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Trade to cement ties
Limits of judiciary |
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Honour the soldier
Implications of Iran going nuclear
Dear All !
Early identification of alcohol and drug use problems right there in school or by NGOs is important for
better outcome. Many often reports late and the treatment begins after five or more years of drug use
A “ticking bomb”
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Trade to cement ties
Though the outcome of Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao’s New Delhi visit has, unfortunately, not been on expected lines, there is a lot to feel satisfied for both sides. The two countries showed considerable understanding of each other’s core concerns and took a number of steps to strengthen their relations despite the status quo on the border disputes and some other issues. The talks between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and the Chinese leader could not change Beijing’s stance on the status of Jammu and Kashmir as China gave no commitment on its policy of issuing stapled visas to visitors from this border state of India. Mr Wen was also unwilling to allow the inclusion of a reference to J&K as an integral part of India in the customary joint statement issued on Thursday. China continues to maintain an ambiguous stand on India’s case for the UN Security Council’s permanent membership. The Pakistan factor in Mr Wen’s arguments could be easily noticed, as he did not favour a mention of the 26/11 Mumbai terrorist attack in the joint statement. It is, therefore, obvious why Beijing’s “one China policy” and its scheme of things about Tibet could not get support from India. But the talks did not show any impact of India’s decision to be represented at the controversial Nobel Peace Prize ceremony despite China being opposed to it. Both sides provided sufficient proof of conducting themselves in a manner that each other’s economic interests were not hurt, whatever the circumstances. There was clear realisation that they have to cooperate to lead the world in the future. Both countries agreeing to increase their stake in fast-growing bilateral trade and other kinds of economic activity may work as a cementing force for relations between India and China. This factor may continue to become stronger with Beijing allowing certain concessions for India’s exports to correct the balance of trade, which has been in China’s favour. The India-China bilateral trade, estimated to be around $60 billion in 2010, can easily reach the targeted level of $100 billion by 2015. This reality alone may force the two countries one day to remove most of the irritants in their relations, including the lingering border disputes. |
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Limits of judiciary
The Supreme Court’s efficient discharge of its primary role in protecting the citizens’ fundamental rights and upholding the rule of law deserves to be acknowledged. However, of late, its role in monitoring cases being probed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), the Central Vigilance Commission and other agencies has given rise to some questions. Has the apex court taken on an activist role to stem the rot, improve the system and ensure good governance? If so, will this not run counter to the doctrine of separation of powers which clearly demarcates the roles and functions of the three pillars of the Constitution — the legislature, the executive and the judiciary? Interestingly, Chief Justice of India Justice S.H. Kapadia, soon after taking over as the CJI in May, had cautioned the judiciary against exceeding its brief through judicial activism. Quoting from a British Judge’s book, he said: “Judicial activism beyond a point is against the rule of law…” and “that is why I always tell my brother judges, please see to it we also should continue to learn.” Of course, one cannot question the Supreme Court’s sincerity to get to the root of the 2G Spectrum allocation scam, recover the crores of rupees looted by the scamsters and bring the guilty to book expeditiously. Thus, its decision to monitor the scam being probed by both the CBI and the Enforcement Directorate is apt. A significant pointer is the widening of the scope of the investigation: the apex court has asked the CBI to probe all telecom licences awarded from 2001 to 2007 and information thrown up by the Niira Radia tapes. Indeed, monitoring by the apex court has become imperative because the image of the CBI and the CVC is at its lowest ebb today and both act as tools of the ruling party at the Centre. However, such intervention needs to be restricted only to the rarest of rare cases such as the 2G Spectrum allocation. Of late, some of the apex court’s directions and observations (for example, its remarks on the Prime Minister for his office’s purported delay in responding to Janata Party leader Dr Subramanian Swamy’s petition against Mr A. Raja) give rise to an impression that it may be violating the principle of separation of powers and disturbing the delicate constitutional equilibrium. The judiciary indeed needs to ponder over increasing cases of corruption in the higher judiciary in the backdrop of the apex court’s remarks on the mess in the Allahabad High Court. A heavy responsibility devolves on it to not only protect the Constitution but also to look within. |
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Honour the soldier
Thirtynine years ago, India recorded a spectacular military victory over Pakistan which has since been closely studied and analysed by several military forces the world over. The military victory, which involved considerable planning, evoked the largest surrender after World War-II, a record that was later broken by Saddam Hussein’s mother of all surrenders during the 1991 Gulf war. The most significant consequence of India’s military victory was that it rendered irrelevant Jinnah’s two-nation theory – East Pakistan broke away from West Pakistan to build a national identity based on (Bengali) ethnicity and language rather than on the commonality of religion. Indeed, the record of the Indian soldier has been among the most glorious. From conducting nation-consolidation operations starting with Junagadh, Kashmir, Hyderabad and later Goa to nation-preservation against attacks from Pakistan and China, the Indian military has also been wantonly misused if not abused as evident from its involvement in Operation Bluestar in Punjab, Operation Pawan in Sri Lanka and internal security operations in Kashmir and in the Northeast due to a long history of gross political and administrative mismanagement. Yet, the stoic and apolitical Indian soldier has performed uncomplainingly and with aplomb even as some governments in our neighbourhood succumbed to military interference or coups. His sacrifice remains mostly unheralded. In April this year the Supreme Court observed that our soldiers were being shabbily treated by the government. Disgustingly, successive governments have failed even to build a national war memorial. The India Gate, where our President ritualistically lays a wreath every Republic Day and which we treat as a war memorial, was, ironically, built by the British colonialists to commemorate the 90,000 Indian soldiers who died fighting in World War-I and in the Third Anglo-Afghan war. It is a national shame that ex-servicemen have been returning their gallantry medals to the indifference of our politicians. Unlike the US where successive presidents starting from US Army Colonel Harry Truman to Air Force First Lieutenant George W. Bush or the present British Royal family starting from Queen Elizabeth-II to her grandson, Royal Army Lieutenant Prince Harry, all of who have a distinguished record of military service and of seeing action in wars, the Indian politician ranks among the most corrupt and self-seeking with rare examples of either he or his son serving in the military. India cannot afford to forget that all books of statecraft starting with Sun Tzu’s Art of War, Kautilya’s Arthashastra, Niccolo Machiavelli’s Prince warn against neglecting the soldier. We can risk this only to our own peril. |
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Life is a succession of lessons which must be lived to be understood. — Thomas Carlyle |
Implications of Iran going nuclear
One of the WikiLeaks revelations presents the note which the American Ambassador to Saudi Arabia prepared for Hillary Clinton during her visit in February 2010. The note talks about the Saudi Arabian fear of the failure of dialogue with Iran on nuclear weapons, and the King’s nuclear ambitions to protect his own interests. According to the note prepared by Ambassador James Smith for Ms Clinton, “The King is convinced that the current U.S. engagement efforts with Tehran will not succeed; he is likely to feel grimly vindicated in his view by Ahmadinejad’s February 11 boast that having successfully enriched uranium to a level of 20 per cent, Iran “is now a nuclear nation”...The King told General Jones that if Iran succeeded in developing nuclear weapons, everyone in the region would do the same, including Saudi Arabia.” Will Saudi Arabia wait till Iran goes overtly nuclear, or will it have already started preparing for that eventuality? This is where one has to analyse Saudi Arabia’s options in terms of looking for nuclear deterrence. Clearly, the King has three options - to develop a nuclear weapons programme for Saudi Arabia; buy nuclear weapons and delivery systems from other countries (perhaps Pakistan); and to ask for a nuclear guarantee (either from the US or Pakistan). There have been news reports detailing the linkages between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan on nuclear weapons and delivery systems. Saudi Arabia has already established a nuclear power programme. During April this year, Abdullah bin Abdulaziz through a royal decree created the “King Abdullah City for Atomic and Renewable Energy (KACARE)” in Riyadh. Clearly, Saudi Arabia has started its march towards a nuclear programme. The focus of this analysis, however, is not on Saudi Arabia’s nuclear programme, but on the nature of Pakistan’s nuclear deterrence in case there is an understanding between Islamabad and Riyadh on a nuclear guarantee or umbrella. In this case, if Iran goes nuclear, or if Saudi Arabia and Pakistan are convinced that Iran has a nuclear weapons programme, will the primary objective of Pakistan’s nuclear deterrence remain India-specific? As of now, there is a widespread belief that Pakistan’s nuclear weapons programme -fissile materials, weapons, delivery mechanisms and the nuclear strategy/doctrine — is purely India-specific. Will it continue to remain India-specific if the Iran and Saudi factors need to be taken into account? Will Pakistan be willing to extend its arsenal and doctrines to provide a nuclear umbrella to Saudi Arabia and perhaps some other countries in the Gulf which fear Iran? Reports have it that there is already a secret agreement between Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, reached sometime during 2003. Perhaps true; perhaps not. What needs to be analysed in this context is, what if Pakistan decides to extend the nuclear deterrence to include Saudi Arabia and other countries in the Gulf against a nuclear Iran? Three specific issues need to be analysed here. First, political relations between Iran and Pakistan; it is an open secret that Islamabad and Tehran have their own differences vis-à-vis each other, which got exacerbated since the late 1970s. The Iranian Revolution in 1979 and Zia’s Islamisation (in reality “Sunnisation”) have created a Sunni-Shia rift within Pakistan, which has increased the tensions between the two countries. To make matters worse, since the 1980s there has been an additional vigour in the Saudi-Wahabi influence in Pakistan, further vitiating the anti-Shia campaign by the sectarian organisations in Pakistan. As a result, for the last three decades, despite efforts, the political relationship between the two countries remains strained. Thus, there is no incentive for Islamabad for remaining neutral in case of an open nuclear tension between Iran and Saudi Arabia. The lines are already drawn and Pakistan has chosen its sides. The only exception was the A.Q. Khan network, which helped Iran’s nuclear programme. To be fair to A.Q. Khan, his network was completely secular and was beyond any national boundaries. It was purely an economic enterprise, which looked beyond Sunni-Shia, Iran-Pakistan and Iran-Saudi Arabia calculations! Hence, Khan’s assistance to Iran’s nuclear programme should not be considered as a factor in Islamabad’s nuclear decision-making process vis-à-vis Tehran. Second, how is Pakistan’s relationship likely to build in the next couple of years vis-à-vis Iran in terms of Islamabad’s growing influence and presence in Afghanistan? Again, it is an open secret that Islamabad is backing the Taliban to reach some kind of an agreement with President Karzai to expand its influence in Afghanistan in a post-American exit environment. Pakistan has already signed a trade and transit agreement with Afghanistan, besides concluding another agreement on gas recently with Turkmenistan and Afghanistan. Clearly, Pakistan has well positioned itself now to impose its stooges in Kabul and convert Afghanistan into its strategic backyard. Will Iran remain a mute spectator? One is likely to see an increased hostility between Islamabad and Tehran as a result of their strategic rivalry in Afghanistan. Third, as a result of the above two issues, Pakistan is unlikely to remain unaffected in the Iran-Saudi Arabia nuclear diad. This is bound to become a triangle relationship, creating an arch of nuclear instability in the entire Middle-East. It is a different question and issue altogether if Isreal jumps into it; but for the purpose of this argument, the focus is only on the triangle. Pakistan has a history of proliferation; hence there is no reason to believe that Islamabad has not already made a deal with Saudi Arabia. In fact, there are also reports claiming the sale of Ghauri missiles to Saudi Arabia. Neither the Pakistan-Iran relations nor Islamabad’s past history of proliferation makes one feel confident that Pakistan is unlikely to work with Saudi Arabia and provide nuclear weapons or just an umbrella. What needs to be analysed here is how this will affect Pakistan’s calculations towards its fissile materials, nuclear weapons and delivery mechanisms. It is believed that Pakistan has an adequate fissile material stockpile today to make approximately 100-plus nuclear weapons. However, this is unlikely to remain at this level if the Iran-Saudi Arabia-Pakistan nuclear triangle needs to be taken into account. In this case, Pakistan’s deterrence will not be based only against the Indian stockpile and weapons. Therefore, Pakistan’s “minimum” is unlikely to remain minimum. Now, what are the likely implications of the above scenario? First, Pakistan is unlikely to accept the Fissile Material Cut-Off Treaty for its stockpile is not likely to remain focused on India alone. Thus, Obama will see his vision for nuclear disarmament breaking into pieces, in his own life time. Second, the nature of Pakistan’s arsenal then will be dependent on Iran’s stockpile and Saudi Arabia’s requirement. And this will be anything but minimum. Therefore, one could visualise a different calculation of India’s “minimum” as well. Whatever may the nature of these calculations, it is easy to conclude that the credible deterrence in South Asia is unlikely to remain minimum. Third, the above triangle will also result in Sunni and Shia nuclear bombs, infusing a different argument into the old concept of an Islamic bomb. This in turn, will further increase the distance between Islamabad and Tehran besides vitiating the minds of the Shias and Sunnis inside
Pakistan. The writer is Deputy Director, Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies, New Delhi. |
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Dear All !
The Professor of English read out an e-mail from one of his former students who had done very well in life. “Dear All”, began the bright spark, “With great happiness, I inform that I am getting married in Kukreja Palace, Pathankot, on the 6th. Please reserve the date in your diary.” “Dear All!” thundered the Professor. “This form of address is totally unacceptable !” The paneer tikka with its olive oil dressing congealed into an inedible lump as the lady of the house gazed across the dining table at her hyperventilating husband. “It’s just a juvenile thing, Brij, my dear. Calm down. Do you want to burst that very expensive stent you acquired last year? Every generation has its own slang. Remember the idiotic greeting our generation favoured : ‘All is well at my end, trust the same at your end’, as if the well-being of our posteriors was the primary purpose of writing !” The next day’s Business English class was eventful. “Dear All……” began the red faced Professor “…is only acceptable when the recipient’s name is Allwyn, abbreviated to All! On every other occasion, it is undiluted rubbish. Class, take note.” A few impressed eyebrows were raised in acknowledgement of the truth in the Professor’s statement. Some sincere fingers flew in rapid note-taking mode over blank pages. “And that is not ALL!” roared the guardian of good grammar. “The article ‘the’ is a three letter word which must NOT be abbreviated to ‘d’ or anything else, for that matter. ‘GR8’ is a terrible alphanumeric concoction that does grave injustice to the language. “Best of journey” might be a sincere sentiment but it is a sick sentence, nevertheless. I could go on… but I shall desist.” A decisive click followed as the white board marker was capped into position. The Professor stopped for breath. The class was distinctly uncomfortable. Who wasn’t guilty of the blunders cited by him! Those who hadn’t even realised that such language was considered bad form were in a fix. How could they tell the difference between right and wrong use of the language if everyone around was equally ignorant or careless ! Old “Bridge Moan Sing” had attended elite schools where they presumably equip you with a cut-glass accent but the MBA students in his class had other priorities. A week later, a sombre-faced Dean announced that Prof B.M. Singh was admitted to the cardiac care unit of a city hospital. A shocked class of forty mustered all available transport, broke several traffic rules and wrestled with hospital protocol to meet his worried wife. “He had just finished reading an sms saying, “Dearest All, kindly note my new number”, when he suffered his second heart attack….” A contrite class sent a get-well card to the hospital: “Respected Sir, ALL of us will pray to God to keep you safe.” This single sentence was okayed by three different Professors first, as a measure of abundant caution. They had realised that old Bridge tended to take such matters to heart, literally. From the sick-bed came the prompt reply, “Thank you, one and ALL !” |
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Early identification of alcohol and drug use problems right there in school or by NGOs is important for
better outcome. Many often reports late and the treatment begins after five or more years of drug use
A study carried out in Ludhiana (2008) reported that 49.2 per cent of male students and 5.2 per cent of female students were alcohol users and most had started drinking around 18 years. Of concern was the fact that about 25 per cent were binge drinkers (over 5 standard drinks in a single drinking episode) which is often associated with accidents and fights. Only a small percentage reported that their parents were aware of their drinking. Many of the students believed that unprotected sex was higher under the influence of alcohol and that boys were likely to indulge in eve-teasing after drinking. Clinic-based data from the PGI, Chandigarh, suggests that inhalant use in Chandigarh is also seen in children from middle socioeconomic strata. In Delhi, we have observed that children from lower socioeconomic strata start staying out of home intermittently due to drug use and then shift to street life. They come for treatment only when the family finds them and persuades them to do so. Several physical and psychological effects are seen due to its use and seen below Some of the risk factors for alcohol and drug use are: living in a disadvantaged neighborhood, easy availability of drugs, childhood abuse and drug use in family. Not all these factors may be present in every drug using adolescent. Some may even come from apparently well adjusted families. Common problems in adolescents with alcohol or drug use in treatment settings are drowsiness, lethargy, hyperactivity, spending too much time outside home, academic decline, loss of appetite and weight, fights, accidents or involvement in petty crime. Not only the affected person but also the whole family gets stigmatised. The parents have to face the stigma of being labelled as inadequate parents. Drug use is often associated with various psychological problems such as conduct problems, attention deficit, depression and anxiety. Adolescent drug use may continue later in life. Treatment helps and leads to reduction in drug or alcohol use, improved school performance and social adjustment. Those who remain under treatment are likely to do better. Treatment includes both use of medicines and psychological therapy, including prevention of relapse. Family involvement helps to improve lifestyle and communication between parents and the adolescent. Early identification of alcohol and drug use problems is important for better outcome. Many often reports late and treatment begins after five or more years of drug use. Early identification can be done in school and by NGOs working with adolescents. Ii is very important to prevent or at least delay introduction to drugs. Prevention messages should be given from multiple settings such as family, community, school, temples/gurdwaras/sports venues besides providing life skill training. Decreased availability of drugs along with education, awareness and treatment-related activities need to go hand in hand. Rajat Ray and Anju Dhawan are from National Drug Dependence Centre, All-India Institute of Medial Science, New Delhi B, a 16-year-old boy, studying in class X and a good student, started using capsules (painkiller in Dextropropoxyphene) with friends for getting a "high" and to relax. He increased the amount gradually and experienced discomfort when he did not get it. His parents came to know once his academic performance declined and his friends started avoiding him. He was brought by the family for treatment and has stabilised for the last two months while on treatment.
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The problem of drug addiction in Punjab is indeed alarming. The state government has in the past one year taken some steps in ensuring that standard quality of treatment is given to the drug addicts. But it is obvious that a lot more needs to be done. A study conducted by Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, in 2009, pointed towards an exponential increase in the number of drug addicts in the state in the past decade. It also highlighted how the drug use pattern had changed over the years. The study also showed drug abuse trends in the three broad regions of the state — Malwa, Doaba and Majha. Ranvinder Singh Sandhu, Professor of Sociology in Guru Nanak Dev University who conducted the study, called the problem of drug abuse in Punjab a "ticking bomb". Sandhu had in his study suggested that there should be an independent department within the government to deal with the problem. Currently the various aspects of the problem are divided among the department of health, department of social security and the police. Coordination between the three is lacking and each works within its own jurisdiction. Sandhu had suggested the constitution of a "Punjab Drug Prevention Board", to effectively deal with drug addiction in the state. The state government is yet to even take up this suggestion for discussion. Sandhu had added that the state's Department of Medical Education and Research also recommended to the government to form a panel on drug abuse which should direct the introduction of curriculum in schools for creating awareness against drug abuse on the pattern of some developed countries like the US and Canada. The panel would also be empowered to "direct the investigation either through state police or a private agency, the prevalence of drug trade in an area with a view to booking the smugglers, peddlers and their associates either in the police department, the jails department or the health department or outside the government." This suggestion is vital for Punjab as on innumerable occasions the efforts of the state police has proved futile in grabbing smugglers and peddlers because of the strong nexus between the two. The panel would "expose for public view all those in high places in society who are in any way involved in drug trade or its distribution." Other than these, such a panel or board is expected to draw up a detailed action plan on how to fight the problem. The panels can also commission regular surveys to ascertain the extent of the problem and how it was changing with time. The board, it was further suggested would "evaluate all the existing programmes of the government regarding drug addiction and suggest some new measure to tackle the drug abuse." Across the country Punjab is one of the most severely afflicted states when it comes to drug abuse. It is now for Punjab to come up with successful measures to curtail the problem and bring out working models which can be replicated in other states.
— TNS |
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Substance abuse related issues among youth are important as drug use starts often in adolescence. A box published alonside shows the national data on prevalence of current other-drug use (any use in last one month) among them. Alcohol and drug use should be seen as distinct from (ab)use (those experiencing various problems due to drug use) and dependence (those addicted). It is generally believed that the age of initiation to tobacco, alcohol and drug use in young people is coming down. 
Among adolescents, the specially vulnerable are those living in the street. A study on inhalant use among street adolescents carried out in Delhi and Bangalore found that drug abuse was almost a universal phenomenon in them (Study carried out by NDDTC and NIMHANS-National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences, 2008-09). The substance abused most commonly was ink eraser fluid which causes various physical complications.