Depending too much on data is bad for your company 
01.04.2018  times of india 

Managers are fixated on metrics these days. Everything from sales to your individual performance needs to be measurable. Decisions should be based on metrics, not judgment. Jerry Z Muller, author of ‘The Tyranny of Metrics,’ says this blind faith on metrics is not doing us any good.

While biases can colour our judgment when data is not available, Muller says too much data replaces management with ‘managerialism’, which is the belief that “all organisations are fundamentally the same and can be managed by the same tools...”

By this logic, “the head of a corporation becoming the president of a university or the head of a department of the federal government” is perfectly normal. Muller says this negates the importance of judgment acquired by personal experience and talent.

Under managerialism, metrics become the basis for rewards, which actually hurts performance, Muller shows with examples. For instance, if hospitals start scoring their surgeons on the success rate of surgeries, wouldn’t the surgeons avoid all risky surgeries? It will not only hurt patients who are in urgent need of an operation but also the surgeons themselves who will miss out on important learning opportunities.

When workers are told which metrics they need to work on — this happens in every workplace now — they do so mechanically to the detriment of other goals. For instance, if teachers are to be judged on the scores of their students, they will stress on rote learning. If CEOs are judged on stock prices, they will focus on quarterly profits while reducing spending on research. If police are promoted on the basis of crime statistics from their area, they will try not to note some crimes, or register cases under milder sections.

“In general a focus on measured targets discourages innovation — if the goals are specified in advance, there is little room for initiative, not to speak of risk-taking.”

Muller does not deny the importance of metrics, but he says they cannot be used effectively without judgment. Instead of being the basis for reward and punishment, they should be used to improve performance.

“Judgment is a matter of discrimination: of knowing which cases are harder, more challenging or more important than can be captured by a standardised measurement. And that discrimination is only possible when the judgment is linked to a sense of the overall purposes and peculiarities of one’s office, department, clinic or organisation.”

For more: Knowledge@Wharton


NOT BY DATA ALONE: Use judgement too

Older people are happier because they live mindfully

times of india 01.04.2018

Old age means creaky bones and other ailments but it is also a time of inner calm. Research shows older adults experience more positive emotion than younger people because they live more mindfully.

Youth is a time for plans and ambitions, and the mind is focused on the future. Young people do not worry about the years they have left. However, once people begin to accept that their days are numbered, they become less likely to do things without paying attention.

“It was their focus on the here and now — their greater mindfulness compared to young people — that explained their good moods. The higher their mindfulness, the better they felt.”

But old age is not a binding condition for mindfulness. If you wish to be calm and happy, you can cultivate mindfulness at any age, with practice. It will be useful in your daily life: “The cultivation of mindfulness may be an adaptive means of maintaining emotional well-being when faced with life’s challenges.”

For more: greatergood.berkeley.edu

The stupid reasons why Delhiites kill each other 

From stabbing a delivery guy who was late to beating a customer who complained about food, murders over trivial issues are on the rise. Is impulse killing Delhi’s new problem?

Himanshi.Dhawan@
timesgroup.com   01.04.2018

As if road rage weren’t bad enough, now even minor things like brushing against a person or an inconvenient delay seem to be provoking Delhiites into whipping out knives and guns.

Delhi Police data seems to confirm this. While the number of murders declined from 528 in 2016 to 487 in 2017, murders over trivial issues or sudden provocation as a cause rose from 16% to 18.6%.

What makes people turn violent over petty issues? One of the first studies to examine the differences between impulsive murders and premeditated crimes was conducted by Northwestern University in the US. “Impulsive murderers were much more mentally impaired, in terms of both their intelligence and other cognitive functions,” wrote Robert Hanlon, an expert in clinical psychiatry and neurology and senior author of the 2013 study.

Nearly all impulsive murderers have a history of alcohol or drug abuse and/or were intoxicated at the time of the crime — 93%, compared to 76% of those who strategised about their crimes.

Criminologist Rajat Mitra says most perpetrators in such cases experience “explosive rage”. “Such people are already deeply angry with themselves and the world and often suffer from impulse control disorder. Very often they consider themselves to be failures and victims.” And when a fight over a trivial issue occurs, it touches a raw nerve and acts like a trigger. Such people often report a feeling of calmness after the act. “Their vital signs like blood pressure go down and they experience a high,’’ says Mitra.

• Cannot live without your phone? One Delhi resident was willing to kill for it. Last week, 30-year-old Kamal Deep and her brother allegedly stabbed a Flipkart delivery man because the mobile phone she was supposed to get from the e-commerce site reached her 20 minutes late.

• Last month, Pawan Kumar, 30, was beaten to death with a ladle when he complained about the quality of food in an east Delhi dhaba.

• And a New Year eve’s party went sour for another Delhi resident Vinay Bhati, 30, who was shot and injured. His ‘crime’ was that he accidentally bumped against a man inside a tony south Delhi bar.

• In December, Rohit Saluja, 25, was attacked with knives by three men who tried to stop him from urinating in the open in Timarpur. The victim said he was first lectured on Swachh Bharat

• A month earlier, 24-year-old law student Ashish Bhardwaj, was shot dead after a man objected to his sitting on a park bench and asked him to leave. When Bhardwaj protested, there was an argument and the man pulled out a gun and opened fire.

SUNDAY PROFILE
BEING NIRBHAYA’S MOTHER 

One brutal night transformed Asha Devi into the fearless woman who now speaks up for the voiceless

Himanshi.Dhawan@timesgroup.com   01.04.2018

Asha Devi Pandey, a barely literate woman from a small Uttar Pradesh village, did not know what to say when mikes were thrust in her face the first time five years ago. Her daughter was brutally gang-raped and left to die. The nation was repulsed and jolted. Thousands took to the streets to demand justice, forcing the powers-that-be to rewrite the law against rape. And the trial of her daughter’s attackers began. Something snapped. From another faceless, voiceless migrant whose home and family was her universe, Asha Devi became Nirbhaya’s mother.

“I never imagined my child would be taken away from me like this,” she says. “Right after the incident when my mouth would be dry, when I felt I had no voice, the media came to talk to me. I opened my mouth and the words just tumbled out. Now, it is no longer so difficult. I speak my mind no matter who is on the stage.’’ That hard-won courage was in evidence when she recently took on former Karnataka DGP HT Sangliana for his misogynistic remarks at a Women’s Day event in Bengaluru. The ex-top cop commented on Asha Devi’s physique, saying he could well imagine how beautiful her daughter must have been. He capped his speech by saying that when overpowered, one must surrender to save one’s life.

In an open letter, Asha Devi tore into Sangliana. “You have not just insulted my daughter’s sacrifice but also our struggle to get justice. You are suggesting that my daughter should have surrendered and she could have lived. Then why don’t we ask the Army jawans on our border to surrender so that they can stay alive?” she asks.

The voice is louder now but five years have done little to numb the raw pain in it. But Nirbhaya’s mother is now the symbol of every woman’s fight against discrimination, injustice and the humiliation she must face to bring her assaulters to book.

Nirbhaya too is no longer just her daughter, an average 23-year-old paramedical student chasing her dreams. That girl is now in some corner of the house, packed into a box with her clothes, books and belongings. Nirbhaya is now a symbol of all that is wrong with society, and her mother must carry on the battle the young woman fought from her hospital bed to bring her attackers to justice.

In her home in Delhi’s Dwarka, a poster showing a flame is pinned in the backdrop, helpful for media interviews. There are certificates and plaques displayed in a glass showcase in the living room.

Asha Devi and her husband, Badrinath, have shared the stage with presidents, prime ministers, foreign diplomats, Union ministers, policemen and civil society activists. They have spoken to packed halls, received awards to honour their daughter’s memory and given away awards in their daughter’s name. Nearly every month there is a “women’s empowerment” function that the two end up attending. The functions go little beyond felicitations, but the couple rarely refuse an invite. “If I don’t get on the stage and speak about my daughter’s case, people will forget her. They have already forgotten her…’’ Asha Devi’s voice trails off.

Within days of Nirbhaya’s gangrape inside a bus on the night of December 16, 2012, arrests were made. Men, women and children in various cities took to the streets to demand a stricter law, even capital punishment for rapists. Consequently, a more stringent anti-rape law was passed and a government fund established to improve the safety and security of women. The protests sparked books, poetry, art, and a searing documentary featuring the rapists.

“No one knew me, no one knew my daughter but so many people came to protest. I was so hopeful that something would change. Surely my daughter’s death would not be for nothing,” says Asha Devi. Now, she’s not sure. Of the six attackers, a juvenile has already served his three-year term and been rehabilitated. One committed suicide in prison and the remaining four have recently filed a petition in Supreme Court seeking review of the death penalty. ‘’They are still alive and their families can meet them. It is our fate to wait,” she says.

“When you face difficulty, you tell yourself there is some good at the end of it. That hope makes you move ahead. But now I can see the truth. There is no hope, there is only disappointment,’’ she says. And it is not just about her daughter, it is about the Nirbhayas across the country.

Asha Devi repeatedly mentions the recent rape of an eight-month old in Delhi. “Things are just getting worse.” It is this lack of hope that keeps her up on many nights. But this is something only she knows.

Both Badrinath and Asha Devi receive calls from parents of young girls who have been molested, raped, killed. Often, the parents have no clue about who to complain to, have no resources to pursue cases or have been stalled by the police and authorities. “Mothers call me... They think because I have gone through this, I will understand what they are going through,’’Asha Devi says. The months spent inside police stations and outside court rooms have helped create a network of lawyers, cops and NGOs that she can use. A phone call from her ensures that an abduction complaint pushed aside gets the station officer’s attention or a rape trial that has been pending gets legal representation. This week, a 15-year-old girl from Jharkhand who was working as a domestic help was found hanging at her employer’s residence in Delhi. The teenager’s parents called Asha Devi, who approached the Delhi Commission for Women and helped get the case registered.

The battle has just begun, Nirbhaya’s parents know. Even for those ready to fight for justice, harassment, indignity and humiliation awaits in the neighourhood, at the police station and numerous court hearings. Hope or no hope, there is only one way to go about it. “They say…samaj kya kahega? Mein kehta hoon, kya kahega? Humne kabhi aankh nahi churayee, aur na churayenge (Parents say what will people say? I tell them, what will they say? We have never backed down nor we ever will),” says Badrinath.


HELPING HAND:

Parents who don’t know how to get justice for their girls turn to Asha Devi. She calls station officers to get cases registered, and lawyers for legal aid

Two Maoist supporters held for plot to kill Hyd central varsity VC 

They’re Working On Order Of Telangana Maoist Brass To Avenge Vemula’s Death

TIMES NEWS NETWORK   01.04.2018

Kakinada/Hyderabad:

Two people with Maoist leanings were arrested on Friday night by East Godavari Police on the charge of hatching a plot to assassinate the vicechancellor of University of Hyderabad (UoH), Podile Appa Rao.

Police claimed the duo was acting on orders of Maoist brass of Telangana to avenge the death of dalit research scholar Rohit Vemula, who committed suicide on the campus.

Producing them before media on Saturday, East Godavari SP Vishal Gunni identified them as Ankala Prudviraj, 27, from Gannavaram in Krishna district of Andhra Pradesh and Chandan Kumar Mishra, 28, from Howrah in West Bengal. The two were students of UoH when Vemula committed suicide in January 2016, and have strong Maoists links.

They hold vice-chancellor Appa Rao responsible for Vemula’s death, police said.

During questioning, Prudviraj and Mishra said they were following orders of Maoist Telangana state committee secretary Haribhushan alias Yapa Narayana and central committee member Chandranna.

By killing the VC, the guerrillas hoped to attract more youth into their fold and replenish their depleting cadre strength, said police.

The duo was arrested at Pitchukalapadu ‘T’ junction on the Bhadrachalam-Cherla Road, after they were evasive to queries by a police patrol party.

Prudviraj, who is currently studying in Siddhartha College, Vijayawada, was a student of UoH between 2010 and 2013 and was an active member of Telangana Vidyarthi Vedika. Drawn to Maoist ideology, Prudviraj later met Sukhadev, Dal commander in Charla area in 2013 and moved with his dalam for two months.

Later, he was arrested by Palvoncha police and sent to Warangal central jail for assisting a Chandranna dalam member. On his release on bail, he resumed work for Maoists.

Police said Chandan Kumar Mishra joined UoH in 2013 to study post-graduation and was a member of Telangana Praja Front, a frontal organization of Maoists. During the agitation after Vemula’s suicide, he got acquainted with Prudviraj and both continued their friendship even after Prudviraj moved to Vijayawada to study law.

In December 2017 and January this year, Mishra and Prudviraj met Maoist leader Haribhushan in Cherla area where they were instructed to kill HCU vice-chancellor Appa Rao.

Speaking to STOI, Cyberabad police said they were informed by AP Police about the arrests of two Maoist sympathisers, who were conspiring to eliminate Appa Rao, but they are yet to get full details.

“The state government has deployed two gunmen for the security of vice-chancellor Appa Rao. He resides inside the UoH campus and there are private security guards at his home too. We are waiting for recommendations of AP police and if required we may further beef up his security,” a senior Cyberabad police told STOI.

HATED FIGURE: The state government has deployed two gunmen for the security of vice-chancellor Appa Rao

New AIIMS plagued by huge vacancies: House panel

Rema.Nagarajan@timesgroup.com   01.04.2018

The parliamentary standing committee on health has expressed concern over the fact that work on six AIIMS-like institutions started in 2010 in phase-I of the Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojana (PMSSY) remained incomplete even as more such institutions are being announced and taken up for construction. Even in these first six AIIMS-like institutions, only 38.5% of faculty positions and 18% of non-faculty positions have been filled, the panel noted. Yet, 13 more AIIMS-like institutions have been announced since then, of which construction has started in four.

In its report on demands for grants of the department of health and family welfare for 2018-19, it observed that only 704 faculty posts had been filled in the six AIIMS-like institutions out of the sanctioned 1,830 as on January 1, 2018. Only 4,202 posts had been filled out of 22,656 sanctioned posts for nonfaculty positions, with an additional 2,548 posts being filled up on an outsourced basis. With this level of shortage, almost all these institutions have been taking in MBBS students since 2012.

The revelation about the difficulties in staffing even central government funded AIIMS-like institutions raises the question of how the government expects to find the required personnel for upgrading 24 district and referral hospitals to medical colleges, as was announced in the budget this year.

The PMSSY had been launched in 2006 with the objectives of correcting regional imbalances in the availability of affordable and reliable tertiary healthcare services and to augment facilities for quality medical education in the country. Along with setting up AIIMS-like institutions, PMSSY also funds the upgradation of existing general medical colleges (GMCs). Of the 13 GMCs taken up in phase-I, 10 have finished upgrading. Another 39 GMCs taken up in phase-II have just started upgradation work.

The shortage of doctors in rural India and hugely expensive private medical colleges having almost 3,300 more seats than government medical colleges, the need for the government to augment the seats for reliable and affordable medical education is obvious.

However, the parliamentary panel was of the view that funding for PMSSY remains sub-optimal. It wondered how the targets would be met within the set time frames. The health secretary told the committee that the projected demand for PMSSY scheme was ₹8,398 crore out of which only ₹3,825 crore, or less than half, has been allocated.

Had the department undertaken a critical analysis of the requirement of faculty and non-faculty staff at the six AIIMS-like institutes, the issue of vacant posts would have been addressed, stated the report adding that the vast shortage of manpower would crumble even the strongest infrastructure.

Patients from Bihar and Uttarakhand continue to burden AIIMS, Delhi as AIIMS Patna and AIIMS Rishikesh are not up to the mark, noted the report. 

No need for women to depose in domestic violence cases, says HC

Swati.Deshpande@timesgroup.com   01.04.2018
 
   TIMES OF INDIA 
Mumbai: In a landmark ruling that comes as a boon to wives battling for maintenance from estranged husbands under the domestic violence Act, the Bombay high court has held that an affidavit filed by the women would suffice as evidence. A woman need not depose in court to make her case. The court, though, can permit the husband to cross-examine her based on the affidavit.

The question before the high court was whether a woman who has filed an application under the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005 (DV Act), can be allowed to submit evidence in the form of an affidavit alone. A magistrate in Pune had permitted such a submission, prompting the husband in one case to move high court to challenge it last year. He and his lawyer Abhijit Sarawate wanted the woman to first step into the witness box and depose.

They claimed that an affidavit cannot substitute oral evidence recorded in court in the presence of both sides in a DV case. The wife’s lawyer, Abhijeet Desai, though, argued that the magistrate was right in allowing her affidavit in evidence.

Narrow interpretation would defeat purpose of DV Act, says Bombay HC

After interpreting salutary provisions of the DV Act, the high court answered in favour of the wife. Justice Anuja Prabhudessai, who passed the judgment, held that the DV Act allows the court to devise its own procedures to ensure speedy disposal. “The court, in its discretion, can allow evidence on affidavit and permit cross-examination to test the veracity of the evidence,” she held, adding that “a narrow interpretation would defeat the purpose of the Act”.

The DV Act provides effective and speedy protection to women who are victims of domestic violence, setting out a disposal deadline of 60 days.

“This Act was enacted keeping in view rights guaranteed under articles 14 for right to equality, 15 for prohibition of discrimination on grounds of race, sex etc, and 21 for right to life of the Constitution, to provide for a remedy under the civil law, which is intended to protect the woman from being a victim of domestic violence and to prevent occurrence of domestic violence in society,” said Justice Prabhudessai.

The question of law had emerged in a dispute between a couple that wed in 2013. Two years into the marriage, the husband filed for divorce. The case is pending before a Pune family court. The same year, in 2015, the wife filed for interim maintenance before a magistrate. Her plea was fixed for a date in November 2016 for court to record her evidence. With days to go before the hearing, though, the husband moved the magistrate to claim that she was not entitled to file an affidavit and wanted the court to direct her to step into the witness box as, he said, the proceedings have to conform with provisions for seeking maintenance under Section 125 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC).

The Pune magistrate, though, held that Section 28(2) of the DV Act permits the court to lay down its own procedures for disposal of an application for relief, filed under Section 12. Keeping in mind the 60-day time frame, the Pune court had said the wife’s deposition could be dispensed with and her evidence could be presented through an affidavit. Last year, the husband moved high court to challenge the magistrate’s order. The court found the magistrate was justifiably right. It observed that the DV Act mandates the magistrate to fix the first date of hearing, ordinarily not beyond three days from receipt of the application by the court. The magistrate is required to endeavour to dispose the application within two months from first hearing.

Applying principles of interpretation to effectuate legislative intent, the high court observed, “The DV Act is a beneficial piece of social welfare legislation aimed at providing to the victims of domestic violence speedy relief, which is civil in nature. Though..., there is no specific provision in the DV Act to give evidence on affidavit, Section 28(2)…gives flexibility to the court to depart from the procedure prescribed under Section 28(1) and to devise its own procedure in deciding application under Section 12...”

FOR SPEEDY DISPOSAL