Mangesh first in the morning !
Mangesh’s work is a one-man effort. All of us, the beneficiaries of his work, wish him many more years of productive life and service to the RBI community and beyond. But we are all mortals. Since the newsletter has stabilized itself with a large number of readers there is a case for giving some thought to its institutionalisation to secure its future. I am sure there will be some organization, Internet-based or otherwise, that may like to take over the work under the continued ownership and honorary editorship of Mangesh. In that case he will have some supporting staff. The organisation taking over will naturally expect some quid-pro-quo for the arrangement. It can be allowed to use the newsletter for advertisements in an unobtrusive way. The readers can ignore the ads as they do in their Internet visits. Since the RBI is broad-minded enough to allow staff members to participate in many social and cultural activities in an honorary capacity it may not object to the proposal. As an alternative, RBI itself might think of taking over the newsletter under the editorship of Mangesh (on a part-time basis) as a public service of its Department of Communication. The additional cost to the Bank will be small but it will generate tremendous goodwill among a larger readership not only in India but abroad too, especially among the NRIs. There is a precedent to this suggestion. When I was In Freetown as Adviser to the Bank of Sierra Leone on an assignment from the IMF I used to get a faxed newsletter from the Fund's headquarters every day that had extracts from various newspapers around the world.
A. Seshan
June 26,2013
______________________________A. Seshan, Economic Consultant,
{Former Officer-in-Charge, Department of
Economic Analysis and Policy,
Reserve Bank of India, and
(IMF) Adviser to National Bank of Kyrgyzstan and
Bank of Sierra Leone}
9 Shiv Mahal,
206 Sion Road, Sion,
Mumbai 400022 (India)
Tel: 91 - 22 - 24075087
E-mail: anseshan@gmail.com
1 comment:
This is an idea worth developing further. Mangesh may have his own views which should be respected. If RBI considers it worth taking forward, on a trial basis, Mangesh could be given some internal support initially, like:
• Some free time and support or some incentive for the work
• As the work happens much before the usual office hours, freedom for Mangesh to get ‘assistance’ from willing colleagues
As it may go the commercial way, dependence on outside revenue or entrusting the work to ‘outsiders’ may be a decision to be taken after considering all aspects. In any case, this suggestion coming from Seshan shows the esteem in which VITALINFO is placed in the minds of economists and consultants.
Recent appreciation by Deepali perhaps has had a proactive role in people recognizing the efforts behind the ‘Newsletter’.
Congratulations, Mangesh!
M G Warrier, Ex-General Manager and Freelancer
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