Reference Auto

Manipulation has probably seen prices of vegetables such as onions and tomatoes along with fruits soar to unprecedented levels. This is the ideal time – just before Christmas and New Year – for hoarders to manipulate as the demand soars.

So, the unusual prices coupled with an uptick in demand have allowed hoarders, retailers as well as wholesales make a quick buck. Not that the issue is entirely stage-managed.

Yes, there may be an iota of truth in the inflation figures. As per data, food inflation shot up to 12.13 per cent this week from 9.46 per cent last week. And, a price rise is only natural.

But not the kind we see in newspapers which have reported that vegetable prices have risen 15.5 per cent in a year, while the figure for milk is 17.7 per cent, for fruits it is 20.1 per cent, for egg, fish and meat 19.4 per cent and for condiments and spices it is a whopping 32 per cent.

But, as the government does not have a proper mechanism in place to check manipulators, prices tend to head skyward.

Like stock market watchdog Sebi, which has brought a great deal of transparency into our bourses over the years, can we not have an autonomous regulator to check hoarding by traders and wholesalers? In fact, the body can declare retail price trends of vegetables on a weekly basis and put it in newspapers so that hoarding can be obliterated.

Yes, it is an insurmountable task to reach out to every nook and corner of the country, but once a mechanism is put in place, it could help find a long-term solution to check prices of vegetables.

Is A Raja’s CBI grilling too late?

Are we going to see the conviction of a once stalwart politician A Raja, who has drained the government coffers of Rs 1.76 lakh crore, in awarding telecom licences.

Well, even though the CBI has zeroed in on him (after Raja decided to give the investigating agency an audience), the probe has started late enough to allow destruction of evidence. So, now is it time for another politician (Raja) to go scot free?

Moreover, what’s baffling is that Raja’s party, the DMK, instead of reprimanding him, is campaigning in his support. And this could pave the way for other politicians to follow suit and garner support of friends, aides and party men to conceal their crimes.

Backing a politician under such circumstances is tantamount to supporting corruption. So, are we in India actually interested in weeding out corruption or are we still supporting it?

The CBI has also raided Suresh Kalmadi in Pune and found a CD which allegedly contained evidence against him. The person who had the CD in his possession was blackmailing Kalmadi and demanding Rs 4 crore.

This is something Kalmadi did not reveal to the police, clearly indicating that he could have been a party to the irregularities that took place during the Commonwealth Games.

Like the Raja case, the government has allowed the CBI to go ahead with its probe but has also given Kalmadi ample time to come clean (by destroying evidence?). At least, the Congress can claim that their partymen are not beyond the law.

Has Sheila Dikshit’s proximity to Sonia Gandhi helped the Delhi chief minister wriggle out of the Commonwealth Games scandal and put the blame squarely on Suresh Kalmadi?

Although Dikshit said corruption lied in the Commonwealth Games Organising Committee, Kalmadi, who is the panel’s chairman, retorted saying Dikshit should check corruption in her department first.

Kalmadi said, “We don’t want to be the scapegoat anymore. The Organising Committee is constantly being hauled up for the delays in construction when it was not involved in the works.”

Even the Central government seems to be riveting the spotlight on Kalmadi with regard to the corruption issue, excluding him from key Commonwealth Games meetings, which were attended by Dikshit.

So, should Dikshit own up (along with Kalmadi) and share the blame for the shoddy patch up of Delhi’s roads, incomplete flyover near the Commonwealth Games Village (Mayur Vihar Phase I), shooing away beggars and prohibiting Blueline buses to operate for two weeks forcing commuters to jostle for space in the few DTC buses.

Also, the area outside the Commonwealth Games Village was abysmal and the pavements in the vicinity (near the Yamuna bridge in ITO) were covered with banners to conceal the filth that lay beyond it.

Prime Minster Manmohan Singh, who is known for his clean image, has set up a probe within 24 hours of the Commonwealth Games by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG). Also, agencies such as the Central Vigilance Commission and the Income Tax department have started their independent scrutiny.

The Comptroller and Auditor General will start the audit work of Commonwealth Games Village from October 28 and probe allegations of financial irregularities.

The CAG will most likely audit the accounts of Delhi Development Authority and the expenditure incurred for constructing at the Commonwealth Games Village. It will also look into the alleged favours granted to a leading real estate group for various construction projects.

But will Sheila Dikshit be made to share the blame or can the Sonia connection help her come clean on the issue?