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The road not built World in the Cup No secrecy, please |
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Politics above law
Go for rural development!
Atomic brotherhood National test for ITES-BPO industry Delhi Durbar
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The road not built
THE Bangalore-Mysore Infrastructure Corridor (BMIC) project should have been a highway and business infrastructure project that should have moved from concept to completion in quick time. The idea was to provide a high-speed link between Bangalore and Mysore, besides boosting the economic potential of areas on the way, developing Mysore as a vibrant satellite town, and helping decongest Bangalore. What we now have, instead, is a grim pot-boiler that has pitted the state government against the developers and the Supreme Court, farmers against other constituents, and one ruling coalition partner against the other. In this sordid drama, it is the people who are losing. And it is all to do with land. Former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda is at the heart of it in more ways than one. He has always made known his opposition to the project, and he swore recently that he would slit his throat if it was found that he owned land in the BMIC project area. Apparently, son and Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy owns 47 acres of land next to the expressway. He says this land is not in the “alignment area.” The Supreme Court had stepped in to prevent the state government from putting up hurdles, but the Chief Minister is planning legislation that will circumvent it. The coalition partner, the BJP, is for “recovering excess land” but not for sweeping legislation that will take over the project and scare away new investors. The state seems willing to risk both Contempt of Court and, evidently, the consequences of a bounced cheque it paid to the developers. All big infrastructure projects, whether it is the golden quadrilateral, BMIC or greenfield airports, stumble at land acquisition and related issues. It is time governments evolved a framework to tackle this. Increased transparency in land records, and rigorous land reform, are fundamental. The leeway for big and influential private developers, political parties, or a government to hamper public interest infrastructure projects, should be lessened. As for BMIC itself, if it were really about returning “excess farmers’ land” there could have been a solution. But if it is about brazen greed and corruption in high corridors of power, the road ahead is dark. |
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World in the Cup
This is the time when the whole world turns into a soccer fraternity. that eats, drinks and breathes football. The fans are at times more passionate about the game than the players themselves. Not many would have known that among them is UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, who has now gone on to write an article, revealing not only his admiration for FIFA, but also admitting that the World Cup “makes us at the UN green with envy”. And it is not merely because of size: FIFA has 207 members while the UN has only 191. There are many more attributes of the World Cup, which the UN boss would like to emulate. Explicit in the admiration is the admission that these are found wanting in the world body that he heads. The most enviable of all the qualities, according to Mr Annan, is the fact that the World Cup is an event in which we see goals being reached. He is not talking merely about the goals that a country scores; the reference is to the most important goal of all – being there, part of the family of nations and peoples, celebrating our common humanity. How one wishes the UN too could be a prolific scorer! Drawing a parallel with the World Cup, the Secretary-General reveals the rest of the items on his wish list. He expects governments to be as accountable as the organisations managing soccer in various countries. They should be vying vigorously on human rights, child survival rates or enrolment in secondary education. Citizens should take as much interest in carbon emissions, human development index and HIV infections as they do in football. All this should take place on a level-playing field. Talent and teamwork are the key to the World Cup magic. Taking a cue, the nations of the world should have free and fair exchanges without the interference of subsidies, barriers or tariffs. There should be cross-pollination between peoples and countries. And there should be national pride in the achievements of one’s team. Indeed, if all these qualities can rub onto UN members, the world will be a different place altogether. |
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No secrecy, please
THE Second Administrative Reforms Commission, headed by Mr M. Veerappa Moily, has rightly recommended the repeal of the Official Secrets Act (OSA), 1923. In its report presented to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, the commission stressed the need for its abolition because it has the shadow of a colonial regime. Moreover, after the enactment of the Right to Information Act, the 83-year-old Act has become incongruous with the kind of transparency necessary in a democratic society. Significantly, the commission suggested that instead of continuing the outdated law in the statute book, suitable safeguards to protect the security of the state should be incorporated in the National Security Act. Surprisingly, even though the original Act in Britain has undergone drastic changes, the one in this country remains in its pristine form. Many of the important files concerning development in the early years of Independence remain undisclosed to this day. These include, among others, Cabinet files related to comprehensive primary health care. In a democracy where citizens enjoy equal political rights, official secrecy has no relevance. More important is the crucial question: who benefits from secrecy? A classic example is the manner in which information relating to the Narmada Dam was kept under the OSA’s protective cover, depriving the victims of the much-needed access to information. Another case of abuse of the OSA is the arrest of Iftikar Geelani, a journalist from Kashmir. The Press Council of India has called for its abolition. Alternatively, it sought amendments to the sections dealing with espionage and security. If the Right to Information Act has to succeed, the OSA will have to be scrapped lock, stock and barrel. The right to information not only reinforces people’s right to know but also makes it binding on the officials to disclose the information they seek. Today, the issue concerning effective administration and good governance is not simply about increased public involvement in policy formulation and decision-making but about the extent to which the government chooses to open up for wider public deliberation and scrutiny. |
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It’ a very remarkable circumstance ... that poverty and oysters always seem to go together.
— Charles Dickens |
Politics above law
Recent goings-on in the country remind me of a saying in the United States, popular during the prohibition era there, “The administration’s folly makes you feel like crying into your beer and denies you the beer to cry into”. There may be no dearth of drink here but highly lamentable is the shortage of good governance, rule of law, and observance of even the most elementary norms of democracy and political decency. To expect this dismal trend to be stemmed anytime soon would be a classic case of the triumph of hope over experience. Utterly astonishing is the mess that the Congress, the core of the ruling United Progressive Alliance in New Delhi, has made over the simple issue of the inevitable hike in petroleum prices. The party and the government went through the pantomime of speaking in different voices, the Congress president demanding a “partial reversal” of the price hike for the sake of aam aadmi and the Prime Minister firmly refusing to “roll back” his decision. The eventual ploy of saving face on both sides by persuading the states to forgo additional sales tax and thus give consumers some relief has all but boomeranged. The UPA’s Leftist supporters and its inveterate enemies, such as the BJP and the Samajwadi Party, are united in a countrywide campaign to force the Union government to first reduce the customs and excise duties it imposes on petroleum products. The sudden spurt in the violence and killings in Assam is the price for the election-eve expediency of suspending military action against ULFA (United Liberation Front of Asom). Even more ominous has been the conspicuous surge in cross-border terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir, with the death-dealers concentrating on soft targets. Nor is there any diminution in the Naxalite orgy of murder and mayhem in 170 of the country’s 460 districts. It is on top of all this that some deeply disturbing developments in Karnataka and Maharashtra have given a further boost to the insidious forces that are already eating into the country’s vitals. The monumental mischief in Karnataka centres on the Bangalore-Mysore Infrastructure Corridor (BMIC) that was conceived 20 years ago and has been in progress. It also has a bleak backdrop. Ironically, it was the then Chief Minister of Karnataka and later Prime Minister for a while, Mr H.D. Deve Gowda, who had initially assigned the lucrative project to the private sector but it really got going only when Mr S.M. Krishna — now trying hard to get out of Raj Bhavan in Mumbai — was Karnataka’s Chief Minister. The thought that his men, not Mr Gowda’s cohorts, would benefit naturally troubles the latter. Consequently, the previous Congress-led government in which Mr Gowda’s party, the Janata Dal (Secular), was included, did all it could to obstruct the BMIC project and its builder. For this the Supreme Court imposed on it a fine of Rs 5 lakh and directed it to let the private builder get on with the job. As is well known, some months ago, Mr Gowda’s son, Mr H.D. Kumaraswamy, managed to overthrow the Congress-led coalition and, with the help of the BJP, himself became Chief Minister, throwing his father’s “secular” pretensions to the winds. The son has now come up with the “bright” idea of a state government take-over of the project. At first it appeared that the necessary law for this purpose might be passed by the legislature within days. After all, the BJP having come to power in any southern state for the first time was in no hurry to lose it, and the Congress had its own “sins” to answer for. But luckily the BJP, still wanting to share power with Mr Kumaraswamy, and the Congress, anxious to settle scores with him, seem to be having second thoughts. The BJP realises that to let the father and son have their way over the highway might attract the displeasure of the Supreme Court. The Congress needs to get even with the Gowdas. It has, therefore, demanded a CBI inquiry into reports that the Chief Minister Kumaraswamy already owns 47 acres of prime land close to BMIC fetching mind-boggling price. Both are incensed, moreover, by the brazenness of the Kumaraswamy government in encouraging the farmers to dig up the portion of the highway that was to be inaugurated on June 16. TV images have underscored how vile is this act of vandalism that also flies in the face of the country’s determination to become the third largest economy as well as a major world power. In Maharashtra it is political chicanery of a different but no less dangerous kind that has been on display. What the happenings in the country’s financial and commercial capital prove is that coalitions may be inevitable in India but there is no hope in hell that the necessary coalition culture would develop here. Every partner in every coalition is recklessly self-seeking and opportunistic, with an eye on the main chance. On the face of it, the issue of a single byelection to the Rajya Sabha from Maharashtra, caused by Pramod Mahajan’s death, may seem a minor one. But what Mr Sharad Pawar, Union Agriculture Minister and the top leader of the National Congress Party (NCP), has done is fraught with frightening possibilities for not just the Congress but also all those championing the cause of secularism. Without any consultation with his coalition partners, he chose a leading industrialist, Mr Rahul Bajaj, as the most appropriate candidate. And in order to ensure Mr Bajaj’s victory, he joined hands with the BJP and the Shiv Sena both of which, embroiled in their own difficulties, were happy to rub the Congress’ nose in dirt. The Congress can only fume and fret. It doesn’t have the votes. Surely, Mr Pawar is blameworthy. But the Congress is not a lilywhite innocent either. When it welcomed with open arms Mr Narayan Rane, a “prized” defector from the Shiv Sena, one of its objectives was to cut the NCP leader to size. Mr Rane did his assigned job remarkably well by doing unto Mr Pawar in the recent state legislative council elections exactly what Mr Pawar is doing to the Congress now. The question that everyone is asking is that if Mr Pawar can join hands with the BJP and the Shiv Sena in Mumbai today, can’t he replicate this performance in New Delhi whenever the time is
ripe?
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Go for rural development!
EVEN after 58 years of independence and throwing off the brutish colonial and imperialist yoke, India is still a basket case going round the world with a begging bowl and with 80 per cent of her population wallowing under the absolute poverty line and why? Because the rapacious cities are growing grotesquely fat on the sweat, tears and blood of our toiling and oppressed rural masses.” “I earnestly appeal to the idealistic men and women in this enlightened audience to go and work selflessly in villages if they want to discover the real India!” Stirring words indeed and they were uttered by a politician addressing an election rally on Bangalore’s National High School grounds. A quick check through the telephone directory immediately on returning home turned up the interesting fact that the politician was staying in Palace Orchards — one of Bangalore’s poshest localities which could not possibly be called a “village” by any stretch of imagination, but that was neither here nor there. I had been exhorted to go and work in the villages and I was going to do just that. May be mine was an unusually malleable and plastic mind, but I was already convinced that with my smooth-talking city slickness and savvy, I was cornering the fruits of development, while letting my victimised rural brethren wallow in poverty and ignorance. For my pro-active rural development action, I chose a village in the interior, about 100 miles from Bangalore. I wanted the “locale” for my heart-stopping rural action to be as far away as possible from Bangalore with its 97 ( or is it 98?) cinema theatres, sleazy live band joints featuring all-night cabaret and floor shows. Tut, tut. I drew up an elaborate programme of selfless action in the village. I would sweep cowdung off the cobbled and dusty bylanes and construct bio-gas units and usher in an era of appropriate rural technology. I would galvanise the indolent rural youth and make them the dynamic vanguard of a revolutionary agrarian army that would overwhelm the parasitic cities and establish “gram swaraj” of Mahatma Gandhi’s dreams. I would organise the exploited rural women into micro credit societies and self-help group and free them from the shackles of usurious money lenders and “kulaks”. These and other revolutionary thoughts jostled in my mind as the rickety bus made its way to the village. As I alighted, a fierce mid-day sun was beating overhead and hunger was gnawing at my vitals and I would have gladly given my eye teeth for a plate of hamburgers and a foaming mug of chilled draught beer. So my wicked city ways were still with me after all, hankering after rich foods and alcoholic beverages to wash them down. I told myself sternly that I was in the village to share in the trials and tribulations of the exploited rural masses and that I should consider myself fortunate if I got some millet balls and thin watery rice gruel. But something odd struck me right away. The village was bereft of young people whose sweat, tears, toil and blood were being ruthlessly exploited by the city folks to grow obscenely fat. Puzzled, I accosted an old man who was sitting on the verandah of the panchayat office chewing betel and thoughtfully appraising his gnarled fingernails. “Pop,” I said earnestly, “where ARE the village young men and women?” The old man looked up surprised. “Don’t you know,” he said, “they have ALL gone away to
Bangalore.” |
Atomic brotherhood
In regard to nuclear proliferation and arms control, the fundamental problem is clear: Either we begin finding creative, outside-the-box solutions or the international nuclear safeguards regime will become obsolete. For this reason, I have been calling for new approaches in a number of areas. First, a recommitment to disarmament — a move away from national security strategies that rely on nuclear weapons, which serve as a constant stimulus for other nations to acquire them. Second, tightened controls on the proliferation-sensitive parts of the nuclear fuel cycle. By bringing multinational control to any operation that enriches uranium or separates plutonium, we can lower the risk of these materials being diverted to weapons. A parallel step would be to create a mechanism to ensure a reliable supply of reactor fuel to bona fide users, including a fuel bank under control of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The third area has been more problematic: how to deal creatively with the three countries that remain outside the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT): Pakistan and India, both holders of nuclear arsenals, and Israel, which maintains an official policy of ambiguity but is believed to be nuclear-weapons-capable. However fervently we might wish it, none of these three is likely to give up its nuclear weapons or the nuclear weapons option outside of a global or regional arms control framework. Our traditional strategy–of treating such states as outsiders–is no longer a realistic method of bringing these last few countries into the fold. Which brings us to a current controversy — the recent agreement between US President George W. Bush and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh regarding the exchange of nuclear technology between the United States and India. Some insist that the deal will primarily enable India to divert more uranium to produce more weapons — that it rewards India for having developed nuclear weapons and legitimises its status as a nuclear weapons state. By contrast, some in India argue that it will bring about the downfall of India’s nuclear weapons program, because of new restrictions on moving equipment and expertise between civilian and military facilities. Clearly, this is a complex issue on which intelligent people can disagree. Ultimately, perhaps, it comes down to a balance of judgment. But to this array of opinions, I would offer the following: First, under the NPT, there is no such thing as a “legitimate” or “illegitimate” nuclear weapons state. The fact that five states are recognized in the treaty as holders of nuclear weapons was regarded as a matter of transition; the treaty does not in any sense confer permanent status on those states as weapons holders. Moreover, the US–India deal is neutral on this point — it does not add to or detract from India’s nuclear weapons program, nor does it confer any “status,” legal or otherwise, on India as a possessor of nuclear weapons. India has never joined the NPT; it has therefore not violated any legal commitment, and it has never encouraged nuclear weapons proliferation. Also, it is important to consider the implications of denying this exchange of peaceful nuclear technology. As a country with one-sixth of the world’s population, India has an enormous appetite for energy — and the fastest-growing civilian nuclear energy program in the world. With this anticipated growth, it is important that India have access to the safest and most advanced technology. India clearly enjoys close cooperation with the United States and many other countries in a number of areas of technology and security. It is treated as a valued partner, a trusted contributor to international peace and security. It is difficult to understand the logic that would continue to carve out civil nuclear energy as the single area for non-cooperation. Under the agreement, India commits to following the guidelines of the Nuclear Suppliers Group, an organization of states that regulates access to nuclear material and technology. India would bring its civilian nuclear facilities under international safeguards. India has voiced its support for the conclusion of a Fissile Material Cut-Off Treaty. The strong support of both India and the United States —as well as all other nuclear weapons states — is sorely needed to make this treaty a reality. The US–India agreement is a creative break with the past that, handled properly, will be a first step forward for both India and the international community. India will get safe and modern technology to help lift more than 500 million people from poverty, and it will be part of the international effort to combat nuclear terrorism and rid our world of nuclear weapons. As we face the future, other strategies must be found to enlist Pakistan and Israel as partners in nuclear arms control and nonproliferation. Whatever form those solutions take, they will need to address not only nuclear weapons but also the much broader range of security concerns facing each country. No one ever said controlling nuclear weapons was going to be easy. It will take courage and tenacity in large doses, a great deal more outside-of-the-box thinking, and a sense of realism. And it will be worth the effort. The writer is director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency. He and the agency won the 2005 Nobel Peace
Prize — By arrangement with LA Times-Washington Post |
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National test for ITES-BPO industry
ITES (Information Technology Enabled Services) and BPO (Business Process Outsourcing) may not remain buzz words for the haloed few any longer. They are set to penetrate to the core of Indian society with the IT industry’s representative body NASSCOM set to introduce a national level entry platform for the ITES and BPO industry. Come this November, candidates can compete for entry into ITES- BPO industry by taking the National Assessment and Certification (NAC) programme. The test is set to be held in eight cities across the country. The test, which will be on the lines of the G-MAT and GRE examinations, is aimed at creating a continuous pipeline of talent by transforming the “trainable” workforce into an “employable” workforce. NASSCOM has already completed a pilot project in this regard with collaboration with Hewitt. The pilot project launched in August, 2005 has witness participation from 6,000 candidates, 22 ITES-BPO companies, State governments and educational institutions. Candidates taking the test will be tested in seven areas including keyboard skills, analytical skills, written and spoken English, quantitative and logical skills. The test is likely to be used as a primary recruitment filter by companies. NASSCOM President Kiran Karnik disclosed that an effort had been made to build NAC as an industry certification that integrates industry requirements with University and College courses on the lines of GMAT and GRE examinations. He said the pilot project had received a good response from the industry and State governments and NASSCOM expected one lakh job aspirants to take the test in its first year this November. The test is also expected to increase the reach of ITES-BPO industry to tier two and tier three cities for their sourcing requirements and also spread awareness about job opportunities in the ITES-BPO industry. Mr Karnik said industry would benefit through the creation of a national standard for recruitment of entry level talent, reduction in hiring costs and improved efficiencies. He said job aspirants could look forward to a transparent process across companies in the ITES-BPO sector, be able to identify their strengths and weaknesses and self assess training needs. Governments, Mr Karnik said would benefit through the exploration of talent in tier two and tier three cities for industry requirements and help in attracting serous investors by enabling State governments to plan their investment policies on the basis of ground data about talent availability. The ITES-BPO industry feels the nation wide talent pool will bring the unexploited talent pool to the fore and help Indian off shoring industry maintain its leadership position. It also feels the enlargement of the candidate pool will remove the current escalation the market is seeing in entry level wages, a factor which is becoming important with China also entering the market on the strength of low wage workers. A McKinsey report for NASSCOM projected a potential shortage of semi-skilled workforce in India in the next decade in the ITES-BPO sector. It noted that only 25per cent of technical graduates and 10-15 per cent of general college graduates are suitable for employment in the offshore IT and BPO companies. It noted that it was imperative for India to improve the quality and skills of its workforce with other countries around the world also entering the offshore market. The boom in the ITES-BPO sector is projected to continue its 35 to 40 per cent growth with projected earnings in 2006 -2007 being $ 8.5 billion. |
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Delhi
Durbar Civil servants have always had ingenious ways of putting a spoke in the wheel to serve their own interests. A case in point is the Right to Information Act, essentially meant to facilitate the public and ensure transparency and accountability of the administration. Sources say in hushed tones that the babus are using the Right to Information Act to settle scores among themselves. When certain officers of a ministry found to their chagrin that they had been left out of a foreign trip, they took recourse to the Act to find out the purpose, nature and money involved. Eyebrows have been raised in the Ministry of Personnel, who believe the real intent and purpose of the Act is being defeated from within.
Together on reforms The pro-reforms stance of the Nationalist Congress Party on issues such as airport modernisation seems to be getting it admirers abroad. A delegation of the NCP, which recently came back from an eight-day visit to China, returned impressed with the growth the neighbouring country has made in infrastructure. China has less arable land than India but its per hectare yield is more. NCP general secretary D P Tripathi, who led the delegation, feels that China today combines the discipline of communism with dynamism of capitalism. Tripathi avers that NCP is seen as pro-reform by the Communist Party of China. That was apparently a reason for the invitation to visit China, and thus forge stronger party-to-party ties.
Arjun Singh loves AMU At a reception hosted by the Aligarh Muslim University Old Boys’ Association in Riyadh recently, Union HRD Minister Arjun Singh, who has earned the sobriquet “messiah of the minorities” essayed his role to perfection. He assured the Aligarh old boys that he will protect the minority character of Aligarh Muslim University beyond any doubt. The minister eulogised the AMU set up by Sir Syed Ahmed Khan and observed that though several universities had offered him honorary Doctorates, he declined them and chose to accept only the Doctorate awarded by AMU which he “values and cherishes most.”
Teaching in peril The University Grants Commission’s recent decision to exempt candidates with a Ph.D or M Phil from taking the National Eligibility Test (NET), which is otherwise mandatory for qualifying as a lecturer, has left many academicians worried. Pointing out that research papers can easily be procured in exchange for money, the academicians are concerned that the move to scrap the NET will only open up new avenues for earning money on the sly. Academicians who want to earn a quick buck can now double up as thesis writers for aspiring lecturers. And in the absence of parameters to gauge the standards of research papers, they can recycle and reproduce data that is all too easily available on the internet. Contributed by S Satyanarayanan, R Suryamurthy, Prashant Sood and Smriti Kak Ramachandran. |
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May 11, 1956 I.A.S. Recruitment
The announcement by the U.P.S.C. to the effect that it will hold a qualifying examination for selection of candidates, under the special recruitment scheme, for appointment to the I.A.S., has been generally welcomed. While we are in favour of the special scheme of recruitment, we cannot help expressing our disapproval of at least one particular qualification insisted upon by the Home Ministry in every prospective applicant. We refer to the condition that a person wishing to sit for the U.P.S.C. test should be and have been in receipt of a pay, or income of not less than Rs 300 per month, for a continuous period of not less than one year immediately preceding April 1, 1956. The general income or pay structure in our country is such that a large number of intelligent and competent persons work in posts which do not bring emoluments that will entitle them to sit for the U.P.S.C. examination. There are not many jobs or avenues of work which will yield this basic income. Insistence upon the observance of this condition will, therefore, render thousands of otherwise qualified persons ineligible for the special recruitment. |
God does not pardon sitting up partners to God put pardons anything else for anyone, by divine will. And whoever attributes partners to God has invented a serious wrong. — The Koran It is God himself who has become a physician. Therefore one must believe all of them. But one cannot have faith in them if one thinks of them as mere men. — Ramakrishna One way of deluding ourselves is to talk about renunciation and contemplation while thinking about sensual pleasures. What we think about, determines what we are; not what our names and castes are. A low-born person may become a saint by thinking of God and Truth. — The Bhagvad Gita My effort should never be to undermine another’s faith but to make him a better follower of his own faith. — Mahatma Gandhi
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