नावात सगळं आलं

http://www.economist.com/news/briefing/21723815-tax-reform-does-not-go-far-enough-land-and-labour-reforms-have-barely-been-tried-narendra-modi

Economist वृत्तपत्राने अलिकडे भारतात येऊ घातलेल्या GST करप्रणालीवर (माझ्या मते संतुलित) टीका केली. यावर माझ्या मित्रवर्तुळातून अशी टीका आली की "ह्या स्तंभाच्या लेखकाचे नाव वृत्तपत्राने प्रसिध्द केले नाही त्यामुळे लेखास credibility नाही."

तेव्हा मी म्हणालो की 2013 साली Economistने याबद्दल स्पष्टीकरण दिले आहे:
http://www.economist.com/blogs/economist-explains/2013/09/economist-explains-itself-1

"Why are The Economist’s writers anonymous?
Because it allows many writers to speak with a collective voice
LEADERS are discussed and debated each week in meetings that are open to all members of the editorial staff."

परंतु मंडळींचे समाधान झाले नाही.

आता पाहा...काय लिहिले आहे यापेक्षा कोणी लिहिले आहे यावर आपण चर्चा करत आहोत. हे आम्हा भारतीयांचे वैशिष्ठ्य आहे.

Economist मध्ये जे लिहून आले आहे त्यावर मतभेद असू शकतात परंतु मूळ हेतूबद्दल आपण साशंक असावे असे काही मला स्तंभात दिसले नाही.

GSTचे उदाहरण घेऊ. चला, सरकारी तज्ञ म्हणतात GSTने करोत्पन्नात वृध्दी होईल, आम्ही म्हणतो बरं आणा GST. परंतु प्रश्न असा पडतो की करोत्पन्न वाढवायच्या guaranteed व ज्यांनी जनतेला बिल्कुल तोशिष पडणार नाही अशा साधनांचा आधी अवलंब का केला जात नाही? उदाहरणार्थ Hindu Undivided Family नावाची tax entity. बरखास्त करा. त्याचा वापर करून करोडो रुपये कर बुडवला जातो. पण ते करायचे नाही. हितसंबंध आहेत.  GST, demonetization यासाखी धेंडं नाचवायची. ज्यांचा चांगला वाईट असर अनेक वर्षांनी जाणवेल.

"FEW countries would see a tax requiring some businesses to file over 1,000 returns a year as an improvement. But India might. A nationwide Goods and Services Tax (GST) is set to come into force on July 1st.

The GST, although welcome, is unnecessarily complicated and bureaucratic, greatly reducing its efficiency."

यात आक्षेपार्ह काय आहे? मग ते नोबेल विजेत्याने लिहिलं काय किंवा एखाद्या सोम्यागोम्याने लिहिलं काय.

तथ्य असलेलं पण आपल्याला खुपणारं लिखाण आढळल्यावर थेट लेखकाच्या किंवा प्रकाशनाच्या हेतूबद्दल शंका प्रकट करण्याच्या आपल्या (including me) प्रतिक्षिप्त क्रियेस आळा घातला पाहिजे. हा स्वभाव भारतीयांच्यात इतका भिनलेला आहे की जागतिक पातळीवर गेल्यावर सुरुवातीला बहुतेक भारतीय यामुळे गटांगळ्या खातात. काही नंतर भानावर येतात, बरेच तिथेच अडकून पडतात.

Anyways हा "Credibility by name" प्रकार विचित्र आहे.
नाना पाटेकर शेती संकाटाबद्दल काहीही बोलतो पण खपतं.
पण "मिलिंद मुरुगकर" ह्या नावाखाली आलेल्या मतांना लोक महत्त्व देत नाहीत.

RUPESH GESOTA

Today I visited a Municipal School (मुनशिपाल्टी शाळा) in Airoli, Navi Mumbai. I went to meet Rupesh Gesota, who calls himself an "engineer-turned-math-teacher". Among other things, he works with a set of slum kids in Airoli, coaching them in Math using what he calls his "Inquiry & Discovery" techniques. Basically, these kids think and teach themselves.

Among the kids I met was Rohit. Read here what this 12 year old kid stumbled upon recently:
http://rupeshgesota.blogspot.in/2017/06/discovering-formula-for-area-of.html?m=1

A French teacher took note of this and published a video which you can find embedded at the above link.

PS: Rohit has just passed his class-7 from the  Marathi medium municipal school and lives in the slums surrounding his school, with his parents and younger brother.

At the municipal school I also met a gentleman by the name Sudhakar Sonawane. Mr. Sonawane has no qualms admitting that he is illiterate but says that he is determined he will educate as many poor kids as he can.

An introduction to Mr. Sonawane and you need to sit down on this one...he is the *MAYOR OF NAVI MUMBAI*, one of the richest municipalities in India. I found him loitering around the school yard on a Sunday feeding chicken strutting around the school compound. He told me kids need to be around animals hence he raised chicken around the school yard. Adjoining the school is a huge garden patch where Mr. Sonawane raises vegetables. He pointed out to a  structure which houses a makeshift swimming pool and asked me, "What?! Can't poor kids have a pool of their own? ".

Mr. Sonawane is Rupesh's supporter-in-chief.

Accompanying me were my son who is entering his second year of Math undergrad, a friend who I call "an amazing Math missionary teacher" and my daughter. My friend was bowled over. He is going back to teach those kids Combinatorics & Calculus - he feels they are ready. My son says the kids are miles ahead of where he was at their age.

Rupesh and his prodigies work daily out of a terrace loft in the school building. The entire school staff "studiously" ignore them.

On the wall we saw a chart in which the kids had constructed numbers 1-100 using digits of the current year 2017 in sequence and basic mathematical operators - try that for size.

Rupesh Gesota's YouTube channel has around 30 videos of his under-privileged (read " slum resident") students solving Math problems  independently and even in groups.
https://m.youtube.com/channel/UCWxFLepEX2rJnuIJSfyIUkA

All in all a very different Sunday.