Editorial January 2021
| Dear Readers,
I am pretty confident that I am not alone when I say that I’ll be glad to bid goodbye to 2020. The most depressing and worrisome year gave us both a global pandemic with the highest unemployment rate and a financial crisis. It’s probably fair to say that this has been one of the worst years in recent times, with COVID-19 registering more than 82.8 million cases, 1.8 million deaths and 58.6 million people recovered as of December 30, 2020, worldwide according to www.worldometers.info. But the good news is that it is almost over. Most of you who know me, know that I am an enthusiastic and positive person and I definitely look for a ray of hope in everything. Not only do I see the glass half full, but I also see that the water is clean and nutritious. Some of you may ask what is there to be happy about. Well, let me start with analyzing the numbers I just gave you. More than 70% recovered from the virus, and the recovery rate in India is as high as 96%. All along we all were concerned about the spread of this deadly virus in India. We all know that in some of poor communities in India, keeping socially distant is nearly impossible and so called “experts” were predicting a record number of deaths. But that never happened. Now whether you call it blessing from Lord Rama, the strength of Indian immune systems, or the fact that most Indians still believe in joint families and taking care of their elderly parents at home rather than enrolling them in nursing homes the way it is done here. Now let me talk about some other positive news by asking you when was the last time you saw that a vaccine for a deadly virus developed in less than one year? Well, we witnessed it this year with the COVID-19 vaccine. Of course this happened due to multiple reasons, including President Trump’s Warp Speed operation and perseverance of multiple pharma companies. I can go on and on and report many other positive news that happened in 2020, but let me stop here otherwise it will be a five page article. Now, let’s move on to the first issue of 2021, which remembers Gandhi ji on his punya tithi. This issue includes three articles on Gandhi ji, and I have put some of my thoughts in the beginning of each article so I will not repeat here. But I do want to take this opportunity to congratulate my good friend Sanjiv Anand for his spectacular exhibition in Delhi. As you know at the beginning of every year we cover some articles on financial and tax planning. We have two articles in this issue from leading experts, one in academia and one in the industry. On behalf of the entire team of Desh-Videsh Media Group, let me take this opportunity to thank all of you for your business and support during 2020. Your loyalty and support are much appreciated. We look forward to continuing to serve you in 2021. Let me end my column by reiterating a universal prayer from the Hindu Scripture Brihadāraṇyaka Upanishad: ॐ सर्वे भवन्तु सुखिनः Om Sarve Bhavantu Sukhinah Om, May All be Happy,
Once again, a Happy, Healthy and Prosperous New Year to you all! Raj Shah |
The shloka prays for everyone to be happy, everyone to be free from all diseases, everyone sees goodness and auspiciousness in everything and may none be unhappy or distressed – such an altruistic shloka from our ancestors. How broad their minds were!
