22 March 2012 Kerala Commentary
Political leaders in Kerala unwilling to retire when civil servants do.
P.S.Remesh Chandran.
Editor, Sahyadri Books & Bloom Books, Trivandrum.
Retirement age of government servants in Kerala is 56; retirement age of political leaders in government is 100. It was earlier reported that riots and destruction were going on all over Kerala over the raising of the retirement age of Kerala government employees by one year, led by pro-left youth organizations. Pro-left youth organizations in Kerala means only two active organizations, the Democratic Youth Federation of India led by the CPIM and the All India Youth Federation led by the CPI. We all know that these organizations declared endless war on corruption and petrol price hike, etc. After conducting one or two routine marches and issuing a few press notes, they returned to their cozy, sequestered cool quarters. Corruption in Kerala continues as before and the price of petrol was never lowered. They have lost the stamina for unending struggles till victory. They are part of the rotten establishment now like any other organization. A well-groomed, beautician-touched moustache, fashion clothes, costly vehicles and 30000 Rupee mobile phones will not bring about revolutions. The leaders of these organizations perfectly well know that Com. Achuthanandan clinged to the Chief Minister’s chair even after 87 years’ age. The cases of Comrades E.K.Nayanar and P.K.Vasudevan Nair were not different. Why are most of their Parliament Members and State Assembly Members 70 and 75 years old? They will reply that consul of the wise is needed in the field of higher administration. What startles us all is their argument that wisdom degenerates in the qualified government servant all of a sudden at the age of 55 years. The real reason behind the youth organizations’ fury is another thing. The minds of all members in DYFI and AIYF are fuming and burning at the injustice of their party leaders remaining in authority long after their desirable retirement age. They, through these riots, were actually though symbolically, telling their party leaders to voluntarily quit at a decent age. But if they tell it directly or through a press release, the state secretaries of both these organizations would be thrown out of the party the instant. And they all know this. Just sympathize with them in their helplessness. Tolerate their atrocities lest they may go mad with their suppressed anger and fury.
19 July 2012 Kerala Commentary
We will think that some young man gets the job when a person retires in India, be it at any age. Job-aspiring young men and their organizations know this. As a result of computerization and automation, this post is simply being abolished by government. So raising the retirement age is good for the society such that a part of government revenue will reach people instead of reaching internet service providers. Even when someone is engaged in place of a retiree, he is engaged on a daily wages basis which is present policy adopted by all state governments in India and by the central government. Then again, lesser amount reaches society and people as government salaries because daily wages are fixed far less. Therefore, as many people think and as youth organization leaders like to speak and believe the job of the retiring father does not go to the unemployed DYFI son. It is only logical and revolutionary to allow the father to continue to work for a few more years, bring more amount as salaries to the household before the post becomes abolished and support the family which the son cannot do and won’t do anyway. Every person who has ever tried to send an e-mail message to government ministers’, secretaries’, collectors’ and other official email addresses or submit through government’s official web sites know that these sites are only useless decorations and just playthings for their staff to view sex films at government expense. Automation and computerization in government is a farce, not because computers are inefficient but because officials are a lazy irresponsible lot. So, abolishing manual posts for automation is never justified. Credential Reports of noted youth organizations presented in their annual conferences indicate that 90 per cent of their members won’t ever get government jobs due to their lesser qualification and incompetence. Of the central government jobs with the toughest competition, those are unthinkable for them. So we are tempted to ask what jobs does these youth leaders do for a living, or if they take it politics is a job? Lenin said, food shall not be given to those who do not work. Those who are in desperate need of a job in Kerala to support a family do find jobs with attractive remuneration. There are now no people there to pluck coconuts, till the paddy fields and attend the works long waiting for a carpenter, plumber and mason, the highest yielding jobs in Kerala which are now heartily attended by hard working youth from other states. Let us first fix the retirement age of the Chief Minister of Kerala, then those of our M.P.s, M.L.As and Panchayat Members. After fixing the retirement age of these higher administrators, we shall turn to fixing the retirement age of the lowly scribes. But this participatory pension scheme is a treacherous cheat to help share market thieves.