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Tuesday,
July 15, 2003, Chandigarh, India  
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Opting out of NDA Plant trees, get jobs Deadweight
is not deadwood |
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Water is the big issue
Chandigarh Pursuit
Human rights violation complaints inflated
Nitish’s worry — the image
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Opting out of NDA THE National Conference (NC) snapping its links with the ruling National Democratic Alliance is not a sudden development. The gulf between the two, noticed with the rejection of Dr Farooq Abdullah’s claim for the Vice-President’s post, had been widening for some time. It was more visible when the NDA leadership highlighted the fact that elections in Jammu and Kashmir had never been as fair as the Assembly poll held last October. This was a sad reflection on the defeated NC government headed by Dr Farooq Abdullah. It was, therefore, natural for the Omar Abdullah-led regional party to feel uncomfortable in the NDA. After the October elections there was no convergence between the NC’s interests and those of the NDA. Their alliance had some meaning when the NC was in power. In any case, the NC’s decision to join the NDA was in keeping with the regional party’s past practice of having an alliance with the group or party in power at the Centre. The idea was that this made the state government’s functioning easier, besides providing opportunities to consolidate the NC’s position in the state. But Dr Abdullah’s non-performance coupled with violence committed by militants changed the atmosphere. The result was a major erosion in the NC’s support base, leading to its rout in the Valley at the hands of the Mufti Sayeed-led People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in last year’s assembly elections. The NC was humiliated by the voters in the Jammu region too, but the gainer was the Congress. What was more worrying for the NC was the emergence of the PDP as a major political force in the valley. The PDP’s growing popularity has obviously been disturbing the NC leadership also in view of next year’s Lok Sabha poll. Hence its new strategy to project itself as “Kashmir’s voice in Delhi” instead of being “Delhi’s voice in Kashmir”. Although this was possible even while maintaining its association with the NDA, the NC leadership does not know how to exploit Kashmiri sentiments while remaining in the company of the BJP. Now Mr Omar Abdullah will not have to bother about the NDA’s reaction when he, for instance, takes up the plight of the people of Jammu and Kashmir or the miscarriage of justice in Vadodara’s Best Bakery case. He seems to be keen to play the autonomy card more forcefully. Needless to say, he has a better image than that of his father, who never took politics seriously. But the poor record of Dr Abdullah’s government will always be following him like his own shadow. Out of the NDA now the junior Abdullah will have to work hard to make headway. There is always scope for responsible opposition politics in Jammu and Kashmir. Mr Omar Abdullah is young and can still build his future, even without the help of the NDA. |
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Plant trees, get jobs THE thought behind the scheme announced by Haryana Chief Minister Om Prakash Chautala on Sunday to give government jobs on a priority basis to those unemployed youth who plant 1,000 trees is laudable, but he will have to guard against its misuse. These trees should actually grow, instead of being recorded only in official files, as it happens in the case of many well-meaning schemes. Equally important will be to ensure that the trees thus grown survive. “Van mahotsavas” during the past many decades have taught us that while the plantation ceremony provides a wonderful photo opportunity, the upkeep of the trees is nobody’s responsibility after that. That is why the forest cover in the country is far short of the ideal laid down in the national forest policy. The lure of a government job is such that many unemployed youth may indeed take it upon themselves to plant trees. It will be interesting to keep track as to where and how Haryana asks them to use their green fingers. Trees require tender nurturing for several years. The job-for-trees offer should be treated as an added incentive for planting them and not just as a backdoor route to a coveted job. Only then will an abiding love for trees and environment take roots. Schemes like “Samanvit Gram Vanikaran Samridhi Yojana” have made some difference but a lot more needs to be done. It is necessary to expand the tree-plantation drive and involve the entire community, especially school-going children, in it. A tree planted by a child may have a greater chance of survival for several reasons. One, the child can be depended on to give it his or her total personal attention. Two, his family may also extend its whole-hearted support and, three, his school too may chip in to the extent possible. Haryana has launched a massive programme to involve school children in environmental activities by starting 2,300 eco-clubs in government schools in the state. Tree plantation needs to be made an integral part of the school curriculum all over the country. Similarly, panchayats and municipal committees and councils too have to be enthused into adding their mite. By now, the public is quite convinced that trees are essential for the survival of mankind. All that is required is a committed coordinating agency that can supervise the mission in right earnest. |
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Deadweight
is not deadwood OFFICIAL India should take out a patent for the formula for dealing with any problem. The dust-laden shelves of the Kendriya Sachivalaya contain any number of reports, dating back to the British rule, on how to improve the efficiency of the civil services. So what? Another committee was set up to recommend a mechanism for assessing the "performance evaluation system of the bureaucracy". The task was entrusted to Lt-Gen Surendra Nath. The former fauji did not beat about the bush nor did he mistake the wood for the trees. He recommended the removal of "dead wood". If the reference was to inert mass, a more appropriate description of the Indian political and bureaucratic behemoth, the General should have ordered the removal of deadweight from the Indian Administrative Services. He would still not have been out of the wood for the outlandish recommendations that have purportedly been made by the committee headed by him. It is difficult to believe that he wants that "non-performing, corrupt or seriously ill officials should be identified when they turn 50, or on completion of 20 years of service". In other words an officer who is found to be inefficient or corrupt or seriously ill on joining service will be allowed to continue for the next 20 years before being asked to quit on touching the age of 50. If the committee insists on calling deadweight as deadwood, it may actually be throwing a lifeline to the corrupt and inefficient bureaucrats. The South Dakota State Historical Society has a Deadwood Fund. It is spent on historical properties that need rehabilitation and restoration. If word gets out a large number of Indian politicians and bureaucrats may apply for migration to the land of opportunities. In the city of Deadwood (named for the dead trees that were found in the canyon), seat of Lawrence County in Western South Dakota, they may even strike pay dirt by inviting Indian tour groups to the land of the dreaded "Wild Bill" Hickok and Calamity Jane. |
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Thought for the day In politics, what begins in fear usually ends in folly. — Samuel Taylor Coleridge |
Water is the big issue IN a country where the summer queues for water are getting longer and longer, underground reserves are plummeting and there are frequent fights, leading to death, over water, the government has begun to realise that higher priority needs to be given to water than to the traditional need for “roti, kapada aur makkan”. But the big question is: what will they do about it? As the mercury soared, the rain gods played truant and heart-rending reports of the fifth year of drought hit the headlines, newspapers and magazines across the country reported extensively on the water crisis. Eight of the 20 river basins of the country are running dry, screamed one headline. No water in Jog falls in Karnataka for the first time in 40 years, said another, and mass migration of man and cattle was reported from various parts of Rajasthan, Gujarat and the Malwa and Bundelkhand regions in a desperate attempt by the poor and the marginalised to stave off thirst and the death looming over their landscape. But with the monsoon breaking over most parts of the country, that sense of urgency evaporates and the stories on the need to conserve water, do rain water harvesting and watershed development are reduced to a trickle or relegated to the inside pages. The media and the NGOs seem to let up the pressure on the government to find a permanent solution to the water crisis that will erupt again like a summer boil next year. It was, therefore, heartening to attend a national workshop for voluntary organisations on drinking water and sanitation organised by the Ministry of Water Resources and the Global Rainwater Harvesting Collective (GRHC). Using his tremendous clout and reach, Mr Bunker Roy, the doyen of NGOs and coordinator of the GRHC, was able to get together close to a hundred grassroot groups and voluntary organisations from across the country to discuss with the government and donors low cost rural solutions and share community-based success stories in an effort to influence and change water policies from below. Since it is the International Year for Freshwater, there was a good turnout of international donors as well as government representatives. It is not that we do not receive enough rainfall. Over 15 per cent of the country receives more than 1500 mm annually. The entire west coast and most of Assam and sub-Himalayan Bengal receive 2500 mm of rain. However, 21 per cent of the country receives less than 750 mm and western Rajasthan, the adjoining areas of Gujarat, Haryana and Punjab receive less than 500 mm of rain annually. Our major problem is the management of water resources. India has an annual precipitation of around 4000 bcm (billion cubic metres). Of this, the runoff, the accessible water, is 1,869 bcm but nearly 1,179 bcm is wasted or drains into the sea. Half a dozen ministries — Rural Development, Urban Development, Agriculture, Water Resources, Food and Environment — share the funds and responsibility for managing water. It seems to be a case of too many cooks spoiling the broth, for the Vajpayee government alone is said to have spent over Rs 8,500 crore on accelerated rural water schemes. The number of villages without water has shot up from 232 at the time of Independence to over 90,000 today. Quite clearly a people’s movement is needed for conserving and harvesting India’s by and large bountiful rainfall. Every family and community has to be involved in this mission. Drinking water has been one resource, like air, that has been accessible to people, though not always easily, without their having to pay a price for it. With water becoming scarce and large-scale pollution of water sources, bottled, mineral water is seen as a necessity by the elite, and it costs anything from Rs 10 to Rs 15 a bottle. In fact, this is more than the cost of milk in most villages. The rural/urban inequity is apparent even in the availability and price of drinking water. In some villages of Rajasthan, 30 litres of water costs Rs 60 as against Rs 35 for 1000 litres in the cities, Mr Rajendra Singh of the Tarun Bharat Sangh laments. The common concern of a large number of voluntary organisations is the privatisation of water resources, including rivers. The sale of the tributary of the Sheonath by the Chhattisgarh government has denied people living on the banks of the river access to what they have always considered a common resource. Though under public pressure the state government decided to cancel the contract, till date nothing has happened. Paragraph 13 of the National Water Policy says quite clearly, “private sector participation should be encouraged in planning, development and management of water resources projects for diverse uses, wherever feasible. It may help in introducing innovative ideas, generating financial resources and introducing corporate management and improving service efficiency and accountability to users. … combinations of private sector participation in building, owning, operating, leasing and transferring of water resources facilities may be considered.” The government has been told that this paragraph needs to be changed or more sources will be hawked to the highest bidder. The message that the workshop sent out is that the government should get out of the supply of water for irrigation and domestic needs. Water is scarce. Restore the traditional step wells, tankas and water ponds, all examples of sustainable development that have survived hundreds of years, and hand over their maintenance to local communities. There are umpteen examples of community initiatives to regenerate and restore water sources. Take the case of Utthan, working largely with women, in 108 villages of Amreli, Bhavnagar, Patan and Panchmahal districts of Gujarat. When Nafisa Barot and her team began working in the Bhal region of Gujarat, migration was a common feature for six to seven months every year because there was no water for drinking, leave alone agriculture. When water tankers visited the area there were serious fights for water. Water pipelines that the government constructed were broken at several places in desperate efforts to get water. The poor at the end of the pipeline seldom got water. The groundwater was depleting and with the ingress of salt water from the sea, it was unpalatable. It was virtually impossible to solve the socio-political conflicts for water over a huge area. So, the people decided to go back to their traditional systems of water collection. Tanks were dug and with funds from the government they were lined with polythene sheets to prevent salt from seeping in. The rainwater that was collected was prevented from evaporating by using a protective film on the water surface. Today in 100 villages there is water round the year for drinking, sanitation and ensuring food security. A great deal of importance has been given to soil conservation and watershed development. With some 2500 structures for roof water collection, wells have been recharged and there are umpteen small check dams and farm ponds managed by the people. Pravahs or local committees manage water resources. In Bhavnagar, the water committee has given common space to the families which had no place for water collection. Economic improvement is apparent — thatched huts are being replaced by pucca constructions. These are several such excellent projects being managed by voluntary organisations that need support. They do not require the large sums of money that government projects do. It is time the government put its money where its mouth is. Usha Rai writes on development issues. This is the first of her two articles contributed to The Tribune |
Chandigarh Pursuit IT seemed the simplest of things to do. Hadn’t my staff done such jobs any number of times from Bhopal? If so, it should be much simpler from the national capital and when attempted by me personally, it should by no means be more difficult. I had sent a “middle” piece to the Tribune a few weeks ago and all that was desired was to know its position. So, it did not involve any issue of national security or official secrecy and was or — at least should be — fully covered by all the glib talk about transparency. Well, there was no bar to my venture. Only, I had to know the phone number to press the relevant knobs. The telephone directory available to me was not the latest and during that span the phone people must have managed to change the numbers at least once if not twice. And I had a diary which my telephone operator constructed over the years, which he had “gifted” to me at time of parting. The diary had two sets of numbers against “The Tribune, Chandigarh”, one commencing with ‘233’ and the other with ‘270’ but both were outdated or wrong — for whatever reason. Once, when I did get one of the six numbers a taped response told me to ask 1951, 1952 or 197 for the new number. It was a long haul to get one of these but the response was honey-dipped. “Your call is precious for us, kindly wait........ repeat........... repeat again and again,” but usually before the human attention could intervene, it got disconnected.... I was told to approach the Trunk Enquiry, “183”. In this age of Informatics they should click, I surmised. But that turned out to be the biggest disappointment. I was flabbergasted because the venerable lady at the end had never heard of the paper! I had to spell the name thus: ‘T’ for train, ‘R’ for Ram, ‘I’ for India and so on to enable her to make sense of what I wanted. No good at all! Nor did the name of the Editor help. “Is it “Mansadevi Complex”? She asked reading from whatever source she had before her or Raipur Khurd” whatever these were. It disgusted me to no end. “It is too much”, I exclaimed after all my pleading about Northwest India’s oldest English daily, its role in history and its Hindi and Punjabi sister journals. It was — to use a rather uncouth phrase — like music before swine! While I was fast exhausting my patience, the sweet maiden had a bright idea. “May I give you Chandigarh’s enquiry numbers?” “Oh yes, please do,” I replied mumbling to myself, “may be they are less ignorant!” “2703498 and 2702244” she said and hung up, presumably with a sense of satisfaction. Postscript: Nobody picked up the receiver of the first number for long enough to make the instrument lose all hope, and give up. As for the second, after a couple of normal rings, it offered a choice of two shrill whistles. I regret I am no good at such selections. If we have a connoisseur around I may state that when I called 23721088 the only entry Delhi’s bulging telephone directory has in the name of “Tribune Trust”, I was served the same two shrill tones. Any guess why the capital’s directory has such a shabby deal for The Tribune? The writer is a former Governor of Madhya Pradesh.
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Human rights violation complaints inflated
In an interview the Director-General of Police, Mr M.S. Bhullar, lists steps being taken by the Punjab Police to check police excesses and give the force a people-friendly look. Excerpts : Q: The PSHRC report of 1998-99 says that of the 1,063 complaints received by the commission, a majority pertained to police excesses, including death in police custody, custodial violence, unlawful arrest and other police excesses. What do you have to say about this? Of the 1,063 complaints received by the commission, very few relate to police excesses. A vast majority of the complaints relate to the nature of problems handled by the police. An average police case involves two parties, both in adversial role, with conflicting perceptions about their expectations from the police. Immediately, after any dispute both parties are in a highly agitated psychological state and, consequently, they address their complaints to all available, including the commission. However, in due time their grievances get redressed and they do not follow up their cases in the commission. A large number of complaints are devoid of truth. When this is reported to the commission, the complainants fail to rebut the version of the police in spite of repeated opportunities. In some case, the matter is found sub-judice and is disposed of as such by the commission. This only inflates the figures as they were considered cognizable by the commission. However, now three law officers have been appointed in the commission to check such complaints at the initial stage itself. Only in a few cases the police version is rebutted and the cases are referred to the crime branch or the internal vigilance cell and/or are taken up by the investigation wing of the commission. Interestingly, most of the policemen have been indicted on the basis of enquiry by the crime branch or the internal vigilance cell of the Punjab Police and strict action is taken against such guilty officials. Out of these 1,063 complaints, 85 complaints were dealt with by the crime wing. Of these 49 were against policemen of which only four were found to be true. Q: What action has been taken against policemen found guilty? Are you planning to have an inbuilt mechanism to minimise complaints of excesses? Based on the recommendation of the commission, appropriate action has been taken against the guilty policemen. Action has been taken in the form of registration of a criminal case, initiation of a departmental enquiry or the transfer of the officials concerned. Of the four cases investigated by the crime wing, departmental enquiries were initiated against three policemen, including two SHOs and one ASI, while one Inspector was transferred. On the basis of the recommendations of the Punjab State Human Rights Commission in 16 other cases, departmental enquiries were ordered in six cases, cases were registered in three cases against the guilty policemen, in two cases three years service was forfeited while in yet another case, an enquiry against an Inspector and a Sub-Inspector was entrusted to the Subdivisional Magistrate of the area concerned. Q: Most recent complaints of police excesses include custodial death of a child in Jalandhar. What action has been taken against the police officials responsible for the incident? In this case, one Sub Inspector, one Head Constable and one Special Police Officer (SPO) were booked for murder on January 21, 2003. They were all arrested and a challan was submitted in the court against them on February 17. They all have been suspended. Q: What steps has the Punjab Police taken or proposes to take to educate its men and officers about human rights? The Punjab Police Academy (PPA) at Phillaur has been organising specialised courses for gazetted and non-gazetted officers from time to time to sensitise them about human rights. The course material includes instructions of the Human Rights Commission and various guidelines issued by the commission from time to time. Important judgements by various courts are also included in the curriculum. Eight such specialised courses have already been conducted. Q: How do you propose to change the much tarnished image of the police and to make it people friendly? A new concept of community policing has been launched recently for greater interaction between the police and the public to clear all misconceptions about police functioning. New courses have been introduced at the PPA incorporating new concepts of policing. Training methods of policemen have also been changed. Increased stress is being laid on welfare of the policemen so as to make them calm and composed so that they can handle their jobs professionally. |
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‘Attempts to hush up police excesses’ THE Punjab State Human Rights Commission (PSHRC) in its 1998-99 report tabled in the Punjab Vidhan Sabha during the last session says that a total of 1,063 complaints were processed by the commission of which 12 were about death in police custody, 52 about torture in police custody, 70 pertained to unlawful detention or arrest and remaining 434 were of other police excesses. The death of a toddler in police custody in Jalandhar last year is yet another glaring example of police highhandedness. The commission has specifically mentioned some cases, including that of Lieut-Col G.S. Sooch, who was physically assaulted at a roadside dhaba in Jalandhar. Pressurising the complainants to withdraw their petitions, falsification and fabrication of evidence and tampering with police records, including evidence, says the commission, are some of the methods resorted to by policemen to get the “genuine cases of police excesses” hushed up or filed. The commission also took a serious view of biased investigations and assisting the “influential” in property disputes. Intimidation was the most common complaint against the police, the commission said, holding that political pressure was the most potent weapon used by the ruling party to browbeat its opponents into submission and police unwittingly becomes a tool in the hands of the political bosses.
— PS
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Nitish’s worry — the image NITISH Kumar is fast becoming a proactive Railway Minister. This was quite clear at a workshop he convened a few days back. He encouraged the participants to present their problems without any hesitation. Assuring them complete immunity, he told them that he had convened the workshop to lend his ears to their problems and would, therefore, not leave the stage during the interactive sessions. Nitish Kumar bemoaned the fact that the Indian Railways had got a bad name due to accidents. He said that he had lost his “yash” (fame), “chavi” (image) and “prathistha” (respect) in the process. Sonia’s walks in Shimla There is a projected informality in Sonia Gandhi’s interaction with her party colleagues. This informality was evident at Shimla where the Congress just held a Vichar Manthan Shivir. After the shivir deliberations got over, she could be heard calling Congress Working Committee member Ghulam Nabi Azad as `Ghulam Nabi’ and Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot as `Ashok.’ If not the proceedings, Sonia’s walks became the talking point among Congressmen attending the Chintan exercise in Shimla. Evidently fond of the hill station, which she has been visiting since 1968, the Congress President had much to reminisce. Media persons looking for some late evening updates at the hotel where all the senior leaders were staying, were in for a pleasent surprise when they saw Sonia Gandhi walking in along with party leaders Ambika Soni and Ahmed Patel. Her guards following, the Congress President walked from Peterhof, the venue of the Congress Working Committee meeting, to the hotel. It was well past 10 pm and the hotel kitchen had to be activated to serve tea and coffee to the assembly of leaders and scribes who joined Sonia in the open lounge. Some leaders, who had retired to their rooms, rushed out. Sonia did not take questions, saying: `no interview.’
Made in India In a city crowded with Cadillacs, Lincolns, BMWs and Mercedes Benzes, India’s quintessential omnipresent car, the Hindustan Motors’ Ambassador has attracted great attention after being installed in America’s prestigious Smithsonian Arthur M. Sackler Gallery. Residents of the Capitol city have been awed by the ruby red Ambassador shell which has been placed in the gallery since March last as part of an
exhibition on the renowned photographer Raghubir Singh’s book “A Way into India”. The excitement generated by the old warhorse of the Indian roads is so great that the residents of Washington DC have been `driving away’ with their very own-made in India- Ambassador dinky (miniature) cars at $ 4.95 apiece. The Ambassador car shell was airlifted specially to Washington at the behest of Chairman of Hindustan Motors C.K. Birla. And as a result, the ruby red painted car has to the delight of the company officials, received some trade enquiries, again proving that the `made in India’ tag does attract the Americans.
Liberhan panel Justice M S Liberhan has recently been given extension till December 31 to complete his job. The lawyers associated with the one-man enquiry commission feel that there is no chance of Vajpayee being summoned on a mere allegation. Former UP Chief Minister Kalyan Singh had alleged that Vajpayee was also involved in the Ayodhya demolition conspiracy. This will definitely give boost to the BJP for strengthening its alliance with the NDA partners as Vajpayee has been the party’s “clean face” on Ayodhya. The question of summoning Vajpayee and Kalyan Singh and re-summoning L K Advani will be decided by the panel on July 22 when it will hear four petitions in this regard. (Contributed by Tripti Nath, Prashant Sood, Girja Shankar Kaura & S.S. Negi) |
The greatest wisdom is to know thyself. — Hebrew proverb Seek wisdom even in the language of folly. — Hebrew proverb The value of words uttered with the lips is determined by the devotion of the heart. — The Talmud You may turn to the east to the prophet but all the four winds are God’s. — Sufi proverb The face of Truth Is covered by the glittering lid of gold. The Purusha — The ultimate source of conscious life, who shines in the sun I am that Aum, The supreme entity. — Yajurveda 40.17 |
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OF late, the Punjab Police has been at the receiving end for various excesses committed by both its men and officers. The Punjab State Human Rights Commission, for example, has been flooded with complaints of police excesses. These complaints are not only coming from workers of both the Shiromani Akali Dal and the Bharatiya Janata Party but also from ordinary citizens.