Bulletin of Research Developments March 2015

From Editor in chief's Desk
It gives me great pleasure to launch the second issue of our journal, “Bulletin of Research
Developments.”
There are a lot of challenges which the growing economies face in the realms of basic necessities in
life.Technologycanplayaverydistinctroleinbringingaboutthischange.
It is very important that different stakeholders unite and collaborate on issues which confront the
society.Oneofthekeyobjectivesofresearchshouldbeitsusabilityandapplication.
This journal attempts to document and spark a debate on the research focused on technology in context
ofemerginggeographies.
The sectors could range from education, energy, environment, health care, transport, shelter,
manufacturingandserviceareas.
The key focus would however be the emerging sectors and research which discusses application and
usabilityinsocietalorconsumercontextwhetherindividualorindustrial.
The application of technology is a key theme in every paper which is published in this journal. The
intent of this journal is to showcase technologies which could bring about a fundamental change in
achievingsocietalandconsumerimpact.
These technologies could be very sophisticated to very elementary but in terms of impact they would
becapableofbeingcommercialized,scaledupandfocusonreallifechallenges.
The second issue has been very carefully put together covering a range of technologies in different
domains.
The contributions have come in not only from India from industry and academics but also from very
renownedinstitutionsandglobalindustrygroups as well.
I would like to thank all the editorial team members, reviewers and initial team which have helped
in making this journal a possibility. We hope that the research featured here sets up many new
milestones.
We have had an overwhelming response from some very eminent Editors and researchers globally
to support as Editorial Team. I look forward to make this endeavor very meaningful
Dr. Subramonian
Editor- in- Chief
Guinness World Record Holder in Online Teaching
National Record Holder in India for Continuous Teaching for 61 hrs 35 minutes
Email-director@iirm.edu.in Website-www.iirm.edu.in

Research Articles
Vol.2 No.2 5 March 2015th
Bulletin of Research Developments
Evaluation of Position of Female Workers in Construction Industries in India
Babu.M 00
Theory and Application on Critical Chain Project Management
S.Jothinathan 00
Functions and Profit Criteria of Indian Banks in Post Liberalization Period
Anup Varghese Cherian 00
XBRL: A New Tool for Electronic Financial Reporting
Jia Wu and Miklos Vasarhelyi 00
A Critical Reading of Tennyson's In Memoriam
Showkat Hussain Dar 00

Bulletin of Research Developments Vol.2, No.2, (5 March 2015)th
Evaluation of Position of Female Workers in Construction Industries in India
Babu .M
Doctoral Student Department of Project Management
Himalayan University-Arunachal Pradesh
Abstract
Construction industry provides job opportunity to large number of skilled as well as unskilled
workforce.Theworkforcesemployedintheindustryhavetofaceseveraldifficultiesattheworkplace.
Several issues related to health, job stress, and injuries at work place are the major concern of the
research among researchers. The present study is review of past research work related to the women
workforceemployedinconstructionindustryinIndia.Themajorfocusofthestudyistoidentifythekey
factors related to the status of female worker in the industry.Women work as unskilled labour and face
several other difficulties in comparison to males. Sexual harassment, gender biasness, wage
discriminationarethemajorfactorduetowhichtheworkingenvironmentbecomesdifficultforthemin
theindustryandwomen'sareremainsatsamelevelofskillevenafterworkingfewnumberofyears.
Keywords
Constructionindustry,health,injuries,jobstress
I.Introduction
Women are almost unskilled labourers and they face serious problems related to work, viz., wage
discrimination, gender and sexual harassment, unhealthy job relationship, lower wages; despite these,
constructionindustryoverwhelminglyattractsfemaleworkers.Theirskillsareneverupgradedasthey
are allowed to perform only certain types of work and usually they assist the male work force. India is
oneofthefastestgrowingeconomiesoftheworld.ThereareseveralpoliciesadoptedbyGovernmentof
India for the development of infrastructure for the country's economic development. Construction
industry is the key for the success of the globalization of Indian economy .Construction sector is
providing employment to 7% of total world employment.Today Indian construction industry employs
about31millionpeopleandcreatesassetsworthoverRs200,000million(IndiaInfraGuru,2008;GOI,
2008a) annually. In India, it is the largest employer of unorganized labour next to agricultural sector
(Laskar and Murty, 2004). The contribution of construction sector in India to the GDPat factor cost in
200607wasRs.1,965,550million,registeringanincreaseof10.7%fromthepreviousyearandtheshare
ofconstructioninGDPhasincreasedfrom6.1%in200203to6.9%in200607(GOI,2008).
Around 16% of the India's working population depends on building construction for its livelihood and
theIndianconstructionindustrytodayemploysabout31millionpeopleandcreatesassetsworthoverrs
200,000 million (India Infra Guru,2008; GOI,2008a)annually. However, the construction industry in
India is facing a huge shortage of manpower. The strength of skilled workforce in construction has
dwindled substantially from 15.34% in 1995 to 10.57% in 2005, whereas relative proportions of
unskilled workers have gone up from 73.08% in 1995 to 82.45% in 2005 (GOI, 2008b). These
construction labourers are one of the most vulnerable segments of the unorganized sector as there is no
permanent job opportunity for them.The construction industry has an annual turnover of Rs 2, 10,000
crores.
Construction workers are the backbone of the economy as they create the infrastructure necessary for
industrial growth. In a globalizing economy, it is they who are constructing the new economy. India's
threecoreconstructionworkersareliterallythebuildersofmodernIndia.

TheycontributeininfrastructuraldevelopmentofIndiabybuildingtheroadsandhighways,therailway
tracksandairportsandports,theITcities,thecallcentre'sandmegamallsthatarecreatingnewformsof
wealth today. It is they who are laying the cables for a rapidly expanding country-wide
telecommunications network that connect the vast sub-continent and make India one country, to
shorting the distance and supporting the business activitely in order to upgrade the economic
development. Yet these workers, who are creating the base of the new economy, lives in a time warp,
trapped in low skilled, low paid, insecure working conditions. About one-third of these workers are
womenandchildren.Womenarealmostunskilledlabourerstheyfaceseriousproblemsrelatedtowork,
viz., wage discrimination, gender and sexual harassment, unhealthy job relationship, lower wages, etc
despiteallthese,constructionindustryoverwhelminglyattractsfemaleworkers.Theirskillsarealways
at the same level and are not upgraded as they assist only the male work fare the workplace. Their
husbandsareoftendrunkardsorarefoundtohaveothersexualpartnersandfindthemselvesindebttrap,
due to these factors women are unable to strengthen their skills and economic position in the industry.
The female employment in the construction industry is very high, even though they work only as the
helpers or unskilled workers .The present study aims at reviewing the existing literature to look for
variousissuesofdiscriminationduetogender.
II.LiteratureReview
The review of literature is pertaining to some of the important articles and survey documented by
variousresearcherregardingtheconstructionindustryandwomen'sstatus.Thefocusofreviewisonthe
factors such as gender biasness, sexual harassment, family conditions of the women working in
construction industry .The variability in labour absorption in construction workers is much more
pronounced for women than for men. It has often been noticed that whenever there is high demand for
labour in this sector, the femaleemploymentrates is much higher than that of males. On the other hand,
wheneverthereisanyshrinkageintheworkforce,femaleworkersaretheonewhowillberemovedfrom
the work force than compared to males (Shramshakti Report). It appears that women construction
workers form a buffer which provides the cushion to industry and as soon as the situation comes under
the control they are shifted towards some other industry. The literature review is categorized in to
following sections to have an in depth insight regarding discrimination of construction workers based
ongender-
A. Women'sEmployment.
B. GenderBiasinConstructionSector.
C. WageDiscrimination.
D. SexualHarassmentatWorkplace.
E. Socialandeducationcontext.
F. HealthHazards.
A.Women's Employment
When it comes to female employment, however, the trends revealed by statistical analysis are more
mixed.
Public sector employment and Private sector employment of women in construction industry
(in thousands)
Year
Public sector
Privet sector
1981 1991
49.8 55.3
9.5 6
2000
63.2
4

8 Bulletin of Research Developments Vol.2, No.2, (5 March 2015)th

[1]. Occupational Stress of Women Workers in Unorganized Sector,Aadya and Kiran, U.V. (2013),
InternationalJournalofScientificandEngineeringResearch,4(3),3-13.
[2]. Issues of Occupational Health and InjuriesBharara, K., Sandhu, P., and Sidhu, M. (2012).
amongUnskilledFemaleLabourersinConstructionIndustry:AScenarioofPunjabState.
[3]. Sex Discrimination against Female Workers in Unorganized Sector,Das, D. K. (1985). Indian
JournalofIndustrialRelations,21(2),232-244.
[4]. Socio-Economic Conditions of Construction WorkersGirija, R. and Geetha, R. et al.)(1989).
inTamilNadu,ReportsubmittedtoICSSR,(Mimeo).
[5]. Occupational profile of child labour in Chikankari IndustryKumari, N and Kiran, U.V.(2012). ,
AdvancedResearchJournalofSocialScience,44(4),247-250.
[6]. Report on the status of women workers in the construction industry NationalMadhok, S. (2005).
commissionforwomenNew Delhi.
[7]. Female Work Participation in India: Facts, Problems, and PoliciesReddy, D. N. (1979). Indian
JournalofIndustrialRelations,15(2),197-212.
[8]. Women's Status and Economic Globalization,Richard, D. L. and Gelleny, R. (2007).
InternationalStudiesQuarterly,51(4),855-876.
[9]. Workplace Culture & Status of Women Construction Labourers;Rai,A. and Sarkar,A. (2012).
A case study in Kolkata, West Bengal, Indian Journal of Spatial Science 3.0(2) Winter Issue,
44 54.
[10]. Recruitment and EmploymentShivakumar, M.S., Sheng, Y.K. and Weber, K.E. (1991).
Practices in Construction Industry: A Case Study of Bangalore: Economic and Political Weekly
26(8),M27-M40.
[11]. Labouring Brick by Brick:Self Employed Women's Association (2000). A Study of
ConstructionWorkers.
[12]. A review on the occupational health and socialTiwari, G., Gangopadhy, P.K. (2011).
security of unorganized workers in the construction industry, Indian Journal of Occupational
and Environment Medicine 5(1).

Theory and Application on Critical Chain Project Management
S.Jothinathan
Doctoral Student
Department of Management
Himalayan University Arunachal Pradesh
ABSTRACT
It is now over 10 years since the first publication on Critical Chain Project Management (CCPM)
(Goldratt, 1997). Since then, software and implementation practice have developed rapidly. The logic
and assumptions underpinning this new knowledge has recently been published (Goldratt, 2007) in
the form of a strategy and tactics (S&T) tree. It is, therefore, timely to review the CCPM claims from
both a theoretical and practical perspective in the light of this new guidance. The paper includes
interim findings of longitudinal case research of a construction company following the S&T logic to
implementCCPM.
The paper, firstly, provides an overview of CCPM in the light of prior publications before reviewing
the newly published implementation guidance and evidence of current industrial practice. This
includes the use of CCPM within a government construction project initiative in India. Secondly, the
case research methodology applied to a construction company is presented followed by the interim
results and findings. Finally, the interim case findings are evaluated in the light of prior research and
thewidertheoreticallinks.
The paper concludes that CCPM is now making a significant contribution to improving project
management performance worldwide. The S&T guide provides a more comprehensive
implementation methodology as well as updated thinking on how CCPM should be implemented -
particularly in relation to flow control and continuous improvement. The research findings are only
interim, but largely support the logic within the S&T implementation guide with minor reservations.
However, the study, thus far, does not include the flow planning of multiple projects. Further research
is clearly needed to test the guidance in more detail as well as to clarify the relationship between lean
andTOC conceptswithparticularreferencetoflowcontrolandcontinuousimprovement.
Keywords: Theory of Constraints, Critical Chain, Buffer Management, Construction industry
INTRODUCTION
Theory in operations has undergone significant change in the past 40 years with a shift from an
economics cost-based view to one emphasizing flow and the reduction of waste and variation in
delivery systems (Ohno, 1988; Deming, 1982; Womack et al., 1990). This has, however, not been so
evident within the largely separate field of project management. The underlying theoretical basis for
project planning and control has not significantly changed in over 50 years, even though the planning
and control tools, such as network planning long have been acknowledged to be ineffective in practice
(Fondahl,1980).

'All too often, however, only the original plan and scheduling data are ever produced. They
continue to cover the office wall long after they are obsolete and bear little resemblance to the current
progress ofthejob.'
CCPM under the umbrella of TOC has been presented as an answer to this weakness but lean
protagonists would make similar claims. Koskela & Ballard (2006), with reference to construction
projects, argue project management theory needs to mirror the transition in thinking experienced in
production operations. They advocate changing from an economics based transformation model to a
flow model, as adopted by Toyota, and now associated with lean. They advocate adopting practices to
manage a flow routine and encouraging local control to improve synchronisation, seeing this as a
naturalextensionofleanpractices.
However, although the direction of improvement is clear, means of developing formal planning and
controltoolstoaccommodatetheuncertainprojectenvironmentarenotapparent.
Goldratt (2007) claims the TOC versus lean debate is a false dichotomy, and that TOC encompasses
the same underlying concepts of flow and continuous improvement associated with the Toyota
Production System (TPS) (Ohno, 1988). However, he and others assert TOC adds value by offering
thinking processes (Goldratt, 2008) that support the development of applications for different
environments, as in the case of projects. More specifically, Goldratt (1997, 2007) claims CCPM is a
means of applying the principles of flow and continuous improvement to a project environment.
Leach (1999) and others have previously emphasized this link by arguing that CCPM is an extension
ofShewhart's (1939)continuousimprovementconceptsandOhno's (1988)TPS flowconcept.
In reviewing the 10 years of development of CCPM and the case research findings this paper tries to
look beyond the more evident practical benefits to the underlying conceptual assumptions and
theoreticallinkswithleanproduction.
Thepaperis structuredas follows:
Overview key features of CCPM with reference to prior publications, newly published
implementation guidance and industrial practice - including the Indiaese Ministry of Infrastructure,
TransportandTourismconstructioninitiative.
Present the case research method and interim research findings of a UK construction company's
ongoinglongitudinalcase,utilisingGoldratt's S&TguideandConcertosoftware.
Discuss findings and reach conclusions on the in the light of prior research and a wider theoretical
frameworkthatlinksTOC andleanconcepts.
CCPMREVIEW:OUTLINE, LITERATURE, PRACTICEAND GUIDANCE
This section sets the scene by outlining the core elements of CCPM before reviewing critical
literature, evaluating recorded practice and outlining the recently published implementation guide
(Goldratt,2007).

CCPMinoutline
A central driver for adopting CCPM is enabling more predictable and shorter project lead times. The
argument is that this not only will enhance time-related order-winning criteria but also will reduce cost
and improve adherence to specification. To achieve this the focus is on improving the flow of projects
using similar logic to that of lean manufacturing and the operations-based TOC application entitled
Drum-Buffer-Rope(SchragenheimandDetmer,2001).
The main conceptual elements of CCPM are presented below in the context of planning, execution and
continuous improvement. Its distinctive differences with conventional project management are also
presented.
Projectplanning
CCPM takes account of resource as well as precedence dependencies in determining the project
duration. This is termed the critical chain. In Figure 1, the critical path would be denoted by activities
1-3-4, whereas in CC it is denoted by 1-3-2-4 due to common resource B. In such cases, the critical
chain is shown to be longer than the critical path and all four activities need to be managed
accordingly.
CCPM introduces the concept of project and feeder time buffers to accommodate the effective
management of buffer time that is commonly wasted at the activity level when managed locally. The
project buffer is located at the end of the project to protect the critical chain, and feeder buffers isolate
activity sequences with float from the critical chain (see Fig.1). Thus, such buffers enable aggregation
of the buffer time as well as better control, enabling both shorter and more controllable lead times. In
establishing these buffers, the proposed start point is to halve existing activity times and put half of the
remainder into the aggregated buffer. Therefore, the buffer is equal to a third of the activity and buffer
combination(seeFig.1forillustration).
When planning in a multi-project environment, CCPM advocates staggering the release of projects
around a designated resource that acts as a drum. This is used to ensure flow and avoid too many open
projectsthatresultinexcessivemulti-taskingandmissedduedates.
Figure 1 Network diagram and critical chain schedule showing buffers
Projectexecutionandcontinuousimprovement
Taskcompletionreporting

It is common practice for activity times to be reported in terms of work done, an economic measure
that is often only formally reported weekly or even monthly. With CCPM the remaining time to
completetheactivityis reportedonamuchmorefrequentbasis ideallydaily.
Provide visibility of upcoming tasksAs there are no intermediate task dates in the planning system the
task-time-remaining data provides advanced notice of upcoming tasks (this has previously been
referredtoasaresourcebuffer).
Current and upcoming tasks are monitored in line with priorities to ensure tasks are effectively
progressing.
In the more complex multi-project environment, there are many in-progress tasks competing for a
resource provider's time. In CCPM they are prioritised in terms of the ratio of critical chain completion
and buffer consumption, commonly using green, yellow and red priority colour codes. Upcoming
tasks are also displayed, indicating their relative priority as well as the projected time when these tasks
areexpectedtobecomeavailabletothatresource.
Buffer consumption is monitored daily by the project manager and recovery action taken where
necessary. Consumption of the buffer indicates a task is exceeding the ambitious time and that the task
managermayneedassistance.Actionattheprojectlevelmaybeneededtorecoverasituation.
Senior managers monitor the status of all projects and take action where necessary. At this level, the
priority status of all projects is reviewed periodically to monitor and address higher level programme
recovery.
Reasons for delay are monitored and provide focus for improvement. The relevant reasons for delay
areextractedtofocusimprovementactivity.
Reviewofliterature
Much of the literature relating to CCPM is positive but the focus here is on the more critical sources.
This is an attempt to expose underlying weaknesses that may be tested in subsequent research. The
mainissues raisedhavebeencategorisedasfollows.
Originality
The main distinction between CCPM and traditional project management is well reported (Newbold,
1998; Leach, 1999; Umble and Umble, 2000; Steyn, 2001). However, there are questions over
whether elements of the design are original to Goldratt. Trietsch (2005) is most critical in this area and
goesintosomedetailontheelementsoftheapproachhewouldattributetoothers:
This includes earlier reference to resource dependency 'the critical sequence' (Wiest, 1964) and
general awareness of the need to consider limiting resources in the network plan. It would appear
resource dependency was acknowledged academically but this was not effectively incorporated in
professionaltoolsbeforeCCPM.
The abolition of intermediate due dates which he links back to Schonberger (1981), among others,
who was an early proponent of lean and had seen the damage that intermediate dues dates had on
traditionalbatchmanufacture.

Trietsch acknowledges the important contribution of feeding buffers, but again questions their
originality, citing his work as earlier. He suggests project buffers naturally arise under other names as
in Obrien's (1965) term 'contingency'.CCPM is inherently simple in concept; therefore, it would be
surprising if the elements had not already been identified. However, even Trietsch (2005)
acknowledges Goldratt's important contribution in drawing together these elements in a holistic
manner, asdoothermorecriticalauthors(Razetal.,2003).
Oversimplification
It is clear that Goldratt's (1997) original publication was focused on presenting a radically different
conceptual approach that lacked detail, as in the case of the management of multiprojects highlighted
by Elton and Roe (1998). Several authors (Raz et al., 2003; Elton and Roe, 1998) argue the approach
brings more discipline but raise reservations over downplaying the traditional importance of personal
project management skills. Raz et al. (2003) also suggest the industrial successes are due to the
adoptions having been made in organizations who have poor project management implementations in
the first place. However, no empirical evidence was offered and the growth in applications and the
caseresearchreportedheredonotsupportthisassertion.
Paradigm change / over complication Lechler et al. (2005) acknowledges the clear benefits but
highlights the challenge in adopting a different mindset and suggests it could explain some failures.
The issues include the greater discipline of having activity times with the buffers removed, and the
complexity of managing multiple buffer types.They suggest a CCPM-lite version that would not have
feeder buffers (p56). It is interesting to note that in healthcare patient flow, such a variant has been
developed (Umble and Umble, 2006) but this complexity argument is explored in this research in
moretraditionalprojectenvironments.
Raz et al. (2003) also argue that the software and training cost resulting from the need for a change in
the organisational culture works against this approach. For example, the need to give up task time
ownership, not use task due dates and to avoid multi-tasking. Again no research evidence is offered,
buttheseissues areexploredinthecaseresearchthatfollows.
Pipelinescheduling
Raz et al. (2003) question the stability of a bottleneck resource within a project environment, as does
Trietsch (2005). Raz quotes the work of Hopp and Spearman (2000) in questioning the merits of DBR
over CONWIP, arguing that CONWIP is less susceptible to bottleneck instability. Although this
critique was not directed at CCPM, the instability of the bottleneck resource in project management
has more recently been acknowledged by Goldratt (2007). His original guidance (1997) was to plan
projects around a 'drum' in the form of a resource. This has now been changed to a virtual drum
resource that acknowledges any limiting resource is likely to move, and the real issue in projects is not
resource constraints but synchronisation (2007). It is intended that this new development will be
closelyinvestigatedthroughthisresearchiftheopportunityarises.

Buffersizing
The introduction of buffers is generally seen as a positive step in providing a means of managing
uncertainty, with this acknowledging the need to not attempt to set intermediate task start and end
dates (Deming, 1982). Several authors raise question over the sizing of buffers to comprise one third
of the path duration. It needs to be acknowledged that there is no scientific bases for the buffer sizing
but it is clear the size of the buffer required depends on several factors, including frequency of updates,
task uncertainty and project service level.Aproposal to size a buffer, using a fixed as well as a variable
element (Raz et al., 2003), is an interesting possibility but Goldratt advocates that even in
construction, where uncertainty is relatively low, the generic sizing rule still holds as the buffer is a
natural extension of the task time. Although this results in an inherently simple policy, there are clear
meritsinsimplicity,butundoubtedlyfurtherjustificationisdesirable.
These matters will be closely monitored in the design of the case research that follows. However, we
need to determine whether any additional complications add significant value. Raz et al. (2003) also
question the validity of the assumption that tasks are routinely overestimated then wasted, as well as
the practicality of extracting the buffer time from the task estimates. They suggest that transferring
some of the estimate to the buffer will reduce commitment or encourage further escalation of the task
time estimates.Again, this claim is central to the CCPM approach and will be specifically investigated
inthecaseresearch.
Concern is also raised over the use of a buffer penetration ratio for priority setting, arguing that other
factors such as project value could be more important. This argument is indeed valid if it is assumed
notallprojectscanbefinishedontime.
Herroelen and Leus (2001) conducted computational experiments and argued the buffer sizing can be
improved by ' . They suggest suchclever project scheduling methods such as branch and bound'
'advanced project scheduling tools can be implemented as black boxes without forcing management
or workers to know the technical details of the scheduling mechanism involved'. Further work is
clearly warranted here but due consideration needs to be given to the uncertain nature of the real world
and the benefit of simple pragmatic solutions that work with the full engagement of management
ratherthantheuseof'blackbox' logic.
Conclusion
There are clearly many questions regarding the details underpinning the application of CCPM. The
overriding consensus is that CCPM makes a significant conceptual and practical contribution. The
process of improvement is ongoing, as illustrated in the S&T developments (Goldratt, 2007)
discussed later and, as all solutions are underpinned by assumptions, it is important to expose those
that may prove to be invalid in establishing the boundaries and targeting the improvement process.
Trietsch (2005) advocates more scrutiny over the underlying assumptions stressing Goldratt's claim 'it
works' only means the flawed assumptions are not fatal. This is indeed true and, therefore, what is
needed is to identify the fatal flawed assumption first in embarking on a process of ongoing
improvement. To do this, however, research needs to be closely allied to practice which is a particular
concernindesigningthecaseresearchthatfollows.

Goldratt's StrategyandTactic(S&T) treeimplementationguide
The original publication presenting CCPM (Goldratt, 1997) addressed the main elements of the
overall design but many of the details had to be worked out and refined in practice, as in the case of
staggering multi-projects (Goldratt, 2007).The S&Tguide to CCPM implementation has clearly been
created with close reference to the implementation experiences of CCPM software providers, such as
Realisation. This knowledge has been provided in an innovative format that communicates the
implementation process and logic in a way that links strategy and tactics with increasing levels of
detail (see Figure 2). The part of this tree that concerns the core elements of CCPM is the focus of the
followingresearchthatfollowswhichparticularlycentresonthe'Build' and'Sustain' elements.
Figure 2 Extract of the CCPM S&T Tree breakdown

At each level of the S&T tree, the format is the same, with the assumptions linking the strategy
with tactics (see Figure 3).
4.14 Executing
Necessary
Assumptions
These assumptions (necessary, parallel and sufficient) are designed to support the logical links. The
value in clarifying these assumptions is particularly evident in 5:131 Building the CC network
diagram(PERT).
Strategy Projects are actively managed to ensure their successful, rapid completion
Parallel
Assumptions
Tactics
Sufficiency
assumption
Knowing when not to intervene is almost as important as knowing when to
intervene.
Figure 3 Example of the format and detail underpinning each level of the S&T tree

29
Functions and Profit Criteria of Indian Banks in Post Liberalization Period
Anup Varghese Cherian
Doctoral Student
Department of Management
Himalayan University - Arunachal Pradesh
I. Introduction
The paper seeks to determine the impact of various market and regulatory initiatives on efficiency
improvements and profitability of Indian banks since the implementation of financial sector reforms
following the recommendations of the Narasimham Committee in 1992 and 1997.The reform process
has shifted the focus of public sector dominated banking system from social banking to a more
efficient and profit oriented industry. While the reform process has resulted in the private sector
replacing the government as the source of resources for public sector banks (PSBs), the infusion of
private equity capital has led to shareholders challenges to bureaucratic decision making. PSBs also
face increasing competition not only from private and foreign banks but also from growing
nonbanking financial intermediaries like mutual funds and other capital market entities. The
competitive pressures to improve efficiency in the banking sector has resulted in a switch from
traditional paper based banking to electronic banking, use information technology and shift of
emphasis from brick and mortar banking to use of ATMs. For instance, by March of 2007, 86% of
public sector bank branches were fully computerized andATMs made up approximately 48% of total
bankbranchesinthecountry.
We use Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) to identify banks that are on the output frontier given the
various inputs at their disposal. Efficiency of each institution is then derived relative to the best-
practice bank on the frontier that uses a comparable mix of inputs. We then use the random and fixed
effects multiple regression models to explain differences in the relative efficiency of different banks in
terms of differences in management structures, regulatory mandates, and macroeconomic
environment. Our study is perhaps the first one that recognizes that differences in macroeconomic
environment at the state level may impact bank performance. Subsequently, we attempt to understand
the impact of efficiency differences and other factors like non-performing assets, labor costs and
market concentration on bank profitability. We again use the random and fixed effects multiple
regression models. Fixed effects are incorporated by adding two control variables; time and
ownership.
While inputs and outputs are easily identified in most businesses, that is hardly the case in banking.At
the heart is the question of whether deposits are input or output.Atypical financial intermediation role
for banks involves the use of deposits together with physical inputs of land, labor and capital to make
loans and earn interest income. Banks also recognize the importance of generating non-interest
incomeas ananti-dotetothevariabilityininterestincome.

Table 1: Characteristics of Banks
Banks
State-owned
Private-Old
Private-New
Foreign
Nationalized
1997
26.7
65.0
7.7
6.2
0.1
2007 **
23.8
36.5
5.9
30.2
3.5
1997
28.2
58.6
6.4
2.0
4.8
2004
27.6
50.7
7.0
10.1
5.5
2007
23.5
50.4
5.1
15.3
5.6
1997
31.7
52.5
7.2
2.7
6.0
2004
25.7
48
6.8
13.1
6.5
2007
24.3
48.4
4.7
16.2
6.4
2004
25.7
62.9
8.3
2.7
0.3
2007
24.6
62.4
8.1
4.4
0.5
Branches
% Total
ATMS
% Total
Deposits
% Total
Advances
% Total
* End March ** Data for earlier years not available.
Partly in response to these measures and partly as a result of the economy's improved performance, the Indian
banking sector's characteristics have changed and its health has improved. Old and new private banks have
increased their market share in terms of number of branches andATMs as well as share in deposits and loans at the
expenseof state-ownedandnationalizedbanks (Table1).
Since 1997, net interest margins have declined in every segment of the banking system save nationalized banks
and profit margins with and without taxes have improved across the- board save new private banks up to 2004 but
private banks' net interest margins and profits started improving from 2005 and outstripped overall industry
margins.All in all, industry-wide net interest and profit margins peaked in 2004 and have not recovered from their
downward spiral to date. Our subsequent work in this paper will focus on which groups of banks have gained in
efficiency in producing the specified outputs and also how individual banks stack up in terms of efficiency gains
during the post reform period. We also look at the impact of efficiency gains on bank profitability in the post
reformliberalizationperiod.

State Banks
Nationalized Banks
Private Banks-Old
Private Banks-New
Foreign Banks
All Banks
Banks
1991
1999
S1
1997 1998
1.95
2.13
2.30
2.97
1.81
Table 2: Trend in Bank Spreads and Profits (%Total Assets) 1991 - 2007
P1
0.15
0.21
0.31
1.39
0.20
P2
0.15
0.21
0.31
1.39
0.20
2000
S1
2.80
3.44
2.94
2.79
3.87
2.97
P1
0.34
0.67
0.85
1.70
1.28
0.60
P2
1.47
2.07
1.82
2.71
3.75
1.66
2001
S1
2.64
3.68
2.58
2.22
3.75
2.74
P1
0.50
1.11
0.46
1.92
1.26
0.59
P2
1.19
2.26
1.81
1.88
3.48
1.62
State Banks
Nationalized Banks
Private Banks-Old
Private Banks-New
Foreign Banks
All Banks
2002
2.15
2.18
2.00
4.01
2.26
3.09
0.12
0.60
0.40
1.51
1.91
0.10
0.62
1.76
1.08
2.18
3.72
1.04
2003
2.53
2.94
2.33
1.85
3.59
2.59
0.40
0.79
0.11
0.93
0.92
0.57
1.20
1.98
1.08
1.93
2.77
1.50
2004
2.74
2.71
2.42
2.01
3.30
2.70
0.25
1.54
0.68
0.76
1.15
0.49
1.14
1.38
1.72
1.63
3.00
1.44
State Banks
Nationalized Banks
Private Banks-Old
Private Banks-New
Foreign Banks
All Banks
2005
2.63
2.62
2.30
1.12
3.08
2.43
0.66
0.74
1.04
0.39
1.30
0.71
0.76
1.87
2.57
1.17
3.13
1.83
2006
2.99
2.77
2.63
1.68
3.45
2.78
0.98
0.91
1.19
0.89
1.75
1.011
2.34
2.27
2.69
3.35
3.35
2.411
2007
3.05
2.83
2.56
1.96
3.54
2.86
1.18
1.02
1.16
0.82
1.70
1.13
2.72
2.62
2.58
2.05
3.75
2.67
Nationalized Banks
Private Banks-Old
Private Banks-New
State Banks
Foreign Banks
All Banks
3.02
3.06
2.70
2.17
3.34
2.83
0.89
0.91
0.33
1.05
1.29
0.89
2.17
2.44
1.68
1.85
2.98
2.17
2.89
3.07
2.75
2.27
3.58
2.81
0.81
0.86
0.58
0.91
1.54
0.88
1.79
2.17
1.51
1.78
3.34
1.95
2.71
2.79
2.83
2.34
3.74
2.69
0.88
0.82
0.70
0.91
1.65
0.90
1.77
1.69
1.89
1.88
3.45
1.90
S1 = Net interest income, P1 = Net Profits, P2 = Gross Profits
* End March

III. Data EnvelopmentAnalysis
Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA), developed by Charnes, Cooper and Rhodes (1978), uses
principles of linear programming to examine how a particular decision making unit (DMU) like a
bank in our exercise operates relative to other DMUs in the sample. Efficiency is defined by the ratio
of output to input. This is straight forward when there is only one output and one input. But the task
becomes complex where multiple of outputs and inputs are involved. DEA gets around this problem
by constructing an efficiency frontier from weighted outputs (virtual output) and weighted inputs
(virtual input). DMUs on the frontier are assigned an efficiency score of 1 while those inside receive
scores of between zero and one. The further away a bank is from the frontier, the lower its efficiency
score.
While inputs and outputs are easily identified in most industries, it is not so in the banking industry.
The DEA studies of bank efficiency have typically used either the intermediation approach or the
production approach in selecting outputs and inputs. The former considers banks as intermediaries
that use deposits together with other inputs such as labor and capital to produce outputs like loans.
Hence, the intermediation approach views deposits as an input. In the production approach, however,
banks are thought of as service providers and deposits are considered as an output. Thus, the
production approach postulates that banks produce deposits, and loans using labor and capital as
inputs. In using the two approaches, we also consider non-interest income earned by each banks as a
distinct output in view of the emphasis banks themselves place on it as a stable source of income. As
our subsequent quantitative analysis shows, whether deposits are treated as an input or an output does
notappeartomakeanydifferencetotheefficiencyscoresofvariousbanks.
A few DEA-based studies of efficiency in the Indian banking system have appeared in recent years.
They have used a variety of specifications for inputs and outputs as evident from Table 3. Inputs vary
from purely financial such as interest and non-interest expenses to purely physical like number of
branches and employees. Outputs are either income related -- interest and non-interest income or
product/service related loans, investments and non-interest income. Deposits appear as inputs or
outputs depending upon whether the authors work with the intermediation or production
interpretationofbankingbusiness.
The efficiency scores are found to be relatively sensitive to the specification in terms of inputs and
outputs, which makes it difficult to reach generalized conclusions on how bank efficiencies stack
up by ownership. In a few studies that use a large number of inputs, not surprisingly many more
banks are found to be on the efficiency frontier ((Das, Nag and Ray). In earlier papers Ketkar et.
al. used deposits as well as physical inputs such as number of full time employees as a proxy for
labor and number of branches as a proxy for capital, and loans and investments as outputs. The
efficiency scores of most domestic banks were found to be quite low in that specification of inputs
and outputs. On reflection, we conclude that this

Table 3: Input & Output Specifications
Author(s)
Bhattachryya A. C.A.K.
Lovell & P. Sahay
Saha & Ravisankar
Ketkar & Noulas
Sathye M.
Ketkar, Noulas &
Agarwal.
Ketkar, Agarwal, Singh
& Mitra
Interest Expense,
Operating Expense
No. Of Branches,
No. of Employees,
Establishment & Non-
establishment
Expenditures
Capital No. Employees
Deposits
Capital No. Employees
Deposits
Model 1 Deposits Staff.
Branches
Model 2 Staff.
Fixed Assets
No. of Branches
Model B Deposits &
No. of Staff
Advances, Deposits
Investments
Advances, Deposits
Investments, Spread,
Total Income, Interest &
Non-interest income
Investment Advances
Investment Advances
Net Interest Income
Non-interest Expense
Net Interest Income
Interest Expense,
Model 2 Operating
Expense
Interest Income,
Non-interest Income
Investment Advances
Advances Deposits Investment
Inputs Output Period
1986-91
1991-92
1994-95
1993
1990-1995
1996-2003
1997-98
1997-98
1992-2000
Chakrabarty & Chwala Interest Expense,
Model 1 Operating
Expense
Advances, Deposits &
Investments
1990-2002
1997-2003Borrowed Funds, No. of
Employees, Fixed Assets,
Equity
Das A. A. Nag & S. Ray Investments, Performing Loans,
Non-interest Income
Model A Interest Expense
Rammohan & Ray Operating Costs,
Deposits
Investments, Loans &
Non-interest Income

0.6563
0.6071
0.7515
0.8227
0.8487
0.7151
0.7677
0.6882
0.7898
0.8377
0.8373
0.7674
0.6647
0.6358
0.7027
0.7954
0.8492
0.7058
0.7719
0.7196
0.7649
0.8328
0.8668
0.7722
0.7103
0.6289
0.6723
0.8018
0.9244
0.7091
0.8058
0.7087
0.7287
0.8342
0.9188
0.7676
2002 2003 20041997
State owned
Nationalized
Private - Old
Private - New
Foreign
All Banks
Spec. 1
Spec. 1
Spec. 1
Spec. 1
Spec. 1
Spec. 1
0.5878
0.4407
0.6218
0.6568
0.7487
0.5807
0.5150
0.4593
0.6458
0.6686
0.7529
0.5868
0.5372
0.5268
0.5909
0.7399
0.7799
0.6049
0.5907
0.5539
0.6420
0.7544
0.7844
0.6390
0.7561
0.5046
0.7202
0.6671
0.6958
0.6492
0.6623
0.5072
0.7077
0.6419
0.7099
0.6322
0.6924
0.5517
0.6500
0.6739
0.7425
0.6389
0.7324
0.5904
0.7042
0.6968
0.7781
0.6803
0.5896
0.5676
0.6466
0.7539
0.8732
0.6545
0.7286
0.6304
0.6970
0.6841
0.8424
0.6954
Spec. 2
Spec. 2
Spec. 2
Spec. 2
Spec. 2
Spec. 2
1998 1999 2000 2001
Table 4: Efficiency under Alternative Specifications and CRS
Ø
Ø
In sum, the perceived low efficiency of state-owned and nationalized banks appears to result
from their mission of generating deposits in addition to other outputs and the low income areas
in which they operate. Their profits do suffer in the process; in recent years state-owned and
nationalized banks have earned lowest levels of profits (Table 2), perhaps with occasional
exceptionofnew privatebanks.
Turning to the five most efficient banks over the sample period under the two alternative inputs
and outputs specifications (Tables 5 and 6), it is clear that foreign and private banks are found to
bethemostefficientbankswhetherdepositsaretreatedas outputorinput.

Only two domestic banks - the Catholic Syrian Bank (#38) and Lord Krishna Bank (#44) appear in
the top five most efficient banks in Specification 1. In addition to banks #38 and 44, bank 28 (Federal
Bank Limited) also shows up in the top five in Specification 2.All these are old private banks that have
hadagoodtrackrecordinproducingnon-interestincome.
Table5:FiveMost EfficientBanks
Specification1:
Outputs:Loans,Deposits,Non-interestIncome
Inputs:No. of Branches,Equity,TotalOperatingExpenses
Year/Rank 1
591996
591997
561998
49, 56, 57, 511999
38,51,56,59,622000
38,48,49,51,56,622001
38,49,50,56,58,592002
49, 56, 58, 60, 622003
2
38
38
59
3
50
49
48
4
49
51
61
5
44
61
38
59
State-owned
Nationalized
Old Private
New Private
Foreign

Table 6: Five Most Efficient Banks
Specification 2:
Outputs: Loans, Non-interest Income
Inputs: No. of Branches, Equity, Deposits, Total Operating Expenses
Year/Rank 1
501996
381997
571998
44,52,57,601999
52,60,632000
57,632001
57,632002
57,59,60,61 532003
2
38
60
52
3
60
44
60
49
51
4
51
52
62
57 50
50 52
53 61
5
57
62
28
62
V.ExplainingEfficiencyDifferences
In this section, we attempt to explain differences in bank efficiency scores due to regulatory mandates
and managerial decisions. We use multiple regression method with random and fixed effects for this
purpose. The dependent variable in the efficiency equation is each individual bank's efficiency score
(ES) and the independent variables are: the percent of bank branches located in rural and semi-urban
areas (RSB), the number of officers as percent of its total employees (OS), the level of fixed assets as
percent of its total assets (FA), priority sector loans as percent of total loans (PSL), investment as
percent of total assets (INV), number of ATMS relative to bank branches (ATM) and each bank's
market size index (MSI)6. The RSB, PSL, INV variables reflect RBI mandates, the OS variable
represents a management decision, the variables FA and ATMs is influenced by both RBI mandates
and managerial decisions, and finally the MSI variable is an amalgam of management decisions,
regulatorymandates,andmacroeconomicenvironmentatthestatelevel.

All employees of new private banks, for instance, are classified as officers and majority of foreign
banks' employees are classified as officers. Our results should reveal whether that improves the
efficiency with which new private and foreign banks operate. As regards PSL, domestic as well as
foreign banks are required to allocate, respectively, 40% and 32% of their net bank credit (NBC) to
priority sectors including agriculture and small scale industries and businesses. Domestic banks that
fail to allocate the requisite percent of their NBC to PSL are required to contribute the shortfall to the
Rural Infrastructure Development Fund. Similarly, foreign banks are required to deposit the shortfall
with the Small Industries Development Bank of India. Thus, banks have some ability to deviate from
the proscribed PSLlevels. Furthermore, the RBI has enforced the PSLmandates a lot more flexibly in
recent years. The net result is that the PSL as percent of total loans has varied from low teens to high
60s. Banks undertake investment in government securities (INV) to meet the statutory liquidity
requirement (SLR). While the RBI has lowered SLR from a high of 33% to 25% of bank liabilities,
many banks (public sector banks in particular) continue to hold government securities in excess of the
proscribed liquidity requirement, sometimes as high as 40%. This is reflection of banks' reluctance to
seek loan business aggressively. INV thus measures degree of “lazy” banking in India. As INV
increases for a bank, its lending is curtailed and its efficiency score ES is reduced. Finally, the market
size index is calculated by weighting state-level GDPs by the share of each bank's branches in each
state in the total of all bank branches in that state and then summing the resulting magnitudes across all
states.7The market size variable is converted into an index. Market size index (MSI) is constructed by
first calculating the average market size for all banks for each year. As a second step, we compute
market size faced by each bank in relation to the average market size for a given year. The MSI faced
by state owned and nationalized banks partly reflects the mandates on opening bank branches in rural
and semi-urban areas triggered by the management's decision to open up branches in urban centers.
For all other banks, of course, MSI is a purely managerial decision. MSI takes into account the impact
of state-level macroeconomic environment on bank efficiency at the national level. We estimate
equation(1)foreachofthetwoefficiencyspecificationsbycontrollingforownershipandtime.
It is observed from the regression results inTable 7 that the RSB regulatory mandate has had a negative
impact on ES in specification 1 but when we control for ownership, the impact of RSB is positive and
statistically significant implying that branch expansion improves business by bringing in deposits.
RSB hasstatisticallysignificantpositiveimpactonESinspecification2for

Table 7: Determinants of Efficiency Scores Differences
*t-statistics are reported in parentheses below the estimated coefficients.T-statistic above or below +/-
1.96 implies significance at 5% and above or below +/-1,645 at 10%. both random and fixed effects
models. Thus, a bank's urban-rural presence by itself does not seem to impede efficient operations. A
rise in the percent of officers in total employment (OS) does appear to enhance efficiency significantly
andthatis notsurprising.
This enhancement in efficiency can be attributed to the officers' ability to work with modern
technology. A rise in the percent of fixed assets in total assets (FA) has negative and statistically
significant impact, which again is not a surprising result. We observe that both PSL and INV have the
expected negative and statistically significant signs, implying that RBI mandates adversely impact
bank efficiency scores. Finally, the MSI's statistically significant negative impact on efficiency
suggests that larger market size together with less competition in many states makes banks less
efficientinproviding
Specification 1 Specification 2
Independent
Variables
Random
Effects
Fixed Effects
Ownership Time
Fixed Effects
Ownership Time
Random
Effects
Intercept 0.792 0.542 0.962 0.969 0.880 1.221
RSB -0.00036
(0.807)*
0.002
(3.39)
-0.0001
(0.30)
0.0013
(2.77)
0.0024
(3.60)
0.0016
(3.98)
OS 0.0020
(4.80)
0.001
(1.78)
0.0017
(4.27)
0.0019
(4.39)
0.0029
(4.30)
0.0014
(3.77)
FA -0.020
(4.08)
-0.021
(4.03)
0.013
(2.75)
-0.24
(4.68)
-0.159
(2.81)
-0.0146
(3.17)
PSL -0.002
(2.48)
-0.001
(1.32)
-0.002
(2.82)
-0.0018
(2.16)
-0.0023
(2.68)
-0.0021
(2.82)
INV
MSI
-0.0027
(2.77)
-0.001
(1.01)
-0.0057
(5.72)
-0.0086
(8.33)
-0.007
(6.90)
-0.13
(13.10)
-0.021
(4.80)
-0.0098
(2.02)
-0.02
(4.92)
-0.015
(3.30)
-0.104
(1.99)
-0.014
(3.48)
R- Square 0.25 0.33 0.34 0.20 0.25 0.15
F- Statistic 28.40 21.15 21.29 17.89 9.325.06

banking products and services. The State Bank of India, for instance, has an extensive branch network
alloverthecountrytoraiseitsMSI whichactuallycontributestoitsrelativelackofefficiency.
Finally, we attempt to determine the impact of estimated bank-specific efficiency levels under
specifications1and2ontheirprofitability.Todothis,weestimatethefollowingregressionequation:
where ROAis the gross profit margin as percent of total assets , ES is efficiency scores from the DEA
model, IS is the net interest spread, NPA is non-performing loans as percent of total loans, PSL
represents priority sector loans, WS is total compensation per worker, and HHI is the Herfindahl-
Hirschman “concentration” index based on each bank's market share in total loans and deposits. We
expect an increase in ES, IS and HHI to increase bank profitability(ROA) and an increase in NPA, PSL
andWS to reduce ROA. Equation 2 is estimated using specifications 1 and 2 for ES estimates. For both
specifications, we estimate equation (2) using random effects model and then re-estimate for fixed
effectsbycontrollingforownershipandtime.
From Table 8, we observe that ES, IS and NPAvariables have the expected and statistically significant
effects. As expected, ROA decreases as NPAs increase and the decline in ROA is statistically
significant. NPAs affect ROA on two fronts. First, NPAs directly reduce interest income and second,
RBI mandates banks to make provisions against bad loans. The effect of PSLvariable is mixed. When
we include ES scores from specification 1, the effect of PSL variable is positive but not statistically
significant.
VI. Efficiencyand Profitability

Table 8: Determinants of Bank Profits (ROA)
Significantat5%(10%)leveliftis aboveor below+/-1.96(+/-1.645)
However, when we control for ownership and time, the PSL variable has the expected negative and
statistically significant effect. When ES from specification 2 are included and the equation is re-
estimated, the PSLvariable has the expected negative and statistically significant effect.Thus, priority
sector lending, PSL, not only negatively impacts bank efficiency (ES), it also adversely affects bank
profitability (ROA). In the Indian context, an increase in WS increases ROA but the effect is not
statistically significant. Perhaps, this implies that as banks hire more skilled and educated workers or
officers, their efficiency (ES) increases but their profitability (ROA) is not materially impacted. When
wecontrolforownershiportime,theresultsdonotchange.
Specification 1 Specification 2
Independent
Variables
Random
Effects
Fixed Effects
Ownership Time
Fixed Effects
Ownership Time
Random
Effects
Intercept 1.32 -1.3 -0.0741 -1.03 -0.97 -0.87
ES
IS
NPA
PSL
WS
HHI
R- Square 0.48
-0.32 -0.28 -0.25 -0.33 -0.26 -0.4
-0.0003 -0.0003 0.0002 -0.0003 -0.0002 -0.0003
-0.84 -0.98 -0.64 -1.2 -0.49 -0.97
1.41 1.9 1.11 2.034 0.96 1.66
-1.45 -2.02 -1.95 -2.37 -1.59 -2.83
0.008 -0.013 -0.011 -0.013 -0.01 -0.02
-4.28 -4.28 -3.86 -4.65 -3.84 -4.24
-0.036 -0.038 -0.032 -39 -0.035 -0.04
-16.03 -14.72 -16.09 -15.74 -14.51 -15.8
77.05 75.62 77.13 76.01 75.16 76.35
(8.20)* -7.67 -7.28 -7.69 -7.50 -6.52
2.79 2.79 2.51 2.46 2.37 2.14
0.47 0.49 0.47 0.47 0.48
F- Statistic 76.16 38.47 73.86 44.42 37.0146.01

VII. Summary and Conclusions
The paper investigates the efficiency of Indian banks since systemic reforms began to be undertaken in
the 1990s. Our study is perhaps the first one that examines the long run impact of reforms and
liberalization on individual banks' efficiency and profitability. We do this using Data Envelopment
Analysis and bank-specific data from 1997 to 2004. We recognize the controversy on the role of
depositsasinputoroutputbyderivingefficiencyscoresunderalternativespecifications.
Our DEA results show that the relative efficiency of banks by ownership does not critically depend
upon whether deposits are treated as an input (intermediation approach) or output (production
approach). In general, we find foreign banks to be the most efficient followed by new private banks.
While the efficiency scores of all banks have increased over the reform period, the nationalized banks
have registered the strongest gains. This reflects the infusion of new capital and the increase in
competitionthatthesebankshaveexperiencedinrecentyears.
The regression analysis undertaken to explain efficiency differences among banks shows that the
mandates on priority sector lending have hurt the efficiency of state-owned and nationalized banks but
bankbranchexpansionmandateshavenothurttheirefficiency.
The latter may reflect efforts by banks to locate rural and semi-urban branches close to population
concentrations. The managerial decision by new private and foreign banks to have a high percent of
officers in their workforce has added to their efficiency. Excessive bank investment in government
securities has negatively impacted bank efficiency. Such overdependence on government securities
by public sector banks is an indication of their risk-averse behavior. Finally, the new MSI variable
developed to measure the income environment facing each bank is found to be quite relevant in
explaining lower efficiency scores of state-owned and nationalized banks. Turning to banks'
profitability, we find that efficiency scores and net interest spreads impact it positively while
nonperformingassetsandprioritysectorlendinghavetheoppositeimpact.
Thus, the liberalization and deregulation of banks have raised efficiency scores over time of all banks
in India regardless of their ownership.These gains in efficiency have also improved bank profitability.
Still, the remaining RBI mandate of priority sector lending continues to hurt both the efficiency and
profitability of state-owned and nationalized banks. The practice of hiring more officers in relation to
non-officers among foreign and new private banks also appears to have contributed to their enhanced
profitability. This reflects perhaps the computer and credit-assessment skills that officer employees
bring to the table. Finally, the statistically insignificant impact of the Herfindahl-Hirschman
concentration index indicates that the State Bank of India has not been successful in leveraging its
relativelylarge marketshare to raise eitherits efficiencyor its profitability. In allfairness, however, the
Herfindahl-HirschmanindexisnotthathighevenfortheStateBankofIndia.

Table 5.2. A comparison of three markup languages
5.3.1XBRLComponents
XBRL consists of three major components: the XBRL specification, XBRL schema, and XBRL
instancedocuments.
5.3.2XBRLSpecification
XBRLspecification aims at standardizing the creation of XBRLtaxonomies and instance documents.
XBRL allows each user to define his/her own set of meta-data tags. However, unless these tags are
created following certain uniform standard, information exchange would be inhibited since the tags
defined by one user may be incompatible with and incomprehensible to the other user's application.
XBRL specification is such a uniform standard that provides guideline on how to design taxonomies
andinstancedocumentsinXBRL. ItdefinesXBRLelementsandattributesthatcanbeused toprepare,
exchange, and analyze financial reports, ensuring that user-defined tags do not overlap or clash.These
elements and attributes include syntax of instance documents, syntax of taxonomies, semantics of
instancedocuments,andsemanticsoftaxonomies.
Function
Flexibility
Tags
Components
Parser
Similarities
HTML XML XBRL
Web page
presentation
Limited
Predefined
Tags
Web Browser
Plat-form independent, language independent, easy for document exchange
Data processing
Great
User defined
Schema (DTD), tags
XML-enabled
applications
Financial data processing
Great
User defined
Specification, taxonomy,
instance document, tags
XML-enabled
applications

Table 5.3. Example of XBRL Specification Elements
5.3.3XBRLTaxonomies
XBRL.org defines taxonomies as a “standard description and classification system for the contents of
accounting reports. XBRL taxonomies can be regarded as extensions of XML Schema. Information
producers take their accounting information from their accounting system and code it in a standard
fashion as described by the taxonomy.”Taxonomies are used for different types of business reports.As
we know, accounting can be divided into several subsets, including financial accounting, management
accounting, SEC reporting, IRS reporting, etc. Each subset usually requires a special set of accounting
terms, policies, and methods for reporting.Addition- ally, different accounting standards may require
different taxonomies. For instance, U.S. General Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) are
different from International Accounting Standards (IAS). Therefore, two taxonomies may be needed
topreparethebusiness reportsinaccordancewiththesetwodifferentstandards.
Consequently, XBRL communities have determined to create one taxonomy for each accounting
subset. For example, there are taxonomies for general ledger, financial reporting, management
reporting and SEC certification. Currently, two taxonomies are available to the market. One is U.S.
GAAP CI taxonomy, which deals with financial reporting for commercial and industrial companies
under GAAP. The other is GL taxonomy, which is concerned with reporting at the transaction level.A
number of new XBRL taxonomies, including taxonomy for management notes and discussions,
taxonomy for SEC certification, and taxonomy for IAS accounting, are either under development or
underreview.
5.3.4 XBRL Instance Document
Syntax of
instance
document
Syntax of
taxonomies
Elements Examples Meanings
NASDAQ:MSFT
CUSIP:41009876AB
<element name= “CurrentAs-
set.CashandCashEquivalents”
type= “xbrl:monetary”/>
<element name=“significant
Accounting Policies-Note.
stock Based Compensatio
n Policy”
type= “string”/>
The company with
NASDAQ ticker
symbol MSFT
The entity with CUSIP
number 41009876AB
Define the elements. Note
that both the colloquial
name and its immediate
parent are included in the
element
Company ID,
reporting period,
entity names
Elements,
Monetary and
shares data- types,
rollup

An instance document is an XBRL-coded business report. It can be an XBRL-tagged balance sheet, an
XBRL-taggeddebtcovenantreport,oranXBRL-taggedSEC10Q filing.
XBRL specification, XBRL taxonomies and XBRL instance documents constitute the XBRL world.
An XBRL instance document includes the XBRL specification version ID as well as the name and
location of XBRL taxonomies. Upon receiving an XBRL instance document, the XBRL- enabled
application can process the instance document in accordance with the matching specification and
taxonomies.
5.4XBRLandBusiness Intelligence
XBRL has far-reaching implications for the entire business community. XBRL can dramatically
facilitate business reporting. The processes of pre- paring, presenting, extracting, and analyzing
financial reports can be largely automated using XBRL-enabled applications. Both financial report
preparersandusers canharvestthehugebenefitsfromXBRL.
5.4.1BenefitsforFinancialReportPreparers
Accounting computerization has already for a large measure alleviated accountants' workload. XBRL
can further increase the efficiency and effectiveness of accountants' work. XBRL can facilitate the
preparation of financial reports. Traditional financial reporting requires multiple inputs of financial
data for different types of financial reports. Accountants need to input a company's entire set of
financial and non-financial data for its annual report to be placed on the company web site. They may
input the same set of data again to prepare an SEC 10K filing or a credit report filing for bank loan
applicationbecausethesereportshavedifferentdataandformatrequirements.
These multiple entries of data into the computer system not only waste time and labor but also result
in many input errors. XBRL eliminates this redundant task. Since XBRL applies standard tags to the
raw financial data, an XBRL-enabled application can understand and process the data.The same set of
data can be used across applications. Accountants can enter data once into the computer system and
use it multiple times. It would be time saving, effort saving, and paper saving for accountants to
prepare different business reports for different purposes using different formats. It is comparable to
havingaword documentfilethatcanbeconvertedeffortlesslyintotxt,pdf,andrtfdocuments.
XBRL can be integrated with ERP systems, corporate data warehouses, and other corporate
information systems. ERP systems and corporate data warehouse can capture data at the transaction
level and feed the data into XBRL- ready applications. Then the information can be tagged in XBRL
using XBRL GL (general ledger) taxonomy. Afterwards, the general ledger level XBRL-compliant
report can be further processed, consolidated, and customized for different user needs. The entire
process can be computer automated without human intervention.This practice will further reduce the
costsforfinancialreportpreparation.

5.4.2Benefitsforbusiness reportusers
In addition to facilitating accountants' business reports preparation, XBRL can also streamline the
extraction and analysis of business reports for a large variety of financial report users. These users can
include company decision makers, auditors, creditors, financial analysts, stockholders, as well as
regulators.
Different financial report users usually have different interests in the financial reports. Local
managers may be interested in the sale volume and inventory turnover ratio. Top decision makers may
be interested in the overall profit of the company. Auditors may be more interested in knowing if the
company hidden financial problems. Creditors will be interested if the company will be able to pay
back the loans. Stockholders and financial analysts are usually interested in the company's earnings,
stock dividends and growth potential. Regulators usually pay more attention to if the company has
compliedwith thelaws and regulations.For example,IRS officialsmay pay attentionto the company's
taxableincomeandpayments.
Currently, these users have to manually extract relevant data from business reports and then import
these data into various computer applications for analyses. A bottleneck lies in this manual data
extractionprocess.
Computerized data extraction is hampered for four major reasons. First, not all the companies use the
same set of accounting terms. For example, “cash” and “cash and equivalents” can mean the same
accounting item (Kogan et. al, 2002). It would be easy for human users to identify but will cause
confusion for computer programs. Second, what makes things worse; there is no consistency for the
report layout and format. The length of an annual report can vary from 5-7 pages to 70-80 pages. An
income statement can be found at the beginning, middle, or end of an annual report.Aline item, such
as inventory, can be located at the 3rd, 4th, or even 5th line under the current assets account. The
inconsistency in accounting terms and report formats prohibits the automation of data extraction and
analysesfrombusiness reports.
However, with the adoption of XBRL, these problems can be easily solved. If financial reports are
encoded in XBRL tags, XBRL-enabled computer applications can quickly scan the tags in the report,
locate the desired line items, and extract the data for analyses. Since these XBRL tags are clearly-
defined standard tags, the computer application will not have any confusion in identifying the needed
data.
The financial report users only need to inform the application what type of information they are
interested in, and the application can extract the relevant information for them automatically.Thus, the
timefordataextractioncanbegreatlyreducedbyusingXBRL.
XBRL can also facilitate the information exchange of financial reports. Traditional financial reports
have limitation in information exchange. First, financial reports are usually prepared in different file
formats by different computer applications. For example, a study of online financial reporting found
that the formats of online financial reports include pdf, word document, txt, excel, and html. These
files have limited compatibility. Smooth information exchange is rendered impossible by these
incompatiblefileformats.Moreover, differentplatforms,suchasWindows 98,Windows

2000,Windows XP, Unix and Linux, have created more barriers for financial report exchange between
different platform-dependent applications. Second, financial reports can be prepared in different
languages, including but not limited to English, German, French, Chinese, Japanese, and Korean.
Current financial analysis software suites are language dependent. Most of these applications can only
process financial reports in one language, mostly in English.Ahuge portion of non-U.S.-based capital
markets is excluded from the financial community due to language barrier. Last, but not least, different
accounting standards, regulations and policies have prohibited seamless comparison between
financial reports prepared under different accounting standards. U.S. GAAP, International
Accounting Standards (IAS), and other proprietary national standards such as Japan's accounting
principle prevent expedited exchange and analysis of the financial reports because the information
contained in these financial reports is not comparable if the user is not familiar with these different
standards.
XBRLcan nicely resolve the above-mentioned problems. First, if a financial report is coded in XBRL
tags, the conversion of this report into other formats can be as easy as several mouse clicks, using the
XBRL- ready application. Microsoft has already added an XML module into its Office XP software
package. It is expected that an XBRL module for Office applications will soon be available. On the
other hand, the conversion of financial report in various formats into XBRL-compliant document is
also effortless. University of Kansas has developed a prototype of an XBRL conversion tool, which
can convert a text-format financial report in- to an XBRL-encoded one. UB Matrix and Case Ware are
among the increasing number of software vendors who are developing XBRL-enabled applications
tocreateXBRL-encodefinancialreports.
Second, in order to overcome the language barrier, XBRL uses Unicode as its default font. Unicode
can support over 120 languages, which makes XBRL language independent. Hence, even if a human
user does not understand the language in the financial report, an XBRL-ready computer application
canautomaticallytranslateandanalyzethefinancialreportsfortheuser.
Third, the barrier caused by the different accounting standards can also be removed by XBRL. Each
XBRL-compliant financial report contains taxonomy information, which indicates the type and
location of the taxonomy. Financial reports based on different accounting standards use different
XBRL taxonomies.An XBRL-ready computer application can retrieve the matching taxonomy from
thedesignatedlocationandprocessdatacontainedinthefinancialreportsaccordingly.
In summary, XBRLis a language independent, platform-independent, accounting-policy independent
standard. Its adoption can facilitate financial report preparation, extraction, exchange and analysis.
Accountants can prepare financial reports with ease. More frequent financial reporting is made
possible by XBRL. Using XBRL-enabled software, Managers can have both very detailed and highly
consolidated view of a company's financial data. More effective decisions can be made.Auditors can
integrate their auditing software with XBRLbusiness reports. Financial data can be electronically fed
into the auditing software as opposed to manual input. Thus, auditing sample size can be dramatically
increased, and the audit risk can be lowered. Frauds and errors can be detected more promptly. With
XBRL, investors and creditors can follow more companies, including domestic and international,

large and small ones. The capital and loan market will become more rational and efficient. Similarly,
regulatorscanmonitormorecompanies' financialperformance.
5.5XBRLSoftwareVendors
Although XBRL is a recent innovation, several software companies have already developed XBRL-
enabled applications.Awell-known application is a jointly-developed project called “Excel Investor's
Assistant” by Microsoft, PricewaterhouseCoopers, and NASDAQ. This application can pull financial
data from the Internet, build XBRLinstance documents, and conduct financial analyses of 21 selected
companies. The beauty of this application is that it is a macro which runs on the widely-used Excel.
Therefore, no new software is required. It can prepare XBRL instance documents, perform ratio
analysis, compare up to five companies' financial measures, and analyze financial and nonfinancial
information.Everyprocessandtaskcanbecompletedinseconds.
A number of business software vendors have developed XBRL-enabled applications. Generally
speaking, current market available applications can be categorized into two major groups: XBRL
instancedocumentbuilderandXBRLtaxonomybuilder.
Fig. 5.1 shows the initial startup screen of the application. It allows the user to input the fiscal period
and company names for analysis. In this case, Microsoft and Intel are added for analysis. The fiscal
period is from 1st quarter in 1997 to 4th quarter in 2002. The application retrieved the XBRL
documents for these two companies from the Internet immediately after the “Build Analyses” button
was pressed.
Fig. 5.1 Excel Investor's Assistant initial screen

Fig. 5.2 Time series comparison
Fig. 5.2 displays the screenshot a time series comparison chart of Intel Corp's annual financial
measures and ratios, such as total revenue, gross profit margin, inventory turnover, and ROI. Through
the charts, financial statement users can instantly compare the current financial performance to
historicalperformance.
Fig. 5.3 Comparison chart

Fig. 5.3 shows a comparison chart of Intel and Microsoft's annual net in- comes from 1997 to 2002.
The financial measure comparison between these two companies is clearly visualized through the
charts.
Fig. 5.4 Accounting numbers for Intel
Fig. 5.4 presents the accounting numbers for Intel. The increase and decrease of accounting
numbers can be indicated by different colors. The variance percentage will pop up if the mouse is
moved over the appropriate numbers.
XBRL instance document builders focus on making XBRL-compliant business reports. These
applications either generate XBRL-compliant business reports directly from the corporate data
warehouse such as PeopleSoft and SAP's financial modules and Case Ware's Working Papers; or the
applications convert traditional business reports into XBRL-compliant reports such as Hyperion
Solutions' Hyperion Reports and Price water house Coopers' Edgar Scan. XBRL taxonomy builders
allow users to create their own taxonomy.As we know, variations exist in different business reporting
requirements for different business entities. Standard taxonomy is not all inclusive, which may not
always satisfy business reporting needs. Sometimes an organization needs to create its own taxonomy.
XBRL taxonomy building applications can help to create new taxonomies, ensuring that the
taxonomies created conform to XBRLspecifications and can be mapped into the company's database.
This type of application includes UBMatrix's Taxonomy Builder, Decision Soft's X-Meta, and Fujitsu
Ltd's Taxonomy Editor. In addition, another group of XBRL vendors provides a repository for XBRL
instancedocuments. ThesevendorsincludeEdgarOnlineandOneSourceInformationServices.

5.6Conclusion
XBRL can facilitate financial report preparation, exchange, extraction and analysis. Business report
preparation and analysis will be much faster and less costly than ever. The adoption of XBRL
technology has far-reaching benefits for accountants, decision makers, creditors and regulators.
Financial data only needs to be entered into the computer system once and can be used multiple times.
The workload for accountants can be reduced. Financial reports in XBRL can be easily exchanged
through the Internet. Data extraction and analysis from XBRL-coded financial reports can be largely
automated by computer applications. Financial report users can analyze more efficiently and
effectively.
XBRL will invoke great changes and create new opportunities in the financial reporting community.
For accountants, since financial reports can be prepared more efficiently with XBRL, it is possible that
more frequent and detailed financial reporting will be made.As a result, financial reports will be more
transparent and informative. For company management, they can know more accurately how their
unit performs as compared with other units and previous periods. Better decisions can be made based
on the information contained in XBRL reports. For auditors, XBRL reduces the opportunities for
management fraud and manipulation of accounting numbers.Additionally, audit sampling and testing
are facilitated with XBRL. These improvements will dramatically reduce auditor risks and cut the
auditor's workload.Itis alsoexpectedthatXBRLwillenablecontinuousauditing.
Auditors can use XBRL to perform audits on a high frequency or even real time basis. With XBRL,
creditors can closely monitor a large group of clients' debt covenant compliances at the same time.
They can make better and faster credit decisions and increase the customer base. For investors, XBRL
can help them to follow more companies than before and improve their investment decisions. Mid-
and small-sized companies can compete with large companies for the capital market, since the cost of
investment analysis will be reduced by using XBRL. Regulators will also have better control of their
subjectssinceXBRLcanprovideimprovedmonitoringfunctionality.
In order for XBRL to be widely employed in financial reporting, a few issues need to be solved. First,
good taxonomies need to be created. Only two taxonomies, CI and GL, are available. We need more
taxonomies to satisfy various reporting requirements. Second, regulators need to encourage the use of
XBRL in financial reports. Only with the regulators' help can XBRL be quickly adopted. Third, more
user-friendly XBRL-enabled software must be developed. Many financial statement preparers and
users are not very technically inclined. The promotion of XBRLin the financial reporting community
relies heavily on user-friendly and affordable XBRL applications. If these issues are resolved, we are
suretoseethatXBRLwillbewidelyusedinthenearfuture.

Table 5.4. XBRL vendor list (Adapted from “XBRL Progress Report---April 2003”)
CaseWare
International
Creative
Solutions
Decision
Soft
EDGAR
On- line
Fijitsu
Limited
Hyperion
Solutions
iLumen
FRx
Navision
Supporting XBRL GL
compliant files, Working
papers can create XBRL
tagged instance documents
Creating XBRL-tagged
financial documents
X-Meta can create
taxonomies; Took Kit
can validate taxonomy
and instance documents
A central repository for
companies to submit their
XBRL business reports, or
promote XBRL applications
Creating XBRL
taxonomies, convert reports
into XBRL- compliant
documents, and validate
XBRL documents regarding
syntax, schema, and XBRL
semantics
Creating XBRL instance
documents under existing
reporting paradigm
Its financial monitoring and
benchmarking network sup-
ports XBRL and can convert
multiple-format reports into
XBRL
It can create XBRL instance
document and supports XML;
providing financial reporting and
analysis function for leading
accounting and general ledger
applications
It can import taxonomies and
generate XBRL reports
www.caseware-idea.com
www.CreativeSolutions.com
http://xbrl.decis ionsoft.com
www.xbrl- express.com
http://xml.fujits
u.com/en/tech/xbrl/index.html
www.hyperion. com
www.iLumen.com
www.frxsoftwa re.com
www.navision.com
CaseWare
Working Papers;
CaseWare IDEA
Write-up
Solutions; Trial
Balance
Solutions
X-Meta; XBRL
Took Kit
XBRL
Repository
Interstage
XWander
Taxonomy
Editor, XBRL
Converter,
XBRL Validator
Hyperion
Reports
iMonitor
FRx Financial
Reporter
6.5
Navision
ApplicationVendor Name Function Web Site

OneSource
Information
Services
Oracle
People Soft
PPA
GmbH,
Germany
Price water
House Coppers
SAP AG
Semansys
Technologies
B.V.
Universal
Business
Matrix, LLC
XBI
Software Inc
It offers XBRL reports
for 25,000 global public
companies with 5 years
annual and quarterly data
It can import XBRL
taxonomy and use it to
create XBRL-compliant
reports
It has XBRL functionality
which can create XBRL
in-stance documents for SEC
filing and investors' business
It provides 7000 German
companies' financial reports
in XBRL format
It can extract filings from
SEC server and convert them
into XBRL-compliant
reports
It can import taxonomy,
pull data from data warehouse,
and create XBRL business reports
It integrates XBRL with business
intelligence. It supports taxonomies
management, XBRL report creation,
reception and interpretation.
It is a comprehensive suite that
can support XBRL tax onomy
building, instance document
creation, editing and validating
It can use XBRL to monitor
clients' banking covenants
www.onesource.com
www.oracle.com
www.peoplesoft.com
www.ppaworld.com/xbrl
http://edgarscan.pwcglobal.com
/ XBRL/XBRLatPwC.html
www.sap.com/financialsinancials
www.semansys.com
www.ubmatrix.com
www.xbisoftware.com
App link
Financial
Statement
Generator
Financial
Management
Solutions
PPA Bench base
Edgar Scan
Strategic
Enterprise
Management
Semansys
XBRL
Composer
UBmatrix
Taxonomy
Builder,
UBmatrix
Studio
Convenant
Monitor
ApplicationVendor Name Function Web Site

A Critical Reading of Tennyson's In Memoriam
Showkat Hussain Dar
Doctoral Student
Department of English,
Central University of Kashmir.
Abstract:
Like John Milton's “Lycidas,” and Shelley's “Adonias,” Tennyson's most celebrated and perhaps his
finest poem, In Memoriam, is essentially an elegy. It was written to mourn the death ofArthur Hallam
who was a young man of brilliant promise, and of unusual charm. The death of Hallam was an
appalling loss for Tennyson, and Tennyson's grief was immediate, genuine and overwhelming.
Written for the death of his close friend Hallam, In Memoriam is a collection of one hundred and
thirty-one poems recording the different stages of Tennyson's grief. Deeply personal as well as
embracing universal concerns, this was the work that established Tennyson as the foremost poet of his
generation. Each of the lyrics constituting the poem expresses some overpowering mood grief,
desolation, despair, doubt, the dawning of hope, the sense of an ultimate assurance, the certainty of
faith. Tennyson was far from being a dogmatic Christian. Religious doubt was very much part of the
intellectual climate of the time, and Tennyson was as sensitive to it as any man. His poetry is a mirror
which reflects the social, political, moral, and religious trends and tendencies of the Victorian era. His
magnum opus work, In Memoriam, expresses the spiritual unrest and uncertainty of the people who
lost their religious faith as a result of the advancement of scientific ideas. This poem reveals
beautifully the torment of the modern soul oscillating between the hopes offered by Christianity and
the negations of science. In spite of its pessimistic beginning, the poem ends as a poem of universal
faith, a faith which rest ultimately on soul's instinct for immortality. In this poem,Tennyson achieves a
firm belief in the reality of the self, in the immortality of the soul, in the freedom of the human will, and
inapersonalGod guidingNaturetosomeinfinitelyremotebutnobleend.
KEY WORDS:
Elegy, Faith, Doubt, Nature, Immortality, and Victorian era.

Introduction
In Memoriam A.H.H. (popularly known as In Memoriam), is by and large considered the greatest
poem, Tennyson ever wrote. While commenting on this poem, Hugh Walker writes,
“In Memoriam, may be taken to be the best that Tennyson's head and heart produced in the long
labor of seventeen yearswhich found him in the prime of youthful manhood and left him on the
verge of middle age.”
Title: “A CRITICAL READING OF TENNYSON'S IN MEMORIAM”, Source: Review of
Research [2249-894X] - Showkat Hussain Dar yr: 2014 | vol: 3 | iss:7
The original title of the poem was “The Way of the Soul.” The one hundred and thirty-one lyrics
constituting In Memoriam, published in 1850, were written by Alfred Lord Tennyson to express his
personal sorrow and grief over the premature and shocking death of his Cambridge college friend,
Arthur Henry Hallam, who died inVienna in 1833. In the beginning, we are struck by the poignancy of
griefexpressedinsuchstanzasas:
“He is not here, but far away
The noise of life begins again
And ghastly through the drizzling rain
On the bald street breaks the blank day.”
And in the following stanza of Canto 27,
“I hold it true, whatever befall; I feel it when I sorrow most;
'Tis better to have loved and lost
Than never to have loved at all.”
But, as the poem grew, it acquired a much wider scope. In its final form, the poem became not only a
moving and poignant expression of the poet's private grief and his deep love for the dead Hallam, but
also as a vehicle for the expression of those anxieties which were occupying the minds of numerous
intellectual people for the first half of the nineteenth century. The poet's belief in God and immortality
seemedtohimtobechallengedbycertainscientificideasandtheorieswhichhad

67Bulletin of Research Developments Vol.2, No.2, (5 March 2015)th
become current before and during the period of the composition of the lyrics which went into the
making of In Memoriam. The poem, in addition to being a deeply and profoundly personal document,
becamealsoamovingandpoignantdocumentofthegeneralpublicinterest.
It reflects the Victorian tussle between science and religion, a tussle which had already begun in the
early decades of the nineteenth century, and which became keener, acuter and more widespread after
thepublicationof CharlesDarwin'sTheOriginofSpecies(1859).
The publication of Darwin's The Origin of Species, was resulted in alienation, fragmentation and
disillusionment. Belief in tradition was discarded, and in its place the spirit of doubt and inquiry was
brought in. Faith in God and religion was overshadowed by the power of ruthless logic of science. It all
createdloss ofcoherentmeaningtolife.
The creative minds of the Victorian era found themselves on the high seas of doubt. This condition of
VictorianshasbeenbrilliantlysummedupbyMatthewArnoldinthefollowinglines:
“Hath really neither joy nor love, nor light, nor certitude, nor peace, nor help for pain; and we are
as on a darkling plain
Sweptwithconfusedalarmsof strugglesandflights,Whereignorantarmiesclashbynight.”
Victorian thinkers register various degrees of halt between Faith and Doubt. Tennyson's In-
Memoriam, reflects this conflict in many of its phases and facets.This poem clearly shows the effect of
theevolutionaryideasonthepoet's mind.
Tennyson in this poem wants his readers to believe that his friend Hallam is still alive in some other
world and that he would be able to meet his friend after his own death. He even wishes to believe that
the spirit of his dead friend can speak to him from the other world even now, and that he can even
commune with the spirit in his serene moments. But the poet's desire to believe in the immortality of
the soul and in a God or a Universal spirit, which guides the destiny of human beings, is challenged by
evolutionaryideas.
The poet moves triumphantly from the state of despondency and despair to the state of spring and zest.
Through state of doubt and despair, and anguished question, the poem mounts in a region of firm,
thoughsaddenedfaith,andendsinfullhymnalmusic,breathinghopeandfortitudeofheart.
In spite of its gloomy beginning, the poem finishes as a poem of universal faith, a faith which rest
ultimately on soul's instinct for immortality.The immortality of human love is, in fact, the theme of the
poem. In this poem, faith and love triumph over Death in the confident hope of life beyond, and over
doubtbytherealization:
“That all, as in some piece of art
Is toil co-operant to an end

When the poem sweeps to its conclusion, Tennyson's doubts are resolved and conquered by faith. The
spirit of Hallam meets the poet's spirit. The two spirits become inter-twined with each other and they
then, soar to heavenly heights of thought. This spiritual trance is a great achievement in the poet's
spiritual development in the poem, even though the trance is terminated by the intrusion of doubt and
skepticism. In the Epilogue, Tennyson gives a still more powerful expression to his affirmative faith
and his hopes about the great destiny of mankind. He overcomes his uncertainty and doubt, and
emerges with a triumphant faith in God and immortality. This ardent belief in both God and spirit is
conspicuousinthefollowinglinesfromIn-Memoriam,
“Peace, and let be; for I loved him, and love him' the dead are not dead but alive.”
It stands to reason that the Victorian age was an age of material affluence, expansion of education,
scientific advancement, industrial and mechanical progress, political awakening, democratic and
social reforms and pessimism. Tennyson was the most popular poet of his age. His work reflects the
various aspects of the Victorian erapolitical, economic, social, religious and scientific. In order to
resolve the conflict between science and religion, he tried to evolve a compromise between the two.
Tennyson voices theVictorian concern for compromise between science and religion in Memoriam, in
theselines:
“Let knowledge grow from more and more
But of more reverence in us dwell.”
The spirit of In Memoriam is well reflected in the introductory hymn, “Strong Son of God,
Immortal Love”; its message is epitomized in the last three lines:
“One God, one Law, one element, and one far-off divine event
To which the whole creation moves
Unlike MatthewArnold, he felt that science was both fruitful and important for progress.Arnold was
very sensitive to the spirit of the age, and, he could not make any compromise with the age. When
Victorian men were rejoicing at the progress and prosperity, a sensitive soul likeArnold sang elegies.
Hefoundhimselfbetweenthedevilandthedeepbluesea,
“Wanderingbetweenthetwoworlds, onedead,theotherpowerlesstobeborn.
Withnowhereyettorestmyhead,LikethoseonearthIwaitforlorn.”

Tennyson is a great patriot who, besides glorifying Victorian heroes in his poems, reflects the success
andbeliefinnationalprosperitythatmarkedVictorianEngland.
In Memoriam, was not originally planned as a single poem, but was a series of short poems in the same
meter, which gradually grew in bulk over the long period of about seventeen years. The poem was
never planned as a whole; its theme was never conceived as a whole; and part of the problem is to be
sure whether there was a single theme. If we look at the poem's leading ideas, these are immortality,
geology, evolution, poetry, the relation of man to nature, the future of England, and personal grief over
Hallam's death.
According to one group of critics, the poem does not have an organic unity. P. F Baum, observes, “the
poem is… (according to the poet's own note) partly personal and partly impersonal 'the voice of the
human race'; but it is left to us to distinguish the two voices.”According to this critic “the form, a series
ofshortlyrics,is notsuitedtosustainedphilosophicalpoem.”
It is axiomatic that the poem falls into four parts, with the three Christian sections serving as
chronological points of division.The dominant moods progress from an initial reaction of despair over
Hallam's death through a period of philosophic doubt to rising hope, and finally, to a confident
assertion of faith. This schematization is highly satisfactory and accords wall with the view that the
poem moves from grief and religious doubts to cheerfulness, hope, and the triumph of religious faith.
The three Christmas lyrics may then be regarded as a kind of structural framework round which the
restofthepoemisarranged.
The poem is an organized whole as far as its thematic unity is concerned. The poet traces the various
stages of his grief and spiritual conflicts and struggles till he arrives at a positive faith. The epilogue
clinches the thematic unity by emphasizing the attainment of faith by the poet and by heightening the
effect of the triumph of faith and hope over doubt and despair. Thus everything falls into place and the
entire poem can be seen as a single, organic, and coherent whole, despite the apparent discontinuity or
disjointedness at places In his essay on In Memoriam, T.S.Eliot states that to appreciate the poem, we
shouldreaditas awhole,butnotinparts:
“In Memoriam is the whole poem. It is unique: it is a long poem made by putting together lyrics, which
have the unity and continuity of a dairy, the concentrated dairy of a man confessing himself. It is a
dairyofwhichwe havetoreadeveryword.”

In Memoriam is one of the greatest elegies in English poetry, for all the moods, thoughts, questionings
and pictures of nature in diverse aspects, revolve round the person lamented. Its sorrow, in the sections
that voice it, is gloomier than it is in other elegies. It is a lament from the bottom of singer's heart. The
poet's personal grief and doubt become a microcosm for the suffering being endured by nineteenth
century men and women who were losing faith in received religion, because the advances in science
were leading to the conclusion that there was no divine hand guiding existence. The speaker suffers
from his loss, but he eventually accepts the notion that, despite the outward signs of chaos, the world is
really revolving into something better; his friend Hallam comes to be seen as harbinger of a “high
race” that will lead humankind to God. This poem represents the 'Victorian dilemma' as truly as any
other work of its era. In- Memoriam remains an important work for critical examination as its themes
ofgrief,doubt,loss, andlongingareuniversaltohumankind.
WORKS CITED:
1. Tennyson, Alfred Lord. The Works of Alfred Lord Tennyson, Poet Laureate, Macmillan and Co., 1903.
2. Bristow Joseph. The Victorian Poet: Poetics and Persona, Croom Helm Ltd., 1987.
3. Albert Edward. History of English Literature, Oxford University Press, 1979.
4. Bloom Harold. Alfred, Lord Tennyson (Bloom's classic Critical Views), Chelsea House Publishers, 2010.

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Date 01st
March 2015 Signature of Publisher

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