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Sunday,
June 29, 2003, Chandigarh, India  
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Interbasin development
and transfer of river waters The Pakistani
experience |
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ON RECORD
Maestro who wants to
cross the ocean of music
Promoting
religious tourist centres
Tailang
thrills cricket, cartoon lovers
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Interbasin development and transfer of river waters The water resources of the Sutlej, the Beas and the Ravi have been optimally developed after construction of Bhakra, Nangal, Pong, Pandoh and Ranjit Sagar multipurpose projects. The installed hydro-electric power generation capacity of these dams taken together is 3,420 MW. Irrigation benefits have been provided to 54 MHa; most of it in Punjab, some extended to Haryana and further to desert districts of Bikaner and Jaisalmer in Rajasthan. Several towns and villages in Punjab, Haryana, Western Rajasthan, Union Territory of Chandigarh and also the national capital Delhi in the Yamuna basin are supplied 28,368 million cubic-meter (MCM) water for drinking purpose from Bhakra-Beas system. Except Nangal having a negligible storage in the balancing reservoir, the other dams have live storage capacity of 16,843 MCM to cater to various demands and provide flood benefits in Punjab. The area protected from flood is yet to be properly quantified. The submergence in most cases is within Himachal Pradesh affecting about 500 sq km area. The Indus basin has two classic cases of interlinking its rivers. The oldest is a link canal of 283 cusec capacity constructed in 1955 for diverting surplus water of the Ravi at Madhopur headworks to the Beas near Pathankot. Transfer of 4,716 MCM Beas waters into the Sutlej has been made at Pandoh in Himachal, about 21 km upstream of Mandi town through a 13.1-km-long tunnel of 255 cusec capacity. The link tunnel outfalls into the Sutlej at Slapper. These have proved useful in augmenting water for generation of power and other uses. The interlinking of the basin’s three rivers has also facilitated better control in regulating river flows through integrated operation of the storage reservoir at Bhakra, Pandoh, Pong and Ranjit Sagar. The system feeds the largest irrigation network of 900-km-long canal from Harike to Gadra, also known as the Indira Gandhi Canal, its 8,800-km distributaries and 6,500-km field channels by long distance transfer of the Ravi-Beas waters. The Rajasthan desert is still thirsty and needs more water to reclaim the moving sand dunes for productive use. The ongoing Sutlej-Yamuna Link (SYL) proposal for interbasin transfer of water to Haryana is already troubled by political posturing, notwithstanding the Supreme Court directive. The number of dams, weirs, barrages, river-interlinks, large network of canals and distributaries have been constructed on these three rivers with massive investment after Independence. Punjab has been the main beneficiary and became the granary of India. Haryana carved out of erstwhile Punjab, western Rajasthan and Delhi, though outside the Indus basin, have shared some of the benefits in accordance with old agreements, awards and the Punjab Reorganisation Act, 1966. Himachal Pradesh, an upper riparian basin state of these three rivers contributing major flow from perennial snow cover, higher rainfall and large drainage area of 51,358 sq km has received a raw deal. Himachal did not have enough political clout for hard bargaining. Its administration displayed mute generosity while signing the agreements and accepting the awards. Sadly, Himachal cannot draw water from Bhakra and Pong reservoirs even for drinking purposes. As per the National Water Policy, it should receive the first charge from the nearest available source. The villages and towns situated along the periphery of these reservoirs in Bilaspur, Ghumarwin, Paragpur and Dehra areas have to depend upon tanker supplies in summer months. Similar is the situation of Mandi town and hill top villages around Pandoh reservoir. Drawl of only 0.57 cusec water out of canal's capacity of 255 cusec is stipulated from Sundernagar hydel channel of BSL for irrigating the fertile Balh valley. The local farmers and small towns in proximity of BSL channels are depending upon nearby seasonal streams or on groundwater to meet their additional demand. Its share of hydro-electric power from these major dams is a pittance when compared to benefits accruing in the downstream. Jammu and Kashmir too has not been able to utilise its share of the Ravi waters due to delay in the construction of the Shahpur-Kandi barrage. Indiscriminate and unscientific irrigation has disturbed the equilibrium between inflow and outflow of water in command areas of main beneficiary states leading to excess salt concentration. The area affected by salinity in Punjab is about 4,90,000 ha and in Haryana 1,97,200 ha. The over-irrigated command of the Indira Gandhi Canal is also suffering from waterlogging and salinity. Misuse and quality degradation is bound to affect the productivity of land and cause shortage of water. Efficient water management practices by reducing the water allowance and irrigation frequency are necessary to check these problems. The water thus saved can provide critical irrigation to more desert areas in Rajasthan. Despite optimum development, the principles of easy access, fair use, justice and social equity have not been adequately addressed in all adjoining states. Harnessing the water resources of the Indus, the Jhelum and the Chenab within the Indian catchment of 1,78,406 sq km is negligible though the Indo-Pak Treaty affords the use of some flow for existing and specified future purposes. This is generally viewed with abundant caution. Only a couple of hydro-electric projects in the Chenab basin at Salal in Jammu and Kashmir and Hurot in Himachal have been completed. Work on Dulhasti power project in Jammu and Kashmir is in progress by the NHPC. The Jhelum has no project worth the name although a flood storage dam is needed to control inundation in the rainy season and to regulate inflow to the Wular Lake for inland navigation. The main Indus river flowing through the Ladakh region enters virgin into Pakistan except for small abstractions to meet day-to-day water requirements of thinly populated local habitations. These snowfed rivers have untapped hydro-electric potential which could be exploited for evacuating power to Pakistan and Afghanistan through the sub-continental power grid after meeting the local demand. The Chenab is the largest river in terms of water originating in Himachal Pradesh. Its upstream tributary, the Chandra, could be linked with the Beas through a tunnel parallel to the one already planned for road traffic near Manali to supplement the SYL and the Indira Gandhi Canal supplies via the Beas-Sutlej link for the benefit of Haryana and Rajasthan. Similar possibility exists in the downstream for diversion of still larger quantity of Chandra-Bhaga waters to Budhil nala near Kugti and its further transfer to the Indira Gandhi Canal through the Ravi-Beas Link. Himachal can be the facilitator for such a project. The feasibility and economics of the two is a matter of detailed study. The water requirement for diverse uses is greatly influenced by social behaviour, population dynamics and economic growth of the communities. None of the three parameters is static. Therefore, the increasing demand for water cannot be tied down forever to an old and one-time treaty. The Supreme Court has given a broadbased interpretation to Article 21 of the Constitution guaranteeing fundamental right to life to include right to water as well. The old water sharing instruments should be redrawn in terms of basic human right and relative importance of water for various uses. The writer, a former Chief Engineer, Central Water Commission, New Delhi, was also Chairman, Brahmaputra Boa-rd, Government of India, Guwahati |
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The Pakistani experience AS India has decided to undertake an ambitious programme of linking its rivers at an estimated cost of Rs 56,000 crore in a period of ten years, it would be beneficial to examine how other countries have handled such projects. Pakistan, for instance, built a network of river links as a part of the Indus Treaty works which function as replacement links to irrigate those areas which got deprived of irrigation when three eastern rivers of the Indus System were allocated to India. The experience of Pakistan on this front will be of utmost relevance to Punjab as the soil and environment conditions are similar. Pakistan built ten links, six barrages and two dams during the post-treaty period of 1960-1970. Its Indus Plains host most of its population and the world's largest irrigation network commanding an area of 345 lakh acres which contribute to 90 per cent of its national agricultural production. At the time of Partition, the barrages of Madhopur and Hussenawala fell to the share of India whereas six barrages of Kalabagh, Sukkur, Trimmu, Baloki, Sulemanki and Islam went to Pakistan. There was no storage dam built then. After Partition, the irrigation system conceived originally got divided between India and Pakistan without any regard to irrigation boundaries which resulted in disruption of irrigation. This triggered a dispute which was resolved by the Indus Water Treaty of 1960. This treaty covered the regulation of the river system of the two countries. The treaty assigned three eastern rivers of the Sutlej, the Beas and the Ravi to India and the other three rivers to Pakistan. It provided for construction of replacement links by Pakistan for transfer of irrigation supplies from the western rivers of the Indus, the Jhelum and the Chenab to the areas served earlier by the three eastern rivers. It also provided for building of two storages dams — Mangla on the Jhelum and Tarbela on the Indus. The time fixed for the completion of treaty works was 10 years and if there was any time overrun, Pakistan was required to pay to India for the water utilised. Consequently, Pakistan built ten links and some other associated works which provided on short-term basis the losses incurred on account of partition of the irrigation system. The system built resulted in meticulous water management and optimum utilisation of the allocated water resources to Pakistan. The links built by Pakistan are: 1. Marala-Ravi link, (capacity - 22,000 cusecs, 100 km long) to transfer water from the Chenab to the Ravi. 2. Bombanwala-Ravi-Bedian-Ripalpur link (2200-4200 cusecs, 158 km) to transfer water of the Chenab which was brought by the Marala-Ravi link to the Sutlej. 3. Rasul-Qadriabad link (19000 cusecs, 40 km) to transfer water from the Jhelum to the Chenab at the Qadribada barrage, built some distance below the old Marala Barrage. 4. Qadribad-Balloki link (18,600 cusecs, 125 km) to transfer water brought by the link (3) above the Balloki Headworks. 5. Balloki-Sulemanki II link (15,400, 84 km) to deliver water to the Sutlej just above the Sulemanki Headworks. 6. Balloki-Sulemanki II link (6,500 cusecs, 58 km) to transfer additional supplies to the Sutlej above Sulemanki Headworks. 7. Chasma-Jhelum link (21,700 cusecs, 94 km) to transfer water from the Indus to the Jhelum. 8. Trimmu-Sidhnai link (11,000 cusecs, 66 km) to transfer from the Chenab after Syphon crossing. 9. Sidhnai-Mailsi Link (10, 100 cusecs, 198 km) has been built. 10. Taunsa-Panjnad link (12,000 cusecs, 58 km) to transfer water from the Jhelum to the Chenab. Most of the links built are unlined channels except a part of the Sidhnai-Mailsi link. The total length of the links works out to be 899 km, built at a cost of Rs 400 crore. These links have the aggregate capacity of 140,500 cusecs and in a day transfer some 2,81 MAF of water. Five barrages were built as part of the Indus Treaty Works. These were the Chasma Barrage on the Indus below the Tarbela Dam; the Rasul Barrage built on the Jhelum; the Marala Barrage; the Qadribad Barrage which works like a level crossing on the Chenab; and the Sidhnai Barrage on the Ravi. In addition, a unique structure of the Mailsi Syphon has been built, 29 km downstream of the Islam Barrage. It enables irrigation water supplies of the Sidhnai-Mailsi-Bahawl Link across the Sutlej to Bahawal Canal. This structure works as a syphon-cum- weir, a gated control structure provided to handle a flood of 4.29 lakh cusecs. The syphon measures 160 ft between the Inlet Portal and the Outlet Portal. It is located a few kilometres downstream of the Islam Barrage. The Mailsi-Bahawal link constructed at the downstream end of the Mailsi Syphon into the Bahawal Canal at RD 15,000. It is a lined channel with fully supply of 4000 cusecs and is 21 km long. Dams built as a part of the Indus Treaty Works are those of the Mangla Dam on the Jhelum having a storage capacity of 5.34 MAF and the Tarbela Dam on the river Indus (capacity 9.7 MAF). Thus, a storage of 15.04 MAF got created. The Mangla Dam was completed in just five years. If Pakistan managed to complete the interlinking of its rivers in 10 years, it should not be difficult for India to complete the task of interlinking of rivers. We have much to learn from the Pakistani
experience. The writer is former Chief Engineer (Research) and Director (Irrigation), Punjab. |
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ON RECORD Excerpts of the interview: Q: You have set up
an expert committee to ensure political empowerment. What is your stand
on the Women’s Reservation Bill and what are you doing to press for
its passage in the forthcoming session of Parliament? A: We want 33
per cent reservation for women in Parliament and State Assemblies and we
will not compromise on the percentage. We are not in favour of a
sub-quota for women from backward classes. We don’t want any dilution
of the bill and favour its passage in the present form. We are inviting
all State Women Commissions to join us for a dialogue with the Lok Sabha
Speaker, women MPs and the Parliamentary Affairs Minister. Women
constitute nearly 50 per cent of the total population and there should
be at least 33 per cent reservation for them. Women should have got
justice long back. The fact that women have not got it till date means
that men have not wanted to give them their just place and fear that
their constituencies will be lost to women. Q: Why are some states
dragging their feet on setting up women commissions? A: More
important than setting up commissions is to ensure that they are
statutory, autonomous bodies. I’m having heavy correspondence with
Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa as the Tamil Nadu State Women Commission
is one of the two which have been set up by an executive order. It is
like a sub-department of the government. I’ve written to her to
reconstitute the State Women Commission and ensure that it is a
statutory body. Twenty states have set up women commissions due to
pressure from the women’s movement. The NCW owes its existence to
women organisations who lobbied for a statutory body. Q: The NCW
has started a project on compiling statewise reports on the status of
women. How are you going about it? A: One of the prime functions of
the commission is to evaluate and advise the Union and State governments
on the socio-economic development of women. Our prime concern is to know
from the mouth of those affected. Before visiting a state, we issue a
notice in local newspapers. We have already visited Haryana, Kerala,
Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh. We also send a questionnaire to
non-government organisations and the government to hear the grassroot
voice and markers for literacy rates and infant mortality respectively.
We prefer the presence of the Chief Minister during these meetings. Our
visits are followed by interim recomendations to the state government.
We plan to cover Union Territories also. We want to cover two states
every month. Q: In your Action Plan for 2003-04, you have listed
the north-east on your agenda followed by women in industry. What are
the reasons for identifying these two focus areas? A: Women in the
north-east face very different kind of problems. The commission has till
now not really put in all its resources into understanding the problems
of women of the north-east. We would like to look at the impact of
conflict on women in the north-east, their health and economic
empowerment. There has not been a segregated examination of policies
governing women in industry. Q: Are you planning to move the
Supreme Court on non-implementation of the Vishakha judgement which
spells out guidelines to check sexual harassment at the workplace. A: We
have held 28 meetings with 700 organisations to assess adherence to
guidelines to check sexual harassment. We want to cover 1,000 organisations
and do a study to figure out the extent of adherence to the
guidelines. No monitoring mechanism has been ingrained in the
guidelines. Q: The Union Human Resource Development Ministry has not
tabled your annual reports since 1999. Why? A: There has to be a
time frame at every stage — for the commission to give its report to
the Department of Women and Child Development, for the department to get
action taken report from various departments and to table it in
Parliament. Two annual reports have not been tabled in Parliament. The
entire work of the commission is recorded in the report. By the time the
report is tabled in Parliament, the importance of the issues has
diminished. Q: You have been holding public hearings of beedi/cigar
workers and women belonging to the minority community. What do you have
in mind to improve their condition? A: The wage problem of beedi
workers is enormous. Nowhere are their wages close to the minimum wages
and women are paid less than the menfolk. We have started similar
hearings for fisherwomen and construction workers. After understanding
their problems, we make recommendations to the state government and the
Department of Women and Child Development. After each investigation, we
will try to organise an interaction between the state government and the
parties concerned. |
Maestro who wants to cross the ocean of music A small bed, a telephone and a lantern are, perhaps, his only worldly possessions and the furniture includes creaky wooden benches and an over-sized “Takht”. The living room also serves as guest room and does not have even a room cooler. Khan Sahib, as he is popularly known, looks after as many as 100 members of his family which includes, six sons, relatives and their children. He spent all that he has earned through concerts on his dependents, hardly saving anything for himself. Now that the maestro is ailing and unable to perform, he desperately needs financial assistance. He appealed to Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee for help twice. Though belated, help came in the shape of a grant of Rs 2 lakh from the Prime Minister’s Relief Fund, followed by a grant of an equal amount by Karnataka Chief Minister S.M. Krishna. President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam has also contributed Rs 1 lakh for the treatment of the ailing maestro. The amount is considered “too little, too late” for the stature of a genius like Bismillah Khan. He has also asked for a job for his grandson, but despite assurance, the young man still remains unemployed. Dire poverty in artists is not a new phenomenon in India. Such big names in Indian music as Ustad Fayyaz Khan, Abdul Karim Khan and Onkar Nath too underwent stark poverty at the fag end of their lives. Bismillah Khan is truly a Piped-Piper of the Indian music. He has attained astonishing mastery over shehnai which keeps the listeners spell-bound. On the first Republic Day ceremony, he poured his heart out in Raaga “Kaffi” from the ramparts of the Red Fort. A devout Shia, Khan Sahib is an staunch worshipper of Saraswati, the Goddess of learning and wisdom and, true to his belief, he sees a divine unity between music and religion. According to him, religion of music is one and music, “sur” and “namaz” are the same for him. His namaz is seven “ shuddh” and five “komal” surs. He often narrates an encounter he had with some Shia maulavis in Iraq long back. Well versed in their subject, they were making several forceful arguments as to why music ought to be damned. In the maestro’s own words: “At first I was left speechless. Then I closed my eyes and began to sing Raga Bhairav; Allah-hee…Allah hee…Allah hee…I continued to raise the pitch. I opened my eyes and asked them: Is this haraam (taboo)? I am calling God. I am thinking of him. I’m searching for Him. Isn’t this namaz? Why do you call my search haraam?”. They had no reply. Bismillah Khan’s guru was his “Mamu” (maternal uncle), the late Ali Bux ‘Vilayatu’, who was attached as Shahnai player to Varanasi’s Vishwanath Temple. A hard task master, Vilayatu did his ‘riyaz’ at the temple of Balaji for 18 long years. Khan Sahib often recalls an incident that changed the course of his life; he was barely 12-year-old at that time. In his words: “Mamu told him to do riyaz at the same temple and I meticulously followed the advice playing shehnai from 7 pm to 11 pm each day and usually played four ragas. After a-year-and-half , Mamu told me if you see anything just don’t talk about it. One night as I was playing, engrossed deep in meditation, I smelled something like sandalwood or jasmine. I thought it was the aroma of the Ganges. When I opened my eyes, there was Balaji, standing with his ‘kamandal’ next to me. He said play on son but I was sweating…I stopped playing. He smiled and disappeared. I thought a faqir may have come in. I took a lantern and searched the streets; they were all empty. I ran home, ate quickly and slept. Later, as I blurted out the experience to Mamu, he slapped me, because he had asked me not to talk about it to anybody”. Khan Sahib still goes to Balaji temple at night, alone and plays all by himself. Bismillah Khan has always been in great demand in the country but he always preferred to travel with his troupe by train, often in a sleeper class compartment. As a matter of fact, he hates to undertake journey by aircraft except when travelling abroad. His preferred mode of conveyance has been cyclerickshaw when in town. Days before the travel plans are made, ramshackle steel trunks are taken out, torn British Airways flight bags packed with clothes and lunch boxes stuffed with rice and ‘samosas’. Khan Sahib’s only bad habit is smoking and his preferred brand is “Wills” cigarette which he puffs with relish. Bismillah Khan’s ancestors were court musicians in the princely state of Dumraon in Bihar. They, subsequently, moved to Varanasi where Bismillah was born. He made a debut on the national scene when he was barely 20-year-old, having cast a spell with his shehnai at the All India Music Conference in Calcutta in 1937. His contribution has been to give respectability to shehnai and pitchfork it to the level of classical music. The maestro says “the heart yearns to go on and on but the body tires. Thirty years ago I used to think, as if, I have conquered. Now I say I have not reached anywhere. The world may know and listen to my ragas but the life will end one day. The yearning will continue. The music is an ocean and I wanted to cross it. But I have barely reached the shore. I haven’t yet even taken a dip”. |
Promoting religious tourist centres OF the 226 million domestic tourists India sees annually, about 180 million are said to be religious tourists. It would be wise to preserve the religious sanctity of the religious tourist centres to cater to this traffic. Commercial tourism on the other hand, accounts for about 15 per cent of our exports of services. The future of services exports is bright though earnings from tourism have been stagnant in the last four years due to events such as Kargil and Gujarat. It is possible to increase this income by using the tourist infrastructure of religious centres for promoting commercial tourism. This line of thought has led the Uttaranchal Government to propose the development of Badrinath as a commercial tourist centre during the winters when the temple of Lord Badri Vishal is closed. The government believes that the two types of tourism can go hand in hand. Badrinath will cater to religious tourists during the summer when the temple is open; and the same infrastructure will be used for commercial winter tourism in the period when the temple is closed. Badrinath gets much snowfall. Hence winter sports such as skiing could possibly be developed. This line of thinking ignores the fact that there is a fundamental difference between religious and commercial tourism. The objective of religious tourism is to recognise the limits of one’s conscious efforts and to seek the support of one’s unconscious powers. This unconscious level is commonly referred to as the “domain of god” and personified in the idol. The statue represents one’s unconscious. A temple is a place where one seeks to subdue the conscious and strengthen the unconscious. Commercial tourism, on the other hand, seeks to invigorate the conscious mind. The objective of boating on the lake in Nainital is to pour in new sense experiences into the mind. The cool breeze, the playing of the ducks and the tall hills on the sides focused on the conscious mind. The objective is to provide the mind with more consumable things. Then one is told about the beauty of Bhimtal and he takes a taxi to visit that tourist spot. His mind enjoys the island in the middle of the lake. The idea is that the mind of the tourist must be filled up with new experiences which he has not yet had. He is fed with food in lakeside restaurants. His palate is invigorated. Religious tourism requires that the mind and the senses be subdued while commercial tourism requires that they be invigorated and fed and fattened. The two types of tourism are directly opposed to each other in their orientation. They cannot go together. This is not to say that abstinence is the rule in pilgrim centres. Shops of small trinkets can be seen at almost every religious centre. The idea is not to entice the pilgrim into buying more things. The idea is to create gradual abstinence through restricted indulgence. This is explained in Srimad Bhagwatam published by the Ramakrishna Mission: limited indulgence is permitted in the scriptures to help the devotee “to regulate and control these desires with a view to eliminate them gradually.” The system of devadasi was conceived to help a person overcome his irrepressible lust within the overall ambience of sense control in the temple. The display of the sexual act in the temples of Khajuraho is to depict that the life cycle is an endless trap and to show the futility of unlimited indulgence. There is a difference in the tourist buying some trinkets in Badrinath and making purchases in a tourist’s shopping mall that may be opened at Badrinath. The trinkets bought at Badrinath are meant to help the person overcome his attraction to the things and to go deep in prayer before the Lord. If a shopping mall were to be opened at Badrinath the situation would change drastically. The mind will then be wandering between the new designs of clothes etc. The two approaches cannot go together. The ambience of a place has to be designed either to subdue the senses or to invigorate them. The Uttaranchal Government will have to take a decision whether to develop Badrinath as a centre of religious or commercial tourism. It will not do for the government to say that Badrinath will be developed as a centre of religious tourism for six months when the temple is open and as a centre of commercial tourism in the remaining six months. The psychic environment of the centre will be necessarily influenced by the two activities differently. The sacred texts say that no human being should live in Badrinath in the six months that the temple is closed. The reason is that the psychic environment is regenerated and rested in these six months much like the soil is regenerated when left fallow. Commercial tourism in the winter will leave psychic waves of a strong mind in the area. This will interfere with the psychic waves of quietening the mind during the summer months. Different temples use different techniques to create and preserve the desired psychic environment. This is the method used by Badrinath and that should be honoured. The idea of using Badrinath as a commercial tourist centre would be like converting a temple into a casino in the night! Indian scientists and engineers are dominating the world because they are able to draw out their unconscious mental energies and apply them to the task at hand. Indian rituals such as putting tika on the forehead and ringing the bell in the temple are all designed to pry open the unconscious mind. The main temples such as those at Badrinath, Puri and Tirupati are loaded with these positive psychic waves. It is for this reason alone that people find peace after visiting these places. It would be unfortunate indeed if we squandered away this inheritance for petty gains of money. The Government of India should formulate a national policy to preserve the psychic endowment of the religious places. It would not be wise for us to give up the welfare of 18 million domestic religious tourists simply because we can earn a few hundred dollars more from winter tourism as
Badrinath. |
Tailang thrills cricket, cartoon lovers MIDWEEK saw the release of cartoonist Sudhir Tailang's book of cartoons and like almost all book releases several speeches had to be heard before drinks flowed…Tailang's latest book is a collection of cartoons on cricket. With this input, no guesses on the chief guest. It was Kapil Dev. Thankfully, Kapil Dev hasn't (yet) dreamt of becoming a politician, for his speech rendering requires much polishing. Though he didn't speak much, he managed to focus on the controversy he almost landed in — last fortnight the news item which went on to say that he got a threat from one of the undesirable characters of Ahmedabad — and like the latest trend he blamed media hype for that too … Tailang, of course, spoke from his heart on the cartoonist's delights — the men he loves to lampoon. The list is rather long (almost like DU's cut-off list) and topping it is former Prime Minister P.V. Narasimha Rao, who if Tailang is to be, has been created for the cartoonist 's sessions. Tailang went ahead to say that Rao's pout is better than Aishwarya 's and his nostrils can be played around with! It was a fun evening for cricket and cartoon lovers, but the problem was that it was overstuffed with two categories of lovers. Not to overlook the fact that Tailang has a large circle of friends and the man is down to earth. In fact, it was after weeks that I attended a bash and by the end of it, I was so fatigued out that it was almost as though I was mentally bashed up. Familiar faces of those who have made it to those so-called top slots were doing the rounds, amidst plenty of snacks and drinks…Lalit Suri of the Inter-Continental did play a gracious host; after all he isn't just a lover of cricket but also called "daddy" by Kapil Dev who took pains to explain. “Since I lost my own daddy when I was very young, I have always looked upon Suri saab as my daddy…" And to that Suri saab took subtle pains to explain that the age difference between the two — Kapil Dev and him — wasn't really much. To rub in the fact that he wasn't old enough to be Kapil Dev's father, he narrated a rather bizarre incident on how he broke a limb or two whilst playing cricket and had to be hospitalised. "When Kapil came to see me in the hospital he burst out laughing, telling me “this is what happens when you try to enter my profession...”
Just received the invite for Sushobha Barve's book “Healing Streams” (Penguin). She has worked extensively for riot victims and is closely associated with Raj Mohan Gandhi's Centre for Peace and Reconciliation Through Dialogue. A firm believer in the concept that there is no substitute for dialogue, she actually practices it...
Focus on drugs As expected, there was focus on tobacco, drugs and associated products on June 25. In the capital city, advertisements were splashed and dancer Geeta Chandran choreographed a dance show to focus on the damaging effects of drug use and abuse. After all, let’s not overlook this startling figure — there are 5 million tobacco deaths in the world every year. Perhaps, in keeping with this on June 16, 28 countries and the European Community (EC) signed the global tobacco control treaty which was adopted last month by all the 192 member-states of the United Nation's World Health Organisation. In accordance with the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), it would require countries “to restrict tobacco advertising, sponsorship and promotion, set new labeling and clean indoor air controls and strengthen legislation to clamp down on tobacco smuggling. Tax and price increases would also be considered..." And whilst going through the latest UN Newsletter to see names of the countries which have signed the FCTC, one was dismayed to notice that our country was not one of the signatories. This when even small countries like Bangladesh, Malta, Kuwait, Italy, Hungary, Iran, Palau, Paraguay, Mongolia, Brazil and many others are signatories...Isn't tobacco and related products reigning hell here and yet we don't seem to move beyond boring speeches and dull ads? |
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THE initiative for interlinking of rivers has given rise to certain apprehensions: few real, some hypothetical and others just misplaced. While local issues on the doctrine of riparian rights and appropriation of water for priority uses within a basin or sub-basin are important, a broad national perspective is of no less significance and required to be considered against unreasonable use and or non-use of this vital resource.
DR Poornima Advani’s
association with the National Commission for Women (NCW) dates back to
December 28, 1998 when she joined as member for a three-year tenure. She
took over as Chairperson of the Commission on January 25, 2002. She
holds a doctorate in criminal law from Bombay University and has taught
in its law faculty. Dr Advani says that NCW addresses the concerns of
women and protects their rights. It is therefore an organisation women
need to trust. "Anyone here is on a mission. It is a good
opportunity to serve the country. My main interest is women of the
country," she says. Although Dr Advani supports the demand for more
teeth for the Commission, she feels that it is important to chew with
the available teeth.
EIGHTY-seven-year-old shehnai wizard Bismillah Khan, decorated with Bharat Ratna, has entered the evening of his life, ailing and virtually broke. His arthritis-afflicted knee joints often start aching and the scorching heat of Varanasi summer, with mercury rising up to 45 degree Celsius, has compounded his agony. The maestro, who has become a legend, says: “I am now very weak; I don’t feel strong anymore. I had got a heat stroke”. He lives on the top floor of a decrepit house located in narrow, winding lanes of Varanasi on the banks of the Ganga.