By MUNEEB FARAAZ | INNLIVE
By LIKHAVEER | INNLIVE
By M H AHSSAN | INNLIVE 
By M H AHSSAN | INNLIVE
By SARIN RAMASWAMY | INNLIVEBy LIKHAVEER | INNLIVE
In the recently concluded Budget session of Parliament, three BJP MPs spoke out openly against the government.
Last May, around the time Prime Minister Narendra Modi completed one year in office, a hitherto-undistinguished Bharatiya Janata Party member of Parliament, Bharat Singh, shot to fame by standing up in a weekly meeting of the party’s parliamentarians and, in the presence of Modi, questioned the functioning of the government. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Venkaiah Naidu, who was coordinating the meeting, had no option but to intervene and stop it abruptly.
The lone voice of dissent, which seemed feeble back then, has become louder as the BJP completes the second year in office. The wall of silence that appeared impregnable until it was breached by Bharat Singh, the BJP MP from UP’s Ballia constituency last year, seems to have weakened.
Not only have BJP MPs stopped taking Modi’s instructions in the parliamentary party meetings seriously, many of them have started expressing their rebellious voices on the floor of Parliament, embarrassing the government in full public view.
The just-concluded Budget session of Parliament was most striking in that sense, as three BJP MPs spoke out openly against the government. The most embarrassing moment for the government came just before the end of the Budget session when party MP Bhola Singh declared in the Lok Sabha on May 11 that “while eastern India lacks development, it has brains. Western India has development but lacks brains”.
Modi, who hails from Gujarat in western India, was present in the House when the remark was made. Many party MPs were seen suppressing giggles. Singh also hit out at Modi government’s flagship smart city project, saying it would only help the developed cities to make further progress and increase regional imbalances.
On May 2, Singh also had another awkward question. “With regard to Reliance, the policy of the previous government and in some instances the present government remains the same," he said. "I want to know what is the compulsion of the government in resolving the dispute clearly and firmly with the company?” As Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan sought to defend the government, many party members were seen congratulating Singh.
Open dissent:
Modi was left even more embarrassed on May 3 when two party MPs put the government in the dock while many other BJP parliamentarians thumped their desks.
Hukum Singh created a flutter in the Lok Sabha when he expressed his unhappiness with Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh. “You have given a very elaborate reply but the problem remains as it is," he said. "The price of pulses is not coming down and that of onions is not going up.”
Moments later another BJP MP, RK Singh, rose to contradict his party’s government. After Home Minister Rajnath Singh denied that there was ever a provision for housing in the Centre’s police modernisation scheme, the BJP MP from Ara in Bihar said, “I just want to clarify one fact. There was a provision for housing in the police modernisation scheme… It has been stopped since the Centre has increased the share of taxes to the states.” Embarrassed, the Home Minister sat down, without contesting his party MP.
These statements on May 3 came merely an hour after Modi gave to his party’s parliamentarians a pep talk, listing his government’s achievements and asking them – as he has been doing in almost every other parliamentary party meeting – to take these to the people.
Cracks in the fiefdom?
Some BJP MPs are uncertain what message they should carry. “What should we tell the people?” a party MP from Bihar asked Scroll.in. “That we are trying to make the country clean and that we have started the process of creating some smart cities at some distant places? Or should we tell them that a few years from now there would be a bullet train running between Mumbai and Ahmedabad? What about the widespread unemployment and the unusual rise in prices of food items after Modiji became the Prime Minister?”
In many situations, such dissent would be construed as a good thing. It is a sign of intra-party vibrancy in a democratic set up. But in the case of Modi, such expressions are the sign of a big problem. Modi is known to run the government and the party in an autocratic manner, and the sudden emergence of autonomous voices from within may well be construed as a threat to his authority.
By M H AHSSAN |INNLIVE
His credentials and knowledge of the game are beyond question, but with just one year of international coaching experience, is it too early?
It might be the second-most important job in the country. With, perhaps, the responsibility of pleasing more people than even the prime minister has to.
So, when the position of coach of the Indian cricket team is offered to one of India’s most beloved cricketing sons, there are bound to be very high expectations. Ever since reports surfaced in the media that the Board of Control for Cricket in India’s advisory committee, comprising Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and VVS Laxman, had approached the fourth member of the so-called Fab Four, Rahul Dravid, 43, for the job, it’s got not only the fans but also some legends of the game talking.
Former India batsman Sunil Gavaskartold NDTV that Dravid has served his “cooling period” after retirement from all formats in 2013. “My honest advice to [the] BCCI is that in case they are looking for a change, there is no one better than Rahul Dravid.” Former Australia captain Ricky Ponting said, “I don't think [the] BCCI will find many better candidates than someone like him. If he’s interested in doing the job, he will do a good job. He’s got a lot of knowledge, is very experienced and understands all three formats because he has worked in IPL.”
No greenhorn:
Dravid’s name hasn’t cropped up out of the blue. In June 2015, in a decision that was welcomed by Indian cricket fans, the BCCI had appointed him coach of India’s Under-19 and ‘A’ teams. Who better to put in charge of the next generation of Indian cricket than one of the most technically sound and reliable batsmen produced by the country?
Dravid had served as mentor of the now-defunct Rajasthan Royals IPL team for two seasons, so he had some experience grooming youngsters such as Sanju Samson and Karun Nair. He had also served as batting consultant to the Indian team ahead of their tour of England in 2014, where several players spoke highly of their interactions with “The Wall”.
And Dravid did not disappoint. Under his stewardship, the Indian team went unbeaten right up to the final of the Under-19 World Cup in February 2016, where they suffered a shock loss to the West Indies. It was around this time that the possibility of his coaching the senior team started being discussed.
The Indian team has been without a head coach for over a year now since Duncan Fletcher’s contract expired at the end of the 2015 World Cup. Ravi Shastri was temporarily given the post of team director, in a stint that ended after the 2016 World Twenty20. It was at that point that the BCCI’s advisory committee reportedly suggested offering Dravid a long-term contract to coach the senior team, possibly extending till the 2019 World Cup, according to The Times of India.
With India scheduled to play 18 Test matches between June 2016 and March 2017, against teams like New Zealand, England and Australia, the squad needs a head coach very, very soon. And while Dravid is reported to be considering the offer, saying he will take it up only if he has the “bandwidth” for it, former Australian wicketkeeper-batsman Adam Gilchrist got it spot-on when he said, "It is just a question of if and when the time is right for him.”
On the other hand...
There are a lot of factors that support the idea of Dravid's becoming the India coach. But there's a counter-view as well, which cites his lack of coaching experience. Yes, the players he has coached and mentored have spoken highly of him, but his record has not been spotless. At both the IPL teams he has mentored, Dravid has been criticised for tinkering with and messing up the team combination far too often, with none-too-successful outcomes.
Last season, the Rajasthan Royals seemed to be going all guns blazing at the start, notching up five wins in a row, before a late slump meant they struggled to qualify for the playoffs. They were thrashed by Royal Challengers Bangalore in the eliminator by 71 runs. This season, Dravid’s Delhi Daredevils looked to be cruising into the playoffs in the first half of the tournament, only for a late-season slump to jeopardise their chances. Players such as JP Duminy and Chris Morris, who are capable of causing carnage with the bat, are being sent in low down the order, while the T20 World Cup final hero Carlos Brathwaite is hardly being used.
Becoming India's head coach will come with more than a fair share of scrutiny, and even someone with as impeccable a reputation as Dravid's will not be spared if the team does not perform well. There will be gigantic expectations given his stature, and the fans will expect results straight away. It has also been argued that Dravid's defensive instincts, at least as a player, are not aligned with the aggressive nature of India's current Test captain, Virat Kohli.
More time?
Perhaps it might make better sense for Dravid to spend at least a year or two with the Indian senior team as a mentor or a consultant under another head coach before he takes up the top post. It will enable him to gauge how the players function, both individually and as a unit, and make him better prepared to take over the reins.
The only argument that goes against delaying Dravid's appointment, if the BCCI indeed wants him to be at the helm for the 2019 World Cup, is that he will lose precious time in building and shaping his team for the sport's biggest tournament. Putting him in charge three years before the World Cup is obviously smarter than doing it just one year before the tournament.
The BCCI also has the example of one of its former employees, Gary Kirsten, who was handed charge of the Indian team in 2008 with negligible prior coaching experience. The former South African batsman had only worked as a batting consultant for local teams and was running his own cricket academy in Cape Town when the BCCI came calling. He would go on to lead India to their second World Cup triumph three years later.
Kirsten had taken his time to get back to the BCCI and so should Dravid. If he feels he is up to the task, no one can stop him from taking up the role, and rightly so. However, with just one year of proper international coaching experience, he'll need to learn quicker than he scored at No. 3.
By SUNAINA MORE | INNLIVE
Hypertension is a very common but a grossly neglected disease. Untreated hypertension can lead to serious complications like brain stroke, kidney failure, and congestive heart failure and retinal problems.
ENT specialist Siddharth Yande said, "Not many people know that obstructive sleep apnoea, a sleep disorder, is also a risk factor for hypertension. Proper treatment in time can definitely help control hypertension and reduce the risk of complications."
"Obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome is a serious sleep disorder in which there are obstructive episodes in sleep leading to a drop in blood oxygen levels during sleep. He added that obese people who have obstructive sleep apnoea should be extra careful of hypertension and any hypertensive person who has snoring must get himself or herself checked for obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome,"Yande said.
To avoid this, screening for hypertension and proper treatment for the same is a very important step, say experts.
Pune chapter of Indian Medical Association (IMA) has decided to take a small step by checking blood pressure of patients free of cost May 17. The state IMA has requested all its 37,000 plus members to volunteer free BP checkup at their clinics and hospitals.
