[Assam] You betcha!

Wed Jun 20 11:31:41 EDT 2007

Umesh,

>amusing but not too funny. democracy shouldn't be a joke anyway.

I think you missed the point of the article - it was on 'betting' and not on
democracy,
and in some countries, democracy is a joke!

--Ram da

On 6/19/07, umesh sharma <jaipurschool at yahoo.com> wrote:
>
> Ram-da,
>
> amusing but not too funny. democracy shouldn't be a joke anyway.
>
> Umesh
>
> *Ram Sarangapani <assamrs at gmail.com>* wrote:
>
>          This from the Asia Times - quite interesting and off the beaten
> track.
> Hope y'all enjoy it.
>
> --Ram
>
>
> *Monsoons and politics no sure bet in India*
> By Siddharth Srivastava
>
> NEW DELHI - Can there be a connection between Indian monsoons and electing
> a new president? There is in the huge underground *satta* (betting) market
> that usually centers on cricket but takes on other issues as well. Despite
> police crackdowns, *satta* is one of the most organized gaming forums.
>
> If not cricket or monsoons, bets can be placed on election results, even
> for a high-profile one in the United States.
>
> According to reports, more than Rs4 billion (US$98.2 million) in
>
> <http://goldsea.com/GAAN/adclick.php?n=a923457d>
>
> bets were placed on the recent Punjab elections, and the jostling over who
> is going to be India's new president next month has been an added bonus.
>
> India could have its first female president in Pratibha Patil, a veteran
> congresswoman with a feisty political record in the state of Maharashtra.
> However, the selection will not be straightforward.
>
> In the latest twist, incumbent President A P J Abdul Kalam has been backed
> for re-election by a third front, a conglomeration of non-Congress and
> non-Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) outfits.
>
> Thus the *satta* continues.
>
> "Given the different names being touted as possible candidates for
> president, the odds on any one being nominated provided ideal material for
> bets," said a *satta *operator who has been involved in the trade for more
> than a decade. He said the *satta* value on emerging candidates has passed
> Rs10 billion.
>
> *Betting on the president*
> The post of president, in essence a symbolic figure but who can be an
> irritant to any government in power, has turned into an intensely political
> subject.
>
> The president is elected via an indirect vote by an Electoral College
> composed of elected representatives.
>
> In a top-down approach, political parties have been resorting to slotting
> a vacancy on the basis of community/religion before identifying a person.
> Thus a Sikh dalit (considered the lowest caste) or a Muslim has been chosen
> in the past to pass on the right message to the concerned section of the
> population.
>
> There have been persons of eminence such as President Kalam, a Muslim and
> noted scientist who was chosen by the previous BJP government.
>
> This time, however, the criterion has been different, resulting in the *
> satta* market moving in.
>
> The BJP candidate was more or less certainly Vice President Bhairon Singh
> Shekhawat, a person of political eminence, until Kalam's name resurfaced
> this week. Now Shekhawat says he won't run if Kalam does.
>
> However, the Congress, which has to carry along its left-wing coalition
> partners on every decision, has not had it so easy.
>
> It did not want to support Kalam partially because of differences on a few
> issues such as a tradition of Indian presidents serving one term and Kalam's
> initial appointment by the BJP.
>
> Congress president Sonia Gandhi was looking for someone like the gentle
> Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, a person who can never cross political swords
> with her and maintains a sense of personal loyalty.
>
> Gandhi's chosen one, however, was current Home Minister Shivraj Patil, a
> politician similar in demeanor to Manmohan, though not in caliber and
> professional acumen.
>
> This sufficed for Gandhi, but not the left, which likes to oppose anything
> that the Congress proposes.
>
> Pitching for Bengali brotherhood, the leftists wanted External Affairs
> Minister Pranab Mukherjee, a man known to have a mind of his own, apart from
> being a very important minister. But he was too much of a bitter pill for
> Gandhi to swallow.
>
> Left-wing compromise candidate Arjun Singh was rejected as a loose cannon,
> given his self-appointed status as a messiah for the backward castes.
>
> Thus over the past week other names appeared and faded such as veteran
> Congress party member N D Tiwari, leftist leader Somnath Chatterjee, and
> Sushil Kumar Shinde.
>
> A compromise was struck for Patil, who was plucked out of relative
> obscurity as Kalam was earlier, and her candidacy was cleverly couched as
> promoting woman power.
>
> Patil fits Gandhi's bill nicely, too. The left had had a say and with
> Brahmin dalit leader Mayawati extending support, Pratibha Patil could create
> history unless President Kalam spoils her party.
>
> Indeed, those who bet on a dark horse owe Patil a bit of their newly
> gotten wealth.
>
> *Monsoon betting*
> Aside from the president, the *satta* market is deep into an annual
> contest: betting on the monsoon.
>
> There is a reason that the Indian monsoons make good *satta* candidates.
> The official weather department issues regular bulletins that are followed
> like stock indices.
>
> Given unpredictable weather conditions, exacerbated by global warming, the
> period of May-August is marked by periodic squalls and cloudbursts, and each
> month could be the beginning of the actual monsoon, or otherwise.
>
> According to reports, bets of up to Rs30 billion have been placed in
> Mumbai on the various aspects of the rain - the date of arrival, the total
> downpour, and monthly breakup.
>
> The year 2003 was particularly difficult for gamblers as the monsoons were
> at their unpredictable best. A period of heavy rainfall resulted in the
> national weather office even declaring that they had arrived, followed by a
> healthy forecast for the season.
>
> However, the rains petered out, leaving most of northern India in the
> worst drought in more than a decade, and many a diehard punter lost money.
>
> *Siddharth Srivastava is a New Delhi-based journalist. *
>
> (Copyright 2007 Asia Times Online Ltd. All rights reserved. Please contact
> us about sales, syndication and republishing.)
>        <http://forum.atimes.com/forum.asp?FORUM_ID=4>
>
> Indians love cricket, you bet<http://www.atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/IC15Df02.html> (Mar
> 15, '07)
>
>
>
>
> 1. After Rumsfeld, a new dawn?<http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/IF19Ak07.html>
>
> 2. I told you so, essentially<http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/IF19Ak03.html>
>
> 3. Levitate the Pentagon
> <http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/IF19Ak01.html>
>
> 4. US gives Russia short shrift<http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Central_Asia/IF19Ag01.html>
>
>
> 5. The wars that oil the Pentagon's engine<http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/IF16Ak04.html>
>
> 6. China's cheap labor pool running dry
> <http://www.atimes.com/atimes/China_Business/IF19Cb01.html>
> (24 hours to 11.59pm ET, June 18, 2007)
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> Hotels <http://www.hoteltravel.com/indonesia/bali/hotels.htm> Korea Hotels<http://www.hoteltravel.com/south_korea/hotels.htm>
>
> <http://network.realmedia.com/RealMedia/ads/click_nx.ads/atimes/combo/ron/nwspfn/ss/a@x08?x>
>
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>
>
>
>
> Umesh Sharma
>
> Washington D.C.
>
> 1-202-215-4328 [Cell]
>
> Ed.M. - International Education Policy
> Harvard Graduate School of Education,
> Harvard University,
> Class of 2005
>
> http://www.uknow.gse.harvard.edu/index.html (Edu info)
>
> http://hbswk.hbs.edu/ (Management Info)
>
>
>
>
> www.gse.harvard.edu/iep (where the above 2 are used )
>
>
>
>
> http://jaipurschool.bihu.in/
>
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