Sunday, December 29, 2019

Faulty BISP Beneficiaries Analysis. Use of Proxies in Data Analytics

Faulty assumptions of BISP research led to faulty conclusions:

We must need to question the faulty research assumptions of BISP Benazir Support Program Research Study that is being promoted on social media without requisite critical analysis. Over 8lac people have been identified that are being classified as "rich" without the necessary and rigorous research methodology and analysis. The research has used some raw data plucked from random sources without rigorous analysis, validation and triangulation of the data.

The use of data analytics, however, is a good beginning and like all tools need to be used with care and proper training. This is a good case study of faulty research assumptions for MPhil/PhD researchers that often lead to faulty conclusions:.

بے نظیر پروگرام ریسرچ مفروضہ-1:

کیا NADRA کے ایگزیکٹو سنٹرز سے cnic بنوانے والے سارے امیر لوگ ہوتے ہیں؟ کیا آپ نے وہاں مزدور نہیں دیکھے؟ کیا غرہب، بیمار اور بوڑھے لوگ لمبی خواری سے بچنے کیلئے ایگزیکٹو سنٹرز نہیں جاتے؟

بے نظیر پروگرام ریسرچ مفروضہ-2:

کیابیرون ملک سفر کرنے والے غریب مزدور نہیں ہوتے؟ کیا واپس آنے والے سارے مزدور امیر ہو جاتے ہیں؟ کیا آپ نے ان کے استحصال کی دلخراش کہانیاں نہیں سنیں! جن سے وہاں بیگار میں سالوں کام کروایا گیا؟ میں کئی لوگوں سے ملا ہوں جو کئ سال بعد واپس آئے ہیں یا واپس بھیج دئیے گئے ہیں، اور اب اپنی ذندگی دوبارہ شروع کر رہے ہیں- کچھ ساز و سامان انہوں نے اچھے وقتوں میں خرید لیا مگر بدلے ہوئے حالات میں کرائے کی ٹیکسی چلا رہے ہیں-

بے نظیر پروگرام ریسرچ مفروضہ-3:

کیا ہر موٹر سائیکل خریدنے والا امیر ہوتا ہے؟ کیا موٹر سائیکل خریدنے والے مزدور یا فوڈ ڈلیوری والے نہیں ہوتے؟ کیا موٹر سائیکل 2ہزار روپے مہینہ قسط پر نہیں ملتی تھی؟ کئ لوگوں سے ملا ہوں جنہوں نے کسی طرح موٹر سائیکل خرید لی ہے اور اب اس کے زریعے معاش تلاش کر رہے ہیں- آج کل موٹر سائیکل ٹھیلے کی جگہ بن گئ ہے-

Do you think that all Food panda/Bykea riders are rich? Do you think all taxi-drivers/rickshaw drivers are rich? Do you know what is the daily rent that a yellow cab driver pays to the owner of the yellow cab/rickshaw? Do you think the Uber driver who drives professionally is rich? Many of them may have brought the car/bike on installments.

There can be similar critique of other parameters selected in this study:

The collected data is known as proxy data. Please ask any econometric and social science researcher how this data needs to be qualified with other demographic data before it could be gainfully used to pluck out those unworthy of government support.

This measure indicates also that it is deriving Sadistic Pleasure from stopping the paltry amount of 1500-2000 rupees being disbursed to over 8lac people. Just see the ridiculousness and shameful irony:

بے نظیر انکم پروگرام سے ملنے والی دو ہزار روپے ماہانہ کی "خطیر" رقم پر "عیاشی" کرنے والے لاکھوں لوگوں کا ناطقہ بند کر کے حکومت اب بیرونی قرضوں پر لات مارے گی، موج اڑائے گی

What a shameful sadism.

Dr Irfan Hyder

Sunday, December 15, 2019

What Economic and Political Circumstances Led to Secession of East Pakistan

[To understand the context of this post, please read At What Cost! Why Compute Economic Costs of Faulty Political Decisions]

A Jog Down the Memory Lane

A Jog down the memory lane

Yesterday I took a stroll down the fields on the farm in Tumair. Moving from the small cozy cottage on the east side of the farm land towards the north-west corner where the work was in progress to build a water reservoir. This is barani land, where people have been growing crops such as corn and wheat for ages. These crops only require the seasonal rain pattern. As the farm lodgings begin to take shape we are still groping for a water solution. Without water, landscaping and growing of the plants we want is difficult. Although, rain in Islamabad is plentiful, the water needs to be stored in reservoirs. [2007-04-28]

How I learned the Craft of Book Binding

I learned book binding جلد بندی from my relative Ehtisham Haider Chacha (منّو چچا) . I went with him to Raja Bazar, Rawalpindi in 1975-76 when I was in 8th class and living in Islamabad. He helped me buy the needle, thick thread, and glossy paper sheet, scissors, etc. He then taught me how to prepare home made glue (میدہ کی لئی ), make holes in the book, thread the book with needle, attach thick card from used hard binding of copies, tie it to the thread, cut it, put the spine cloth, glue it and paste the glossy paper. I used this skill to bind hundreds of books in my home collection. I still have a few of those bound books with me. Unfortunately I could not get the opportunity to graduate to the finer art of جزو بندی which is a more involved craft requiring sewing with fine thread different parts (جزو) of the book.