tee-bhee

The morning news paper read today that government is planning to levy a licence fees amounting half a thousand rupees for viewing television. The purported reason is to turn the government owned entertainment(!) agency, the प्रसार भारती, from red to green. It's a different observation, however, that this move has turned viewers' faces red. As per the fiat, the amount garnered by slapping the levy shall be used to upgrade the pay scale of agency's 38,000 odd employees to government pay scale and provide 'other benefits'. Moreover, the move shall rake circa Rs.23,871 crores from the pockets of the viewers. Entertaining, it is, indeed. The government owned entertainment agency was enacted by a Parliamentary Act which has a section that entitles the promoters of the company, in this case, representatives of the public - otherwise called the government - to loot (oops! charge) the public this way. The viewer base of the agency owned channels, beamed free of cost, is abysmal. This means, the agency will be charging the levy for viewing channels other than it's own! A couple of weeks back, the honourable Information and Broadcasting minister issued a fiat that watching cricket matches is a must for every citizen of India, hence or otherwise, the private satellite channels must share the match feed - which they have acquired exclusive rights for, by commercial competitive bidding - with the प्रसार भारती channels. So competent are the employees of the agency for whose upliftment, the levy is being levied. Furthermore, a proposal of levying 10% licence fees (~896 crores) on TV and Radio manufacturers is also doing rounds. It's an perfect illustration of a archetypal socialist ideology: Milk the cow to the full (stop of her life).

Figure this: Rs. 24,677 crores raised such if invested in making a new power plant can easily finance a 5000MW greenfield project, at prevalent costs. A full thousand megawatt more than the much touted Ultra Mega power plants, which are gaining more attention for bidding fiascoes rather than speedy implementation. It will well alleviate power crisis of many states, though to a little extent. Besides, it will generate employment for many citizens of India, mostly those, which don't watch either cricket matches or any of the प्रसार भारती programs.

Master had always cursed me for bugging him on weekends, for I don't have a TV and no plans for buying it ever. With government coming in support of my decision, Master is feeling down and out with his 500/- TV.