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Friday,
December 27, 2002, Chandigarh, India  
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Water for all Funds for non-development
HARI JAISINGH |
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Face to face with three Nobel laureates
Knowing the mind of the ‘Great Satan’ Less cold you catch, more active you are A new study has revealed that exercise helps to prevent common cold and also that people who are physically active had fewer colds than couch potatoes. For the study, the researchers analysed health and exercise data of 547 healthy adult men and women. They found that people who were the most active had 25 percent fewer colds than those who were the least active.
Teenage drinking quite perilous
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Water for all IT is one indelible black mark on the face of India which refuses to go away even 50 years after Independence. A sizeable population of this great country still does not have access to clean and safe drinking water. It is perhaps the biggest problem facing the rural masses and is now sought to be solved with the help of an ambitious scheme, launched with much fanfare on the birthday of the Prime Minister. “Swajaldhara” aims at providing drinking water to all villages in the country by 2004. Time schedule is tight and it will require all the attention of Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee if the deadline is to be met. Many other schemes launched on his birthdays have lost steam after the initial enthusiasm. This one is of a different nature and brooks no delay. That is why he has called for a collective, all-party effort. It is ironical that a facility that should be provided by the government as a matter of duty has to be packaged as a “gift”. Equally ironical is the fact that some put hurdles in its way because of petty considerations. For a change, all parties should back this endeavour in deference to the dire needs of the poor villagers. The task is very much in the realm of reality. It is not as if the whole country is deprived of drinking water. There are only certain pockets which have remained neglected for various reasons. Banish the routine “ifs” and “buts” and you can bring water to everyone’s doorstep. Funds have been a major constraint. But this time the necessary details have been filled in. While 10 per cent of the project and maintenance costs are to be borne by the village or the panchayat, the rest will be spent by the Union Ministry to Rural Development. Launched initially in eight states, including Haryana and Himachal Pradesh, “Swajaldhara” envisages taking up 882 projects costing Rs 87 crore. The Prime Minister has also done well to lay stress on saving water, preventing wastage and maintaining the assets created through the scheme. Water is the elixir of life which has not been used with the necessary care by those who take it for granted. Perhaps those who have experienced the scarcity will be more enthusiastic about its conservation. On a larger canvas, Mr Vajpayee has put his weight behind the linking of rivers. It is unfortunate that instead of letting experts delineate on the pros and cons of the project, lay persons have peddled their personal opinions as gospel truth. The whole issue needs to be examined with an open mind. However, most people seem determined to use their hearts instead. But then, every ambitious project has its detractors who approve of it only after it is up and about. |
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Funds for non-development WHAT
can be more shocking than the revelation made by the Punjab Chief Minister that Punjab MPs have not spent a large part of the money given to them by the Centre for undertaking development works in their constituencies? Funds amounting to Rs 33 crore are lying unspent. Under a Central scheme, each MP is provided with a grant of Rs 2 crore by the Union Government which he can spend on need-based projects in his area in consultation with the Deputy Commissioner concerned. Although newspaper reports about the Chief Minister’s announcement, made at a meeting with senior state officials in Chandigarh on Tuesday, have not carried details of who spent how much on which project, the amount lying unutilised is large enough to cause concern, specially for a state which is passing through a critical financial crisis and needs every rupee available to meet its pressing needs. The Chief Minister has often been accused of focussing too much on Akali-related corruption and neglecting development work in the state. In his defence, Capt Amarinder Singh points to the empty Treasury left behind by his “extravagant” predecessor. On the one hand, there is Central money available for development, and there are no projects, on the other state projects are held up for want of funds. Is not something seriously wrong with how public money, whether in the Central possession or in the State’s kitty, is handled? And this is not the first instance of non-utilisation of Central assistance. In August this year a meeting of Amritsar district officials witnessed an angry outburst by the Union Minister of State for Rural Development, Mr Annasaheb M.K. Patel, who pointed out that out of Rs 175 crore made available for various projects, Rs 76 crore was not used at all in addition to the previous year’s balance of Rs 9.17 crore. The fund utilisation was less than 58 per cent for Central schemes like the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sarak Yojna, the Indira Avaas Yojna, the Food-for-Work programme, the wasteland development scheme and the Sampuran Gramin Rozgar Yojna. He blamed the state bureaucracy for the slow or non-use of funds and debunked the widely shared view of Punjab being a progressive state. There is no doubt that in the past decade or so Punjab’s development graph has shown a downward trend. The state’s easy-going bureaucracy and political leadership engaged in petty politics and mutual bickering are largely responsible for the economic slowdown. It is still not too late in the day for the state’s politicians to give up their unprincipled politics, bury personal differences and work unitedly for the overall growth of the state. The bureaucracy too takes advantage of a sleeping or ever-fighting political class. It will take all Punjabis and their well-wishers to make a joint effort to reverse the state’s downhill journey. |
The octopus of corruption
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Transparency International (India)-ORG Marg survey has reportedly revealed that Indians pay Rs 26,728 crore (Rs 267 billion) in bribe every year in exchange for the services they get. This figure roughly works out to be half of the country’s annual defence budget. The message from the findings is highly disquieting, though in today’s changing moral standards in public life more and more of Indians are becoming insensitive to cases of corruption and corrupt practices. This ought to be a major point of worry as well as study. The survey points out that every 10th person in India is affected by corrupt practices, whether he has to deal with the police or seek medical service or keep electricity going in his or her house. The study finds the country’s health network to be the most corrupt among 10 service sectors surveyed, affecting 8 per cent of the population. In monetary arithmetic, this means Rs 7,578 crore in bribes keeps health facilities going for harassed citizens. Things are equally awful in the vital sector of education. Even the judiciary is not free from the octopus of corruption. The report says: “The key form of corruption is predominantly paying money to the court official. Around Rs 2,510 crore is said to be paid as bribe in the judicial arena”. The survey has covered 16 states and 5,127 urban and rural households. This is apparently quite limited in range. I personally believe that the ground realities are far more painful than what has been reported. No wonder, India ranks 30th among the most corrupt nations in the world. According to another study by KPMG Fraud Survey 2002, secret commissions and kickbacks account for 30 per cent of losses suffered by India Incorporated, thanks to wider-anging frauds. Fudging with expenditure accounts, misappropriation of funds and purchases of goods for personal use by officials at their employers’ expenses and false invoices, etc, have virtually made corruption a way of life in the absence of a foolproof system of transparency and accountability. The recent securities scams only confirm the deep-rooted malaise afflicting the country in a big way. How this led to the collapse of US-64, the beleaguered scheme of the nation’s largest mutual fund, the Unit Trust of India, is widely known. Earlier it was Harshad Mehta. In the US-64 scam, Big Bull Ketan Parekh manipulated the securities market in connivance with some banks and corporate houses. Ketan Parekh obviously took full advantage of the loopholes in the system with active support from key persons in positions of power and authority. The Joint Parliamentary Committee has confirmed these shady affairs, though selectively. The economy is indeed in the grip of a vicious circle and it is difficult to identify who exactly are the real or main culprits. What we see today is part of a continuous drift because of the “indulgence extended by a section of politicians and bureaucrats”. Things have come to such a pass that “front-ranking smugglers of yesteryear could declare themselves without the least compunction as honourable politicians”. Money, especially of the black genre, has never before been so openly flaunted to achieve sectarian or personal gains. “Bribing has almost become a way of life. It has given rise to a kind of auto-compensation principle. A bribes B and B bribes C and C bribes A, and like this it goes on.” Loose ends of the system apart, political waywardness has mainly contributed to black money generation. Political funding is the single most important generator of black money. The rest is taken over by real estate developers, underworld filmi links, smugglers, speculators, neo-industrialists and adventurers. The situation is dicey. A person belonging to the middle income group has no choice but to pay a substantial part of the price in black money for a flat in a metropolitan town. He is compelled to convert his white money—his provident fund and other domestic savings—into black money. A sad commentary on the Indian property transactions which are tilted in favour of black money operators. Even the taxation system is lopsided. The Indian people are probably among the highest taxed in the world. Since the tax structure is built on the narrowest base, those coming in higher slabs generally resort to evasion. According to one study, quite a sizeable black income is generated by undervaluing real estates. With black money has grown “crime money”. It roughly constitutes 25 per cent of the total quantum of cash generated every day. There are thousands of illicit gambling dens which generate black money. As it is, the illicit liquor trade is lucrative business. Who benefits from such activities? The netherworld accounts for a large chunk of the flow of money. The smugglers have now entered the world of business, industry and finance by flaunting their black money power. They have been buying up shares in major joint stock companies and have practically monopolised the construction business in metropolitan and big cities. With their muscle power, money power and political clout, they have been entering politics in a big way. They even finance anti-national elements and manage to get away with every crime. The statistics are telling: (i) A smuggler pays Rs 15,000 per kg of a drug at the pick-up point. At this stage, the drug usually has a 60 per cent purity. By the time it is retailed on the street it costs anything up to Rs 60,000 a kg and has 10 to 12 per cent purity. Hence, an investment of Rs 15,000 generates a magical gross revenue of over Rs 3.5 lakh. (ii) A small-time peddler pushing smack from a dingy street corner could easily amass over Rs 1 crore in a short period. If a small fry could make a fortune in a short span, money power of big sharks operating beyond the pale of law could well be imagined. What is disquieting in this shady setting is the harsh fact of the law enforcement authorities also being major beneficiaries from these underworld activities. In fact, they are virtually partners in the socio-economic “crime”. Corruption in India thrives on black money operations. Like water, it flows from top to bottom. Corrupt leaders impart momentum to corrupt practices and gradually muddy the system. A businessman may corrupt the rank and file of public service—from the chaprasi upwards. The prevailing conditions favour such corrupt practices. Once the system is corrupt, simple business arrangements make people greedy. Eventually the poor and the common people suffer badly. Corruption is surely ubiquitous. It may be a “global” phenomenon, as Indira Gandhi once explained it away publicly. However, we have reasons to feel concerned since today’s corruption-prone system in our country affects everything, including the gross national product and the balance of payments. Mr V.P. Singh, who left the Rajiv Gandhi Cabinet in disgust, once remarked: “If the total amount of loot stashed away in foreign countries now amounts to as much as Rs 50,000 crore, or a quarter of our national income, everyone of us is ultimately at the receiving end.” Actually, money deposited by Indians in foreign banks is much more than Rs 50,000 crore. According to one estimate, the “overseas funds” of “successful Indians” (I am not referring to NRIs) can finance a minimum of the country’s five Five-Year Plans. These harsh facts come as a shock when we look at our civilisational values, rich traditions, the reach of sacred books which are part of the life of millions of Indians whichever religion they might belong to, and the overall influence saints, swamis, sadhus and fakirs enjoy among all segments of the population. As we bid goodbye to the year 2002, may I ask the readers why we have acquired notoriety of being a corrupt nation. What is wrong where? Can we have an honest appraisal of the whole gamut of corruption power and draw appropriate lessons with a view to correcting the system and ensuring transparency and accountability in critical areas of governance? In any case, the process of reforms for a clean system has to begin in the mind of every Indian. |
Face to face with three Nobel laureates AFTER my retirement, often, as I sit to enjoy the bliss of solitude and savour the feast of memories, three luminous images — those of three Nobels — distinctly flash across the screen of my mind, I fervently thank dame luck for having bestowed upon me the rare honour of having been face to face with Prof Abdus Salam, Mother Teresa and V.S. Naipaul. It must indeed be counted as a great blessing and privilege granted to an ordinary mortal to have spent some memorable moments with three of the brightest and towering figures who have ever stridden across our planet. The first picture to rise before my inward eye is that of Abdus Salem, The bright star on the firmament of mathematics and physics, who did brilliantly original work in Italy. Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, was holding its convocation on January 25, 1982, when I found myself spell-bound by the convocation address delivered in chaste Punjabi with Jhangi accent by this charmingly unassuming scientist. I was teaching in Government College for Women, Amritsar, at that time. The solemn occasion was also graced by Prof H.R. Bhatla (Physics) and Prof. Ish Kumar (English), two veteran teachers of Abdus Salem. But the star attraction undoubtedly was the genius Nobel prize winner Abdus Salem the simple looking son of the Punjabi soil. During his address he vigorously made the point that only the progress in science and technology could unlock the doors of prosperity and development for Third World countries. As a science teacher, I found myself much elevated when I exchanged a few words with him. Mother Teresa, the messiah of the poor and the destitute, and one of the most humble examples of living faith and shining nobility, was gracing The Saint. Francis School, Amritsar. I was blessed to be in her sublime and divinely radiant presence. She blessed me, when I touched her feet. That was a moment ever serene and satisfying. To quote William Wordsworth, “I felt that it was bliss in that moment to be alive, and to be there was very celestial.” Of course, she had not won the Nobel Prize at that time. But with difference does it make? She is one of those magnificent and illustrious personalities who confer lustre upon the honours awarded to them and not vice-versa. The selection of V.S. Naipaul for the Nobel Prize in Literature brings to my mind the train of memories — a remembrance of the things past, as I recall having had an unforgettable occasion to interact with the literacy giant on the lush lawns of Hotel Mountview in Chandigarh. This privilege came to me via the courtesy extended by a veteran journalist. Those were the dark days of terrorism in Punjab and V.S. Naipaul was here to seek an understanding of the complexities of the satanic situation and explore the psyche of the Punjabis, as he wanted to garner material for “The Million Mutinies”. I was introduced to him as a secular Hindu hailing from trouble-torn border area of Punjab. He revealed a keen intellect, perceptive mind and incisive and inquisitive approach as he endeavoured to wrestle with the baffling subject. He evinced keen interest in pursuing the idea of Hindu-Sikh relations in the terror-stricken Punjab. This interaction continued for more than 30 minutes over a cup of coffee. It helped me also to gain a more meaningful insight into the subject which had gripped and afflicted the Punjabi mind everywhere. But more than that, I felt honoured and rewarded by the mere fact of being a Naipaul’s inspiring presence. Even at that time it could be easily anticipated that a Nobel could not elude such creative great man for ever and ever. |
Knowing the mind of the ‘Great Satan’ AMERICA is a dream. It is also a nightmare. It is sublime, and it is also ridiculous. Even its Presidents are rather queer. Bush is one. He has two heads and two voices. “Who lives there in the White House?” President Coolidge was once asked. “No body”, came the prompt reply from a glum Coolidge. “They just come and go!” he said. It is true, American Presidents come and go. And more often they are nobodies — more proxies of dark forces. They appear larger than life because it is part of the mythology that American Presidents should be presented in a heroic mould. And their private pathology is too obvious not to be missed by men of their age. They have come down to us through anecdotes and apocrypha. The American Presidents appropriated the mantle of the Imperium of the Roman Caesars. Greece did not interest them neither its muses nor its philosophers. Not all the Presidents of America were imperius like Augustus or Julius. In fact, more often, they were like Nero, the joker. And yet the chroniclers of American history would have us believe that Washington, the first President, was “pious like Numa, just as Aristides, temperate like Epictous” and so on. Today it is the make-up artist of the hired media who builds up the public image of the US Presidents. American Presidents have been a varied lot. Some were born to wealth, some to poverty, some had education, most had none. Few were really great, most were plain disasters. There has been a change in the preoccupations of American Presidents — from Washington’s unremitting exertion to mate an unwilling Spanish jackass with an American mare to Bush’s worry: how to fight terrorism with Musharraf for company! And between the two, we have both the absurd and the poignant, and no doubt the hilarious too, all telling one single tale of the march of the American wagon train to the Wild West to the great unknown beyond. Today the wagon train is hitched to the fight against terrorism. It could take America and the world to ruin and disaster, if America is not serious — if its idea is to fool the world once again. America as the supreme power of the world for all times to come — this is what the American dream is all about. But America is not ready to pay the price for world domination. It is too costly. Other ways must be found for world domination. And one way is to distract its enemies. It must not allow the mind of its enemies to settle down on a single thought or on a single goal. There must be continuous distraction. And the best way to distract men is by playing on religion, sex and violence. In short, America keeps the world in a state of fever and fear. America has a theory for it: churn up the world into a whirlpool of distracting passions and prejudices and let the world’s peoples be sucked into this maelstrom and thrown about in a continuous turmoil. This way men will stay out of their schemes for new world orders. It is a cold-blooded calculation. But distraction is not enough. There must be big bangs too if needed. But who will pay for the army and the bombs? Why, those who benefit from the capitalist enterprise must pay for the bang too. There are millions of them. There can be no sleeping partners here. Each must fight the battle for capitalism. For globalisation. And pay their share for the security. Have our defence analysts thought of world domination as a business enterprise? Perhaps not. They must learn it from Uncle Sam. And what of the Sultans and Sheikhs and others who depend on Uncle Sam for their survival? They too pay for their security. Even those who have no mandate to rule register themselves with Uncle Sam, no doubt on payment, for protection. That is why the religious fundamentalists used to look to America for life support. So too the political class, the capitalists, the bureaucracy. They all support America, for under any other global dispensation, they may lose their privileges. The Ayatollahs and mullahs will go back to Uncle Sam one day on their bended knees, for America is the only protector of all mullahs and sadhus of the world. Without America, there may be a world revolution tomorrow. I do not think that the world is ready to experiment with new ideologies. If it does, America knows how to oppose it, distract it, confuse it and confound it. In fact, America does not want the world to take a single step forward. It wants the world to stay where it is, rooted in its fear. America keeps talking of the “free” world, although it is only a den of wolves. But “free” is a potent word. It gives oneself respectability and legitimacy. And it talks of “democracy” and “human rights”, though it is engaged in promoting the law of the jungle, setting herds against herds, nations against nations. And to mute the world, America distributes aid, but it knows how to take it back. It is easy to dominate the world, for the rulers of our world are not a highly intelligent lot. Those who have climbed thus far on this ladder of power have lost their humanity and intelligence. They are susceptible, you can be sure, to the infirmities of rulers of all ages. You can still fool many of them, some you can buy and there are others who are ready to be your slaves. So what is the ultimate game of Uncle Sam? He keeps the world guessing — that is the greatest game. And he keeps the world in a state of slux. And men are but marionettes to him. And if there is a price to be paid to keep the world safe for American power, America is ready to pay it. But it makes more in the process. It is no great loss to America (indeed it is a profit) if it can gain a marginal profit from its various enterprises, for, as they say, many a drop will make an ocean. And if America is still short of cash, it can always create an economic or financial crisis around the world to earn a few billions. How does it matter to America how it makes the investments to secure power over the world — by giving alms or arms, or through coups and assassinations? If by being friends with China, America can keep Russia at bay, it is indeed a wise investment, for American power will continue in the meantime as also its profits. Don’t such short-term gains in time lead to the long-term quest for American power over the world? To buy time is also part of the game. But mind you, Uncle Sam will never strengthen the hand that can strike it one day or say nay to its proposals. Such has been the case with Moscow and Delhi. America also acts the world’s cop with an eye on the empire it has built. And he is paid by the priests and power hungry and the MNCs. Thus, America has been able to use the power of the “haves” to deny the rights of the “have-nots”. And America buys those who are still reluctant with the offer of jobs in America, trips, green cards and other ways. America knows that it can play this game for a long time, for it can find men and nations ready to play the game with it. And in the flux of history, friends become enemies, enemies become friends. And thus has America raised the permutations of its opportunities. |
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Less cold you catch, more active you are A new study has revealed that exercise helps to prevent common cold and also that people who are physically active had fewer colds than couch potatoes. For the study, the researchers analysed health and exercise data of 547 healthy adult men and women. They found that people who were the most active had 25 percent fewer colds than those who were the least active. Those who were moderately active also had fewer colds than those people who were the least active though the difference wasn’t very striking, according to Charles E. Matthews, author of the study and a research assistant professor of epidemiology at the University of South Carolina. The researchers looked at physical activity done in the home, at work and during leisure time. They considered only moderate to vigorous exercise, including activities such as brisk walking, scrubbing floors or heavy gardening — mowing the lawn, for instance. Vacuuming or dusting wouldn’t qualify, Matthews says. After controlling for major diseases, age, diet, having young children in the household and psychological factors such as anxiety and hostility, they found that people who were the most active had the fewest colds. “The most likely explanation for the finding is that higher levels of activity for the average person derive some benefits to their immune defenses against a cold,” the researcher added.
ANI |
Teenage drinking quite perilous A new US research has found that binge drinking is more dangerous for teenagers than previously thought as such teens suffer long-term health and life-style hazards, including permanent brain damage and financial hardships. According to a report by the American Medical Association, teenage drinkers also have a worse memory, vocabulary and general knowledge than non-drinkers. They also do worse at school and have an increased risk of social problems, depression, suicidal thoughts and violence. It was found that binge drinking damages brains, which continue to develop up to the age of 16 and it can permanently damage the frontal lobe, which influences personality, and the hippocampus, important in memory, reports The Sydney Morning Herald. The report, a summary of the past two decades of research on alcohol and young people, also revealed that such teenagers were more likely to indulge in abusive behaviour , less likely to finish their education, get married, get a job and gain financial independence.
ANI Oranges, green tea check cancer Citrus fruits and green tea contain anti-cancer properties and their extensive consumption can help prevent the potentially fatal disease, Indian researchers have found. The finding came from eight years of research by a team of scientists under Mr B.R. Das, professor of molecular biotechnology at the Institute of Life Sciences in Orissa. The researchers found that d-limonene, a chemical found in oils of various citrus fruits, some teas and orange peel, could combat the carcinogenic effects of chemicals like NDEA (N-nitrosodiethylamine), one of many factors that cause cancer. “We gave this chemical (NDEA) to mice with drinking water on an experimental basis after various time intervals like 30, 60 and 90 days,” institute director A.P. Das told
IANS. |
If ye love me, keep my commandments; and I will pray the father and he shall give you another comforter that he may abide with you for ever. —The Bible. John 13.34-35
*** Jesus was not an ordinary human being. He was the divine power and love incarnated upon this globe for a special, divine purpose.... The voice of Jesus is verily the voice of the Eternal Being. Through him is expressed the call of the Infinite to the finite, of the Cosmic Being to the individual, the call of God to man. His divine voice is the same, therefore, as the voice of the Vedas and the Upanishads, the voice of the Koran, the Zen Avesta, the Dhammapada and all such sacred scriptures... of the world. —Swami Sivananda, Bliss Divine.
*** Jesus Jesus, lover of my soul, Let me to thy bosom fly, While the waters nearby roll, While the tempest still is high, Hide me! O my saviour hide, Till the storm of life is past; Safe into the haven glide, O receive my soul at last. —Charles Wesley, Jesus, Lover of My Soul
*** Hark! the herald angels sing Glory to the new-born King; Peace on earth, and mercy mild, God and sinners reconciled! Joyful all ye nations rise, Join the triumph of the skies; With the angelic host proclaim Christ is born in Bethlehem. —Christmas Hymn: Hark! the Herald Angels Sing.
*** The True Lord is within all and everything happens under His will. He who recognises His will he knows the one alone. God alone is beyond the castes and names, because on everybody there is only one shade of God. — Shri Guru Granth Sahib, Var Sri Rag M4, page 83 Compiled by Satish K. Kapoor |
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