The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

On verge of extinction
World must come together to save tigers

TIGERS are not vanishing in India alone. They are on the verge of extinction all over the world. From a population of about one lakh a century ago, they are down to merely 3,200 already. If the trend continues, the wild tigers may be dead as dodo in the next 12 years. Three of the eight tiger subspecies are already extinct. In such a dismal scenario, it is heartening that for the first time a summit of 13 countries having tiger population is taking place in St Petersburg to discuss ways to double the population of the endangered animal by 2022. However, procedural wrangles have put a spanner in the works, with India, which boasts of the largest tiger population in the world, sending only officials while other countries are represented by heads of state. The Indian government has informed the World Bank (WB) that it won’t allow the lending institution to play the big brother and manage and monitor its efforts to conserve the Indian tiger under the recently floated Global Tiger Initiative (GTI).

India’s concern is that a WB-funded project on tigers had led to displacement and agitation by tribals and increased corruption in some tiger reserves. It will be unfortunate if such clashes derail a well-meaning attempt to preserve tigers. Since India has already told the multilateral funding agency that it neither required money nor expertise from other countries, it must ensure that it provides these adequately from its own resources.

The majestic animals have been done in by habitat loss, urban development, poaching and environmental pressures. India is home to 18 of the world’s 42 core tiger sites, which can be taken care of properly only if the funding is doubled to $82 million a year. Since it is impossible to protect them across the entire landscape, these core sites should be the priority areas. If Russia can increase its tiger population from 80-100 in 1960s to around 500 now, so can India.

Terrorised world
Pak-based groups continue to threaten peace

DESPITE the US-led drive against global terrorism, the monster remains a major threat to peace and stability in the world. Terrorists, with their masterminds functioning from the Af-Pak area, have, of course, not been able to implement their destructive plans for a long time. But they remain as active as ever. The latest proof has been provided by a special report in a largely circulated German magazine, Der Spiegel, that a group of Al-Qaida activists, trained in Pakistan, are about to target German parliament’s Lower House, Bundestag, as they attacked Mumbai in November 2008. They may not succeed in causing death and destruction in accordance with their plan — early next year — because security has been tightened beyond breach by Germany. Many times in the past also their designs have been foiled by the US and the European nations on their target list, but there is no guarantee that they can never be successful.

Members of Al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb kidnapped five French nationals in September in Niger , a North African country, to press their demand for the French troops’ withdrawal from Afghanistan and lifting of the ban on the Islamic hijab. The French government was groping in the dark till last Friday when it got a message, aired by Al-Jazeera, that the captives could be released if Paris approached Osama bin Laden wherever he was — most probably, in the tribal region in Pakistan or on the other side of the Durand Line. The French government has refused to consider the terrorists’ demand, but it is difficult to say that it can save the lives of its five nationals.

Delhi and Mumbai are also on high alert after a Western intelligence agency has warned that Lashkar-e-Toiba terrorists may stage another Mumbai-type attack anytime now. The question is: why is the international community not acting decisively when there is solid proof that the terrorists threatening peace in different parts of the world get training in the Af-Pak region? India has been highlighting this fact for a long time, much before other countries began to be targeted by the Pakistan-based terrorist networks. The world’s indifference was understandable then. But why is it behaving in the same way now?

Thought for the Day

Glories, like glow-worms, afar off shine bright,/But looked to near, have neither heat nor light. — John Webster

ARTICLE

India in UN Security Council
The challenge begins now
by Harsh V. Pant

THE US President Barack Obama made a splash in India saying that the US would back New Delhi’s claim for a permanent seat in an expanded United Nations Security Council. It was a major policy shift that India has long been clamouring for and Washington has been reluctant to offer. By suggesting that he looks “forward to a reformed UN Security Council that includes (India) as a permanent member,” he warmed the hearts of the Indian policy-makers who have long viewed American support as a litmus test for the burgeoning US-India partnership. It was being suggested before the visit that the US President might announce America’s support for India for a permanent UN Security Council seat during his visit to India. But publicly the Obama Administration was arguing that while it supported India’s rise, America’s explicit support would be difficult to come by. Yet during the visit to India, Obama decided to make this leap of faith and heralded US-India relations to a new high

With the support of 187 countries in the 192-member United Nations General Assembly, India secured a place for itself in style in the Security Council recently as a non-permanent member along with Germany, South Africa, Colombia and Portugal. New Delhi had worked hard for the seat with the Indian External Affairs Minister, Mr S.M Krishna, spending 10 days in New York and personally speaking to his counterparts of more than 130 countries. India would like to use its presence at the UN high table to make a case for its permanent membership more forcefully. As Mr Krishna made its clear, India would work with “like-minded countries and groups” to bring about the “much-needed structural reform” to the UN Security Council.

The last time India had contested elections for the permanent membership of the Security Council was in 1996 against Japan when it could just about muster one-fourth of total UN votes. It was a stinging defeat that continued to jar India’s rising global profile.

It is interesting that all four BRIC and three of the four G-4 countries (India, Brazil and Germany) would be present in the Security Council. It’s a major opportunity for these states who have been arguing for the last several years that the Security Council needs to be more representative of the changing global order to demonstrate that their presence does indeed make a substantial impact on the pressing issue of our times. The composition of the new Security Council more closely mirrors the changing global balance of power. An organisation that reflects the balance of power of the post-World War II period is no longer tenable.

But as of now there is little likelihood of Security Council reforms progressing anytime soon. A campaign led by Brazil, Germany, India and Japan for Security Council reforms has stalled primarily because of opposition from China as it views the inclusion of India and Japan as a threat to its position as the pre-eminent Asian power in the Security Council. This power politics will continue to be the biggest obstacle in India getting permanent membership.

The thumping majority for India in last month’s election is a recognition of India’s credentials as a major global power. But India still needs to convince the world that it has a legitimate claim to a permanent seat on the Security Council. India now finds itself in the spotlight and its actions on critical global issues — including Iran, Israel-Palestine, Sudan, North Korea and Myanmar — will be scrutinised closely and critically. India will be forced to jettison its old foreign policy assumptions and will have to create a fine balance between the pursuit of its narrow national interest and its responsibility as a rising power to maintain global peace and stability. It won’t be able to please all the nations in the world as providing solutions to world’s problems involved making difficult choices. Merely suggesting that India will be the “voice of moderation and constructive engagement” won’t help. India’s stint at the Security Council will, to a large extent, determine the type of great power India will emerge in the future.

New Delhi has always wanted to be taken seriously as a global power. Unfortunately, that means that everyone will be watching when it says something (or can’t figure out what to say) and they will care about what India decides to do. That’s life in the fast lane. It’s not surprising, therefore, that many think that India is better off not being a permanent member of the UN Security Council. If India does become a member it would have to take a position on various critical issues and, given the fragility of Indian domestic politics, India might find it harder to accomplish than many anticipate.

India would do well to use its permanent membership in the Security Council to credibly project in the international realm what it stands for. Raymond Aaron has suggested that the legitimacy of a great power diminishes if that power is not associated with a vibrant set of ideas. Global reassessment of India is primarily predicated on its recent economic rise. But India’s rise will remain incomplete in the absence of a credible vision with a larger purpose. India not only appears to be devoid of big ideas backed by assertive political conviction but also continues to lack the intellectual infrastructure essential to debate and achieve clarity on what being a great power means for India.

India has always been a nation of great ambitions, but today, more than ever, it needs to answer the question: What is the purpose behind its ambition? India wants to rise, but what for? It is this question that India should try to answer as it takes its seat at the UN high table from January 2011, eventually moving towards a permanent membership in the Security Council.

The writer teaches at King’s College, London.

MIDDLE

Of ghosts and printer’s devil
by Jupinderjit Singh

Ghosts scared me a lot in childhood. I grew up hearing stories about evil spirits, all scripted to keep me indoors at odd hours.

But the ghosts in those times had some character. They killed without much melodrama. Dracula was one such ‘straight -forward’ spirit. He appeared and directly buried his two long teeth in the neck of a young damsel and sucked the last drop of blood from her body.

They were so unlike modern ghosts of the Ram Gopal Verma kind, who keep on teasing the actresses by throwing plates, entering their bathroom or disturbing the curtains and photos in the room till the end of the movie, when they finally show themselves.

While one laughs more at these, I recall how I trembled all night when my friend lent me a new comic on Dracula and instructed that it should not be kept in the bedroom as Dracula may come out. I had hidden the comic in the boring chemistry book, and kept it in the other room. My mom (trust her to spoil all my such plans) brought the chemistry book saying I had to read a certain chapter first thing in the morning. All night I lay in the foetus pose fearing Dracula as well as my mom.

Today, I laugh at those fears. But that doesn’t mean there is no evil spirit that scares me. Most frightening one is the Printer’s Devil that gives goose bumps to all.

A hapless photographer with a vernacular daily had twin assignments one day. One, to click a photo of cows in a pond and second, to cover a fashion show. The devil jumbled up the captions.

Under the picture of beautiful models, it read in Hindi , “Ludhiana ke ek talaab mein bhainsen nahaati huyi (buffaloes bathing in a pond).” On another page was the picture of the dung laced cows which said, “Ludhiana ke ek fashion show mein sundriyan jalwe bikherti huyi (beauties mesmerise at a fashion show)”.

This devil works out of the printing room also. The Indian Railways introduced new enquiry numbers in Ludhiana. I got the story first and thought we would be the first to provide public information. But by mistake, they gave me Jalandhar enquiry numbers. Next morning, I called up at one of the two numbers to ascertain if they were working.

“I will bang my head against the wall. I will kick you and burn your paper,” said a badly harassed old man from a colony in Ludhiana, whose number it actually was. He was getting calls since morning: “Is Shatabdi right time ji?” The clarification provided temporary relief.

A reporter in a town on the rail route from Ludhiana to Jalandhar got hold of the “wrong” information and filed the report five days later, this time in all the editions.

I didn’t dare call the old man again.

OPED HEALTH

Affordable healthcare still a far cry for rural women
Every year, 60,000 to 70,000 maternal deaths occur in India and 20 to 30 times more women become very ill due to pregnancy, childbirth or abortions. Women die because they are unable to access good quality, affordable and skilled care. It is estimated that one in 48 pregnant women run the risk of dying during childbirth. The situation becomes alarming in tribal populations and among the marginalised living in isolated pockets of the country
Usha Rai

A decade of focused work by the Centre for Health Education, Training and Nutritional Awareness (CHETNA), primarily in Gujarat but also in parts of Rajasthan, has shown that community empowerment and involvement is vital for improving maternal health and reducing maternal mortality. The National Rural Health Mission seeks to reduce infant mortality to 30/1000 live births and maternal mortality to 100 /100,000 by 2012. It needs good NGO partnerships and action at the community level to reduce both.

Anaemia continues to be a killer

CHETNA provides a continuum of care to children, youth and women. Working closely with its network of NGOs and communities, it tries to ensure that people take responsibility for their own health. Simultaneously it works with local, district, state and national governments and tries to influence policies. Each and every intervention, whether it is public hearings, improving sub centres, reducing anaemia to counter maternal mortality or providing health care to remote tribal pockets, the ultimate objective is to improve women's health and reduce maternal mortality.

Studies have also shown that women do not have access to complete, continued care from the public health system; 65 percent of births occur at home and women prefer delivering babies in the comfort and security of their homes. There is at least one dai in every village of India to assist during births and their services need to be upgraded and used to improve village level health care.

Between 2006 and 2009, in partnership with the state health department in 60 villages of the two tribal blocks of Vansada and Chikhali, Navsari district, CHETNA has shown that it is possible to enhance access to maternal health services. It has also shown that maternal deaths can be drastically decreased by reducing three delays — delay in identification of complication and taking timely action, delay in reaching the appropriate facility and, delay in initiation of treatment at the health facility.

Communities were mobilised to access maternal health services by strengthening the role of panchayat and Self Help Group (SHG) members in monitoring maternal health care services. The traditional birth attendants (TBAs) or dais became the link between the village, the service providers and the health facility. Even the Auxiliary Nurse Midwife (ANM) was activated to ensure community participation and outreach of services.

Working as a team

Maheshbhao, sarpanch, Mohuvas village, says that the villagers learnt to work as a team after the training given to them. In March 2009, this teamwork facilitated the transfer of 200 pregnant women to health facilities for institutional deliveries. Fatimaben, trained dai, Lakhavadi village, says, "I explain to the husband and pregnant women about risks involved in home deliveries, and if there are complications, as a dai I will be responsible. They understand and agree to go to the hospital."

Dai Julkiben recalls that when she received a call from a pregnant woman, she swung into action. First, before reaching the woman's home, Julkiben called 108, the emergency ambulance number. Then, at the pregnant woman's house, she cut a clean cloth into pieces to be used at the hospital and kept a lota (container) to fetch / store water.

But when the woman's labour pains increased and it became impossible for her to climb down the hillock to reach the ambulance, Julkiben got young men from the neighbourhood to make a sling from a bedsheet and carry the pregnant women to the ambulance. Barely had they reached the labour room and the pregnant woman delivered.

Thanks to the strategies adopted, in 2009 50 percent of the pregnant women visited PHCs for abdominal checkups and laboratory testing. Institutional deliveries also increased by 21 percent. In Vansada block the number of beneficiaries of the government supported Janani Suraksha Yojana for institutional deliveries shot up from just 493 between April 2006 and March 2007 to 2113 between April 2008 and October 2009.

In India nutritional anaemia is one of the major indirect causes of maternal mortality, accounting for 20 to 40 percent of the maternal deaths. An estimated 87 percent of pregnant women are anemic. So an important initiative of CHETNA has focussed on improving diets and finding 'herbal solutions' for anaemia. Seven cereals, four leafy vegetables, five herbs which improved the haeomoglobin levels were identified and farmers were encouraged to cultivate them. Women were encouraged to include them jn their daily diet. After six months of nutritious food and herbal treatment there was an improvement of up to two gram percentage in the haemoglobin level of 80 percent of the 50 women whose haemoglobin levels were measured before and after the intervention.

Dais as crucial links

In the continuum of care that it seeks to provide, the traditional birth attendants or dais had a role in childbirth and care of pregnant women and newborns. However, with ASHAs (accredited social health actvists) being given importance in the NRHM, the dais were being marginalised. CHETNA worked with 20 CBOs and 8000 TBAs and ensured a government resolution recognising the role of the TBAs in reproductive and child health programmes. A standardised curriculum for enhancing their capacity was approved by the Health and Family Welfare department of the Gujarat government. The dais are now given a token fee for accompanying women to a health facility for delivery. A dialogue has begun with policy makers on the role of TBAs in the NRHM.

CHETNA believes that in underserved, remote rural and tribal areas where maternal mortality rates are the highest, the dais can be tapped as a link between homes and institutions to provide care in areas where home births are still high.

In the Khedbramha tribal block of Sabarkanta District of Gujarat too there was high maternal as well as infant mortality largely because many of the villages are on hills and have no roads. Some villages are unapproachable during the rains and villagers have to travel 10 km to reach a PHC and 30 to 50 km for institutional delivery. By telling villagers about their health entitlements and how to access them, involving panchayat leaders, doctors, the state health department, link workers and ensuring the services of ambulances, both infant and maternal deaths dropped dramatically in the 35 villages of the block in three years from 2006.

CHETNA also studied the status of the 226 sub centres in the 10 districts of Gujarat and held junsunwais in both Gujarat and Rajasthan to ensure accountability in public health. Interviews with women registered in the sub centres and community dialogue with the 265 villages covered by the sub centres revealed the services were inadequate for conducting safe deliveries. However, the community was keen to avail public health services.

At the junsunwais or public hearings, over 56 testimonies of the problems pregnant women faced in accessing the public health facilities were presented. There were husbands who testified how they had lost their pregnant wives running from one health institution to another to get the required attention. The public hearings are not one-off events. With participation of health officials and panchayat leaders in the public hearing, there is closer scrutiny, monitoring and accountability of the public health system.

Its womb to tomb approach has also led to successful interventions in areas like child sex selection in Mehsana and other districts of the state where the female child sex ratio is low and infant mortality high. It facilitated the advocacy for a State Adolescent and Youth Policy in Rajasthan. Says Indu Capoor, director of CHETNA, given the early age of pregnancy and child birth, there was a need to restructure reproductive health services to reach out to all adolescents and youth, rather than providing services only to married couples in a particular age bracket.

Anaemia can be treated

Through CHETNA's intervention on anaemia, more than a thousand women understood that the 'weakness' they experienced could be treated. With small mirrors given to them, they were able to examine the pallor of their eyes and skin and confirm anaemia. They ate green leafy vegetables thrice week, proteins (dal) a few times a week, and included amla (vitamin C) in their diet. After adopting the diet prescribed and changing their lifestyle they said they were 'less tired' and could do more work.

A woman from Sabarkantha district who felt rejuvenated after treatment for anaemia said "normally bhaji (leafy vegetable) is given to the cows and goats, but now we ourselves eat the bhaji because we know it is good for our body.

Another woman from Satlasana block of Mehsana district who learnt to combat anaemia said "I used to eat nothing in the morning and would go to work. Finally when I got back in the afternoon I would eat whatever was leftover from lunch. I would be very tired. Now I have at least a roti with chai before I go out in the morning and eat lunch in the afternoon before I go into the fields again. Now I have the strength to work."

After six months of nutritious food and herbal treatment there was an improvement of upto two gram percentage in the haemoglobin level of 80 percent of the 50 women whose haemoglobin levels were measured before and after the intervention.

India contributes about 50 percent to the global anaemia-related maternal deaths. Nutritional deprivation not only hampers the full growth of adolescents but leads to anaemia. Both conditions result in complicated pregnancies and deliveries, low birth weight babies and maternal and infant deaths. Yet, as the CHETNA intervention has shown, deaths due to anaemia are preventable with adequate and timely treatment. Increasing haemoglobin level by 1gm percent reduces the risk of maternal mortality by 2O percent, says Smita Bajpai, an ayurvedic doctor and project coordinator of the Regional Resource Centre of CHETNA.

In India nutritional anaemia is one of the major indirect causes of maternal mortality, accounting for 20 to 40 percent of the maternal deaths. An estimated 87 percent of pregnant women are anaemic