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Debate Telangana
report Handling food
inflation |
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Murder of a child
Emergency,
judiciary & polity
Life in
its evening
Excerpts Corrections and clarifications
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Handling food inflation
Food
inflation shot up to 18.32 per cent in the week ended December 25 from 14.44 per cent, adding to the common man’s woes and the UPA government’s political worries, and triggering speculation about an interest rate hike on January 25 when the RBI meets to review the monetary policy. This belies the official claims of inflation moderating in the second half of the year and lends weight to former Finance Minister P. Chidambaram’s candid admission on Wednesday that “the government has not grasped the factors contributing to high prices” and “does not seem to have all the tools to control price rise”. The latest spurt in price rise comes from onions, meat, eggs and fish getting costlier. The Pakistani curbs on onion exports through trucks have erased hopes of early relief. The protein-rich food items are becoming expensive due to increased consumption by the prospering and bulging middle class. Globally, food prices in December crossed the levels that had sparked riots in Haiti and Egypt in 2008. This is because of an oil price hike, excessive heat hitting South American crops, Russia banning wheat exports and floods crimping Australian raw sugar output. Inflation in Eurozone is at a two-year high. Countries respond to price rise by tightening money supply. China has raised interest rates twice in the recent past. The IMF too has issued the same advice to India in its annual advisory. The RBI may do so at its January 25 meeting despite a prevailing cash crunch in the system. Higher interest rates raise the cost of capital for industries and individuals, hurting production and spending, and slowing growth. India has done little in recent years to raise farm productivity and improve the supply chain for perishable agricultural produce. A lot of cereals, fruits and vegetables go waste for want of processing facilities and scientific storage. There is no shortage of ideas. Political will is required to implement them. Industrial growth alone cannot make India an economic superpower if agriculture, which supports 60 per cent of the population, keeps languishing. |
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Murder of a child
On
Wednesday parents and their children in Chandigarh were chillingly exposed to just how vulnerable they are. A passerby in Mohali chanced upon the strangulated body of five-year-old Khushpreet, still in school uniform, who had been kidnapped 16 days earlier from near his house in the Union Territory’s Burail village. The gruesome discovery sparked off a violent wave of protest in and around Burail village, which was controlled with great difficulty by the police. The tragic ending to a kidnapping, violent public protests and teargassing by the police are activities not known to be associated with the country’s smallest union territory that boasts of being the first planned city and having the country’s third highest literacy rate. But with Chandigarh’s rising crime graph, the city seems to have been rendered insecure and violent. In allowing the situation to come to such a pass, the UT police, in particular, and the UT Administration, in general, must squarely take the blame. From the very first day, the UT police was at its incompetent worst. First, the Station House Officer of the concerned police station did not immediately inform his seniors about the kidnapping. Next, the police erased whatever telephonic evidence they had of the conversation between the kidnappers and Khushpreet’s family members. And to top it all, despite laying a trap, a team of 16 policemen failed to detect and intercept two motorcycle-borne kidnappers who disappeared after collecting Rs 4 lakh in ransom. All through this period the UT Police remained reluctant to set its own house in order. Eventually, it was only after Khushpreet’s parents met senior police officers did they, only a day before the body was found, decide to take action which both predictably and routinely involved transferring out two police inspectors and ordering a departmental inquiry. Both the inertia ridden UT Administration and the UT Police must accept the blame, account for their actions and fix responsibility. The police must introspect on what went wrong and what they need to do to ensure that there is no repeat of such a tragedy. Similarly, the UT Administration must be both sensitive and pro-actively responsive to the needs and requirements of a disproportionately small and a not so well equipped police force entrusted with maintaining law and order of a demographically ever growing union territory. |
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In science the credit goes to the man who convinces the world, not to the man to whom the idea first
occurs. — Francis Darwin
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Emergency, judiciary & polity RATHER belatedly the media has discovered that in a “recent judgment” a two-member bench of the Supreme Court has declared that the apex court’s 1976 judgment upholding the suspension of fundamental rights for the duration of the Emergency (June 1975-March 1977) was “erroneous”. This admission ought to have come much, much earlier, but let that pass. Incidentally, Justice Aftab Ahmed and Justice Ashok Kumar Ganguly made their welcome pronouncement while reviewing and partially reversing an earlier verdict. On May 5, 2009, the court had confirmed the death sentence passed on a man convicted of murdering four members of a family in 1992. Commuting this sentence to life imprisonment, Justice Ganguly, who wrote the unanimous judgment, argued that the instances of “this court’s judgment violating the human rights of the citizens may be extremely rare but it cannot be said that such a situation can never happen.” In this context he added: “We can remind ourselves of the majority decision of the Constitution bench of this court (in the Emergency case) … There is no doubt that the majority judgment violated the fundamental rights of a large number of people in this country”. Understandably, the two Justices have expressed themselves with judicial restraint. But the story of the Supreme Court’s conduct during the Emergency is chilling. Like the other institutions expected to underpin democracy, the highest judiciary also caved in. The five-member Constitution bench’s decision, by a majority four to one, to uphold the virtual elimination of fundamental rights for the duration was nothing short of horrendous. Chief Justice A. N. Ray had presided over the bench. His elevation was highly controversial because to appoint him as CJI, Prime Minister Indira Gandhi had superseded three of his senior colleagues amidst countrywide protests. This had happened in 1973 immediately after the apex court’s epoch-making judgment — by a majority of seven to six — ruling that Parliament could amend any part of the Constitution but could not alter its “basic structure”. Interestingly, this judgment was a tangled skein of conflicting opinions. So much so that the seven judges who prevailed in relation to an issue were not exactly the same that upheld or rejected another contention. Broadly, the picture was that six judges, headed by the then chief justice, S. M. Sikri, and including the three that were later superseded, were against the government’s contention while the remaining six, of whom Ray was the most senior, were wholly for the government. Justice H. R. Khanna provided the balance, agreeing with the first set on some points and with the second on others. Justice Khanna was still on the bench when three years later the apex court heard arguments on the legality of the suspension of fundamental rights under the Emergency proclamation. From the word go it was clear that all the judges except Khanna were inclined to uphold the government’s view. At one stage, the dissenting judge asked Attorney-General Niren Dey, whether there was a remedy if a policeman told a citizen that he was going to be shot for no rhyme or reason. Dey replied: “My conscience revolts, My Lords, but under the law there is no remedy.” There was eerie silence in the court’s chamber. It is also noteworthy that when the time came for CJI Ray to retire, Justice Khanna was the most senior of the possible successors. Needless to add that he was passed over and Justice M. H. Beg, a clone of Ray, appointed CJI. Justice Khanna resigned, of course. The crowning irony is that his dissenting judgment of 1973 is today the law of the land. For, the 44th Constitution amendment has made sure that any future declaration of the Emergency cannot interfere with fundamental rights to life and liberty under Articles 20 and 21. By a curious coincidence, the Emergency is in the news again for another reason that is essentially trivial. To celebrate its 125th anniversary, the AICC published a volume on the Indian National Congress’s contribution to the making of the Indian nation. A mild criticism of Sanjay Gandhi about the “authoritarian” way in which he enforced such policies as family planning and slum clearance almost instantly touched off a cacophony that often made no sense. Senior BJP leader and former Deputy Prime Minister L. K. Advani has now given a totally different twist to the discussion. Since copies of the AICC publication are not yet available, one has to take Mr. Advani’s word that it has devoted only two paragraphs to the Emergency. His grouse is that the second paragraph on the subject is “a ridiculous attempt to make Sanjay Gandhi a scapegoat” for all the misdeeds such as “mass arrests, suspension of fundamental rights, etc”, that the country had to suffer. For these he lays the blame squarely on Indira Gandhi. This is not all. Mr Advani compares the Emergency era in India to the Nazi rule in Germany. This surely is ridiculous, to borrow the expression from him. Ugly though the Emergency undoubtedly was, during it Delhi wasn’t like Berlin under Hitler, Moscow under Stalin, Beijing under Mao or Islamabad under Zia. Two factors seem to have affected the BJP leader’s judgment. First, the Congress general secretary Digvijaya Singh’s overblown rhetoric against the Sangh Parivar describing RSS leaders as “Nazis”; and, secondly, that while the Gandhi dynasty controls the Congress and rules the country, there are at least two Gandhis in the BJP ranks, too. Tragically, we Indians are disinterested in history, and when in need of interpreting history we tend to do so in a partisan or palpably esoteric manner. Any dispassionate person can discern that over the last 35 years the perspective on the Emergency has undergone a major change, regardless of the fact that more than half the Indians were born after that hammer-blow. They know little about the Emergency and care even less. Remarkably, an ever-increasing proportion of even those who used to hold Indira Gandhi alone responsible for what went wrong now accept that if she sinned, politically speaking, she was also being sinned against. Some are doubtless implacably hostile to her. However, premier sociologist Andre Beitelle, eminent historian Bipan Chandra and prominent scholar Ramchandra Guha are agreed that the Emergency was “scripted jointly by Indira and J.P.”, as Jayaprakash Narayan was popularly known. According to Professor Beteille, the “anarchy” that J.P. promoted and the “abuse of power” by Indira and her younger son, Sanjay, were “but two sides of the same
coin”.
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Life in its evening There’s no telling when the evening of life could choose to descend upon a human being. It comes unsuspectingly, without much ado, and entirely inevitably. For some, it begins when they start believing that they’re past their prime, even when they’re not. For others it comes only when it’s almost time to go; when they’ve actually arrived at the departure lounge, as one former officer puts it. Indeed, the evening of life is as much a state of mind as it is a state of being. There are those who never seem to retire even years after they have actually done so. They are never morose, come what may. They choose to whistle their way through life, and continue to do so even when it is time for the curtain to come down. When it is finally time for them to go, they do so in a blaze of glory. A glow of goodwill and warmth accompanies them. An 85-year-old lady celebrated her birthday recently with much pomp and show. Her grandchildren around her, she looked resplendent, and couldn’t stop smiling. When asked about the favourite moment of her life, she replied nonchalantly, “This very one! I have always lived in the present and enjoyed each moment to the fullest. “ Indeed, those who look upon life’s problems less seriously seem to be the ones who avoid most of its bumps. One retired government officer is much like an entrepreneur, who discovers himself anew every day. He writes, he lectures, he travels and he holds people enthralled with tales old and new. He has an office of his own and is visited by more friends than most serving officers even today. The general bonhomie and loud guffaws that are an integral part of his office- environment are clearly a reflection of his own glowing personality. As he regales visitors with anecdote after anecdote from his life, he spreads cheer all around. Another retiree has actually taken to professional singing after hanging up his official boots. He sings at friends’ parties and even sings commercially, at other events. He says that he’s enjoying life much more than he ever did as a serving officer. His family is always around to hear him croon, and the loud cheers that the crowd unfailingly gives him each time are clearly music to his own ears. The glow on his face and the smile on his lips as he performs make one wonder whether he shouldn’t have been a singer all his life. There’s clearly much to be said about the sheer pizazz that he possesses as he breezes his way through life now. One thing’s certain. The evening of life has the potential to be as joyous as any other phase of life. What helps make it so is a smile on the lips and a song in the
heart.
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Excerpts
There are sound economic reasons for keeping Andhra Pradesh united, reports B. N. Srikrishna committee. However, the inevitability of political unrest and rising sentiment in favour of Telangana rule out the status quo.
Maintaining the status quo implies treating the issue as basically a law and order/public order challenge to be handled by the state government, not requiring any major intervention by the Union Government. Such an approach is based on the history of the last 54 years when the demand for a separate state of Telangana was dealt with mainly in a political manner by accommodating different interest groups in the government and the party structure.
At the same time, the emotional appeal of "Telugu Pride" was invoked to keep separatist sentiments in check with the result that the demand for Telangana subsided but did not entirely disappear. It resurfaced in the post -2000 period with the rationale virtually being the same as in the earlier movements for Telangana. Above all, there were the sentimental and emotional reasons and attachment to a long held desire for a separate state of Telangana. The Committee did not find any real evidence of any major neglect by the state government in matters of overall economic development. However, there are some continuing concerns regarding public employment, education, and water and irrigation.
Bifurcation of the State into Seemandhra and Telangana This option underscores the pivotal position of Hyderabad and its economic significance at all levels -regional, national and international. Hyderabad is now regarded as an engine of growth in view of its position in the global economy as being a hub of information technology and Information Technology Enabled Services (ITES). Besides, it has a thriving real estate industry with strong participation of national players in addition to regional firms. It also has a manufacturing base in the nearby Rangareddy district which has attracted investors from coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema regions as well as from outside. Over the years, migration has completely changed the demographics of the city and the total number of people from other regions and from outside the state residing in the metropolis is very substantial and estimated to be more than one third of the population of the Greater Hyderabad Metropolitan area. The situation of Hyderabad can be compared with the metropolis of Brussels in Belgium. In 1968, Belgium had erupted in a series of riots on the question of who had a claim to Brussels city, which is barely inside the northern Flammand region. The only way to settle the issue was to declare that Belgium was a country of two cultures and three regions. It is to be noted that Belgium has a population of about 10 million out of which 6 million in the northern part of the country are Flemish speaking while 4 million, who are mainly concentrated in the south of Belgium, speak French. There is also a small German speaking minority. Belgium is thus constituted as a federation of three language communities -Flemish, French and German. The capital region of Brussels, therefore, is organised altogether as a separate bilingual capital region with an independent administrative set up and jurisdiction. Andhra Pradesh, however, by and large, has a common culture and was constituted as the first linguistic (Telugu) state.
Bifurcation into Rayala-Telangana & Coastal Andhra This suggestion was put to the Committee as the second preference by some sections of the people of Rayalaseema region. Their first preference was for a united Andhra. AIMIM also, while strongly advocating the cause of united Andhra Pradesh as being in the best interest of economic growth and welfare of the minority Muslim community, stated that in the event of division of the state it would be in the community?s interest to form a new state combining the regions of Telangana and Rayalaseema. Their argument is based on the demographic composition of Rayalaseema which has over 12% Muslim population as compared to just about 8% in the rest of Telangana (i.e. excluding Hyderabad). The Muslim community in this scenario will get greater political space. A second rationale for combining the two regions is suggested by the economic analysis of the state which has shown that Rayalaseema is the most backward of the three regions. It is dependent on Telangana for water and irrigation resources and values its access to Hyderabad for employment and education. There is also greater social homogeneity between the two regions. It is for these reasons that given a choice between coastal Andhra and Telangana, the Rayalaseema people may prefer to join Telangana. Our analysis suggests that primarily taking economic and social parameters into account this would be a viable and sustainable option.
Bifurcation into Seemandhra and Telangana This option flows from option (ii) which highlights the characteristics of Hyderabad as a growing global city. The city?s boundaries have recently been revised to extend the municipal limits from the 175 Km2 of the erstwhile MCH to 625 km2 of the current GHMC. The erstwhile HUDA has been replaced by an expanded HMDA, headed by the Chief Minister, with a substantial area of 7073 km2, which is about twice the size of the state of Goa. Hyderabad may also house the capitals of both Telangana and Seemandhra as in the Chandigarh model with a separate Union Territory administrative set up. Most of the administrative, police, etc. officers will be drawn from the existing state cadres. Since this would be a reasonably larger area with a population of well over 10 million people, the model could be a mix of Chandigarh and Delhi UTs i.e. it may have its own Legislative Assembly. As has happened in Chandigarh, over the years its neighbouring towns Mohali, Derabassi, Panchkula and Parwanoo, etc. in Punjab, Haryana, and Himachal Pradesh have seen remarkable growth and development. Similarly, within this proposed new Union Territory, all the three neighbouring regions (Telangana, coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema) will automatically piggyback on the economic engine of Hyderabad.
Creation of Telangana and Seemandhra In this option there would be a clear division of Andhra Pradesh into two states - Telangana and Seemandhra and in the interim Hyderabad will continue to house both the capitals till a new capital for Seemandhra is created. For creation of a new capital, a large investment would be required, provision for which will have to be made both by the Union and the state governments. This option implies accepting the full demands of a large majority of Telangana people for a separate state that will assuage their emotional feelings and sentiments as well as the perceived sense of discrimination and neglect. As noted in the Chapter on Economic and Equity Analysis, the economic dimension is also not to be lost sight of. The world over, there is a trend towards economic integration with economic blocs consisting of many smaller nations being formed in the interest of enhancing economic opportunities, markets and employment. It is normally believed that formation of smaller states contributes to pre-existing barriers to inter-state and intra-state trade and movement of goods and services. For example, a variety of local entry taxes and cess may impede free trade and enhance cost of business and increase prices of goods and services. Division of Andhra Pradesh can only be a negative factor which would inhibit the economic growth of the newly formed states. Economically, the land locked region of Telangana may also lose out on access and opportunities to the eastern coastline which has a major port in Vishakhapatnam and many other sea ports. With vast discoveries of oil and gas on the anvil and the resultant likely spurt in economic growth and employment in the coastal region, an integrated economy is likely to benefit the people of both regions optimally rather than through separation by formation of Telangana state.
Unity is in the best interest of all The Committee is convinced that the development aspect was of utmost importance for the welfare of all the three regions and could best be addressed through a model that includes deeper and more extensive economic and political decentralisation. The Committee believes that overall it may not be necessary to have a duplication or multiplication of capitals, assemblies, ministries, courts, institutions and administrative infrastructure required by the other options. The Committee considers that unity is in the best interest of all the three regions of the state as internal partitions would not be conducive to providing sustainable solutions to the issues at hand. In this option, it is proposed to keep the state united and provide constitutional/statutory measures to address the core socio-economic concerns about development of Telangana region. This can be done through the establishment of a statutory and empowered Telangana Regional Council with adequate transfer of
funds, functions and functionaries in keeping with the spirit of Gentlemen’s Agreement of 1956.
UNITY
The Best Option
Historically
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Corrections and clarifications
Despite our earnest endeavour to keep The Tribune error-free, some errors do creep in at times. We are always eager to correct them. This column appears twice a week — every Tuesday and Friday. We request our readers to write or e-mail to us whenever they find any error. Readers in such cases can write to Mr Kamlendra Kanwar, Senior Associate Editor, The Tribune, Chandigarh, with the word “Corrections” on the envelope. His e-mail ID is kanwar@tribunemail.com. Raj Chengappa,
Editor-in-Chief
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