What Was Won and  Lost in Dubai

After India’s convincing win over Pakistan in cricket in Dubai yesterday , The Indian Express today  carried the front-page headline “ India wins hands down over Pak, skip the handshake: For Kin of Pahalgam victims, Armed Forces “  The sports correspondent’s  report  mentions that at the end of the game the Indian captain walked away without shaking hands with Pakistani players or their captain . Obviously, one cannot shake hand with one’s  hands down!

 Yes,  the mood of the team and that of most in  the country is that this cricket win is the true decider of   Operation Sindoor against Pakistani terrorists,  which after  four days of hostilities ended with  both armies agreeing to a ceasefire , notwithstanding  President Trump’s repeated claim that he  brokered  this  ceasefire.

The question arises  why  the winning in a sporting event  should be considered  to decide the winner  in the case of  conflicts between nations over issues like terrorist attacks, border disputes,  etc,.  The Government of India and the BCCI  were not against India playing Pakistan in Dubai; only a faction of a regional political party and some members of the victim of Pahalgam massacre protested against the match. Even  after a major shift in India’s relations with Pakistan  marked by significant tension and hostility after Pahalgam, the diplomatic relations between the two countries have only resulted in  a limited presence of  staff in their respective embassies and   not a total abandonment

There is a famous  saying that the Battle of Waterloo was won on the playing fields of Eton, implying that the discipline, leadership, and values earned by British officers in public schools like Eton provided the foundation for their victory in the Napoleonic wars.

With reference to sports, it  may be said that apart from the above qualities,  a team’s respect for the overall  aim and purpose of sports and observance of courtesy and etiquette on the field is as important  if not more  than winning.  Nations use  sports  and sportsmen as ambassadors to promote goodwill and friendship . This alone represents the spirit of playing the  games and the reason why the late Jawaharlal Nehru exhorted the sportsmen to play the game in the spirit of the game.

 

Before the advent of ODI and T20 formats  cricket  matches  were of 5 days duration and  called TEST Matches as they were considered the ultimate test of a cricketer’s skill, endurance and temperament.  Implied were also the players’ gestures of friendship, empathy and mutual respect. Cricket was called a Gentlemen’s game  for features like accepting the Umpires’ decision as final, a dress code of white flannel for players and some rare cases of foul language.  A shining example of  concern and extraordinary empathy was that exhibited  by the West Indies captain Sir Frank Worrel and his team mates when the  Indian cricket captain Nari Contractor sustained a severe head injury while facing a bouncer from Charlie Griffith in 1962 .

In the past, India’s win over Pakistan in cricket  were  celebrations merely as a sports victory and not for  any    other reason.  

In  Dubai ,  we won a game of cricket  but lost its spirit.

 

 

 

Finally, the Cat is Out of the Bag

In my last blog titled  A Nation of Ungrateful Citizens, I wrote, “In the wake of the  announcement last week  of the new GST rates,   full - page by  advertisements  are appearing in  newspapers, mostly by the automobile industry,  joyfully thanking our Hon'ble Prime Minister for the visionary GST reforms turning this moment into a nationwide celebration”.

I thought that this was a spontaneous and unsolicited response by a grateful automobile industry expressing its delight at the reduction of the GST rate in their case. But in today’s edition of The Economic Times, in the Just in Jest” column, the cat has been let out of the bag. For it says, and I quote,

 “ The Ministry of Heavy Industries (MHI) has reportedly asked carmakers and 2-wheeler makers to display posters showing a comparison of pre-new GST and post-new GST rates at all dealerships. That makes obvious good sense.
After all, who doesn't like being overtly told about things getting cheaper than before. But another interesting 'suggestion' made by the ministry is that these before-after posters carry the photograph of Narendra Modi.

Auto execs are now apparently getting posters designed and sending them to the ministry for approval before display.

The prime minister as a car salesman-which is essentially what such posters will amount to-is nifty marketing. As prime influencer, his face should also serve as a quality control marker.”

One would think that at some point this trend will appeal to other sectors as well, spilling over to include posters carrying the photos of chief ministers too. White goods and FMCGs carrying pictures of popular political leaders is a ready-made solution to pick up pre-Diwali consumption.

 

Refrigerators at Lucknow stores with Adityanath's photo; real estate hoardings in Kolkata with the looming image of Mamata Banerjee; coaching centres across the country with Shashi Tharoor's visage adorned with the curvature of mirth.

MHI has certainly unleashed a heavy idea that can appeal to a Neta-friendly nation.”

 

What next to expect after PM’s photo in free ration bags in UP, in Covid vaccine certificates and now in car advertisements?

A Population of Ungrateful Citzens

 In the wake of the  announcement last week  of the new GST rates,   full - page by  advertisements  are appearing in  newspappers, mostly by the automobile industrry,   "joyfully thanking our Hon'ble Prime Minister for the visionary GST reforms turning this moment into a nationwide celebreation". The " love's labour lost"  of the esteemed GST Council comprising the Central and State Finance Ministers and others has gone without a word of appreciation and thanks . Even the common citizens, the ultimate bearers if this indirect taxation and who have been greatly benefitted in the reformed regime of GST have not expressed a word of gratitude. They may not have a representative  organisation like industry associations or ferderations or adveertisement budget to afford full page advertisements , but they could atleast have let their gratitude published as  Letters to Editor in newspapers.  

Briefly,  the 0%reformed rate  "ensures basic necessities and critical services remain affordable and accessible to ALL  CITIZENS", while the 5% rate is  "designed to keep everyday items affordable and accessible for the "GENERAL POPULATION" . This is somewhat confusing . For instance,  if  one buys fresh milk attracting 0 % GST, he/she  is a citizen but when the same person  buys a tube of toothpaste at 5%  does he/ she become just one of the general population?  Which of the two is inclusive of the other  ?   

As a wag in my group of senior citzens remarked with his tongue in cheek that the date of commencement of  the  reformesd rates of GST has been carefully chosen as 22nd September marking  the passing of the ongoing Pithru Paksha, a period not condusive for good events!