You can't but help feel outraged at the story of Justin Bassett, Seattle citizen who was asked at a job interview, to hand over his Facebook login and password. Understandably, he withdrew his application and wanted nothing further to do with the company. I'd surely have done the same – after making a huge noise first. After all, the offline equivalent would be like gate-crashing a party the candidate is attending, landing up to observe him when he's at home, with his friends, or out on a holiday. Not everyone would have walked out. In the US, Bassett's case wasn't a one-off but a trend and people are getting increasingly unsurprised when their social media activities are scanned at hiring time. While you can understand a hiring company wanting to know who would be working for them, there are many hairy issues raised here. One CEO explained to me that information online was now a given. Why would one not use it to research someone's background? "There was one time when we discovered that a person we were hiring had a police case against him – for data theft. And that's hardly something we want happening in our company," he told me. It's now routine to Google someone online and see what the search throws up. Does the person seem active online – in which case it may mean he or she is keeping up with new technologies instead of being technophobic. Is there a blog? Are there any presentations on SlideShare, useful posts on Twitter? A solid LinkedIn profile and recommendations?In much the same way, a Facebook page can reveal say, an odd note, or something drastically wrong. HR departments and executive recruitment firms are paying people to do a thorough job of research on each candidate they take up. Fascinatingly, we in India aren't half as bothered about privacy. I chatted with Supreme Court lawyer and cyber law expert, Pavan Duggal, who agreed that privacy concerns differ from one culture to another. He said that in India, where we've had a long tradition of joint families, we're accustomed to sharing information freely. He even felt job candidates would be unhesitant and perhaps even proud to show off their accounts. But forcing a candidate to give up a password and login would be another matter. That's punishable under sections 43 and 66 of the IT Act and could land the coercer in jail for three years. But of course, it isn't illegal to ask for the password – only to force. India doesn't even have privacy laws, as Pavan Duggal points out. In some countries, even Googling a person to check him or her out is not allowed. And Germany, as we know from recent noise over Facebook privacy, are pretty touchy about who wants to know what.In the US, there is so much sudden outrage sparked off by the Bassett case that several states are working on legislation to stop companies from even requesting access to online accounts. After all, what next – email?Facebook says giving your password to anyone is in violation of its user agreement and warns companies that look into accounts and then don't hire a candidate could face charges of discrimination in some situations. Such as when you see that a woman is pregnant and don't hire her, for example.A company may want to find out all it can, but so much of what you find could be anecdotal. Let's say for instance that a person has changed jobs twice over the past few months. He announces the change on Facebook, and a friend or two happen to tease him for being an inveterate job-shopper. But perhaps he isn't one. Perhaps he discovered that a line of work he took up didn't excite him at all. Perhaps he was strong enough to act on the decision to change. Or perhaps there was a brilliant offer he was eager to take up. Now, a researcher may well misinterpret this or not look beyond the surface and report incorrectly. On the other hand, one may find online a clear demonstration of focus on work and evident domain knowledge.But as someone who studied psychology and worked with psychological tests, it occurs to me that, other than ruling out something drastic such as obvious signs that a candidate is say, an active trouble-maker, there's not much you can find out to predict future performance and workplace behavior. It was difficult enough with apparently scientific tests and it would be too anecdotal and open to misinterpretation by scanning random social media activity. Clearly we need to start thinking about how we need to handle online privacy in our country.
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The two clear trends evident at the three-day conclave of the media and entertainment industry in Mumbai last week were: first, the determination by government to push through digitization of the disorganized cable television industry; and second, the importance given to the print industry not seen earlier in these annual jamborees held by Ficci under the ‘Frames' brand. Stating that "we are on the threshold of a revolution", Uday K Varma, Secretary, Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, said the central government was committed to the ‘sunset' date of July 1, 2012 from when on the metros would shut off their analogue cable networks and go digital. By December 31, 2014, he was hopeful the last hamlet in rural India would also be part of the digital network making the transformation of 80 million cable homes "the fastest digital changeover in the world." Delivering his ‘vision statement' for the Information and Broadcasting Industry, Uday Varma said the digitization programme this time would go through because "all stakeholders including cable operators were supporting the drive." He also said the government was determined to broaden the communication footprint by releasing licenses for an additional 839 FM radio stations and setting up 1,000 community radio stations. To mark 100 years of Indian cinema, the government would be investing Rs 500 crore to set up a Film Restoration Mission "to save and archive the country's rich celluloid history. Echoing the I&B Secretary, J.S Sarma, the Telecom Authority of India (Trai) chairman said that much of India's growth was linked to the communication revolution that digitization would bring in its wake. He pointed out that in the developed world the growth in communication technology had worked its way systematically from a 100 per cent wireline telephone density, to cable TV, onwards to mobile telephony and finally the 4th layer – fibre optic broadband systems. In India, many of the stages such as full wired telephony, had been skipped while there were doubts whether mobile technology had the capacity to provide comprehensive communication. In this context, digitized cable TV had the capacity "to provide communication to the masses." In the discussion that followed, I&B secretary Varma indicated there would be no compromise or postponement in the sunset dates for analogue TV, and added that a Task Force of stakeholders had been set up to iron out problems and hear grievances. Sarma, on the other hand, acknowledged that it was indeed a challenging task for the cable industry to gather the financial resources necessary for putting in place 10 million set-top boxes in homes by the time the first phase of digitization kicked in July 1, this year. Interestingly, later sessions at the Ficci-Frames dwelt at length on the challenges of galloping digitization of the news and entertainment media on print. T N Ninan, Chairman, Business Standard, for instance conceded that the print media was "showing signs of stress". He said the print industry strangely was displaying trends of both proliferation and consolidation simultaneously. Advertising was drifting towards entertainment media while those who were advertising on news programming were moving towards the internet.Rajiv Varma, CEO, HT Media, on the other hand, said "the print medium has a bright future" and based his assessment on the market dynamics in the eastern part of the world – Japan, Korea and Singapore – where newspapers are thriving. While Rajiv Varma pointed out that in the U.S. print newspaper advertisements had declined from $ 60 billion in the late nineties to $ 20 billion in 2011, mainly due to the impact of the internet, Lynn De Souza, Chairperson, Readership Studies Council, noted that the Indian print market remained buoyant with ad spends during the last five years doubling from Rs 15,000 crore to Rs 30,000 crore. The share of the print media at 40 per cent has remained unchanged, she said.
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Young people are disloyal and feel entitled to high compensation and fast advancement. Older people are stuck in the past and are unwilling to change. At least that's what we hear people say. In our work around the world, we've seen the same pattern of discussion play out in countries as different as India, France, China, South Africa, Australia, and the United States. Older people everywhere believe that younger people (typically those under 30) are unwilling to work as hard as they worked at the same age, are not as respectful of the knowledge and experience older people have- as they should be, are generally impatient and unwilling to spend a lot of time learning the business, and think they should be promoted faster than people were in the past.On the other hand, younger people believe that older people (typically those over 45 — or two levels higher in the organisation) have worked hard to get where they are, but are unwilling to accept that the world has changed. Young people assume the older generations' value deference to authority more than productivity and prefer directive leaders more than inclusive ones. The younger generations generally believe that they have had an easier life than their elders did, but that the older generation is deliberately holding them back and making them wait their turn, rather than rewarding productivity. They think that they could move faster and be more productive if the older generations were willing to embrace new ways of working. Sarah Stawiski The Center for Creative Leadership (CCL) has been doing research on the differences among generations globally, for 12 years now, and we have found that many of the common beliefs about the different generations are more based on myth rather than facts. So what do you need to know about different generations to work with them more effectively?Younger people don't dislike authority: Many people talk about enormous differences in values between older and younger people as if these differences were an established fact. CCL's generational research in India has found that older and younger employees don't differ in their beliefs about deference to authority. So why do people assume such differences exist? Our view is that although the beliefs about authority are the same, what showing respect looks like to someone who is 50 versus someone who is 25 is not necessarily the same. For example, people in the older generation may believe a sign of respect is to let the most experienced people in the room do most of the talking; but a younger person, although less experienced, may think that they are showing respect, and adding value, by making a substantial contribution! So we can't assume that younger people are less respectful — or older people are more respectful — just because they may just show respect in different ways.Leaving a job isn't about entitlement. It's often said that young people are no longer loyal to organisations in the same way their predecessors were. That may be true, but is that because the character of the generation has changed? Or is it because young managers have more opportunities to move and organisations aren't promising them lifetime job security as they used to in the past? Do people really believe that if the current opportunities had been available 40 years ago, and organisations hadn't promised to take care of their employees, people in their 20s then wouldn't have jumped at them? Our research suggests that it is the economic environment and the available opportunities that are the critical factors in the level of loyalty demonstrated, not the generation they were born into. People of all generations have similar ideas of what they want from their organisation. They want: Opportunities to advance within their organisation. Learning and development. Respect and recognition. Interesting work. Good quality of life. Good compensation. Organisations that provide such opportunities to all employees they want to retain will have a more engaged — and loyal — workforce. So don't blame young people for taking advantage of the opportunities presented to them . . . offer them the opportunities yourself.All generations want leaders who are charismatic, participative, and team-oriented. Our data in India indicates that employees of all ages believe that being charismatic, team-oriented, and participative are critical for making a leader being successful. Just as older and younger people have similar attitudes about authority, they also have similar attitudes about hierarchy; neither older nor younger people desire leaders who are hierarchical. Old or young, both want a leader who motivates, involves others, and works with a team, rather than one who simply directs and orders. Beliefs that generations are radically different are pervasive , and nothing new. However, data does not often support the most common assumptions made by the older generation about younger people, and vice versa. Organisational leaders who can look beyond these commonly held, but often unfounded, beliefs will be able to focus on what really matters to their workforce. Offering better opportunities, recognition, high quality of work and life, and leading in a way that involves, inspires, and empowers others is what younger and older generations alike want and value.Jennifer J. Deal, Ph.D, is a Senior Research Scientist at CCLSarah Stawiski, Ph.D, is a Research Associate at CCL
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As expected the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) did not cut rates. It had no reason to. A 75 basis point (bps) cut in the cash reserve ratio (CRR) to 4.75 per cent kicked in only five days ago (effective March 10th). And there was only an outside chance of a fresh round of cuts ahead of the Union Budget for 2012-13 on Friday.The central bank had already indicated in its last meeting that policy rate action going ahead would be contingent on the extent of fiscal consolidation the government would target in 2012-13. It would become clear only tomorrow and a repo rate cut right now could, therefore, have been construed as premature.Wait & WatchThe key takeaway from Thursday's review is inflation appears to have come back on top of the central bank's radar. Year-on-year (YoY) headline inflation which held above 9 per cent during April-November 2011 has been on a see-saw since. It dropped to 7.7 per cent in December, and lower to 6.6 per cent in January 2012, only to head northwards to 7 per cent in February. The worry for RBI is "upside risks to inflation have increased from the recent surge in crude oil prices, fiscal slippage and rupee depreciation".Then you have growth. GDP growth YoY decelerated to 6.1 per cent in the third quarter of 2011-12 from 6.9 per cent in the second quarter. Given the growth-inflation dynamics, the RBI is clear the next rate move is lower. But it has categorically said notwithstanding the deceleration in growth, "inflation risks remain, which will influence both the timing and magnitude of future rate actions"."Today's statement does appear to be more hawkish, with the focus more firmly back on inflation. Unlike the previous policy where the RBI had said the rate decision would be contingent on fiscal consolidation and steps to incentivise investment, this time it has broadened its emphasis to other variables fuelling inflation", explains Rohini Malkani, Chief Economist at Citigroup (India)."It quite evident RBI would partly base its decision to cut policy rat, on the emerging core inflation figures and developments on oil and other commodities front. It appears that RBI is comfortable with current GDP growth rate of 6 per cent plus and is not in a hurry to boost growth. Due to weak domestic demand and higher base effect, the core inflation is expected to moderate further in 2012-13. This would provide room to RBI to cut rates and boost growth. We expects a 150 bps cut in repo rate in going ahead", says Shyam Srinivasan, MD & CEO of Federal Bank.Economic Survey, Railway BudgetThe new variable is the Economic Survey which has slightly queered the pitch as it sees a strong GDP growth of 7.60 per cent for the coming fiscal. "The Budget will be keenly watched to ascertain the extent of fiscal deficit and the gross borrowing needs. Any large deficit and consequent borrowing program could affect liquidity in the market and rates", notes Krishnamoorthy Harihar, Treasurer, FirstRand Bank who adds "good revenue projections from disinvestment as well as telecom auctions, which could lead to a manageable fiscal deficit", would be a key.The RBI would watch inflation numbers in the coming months as the base year effect wears off, and the recent railway freight hikes and possible diesel and petrol price hikes find their way into inflation numbers. "So while hopes rest on a lower inflation number in the coming weeks, oil price trajectory in international markets, as well government moves on pass through of crude costs could influence inflation levels and consequent rate moves", explains Harihar.If the government does expect to target a lower fiscal deficit next fiscal, is a repo rate cut in April still likely? While upside risks to inflation remain, especially from structural factors (such as fiscal slippage and demand-supply imbalances in key food items) and firm global commodity prices, these are likely to curtail the degree of monetary easing going ahead. "They are unlikely to delay or derail it. We, therefore, retain our expectation that the first repo rate cut (25 bps) will likely come in the April annual review paving the way for 50-75 bps of additional repo rate cuts for the remainder of the year and taking the total repo rate cut tally for the year to a relatively modest 75-100 bps", Abheek Barua, Chief Economist at HDFC Bank which expect a deficit of 4.9 per cent GDP in 2012-13 against 5.7 per cent in 2011-12),
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AbsolutData a leading global analytics firm, has recently expanded its top management team in India. New joinee in top management Sundar Ramaswamy has joined as Chief Operating Officer, Abishek Sawhny has joined as Chief Financial Officer and Rahul Monie has joined as Chief Technology Officer. Anil Kaul, AbsolutData, CEO said "with this expansion of the India team, we are adding significant and broad industry experience, business delivery skills and senior leadership to our management team. I am very pleased to welcome the addition of Sundar, Abishek and Rahul to the AbsolutData team".The new additions to the team are leaders in their respective fields, who bring with them many years of rich industry experience in consulting, technology, finance and analytics. They will operate out of the Gurgaon, India office of AbsolutData. Sunder Ramaswamy, an IITian and a gold medalist from XLRI Jamshedpur, who has close to 15-year of experience across consulting, off-shoring and outsourcing. Prior to join AbsolutData he led the global analytics capability at McKinsey. He spent almost six years at McKinsey and seven years at Accenture as a consultant.Abhishek Sawhny, a Chartered Accountant from England and did economics from Loyola College of Chennai, has spent over 20 years in consulting industry in England, India and US. Rahul Monie has 22 years of experience across IT business solutions, ERP, data center services, product development, etc. He has successfully run technology startups and managed P&L's in large organisations. AbsolutData founded in 2001 and headquartered in San Francisco, with a global delivery model. It helps its clients take data-driven decisions, which make them more successful and profitable.
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With globalization, we have been witnessing the execution of mega engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) projects in India. Typically EPC contracts involve multiple activities within and outside India relating to offshore services (basic design and engineering, provision of technology, training, etc.), offshore supply of equipment and onshore supply and services that would include equipment installation, testing and commissioning. A recurrent tax issue in such projects relates to the taxability of offshore supplies. Large EPC contracts typically involve complex structures, multiple sub-contracts, linkage between the offshore supply and onshore service components and single point performance guarantees, raising questions as to the place where the offshore sale could be said to have been completed and the situs of taxation. Indian tax authorities are constantly seeking to tax some portion of the offshore supply profits, under composite and split contracts, on various grounds. Even a minor profit attribution on the offshore supply component could translate into a huge tax liability in India. Various commercial aspects viz. form of the contract (composite or split), obligations and responsibilities of the parties, performance guarantees, signing of the contract, role of the Indian project office, insurance beneficiaries, terms of payment, etc. have been considered by Courts while laying down principles for determining taxability.In the case of a supply of equipment simpliciter, Courts have held that if the entire operations (design, engineering, manufacture etc.) relating to offshore supply of equipment take place outside India, the transfer of title in goods takes place outside India, the payments are received outside India and if the transaction is on a principal-to-principal basis then the income from offshore supply cannot be said to arise in India. The place where the transfer of title in goods would take place depends upon the intention of the parties as mutually agreed. In the case of a composite or turnkey contract that involves both offshore supply and onshore services, Courts have held that the offshore supply will not be taxable in India if the obligations under the contract and the consideration for offshore supply, offshore services, onshore supply and services are distinct and separate and if the title in the equipment is transferred outside India and payments are also received outside India. Thus, if the contract provides that the property in goods shall pass at the time of loading of goods at the port of shipment, the sale would be completed outside India, even if the contractor was to additionally perform onshore services like customs clearance, port handling, or retain care, custody and control of the equipment and have overall responsibility, till final acceptance and equipment testing in India. A single point performance guarantee, or a covenant to the effect that a default under the offshore supply component would automatically be deemed as a default or breach of the onshore component, would also not affect the passing of the property outside India. A right to examine and repudiate equipment does not, by itself, indicate that property has not passed, if separate remedies by way of repairs, replacement or payment of damages are available for such breach. However the position could be different if the buyer reserves the right to reject the equipment on acceptance test failure in India. Provisions relating to part payment of the offshore supply price, after receipt at the Indian site, do not affect the passing of the property in goods. Likewise, signing of the contract in India is of no consequence where the offshore supply activities are carried out outside India and the Indian project office for onshore activities is not involved, or, has no role to play, in the offshore supply. In some recent cases, profit from offshore supply was held to be taxable in India. In these cases, there was a finding that the onshore entity was a façade created for taxation purposes and was not actually engaged in executing onshore contracts; that it was formed prior to the award of the contract and had a vital role to play in the execution of the entire project; that even after the goods were supplied from outside India, certain parts which were to be fused with the machinery supplied were manufactured in India and it was the responsibility of the contractor to supply the total equipment; that a single contract initially awarded had been subsequently split into separate contracts and there was an allegation that the price under the onshore contract was ‘loaded on' to the contract price for the offshore contract. Thus, certain ‘Do's' and ‘Don'ts' need to be kept in mind while structuring EPC contracts. Additionally, one may consider approaching the AAR since this issue has been the subject matter of several advance rulings. (The author is Director with Deloitte Haskins & Sells. The views expressed herein are his own)
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If you are like many leaders, you pay attention to opportunities to make a career move that expands your prospects and stretches your leadership capabilities. There is nothing wrong with that. New and higher-level positions typically offer learning, growth and better compensation. But in constantly scanning the horizon, you may miss seeing growth opportunities much closer to home.Our research at the Center for Creative Leadership convinces us that leaders, at any time, can take on challenges that will substantially expand their knowledge and skills without a job change. You, too, can seek fresh leadership challenges by using one of these three strategies.1. Reshape your current job. Manish, Director, Marketing Research at a large retail company, and Chandrika, his colleague in Public Relations, felt they were getting stale in their jobs. They hit upon the idea of trading a couple of projects and sold the idea to their respective bosses as an opportunity to learn from experience through on-the-job development. As a result, they both learned new skills and gained a wider perspective on their organization and industry. Other ways to reshape your job are: Ask your boss to delegate a new responsibility to you, such as making monthly presentations, managing a client relationship, or preparing a feasibility report. Look for something that he or she has already mastered and would be glad to move from his or her plate to yours. Take on a job that is needed but currently left undone. For example, one manager felt that it took too long for new employees in his unit to get up to speed. He stepped in, and set up and ran a peer coaching process. Teaching others to be peer coaches improved his own coaching skills. Rethink your approach to a current responsibility. Is there some part of your job that you tend to avoid? It might be because you are not very skilled at it. One administrator told us how she dreaded the introduction of new organizational systems or procedures because her employees always complained, and she didn't know how to change their attitudes. She came to realize that she needed to embrace this challenge rather than avoid it—using each new organizational change as an opportunity to practice being an effective change champion. 2. Select temporary responsibilities with your development in mind. In an interview, Thomas described how he had jumped at the opportunity to manage a large multisite research project with a tight deadline. The deadline, coupled with responsibility for critical decisions and the project's strategic importance and visibility, increased his decisiveness and his ability to work under pressure. You can seek out projects, task forces, and temporary activities that expose you to new leadership responsibilities for a limited period of time. For example: •Join a project team that is breaking new ground in your organization, such as one that is opening a new market or installing a new system. With the opportunity to lead a new initiative, you enhance your ability to think strategically and your comfort level with ambiguity. •Volunteer to manage a high-profile customer or business partner. You'll learn to deal with accountabilities from multiple directions—from your own organization and from external sources. •Co-lead a project with someone in another function. Assignments that require you to collaborate across functions or business units will strengthen your ability to influence others. •Serve on a team or committee with members from other countries. This is a way to get international exposure without leaving home. 3. Seek leadership challenges outside the workplace. One leader described joining an environmental group not only because he was passionate about the cause but also because it was a setting for negotiating with multiple, equally passionate stakeholders—a skill that would be of great benefit to him in his workplace. You can gain valuable leadership experience by serving in volunteer, social, and professional organizations. For example: •Start something new outside of work—a new volunteer program for your child's school or a new professional network in your region. •Volunteer for a task that you've never done before in a community or professional organization, such as organizing a fund-raiser or representing the group to the media. •Lead your charitable or professional organization through a process that requires input from multiple stakeholders (e.g., creating a long-term strategic plan, revamping the governance structure for the organization). But before you take on new responsibilities in your job, you must take measures to set yourself up for success. If you take on a temporary assignment that increases your workload, talk to your boss about moving lower-priority responsibilities off your plate. And look for ways to work more efficiently. For instance, let go of tasks that could and should be delegated; or create better systems for monitoring and tracking work so that you don't need to "touch" projects at so many points. Most importantly, look around for someone who has done the kind of work you are taking on who can coach you and give you feedback. You'll make fewer mistakes because that person can give you advice, answer questions, and point you to other resources in the organization. Talk to your most trusted colleagues about the skills you are working to improve; they can then pay closer attention and deliver richer feedback. Finally, it's helpful to have a trusted sounding board—a person removed from the assignment who can help you reflect on your own learning and assess your progress.Ultimately, it is in your best interest to take charge of your own learning. This approach will serve you well throughout your life. (The author is a Senior fellow of Center for Creative Leadership)
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Shiv Someshwar, Director of climate policy at the Earth Institute talks to Businessworld's Yashodhara Dasgupta how sustainable development goals can be used to highlight the inequities in the current system What is sustainable development?In 1987, a UN World Commission on Environment and Development report — ‘Our Common Future' (the Brundtland Report) — laid the basis for the concept of sustainability. The heavy focus was on intergenerational equity, both for now and in the future. Fast forward to Johannesburg 2002, the concept was revisited and it was clarified it by having three core areas – environmental sustainability, economic growth and social equity. The effort was to make sure that growth, equity and environment are recognised because there was a sense that developing countries were getting upset with the focus on sustainability which many thought was a ‘green wash'. They thought that advanced economies are talking about limits to growth by using the term sustainability because of the idea that there is one finite planet and it has to support all of us. The key word then is equity. It takes an entire village to support one person in the US. Here in India, you have 35 per cent of the population under the poverty line. So that's why effort was made to incorporate all three areas. Now, at Rio+20 (to be held in June 2012), the goal will be to revisit sustainable development. Some countries, according to me, are mistakenly opposing this because they think sustainable development goals could be used to bypass issues of equity and common but differentiated responsibilities. But actually, they can use the sustainable development goals to basically highlight the inequities in the current system and force the industrialised countries to actually come up with the financing that has always been promised.You guys need to be really pushing. You need to be pushing also for scientific data. What does science say about the 2 degree Centigrade target? How can you be so blasé about 2 degrees? It's is a huge amount. And now the US is going to say well, we never really promised. So we're looking at 4 degrees and it's not going to be linear rise in temperature. It's going to have all these huge implications on the ecosystem.How do you then bridge the information gap about climate change which exists nationally as well?That is not unique to climate issues. That is part and parcel of development itself. For example, the previous regime in the US used the uncertainties in the economic model to not make any policies. But not doing a policy is itself a policy. It's a job for NGOs, non-profits and the media to make sure it happens. There's a lot of emphasis with FDI coming in and the Indian government can put in money into renewable energy. I think these are very big stories that are completely absent in the news.But what is climate policy really?It is really policy on socio-economic development that has an impact on climate. If you're not going to be mitigating, how do you adapt? And so on. The implications of development on climate and then the equal impact of the same on the kind of policies you undertake in response to climate change. India has a very good set up called the Agro-Met Advisory system which is a world leader in giving climate information for 24-48 hrs to farmers. We've been working with them for 2-3 years to extend that to one month. When we think about climate change, it's important for mitigation and economic trajectories of governments but not for adaptation. At the farm level, if you talk about adaptation for a 100 years from now, they'd think it's really silly. They would want to focus on the next season or the next year. So the concept of what constitutes climate and response also has to be wider. You also need to anticipatory work plan as well.What are the key parts of climate policy?Whether one likes it or not, government departments and ministries are in silos. Given that fact, we need to make sure at critical junctures especially at spatial scales in the district and state level, there is really strong inter-sectoral policy coordination so that we have don't have a situation where multiple climate policies say between agriculture, water resource management, energy are working at cross-purposes. Subsidies are also important. It's not about yanking the subsidies away. Here we have to look at the nature of the social safety net that we need to put in place anticipating the kind of welfare shock from removing the subsidies.So what's not being done here that should be?You have the very impressive eight missions – the National Action Plan on Climate Change – that are based on the trajectory of what's going to happen a hundred years from now. I'd like to see how resilient critical infrastructure is here in India now. Right now, like in the case of Mumbai floods, everything comes to a standstill. Or if there's a major drought, what happens to the farmers. In addition to this action plan, what's really important would be to engage the current infrastructure and policymaking to see what the resilience of the system is to enhanced climate variability. Where you had return periods of drought between 6-8 years, now in some parts of India that may be 4-6 years. What would happen then? What would happen in case of extreme events? Doing this gives you a sense of the vulnerability of infrastructure to climate dynamics and you know what else you need to do in order to create resilience. This also gives you a chance to look at the new infra requirements just from the climate perspectives. Too many times when people talk about adaptation, they only focus on climate as the dynamics as though only climate is changing and the rest of it is static – what I call development nirvana. That's not really the case at all. You've got massive population movement, resource intensification, changes in agricultural patterns and job structures in urban areas. Once you've looked at the vulnerability and new infra requirements, on top of that add what you know about the population trajectory or the urbanising trend, what else should be the combined infrastructure. That's one thing I feel India should do and that's also a way to immediately attract the attention of policymakers. What happened in Mumbai was because of climate change as well as designs which were a 100 years old.What about pay-offs?You can also look at this in terms of engaging new areas of opportunity. Indian entrepreneurs are extremely innovative in seeking out new areas. For example, the efficiency of buildings, fuel efficiency, using less materials – there's a huge opportunities in a series of industries. The same thing holds for agriculture. Businesses always protest when things are changing and that they need stability of policy. But the very fact was that they got into the business at the time of change. So I don't think they should fear policy changes as long as it is reasonable and has scientific backing.How do you bring financial institutions into this?There's a great deal of emphasis for example, in the states of New York and California forcing insurance companies to reveal plans for extreme climate events. Do they have any plans or are they just going to throw up and declare bankruptcy. The green insurance companies have been at the forefront of climate risk evaluation. And investors want to figure out if their investments are safe in the insurance companies. This is how the finance industry is becoming savvy on the risk and opportunities from changing climate.What about those in India?Pata nahi (No idea).Will it be effective to look at these public goods as global commons or local commons?Local can be looked at as metropolitan, as sub-national all the way to global. All of them have the commons embedded and have institutions that are at the national level accountable to the citizens. But what happens to water aquifers or to fertile agricultural lands in delta regions? There's accountability there and at the same time, nation-states are making policies at the global level. So it makes no sense to talk about local versus global. The tragedy of the commons can happen at any of these levels. Garrett Hardin had it wrong. It's a very famous thesis. But there's much research that came out later to say that there are social rules of engagement and regulations that permit a certain level of extraction like you have at a national level as well. So we're not trying to figure out is how to make sure we inform policy makers across these levels. Biophysically and socio-economically they're all connected. For example, if there's a bumper harvest of coffee in Brazil, the price of coffee collapses. We longer have the freedom to say this is within our national boundaries, we don't care what happens outside.What about just the term global commons? It would have the same impact as protecting national commons.I think that comes down to good communication. Global doesn't mean we're disconnected. We're all part of the world. I do see what you're saying. There is a sense of disconnect. That's made worse by the scale of 100 years. We need to focus on right now.Related Link: Changing For Good
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