c# - ODP.NET Oracle.ManagedDataAccess causes ORA-12537 network session end of file -

The principle of competition, Hesiod pointed out long ago, is built in the very roots of the world. There is something in the nature of things that calls for a real victory and real defeat. The competitive spirit is at the heart of a vibrant economy, and it is precisely what we have been trying to foster through our economic reforms. In the end, competition guarantees individual liberty far better than laws or regulators. Now a Competition Bill is being introduced in Parliament this winter for fostering competition, but ironically, it will result in having the opposite effect. With all good intentions, it wants to ensure that no company becomes dominant in the market and abuse its monopoly power. The bill gives a proposed Competition Commission the power to investigate any acquisition or merger between companies whose combined assets exceed Rs. 1000 crores or turnover exceeds Rs. 3000 crores. According to Omkar Goswami, 144 of our listed companies already exceed that asset limit, and among them are our best companies, the very ones with the potential for building infrastructure and competitiveness. The Commission can also investigate an acquisition by an "industrial group" whose assets exceed Rs. 4000 crores. The bill has revived foul memories of the MRTP days because it gives "experts" (read retired bureaucrats and judges) once again the power to decide the fate of our successful companies. They will be able to stop, for example, companies like Reliance or Infosys from acquiring other Indian or foreign companies to become competitive in the global market. Mergers are an essential part of a vibrant economy and they are just beginning to bloom in India. They are already subject to clearances under SEBI's take-over code and the Companies Act. Do we really need a third hurdle of a Competition Commission? If we are worried that an Indian company may become monopolistic, the simple answer is to protect the consumer by opening our markets to imports and lowering tariffs. We live in a global economy and market dominance can no longer be measured in simplistic terms. We are also a small economy-a little larger than Belgium-that has only recently found its path to growth. Only growth will help us to escape from poverty, and growth will come if we allow our companies to grow larger and efficient so that they compete in the world. The new bill will only cut them down. Fifty years ago other developing countries envied us because we had robust companies belonging to Tatas, Birlas, and others. But the MRTP commission came and destroyed their drive and ambition. Meanwhile, our competitor countries created giants with global empires. Do we want a repeat performance? People assume that market concentration inevitably leads to monopoly profits (following Bains' work). This assumption has been thoroughly discredited by recent empirical data (including the idea that economies of scale and advertising create barriers to entry for new firms.) Baumol's theory of "contestable markets" reaches the same conclusion. Even where there is only one firm left, its behaviour is not necessarily monopolistic. On the other hand, Stigler has shown that companies inevitably capture government regulatory agencies that regulate them. Thus, a Competition Commission could actually create entry barriers. Having said that, this bill has laudable provisions related to unfair and restrictive trade practices. These are needed, but they can be incorporated in the Consumer Protection Act. We don't need another bureaucracy for that. America, with its giant multinationals can afford the luxury of chopping down its companies in the name of dominance. It has mature policy makers who can be trusted not to destroy the institutions that create wealth. India's bureaucrats, however, have been destroying wealth for fifty years. This bill could seriously undermine investor confidence. America does not have the same worry--it is the investment destination of the world. It was able to withstand Microsoft's shock. But our investment confidence is fragile. As it is, we do not receive enough foreign investment, and a poor judgement by the Competition Commission could totally undermine our frail edifice. The only benefit, as far as I can see, of this law is to reassure people who are opposed to liberalisation. But a law that could undermine our fragile companies, stifle liberty and prosperity is a huge price to pay for this reassurance. It is sad! Here is a huge country with a potential to grow 10 per cent a year, and it is held back because it gets diverted by irrelevancies like competition laws. India should focus single-mindedly on growth. It should concentrate one-pointedly on fixing infrastructure, liberalising agriculture and reforming education. India needs more competition, but a competition law will not create it. It will come from freer trade and an investor friendly environment.