Note the statement regarding Gandhiji teaching us to break laws! Taken out of context, this statement would make him turn in his grave!!! I don't think he would have ever thought he would be quoted in a way so as to make law-abiding citizens lawless ones!
I always find that people miss the larger perspective of any action, and sadly we are never taught (taught, because such habits can only be inculcated with repeated teaching) to find the truth of something.
Somebody must never have told this gentleman two facts:
1. Gandhiji broke the salt law because the British govt. was charging outrageous tax on salt, so as to charge the poor too, and because salt was a basic commodity, leading to large revenues.
2. The government today is charging nominal fees in order to have liquid funds for regular upkeep of the property it has created. This helps create income directly from those who use the facility. I would ask the gentleman why should govt spend a part of my income for that facility when i am never going to visit it! As he will rightfully point out, that is utter stupidity, because in our system, income tax is a way of pooling money for greater benefit. However, we cannot discount those who can afford to use the facility with general funds. Otherwise, if his logic is applied, all government services like transport, water, etc should be free. Just imagine the kind of rash & injudicious use of infrastructure that would lead to!
However, the point of this post is the lesson for any person: leader or follower -
all your actions shall be judged by history, in means you have never thought of... Hence, there are only two ways to live:
1. the cautious (rather, over-cautious) thinking way, where you first think of all possible outcomes & judgements that your action will create, before you act
or
2. Jun's way: since all our efforts will amount to nothing in the end, lets just enjoy life & leave the thinking to those who can afford to waste life on it! This saves you from having the responsibility of any person following you. Gandhiji would have done fine with following non-violence & making a good example of it, a great actor that he was! But, i guess his mistake lies in becoming a leader & propagating his principles. The various shady ways in which his beliefs are twisted across the society would make him take back his words!
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8 comments:
Hi,
I would oppose charging any entry fee to a place like Kankaria. And my reasons are different from that doctor's. How can someone create a fence around a lake and start charging money to see it or to be next to it? Kankaria is a very different scale. It is a city level open space. Can you imagine the same thing being done to 9 kms of development along Sabarmati? There should be more options given to people where some parts of the lake can be completely open, some parts where with more added attractions, rides etc can have entry fees. Are there 'open' components in this proposal? Is it about making a viable model for regular up-keeping or it is utter dis-regard to the nature itself and to the public-ness of public place? well, it is not about money, it is about creating barriers and boundaries.
cheers,
Rutul.
i would completely agree with you, and i had not thought of the varied mix of uses that could be provided free / charged per use, instead of covering the whole part under charges. However, my point stays that the nominal charge is kept in order to have funds for upkeep and control crowds, which should definitely not apply on the entire lakefront. The second point being that the doctor put us to shame by his quotes.
The questions of barriers & boundaries is quite interesting! While our malls are open to everyone (except beggars), our public spaces can't be charged. Instead, a revenue sharing with advertisers, stall owners, etc may also be a very bright proposition!
at a fundamental/ethical level. a charge for the use government property is a little unfair. it does not make sense pay 2 rupees separately for public space upgradation without expecting a 2 rupee deduction in your taxes.
what this is, is a case of "over rationalization gone mad" (my favorite peep show quote)
yes: taxation is complex.
no: we cant reduce your tax b 2 repees
yes: allocating a liquid fund for kankaria upkeep is damn difficult
right so: lets just add to your taxes to simplify the whole deal.!!!! yeah, thats makes sense........
practically it makes sense to add a lousy 2 bucks to the whole deal.... heck even 200 might not be too much .... if i had more faith in the system....
i guess thats wat it was about.. if the doc was shown that all his hard earned cash is goin into child welfare, education for the poor, roads and infrastructure, security etc etc, hed probably love to payup for a better looking lake.
jun
btw... dude!!!!.... "jun's method!!???"
taxation is necessary to pool funds for basic infrastructure development & accessibility..
however, beyond that i feel that users should pay... just in case of toll on highways, where it is built at public cost & maintained at user cost...
id think the doc would like his money better used too, but that doesnt mean he should get free lunches at cost of others!
he should own up responsibility of atleast replenishing watever he has used (in maintenance costs). while the infrastructure is his to use at his will...
on re-reading, i got the jist that you may be reading Jun's way negatively... what i mean is that one should stand by watever is done, fair or unfair & not worry about others... call it self-confidence / arrogance watever, its a state of mind, unlike the first case, where the person worries about the results of his / her actions on the public at large.. which is where i would put gandhiji & hence his heartache.. i hope its clearer...
Hi,
I think, the issues here is not about taxes/charges or money... I am sure, it is not very difficult to work out viable models of public projects. I am concerned with the fact that after studying/discussing/'feeling good' about PUBLIC REALMS and what not, do we really respect it.
How can one put a fence around a lake? (one can accept it in parts, but putting fence around the whole lake! Absurd!) Let's compare new kankaria with old kankaria. What is it that I would not like to change about old Kankaria... the spontaneity of the place... A passer-by might just stop for a while, he doesn't really have to take his family out and enter through a formal gate! A lake is inseparable part of daily life. It is like converting our piece of daily life into a museum piece by putting a fence around it, having a security guard, lighting it up... I am sure that place is cleaner, greener now then before...but less public and more exclusive for sure. Lets compare it to other lake fronts in India... Udaipur, Hyderabad, Mt. Abu... They are raw, open and public... parts of it has gardens etc overlooking them but the lake fronts are accessible.Public places and that to a water body in ahm climate, should be so special, flexible, open place. I am sure, this would have been the real ache for Gandhi too, to see ahmedabad full of so many 'territories'!
Im in two-minds about this point. While there is not any LESS activity due to the charges & fencing, your point on open-ness of public spaces is well-taken. Unfortunately, in our country, we are culprits of free-rides & disrespect for public property. As a taxpayer, i would like the property that has been developed so painstakingly to last its said life. I think, such maintenance would be required, if only to educate people on how to use it. Whether one pays for it or not is another issue, i agree, as i have pointed out in earlier comment, where corporates / advertisers may pool the revenue.
I dont think kankaria has lost any of its charm as an OPEN & ACCESSIBLE space. If by that we mean that we may take our vehicles right upto the lakefront, it is only our narrow thinking. Some basic organization is needed for safety & upkeep.
I am surprised that you interpreted my 'casual stopping by' the lake as taking a vehicle to the lake. I would never think of it. Right from the first comment, I am only talking about 'openness' of a water body with scale of Kankaria. A place like that is about spontaneity...being casual. I am reminded of Penelosa's statement saying, streets are all about walking aimlessly... This statement has become my criteria of judging a public project.
Anyways, I am sure Kankaria's proposal would have many good things. The idea of barricades might not be part of original proposal... It just happened in the name of 'management and security'. And the second question (which is for a discussion and not a critique of Kankaria)... Are we always going to create public places in India with barricades and security guards watching us, till great Indian Janta learns to 'behave'??? Is there a way out of this situation... a public place without the watchtowers???
i had been near kankaria the other day
i didn't find a single person complaining about finding it hard to get in..
i am not implying that just because the public doesnt voice its concern, we can get away with anything. But, its a good start to SOME orderliness. Parking, however was flooded & all roads leading to the place were also used as parking!
I dont know how long we need to put up barricades in order to teach ourselves some "Behaviour". But, i think its for the best. If one has ever heard accounts of Indians behaving abroad, one would certainly be appalled. There is a cultural difference i agree, but the sheer disrespect we show for public facilities is quite disgusting.
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