5 SMS Part 5: Hidden reasons
This is the last post in a series deconstructing the government’s imposition of a cap on the number of SMSes that can be sent in one day. Sadly, the government has bowed to the extreme pressure of public opinion created by my earlier posts in just 4 days, and have raised the limit to 20 SMSes per day.
But I can still speculate about why they introduced a 5 SMS limit at all. Because I do not accept the wafer thin ‘rumour stopping’ excuse that they had given. No, I think there was a much deeper hidden motive, though I do not know exactly what it was. Doesn’t stop me from guessing, though. Here are the least crazy ones:
1. To help us prepare for the upcoming petrol price increase: It is rumoured that the petrol price could be headed for a Rs. 3 hike very soon. Is it not nice of our benevolent masters to introduce an SMS limit so that we can give up all our special unlimited SMS packs, and thereby save up for what we will splurge on fuel in the following days? Every penny counts.
Besides, we are so busy complaining about the 5 SMS limit (and about the new 20 SMS limit) that we might forget to complain about the petrol price hike.
2. As a tribute to VVS Laxman: If you stop for a second and think about the pattern of SMS limits, it will look a bit like 5 → 20 → unlimited. Which is a lot like a VVS Laxman innings - starting off slow, accelerating a bit and then finally making the opposition wish they’d never been born. The government was actually paying tribute to their favourite cricketer through this ban. We should have got the message as soon as they announced it, instead of waiting for his retirement announcement a few days later.
3. To let people blow off steam: When people get angry, things like revolutions can happen. Therefore, a safety valve is essential, so that people can cool down instead of going crazy. Facebook is such a safety valve, and the government announces measures like the 5 SMS limit every once in a while so that people can take to FB and write about their oppressed lives, as opposed to taking to the streets and actually doing something to lessen the oppression. Of course, this has given us a lot of very good jokes (my favourite was: “If the Govt. limits SMS just because rumours are spreading, shouldn’t people stop paying taxes because their money spreads corruption?”) but not much action.
4. Someone high up really likes WhatsApp: For all those with smartphones, WhatsApp is the answer to SMS silence; they don’t even notice an SMS limit. The common man suffers, of course, but he is important only for his vote, not 2 years from an election.
5. They were Maoist agents!!!: Sorry, Mamata seems to have hacked into the account while we were writing this particular point. Anyway, it seems as good a conspiracy theory as any.
What do you think about the real reason behind the limit? Shout out in the Comments Section.