Munnar is breathtakingly beautiful. Endless carpets of tea, misty hills, winding roads, waterfalls and bursts of purple jacaranda. Sometimes we travel across the world in search of beauty and forget what lies in our own backyard.
Nice idea to recognize taxpayers’ contribution. But important seats seem to carry a strange spell: people enter with different ideals, yet become remarkably similar once in power. In 5+ decades, I’ve seen this repeat. Perhaps systems transform people more than people transform systems. Hope you stay immune!
In April 2019, one of the largest food companies in the world sued 9 potato farmers in Gujarat.
The farmers were growing a potato. They had bought the seed in the local market. Most of them had never heard of intellectual property.
The company wanted damages running into crores.
Her name is Kavitha Kuruganti.
She is a farmers' rights activist and the convenor of an organisation called the Alliance for Sustainable and Holistic Agriculture.
The potato at the centre of it is called FL 2027, sold commercially as FC5. It is the variety grown for Lay's chips, because it has low moisture content and fries well. PepsiCo India had registered it in 2016 under a law called the Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers' Rights Act.
That law is unusual, and it is the whole point of this story.
Most countries protect the plant breeder. India's law protects the breeder and the farmer, in the same statute. Section 39 says a farmer is entitled to save, use, sow, resow, exchange, share or sell his farm produce, including the seed of a protected variety.
That right was written in deliberately, because in India seed has been saved and exchanged between farmers for thousands of years, and Parliament decided that a registration certificate should not be able to end that.
PepsiCo sued anyway.
The response was immediate. Farmers' organisations mobilised. Political parties took it up. It became a national argument about whether a company could own a potato.
On 10th May 2019, PepsiCo withdrew all the cases.
That is usually where such a story ends. The company retreats, the news moves on, and the registration that made the lawsuit possible stays exactly where it was.
Kuruganti did not stop there.
In June 2019 she filed an application asking the authority to revoke PepsiCo's registration of the variety altogether. Her argument was that the registration itself was wrong, that documents were missing from the original application, and that granting it was against public interest given the hardship it had caused.
It took 2 years.
On 3rd December 2021, the Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers' Rights Authority revoked the certificate. The order noted that the registration had been granted despite missing paperwork, that there were discrepancies in the process, and that farmers had suffered hardship as a result.
PepsiCo challenged it in the Delhi High Court, and the case has gone back and forth through the courts since.
Whatever the final legal position, one thing already happened and cannot be undone.
9 farmers who could not have afforded to defend themselves were sued by a company worth hundreds of billions, and within a month the company walked away.
Not because the farmers hired better lawyers.
Because 1 woman read the Act properly and knew that Section 39 was in there.
20 year old Bittu Tabahi takes upon himself to clean a polluted river in his village. He removes plastic & garbage from the water, spends his own money on supplies & has continued despite suffering infections on his hands. Remarkable example of individual civic responsibility.
“Ganpati Bappa Morya!” “Jai Shivaji, Jai Bhavani!” The energy of Dhol is unforgettable. Men & women, young & old, across roles and designations, play, sing & celebrate together. Such moments dissolve boundaries and recharge the heart, mind & soul. Culture unites!
This Sunday, I’m not posting anything about an undiscovered exotic place.
Because as this festive season begins to wind itself up, ALL roads lead to Mumbai.
Damn. I love being a Mumbaikar…
#SundayWanderer
This Sunday, I’m not posting anything about an undiscovered exotic place.
Because as this festive season begins to wind itself up, ALL roads lead to Mumbai.
Damn. I love being a Mumbaikar…
#SundayWanderer
This is the residence of the Mumbai Governor.
• ₹3.5 lakh salary per month
• Free medical treatment
• Z+ or high-level security
• Free air travel anywhere in India
• Lifetime Pension
Meanwhile, common citizens struggle for jobs, healthcare and infrastructure
This is not governance, this is VIP culture funded by your taxes.
@NalinisKitchen Hi Nalini, do we still believe every corporate claim about nature, sustainability or people's well-being is purely altruistic? Often, commercial benefit is wrapped in an acceptable social narrative. The real test is simple: follow the cost, consequence & benefit.
Ever raised a concern and suddenly found yourself defending yourself? That may be #AccountabilityInversion: question the questioner, divert attention & escape scrutiny. It can be pre-emptive or reactive. Ask one thing: “Was my original question answered?” #SocialEngineering
@Neha_S_Patel India has the talent, capability, resources & foundation. What we need is stronger enablement, empowerment, research & innovation. Patriotism isn't self-praise or saying all is well. It is having the courage to see reality, fix what is wrong & build what India can become.
India has the talent, capability, resources & foundation. What we need is stronger enablement, empowerment, research & innovation. Patriotism isn't self-praise or saying all is well. It is having the courage to see reality, fix what is wrong & build what India can become.
@GoogleCloud_IN Cloud billing dispute remains unresolved for months. I’ve repeatedly requested verifiable evidence linking disputed service usage to my Cloud project: Project ID, API/method, timestamps & authorization source. Please help bring transparency & closure.
You don’t need crores to live a good life.
If you can do remote work, then leave the concrete jungle. Sell your flat, buy a small piece of land and build a simple home in a village. Grow your own food, plant fruit trees, keep a cow, grow flowers and enjoy fresh food, clean air and peace.
But choose your village smartly. Pick one near a small city, so you can easily go to the city for all the facilities you need, like hospitals, schools, banks, ATMs, shops, restaurants, a railway or bus station, and basic entertainment, and still get back to your village within 15 minutes.
You may have less money, but you’ll have more time, less stress and a better life.
City life is overrated. Choose peace over pressure.