u/DunderMifflinReal

₹10,000 Crore spent and almost no prime-time outrage. That is exactly why many people call it “Godi Media.”

What a scam!

The CAG’s audit of the PM Skill Development Scheme (PMKVY) flagged serious irregularities:

➡️ Over ₹10,000 crore spent in 7 years

➡️ 94.5% beneficiary bank account records were invalid, missing, or suspicious

➡️ Massive duplication and irregularities in mobile numbers and email IDs

➡️ Large numbers of trainee records could not be properly verified

➡️ Training records and outcomes showed major discrepancies

➡️ Around 61 lakh candidates did not complete training

➡️ Cases where the same inspector was shown physically verifying centres across multiple states on the same day

➡️ Instances of unrealistic trainer deployment, including thousands of trainers linked to a tiny number of centres

➡️ Closed or non-functional centres continuing to appear in official records

These findings were not made by the opposition. They were flagged by the CAG, India’s constitutional audit authority.

If such findings had emerged under a non-BJP government, television studios would have run debates for weeks. Instead, there has been remarkably little public scrutiny.

The bigger question is simple: who is accountable for these irregularities, where did the money go, and why has there been no serious action against those responsible?

In today’s India, corruption doesn’t always need to be hidden. Sometimes it is protected by silence.

Whenever I question government infrastructure spending in cities like Ayodhya, people justify it by saying it will drive revenue growth and improve living standards. But looking at Varanasi, a major pilgrimage hub and one of the most visited cities in the world, the average income is still only around ₹1.15 lakh per year, which would place it among the lower-income districts if compared with districts in South India. So when projects worth ₹30,000 crore are sanctioned and another ₹80,000 crore is planned over the next decade, one shud b absolutely brainless if they believe this scale of spending actually translates into meaningful economic uplift for local residents.

Whenever I question government infrastructure spending in cities like Ayodhya, people justify it by saying it will drive revenue growth and improve living standards. But looking at Varanasi, a major pilgrimage hub and one of the most visited cities in the world, the average income is still only around ₹1.15 lakh per year, which would place it among the lower-income districts if compared with districts in South India. So when projects worth ₹30,000 crore are sanctioned and another ₹80,000 crore is planned over the next decade, one shud b absolutely brainless if they believe this scale of spending actually translates into meaningful economic uplift for local residents.

Once Kerala’s six-lane highways are fully operational, there will be restrictions on bikes and autorickshaws. Autorickshaws are fine to exclude since they’re meant for short trips, but a blanket ban on all two-wheelers feels too broad.I believe motorcycles above 300cc should still be allowed, since they’re more stable and better suited for highway speeds than small commuter bikes and scooters.

This question is for Gujjus and this post is about Ahmedabad, a city I have had the chance to visit multiple times and stay in for over a month. I genuinely enjoy watching Shark Tank and, unfortunately, it’s one of those rare shows you can watch with family without awkward scenes, but it’s still very entertaining. I’ve fully watched Season 5 and still keep going back and watching random episodes from earlier seasons here and there.

And I am pretty sure almost 50 percent of the participants on that show are from Ahmedabad. That alone makes me feel like Ahmedabad is a place where people actually get things done. I am not saying this as a political statement, and this has nothing to do with me being anti BJP or pro BJP at all(I absolutely hate them), but I genuinely feel it is one of those cities where execution happens for sure.

Now I am trying to understand why. Is it because corruption is lower or because ease of doing business is higher? My personal impression was that corruption is still there & rampant, but it is very systematic and organised, which ironically makes things smoother in a way, which I am not really in favour of morally, but at least work gets done.

Or is it more about the Gujarati business mindset? And no, I don’t think this is because of the government alone, in fact I would even say the government might have made certain things worse. But there is clearly a strong trading and business instinct in Gujaratis that seems to have existed for centuries. They have been doing business for generations and are found all over the world, where their great grandparents migrated and settled purely for trade and business reasons, and many of those communities are still thriving and dominating local economies.

This is not just USA, UK or Canada. Even in African cities like Nairobi, Mombasa, Dar es Salaam, Johannesburg and more, Gujarati communities are present and quite affluent. Of course these are not always the safest or most developed cities people dream of living in, but Gujaratis are often wealthy enough to build tight knit communities, maintain prosperity, and stay relatively unaffected by the surrounding conditions.

And what is the city that represents them most strongly? Ahmedabad. Because it is the economic and cultural core of Gujarat and Gujarati identity in many ways. It feels like the place where things get done. I even feel Ahmedabad is to India what Chicago is to the USA, with its strong commercial backbone, industrial energy, and a kind of ruthless efficiency when it comes to trade, logistics, and business activity.

Now coming to the main point, Ahmedabad is absolutely filthy. There is no question about that! It is genuinely the dirtiest city I have personally ever visited in India. The level of dirt and pollution is insane. Infrastructure exists and is often new, but it feels poorly planned and chaotic.

Public transport is also one of the worst I have seen. You cannot even compare it with cities like Bangalore or Chennai. There are factories and dump yards literally within city boundaries, constantly releasing smell and toxic smoke all day and night.

And of course it is also a place where things get done, so naturally there are industrial belts and factories running 24/7 around the outskirts, continuously emitting pollution almost nonstop. The summer heat is extreme and unbearable, driving is chaotic and almost impossible, and the driving culture is honestly one of the worst in India.

Footpaths barely exist, and if they do exist they are either occupied by homeless people with carts and belongings, or covered in cow dung. Cattle are everywhere in the city. Cows on roads are common in many Indian cities, but in Ahmedabad it feels like cattle pro max level.

Even worse, cattle are so routinely fed food waste that I have never seen anywhere else. Leftover khakhra and other Gujarati food items, often rotten, are dumped on streets for cows even when trash bins are right next to them or municipal collection vehicles are nearby. The cows don’t even care about the rotten food sometimes, yet it continues anyway.

It almost feels like wealthy people live in completely sealed societies inside large gated compounds, and whatever happens outside those walls does not really affect them. They travel in cars from one gated area to the next mall or office, living in a completely separate reality from the street level city. It is like two different worlds divided by brick walls.

I am not even going into caste or religious segregation in housing societies because this is mainly about cleanliness and city condition.

And honestly, this is like 95 percent of the city. The remaining 5 percent is just a slightly more polished, somewhat posh central area, and that is it. The rest feels like garbage and neglect everywhere.

I am pretty sure if you randomly use street view and zoom into almost any part of Ahmedabad, you will find dirt, clutter, and mess in every lane and corner.

So my question to Gujaratis is how are people okay with this? I know there are rankings where Ahmedabad is called the cleanest city in India, but honestly that feels completely fake and disconnected from reality, or at least heavily misleading.

Or is Ahmedabad basically just a place to get things done, make your money, build your business, and then use that money to travel elsewhere, live elsewhere, or enjoy life in other cities, while returning back and living inside a protected cocooned society that is completely detached from what is happening outside?

Till 4th May, from 28th Feb 2026, everything was fine with India and India's economy.

Then all of a sudden, things became dire.

We were given 7 things to do;
Not to use too much fuel.
Not to use too much cooking oil,
Not to use too much foreign exchange for foreign travel.
Work from Home (or Home for Work).
Not to buy Gold.
Not to use fertilizer.
Cut down on imports and use Swadeshi.

And we were given these tasks by Modi who had left for a five nation tour on his 8000 Crore Boeing.

Then came the statement, that if the situation did not improve, everything will end. Nobody dare ask Modi what is 'everything'?

Then came the news that RBI had sold gold to shore up falling value of Indian Rupee.

Then came the news that RBI had basically failed and the rot in rupee would continue.

During the interim phase, press reports started appearing that oil companies are losing 1000 Crore every day.

These reports were a precursor to increase in prices, which started happening as soon as the elections were over and governments installed.

Now, reports have started appearing that 100 Rupees to a US Dollar is just a number.

We are being prepared and softened to accept that soon One US Dollar will be 100 Rupees as that is just a number.

When One US Dollar becomes 100 Rupees, the Andh-Bhakts will start singing the song, it is just a number, forgetting the fact that Modi had called a falling rupee as a personal failure of the PM and falling because of corruption at the center.

Now he is the PM and he is in the center.

Therefore, we are being prepared to accept that 100 is just a number and it is because of international reasons that Rupee is falling and Modi is not corrupt.

If you buy into that argument, I know who you are.....

When you are doing the right thing, you don't need anybody's validation, because deep in your heart you know that you are doing the right thing.

There were many things that happened wrong during the tenure of Dr. Manmohan Singh but he kept on doing the right thing.

And he did not bother about validation.

He knew that history will be kinder to him when time came.

He did not shy away from calling a spade a spade.

He stood in a banquet in his honor in America and when asked about America's invasion of Iraq, he had the courage to answer that question without a pause and say that according to India, it was a mistake.

Close to the 2014 elections, he said without going into merits of Mr. Modi, Modi becoming Prime Minister of India would be a disaster.

In his seven and half minute speech in Parliament after demonetization, taking not a minute more than his allotted time, he laid bare the ill conceived scheme and called it 'organized loot and legalized plunder' and predicted a 2% drop in GDP (which came true, 2% drop was around 5,00,000 Crores during that year).

It is not for nothing that American President Barack Obama had said that 'When Dr. Manmohan Singh speaks, the world listens."

So, when you are doing the right thing, know in your heart and soul that you are doing the right thing, don't seek validation, for there will be others who don't have the ring side view that you have and whose moral compass is misplaced.

Just Keep Doing It.

When a farmer sows 20 kg of seeds and harvests 2,000 kg of crops, he creates new wealth. He takes a small input, adds labour, skill, time and resources, and produces something of far greater value that feeds people and supports the economy.

When an iron ore miner extracts ore, a steel plant turns it into steel, and a factory converts that steel into machinery, each stage adds value and creates real wealth. New goods are produced, productivity increases, and the nation’s economic capacity grows.

Now consider an IPL match. When 50,000 people buy tickets, food, merchandise, subscriptions and advertisements are sold, money certainly changes hands and economic activity takes place. It adds to GDP. But in most cases, wealth is not being created in the same way. Money is largely being transferred from spectators to teams, broadcasters, sponsors and organizers. It is entertainment, not production.

The same logic can be applied to temples. When devotees donate money, buy offerings, or spend on rituals, economic transactions occur and GDP may increase. But unlike farming, manufacturing or industry, no new material wealth is being produced. Money is mainly circulating between devotees, institutions and service providers. For believers, temples may provide spiritual, cultural and social value, but that is different from creating productive economic output.

This is not an argument for banning cricket or temples. Both have their place in society. People need recreation, culture, faith and entertainment. A society of only work and no leisure would be a miserable place. As the old saying goes, “All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.”

The question is one of priorities. For a nation trying to reduce poverty, create jobs, improve living standards and build prosperity, should more energy and resources go into activities that produce goods, skills, technology and infrastructure, or into ever bigger spectacles and grander ceremonies?

A little play is healthy. A little entertainment is necessary. But when the circus becomes bigger than the workshop, and the cheering crowd gets more attention than the people who actually produce things, a country risks confusing consumption with creation.