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BJP rumblings Gas in Gujarat? |
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Man of the Common
Cause Shourie always lived for others Few administrators had as much enthusiasm and commitment for social service after retirement as Hari Dev Shourie, who passed away in New Delhi on Tuesday. Founder of “Common Cause”, his consistent endeavour to secure justice for the common man gave a new meaning and thrust to the concept of public interest litigation. It was through PILs that he won many landmark cases in the Supreme Court and the Delhi High Court.
Non-proliferation
today
The “Dekko”
Families divided by
Line of Control Why kids don’t
eat healthy diet From
Pakistan
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Gas in Gujarat? The
discovery of huge natural gas reserves in the Godavari-Krishna basin by the state-owned Gujarat State Petroleum Corporation (GSPC), if true, comes as a piece of good news. It is quite possible to go overboard with this kind of gas find, believed to be one of the biggest in the world. The Gujarat Chief Minister, Mr Narendra Modi, may be forgiven his excitement, but his figure of the gas reserves has been dubbed “premature” by none other than India’s gas regulator, Mr V.K. Sibal, who maintains production testing is still on and a few more wells will have to be drilled to justifiably assess the real quantity of reserves. The initial estimates put the natural gas reserves at 20 trillion cubic feet valued at Rs 2 lakh crore ($50 billion). There is no mechanism to counter-check the claims of gas finds made by a company. And if the company is listed on stock exchanges, false claims can mislead investors. The gas regulator has brought this issue to the notice of SEBI and requested it to frame guidelines for declaring proven reserves of oil or gas. When the Gujarat Chief Minister made the gas find public, the stocks of Gujarat companies went up in a flat market. Western countries have put in place stringent rules to check speculation over gas or oil reserve announcements. If Mr Modi’s claims are correct, the GSPC find is bigger than the recent gas discoveries of both Reliance (14 trillion cubic feet) and ONGC (4 tcf). With these discoveries, India is expected to double its gas production in five years. Gujarat, incidentally, is the only state in the country to venture into gas and oil exploration and production. GSPC struck gas reserves while drilling the KG8 well located 6 km off the Yanam-Kakinada coast of Andhra Pradesh. The success was achieved after only 300 days of work and an investment of Rs 250 crore. According to one estimate, the power produced by the gas from the GSPC find will be sufficient to meet the peak energy requirements of Delhi and Mumbai. |
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Man of the Common Cause Few
administrators had as much enthusiasm and commitment for social service after retirement as Hari Dev Shourie, who passed away in New Delhi on Tuesday. Founder of “Common Cause”, his consistent endeavour to secure justice for the common man gave a new meaning and thrust to the concept of public interest litigation. It was through PILs that he won many landmark cases in the Supreme Court and the Delhi High Court. These include making political parties maintain accounts and submit income-tax returns, imposition of penalty on the Union Petroleum Minister for illegal allotment of petrol and gas pumps, rectification of an anomaly in the 1980 Government of India order and subsequent sanction of pension to over 2.5 lakh retirees and setting up of proper blood banks with licences. If every district boasts of a consumer court today, it is because of Shourie’s tireless efforts. Shourie was a friend of the common man, always involved in finding solutions to his problems. He was a crusader of speedy justice through the Lok Adalats. He felt that there was no meaning of justice if it could not be delivered to the needy in time. One issue that had engaged his attention was the non-performing assets of banks. He filed a writ petition in the Supreme Court, questioning the wisdom of the authorities in writing off Rs 43,000 crore as non-performing assets. Shourie was not enamoured with the trappings of the bureaucracy. On the contrary, he used the various positions that he held since 1935 (in both the Punjab Civil Service and later, the Indian Civil Service) for public good. Unlike most bureaucrats, he was not satisfied with leading a peaceful life, either in or out of service. Apparently, that is why his career saw him through several ups and downs. He always had a strong streak of self-esteem and he never bowed to the ministers’ diktat if he found it was jumping the boundaries of law and propriety. He was not the person to act on recommendations, a lesson that the present lot needs to learn. He lived till the last for others. |
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I never think of the future. It comes soon
enough.
— Albert Einstein |
Non-proliferation today
The
Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty (NPT) signed in 1968 had three essential facets. The treaty envisaged that only those powers that possessed nuclear weapons prior to its being signed could possess nuclear weapons. All other countries were required to foreswear the acquisition of these weapons and accept international safeguards on all fissile materials. In return, these countries were promised access to nuclear technology for peaceful purposes, including power generation. The nuclear weapons powers were required to cease “the manufacture of nuclear weapons, the liquidation of all existing stockpiles and the elimination from national arsenals of nuclear weapons and their means of delivery, pursuant to a treaty on general and complete disarmament under strict and effective international control”. China initially denounced the treaty as an instrument of hegemony and then opportunistically joined it in 1992, after the Cold War ended. The United States and its NATO allies asserted in 1999 that “the supreme guarantee of the security of the Allies is provided by the strategic nuclear forces of the alliance”. The NATO document added that the “fundamental purpose” of its nuclear forces was to ensure “uncertainty” in the minds of any adversary. Nuclear blackmail thus constitutes the central theme of the NATO nuclear doctrine. The NPT also requires states not to “transfer nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive device” to any other state. China has blatantly violated this provision by transferring the designs of nuclear weapons to Pakistan-designs that Islamabad in turn passed on the Libya and others. China also continues to provide Pakistan assistance on nuclear reprocessing and has actively participated in keeping Pakistan’s uranium enrichment facilities functioning. Further, China has worded its pledge on “no first use” of nuclear weapons in a manner that it would not be applicable to India. Further, the 1958 Mutual Defence Agreement between the US and UK permits the exchange of classified documents on “atomic weapons design, development and fabrication capability”. The UK currently deploys the US nuclear weapons system “Trident” using “Trident II” missiles manufactured in the US. The British Trident warhead is based on the American W 76 warhead. This is also a blatant violation of NPT provisions. When the Cold War ended, the Clinton Administration attempted to freeze the global nuclear environment. Under American pressure and Chinese support, the NPT was extended in perpetuity and efforts made to pressurise India to “curb, roll- back and eliminate” its nuclear programme. This effort failed when India tested nuclear weapons in May 1998. Even though it possessed Chinese-designed and pre-tested nuclear weapons, Pakistan followed suit. After direct pressure failed to deter India, the US proceeded to “engage” New Delhi to limit and cap its nuclear and missile capabilities. This effort ended with the advent of the Bush Administration, which decided that the real danger to American security flowed from nuclear weapons in the hands of terrorists or “rogue states” like North Korea, Libya, Iraq and Iran. This period also saw the emergence of groups like the “New Agenda Coalition” comprising South Africa, Egypt, Brazil, Mexico, Ireland and New Zealand that called on India, Pakistan and Israel to give up their weapons programme and accede to the NPT. It is in this background that the Second Review Conference of the NPT was held in May 2005 in New York. The Americans made their priorities clear. They noted that since the last review in 2000, North Korea had walked out of the NPT and declared it possesses nuclear weapons. Iran had developed a clandestine nuclear weapons programme. The infamous A.Q. Khan network that sold nuclear weapons technology and designs had been discovered. They wanted a more effective and intrusive system of inspections by the IAEA. More importantly, they urged that other than the countries that already possessed “full cycle” nuclear enrichment and reprocessing facilities, all others like Iran should be barred from acquiring capabilities. The US also brushed aside calls for disarmament and claimed that it had already reduced its strategic nuclear arsenal, submarine-based missiles and tactical nuclear warheads significantly. It also placed importance on counter-proliferation measures like the Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI) that provides for interdicting suspected shipments of materials for weapons of mass destruction in international waters. The US found that it just could not get its way at the NPT Review Conference. The New Agenda Coalition drew attention to the call of the 2000 Review Conference for the “total elimination of nuclear weapons as the only absolute guarantee against the use or threat of use of nuclear weapons.” The coalition also called on India and Pakistan to “pull back from their nuclear weapons programmes and accede unconditionally to the NPT”. Japan took a similar position. A number of countries led by Egypt and Iran demanded that the nuclear weapons powers led by the US should give categorical assurances that they would never use nuclear weapons against a non-nuclear weapons state. They also rejected US demands that they should not develop enrichment and reprocessing facilities. The US also faced widespread demands that it should sign the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty. American espousal of a Fissile Materials Cut-off Treaty without inspections evoked little enthusiasm. The US also faced Chinese opposition to its plans for militarising outer space. The differences between the signatories of the NPT and the absence of any consensus on nuclear disarmament have created a new situation in the global nuclear architecture for India. American Assistant Secretary of State Stephen Rademaker made a passing reference to the countries that have not signed the NPT at the Review Conference. His Deputy, Mr Andrew Semmel, also acknowledged that the US remains committed to the “universality” of the NPT. Mr Semmel, however, added: “We recognise, however, that (India and Pakistan may not join the (Nonproliferation) Treaty for the foreseeable future”. France took a positive approach on the needs of countries for nuclear power. It is thus important for India to work together with key countries in the Nuclear Suppliers Group like the US, France, the UK and Russia to see how India’s energy needs can be met. Despite the demand of some of India’s so-called “nonaligned friends” like South Africa and Egypt that New Delhi should sign the NPT, it is evident that with the passage of time, India will be accommodated on terms it finds acceptable in the global nuclear architecture — perhaps under a separate protocol for the NPT that will be applicable to India, Pakistan and Israel. The passage of the “Prevention of Weapons of Mass Destruction and their Delivery Systems Act” by Parliament in May 2005 is a good first step in this direction. |
The “Dekko”
“Ack-chu-ally” said the Lt. Gen. Indian Army (Retd), “it was a damn good show, though I nearly had my sun-helmet knocked off, ha! ha! ha!” You could have sliced his army accent with a knife, and he wasn’t even Sandhurst. Only Dehra Dun, circa 1936. The ‘show’ he had been telling us about, or trying to, above the din of the cocktail party, took place in 1938 when he was just a “2nd loot” in charge of a platoon. Apparently, the Sikh regiment to which he was attached was moving down from Bannu to D.I.K. (Dehra Ismail Khan). The open truck in which he was riding took a wrong turning and got detached from the convoy. His (unwaxed) moustache, almost white, stood up at the ends, defying the laws of gravity. He brushed it with the back of his hand and continued. “There I was, scanning the countryside with my field glasses, when I heard the ping of a bullet going past my ear. In a jiffy, the tribesmen appeared from behind huge boulders waving their home-made matchlocks and stolen Lee Enfield rifles, shouting ‘Allah-o-Akbar’.” “So what did you do?” asked a Sweet Young Thing, obviously addicted to tales of derring-do. The General sipped his whisky slowly before replying to her. “What d’you think I did, young lady” he said. “Went flat on my face on the floor of the truck, shouting to my men to do the same. All of them did save one poor bug... er, fellow who was busy tying turban. He got a bullet through his shoulder.” “And then what happened?” asked the S.Y.T’s middle-aged mum, her mouth almost drooling with anticipation. The General took another sip from his glass. “Oh, very little” he said. “We lobbed a couple of hand grenades at the blighters. They scooted, leaving three of their lot stretched out in a nullah by the side of the road. “Did you pick them up?” I asked. “Don’t be daft, man” he said. “We couldn’t risk getting out to have a ‘dekko’ There may have been hundreds of ’em on both sides of the road. So we beat it, ek dum.” It came as a sort of anti-climax and it left us (at least me) thinking of the three Pathans, lying dead or wounded under a blazing sun. Oddly enough, as a young box-wallah, I used to travel up and down those roads in the NWFP in the summer of 1938. The most exciting thing that ever happened to me was a tyre-burst between Peshawer and Razmak. But I dined out on that story for several years. I used to say that a tribesman had hit the wheel of my car while he was taking a potshot at me and that the moment I stepped out of the car to take a “dekko” at the wheel the fellow took to his heels.
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Families divided by
Line of Control Surrounded by the mountains of Pakistan is the village of Thang with 18 households on the Line of Control in Ladakh. At a distance of 3 or 4 km, on the other side of the LoC, lies the village of Phranu in Baltistan. Almost every family has some close relatives on the other side, since Thang was also controlled by Pakistan until 1971. The story of how they had to part with their relatives during the 1971 war might send shivers through the body. Both villages being neighbours, many people of Phranu had come to Thang and vice versa for agricultural work, grazing their livestock, etc. When war broke out, most people had to settle wherever they were since a line was drawn between the neighbouring villages. Consequently, many could not meet or see their near and dear ones for the last 34 years, although they have seen each other from a distance of 4 km. “We see them grazing their cattle, clearing their canals and working in the fields. During the war I had come here to my aunt’s, and following partition I couldn’t return home,” says Ghulam Mohammad, who has his all family members in Phranu. Formerly a Pakistan national and now a Canadian citizen, 60-year-old Ibrahim Abdul Rehman came to visit his native village Turtuk after four decades. Ibrahim had gone to Karachi to his uncle in 1960, while Turtuk was under Pakistan. He was still in Karachi when Turtuk came under India in 1971. In Leh in 2004, after a struggle of nearly three months, Ibrahim failed to get permission to visit Turtuk. The Home Ministry does not allow any foreigner to visit this restricted border area. Ibrahim, who had wanted to pay homage to his parents’ graves and see his own village, family and neighbours again, had to return to Canada hopelessly. Elderly Ahmad had come to Thang during the operations in 1971, but his wife and father were still at Phranu. Knowing that he couldn’t return home, he married again at Thang although he would still keep in touch through letters with his first wife and father. A few years ago he got a letter saying that his wife and father had passed away. It normally takes about two to three months for a letter to reach across to their relatives. “I wish God had given us a chance to meet our kith and kin,” regrets Ahmad, for parting from his relatives forever. Mohammed Ibrahim, (55), a government school teacher posted at Thang Primary School, was born a Pakistani national in Tyakshi, located in India. He was sent to school in Turtuk up to 5th Class, in Siksa up to 8th Class, and finished 10th in Skardo. But when the Turtuk area fell under Indian territory, he became an Indian national and got a job as a teacher in Ladakh. Recalling his school days, Ibrahim says the education system then in Pakistan was better than in Ladakh. Expressing satisfaction over the launch of the Srinagar-Muzaffarabad bus service, Ibrahim applauded Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and President Pervez Musharraf for taking initiatives in strengthening relations between the two countries. People of the Turtuk valley have made several requests and sent memorandums through their representatives to the Government of India to grant permission to visit their relatives in Pakistan. “All people of this border area are eager to meet their relatives and, therefore, we appeal to the Government of India to construct a road up to Phranu village and then grant us permission to go to see our relatives on the other side of the frontier,” says Ibrahim. They claim their area is more peaceful than the present situation in Kashmir. “Let us meet our near and dear once before we breathe our last,” said Ghulam. Thang village headman Mohd Ali’s father, Rozi Ali, is in Pakistan. Until recent times both father and son had been exchanging letters. The last letter Ali received was in 1999 in which his father had suggested to Ali to stop the correspondence, as the father could get in trouble for getting letters from India. “Since then I don’t know his whereabouts, whether he is alive or not,” says Mohd Ali. They are, however, happy with the presence and attitude of the Indian Army. Mohd Ali being the village headman is always in touch with the top Army officers of his area. “Whenever we are in need of something, the Army always comes forward and helps us,” says Ali. Elderly people also say that the Army personnel treat their girls as sisters and mothers. During Operation Vijay, many people of Turtuk were relocated to safe places due to heavy shelling by the Pakistani Army. People of Thang claim to have not left their village because they wanted to stay with the Indian Army. One does not know if and when these people will meet their families again. But life has become more human and saner because of the sensitivities of the Indian Army towards these minorities. — Charkha Feature |
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Why kids don’t eat healthy diet Nearly half of parents are doing little to ensure that their children eat a healthy diet, despite the growing concern over childhood obesity, research indicates. Although the majority of parents claim that they try to make their offspring eat healthily, only about half of families are actually doing anything about it, a report on childhood obesity by the consumer researcher Mintel found. Just over half of parents claimed they tried to limit the amount of sugar eaten by their offspring, the poll of 25,000 parents found. Meanwhile, only 42 per cent had done anything to restrict the amount of high-fat food eaten by youngsters. One in three families reported they had little interest in their children’s eating habits and were “relaxed” about their diets while one in six described themselves as “indulgent parents” who would give their child what they wanted whether it was healthy or not. Maria Elustondo, a senior market analyst for Mintel, said the findings showed that parents needed to do more to ensure their children ate healthy diets. She said: “The time has come to take action and to move away from simply who is to blame. Although messages about the importance of leading a healthy life seem to be getting through, too many parents are still unsure about how to put a healthy diet into practice. Parents need practical suggestions, such as how to ensure their child eats five portions of fruit and veg a day, to make leading a healthy life as easy as possible.” But Jane Landon, the associate director of the National Heart Forum, which launched its recommendations for healthy eating in schools this month, said most parents were deeply concerned about their children’s diet. She said: “I think that some parents are confused by misleading advertising which makes them choose high-fat or high-sugar products. Parents may ... give their children jelly sweets which highlight their fruit content but are really mostly sugar.” Ms Landon said the survey also showed the importance of healthy eating education and nutritious food in schools. “We also need to address children’s eating during the times they are not with their parents.” The researchers also interviewed 4,500 children and found that although the majority (72 per cent) claimed to know about the importance of a balanced diet, many did not seem to be putting this into practice. More than two-thirds said they often ate between meals and more than half claimed to eat whatever they like. The top five snacks of choice were: potato crisps (41 per cent), chocolate (39 per cent), fruit (35 per cent), sweets (29 per cent) and sweet biscuits (22 per cent). Girls were more interested than boys in healthy eating, with three-quarters of girls understanding the importance of a balanced diet, compared with 68 per cent of boys. A third of children said they often tried to lose weight — whether they needed to or not — and a similar proportion said they ate when they were sad. Girls were twice as likely as boys to be trying to lose weight, and were more likely to feel guilty about eating and to eat for comfort. Ms Elustondo also called for children to spend less time in front of the television and lead more active lives if they were to avoid obesity. She added: “Children need to be educated on the benefits of a healthy diet for themselves, in order to understand how it affects their lifestyles.”
— The Independent |
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From Pakistan LAHORE: The Chief Minister’s Secretariat in Punjab, once confined only to the Punjab Civil Secretariat, has now spread over four spacious buildings, while the fifth one, the CM Complex, is under construction at the GoR-I. The expansion of the secretariat seems to be a continuous process, as Freemason Hall (90-Shara-e-Quaid-e-Azam) is currently being expanded unnecessarily, at the cost of its own architectural design and the historic Bagh-e-Jinnah and Lahore Zoo. The present Punjab Chief Minister reportedly considers the existing size of the building insufficient to host political meetings. The ongoing extension of this one-and-a-half-century-old building has badly defaced its Mughal style architecture under the pretext of security. This architectural marvel, standing in the heart of the city, was built in 1859 by the Freemanson Society, which has its network all over the world even today. Going through the annals of history, it has been found that former Chief Minister Mian Nawaz Sharif ordered the annexation of Freemason Hall in 1987. It is said that he was so mesmerised by the majestic beauty of this building that he spent most of his time there sitting with his close friends. — The Nation Protest against water
shortage
MIRPURKHAS: Police baton-charged residents of Baloch Para,
Walkart, who were protesting against the shortage of water in their area on Tuesday. The residents, including women and children, took out a procession and held a demonstration. They ransacked offices of the taluka
nazim, personal assistant of the taluka nazim, naib nazim, taluka municipal officer, meeting hall and other offices. Three people suffered injuries while breaking glass of the offices. The protesters then burnt tyres on M. A. Jinnah Road in front of the TMA building. Some shopkeepers closed their shops. The protesters raised slogans against the taluka nazim and the Mirpurkhas TMA and demanded supply of water to their areas.
— The Dawn
Rally against fund
shifting
CHAKDARA: A protest rally was held here against the shifting of funds allocated for the tehsil headquarters hospital and non-compliance of the Chief Minister’s directives. Held under the auspices of the Adenzai Bachao Council, the protest was attended by leaders and workers of different political parties. Addressing the rally, council chairman Hussain Shah
Yusufzai, ex-MPA and PPP leader Bakht Bedar Khan, PPPP district president Malik Azmat Khan, Humayun Khan, Khurshid Ali advocate, ANP Haji Abdur
Rahman, nazim Ishfaqur Rahman, JUI Haji Zar Naseeb Khan, PML Sahibzada Sardar Ahmad Jan, trade leader Bakht Rawan and councilor Ihsanullah said the shifting of funds from the tehsil headquarters hospital and ignoring the Chief Minister’s directives in this regard were equal to usurping the rights of people of the area. They asked senior minister Sirajul Haq to stop step-motherly treatment to the people of Chakdara and stop shifting to his constituency the funds allocated for the Chakdara hospital.
— The News |
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From the pages of THE OPIUM TRAFFIC
In
his decisive pronouncement against the opium traffic Mr Gladstone has discarded the caution and carefulness which generally characterise all his public utterances. His denunciation of the opium traffic will be gleefully welcomed by Sir Joseph Pease and his party. As a bid for votes his declaration is not more charming than the sympathy of Lord Salisbury with the women’s suffrage movement. Mr Gladstone could have taken the wind out of the sails of Lord Salisbury in that direction also, but he has shown no disposition to modify the views he holds upon this subject. Mr Gladstone has morality on his side in his attitude towards the opium traffic, but he can never go the length of the Anti-Opium Society. The opium revenue cannot be interfered with unless some means, consistent with the safety and prosperity of the Empire and involving no increase of taxation, is devised....
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Self control is the best way to calm the thought-distributed mind. It brings serenity and allows us to look on the world dispassionately. — Book of quotations of HinduismThere is sickness in their hearts, and God has made them sicker, and theirs is a painful torment, because they were in fact lying. — Book of quotations on Islam But the Maker is merciful and has His own wonderful ways of extending help to the virtuous and the non-virtuous. — Guru Nanak Evil deeds should be thought of as poison. A man who loves life would go out of his way to avoid poison. A man who loves his life should go out of his way to avoid evil deeds. — The Buddha As a blind man led by another blind man loses his way, so does a man led by Priya go astray. — The Upanishads He converts the non-virtuous into the virtuous and makes the virtuous more virtuous. — Guru Nanak The happiest life is that which constantly exercises and educates what is best in us. — Book of quotations on Happiness
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