The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

Criminal neglect
Colleges need teachers, infrastructure

HOW often have we heard that children are the future of the nation? A logical corollary of the former statement is that the education that these children and young adults receive will determine not only their own future, but also that of society and, ultimately, of the country as a whole. It would, thus, be reasonable to expect that the government would devote attention to providing educational and other facilities to best equip its young citizens to make a place for themselves in the world.

Yet, logic seems to have deserted the Punjab government since higher education in the state is in a sorry state, as has been seen in the recent exposes printed in this newspaper. Colleges, without teachers, without laboratories, or even without classrooms — all kinds of travesties tumble out of the closet once this sector is examined closely. Inevitably, it is educational institutions in rural areas that suffer the most. In the first instance, teachers’ vacancies are not filled, and even if this is done in some cases, the individuals concerned seldom report for duty. As for physical infrastructure, such colleges are dependent not only on government grants, which are few and far between, but are also at the mercy of government departments to execute projects after they have been approved and funded. Five classrooms for 500 students? It would be laughable, if only it was not so serious a matter.

The nation needs to invest in its educational sector. There are already too few educational institutions, and as we have seen, out of those, too many do not even have the basic infrastructure for their students. Foreign universities and privatisation have their own place in the future of educational infrastructure of the nation, but the basic thrust has to come from the government, which must re-examine its priorities and do more for its colleges. In Punjab, the state government, which is now in its second term, has not shown the required earnestness in dealing with longstanding issues. Before embarking on any new projects, or sanctioning splashy new programmes, it must ensure that the colleges all over the state are provided with the basic necessities that are required to teach students. Surely, this is not asking for too much, or is it?

Living with indignities
Children require sensitive handling

JUST because children do not have a voice of protest, it does not mean they do not deserve dignity. They need to be offered basic convenience, if not comfort. Two girls fainted outside a bank in Fatehabad, Haryana, while waiting to get their scholarship. And, they had to wait for more than four hours. About 50 girl students had assembled outside the bank to receive the money due to them under the backward class quota. Since a sizeable number of students were expected at the bank, the authorities should have taken care of the logistics. Getting a shamiana raised, arrangement for drinking water etc would not cost a fortune. But the callousness inherent in our system to treat people who do not wield power without the essential dignity has become a norm. The scholarship recipients should have been treated with some respect.

In a work culture where work is treated like a punishment, such callousness becomes an unwritten law. No one complains for fear of a reprisal. Children, women and the elderly often come at the receiving end of this callousness. And, if they happen to belong to the backwards classes, it is a double whammy. Banks are supposed to serve. Class consciousness in our service sector is creating a new kind of work order.

Year after year newspapers report on children fainting during rehearsals of the Independence and Republic Day parades. Yet year after year no medical assistance is arranged on the spot. For any public event where crowds are needed, bus loads of children are picked and made to stand for hours, either to greet a foreign dignitary or to welcome a political leader. They are often used to substitute crowds, without giving a thought for their basic convenience. Here again, children from government schools are made to suffer this ignominy, deepening class-consciousness.

Thought for the Day

Temptation is a woman’s weapon and man’s excuse. — H. L. Mencken

ARTICLE

Pakistan’s descent into chaos
Terrorists getting close to seizing N-warheads
by Gurmeet Kanwal

Embroiled in continuing political turbulence, judicial activism, internal instability and a stagnating economy, Pakistan appears to be hurtling inexorably downhill. The terrorist strike on Minhas airbase in Kamra on August 16 in which one Pakistani soldier and nine terrorists were killed is but the latest manifestation of the country's inability to protect even its vital military installations from attack. The fact that nuclear warheads are stored at the airbase makes the attack even more ominous. The strike was launched by fighters of the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), a terrorist organisation that is committed to the establishment of a "true Islamic state" in Pakistan.

Incidentally, this was the fourth such attack on Minhas airbase. Earlier attacks on the base had been launched by suicide bombers in 2007, 2008 and 2009. The attack was similar to the one launched by well-trained terrorists at Mehran naval aviation base near Karachi soon after the US Special Forces had killed Osama bin Laden in May 2011. In both cases insider help is suspected. The material damage caused has been extensive - one airborne early warning (AEW) aircraft was damaged at Minhas and two P3C Orion AEW aircraft were destroyed at Mehran and 18 military personnel were killed.

Terrorist organisations inimical to the Pakistani state have repeatedly proved their ability to launch strikes against well- guarded military targets at will. They have also demonstrated their ability to infiltrate the rank and file of the armed forces and are getting close to their real objective of seizing a few nuclear warheads.

The Pakistan Army is, perhaps, facing its deepest crisis since its strategic blunder in Kargil. General Ashfaq Pervez Kayani, the Chief of Army Staff, appears to lack both initiative and ideas to deal with the deteriorating internal security situation. Insurgency in Khyber-Pakhtoonkhwa (earlier called the NWFP) and the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) is proving difficult for the Pakistan Army to handle. Its counter-insurgency policy has been unsuccessful and casualties have been mounting. The use of air-strikes and helicopter gunships to attack terrorist hideouts has proved to be counter-productive. The Pakistan Army has been forced by the TTP to wage a three-front "war": against the TTP and the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU) in South Waziristan; against the anti-Shia Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) in the sensitive Darra Adam Khel-Kohat area of the NWFP and the Shia-dominated Kurram Agency of FATA; and against the Tehrik-e-Nifaz-e-Shariat-e-Mohammadi (TNSM), headed by Maulana Fazlullah, and the Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) sheltering across the Durand Line in Afghanistan.

Though it has flirted with peace deals with the militants, the army finds it impossible to meet the demands of the TTP and the TNSM. According to B. Raman, a noted counter-terrorism expert, these demands include the suspension of all military operations in the tribal areas; the withdrawal of army posts from the FATA; the release of all tribals arrested under the Anti-Terrorism Act; the release of Maulana Abdul Aziz Ghazi and tribal students arrested during the commando action in Lal Masjid in Islamabad in July 2007; and enforcement of the Sharia in the tribal areas.

US-Pakistan cooperation in the joint war against terror is at an all-time low. Though NATO-ISAF supply routes have been re-opened and the ISI chief visited Washington recently, General Kayani has failed to take action against the Haqqani network that has been operating against the NATO-ISAF forces in Afghanistan from safe havens in Pakistan. Despite the repeated US demands to address the insurgency problem in North Waziristan, the Pakistan Army has not yet launched counter-insurgency operations in the restive area that is the hub of the TTP. It appears to be both unable and unwilling to do so.

The US and its allies have become increasingly more frustrated by Pakistan's failure to deal with Al-Qaeda and Taliban militants launching raids on US and NATO troops across the Durand Line. The Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff of the US, and other officials have been meeting General Kayani frequently to impress on him the need to be more pro-active in counter-insurgency operations. Unilateral trans-border intervention against militants inside Pakistani territory by the US is continuing through drone strikes. Trans-border ground action through Special Forces is likely to be approved if President Obama wins the November election.

The continuing stand-off between the government and the judiciary over the prosecution of President Asif Ali Zardari for allegedly stashing huge sums of money in Swiss bank accounts is undermining political stability and adversely impacting governance. The underperformance of Pakistan's tottering economy is another cause for concern. Inflation is still raging in double digits and is having a crippling impact on the economy. If economic conditions continue to spin out of control, there is a possibility of much greater popular discontent and violence spreading across Pakistan.

The ruling party in Pakistan needs to make determined efforts to rein in the ISI from continuing to appease the Taliban, provide good governance and formulate sustainable economic policies. It must also initiate a consultation process with all the stakeholders for the formulation of a holistic and comprehensive national-level counter-insurgency strategy. At this juncture, the Pakistani military is in no shape to step into a potential political quagmire. However, if historical evidence is any guide, such restraint on the part of the military may yet prove to be fleeting if conditions in the country continue to deteriorate.

Pakistan is not yet a failed state, but it is a state with a failed leadership. Now that Musharraf is out of the way and Nawaz Sharif's urge to avenge his humiliation in 1999 has been satisfied, he should behave in a more statesman-like manner in the larger interests of his country. However, going by past experience, he is unlikely to do so. Political turmoil, internal instability, a floundering economy and weak institutions make for an explosive mix. The only deduction that can conceivably be drawn is that Pakistan is in for even greater difficulties ahead. The emerging situation does not augur well for strategic stability in South Asia.

The writer is a Delhi-based defence analyst.

MIDDLE

Reined in the rains
by Rajbir Deswal

Generally you have to pay heavily to enjoy a luxury which is beyond your means. But there are certain things that come your way as godsend at a time when you are either not expecting them to happen or when you think you have grown mature enough to indulge in such "silly, childlike and imprudent" adventures. Imagine your being in your stroll gear with the i-pod's ear plug inserted besides a phone in your pocket, and all of a sudden it starts raining! You will stay back, definitely, for if at all you venture out people might call you mad.

I was on the other end of my strolling lap the other day when all of a sudden it began to rain. There was no indication of it. No gushy winds. No huddle of clouds. No thunders to fulminate and light up the sky. Not even a dip in the temperature. All these things combine and conjure up to give you enough time to gather up and either rush for cover or hurry up to settle, or even swathe yourself with whatever accosting is available. But no, it wasn't to happen with me. And thankfully for once at least. After so many years.

The first few drops hit me like hail. I too in the initial reflex looked for cover. But then I gave way to a long-cherished desire since childhood — to drench myself in rain. And I paused in my stroll. I saw all around running helter-skelter as if it was a volley of bombs being hurled and not sweet monsoon rain droplets. I began to feel the thrill of a cooling sensation down the spine — literally. Eyebrows started dripping. The nose-tip held for a while and let go the watery-dew. Lips became lipsy of each other when I began to also taste the rain.

I secured the Kenneth-Cole watch Sawan had bought for me from Settle Premiums on the US-Canada border. It was being put to a water-proof test for the first time. Then I wrapped in the handkerchief my i-phone gifted to me by Sagar. By this time my laced sneakers had become fluffy floaters — literally, for they had overflowing water in them. I began to nearly gyrate when, like kids, I splashed the accumulation in the puddles on the road. I even went a step side-ways to thump my foot a tad strongly, making a bigger splash, for the enjoyment of a sheer escapade into experiencing exuberance bordering on madness. People from their terraces, verandahs and balconies looked at me as if an ostrich had strayed out of the zoo.

Some urchins joined me in my fun. I encountered wet cats and dogs, besides cows going on the road with bent necks as if they could take on the torrents with their pointed horns. Once in a while a car would rush past, making splashes on some dry patches left on me. I knew wife would send the car to fetch me home, unscathed by reckless rains. But I changed the route back home. As it during childhood, romance of the rains filled me with an audacious indulgence into all that was forbidden for people of my age. The child in me was born again and made me frolic like one — unplugged, uninhibited!

At the pre-entry was wife waiting with a smile to say, "Look, you had your fill of the rain today!" Towels in tow, slippers in place and an extended tray to deposit my mobile phones, watch and wallet make me a man again — reined in!

OPED

India needs a Chief of Defence Staff
Increasing multi-faceted security problems led the government to constitute a committee on security reforms that has submitted its report. It is time the Indian state became sensitive to many formidable security challenges it faces in the foreseeable future
Lt Gen Kamal Davar (Retd)

Noted American strategic analyst George Tanham succinctly expressed some years back that "the Indian elites show little evidence of having thought coherently and systematically about strategy." It is indeed paradoxical that an ancient profound civilization surviving countless upheavals, now a 65 years young nation located geographically in one of the most violent expanses of the world and having fought five wars since Independence, has in reality hardly looked into its defence needs in an institutionalised and systematic manner. The status-quo and pacifist mentality of the Indian psyche is, perhaps, reflective of a primordial and philosophical adherence to outdated moorings inconsistent with the security challenges which India now confronts in a seriously troubled and politically unstable neighbourhood.

Defence Minister AK Antony with the three services chiefs. The Naresh Chandra Committee has lamented that despite the chiefs and specialised staff being available for advice on security matters, the political establishment is totally dependent on bureaucrats drawn from diverse fields

The serious debacle and ignominy suffered by the nation in 1962 at the hands of China had prompted the then government to constitute the Henderson Brookes Committee to go into the reasons of the defeat. Their report, even 50 years after the event, still remains shrouded, inexplicably, in secrecy for reasons which are difficult to gauge. Despite the 1965 and 1971 wars with Pakistan or even with Pakistan becoming a nuclear state in 1998, continuing border and maritime tensions with an increasingly powerful and belligerent China, no periodic security reviews were ever undertaken. However, the 1999 Pak perfidy in Kargil which definitely did surprise the Indian establishment, prompted the government to form an all encompassing high powered commission, the Kargil Review Committee (KRC) under the widely respected K Subramanyam to delve deeply into all aspects of Indian security. The latter, in one of his last interviews before his demise had expressed that "India has lacked an ability to formulate future-oriented defence policies, managing only because of short-term measures, blunders by its adversaries and force superiority in its favour."

Strategic security review

The KRC comprehensively analyzed and recommended measures to tone up security in India in all its myriad nuances and complexities. Most of the recommendations of the KRC, further streamlined by a specially constituted Group of Ministers Committee in 2001, mercifully, have been implemented in letter if not in total altruistic spirit! Some critics of the KRC have, however, opined that its reforms "had failed to deliver."

Ten years having elapsed since India's first comprehensive security review and increasing multi-faceted security problems, both internal and external, led the government to constitute the Naresh Chandra Committee on Security Reforms. This 14-member task force was mandated to review the unfinished tasks of the KRC report and make suggestions relating to the higher defence management structure of the nation and also examine why some of the critical recommendations relating to intelligence and border management were found wanting. It is pertinent to note that the KRC had previously observed that the political, bureaucratic, military and intelligence establishments appear to have developed a vested interest in the status-quo.

The committee commenced work in mid-2011 and has very recently submitted its report to the government. Its findings have not yet been made public and its report is currently under consideration of the Cabinet Committee on Security. Nevertheless, like most state secrets in India, some of its major recommendations have found their way into the public domain and are currently under animated discussion among security analysts, think tanks and the media. Though it will be grossly unfair to carry out meaningful appraisal of the report without the entire review being made public, some initial comments on a few vital issues raised will be in order.

A major observation of the committee has been that uniformed officers from the three services must be posted to the Ministry of Defence in adequate numbers as the uniformed community must have a greater say in matters of national security. It has lamented that despite the service chiefs and the highly specialised headquarters staff being at their disposal for advice on national security, the political establishment is totally relying on feedback from civil servants in the MoD drawn from diverse professional backgrounds not even remotely connected with security matters.

According to media sources, to include and enhance the status of the service chiefs in the national security decision making processes, the task force has also recommended amendments in the business rules, namely the Government of India Allocation of Business Rules and the Government of India Transaction of Business Rules framed in 1961. Surprisingly, under these enactments the service chiefs do not even find a mention and the defence secretary, under these Rules, is responsible for the "Defence of India and every part thereof." In addition, the defence secretary is deemed to represent the three service chiefs in most forums! To any objective bystander or an ordinary citizen, such glaring and basic omissions are unacceptable.

One of the major and widely endorsed recommendations of the KRC had been the establishment of the office of the Chief of Defence Staff, a 5-star rank officer to act as a single point military adviser to the government and handle the tri-services commands including the vital Strategic Nuclear Forces Command, Andaman and Nicobar Command, the Defence Intelligence Agency, etc. However, the Naresh Chandra Committee has surprisingly recommended a slightly toned down version of the CDS by suggesting another 4-star rank officer from any of the three services (making it a total of four 4-star officers) to act as a permanent Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee (COSC), According to reports, this appointment will also replace the defence secretary to render tri-service advice to the government -- an aspect which will naturally meet stiff resistance from South Block babus. Among the three services, as is widely known, the Indian Air Force has been opposing the CDS concept (also mentioned to me personally by a former senior Cabinet minister), a posture which also suits MoD bureaucrats. Even the government has stated its position on the CDS that "the views of political parties are being ascertained." Thus, in the absence of total unanimity on the decision to have a 5-star rank CDS, some feel that the committee's recommendation can be temporarily agreed to and utilised, in the interim, in creating more cohesion among the three services. The Special Operations Command, which the committee has recommended for synergising the special operations of the three services, could also be put directly under command of the COSC as also the urgently needed tri-service Cyber Command as and when it will be raised.

Everyone in the country, in uniform and out of it, must appreciate the simple fact that large armed forces encompassing multi-dimensional strategic forces including land, sea, nuclear and aerospace, cannot be left to the whims and fancies of any single service. They have to be deployed and operationally employed in an integrated manner for which jointness, unity and economy of effort among the three services is sine qua non. This is only possible with a CDS overseeing the entire gamut of operations and other aspects of all the three services as is the practice in militarily powerful nations of the world. One prays that a dedicated pan-India political leader will address the problem of true jointness for the Armed Forces, override any individual service parochialism and get the three services to truly integrate for the larger national good.

The committee has reportedly made many more useful recommendations. It has correctly opined that India must prepare militarily to deal with an assertive China as it simultaneously seeks to enhance cooperation in diverse fields with it. It notes that China will continue to utilise Pakistan as part of its grand strategy for containing India in a "South Asian box." It has suggested that the Indian Army be given management of the Sino-Indian border and retain overall operational control over all forces deployed on this border.

The committee has further opined that Pakistan remains unable and unwilling to set its house in order. Its army continues its myopic and self-destructive policies of using Islamic groups to promote terrorism in India and Afghanistan, and seeks strategic depth in the latter. It has recommended that India must employ all political, diplomatic, economic and military measures to ensure that Afghanistan does not fall a victim to Pakistani efforts to convert Afghanistan into a fundamentalist vassal state.

Ensuring reforms

The committee has also made sound recommendations regarding better liaison between the MoD and the other ministries like the MHA and MEA through institutionalised measures. This committee has also stressed the need for an agency to tackle militancy and terrorist activities across the nation -- perhaps alluding to a set-up like the widely debated National Counter Terrorism Centre which most states have been opposing till date.

With the report being studied by various ministries and relevant organs of the government, it will be in order that it is made available to the public at large so that concerned think tanks and analysts could also give their considered views on vital matters. Importantly, once the Cabinet approves the report and other suggestions for improving national security , the government must ensure its speedy and faithful implementation. Recently at the DRDO Awards function, the Prime Minister had himself said, "As we look around us, a net deterioration in the international strategic and security environment becomes too obvious." It is time the Indian state not only becomes sensitive to the many formidable security challenges it will face in the foreseeable future but more than prepared to successfully confront them as it gears itself for a larger regional and global role.