The first conference of FTI was held in February 2010 in Mumbai. A detailed report on the conference, published in the March issue of the Towards a Great India magazine, is provided below (report prepared by Supratim Basu and condensed by Sanjeev Sabhlok).

Photograph below: FTI members on the first day of the Conference, 20 February 2010

Left to right: Rahul Pandit, Ajay Anand, L.K.Kandpal, Siddharth Shankar, Ritesh Shukla, Supratim Basu, Anil Sharma, Akalpita Paranjpe, Ujjwal Bannerjee, Sanjeev Sabhlok, Dipinder Sekhon, Vishal Singh, Col. L. Anand, Shantanu Bhagwat, Kamal Sharma, Arun Shankar.

Not depicted (attended on the second and third days): Ashish Jauhari

Apology: Sandeep Shelke, Ram K. Atri, N.P. Singh. Many other members had wanted to attend but could not make it to this conference. We look forward to meeting them in future conferences.

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This has been prepared by a new member based on his experience of FTI. Please always start with the New Member Pack here.

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Welcome to FTI. Read this guide to get up and running with the workflow on FTI.

1. Get Gmail and make your life easier. Create a label for FTI using http://mail.google.com/support/bin/answer.py?answer=118708. Set the label to archive the message(skip Inbox). Create a filter for FTI on gmail using http://mail.google.com/support/bin/answer.py?answer=6579 . Now all mails from google group should go to label.

2. FTI is divided into various other FTI groups for management. Currently the following groups exist: FTI Managers | FTI Backoffice | FTI Finance Committee | FTI ARMC | FTI Disciplinary Committee | FTI Adharshila | Adharshila Steering Committee | Freedom Partners FTI General Body| Towards a Great India | | FTI Future Leaders

3. Get to know the members of FTI here. Update your information also.  For updating your information log into the blog using the username/password you should have received. Then go to profiles and fill up all relevant information.

4. Participate in fortnightly skype conference.

5. Take a look at the task spreadsheet here. This is a snapshot of whats going on FTI currently. If you want to add a new task, raise a conversation on the group.

6. Observe the conversation traffic on the group for a few days. Soon you would understand the workings and the context of the conversation and then chip in with your views

7. Should you wish to speak to someone from FTI over Skype you are encouraged to contact Mr. Shantanu Bhagwat at jai.dharma@gmail.com, with the subject: “FTI new member: wish to talk” and arrange a suitable time with him.

This quick guide should help you ramp up. Ask questions on the group if you need some help.

Go ahead and do it, if you believe something needs to be done.

Freedom Team of India (FTI) fully understand the value of hard earned money and thats why FTI works extremely hard to ensure that every amount you donate is used in the best possible way to bring much needed reforms.

FTI Bank details

Bank name: Axis Bank
Account number: 909020039016803
Customer Id: 832717284
Branch/Branch code: Indore (043)
NEFT code: UTIB0000043
Branch Address: Kamal Palace Indore 452003

Residing in India
Above bank details may be used for online donations within India. Donation to FTI is exempt from Income Tax under section 80G.

Overseas donation
Funds may be transferred through NRE bank account. Members are entitled to open their NRE bank account from anywhere in the world without visiting India.

Other publications

Powerpoint slide show (summary of strategy)

FTI’s strategy is outlined through these power point slides (about 300 KB). This draft is dated 13 November 2009 and is subject to improvement over the coming months.

Detailed strategy (Word document)

FTI’s detailed strategy is presented in this Word document (280KB) dated 19 November 2009. As usual, all FTI documents are subject to revision/ amendment.

The meeting was held in Mumbai on 1^st August 2009. Awadhesh Singh, Vishal Singh, and Babu Joseph from FTI attended the meeting, along with S.V. Raju the organiser who is also an FTI member. In all, there were about 60-75 participants coming from diverse fields such as business, education, media, social work, etc. Some of the well-known participants:

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I was watching a Television chat show this Sunday, There was a man who had come to talk about his Episode with a hospital. His father felt sick and he went to a Government Hospital, the government hospital turned him down and asked him to go to a particular Private Hospital, he in a bid to save his fathers life lands there.

Now the Hospital asks him to pay 40,000 Initially, and he does, after a few days of fleecing him, the hospital finally declares that his father is dead, and all this four days he was not allowed to see the Father because they said that they don’t want anyone to get into the ICU when he was critically ill.

The hospital also slapped a bill of 2,25,000 on him, coming from a poor back ground, this was beyond his wildest dreams, but Luck favored him from inside, a insider nurse who saw his condition spilled the beans, ” your father has been dead for 2 days” this is the hospitals strategy to take money out of you?

Shocked? everyone in the forum was, But finally the whole village came with him and they fought with the hospital and they police and the hospital bargained and the people of the village collected money paid the one lakh and released the old mans body. I was really moved hearing this story.

on the contrary if you start thinking , i was wondering when we pay so much of taxes, arent we entitled to good health care? alteast in the cities we have some government hospitals, but in he rural areas i doubt if there is any access to health care?

Also, its so strange that to open a private hospital one does not need a license?

With so much of people, resources, I have one question to answer myself, why are we not able to provide health care services like the Private institutions do? Is it a nexus between the Government and the Private hospitals?

Who cares? as long as we make money we will pay it to the Private vendors who see health care not as a service but a large money making unit?

think , act

Joe

I was travelling with my friend who was visiting me from the United States; we were at the Trivandrum Railway Station to pick up tickets to go to my home town. The counters where crowded and we settled in a queue waiting for our turn to buy tickets for the train. A couple of people came in and rushed to the counter telling they where late for the train ahead of the queue, no one in the queue reacted, Suddenly I saw my friend walking towards the counter, I was wondering why, before I could react he was dragging both of them back to the queue. I couldn’t stop laughing and then when they tried to go again a few of us reacted asking him to go behind, sitting in the train, we were talking when he told me, this can happen only in India, people can break a queue and walk ahead with the others not complaining, this would not happen in my place, I started arguing with him, that he had mentioned that he was late for the train and we have to be compassionate. Something he told me struck me very hard.

Trains don’t change times every day in India, why couldn’t the gentleman come in time? And why does he take advantage of all the people standing there? He is no handicap for me to let him break the queue. There was a valid point there; It had hit me really hard. I drive to office everyday and we have to cross a toll, and everyday there are people who cut the line and come threaten you to give them way, I am sure everyone would have experienced it, some people fight back and some people don’t, I started fighting back, I would not let anyone break the queue and go ahead of me, and I would try and block him and let other vehicles go. But there are a lot of people I see don’t bother.
Have we started becoming a bunch of people who are completely laid back with the attitude of whatever happens I am not bothered?

We have bad roads? No problem we will live with that

We have price raise? No problem we will live with that

Are we becoming undemanding people who will live with what the public administration provides us with? Strangely it looks so, when the Mumbai blasts came, everyone came out, everyone wanted things to change and then after a few weeks its dead, I am sure we all need to take care of our own conveniences, but giving some time and making an effort to see if something can be done for the good of the country is not going to hurt us.

The governments and the Politicians take advantage of us, why, he knows he will get away with whatever he does, and he knows people here won’t even bother, then he makes his Son and daughter his second commands, he make his party a family affair, we are not bothered, we are on the verge of bringing a feudal system of Governance, Who cares?

Prices of essential commodities are going up, who cares? I have money to buy that, today it’s the poor, tomorrow it’s you, we are all going to face problems reacting then would be too late. It’s today or never. Rise up every Indian, your slumber is enough. Work towards making your nation a better place, spend half a day a week for your nation, I am sure we can change it, are you going to wake up my Indian soul? are you going to fight for your right? this is your nation, the servants who work for you are looting it away, they are making a criminal den,they are destroying your mother land, how long? will you ever wake up? Duty calls but ………….

Joe

In our childhood days, when we were told about India’s ‘unity in diversity’ I’m sure we would never have understood the full extent of the meaning of the phrase but now, thanks to omnipotent ‘nepotism’ in Indian politics, our education system might incorporate yet another example of teaching our children about India’s ‘unity in diversity’. From Abdullhas in Kashmir to Karunanidhis in Tamil Nadu our politicians are one in perpetrating ‘nepotism’ and it’s not an exaggeration if we claim this gene of nepotism runs in every Indian’s blood, across the length and breadth of the country!

Like many of the ill-wills afflicting this nation, the disease called nepotism too was effectively introduced in Indian politics by the Congress party in its obsession with the Nehru-Gandhi family.

Apart from the three family trees so far mentioned in this article the dynasties spread across all “isms” and all regions of our political spectrum. From the Thackerays, the Pawars and the Deoras of Maharashtra to the Karunakarans of Kerala to the Chidambarams and the Ramadosses of Tamil Nadu to the Naidus and Reddys of Andhra Pradesh to the Gowdas of Karanataka to Patnaiks of Orissa to the Mulayams and Mayawatis of Uttar Pradesh to the Badals in Punjab to the Chautalas in Haryana to the Scindias, Jaswant Singhs and Pilots in Rajasthan to the Laloos and company in Bihar, the list is endless. They believe in Parivars or gharana politics rather than in ideologies. They are the first families in their respective fiefdoms and are law unto themselves.

The end result is our political parties, while fighting tooth and nail to perpetrate their kinds of rule in their local strongholds, are never interested in spending time and energy to democratise their internal systems. It’s because of the fear that they might lose their grip over the family silver. Most of the political parties are nothing but private limited companies. When starting a political party has become such a profitable venture it is foolhardy on the part of the electorate to expect any kind of self-regulation and internal democracy. Most of our present day leaders are ‘state men’ rather than ‘statesmen’.

Recently the Supreme Court found it difficult to give directions to political parties to file income tax returns when the Association of Democratic Reforms, in its petition, urged the Apex Court to order them to file income returns for each assessment year. The bench consists of Chief Justice K.G. Balakrishnan and Justice P. Sathasivam merely said, “…it was for the Income Tax Department to look into the issue. Why should we interfere in it?”

Political parties in India get divided not due to any ideological reasons but mainly due to family feuds and palace intrigues. As Pratap Bhanu Mehta writes, “Our political parties seem to be similar in their style of functioning. Most are based on loyalty to leaders rather than loyalty to causes or institutions. Very few have properly institutionalised norms of recruitment and membership. And none has any real intra-party democracy.”

Meanwhile what’s even more striking is the recent remark by Rahul Gandhi when he admits ‘democracy’ in political parties “is non-existent in India”. You cannot enter politics unless you are well connected. The outburst of Margaret Alva, one of the staunch family loyalists of the Gandhis, when she speaks of Congress tickets being ‘sold’ is sadly true.

Both Rahul Gandhi and Margaret Alva are living examples of all that is wrong with the Congress in particular and the Indian political system, in general. Whilst there is no doubt about the lineage of Rahul Gandhi, Margaret Alva too is a product of nepotism and privilege. As the daughter-in-law of Joachim and Violet Alva, the first Congress couple in the parliament, she was handpicked by Indira Gandhi to become a Rajya Sabha MP, in 1974, when she was barely 32. She went on to serve four terms till 1998. In 1999, she contested on a Lok Sabha ticket and won. In both Rajiv Gandhi and Narasimha Rao cabinets she held important portfolios and therefore it’s totally uncalled for when she suddenly accuses the very system, which has so far helped her reap benefits.

The answer is not a difficult one. Like any Indian political leader would behave in a similar manner, she too wants to continue with the same tradition and would like to plant her elder son Nivedith, as her successor in the system, before it is too late!

The irony is that it is simply out of place for both Margaret Alva and Rahul Gandhi to adopt this kind of moral posturing in a party ruled by a political dynasty and crowded with children of political clans.

What’s also amazing is the shadow boxing that both the leaders unwittingly indulge in. In Alva’s case the real target is none other than Digvijay Singh, the chairman of the screening committee who, she claims, is the man who looked the other way while tickets were being bought and sold. On the other hand it’s an open secret that Digvijay Singh enjoys the confidence of none other than Rahul Gandhi himself!

So, is Margaret Alva taking on Rahul Gandhi to tell the whole world how come nepotism on the part of the first family of the Congress is okay but not of other leaders? Or is it called the ‘family value’?

It would be interesting to see how the Congress leadership handles this unlikely scenario but one thing is clear: coteries in the Congress Party are well and alive and Benjamin Disraeli has to blame himself for speaking too much when he said, “change is constant” but, of course, he only talked about “a progressive country”. Sadly, India is just an ‘imitation democracy’