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The business of
expelling Excellencies On
Record |
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Scrap
MPLADS and strengthen decentralisation
Reflections Profile Diversities
— Delhi Letter
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On Record His main regret is that the NCM failed to play its
real role, as the union government never consulted it on the issue of
minorities. "I feel the government is not serious about the NCM," he
observed in an interview on his last day as NCM Chairman. Excerpts: Q:
Overall, how do you see the role of the NCM? Has it been able to uphold the
peoples’ right to freely profess, practice, propagate and adopt
religions? A: The NCM could not play its real role. The union government
never consulted the NCM on any issue concerning the minorities. The present UPA
government did not call even one meeting. If the NCM is effective, people will
look up to it. However, even though there are organisations trying to drive a
wedge between Muslims and Hindus, the NCM has been able to restore confidence
among the minorities. Q: There is a bill pending in Parliament to amend the
Act regarding the NCM. A: The proposed amending legislation will not be
effective if the government does not pay attention to the recommendations of
the NCM. The issue of minorities has been politicised. Minorities have become a
vote bank and political parties want to keep it that way. Q: How do you
view the communal legacy? A: Nowhere is any injustice sought to be heaped
on the minorities. There is no organised effort to put down minorities though
some groups raise slogans. By and large people want peace and communal harmony.
Political parties must have a code of conduct when it comes to dealing with
minorities. Empowerment of minorities is an imperative though I am totally
against any kind of reservation. Political parties must give due weightage to
the representation of minorities in state assemblies and Parliament. Q:
Talk of minorities presupposes a reference to the Muslim community. A: We
have changed this concept. We have succeeded in having State Minority
Commissions in 14 states where all minorities are accommodated. One of the
major achievements is having a Minority Commission in Jammu and Kashmir, the
only state where the Hindus are going to be the minority. Minority Commissions
in the states have Sikhs, Muslims and Christians as their Chairpersons and all
minorities are treated on an equal footing. Q: What is the attitudinal
change that you have seen? A: There is acceptance across the board that
improved welfare and economic uplift of the minorities is good for the majority
community and the country. Q: What is your view on Madarsas? A: Muslims
prefer to go to Madarsas which provide religious education. We have underlined
the need for modernising the Madarsas so that additional subjects can be taught
with available grants. It is for the Muslims to decide that Madarsas can also
become normal centres of education. Q: What is the major weak link in the
Muslim community? A: Child labour. The dropout rate in schools is very
high. Regrettably, the Muslim leadership dwells in slogan mongering. They do
not recognise their own responsibility in guiding the community and sending the
children to school. Q: Has the NCM’s major initiatives of inviting
leaders of all communities for dialogue in maintaining communal harmony
helped? A: For the first time we opened the doors for the majority
community leaders for a direct interface with the minorities. It included Hindu
leaders from the RSS, Bajrang Dal, the VHP and other institutions. It
facilitated in bridging the grouse against the minorities and led to ending the
distribution of Trishuls. In the aftermath of the Godhra carnage and riots in
Gujarat, the NCM held a sustained dialogue between Muslims and Hindus. There
were also several meetings between the Hindus and Christians on the
controversial issue of conversions. Q: The NCM also conducted critical
studies about all the minority communities. A: The dwindling sex ratio
among the Sikh community was the subject matter of the study. The study also
separately probed the allegation of a population spiral among the Christians in
the Northeast. And among the Muslims there was nothing to suggest an abnormal
increase in their population. The studies also brought to the fore that 40 per
cent of Muslim women were adopting family planning. |
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Scrap MPLADS and strengthen decentralisation The
MPs’ Local Area Development Scheme (MPLADS) needs to be examined from the perspective of decentralisation efforts in the country. CAG reports (1993-97, 1997-2000) and the Standing Committee on Finance (1998-99) have pointed to operational lapses and the failure of the government to effectively administer and monitor the scheme and have suggested a thorough review. In November 2001, the Planning Commission evaluated the Scheme and concluded that: “Allocation of funds to most of the works in the selected districts was found to be meagre despite the fact that there is a large unspent balance (46%) of the MPLADS amount… Monitoring and supervision is the weakest part of the scheme, which is largely due to inadequate infrastructure available to the collector vested with the responsibility. The maintenance of the assets created is another area of weakness.” The most dangerous implication of MPLADS is that it offends the letter and spirit of the 73rd and 74th Constitutional Amendments which sought to create a third stratum of local government in the country. A new Ministry of Panchayati Raj was created to strengthen these institutions. State legislatures are now required to endow panchayats and municipalities ‘‘with such powers and authority as may be necessary to enable them to function as institutions of self-government” The 11th Schedule (Article 243G) and 12th Schedule (Article 243W) contain the list of 47 subjects that should devolve to these institutions. Interestingly, all the 23 items of work meant to be implemented with the guidance of MPs under MPLADS are from the 29 subjects of the 11th Schedule. As per the constitutional amendment acts in the intermediate and district level tiers, MPs are the members with voting rights. Hence, if any of them wants to promote a local scheme, he can do so through his participation at the local level decision making process. Charity does not begin at home for the MPs. Regional level planning and prioritisation cannot be overlooked. Article 243 ZD of the 74th Constitutional amendment provides for constituting the District Planning Committee. But how can this Committee think of planning when the MPs have their own priorities at a decentralised level. Whose priorities should the administration take note of and act upon? The adverse cascading effect of MPLADS is that there are more than 30 lakh elected representatives in more than 2.5 lakh Panchayats identifying devolution of powers from Centre and States in the form and on the style of MPLADS. They have frequently been found arguing at various forums that they too were elected representatives and have their constituencies to nurse. They demanded that they also need schemes on the pattern of the MPLADS. Hence, the scheme, if continued has the potential to degenerate the process of decentralisation which was started in the early nineties, and may prove more injurious to the health of the Indian
democracy. The writer is Associate Professor, Haryana Institute of Rural Development, Nilokheri
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Reflections I was invited to speak at a prestigious Business School on Mahatma Gandhi”s Martyrdom Day. On arrival, over a cup of coffee, the director expressed his deep anxiety over the lack of interest of students in education and inculcation of sound values and wondered whether I could focus my talk around this issue. He triggered my thinking and out of curiosity I asked the director if a prayer meeting had been held, being the Martyrdom Day? He shyly said, “Oh No. We ought to have done so. In fact it should have been a University event as a whole”. He then said, “Dr Bedi, I am very disappointed with my students at present. They have started to take things for granted. They know they already have or will get attractive placements. They are not realizing that for many this may well be the last chance of this kind of learning before they start to work and deliver. I do not want to add to the mediocrity in the society. Could you please share some of your thoughts on what more we could do? How do I improve their value systems for I am seeing a steady erosion? Could you please egg them on to value their time?” I asked the director, “do you encourage your students to read biographies? Have they read My Experiments with Truth? And do you have such books as a part of the curriculum?” He said, “No”. “Why don’t you have them”, I asked. For how else do you reach core values? He said it just did not occur to him. But hereafter he will. “Good” I said. “Now what is it that you want me to focus on”? He said, “put fire in their belly.” I went to the assembly. I instinctively began by asking the students present in the auditorium (nearly 400 of them) if they all had a pen and paper. They said yes. I said, “then pick up a clear sheet and write, “how would I like to be remembered?” I explained: “It is Gandhiji’s Martyrdom Day today…just as we remember him for all he did, how would you like to be remembered”? They all started to write. There was pin drop silence, for all were taken by surprise. I too was surprised at my own thought. I could feel that it was triggered by my brief conversation with the director. After they had written I asked the students to put their name on the paper. This too was a surprise for they were under the impression that it was anonymous, hence it may not matter what they write. But I had cautioned them that this was a serious exercise and hence it was not to be taken lightly. Once written, (including the faculty and the Director), I went down from the stage to collect these. This too was another surprise. They probably were under the impression that the paper was going to stay with them or get lost in anonymity. It was not so! I got each of them collected. I took the bunch of papers with me to the podium. The students were wondering what I was going to do next. I now asked them if they if would like to know what some wrote, while keeping the anonymity of course. They all said, yes. They were certainly curious of what others wrote. I randomly picked one paper out of the bunch and read it out, without mentioning the writer… It was a bit of a shock! It was totally in tandem with the concerns of the Director. The answer on the sheet was just one word “Bindaas…” In other words, “I don’t care”! It did not matter to him. For him this exercise was a joke. (The writer was a boy, for it was a male name). Well, this could be an answer. I said nothing but watched the reaction of the students. Surprisingly this left the students dumbfounded. They felt defensive to an extent. I asked them if I may give these responses to the Director. They overwhelmingly said, NO. Now they did not want to be read For me, it was a test check of what the Director had said. I then read a few more. One by one they revealed no fire in their bellies! The students themselves realized that this was not what was expected of them. After all the investments which were going into them. I now spoke to them, conscious that I not sermonize. I was aware they were already into many digit “offered” salaries. Their stomachs were full. They were obviously not interested in remembering others, nor were they concerned with how they are remembered. But I do feel these young “executives to be”, would not easily forget this day. Perhaps some were left wishing they get another chance to write how they would like to be remembered! To some extent, the objective was
met! |
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Profile He has helped innumerable young men get jobs, provided medical relief to the ailing and facilitated the treatment of many poor cancer patients in Bombay’s reputed Tata Cancer Institute. Refer to him a case of an unemployed youth or a patient fighting for his life, and the response would be unbelievably prompt. Murli Bhai has always enjoyed powerful clout in the corridors of power irrespective of which dispensation ruled the country and pulls the strings. He is now himself in the government, having been inducted in the Cabinet as Petroleum Minister. In the corporate world he has been a much sought after man because he can help captains of industry in the hour of need. His friends include the late Ramnath Goenka, who was his regular bridge partner, the late Dhirubhai Ambani, K K Birla and many front line industrialists. Goenka regularly invited him for a game of bridge at the pent house of Bombay’s Express Towers. Ramnathji, it was believed, may not oblige the highest of the land but would never say “no” to Murli Bhai. His proximity with Dhirubhai dates back to the late seventies and the creator of the Reliance empire had described him as “a name synonymous with Mumbai’s dynamism and vitality”. Dhirubhai wrote on the eve of the 1999 election: “Murli’s rise in public life has been phenomenal. We began our struggle together sharing common interests in the yearn trade, and often we commuted to work together. I remember those days with nostalgia. Murli Bhai took to politics and I took to business. Over the years, we have continued to meet often, exchange views and update ourselves on current issues. This interaction has increased since Murli Bhai entered Parliament”. Yet another doyen of the corporate world, the late JRD Tata, in an appeal on election eve wrote “Murli Deora’s willingness to help small people is well known and makes him the good politician that he is”. Noted Jurist Nani Palkhivala too was not lagging behind in praising Murli Bhai’s versatility: “Murli has been working along with me as a colleague in the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan’s Gandhi Institute of Computer Education and Information Technology which is, in fact, his own brain child and which we at the Bhavan readily agreed to adopt. The institute is the first of its kind to launch totally free computer education for the underprivileged and aims at bridging the underemployment gap in a big way”. Press Magnate Pravinchandra Gandhi called Murli Bhai “A dynamo of a man—a friend in need”. Ramnathji, Dhirubhai and JRD are no more but one wonders how others will be feeling at Murli Bhai’s swearing-in as Petroleum Minister. Unlike his predecessor, Mani Shankar Aiyer, Murli Bhai has for long years been maintaining amazing contacts with successive US establishments, cutting across Republican and Democratic party lines. It is believed that irrespective of the political dispensation at the While House, he can have opened many doors in Washington DC. He is sure to have a significant role during President George Bush’s much hyped visit to India next month. In the past he had been host and guide of any American of some consequence visiting the country. Many of them were big names like Bill Gates. Murli Bhai has also fought for many issues of public interest. As far back as 1999, he filed a public interest litigation (PIL) in the Supreme Court asking for restrictions on indiscriminate publicity promoting tobacco and related products. The petition resulted in a series of directions from the court instructing manufacturers to make the statutory warning more visible and placing certain restrictions on cigarette advertising. This was the first such PIL and was the forerunner of many others that ultimately resulted in a series of bans on smoking in public places that included government buildings and aircraft. True to his character, the first act of Murli Bhai as Petroleum Minister was to call on his predecessor, Mani Shankar Aiyer, in a bid to assuage his hurt feelings. The two thereafter drove to the Ministry in Shastri Bhavan and Aiyer led Deora to the ministerial chair. Murli Bhai’s second act was a meeting with the Marxist leader, Sitaram Yechuri to discuss the issue of pricing of sensitive petroleum products. This followed a categorical assurance from the new Petroleum Minister ruling out immediate increase in LPG and kerosene prices. Deora, during the first day in office, addressed two key problems plaguing the oil sector. His clear cut commitment was “we have to offer subsidies to the poor and make sure that the losses incurred by the PSUs are
reduced”. |
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Diversities — Delhi Letter Paradoxes, if I may say
so. Just about yesterday evening, getting back home after hearing a
detailed lecture at the IIC by Professor Nadia Al Baghdadi of the
Central European University at Budapest, on the havoc that has been
happening in today’s Iraq, it was as though one was halted midway.
As I reached Chanakyapuri‘s diplomatic stretch of the French embassy
the formations in the skies stood in the way. Huge, colourful formations
all over the skies. It just about then struck that that particular
evening —February to be precise — France’s Pierre-Alain Hubert,
who is considered as one of the greatest pyrotechnic artists, was to
hold a show of fireworks hitting the skies so as to say, to celebrate
the forthcoming visit of the President of the French Republic, Mr.
Jacques Chirac. And seeing those fireworks often described as
"paintings in the skies, opera of light," I couldn’t help
but comment on the paradoxes at work. I’d just heard one of the
detailed lectures on the tragic turns in Iraq by one of the leading
academics that had left one feeling low and upset, then, within ten
minutes the glitter one saw right there, up in the skies. In fact,
another addition along the strain — this very French Embassy has been
witnessing a series of potent protests by Greenpeace activists —
protesting against the entry of Clemenceau in our country — and yet
the fireworks hitting the skies, so as to say It’s really premature
to comment whether those fireworks would continue till the French
President’s visit. For, not to be overlooked are angry protests, which
are going on unabated. And rightfully so; we third world nations cannot
be treated as dumping grounds for toxic wastes and it is time to rise
and react. If the government does not do so, the people have to come
forth and protest.
Some focus on Kasturba Moving on. Though
the latest book on Mahatma Gandhi — Girja Kumar’s Brahmacharya
Gandhi and His Women Associates — is said to be focusing on the
women in Mahatma Gandhi’s life yet there is little focus on Kasturba.
Never mind. For this coming week there will be much focus on her. It
is the 60th anniversary of the Kasturba Gandhi Memorial Trust and with
that her granddaughter Tara Gandhi Bhattacharjee is holding a two day
meet at the Gandhi Smriti. The very invite holds out much hope as it
states — "A celebration of the life and message of Kasturba
Gandhi," together with this quote of Mahatma Gandhi — "I
learnt non-violence from Kasturba." Of course, there’s no
denying that Kasturba Gandhi did play a role in the entire freedom
struggle. Maybe, took a backseat and purposely avoided focus on her work
and the manner in which she supported her husband.
Power of
nationalism Often I muse, why do we sit and sing long departure
songs when the person is gone? In the case of rebel Urdu poet Israr-ul
Haq Majaz, he is long gone and was part of the Progressive Writers
Movement. But, then, suddenly, from last August there’s been one meet
after another on him. The latest focus this week-end is at the India
International Centre. I am writing this several hours before the event
so can only leave you with this poet’s haunting lines from his poem
titled Awara: Night has fallen in the city, and I, unhappy
and defeated Roam, a vagabond on dazzling, awake streets It is not my
neighbourhood, how long can I loiter thus? Anguished heart, desperate
heart, what should I do... To stop and rest on the way is not my
habit To admit defeat and return is not my nature But to find a
companion, alas, is not my fate... Or these lines from another of
his poems tilted Inquilaab (Revolution) which he penned in great
anger at the British rule: The rule of capitalism is about to
end The passion of the workers’ revenge is coming to a boil Winds
bearing the scent of blood will soon blow from the forests... And on
that horizon, amidst a thousand tumults Shall rise the sun of our land’s
freedom. What men — the so-called progressive writers — we had
produced in that era! It is really unfortunate that we have sidelined
them and their verses. Such potent verse, what powerful words, enough to
surcharge that strong feel for the nation. In fact, before I end I must
write what Professor Nadia Al Baghdadi did say in her lecture, in the
context of nationalism. She said that the US and the allies did not
expect such a stiff and strong opposition from the Iraqis and it
probably came from the factor of strong nationalism. This has to be
systematically built into the citizens of each nation. |
If a man voluntarily allows himself to be crushed, he yields the oil of moral energy which sustains the world. — Mahatma Gandhi If the garment be considered polluted and impured by a stain of blood, How can the minds of those be deemed pure who suck the blood of human beings? — Guru Nanak |
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Mr Tarlochan Singh
bowed out as the Chairman of the National Commission of Minorities (NCM) last
Wednesday, after a three year term. He has served as its Vice-Chairman as well,
and was the first Sikh and non-Muslim to have headed the NCM. A multi-faceted
personality with a wide range of interests including tourism and sports, he is
currently an independent member of the Rajya Sabha from Haryana. He has been a
member of the National Human Rights Commission. As an MP he is a member of the
Parliamentary advisory committee of the ministry of Civil Aviation and the
Privileges Committee of Parliament. He is Chairman of the Publicity Committee
of the 2010 Commonwealth Games to be held in this country and Patron of the
World Punjabi Organisation.
M