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Sunday,
May 18, 2003, Chandigarh, India  
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GUEST COLUMN ON RECORD |
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VIEWPOINT IMPRESSIONS
Commonalities
in diversity
One flew
over cuckoo’s nest
‘China
Man’ moves to Pak
Focus on
Sikhs living abroad
STUDENTS’ HELPLINE
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GUEST COLUMN
AFTER months of sabre-rattling, India-Pakistan relations took a sudden turn to the road to peace on April 18, when Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee announced in Srinagar that India was willing to extend its hand of friendship to Pakistan. The news was bewildering as it came just when the leaders of the two countries were shooting threats of pre-emptive strike and nuclear retaliation at each other. A participant in a PTV discussion that night thought it was another of Mr Vajpayee’s musings. But Pakistani Prime Minister Zafarullah Khan Jamali and his Foreign Minister Khurshid Mehmood Kasuri lost no time in welcoming the offer. They considered it a victory of their foreign policy. Mr Jamali took the initiative of speaking to Mr Vajpayee on telephone to assure him of his government’s sincerity in resolving all problems between their countries. It is said that India and Pakistan are tied in a relationship of love and hate. They can get hysterical against each other at the slightest provocation and the next moment plunge into a euphoria stupor. This relationship somewhat answers Aristotle’s theory of tragedy: a tragic flaw leads to tragedy and the tragedy produces catharsis. Note, for example, the upsurge of the emotion of love between the peoples of the two countries after the tragedy that was the 1971 war. Note also the same emotions during Mr Vajpayee’s bus journey to Lahore in February 1999 after a tense period following their nuclear experiments. There was tremendous jubilation when Gen Pervez Musharraf arrived in Delhi for the Agra talks in July 2001, about two years after the Kargil invasion, which he has authored. The high tension which had brought the two nuclear weapon countries on the verge of another war, after the December 13, 2001 attack on India’s Parliament, suddenly relaxed after Mr Vajpayee’s recent announcement. Mr Vajpayee has been known for his eagerness to have peace both at home and with neighbours. And that is his strength. As the Foreign Minister in the Morarji Desai Janata Party government during 1977-79, he chose Pakistan as the first country for his visit in 1978 despite all the reservations in India about Gen Zia-ul-Haq’s military dictatorship. This visit brought about an ostensible change in India’s attitude towards military regimes in Pakistan. Gen Zia was frightened when Mrs Indira Gandhi came back to power in 1980. Pakistani newspapers at that time had reported that he had expressed his fear about this to his friends in America. Pro-democracy and anti-Zia forces in Pakistan distributed sweets when the Congress returned to power in India. But despite all her sympathies for these forces, Mrs Gandhi did not reverse the trends in relations with the Zia regime. Both countries started negotiations in 1983 for evolving a peace treaty by marrying Gen Zia’s no-war pact proposal and the one for peace and friendship treaty as proposed by Mrs Gandhi. Notably, Pakistan chose to keep Kashmir out of these discussions. However, it is necessary to make it clear that along with the upsurge in people-to-people contacts, Gen Zia’s Islamisation programme and Pakistan’s active involvement in the US-led campaign in Afghanistan was producing counter-effects. A new version of the two-nation theory was being propagated which considered it a blasphemy to say the peoples of the two countries had the same history and culture. Gen Zia flatly refused to allow Lata Mangeshkar to visit Pakistan. “After all we have our own culture,” he would say but would never shy away from posing for photographs with semi-nude Chinese and North Korean dancers. He would also not allow screening of Indian films. In June 1978, he discontinued private trade with India under pressure of fundamentalists who considered cultural and trade relations with India against what they called the ideology of Pakistan. The use of Pakistan as a nursery for obscurantist jehadis against the Soviet presence in Afghanistan by the United States was a long way in promoting hostility between India and Pakistan. It was then that the ISI learnt the art of using terrorism in the name of jehad as an effective tool of foreign policy. Since 1989, India has been a victim of this policy in Kashmir. Mr Vajpayee had undertaken his bus trip to Lahore in February 1999 when the bitterness because of the continued cross-border terrorism had been compounded by their nuclear tests in May 1998. When Mr Vajpayee announced his decision to go to Lahore, a view was expressed that the fact of their being nuclear weapon countries should make them realise the need for peaceful co-existence more than ever before. One thing that the people of Pakistan, the monument that reminds visitors that Pakistan must remember about Mr Vajpayee’s Lahore trip is his visit to Minar-i-Pakistan, the monument that reminds visitors that Pakistan was created on the basis of the Muslim League’s two-nation theory. Apparently, Mr Vajpayee made the historic visit to assure the people of Pakistan that India truly accepted the existence of their country along with the basis of creation. This was a historic gesture from the Prime Minister of a secular democracy. The Lahore Declaration, the Memorandum of Understanding signed during his visit and, above all, Mr Vajpayee’s show of respect to the ideological foundations of Pakistan should have started a new ear of peace and friendship between the two countries. But all this did not impress the Army, the ISI and the fundamentalists. Just when Mr Vajpayee was preparing to go to Lahore, Urdu daily “Jang” was carrying at least one article a day saying Pakistan needed an external enemy — in India — for its own survival. And then came the Kargil aggression. In June 2001, Mr Vajpayee again created history by congratulating Gen Musharraf when he took over as the President from Mr Rafiq Tarar. It was for the first time that an India Prime Minister congratulated an Army coup leader for becoming the President of Pakistan. This was in the run-up to the Agra summit for which Mr Vajpayee had invited Gen Musharraf. Gen Musharraf was responsible for the Kargil aggression. Through this, he apparently sought to achieve two objectives: get jehadis against Nawaz Sharif, who had hosted Mr Vajpayee in February and ordered withdrawal of Pakistani troops from Kargil in July; and to support the Jehadis’ view that Kashmir can only be resolved through force. Gen Musharraf’s current claims that he had gone to Agra to discuss all bilateral issues including the core issue are not very correct. It had been his promise to jehadis right from the day he removed Nawaz Sharif’s government on October 12, 1999 that Kashmir would be the only issue on which he would talk to India. That is reason why the Agra talks failed. However, after September 11, 2001 terror attacks on the United States, Pakistan was forced to stop its open support to jehadi\ terrorist forces. Now is the time for Pakistan to prove its sincerity about terrorism-free relations with India. The writer is Director, Institute for Media Studies & Information Technology, YMCA, New Delhi |
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ON RECORD
WHEN Manohar Joshi took over as Lok Sabha Speaker a year ago, leaders of some political parties raised doubts about his capabilities to conduct the House in an impartial manner. However, on May 9, that impression was demolished when members belonging to all political parties gave Dr Joshi a standing ovation on completing one year as the Speaker of the Lok Sabha. Dr Joshi had been instrumental in ending frequent adjournments as well as incidents of members trooping into the well of the House. But for the deferment of the controversial 33 per cent Women’s Reservation Bill amidst uproarious scenes, Dr Joshi conducted the business of the recently concluded Budget session in a relatively peaceful and smooth manner. In a free wheeling interview, Dr Joshi defended his decision to defer the Women’s Reservation Bill. He also minced no words in giving credit to former Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pramod Mahajan for getting him appointed to the most prestigious post. Dr Joshi, who never believes in making off-the-record statements also made certain suggestions to improve the image of Parliament. Excerpts: Q: In your long political career, you have served in different capacities. How do you feel being the Lok Sabha Speaker? A: Cricket has a great influence in my life. So, I will answer your question using words used in cricket. As Chief Minister and Minister in the Union Cabinet, I was like a batsman. But as a Lok Sabha Speaker, I see my role as an umpire. As a Minister one enjoys direct power, but as Speaker, although one enjoys greater power, it is not directly derivable. As the Speaker I not only get respect and honour within the country but also abroad. Q: Many in political circles refer to you as "Mahajan’s Man", as the former Parliamentary Affairs Minister played a crucial role in your elevation to the Speaker’s position. Your comments. A: I have no qualms in saying that Mr Mahajan played a crucial role in my elevation to the Speaker’s position. He spoke to everyone from Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee to Shiv Sena Chief Bal Thackery about me. Since we had been in Maharashtra politics together for 15 years, Mahajan knew well about my capabilities, sincerity and hard working nature. I strongly believe that the Speaker of the Lok Sabha remains above suspicion. When I took over, many felt that I will not be acting in an impartial manner and that I will act by "remote control" but I proved them wrong on May 9 when members belonging to all political parties gave me a standing ovation on my completion of one year in office. Q: On the deferment of the Women’s Reservation Bill Congress President Sonia Gandhi has pointed fingers at you. A: I was keen that this important bill should be passed unanimously. But I knew that some political parties are opposing it. I was also aware of what had happened in the House in the past when this bill was listed for debate. That is why I held a meeting with the representatives of all the political parties after briefly adjourning the House to ensure that at least there is a debate on the Bill. However, during the meeting the party leaders themselves felt that it would be difficult to get the Bill passed in the Budget session. I have to go by the collective wisdom of the House. I can’t help if any political party later criticises me outside Parliament. Moreover, it is wrong to say that I was trying to avoid the Bill. It is a fact that I belong to a party (Shiv Sena), which is opposing the Bill in its present form, but as the Speaker of the House I did the right thing in the circumstances. Those who are trying to point fingers at me should know that I, as the Chief Minister of Maharashtra in 1996, had got a resolution unanimously passed in the State Assembly, urging the Centre to provide 33 per cent reservation to women in legislatures. Maharashtra was the first in the country to pass such a resolution unanimously. Q: But you had the option of throwing out the members who were preventing the House from debating the Bill. A: You would have yourself noticed that I never believed in throwing members out of the House to conduct the business...I strongly believe that there can always be a debate and compromise. Q: Can you allow a handful of members to hold the House to ransom? A: For me the House is like a family. If a member of the family does not agree with the view of another member, will you throw him out? No, you will try to convince him. My effort has all along been to improve the image of Parliament and conduct the proceedings in a peaceful manner. Q: To improve the image of Parliament what further steps do you think are needed? A: People having criminal background should be prevented from entering Parliament and declaration of assets by MPs should be made compulsory. If these two things take place, there will be phenomenal improvement in the image of Parliament. Another area where MPs will have to contribute in a big way is the quality of the debate...In the past one year there has been substantial increase in the time allotted for debates, with less interruption and adjournments, but there is immense scope for improvement in the quality of debates. Q: Recently there had been lot of controversy over the MPs’ Local Area Development Scheme (MPLADS). There were suggestion from many quarters for scrapping the scheme. Your comments. A: I
feel that this fund is very important. I do not favour scrapping of
the scheme just because a few members could misuse it. Yes, if any
member is found guilty of misusing severe action must be taken against
him. If any district official is also involved in the misuse, action
should also be initiated against him. Punishing the erring member
would act as a big deterrent against the misuse of MPLADS funds. |
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VIEWPOINT MIGRATION has become a major problem in the country. Micro-level studies indicate that the population living in slums, shanties and pavements in metropolitan and other large cities has been growing at a much faster rate than their total population. In Kolkata, 2000 migrants come every day, in Mumbai 25,000 a month and in Delhi, 1.2 lakh every year. And most of this population finds place in slums and/or slummish-type settlements. The growing poverty in the rural areas, being the result of lack of balanced regional development, is increasingly forcing the population to migrate to the large urban centres in search of employment. Moreover, the use of mechanisation in industry in reducing the employment potential and a middle-level industry in countries like India can hardly satisfy the employment needs of the neighbouring villages. While industry has tended to become what could be termed modern, agriculture in developing countries like India is not sufficiently modern to provide food or wok for the labour force of the villages. As such, even a majority of those owing small tracts of land do not find it profitable to cultivate it and instead move to the nearby urban centres in search of employment. There is now a consensus of achieving an appropriate rural-urban balance of job opportunities and development activity within a nation. Specially for countries like India and China, where the majority of the population is concentrated in the villages, it is imperative to extend planning, infrastructure, appropriate technology and complimentary resources and services to the rural areas as a matter of highest priority. The hurdles in the way of such development in the past seem to have diminished to a considerable extent in recent years and appropriate strategies for improving the rural-urban balance need to be devised immediately. The need for bestowing proper attention to the rural areas so as to ensure its normal, healthy growth would possibly be the priority in most countries, especially in India. How can rural, non-agricultural work opportunities be generated? What is the cost of creating a job in the cities as compared to the rural areas when capital per worker and new infrastructure requirements (including social services) per family etc. are including in the calculas? Indeed, what are the full costs of providing basic infrastructure and social services in cities as compared with rural areas? Why do people migrate and what are the full benefits and costs of their doing so, considering that their arrival in a new location may increase the need for social and physical infrastructure? These and other questions need to be examined in depth if the rural-urban migration has to be arrested. But the most vital issue is the need for decentralisation of planning and implementation functions and their coordination at local levels. It, however, needs to be pointed out that the nature of the involvement of both internal and external agencies in supporting regional or district-level planning efforts requires a careful thought because the opportunities like to emerge over the next few years will be enormous for a balanced strategy of development. Moreover, micro-level training, choice of appropriate technology as also sincere developmental efforts with sufficient allocations in budget could gear up the process of rural development and attempt at checking the increasing in-migration from the rural to the urban centres. A comprehensive plan of action to ensure that the planning process and the resultant implementation of developmental efforts reach the grassroots level has been echoed the world over. In India, efforts are being made to decentralise the administrative process and make the panchayats more effective and responsive to the needs of the masses. The 73rd amendment to the Constitution has bestowed more powers on the panchayats to make them viable centres of the three-tier of governance. However, planning needs to be translated into reality to gear up developmental efforts and ensure a balanced regional development. Even if there is a comprehensive developmental plan for the rural areas, can the population migration be totally arrested? This is obvious because even the rural rich may like to migrate and live in material comforts in the metropolises and big cities. But if there is a definite shift in emphasis from urban to rural planning, some important rural areas could also hope to enjoy some of the advantages of big cities like electrification, better communication system and better education and health facilities. The whole point is that exodus from the rural to the urban areas has to be arrested at any cost and this could only be done by greater attention to micro-level planning and rural developmental efforts. No form of subsiding the urban population that cost of keeping the rural mass will be entertained as there have been protests in many countries at ensuring remunerative prices for farmers. The government should ensure that those in the rural areas are assured of minimum needs, sufficient purchasing power and facilities to lead a normal life. Then only will the process of migration to the urban centres be checked and ensure rural-urban balance.
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IMPRESSIONS IS today’s woman really independent? In Delhi, Chandigarh or Barabanki? In India or the US? The woman who washes and cleans floors; or the woman who sits in a plush office in Mumbai; the woman who raises slogans in a political rally; or the classy dignified minister, who wears khadi silks with understated colours; the woman constable who dons the khaki uniform or the helpless housewife who doesn’t know the way to her husband’s office. Are any of them free, independent and safe? Do they have the freedom of mobility, of dressing, of living, of choices, without getting into some danger? They maybe, it is said, if they wear decent clothes, if they don’t walk the streets after dusk, if they are not frank and open in their conversation, if they choose to always have a male escort with them at odd hours (not that, that is a 100 per cent guarantee), but still! There are innumerable other do’s and don’ts to be followed if women are to save themselves from one crime even God can’t protect them from. If a sex hungry human from the opposite sex, who constitute the other half of the world, decides to do so. You could be a rocket scientist, a model, a film star, an astronaut or just plain and simple Kanta Bai, you have one common fear, the rape factor. You can be invaded, outraged and demeaned in a manner no man can ever be. A biological disadvantage a woman is born with. It was always there, and it will always be there. We no longer talk of dark alleys or empty parking lots at late nights. We are talking of 2.30 in the afternoon, in the heart of the city, on a busy thoroughfare. A girl who is pursuing medicine, who is educated and who believed till recently, in the myth of her freedom. A young aspiring, untarnished human who believed she was free to make choices about her life, about the man she would marry, the person she would choose to have sex with, when and where she would have it, have all been exploded! No woman has ever been or will ever be completely free or independent. She lives with the possibility of rape every moment. It is only a matter of chance. Who it could be, when and where. There is no mechanism yet, short of murder, by which a woman can thwart the sexual exploitation by man. In a world where a grand son’s friend can rape an 85-year-old woman, what can one say about the manliness of men today? Why do men rape their daughters, nieces, babies, even mothers and grandmothers? Why is it so coolly said “men will be men”? It is baffling. Why being sexually hyperactive and always gratified, whatever the method adopted implies machoness. Sex is about two consenting individuals, who wish to be with each other. To use force on another human in so despicable a manner is nothing short of being just an animal. But there seems to be a pattern in sexual behaviour the world over, whether societies are permissive or restrictive. A behaviour, which cuts across religions, communities, castes, countries, even races. Men will have sex. If they do not get it voluntarily, they will have it forcibly. Forcible sex exists inside marriages, outside marriages, within homes, where girls are abused at tender ages by rotten uncles and cousins. The fear of rape is not of unwanted pregnancy, or of physical injury or medical complications. It is the humiliation of being defiled by somebody at the core of your person. It is about not having the power of protecting oneself; it is about irrevocable theft; it is about being stigmatised; it is about being a victim and yet being marginalised. So many theories float around about such errant behaviour. This is not errant behaviour. It is about moral decadence. It is about complete disrespect towards human life in general and women in particular. It is about being prudishly tight-lipped about sex; it is about the populace in general and youth in particular being exposed to so much titillation through movies and videos and not finding willing partners due to societal pressures; it is about women nowadays wanting to exercise the power to refuse if they do not want sex; it is about a world where sex is a bad word; it is about making unnatural demands of celibacy on widowed, divorced, unmarried or unhappily married people. All the rules about right sexual conduct are for women, and men have laid them down. Because deep down they know what their fellow brothers are capable of. Women have to sit on moral pedestals, created by men. But it takes only one man to remove the chastity belt the other placed. The tragedy is that it takes only one man to demolish that precarious elevation. This is one crime which goes largely unreported, but not necessarily undiscovered. Girls and women bruised by such events remain traumatised throughout life and often become dysfunctional human beings. It is not about promulgating stricter laws; or about having more severe punishments. It is about nurturing values and respect for humanity in general and women in particular. You can not hope to change man’s attitude towards women once he is an adult. You cannot hope to reform him after he is caught and sentenced. It has been found once an offender, he goes back to the same crime. Devils exist in the minds of people. Both men and women should stop commodifying human bodies. And everybody has to do it. In whatever profession or social structure they are in. It is no use just making clucking sounds and pointing fingers. Begin at home by telling your children to respect their own and others bodies and lives. You don’t need laws for this. You need good parenting. But sadly even at home, the unequal status of mothers in general, ensures that sons imbibe the superior, aggressive and dominating behaviour of their fathers. In a home where brothers see sisters sidetracked and mothers abused, how will they ever learn to respect women? So, the onus ultimately lies with the men. Teach equality and practise it. This world will be a kinder, happier and sexually more satisfied place. |
Commonalities in diversity WE may be living in far away countries, speaking different languages, having diverse cultures but when it comes to human management we all have strong commonalities. We have recognisable strengths and visible weaknesses. I saw this coming alive in one of my recent duties I was at. I do not wish to identify the place out of respect and trust I owe to it. I was in a location, which is being assisted by the international community to help create its administrative systems almost from a scratch. Priority areas are therefore almost all, including the criminal justice systems. When I say international community, in this case it is coming together of huge expertise in all respects, from scores of countries, at a phenomenal cost of time and financial recourses. Every person or official who is deputed is experienced and carefully selected. They are therefore all in demand and a precious human resource. Many of them are spared for only limited periods. They are advisers, professionals, consultants and volunteers. They are there to achieve inter-related tasks and targets. It is undoubtedly a very historical exercise supported by a massive display of international synergy. And this is exactly what I am coming to. This large and diverse international presence is also a great study in how we manage what we are deputed for. How are our styles of functioning? Are they diverse and different too? This is precisely the opportunity I got to observe, as I travelled and interacted. Some patterns clearly emerged which fascinated me and provoked me to share through this writing. It was incidentally my first in-depth exposure of this kind and certainly was a learning experience for me. Here are a few of my observations that stood out, in my view as ‘Commonalities’ within ‘Diversities’. 1. Absence of commitment: This appeared most common of all. There appeared to be an absence of commitment and conscientiousness to return, at least in proportion, to what one was receiving from one’s own country and the international community. I did not come across a single case who was there, “as sent”, against his/her own volition. If that were the case, then willingness to do one’s duty is the minimum one can expect. The attitude seemed to be, to mark time… rather than be anxious to deliver. It was not a worry for many of them, that results were not quick and sufficient enough. In fact non-performance was considered safer as a choice. 2. Absence of willingness to communicate with concern: Many shared the bare minimum that was required…without being considerate to others needs. The seniors believed they had said it, written or conveyed it, or indicated it and now it was for others to grasp it. People for whom the huge effort was on were still not partners enough. What is commonly missing is not communication as much as concern. Communication without concern in certain situations, is routine conveyance and amounts to being callous and indifferent. This too was quite evident across the board, of course with exceptions in all nationalities. 3. Absence of proactive behaviour: Most of the responses seen were reactive in nature rather than preventive. The systems were hierarchical and distant. The juniors must ask, they must report, they must come (if allowed) and if they do not, then how can a senior be blamed? For the seniors is a “supervisors” and how can they be going to “juniors”. For then, what is the difference left between the two? The problem is that society needs sound managers and not “senior onlookers” who are there only to “reprimand” and “punish”. We also do not need leaders who either want followers or stay aloof in ivory towers. We as communities need transforming leadership, which reframes values above all. Once these are in position all else follows. No wonder well researched books which address these issues, written anywhere in the world, by capable and versatile writers, immaterial of diversity, become well-read and even best sellers. For they address human commonalities. |
One flew over cuckoo’s nest THE “goodwill” tour of Pakistani parliamentarians to India does not seem to have generated much goodwill in the Vajpayee government set up or, for that matter, the BJP or the NDA. The event has virtually turned out to be an “opposition parties” affair with the Pakistani delegation meeting only the leaders of opposition parties in India. While they met leaders belonging to the Congress, Samajwadi Party and Lok Janshakti Party and a few others, the Pakistani delegation which toured India under the forum of Pakistan-India Peoples’ Forum for Peace and Democracy was not given appointment by any single representative belonging to the ruling NDA alliance. On the contrary, BJP spokesman Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi poured cold water on this Pakistani track II initiative when he said the Pakistani parliamentarians had been invited by “pseudo secularists”. When the delegation coordinator Ishaq Khan Khakwani was quizzed by reporters on this, he explained that there was no specific schedule when they arrived in India. “We were totally dependent on the organisers and hosts in India...Wherever they took us we went and we met those leaders with whom meetings were arranged by our hosts.” Did you say: Pakistanis flew over the cuckoo’s nest? In China Shop! UP Politics Uttar Pradesh Congress leaders arrived here last week in hordes. The reason: speculation in the media about an imminent shake-up in the UP Pradesh Congress Committee. State Congress Legislature Party leader Pramod Tiwari, who has the dubious distinction of seeing his party breaking up time and again while he has been at the helm of affairs, camped in the capital trying to meet senior leaders, including the newly appointed AICC office bearers. Unlike in the past when he had an easy access to AICC treasurer and Congress Working Committee member incharge of Uttar Pradesh Motilal Vora, this time Tiwari was in for a shock as the new General Secretary incharge of the State, Nawal Kishore Sharma, had no time for him. Needless to say his efforts to meet Congress President Sonia Gandhi also yielded no results. Moral of the story as per the AICC grapevine: Tiwari’s days are numbered as the CLP leader. But Sonia’s dilemma is who will replace
Tiwari.
Cable muddle Barely two months left for the Conditional Access System to come into effect, confusion prevails among consumers, cable operators and even the broadcasting companies. It would be quite a tough decision for the broadcasters to bite the bullet as the annual advertising revenue in the country is pegged at around Rs 4,000 crore and the pay channel subscription of all channels put together is only Rs 500 crore. For the consumers, it is the question of whether to buy or not the Set Top box. Nobody has a clue as to how much this box is going to cost. For the cable operators, it is time to think of ways to circumvent the system, even as the government has fixed Rs 72 for a minimum of 30 free-to-air channel. Of all the muddle, one section of society which is most worried is parents with young kids. As Cartoon Network would be off the screen from July 14, they are aware that they are going to face protests at home and the Set Top Box might adorn their TV sets just for the Cartoon Network.
Graft at helm Ignited Mind Contributed by S. Satyanarayan, Girja Shankar Kaura, S.S. Negi, R. Suryamurthy, Satish Misra and Rajeev Sharma |
‘China Man’ moves to Pak
Ruling dispensations both in India and Pakistan have nominated best of their diplomatic brains to represent their governments in Islamabad and Delhi respectively. In practical term, High Commissioner’s offices in Delhi and Islamabad are considered more important and challenging than the prize assignments in Washington or London. Yet another rigorous posting for the officers of the two countries is considered Beijing. Both Nambiar and Menon have gone through that diplomatic mill. The then High Commissioner of Pakistan in New Delhi, Ashraf Jehangir Qazi, too had served in China before his assignment in India. The present Ambassador of Pakistan to China, Raiz Muhammed Khan is also in the reckoning, along with journalist-turned diplomat, Maleeha Lodhi, for the New Delhi post. Such prominent diplomats from Pakistan as Abdul Sattar and Niaz Naik represented Islamabad in New Delhi and became quite popular in Delhi’s social and cocktail circuit. The last envoy, Jehangir Qazi and his predecessor, Riaz Khokhar, too earned many friends and admirers in Delhi. In popularity and diplomatic skill, Qazi could be compared to Abdul Sattar and Niaz Naik, who rose to the top on return to Pakistan. Indian envoys to Pakistan were diplomats like S.K. Singh and J.N. Dixit who became Foreign Secretary before superannuation. The new incumbent to Islamabad, Shiv Shankar, is known to be the personal choice of Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. His grand father, the legendary KPS Menon, was among the first of the IFS who served as India’s Ambassador to China and USSR. He was head of India’s mission in Moscow when Jawaharlal Nehru visited Soviet Union in early fifties, opening a long chapter of friendship between the two countries. Shiv Shankar’s father, P.N. Menon too was a talented IFS officer and posted as Consul General in Lhasa in early fifties. Shiv Shankar spent a few years of his childhood in Tibet. It was not a mere coincidence when Shankar Menon, as Ambassador, paid a two-week long visit to the sensitive Tibet region in July last year and the Chinese government gave him permission to undertake the trip. Shiv Shankar is well versed in Chinese. He is known in the corridors of the External Affairs Ministry as “China Man”; an expert on Chinese affairs. He had worked early in his career as Under Secretary (Pakistan) but no one in South Block doubts his ability to leave a lasting impression in his new assignment to Islamabad. Those who have worked with him say he has infinite patience when dealing with a complex issue, has good sense of humour and his approach is down to earth. Belonging to 1972 batch, 53-year-old Shiv Shankar has a distinguished career in the IFS. He served in places ranging from Vienna to Tokyo and Tel Aviv. Before he was sent to Beijing, Menon was High Commissioner in Sri Lanka. It was a difficult time; the Tamil Tigers had taken control of Jaffna and completely cut the access of the Sri Lankan security forces to the area. |
Focus on Sikhs living abroad FOCUS on the Sikhs living abroad is continuing. Last fortnight, it was Surjit Kaur’s book on them. On May 26, Punjab Chief Minister will be releasing New Delhi-based journalist Gurmukh Singh’s book on the Sikhs living in the different continents. For the last two years, Gurmukh has done little but travel right from Australia to New Zealand till South Africa and, of course, Europe and America, in search of man and material for the book. In keeping with the spirit, the launch will be in Chandigarh. “After all, it’s a book on the Sikhs. So the inaugural launch has to be in the heartland. Overseas launches in the different cities of the world will be after this,” says Singh. BOOK ON HUSAIN Whilst on books, there is something about this city that even persons who double as companions, find time to unearth facts and fiction to write a book or two or even three on the person they’d companioned. Yes, it’s artist M.F. Husain’s full-time companion Rashida Siddiqui who is now in the midst of writing her yet another book on him. Married to a retired army personnel, Rashida is a mother of three ‘Siddiqui’ children (probably a grandmother by now). Yet, she has never tried to camouflage her friendship with Husain sahib. She had once visited my home, together with her husband Colonel Siddiqui and friend M.F. Husain. And all three seemed comfortable and at ease. Liberation of a certain kind, say of a much-needed kind. Otherwise, you lose not just one or two, but never manage to gain this sort of fame and name and fun games. WAR ON IRAQ As expected, the first book on the Bush’s war on Iraq is out. It is adman Suhel Seth's compilation of jokes which he calls “foreplay”, centering around Bush in the book titled “Shock and Awe” (Roli). As he writes, “this joke book rises from the ashes of the burnt books in Baghdad...This one was for letting off steam at, for instance, the cultural numbness of those that burnt libraries and rare papyrus manuscripts and walked off with 7,000 years of history. As book lovers how else would we register our protest at the arrogance of the war…from the sidelines, we could only try to draw attention to the man in charge of the world. So, enter the cowboy from Texas, a firearm dangling by his side, a modern day Don Quixote tilting at windmills with a Anglo Saxon Sancho Panza, Tony Blair...” Bush insists that deep down he is Green. “Its true I want nothing more than to see the earth completely covered with beautiful plants — steel plants, oil plants, nuclear plants...” Once George W. Bush and Donald Rusmfeld
took an English exam. Rumsfeld: How was your exam? Bush: I only made one mistake. Rumsfeld: Great, what was the mistake? Bush: They asked me the plural of think and I thank and thank. |
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STUDENTS’ HELPLINE Exam fever may be a thing of the past, but experts suggest that the wait for the results could be equally stressful. Said medical practitioner and new age therapist A.A. Khan: “As the dates for the announcement of results of Class 10 and 12 are approaching, meditation is the best exercise for students to keep their cool.” Identifying stress as the main cause of anger, guilt and hostility in students, he said meditation, yoga or even a simple silent prayer could be helpful. Khan says: “Meditation is always associated with a serene mind and a quiet atmosphere. Twenty-thirty minutes of meditation daily will also increase resistance to stress.” Child psychologist Abhay Nath Tripathi agreed: “Meditation improves memory, listening abilities, problem solving and creative abilities as well as teaches patience and resilience.” “Parents cannot stop themselves from having high hopes. This is the biggest reason for anxiety, inferiority complexes, negative thoughts and fatigue in most students,” observed psychiatrist Samir Parikh. Meditation starts with simple breathing. “Just two-three minutes of deep breathing immediately helps in reducing stress of any kind while regular deep breathing will immunise one from mental illness,” added Anil Choudhary, who conducts yoga classes in east Delhi. “The best form of meditation is chanting. Students should close their eyes, sit with legs crossed and chant ‘Om’ for 15-20 seconds and open their eyes slowly,” advised Choudhary. Students would feel the difference at once. To help children cope with the tensions, experts said parents should take special care of their diet. Said Khan: “Many children suffer from appetite reduction at such times. Parents should keep check of their kids eating habits. A lot of liquids in the form of juices, lemonade or glucose drinks should be given.” Explained Tripathi: “A child should not be left alone when in stress. Parents, friends or relatives should try to communicate with the child. Half the problem is solved once the thought is expressed. If not, the thought takes the shape of anxiety and hostility.”
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China has evinced sharp interest for India. Any high level visit from India to China and vice versa is keenly awaited and its results hotly discussed and debated in the media. So when Defence Minister George Fernandes, who has just returned from his first-ever visit to China, announced early this week that Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee would be making an official visit to the eastern neighbour sometime next month, it generated lot of interest in the political and diplomatic circles. Vajpayee’s forthcoming China visit would be the first by an Indian Prime Minister in nearly a decade. P V Narasimha Rao was the last Indian Prime Minister to travel to China where he had concluded the historic agreement on peace and tranquility on the Sino-Indian border. The announcement by Fernandes seems to be a peculiar case in the bureaucratic circles where the right hand does not know what the left is doing. Soon after, the Ministry of External Affairs spokesman said on record that “no dates have been fixed yet”. When pressed further by reporters, the spokesman remarked that when no dates had been fixed, the visit could take place any month. What, however, was apparently forgotten was that Fernandes’ visit to China had ended just days before and on his return the first thing he did was to “brief” the Prime Minister in a one- to- one meeting. Ministry of Defence officials were at pains to point out that there was still a long time to go before June gets over and the dates for the visit can be fixed any time. They maintain that confusion over the China visit seems to have come more due to lack of knowledge about facts rather than over enthusiasm on the Defence Minister’s part.
The powerful bureaucratic lobby will never allow creation of a statutory body to have surveillance on it for any corrupt practice. It is a different matter that the top echelons of the Indian polity, including Deputy Prime Minister L.K. Advani, have expressed grave concern over the rising corruption cases against IAS and IPS officers. To check corruption at highest level, the Supreme Court had provided for establishing the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) in its verdict in the Jain-Hawala case. But the bureaucrats “scuttled” the process of
constituting the CVC by an Act of Parliament and instead ended up in setting up the body “without teeth” through an executive order, senior advocate and former Law Minister Ram Jethmalanai told the apex court recently. Jethmalani argued that the bureaucrats ensured that the CVC is headed by a retired government official, not by an expert from the field of law, social sciences and science and technology as envisaged in the Supreme Court judgement. “Will such a body be able to keep officials under scanner,” the former Law Minister asked.
President A. P. J. Abdul Kalam is an ignited mind indeed (pun intended). He is an extremely active President and perhaps it may not be wrong to say that no President has been as active as him. When he returned to Delhi late Thursday from Orissa, Kalam had made a record of sorts. It was the 20th State he had visited since he assumed Presidency. That is not all, he is aiming at covering the eight remaining states by July 25 when he completes the first year in the Rashtrapati Bhavan. And as his Press Secretary S. M. Khan informs, Kalam’s visits are hectic and not sojourns or holidays. The President is always very keen to cover the entire length and breadth of the state he visits and it invariably entails extensive travel by helicopter. The President starts his day at 7 am and goes to bed only around midnight. But what next after July 25 when the President would have covered all 28 states? Foreign tour? Watch this space.
ROUTE of, at least, two of India’s envoys to Pakistan have been via Beijing and both are rated finest diplomats in the Indian Foreign Service. Vijay Nambiar, a bright career diplomat, was Ambassador to China before he was moved to Islamabad at a time when Indo-Pak relations were at the lowest ebb. Within months of his appointment came the hideous attack on India’s Parliament resulting in down-grading of relations between the two countries and Nambiar had to be recalled. Another bright star of the IFS, Shiv Shankar Menon, had succeeded Nambiar in Beijing. In sharp contrast to traumatic months following December 13, 2001 attack, Menon’s appointment to Islamabad comes at a time when there is optimism in the air; ties snapped 31 months back are being restored. It is difficult to say who is more bright — Nambiar or Menon — but certainly Menon has been more lucky. 
New Delhi:
Here’s a flash for all those millions waiting for the make-or-break Class X and XII results. Meditation is your best way to beat the stress of that endless, agonising wait.