The Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his monthly " baat" ( talk) on the radio stated that India has an economic growth of 7.5%. One cannot fault him for this as there is no doubt that the Indian growth rate is at the moment the highest in the world. The growth rate is a figure and refers to many factors and one of these is the investment in the country and the growth of the industry
Growth rate vs prices
Yet this growth rate has not translated into any material benefit for the Indian masses who continue to subsist on the lowest intake of protein and healthy foods in the world. This has a repercussion on the national health and the resultant effect on good life and performance in sports. The fact is that food prices despite this 7.5% growth have shot up to the sky and the humble Daal( pulses) the main staple diet for the Indians is selling at 3 times the price what it was sold before Modi took over. Daal is the source of protein in India as the percentage of meat eaters is less and also because meat and other items are beyond the reach of the masses because of their exorbitant cost. Mutton sells at almost Rs 500-600 a kilogram and that is not what an average Indian can afford to pay.
A question which I have repeatedly raised is that what use is a Mars mission and another paraphernalia if food for the mases is not available and farmers who produce the food are forced to commit suicide. What relevance has 7.5% growth and missions to Mars have for a child who does not get enough protien to eat or goes to bed half hungry. Many so called nationalists don't want to see the problem from this perspective and the result is the government also has lopsided priorities and food security, wholesome and healthy which should be the first priority remains the last.
Economic priorities
Foodstuff and that includes vegetables so essential for vitamins are selling at a price which should be for meat products. Meats are in any case out of reach for the masses and the myth is created that Indians are vegetarians. The fact is that people are unable to eat meats and so a myth of vegetarianism is created. I wonder whether Modi has ever thought of these points in his favorite Man ki Baat radio talks. He has NEVER touched on this issue. The fact is that 40% of Indian live below the poverty line and in numbers, they are more than the destitute of all countries put together. Not a happy thought.
One is reminded of a famous quote by the queen of France during the French revolution. She stated in 1789 "If there is no bread let the people eats cakes". i wonder whether the Modi government has a similar answer. However having said this, one must state that the present crisis of rising in foodstuff prices is a legacy from the lopsided economic policies of the Congress party and emanated from the views of Jawaharlal Nehru. This man really was just a philosopher who was catapulted as India's prime minister and the results in all field were simply disastrous. He set up 5 years plan but agriculture got very less priority and during his time hunger stalked India and thanks to the USA who gave free grains under PL 480, the Indians could subsist. This is Nehru and Congress party's legacy.
The future
But the clock has to be arrested and Modi can not take refuge at the ills of the congress party. He has to turn the clock around and see that the priority is nothing but food and this I am afraid he has not done. He has been in power for 2 years and yet one does not find any visible change. Farmers continue to commit suicide and food prices have shot up to the sky and overall Indian have less to eat, yet the BJP government like the congress is just increasing taxes. So what does 7'5 % growth men and what meaning it has for the poor?. Modi has to address this issue otherwise, he will go down in History like Nehru, who promised much but achieved little.
The US Presidential election is now heading for the last lap. The conventions of the two main parties the GOP and the Democrats will be held next month and they will in all likelihood put the seal on the election of the two candidates who will represent the parties. Thus the stage is set for Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump to confront each other. As things stand Hillary has built up a tremendous lead over Trump as per the Gallup polls. This lead will be sweet music to the supporters of Hillary.
Assuming that Hillary maintains her lead, there is every chance she will be the president of the USA. Here is the fly in the ointment. Hillary as president will also be the Commander in Chief of the US armed forces. What sort of commander she will be is a question that many want to answer. One must understand that a C in C of the US armed forces is unlike any other commander as he or she also controls the nuclear button and the commander has to take momentous decisions on security matters and deployment of troops.
Last week I was in the USA and was a guest at a brunch with my American friend who is now out of the army as a Colonel. He in an animated discussion gave me a startling opinion. As per him, Hillary as a Commander in Chief is the most undesirable thing as far as the US is concerned. He pointed out that there is no record in the history of a woman having commanded any army and taken momentous military decisions. One is apt to quote the example of Indira Gandhi and say " look she was a woman and yet led in the war for the liberation of Bangladesh". But in reality, she took only political decisions and despite her exhortations the then army Chief Sam Maneckshaw made it clear that he would launch the invasion only at a time he decided and hence the invasion was delayed by a few months.
In the US such a scenario does not exist, as all executive power over the armed forces is the president. I must also grudgingly agree with my friend that there is no record of a woman taking military decisions in the army. Another friend, however, interjected and asked what about Razia Sultana and Joan of Arc of Orleans( France) ? My answer is the Razia ruled in the company of her lover and all military decisions were taken by him while Joan of Arc was a subordinate commander as the King of France was the defacto ruler.In any case in a history of 4000 wars, these are like flashes in the pan and overall women as commanders have not existed.
War is now more complex and there is the added danger of a nuclear conflagration. This is the real danger as the sole authority to authorize a nuclear strike is the US president and one wonders with the state of her health ( she fainted a few months back) how competent she will be to handle the nuclear button. In all likelihood, she will need an advisor and maybe her husband the ex-president Bill Clinton will chip in. She does not have the best of relations with him after his indiscretions in the oval office with Monica Lewinsky which almost led to his impeachment.
Being a woman has an effect. However competent she is Hillary, has not displayed any acumen that she is fit to handle the nuclear button. Women are associated with somethings soft and beautiful and one cannot associate them with the harsh decisions of deciding the policy of war. All in all an interesting aspect of politics in the US has come up. The voters are fickle and vote more by instinct than thought and some follow the sheep mentality. It happens in India also as the real capability of a candidate gets overlooked.
How good a commander Hillary will be is a question that at present finds no answer. Perhaps one does not question Donald Trump on his capability to handle the nuclear button, but in the case of Hillary these thoughts do crop up.The present election may well be a watershed in world politics.
Election year in America is a period of fervent activity. However in a sense, it is a restricted election as the main contestants are only from two parties, namely Republican or Democrat. Frankly, there is little to choose between the two, other than minor differences.Theoretically,anybody can stand for an election in the USA, but a candidate who does not belong to these two mainstream parties has no chance whatsoever of winning at the hustings. This is the harsh truth. Both parties have a common thread and that is nationalism,unlike in India where the grand old party , the Congress at many places compromised on India's security like in the Batla House encounter, Dawood, and Samjhauta Express.
Donald Trump when he started the race against 16 contestants was given not an iota of a chance. But like a seasoned boxer he kayoed all the contestants from JebBush to Ted Cruz and finally emerged as the presumptive GOP nominee for the coming presidential election. I recollect one of Donald's statements. When he was reminded that the veterans and the old guard in the Republican party were opposed to him and could be the referees who would declare him out of the race, he replied that he knew it and as a boxer who enters a hostile territory where all the referees are arraigned against him, he would smash all his opponents with knockout and the referees will be presented with a fait accompli. This about sums up the character of Donald Trump.
Donald Trump did indeed incite passions and even his own GOP members have announced that they will support Hillary Clinton. But pollsters and others are hard to put to explain that despite so much antagonism against him, how come Donald won the nomination by crushing his opponents? The fact is that the silent American man came out of his home and voted for Donald as he identified with the views, though extreme of Donald Trump. His diatribes against Muslims, Hispanics and how to fight the ISIS struck a chord with the silent American citizen. He decided that Donald was his best bet to save him and he came out of his home to support Donald , notwithstanding the rhetoric of Mitt Romney and old timers who railed against Donald. These men failed to see the writing on the wall, that America is changing and the people do not want the status quo to continue.
Hillary Clinton will most likely,bar a miracle be the Democratic nominee. She has women voters, blacks, coloreds and big business behind her, but she is identified with Obama administration and an appeasement policy favoring Muslims. She also faces a Congressional indictment on the email scandal and that will dent her chances. Hillary has nothing new to offer and the American man sitting at home , I resume is fed up a status quo where he feels unsafe. It is this silent American who may and will tilt the scales in the final outcome.
the elections are still some months away, but the dice is cast and the American people have to choose between Donald and Hillary . It's like choosing between bad and worse and it's a pity as no other candidate can make it. One bright spark was Bernie Sanders but he has come to a cropper as the Democratic old guard decided to dump him and support Hillary. Frankly, Bernie never stood a chance, despite polls showing he is the best man to face and beat Donald.
Donald in negativity is 10 points ahead of Hillary and his popularity is now 2 points behind the Democrat presumptive nominee. But these are early days and I am sure when the time to cast the vote will come, Donald may well be the winner. A win for Donald will alarm politicians like the British PM and Muslims , who he has declared will not be allowed to enter the USA till their bonafide's is proved. Many in the world are unhappy and Pakistan is hiding its terror at Donald becoming the US president as he has gone on record and stated that the Pak nuclear arsenal is unsafe. Indians, of course are happy and the Hindu Sena has held a prayer meeting for the victory of Donald Trump in the coming election.
One has now to wait for a few months and see what transpires. But there is no doubt that Donald Trump has made a point and he cannot be written off.
NarendraModi must remain an enigma as with almost half of his tenure over, he has failed to deliver on all that he had promised. He talked big before the election, but 2 years down the line, it is difficult to fathom why he never moved an inch in all that he had promised. Modi is thus not a Karamyogi, which in Hindu philosophy is synonymous with action or a doer. On the contrary, he appears to look more and more Like a man sitting on the fence waiting for events to overtake him. Considering that he on his own had won a massive majority, this inertness does baffle. One is reminded of the famous nursery rhyme that stated: " Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall, Humpty-Dumpty had a great fall and all the kings horses and all the kings men could not put Humpty Dumpty together again". One hopes something similar does not happen to Modi.
Let's have a look at Modi's promises. He stated that he would sanction OROP as per the Koshyari Commission, bring in Uniform Civil Code, Integrate Kashmir by abolishing Article 370, bring back all the black money stored abroad, construct a war memorial, prosecute the leaders of the Congress party on corruption issues, rethink on the Samjhauta Blast, Construct Ram Temple, usher in better days, give a fitting reply to Pakistan and a host of more promises. Did Modi just make them as an electoral camouflage or he really meant it? The fact is that Modi has not moved anywhere near doing any of these activities in total though he did pass OROP but not as per the definition approved by parliament, but the BJP own interpretation that in effect meant just a pension raise and not equalization of pensions as approved.
On Kashmir, he has formed a government with a rabid anti-national party the PDF. His promise of resettling Pandits as well abolition of Article 370 have not gone anywhere. On Article 370 not a word has come from him and that is surprising, considering when in the opposition the BJP was the most strident in asking for abolishing the Article 370. As things stand, the situation in the valley is bad and daily 3/4 soldiers of the army are martyred. What use is his forming an alliance with the PDP as the state goes further into anarchy?
Modi and the BJP have not moved anywhere on the Temple or the Uniform Civil Code, despite it being part of the directive principles of the constitution. Again the failure to act on this important legislation, that is demanded by the Muslim women, is a shock. Despite the hue and cry on triple talaq as per the Sharia, Modi was expected to lead the debate and ask the Supreme Court to expedite its decision. But he has just sat on the fence and maintained an enigmatic silence.
Modi's record with Pakistan is poor. When in opposition he made tall claims but the reality is different. He visited Pakistan to meet Sharif and had a bloody attack on the Pathankot base. Worse in a joint investigation, he allowed the Pak team to enter not only India but the Pathankot base and obviously there is no reciprocity.Modi has been elbowed out of Nepal and Ceylon by China and he has failed to stand firmly against China when he refused Visa to 2 Chinese dissidents to attend a conference in Dharamshala on not antagonizing China. Yet China des not reciprocate and even restricts Indian pilgrims to visit Mansarovar as well is issuing stapled visa fro Indian residents of Kashmir and Arunachal Pradesh, which China claims. China has also vetoed the Indian membership of the nuclear sellers group and thrown the Indian request for Azhar Mahmood in the dustbin.
At home though over 2 years have elapsed the BJP government has not filed even an FIR against most of the Congress leaders and Robert Vadera, son in law of Sonia Gandhi. What is the hitch? Perhaps he was talking too much and the evidence is simply not there. The Black money equation remains the same and Modi and his finance minister are reduced to making statements, but on the ground, it is zero.
The war memorial? nobody seems to have heard anything about it including his boast to crush the Maoist insurrection. Modi has also not concentrated on matching China. One reason is his complete lack of knowledge of power politics and the role of military power as an extension of national policy. Modi needs to read Clausewitz, but he is a man with limited means of education and such a treatise may be beyond his grasp.
Modi has miles to go, but he has achieved nothing so far. It's a sad state, that a man who came riding a tiger should be eaten by the tiger.
Background
Narendra Damodar Modi is the Prime Minister of India. He has had a checkered career and risen to great heights from a not so affluent background. Modi was born on 17 September 1950 at Mehsana in Gujerat. The time is given as 11am and I presume this is accurate enough. That makes him 66 years old.This is an age when many men reach their prime intellectually and Modi is no exception. He is the Prime Minister of India and that is one of the most difficult appointments in the world. This is because he heads a nation that from Kashmir to Assam has a diverse culture and language. Though 80% of the population is Hindu, yet this Hinduism has many facets and the people are not one in thought and deed.
I am an amateur astrologer and thought it fit to present to readers of this site a fascinating view of what the stars foretell about Modi. Astrology is not infallible, but ancient Indian astrologers like the Bhrigue in their works have forecast horoscopes of people thousands of years back. So there is an element of truth in horoscopes. Normally horoscopes which are cast are called " Natal Horoscopes", which is the position of the plants and their conjunctions at the time of birth. The horoscope of Modi is sent to me by my friend from California. It is also available on the net, but the interpretations are made by me.
The Horoscope of Modi
The horoscope is based on the Ascendent. This is the dominating star and house at the time of birth. The Ascendent of Modi is Mars and this shows energy and strength. This has carried him to his present position. There is no point in discussing his past and his marriage which are events that have long passed. At this stage one is interested in the future and what it holds for Modi.
Modi won the last general election single-handed. It was a victory that can correctly be ascribed only to him. The reason is that 4 planets including the Sun are in the 10th house. This conjunction spells the rise of Modi. A decade back nobody could have imagined that Modi will rise to this height. Yet, he surmounted all problems and led the BJP to victory. This is entirely due to placements of plants in the 10th house.
The Napoleonic House in Modi's Horoscope
But again the 10th house has great significance otherwise. It is a house that is also referred to as " Napoleonic house". Now Napoleon was a great French man. He rose from obscurity to be a great leader and emperor of France. But having reached his apex he dropped to the nadir with a massive defeat at Waterloo. This ended all his dreams and he spent the rest of his life as a prisoner of the English at the island of St Helena in the Atlantic Ocean, thousands of miles from home.
Sadly Modi has the same dispensation of plants in the 10th house.Sun and Saturn have conjoined in this house and they show a tremendous rise as is demonstrated by his rise to power. But Saturn unlike Jupiter in all astrology's has great side effects. It gives great rise, but abject downfall to the depths of nowhere. Everybody knows what happened to Napoleon. There is a similar chance of events overtaking Modi in the years to come.
The position of the planets in the 10th house can be interpreted to mean that in the 2019 election, he may crash to a gigantic defeat. I will say a shattering defeat. This is sad, but again this is what one reads from the stars. I am a supporter of Modi, but I am afraid the stars do not portend his continuation in power.
One fact that emerges from Modi's horoscope is that he is not a revolutionary. Thus, for limited gains he has not followed what he had preached. On at least a dozen issues from UCC, Article 370,reservation, China, Pakistan policy among others he has not brought in anything revolutionary. On the contrary like giving the reservation of 10% to higher castes and violating the instructions of the Supreme Court he has in fact seriously compromised himself.This is because of Saturn in the 10th house and it's conjunction with the Sun. Saturn has always long term ill effects and that perhaps is the reason that Modi for short term vote bank politics has resorted to such subterfuges.
Last Word
Modi's horoscope is interesting and in some later posts I shall give readers many other insights to his character. In particular the complete absence of women in his life, which again is a trait that is not found in a majority of horoscopes.
Modi will do well to beware. I recollect reading Shakespear's famous play " Julius Ceasor". He was warned to beware of the "Ides of March" and not go to the Senate. He went and got murdered. The 2019 election is still 3 years away and if Modi pulls up his socks he could turn the effects of the 10th house. But to my mind, he has reached his zenith and when you reach the zenith, you slip. in the case of Modi, it may be a sheer and precipitous fall.