O P I N I O N S

EDITORIALS

Voters’ victory
Hung Assembly a blessing in disguise
AS expected, no political party has won a clear majority in the 87-member Jammu and Kashmir Assembly. An inference possible is that the voters want a coalition government. Since the National Conference has emerged as the single largest party, the responsibility of providing a stable government devolves on it.

In the dock
Pakistan’s denials have no takers
Pakistan shows no sign of concentrating on the primary task of bringing the culprits of the Mumbai mayhem to justice. Its initial reaction, when President Asif Ali Zardari talked of “non-state actors”, has changed to “no proof” of Pakistani nationals’ involvement in the well-planned horrifying attack on India’s financial capital.

Energetic policy
Effective implementation is crucial
THE new energy policy, cleared by the Union Cabinet on Friday, focuses on integrating different and occasionally inconsistent policies hitherto followed by ministries for various energy sectors. It is a comprehensive policy covering all aspects and is based on the recommendations of an expert committee set up by the Planning Commission and headed by Kirit Parikh.

• Thought for the Day

ARTICLE

Save media’s reputation
Jingoism is not journalism
by Prem Prakash
Hamid Mir, Editor of the Islamabad-based Geo TV channel, who had confirmed the fact that Ajmal Amir Qasab, the lone terrorist captured during the Mumbai terrorist attack on November 26, was indeed from Pakistan, was asked by students of journalism in Lahore to explain the difference between patriotic journalism and real journalism.

MIDDLE

O’ to be Obama’s dog!
by Rajbir Deswal
I woke up in the wee hours to eavesdrop on a unique canine conference. The venue was my backyard where nearly all the elite breeds of dogs were represented. They seemed to have unleashed themselves from all mundane shackles from the nearby houses, using their sixth sense.

OPED

The misunderstood and the misjudged in 2008
by Johann Hari
CAN we declare 2008 over a little early, before even more of the world economy collapses? If we hit the fast-forward button, maybe we can skip the plague of locusts, the slaying of the first-born, and the rain of frogs. But before we mumble a premature Auld Lang Syne, I have a suggestion.

Cyber security should safeguard privacy
by Roopinder Singh
IN the wake of the Mumbai terrorist attacks, the government has been tightening its hold on cyber traffic, and the latest Information Technology (IT) Amendment Bill 2008 gives government agencies the power to handle new cyber crimes like posting sexually explicit material electronically, video voyeurism, breach of confidentiality and leakage of data and e-commerce frauds.

Chatterati
A novel by PM’s daughter
by Devi Cherian
THE Prime Minister’s wife, Gursharan Kaur, had a busy week. First she released her daughter, Daman Singh’s book “Nine by Nine”. The novel refers to the size of the hostel room where it is mostly located and puts together elements from Daman Singh’s academic life and her relationships in those years.

EDITORIALS

Voters’ victory
Hung Assembly a blessing in disguise

AS expected, no political party has won a clear majority in the 87-member Jammu and Kashmir Assembly. An inference possible is that the voters want a coalition government. Since the National Conference has emerged as the single largest party, the responsibility of providing a stable government devolves on it. Since its leader, Dr Farooq Abdullah, has ruled out the possibility of a tie-up with the BJP, it will have to enter into an alliance with the Congress. These two parties are better endowed to form a coalition government. The PDP has done slightly better this time. However, because of its politics of negativism and soft separatism, which had, in fact, brought down the Ghulam Nabi Azad government, the PDP may find itself friendless in the new House.

Even so, it would be risky to rule out a PDP-Congress coalition as, after all, politics is the art of the possible. The results have disproved the fears that the PDP, which whipped up a frenzy in the Valley over the allotment of a piece of land for the Amarnath shrine, would sweep the polls there. Unlike the BJP, which remarkably improved its position in the Jammu region thanks to the espousal of the land allotment issue, the PDP could get only a few more seats. The Congress did reasonably well, though the BJP took away some of the seats it had held in the previous House. The previous Congress-PDP coalition has not benefited the Congress which is another reason for the party to be wary of aligning again with the PDP.

However fractured the verdict may be, the results truly reflect the ground situation in the state. No party is in a commanding position in all the three regions of Jammu and Kashmir. The result can be seen as an attempt by the electorate to discipline the political parties as those forming the government will have to work within the framework of a common minimum programme. As Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has mentioned, it did not matter who won and who lost when democracy triumphed in the state. It was one of the most peaceful elections in the country in which people in large numbers voted braving the separatists who had given a call to boycott the elections. The results are a slap in the face of the secessionists who should know that bullets have no place where ballots decide.

In the dock
Pakistan’s denials have no takers

Pakistan shows no sign of concentrating on the primary task of bringing the culprits of the Mumbai mayhem to justice. Its initial reaction, when President Asif Ali Zardari talked of “non-state actors”, has changed to “no proof” of Pakistani nationals’ involvement in the well-planned horrifying attack on India’s financial capital. Islamabad took cosmetic action against the Jamaat-ud-Dawa, the new name for the Lashkar-e-Taiyaba, after it was declared a terrorist organisation by the UN. Now it has changed its tune and accuses India of “blaming” Pakistan for what happened on November 26. Islamabad has invented another theory, saying that “non-state actors” from Bangladesh, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, etc, were also behind the Mumbai carnage. All this is accompanied by a war hysteria being created to hoodwink the world, so that the focus shifts from the real issue — how to eliminate terrorism nurtured in Pakistan.

The rulers in Pakistan must try to understand that they can no longer succeed in misleading the world. They can see this message in what US Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Richard Boucher has said in the course of an interview with All India Radio. He has emphatically told Pakistan that “there is a lot to be done (by Islamabad) to tackle the menace”. The cause of fighting terrorism requires Pakistan’s cooperation for giving exemplary punishment to the perpetrators of the Mumbai massacre. Mr Boucher echoed the terse message earlier delivered by US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice that Pakistan must “do everything that it can” to prevent the recurrence of Mumbai.

Pakistan has to do more to the satisfaction of India and the rest of the world. It has to fulfil the promise it has made that Islamabad will allow no territory under its control to be used for terrorism. Shamefully denying the Pakistani identity of arrested terrorist Ajmal Qasab and asking for proof from India when enough is available in the accounts carried by the Pakistani media itself will not do. The world wants Pakistan to dismantle the nurseries of terrorism in its territory without delay. The earlier Islamabad does it, the better.

Energetic policy
Effective implementation is crucial

THE new energy policy, cleared by the Union Cabinet on Friday, focuses on integrating different and occasionally inconsistent policies hitherto followed by ministries for various energy sectors. It is a comprehensive policy covering all aspects and is based on the recommendations of an expert committee set up by the Planning Commission and headed by Kirit Parikh. A committee under the Cabinet Secretary will try to iron out inter-ministerial differences. Significantly, the new policy is not very upbeat about India’s foray into nuclear power that had got a boost after the much-celebrated deal with the US. According to the policy statement, even after a 20-fold hike in output, nuclear power will contribute only 4 to 6.4 per cent of India’s energy production by 2031-32.

Coming at the fag end of the UPA government’s tenure, the policy aims to ensure a swift transition to market-determined pricing of petroleum products, which means phasing out huge oil subsidies that had, after the price hikes earlier this year, derailed the government finances. The government has usually adopted a populist approach in keeping oil prices at affordable rates. Unshackling the administered prices in favour of market pricing requires huge political courage, especially in states where electricity is given free and subsidies tend to benefit the rich more than the needy.

As growth picks up, India’s energy needs will grow faster than the pace of supply. To have an 8 per cent GDP growth annually, India needs to hike energy generation to 8,00,000 MW. Vast energy potential of the country remains unrealised due to lack of political will and funds. Unconventional sources of energy, which are environment-friendly and crucial to sustainable growth, have not got the required attention. Some two-thirds of India’s billion-plus population still remains energy deficient. The new policy may not be able to sort out systemic failures and infirmities of governance. Its implementation will remain a challenge.

Thought for the Day

His imagination resembled the wings of an ostrich. It enabled him to run, though not to soar.

— Lord Macaulay

ARTICLE

Save media’s reputation
Jingoism is not journalism
by Prem Prakash

Hamid Mir, Editor of the Islamabad-based Geo TV channel, who had confirmed the fact that Ajmal Amir Qasab, the lone terrorist captured during the Mumbai terrorist attack on November 26, was indeed from Pakistan, was asked by students of journalism in Lahore to explain the difference between patriotic journalism and real journalism.

This is one question that is being raised in India as well following the manner in which the reporting of the Mumbai mayhem was handled by the Indian media.

The Indian media allegedly went overboard in reporting the happenings in Mumbai live and round the clock for three days continuously. To keep the viewers glued to the TV screen, the reporting had to have a good mix of emotion. The terrorists and their country - Pakistan -- had to be bashed. After the coverage was almost over, the question raised was whether live reporting helped the terrorists to achieve their objectives. Did the security forces suffer because of the live telecast?

To many it seemed that whatever way one called it, "patriotic journalism" or "real journalism", the coverage during the crucial three days helped the terrorists. Did then plain and simple journalism become a casualty?

One has to accept that the proliferation of media globally has led to cut-throat competition, particularly among the 24-hour TV news channels. Everyone wants to be the first to break the news. And to stay first a news channel needs to remain live.

The events in Mumbai put a severe strain on the news channels. Each channel had to deploy all its reporters irrespective of the fact whether they were trained for such assignments or not. The seniors in the newsrooms had to depend on young reporters and cameramen. For many of them the Mumbai mayhem was too overwhelming.

My mind went back to the manner in which the American channels had reported the 9/11 events and the British channels the 7/7 attacks in London. I was in London when the 7/7 attacks occurred. Both in the United States and London, the TV channels reported the events live, but they were restrained. In London, no one came in the way of the police and waited for a proper briefing by the Metropolitan Police Chief in the late afternoon after he had gathered the facts.

In Mumbai, it seemed everyone was on his own. You could get any person on the street to comment and push a mike in the face of any policeman or the nearest officer. The media was not to blame for all this. The police had failed to put a forensic cordon, and even when it was placed the reason given out was that the authorities wanted to keep the media away from the harm's way!

The spokespersons of the governments, both Central and state, were nowhere in the scene to guide the media during the events in Mumbai. Where was the spokesman of the Mumbai Police? The commanders of the naval commandos, the area commander of the Army, told their side of the story as the operations were continuing. The head of the National Security Guards briefed the Press when the whole operation was over. Over the years the Press department of the state government has learnt to work more for the ministers than the government of the state. No wonder, they were absent and not liaising with the media at all.

It was evident to one and all during the very first hour of the Mumbai terror attack that it was going to be a long haul. Why did the Press Information Bureau of the Government of India fail to get there, the first thing in the morning, to help the media report events that had an impact worldwide? What was the Defence Press Relations doing both in Mumbai and Delhi when they were aware that the Army and the Navy had moved into the area?

We saw the " parachute journalists" arrive in Mumbai from all over the world overnight to cover the events. Very rightly so; after all, many nationalities were targets of the terrorist commandos. One expected somebody from the Foreign Office to be present in Mumbai. One heard in dismay the BBC reporting the mayhem by terrorists being called the "militant attack" on Mumbai!

The Chief Minister and the Home Minister of Maharashtra sat in their offices to pronounce that "such incidents do happen in big cities". Thus, in the absence of any authoritative briefing what we had from Mumbai was neither "patriotic journalism" nor "real journalism", but a lot of breast-beating by emotionally charged individuals and reporters.

Pakistan is being monitored by world powers, and the information gathered has indicated the involvement of Pakistani forces - what President Zardari called “non-state actors” --- in the Mumbai mayhem. The military-jihadi nexus in Pakistan has been in existence for nearly two decades now. The Mumbai attacks took over a year for planning and execution, which was not in the knowledge of the civilian government there. A repetition of Kargil.

Truth about who carried out the terrorist attack in Mumbai would not have been known had it not been for the capture of Ajmal Amir Qasab. Pakistan's military-jihadi nexus is a threat not just to nascent civilian rule in Pakistan but also to the whole world.

The question of "patriotic journalism" has been raised in Pakistan because the Army and jihadi elements in that country want to equate the attack on Mumbai as a war-like issue between India and Pakistan. . Therefore, Pakistani patriots must stand against India and the media toe the national line in defence of the country.

If any journalist attempts to bring out the truth as was done by Hamid Mir, then, according to the protagonists of "patriotic journalism" in Pakistan, he should be ready for “retribution” — and treated as a traitor in a nation at war.

There is no place for "real journalism" in Pakistan as propounded by Hamid Mir. The real rulers in Pakistan forget that journalism simply requires honest presentation of the facts as known to a reporter or as captured by a cameraman.

Here in India we need to watch so that the high reputation of Indian journalism is not sullied by enthusiastic youngsters or high-pitched emotional commentators. Get your facts and present them in a sober manner so that the people of India are helped in understanding an issue and making up their mind.

As a fellow commentator wrote recently, whether India and Pakistan should go to war or not the media of the two countries are, perhaps, already at war. Is this the situation that the media should be in? It is time serious practitioners of the profession moved in and took charge.

The writer is a veteran journalist.

MIDDLE

O’ to be Obama’s dog!
by Rajbir Deswal

I woke up in the wee hours to eavesdrop on a unique canine conference. The venue was my backyard where nearly all the elite breeds of dogs were represented. They seemed to have unleashed themselves from all mundane shackles from the nearby houses, using their sixth sense.

The issue of “Who to be Obama’s dog?” was being fiercely debated in dog-eats-dog projections, about suitability of various breeds (read races), to gain entry through the Pearly Gates of the White House. In the chair was my own St. Bernard, appropriately called, Haider.

An Alsatian opened the plenary with the doggerel: “I am His Majesty’s dog at Kew. Pray Sir, whose dog are you?” “Hey you! Basically German (Shepherd)! Likes of you may not be preferred in the U.S.,” said the Staffordshire Terrier and added an all-too-acidic comment on even the hitherto silent Doberman, “You too. The one given a name after that blood sucker tax collector, in Germany.”

Not to be put down easily, both of the German breeds growled in a kind of jugalbandi when a Cocker Spaniel interjected, “We are more acceptable in the U.S. Remember the most popular language in that country these days is Spanish!”

“Stop all that nonsense on races and languages,” intervened the black Canadian Labrador from Newfoundland, “Didn’t you hear Obama likening himself to a mutt — of mixed breed.”

At this our own street dog Sheroo, sitting doggo all this while, stretched his limbs, turned his head away from the deliberations, and started singing a la Dilip Kumar in the movie “Sagina Mahato” — Bhole bhale lallua khayeja roti baasi; bara ho ke banega Sahib ka chaprasi! (O’ my innocent child, keep on eating stale food, you will definitely grow up to be a peon, in attendance to an officer, one day.) None paid heed to Sheroo’s ecstatic outpouring dubbing it uncouth and enough desi.

“O.K., Okaay. No one needs to be a Pekingese Royal, theft of whom carried death penalty in 18th century China,” said a Chihuahua of Mexican origin. “You be quiet there. Sacred and edible stuff for the Red Indians! Don’t deserve to be dogs! Bow wow!” barked in the American Bulldog. “Remember we are the ones, after whom the dogmatic reassurance came from some human fella — The more I see of man, the more I love dogs!” said he, “And it suits us fine. But we need to act fast for Peru has already offered their breed ‘Ears’ from Incas to Obama.”

While all this was going on, I saw Sheroo cozying up with Tikki, a white exotic female. Turning away from the deliberations, I lent my ear to what Sheroo had to very endearingly tell an “expecting” Tikki. “Aey sweetheart, crossbreds of whatever shade have a safe future in the U.S., and our ladle and ladlee — little ones — to be born soon, will surely find their way in the White House, for they will be hypoallergic mutts, as also the bald variety, suitable for Obama’s daughter Malia, who is allergic to the fur and hair.”

I don’t know whether the canine conference reached a decision with all that bar (ac) king or not but the duet Sheroo and Tikki sang, while walking away from the dogged venue, still reverberates in my ears, confirming the sanguineness of the couple’s American dream — Jeevan ki bagia mahkegi, lahkegi, chahkegi; Khushiyon ki kalian, jhoomengi, jhoolengi, phoolengi! (Our life’s flowerbed will experience fragrance, blossoms and flourishing; Our happiness buds will experience swaggering, swinging and thriving.)

OPED

The misunderstood and the misjudged in 2008
by Johann Hari

CAN we declare 2008 over a little early, before even more of the world economy collapses? If we hit the fast-forward button, maybe we can skip the plague of locusts, the slaying of the first-born, and the rain of frogs. But before we mumble a premature Auld Lang Syne, I have a suggestion.

Every year Prospect magazine conducts a stock-take of the past 12 months, asking who – or what – we misunderstood. It should be part of everyone's New Year routine to ask: who did we over-rate in '08, and who didn't get their due? Here are my proposals:

Most over-rated US politician: Sarah Palin. Has the right learned nothing from the Bush years? You betcha! Once again, they fawned over a know-nothing incompetent because she could sound like a Bible-lovin' Ordinary Joe-ess while screwing them over on behalf of Corporate America.

It turned out she thought Africa was one big country, believed global warming wasn't happening, and couldn't name a single Supreme Court judgement except Roe vs Wade – but have her cheerleaders apologised? It ain't so, Joe.

They still insist the only reason anyone would condemn this book-banning dim-wit is snobbery and sexism. Chant with me now: Palin 2012! Palin 2012!

Most over-rated international event: The Beijing Olympics. Yes, it's true: a ruthless Communist police-state can put on a show. They can arrest protestors, clear out dissidents, and demand the entire society stop and serve their prestige project.

But should the world praise them for it? The 2012 London Olympics should be messy and frequently halted by protestors. It's called democracy – and it's worth a thousand slick, soulless acts of athleticism.

The most under-rated international event: Chinese fiction. The best form of travel is always into a novel. Go to Beijing and you can stare at the shiny neon exterior; pick up one of the extraordinary new wave of Chinese novelists and you peer into the real China.

This year I have been travelling through the rising super-power by reading its fiction. Only there can you grasp the shifting consciousness that the Communist Party is trying to suppress.

In Jiang Rong's Wolf Totem you witness the dawn of Chinese environmentalism; in Ma Jian's Beijing Coma you hear democracy trying to wake.

0While the brilliant Russell Brand left the BBC over a crude joke, Cole was turned into a "bless-her" national treasure on ITV – without anyone mentioning her thuggery. In a Guildford nightclub in 2003, she went into a toilet and seized some lollies.

The toilet attendant Sophie Amogbokpa asked her politely to pay for them – and Cole beat her up so badly that she was in pain for a month. At the trial, Cole showed no regret. Cheryl, babe – I'm so not proud of yer.

Most under-rated group: Plane Stupid. The news story of this year – of this millennium – is the great global melting we are triggering. Yet as the ice vanishes, we are becoming more frozen. We change our light-bulbs and look away – except for a few.

There were jeers and sneers when these smart young eco-activists blockaded a runway at Stansted, but if the destruction of our own habitat doesn't warrant direct action, what does? If Plane Stupid doesn't try to slap the sleepwalker awake, who will?

Most over-rated phenomenon: The surge in Iraq. The outbreak of cholera in Zimbabwe became a symbol of that country's collapse – but who noticed the spread of cholera across Iraq?

The McCainiacs chorused that "the surge worked" – but a study by the journal Environment and Planning found the truth. Between 2003 and 2007, Iraq was ripped by a massive ethnic cleansing.

The mixed Sunni-Shia areas were destroyed. By the time the surge started, there was nobody left to purge: the country was carved into ethnically homogeneous neighbourhoods. All the surge did was build vast concrete walls between the collapsing hoods, cementing the cleansing. That's success?

Most under-rated phenomenon: Newspapers. Here's a weird paradox. If you include the internet, more people are reading quality papers than ever before. Yet they are – as the bankruptcy of the LA Times and the Chicago Tribune show – dying. We don't just want it all, we want it free.

Does it matter? As good as some bloggers are, they don't have the foreign correspondents and investigative teams necessary to make sense of the world. If newspapers – for all their flaws and corporate biases – die, there will be an aching hole where newsgathering used to be. Newspapers: buy them or lose them.

And we can argue long into the New Year's Eve fireworks about the borderline cases. Did we under-estimate Gordon Brown, who seemed to find his feet by standing on Keynes's shoulders?

Did we underestimate the American people, who rejected racism and Bush-ism so definitively? And can someone please tell me why I know so much about the divorce of Madonna and Guy Ritchie? Farewell, 2008. Go now, before we are hit by a plague of boils.

— By arrangement with The Independent

Cyber security should safeguard privacy
by Roopinder Singh

IN the wake of the Mumbai terrorist attacks, the government has been tightening its hold on cyber traffic, and the latest Information Technology (IT) Amendment Bill 2008 gives government agencies the power to handle new cyber crimes like posting sexually explicit material electronically, video voyeurism, breach of confidentiality and leakage of data and e-commerce frauds.

For the first time, there is provision to fine, up to Rs 5 crore, companies that fail to handle sensitive personal data. Government agencies have got the power to intercept access and use any information conveyed through computers in the interest of national security.

Only recently, government servants were asked to desist from using the popular web-based e-mail services like Gmail and Yahoo! Mail for transacting official business because of increasing security concerns.

This is not the first time this move was made, but many officials still continue to use these services because of convenience. However, in doing so, they put at risk national security, since the information contained in these mails may well be intercepted at various levels.

Most of the computer ‘servers’ used for these services are located in the US, where the government has long-standing programmes to intercept and analyse such data for its own national security purposes. A signals intelligence collection and analysis network called ECHELON is used by Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the UK and the US to intercept and analyse commercial satellite trunk communications.

In any case, interceptions can occur anywhere while the data is being transmitted, and even e-mail accounts can be broken into. During the recent Presidential primary elections in the US, Alaska Governor Sarah Palin’s Yahoo! e-mail account was hacked and she faced considerable embarrassment. Later, it was revealed that President-elect Barack Obama’s personal cell phone account had been illegally accessed by employees of the phone company Verizon.

In India, last year, a Joint Secretary in the Union Agriculture Ministry sought police assistance after his account was hacked and all his contacts listed in the e-mail service received mails seeking financial help. Many cases of phishing where deceptive tactics are used to make users reveal their e-mail addresses have been reported.

The Indian government has rightly asked the officials to restrict themselves to the mail services offered by the National Informatics Centre (NIC) which has its servers located within the nation. This considerably reduces the potential of leaks. Since NIC handles the bulk of government business on the Internet, it is thus also a major potential target for hackers and it must take steps to ensure proper security for the data that has been entrusted to it.

It was in August last year that a Swedish computer security consultant posted the user names and passwords of at least 1,000 e-mail accounts belonging to embassy employees around the world, including the Indian Ambassador to China. He noted that user laziness played a key role in both weak passwords and improper use of encryption software. He was right; we can only be secure if we take security seriously.

While every precaution must be taken to ensure that safe practices are followed on the Internet, there is also, however, concern about the rights of the user. It is generally accepted that all official communication must be taken seriously, and should be subject to judicious scrutiny, just as it would be in the case of letters written on paper. It is precisely for this reason that in the US, government officials are expected to uses only the government accounts, which are safe, and also subject to legal examination, as and when necessary.

On the other hand, ordinary people have a right to privacy. This right is being progressively threatened — both by what one may call “stateless actors” of the cyber world and governments that become increasingly invasive in their cyber scrutiny. These days communications through the cyber world represent a fairly major slice of people’s personal live. Much personal data is stored in various computers that has serious consequences if it is leaked out.

The IT Bill 2008 was passed after barely minutes of scrutiny. Experts have pointed out that the Bill does not say how the personal information collected by the government should be processed and used. What are the safeguards to ensure the privacy of individuals? The IT Bill 2008 has left many grey areas, some important issues like spam mail have been neglected and privacy issues have been given a short shrift.

Coupled with a lack of basic understanding about the issues involved in tackling cyber crime among many police personnel, especially at the grassroots level, this vagueness bodes ill for the future.

Chatterati
A novel by PM’s daughter
by Devi Cherian

THE Prime Minister’s wife, Gursharan Kaur, had a busy week. First she released her daughter, Daman Singh’s book “Nine by Nine”. The novel refers to the size of the hostel room where it is mostly located and puts together elements from Daman Singh’s academic life and her relationships in those years.

The transistor brought them the cricket commentary and Kolkata was Cal and there was only one phone in the entire hostel where they had to queue up to make a call.

Daman revealed all this in her witty speech with her dimpled smile and innocence. She started her book in absolute secrecy and when she confided in her bureaucrat husband, Ashok Patnaik, he showed no curiosity. So she named the best-looking waiter in the hostel after him.

In an endearing speech the mother spoke proudly of the writer. She told the enthralled audience that she had always wanted the creative Daman to take up either painting or writing. When Daman told her that she was working on a book, she knew, like all mothers, it would make them proud.

Diplomat’s wife

The second book released by the Prime Minister’s wife was by a diplomat’s wife, Ranjana Sengupta. This was a gathering of diplomats and their elegantly dressed wives bubbling with chatter over their wine and Scotch.

This book is more about the role of a diplomat’s wife and her hard work of being a savvy hostess and her being a shadow of her husband while travelling with him through his various transfers.

She does reveal the truths behind their act of diplomacy. Like when a diplomat says ‘yes’ it really means ‘maybe’ and when he says ‘perhaps’ it means ‘no’ and how you’ll never ever catch a diplomat worth his salt say a flat-out ‘no’. It is something that every Foreign Service wife around the world can relate to. That was every diplomatic wife’s comment.

Talking of terror

Terror still continues to be the prime subject of discussions at lunch, dinner and receptions. But it is nice to see the Taj and Trident getting back to business in Mumbai. Thank God, no one talked of Mumbai’s resilience and the ability of the Mumbaikars to bounce back.

This tragedy will never be forgotten. It will always remain a milestone in our history. One thing the Mumbai terror attack has made clear is: the minister and the babu managing Home cannot afford to pass the buck any more. The Home Minister had to quit but the babu has survived. The government has already made the right beginning by appointing a hands-on minister, P. Chidambaram, who is not under the spell of the babus and can take decisions independently. Whether he is able to put together a system which actually works is something one has to wait and see.