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Friday,
March 22, 2002, Chandigarh, India  
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Ayodhya hearing, hope Think of the farmer
HARI JAISINGH |
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“Nothing official, sir”
Poison of western economic thought
The healing touch of the mind
New BP pill checks strokes
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Ayodhya hearing, hope The Lucknow Bench of the Allahabad High Court on Wednesday completed the formality of accepting the Centre's request for a day-to-day hearing of the Ayodhya land dispute. A three-member Bench laid down rules and procedures for the speedy disposal of the case that has damaged the secular image of the country. In the past decade much avoidable blood of innocent people has been shed over what is called the mandir-masjid dispute. The latest was the horrifying act of barbarity that visited a group of kar sevaks inside the Sabarmati Express at Godhra on February 27. The post-Godhra incidents were equally upsetting. The Lucknow Bench has provided an opportunity to the leaders of the two communities to rise above narrow sectarian considerations for finding an amicable settlement to the dispute. Following the demolition of the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya on the disputed land by frenzied kar sevaks on December 6, 1992, several packages and formulas were tried for resolving the issues that came close to turning the country into a battlefield of religious hatred. Among them was the dangerous attempt to involve the highest court of the land in deciding whether a temple originally existed at the disputed site. A five-judge Constitutional Bench of the Supreme Court wisely turned down the request. It also shot down the Centre's attempt to unilaterally enforce an out-of-court settlement and ordered the revival of the original title suit between the Sunni Central Waqf Board and the Nirmohi Akhara. A point that needs to be emphasised is that neither the Vishwa Hindu Parishad nor the All India Babri Masjid Action Committee nor other pro-mandir or pro-masjid organisations should be allowed to vitiate the atmosphere in the country nor permitted any role during the hearing of the case. The focus should ideally remain on the representatives of the Sunni Waqf Board and the Nirmohi Akhara. However, the other "parties" apart from watching the proceedings from the margins can still play a positive role. They can help defuse the communal temperature in the country through joint initiatives. It must be understood that a day-to-day hearing does not mean that the case would be disposed off within a matter of months, if not weeks. Simply put, all it means is that instead of generations it may now be decided within a matter of years. The leaders of the two communities should make use of this period for preparing their followers to accept the verdict even it goes against one community. The whisper in certain quarters that the court cannot decide the dispute is unfortunate. It is this kind of dangerous posturing that has caused serious damage to the secular ethos of the country. Ideally the principal parties to the dispute should also work out a post-judgement strategy for ensuring communal peace when the verdict is delivered. They should also come to some kind of an understanding not to exercise the option of going in appeal to the Supreme Court. For the sake of Ram, who is perceived as a compassionate and a kind god, no more blood should be shed in his name. Otherwise, the very purpose of a speedy trial would be defeated. |
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Think of the farmer The Agriculture Ministry, according to reports, has recommended an increase of Rs 15 in the minimum support price (MSP) of wheat for the coming procurement season. The recommendation has been sent to the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs. Mr Ajit Singh, Agriculture Minister, is an emerging kisan leader and does not want to be seen behind Mr Om Prakash Chautala in taking up the cause of farmers of his home state UP. Capt Amarinder Singh, the Chief Minister of another wheat producing state, too has pressed for a substantial MSP hike during his recent visit to Delhi.The Congress Chief Minister does not want the farming community of Punjab to feel let down after the ouster of Mr Parkash Singh Badal from power. Their efforts should not be seen only as an exercise of political pressure to strengthen their vote bank. It is a political lobbying for a genuine cause. The Centre is under considerable pressure, particularly from a section of economists, not to succumb to the pressure of the farm lobby. The reasons given are (a) the present MSP of wheat is much higher than the price in the international market (b) the FCI godowns are already bulging and has no place or resources to store any more stocks (Some have even suggested a procurement holiday this year), and (c) an unreasonably high food subsidy. These arguments do not take into consideration the plight of the farmer, whose living standard has remained unchanged over the years. Land holdings are getting fragmented. Irrigation facilities are inadequate and agriculture still largely depends on the mood of the monsoon. Even after getting a minimum support price of Rs 610, which is not always the case, the farmer is unable to meet the increased costs of farm machinery, fertilisers and pesticides. The unchecked sale of spurious fertilisers and substandard seeds can spell doom any time. If one crop is successful, the second may fail. The year-after-year failure of cotton crop has ruined many growers. Cheaper credit is still hard to get. Banks’ complicated procedures are not farmer-friendly. Besides, the 2002-03 Union Budget has dealt a severe blow to the farming community by steeply raising the prices of urea, DAP and potash fertilisers. With such handicaps, the Indian farmers cannot compete with the farmers of developed countries, whose production costs are much lower. The manual handling, transportation losses and pilferage, all add to the cost of foodgrains for which the farmer cannot be penalised. With the WTO in place and pressure from the USA and other developed countries to ease the import of agricultural commodities into India, the farmer will be the ultimate loser. |
Facing nation’s stark realities Nothing seems to put us on the right track as a nation. The Gujarat carnage has certainly pricked the conscience of the silent majority, Hindutva or no Hindutva. Certain developments at Ayodhya have equally disturbed large sections who do not want the country's social equilibrium to be disturbed in the name of religion. India is not Pakistan where minorities are treated like junk. This country has a different tradition, a different value system and a different constitutional framework to bind the people together, wherever and whatever be the social, economical, religious and emotional gaps. Here the core issue of communal harmony must not be lost in the glib talk of left-liberalism versus right reaction. What is pertinent is the restoration of a humane and civilised order that places India differently as a democratic polity which, in turn, thrives best in an atmosphere of understanding, tolerance, mutual care and concern among all sections of the population. The majority community has a primary responsibility in this regard. What is disquieting is that some basic issues which once agitated the minds of liberal thinkers in the sub-continent have resurfaced after 54 years. Several sensitive matters, which were taken as settled with Partition, are very much before us and that too in uglier forms. From Ahmedabad to Ayodhya, an uneasy calm prevails today. This shows the fragile nature of the polity. What disturbs me is the sharpening of beastly instincts on both sides of the communal divide. Instead of acting in a rational and responsible manner, we have allowed the devil in us to have free play. How come that even the educated class is becoming part of the vicious communal circle? Even Gujarat's tribes have been drawn in this beastly game. This is a new phenomenon. Chief Minister Narendra Modi may have his own calculations and strategies. But as Chief Minister his first job is to govern fairly and justly and not allow the police to become partisan. Equally disturbing is the frequent use of the Army for maintaining law and order. This is not in the nation's interest. We have enough of police and para-military forces at different levels to take care of peace and tranquillity in troubled areas. If the authorities still think that the police cannot generate enough confidence among the people, then we could as well disband it and overhaul the system. The police, after all, is expected to perform the primary task of maintaining law and order in an impartial manner. And if the persons at the helm cannot govern, then they have no moral right to remain in power. Of course, the main problem here is the poor quality of leadership. I have repeatedly said so. If we cannot produce quality leaders, then there is apparently something basically wrong with the system and the environment which puts a premium on mediocre leaders. In any case, those in power are expected to see problems in the larger national and rational perspective. They must not play into the hands of sectarian and vested interests. This is what has been happening at Ayodhya. It is a pity that the question of Ram temple has become a communal issue. This matter could have been left to religious leaders on both sides to sort out amicably within the broad framework of secular India. But the moot point is: do we have an answer to vote bank politics? This is how the temple issue has got complicated. I have earlier talked about caste-cum-Muslim politics played by the likes of Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav. As for Delhi, it has also played into the hands of vested interests represented by the Vishwa Hindu Prishad, the Bajrang Dal and even the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). It is equally distressing to see negative signals from the other side. If Muslim religious and political leaders react selectively, then the problem is bound to get complicated. The sufferers in the process are the Muslims. What has particularly disturbed me is the neglect of social and economic issues facing the community. The national leadership must think hard about the plight of ordinary Muslims whose economic well-being does not seem to be anybody's concern. If we give a serious thought to this problem and work out a plan of action, we will ensure economic uplift of the poverty-stricken Muslims. They need a proper environment, reasonable living conditions, modern education and job opportunities. How do we ensure this? The answer lies in economic revival. In any case, the socio-economic uplift of the Muslims ought to be a passionate commitment of every educated Indian. The community must live honourably as an equal partner as the country progresses. It is because of the indifferent attitude of the rulers that the madarsa syndrome has acquired dangerous overtones. Even in the Marxist-governed West Bengal, Chief Minister Buddhadev Bhattacharya dare not stop the growing menace of madarsas because of electoral considerations. He had to give up his initiative for reforms as suggested by the Kidwai committee because it was thought to be politically explosive and not to the advantage of the Marxists. Indeed, the Marxists are playing the same card of communalism (of the minority) as the BJP is playing by exploiting Hindu sentiments. How can we induct sanity in this surcharged atmosphere? Who will bell the cat? Who will call the shot? Do we have to leave every issue to religious fanatics on both sides of the communal divide? How can we emerge as a 21st century forward-looking nation amidst all these destructive forces? Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee may still be the best bet for the country. But unless he rises above his 'parivar' and sees India in a broader and rational perspective, he will be losing the battle to wrong persons and for wrong reasons. The writing on the wall is clear. The feeling of hurt is everywhere. The loser in this dubious game is the true and innocent citizen and the nation that we wish to see as a superpower. But then no nation can become a superpower with such super follies as we have seen in recent weeks from
Godhra and Ahmedabad to Ayodhya and other parts of the country. Looking beyond Gujarat and Ayodhya, it needs to be acknowledged that the Muslims have their own pockets of unrest which must be attended to. The vast majority of Muslims suffer from a sense of insecurity and tension which breeds a form of religiosity in tune with the ulema's world-view. Perhaps, the Muslims suffer from a crisis of identity. Maybe, they are still not quite sure whether they should go along fully with the zigzag course of the not-yet-defined "national mainstream" or continue to look towards the Islamic world and the neighbouring Muslim brethren for clues and views, or explore orthodox Islamic roots for salvation. The search within has its own rewards. What the Muslim community needs most is the quest for adjustment without vis-a-vis other segments of society and the prevailing environment. In the absence of an honest and earnest quest, the community tends to suffer from a permanent handicap. This is not exactly the fault of the community. It is simply paying the price of a leadership (or lack of it) which has kept itself above and hence delinked from the people. A less enlightened leadership usually thrives not on free flow of ideas but on ignorance and prejudices. This syndrome is not confined to the Muslims. Indeed, the crisis of identity can be discerned in other sectors of social life as well, with the result that the Indian polity today presents a picture of a split personality with loyalties divided and subdivided on grounds of caste, religion and community. This certainly is not a happy setting. Indeed, multiplying and multiple problems have put the nation to a severe test. Mere shadow-boxing cannot give us the answers we are looking for. The realities have to be faced. A shock treatment for the leaders and the led is imperative. As it is, the stalwarts of Independence are no longer in command. With them have vanished the virtues of national character, leaving the field free for crooks, rogues and fanatics. The problems of the Muslims, however, cannot be treated merely as those of the government. They should concern every Indian. It is also particularly important that educated and liberal Muslims get fully involved in tackling the basic problems of the Muslim society. The sangh parivar ought to understand the gravity of the situation. It must not use Lord Rama as a divisive force which he was not. |
“Nothing official, sir” Sometimes we find spark of humour or witticism at a place or in a person where it is least expected. The official correspondence is one such area which is usually dominated by the cliche expressions and hackneyed phrases. There is no scope for wit or humour or practicing ones flair for writing here. But during my career in banking I have come across, though not very often, some pen pushers who used their pungent wit or humorous turn of phrase wherever they could find an occasion thus enlivening the stream of yawn inspiring, dull or routine officialese. A few years ago, I was posted at a zonal office of a bank and dealt with the sanctions for the various expenditures incurred by the branches. We did not usually give permission for use of taxi for carrying cash from one branch to another and insisted that the ordinary bus should be used instead. But one branch manager pleaded his case with such a witty metaphor that I could not help but allow him the use of taxi. He had written: “The buses are so crowded and jam-packed in the area that it is extremely difficult to keep one’s body and soul together, not to speak of the gun and the cashbox.” In another instance, we received a request for permission to purchase furniture and fixtures for a newly opened branch office and also for the Branch Manager’s residence. It included the requisition for six ceiling fans and four pedestal fans. As it happens in most of the zonal offices, such requests are not acceded to in the first instance. Thus a routine query was mailed to the branch: “Please specify where these fans will be used.” We wanted to ascertain as to how many of these fans would be used in branch premises and how many in BM’s residence. But the manager of the branch took the query at its face value or pretended to do so. He wrote back, perhaps with his tongue discreetly in his cheek: “Sir, the ceiling fans will be used on ceilings and the pedestal ones on pedestals.” Simple enough! Sometimes, the senior executives are also caught off guard and become butt of a joke or cause an amusing repartee. Once a note for payment of gratuity and terminal benefits of an employee of the bank was put up for sanction before the Chief General Manager. The case was that of a deceased employee, but the CGM, taking it for a routine retirement case, wrote a remark in red ink as to why such claims are not processed at least six months in advance. The officer down the ladder could not digest the remark and wrote back, apparently in an attempt to clear the misunderstanding: “Sir, we would have prepared the papers well in advance, but the employee in question failed to provide us with the intimation of his premature death well in time.” I do not know whether this reply reached CGM’s table or not, but whoever read it on the way could not suppress a smile. But my most treasured piece in this context is an unusual compliment paid to me by my former boss. Noticing my aptitude for detecting the grammatical or syntactical slips and correcting them, he used to send to me the various drafts for approval before finalising. Once when I spotted yet another glaring but not so easily noticeable mistake in the draft, he wrote on the margin: “Mr Parmar, these days you are doing better than V.V.S. Laxman!” It took me some time before I realised what he actually meant. V.V.S. Laxman has the reputation of being one of the best slip fielders. |
Poison of western economic thought They gave bangles for African slaves, opium for the silver of China and beads for the gold of the Incas and Mayas of South America. Exploitation — it was natural to the ways of the whiteman. It has not changed to this day. Live and let live — this was not what inspired their economic doctrines. Instead, they talked of “competition”. In practice, they used gun powder. They have been a Cain to the Abels of the world. Remember, the greatest sport of the Romans was to let the lions tear up human beings: To let gladiators gore each other! Am I provoked? Indeed, I am, for the whiteman continues to “exploit” the world. He is the cause of much suffering. And, worse, he sells to the poor of the world what is banned in his own native land and treats Asia and Africa as dumping ground for dangerous toxins. Surely, behind these activities is not a civilised mind. It reflects the barbarous past of Europe. The mind is deadened by rapacious greed. That others too have to make a living — this has never been the concern of white men. Thus, the Manchester textile factory owners saw nothing wrong in destroying the livelihood of millions of Indian handloom workers in order to promote the livelihood of the white workers of Manchester! Of course, profit was the first priority. Am I taking up the past to denigrate the people of the West of today? Certainly not. One can ignore the black deeds of the past, although that is no easy task. How can the Africans forget the slave trade and the Red Indians the genocide against their race? And these by those who professed Christianity! But one cannot tolerate the continuing criminal activities of the West in our times. That tobacco is a health hazard was known a century ago. But the Western manufacturers persisted in foisting it on the world. Profit was all. Today they target the young (and women too) of Asia and Africa as tobacco consumption is fast declining in the West. That tobacco causes cancer, that millions go through agony — these are of no concern to them. There is no easy way to block them for they are powerful people. Liquor has been a killer of a different kind. It causes alcoholism. Over the years, its consumption has gone up by leaps. With a decline in consumption in the West, makers of Scotch whisky are desperately trying to dump the surplus in Asia and Africa, particularly in India, with its copious market and high purchasing power. Globalisation has brought McDonald’s and its French fries to every corner of the world. We are now told that it has been selling beef-flavoured French fries! How could it have done such a monstrous thing? Insatiable greed — that is the only answer. And imagine this: a medical device which can see the inside of the lung was found to be causing infection of the lung! Although it is banned in the USA, the company continues to sell it in India. All these have become possible because the peoples of Asia and Africa have for long been subjected to a feeling of inferiority — of self-hate. And admiration for everything western. Which is why America gives so much importance to the export of its way of life to the developing world. This was the unfinished business of colonialism. It has already prepared the peoples of Asia and Africa for an apotheosis of the market culture. Of course, Indians are a party to these criminal activities. Thus, highly toxic lead wastes, which can cause blood and neurological disorders, imported from the West are sold in India for re-use in car batteries. At one time there were 250 plants in Delhi alone to re-cycle lead wastes! As India has no regulatory system, these activities have continued and multiplied. Which explains how a US firm planned to dump 20 tonnes of dangerous mercury in India. It was turned back when Indian NGOs got wind of it. Today, indigent nations accept nuclear wastes for burial against payment. In fact, a new pattern has emerged: a hazardous industry is either transferred to the Third World or its wastes are sold to Third World peoples for reprocessing or disposal. Sometimes free incinerators are provided to burn the wastes, thus polluting the environment. Can the non-white people object to these things? They cannot, for the whiteman can drag them to the WTO court in the name of “free trade”. Reap where you have not sown. The whiteman is a master of this art. He has done little for the development of the world. In fact, he was opposed to the industrialisation of the developing world. India got much of the help from the socialist countries, above all from Russia. And yet the West wants larger and larger share of the Indian market, as if by right! It is time to ask: is this the way man should organise his economic life on which his life depends? Does this add to his happiness? Or is the entire system causing a great deal of avoidable sorrow? The answer should be obvious. In spite of all these, how is it that we are too eager to open up our markets? This is because our business community’s concerned with only one thing: its profit. The care of the country is secondary. Only when its own interests are threatened does it make nationalistic noises. And our rulers (whatever their hue) they have shown least interest in changing the ways of the world. Today the USA champions human rights. It is legitimate to ask: is there a right against economic murder? Have we a right against those who poison our food and environment? It is time to raise these questions. |
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The healing touch of the mind More and more people, doctors included, are feeling the relevance of mental health and its role in physical health and disease — the role of mind in causing various illnesses like high BP, heart disease, stomach ulcers and so on and its role in the progress of various diseases. Faith is a great healer so mind plays a very big role as the causative factor of many illnesses — physical, as well as of mind. Beside causing many illnesses such as high blood pressure, heart disease, stomach problems and so on, it is in fact causative of most other illnesses. It plays a major role in the progress of illness and healing. The following examples narrated by Dr
Lowen, Professor of Cardiology and Nobel laureate (1985), are worth mention. I recall a heart patient whose cardiac (heart) muscle was irreparably damaged, lungs congested with fluid, the heart rate uncontrollably rapid and rhythm at times chaotic; breathing laboured though he was constantly on oxygen. One morning on the rounds I commented to the attending staff that Mr B. had a very long third sound gallop — which is a poor sign — meaning heart straining and usually failing. Slowly and quite unexpectedly, the patient started improving. Some months later, I marvelled at his recovery and asked about the basis for the miraculous improvement. Imagine when he explained that he well knew his desperate condition, but the whole thing changed when the doctor announced to his accompanying staff that the patient had a ‘wholesome gallop’. I thought it meant I had still a galloping heart. My spirits lifted and I knew I would recover.” The doctor narrates another incident. Angel, an old Italian, was awaiting death with a failing heart badly damaged by coronary disease. Doctors had long abandoned all hope. He was in a critical stage with sterborous breathing and convulsion intermittently. Round the clock by his bedside was a young beautiful lady, poised and calm, looking after him — with rare devotion which the doctor thought to be his daughter. The doctor tells: “The day I said to Angelo, you are lucky to have such a devoted daughter,” Angel replied. “She is not my daughter, she is my mistress." The doctor said: “Then you are still luckier, you should marry her.” Angelo replied: "I do not want to make her widow so soon after marriage." The doctor said: "Who says you will." Angelo replies: "You may be joking. If you guarantee in writing that I will be around for five years, I will marry her.” So in the same spirit the doctor drafted a statement guaranteeing Angelo would live for five years. A few days later he was discharged and he got married. One day Angelo appeared and during conversation jokingly said: “Doctor, the five years up — need another guarantee?" Once again the doctor drafted another contract? Another five years passed, Angelo reappeared on the exact date, though this time he was miserably sick, but calm and sensible enough, not to ask for another impossibility even from this fellow human being — the doctor. After hospitalisation and best of efforts in treatment, he died after two
years. Hippocrate said once where there is love of man there is also love of art. For some patients though conscious that their condition is serious, recover their health simply through their faith and love. Though it is difficult to accept by a scientist but then truth cannot be overlooked too — miracles do happen. |
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New BP pill checks strokes A major comparison of two widely used blood pressure pills has found one dramatically superior in preventing strokes and diabetes, even though they are equal at reducing hypertension. The winner was Merck’s Cozaar, which was pitted against the older and widely used beta blocker drug known generically as atenolol. The study was paid for by Merck. Typically, doctors are satisfied simply to get patients’ high blood pressure down and feel it does not matter much which kind of drug accomplishes the goal. Researchers say the new study is the first to show that the way blood pressure is lowered can be important, too. The study found that patients on Cozaar were 25 per cent less likely to suffer strokes and 25 per cent less likely to develop diabetes. However, the two drugs lowered patients’ blood pressure virtually identically. Dr Bjorn Dahlof of Goteburg University in Sweden presented the results to extended applause and whistles in a packed hall on Wednesday at the annual meeting in Atlanta of the American College of Cardiology. The study will also be published in this week’s issue of the British journal Lancet. “We have known for many years that it matters to lower blood pressure,” Dahlof said. “We now know that it matters how we lower blood pressure.”
AP Suffering from food allergy? People often confuse food allergy with food intolerance. You might think that you are allergic to certain kinds of food, but come to think of it seriously, that might not be the case after all. You might actually be suffering from food intolerance and not food allergy. A true food allergy is an abnormal response to a food that is triggered by the immune system. In its most extreme form, this leads to potentially life-threatening anaphylactic shock, which requires emergency treatment with the hormone adrenaline. On the other hand, a food intolerance does not trigger a life-threatening immunological response, but can produce symptoms such as asthma, eczema or migraines. The most common triggers for true food allergies are peanuts, milk and seafood. In fact, allergies can be triggered by as little as 1/1,000th of a peanut.
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I have never thought of anybody as inferior; I have never thought of anybody as superior. I am myself, you are yourself. Drop competition, drop jealousy. It is absolutely pointless. It is absolutely a cunning device cheated by the priests so that you can never by yourself because that is the only thing all the old religions are afraid of. If you are yourself you have found contentment, fulfillment, ecstasy. Who cares about God then? You are God. You have tasted godliness, and within yourself. There is no qualitative difference between you, the beggar and the emperor. The only difference is just on the outside; in the clothes, in the titles, the elephant on which the king is sitting and the beggar in his rags. But these are not real differences, not the difference that makes a difference. Inside yourself you will find a tranquility, a serenity, a silence, a treasure unfathomable. And in finding it you will know everybody has got it; whether he knows it or not, that is a different matter. Everybody is just himself. Accept him as he is. But this is possible only if you accept yourself as you are, with no shame, with no feeling of worthlessness. — Osho, Excerpts from
Personality to Individuality. *** O my Master, Wonderful is your play... You have but one form, though concealed and yet in your creation no one is like another. — Sri Guru Granth Sahib *** Do not to others what ye do not wish Done to yourself; and wish for others too What ye desire and long for, for yourself — This is the whole of dharma — heed —it well. — Veda Vyasa, The Mahabharata |
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