Office of Profit & Future of the Job

What is an office of profit? अथार्थ वह ऑफिस जिसमे आपको कुछ फ़ायदा हो रहा हो। 

Actually, there is no such concrete definition of the office of profit. Even constitution is silent on this aspects. This has been a very debatable issue for many decades. People's President APJ Abdul Kalam had also raised this issues which inflicted the moral conscience of the countrymen due to the misuse of public money and adding or deleting the list of office of profit for own whims and fancies.

This debate came to light again and the question was raised that can an MP/MLA practise another profession. For example, Shri Kabil Sibbal is a lawyer who happens to be a Member of Parliament. So is it ethical for them to obtain the monthly benefits which are around Rs 2,74000 per month? 

Well in my view it is not ethical because:

1) This is public money.

2) The position can be misused for private benefits thus undermining the public interest. For instance, lobbying for any private firms or even defending the industry against the government.

Although it is unethical but not illegal due to the technicality. The word is EMOLUMENTS. Yes, you heard it right these MPs/MLAs does not get Salary but emoluments. 

Definition: Emolument is a benefit which a person gets for the compensation of his/her work in form of monetary or non-monetary.

While Salary is the amount a person receives for rendering the portfolio of services.

Moreover, in emoluments, there is not permanent in nature while salary is regular and permanent.

In nutshell, these technical reason does bring the MPs/MLAs under the office of Profit. Even the Constitutional post of Attorney General is also allowed to further practice in private capacity. While the executive ministers come under the office of profit.

Coming to the second part which is the future of the job. As far as India is concerned, I see the change the way job is being offered or created under the influence of Liberalization, Privatization and globalization. 

The jobs lucrative is contingent upon the demand-supply.

Scenario 1:

More the demand and more supply; means mediocre salary.

Scenario 2:

Less the demand and more the supply; means minuscule salary. Example: Today's job of Merchandiser, clerk even IT professional due to slow growth or stagnant world market.

Scenario 3:

More the Demand and Less the supply. This would create scarcity in the market so higher offering of salary to incentivize the people to do such jobs. Example: Today's Quaternary services, Quinary services, policy making, Research and developments etc.

Scenario 4:

Less Demand and Less Supply. Example obsolete jobs due to some disruptive changes in technology, polity, economy etc. For instance; Artificial Intelligence, Robotics is already replacing the humans for the menial jobs like Call operation, advertising, call centres in form of Autobots which you visit any websites etc.

Scenario 4 is very capricious and we still don't know how it would impact human jobs in future and I am a bit concerned about this. I would cover this on my future blog. 

Scenario 3, we see here the jobs with enormous educational qualification but future may change as the education become more affordable, qualitative and dynamically functional then more and more people would be able to educate themselves which means more competition in the job market. Basically, all the people would lie at almost same intellectual level. So I guess three-quarter of the world problem would be solved and perhaps we could almost reach to the Marx Utopian society-'a true Communism'. 

Another thing is that Dirty and intensive jobs would be more remunerative again in order to incentivize people to do the job. This we would see by the year 2025. I recall that in the summer of 1998, I read one of the newspaper where it was mentioned that job of Plumber is getting high paid jobs in England. I was astonished to see this.So who knows what tomorrow the job of the blue collar labour would be more demanding. This I would call "Reversal Capitalism''. But again we don't know of disruptive technology implication yet, so let's wait and watch.