Celebrities conferred honorary ranks absent from annual parades

Navy decides not to confer honorary ranks henceforth
Dehradun: In a significant move, the Indian Navy, after sensing the apathy of the honorary-rank holder celebrities towards armed forces, has decided to not to confer anyone with these prestigious ranks henceforth.
Navy has concluded that the celebrities previously conferred with such ranks have remained apathetic towards the armed forces. Chief of Navy staff, Admiral DK Joshi said that the Indian Navy is now not in favour of conferring prestigious titles to the civilians.
Recently, following the footstep of cricketer Sachin Tendulkar, Indian cricket team captain MS Dhoni, who also holds the honorary rank of Lt-Colonel in the Territorial Army, had chosen to give a miss to the Army’s annual parade ceremony. Last year, Dhoni was conferred with the honorary rank of Lt-Colonel in the Territorial Army amid much fanfare.
Tendulkar was inducted into the Air Force as an Honorary Group Captain in September 2010.
The absence of Dhoni and Tendulkar from their respective organisational events had sparked off a debate on whether the celebrities should be conferred such titles or not. The Ministry of Defence had started conferring such titles to the celebrities in a bid to attract the youths for opting defence as their career. But the non-participation and non-commitment of these celebrities towards their duties have caused disappointment which has culminated into the fresh decision of Indian Navy to stop honouring any celebrity with these titles. JPN/Bureau
Navy decides not to confer honorary ranks henceforth MS Dhoni skips Territorial Army Day parade
Comment: Absent from parade means they should be discharged from service.

Pennies from heaven by Karan Thapar

Pennies from heaven by Karan Thapar, Hindustan Times
April 09, 2011 First Published: 22:47 IST(9/4/2011)
I've done a little test to see how right or wrong my views can be, and I'm delighted to tell you that, at least in this one instance, I'm almost spot on. I sent some 50 different people — journalists, politicians, authors, ambassadors, civil servants, doctors, elderly aunts, etc — an sms outlining my response to the way state governments have competed with each other to shower gifts on our World Cup winning cricketers. To my pleasant surprise, almost everyone responded readily, if not also immediately. So, now, I'm pretty confident I know how most people think!
The sms I sent read: "What do you make of this competition to give money or land or houses to the team? I find it questionable if not distasteful. What's your view?"
Three things stand out about the responses I received. First, practically everyone replied. This has rarely happened before. So, clearly, this is a subject that struck a universal chord. Second, not one person defended this gratuitous money-giving. Third, several responded with passion, even anger. I don't recall any replies that suggested mild or lukewarm concurrence.
Let me, therefore, draw a few conclusions. No doubt we all want to acknowledge, applaud and, even, reward our World Cup winning cricketers but doling out cash, land or houses is both morally wrong and demeaning. One of my respondents, not inaptly, compared the outpouring of crores to the way maharajas used to throw gold coins at courtesans. By that token cricketers are today's nautch girls! Others pointed out, again quite justifiably, that this suggests the team was only playing for money.
The second conclusion is possibly more damning. This behaviour betrays our own twisted set of values. Is money the only way of saying thank you? Is it the most meaningful way of doing so? Our chief ministers should think carefully about this. Their gifts reflect their thinking.
The third conclusion is actually a question: whose money did they gift away? Not their own but the tax payers. Yet in a country where hundreds of millions live in miserable poverty — even if you don't want to accept Arjun Sengupta's figure of 77% living on Rs 20 a day or less, you can't dispute this — should we be giving crores to those who already have several, in some cases hundreds? Is that responsible government? And is this how the aam aadmi is best served?
I wish just one of our cricketers had politely declined the cash or, better still, announced he would donate it to charity. Even if the new players could not be expected to do so, what about Sachin or Dhoni or Yuvraj? They don't need this largesse but the respect they would have earned from a polite refusal to accept would have catapulted them to moral stardom. Instead, we've ensured they remain only cricket heroes.
Let me, however, end with a thought that was not part of my sms. If the team deserves Rs 1 crore each from the BCCI why should their coach, Gary Kirsten, without whom they all acknowledge they would not have won, get less?
I can think of sound arguments for giving him more. But that did not happen. The only case for giving him half what his team got is either he wasn't very good — but the team dispute that — or the BCCI doesn't believe in generosity to people who aren't Indian.
Once again, that raises a whole set of disturbing questions. But where do we get the answers?
The views expressed by the author are personal.
Pennies from heaven by Karan Thapar
Comment: Cricket has become a money spinner for Politicians- Cricketeers are their tools- BCCI, ICC and ICL are all suckers who steal the sweat of the tax payers!

When politicians leave this earth, their bodies lie in state

...But the passing of a soldier goes unnoticed and unsung.
WORLD CUP EUPHOURIA AND FELICITATIONS AS COMPARED TO THOSE GIVEN TO GALLANTARY AWARD WINNERS (POSTHUMOUS/ LIVING)
Dear Sir,
The following is sent with a request to be put on RMS for info of all
Secy RDOA

AN OPEN LETTER TO ALL VETERANS & VETERAN ‘GENERALS’
The whole nation is proud that the cricket team has won the world cup after a gap of 28 years since 1983. There were jubilations/ celebrations all around hailing Dhoni and his men in blue. Even the Chairperson of UPA Mrs Sonia Gandhi did not lag behind and was seen mixing with the crowd to be part of the frenzy. Starting from the ICC, States, corporate’s, railways everyone has come forward to shower praise and money/ wealth on to the players to endorsing brands making them richer by a couple of crores. No hard feelings. The team has done a good job and deserves a pat.
Now that the euphoria of the cup is waning it is time to do some introspection as to how the country views its war heroes and what the Govt/ State offers them to sacrifice their lives at the alter of duty.
Each player would get Rupees One crore from the BCCI in addition to its share from the ICC, 2cr for Dhoni and one cr each for the four Delhi boys; land/ house to Dhoni & Sachin by the Uttarakhand Govt; one crore to Sachin and Zaheer by Maharashtra Govt; one cr to Yuvraj and Harbhajan by Punjab Govt; land to Dhoni for cricket academy in Jharkhand; Housing plots to team members by karanatka Govt; Audi to Yuvraj and lifetime railway pass to travel by first AC to all.
The team partied at the same Taj Hotel which was the battle ground on 26/11 & witness to many a soldier giving up his life. Major Unnikrishnan who died while fighting the terrorists is yet to receive his complete NOK entitlements. He gave his today for the tomorrow of others so that they can party all night without any threat.
The world Cup finals at Mumbai was held under safe environments with the army, navy, coast guard, NSG and what not to ensure the conduct of the match without a hitch. Remove the men in uniform and see if the events pass smoothly, be it CWG games or cricket match.
The Kargil War has still its shadows on the number of officers/jawans who laid their lives to protect the nation and its territorial integrity. What the recipients of Param Vir Chakras/ Mahavir & Vir Chakras got in comparison to the cricket boys is known to all (peanuts). What the families of the dead go through can only be experienced by them. Having a decent living is hard to come by. It’s passé as far as the nation is concerned. There is no crib here, but for the value of blood, shed for others to have a peaceful life. The railways is not prepared to honour the percentage concession given to the war heroes in stark comparison to a lifetime FIRST AC FREE PASS throughout the country along with a aide to the cricket stars. Let us not forget the Kabul blast in which a Brig was also blown up with a bureaucrat. The Babu got all the cake and the icing, the Brig was treated as a casualty. The PM went and paid homage to the babu and his family, the Brig got the traditional ‘Shok Shashtra’. The naked truth is known to all but yet our tolerance levels are very high and we continue to be downgraded/ kicked around and accept with a smile.
Many have written to the PM on lot of issues without success. The PM himself is a seasoned bureaucrat. Perhaps it would be wise to remind him that one day he too would go away. When the PM passes away, the Generals will stand guard on his coffin and carry it to the pyre and sound the last post; it is for the PM to think whether he has done his bit towards those who guard the nation and would be part of his last entourage till he melts away.
Where do we go from here? Should we be a silent spectator to the happening around us or should we form part of the Anna Hazare team and mobilize people on the lines of Egypt or pass away into oblivion. I leave this thought with you.
Secretary RDOA
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RDOA

RDOA Blog
Comment: Military is the watchdog for the Looters?

Military Ranks Demeaned

Sir,
This article appeared in the in the Times of India, 09-08-2010 on the editorial page in the section "Times View-Counterview" on Sachin tendulkar being given the honorary rank of Group Captain. I had critisized it in a mail to Signals blog. Now Jay Kumar writing on the editorial view has very lucidly written why such ranks should not be made cheap. I am sure all your readers would like what arguments Jay Kumar has given for opposing the action by the IAF. I append a copy of the article below which will interest all veterans.
Shashank bendre
Wg.Cdr.(Retd)

COUNTERVIEW: DON'T DEMEAN MILITARY RANK
Jay Kumar, Sep 9, 2010, 12.00am IST
The Indian Air Force has granted 21 persons honorary ranks, from flight lieutenant to air marshal. This includes the latest anointment of Indian batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar as a group captain. The territorial army has conferred similar honorary ranks to cricketer Kapil Dev and Malayali actor Mohanlal. It is questionable whether the honorary ranks accorded by our forces serve any purpose, when the government and civil society have already devised numerous ways to recognise distinction and individual achievement.

Let's not ignore that our soldiers earn such ranks and distinctions through years of arduous life in inhospitable terrain, and sometimes are called upon to make the supreme sacrifice. Let's not confuse achievement in this area with achievement in other domains. Military honours keep them motivated and prepared for service to the nation. Conferring them indiscriminately on civilians would blur their meaning. The purported utility of 'brand ambassadors' in terms of actually motivating youth to join the forces also needs closer scrutiny. It is puzzling how cricketing legends like Sachin or Kapil can motivate someone to join the forces instead of cricket. More so, when cricket is one of the few sports in India that guarantees money and fame and can turn an individual's fortune overnight. Is there any comparison with the grit and grime that life in the armed forces would entail?

The question is, ought we to reduce our forces to mere 'brands' with a need to woo customers? Even if we answer that question in the positive, a brand can only work if it has credibility. For that to happen, the armed forces ought to bet on real war heroes who can better position them in the market.

Rank Honour and Status of Armed Forces Reduced

Ref: click here

Some of the veterans may disagree with what I have to say on the episode of rank inapporopriateness by the serving Air Force officers but I am compelled to state my views.

Sachin Tendulkar being conferred with the rank of Group Captain, though honorary, by the IAF is an example of how serving (high ranking) officers try to focus limelight on themselves through cheap publicity stunts. Any serviceman, whether a commissioned officer or NCO will bear out the fact that entry into the service is earned through a tough selection process and after that ranks and promotions are obtained through merit, hardwork and dedication to the service. What criteria did the IAF consider while Tendulkar was made a Group Captain? I have all respect and admiration for Sachin for his excellence, achievement and dedication in the field of cricket , but I say that he has not done anything for the cause of any of the defence services or nation to deserve this honour from one of the defence forces. He could be conferred with any of the civil awards like Arjuna award for sports but not a military honour.

To cap it all, the Air Force has gone head over heels to please the aam (cricket mad) janata by promising to give him the "Wing" simply after one sortie in a Sukhoi aircraft as a passenger! As an engineer, I have flown as a passenger in a fighter aircraft but that did not make me eligible to get a wing. Some of the engineers do get their "official" wings but only after being selected for the "pilots course" and earning it after undergoing the regular necessary pilots training course like other aspirants for the "F" branch. Many of my "F" branch friends will aver that a wing has to be earned -many aspirants are denied this if they fail to meet the crucial flying proficiency tests- and cannot just be bought cheaply in a camp tailor shop and pinned on to the chest.

And another thing. Those who have seen the photograph of the Air Force chief with Sachin Tendulkar in the Times of India (Mumbai edition, 04 Sep, 2010 in the section "Times Nation") saluting him after getting his tapes, will notice that the chief is returning the salute without (R) without his cap ON !!! A good example of service etiquette to be publicly displayed before the service personnel under himl! I had never seen that so far.

Sorrowfully, this is one of the many instances of why and how the prestige of the Armed Forces is lowered. Why blame only the Babus if we ourselves do not want to hold it high?
Shashank Bendre
Wg Cdr (Retd)

Indian Cricket: BCCI echoes IPL scam pitch

Lalit Modi spills the beans: Amin part of bidding for Pune
New Delhi: Giving a new twist to the bidding controversy, suspended IPL Commissioner Lalit Modi on Friday claimed that the Twenty20 league's interim chairman Chirayu Amin was part of the consortium that made an unsuccessful bid for the Pune franchise in March this year.

Modi said Aniruddha Deshpande, Managing Director of City Corporation in which Sharad Pawar and his family had 16 per cent shares, made the bid in March for a new consortium which included Amin.

"There were three members in the consortium that was part of the bid. They were Aniruddha, Akruti and Chirayu Amin," said Modi, whose suspension saw Amin being appointed as the interim IPL chairman.

"It's a fact of life and I cannot change or distort facts. They were the bidders, one can't change that," Modi said.

Amin was not available for comments. Amin, a Vadodara-based industrialist who heads the Baroda Cricket Association, was named the interim chairman in April after Modi was suspended on charges of financial irregularities, including bid-rigging.

Modi had earlier defended Pawar, saying no one from the Agriculture Minister's family had anything to do with Deshpande's bid.
Source: PTI
Amin was part of bidding for Pune: Modi

Can of worms exposed!
Manohar also claimed that contrary to Modi's assertions, the IPL Governing Council did not know that City Corporation's Managing Director Aniruddha Deshpande bid for the Pune team in his "individual capacity".
Convoluting the Cricket Controversy: Manohar lashes out at Modi

Moderator Comment
Is Cricket in India churning into a Money Laundering Business under the so called apex body of BCCI? Is there no one who can set the goals of sporting and games in order in India. Till today a billion plus citizens hardly produce world class sportsmen. The reasons are obvious from the scams that are erupting in the sports arena. It is here the Armed Forces can set an example to produce world class players and sportsman for the Nation to be proud of.

No place for half measures: IPL mother of all scams

Pankaj Vohra
The government appears to be in a dilemma over whether to order a probe into the functioning of the Indian Premier League (IPL) by a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) or allow its agencies to investigate the matter that could have wide-ranging political ramifications.
The controversy seems to be leading to a situation where the IPL may make way for a PIL (Public Interest Litigation) given the amount of money that has allegedly changed hands illegally in the name of cricket.
It is only a matter of time before the Apex Court will have to step in if the credibility of the system has to be restored in the eyes of the people who have been under the spell of the IPL for over a month now.
In the eye of the storm is the IPL tsar Lalit Modi whose alleged murky dealings may open a Pandora’s box that could jeopardise the political future of many top politicians. Shashi Tharoor, the former Minister of State for External Affairs, has already fallen by the wayside and no one knows who may follow suit.
The entire IPL circus has turned out to be the biggest scam of our times and could expose the ugly nexus among tax evaders, film stars, politicians, cricketers, corporate giants and the underworld. The IPL has also cast a shadow on its parent body, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) that has as its members senior politicians from the NCP, the BJP and the Congress besides some smaller parties. Designed to help develop cricket, the League has got entangled in allegations of gambling, prostitution, match-fixing, money-laundering and tax evasion.
Read more:
No place for half measures

IPL Cricket sports show of shady sleaze

IPL misusing Indian passion for cricket, says Yechury by Staff Reporter The Hindu

It has nothing to do with the game; actually being used as a backdrop for shady ventures. Seeks probe into source of IPL funds and where they were going. Actual role of media as the Fourth Estate relegated to the backseat.

ALAPPUZHA: Communist Party of India (Marxist) Polit Bureau member Sitaram Yechury on Sunday said the Indian Premier League (IPL) had nothing to do with cricket and that it was misusing the Indian passion for cricket.

Inaugurating a symposium on ‘EMS and the Media,' held in connection with the birth centenary of the former Chief Minister, E.M.S. Namboodiripad, here on Sunday, Mr. Yechury said the IPL was actually being used as a backdrop for shady ventures that ran into thousands of crores of rupees. The source of IPL funds and where they were going had to be probed thoroughly, he said.

Crucial role
With the media too playing a crucial role in the mounting of the IPL spectacle, it was essential to find the source of such money, particularly at a time when the common man was finding it tough to find food and to tackle rising prices.

On Union Minister of State for External Affairs Shashi Tharoor's alleged involvement in the controversy, Mr. Yechury said Mr. Tharoor, if he genuinely had Kerala's interests at heart, should have fought for the Kochi Metro Rail project or for rectifying the below poverty line (BPL)-above poverty line (APL) categorisation imbroglio in the State.

Earlier, terming EMS a master communicator who was never afraid of controversies and even generated them to mobilise people on various issues, Mr. Yechury said there was no person like him in contemporary Indian politics.

Power of media
EMS believed in the power of the media to mould people's consciousness and to elevate people's thoughts. He was the staunchest defender of freedom of expression and the media. However, the post-EMS era was witnessing a distortion of responsibility of the media to make the judiciary, executive and legislature accountable and to raise issues that they ignored. This was mainly happening through globalisation-fuelled trends for maximisation of profits, he said.

Lucrative institution
With the media turning into a lucrative institution and trends like commercialisation and paid news setting in, the actual role of being the Fourth Estate was relegated to the backseat. Cautioning against agenda-driven media attempts to manufacture people's consent, Mr. Yechury said this was dangerous because people were deprived of their right to know the truth. Parliamentary democracy would be undermined and democracy itself would be restricted to the rich.

Calling for the media too to be part of the solution, which had to be evolved through discussions with the people and the political process, he said the right form of regulation of media too had to be evolved through debate.
IPL misusing Indian passion for cricket, says Yechury

Tehelka Scoop of the Money Spinners
Mr Big Deal: Financial whiz, cut-throat tycoon, or failed scion with a point to prove? Lalit Modi is making the cricket world both rave and rant. Rahul Bhatia digs out his turf

BJP scores a sixer
Senior BJP leader Murli Manohar Joshi told reporters in Kolkata, "The Centre should investigate the entire IPL issue but before that, Tharoor should resign. If he does not resign, he should be sacked."

The BJP leader said the IPL scam had demonstrated how political leaders and businessmen were manipulating the bids by cricket teams.

"This is a serious issue which involves ministers and officials. At a time when the country was facing price rise, Maoist problem and terror threat, they are busy converting IPL into an agency for looting public money. Tharoor is a small fry. There are many other players. A correct picture should be presented before the people," Joshi said.

Nation bereft of Humane Values

We are proud Indians but I still feel there is something we must do to improve our nation. I do not have the answer to this but I feel basically the value of a human being is missing.
Few lines for pondering:
WE LIVE IN A COUNTRY

Where Pizza reaches home faster than the Ambulance and Police.

Where we get Car Loans @ 8% but Education loan is @ 12%.

Where Rice is Rs 40/KG but Sim Card is free.

Where a millionaire can buy cricket team, instead donate money in any charity. I personally hate this IPL nonsense- we as Indians should boycott this game in totality in its revised form.

Where everybody wants to be famous but nobody wants to follow the path for betterment of the nation.

Where people standing at tea stall reading an article about child labor from a paper and says “yaar bacho se kaam karne walo ko to fansi pe chada dena chahiye”
and then they shout - “oye Chotu 2 chai laana”
FIR BHI DIL HAI HINDUSTANI
JAI HIND
Hemant Kamboj
(Son of Brig CS Kamboj)

Kapil Dev joins Territorial Army as Brand Ambassador

Army Chief General Deepak Kapoor decorated former cricketer Kapil Dev with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel after the latter voluntarily joined the Territorial Army during a ceremony in New Delhi on Wednesday.

The former cricketer has been roped in to join the Armed Forces by the Territorial Army (TA), which is celebrating its 59th anniversary this year. The 1983 World Cup winning captain joined as an honorary officer. He donned the Army uniform at the glittering ceremony.

While Kapil will not take part in the rigorous training, he will palpably act as a brand ambassador for the Armed Forces. Kapil's wife Romi Dev and daughter Amiya Dev were also present on the occasion.
Kapil Dev joins Territorial Army
Territorial Army

“I am proud I have been given this rank. It took six months for the things to materialise, with the file moving from the home ministry to the defence ministry,” said Kapil, as his wife and daughter looked on.
Cricketer Kapil Dev now an honorary army officer

"I am today proud to wear an Army uniform and at this age to serve the country in this uniform is a proud moment for me," Kapil Dev said soon after he was formally commissioned into the Punjab Regiment of the citizen's army here.
Lieutenant Colonel Kapil Dev

The Territorial Army is part of the regular Army and has various roles, including relieving the regular personnel from static duties and assistance to the civil administration in times of calamities. TA personnel can also voluntarily serve in active duty for short durations and several officers and men have won gallantry awards for exceptional bravery.
Interestingly, the Territorial Army, which has a sanctioned strength of just over 40,000 personnel, was keen on roping in young MPs and MLAs to join its ranks to set an example for youngsters. A presentation was also held at the Parliament house last year but the force did not receive any applications from the elected representatives.
Kapil joins TA

Indian Athletes Aim for Gold on Billionaire's Buck

Young Indians are training for this summer’s Olympics with the backing of a London-based billionaire steel magnate, the Wall Street Journal reports. Lakshmi Mittal was dismayed by India’s poor showing at Athens in 2004—where the burgeoning superpower earned only a single silver, while arch rival China won 32 golds—and founded the Mittal Champions Trust to identify and support promising athletes.

Mittal, who left India as a young man, has committed $10 million so far, and 10 athletes whose training he's supported will compete in Beijing. One young archer, training in the program's camp at Bangalore, who had no means to pursue Olympic dreams, not only trains but sends money home to support his family. "I am so fired up that whatever is expected of me to win, whatever effort's expected, I will do it," he said.
Indian Athletes Aim for Gold on Billionaire's Buck
India decades of Olympic mediocrity

Cricket Crazy Country. The nation's love for cricket has sidelined all other sports and games activity to almost a diminishing zero. The Defence Forces, Veteran Organisations, Schools, Colleges and Universities need to get into the act of resurrecting the sports and games arena of the Nation.