The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

Free power for farmers
Policy flip-flop by Punjab govt

By reintroducing free power for farmers in Punjab the government has admitted how immature the suggestion of the Sukhbir-Kalia committee was to first charge for power and then return the amount collected through a productivity bonus. Anyone familiar with the ground realities would know that the proposal would expose farmers and Powercom to needless harassment. Media reports suggest 50 per cent farmers have not paid their electricity bills. Surprisingly, even Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal, known for his pragmatic ways, did not veto the ridiculous idea. Anyway, Sukhbir is learning through experience at the state’s expense.

In the recent tussle over subsidies the state government was forced to drop Finance Minister Manpreet Singh Badal, who was a vocal critic of the Akali-BJP politics of populism and wastage of limited resources on misdirected subsidies. The government’s policy reversal is meant to deny Manpreet Badal a chance to harness disillusioned farmers’ votes. Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Badal has suddenly and unilaterally decided to go back to free power in an attempt to consolidate the party’s vote bank and keep farmers off Manpreet’s public meetings.

Experts have all along opposed free power for farmers since it leads to lower minimum support prices for wheat and paddy as this component of the cost of production is borne by the state government and not included in the calculation of MSP. Lower MSPs mean lower food grain prices. Thus, the state ends up subsidising consumers in other states while depleting its own water and soil resources. The recent debate over subsidies threw up a near consensus over limiting these to small farmers. If the government delays subsidy reimbursements, as it had done in the past, nothing would stop Powercom from going bankrupt like the power board. Political interference has started with the Chief Minister asking Powercom to recruit 5,000 linemen. It is back to populism and further financial ruin.

Checking dowry deaths
SC opinion on death sentence timely

The Supreme Court’s observation that those found guilty of burning brides for dowry deserve death sentence has not come a day too soon. A Bench consisting of Justice Markandey Katju and Justice Gyan Sudha Misra has ruled that killing a bride for dowry falls into the category of “rarest of rare case” and thus those accused of the heinous crime deserve exemplary punishment like the death sentence. Though it upheld the Allahabad High Court’s award of life imprisonment to the husband and mother-in-law of the deceased (both appellants), it observed that it was really a case under Section 302 IPC and death sentence — and not life imprisonment — should have been imposed on them. However, since no charge under Section 302 IPC was levelled, the Bench did not order capital punishment. Significantly, the Bench took serious view of the crime and observed that while the expression, “rarest of rare” as referred to in Bachan Singh vs. State of Punjab (1980) did not mean that the act is uncommon; it meant that the act is “brutal and barbaric”. And bride killing is, certainly, “barbaric”, it ruled.

The apex court’s latest ruling on death sentence for bride burning comes at a time when there is an increasing demand for the abolition of capital punishment in India. There is no denying that capital punishment per se is anachronistic and the person condemned to death needs to be given a chance to reform. Nonetheless, there is merit in the argument that death sentence should be awarded to the guilty only in rarest of rare cases and that it should continue in the statute book because of its great deterrent effect.

Interestingly, the apex court observation is in variance with the Law Commission’s recommendation for a minimum of 10-year jail term for dowry death. The commission pointed out that there is no justification for amending Section 304 B IPC to provide for death penalty for dowry death. However, there is a strong case for checking the malady. In addition to strengthening the laws, we need to spread social awareness. Women have been exploited for long and laws alone will not help as the failure of the anti-dowry law and the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act shows. A financially independent woman experiences less violence at home. The need of the hour, therefore, is to liberate women from the shackles of ignorance and over-dependence.

Thought for the Day

Science without religion is lame, religion without science is blind. — Albert Einstein

ARTICLE

Need for national defence policy
Essential to protect the country’s interests
by Rakesh Datta

In post-Independence Indian history, defence policy has never been invoked as a separate structured framework. Rather it has emerged in various ways by way of an individual leader’s philosophy or as a result of the ruling party’s political creed. Nehru’s inability to give a concrete shape to his broad defence policy for fear of militarisation gave India a policy of self-defence. While the latter was seen mostly under the shadow of neutrality or non-alignment, India unfortunately overlooked its basic need for defence.

One significant reason for India suffering major reverses in most of the battles it has fought has been the poorly conceived policies of fighting wars. According to Prussian strategic theorist Clausewitz, “Policy is the womb in which war develops”. While India has been striving for a long time to have a pre-eminent position in regional politics, inadequate defence planning has led to the country being unable to acquire the requisite strength to achieve its objectives.

Seeing things against the backdrop of the Chinese military philosophy, which considers the gun as the currency of power, has also put India in an extremely vulnerable position. We are unable to put forward any effective strategy to counter the threat. The lack of a national security strategy has put the Indian military at the receiving end or making it fight in a knee-jerk manner.

In this regard, while the chances of open war, though its probability is very low, cannot be ruled out, our long uninterrupted experience of fighting low-intensity conflicts has not paid any dividend. The U S army and marine, on the other hand, have designed a counter-insurgency doctrine based on its involvement in Afghanistan and Iraq.

The need for a proper defence policy for the country arises from considering several long and short-term perspectives in terms of providing what Walter Lippmann had said — that a nation was secure to the extent it did not have to sacrifice its core values and, if challenged, it decided to maintain them by achieving victory. This meant securing a peaceful environment by fighting terrorism, handling a low-intensity conflict or political instability in the neighbourhood as well as protecting the country’s frontiers, including having internal security. In this context, formulating a defence policy as designed by other big powers will not only give India the strength to deter exploitation by external forces, but also help understand the strategic environment in the region.

It will also help in taking decisions about the size and shape of our defence forces, allocating adequate budgetary resources and deciding as to when, where and how we may use our military power. A clear defence policy and strong military capability will reinforce our political, diplomatic and economic power, including reassuring the neighbours of our invulnerability.

India is a rising great power, the second largest democracy and the third largest economy in the world. So far as our military potential is concerned, the Indian Army, the Air Force and the Navy occupy the third, fourth and sixth positions, respectively, in the world. However, such a large force has merely become a usable commodity rather than holding any deterrent value.

India’s acclaimed nuclear weapon capability is being circumvented by our adversaries. Our ‘No First Strike’ may be a good political statement, but it holds no value in military terms, especially when India’s immediate neighbours have a policy contrary to this. Until now no Indian government has ever released a national security policy for the country.

When India has a maritime policy, a “cold start” strategy for the Army and a clear doctrine for the IAF, besides the nuclear policy, why is there not a comprehensive defence policy?

In 1985, Narasimha Rao as Defence Minister had said in Parliament that we did not have a document called national defence policy, though there were several guidelines linked to that. The situation has not changed till now.

Later in 1990, the then Defence Secretary had said that there was a document called the Operational Directive issued to the three Service Chiefs, and it was a fairly comprehensive paper. According to him, this again does not conform to a defence policy though efforts have been continuing to have such a document.

The setting up of the National Security Council was one step in the same direction. He further said it should not be left merely to the Ministry of Defence or other concerned organizations. Rather we need to discuss the perceptions and the concept at various forums.

Defence planning has been neglected for long in India. It has led to ad-hocism in decision making, adversely affecting the modernisation plans of the Services. Consequently, the military budget has been a smaller share of the GDP. Funds are surrendered every year for not buying military equipment. The key issue needing immediate attention is the revival of the five-year defence plan and better management and acquisition of human and material resources.

Unless we have a broad-based national defence policy — taking into view matters relating to military planning, issues concerning border management, international operations, space management, an extended EEZ as well supply routes for meeting energy resources, internal security and terrorism — the various agencies like the armed forces executing such plans will remain devoid of a common reference document.

A clear defence policy with strong military capability will equally reinforce our diplomatic and economic power to help the country’s emergence as a significant global player. India has been faced with a low-intensity war for a long time. We have been experiencing terrorist violence since the mid-sixties in the Northeast and there is no trained force to deal with this kind of threat. The government is actually clueless about how to deal with Naxalism which, according to the Prime Minister, is the biggest threat to the country’s security. At the same time, Union Home Secretary G.K.
Pillai’s statement that the Maoist plan to overthrow the Indian state by 2050 is alarming.

According to the Chinese, nations respect power, and have contempt for the weak. The comprehensive national power accumulated and projected by China has attracted Nepal, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Pakistan in its orbital structure. Pakistan, on the other hand, is aggressively using sub-conventional warfare tactics against India.

To safeguard our national interest, it is highly necessary to formulate a defence policy in a structured manner. It will not only help in reviewing our basic approach towards defence, but also lend the much-needed credibility to the defence forces, true to the Clausewitzian dictum that it is the policy that fights a war. n

The writer is Professor and Head, Department of Defence and National Security Studies, Panjab University, Chandigarh.

MIDDLE

Middle on middles
by Raj Chatterjee

I am addicted to “middles” which is why, living in Delhi, I subscribe to The Tribune. It prints the kind of middles I like — lighthearted, free of political squabbles, and thoroughly readable.

The Tribune had no middles till 1977 in which year my old friend Prem Bhatia took over the editorship of the paper. Before leaving Delhi he asked me if I had a couple of middles lying about as he wanted to run a series in The Tribune. I said I should be happy to help. That is how “The Working Girl” appeared in The Tribune of April 6, 1977.

For sometime a man called C.L Proudfoot kept me company. He became quite popular with his favourite theme about his wife whom he referred to as “The Lady of the House” then, abruptly, he stopped writing.

No matter, because by then a steady stream of middle-writers had emerged.

Payments for contribution seem ridiculous when compared to what they are today. They ranged from Rs 25 per middle to Rs 50 from ‘ classy’ papers. But it must be remembered that Rs 50 went much farther in those days than it does today. A bottle of Scotch whisky cost Rs. 91!

Someone once asked me what it takes to write a good middle. My reply was: ‘ plenty of imagination, and the ability to write simple English with no adornments. Somerset Maugham, the greatest novelist of the 20th century, once said ‘Write as you would talk’.

In March 1997 I was surprised to receive a letter from the Editor of the Economic Times, whom I did not know, to send him a thousand words on the Bankipore Club, Patna, where I happened to be stationed at the time. It appeared under the caption ‘Happy Days And Clubbable Nights’. I was paid the (to me) astounding sum of Rs 1400 for this. It appeared in the Economic Times of 6.4.97.

Another request came when I moved to Lahore. This was to give my impression of the town. It appeared as Northern Lights” on 4.5.97.

But the third assignment knocked me sideways. It was about the new boxwallas, Indians who had joined foreign firms and how they got on with their British colleagues. It brought me the staggering sum of Rs 2000/ and appeared under the title Whose tryst with destiny was it anyway’ on 8.2.98.

Alas, my little gold nest did not last very long. The Editor left the paper. My day was over. I was left high and dry!

I also dabbled in short stories and wrote 35, of which eleven were broadcast in the World Service of the BBC.

OPED

SAVING THE GIRL CHILD
Perneet Singh and Charu Singh

A unique tree plantation drive and gender awareness movement, Nanhi Chhaan combines secular concepts with a green agenda. It has now spread its roots from Punjab to other parts of the country

A girl child has a neglected existence in India. Most of the parents mourn the birth of a daughter instead of celebrating it. That is why the girls-to-boys ratio is highly skewed. There are various ways to remedy the situation. One way out is to have tough laws on ensuring equal rights and opportunities for the daughters. But a better option is to bring about awareness among the people.

Equally serious is the problem of vanishing green cover. India is home to 16 per cent of the world population, but has only about 1 per cent of the world's forests. Both these problems have been sought to be addressed by a unique tree plantation and gender awareness movement in North India by Nanhi Chhaan Foundation.

Launched in August, 2008, it has caught on rapidly and is already spreading its roots across the nation at a tender age of two. A brainchild of Fortis Healthcare Chairman Harpal Singh, the Nanhi Chhaan Foundation got a perfect launch pad in the form of the Golden Temple, the holiest Sikh shrine. Also, it seemed more apt as Punjab not only has the most skewed sex ratio in the country but it also lies at the bottom of the table among the states with the lowest forest cover.

Harpal Singh, Chairman, Nanhi Chhaan Foundation We have used the positive power of faith to move the social agenda of India. Nanhi Chhaan is not only restricted to Sikhs or Punjab but has also reached out to people from different faiths and states.
— Harpal Singh, Chairman, Nanhi Chhaan Foundation

Under the concept, saplings are distributed among the visitors at the Golden Temple as "buta parshad" to be planted back home in the name of their newly born daughters and newly wedded daughters-in-law. The concept was an instant hit with the devotees as they made a beeline to get the saplings. As a part of its follow-up plan, Nanhi Chhaan also noted down the addresses of those getting the saplings and made it a point to make a random check to track the growth of the plant as well as the girl child, clicking their snaps together.

Though scores of NGOs have been working in Punjab in the fields of girl child and environment, none of them has struck the chord with the common people the way Nanhi Chhaan has and that too in a very short span. What is it that lends Nanhi Chhaan a distinct identity?

"We have used the positive power of faith to move the social agenda of India. Nanhi Chhaan is not only restricted to Sikhs or Punjab but has also reached out to people from different faiths and states. If we launched the campaign from the Golden Temple, we also took it to Sacred Heart Cathedral, New Delhi, Govind Devji Temple, Jaipur, and Dargah of Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti, Ajmer. The idea was to give women strength and confidence that they are not alone and what better people to do so then the leaders of faith," averred Harpal Singh.

According to him, the concept has three dimensions and not two as is being projected. These are saving the girl child, environment conservation and promoting secularism. "We believe in allowing all faiths to flourish and that's why the campaign was launched from all the places of worship."

On the genesis of the idea, he says: "Around two and a half years back I was waiting for someone in the Golden Temple when I stepped out towards the "galiara" (corridor) and found it in a pathetic shape with stray cows roaming all over it. I immediately rang up the DC and expressed my desire to maintain the area. A couple of months later we got the approval. However, I wanted to turn the idea into something more meaningful than merely a beautiful park. Subsequently, the concept of planting a sapling and protecting a girl child was evolved."

To further connect the idea with the faith, the Nanhi Chhaan Foundation decided to distribute saplings of the trees which find mention in the "Gurbani".

The concept owes its name to Harpal Singh's wife who initially named it "Nanhi Chhayan" which was modified by Bathinda MP and the foundation's patron Harsimrat Kaur Badal to "Nanhi Chhaan" in view of its launch from Punjab.

Nanhi Chhaan Foundation's very first initiative — beautification of "galiara" around the Golden Temple — was a success. The extraordinary effort put in by the foundation has totally rejuvenated the "galiara" which now has lush green lawns, beautiful trees, fountains and a promenade across the entire stretch which not only serves as an ideal place for an afternoon siesta for pilgrims from far-off places but also provides a place for morning walk to the local residents. Moreover, lamp posts have also been put up in the "galiara" due to which women and children are not afraid of visiting it even in the evening hours.

Foundation's coordinator Sanjay Joshi, who is in-charge of the 'galiara' work, said, these green belts around Sri Harmandar Sahib add to the beauty of its splendid architecture and offer an opportunity to pilgrims to savour its charm. They also serve as lungs for the residents of the highly congested walled city where there is hardly any patch of green belt providing open space and fresh air. The foundation is also maintaining the green belt in front of the Golden Temple's main entrance where the proposed entrance plaza is to come up.

The foundation along with BBK DAV College for Women, Amritsar, has also adopted Qilla Jeewan Singh village, near Amritsar. Together they have launched a green drive in the village apart from opening a vocational training centre for women in the village gurdwara where they are primarily involved in stitching work.

The success story of Nanhi Chhaan doesn't end at the centres of faith where it was launched, as the concept has been lapped up by hospitals, educational institutions, corporate firms, banks and even the CRPF at the national level.

During its launch in Rajasthan, scores of schools, including prestigious ones like Maharani Gayatri Devi School, Jaipur, and Mayo Girls School, Ajmer, participated in the function and around 2,500 students pledged their support to the campaign. Similarly, Fortis Hospitals in different cities started distribution of saplings to the parents of the newly born girl child, while some hospitals extended the gesture among all the patients getting discharged.

Nanhi Chhaan has also been adopted by the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) as its national programme. The CII has given scholarships to disadvantaged children under the programme. While 100 companies have extended their support to it, more are coming on board with each passing day. For instance Lumax has adopted the idea as "Lumax di Nanhi Chhaan" and the company gives two saplings to an employee who is blessed with a girl child, apart from some monetary incentive. One of these saplings is planted at his/her home and the other at the factory.

The CRPF, in association with JANANI, its social initiative, adopted Nanhi Chhaan at the national level amid much fanfare in the presence of Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram. As a follow-up action plan each regiment of the CRPF launched the programme where saplings with Nanhi Chhaan leaflets are disbursed, particularly among parents of new-born girl child, on a quarterly basis in all 209 units of the CRPF. Apart from it the CRPF also holds awareness programmes, lectures and seminars on issues like women empowerment, dowry, gender ratio and environment conservation.

Celebrities from film and music world have also evinced keen interest in Nanhi Chhaan campaign. Among them, Zila Khan, daughter of sitar maestro Ustad Vilayat Khan, has attended various launch functions of the campaign in different cities, besides rendering invocation songs.

On Nanhi Chhaan's future, Harpal Singh said, "It has become a wide-ranging idea with national character. Our work has been regarded as exceptional in the last two years and we hope to build on that in the coming days."

The movement has now grown way beyond Punjab and has spread to Delhi and Rajasthan, this year Nanhi Chhaan is slated to get launched from Vaishno Devi and will also have separate launches in three different states, that is UP, Madhya Pradesh and Haryana. It is all set to launch from Vrindavan, Banaras, Vashnu Devi and Gwalior in the year 2011.

It was also launched from all Takht gurdwaras in Punjab which included both Damdama Sahib and Anandpur Sahib. The response from the people was so massive that at Damdama Sahib, people queued up in long lines to receive their sapling and at the end of the day there was a riot for saplings. The concept that the organisers got across to the people was that the sapling represented their daughters, wives and even grandmothers. It was a symbol in their honour and people really responded to this.

Nanhi Chhaan is all set to expand into the remaining northern states in 2011 with a series of launches that have been planned out for 2011. Subsequently, after 2011, the Nanhi Chhaan movement plans to go South but selectively, only to areas that have an unequal gender balance.