In Need of Austerity

Till somedays back, the news channels were feasting on the austerity measures introduced by the Congress Party.....the most publicized being the public admonition of Shashi Tharoor and S.M. Krishna for putting up at a five star hotel (at their own expense mind you) till their official accomodations were set right....Bang after it came the public debate with members of parliament flying cattle...oops....sorry....economy class...another measure which was not given as much coverage as the above was the decision of the Congress MPs to take a cut in their remuneration....all media channels jumped at the ruling party saying all the measures were just symbolic and were done keeping in mind forthcoming elections.....While there may be some truth to what they were saying, the thought which came immediately to the mind was ..whats wrong if one does it for a purpose...as long as they do it....In fact, in a country like ours, dont think we need droughts to roll out austerity measures...With so much poverty around.....the priveleged few who have had access to education should build in a mechanism of giving back to the society...and even if the Congress Party does it for the sake of elections ...thumbs up to them..........since they might pull other parties and respective supporters to match their efforts...