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Monday,
January 28, 2002,
Chandigarh, India  
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President pleads for dalit uplift Honour dimmed by delay
US perception of South Asia |
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No justification for quota in Army
Harihar Swarup
Humra Quraishi
1986, Physics: RUSKA, BINNIG and ROHRER
A natural way to treat cirrhosis in the offing
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President pleads for dalit uplift In his address to the nation on the eve of Republic Day President K. R. Narayanan reminded the private sector of its responsibilities to society, particularly the deprived sections. Immediately after Independence the government came out with the policy of reservation to bring the these classes on a par with others. The policy benefited them but only to a limited extent. With the adoption of the policy of privatisation, the role of the government in this task is getting reduced. Today no effective socio-economic change is possible without the active participation of the private sector. Hence the President's appeal. What he has said this year can be linked to his reminder to the private sector last year. Mr Narayanan's idea was that the private sector had gained immensely from the economic base created as a result of the past policies when the public sector was in a commanding position. Therefore, it was obligatory on the part of the private sector to help in reducing deprivation and inequality in society, which continues to be part of the nation's agenda. Mr Narayanan has given expression to the anxiety of the well-wishers of the dalits and backward classes who feel uneasy because of the politicisation of the noble cause. The politicians who are more vocal on the issue are using it for the expansion of their vote banks. The President as the top constitutional authority should do whatever is possible to prevent further harm to the cause from circles which have their own disguised agenda to promote. This is also the problem with the Bhopal Declaration, which the President has referred to in his address. A brainchild of Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Digvijay Singh, the much-publicised conference of dalit intellectuals and others was apparently aimed at giving a new direction to the fight for justice to the deprived people, but it was obviously timed to influence the coming elections, particularly in UP. Besides this, its 21-point charter of demands gives the impression that the reservation system remains the most reliable instrument for the empowerment of the dalits and other backward classes. That is why the charter highlights the need for an increased quota for them in all technical and professional courses in both private and government-run institutions. The Bhopal conclave also wanted to extend the reservation policy to the judiciary and the defence forces at all levels. The policy may have its plus points, but it has become highly controversial, leading to intense social unrest. The nation should look at the whole issue afresh. It is difficult to believe that the quota system will find acceptance in the private sector, where profit is the dominant motive and excellence cannot be compromised. It can, however, play its role in an admirable manner by
providing facilities for the deprived people to enable them to compete with the rest of the country's population without the crutches of reservation. This may go a long way in the all-round empowerment of these less fortunate sections.
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Honour dimmed by delay It is richly deserved but inexcusably delayed. This will be the first thought of Indians with a long memory on the investiture of the rank of IAF Marshal on Arjan Singh. He led the air force in 1965 to a scintillating win over Pakistan. Even as army columns got bogged down on this side of the Icchogil Canal, Gnats and Sukhois dominated the sky and bottled up the Pakistani forces. Air Marshal Arjan Singh — that was his rank then and he became the first Air Chief Marshal the next year — led from the front. He was not holed up in a moist air-conditioned room barking orders. He chose to fly his aircraft whenever he went inspecting bases, and airmen and officers admired him for his hands-on approach. He is a throw-back to the pre-1947 days and rubbed proud shoulders with the Keeler brothers and several others from this part of the country. After retirement in 1969 he served the country as envoy in Singapore and Kenya, the two Commonwealth countries in which distinguished Editor-in-Chief of The Tribune Prem Bhatia did duty. It is incidental that both are Punjabis and the countries have a good number of citizens of Punjabi origin. It is time to see a pattern in honouring distinguished soldiers. IAF Marshal Arjan Singh should have been bestowed the highest honour a long while ago. He had earned it. And the country owed it to him. He was the first Air Chief Marshal, a rank equivalent to Army General and Navy Admiral. It was due to him by his work and planning. And also leadership. The Indian Air Force is very different today from what he came to lead and a big part of the change is because of his character and also technological advance. Why wake up so late in the day and award an honour in the evening of his life? The same thing happened to General Cariappa. He was elevated as Field Marshal years after General Sam Maneckshaw was given the baton. A number of leading and prominent men — political leaders, academicians and artistes — became Bharat Ratnas either after their death or in old age. Why does the government need so much time to assess their contribution to their respective field of activity? Take for instance, Kishori Amonkar. She has been around as an outstanding Hindustani classical singer for years; yet somebody woke up to her importance this year to list her name as a Padma Vibhushan awardee. A small mercy but a big mystery. |
US perception of South Asia When Afghanistan was last in the news, the military ruler of Pakistan said one thing and did another, explaining to his American mentor that “Muslims have the right to lie in a good cause.” That was Zia-ul-Haq to Ronald Reagan after Mikhail Gorbachev had announced a Soviet withdrawal on the understanding that the Americans and Pakistanis would stop supporting the mujahideen, a commitment that Zia had no intention of keeping. History may not repeat itself exactly, but precedence cannot be ignored in assessing General Pervez Musharraf’s intentions on which hang wider questions of security and foreign relations. They in turn will determine economic policy which is the point of all national endeavour, though this may be lost sight of amidst the excitement of mobilisation, diplomatic demarches and high-powered visits. India needs peace, not power. It needs American investment and expertise as well as the American market and American influence with multilateral institutions. Mr P.V. Narasimha Rao acknowledged that far from serving some sinister capitalist-colonialist conspiracy, economic reforms would release domestic funds for essential social welfare spending. The economy has maintained a steady growth rate of about 6 per cent with minimal foreign investment, but education, housing, medical care and all the other services that can be called the people’s agenda are still woefully neglected. Only a reliable and adequate infrastructure can attract enough investors to boost production. As President Vladimir Putin also discovered, there is no alternative to the USA in coping with these challenges. But the case of the Israeli Arrow-2 anti-tactical ballistic missile system and the Phalcon airborne warning and control system underlined again that US help will be contingent on India’s relations with Pakistan. Washington may not have stopped the sale but misgivings about its timing reflect American concern for Pakistan. Terror Tuesday arrested the shift towards India that was discernible after President George W. Bush’s election, and restored Pakistan’s primacy in US calculations. The Americans will vigorously deny this, and claim to be acting on the advice of Dr Ashley J. Tellis, the US Ambassador’s Bombay-born senior adviser, whose policy paper recommended that the Bush administration should “systematically decouple India and Pakistan.” They will point to statements by Mr Colin Powell and State Department officials about erasing the “hyphen” between the two countries so that bilateral relations are strictly merit-based, which is about as convincing as India insisting that facilitation is not mediation. True, the USA is not an arms shop where every customer has the right of purchase. Nor is a military supply relationship the sum total of ties. Having said that, the new American sales policy of “presumption of approval” can turn out to be little different in practice from “presumption of denial” if the Missile Technology Control Regime (which was mentioned in the context of the Israeli deal) or the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty or other international agreements or domestic laws are again cited to turn down Indian requests for sophisticated arms and high-technology equipment. In 1986 when Mr Caspar Weinberger became the first American Defence Secretary to visit India, he was shown all our aeronautics, electronics and other dual-use technology establishments, treated to two long presentations on how military assistance for Pakistan affects India’s security and capability to absorb sophisticated technology, and allowed 90 minutes alone with Rajiv Gandhi. While India gained nothing from that elaborate attempt to impress, Mr Weinberger flew in to Islamabad and immediately announced the transfer of Boeing 707 advanced warning aircraft control systems. The decision had been taken before he even left Washington, and certainly without the Pakistanis having to go to the lengths that Rajiv had done. That episode demonstrated that political understanding and confidence matter more than pious theories. Mr George Bush Sr needed no “presumption of approval” to sell Pakistan F-16 fighters. It is only because Washington is not sure of India’s objectives, especially in relation to Pakistan, that it Every American utterance on India or Pakistan has an instant resonance in the other country. When President Bush described the Lashkar-e-Toiba as “a stateless sponsor of terrorism”, or General Colin Powell claimed that Pakistan was as much a victim of terrorism as India, and that the two countries should jointly work against “their common enemy,” Indians were astounded by their artlessness. Euphoria about Mr L.K. Advani’s reception in Washington which has replaced euphoria over Mr Jaswant Singh’s chat with President Bush which replaced the euphoria over his dialogue with Mr Strobe Talbott cannot wish away the hard fact that Pakistan remains as central to America’s South Asia policy as it was during the Cold War era. However, if Enduring Freedom reinstated Pakistan as the favoured son, India is no longer the favourite whipping boy. Thanks to Republican realism about projecting power, India can for the first time deal with a friendly Pentagon. The White House is supportive, and even the State Department better disposed than before. Things might change further in India’s favour depending on how General Musharraf copes with a belligerent clergy, disloyal Inter-Services Intelligence officers and the political setback of Mr Hamid Karzai’s elevation in Afghanistan. But his January 12 speech must be treated with caution, notwithstanding General Powell’s simplistic effusiveness. In 1988 Pakistan promised at Geneva to “prevent within its territory the training, Given America’s commitment to Pakistan, its dialogue with India can fulfil President Bush’s hope of “a fundamentally different relationship” only if India continues to develop all its other options. Closer ties with Russia, which accounts for the bulk of military supplies on terms that would not be available anywhere else, increased strategic cooperation with Israel which probably boasts the world’s best intelligence and covert operations agencies and the prospect of deeper economic exchanges with both China (albeit with caution), and the Association of South-East Asian Nations must accompany a serious effort to ensure that the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation can rise above Pakistani obstructiveness. SAARC must finalise the draft treaty for a free trade zone by the end of the year and explore with much greater determination the quadrilateral growth initiative comprising Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal that was decided on at the 1997 Male summit. It is a truism to say that economic growth sustains defence and defence supports foreign policy. So much the better if the loop can be completed so that foreign policy — meaning the much talked-of partnership with the USA — promotes growth. If the USA holds off because of its concern for Pakistan, the process will be slower but the end would still be the same if economic opportunities in India are promising enough to engage the businessmen who make Republican policy. |
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No justification for quota in Army The Welfare Federation of Scheduled Castes and Backward Classes Employees of Punjab has demanded that the central government should reserve jobs in the defence forces for these classes. Coming at a time when the country is teed up for a forced war (as was the scenario at the time of writing), this demand gives an aura of patriotism. But, then, this is not the first time that such a demand has come up. It was at the time of the Chinese aggression in 1962 that the members of one such class from Punjab represented to the Centre that they should be given a chance to serve the nation. The demand travelled down the line from the then Defence Minister to the Chief of Army Staff and then to the Adjutant-General, who asked us to examine the possibility of giving representation to the class concerned after going through their past history of soldiering. (This writer, at that time, was dealing with the class composition of the Army at Army Headquarters). Accordingly, the war record of the class was checked from the history section of the Ministry of Defence. And it was discovered from the records that a battalion of this particular class was raised during World War 1, which mutinied, when committed to battle, and killed all its officers. However, one company of this class was included in a battalion under political pressure in 1963. But, unfortunately, the new experiment did not gain credibility. Another experiment was carried out in the early fifties to try out a new system of reorganising units of an infantry regiment on an all-class basis. This brought all classes together in units even at the lowest level, that is, a section. Even during peace time, this motley assemblage created certain administrative problems because of different food habits of the jawans hailing from all over the country. In the 1962 war a unit of this set-up bolted in the face of the enemy. It was then that a British Brigadier in the Adjutant-General’s Branch remarked to this writer: “Now you know why we did not go in for such a hotchpotch”. Soon after the 1962 debacle these all-class infantry units were reorganised on a zonal basis. Incidentally, all the battalions of this regiment have given a good account of themselves in the subsequent wars that India has fought. The Indian Army’s combat units, especially the infantry regiments, were formed on a one-class basis by the British and this system, albeit with some minor changes, still continues to be in vogue. However, since Independence a strong lobby, mostly comprising politicians, has been at work to change the class composition of the Army. They have all along been suggesting that we should have mixed-class regiments. But most old soldiers, on the other hand, have been strongly opposing this move. For, they feel that the mixing of one class units will dilute their old traditions and impinge upon their fighting efficiency. Driven by the in inane political considerations and certain unfortunate incidents in the Army which happened in 1984 due to the inexcusable timidness of commanders and lack of confidence of troops in them, the class composition of infantry units came in for revision. Mercifully, after trying out the mixed-class composition in some infantry battalions, good sense dawned on the decision-makers and we reverted back to one-class composition a few years ago. In his foreword to the late Maj-Gen Joginder Singh’s book, “Behind the Scene” — an analysis of the Indian military operations from 1947 to 1971 — published in 1993, Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw says: “I have heard rumours for the proposed reorganisation of the Indian Army into mixed units on the basis of state population under the garb of recruitment imbalance. Should this happen, God forbid, it will transform battlefield scenes completely: the old battle slogans and the rallying of units during moments of crisis will have no substitute ....” Thus would it be fair to the country, to the nation and the armed forces to recruit those classes which cannot come to the Army on merit by fulfilling the requisite standards? Would it be fair to drop the standards to accommodate them because our self-centred politicians need their votes to retain or grab “kursis”? Would we like to jeopardise the integrity of India by presenting a weak front to the enemy? There cannot be more authoritative and stronger views on this sinister move than what the legendary soldier, Field Marshal Manekshaw, has candidly expressed in his foreword. This is not to say that the weaker sections of our society should not be encouraged to come up in the overall spectrum and given opportunities to improve their lot. This, however, should not be done at the cost of the integrity of the country. There are any number of civil services where they can be given their due share by giving them concessions. But in the armed forces such concessions can spell disaster. Finally, we should continue to select our combat soldiers on merit. No political consideration should be brought into this selection. Any politician or bureaucrat who toys with the idea of accommodating people by lowering the prescribed standards is clearly betraying the country. |
Capitalist, but socialist at heart Murthy is now well known nationally and internationally but few know about the other facet of his personality and his long march from a small town of Karnataka to the corporate boardroom of Infosys; the journey has been remarkable indeed. Also little is known about his personal habits and simple lifestyle. He starts his day cleaning the toilet in his family’s small, spartan house, located in a middle-class locality of Bangalore . His wife, Sudha, holding a post-graduate degree in engineering, cleans the house and cooks for the family. The couple never employed a maid servant or a domestic help. Sudha’s daily routine, in fact, keeps her more busy than her husband. Author of half a dozen books, she teaches in a nearby engineering college and works at the Infosys Foundation, a social welfare trust.. His son, when a student of Class X at Bangalore’s Bishop Cotton Boys’ School, commuted by bus. Murthy calls him a computer junkie. His other child is a daughter. Born on August 29, 1946, Murthy had a very humble beginning. His father was a school teacher in Kolar district. Murthy was a bright student and grew up to acquire a degree in Electrical Engineering from Mysore University, and later went to study computer science at Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) at Kanpur. His first real job was in the West where he took up employment with SESA in Paris in early seventies. He worked with a team to design a real time operating system for handling air cargo for the Charles de Gaulle airport. During his stay in Paris, he came under the influence of French Communist leaders and according to his own account “I was a strong leftist in France”. But the influence did not last for long. His three-and-half year term with SESA having come to an end, he decided to return to India. Instead of taking a flight, he decided to hitch-hike his way to Mysore with a mere $450 in his pocket. “It was a great learning experience, punctuated with adventure and great escapes”, he says. Back in India, he took up a job with Patni Computer Systems in Pune where he met his future wife. Murthy set up “Infosys” in 1981 along with six software professionals . Early days were time for struggle and there was a time when he had to mortgage his wife’s jewellery for Rs.10,000 to be invested in the newly formed company. It took him nine months to get the company’s first telephone connection and three years to persuade the bureaucracy to allow “Infosys” to import its first computers. In the course of time “Infosys” grew into a highly respected, dynamic and innovative company and listed on NASDAQ. He designed and implemented the country’s BASIC interpreter and the country’s first time-sharing operating system. The company now has a market capitalisation of $24 billion on the NASDAQ and the individual net worth of Murthy is estimated at $1.5 billion. Murthy’s favourite dish is dosa and that too prepared at Udipi restaurant. There are many such jaunts in Bangalore and often visited by Murthys. If an US-based I.T. magnate is introduced to Murthy at an Udipi restaurant , he will not believe that he is talking to India’s software “Mughal”. “The slight bespectacled computer engineer hardly seems to be the new archetype of a widely successful Indian entrepreneur, boldly bettering his country away from decades of state-dominated, bureaucratic socialism and into an era of capitalist growth”, reported the New York Times. The incredible rise of Murthy’s company and the software services industry in India has come to represent the hope. Once a communist, Murthy describes this trend as “ compassionate capitalism”. It can provide decent, desperately needed jobs and the national wealth to improve health and literacy levels in a country where population has more than tripled since it won independence from the British in 1947. Murthy is of the view that “If we want to sell capitalism to the people, we have to practice a lifestyle that does not seem unattainable”. And, he further says: “We want more and more people to become entrepreneurs. If the tea stall owner in a small village can say, ‘hey, these guys can do it; so can I’, and get his business into the next orbit, then our job is done”.
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Sitara Devi’s stand on Padma Bhushan in bad taste The manner in which Kathak maestro Sitara Devi has turned down the Padma Bhushan while simultaneously almost ordering for (well, almost) a Bharat Ratna for herself speaks volumes for her conduct. I met her just once at Uma Vasudev’s home and the way she spoke and conducted herself was, to say the least, crude. She not only bragged about herself, about the one relationship she’d had, about those yesteryears spent in Benaras, about her dance, but there was also a certain harshness about the way she conducted herself. And now of course, we have the latest from her end. To say that she has turned down the award would be incorrect, for she has been rather too blatant. But to be honest, around this time of the year when the list of awardees is announced, there are murmurs of discontent. I have myself heard the supposed who’s who of this city talk of the surprise names on the list! On Republic Day evening, as I walked past the India International Centre (IIC), the number of posters on their notice board caught attention as there are several programmes coming up for January 30 — dance, narrations,
music, events centred around Mahatma Gandhi — but perhaps the biggest of them all will be the Khadi exhibition — ‘The Fabric Of Freedom’ opening at the Indira Gandhi National Centre for Arts. To be inaugurated by the Prime Minister on January 30, one is looking forward to hearing what he will have to say about the relevance of Mahatma Gandhi’s teaching when, at this juncture, we seem to be following none. Not just turning Khadi into elitist apparel with high pedigree designers appropriating it, we also don’t seem to be speaking with one voice as advocated by Gandhi, but with a triple toned strategy judging by the communal happenings around. Take the case of VHP’s march towards Ayodhya: there has been no stopping of their movement even at this juncture, that is from New Delhi, towards the last leg of the journey. Aren’t the BJP, the RSS and VHP not much different, working as they apparently are, in a coordinated manner, otherwise why on earth has this yatra been allowed to move towards a State which is going to the polls next month? Is it not to distract the voters or to attract them for votes, or is it to send some very wrong signals all over? And then, nobody seems in a mood to intervene or to cry a halt to this. Returning to the big Khadi show, what surprises me is that one of our well established industrial groups
sponsored the event, rather it is Switzerland’s Volkart Foundation, “as part of their commitment to the message of non-violence”. WIDOWS’ CAUSE Beginning next month (February 1-3), the supposed first conference on widows with a South Asian focus will be held here. Organised by the Guild Of Service headed by Mohini Giri, its focus will be on the plight of the widows in our country and in the other South Asian countries. Interestingly, there will be a delegate from Afghanistan too. “Rukshanda Naz, who has been working with the Afghan widows for several years, has brought about facts and figures before and after the September 11 attack and the millions of women who have been displaced”. Coming to the grim scenario in our own country, “more than 9 per cent of India’s women population are widows ...more than 92 per cent of women over 70 years of age are widows, while the corresponding figure for men is 23 per cent. Old women with little economic support and physically incapable of looking after themselves is the future grim that India will
face. Yet in India we have no social policy for the holistic care of these widows...” The latest here is ‘To Kabul ...’ No, it is not ‘for Kabul’, for that could have been understandable. And what I fail to understand is why certain filmmakers and artists are taking their wares to Kabul, to sell them to a nation that is on the verge of bankruptcy and famine. It’s a different matter altogether that now with all the money getting pumped into it by all the vested powers and that superpower, the state of affairs couldn’t really be that pathetic. But ask any of the Afghan refugees staying here, whether they want to return to Afganistan and it’s a firm no. |
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A natural way to treat cirrhosis in the offing There is some good news for all those people who are suffering from various kinds of liver diseases. A recent study has revealed that a dietary supplement, widely used in the USA to treat ailments ranging from depression to arthritis, might also be used to slow the effects of liver disease, especially cirrhosis. European researchers share similar views and various reports suggest that SAM-e
(S-Adenosyl L-Methionine) has good effects on the liver. SAM-e is present in every single cell. It is generated by every cell and participates in a whole variety of different cellular processes. It is both generated by, and essential to, the liver. In case of an infected liver, SAM-e production falls, resulting in a vicious cycle. Although it is too early to tell if the supplement will help, researchers are optimistic. Since cirrhosis is incurable, the patient ultimately needs a liver transplant. But if the SAM-e works, then nothing like it.
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Persons mindful of their well-being Had better eat a mouthful at a time; eat what is easily digestible; eat food that is good and nourishing — A popular Sanskrit quote *** Food cannot make you spiritual but if you are spiritual your food habits will change. .... The basic change is going to be in you. And then everything else follows. — Osho, Roots and Wings *** Food is God; do not waste it. — From the discourses of Sathya Sai Baba *** Make a habit of taking only as much food as is essential for self preservation. Gluttons fall an easy prey to various diseases; those who take balanced diet remain physically fit. — Sudarshan Kumar Biala, *** Yoga for Better Living and Self Realisation
O ye who believe! Eat of the good things with which we have supplied you, and give God thanks if ye are His worshippers. — The Quran, Surah 11.167 *** O Believers! Wine (khamr) and games of chance, and statues and divining arrows are only an abomination of Satan's work! Avoid them that ye may prosper. — The Quran, Surah v .92 *** Food, verily is greater than strength. Therefore, if any one does not eat for ten days even though he might live, yet verily, he becomes a non-seer, a non-hearer, a non-thinker, a non-understander, a non-doer, a non-knower. But on the entrance of food he becomes a seer, he becomes a thinker, he becomes an understander, he becomes a doer, he becomes a knower. — Meditate on food *** The faults which tend to destroy the creatures are: anger, exultation, grumbling, covetousness, perplexity, doing injury (to anybody), hypocrisy, lying, gluttony, calumny, envy, lust, secret hatred, neglect to keep the senses in subjection, neglect to concentrate the mind. The eradication of these (faults) takes place through the means of (salvation called) Yoga. —Apastambiya Dharmasutra, passage 1.8.23 |
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“Time” magazine has declared N.R. Narayana Murthy, India’s software king, as one of 25 top businessmen of the world. He was also selected as one of the 50 most powerful people in Asia for the year 2000 in a poll conducted by “Asia Week”. In a span of about two decades since he created global software giant, Infosys, Murthy became an icon of the new generation of Indian entrepreneurs. The Bangalore based engineer keeps one message high on his agenda: do business ethically and legally. He once gave away his wealth in order to become a communist but soon realised that to help the poor he needed to generate money. Murthy was strongly influenced by the socialists he befriended while working in France in 1970s but he was soon disillusioned following his arrest in Bulgaria on the fake charge of espionage. Considered one of the leading capitalists in India with socialist inclinations, he says: “ I am a capitalist in my mind but a socialist in my heart”.