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Managing the Ghaggar
Daylight murder |
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The Madhu Koda case
‘Cricket diplomacy’ at work
Weaker? Better!
Latest scientific research shows that unless some effective preventive measures are taken at the earliest, the world is going to face a new health epidemic from this biologically untested technology
Laws are lacking
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Managing the Ghaggar
The
Rs 1,150 crore Central project for the Ghaggar should bring relief to Haryanvis and Punjabis living along the river. Whenever there is excess, or even normal rain, the Ghaggar gets flooded. The river has gathered silt over the years. Its embankments have not been repaired. Since it is a seasonal river, encroachments have come up on its bed at many places. As floods wreak havoc every other year, there is much hue and cry. It dies down once the situation normalises. The Centre too washes its hands off by handing over small amounts of compensation to flood victims in the two states. For Akali leaders the ruinous floods provide another reason to berate the Centre. The Akali leadership accuses the Centre of pro-Haryana tilt in the decades old river water dispute. The inter-state river dispute is pending in court after the Amarinder Singh government unilaterally annualled the river water agreements. The Punjab leadership blames recurrent floods on the construction of the Hansi-Butana canal by the Haryana government. The canal acts as an artificial dam and diverts the natural flow of rainwater in Punjab, causing floods. Given the sensitive inter-state disputes over river waters, it would be interesting to see if the political leadership in the two states signs the MoU as required by the Centre. Then there is the issue of river pollution. Industrial units in Himachal towns release their untreated effluents into the river, which originates in the hill state. Punjab and Haryana towns and units too contribute to the poison in the Ghaggar. Haryana Environment Minister Ajay Singh Yadav had recently sought Central help to stop the contamination of the Ghaggar and Yamuna rivers. The three states will, hopefully, agree to curb river pollution too. The Central project can collapse if any of the three states fails to contribute 10 per cent of the cost for building check dams, which are meant to control floods and recharge groundwater. Given its tight fiscal position and the elections ahead, the Badal government, it is hoped, will not play spoilsport. Himachal may hesitate as it has a limited stake in the project.
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Daylight murder
Every
murder is reprehensible. All the more so when the victim is a man of religion like Avtar Singh Tari, a staunch follower of Satguru Jagjit Singh of the Namdhari sect, avowedly a votary of non-violence and vegetarianism. What is particularly alarming is that the 57-year-old Mr Avtar Singh Tari was trailed and shot dead by motor cycle-borne killers in broad daylight, as if they had no fear of the law. Such violent incidents increase the sense of insecurity among the common men, especially those who have witnessed the lawless days of the terrorism era. Ironically, the weapon used in the crime was also the dreaded AK-47. From initial reports, it appeared that the murder was a result of an intense succession battle among two factions of the powerful dera –although its functionaries have refuted the allegation strongly. The police needs to unravel the mystery quickly so that the disquiet that the incident has caused can be addressed. Unfortunately, the gun culture is an inescapable feature of the Punjab countryside where numerous deras hold sway. Last May, the head of Dera Mai Dass (Nirmali sect), Sant Pradhan Singh, was shot dead at Baddan village of Hoshiarpur district. In 2009, suspected terrorists managed to kill the head of Dera Sachkhand in Vienna, leading to widespread violence in Punjab. Before that, the chief of the Rashtriya Sikh Sangat, Rulda Singh, was shot dead in his Patiala home. Many such crimes have remained unsolved. What complicates the situation is the fear that such killings may be part of a larger plot to target self-styled religious leaders.
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The Madhu Koda case
The
belated but welcome move to attach property worth Rs 130 crores, amassed allegedly by a former Chief Minister of Jharkhand, Madhu Koda, and his associates, is a significant development in the fight against corruption. Koda, an Independent MLA who headed a coalition government, is surely not the only Chief Minister to have been guilty of making a fortune out of public funds and dispensing favours through misuse of public office. Being a political lightweight having no support of established political parties, it was easier to move against him. The fact that he and three of his cabinet colleagues have been behind bars since November, 2009 is also indicative of their relative lack of political and legal muscle. But just because enforcement agencies lacked the gumption to go for bigger sharks does not in any way lessen the gravity of the charges against Koda and his associates. The case provides an opportunity to prosecuting agencies to dispel the perception that they neither have the will nor the ability to get politicians convicted of corruption. Koda, who was the state’s minister for mines before becoming the Chief Minister, is widely suspected to have misused the state’s power to grant mining leases in order to feather his own nest. He could not have done so without the active connivance of bureaucrats in both the state and at the Centre. But under the prevailing anti-corruption laws, neither the mining companies favoured by him nor his accomplices in the bureaucracy have been booked so far. What’s more, the case against Koda has given rise to the unfortunate impression that while the law deals severely with simple and less worldly-wise tribal politicians like Koda, it is extremely lenient while dealing with others. This would explain the ease with which Koda’s wife won a seat in the state Assembly riding on ‘sympathy’. It is, therefore, of utmost importance to conduct a fair but speedy trial. While the ED has filed a charge sheet, the Central Bureau of Investigation, the Income Tax Department and the state’s own Vigilance Bureau seem to be taking their own time to complete the investigation. Further delays would erode whatever little credibility the anti-corruption mechanism still retains.
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Pursue some path, however narrow and crooked, in which you can walk with love and reverence. — Henry David Thoreau
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‘Cricket diplomacy’ at work India’s
neighbours like Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan and the Maldives legitimately complain that they are ignored and SAARC summits have been reduced to a farce by turning such gatherings into India-Pakistan soap operas. They rightly claim that Indian political leaders, officials and media ignore the progress and achievements in fostering a feeling of South Asian togetherness, and behave as though all that matters is the bilateral meeting between the leaders of India and Pakistan on the sidelines of SAARC meetings. The 2011 Cricket World Cup was scheduled to be hosted in South Asia by Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. Engulfed by terrorist violence, let loose primarily by outfits earlier backed by the ISI, Pakistan was ruled out as a host by the International Cricket Council. The tournament was, therefore, hosted by Bangladesh, India and Sri Lanka. Rather than using the occasion to foster solidarity between the three hosts, our leaders and mandarins showed deplorable insensitivity in dealing with the co-hosts Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. The World Cup was inaugurated in Dhaka on February 19 by Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Wajed. It was an event which electrified the country, evoking an immense sense of national pride. It was the largest international event Bangladesh hosted after its bloody war of independence 40 years ago. Sheikh Hasina is unquestionably one of the friendliest leaders we have in our neighbourhood. She has extended a hand of friendship to us, proclaimed her country a secular republic, clamped down on extremist groups and handed over separatist leaders from our Northeast who were hosted by her predecessor. ULFA leader Paresh Baruah, earlier feted by Bangladesh and Pakistan, now hides along the borders of Myanmar and China, enjoying Chinese patronage. While India beat Bangladesh in the match, the hosts fought gamely and nearly made it to the quarter finals after beating England. The World Cup inauguration was an ideal event for India to show its solidarity with and empathy for Bangladesh, with our Prime Minister sharing the dais with Sheikh Hasina in Dhaka. Astonishingly, in a manifestation of callous diplomatic indifference and insensitivity, New Delhi chose not to send either a high-level goodwill delegation, or more appropriately, sponsor a goodwill visit to Dhaka by the Prime Minister for the event. Similar indifference and lack of imagination was shown to towards Sri Lanka, where cricketing legend Muthiah Muralitharan, whose contribution to the cricketing glory of his country was personally lauded by President Rajapakse, was playing his last World Cup. If Team India fought for the coveted World Cup for Sachin Tendulkar, the Sri Lankans did so for Murali, as he is fondly known. Most importantly, Murali, a Tamil, is a symbol of how Tamils and Sinhalas can live together in a pluralistic Sri Lanka. An Indian Prime Minister lauding Murali in Colombo would have reinforced and driven home this message. Alas a Prime Minister, who is totally focussed on, and some would say obsessed, with Pakistan, could obviously not entertain such thoughts. It is tragic that our diplomatic establishment and politicians could not also look imaginatively beyond their noses, on neighbourhood diplomacy. Many years ago, Mir Khalilur Rehman, the founder of the “Jang” newspaper, remarked to me during the course of an India-Pakistan cricket Test match in Karachi, when the crowds were going berserk, as Imran Khan decimated the Indian batting line up: “The problem with my countrymen is that they treat the cricket field like a battlefield and a battlefield like a cricket field”. He said it was this attitude that led them to disaster in the 1971 conflict with India, adding that they would feel similarly when the country’s cricketing fortunes were reversed. The Mohali World Cup semi-final pitting India against Pakistan was touted as the harbinger of goodwill and the elixir for eternal India-Pakistan friendship. But what was the reaction across the border when Pakistan, a remarkably talented, but mercurial side, crashed to defeat? Much has been said about Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi’s comment: “Indians will never have hearts like Muslims and Pakistanis. I do not think they have the large and clean hearts Allah has given us”. Compare this with the gracious comments of Sri Lankan captain Kumara Sangakkara: “We didn’t take enough wickets and in the end the best team won. Yes we are a bit sore that we lost. It will take a while to get over that feeling. That’s cricket”. It has been argued that one should not take the comments of Shahid Afridi, who was dumb enough to get banned for chewing on and seeking to tamper with the seam of a cricket ball, with half a dozen television cameras focussed on him, during an international encounter with Australia, seriously. But anyone familiar with the media coverage in Pakistan would recognise that not merely the traditionally hostile Urdu press, but also mainstream English newspapers were severely and even irrationally critical of India. Even a normally restrained person like Air Marshal Shahzad Chaudhry, who was the Director of Pakistan’s Strategic (Nuclear) Command Authority, commenced his article debunking Sachin Tendulkar’s batting capabilities. He averred “And yet this God of cricket was all at sea against Saeed Ajmal. He could not read Ajamal’s Doosra”. Chaudhry made the astonishing accusation that it was as a result of the tampering of the Hawkeye software by Indian IT experts that Tendulkar was not given out LBW. Chaudhury claimed: “The IT hubs of Bangalore worked overtime to provide Tendulkar the escape in the “Decision Referral system” when he was actually plumbed out on an arm ball by Ajmal”. He implied that the “Hawkeye” software had been tampered with to show that an actually straight ball had spun to miss the leg stump! The Mohali episode, based on the misplaced belief that “cricket diplomacy” would bring people in India and Pakistan together, is symbolic of how South Block just has no understanding of how Pakistanis think about cricket. Diplomacy is a serious business, not to be based on wishful thinking. No one objects to a serious dialogue, which promotes people-to-people contacts, enhances mutual confidence and ends terrorism. As a first step, we should unilaterally revoke the ludicrous visa restrictions we have imposed on visits by foreign academics, students and other visitors in the aftermath of the 26/11 attack. The invitation to Prime Minister Gilani pleased the Americans. But is pleasing the Americans the main criterion for determining our policies and priorities in our neighbourhood? The internal turmoil in Pakistan and its problems in Afghanistan call for serious diplomacy and not gimmicks, grandiose gestures or summits without meticulous preparatory
work.
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Weaker? Better! Imagine Adam doing everything all by himself — facing up to the whole world to earn a modest livelihood, combined with the thankless job of bearing and rearing children also. Struck by the dismal prospect of such an onerous task, it seems to me, God must have decided in His exalted wisdom, in the early stages of the Genesis, to effect division of labour in favour of Adam who He had created in His own image. That must be the reason why He promptly produced from His rib Adam’s counterpoint: Eve. Woman (wo-man) as she is now called is actually man with a womb. It is a case of confusion of categories that the biologists distinguish this division by the term ‘sex’, and the sociologists by the more ambiguous epithet ‘gender’. Woman is a riddle impossible to solve. For instance, how the ‘weaker sex’ can suddenly become the ‘better half’ in nuptial nexus is beyond my comprehension. Yet the fact remains that woman has emerged as a force to reckon with, Manu’s codified exhortations to the contrary notwithstanding. Woman has risen to her formidable stature even without the breathtaking blandishments of American women-libbers. For, she is shakti without which even the redoubtable Lord Shiva is a shava (dead body). Woman has made serious inroads into the once-entirely-man-dominated world. She is as good as, if not better than, man in driving and flying. When learning how to drive, though, she can easily drive her instructor mad. But as soon as she is on her own, she is quite innovative. When she suddenly decides, after having taken a half-right turn, to go left — she makes a cross in the air with her right index finger to warn other drivers that she has cancelled the previous signal. As a pilot, she is equally fantastic except that she can land the plane anywhere, anytime, when she suddenly remembers she has to attend a kitty party at her friend’s place. Woman’s capacity for work is boundless, too. In our pre-middle-school classes we used to be given sums in work, time, and wages. If so many men and women can do a piece of work in 10 days, how much time will it take so many more men and women to complete the same job? We had learnt these sums by rote and could solve even the hardest one with relative ease. But once we were asked if one woman can do a piece of work in a fortnight, how many days will it take two women to do it? A fellow, stunned by the disarming simplicity of the sum, answered: The work will never be done because, he reasoned, the two women will forthwith start
quarrelling.
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Latest scientific research shows that unless some effective preventive measures are taken at the earliest, the world is going to face a new health epidemic from this biologically untested technology
It
is unfortunate that most of the people are not aware of the damage being done to their health due to the radiations generated from the cell towers, cellphones and other similar gadgets. Several studies worldwide have documented tremendous increase in various adverse effects on human health due to the exposure to the mobile phone radiations. Headaches, sleep disorders, cognitive disorders and memory disturbances, visual and hearing disorders, brain tumours, cancer and damage to the DNA are being reported. According to scientists, the exposure to electromagnetic field (EMF) or radio frequency (RF) radiation is the reason for modern ailments given the name of "21st Century Syndrome". Out of different sources of unnatural radiation causing pollution such as electrical equipment and wiring, metallic objects, micro-wave or radio frequency technology as used in cellphones, digital TVs, microwave ovens, mobile phones and mobile phone towers and Wi-Fi systems are turning out to be the biggest enemy of human health. Due to massive proliferation of RF/microwave technology, both the personal and public environment is saturated with these manmade invisible radiations increasing threat to our health manifold. It is believed that we are exposed to around one billion times more unnatural radiations than our forefathers who lived a century ago. Consequently, we are becoming electro sensitive, which means that we are reacting to electro-magnetic radiations that surround our lives in every possible manner. In the US, the maximum SAR level limit for general public whole body is 0.08w/kg and partial body is less than 1.6w/kg. The National Council for Radiation Protection and Measurement there has recommended a public exposure limit of 200 micro watts per square centimetres in the 30 to 300 MHz. In India, the Department of Telecommunication (DoT) and the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), set up in 1997, has formulated the draft guidelines on the basis of International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) guidelines in respect of SAR levels. ICNIRP allows emission of radiation rate of 9.2 watts per square metres and as per its 2008 report, mobile phones are low powered RF devices transmitting maximum peak powers in the range of 0.6 to 2.00 W/kg. In India, the prescribed SAR limit is 2 watt per kg which is averaged over a six minute period.
'Dirty electricity' Basically, energy is information and health can be defined as the body having balanced information to direct its function in the most efficient manner. We need ordered balanced information or coherent energy to maintain health and well being. The unnatural radiation from our modern technology is feeding us with imbalanced incoherent energies and consequently, information which directs our cells too becomes likewise imbalanced and diseased. That is the reason for calling manmade radiation as "dirty electricity" which is positioning itself as the next health epidemic of the present century. Children, people with implants like pacemakers and pregnant women are more prone to the dangers of this radiation emitted by mobile phones and their base stations. It is now imminent to understand the direct and indirect ill effects of such radiation on our health which is the basic human right according to international human rights jurisprudence.
Safety standards Existing safety standards as recommended by ICNIRP are solely based on thermal or heating effects of RF/microwave radiation. Thermal effects are the damage done to the human body by heating that occurs at levels above the maximum of exposure to microwave radiation. These 'safety' levels are only to ensure that you don't cook your skin or internal organs from the heat that microwave generates. These standards don't give protection from non-thermal biological effects of radiation. One latest research from Austria has revealed that non-thermal biological damage occurs at SAR levels of only 0.1 w/kg, which is much below the accepted SAR levels. Latest scientific researches show that unless some effective preventive measures are taken at the earliest, the world is going to face the new health epidemic from this new biologically untested technology. Another quite shocking revelation is regarding Wi-Fi technology which was introduced to the US public in 1997 without being subjected to any prior tests. No testing has been done even to determine the safety of digital broadcast format, whereas the digital signals which are modulated radio waves are said to be 250 times stronger than the previous un-modulated analog based signals and emits more harmful radiation posing the greatest threat to our health. No legislation In India, despite having constitutional protection to human's right to life under Article 21 which includes in its ambit right to health, we do not have any specific legislation to combat this emerging challenge to our health and eco-system from the invisible pollution of EMF radiation. The State is directed under Article 47 and 48-A to take steps to improve public health and protect and improve the environment. The existing Environmental Protection Act 1986 does not cover microwave radiation as an 'environment pollutant' in its definition under section 2(b). It only covers "any solid, liquid or gaseous substance present in such concentration as may be or tend to be, injurious to environment", whereas radiation is neither solid nor liquid or gaseous substance. Similarly, radio frequency waves as used for mobile phones are not covered under the definition of 'radiation' as given in section 2(h) of the Atomic Energy Act 1962. One can only resort to the provisions of the AIR (Prevention & Control of Pollution Amendment) Act 1987. It is also true that this technology has become a necessary evil, addictive in nature. Saving human civilisation from its own ignorance is an uphill task. It requires efforts from intelligent forward-looking leaders from all walks of life that genuinely care about future. Unfortunately, the business leaders, the big corporate giants in this profession who have been constantly, till now, refuting any ailments resulting due to exposure from this radiation, are only concerned about their profits and not of next generation. The fact that our economic activity is fundamentally based on consumption rather than conservation demonstrates how humanity is doomed towards self-destruction. Frankly, a profit-based economic model cannot smoothly coexist with the environmental protection as the two concepts are opposite. The very idea of consuming less is the antithesis of corporate profit and expansions. Let us not mortgage our collective future in the hands of these big corporate houses that in connivance with corrupt political leaders do not realise their corporate social responsibilities. Till the time strict legislation and a regulatory regime exist to address this challenging issue, each one us should in the light of our fundamental duty to protect and improve the natural environment as provided in Article 51 (a)(g) of the Constitution, should resort to the "precautionary principle" of the environmental jurisprudence which is even recommended by WHO in this context. This principle, being the risk management policy, is applied in circumstances with high degree of uncertainty and reflects the need to take action for a potentially serious risk without awaiting the results of scientific research. It is time to religiously adopt and implement the concept of sustainable development in the field of modern technology in order to protect future generations. If we recall the history of the decline and fall of the Roman Empire, one of the factors that attributed to its collapse is the lead poisoning of the Romans due to the excessive use of which drove the Romans mad. Let us not repeat the history by now poisoning ourselves with unnatural EMF/RF radiation and follow the path of self destruction by excessive use of mobile telephony. It is necessary to strike an effective balance between technology, law and our health. The writer is Professor, Department of Laws, Panjab University, Chandigarh
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Despite
substantial changes and growth in the telecommunication sector since 1992, the Indian telecommunication system is still being governed by the provisions of the Indian Telegraph Act 1885 and the Indian Wireless Telegraphy Act 1933. The Indian Telegraph (Amendment) Act 2003, in section 3(i) includes 'radio waves' in the definition of the word 'telegraph' and explains that 'radio waves' means electro-magnetic waves of frequencies lower than 3,000 giga cycles per second propagated in space without artificial guide. The Wireless Act 1933 includes 'radio waves' as means of wireless communication under section 2(i). Both these statutes do not deal with the issue of ill effects of the radiation on the environment. TRAI has been set up to provide an effective regulatory framework and adequate safeguards to ensure fair competition and protections of consumer interests, but individual customer complaints do not come under the purview of the TRAI (Amendment) Act 2000. Individual consumers can file a complaint only before the consumer court as provided under Consumer Protection Act 1986. A number of measures taken by TRAI to safeguard the interests of the consumers nowhere covers the aspect of ill effects of radiations on the health of consumers. The Telecom Policy only focuses on facilitating India's vision of becoming as IT superpower and developing a world class telecom infrastructure in the country. In short, neither the telecom policy nor the statutes regulating telecommunication sector show any concern for the fundamental right to health. The Kerala High Court in 2006 gave a general direction to TRAI to make periodical inspections to ascertain whether radiation emanated from the mobile phones base stations would cause any health hazards to the people who are residing nearby. The court relying upon the report of the committee headed by Dr N.R. Ganguly, DG, ICMR as constituted on the direction of the division bench of the Bombay High Court in the year 2004 for evaluating this issue, held that in absence of conclusive documentary scientific evidence to this effect, the permission granted for installation of mobile phone base stations to Reliance InfoCom Ltd. would neither cause any health hazard nor effect the fundamental Right to life of the citizen as enshrined in the Constitution of India. Even the apex court in 2006 admitted public interest litigation to this effect as filed by an NGO, Karma Jyot Sewa Trust of Gujarat, and issued notices to the Union of India and many ministries such as Health and Family Welfare, Environment and Forest, Telecommunication, IT, Science and Technology. Now the report of the eight-member inter-ministerial Committee has not only acknowledged the ill effects of cell phone radiation on our health but has also admitted the shocking flouting of SAR levels as per Indian guidelines standards. There is need for banning all cellphones not adhering to the permitted SAR levels. In the US every cellphone manufacturer has to list its SAR standards for each of the models of phones in their manual but simply specifying SAR levels is also not going to prevent the ever-increasing use of this technology. The Ganguly Committee in its report mentioned that the height of mobile base station antenna is nominally 36 metres and is a safe distance from RF exposures. But in Chandigarh no cell towers are installed at the said height, and are also located in residential areas. All this is happening due to non-existence of astringent law and regulatory mechanism to check these violations. —
SM
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Generally, the whole body human absorption of RF energy varies with the frequency of the RF signal. The most restrictive limits on whole body exposure are in the frequency ranges of 30 to 300 Mhz where the human body absorbs RF energy most effectively. Electromagnetic radiation absorbed in human body is measured in units called the specific absorption rate (SAR) which is usually expressed in units of Watts per Kilogram (w/kg) or mille Watts per Gram (mw/g). SAR level is commonly used to describe the radiation absorbed close to the body, that is the head, with respect to mobile phone usage. SAR is also used to determine whole body exposure and reflects more to exposure to Wi-Fi and cell phone towers.