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Suicides tell no tale ON RECORD |
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Some ideas on
streamlining SEBs by Jagvir Goyal MOST state electricity boards (SEBs) are in the red. While some have been trifurcated into independent entities handling generation, transmission and distribution of power, some state governments have put off their unbundling. The power crisis has deteriorated in recent times. It has also become costlier. How to streamline SEBs and strengthen them has become a big problem for the planners and policy makers.
Rediscover the Khalsa’s values PROFILE DIVERSITIES — DELHI LETTER
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Suicides tell no tale SUICIDES have come to be indicators of economic distress. Everyone seems to have forgotten the psychological truism that suicide is more a consequence of genetic traits than the environment. According to The National Mental Health Association (USA), “No matter the race or age of the person, how rich or poor they are, it is true that most people who commit suicide have a mental or emotional disorder”. Both suicide and depression — the leading cause for suicide — are caused by decreased serotonin in the brain. The suicidal tendency in a person is dictated by the DNA, and only triggered by the economic condition in those already predisposed to suicide. For instance, in the same regions of Andhra Pradesh and Vidharba in Maharashtra where farmer suicides are reported, there exist farmers who are in the same or worse situations than the farmers who took their lives. All did not resort to suicide. There is a suicide baseline which exists in good times or bad. This is well supported by the data released by the World Health Organisation in 2004: while the suicide rate in India, a pre-dominantly agrarian economy, was 10.7 per 100,000; those of industrialised, rich countries were generally higher — Finland was 22.5, USA (10.7), UK (7.5), Germany (13.5) and Australia (12.5). Even inspecting the profiles of suicide victims by profession this fact is confirmed. In 2001, of those who ended their lives, farmers accounted for 15.13 per cent while those in the secure service industry (including the government and PSUs) formed 12.67 per cent of the cases! Suicide rates indicate that the poorer states such as Bihar have a suicide rate of 0.7 and Uttar Pradesh 2.2. These are much lesser than the richer states of Tamil Nadu (19.1), West Bengal (16.6) and Gujarat (9.0) According to Mr Sharad Joshi, “The farmers were driven to suicide, first in trickles and then in waves, as suicide became a thinkable proposition” (Business Line, Aug 4, 2004). This in psychological parlance is known as “suicide contagion”. This suggestion of a mass mentality further establishes the psychological basis of suicide which need not necessarily be linked with a worsening living condition. While we cannot deny the grim reality of the countryside, we also cannot use suicides as a measure for this. Suicide is not a matter of economics, but of how people respond to a social or economic adversity. Our politicians, however, tend to play on the emotional quotient of the situation. This comes through as a gimmick for winning votes. The actual issue is the economic plight of the farmer and the flagging agricultural sector, which should be the centre of concern. Agriculture is in a crisis. The Indian economy has entered the above 8 per cent growth trajectory in the past year. Growth implies a higher demand for food which must be met with an increase in food production. Though Prime Minister Manmohan Singh hoped for a 4 per cent growth of agriculture, it clocked a growth of only 2.3 per cent last year. This has serious food security implications for the country. While the decline of agriculture as a percentage of GDP is considered a sign of development, it also signifies lopsided development when the number of people employed in agriculture keeps rising. This implies falling individual income of the farm sector in relative terms. The main proportion of the government’s outlay on agriculture goes towards subsidies which contribute very little to growth today. They benefit the rich farmers the most, while the marginal ones are living on the fringe. These need to be done away with to arrive at a long-term solution. There is also need to promote watershed management and massively increase the acreage under irrigation. Presently only about 40 per cent of total agricultural land is irrigated. A study by C. Z. Guilmoto, in the Economic and Political Weekly, stated that if 10 hectares of land are irrigated, employment on that tract increases from 8 to 24 persons. Consider the implications this can have — if we were to irrigate the total cultivable area, we would generate 179 million new jobs or employment for 44.5 per cent of our workforce! The state of farmers is worsened by an inefficient procurement and pricing system. The government keeps food prices artificially low by imports, administrative means and subsidy, never allowing the farmer his rightful income. While a kilogram of wheat retails for Rs 13 in India, the same does for Rs 30 in the US, Rs 19 in Egypt, Rs 20 in Malaysia and Rs 34 in Thailand. Even when the retail prices of agricultural commodities shoot up — as is the case of perishables these days — the farmer’s profit margin does not. While tomatoes are sold for Rs 45 a kg in our shops, the farmer only gets a little more than Rs 11. Unless agriculture is made a more profitable business, indebtedness of the farmer shall not ebb. It must also be noted that as per the Tenth Plan outlay of the Planning Commission, Andhra Pradesh gets only 6 per cent of the total assistance to agriculture. This despite the fact that it has around 9 per cent of the cultivable area of the country. Other such weaknesses in the system too must be done away with. How many of us know that Maharashtra has around 12 per cent of the total cultivable area of the country and gets only around 8 per cent of the loans disbursed by the banks? All these lacunae need to be effectively dealt with. The problems with the system are deep rooted, and need to be resolved accordingly. In stead of short-term sops, the government needs to resort to long-term measures. Our leaders must also realise that suicide is a matter of psychology, and not of economics. The true indicators of the economic conditions are objective measures such as the sectoral share in GDP, availability of cheap credit, increase in area under irrigation etc. and not the farmer suicides. That there is a crisis looming over the agricultural sector is denied by none. But instead of playing on emotions, we must rely on facts. If the country hopes to join the league of developed nations we cannot bypass the majority of the population. Agriculture must be made an equal contributor to growth and not the impediment.
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ON RECORD Currently, Ali is working on bringing to life his dream project — a film on the poet, Rumi. In an interface with The Sunday Tribune, Ali says that he is extending his scope beyond Bollywood and hopes to make a truly international film for a global audience. Excerpts: Q: You have had a long break from making a film for the big screen. What kind of cinema are you looking into nowadays? A: Well yes, I have had a break of sorts but I do feel that over a period of time a human being realises the truth of certain issues that relate to him. Somewhere, one has to take a decision to live life as one wants to and without any compromise. At the moment, I am feeling the benefits of all that I have believed in and this reinforces faith in the future. I feel that art is an important way of building bridges. It connects people and makes them sensitive to each other and, in this sense, film can do much. Film-making today is a very sacred art form and needs to be used to its highest end. I am looking forward to spiritual films that would open the hearts of the audience. However, today we need to work towards creating a market and a space for such films. Human attention today is gripped by base issues and how do you address this problem of generating finances for spiritual films? Opening the door for such films is, certainly, a tough job and we are working towards it. Q: Are you engrossed in making spiritual films? A: All my films have been very spiritual and rooted to the earth. They have reflected the wounded spirit of mankind. Umrao Jaan is especially about this “wounded spirit”. Sometime back I was making a film called Habba. It’s a deeply spiritual film and is set in Kashmir. The film is about Habba Khatoon which translates as beloved lady and is really about a peasant girl with a passion for singing and writing poetry. As is the local custom, people in the village get her married off to an insensitive carpenter but finally the crown prince of Kashmir comes across her and marries her. Habba is a historical figure of Kashmir and lived during the time of the Yusufchakshahi dynasty. Unfortunately, Habba, the film ran into trouble and I have had to leave it half-made but intend completing it. Q: What else have you been up to in consonance with this vision? A: Well, I have been making shorter films relating to this quest. These films cost less and are within my budget. Meanwhile, I have also been preparing for a bigger, more ambitious project that targets not only the audience at home but even more abroad. Q: What is this bigger project that you have been working on? A: This is a film on the great mystic and poet, Rumi. I have been researching and working on this for the past 10 years. For the last four years, I have been working on this script, a film on Rumi is a deeply spiritual work and side by side I have been collecting dreamers who can be a part of my project. This script is really about the transformation of Rumi from a mere man to becoming a man of the heart. My current thrust has been to place myself out of Bollywood as this seed cannot take root there and, therefore, I have looked abroad for inspiration and help. The film is really for an international audience and I am drawing a lot of talent from abroad. The script is in English and the cast I am working on is international. Q: It is clear that Sufism has a major attraction for you. Since when have you been so intensely involved in this? A: A subject like Sufism is not a fad but an integral part of one’s thought process. One is exposed to various people and you find something in common that is really the essence of the fact that there is one eternal truth which can be accessed everywhere. Then there are groups of people who resonate with the same thought process and this is a meeting of minds. This eternality and resonance can be discovered in poetry which rings with the passion of love. Its really verse that has led me to this current project on Rumi and my interest in Sufi thought. Of late, I have been looking at poetry driven films.
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Some ideas on
streamlining SEBs MOST state electricity boards (SEBs) are in the red. While some have been trifurcated into independent entities handling generation, transmission and distribution of power, some state governments have put off their unbundling. The power crisis has deteriorated in recent times. It has also become costlier. How to streamline SEBs and strengthen them has become a big problem for the planners and policy makers. The first requirement for improving the functioning of SEBs is to ensure uninterrupted supply of power to the people and to reduce unavoidable power cuts. More than the profit — essential for the survival of an organisation and its employees — what matters most is the extent to which an organisation serves the intended purpose. If power is available even at a litter higher cost, people will buy it, though after some resentment. As the Annual Power Surveys have shown, year after year, the demand for power continues to rise. To ensure uninterrupted power supply, SEBs should constitute a high power committee to meet the future rise in demand for power. It may decide on setting up of new power projects in or outside the state, buying power from outside, renovation of existing projects, looking for new avenues such as nuclear or gas power stations etc. Its proposals should be implemented within a specific timeframe. Tariff rationalisation demands reduction in transmission and distribution (T&D) losses, reduction in overhead expenses and lesser cost of generation. These are gradual processes. In Punjab, for instance, power supply is largely dependent on thermal power stations and coal has to be either imported or brought from distant places. Thus, there is no scope for reduction in the cost of generation. The regulatory bodies should ensure that the unit tariff is more than the cost incurred per unit after taking these factors into account. This is essential to ensure the survival of SEBs, the power supplying bodies. True, even a little rise in power tariff evokes protests. However, if power is available, the din dies down. Consider petrol. It has become quite costlier, but the number of vehicles and the consumption of petrol continue to rise. Though higher tariff pinches the people, their first priority is continuous power supply. Cost reduction and tariff rationalisation are secondary to uninterrupted power supply and freedom from power cuts. In a recent survey by The Tribune, 90 per cent people voted for paying more if uninterrupted power supply is ensured. Herein lies the answer. Uninterrupted power supply needs to be ensured by any means: by installing projects — thermal, nuclear, gas based, diesel operated, hydel or by buying it — at any rate! At the same time, the tariff has to be fixed in a manner that an SEB can make profit after meeting all the expenses. This is the only way to ensure an SEB’s survival. The writer is Additional Superintending Engineer, Punjab State Electricity Board, Chandigarh
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Rediscover the Khalsa’s values THE general elections expected some time early next year in Punjab seem to be casting their spell on events in Punjab. The rowdyism called “burchhagardi” witnessed during the celeberation of the 400th anniversary of the establishment of the Akal Takht is something that has been a tested and tried weapon in the success of the Akali movement of the 1920s. The history of the Khalsa Panth indicates that till the sway of Jassa Singh Ahluwalia who died in 1783, the Tat Khalsa was responsible for ushering in the Sikh domination in Punjab. The Khalsa was taken to be synonymous with the Sikh Panth. The Khalsa was led by self effacing gurmukhs or the guru-centred Sikhs who were an example for the new entrants to the Sikh panth and the new entrants took pride in accepting amrit from the leaders like Jassa Singh Ahluwalia who were otherwise the fighter vanguard of the Khalsa. Even Maharaja Ala Singh who had become a chieftain in his own right and who was bestowed upon the office of Governor of Sirhind by Ahmed Shah Abdali had thought it appropriate to partake amrit at the hands of Ahluwalia. The success of the Khalsa that was expected to usher in the ideal of hane hane miri or making every horseman a ruler got hijacked by mostly the jat misaldars who became the hereditary rulers of the areas that came under their sway. Out of this milieu emerged Maharaja Ranjit Singh to forge a Sikh empire whose success, luster and shine prevented the Khalsa from ever understanding or appreciating the loss of their heritage. The generation after Ahluwalia created a phantom in the concept of “Khalsa jio”. Till the defeat at the hands of the British, the Khalsa came to accept the order of the Nihang Sikhs as the mouthpiece of the Khalsa. The arrangement suited the Sikh sardars and rulers as Nihang Sikhs renounced all claims to any worldly possessions. The Nihangs enjoyed their sway among the Sikhs by becoming custodians of the Sikh code of conduct and turning all their might against the foreigners or some times, the Muslims of Punjab. The jung namah of Shah Muhammed shows how deep was the respect that the Khalsa Panth enjoyed among Punjabis of all the hues. The British who brought in the canal irrigation and railways to Punjab got established as just rulers of Punjab under whose rule the lion and the sheep could drink water from the same source. The hostile Sikh response to the British rule ended with the Namdhari Sikhs being blown away by the British guns at Malerkotla in 1873. The Singh Sabha movement made loyalty to the British its important objective; it took its birth in the same year. The spread of education among the Sikhs and to encourage them to join the colonial services, particularly the armed forces, became the primary concerns of the Singh Sabhas in addition to bringing out literature in gurmukhi emphasising a separate Sikh identity. Notwithstanding the fact that the greatest success of the Khalsa came in a period when the Sikhs perceived themselves to be the guardians of the Hindus, a deliberate twist was given to the Sikh literature and history wherein doctored versions of Suraj Prakash and Panth Parkash were reprinted under the famous Sikh author’s names so that the concept of the separate identity of the Sikh Panth was not compromised. History was sought to be rewritten by highlighting oppression against the Sikhs towards the end of the Mughal rule, making it appear as Muslims were all along inimical to the Sikhs forgetting the facts like the first entry of the Khalsa armies into Lahore was on the invitation of the choudhries of Lahore. The reinterpretation of the martyrdom of Guru Arjan Dev shifting the blame from Chandu Shah to Jahangir has been a Singh Sabha historian’s contribution. However, the gurdwara reform movement owing its origin to a genuine upsurge among the Sikhs against mismanagement of the Sikh gurdwaras and the appearance of Mahatma Gandhi on the Indian scene became the two important factors that changed the old order with the passing of the Sikh Gurdwara Act of 1925. The Shiromani Akali Dal and the SGPC came to assume the leadership of the Sikh Panth without requiring an effort on the part of the Sikh community to recapture the old values of truthful living and selfless service. It became easy for a Sikh to serve the Panth merely by listening and following the rabble rousers who appeared as the leaders of the Panth. The tragedy of the Sikh sufferance and losses in the pre and post-Independence dispensations can be directly ascribed to the lack of vision and character noticeable among the then leadership of the Panth. One must admire the steadfastness of the Sikh community whose core remained loyal to the true Sikh Panth. There were two occasions in the past when the Panthic leadership in power faced a real challenge. One was when Master Tara Singh got challenged by Sant Fateh Singh and the Sikh community decided to ditch Master Tara Singh who had been their leader for more than three decades. The second was an abortive attempt made by Bhindranwale ending in the tragedy of the Operation Blue Star. Various groups ploughing their own furrows in the public affairs of Punjab seem to be coming together to challenge Parkash Singh Badal for the mantle of the leadership of the Sikh Panth. The events at the Akal Takht are only indicative of the fact that it is a no holds barred fight. The “burchhagardi” in the Akali movement was very much in evidence during the Akali agitation and it continued to be the bane of the movement much to the chagrin of intellectuals like late Sirdar Kapur Singh. But I am sure that Badal does not subscribe to it and that he would rein in his followers. It will be like walking on a razor’s edge till the general elections. The rowdyism witnessed is a sign of frustration among the opponents of Mr Badal; he has to develop a response to this challenge in accordance with his standing as a gentle father figure of the Punjabis. Those who have a genuine interest of the Panth at heart must try to rediscover the values, character and service to humanity for which the Khalsa was launched if their objective is to bring back the glory to the Panth instead of indulging in cheap political
stunts.
The writer is a former Chief Secretary of Punjab
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PROFILE Having started with jingles and music for advertisements, the life has come a full circle for this genius who has taken the Indian music to great heights in the international music arena. His greatest achievement, perhaps, is redefining contemporary Indian music to appeal to the younger generation. His very name now is a guarantee of good music and a source of inspiration to millions. Time magazine has tipped Rahman as “Mozart of Madras”. According to BBC, he has sold 100 million records worldwide. The life-story of Rahman and his struggle to reach the dizzy height of fame at a young age reads like a thriller. Rahman’s original name is A.S. Dileep Kumar. His is only son, R.K. Sekhar, is a composer, arranger and conductor for Malayalam films. Sekhar died when Dileep Kumar was barely nine years old and the family ran into bad times. How Dileep became Rahman? It was the year 1988 when one of his three sisters fell seriously ill. In spite of the family’s best effort to cure her, her health deteriorated day after day. In desperation, the family met a Muslim saint, Pir Sheik Abdul Qadir. It is believed that Pir Qadri’s prayers and blessings worked wonders for the sister who made a “miraculous” recovery. Since Dileep Kumar’s mother, Kareema Begum, hailed from a respected Muslim family, there was no difficulty in conversion to Islam. Dileep Kumar was given a new name — Allah Rakha Rahman. The responsibility of supporting the family fell on Rahman’s young shoulders. On the threshold of entering teens, he joined Illaiyaraja’s troupe as a keyboard player and session musician on soundtracks. All this disrupted his education. He fell short of attendance in classes and was lagging behind in studies. Circumstances forced Rahman to shift from the prestigious Padma Seshadri Bal Bhavan to the Madras Christian College. He finally dropped out of school at the age of 16. His tryst with music began as he got opportunity to visit countries with various orchestras including that of renowned Zakir Hussain. Rahman’s exposure helped him earn a scholarship and obtain a degree in Western Classical Music from Trinity College of Music, Oxford University. In 1987, Rahman began composing jingles for television commercials. He composed more than 300 jingles in a span of five years, in addition to his first album of Muslim devotional songs titled Deen Isai Malai and the English Album, Set Me Free. Some of his ads included Parry’s, Leo Coffee, Boost showcasing Sachin Tendulkar and Kapil Dev, Premier Pressure Cooker, Hero Punch and Asian Paints. The small studio — Panchathan Record Inn — where he undertook his ventures is now one of India’s most well equipped and advanced recording studios today. Also, he began a collection of sound samples which turned out to be the most comprehensive sonic libraries in Asia. The year 1991 was a turning point in Rahman’s life. And it came by a sheer stroke of luck. Mani Ratnam, one of India’s well known directors, was in search of a new music composer for his films. At an award function for excellence in the field of advertising, he met Rahman who had won the prize for the best ad jingle in Sharada Trilok’s advertisement for Leo coffee. Sharada introduced the young composer to Mani Ratnam. And the ace director, already impressed by Rahman, signed him for K. Balachander’s film Roja (Rose) which was subsequently dubbed in many languages. Rahman was paid a paltry amount of Rs 25,000 for his compositions. Roja turned out to be a super hit and Rahman became a household name in Tamil Nadu. The song Tamizha, Tamizha (Tamilians, Tamilians) became a rage. Rahman followed Roja with a number of other extremely popular films, including Bombay, Rangeela, Dil Se and Taal. Rahman has won many prestigious awards and they included the Rajat Kamal Award for the best music director instituted by Indian National Film Awards. One of his much acclaimed work is the patriotic album Vande Mataram, marking 50 years of India’s independence. Recently, he also came up yet another album called Jana Gana Mana. He has returned the national anthem which is soulful and very catchy. With the voices of Lata Mangeshkar, Pandit Jasraj, Bhimsen Joshi, Asha Bhosle, Bhupen Hazarika, Jagjit Singh, Hariharan and Kavita Krishnamurthy, this rendition of the national anthem is sure to create a powerful impact on the
listeners.
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DIVERSITIES —
DELHI LETTER It’s a perfect idea to focus and re-focus on the immediate past. The present anyway seems rather bleak. So it is best to not really forget and bypass what had been happening not too long back. I write this in the backdrop of the series of lectures on Delhi that are all set to take off from August. Sir Sobha Singh memorial lectures are sponsored by the India International Centre, Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH), and The Attic. The first lecture will be delivered on August 1 at the IIC by Khushwant Singh. With the very title, ‘My father, the builder’ holding out much, Khushwant will be focusing on his father, who is the man who built prominent structures and buildings of Imperial Delhi. He would be focusing on the other characters who had played a role during that period of the early 20th century and these include Lutyens, Baker, Walter George, Lady Willingdon, Lachman Das (who built Parliament House), Narain Singh and several others. The second of these lectures will be delivered on August 22 by the well known academic Upinder Singh. She is Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s daughter but maintains an extremely low profile. She had earlier taught Ancient Indian History in St. Stephen’s College. She is now teaching at the Department of History in Delhi University. Upinder Singh would be focusing on the ancient aspects to this Capital City, not bypassing the very basics. How ‘Dilli’ got its name and how the ancient, medieval and modern rub shoulders in Delhi’s landscapes. How broken sculptures of Ganesha and Vishnu are worshipped in goddess shrines in villages in and around Delhi. How an ancient iron pillar came to stand in the courtyard of a medieval mosque, why a medieval Sultan invested so much time and money in hauling two Ashokan pillars from Haryana to adorn his palace and hunting lodge and how these pillars got involved in a still continuing worship of ‘jinns’ and ‘pirs’. As I had mentioned earlier, it’s important to know what those decades passed by held out. Last year at the Jamia Millia Islamia, when I had attended a series of lectures and talks on the progressive writers’ movement, it got me focused to a different period altogether. It’s difficult to describe how very enriching it was to know what a committed band of writers and poets we have had, who used their pen with much passion and utmost commitment. As Mushirul Hasan, Vice-Chancellor of this university, had rightly pointed out, these writers of the early last century wrote with the sole purpose of getting freedom. Consequently, it made little difference whether they wrote in Bengali, Urdu, Hindi or Punjabi. Their collective aim was to oust the British from our land and with that zeal and intensity they had written each line or verse. French National Day observed French National Day was observed at the French Embassy here on July 14. The day is also known as Bastille Day, commemorating the storming of the Bastille on July 14, 1789 and heralded the beginning of the French Revolution. The Bastille — a prison — symbolised the absolute power of King Louis XVI and thus its fall marked a victory for liberty and the will of the people. Today, Bastille Day celebrations combine the formality of military parades and the conviviality of street dances and fireworks in France. A reception was held after French Ambassador to India Dominique Girant conferred the French government’s awards to prominent Indians who have made a mark. They were: Commander of Agricultural Merit — Prof M.S. Swaminathan, Founder and President of M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation, in recognition of his outstanding service in the field of agriculture; Officer of the Legion of Honour — Mr R.K. Pachauri, Director General, TERI, for his contribution to environment and sustainable development; Ms Ela Bhatt, Founder of Self-Employment Women’s Organisation (SEWA) in recognition of her unparalleled work for underprivileged women; Knight of the Legion of Honour — Father Cedric Prakash, Director of ‘Prashant’, Centre for Promotion of Human Rights, Justice and Peace for selfless social work and role in human rights. The main hall of the Embassy was packed with invitees unmoving, amidst the free flow of choicest wines. Special evening on Osho Poet Lavlin Thadani together with several from the Osho World Foundation have arranged a special evening on
Osho, the man who stood out with his stark and simple philosophy. On July 21, this group focussed on Osho’s philosophy. Perhaps, one of the very basics of Osho’s philosophy was to remove facades and masks and then live on. Just be yourself. And not to have a different ‘face’ for home and another for the outside world. Ponder on this and you would realise how much sense this carries. Adopt this motto — Just be yourself. No facades or different faces. Keep to your original
self.
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Those to whom men said: Surely the people have gathered against you, so fear them; but this (threat) increased their faith, and they said:Allah is sufficient for us and he is the most excellent. When one can control the mind, the pleasure derived is indescribable. Not even climbing the highest mountain or sailing the roughest seas successfully can compare with it. Not even finding a treasure of gold or winning a kingdom can give the same pleasure. Emulate the learned and the pious in all your thoughts and deeds. — The Upanishads |
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MUZAFFAR
ALI, an ardent Sufi, director and designer, is back in action. He is currently following a most unusual and interesting quest in film-making that extends to every dimension of his life. Significantly, it seeks to give a wider picture of the evolving spiritual universe to the audience. Ali’s quest is to make spiritual films, create a platform for spirituality, Sufism and poetry in cinema. 
THE music prodigy A.R. Rahman is attempting something new. He may come out with a new offbeat album which, he indicates, will be released by this year-end. The 40-year-old music composer may involve less known but immensely talented young artists in his new venture. What is certain is that Rahman is teaming up with a guitarist of international repute. One may guess and, perhaps, rightly that jazz and classical music will figure prominently in what has been billed as “something new”.