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Neglected lot Farmers will be happy |
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Badland called UP Need to handle it on priority Those demanding the imposition of President’s rule in UP by pointing out growing lawlessness may be guided by their political interests in view of the next year’s assembly elections. But they seem to have a case if we closely look at the situation evolving for some time. The latest incident that gives credence to their claim is the killing of at least 15 villagers as a result of a property dispute in Sitapur district on Friday when the police station was not far away.
Threats from Naxalism
It could have been worse!
Human Rights Diary Dateline Washington Chatterati
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Neglected lot THE significance of the report of the Rajinder Sachar Committee is that it has provided statistics to prove what everybody knew about the condition of Muslims in the country. They remain excluded from the mainstream and most economic activities. Their representation in government and private sector jobs, legislature, trade and industry is not commensurate with their population. What’s more galling, their condition in some respects is worse than that of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes, the traditional underdogs. And this is despite the charge often leveled against them that they are the beneficiaries of the government’s appeasement policy. Once the report is made available in the public domain, the people will have a clear idea of where the community stands vis-à-vis jobs, availability of government loans, education etc. Mr Justice Sachar has denied making suggestions about how to bring about an improvement in the condition of the Muslims. This has belied expectations in some quarters that it would suggest reservation for the community in government and private sector jobs, which would have been fraught with dangerous consequences given the fact that religion-based reservation is anathema to the Constitution. Even if it has not suggested solutions, making available data on the backwardness of the Muslims will go a long way in addressing the problems of the community. The Muslims constitute at least 15 per cent of the population. The nation cannot move forward when such a large segment remains backward. Data show that Muslims have done well in unorganised sectors like cinema where creativity alone counts. Similarly, where the community had easy access to quality education, whether in the private or the public sector, it did well. This disproves the claim made in some quarters that the Muslims are reluctant to take advantage of the educational and economic opportunities available to them. It is true that security weighs heavily with them and they tend to live in ghettos but this does not mean that the government can get away from its responsibility of opening schools closer to them. The lack of civic amenities in a place like Malegaon where terrorists struck recently tells a story of utter neglect. It is this attitude of neglect that needs to go if the Muslims have to come up to the level of other communities in the country and feel that they are a part of the mainstream.
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Farmers will be happy The
new land acquisition policy announced by the Punjab government on Friday aims to ensure that a farmer gets the market rate for his land. It also restricts the government role in getting land for private projects. Under the new policy the government will acquire a farmer’s land only for clearly defined public purposes like building roads, hospitals, bus terminals and government offices. Land for private projects will be bought through negotiations with the owners and the government will step in to buy not more than 20 per cent of the land required for a project. The new policy will also end the old practice of acquiring land by taking the average price in the three years preceding a sale deed. Land prices often shoot up when some major project like a special economic zone is announced, but farmers often end up getting prices much below the market rates. This had caused much heart-burning among the land-owners and led to protests and sometimes deprivation. What hurt the farmers deeply was the government role in furthering the interests of private players. The Tribune had recently launched a campaign against this open loot of farmers with the knowledge as well as help of the government. It was the Centre which first came to the farmers’ rescue and sought to protect the farmers’ interests at the recent conclave of party Chief Ministers in Nainital. Taking a cue, the Punjab government has now formulated a fresh land acquisition policy, which is welcome. This is not enough; the government needs to do more. It should computerise all land records at the earliest to discourage litigation and end fraudulent deals. Lack of transparency has bred corruption at various levels in the revenue department. Procedures should be simplified and the stamp duty reduced so that transaction costs come down. This will boost government revenue as also industrialisation in the state, keeping the farmers’ interests in mind.
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Badland called UP Those
demanding the imposition of President’s rule in UP by pointing out growing lawlessness may be guided by their political interests in view of the next year’s assembly elections. But they seem to have a case if we closely look at the situation evolving for some time. The latest incident that gives credence to their claim is the killing of at least 15 villagers as a result of a property dispute in Sitapur district on Friday when the police station was not far away. It not only exposed the inefficiency of the police, but also highlighted the missing fear of law in the politically most important state of the country. The incident occurred soon after the kidnapping of a company executive’s minor son in Noida. Though the three-year-old victim, Anant Gupta, has been restored to his parents, it remains to be seen whether the culprits will be brought to book. The incompetence of the police is the primary cause for Etah district having become a “factory of kidnappings”. Forty kidnapping cases have been reported during the current year from this district alone. The criminal elements involved in this heinous activity have acquired a kind of specialisation by establishing foolproof channels for the transfer of ransom money. They have started assigning the kidnapping job to local gangs, who get paid by the bigger gangs for the work they do. People are too scared to move out of their places of residence or work, particularly during the evening hours, even in cities like Agra, the main attraction for tourists. Viewed against this backdrop, the large-scale violence during the recent civic bodies’ elections was not surprising. Goons were reportedly hired by many contestants to ensure their victory, and it is not yet known how many successful candidates have a history of crime to back them. This shows that law has ceased to have any meaning for the moneyed or those with muscle power. With such a dismal record of the Mulayam Singh Yadav government, the coming assembly elections cannot be expected to be free from violence unless foolproof security measures are taken in time.
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If you are ever at a loss to support a flagging conversation, introduce the subject of eating. — Leigh Hunt
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Threats from Naxalism Naxalism
is growing at a spectacular pace in India. During the last few years it has grown from a marginal movement in two or three states to constitute the biggest internal security challenge in the country. Its tentacles have now spread from Uttaranchal in the north to Tamil Nadu in the South, Maharashtra in the west to West Bengal in the east; affecting 170 districts in 14 states. Recent political developments in Nepal — the Maoists likely to be in the power structure — should sound alarm bells in India. More than the ideological affinity, the Maoists in India have now for the first time an opportunity to establish sanctuaries in the neighbouring country like the “jihadi” terrorists find in Pakistan and Bangladesh. But the “status paper” tabled by the Union Home Minister earlier in the year in Parliament does not give the impression that the Central government has quite grasped the magnitude of the problem. Not surprising, the government response, both by the Centre and the states, has so far been inadequate and shortsighted. The status paper tries to downplay the problem by saying that cases of Maoist violence were reported from only “509 police stations in 11 states, which works out to 5.8 per cent of the total number of police stations in these states”. But what the Ministry of Home Affairs does not say, intentionally or otherwise, in the status paper is more relevant to the current situation. May be, isolated hit and run incidents in the interior areas do not threaten national security and need not be a big cause of worry. But when they mount an attack by hundreds of activists, backed by a large number of local sympathisers, on a high security jail, not far from the main highway, about two hours drive from Patna in Jehanabad in Bihar, or a main district training centre in Giridih in Jharkhand on November 11, 2005, and free high security prisoners and loot hundreds of weapons, there is something to worry about. Today the Maoists have the capability in the most affected areas to disrupt road traffic on GT Road and rail traffic on main trunk routes for days together. The Maoist leadership decides which development project will take off and which will not, which road will be built and which will not. They extort hundreds of crores of rupees every year from major corporate houses, contractors and transporters as levies. Senior politicians and government officers give them regular “donations”. Many politicians, including some prominent ones, have close nexus with them and take their help during the elections, and as a quid-pro-quo, they pay them huge sums of money and ensure that the police does not take any action against them. They have built what they call “liberated zones” and “compact zones” where their writ runs and the state machinery has more or less withdrawn. They hold “jan adalats” (public courts) which are attended by thousands of villagers as the states’ judicial system has virtually broken down. The police stations hardly function in the affected areas and are mostly closed after sunset. They have the ambition of building a “red corridor” from Nepal to Sri Lanka. Far from clearly taking on the responsibility and playing a lead role in tackling the growing menace, the Central government has so far been trying to pass on the buck to the state governments, apparently for political reasons. Instead of taking the lead, it has been shirking its responsibility on the plea that law and order is a state subject under the Constitution. The Central government should do all that it can, as clearly provided in Article 355 of the Constitution, to protect the states against internal and external disorders. Treating naxalism as a mere law and order problem would be making a grave mistake. It is developing into a revolutionary movement; a revolt by the deprived and the dispossessed, and socially and economically marginalised people. No strategic initiative to counter this grave challenge to national security can succeed without the cooperation of the people. It is unfortunate that a well-meaning initiative in Chhattisgarh of “Salwa Judam” has become a controversial subject of partisan politics. The hapless victims of the movement are getting squeezed from all sides, the naxals, the security forces, the unscrupulous politicians and the greedy corporate houses. The solution lies in following a two-pronged strategy: one, the restoration, strengthening and extension of the administrative institutions in the affected areas for the supply of essential goods and services like health, education, water, power, and roads; and two, making the security apparatus more responsive and effective. There is need to solve the basic problems of poverty, unemployment and social injustice rather than branding them as anti-national and suppressing them ruthlessly. The most-affected districts should receive special attention of both the state and the Central governments. Mere allocation of more funds would not do. Unless it is ensured that the allocated funds reach the target groups, they would be total waste and, in fact, only go into the pockets of corrupt politicians and swell the Maoist coffers. The grassroot-level functionaries should be taken care of by committed public servants with a reputation for integrity, and their work should be closely supervised and supported by senior administrators. Senior officers and ministers should make it a point to visit these areas to be aware of the problems of the people, the security forces and the administrative officers at all levels. The capability of the local police stations and the low-level functionaries should be strengthened not only to confront the Naxal menace, but also to deal with the whole range of law and order problems, conflicts and disputes, and all sorts of public grievances. The best officers in the state, who are both willing and motivated to fight the menace at great personal risk, will have to be identified and posted in these areas. They should be given special incentives instead of treating these as punishment postings. We need special forces trained in fighting guerrilla warfare and function in small formations even in plain clothes; special laws giving additional powers to the police to arrest, detain, interrogate, record statements and confessions, and for the constitution of special courts and speedy trials. The Maoists should be given political space to come overground and express their grievances. But the key to this problem lies in accelerating development works, not mega projects but the ones that would give relief to the deprived people in a short period. The people in these areas must be able to see and get the fruits of development. There is need to evolve a broad national consensus about the strategy to deal with such
problems.
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It could have been worse! A few years ago after landing at the New Delhi airport from an international trip I simply forgot to pick up my baggage from the luggage terminus. As I had come back after just a few days’ stay at Atlanta, the immigration official began cross-examining me with very odd questions. My immigration formalities at John F Kennedy airport were comparatively smooth. Preoccupied with the unexpected queries in my very own country, I walked out of the airport to my relatives who had come to receive me at the dead of night. I was carrying back home a number of small gifts for my friends and relatives. Come morning, with great enthusiasm I rushed to open my baggage, which simply wasn’t there. I was dazed. But my friends and well-wishers sympathised with me and said, “Forget it. It could have been worse!” I too realised, it could have been worse. Because while flying over the Atlantic Ocean our aircraft had to face a lot of turbulence due to bad weather. Just a day earlier in another aircraft many passengers had to return midway with broken bones just because of turbulence. I looked below into the blue Atlantic and wondered when I had last taken my swimming lessons. The first one was more than four decades ago in “my own private swimming pool” for exactly nine months before I was born! The next one was again for a few months as a teenager in a water tank in my bathroom. Suppose, I thought, if we hit the ocean what should I do? A drowning man would catch at a straw. What was a drowning woman supposed to be doing, with the Bill for women’s reservation already drowned! For every bad thing that happens, it is a fact that worse could have happened! This phrase sticks to us like a chewed bubble-gum and we are tempted to say every time we wish to sympathise. “Oh, it could have been worse!” This phrase by itself is a nice one, because it takes away a lot of shock we are otherwise in for. It helps us to count our remaining blessings, which are otherwise taken for granted. It is an instant balm on a burning heart. A joke by Noel Horton, which I read in a magazine, goes thus: No matter how horrible the circumstance, Frank would remark. “It could have been worse!” Sick of his annoying habit and to cure him of it, his friends pulled a fast one on him. “Frank,” they said. “Did you hear of Tom? Last night he found his wife in bed with another man, shot them both, then turned the gun on himself.” “It could have been worse!” said Frank frankly, for if it had happened the night before, I’d be
dead!”
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Human Rights Diary DELHI was a place of distances when I settled here after migrating from Pakistan in mid-1947. A swathe of vacant lands gave the city its vastness and depth; otherwise it was a few clusters of habitation, surrounded by thick wild growth. There were big trees and bits of forest. All that has gone now and a jungle of cement and steel has come up, to the disappointment of citizens who are beginning to be conscious of their surroundings. What has been done is a violation of human rights — the rights to clean air, clean water and clean environs. The government, particularly the Delhi Development Authority (DDA), is most to blame for allowing buildings to devour Delhi’s greenery and forests. But the judiciary is responsible for legalising illegal constructions. The Supreme Court was a ray of hope but it has given a disappointing judgment on what has come to be known as the Vasant Kunj buildings. The two-judge bench, even after three years of hearing, has not appreciated the importance of the Ridge, which is older than the Himalayas. It is the Ridge which has been destroyed to let the malls and plazas come up. It is a destruction of heritage. The judges have not even bothered about the natural source of water in the area and there is not one word in the judgment against the Defence Ministry, which has appropriated hundreds of acres of the greenery to build tenements for its men. The bench, when asked in the Court about a remedy for this problem, said that it had been mentioned it in the judgment. But there is not a word of it. And the case has been closed. The judges did not absolve the DDA of blame and said that “it had definitely created an impression that all necessary clearances had been obtained though it does not appear to be so”. Then why is there no criticism of the Defence ministry? Is it because it is considered a holy cow? In fact, the judges have taken the least line of resistance. They quote from the report of the Environmental Pollution (Prevention and Control) Authority that there is no statutory definition of the Ridge. Then they go on to say that the expert committee had referred to the land as “similar to ridge area.” Finally, they pronounce their own opinion, “That (is) being so, at this juncture, it would be inappropriate to reopen the whole issue as to whether the land in question was a constraint on the ridge land.” Surely, the judges could have consulted Delhi’s Master Plan and government records. One person who has met me has said that he has the records of the Ridge since 1890. The fact is that no effort was made to find out what the Ridge meant to Delhi and how old it was. The judges feel that it was too late to disturb the construction but they are themselves to blame. The construction began in 2004 and the petition that there should be no construction was already pending. The expert committee, appointed by the court, had declared the area part of a jungle and had pointed out that. There should be no construction because the place lacked water, the point which the Bhure Lal committee had made earlier: there is simply no water to feed the buildings which are coming up. The malls which have been partially built have already poured concrete at the point where water was surcharged naturally. The judges have said that the construction, if razed to the ground, would cost a heavy loss. But they do realise that the cost of water surcharge, now plugged, would be equal to Rs. 200,000 crore a year. How colossal is this loss against the removal of construction? The civil society is to blame because its interest in the Vasant Kunj building is very little. The media is not concerned. A few environmentalists have voiced their protest. But none at the top has heard them. This applies to entire Delhi. Even today, whatever is left in the city in terms of land is being appropriated by builders who have joined hands with the authorities and politicians to make easy money. I recall when I wrote a letter to the Chief Justice of India some 12 years ago, it was treated as a public interest litigation (PIL). The court not only ordered the constitution of an authority to deal with the environmental protection of the project but also stopped any construction or development of any kind in the area by DDA or any other authority. How things have changed since, because in the Vasant Kunj case, the judges have gone along with the builders. The rejection of the objection against the construction at the Vasant Kunj raised a larger question, not confined to a place, a city or a country. It concerns us all in South Asia, wherever we are living. Money, more aptly, the mafia with the help of corrupt public servants is destroying our national heritage in the shape of forests and fields. This is supposed to be modernisation. I have nothing against it, except that what is being built looks hideous. My real complaint is that as the land in cities becomes scarce, a forest, a park or, for that matter, any green patch is being blotted out to make room for concrete contraptions. Where does environment figure? Dazzled by skyscrapers in Europe and America we have come to prefer bricks to plants, opulence to simplicity, buildings to nature. And when I travel through India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Nepal, I find tall buildings devouring open spaces which are lungs of our habitations. Most of us are indifferent to what is going on but we will regret the loss of greenery some day. India is the worst example. The green cover has already come down to 6.5 per cent from 15 per cent in the last 50 years. The phobia of eight per cent annual growth is not only bulldozing the dissent on the type of development, but doing worse. The government is itself a party to the changing complexion of India through steel and cement. Unfortunately, it is thoughtless, inept and crass development.
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Dateline Washington The
overwhelming bipartisan support for US-India civilian nuclear cooperation in Congress bodes well for the future of the bilateral relationship as Democrats prepare to take control of Capitol Hill in January. The 85-12 vote in support of the nuclear bill in the Senate on Thursday evening was reminiscent of similar backing in the House of Representatives, which voted 359-68 in favour of its version of the bill in July. Democrats took control of the Senate and House after 12 years from Republicans in midterm elections on November 7. Karl Inderfurth, an assistant secretary of state for South Asian affairs in President Bill Clinton’s administration, said the Senate vote was “a strong affirmation that both chambers of the US Congress and both parties, Democratic and Republican, are in favour not only of this particular agreement but the ongoing positive transformation in US-India relations.” “Another important building block in the solid foundation of this relationship has been laid,” Mr. Inderfurth, currently director of the graduate programme in international affairs at George Washington University in Washington, told the Tribune. Sumit Ganguly, the Rabindranath Tagore professor at Indiana University in Bloomington, felt “particularly gratified that the bill has passed because it shows that relations with India are now a bipartisan subject.” He said much would now depend on what transpires in the conference committee, which will seek to reconcile both House and Senate versions of the bill before sending it to President George W. Bush for his signature. The conference is expected to take place in the first week of December when the “lame-duck” session of Congress reconvenes after a two-week Thanksgiving break. “The Senate passage of the bill bodes well for the relationship,” Prof. Ganguly told the Tribune. “However, the task before those of us who care deeply about the Indo-US relationship and see the bill as a vital stepping stone is to ensure that non-germane riders and amendments are not slipped in during the reconciliation process.” The Senate approval put the US and India one step closer to civilian nuclear cooperation. The 45-member Nuclear Suppliers Group in Vienna must also approve the deal. During the conference “the key question is how hard the administration will push for stripping out elements India doesn’t like but which have strong support in the Congress,” Robert Einhorn, a former assistant secretary of state for nonproliferation and now at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, told the Tribune. However, Walter Andersen, associate director of the South Asia studies programme at the John Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies in Washington, said that given that the leadership in both parties is behind the bill, “all of this is likely to happen fast.” A critic of the deal and part of a group of 18 arms control experts who wrote to senators earlier in the week urging them to make certain amendments to the deal, Daryl Kimball of the Arms Control Association was not surprised by the Senate vote. But, he pointed out: “US and Indian negotiators have differences to overcome with respect to the 123 Agreement for nuclear cooperation and Indian and IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) officials have not begun formal talks on the safeguards agreement for the additional facilities schedule to come under the ‘civilian’ list.” The United States and India made little progress in what one source described as “tortuous” discussions on the 123 Agreement in New Delhi earlier this month. A “123 Agreement” is the term for a peaceful nuclear cooperation pact with a foreign country under the conditions outlined in Section 123 of the US Atomic Energy Act. Mr. Kimball noted Indian negotiators are pushing for something the IAEA and the congressional legislation will not allow: India-specific safeguards contingent on assurance of fuel supply. “In addition, the NSG must agree by consensus to necessary rule changes and that will not come quickly or easily,” he predicted. Also a signatory to the Senate letter, Mr. Einhorn said the Senate had adopted the bill “but with elements the Indian government has found objectionable.” Stephen Cohen of the Brookings Institution said this now means that the nuclear issue will be seen in its “proper perspective - not as the centerpiece of US-Indian relations, but as an important and manageable issue.”
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Chatterati India
on canvas was a hit idea conceptualised by Aman Nath, the person who has changed many old and run down forts into plush, understated and elegant hotels. He got together renowned artists, along with many eminent personalities and politicians, to get hold of painting brushes and paint on canvas. These were then auctioned to the rich and famous. Around 124 canvases were on auction at a power-packed do at the British High Commissioner's residence. When our finance minister P Chidambaram painted a couple of strokes with Anjolie Ela Menon, it was auctioned for Rs 65 lakh. Tina Ambani and Jogen Chowdhury's effort went for Rs 95 lakh whereas Laxman Shrestha and Ratan Tata went for 70 lakh. Well, in an evening like this it is a visual delight when you see politicians, business tycoons, painters and the Page 3 lot together. The non-artists were of course very excited about their paintings. The proceedings of this auction go to the homeless youth and the elderly. Though it took a long time for all the paintings to be sold, the auctioneer, Ian McGinlay of Christie's, kept the tempo going. The total sum collected was a whopping 1.5 crores.
Alternative script BJP leader Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi has taken to writing film scripts in a big way. After helping Madhur Bhandarkar with Corporate, his new venture is Signal. Naqvi is now busy penning down a story of a woman sarpanch called Vaishali. Naqvi at one time was a leading spokesperson of the BJP but now President Rajnath Singh likes to talk for himself and the party. Not much work is left for the spokespersons, so they all have to look for other activities. Well, being a Muslim, he is very precious to the BJP and is a good orator.
Haunted house 7, Safdurjung Road at one time was eyed by many. It was the residence of Atal Bihari Vajpayee, who later shifted to 7, Race Course Road as Prime Minister. Many wanted it but it went to Pramod Mahajan. After Pramod's death the bungalow came to be looked upon as unlucky. After all, that is the bungalow where the Rahul Mahajan and Vivek Moitra episode took place. Pramod had spent a lot of money making this bungalow into a luxurious home. We have all heard about the huge jacuzzi and bathrooms with walk-in-wardrobes and latest gadgets. But now the minister of NRI affairs Vyalar Ravi has decided to move into it. Ravi does not believe in superstition and so obviously that makes him a rare politician. The City is after all full of astrologers and numerologists serving politicians. But there are a couple of Vaastu changes reportedly being made in the bungalow before the NRI minister moves in.
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By living in fear in God, man attains to God, Who is above fear; And enters then the house of heavenly bliss. — Guru Nanak Why do you waste your time searching for him in temples while He sleeps in your heart. —The Upanishads The true and faithful wife fears neither jungle nor exile. Her life may be hard but no dangers will bring woe and sorrows to her. Her sinless deeds and holy conduct spread a charmed circle to hold her safe. —The Mahabharata Don’t murder a poor creature, he’ll pay you back in the same coin. Going on a pilgrimage, giving millions of rupees to the Gods won’t save you. —Kabir
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