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SATYAM SCAM
All those of you who love to dream and take what comes your way, as destiny. Imagine the following scenarios .

A class teacher in a school is held responsible for the conduct and performance of the students in his class. When a student is pulled up for disobedience, he not only apologizes for his mistake but also graciously admits to having committed on a regular basis offences like stealing. When the class teacher is about to punish the errant student, the headmaster appears on the scene, shields the student, publicly humiliates the teacher by preventing him from carrying out his duty. Now the question is what will be the status of the teacher in the eyes of the students? Will he ever be able to enforce discipline in the class in such an environment?

Let me bring before you another scene. A pick-pocket is caught red-handed stealing. Passers-by thrash him. The culprit for obvious reasons begs pardon, takes out a five rupee note from his shirt pocket saying that is all he has stolen. It is human nature to let him off with a warning or a few blows. But is it correct? Is it not possible that the culprit if given a sound thrashing will take out the five hundred rupee note hidden in his undergarment.

Now reflect on Satyam episode as reported in the media so far. Taking into account the global recognition that was given to his Company for Corporate Governance and in the light of the treatment meted out to the market regulator - SEBI. Don’t you feel that at the end of the day, some other development will hit the headlines and a small obituary type report may announce the release of Raju and his accomplices, putting an end to the Satyam scam for ever. Satyameva Jayate.

INVESTOR EDUCATION

Although the response to initial public offers from the retail investors is encouraging and the market regulator has proposed to increase the investment limit for retail investors, there is an imperative need to educate the average investor. I say this from my experience of handling investor complaints and queries for over three years now. Last week, I received a request from a shareholder for issue of a duplicate share certificate. On being asked to furnish the details of the original scrip, he promptly replied that he had never received one. He had a demat account and was blissfully ignorant of the same.

In many cases, the investors do not know who their Depository Participant is . They need to understand the difference between a trading account and a demat account. their rights, like calling for a statement of a ccount or a client master list.

The problem invariably is that the investors more often than nought, just lend their money and signature to their application and the rest - filling up the application form - is taken care of by their broker or banker friend.

in a 100% demat issue where is the question for issue of a physical certificate, nevertheless every investor is entitled to get his holding in physical form if he desires. But they should understand that for selling off their holding they will again have to convert it into demat form. that involves time. They need to understand the process of dematerialization and rematerialization.

The need of the hour is investor education in right earnest than investor awareness.

THE MOBILE MENACE

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It was heart rending to read reports of Thursday’s accident, in which a school van plunged into a temple pond in Katripulam village, killing nine students and a teacher. According to reports the driver was talking on his mobile phone when the bus skidded into the 30-foot deep Kamakshiamman temple pond from a narrow road. Innocent lives have been lost for no fault of their own. Any amount of monetary compensation or words of consolation will not bring back the lives. The anxiety of parents at home only increases after reading such reports as the list of probable causes for untoward incidents grows. Today bus drivers in many schools have been provided with a mobile handsets to use in an emergency only. Should there be a need to answer a call they can as well stop the vehicle, talk and then resume their duty. But who cares? This is not the first time an accident has occurred due to driving while talking on the mobile. People driving vehicles especially two-wheelers with the mobile handsets perkily placed between their shoulder and cheek is a common sight on our roads. Even drivers in the public transport buses freely use the mobile while driving. Its time a firm step is taken by the Government to ban use of mobiles while driving with stiff on the spot penalties for violation. People must realize that its no act of heroism to drive while talking on the mobile. They are endangering the lives of other passers-by. Let’s educate our road users and hope sanity prevails for the good of all.


M.S.VAIDYANATHAN

FOR THE GIRL CHILD

Authorities and political leaders, among others, have openly admitted that girl child in India has been grossly discriminated against, from the earliest stage in life, particularly in matters of education and health. There is a crying need for providing them opportunities on par with those available for boys or rather stop projecting them as fit for only household chores and in the process undermine their confidence and finally ruin their future.

A number of measures have been mooted in the past advocating the cause of the girl child. All plans and programmes are announced with a bang and finally end in a whimper. Take the classic case of the directive of the Central Board of Secondary Education in 2006, ordering free education for girls who are ‘single child’ in the family, aimed at ending discrimination against the girl child’s education progress. To promote education of the girl child, amendment to the affiliation bye laws of the CBSE had been made so that all affiliated schools would grant full waiver of tuition and all other fees from class VI to each girl student who is a single child in the family. If a family had two girl children and no other child, each girl could be given 50 per cent of the fee concession. This directive was to become effective from April 1, 2006 and those schools seeking CBSE affiliation were required to implement the directive immediately. The response was on expected lines with school managements saying that such a step would strike at the roots of viability. There were even veiled threats to switch to matriculation or ISCE Boards or discourage admission to girl children, to avoid implementation of the directive. Was not a viable solution possible without the CBSE having to withdraw its directive?

It is against this backdrop that I read with reservation and apprehension the newspaper report of the Government’s decision to observe January 24 as the national ‘Girl Child Day’ to create awareness of issues related to girls. To mark the day the Ministry of women and child development will launch a sustained campaign to highlight the evils of female foeticide, female infanticide and discrimination in matter of health, nutrition, education and opportunities. The importance of the girl child will be highlighted through TV spots advertisements and announcements over telephone. As usual a handful of political bigwigs, elite fashionable ladies from society may hog all the limelight with no tangible benefits accruing to the section/group being targeted viz. the girl child, at the end of the campaign.

I suggest that the Government while drawing up plans, also undertake to ensure implementation of the proposed measures and come out with a white paper on the extent of success achieved with facts and figures. And that’s possible only when all those who take part in the proposed campaign first publicly commit themselves to walk the talk.

M.S.VAIDYANATHAN

ARE OUR MPs AND MLAs ABOVE LAW?

It was shocking to see and read the incident of a bank manager being slapped by a member of parliament and getting away scot free. He had the audacity to justify his action. Can our elected representatives take law into their own hands? If this trend continues where will our country go? Are all the 540 members of parliament in agreement with the action of the minister? If not why have they not raised the issue in Parliament?

Will someone speak up?


M.S.VAIDYANATHAN

BUDGET BLUES

THE FINANCE MINISTER HAS ANNOUNCED A MASSIVE WAIVER OF FARM LOANS. SOME QUESTIONS DO ARISE IN THE MINDS OF THE PUBLIC:

1. WHAT ABOUT THE FARMERS WHO HAVE ALREADY PAID OFF THEIR LOANS, BORROWING MONEY FROM PRIVATE MONEY LENDERS AT EXHORBITANT RATES OF INTEREST? CAN THEY ALSO CLAIM RELIEF?

2. WILL NOT SUCH AN ANNOUNCEMENT, MAKE THOSE TAKING A LOAN TO TAKE REPAYMENTS EASY, UNDER THE ASSUMPTION THAT SOME DAY THEY TOO WILL BE WRITTEN OFF?

3. EVERYONE KNOWS THAT WHAT IS REQUIRED IS TO BRING THE FARMERS OUT OF THE CLUTCHES OF THE PRIVATE MONEY LENDERS. HOW IS THIS GOING TO HAPPEN?

4. HOW DOES ONE IDENTIFY THE GENUINE FARMERS DESERVING THE WAIVER?

WILL SOMEONE ANSWER?!!

INDEPENDENT DIRECTORS

There is a provision under Non-mandatory requirements of Clause 49 of the listing agreement which provides for 'mechanism for evaluating non-executive Board Members'. This clause states the performance evaluation of non-executive directors could be done by a peer group comprising the entire Board of Directors, excluding the director being evaluated; and Peer group evaluation could be the mechanism to determine whether to extend / continue the terms of appointment of non-executive directors.

Now is such a evaluation practically possible? Will not the 'you scratch my back and I scratch yours' principle creep in so that all survive together and the institution loses.

How to ensure an impartial evaluation of independent directors is the moot question.

M.S.VAIDYANATHAN