Posts
Some time ago, we witnessed
public rage over the wide-spread corruption in our country. With the help of the Right to Information
Act (RTI), which empowered ordinary folks to take on the officials in
government positions to deal with corruption. Activists brought to the notice of the general
public, how vested interests had been exploiting the common man and depriving
them of their rights and privileges. A wave of protests swept the nation – only
to cool down gradually and disappear into the ethereal space that held other
frightful prospects for the hapless citizens of India.
The prospect of being victim of
heinous gangrapes! Not a single day
passes without a report of a violent attack on some woman, girl child - or even
an infant! Each case more shocking than the other! Society would certainly need to treat such
mentally deranged members before they become offenders. But in these episodes, what emerges it that the
accountability and dependability of the very establishment that is expected to
protect the citizens of our country is now under question – the Police force!
I have just one question to
ask them: “Tell me, what is your problem
in filing an FIR?”
There is hardly an instance where
the police have immediately
registered the FIR when victims of horrendous crimes have approached the Police
with their complaints. I have not heard
a single valid explanation from any one on what prevents them from taking down
the complaint and registering an FIR!
Do they think that people just go to the Police Station with frivolous
complaints only to harass them? Or do
they think that problems will disappear if they drive them away with a wave (or
strike) of their lathis? I am
clueless! Aren’t they employed just for
us citizens? Or are you waiting for a “Right to File an FIR Act” to be enacted
and come into force?
As rampant corruption and violent
crimes grow to gargantuan proportions, the economic and financial crimes,
generally referred to as ‘white-collared crimes’ are not the kind to sit back
and watch their darker cousins steal the limelight! Heartrending scenes of thousands of investors
losing their hard-earned money can be witnessed on TV news channels, as the
perpetrators vanish with their booty! It
is amazing to find rural folks invest in chit funds and MLMs / chain marketing
schemes – all because of a promise to give phenomenal returns. Schemes that offer unbelievably high returns
are just that – unbelievable! Yet,
several thousands of gullible investors allow greed to prevail over common
sense and become victims of such financial frauds committed by ‘scheming’
innovative offerings. Some, who have
invested their entire life-time savings, have ended up committing suicides!
I have blogged about MLMs and‘get-rich-quick’ schemes before. The
question that one needs to ask is how could they offer such returns in the
first place? What business could give so
much return as to double the money in as fast a time as 6 months or a
year? And as soon as we get a couple of
instalments, we ask all our friends and relatives to join in the investment
frenzy – so we all get rich together?!!
Readers of my blog would have been
wise and stayed away from such traps, but what about the thousands of poor
rural folk who get duped day in and day out? Spreading financial education, prudence and
awareness among rural masses is a pressing need of our times. Should we not entrust this task to public
sector banks who have a nationwide network to take on this task with the help
of local NGOs rather than push mutual funds and complex insurance cum
investment schemes? That way, we will
be able to fill in the gap too and lend credibility to the banking
industry. Some soul-searching by banking industry would be needed before we
can expect that to happen! Or is it
expecting too much from target-oriented professionals?
The other aspect that amazes us
is the enormous sums that such funds and schemes manage to muster until the
bluff is called. The inaction of
regulators is a subject beyond the scope of this post. I can look forward to
Moneylife Magazine to pick up the cudgels against such bodies. The magazine has never failed to take up severial causes of the investor in every issue – the reason why I have just renewed
my subscription for another 3 years, without any hesitation! Moneylife NGO set up
by them works on investor education, consumer protection and such subjects of
public interest that sets it apart. One
sees them play a big role in investor awareness so that fly-by-night operators
fail in every of their effort to con the public at large. It is due to these ignorant, greedy and foolish investors
that trust them with their money, that they flourish.
PS: Although I do not blog regularly, I share my thoughts and other interests and post some funnies on Twitter more regularly. My Twitter id is @gopinathmm Do follow me on Twitter.
