Surge Pricing is a hot topic in Delhi and that is the case in many other cities, where, for passions are aroused, because suddenly the consumer realizes that their demand can be met if they are willing to pay a higher price. The other part of the story, is that Buyers are also eager to meet the consumers demand.
Look at our country's Power Infrastructure. There is a phenomenal latent demand which goes unmet every hour and no body wants to talk about it for fear of being politically incorrect. I refuse to believe that when the mobile phone has become so ubiquitous with modern day living status, the consumer would not spare a few more rupees for their electricity.
So let us apply Surge Pricing algorithm to Electricity and see the possibilities of how this can be made useful.
Electricity consumers are grouped into many categories. Some of the categories are Bulk Industries, Medium & Small Industries, Bulk Commercial, Retail Commercial, Essential, Residential large and Residential Small. We can select a few and see how Surge Pricing can work for them.
Bulk Industries / Commercial: Most of the bulk industries have their own captive plants and can participate in the Surge Pricing most effectively. Whenever Power is available below their marginal cost of generation, they can be Buyers and the moment it goes up they can turn to sellers. They also have the metering infrastructure and manpower to implement this immediately.
Residential large and Residential Small: This category is the most affected in the electricity consumer list as they come at the end of the 'Supply' chain, being at the end of the Transmission network. Most of the times the 'Last Mile Distribution Infrastructure' is the bottleneck. They are also provided with Archaic meter infrastructure. But most of them carry around a powerful Smart Phone which can run the 'Surge Pricing algorithm and some of them have 'Home' Network with reasonable band width to support an additional piece of hardware which can be pinged from remote. To make this feasible the existing Meter has to be substituted with an Electronic meter with a communicating chip and provided with adequate RAM to run the instructions received. In addition a switching device with control to the meter (and so can be operated from remote) has to be installed.
Let us limit ourselves to discussing implementing 'Surge Pricing' to these two categories. Having identified the possibility of providing reasonable infrastructure and connectivity, we need to discuss as to how to go about Surge pricing?
A Consumer has to opt for it and deposit an additional amount depending on the estimated consumption for a given period. The amount to be collected may vary from consumer to consumer depending on their category and their willingness to invest. A minimum period can be set, which would incentivize the utility to supplement their infrastructure and switching networks.
Once this is done, 'Bots' can provide solutions and pricing options to consumers. Immediately we will have so many options and improvements. The utility shall also have to absorb penalties for not meeting the demand, if they fail to meet after accepting 'surge pricing'.
Enabling provisions have to be introduced as well.
These are initial thoughts and we can discuss and improve it.
Kanhaiya - A new leader in the block.(sigh)
Many including my close
family members are involved in the discourse about Kanhaiya. I am shocked to say
the least.
Student leaders and
radical leaders have to seek limelight by coming up with contrarian
views condemning the establishment. There is nothing wrong in it. But since this leader has taken the communist
support ruling party thought it should kill him politically. And they
goofed it up royally.
As a person
who has seen emergency during my Pilani days and been active politically
at college, I would have picked this guy and continued to have
conversations with him off the glare of media till such time I (the ruling
party) understand(s) the forces behind him and then neutralize. And let me add with out all these bravado.
Most of the student leaders,
especially this type who is sincerely attempting to complete his PhD for
the last 8 years, have political ambitions. They invest their time in
college only for that and the ruling party has foolishly fallen for it.
Even Arun Jaitely turned to politics from college.
I read a story about how Kamaraj handled a student
agitation in sixties when Bhaktavastalam was the CM. I have shared it in
my Facebook page. Take a look at it. That student leader is now one of
the leading industrialists of Tamilnadu. Here is the link ....Cementing-a-sound-business-empire
One of my family memebrs who has lived in West Bengal under communist regime had this to say: .
"I think in a democracy a person has the right to express oneself, even if the opinion is unacceptable. If the government found the opinions expressed in the university campus objectionable / dangerous, as Gopu (me) says, they should have marked these ppl and kept an eye on them, tracked them. Action taken with facts to back them would have been more productive.
As of now there has been a lot of drama but no good coming
out of this for either the students or the government, and definitely
not for the rest of the citizens."
CAG in action in Gujarat
An interesting piece on CAG's action by Rediff.com shared by my friend titled "Now Modi Govt gets it from CAG" has provoked this outburst from me:
Meenamkunnu Dinakaran This is a clear case of Modi Bashing. I am surprised that you see only these articles. Deep well oil drilling is dependent on geology and geology, even I know is highly unpredictable. There are no proven technologies which are accessible to the emerging economies at reasonable costs to predict more accurately the characteristics at 45 Km below surface, leave alone 78 KM of Mother Earth. Even global leaders such as Shell make mistakes. A public limited company which is listed in the stock exchange and is forced to carry the losses on its balance sheet is being held accountable for tarnishing the image of the CM. I have seen other comments also on the purported garage sale of gas being sold to the company who everyone is considered aligned to the erstwhile CM. Can anyone predict gas price at the end of this year? How does one sell the produce, which can be stored beyond a few days production? Dina come out of this kind of negative propaganda. It is time you moved on to meta physics whole time.
NPAs and Growth
There is a lot of talk, on NPAs (Non Performing Assets) in India. Some of us who have served this economy for decades are concerned that the talk is veering away to surgical action, which may, in its sweep, eliminate many who are themselves not to be blamed.
NPAs correction effort has taken a 'tsunami-cal' proportion, in the country with the Governor using every opportunity to hype on it and create a sense of panic, with the obvious good intention of doing something which he considers is essential and to be done now.
Is every one over board on this? Is there a better way to go about this?
These are the questions which come up in the minds of executives who are faced with the broader effects of corrective action initiated by the banks whose licensing authority has started flexing their muscles.
Two interesting pieces, one the leader in 'The Hindu' titled 'Of Banks and Books' and the other one Mr. S S Mundra's comment 'Some borrowers indulging in round tripping', capture some of the key elements and indicate the actions that may follow.
For me the problem of NPA should be treated like a cancer which has spread on a human and not like a parasite which has infected the farm fields. The treatment should therefore factor in the psychological, social and day to day existence needs of such companies and group entities, especially their employees, when they are treated through various therapies, like limiting fresh borrowings or denying extension of existing facitiltie, fresh infusion of capital, day to day management take over, asset sales etc.
In the larger picture, as in the case of human cancer, where plastic usage and tobacco abuse are monitored and controlled, the reasons for cash flow deficits, should be ascertained for that is the source of cancer. If it is due to a delinquent party of the contracts, which typically is a PSU or the Government itself, the banks must, through their network at South block, insist on corrective action and correct the anomaly of the Big Buyer passing on risks that cannot be manged by the companies, under the guise of 'audit query'. Non operable payment terms and payment terms which are not operated are classic issues which add up to the trouble. Follow up action by these entities, by way of encashment of Bank Guarantees add to the woes of companies which add to NPAs.
This comment must not be read to defend the actions of some individuals whose birthdays figured in the comment of the Governor. Such individuals and companies, must pay.
But given the downside the economy is facing, through pressure from falling exports, stagnating domestic demand, reforms through land bills and GST stuck, fresh infrastructure investments not emerging, the efforts to clean up balance sheets of banks should be done but through cautious individual actions. Executives of the banks must be trusted to nurture their 'cancer' infected clients and are ill advised to treat them all with a spray of pesticides from the air, which they may if undue pressure is exerted on them.
NPAs correction effort has taken a 'tsunami-cal' proportion, in the country with the Governor using every opportunity to hype on it and create a sense of panic, with the obvious good intention of doing something which he considers is essential and to be done now.
Is every one over board on this? Is there a better way to go about this?
These are the questions which come up in the minds of executives who are faced with the broader effects of corrective action initiated by the banks whose licensing authority has started flexing their muscles.
Two interesting pieces, one the leader in 'The Hindu' titled 'Of Banks and Books' and the other one Mr. S S Mundra's comment 'Some borrowers indulging in round tripping', capture some of the key elements and indicate the actions that may follow.
For me the problem of NPA should be treated like a cancer which has spread on a human and not like a parasite which has infected the farm fields. The treatment should therefore factor in the psychological, social and day to day existence needs of such companies and group entities, especially their employees, when they are treated through various therapies, like limiting fresh borrowings or denying extension of existing facitiltie, fresh infusion of capital, day to day management take over, asset sales etc.
In the larger picture, as in the case of human cancer, where plastic usage and tobacco abuse are monitored and controlled, the reasons for cash flow deficits, should be ascertained for that is the source of cancer. If it is due to a delinquent party of the contracts, which typically is a PSU or the Government itself, the banks must, through their network at South block, insist on corrective action and correct the anomaly of the Big Buyer passing on risks that cannot be manged by the companies, under the guise of 'audit query'. Non operable payment terms and payment terms which are not operated are classic issues which add up to the trouble. Follow up action by these entities, by way of encashment of Bank Guarantees add to the woes of companies which add to NPAs.
This comment must not be read to defend the actions of some individuals whose birthdays figured in the comment of the Governor. Such individuals and companies, must pay.
But given the downside the economy is facing, through pressure from falling exports, stagnating domestic demand, reforms through land bills and GST stuck, fresh infrastructure investments not emerging, the efforts to clean up balance sheets of banks should be done but through cautious individual actions. Executives of the banks must be trusted to nurture their 'cancer' infected clients and are ill advised to treat them all with a spray of pesticides from the air, which they may if undue pressure is exerted on them.
Free Basics and Net Neutrality.
Adhering to Basics & Freedom is a wonderful Leaders piece in 'The Hindu' which captures the nuances of the 'Net Neutrality' and the leadership role played by our regulator at TRAI. (Telecom Regulatory Authority of India).
The key take away from this master piece, from my view are: "The latest ruling could no doubt set the tone for regulators across the globe, especially those of countries that have socio-economic features akin to India’s. More important, it would ensure that generations of Indians are not forced to be satisfied with services that pretend to be the Internet itself, robbing them of the real benefits of the medium... The ruling also suggests that while TRAI recognises the need for India to bridge the digital divide, it realises that compromising the basic ideals of the Internet is not the way to do it."
Another interesting dimension to this ruling is the complexity of the net and the way it is shaping up. In another interesting piece in The Hindu titled How Zuckerberg Got the Blues' the columnist brings out the internal concepts which have emerged in the ecosystem of internet of things to grab more of the dollars being increasingly made available on this platform, by tweaking the basics without he knowledge of the user.
All of these concepts, are basically working to wean away the customer to a corner as in a typical showroom. The attractive discounts and the prominent display, positioning in the show room and other tricks which are deployed in the malls and show rooms have their counterparts in the internet of things.
And that is alarming for the user who is not educated enough of the way these things work could easily be led astray. And that this is deliberately happening under the eyes of the regulators clearly demonstrate that not enough is being done to rein in this behaviour.
As Sri Ram Sewak Sharma the TRAI chairman has shown to the world through his latest ruling, that glitz cannot sway the opinion of the informed, it is time for the rest of the world to take the cue and cooperate to bring in more transparency and change in behaviourial patterns of these organisaitons in the digital space, to chase their dollars while maintaining 'Net Neutrality' in the true spirit and letter.
The key take away from this master piece, from my view are: "The latest ruling could no doubt set the tone for regulators across the globe, especially those of countries that have socio-economic features akin to India’s. More important, it would ensure that generations of Indians are not forced to be satisfied with services that pretend to be the Internet itself, robbing them of the real benefits of the medium... The ruling also suggests that while TRAI recognises the need for India to bridge the digital divide, it realises that compromising the basic ideals of the Internet is not the way to do it."
Another interesting dimension to this ruling is the complexity of the net and the way it is shaping up. In another interesting piece in The Hindu titled How Zuckerberg Got the Blues' the columnist brings out the internal concepts which have emerged in the ecosystem of internet of things to grab more of the dollars being increasingly made available on this platform, by tweaking the basics without he knowledge of the user.
All of these concepts, are basically working to wean away the customer to a corner as in a typical showroom. The attractive discounts and the prominent display, positioning in the show room and other tricks which are deployed in the malls and show rooms have their counterparts in the internet of things.
And that is alarming for the user who is not educated enough of the way these things work could easily be led astray. And that this is deliberately happening under the eyes of the regulators clearly demonstrate that not enough is being done to rein in this behaviour.
As Sri Ram Sewak Sharma the TRAI chairman has shown to the world through his latest ruling, that glitz cannot sway the opinion of the informed, it is time for the rest of the world to take the cue and cooperate to bring in more transparency and change in behaviourial patterns of these organisaitons in the digital space, to chase their dollars while maintaining 'Net Neutrality' in the true spirit and letter.
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