The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

US foreign policy focus
India should expect little change

A second term for Barack Obama as US President is unlikely to see any major change on the foreign policy front. This is a comfortable scenario for India because Obama had amended his policy initiatives vis-à-vis India after his pro-China posturing during the initial months of his first term. He quickly realised the merits in the policy pursued by the George W. Bush administration which had clinched the historic nuclear deal with India. It was a matter of relief for India when he ultimately reverted to Bush’s policy, which was aimed at containing China to protect US interests in East Asia. Attempts at the containment of China were essential as most countries in the region are scared of an over-assertive China, which sees itself as the future superpower. India figured prominently in this American scheme of things and may continue to remain so during the new Obama administration.

But Pakistan and Iran must be feeling uncomfortable with Obama’s re-election as US President, as there is unlikely to be any let-up in the drive to prevent Tehran from acquiring nuclear weapon capability and the targeting of Taliban activists in Pakistan’s tribal areas through drone attacks. Of course, Barack Hussein Obama, whose forefathers were Muslim Kenyans and who spent his early childhood in Indonesia, no longer has to prove that he cannot be soft towards these countries posing threat to global peace. The truth is that no US President can afford to be lax towards terrorists or an Iran which is considered more dangerous for peace in West Asia than Israel by US allies like Saudi Arabia.

But the US under President Obama is unlikely to get more deeply involved in the Arab Spring-hit West Asian region because of the complexity in the emerging scenario. It does not have to bother about the region’s oil as much as the US did till the Bush presidency because of its hope for energy self-sufficiency with Canadian help. Afghanistan will continue to remain under sharp focus though without any change in the policy of US troop withdrawal by July 2014. Interestingly, the US has been showing its inclination towards India for some time for rebuilding of Afghanistan. Washington DC sees Pakistan with suspicion vis-à-vis Afghanistan. Moreover, allowing Pakistan to play a major role in Afghanistan after the completion of foreign troop pullout will amount to providing an opportunity to Al-Qaida-linked extremist forces to regroup themselves. This cannot be expected under the Obama presidency.

Acquisition and lives
Land more than just property

Disposing of a case with the Maharashtra Government agreeing to pay compensation for land acquired in 1964, the Supreme Court has observed that denying rehabilitation to people whose land is taken would amount to inciting them to resort to anti-national activities. It also ruled that delay in appeal against an injustice could not come in the way of redress when there was compelling evidence. There is no gainsaying the fact that anyone subjected to injustice in any form is liable to take to unlawful means to get what he believes is his due, especially when someone’s entire life is thrown into turmoil, as it happens in cases of land acquisition.

The particular case is very old, and today there are few acquisitions where the government may not pay compensation. But disputes over how much compensation is adequate can lead to social tensions no less. There are bound to be issues when governments use discretion in acquisitions. The proposed land acquisition amendment Bill aims to ensure that landowners do not have the sense of being cheated when they see industrial complexes coming up on their fields. Congress president Sonia Gandhi has done right by insisting on the requirement of 80 per cent purchase by a private developer before a government may help in the acquisition of the remaining land required for a project. The UPA government hopes to ride into the elections with this legislation as a feather in its cap.

Many farmers today are sitting on priceless property; unfortunately, given their limited skills in managing cash, they often have little left with them soon after they receive compensation for land acquired. Many end up gross losers on the homestead, which is an anchor of their lives as they have known it. This is where proposals on giving them a stake in the land being developed have to be looked into, so that they may be assured of a sustained income over the years to come. Society may have the right to purchase someone’s land, not lives.

Thought for the Day

To me a lush carpet of pine needles or spongy grass is more welcome than the most luxurious Persian rug.

— Helen Keller

ARTICLE

India’s western neighbourhood
Engulfed in sectarian conflicts
by G. Parthasarathy

India’s oil-rich western neighbourhood, extending from the Arabian Sea to the Bosporus, is engulfed in conflicts arising from sectarian and civilisational rivalries, aggravated by the meddling of external powers. With an arsenal of over 100 nuclear weapons, Pakistan is today witnessing a period of internal strife, largely arising from the pernicious role of its military establishment and tensions across its disputed borders with Afghanistan. This conflict, involving radical groups like the Taliban, Al-Qaida and the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, is engulfing Central Asia.

Iran is now involved in multiple conflicts, arising from its regional ambitions and its controversial nuclear programme. Iran has added to its woes by intemperate rhetoric about “wiping out Israel from the map”. Its Sunni Arab neighbours allege Iran is inciting restive Shia populations in Eastern Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Yemen and Kuwait. Further westwards, Iranian support for the Hezbollah in Lebanon, the Muslim Brotherhood in Gaza and the embattled Alawite (Shia) minority regime of President Bashar al-Assad in Syria, has led to regional and global rivalries exacerbating the existing tensions.

Tensions in relations with Israel and the US have resulted in Iran facing crippling international sanctions and American and Israeli efforts to destroy its nuclear weapons programme by targeting its nuclear scientists. Cyber attacks with “Flame” and “Stuxnet” viruses have stolen Iran’s nuclear data and crippled its enrichment programme for months. Azerbaijan, India and Thailand have been drawn into this rivalry by Iranian-sponsored attacks on Israeli establishments and tourists on their soil. Iran is also believed to have mounted retaliatory cyber attacks on American banks and financial institutions, natural gas production facilities in Qatar and Saudi Arabia’s ARAMCO oil company. Israel and the US are being warned that any attack on Iran’s nuclear installations would engulf the entire region in flames.

The much-touted Arab Spring, which many believed would lead to a new era of democracy, peace and progress in the Arab world, has only exacerbated tensions and uncertainties across the region. This region, ruled for decades by despots and dictators, is now witnessing momentous changes. In Libya, where the despotic regime of Muammar Gaddafi was removed by NATO military intervention spearheaded by France, Britain and the US, large tracts of the country are under the control of Al-Qaida-linked Islamist militias. The Muslim Brotherhood and its offshoots are expanding their influence in countries like Tunisia, Egypt and Libya and the Palestinian Gaza strip. Syria, now ruled by an Iranian-backed minority Shia sect, comprising barely 12 per cent of the population, is engulfed in a bloody civil war that pits the bulk of its 70 per cent Sunni majority against the secular regime of Bashar al-Assad.

The Syrian civil war has led to the displacement of hundreds of thousands of people and an exodus of thousands of refugees to neighbouring Turkey and Jordan. It has also led to a deadlock in the UN Security Council, where Russia and China have resolutely blocked any attempt by the West to get a resolution passed that would sanctify Libyan-style NATO intervention. Veteran Algerian diplomat Lakhdar Brahimi is trying to fashion a ceasefire as a prelude to negotiations between the warring parties in Syria. Led by Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Egypt, the Arab League has favoured intervention and regime change in Syria. Now ruled by an Islamist dispensation, secular Turkey, which has been denied entry into the Christian-dominated European Union, is attempting to become a major player in the region by downgrading ties with Israel and embracing the cause of the Hamas in Gaza.

The United States and Israel favour the ouster of the Iranian-backed Assad regime as this would undermine the influence of the Shia Hezbollah in Lebanon, which is the only Arab militia to challenge the might of Israel’s armed forces. The assassination of the anti-Hezbollah Lebanese intelligence chief Wissam al Hassan in Beirut could revive the sectarian conflicts that tore Lebanon apart in the past. Most Lebanese appear to hold Syria responsible for the assassination. A new major player in these developments is the ruler of the Emirate of Qatar, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa, who holds 14 per cent of the world’s gas resources and hosts the Forward Headquarters of the American Central Command and its Combined Operations Centre, apart from owning the worldwide Al-Jazeera channel, now broadcasting anti-Assad news bulletins. Sheikh Khalifa took active part in the NATO-led ouster of Muammar Gaddafi and was the first Arab ruler to recognise the Libyan National Council. He is spearheading Arab opposition to President Assad. He has visited Gaza and doled out $ 400 million to meet the Hamas leadership to counter Iranian influence.

The US, its NATO allies and Israel would like to weaken Iran’s regional influence by the overthrow of the Syrian regime and the consequent isolation of Hezbollah in neighbouring Lebanon. Turkey, Qatar and Saudi Arabia are the key allies in this effort. But both the US and Israel are wary of arming the fractious Syrian opposition, fearing that an Islamist takeover in Syria could produce another haven for Al-Qaida and the Muslim Brotherhood, akin to what transpired in Libya and elsewhere in the aftermath of the Arab Spring. The Israeli bombing of a suspected Iranian missile facility in Sudan is yet another manifestation of tensions in the region. Growing regional and external rivalries are increasingly destabilising India’s western neighbourhood.

India has reacted maturely and moderately to these developments, with its response being clearly articulated by its Permanent Representative to the UN, Hardeep Puri. India joined Brazil, China, Germany and Russia by abstaining on Security Council Resolution 1973 that led to the NATO military intervention in Libya. India made it clear that it has serious concerns about UN resolutions lacking “clarity on enforcement measures” through military intervention. India backed a UN General Assembly resolution supporting “efforts of the Arab League for a peaceful resolution of the Syrian crisis through a “Syria-led inclusive political process.” It also supported a Security Council resolution vetoed by China and Russia to facilitate the work of a UN supervision mission in Syria to monitor the “cessation of violence”.

India, however, abstained on a Security Council resolution backed by the Arab League that, in effect, demanded regime change in Syria. The policy on such issues is to support moves from promoting a regional consensus to resolving differences, but not getting involved in demands for regime change, to be brought about by external intervention. It is evident that sectarian, regional and external rivalries are going to pose serious challenges and threats to peace and security in India’s western neighbourhood.

MIDDLE

The Rattlesnake experience
by Rajbir Deswal

Come on, it’s the name of a place - a lake and a peak --- near North Bend in King County in Washington state of the US. It’s one of about a dozen other hikes around Seattle, ranging from two miles to 10, and more. Rattlesnake is the most preferred place, being a family hike-fun-friendly. People of all ages can be seen seeking to traverse through a wilderness of its own kind, which has an adventurous side to it.

Thus, a hike is not just a physical activity to indulge in, but also a blissful experience, when on the one hand you seem to exhaust all your energies to a likeable indulgence, and, on the other, feeling emptied and to have a refill straight from the nature’s store house, of bountiful largesse, being blessed with a near-spiritual replenishment.

Rattlesnake trail weaves through a thick forest, with not only tall trees blocking the sky from entering the domain of the wild, but also through the damp and cool earth that offers cushiony pads to your walk. The air here is fresh and so invigorating that you don’t mind going up and up, even without stopping for a while, to breathe a fresher life to your lungs. There are ferns growing even on the trees, besides the ground. There is moss on the damper trunks and branches, gleaming with yellow shine on them, making it a chiaroscuro on a camouflaged canvas of various shades of green.

The rays penetrate into the dark forests like opening the secrets of nature starkly, but in controlled measures. This is ‘No Fire’ zone, meaning thereby that you cannot create any fire, except with your excitement of the feel of surroundings. From atop the summit, it’s a three-side view of the North Bend town, and a lake sprawling extensively on all sides, with its placid blue waters.

The sun has risen right on the head. It’s all magic here. Of reflections and colours - generally subdued blue sapphire and a mild yellow, with orangish hint of the hesitant noon. At a certain height, the dried pine-like needles caution you to tread carefully.

The entire pathway has a Canterbury-Tales-like variety of hikers. From the thumb-sucking infants to the old and infirm; from the differently-abled to the able-bodied; from the lone rangers to the band of cronies; they are all here. Add to their train, side-bogies of pets, mostly dogs, some of who really help their masters carry their stuff in the purpose-made harnesses.

Climbing up, I noticed no one asks the distance left to be undertaken, like we do oftener in India. Just smiles and greetings. I missed the chant of ‘Jai Mata Di’ which makes one forget the vagaries of energy draining down when one is going up - almost effortlessly. I was also reminded of our climb to Cheena Peak in Nainital which is fairly similar to the Rattlesnake hike.

On reaching the top, there appear to be picture frames on all sides, with very high resolution and depth of the field. Each tree looks to be not more than a branch standing tall but clear-cut as one entity - independent and marked. The blue waters seem to mix up with the greens like grossness settles down in a mystical field. A complete amalgamation. Experiencing nature in its divine avatar. Crystal clear and purged. To pure and innocent visuals. Almost devourable!

It’s a tough decision to plan a climb down since the captivating scenario right in front of your eyes may never obtain again.

OPED — ECONOMY

Why India needs FDI in retail
India is not the first country to adopt FDI in multi-brand retail. China, Brazil, Russia and even smaller countries such as Argentina, Indonesia, Kenya and Thailand have permitted FDI in retail - that too without any restrictions
Tarvinder Singh Chahal

Mega stores will buy products directly from farmers and set up backend infrastructure

The process of liberalisation in the last two decades has been carried forward by the governments led by the Congress, the BJP and other political parties. While the cash and carry sector was opened to 100% FDI, the single-brand retail sector was allowed 51% FDI in 2006. Now after a detailed study by ICRIER (Indian Council for Research and International Economic Relations), multi-brand retail has been opened to 51% FDI. With this, multinational traders like Wal-Mart, Carrefour and Tesco are expected to enter the retail market.

To protect the local businesses, producers, farmers and consumers, the government has set some conditions on multilaterals for putting their shop in the retail sector. They will have to make a minimum investment of $100 million, spend 50% of its investment in backend supply chain infrastructure, procure 30% of their requirements from micro, small and medium enterprises; operate in cities with a 10-lakh plus population and the government will have the first right to purchase agricultural produce.

Other nations’ experience

India is not the first country to adopt FDI in multi-brand retail. China has not put any limit on FDI. Similarly, Brazil and Russia have allowed FDI freely and even the economies smaller than India such as Argentina, Indonesia, Kenya and Thailand have permitted FDI without any restriction. While India, at present, has only 5% organised retail, Malaysia has 55%, Brazil 36% and China 20%. All these countries have had an encouraging experience. It is reported that by associating with Wal-Mart, 4,500 small/medium farmers in Central America have earned 15% more and 2.75 lakh farmers have benefited in China.

Karyana stores now account for 95% of retail in India. They will co-exist and compete with mega stores as is happening in the US, Germany and other Western countries. The corner or convenience stores like Seven Eleven, Indian provision stores etc. are progressing well there. Because of the inherent advantages of location, low cost, home delivery, free credit, personal relations and convenient timings, karyana stores will continue to play their major role.

Our previous experience with FDI in single-brand and Cash & Carry stores is already there. Bharti Wal-Mart established its first store in India at Amritsar in 2008. It has created employment avenues for unskilled school and college leaving students. They are given job after training. It has three training schools in Punjab, Delhi and Karnataka. Out of 3,944 persons trained here who got jobs, 2,244 are from Amritsar. In multi-brand retail, the employment level will be multiplied. It will give better income to farmers and small producers as middlemen will be sidelined and it will cut short the supply chain which is long, inefficient and exploitive.

At present, farmers get only 20% of their share of a rupee paid by the consumer and the rest is taken by middlemen. Middle men in vegetable trade gain 100-500%. For example 'lauki' bought at Rs 5 per kg is sold at Rs 30, exposing the level of exploitation under the present system. Mega stores like Wal-Mart will buy the product directly and farmers/producers will get better income. There is an estimate that with the opening of FDI in retail, an investment of US$600 billion will come to our country. Half of it will be spent on back-end infrastructure of roads, transport, cold stores etc. It will provide technical know-how and improved packaging practices for upgrading the quality of the produce which will lead to higher profits to farmers. Even, a number of small ancillary units of production and trade may come up in the vicinity of mega stores which will open up more employment avenues.

The Green Revolution, which is mainly confined to paddy-wheat cultivation, has faded away. Farmers are not getting remunerative returns. The state has made several attempts to change this monoculture since 1985 when the Johl committee report suggested 20 lakh hectares of land to be shifted from paddy-wheat rotation. In 2002 another committee recommended a crop adjustment programme but nothing came out. Other attempts like contract farming, the entry of Reliance's Farm-to-Fork programme, establishment of the Citrus Council and development of the Citrus Estates. have been tried for encouraging cultivation of alternative crops/enterprises, but all these attempts have not taken the state out of this rut because of a half-hearted approach, shortage of infrastructure and lack of continued political support.

Investment in agriculture

The domestic entry in organised retail has not been successful due to lack of sufficient investment and world-class standards. If we could not succeed in the last three decades to develop a new production pattern with domestic resources, what's the harm in trying through FDI in retail? It will bring investment in agriculture and encourage the production of basmati, pulses, oilseeds, fruits, vegetables, milk and meat products. Marginal farmers can adopt apiculture, piscicultre, floriculture, silviculture, mushrooms on their micro-units of land. FDI in retail will bring cutting-edge technologies, best management practices, modern production and trading methodologies for getting full advantage of economies of scale. Farmers will produce according to the requirement and prefixed prices for mega stores. It will not only ensure better income to the producer/farmer but also push diversification in agriculture.

The writer is the Director, Institute of Development and Planning, Amritsar. Email: tschahal@yahoo.co.in

A small step to help farmers and consumers
Bhupinder Singh Mann

It was on November 24, 2011, that the Government of India allowed 51% foreign investment in multi-brand retail. However, the government had to put the implementation of this decision on hold as there was a large hue and cry on this issue.

We at the Bharti Kisan Union have always advocated economic freedom for farmers. We were the first one to welcome the implementation of the WTO treaty as this would have meant more economic freedom for farmers. We also welcomed BT cotton.

Similarly, we are of the firm belief that FDI in retail will open up newer marketing avenues for farmers. Currently, farmers are, by and large, controlled by monopolistic procurement channels.

Almost everyone who is associated with agriculture knows deep inside that FDI in retail will help the agriculture sector. However, it is unfortunate that due to political commands, they are toeing a line which is anti-farmer.

They are giving all kinds of arguments to create a scare as if a tsunami is going to hit India. When the Bhakhra Dam was being built, some people spread rumors that anybody drinking the Bhakra water would become impotent as electricity has been taken out of that water. Similarly when tractors and combine-harvesters arrived, some people felt these would render many jobless.

Foreign retail giants can open outlets in cities where the population is 10 lakh and above. Only 51 cities in the country can host such outlets. In Punjab only Ludhiana qualifies. This will restrict the benefit to a few cities and the government should allow outlets in cities having a population of one lakh and above.

Today inflation plagues the country and the consumer pays for it. At the same time agriculture is in deep distress. Farmers are not getting a suitable price for their produce and the consumer is suffering from high inflation. Why? This is a simple question I pose to those opposing it. If they have a better answer, let them come out with it.

Various governments have advocated diversification of agriculture. Diversification cannot happen unless substantial investment goes into required Infrastructure. Many politicians, agriculture scientists and economists may have given diversification mantras at seminars. But what is required for diversification is adequate price for alternate crops like vegetable/horticulture etc and the requisite infrastructure. Nobody talks of that. Although providing that is the duty of the government, it has failed to do so.

Now, when this FDI scheme is forcing MNCs to invest at least 50% in backend infrastructure, I hope that farmers may get an optional platform for diversification, taking him away from paddy, thus saving precious sub-soil water also. At least 50 per cent of total FDI brought in would be invested in backend infrastructure within three years of the investment. Backend infrastructure will include investment made towards processing, manufacturing, distribution, design improvement, quality control, packaging, logistics, storage, ware-house, agriculture market produce infrastructure etc. Expenditure on land cost and rentals, if any, will not be counted for purposes of backend infrastructure. I see no reason why anybody should oppose this.

The writer is an ex-MP and National President, BKU