The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

Kargil one year later

KARGIL is already one year old; how time flies! But not for those who lost their near and dear ones while defending those formidable hills, many of which were identified only by numbers. For them, and also for the soldiers who were disabled while fighting for every inch of India's sacred land, it has been an eternity. There are hundreds of mothers in the country who still cannot believe that the knock on the door is not of their son. Cold statistics — 520 Indian soldiers killed and more than 1,000 disabled — never convey the empty feeling that remains in as many households. That is the price one always has to pay for a war, declared or otherwise. The first anniversary of the famous victory is as good an occasion as any other to ask ourselves how much we have done for sharing and lessening the agony of those brave families and soldiers. On paper, a lot has been done no doubt. But in reality, there are many gaps. That is why while "Salaam Kargil" functions are being held in various parts of the country and a national integration camp is being organised at Drass, the widow of a martyr is on a fast unto death in Indore. The case of Shobha, widow of Lance Naik Dilip Linwal who had laid down his life in the Kargil sector, is a pathetic commentary on the functioning of our bureaucracy. The promises of an ex-gratia payment of Rs 10 lakh and a government job for a family member are yet to be fulfilled. It is such instances that make one reach the bitter conclusion that we are an ungrateful nation. Tall promises are made in the heat of the moment, only to be conveniently forgotten once the war is over. Like the one-day cricket match fever, the fervour proves to be momentary. Unfortunately, life is a marathon calling for constant vigil and eternal gratefulness. If the nation forgets its martyrs, it may have to make more sacrifices soon enough.

Now that things are back to "normal", it is time for a lot of pseudo-patriotism tamasha. The event has been appropriated for political purposes, in which the real sacrifices of flesh-and-blood people are only peripheral. The task of defending the nation has been assigned to some brave men, while the rest do not mind being disinterested spectators. This much was evident during the Kandahar hijacking crisis. Disconsolate families backed by some political parties blasted the government for the delay in accepting the hijackers' demands. Since then, it has come to light that those who masterminded the hijacking were depending on such public display of despair to bring the government to its knees. No one remembered that the soldiers who fight at the border have families too. While appropriate noises are made about the glorious sacrifices made by those magnificent men, there are very few who actually send their sons to the army. It is no longer a "sensible" career option; business is. That is why there is an alarming shortage of men in the officers cadre today. The National Flag, for which some are willing to lay down their lives, does not evoke enough patriotic feelings in others to make them so much as stand up when it is being unfurled. It is this lack of genuine patriotism that is behind many of our problems of identity. At the macro level too, the situation has not changed much for those who have to withstand the bitter cold of places like Kargil and Siachen. The procurement of some much-needed equipment has not been possible because of a wide-ranging enquiry currently on. Despite the comprehensive investigation by a committee headed by noted defence expert K. Subrahmanyam, the nation is none the wiser about what exactly went wrong and what has been done to make sure that it does not happen again. The four task forces to recommend ways to improve and restructure the management of the country's borders, internal security, intelligence gathering capabilities and defence are burning mid-day's oil, so to speak, while body-bags continue to arrive from the icy heights. On Kargil Vijay Divas, while the nation salutes the brave jawans of Operation Vijay, it might very well spare a thought for all other equally brave soldiers who die unsung, be it in Kashmir, Assam or Sierra Leone!

The dirty dozen

A DOZEN members being suspended from six months to one year by a Speaker is an extreme case but very appropriate for their crime. And crime it indeed is. These men from the Thackeray sena let loose terror and destruction in the Assembly hall to protest against the arrest of their leader. Television pictures perfectly matched with file photos of the Kargil war. That was the nature of their handiwork The Speaker’s table was a wreck, so were six chairs used by the staff. Microphones were torn away and the whole public address system was a shambles. Papers were tossed in the air, as though the MLAs were rehearsing ticker-tape welcome once reserved for heroes of all types in New York and other US cities. Their party men too joined the fray but did not cause as much devastation as the chosen dozen. The Maharashtra Assembly had not witnessed this type of mayhem before except for the stray incident of an MLA, Jambhuvantrao Dhote, hurling a microphone in the direction of the Chair and he was expelled. Otherwise, the state legislature has an impeccable record of decorum despite political hostility and an alliance being in power. It is this reputation that came under savage attack on Tuesday, more than a few pieces of furniture and the sound system.

Tuesday’s violence threatens to become a trend. The Sena men hate the sight of Deputy Chief Minister and Home Minister Chhagan Bhujbal, a former sainik now a bitter critic. And he heartily reciprocates this sentiment. And he has the powers to harass them on a dozen different grounds. Most Sena MLAs had some misdeed or other against their name relating to the period when their party led the ruling coalition. If the sanction for the prosecution of Mr Thackeray is anything to go by, it is certain that police officers who are against the Sena must be quietly building files on these members. Nothing may ultimately come out but the enquiry will generate tension and it will spill over in the Assembly. If the victory of the Sena leader turns into a defeat either on an appeal to the High Court or through an order by the Supreme Court on the Srikrishna commission report, a repeat of the violent acts is very much likely. That will be the end of the long chapter of spotless record of the Assembly. As Uttar Pradesh and Bihar have witnessed, unruly behaviour has a way of becoming the norm when tempers rise.

The problem with the Sena is its structure and outlook. It was born in anger (at the domination of non-Maharashtrians in the metropolis), was bred on faith in violence to have its way and grew to its present status by inventing an enemy in Muslims. This process reflects in the population mix of its strongholds — those with a majority of lower middle class or pitiable slums. This is the catchment area of its volunteers and local leaders. Mr Thackeray addresses himself to these confused but volatile sections. He has a hold on the supporters and retains and expands it by his violent thoughts. But his army of volunteers use violence to become leaders. It is a made-for-each-other situation. What happens to the Sena supremo is not so important as to what happens to the great city. And the Assembly rioting is an early warning.

A glorious track record

P. T. Usha's formal retirement from athletics has brought down the curtain on a glorious chapter in the history of Indian sport. Her career spanning over an almost unbelievable period of two decades can be broken up into two parts. To be fair, her international career ended in 1990. However, when she came out of retirement three years later, after getting married and becoming a mother, she did it for her personal satisfaction. That she still got selected for representing India reflected the country's inability to produce athletes who could replace her on merit. Usha's claim to fame as India's greatest woman athlete is largely based on the first part of her career which began in 1978. That was the year when as a skinny, shy and diffident 14-year-old she set the Indian tracks on fire at the inter-state meet in Quilon. Two years later she made her international debut at Karachi, which made the sport buffs across the globe sit up and take notice of her extraordinary talents. It was indeed a dream debut as she went on to win four gold medals. It did not take her long to be counted among the best women Asian athletes. When she went to Moscow in 1980 at the age of 16, she became the youngest Indian woman to take part in the Olympics. But her moment of glory came in the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics. Amazing improvements in the field of technology deprived her of the distinction of sharing the bronze medal in the 400m hurdles. She was beaten to the third place by one hundredth of a second. Usha herself admitted while announcing her retirement that "my proudest moment came in the 4000m hurdles at Los Angeles. It was also my greatest regret". A year later she added another feather to her cap when she beat the legendary Lydia de Vega of The Philippines in the 100m sprint at Jakarta to earn the title of the fastest woman in Asia.

Although Usha plans to continue her association with the sport which has given her personal satisfaction and Indian athletics a breath of life, it is doubtful whether the "system" would allow her to discover and groom more Ushas for the track and field events. Although she plans to set up an academy for grooming talent, she herself was not a product of any system. It is a different matter that she gave credit to her first coach Nambiar for honing her talents. She was a natural product in the true sense of the word. She was to athletics what Gavaskar, Tendulkar and Kapil Dev were to the game of cricket, Prakash Padukone to badminton, Leander Paes to tennis and Vishwanathan Anand to chess. It is sad, but true, that no Indian sportswoman in any discipline can be compared to the Payyoli Express, a name Usha earned during her performance in the Los Angeles Olympics. It was her resolve to stay fit which saw her continue to represent India. The average life span of even the fittest athlete is short. But Usha was a rare exception. Few athletes in India have ever earned celebrity status on the strength of their performance. In this respect too Usha was different. At the peak of her career she became the symbol of gender success. More girls have been named after her than even the high profile models and actresses. The first decade of her career showcased her brilliance in the track and field events. The second decade exposed the limitations of the Indian system in producing women athletes who could make Usha run out of steam earlier than she did. In athletics parlance she entered the field as a child and left the track as a grandma.

The WTO Challenges
Need for appropriate response
by Sucha Singh Gill

THE establishment of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) in January, 1995, with India as a founder member reflected a qualitative shift in the global trading system. Many economic activities earlier not covered by global trading regime were brought under ambit of the WTO. They included agriculture and related activities, trade-related investment measures (TRIMS), trade-related intellectual property rights (TRIPS), trade in services and movement of natural persons. They were earlier treated as matters of national concern.

Besides the newly covered economic activities, the traditional practice of the protection of national economies from global players through prohibitive customs and duties and quantitative restrictions such as quotas, exchange control and regulations, are not permitted. The use of subsidies for the promotion of economic activities and the protection of domestic production are not permitted beyond specified limits. This has reduced the degree of freedom of the government policy to protect and promote the economy. The economies are expected to choose through market mechanism their areas of specialisation and give up less efficient areas to most efficient producers in the world. Thus the formation of the WTO has become a major force and pillar of globalisation.

The major challenge to the WTO emanates from the exposure of the weak economy of the developing countries to efficient competition from abroad. These countries are technologically backward and their socio-economic system is less conducive for economic efficiency and expansion. The majority of the producers in industry, agriculture and services are small and medium in size. They can not compete with giant MNCs of advavced countries. The size of MNCs, their command/monopoly over new technology and their capability to reap the benefits of economies of scale put them in a position of advantage over small and medium producers of developing countries.

Moreover, the monopoly position of the MNCs enables them to manipulate the market structure in their favour. The WTO regime makes very little (5 per cent) difference in productivity between the advanced and the developing countries. In reality productivity differences are very large. The average per acre yield of wheat in Punjab is nearly double compared to the all-India average, but it is considerably lower than that of Hungary. The same is true of different industries and activities in the service sector such as banking, insurance, transport, communications and hoteleering. The structure of several economies (including India), which was earlier protected by tariff and non-tariff barriers, is suddenly exposed to competition from the most efficient producers and suppliers in the world. While opening up, advance preparation could not be made by the developing countries.

In fact, when GATT agreements were being negotiated on the conclusion of the Uruguay Round, there was no public or academic debate on the merits and demerits of joining the WTO. It was propagated by official circles and supported by industry and business and the Press controlled by them that India (like others) stood to gain much by joining the WTO. It was also stated that there was no other alternative. Therefore, the challenges and risks involved in becoming a member of the new global trading system under the WTO were neither identified nor any advance preparation to overcome the difficulties was made.

Now when the reality of the new regime is being faced, there are hysteric responses from the functionaries of the governments in Punjab and Haryana. Suddenly it is being felt that contrary to the earlier (official) position even agriculture of Punjab and Haryana is not competitive. There is a great threat to milk production (dairying as supplementary to farming) and small-scale industries. Ironically these things are being pointed out by those (the Akali Dal in Punjab and the INLD in Haryana) who are coalition partners at the Centre and are themselves responsible for the lowering/removal of trade barriers. It is appropriate to mention here that during the recent visit of US President Bill Clinton, an agreement was signed by India and the USA to remove quantitative restrictions on the import of 1429 items. Consequently, on 714 items, covering a large number of agricultural commodities (including dairy products), quantitative restrictions have been removed since April 1,2000. On the remaining 715 items such restrictions will cease to exist on April 1,2001.

The response to the WTO challenges has to be careful and well thought-out, particularly for those who are running the affairs of the state. The public in general raises much hue and cry, sometimes in hysteric form, when it faces imminent threat to its existence. But the governments and their functionaries have to be very careful as they are responsible for the protection of the citizens’ life and their economic and social well-being while meeting the country’s global obligations. In view of the long-term threat of domination from abroad, the danger of destabilisation and the fear of weeding out a large number of producers of goods and services, it is necessary to adopt a two-pronged strategy.

One relates to the long-term interests of the country. Prof Robert W. McChesney of Wisconsin University at Madison has remarked that “Globalisation is the result of powerful governments, especially that of the United States, pushing trade deals and other accords down the throat of the world’s people to make it easier for corporations (MNCs) and the wealthy to dominate the economies of nations around the world without having obligations to peoples of those nations. Nowhere is the process more apparent than in the creation of the World Trade Organisation.....” In view of this, India has to evolve its strategy in collaboration with other developing countries to work for an international economic order which is fair, just and helpful in solving the problems of these countries. The fora like the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) have to be activated. The resolution sponsored by the developing countries and passed by UNCTAD in 1974 for the creation of a new international economic order is still valid and can act as the meeting ground for the common interests of the developing countries. This requires a change in the global power structure, away from the unipolar world.

Till the time an alternative to the present international economic order becomes a reality, India (and the states governments within India) has to work within the framework of the WTO. There is some scope for the protection of national interests, particularly for countries like India, under the present arrangement. One has to be vigilant, informed and careful for the country’s interests to use various clauses and articles of the WTO. The agreement on the implementation of Article VI of GATT, 1994, enables all countries to take measures against anti-dumping policies in the form of enhanced Customs duty if any country/firm is dumping its goods in the importing country. Besides, there is an agreement on safeguards against the imports of increased quantities which directly cause or threaten to cause a serious injury to the domestic production from more competitive products.

A member-country under this agreement can apply safeguards only following in investigation by a competent authority following a procedure established and made public in consonance with Article X of GATT. If it is established that suddenly the level of imports have gone up substantially and prices have fallen below a trigger level, the safeguard measures can be undertaken. These measures can be undertaken after investigation with “reasonable public notice to all interested parties and public hearings or other appropriate means in which importers, exporters and other interested parties could present evidence and their views, including an opportunity to respond to the presentation of other parties and to submit their viewpoint inter alia, as to whether or not the application of the safeguards would be in the public interest. The competent authority shall publish a report setting forth its findings and reasoned conclusions reached on all pertinent issues of fact and law.”

All the investigations have to be done in a fair and transparent manner. If the case is justified, the safeguard measures can be applied for four years and can be extended, after a review, to a maximum period of eight years. In the case of developing countries the extension of another two years (beyond eight years) is permitted. But during this period, a country must take steps to build its competitiveness through increased productivity and improvement in the quality of its products. For taking safeguard measures a country must notify a committee on safeguards and take the following three steps: (a) “initiating an investigatory process relating to a serious injury or threat thereof and the reasons for it; (b) making a finding of the serious injury or the threat thereof caused by increased imports; and (c) taking a decision to apply or extend a safeguard measure.”

Going by these three conditions, the response of the Governments of Punjab and Haryana is off the mark on the issue of imports of dairy products after the withdrawal of quantitative restrictions on 714 items from April 1, 2000. The Chief Ministers of both states have demanded the imposition of 60 per cent Customs duty on the imports of dairy products. The magic figure of 60 per cent Customs duty is not based on any investigation carried out by any investigation agency. In fact, the response of the Chief Ministers is that of laymen and not of responsible persons leading the state governments. They have demonstrated brazen ignorance about the WTO rules and provisions regarding safeguard measures. In fact, the situation demands greater vigilance of economic affairs within the country and outside. This requires considerable emphasis on economic research both for serious analysis and economic surveillance.

Ever since India embarked on the path of liberalisation and globalisation, its spending on research and development (R&D) has fallen consistently. India’s expenditure on R&D as a percentage of the gross domestic product (GDP) stood at 0.96 in 1988 which came down to 0.81 per cent in 1995. The share of R&D stands around 2-3 per cent of the GDP in advanced countries with a rising trend over the years. It is no surprise that we not only have no detailed information about the economies of our trading partners and competitors but also lack analyses and information about some aspects of production within our own economy. It is, therefore, no surprise that Mr Badal and Mr Chautala are talking in the air.

Another very serious problem which afflicts our policy-making relates to the sense of commitment to the country in the right earnest. Those who make tall claims and talk of nationalism and national interest take no time to act contrary to the country’s interest. This is evident from the episode involving foreign communication companies on the payment of a licence fee which led to the change of portfolio of a senior minister when he tried to act in national interest. In this context it is worth mentioning here that certain measures were proposed to protect agriculture, but decisions were taken contrary to the proposal put forward. To protect wheat products in the country, it was proposed that 100 per cent Customs duty could be imposed because this was the maximum rate at which duty could be levied on primary products. But actually the government decided to impose customs duty at the rate of 50 per cent. This falls short of the level of protection needed.

On the processed product the maximum permissible rate of duty is 150 per cent. This includes dairy products. But our leaders who claim to be the custodians of farmers’ interests are talking about a 60 per cent rate of duties. On the edible oil front, 300 per cent is the maximum rate of duty which can be invoked, but the actual rate of duty imposed is 30 per cent. This led to the collapse of the cultivation of oilseeds, so essential for the diversification of agriculture. It is evident that the actual decisions on the customs duties are neither based on the proposals moved by the officials concerned within the ministries nor reflect the ground reality and the needs of the economy. It is not difficult to guess the factors which actually influence such decisions. One knows that foreign suppliers of imports are big trading companies with a lot of money power to get favoured decisions.

The writer is Professor, Department of Economics, Punjabi University, Patiala.

The day it rained gold
by Trilochan Singh Trewn

FINDING gold has been considered a bad omen in our ancient belief but what happened in Mumbai when solid gold bars each weighing several kilograms fell from the skies in stray places in the year 1943 preceded by a series of large explosions, is unforgetful.

World War II was on. In such conditions, it is quite normal for a country, as a matter of abundant caution, to shift its gold or precious movable holdings to a safer, secure place or a far away country, to be retrieved later. A medium-size cargo ship carrying miscellaneous items arrived in Mumbai commercial docks. She was berthed alongside a cargo handling berth in a routine manner. The ship’s manifest document did not indicate that she was carrying any gold or explosives. This fact was perhaps known only to the captain and the chief officer of the ship.

The mechanical training establishment of the Indian Navy was located between the castle barracks and the present naval dockyard. The present gun gate was used by the trainees and the staff for all their movements ashore. On that fateful morning a lecture on marine refrigeration was going on in one of the classrooms facing a large banyan tree. At about 10.30 the students heard a very loud sound followed by a heavy thud as if some large and bulky item had fallen from a height with great speed. There were about 20 persons in the class. The instructor abruptly terminated the lecture and all rushed out to investigate. Near the front road, they found a number of persons gathered round a large four feet long and six inches wide red hot gold bar lying in the open. Most of the glass window panes were broken or cracked due to the intense shock waves. Nothing could be made out of this sudden descendence of gold from the skies and the matter was taken charge of by the commanding officer of castle barracks HMIS Dalhousie for further action.

Very soon, through the workers passing by the gun gate as well as the telephone calls, the disturbing news of similar showering of gold bars in the Mazgaon and Sandhurst road area was received. It was preceded by extensive damage to several houses and shops by direct explosive hits. Fire engines from every nook and corner of Greater Mumbai were mobilised to meet the disaster situation.

The local radio news indicated that the fire was first noticed on the ship by the stevedores as emanating from some bales of cotton stowed in the hold at about 9 a.m. The fire fighting equipment both on board and ashore was activated and it appeared as if the fire had been brought under control.

However, this assumption was found deceptive without realising that the initial fire had already overheated the ammunition boxes stowed below the bales of cotton. First there was a small explosion in the rear of the hold. There was panic on board and widespread commotion on keyside. More small and large explosions followed which shook the entire dock area. Some office rooms and godowns inside the docks and houses beyond the outer roads received direct hits by explosives along with gold bars flying along. One side of the cargo ship lay ripped open and seawater entered the holds and the engine room from all sides. Burning explosives with red hot gold bars scored direct hits on two houses located at Reay Road and these were seen burning instantly. Workers and dock officials were seen rushing to the nearby canteen for safety when a hot gold bar whistled past them and landed devastatingly in a garage.

By afternoon the explosions ceased while the cargo ship settled down at the bottom of the sea with a tilt. Maximum casualties took place in the vicinity of the docks. Red hot gold bars had also landed in the vicinity of Ballard pier and the Indira Gate area and were duly retrieved. There were no chances of private pilferage due to the high temperature and the large size of the gold bars costing crores of rupees each. Many of the gold bars blasted out of the ship fell in deep water in various berths as well as beyond the Gateway of India as proved by subsequent dredging in the following years. It is said that near Sandhurst Road railway station one Tukaram Shinde spotted a very small gold piece at 11.30 that morning. He pushed it towards a nearby gutter by means of a heavy brick lying around. He quietly managed to retrieve the piece after four hours while all along sitting there and watching the proceedings.

An investigation on casualties as well as the extent of damage to ships, equipment and property followed. However, no loss assessment was complete without knowing about the exact number of gold bars and the number and type of explosive ammunition boxes initially stored in the holds. This was more so because all explosives were completely destroyed and many gold bars disappeared in deep harbour waters in scattered places after being blown out from the ship. These were retrieved slowly during the next two years as and when that area happened to be dredged. Those who have visited the gold ingots in Fort Knox, USA, or in the Government of India mint at Mumbai Fort must have observed that the gold ingots, weigh about 25 kg each. However, the gold bars from the ship were larger in size and weight to facilitate handling and stowage. It took months to salvage the submerged cargo ship.The day of gold rain in Mumbai, together with the widespread devastation it caused, will ever remain alive in the annals of history of the city of Mumbai.

Immediately after the holocaust the Manchester Guardian from London had commented that the hush-hush nature of the precious gold treasure consignment combined the immense loss with rare fantasy. But the truth is still awaited. Unofficial reports stated that on that fateful day approx 20 metric tonnes of solid gold was shot into sky, most of which showered back over the Greater Mumbai area. In case of some isolated houses the residents avoided reporting damage caused by hot gold bars for obvious reasons!

Of Life Sublime

Faith shows the way to Truth
by Satish K. Kapoor

“IF you have faith no bigger even than a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there and it will move’,” says The Gospel According to St. Matthew. The cynic and the sceptic may disparage such a statement. But the fact remains that what appears to be logical may not be true and what is true may never be explained by logic.

Logic has its limitations; truth is limitless. Logic can help one to comprehend the world of phenomena; truth can take one beyond the world of objects and senses.

Faith turns blind when it shuts its doors to doubt or enquiry. Logic is congenitally lame for it seldom proves which cannot be disproved at some stage. The fallacy of faith lies in credulity; of logic in equivocation. Faith embraces itself, the doubt about itself, wrote Paul Tillich.

What leads one to the Truth is faith. But genuine faith based on revelation, intuition, erudition or experience needs to be distinguished from the fake forms floated by charlatans or religious mountebanks. The former shows the way to the Divine and makes one noble and virtuous, the latter generates insularity of outlook and breeds hatred and violence. Alfred Tennyson admonishes: "Cleave ever to the sunnier side of doubt/And cling to Faith beyond the forms of faith."

True faith implies faith in the Supreme Reality; faith in prophets, saints, sages and other holy men who perceived the Reality through the course of history, faith in the Holy Word; faith in the exponents of truth; faith in human values and above all, faith in one's own self i.e. in one's innate powers which emanate from the Divine.

By the power of faith the blind saw, the lame walked and the dumb spoke when they were graced by Jesus Christ. Draupadi's faith in Lord Krishna saved her from ignominy when she was being publicly unrobed. Indian tradition has it that Dhanna Jat materialised God in a stone by sheer faith. Swami Vivekananda's recipe for India's regeneration was renunciation, service, strength and faith.

Shraddha, the Sanskrit word for faith forms the cornerstone of the Hindu philosophy. "A man consists of the faith that is in him. Whatever his faith is he is," says the Bhagavadgita (17.3). Faith is the sheet anchor of a spiritual aspirant. It makes him confident, curbs the distractions of his mind, provides him with a supreme ideal and tames his ego, the stumbling block in the pathway to realisation. From faith comes grace, from grace, joy, from joy, peace and from a peaceful state of mind flow love and compassion which get transformed into service of humanity.

But shraddha comes to innocent minds alone. Sceptical minds lost in the mire of dialectics and disputations seldom reach the goal. Sri Ramakrishna used to say that unless one becomes child-like in faith it is difficult for one to realise God. "If the mother says to the child, 'he is your brother', the child fully believes that the person referred to is really his brother. God is moved to pity when He sees in a man that kind of child-like faith. None can attain God with the calculating nature of the worldly-minded."

The Buddha describes faith as "one's great possession". Faith, he says, enriches the mind with wisdom, softens hard and selfish minds and gives us a friendly spirit and a mind of understanding sympathy. But he avers that it is difficult to awaken faith in a person.

In Christianity, faith is the "gift of God" as mentioned in the Epistle of Paul, the apostle to the Ephesians (2.8). It has several meanings in The Holy Bible denoting simple trust or confidence in a person or the assent of mind to the credibility of a particular assertion viz. St. Peter walking on water to go to Jesus (St. Matthew. 14.29). But its common use is to express "the exercise of that faculty of the soul by which it embraces the promises of God." To a Christian, faith is trust in God and in His promises made through Jesus Christ, as also in the scriptures by which man is saved.

Lord Mahavira regards right faith along with right knowledge and right conduct (tri-ratna) as the sine qua non of virtuous living. Sadly, we are fast losing faith in our cultural heritage, in righteous values, in our parents, teachers and elders, in the people around, in God and in ourselves. The results are: stressful life marked by tension and anxiety, sceptical view of the Supreme Reality, weakish social bonds, irreverence towards elders, increasing rate of crime and blissless existence.

Let us pray with the Vedic Rishis: "O Faith, give us faith!" (Rigveda), X, 151.

An Associate Editor of the forthcoming Encyclopedia of Hinduism, the writer is a senior lecturer in history at Lyallpur Khalsa College, Jalandhar.

Indian fashion set to dazzle
By Priyanka Khanna

THE top names in India’s fashion industry, along with budding designers, are all set to dazzle with their creations at the first-ever India Fashion Week from August 17 to 23 in New Delhi.

As many as 33 designers will present their ready-to-wear creations in 25 shows spread over a week at the Taj Palace hotel. Fashioned on the lines of the New York Fashion Week, the India Fashion Week is being hailed as a momentous event.

Not only will the event be a huge opportunity for interaction between designers, suppliers and buyers, it will also mark Indian fashion’s entry into a new era. Until now, top-notch designers have been creating only couture lines but now the pret lines demonstrate that fashion will be seen on the streets of India and not be confined to the ramps.

“India Fashion Week will bring together in an integrated manner all the key elements of the garment industry that are critical for the growth of this sector. It is a platform for Indian fashion designers, both upcoming and established, to showcase their talents not just to a nationwide domestic market but also the international market,” said Sumeet Nair, spokesman of the Fashion Design Council of India (FDCI).

“One of the main objectives is to tap the growing number of people who are aware of fashion and style and are willing to spend more on luxury items. A survey commissioned by us shows that 32 per cent of consumers want to shop. What’s lacking is outlets retailing designer products. This event will bridge that gap to an extent,” said Nair.

Among the designers who will be showcased at the event are Ritu Kumar, Rohit Bal, Tarun Tahiliani, Ritu Beri, J.J. Valaya, Suneet Verma, Ashish Soni, Gitanjali Kashyap and Rina Dhaka.

Adding to the excitement are four international models, including supermodel Jodie Kidd. The brightest star in the firmament of British fashion, Kidd will lend a fresh aura to the fashion extravaganza.

India Fashion Week will be open to visitors by invitation only. It is expected to attract more than 5,000 individual buyers, institutional buyers, retailers, exporters and textile industry people. The main display area, with a stage and a ramp, will have a seating capacity of 450 to 500 people. Additionally, there will be specific areas at the venue designated for static exhibits. There will be an on-site media centre, an area for corporate hospitality, an exhibit area for sponsors and a lounge-cum-cafe.

The event promises to be not just a crash course on fashion and style but also an opportunity to see the best models, make-up trends, hairstyles and accessories for the upcoming season. The FDCI, in order to make the price tag of branded garments attractive, has prescribed a retail price range of Rs.800 to Rs 10,000. Usually, designer clothes sell at Rs 10,000 and above.

“India is ‘in’ and the India Fashion Week will be keenly watched by audiences across the world,” said Ravi Krishnan, Joint Managing Director of IMG/TWI South Asia, the second largest modelling agency in the world. — IANS

SPIRITUAL NUGGETS

In every temple, if one stands by and listens, one will find the worshippers applying all the attributes of God, including omnipresence, to the images. It is not polytheism, nor would the name henotheism explain the situation. "The rose called by any other name would smell as sweet." Names are not explanations .... My brethren we can no more think about anything without a mental image than we can live without breathing. By the law of association, the material image calls up the mental idea and vice versa .... If a man can realise his divine nature with the help of an image would it be right to call that a sin?

—Swami Vivekananda at the World Parliament of Religions, Chicago, September 19, 1893

***

I do not regard a Hindu or a Roman Catholic place of worship containing images as necessarily bad or superstitious and a mosque or a Protestant place of worship being good or free of superstition merely because of their exclusion of images. A symbol such as a Cross or a book may easily become idolatrous, and therefore superstitious. And the worship of Child Krishna or Virgin Mary may become ennobling and free of all superstition. It depends upon the attitude of the heart of the worshipper.

— Mahatma Gandhi, Young India, November 5, 1925

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The devotional expression of life and thought seeks its fulfilment in religion, but devotion cannot obviously find expression in mere abstraction. It searches through the Cosmic Infinity for some aspect of the personality, which it feels to be in the cosmos, on which to bestow its love upon .... An image takes the devotee from the physical to the metaphysical concept of the deity.

—A Swaminatha Ayyar, Murti Puja, Kalyan kalpataru: Dharma Tattva Number, January 1939.

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When one sees God, one realises that everything, images and all, is a manifestation of the Spirit. To him the image is not made of clay but of spirit.

—Sayings of Sri Ramakrishna, 332

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We are not idol worshippers. We are ideal worshippers.

— Swami Sidheshwarananda of the Ramakrishna Mission