The audience, organisers, and fighters know that sham wrestling is not to betaken seriously. But the World Economic Forum takes itself seriously.
The comforting thing about the sham wrestling ‘championships' on television is that everybody knows they are a farce. Steroid-stuffed Cro-Magnons stomp the living daylights out of painkiller-primed Neanderthals. Good, unclean fun. The results are safely predictable. You should expect the 600-pound gorilla to overwhelm the 900-pound one in a staggering twist of fortune (after the bets have been laid). But the audience, the organisers, and the fighters all know the fighting is rigged and everyone's happy.
There were many, pre-television Indian symbols of this honourable tradition. As school kids, we cheered wildly as Black Spider brutally crushed Red Spider's brother in an open-air bout. The roaring crowd dispersed only after Red Spider jumped into the ring to promise us he would throttle Black Spider in a revenge match the next week, so buy your tickets in advance. (He then toddled off to dinner with Black Spider). At age 8, it was magical.
Decades later, television has given sham ‘wrestling' giant audiences, made it more spectacular, but perhaps less convincing. (The close-ups are a dead giveaway). But almost everybody still knows what to take seriously and what not to. That, and the fact that they entertain more people, are what demarcate the world wrestling extravaganzas from the World Economic Forum. (Both, otherwise, fully corporate enterprises). The wrestling corporations take the money seriously. The World Economic Forum takes itself seriously, besides the money.
The WEF's first ever summit in Mumbai ended on the 14th. Its main organiser was the Confederation of Indian Industry. But both the Centre and the Maharashtra government came out in “support.” The Chief Ministers of Maharashtra and Kerala (both States reporting rising farm suicides) hosted ‘cultural evenings' and/or expensive dinners for this billionaires club, besides providing other forms of ‘support.' The WEF's May 31 press release announcing Mumbai as the venue had this mysterious line: “The Summit will return to New Delhi in 2012 and 2014 in time for India's next national election.” Wow, is the WEF running for office? And why shift from Delhi to Mumbai? Was it embarrassing for a government drowning in corporate corruption and scams to “host” the corporate world's Croesus Club in the capital?
And so, the governments that cannot add a few hundred rupees per quintal to desperate paddy or cotton growers find the means to subsidise the global billionaire fraternity. Union Ministers and Chief Ministers came down to the Grand Hyatt in Mumbai to reaffirm support.
But why? What exactly does the WEF deliver to India? Or anybody? Has it brought you staggering investments? Unlike the sham wrestling world, the WEF can predict nothing safely. (And they're hardly entertaining). When did this crowd ever get anything right? Did it warn you of the 2008 meltdown or the Euroquake? ( It did grimly observe in Mumbai that Europe is in trouble. Gee. The rest of us would never have suspected that).
Dean Baker puts it so well: “Economic forecasters are not workers like dishwashers and cab drivers who are held accountable for the quality of their work. They can be wrong every day about everything and face little risk to their career prospects.” (CounterPunch, August 25, 2011).
However, by WEF standards, the Mumbai show was a bit subdued. The U.S. and Europe are reeling in crisis driven by the very economics the WEF stands for. India was still rising but not shining. Even the Planning Commission-driven India Human Development Report admits: “the average percentage of undernourished children under five years for 26 Sub-Saharan African countries was 25 per cent, about half the Indian average of 46 per cent. Weight and height of Indians on average have not shown significant improvement over the last 25 years.”
India's rank in the 2011 Global Hunger Index, at 67 out of 81, places us seven notches below Rwanda which apparently handles food security better. We're also below Sri Lanka (rank 36), Nepal (54) and Pakistan (59). The GHI 2011 states flatly that its data “does not reflect the impacts of the 2010-11 food price crisis.”
And the country gracing the top five when it comes to dollar billionaires now ranks 134th in the 2011 U.N. Human Development Report. Our over 55 billionaires grew their wealth at an astonishing rate in the post-1991 era. And there's the India story: the consciously constructed, ruthlessly engineered inequality of it. Just see our HDI Value in the UNHDR. It reads 0.548. Adjusted for inequality, this value falls by close to 30 per cent. India's ‘multi-dimensionally poor' now exceed 612 million, as the report shows us.
But debates over India's dismal performance in giving its people the basic minimums always evade the policy framework of the past 20 years that has driven such levels of inequality. You can blame ‘tardy implementation,' ‘poor delivery,' anything — except the policies that have devastated hundreds of millions of poor Indians. And, of course, there is not even censure for the top guns and whizz kids.
As Baker points out, for this kind of group, there are no bad consequences. If you think that disastrous failures would hurt their record “then you don't understand economic forecasting. There is no reason to believe that forecasters are any more knowledgeable about the economy today than they were four or five years ago.”
Need a good Indian illustration of this? Take Planning Commission deputy chief Montek Singh Ahluwalia and Finance Ministry Chief Economic Adviser Kaushik Basu and their multiple predictions on the economy, particularly on inflation. (Which, says CRISIL, forced Indians to spend close to Rs. 6 lakh crores extra in 36 months). With inflation close to double digits and food inflation at 10.63 per cent, they now admit, sort of, that we were, ahem, not quite as right as we are normally known to be. But we will, umm ... probably will return to being right in the near future.
Dr. Ahluwalia even admits to credibility issues popping up. “It is true that we were hoping that this [moderation in inflation] will happen earlier, to that extent our credibility becomes a question.” (The Times of India, Nov. 21, 2011). And straightaway makes another prediction — “inflationary pressure would ease from the beginning of next year.”
Dr. Basu believes it will start declining in December itself. If in February, says Dr. Ahluwalia, the data show that “inflation is not coming down by then, then we really don't know what we are doing.” India's human development indicators suggest they haven't a clue about what they were doing for 20 years. That, however, is not so. They knew what they were doing. Constructing a world based on a trickle-down, greed-is-good, inequality-helps philosophy. It made things much worse, though not for the authors of the mess.
The WEF has gone. This time, it did not get the kind of publicity to which it is accustomed. Which brings us to the media. Who has been paying for, or heavily subsidising, the large contingents of Indian media that do the Davos Drool each year? Answer: Indian industry, which likes to have its cheerleading team along. Some of the rent-a-report crowd is from media outlets which will not spend a few thousand rupees to send a journalist to cover huge issues of hunger within the country. Switzerland is an expensive place. And Davos is at its costliest in the WEF season. Yet several Indian journalists seem to afford it.
Quite a few have had their costs, including air travel and more, covered by industry lobbies, many of whose members are major advertisers and a big source of media revenue. There are newspapers that have given Davos summits far more coverage than they have the most vital bills before Parliament. There are channels that have had “partnerships” with the CII and the WEF to cover Davos (always euphorically). Strong and rigid rules are issued to journalists on how to report. One such instruction: “Please note we cannot say “WEF”… it is the World Economic Forum and one is not allowed to call it otherwise.” Wonder why? Does the acronym WEF sound too much like one of the sham wrestling outfits? Another fatwa from a television group: “the following programming from CII has to be incorporated in the programming of all channels.”
Surely, the audiences watching the completely uncritical coverage of the WEF have a right to be told that the content was sponsored? When the funding is not clearly stated, when the content heavily favours the sponsor, when criticism is unknown, when correspondents are told how to fulfil their duties to their “partners' — this is what is called Paid News. But there is a pact of silence about this. A fine example of the kind of ‘self-regulation' that media bosses have in mind?
The organisers, lobbies, funders, the media — all know what's happening. But not, in this case, the audiences, readers or viewers. Where are you, Black Spider and Red Spider? All is forgiven, come home.
Keywords: World Economic Forum, Indian economy, Global Hunger Index, inflation, price rise, economic forecasts
Excellent. Is anyone listening? Mr. Prime Minister; Mr. Deputy Commissioner, Planning Commission or Mr. Finance Minister? Anyone...
brilliant! well said... time for talk shops to close down. where is the
reality ?and when will that be addressed?
I do not know if our great Prime Minister reads any of the articles of Sainath. If he does, there does not seem to be any effect on him. As usual he is quite and content not to take any action, even if his country men are starving and committing suicide. He has many more important things like FDI in multi brand marketting so that what little of the Indian wealth is left out can be given to those guys.
Sainath's eloquence in expressing India's plight is matchless. His words are brilliant: "And there's the India story: the consciously constructed, ruthlessly engineered inequality of it."
The article reveals that these economic pundits knew that they were Constructing a world based on a trickle-down, greed-is-good, inequality-helps philosophy. They want no criticism of their "devil take the hindmost" attitude but unreserved eulogy.The wails of the farmers or the destitute are cacophonous to them and the troubles of the middle classes are born out of their unemployable nature and the privileges of the affluent are a reflection of the survival of the fittest.
Devout prostrations at the altar of shadow boxing!Thanks to the "instrumental deafness" of the Indian state(impeccably employing deflection panels to ward off the concerns of the 'lesser mortals' while tuning itself to the unmatched cacophony of the bluff masters)!.And ofcourse, the one who pays the piper owns the tune -ink spills of the rent-a-report mob makes sense too.The unanswered question remains-how many articles of this genre needs to be penned down to wake our senses to the incredibly ballooning inequality? Achilles' heel has been hurt-in U.K,U.S,Arab nations and the rest of the world in queue.Whether the quacks predict it right or wrong(as erring seems to be perpetually their patent),the Domino's effect is at the door.
Hats off Sainath, Unable to stop commenting on this. Carry on the Good work
Several economies like India and China would have continued as dark continents, but for the WEF inter-action among the high and mighty in Industry, business and Government. When such a high-profile meet annually, and in a relaxed place and mood, some leg-shakig might be there. Surely, that cannot be their purpose of meeting. Lastly, the baby cannot be thrown with the bath-water, as Sainath seems to have done.
While I agree with P. Sainath that there are other issues of importance that the media should focus on, a global summit of the importance of the World Economic Forum (WEF) cannot be detached from its inherent bling bling and glitterati. The fact that more often than not this media show is sponsored in a biased way by the corporate/business lobbies leaves us all as much worried. But to think that a global summit of the significance of WEF is organized away from the media glare somewhere in Dharawi will save the country some money to fund an effort to improve its undernourishment is asking for a bit too much. I think the fanfare and the stage-setting for any international event comes appended with some media-hype. After all why did we host the CWG and the F1 race in the manner that we did? Why don’t we suspect rigged media coverage in these events? Because either it’s not rigged or it is supported by certain lobbies in an open and quasi legitimate manner. We should be concerned about improving media ethics but not at the cost of doubting the international protocol attention required by certain events as media-lobbying.
A very well written article linking the social and economic realities of our one goal: Inclusive growth. I wish our policymakers do some kind of internal audit and pay heed to these observations.
It is indeed a candid exposure of the hypocrisy that elite forums like WEF represent and the colossal money that are spent on these sham forums. The 'innuendos' right through the article have been employed with great impact. In the context of Justice Katju's criticisms, his assertion that 'covering' of these events by media cannot be but 'paid news'is very relevant as the rich corporate houses sponsor the massive expenses of these so called 'journalists'. With skewed distribution of wealth and indices that point to the poverty in India ranking worse than the third world African countries, the claims of growth is a myth. The UPA government has lost its balance and the governance is at its nadir. The credibility is totally eroded. The public unrest is increasing. Taking advantage of the situation, we see, people taking law in their hands; slapping and assaulting ministers has become common. Before situation worsens to a sate of anarchy, a fresh election could be the answer to stop the rot.
What solution or policy does the author propose to reduce poverty and inequality in India ? Shall we get back to good old days of the license-permit-quota raj ? Suppose if we had not liberalised in 1991, how would we have solved the 1991 balance of payments crisis ? There was every possiblity of a national collapse due to hyper inflation, etc. and until 80s, with a closed and tightly controlled economy, we had the infamous Hindu growth rate of less than 3 % average which kept us in stark poverty and misery.
Now after the much maligned LPG, our growth is around 9 % which had reduced poverty rates dramatically. sure, there are more billionaires now, but the poor are not getting poorer anymore like in the past. With our present population base of some 120 crores, if things and conditions had remained as in 70s or 80s, then there would have been tens of more crores of poor in India. The respected author does not go into the hard data regarding this vital matter.
No doubt Mr Sainath wishes to remind people why Justice Katju thinks so highly of him. Well-written poignant satire. It is important to keep reiterating that India is definitely not shining. Besides, all that glitters isn't gold anyway. Inefficacious trickle-down economics may result in a mass revolt in the decades to come. We have all seen the public's response to the India Against Corruption movement. Remember people, those in power are only as powerful as you allow them to be. Fight for your rights.
Writing on behalf of the Forum, I’m sorry P. Sainath sees us as a dismally unentertaining sham wrestler. The truth is that we are doing our best to wrestle with the sort of problems that those depressing statistics on poverty in India illustrate so starkly. We sincerely believe that the best way to improve the state of the world is to get business leaders to work together with a range of other people – social entrepreneurs, academics, aid workers, politicians – to find ways of making economic growth more fair. If that makes it sound like we take ourselves seriously, so be it. We do take ourselves seriously. If we didn’t, we wouldn’t spend time compiling a Gender Gap Report every year, or championing Waste Concern in Bangladesh, a social enterprise that turns household waste into fertiliser and triples the income of waste collectors. Finally, we don’t buy media coverage. We accredit over 500 journalists to Davos, and they can cover it however they like. Sessions are also livestreamed.
As a long time fan of Pro Wrestling I take serious offense to Mr.Sainath's comparison. WEF leaders do not deserve to be mentioned in the same breath as our hard working Superstars :)
It's just amother masterpiece from the storehouse of The Hindu. P.Sainath incredible colligates it with skillfully with wrestling & sham events that happens around the globe. The critical view about the some of disturbing elememts that plagues our society is praiseworthy.Shouldn't the Govt. begin by setting examples by cutting down their extravagancy & look for measures that could setforth the equality in society? The economic forecasters could only provide some perplexing figures that are far from realities. The credibility of 'self regulation' in media is again a matter of concern for the general public who are continuouly finding a rising rift between them & 'their reflection' i.e The media.
Thankfully few impartial media group provide the needed leverage for the common man.
These days, I never know if economy is recovering or in recession
unless an economist tells me.
Talk about insensitive and patronizing language! No human deserves to be called “steroid-stuffed cro-magnon” or “painkiller-primed neanderthals”. By looking down on other people, somehow Sainath feels superior. Just because businessmen have a meeting is no reason to tar every businessman as corrupt. This entire style of sarcastic and supercilious writing has become tiresome. It is also unproductive.
Be it the article on disclosure of wealth by UPA ministers or the one on
the migration of Orissa village population in search of work or this one
Mr.Sainath, we the general mass of INDIA owe you immensely for bringing
the plight of the real INDIA, not the one visible on TV or in Parliament
or in F1 Race.When Mr.Katju talk about media's self-regulation the
oxymoron he referred the paid media reacted in a way it have fallen to
his early premise that most of them are of less intellectual level.How
small the world is!!
The world Economic Forum which strictly follows the IMF and WB guide lines have always been hosted by leading industrialists and the latest Mumbai Summit is not an exception. Any layman can easily understand their prescriptions are and have been always pro rich and the economic predictions that they make seldom found to be correct or factual. As Jawaharlal Nehru said ‘the modern kings of Industry have greater powers over the fortunes of men than the kings of old, and whose methods are as predatory as those of old feudal aristocracy’- so how can it be for the common man, the UPA II which claims to follow the left- of- centre rhetoric seems to be more market friendly with and this is a paradox.
An article of Sainath Class,and thats truely outstanding in its thought and idea and a well integration of media malignnment mae the article too good.Thans for this sir.
A very well written and thought provoking article indeed!!!
The only thing new in this article is The Hindu published it :). kudos again to sainath for letting atleast few know about the naunces involved in our much hyped organisations. not just CII, WEF or some other organisation, nothing is indeed helpful and working on what they are supposed to. we are as some one said "growing besides govt but not because of govt". Take any organisation that is shown in news everyday, one way or the other they are for livelyhood of the officers and babus in it. They have never done any thing meaningful forget about miraculous, in our country salary hike bill for parliamentarians passes sooner than other bills. it is waste to blame politicians for this, every indian is culprit in this. though we know we are voting for gundas and culprits we still vote because of regional or caste or relegion feelings.
The obserevation about paid news is alarming.Like in old story should be we get that old needle,when we say "yes" or "no".But needle is still in that well of Gran Maa! The gravity of the situation in India demanding more writings like this,more reporters like Sri.Sainath,more publisheres like the Hindu!
Good article! Great intellectual! Mr. P Sainath has unveiled a hidden facet of all these glitterati festivals. A free-market economy lends substantial powers in hand of mighty business tycoon to veer the policy of government for their benefits. Agriculture and allied sectors has become orphan in wistful race to catch the much touted economic growth. I have not seen WEF type of gathering for the Agri-sector which still provide the livelihood to 60% of population. The grim realities of superfluous growth, where the indicators of economy are vacillating just because of caprice thoughts of foreign investors, are unconnected villages, nearly 50% mal-nourished child, worse than African HDI Index. We really need to correct the basic foundations of growth, otherwise the lost glory will never see the light of day.
As always, Sainath hits the bulls-eye! Cheap, greedy corporates, using public largesse to organize an annual jamboree, making their cheerleaders in the media report to the unsuspecting readers/viewers, that how well the rich have been doing, minting money, and letting the poor rot to death.
I think your articles should be made into text books for school children, hoping that atleast the next generation will truly understand the real meaning of LIFE....Keep writing....Keep on peeling the false masks!
Mr. Ahluwalia's credibility has always been in question. He demonstrates intellectual capture at its worst. Evidently, his forecasts are meant to soothe the markets. Who sponsors THESE predictions?
Brilliant and Caustic, as always.
Meticulously written article!!!
While reading this spectacular piece of cruel,grim and rather epic journey of sham events engulfing Indian politics,economy and trodden poor man,I was mesmerized by P.Sainath's words.Certainly behind the critical humorous expression in this piece of writing,there is a sorrow pity of affairs that is happening all around us.This article reminded me of one of his previous candid writing in the Hindu-"the gang which could not shoot straight".It should be noted that It is the time where we have to re-access the priorities of our society,need of it's people,the basic need a common man need,atmosphere of equality,equity and sustainable opportunities.The drivers of Indian society have to rise from the shambles of 'vested interests of others' and 'the continued ignorance paid to its own people'.Where is our true intelligence? when it is expected from the intellects,politician, bureaucrats and media to use their intelligence to pay heed to real needs of our society,We have received the opposite.
The role of media is rightly predicted by the author. As also pointed by the Press council of India's chairman Justice Katju, media shall come out of corporate greed and realize its real duty of highlighting the stories which are relevant to common Indian. What WEF has to to with the larger poor section of our society ? does it matter to them that India will have 100 new billionaire? they are worried about inflation,poverty,health and eduction. Educating the masses about the policies of government and its impact on them,is an important role of media then only the people could make a wise choice in elections. Media could change the society but its busy in sensationalizing it and acting as puppet of corporate greed.
I was eagerly awaiting article from this Gentleman since long time. As always a thought provoking article from Mr.Sainath.
The author has done well to remove the veils from the yearly rituals of euphoric WEF coverage by non-economist anchors specially on the english tv channels. Those few days seems as if there is nothing else to report in a 1.2 billion country !! There are umpteen examples where stories are completely one-sided and readers can make out the intention behind such efforts. Media itself needs to devise a strategy to kill the demon of 'paid news' since its credibility is all time low these days.
As always,Mr.Sainath's writing is specific.hits the nail on the head of the sham that goes on. Indian general public,specially the poorer is always led up the path of delusion,deceipt and dismay.
Well said! Sadly,Business Pressure Groups have very strong influence on politicians, administrator and Media. Whereas, pressure groups (NGOs) working for tribal and farmers are the one who face government and private atrocities. Government is master regulator, if it does not deliver, no one else can deliver. Yesterday's Businessline carried one more small news - Ministry of Urban development had requested to extend JNNURM to 25 towns with 5lakh+ population. Planning Commission rejected request and reason it gave is - RESOURCE CRUNCH! and 12th plan says Commission wants "More Inclusive" growth! We are observing phenomena of migration from rural and small towns to metros. If Planning Commission doesnt take steps to improve small towns, it will inevitably lead to pathetic migration. While Foreign Policy 2009-14 gives many benefits to industries and exports, schemes like JNNURM benefiting big metros. What is for our small towns from where most of us have migrated to metros?
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