Page 66 - EW JULY PDF

Postscript

Fear, not love no-hope backgrounds have been auctioned, bought and
sold for crores of rupees, earning huge playing fees and
LTHOUGH PRIME MINISTER MODI GAVE A transforming into millionaires. Moreover, cricket stars
good account of himself in his recent state visit from the world over have lined up to participate in this
Ato the US and perhaps even charmed President tournament.
Biden and the general populace, Modi bhakts should This cornucopia is in sharp contrast to the pre-new
resist the temptation to interpret this bonhomie as blan- millennium era when BCCI was controlled by govern-
ket endorsement of BJP rule over India during the past ment. The match fees paid to our great cricket stars of
decade. That the word ‘democracy’ was mentioned over a yesteryear such as Vinoo Mankad and Polly Umrigar
dozen times in the speeches of the two leaders, is a subtle aggregated Rs.500 per test; they travelled to test match
indicator that the US expects the Modi administration venues by second class train and lived in poky three-star
to practice democracy in the full sense of the word, i.e, hotels. Today, following the vast riches in BCCI coffers,
improve its human rights, especially its minority rights even Ranji Trophy (inter-state tournament) and junior
protection record, if it is to expect large-scale American cricketers travel by air and are accommodated in five-star
technology transfer and investment. hotels, making it a win-win situation for all. Time for lefty
There’s no doubt that the US establishment has been and bolshie academics to acknowledge that free markets,
spooked by the astonishingly swift rise of Communist aka capitalism, works.
China into a high-tech superpower capable of challenging
the US in the global arena. As recently as 2001, the US Disappointment twice over
had smoothed the way for China to enter the WTO as a
less developed country entitled to duty-free imports into
the US, and American multinationals such as GM, GE and EWS THAT HDFC BANK AND HDFC (Housing
Apple were officially encouraged to establish large sup- Development Corporation) Holdings have merged
ply chain subsidiaries in the People’s Republic of China Nto form HDFC Bank, the fourth largest lender
(PRC). Furthermore, research students from China were in the world by market cap, is a great leap forward for
given free passes into American cutting edge technology an economy whose housing stock is arguably the worst
establishments. worldwide. Over 80 percent of the country’s 260 million
households live in dilapidated homes averaging 500 sq. ft
Only recently has the American polity become aware
that the assumption that liberalisation if not democracy, in urban India, and in rural India a large number of fami-
lies live in thatched roof dwellings. Hopefully the merged
would spread in China as it prospered, was a monumental
mistake. Now with China having grown into a Franken- entity will extend its operations to affordable housing for
the masses which was its prime objective when HDFC
stein ready to absorb Southeast Asia into its sphere of was promoted way back in 1977. However, this objective
influence, only the world’s most populous country with a has remained unrealised because the corporation has re-
430 million middle class can be transformed into a coun- stricted itself to providing term loans to the urban middle
terweight to the PRC. It’s not love of PM Modi, but fear of and upper classes.
President Xi Jingping, who far from liberalising modern This landmark initiative has poignant memories for
China, is tightening the grip of the 100 million-strong your correspondent because as founding-editor of Busi-
all-pervasive CPC (Communist Party of China) over the ness India, I strongly supported the promotion of HDFC,
country, that has prompted the American re-discovery of India’s first housing loans company launched due to
India. Modi bhakts, please note. determined efforts of the late H.T. Parekh (1911-1994). I
was indignant that housing loans long-established in the
Capitalism works UK (as building society loans) were not permitted under
India’s cock-eyed socialist dispensation. Therefore when
HDFC acquired the all-important licence to dispense
HE REASON WHY INDIA’S LANDMARK economic home loans, we fully endorsed its promotion and cel-
liberalisation and deregulation initiative of 1991 has ebrated it in print. To the extent that when HT's nephew
Tnot delivered double digit rates of annual economic Deepak Parekh was appointed managing director — a
growth it should have during two decades past, is because classic case of nepotism which was criticised by bolshie
closet commies and bolshies within the Academy are not journalists — we justified it.
yet convinced that capitalism aka free markets, is the However when EducationWorld was launched in 1999
best prescription for rapid economic growth. This despite and was struggling to remain afloat, Deepak – a power-
overwhelming evidence that the world’s wealthiest coun- house in Indian finance — declined to support it notwith-
tries — including communist China — are free market standing our commitment to raising standards in public
economies. education, the sine qua non of national development.
Evidence that free markets work best is provided by Simultaneously, he made no effort to lead HDFC into
the recently concluded Indian Premier League Cricket the affordable housing segment, which could have been
Championship. Since the highly monetised limited (20) essayed by cross-subsidisation of interest rates. Therefore
overs championship matches began in 2008, the Board of well into the 21 century, India remains a country for the
Control of Cricket in India (BCCI) has become the world’s middle class, of the middle class and by the middle class
wealthiest cricket governing council. In the recently con- in which over 800 million citizens, deprived of half-
cluded IPL 2023, revenue aggregated a massive Rs.9,978 decent education, live in shanties that are an affront to
crore. Dozens of cricket players from obscure towns and human dignity. A disappointment on two counts.

66 EDUCATIONWORLD JULY 2023