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British cop-out
A clash of ideologies
A life less ordinary
Tackling maritime terrorism Evolving in the virtual world New species discovered
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After 10K WHEN
India’s 30-share stock index crossed the 10,000 mark on Monday afternoon, traders burst firecrackers. The media too joined the celebrations with bold headlines. It is mostly institutional investors and top traders who have a reason to celebrate. The retail investor has not yet directly gained much, but it certainly boosts his morale. Anyway, small investors now increasingly route their investments through mutual funds. The stakes are high and only big ones can play the game. It is, however, worrying to know how the select few handle such vast sums. Fortunately, with the clean-up of the financial system, no one now talks of scams. The market is too big now for a Harshad Mehta or Ketan Parikh to manipulate. The BSE Sensex, launched in 1986, is the fourth Asian index to cross the 10,000 figure after Nikkei, Hang Seng and the Karachi SE 100. A Morgan Stanley report suggests higher one-year returns from stocks in some other countries. Yet foreign funds believe the Indian growth story, initiated by liberlisation in 1991, fuelled by the IT and outsourcing revolution, carried on by a growing service sector and now stabilised by manufacturing. No wonder, the economy has clocked an impressive 7 per cent growth in a not-so-conducive environment. In about a month the FIIs have invested $1 billion in Indian stocks on top of a record $10.7 billion in 2005. They have taken in their stride the frequent Leftist posturing, which initially had unnerved them. The rally is expected to continue as mutual funds are sitting over loads of freshly raised funds. Foreign money, hopefully, will continue to pour in this year also. All eyes are now on the coming Budget and the Finance Minister is unlikely to play the spoilsport. India Inc expects him to reduce the tax burden, abolish the fringe benefit tax and boost infrastructure building. The FIIs want the government to cut duties to ASEAN levels, allow easier FDI in retail, banking and insurance, and update labour laws. Not very unreasonable demands meeting which can help the country aim higher than 8 per cent growth. |
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Troops pull-out WHETHER it is redeployment or withdrawal of troops from terrorism-hit Jammu and Kashmir, it is bound to raise the eyebrows of the people. Is the pulling out of even 5000 troops, as admitted by Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee, really because of “much improvement” in the situation in the border state? Or does it have any link with Gen Pervez Musharraf’s idea of “demilitarisation”, or with the coming visit of US President George W. Bush? Such questions are unavoidable under the circumstances. But Mr Mukherjee wants the nation to believe that it is “a regular exercise undertaken after a review of the situation” in J and K. There may be more redeployment of forces soon if there is a further decrease in terrorist violence. It was done last year also. Mr Mukherjee’s views find support not only from what Army chief Gen J. J. Singh said in New Delhi on Monday, but also on January 13 while addressing a Press conference on the eve of Army Day. General Singh had claimed that the security forces had succeeded in bringing down the rate of terrorist infiltration from across the Line of Control considerably (over 30 per cent), but terrorists had found other routes for entering the country. He specifically mentioned the soft borders with Nepal and Bangladesh. This may be the reason why the troops which have been withdrawn from J and K have been redeployed in Darjeeling and Kalimpong in the Northeast. It is also true that there are enough troops in Jammu and Kashmir, as General Singh emphasised, to tackle terrorists. There should be no laxity in counter-terrorism efforts, whatever strength the Army may think is necessary for its operations. Also, vigilance by our security forces cannot be relaxed.
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British cop-out WHICH of the two – the media and the police – in Britain is more racist? The answer is a cop-out. The British media says the police force is racist, while the latter asserts that the accusation fits the media better. Perhaps, there is truth in what the media and the police are saying about each other and many may want to believe both of them. In fact, this appears to be the most sensible view for a detached observer or even an involved victim, especially after the attacks of July 7 last year. The raging controversy between the media and the police was stoked afresh after Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Ian Blair publicly accused the British media of being “institutionally racist”. He pointed out that British newspapers paid more attention to white victims of crimes than those belonging to ethnic minorities such as Asians. The outspoken Sir Ian was only returning the media’s compliment. Ever since the police killed a South American during last year’s terrorist attacks, the media has been unrelenting in its accusations against the force. The media has exposed that non-white Britons are victims of a covert policy of racial profiling as part of the campaign against terrorism; the number of non-whites being stopped and searched by the police on suspicion of terrorism is vastly more than the number of whites who are questioned. Each side, far from demonstrating its credentials in its own work, has been trying to absolve itself of the charge by accusing the other. In the event, they have only served to document and prove how both of them are racist. With that point settled, it may be instructive for both the media and the police to look at other areas of racial bias, institutional as well as individual. It has now come to light that jail officials are guilty of “systematic” racial assaults, racist abuse and brutality. The police is said to be investigating. Yes, the same UK police which maintains a racially-biased DNA database. Over to the media.
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How seldom is it that theories stand the wear and tear of practice! — Anthony Trollope
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A clash of ideologies WITH parliamentary elections less than a year away, the political situation in Bangladesh is drifting towards an uncertain phase. No one knows in Dhaka how the events will unfold themselves during the next few months and what the final outcome will be. Many observers of the Bangladesh scene are getting increasingly worried about the run-up to the parliamentary elections. There is an uneasy feeling among the concerned citizens that an atmosphere of confrontation is building up between the ruling alliance led by Prime Minister Khaleda Zia and Sheikh Hasina Wajed’s Awami League. Handled unwisely, it can lead to worse. This year’s parliamentary elections are crucial for Bangladesh which has been experimenting with military rule as well as with parliamentary democracy. At stake is the question who is to govern the 35-year-old nation: BNP’s Khaleda Zia, who won the last election and is leading a four-party alliance; or the Awami League’s Sheikh Hasina Wajed’s 14-party alliance. Relations between the two Begums border on mutual hatred – not only because Sheikh Hasina is Mujib-ur-Rahman’s daughter; or Prime Minister Khaleda Begum is former ruler Zia-ur-Rahman’s wife. Begum Khaleda and Sheikh Hasina are leading two rival alliances that have come to mark a sharp divide in Bangladesh’s politics. When the young nation requires a consensus, a politics of confrontation characterises the relationship between the incumbent and her challengers. More than the task of building a new nation, this continuing confrontation has been consuming much of the energy of this nation of nearly 150 million people. This year’s elections are crucial not only because these will decide the fate of Mrs Khaleda Zia and Sheikh Hasina Wajed but also because the outcome of the polls will decide the nature of Bangladesh’s polity and state. The core issue the election will resolve is whether Bangladesh has become an Islamist state or whether it is to be governed by principles of secularism and democracy. Pursuit of power apart, Mrs Khaleda Zia’s alliance is clearly dominated by those who would like Bangladesh to be run by the Islamists. On the other hand, the Sheikh Hasina-led alliance is fighting for a democratic and secular state. On who wins in this clash of two competing ideologies will depend the course this nation will take. Either way it will be the nation’s choice that will be crucial not only for its people but also for the subcontinent, certainly for India. No one in Bangladesh has any doubts about the character of the Khaleda government. Her four-party BNP-led government also includes the Jamaat-e-Islami and the Islami Oikya Jote (IOJ), both fundamentalist. Some of the components of the Khaleda government are those who opposed the Liberation in 1971 and sided with Pakistan. Most essential levers of power – civilian or military – are in the hands of pro-Pakistan fundamentalists. Although the Jamaat-e-Islami got only 5 per cent votes in the 2001 election which catapulted Begum Khaleda Zia to power, its influence in decision-making is beyond its numerical strength. Also a chunk of the Army, particularly new recruits, is said to have been Islamic fundamentalist. The Pakistan Army has developed close links with the Bangladesh Army. The dominance of anti-Liberation elements in the Bangladesh government explains why the Awami League-led alliance has chosen to patch up internal differences and put up a joint struggle against the ruling alliance. The way things are shaping up the country seems to be getting politically polarised and a for-and-against atmosphere is fast developing. The tenor of the political debate has become shrill. The accusing finger has become the order of the day. Political temperatures are rising and the people have begun to feel the heat of the rival campaigns as the polls draw near. The life of the present Parliament comes to an end on October 10 and the polls are to be completed by January 10 next. Under the constitution, after Parliament is dissolved and until the elections the country has to be placed under a caretaker, who is supposed to be an independent authority. The current row between Begum Khaleda and Sheikh Hasina centres on how fair and impartial is going to be the arrangement for holding the polls under the caretaker. The Awami League alliance has launched an agitation against the way the Khaleda government is fiddling with constitutional provisions to ensure that both the caretaker as well as the Chief Election Commissioner and his juniors in the districts are convenient for the ruling alliance. The Awami League wants the caretaker to be chosen by agreement with the opposition. It is also questioning the independence of the office of the Chief Election Commission and his setup. Interestingly, in Bangladesh the Chief Election Commission functions under the auspices of the Prime Minister’s office. The CEC’s office has come under disrepute and the Awami League and its allies have alleged that electoral rolls have been rigged to disenfranchise its supporters in the constituencies and several minority voters by a simple stratagem of denying them enrolment forms. The opposition parties also want transparent ballot boxes so that any mischief can be seen through and corrected. To press its claim for electoral reforms, the Awami League-led alliance has launched a widespread agitation against the government. Last Sunday thousands of its supporters from across the country converged on Dhaka’s Paltan Maidan to press for electoral reforms and scrapping of a system where elections can be managed to perpetuate the continuance of the present government. Before the rally, the government arrested thousands of opposition functionaries in the districts. The Prime Minister herself has been attacking Sheikh Hasina Wajed and threatening to invoke drastic provisions of the constitution to tackle the situation. There is no sign yet of a dialogue taking place between the government and the opposition in the near future. The current situation can lead to more tensions, perhaps a deadlock. And no one knows who is to resolve it, and
how.
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A life less ordinary
I
HAD always wondered why extraordinary things happened only to others. My own life was limited to the humdrum routine of teaching and the monotony of a limited social life, with the same people and the same topics of conversation. There was nothing exciting or adventurous that came my way. When it did, it came so quietly and unobtrusively that I did not have a chance to savour it. I was to go to Calcutta, and much to my surprise, Asad, the friend of a friend, came to see me off. “Harish Bhai, could you please carry this case for Sayyad.” It was a peculiar size, 18 inches by 12 inches and about 10 inches deep. Obviously it had been specially made for a special purpose. “As long as I don’t have to go haring all over Calcutta to deliver it.” “He’ll come to the station to pick it up,” he reassured me. It was an uneventful journey, except for a rather long halt at Moghul Serai. “Trouble with the engine?” I asked my fellow traveller in the coupe. “More likely an opium smuggler. They must have received a tipoff.” He made it sound like an everyday happening and sure enough we saw an elderly gentleman in a lungi, skull cap and henna dyed beard, being led away in handcuffs. “Doesn’t look much of an opium smuggler to me”. My companion laughed. “Smugglers don’t come with recognisable markings. I could be a smuggler.” I laughed at that and had to agree he was right. Sayyad was at the Howrah station to collect his case. On the day of my return he was again at the station. He handed me six tins of rasgullas in a nylon net bag and a long thick manila envelope. “Please give these to Asad Bhai.” I stepped off the train at Lucknow and came face to face with Asad — Sayyad must have rung him up and told him my bogie number. “You can keep those,” there was contempt in his reference to the tins of rasgullas. He snatched the envelope from my hand, tore it open, took out a thick wad of crisp, new one thousand rupee notes. He looked at the numbers, first of the topmost note and then of the one at the bottom. He did some quick mental arithmetic and his face broke into a satisfied smile. Then he counted a few notes, tore them off the wad and handed them to me. “Your commission” He must have seen the bewilderment on my face because he added, “For carrying my opium.” He turned and was gone. I stood gaping after him, the bag of rasagulla tins in one hand, the currency notes in the other. In my mind’s eye I saw again the platform in Moghul Serai — only this time it was I who was being led away by the
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Tackling maritime terrorism INDIA'S is inherently linked with the oceans. For instance, 90 per cent of India’s trade by volume and 77 per cent by value is sea-borne. India’s crude oil imports are almost completely transported by sea. India has nearly 200 major and minor ports. In keeping with India’s growing economy investment in this sector, which continues to take place on a substantial scale, will be further spurred by institutional reforms in the coming years. In the recent past, 13 private or captive projects with an annual capacity addition of about 47.40 MMT and an investment of about Rs 2,597 crore have been completed or operationalised. Another 23 projects with an annual capacity addition of around 89.29 MMT and an investment of Rs 7,108 crore are at various stages of evaluation and implementation. Dedicated rail freight corridors, the first one with Japanese assistance, are being planned to facilitate the quick movement of goods. Though delayed, maritime infrastructure is receiving the attention it deserves. Stability in the Indian Ocean is of great importance to India as it impinges directly on its national security. India’s vast maritime interests are intertwined with its economy and any threat to the global maritime system will adversely affect our interests. The crucial role played by the oceans; the huge significance of economic assets that ply the sea, the criticality of energy lifelines and the centrality of good governance through maritime cooperation are factors which have only recently become important to policy-makers. The maritime sector has both external and internal linkages. Not many years ago the Indian Navy had virtually closed its doors to foreign navies. There were very few visits by naval ships to neighbouring countries and the idea of conducting exercises with foreign navies was unheard of. The presence of extra regional warships in the Indian Ocean was anathema to us. A mention of Diego Garcia used to raise our heckles. Towards the end of the eighties, this picture slowly started changing. The role played by the Indian Navy in “Operation Cactus” in aid of the Maldives was recognised by the international community. Even in India the Navy’s role in diplomatic domain was appreciated and a perceptible change started to emerge, which with the break up of the former Soviet Union added a new dimension to our maritime policy. In the mid-nineties, the Navy started looking outward. More and more naval ships started coming on goodwill visits. These later became deployments for the Navy and its presence in the Indian Ocean became more visible. Simultaneously, exercises with foreign navies became a routine occurrence and simple to complex exercises were undertaken with advanced navies of the western world. Gathering of naval ships of the neighbouring navies was conceived in the form of “Milans”. The first steps were tentative but these too later became annual features and the navies of Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand participated in these exercise held off the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The threat to shipping in our area generally originates from piracy, which is prevalent in the Malacca Strait, off Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Somalia. Gun-running, drug trafficking and illegal immigration also afflict most of the areas. Though India has faced terrorism since the late eighties, it became an ominous threat since 9/11 cutting across all borders. Maritime terrorism too raised its ugly head and the global maritime system along with economic assets such as oil processing and producing platforms and pipelines became highly vulnerable to attacks by terrorists. Transportation of WMD material became a possibility since the sea routes are less secure and subjected to much less inspection. The presence of a large number of “flag of convenience” ships coupled with the purely commercial attitude of the merchant shipping and its crew only makes the problem much worse as security is not a serious consideration. Initiatives such as the proliferation security initiative and the container security initiative are intended more for the security of the US. However, a few things are becoming clear. If the menace of terrorism at sea is to be checked, it would require far more effective maritime cooperation among the nations. Intelligence sharing, patrolling of vulnerable areas by ships and surveillance through air and associated measures have to be resorted to. Since multi-lateral measures for increasing security in this manner are more difficult to achieve, in the Indian context bilateral cooperation was considered more practical and feasible. In the eastern theatre much progress has been made in this regard and we have concluded agreements with Indonesia, Thailand and Singapore. We also have a practical arrangement with the Sri Lanka Navy. India has a vibrant “Look East” policy and it is necessary to bring Malaysia also within the scope of such cooperation. The BIMSTEC nations need to have greater maritime cooperation, starting with Bangladesh with whom we must try to resolve our maritime boundary. While on the eastern front considerable headway has been made, it is necessary now to initiate similar measures on the western side too. To start with, we must try to resolve the Sir Creek boundary issue with Pakistan. Some headway has been made with a joint survey of the area, but it is important that minor irritants like the maritime boundary issue be quickly resolved to enable greater confidence building. It is heartening to note that some progress has also been made in the fishermen issue and that the Coast Guard and the MSA are discussing measures to ameliorate the situation. With the just-concluded agreement on money laundering and anti-terrorism with Saudi Arabia, we have achieved an important milestone with one of the most influential Islamic countries. This should help us in furthering our cooperation on the maritime front with countries such as Oman, Gulf States and Iran. Maritime power is dynamic and evolutionary, and constantly adapts to contemporary realities. The concept of maritime power, therefore, requires a fresh look from time to time so that ocean governance and management remain relevant to the challenges at hand. |
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Evolving in the virtual world THE future of entertainment rests with a hot new star: you, the former audience. That was a key message I heard in Los Angeles this week at an eclectic conference called the Entertainment Gathering, which featured live performances from a diverse cast, including Yo-Yo Ma, Dwight Yoakam, Herbie Hancock and a 19-foot boa carried onstage by five people to join his master, Discovery Channel’s Jeff Corwin. The three-day event brought together several hundred people from the entertainment, technology and design worlds to talk about where their industries are going. While speaker after speaker lamented how traditional media are in various stages of decay, gaming was seen as a bright spot. That became clear as leading game creators talked about how their industry is eyeing a new way to fund the future of entertainment—by putting you to work building their virtual game worlds. The next generation of video games aims to give players a much bigger role in producing the look and feel of their own games, Microsoft’s gaming vice president, J Allard, said Thursday. The gaming industry is copying the models of the community-created Wikipedia encyclopedia and open-source software. By giving players new tools to shape the design and action in more personal ways, the industry hopes to draw in a bigger audience while helping foot the bill for ``skyrocketing’’ production costs, he said. The crowd was enthralled by Will Wright, creator of the Sims, who showed a new game he is developing at Electronic Arts called Spore. It lets players create entire species and have them evolve inside a universe populated by species and cities created by other players. The idea is to put players in the role of a George Lucas or a “Galactic God,’’ Wright said, and let them share their creations over the Internet in a virtual environment. Creating “living worlds’’ has grown increasingly expensive, and the content that players typically come up with on their own isn’t all that good because most lack the technical proficiency of professional developers. Game makers aim to change that by harnessing the power of computers to amplify their handiwork, Wright said. “Computers can actually model players as they play, analyze their game play—which choices do they make, which social interactions and frequencies,’’ he said. Computers can enhance the results of players’ decisions using models of physics and behavior. That is what happens in Spore. Players shape creatures using simple menus, deciding what kind of limbs and coloring they should have. In the background, the computer applies animation models to make their creatures look like something made by Pixar. Wright showed vivid animations of cities, ranging from fantasy villages to urban cities resembling where we live today. Each player’s creations show up on the computer screens of other players because Spore redistributes each person’s handiwork over the Internet to everyone else who is playing. Players start by creating single-cell creatures, which evolve into entire civilizations. Eventually, the game leads to space travel around a universe filled with imaginary planets, each rendered in amazing detail.
— LA Times-Washington Post
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New species discovered AN astonishing mist-shrouded “lost world” of previously unknown and rare animals and plants high in the mountain rainforests of New Guinea has been uncovered by an international team of scientists. Among the new species of birds, frogs, butterflies and palms discovered in the expedition through this pristine environment, untouched by man, was the spectacular Berlepsch’s six-wired bird of paradise. The scientists are the first outsiders to see it. They could only reach the remote mountainous area by helicopter, which they described it as akin to finding a “Garden of Eden”. In a jungle camp site, surrounded by giant flowers and unknown plants, the researchers watched rare bowerbirds perform elaborate courtship rituals. The surrounding forest was full of strange mammals, such as tree kangaroos and spiny anteaters, which appeared totally unafraid, suggesting no previous contact with humans. Bruce Beehler, of the American group Conservation International, who led the month-long expedition last November and December, said: “It is as close to the Garden of Eden as you’re going to find on Earth. We found dozens, if not hundreds, of new species in what is probably the most pristine ecosystem in the whole Asian-Pacific region. There were so many new things it was almost overwhelming. And we have only scratched the surface of what is there.” The scientists hope to return this year. The area, about 300,000 hectares, lies on the upper slopes of the Foja Mountains, in the easternmost and least explored province of western New Guinea, which is part of Indonesia. The discoveries by the team from Conservation International and the Indonesian Institute of Sciences will enhance the island’s reputation as one of the most biodiverse on earth. The mountainous terrain has caused hundreds of distinct species to evolve, often specific to small areas. The Foja Mountains, which reach heights of 2,200 metres, have not been colonised by local tribes, which live closer to sea level. Game is abundant close to villages, so there is little incentive for hunters to penetrate up the slopes. A further 750,000 hectares of ancient forest is also only lightly visited. One previous scientific trip has been made to the uplands - the evolutionary biologist and ornithologist Professor Jared Diamond visited 25 years ago - but last year’s mission was the first full scientific expedition. The first discovery made by the team, within hours of arrival, was of a bizarre, red-faced, wattled honeyeater that proved to be the first new species of bird discovered in New Guinea - which has a higher number of bird species for its size than anywhere else in the world - since 1939. The scientists also found the rare golden-fronted bowerbird, first identified from skins in 1825. Although Professor Diamond located their homeland in 1981, the expedition was able to photograph the bird in its metre-high “maypole” dance grounds, which the birds construct to attract mates. Male bowerbirds, believed to be the most highly evolved of all birds, build large and extravagant nests to attract females. The most remarkable find was of a creature called Berlepsch’s six-wired bird of paradise, named after the six spines on the top of its head, and thought “lost” to science. It had been previously identified only from the feathers of dead birds. Dr Beehler, an expert on birds of paradise, which only live in northern Australia and New Guinea, said: “It was very exciting, when two of these birds, a male and a female, which no one has seen alive before ... came into the camp and the male displayed its plumage to the female in full view of the scientists.”
— The Independent
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From the pages of Reconstitution of Congress While the formation of a separate organisation by Mahatma Gandhi to carry out the Charkha programme, in the sense of an organisation outside the Congress, is to us both inconceivable and in the highest degree undesirable, we are strongly in favour of the Mahatma’s forming a distinct organisation within the Congress for that purpose. Such an organisation would be beneficial both to the Congress and the Charkha programme, because it would free each from the obsession of the other. That association with the Congress has done much to popularise the Charkha is undoubtedly true, but we are not certain that the advantage would not have been even greater if the Congress had made the Charkha only a part of its programme instead of practically making it its whole programme.
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Never allow yourself to become complacent and self-satisfied, even when you have accomplished a task successfully. — Islam Work hard. Work well. And be happy with the results that you get. Do not aspire for a particular result and be upset when you do not get it. This is the essence of karma yoga. —
Bhagavadgita
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