Still More on Lok Paritran

I came across Lok Paritran's manifesto a couple of days back. The document has somewhat mitigated my resentment. And, in addition, quite a few ppl have taken up cudgels against my diatribe. They have since flooded me with the realities of our political firmament, the superior skills of specialist professionals and the dismal picture that other parties present.

Having said this, let me paraphrase what my teacher says (in the context of experimental condensed matter physics though!) - "If you've got them agitated, you are onto something". I get a minute pleasure from my opinions having aroused such indignation, whence I infer that what I say holds water after all. I know that Hari is now going to shout out that this is a vicious circle - after all, lok paritran had me agitated in the first place. But I insist on having my minute pleasure - of the thousands that heard about Lok Paritran, not many others(nobody if my search engine is to believed) have written such virulent harangues. On the other hand, of the 5-6 visitors to my blogspace, atleast 3 have come back with acerbic repartees.

Now for their manifesto - I must say that it is well-written, concise and even a tad impressive. But a deeper reading strips its sturdy facade and exposes hollow content. First and foremost, in the manifesto of a party run by well-educated professionals, you would expect to see irrefutable figures. There is not a single statistical detail to vindicate their perceptions or to lend support to their promises!!!(contrast this to the documents available at www.bjp.org).

In a professional course, you are taught to base any arguments on sound facts and to avoid loose perceptions. This text would certainly have been frowned upon by my 'Report Writing' instructor. These people have given up well-paying jobs to enter politics. I am sure they had all the time in the world to research and analyse the ground situation. Lok Paritran has restricted itself to strictly qualitative, wishy-washy and unscientific homework. Their approach has been far from professional. One ready example is that their manifesto for the May 8th election was released on 24th April, barely two weeks before. I wonder if they campaigned at all before the 24th(not that I've seen much campaigning afterwards).

To cut deeper, phrases like 'vocational education', 'farmer training', 'microfinance', 'MLA fund utilization' and 'sanitation measures' impress the reader at first glance. Unlike what we'd make out of it, Lok Paritran is certainly not brimming with creative solutions. All these and more have been in existence for ages!

For example, we have a distinct 'vocational stream' in the Plus 2 system. Almost all schools include tailoring/electrical repair/typewriting in their curriculum under the name of SUPW-Socially Useful Project Work. But as Hari used to say, these turn out to be Some Useful Period Wasted. If these have not revolutionized society, the reason is not difficult to see. Most of the work done at school cannot be of the industry level. Moreover, students tend to look upon these as superfluous burden. The common man, atleast in Tamil Nadu, learns carpentry/auto-maintenance/foundry work/plumbing by apprenticeship. The uninitiated young offer their services to professionals, and in the process thoroughly learn the tricks of the trade. The pay offered, though measly, is an additional incentive ensuring that the youngster works hard. I sincerely doubt if any school can provide such a thorough exposure or even the least motivation in this direction. This is where Lok Paritran should have brainstormed and come up with concrete measures to revitalize/renew vocational education. Even a little data about the 'vocational stream' may have helped their cause. Merely putting the 'vocational education' on their manifesto is half-baked, to say the least.

I could similarly wax eloquent on all the other points. The fact remains that their manifesto neither assesses the situation pragmatically nor suggests realistic steps. Had I been asked to write a manifesto for my social studies assignment, I might have written all that they say and more in a day's time.

On the brighter side, they have addressed a major concern of mine. They plan to constitute intra party committees to ensure that party members don't engage in corruption or overstep party principles. Again, this is what every party does. But, they have atleast, considered the issue and come up with a solution however trite it may sound.