Saturday 21 December 2019
Neurologist Dr A V Srinivasan speaks on 'leading healthy life without neurological problems
The eMagazine PreSense and Shreyan Foundation jointly organised an interactive session with Dr A V Srinivasan, internationally renowned neurologist at Chennai on 15th Dec 2019. During the introductory speech, Dr A V Srinivasan, explained the various aspects of neurological problems and how to safeguard from these problems.
Please listen to the audio. This is Part One of the series.
Wednesday 28 August 2019
Booklet on Five Initiatives of PreSense Launched
After launching the eDigest PreSense150, Shri K Pandiarajan, Hon’ble Minister launched a 16-page booklet containing information about the five initiatives of PreSense. The editorial team members and the heads of the five initiatives were present on the stage.
1. Education Loan Task Force (ELTF) (to create awareness among the students about Education Loan)
2. Sansad Ratna Awards (to honour the outstanding Parliamentarians every year)
3. Digital Journalists Association of India (DiJAI) (to create awareness about Digital Journalism amongst the students and the working journalists)
4. Digital Security Association of India (DiSAI) (to create awareness about Digital Security among the public)
5. Next Gen Political Leaders (NGPL) (to develop young political leaders across all parties and mentor them)
1. Education Loan Task Force (ELTF) (to create awareness among the students about Education Loan)
2. Sansad Ratna Awards (to honour the outstanding Parliamentarians every year)
3. Digital Journalists Association of India (DiJAI) (to create awareness about Digital Journalism amongst the students and the working journalists)
4. Digital Security Association of India (DiSAI) (to create awareness about Digital Security among the public)
5. Next Gen Political Leaders (NGPL) (to develop young political leaders across all parties and mentor them)
The digital version of this booklet can be downloaded from the following link.
Launch of 150th edition of PreSense and eDigest PreSense150
Launch of 150th edition of eMagazine PreSense and eDigest PreSense150 |
The landmark of the 150th edition of PreSense was celebrated in an event held at Chennai on August 24th 2019. The Chief Guest, Hon’ble Minister of Tamil Nadu, Shri Ma Foi K.Pandiarajan did the honours of releasing the eDigest, PreSense150 which is a compilation of select articles from the 150 editions of the eMagazine. Shri M.R. Sivaraman IAS (Retired), Former Revenue Secretary to Government of India and Former Executive Director, International Monetary Fund (IMF) was the Guest of Honour.
The Hon’ble Minister lauded the performance of the eMagazine and reminisced about his association with it during his early days as a corporate CEO. He suggested expanding the reach of the eMagazine as well as publishing the Tamil version of the eMagazine articles.
Shri Sivaraman in his message spoke about the role and responsibility of the journalists in the changing technology and environment of the media. His message was especially significant since he gave an elaborate presentation about his experience with the media in the earlier days of his career when journalists were “clean, matter-of-fact, polite and well-behaved and responsible” about the truth of the news he reported. In contrast, he found the journalists of the current trend less accountable.
He gave a detailed and comparative account of the role of the journalists and the media of the yesteryears vis-Ã -vis those of the current changing environment, and enumerated the key attributes of a good journalist. He concluded by saying, “journalism is an extremely important wing in the governance of the country.” The public must be informed and the media is the source of the information. The media as the fourth estate, is like the fourth leg of a chair which cannot stand on three legs.
He gave a detailed and comparative account of the role of the journalists and the media of the yesteryears vis-Ã -vis those of the current changing environment, and enumerated the key attributes of a good journalist. He concluded by saying, “journalism is an extremely important wing in the governance of the country.” The public must be informed and the media is the source of the information. The media as the fourth estate, is like the fourth leg of a chair which cannot stand on three legs.
Smt Rehana, Member of City of London Corporation, shared the experience of her journey from a corporate personality to a political figure. She appreciated the Next Gen Political Leaders (NGPL) initiative of PreSense. Shri Ramasubbu, former Member of Parliament (MP) and five-time Sansad Ratna Awardee also shared his experience and perspective as an MP and Awardee.
The launch was followed by a talk by renowned neurologist, Dr A.V. Srinivasan who spoke about ‘Brain Health’, and a panel discussion on ‘Current Trends in Media’. The expert panellists who participated were Shri T K Rangarajan MP, Shri Rangaraj Pandey, Founder and CEO, Chanakyaa and CEO, Vendhar TV channel, and Smt Banu Gomes, Popular Political Analyst. The discussions were moderated by Prime Point Srinivasan.
The eDigest PreSense150 can be downloaded from the following link.
www.prpoint.com/ezine/presense150
The eDigest PreSense150 can be downloaded from the following link.
www.prpoint.com/ezine/presense150
The video recording of the event can be viewed from the following YouTube links:
Hon'ble Minister Shri Ma Foi K Pandiarajan, launching the eDigest PreSense150
Address by Shri K Pandiarajan, Hon'ble Minister
Welcome address by Prime Point Srinivasan tracing the history of PreSense
Address by Shri M R Sivaraman IAS (Retired), Former Revenue Secretary to Govt. of India and Former Executive Director of IMF. (He talks on the current trends of Media and Journalism)
Address by Ms Rehana Ameer, Member, City of London Corporation - The first Indian to become a Member of London Corporation - She talks about the challenges she faced and how she overpowered them.
Address by Shri S S Ramasubbu, Former MP and five times Sansad Ratna Awardee in 15th Lok Sabha. He shared his experience on how he was able to perform and win the Best Parliamentarian award.
Address by Dr AV Srinivasan, internationally renowned Neurologist. He talks about Brain Health.
Panel discussion on "Current Media Trends" (Shri T K Rangarajan MP, Shri Rangaraj Pandey and Smt. Bhanu Gomes)
Photos of the launch event: http://www.tinyurl.com/presense150launch
Monday 26 August 2019
The Budget Session of the Parliament was held from June 17th 2019 to August 7th 2019. This was the first session of the Parliament after the elections for the 17th Lok Sabha. In the past, the Parliament used to hold a short session for oath-taking after the election of the new Lok
Sabha. This session would be followed by the Budget Session.
In the 17th Lok Sabha, the oath-taking session was combined with the Budget Session. Initially, the session was planned to be held from June 17th2019 to July 26th2019. It was extended to August 7th2019. During the Budget Session, Lok Sabha had sittings for 37 days and Rajya Sabha had sittings for 35 days.
Highest in 20 Years
During this session, Lok Sabha worked for 281 hours which is 135% of the scheduled hours. This is higher than any other session of the Parliament in the past 20 years. On an average, Lok Sabha worked for 81% of its scheduled time in the past 20 years. Rajya Sabha worked for 195 hours which is 100% of the scheduled hours. On an average,Rajya Sabha has worked for 76% of its scheduled ime during a session in the past 20 years.
Questions – Highest in 20 Years for Answers
Question Hour functioned for 95% of its scheduled time inLok Sabha and, 65% in Rajya Sabha during this session.During this session, 36% of the questions were answered orally in Lok Sabha by ministers. This is higher than any other session in the past 20 years. 40% of the questions received an oral answer from a minister in Rajya Sabha. This is the second highest among all sessions in the past 20 years.
On an average, 15% of the questions in Lok Sabha and 17% of the questions in Rajya Sabha received were answered orally during a session in the past 20 years.
Legislative
Business is the Highest in Ten Years
Business is the Highest in Ten Years
Lok Sabha spent 46% of its time on legislative business. The corresponding figure for Rajya Sabha is 51%.
38 Bills were introduced in Parliament during the Budget Session (excluding the Finance and Appropriation Bills). 28 Bills out of these were passed during this session. This is the highest for any session in the last 10 years.
265 first-term MPs (Members of Parliament) have been elected to the 17th Lok Sabha. The number of women MPs in the 17th Lok Sabha is 78.
94% of the first-term MPs participated in a debate in the Budget Session. This is significantly higher than the 16th Lok Sabha where 82% of the first-term members participated in a debate in the first session.
Top Performers – Two Women MPs Top the Entire Lok Sabha
The performance of Members is evaluated by their Initiated Debates,
Private Members Bills and Questions.
Ms Supriya Sule (NCP, Maharashtra) participated in 34 Initiated Debates, introduced 4 Private Members Bills and raised 109 Questions, bringing the total tally to 147. She is a third-time MP. She had
secured the No 1 position in the 16th Lok Sabha also. She is a Sansad Ratna Awardee.
secured the No 1 position in the 16th Lok Sabha also. She is a Sansad Ratna Awardee.
Dr Heena Vijayakumar Gavit (BJP, Maharashtra) participated in 12 Initiated Debates and raised 106 questions with a total
tally of 118. She is a second-time MP. She was honoured with Sansad Ratna Awards consecutively for four years during the 15th Lok Sabha.
tally of 118. She is a second-time MP. She was honoured with Sansad Ratna Awards consecutively for four years during the 15th Lok Sabha.
PreSense congratulates both of them for their excellent performance during the first session of the 17th Lok Sabha.
The 17th Lok Sabha has started with a big bang. It is hoped that the Members will continue to
maintain this high spirit and guide the nation towards prosperity.
By G Priya Dharshni, Deputy Editor, PreSense
(Data and graphics Source: PRS Legislative Research)
Published in August 2019 issue of eMagazine PreSense
Thursday 1 August 2019
Parameters for Sansad Ratna Awards for 17th Lok Sabha
Sansad Ratna Awards for 17th Lok Sabha - Jury Committee Members - L to R - Shri Shrirang Appa Barne, Shri Arjun Ram Meghwal and Shri N K Premachandran |
A new Jury Committee has
been constituted for 17th Lok Sabha.
1.Shri Arjun Ram Meghwal,
Hon’ble MOS Parliamentary Affairs – Chairman
Hon’ble MOS Parliamentary Affairs – Chairman
2.Shri N K Premachandran MP
(RSP – Kerala) – Member
(RSP – Kerala) – Member
3.Shri Shrirang Appa Barne
MP (Shiv Sena – Maharashtra) – Member
MP (Shiv Sena – Maharashtra) – Member
The Jury Committee
Members themselves were Sansad Ratna Awardees of the 15th and 16th
Lok Sabha.
Members themselves were Sansad Ratna Awardees of the 15th and 16th
Lok Sabha.
The newly constituted
Jury Committee for the Sansad Ratna Awards met at Delhi on 4th July 2019 under the Chairmanship of the Parliamentary
Affairs and Heavy Industries Minister, Mr Arjun Ram Meghwal, and finalised the
parameters to select the outstanding performers of the 17th Lok Sabha.
Jury Committee for the Sansad Ratna Awards met at Delhi on 4th July 2019 under the Chairmanship of the Parliamentary
Affairs and Heavy Industries Minister, Mr Arjun Ram Meghwal, and finalised the
parameters to select the outstanding performers of the 17th Lok Sabha.
PARAMETERS FOR SANSAD RATNA AWARDS FOR
17TH LOK SABHA
17TH LOK SABHA
1.
Debates :-
Debates :-
a.
Zero Hour
Zero Hour
b.
matter under Rule
of 377
matter under Rule
of 377
c.
Calling Attention
Calling Attention
d.
Private Members
Bills / Private Members Resolution
Private Members
Bills / Private Members Resolution
e.
Written Speeches
laid on the Table of the House.
Written Speeches
laid on the Table of the House.
The number of
Debates in respect of Government Bills, Budget, President’s Address, etc. have
not been taken into account as only the Party nominates the Speaker to
participate in the debate and individual M.P.s has no role in it.
Debates in respect of Government Bills, Budget, President’s Address, etc. have
not been taken into account as only the Party nominates the Speaker to
participate in the debate and individual M.P.s has no role in it.
2. Questions :-
a.
Number of oral
questions
Number of oral
questions
b.
Number of
unstarred questions (written and answers)
Number of
unstarred questions (written and answers)
3. Private Members
Bills :-
Bills :-
a. Number of Private Bills introduced.
Awards
1)
For Debates -
Paragraph 1 may be taken into account
For Debates -
Paragraph 1 may be taken into account
2)
For Questions - Paragraph
2 may be taken into account
For Questions - Paragraph
2 may be taken into account
3)
For Private
Members’s Bills - Paragraph 3 may be taken
into account
For Private
Members’s Bills - Paragraph 3 may be taken
into account
4)
For overall (3 awards)
- 1+2+3
For overall (3 awards)
- 1+2+3
(General + one
woman + First time MP)
woman + First time MP)
(Attendance and MPLAD utilization are additional qualifying
parameters)
parameters)
Excellence Award :-
Number of Debates
including Government Bills, Budget, President Address, etc. + Questions + Private Members Bills
including Government Bills, Budget, President Address, etc. + Questions + Private Members Bills
( Attendance and
MP Lad funds for additional qualifying parameters).
MP Lad funds for additional qualifying parameters).
Jury Committee Special Awards
Every year Jury
Committee will decide on the number of awards.
Committee will decide on the number of awards.
(For quality of
debates, intervention, etc.)
debates, intervention, etc.)
Rajya Sabha Award
Topper among the retires of previous year (Debates + Questions +
Private Members Bills)
Private Members Bills)
Awards for Standing Committees
Topper for Reports presented and number of meetings held. (Bills
excluded)
excluded)
Additional eligibility parameters
4. Attendance :-
a.
Attendance in the
House (Minimum 70%)
Attendance in the
House (Minimum 70%)
b.
Attendance during
sittings of the Committee (Minimum 60%)
Attendance during
sittings of the Committee (Minimum 60%)
5. MPLADS Funds :-
a. Amount
recommended under MPLADS funds (Minimum
recommendation 75%)
recommended under MPLADS funds (Minimum
recommendation 75%)
Awards will be presented every year after the Budget Session. Jury Committee decision is final.
Data source : Lok Sabha Secretariat and PRS India.
Wednesday 17 April 2019
2019 General Elections - Whom to vote?
The entire nation is in
the midst of General Elections to elect the 17th Lok Sabha. Every one of us can feel proud that we are
part of the world's largest democracy with more than 800 million people
electing the Government. We need to
compliment Indian Election Commission for their competence and neutrality.
Two major alliances one
under the leadership of BJP and the other under the leadership of Congress are
fighting in the election to get the mandate of the people to form the
Government. In addition, there are many
regional and smaller parties also in the fray.
Many suggestions are going
round in the social media advising people whom to vote. Some people suggest to vote for 'NOTA'
without even looking at the candidates.
Some people suggest to vote for people with highest qualification,
irrespective of their party, even if they contest as independent.
Though voting for any
candidate is a personal right, I suggest all voters to understand the
procedures of Parliament and the formation of Government and then calmly think
and go for voting without any bias or caste/religious consideration.
Before going in detail, we
should understand that as per Indian Constitution only three bodies are
directly elected by the people.
1. Lok Sabha
2. Lower House of State Legislative Assemblies
3. All Local bodies like village panchayats, Municipalities
and Corporations.
Duties of the elected
members of Lok Sabha, State legislature and the local bodies are
different. Generally people do not
understand their roles properly due to lack of awareness.
Duties
of the members of Lok Sabha
Though all of us discuss
politics in detail, many may not know the duties of the Lok Sabha Members. Without even knowing the role and duties of
Lok Sabha Members, people go for voting.
The Members of Parliament
have the following duties:
1. Legislation - Enact laws for the entire
country;
2. Discuss the financial budget and approve;
3. Participate in the Lok
Sabha Sessions and Committee Meetings and supervise the functioning of the
Government.
4. Represent the issues relating to the constituency,
state and the nation in the Parliament to find a solution. This includes
introducing new Central Government projects or improving the existing schemes.
Unfortunately, general
public do not have the awareness about the duties of Members of Parliament. They expect him/her to look after the local
civil needs, street cleaning, street lighting and other local works. Members of legislative Assemblies and the
local body councillors are required to look after the local civic
problems.
Most of the time, general
public perceives the MP who looks after the civic needs as the 'best MP'. These MPs get a good name from the local
people. There are many MPs, without
doing any Parliamentary work, get a good name from the local people by
resolving only local civic issues.
It is like a company
recruiting a General Manager to plan and execute higher projects, asking him to
do ordinary jobs. People should learn to expect higher performance from the
Members of Parliament and not ordinary works.
How
the Government gets formed?
After the General
Elections, the new Government will be formed. President of India will invite
the person who in his opinion commands the confidence of the majority of the
House to be the Prime Minister and form the Government. Though
Indian Constitution does not specify about political parties, in
reality, President will invite the Leader of the party or the Pre-Poll alliance
who has secured the majority in the House.
Presently, we have 543
seats in the Lok Sabha. The person who
commands the confidence of 272 members can become the Prime Minister. This person can be the leader of a single
party or alliance.
If there is no majority to
any political party or pre-poll alliance, it may lead to confusion and
instability. This will affect the governance
and the economy of the nation.
Since this General
Election is for formation of Central Government, every voter needs to be
careful while casting his/her vote.
Previous
Governments
1. 9th Lok Sabha was formed in 1989. The Government formed by VP Singh without
majority fell in 11 months. Chandrasekar
Government formed thereafter without majority also fell in 6 months. Lok Sabha
was dissolved. During this period, Indian economy suffered heavily. India had to pledge its Gold reserve to get
loan from England.
2. 10th Lok Sabha was formed in 1991. Congress formed the Government under the
Prime Ministership of PV Narasimha Rao, though there was a small shortage of
majority. Narasimha Rao provided a stable Government for five years. During this term, India opened up its
economy. Economic crisis was getting
solved.
3. 11th Lok Sabha was formed in 1996. None of the parties got the majority. As the single largest party, BJP formed the
Government under the leadership of Vajpayee.
This Government survived for 13 days.
Subsequently, Deve Gowda and IK Gujral formed the Governments without
majority one after other. All the
Governments could survive only for 18 months, as nobody could provide a stable
Government. The Lok Sabha was
dissolved. Due to power hungry leaders
of small parties, there was a political confusion and chaos, which led to the
collapse of Indian economy.
4. 12th
Lok Sabha was formed in 1998. This time
also none of the parties could secure majority.
BJP with 182 members formed the Government with the support of some
other parties. This Government survived
only for 13 months. Parliament was
dissolved, after Vajpayee lost vote of confidence in a single vote.
5. 13th Lok Sabha was formed in 1999. BJP led NDA secured 270 seats. NDA Government was formed with Vajpayee as
Prime Minister. Vajpayee provided stable
Government for five years. Indian
economy also was developed.
6. In the 14th Lok Sabha
formed in 2004, Congress secured 141 seats and BJP secured 130 seats. Congress formed UPA Government with alliance
parties, with Dr. Manmohan Singh as Prime Minister. He provided stable Government for five
years. Though the Government was stable,
due to pressure from alliance parties, there were several allegations of scam
during this period, which came to light later.
7. 15th and 16th Lok Sabha were formed in 2009
and 2014. Congress formed the UPA
Government in 2009 with Dr Mahmohan Singh as Prime Minister along with alliance
parties. In 2014, BJP secured majority on its own. However, they formed NDA Government along
with alliance parties with Narendra Modi as Prime Minister. Both the Governments were stable and improved
the economy.
From the above, one can
observe that whenever 'hung Parliament' happens without majority to any party
or alliance, political chaos, confusion happens leading to economic disaster.
We have seen smaller parties taking advantage of this situation, leading to
scam and corruption.
Appeal
to all voters
I humbly request all
eligible voters to consider the following:
1. Though there are several recognised and
registered political parties in the country, presently only BJP and Congress
are competent and experience to govern this large country with stable
Government. Our past experiences of
smaller parties heading the Government have led to disaster and chaos. Please
examine carefully without getting into emotion or bias, which party or pre-poll
alliance (NDA or UPA) can provide a stable, clean and efficient governance.
2. All parties, including
small parties release their manifestoes.
The promises by smaller parties are only for academic purposes. They do not carry any value. The manifestoes of BJP and Congress need to
be examined carefully. The promises by NDA and UPA can also be carefully
examined, if they have released.
3. If BJP or Congress or their pre-poll
alliances do not get majority and if the smaller parties and independents get
elected to 17th Lok Sabha in large numbers, it may lead to political chaos and
'horse trading' to woo the members to form the Government. The Government had to yield to their
unreasonable demands at the cost of the nation. India has seen those situations
earlier. I do not underestimate the
smaller parties or independents. They
have greater role to play in State Assemblies and Local bodies. Their role will be minimal in Lok Sabha,
where national parties play major role.
5. Some people campaign for 'NOTA'. Voting for NOTA is dangerous. It is like an invalid vote. As per the current rules, even if there is
99% NOTA in any Constituency, results will be declared based on the majority of
the remaining 1% vote. Please avoid
NOTA.
6. After examining the manifestoes and promises
of the major parties or their alliances, take an unbiased decision, to vote for
the party or alliance who can provide you stable, clean and efficient
governance, keeping in mind the economic growth, employment, national security,
etc. to take our nation to the next
level. As for as Lok Sabha elections
are concerned only the political parties or alliances are important, than the individual candidates.
7. Your vote is sacred. It is not for sale. Casting our vote is not only our right, it is
also our duty.
Jai Hind
By Prime Point Srinivasan,
Chennai