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Faith in CAG Diplomatic pause |
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No entry into Lhasa for India
The acculturation of English
Love-ly state
A worthwhile drama
Cerebral take
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Faith in CAG The Supreme Court order allowing CAG scrutiny of the accounts of private telecom companies will have far-reaching consequences. It also applies to firms engaged in other areas like power, mining, roadways, ports, airports, etc, operating independently or under the public-private partnership (PPP) model and sharing revenues with the government for using national resources. The aim is to ensure that the government is not denied its share of revenue for the use of spectrum or any other natural resource. Already the CAG is auditing the accounts of three companies distributing power in Delhi after the then AAP government issued an order which was upheld by the high court. It all started in 2009 when the Department of Telecom got the account books of Vodafone, Bharti Airtel, Idea Cellular, Tata Teleservices and Reliance audited by CAG-empanelled auditors and found that these companies had under-paid for spectrum by under-reporting revenues. The telecom firms are required to pay a licence fee of 6-10 per cent of their annual revenues and spectrum usage charges of 2-3 per cent. DoT issued notices to these five companies to recover unpaid dues of Rs 1,600 crore. The matter went to courts where the telecom firms unsuccessfully contended that the unaccounted revenue was from allied activities and not from telecom business. The corporate sector's worries are understandable. Businesses flourish in a free, rule-based environment with minimum government intervention. However, when companies fail to play by the rule book - underreporting revenues, evading taxes or buying political patronage to scuttle procedures - they invite penalties and judicial or official orders that sometimes suffocate the business environment. Companies can avoid trouble if they follow the highest standards of corporate governance, maintain their account books transparently and put them on the Internet so that these are open to scrutiny by not just the CAG but any stakeholder. In these days of scams and crony capitalism, businessmen and politicians are viewed with suspicion. Hence, there is greater faith in institutions like the judiciary and the CAG, which should ensure that those following the rules are not harassed but the law-breakers are dealt with
sternly.
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Diplomatic pause The
Geneva talks involving the USA, the European Union, Russia and Ukraine resulted in an agreement that requires all sides to refrain from violence, intimidation or provocative actions. As pacts go, this is not much, but it is a major step towards diplomacy, away from posturing. Now, both Russia and the West need to allow the government in Kiev to restore peace. The Geneva agreement also calls for the disarming of all illegally armed groups and for control of government buildings seized by pro-Russian separatists during the protests to be turned back over to the authorities. It was the violent seizure of these buildings in eastern Ukraine by pro-Russia
sympathisers, and the ineffectual armed response from Ukraine's government that triggered off the present crisis. Even as the Russian authorities have denied involvement with the uprisings, the denials have found a few takers. The protesters are ostensibly asking for changes to Ukraine's constitution, which, according to them, would protect the rights and interests of these areas dominated by Russian-speaking people. However, given the Crimean takeover, the government in Kiev could well be justified in reacting with alarm at such a proposal of 'federalism'. No government finds it easy to yield ground to separatists, but Ukrainian's new leaders have not been able to consolidate their hold over the nation, even as they virtually surrendered Crimea to the Russian forces. The sanctions imposed by the West have largely been ineffectual and the threat of further sanctions may well prove counterproductive. The West must recognise that Ukraine is in the Russian sphere of influence. Moscow has demonstrated its will and strength, while also exposing the West's limitations. It should now rein in the forces under its control and work towards a mutually acceptable solution. The pause that diplomacy has allowed should be used to take steps towards defusing the worst post-Cold War crisis between Moscow and the West.
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Thought for the Day
Women won't let me stay single and I won't let me stay married. —Errol Flynn
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SEPARATE electorates and proportional representation are the means by which the interests of the minorities are sought to be protected. But in India these taking the form of religious or communal measures separating men not according to their ideas of civic matters but according to their religious or social groups do infinite harm which their supporters have seldom been able to consider dispassionately. It would be interesting to note that the British House of Commons has regularly thrown out the Municipal Representation Bill passed by the Lords giving effect to proportional representation. Lord Courtney has re-introduced the Bill in the Lords. The Bill was twice thrown out in 1907 and 1908 after several amendments. It has been introduced three times in the Commons but without effect. When this form of securing fair treatment to the minorities is rejected by the British democracy, how can we support any scheme on the basis of social and religious divisions of the people to have effect in municipal and civic affairs? Sun power for irrigation
VARIOUS suggestions have been made for utilising the sources of water at a low level for agricultural purposes in India. Various mechanical devices are made for water lifting for irrigation and oil engine is freely used by those knowing modern mechanism. But the latest and the most novel device is to utilise the sun power for this purpose. The London Times points out that the sun power plant recently erected at Meadi, near Cairo has given satisfactory results and Lord Kitchener and Sir Reginald Wingate have invited the makers to put up a similar plant for irrigation work in the Sudan. We wonder if the sun plant will be of use in the Punjab during the summer.
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No entry into Lhasa for India DURING her visit to Beijing Foreign Secretary Sujatha Singh has just concluded the sixth round of the annual strategic dialogue with her Chinese opposite number, Vice Foreign Minister Liu Zhenmin, and also had a meeting with the host country’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi. Even though the relationship between Asia's two largest powers remains complex, complicated and not without tension, a few gains made during the latest talks deserve a welcome.
In the first place, China feels reassured that irrespective of the outcome of the ongoing Indian elections there would be “continuity” in India-China ties. Ms Singh conveyed to the Chinese leadership that there was a “broad consensus” across the political spectrum in this country on "engagement" with China, a situation that dates back to the path-breaking visit to Beijing of the then Prime Minister, Rajiv Gandhi, in December 1988. For his part, Mr Liu declared that he was “confident that to promote China-India friendship is a shared interest of all Indian political parties”. Secondly, the two sides did not merely indulge in comforting rhetoric but also did the ground work for “a series of high-level engagements set to take place” in the coming year. As it happens 1915 has been marked as a “year of friendly exchanges” between the two neighbours. Officials on both sides are, therefore, promising a “packed calendar”. What is most important, however, is that President Xi Jinping does not want to wait that long. He has expressed a desire to visit India later this year. When the visit takes place, it would be the first Chinese presidential visit to this country in eight years. Prime Ministers of China have come here several times. But it was in 2005 that the last Chinese President (Hu Jintao) came to New Delhi. In Ms Singh’s words, the dialogue in Beijing covered the “entire length and breadth” of the India-China relationship. High on the list of the subjects taken up was "cooperation" in Afghanistan where both countries have shared interests. India has warned the world about the grave danger of the Af-Pak region becoming a hotbed of terrorism after the withdrawal of the American and NATO troops from the rugged, war-ravaged country by the end of 2014. China also has made no secret of its worry that the Uighur militants in its western province of Xinjiang will exploit the security vacuum. In August China is hosting a "Heart of Asia" conference on Afghanistan. If the talks on Afghanistan were a source of satisfaction, the same cannot be said, alas, about the Chinese response to India's concern over China's huge investment in developing the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor right up to Gwadar port close to the Strait of Hormuz. In some ways the most depressing news to emanate from the strategic dialogue was China's firm and final refusal to let this country reopen its consulate-general in Lhasa that was established way back in the British days and shut down during the 1962 war in the Himalayas together with other consulates the two countries had in each other's territory. The embassies in each other's capital were headed by Charge d'Affaires, who were later replaced by Ambassadors in 1976. Nearly a decade later the Chinese showed interest in reviving the consulates the two countries had maintained earlier — in Calcutta (now Kolkata) and Bombay (now Mumbai) by China, and in Lhasa and Shanghai by us. This was a golden opportunity to re-establish our presence in the “Tibet Autonomous Region of China" in which Indian stakes are too high to be overstated. The tragedy is that we declined it for reasons that are nothing short of ridiculous. China experts within the government and outside had pleaded hard that all the four consulates should start functioning again at once. But the idea was vetoed by the Intelligence Bureau, which had then, as before and during the 1962 war, an undue say in the making of Indian foreign policy, especially on China. During the recent uproar over the leakage of the Henderson Brooks Report on the 1962 war every participant in the discussion has lamented that the intelligence czar of that era, B. N. Mullik, instead of collecting intelligence on China, was busy playing an important role in the making of China policy. Sadly, this grievous malaise hasn't yet disappeared from the Indian system. In the mid-1980s, as in Mullik's time, the IB was able to dictate to the foreign policy establishment not to accept the proposal under discussion. Its argument which that the government at the highest level bought was typical. An Indian consulate-general in Lhasa, it argued, would be dysfunctional because of the enormous Chinese control on whatever happens in Tibet. By contrast, a Chinese consulate-general in Calcutta could do huge damage, especially at a time when the Communist Party of India (Marxist)-led Left Front was in power and the suppressed Naxalite movement was showing signs of being reborn. Nobody asked the spymasters what it was that the Chinese could not do in Calcutta without having a consulate of theirs there. So it was decided that only the consulates-general in Bombay and Shanghai should be reopened for the present, and others considered later. As China's power increased fast, together with its problems in Tibet and Xinjiang, it decided not to allow any foreign presence in Lhasa other than Nepal's. All attempts by the United States to seek entry into the strategic region were regularly rebuffed. Nearly a decade ago, when the Chinese needed to have a consulate in Chennai, we had an opportunity to link it with the reopening of the Indian consulate in Lhasa. But this idea wasn't even broached and we accepted an additional consulate in China only a short distance away from the one in Hong Kong. The official explanation was that this was done at the suggestion of the Dalai Lama. Now that we have woken up to the importance of Lhasa the Chinese are saying an emphatic NO and offering us a choice between Chengdo and Kunming.
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The acculturation of English Indianisms
displaying the local flavour sneak into English as we use it for functional and literary purposes. They surface as variations made to the core variety, Standard British English (SBE). Though these variants are not viewed as superior or inferior to SBE, they are certainly recognised as different. They have earned the local variety its popular label, Indian English. Broadly speaking, Indianisms are evident as pronunciation, word/sentence structure, meaning and style. Not all Indian variants in reference to sentence structure are acceptable, as seen below: 1. Prof. Reddy has given the cheque yesterday. Within SBE rules, the sentence above shows inappropriate use of present perfect tense “has given” in the context of the adverb “yesterday”. The correct sentence will read as “Prof. Reddy gave the cheque yesterday”, the adverb “yesterday” is used with the simple past tense. 2. I am having two brothers. A common usage among Indians, the present progressive form of verb “am having” is not permitted in SBE to show possession. Though the sense the sentence wants to convey is clear, the use of present progressive tense in the given situation has to be avoided. The amended version will read as “I have two brothers” by making use of present simple. 3. The polling booth for the residents is here only. The user’s intention in the sentence above is to draw the interlocutor’s attention to “here” by using the adverb “only”. The location “here” is to be contrasted with “not anywhere else”, implied by the use of “only”. Many users tend to place “only” at the end of sentences excessively since they don’t make use of intonation or pitch variation to show the intended contrast. In SBE, too, “only” is used to show emphasis and contrast but its position within sentences keeps varying, depending upon the word that needs emphasis. For instance, “Only Capt. Kahlon could have rescued so many people.” Here, “only” implies “no other person”. 4. “Like a gossamer- this web brushed aside by a careless hand, the fragile balance of relations in South Asia has dissolved with frightening suddenness ...” (from a news magazine) The writer has condensed a lot of information in the phrases of the yet incomplete sentence. Packing too much in the phrases and clauses or piling up images makes the text difficult to understand. Such texts defy good, clear communication, a recommended feature of writing these days. Once completed, this long winding text can be rewritten in two or three sentences. The acculturation of English in Indian soil is not the only instance of its kind. In the medieval times, Persian had evolved as Indian Persian (Sabk-e-Hind) through a similar process. But amending Indian variants of grammar in English, if they distort the meaning or fail to serve any purpose, is mandatory for pan-Indian communication and international intelligibility.
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Love-ly state What happens when Chetan Bhagat's very much real and identifiable story and the big banner Dharma productions come together? Well, well, expectedly mush is the overriding refrain and the defining thread. So be it. Only the high on sentiments, 2 States (based on Bhagat's novel by the same name), a love story about cross-cultural conflict, doesn't kill you with its rona dhona but is heartwarming and enjoyable. For the most part that is.
Indeed, we live in times when global Indian is the new reality and marriages across continents are the order of the day. Hence, talking about North-South divide as an impediment in the love-life of two educated Indians, IIM graduate no less, might seem a bit out of place if not jarring. But then let's face it (and admit it too) cultural prejudices too are very much a norm in modern India. So is the fact that in India you do not marry an individual but a family. Clearly, love—physical chemistry not withstanding— is not enough. Of course, none of it is a revelation. Much of it has been depicted in Hindi cinema time and again. However, what makes this love tale a cut above the mundane is first and foremost its breezy first-half that sets the light-hearted zing in place. In the second part the pace might be a trifle slow, yet nothing can take away your interest in the love story of two college-mates Ananya (Alia Bhatt) and Krish (Arjun Kapoor). If their romance, replete with joyful premarital romps, is credible, so are their earnest attempts to first win over each other's parents and finally unite the two disapproving families.
Of course, critics can't have any issues with the way the lead actors sail into their parts. Arjun Kapoor does full justice to his role that sees him graduating from a gawky young intelligent guy to a self-assured man ready to go the long distance for his woman. Alia is as incredibly lovable as the girl with chutzpah, brain and a heart. No doubt the film is all heart. And tugging at your heartstrings are not only the very-much-in- love couple but also supporting actors. Amrita Singh is superb in her cameo of a trifle possessive yet well-meaning Punjabi mother. Her candid cut is matched by Revathi's understated grace as the South-Indian mom. Ronit Roy and Shiv Subrahmanyam (as the North and South Indian fathers) too put in their best foot forward. As for the film… just like Bhagat's novels it may not appeal to the highest common denominator, but is fetchingly engaging nevertheless. Moreover, love stories we all know are not for the hardnosed skeptics. So, if you are a romantic who dittoes it's happily ever after variants, go for it. And even if you are not and believe in the sanctity of human relationships this one will warm the cockles of your heart. And keep you joyously moist- eyed. Happy viewing! Go fall in love or re-live your love story, you are bound to find something you can relate to.
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A worthwhile drama Feroz Abbas
Khan, the prolific and noted theatre director who ventured into films a few years ago with Gandhi My Father, returns with Dekh Tamasha Dekh, a socio-political satire that highlights the demons of communalism and religious fundamentalism. Based on a play, this Shafat Khan adaptation, works on multiple levels. Heavy on irony but low on farce and humour, the plotting also encapsulates a doomed romance between a Hindu boy and a Muslim girl (Alok and Apoorva) and casts aspersions on her mother (a stoic and stunningly poignant Tanvi Azmi), who is the widow of the man deceased and is deemed to have used her wiles to sway him to the Muslim faith. A historian (Satish Alekar), whose account of history is being burned, tries to broker sense in the backdrop of confrontational angst while an idealistic editor (Dhiresh Joshi) is forced to re-examine his values and a constable roams the streets in search of a bitch that appears to have gone astray. In an opening that is both loud and obnoxious, the constable is being instructed by his senior to go in search of the bitch that got away. Meant to be humorous but pitifully overdone to resemble farce, this track is the most disappointing in an otherwise lucid and intriguing drama.
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Cerebral take Recently we had Divergent, not fitting in the mould, now it's Transcendence, something similar. What next, will it be. Transcendental Meditation? Transcendence is centred on Dr Will Caster (Johnny Depp), an artificial intelligence researcher who is striving to create a machine that possesses sentience and collective intelligence--the old Frankenstinian monster theory. But extremists are opposed to this development and hence target him and his team of researchers.
They shoot him with radioactivity-tainted bullets and Dr Caster's mind starts deteriorating. He doesn't have much time to live. But his wife and fellow researcher Evelyn (Rebecca Hall) downloads his brain on computer in an effort to continue his project. Enter, close friend Max Waters (Paul Bettany), who is ideologically opposed to his project. Or, does he want to seize power? Joseph Tagger (Morgan Freeman) is an elder researcher who is part of the milieu. There is also the blonde Bree (Kate Mara) whose facial expressions speak louder than words. This is the set-up for director Wally Pfister to work on and he is aided by Joseph Paglin's imaginative screenplay replete with lines like 'you are not being targeted, you are being helped'. The sets too are futuristic and the plot keeps the viewer engrossed. It is horror of a different type — cerebral. For cinematographer Pfister the switch to direction is smooth like Nicholas Roegg and others before him. What next, is always on the mind. Also, the climax! This English-Chinese-American co-production is absorbing and a talented cast further embellishes the narrative. Johnny Depp is as usual adept and Rebecca Hall provides adequate support. Paul Bettany has his moments but veteran Morgan Freeman just mumbles a few words. But Transcendence is certainly worth watching
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ZEE STUDIO 9:10AM Stop! or my Mom will Shoot 10:55AM Casper 6:05PM The Grudge 3 7:50PM Arachnophobia 10:00PM The One MOVIES OK 8:45AM Patiala House 11:50AM Sivaji: The Boss 5:20PM Dangerous Khiladi 8:00PM Chup Chup Ke 11:25PM Ek Qayamat STAR GOLD 8:45AM Dhadkan 11:35AM Housefull 2 5:40PM Coolie No. 1 8:00PM Virasat Ki Jung ZEE ACTION 10:30AM Ek Lutera 11:30PM Khauf ki Raat 5:30PM Kurbaan 8:30PM Officer SONY PIX 9:51AM Hancock 11:51AM Slumdog Millionaire 9:00PM Good Luck Chuck 10:34PM White House Down ZEE CLASSIC 10:33AM Ram Bharose 5:00PM Lakhon Ki Baat 8:00PM Movie 11:06PM Pyar Kiya Hai Pyar Karenge INDIA TALKIES 9:30AM Dharam Ki Jung 4:30PM Purani Haveli 8:00PM Mahanadi STAR MOVIES 10:00AM The Front Row with Anupama Chopra 10:30AM The Shepherd 12:00PM Life of Pi 9:00PM The Internship 11:30PM Gladiator
MOVIES OK 9:05AM Chillar Party 11:50AM Fukrey 5:10PM Namak Haraam 8:00PM Makkhi 10:25PM Mar Mitenge ZEE ACTION 7:00AM Kurbaan 10:30AM Zindagi Ek Jua 5:30PM Cheetah 8:30PM Gundaraj STAR GOLD 9:25AM Ajnabee 12:00PM Bol Bachchan 4:45PM Baadshah 8:00PM Dabangg 10:40PM Deewar: Man of Power ZEE CLASSIC 10:02AM Kalicharan 4:23PM Desh Premee 8:00PM Haisiyat 11:06PM Yeh Ishq Nahin Aasaan ZEE STUDIO 9:10AM Casper 11:15AM The Grudge 3 5:15PM The Game 7:45PM Goal II: Living the Dream 10:00PM Fighting INDIA TALKIES 9:30AM Honhaar Bachchey 4:30PM Hairaan 8:00PM Shatru STAR MOVIES 8:00AM The Internship 10:30AM Gladiator 4:00PM Life of Pi 9:00PM The Adventures of Tintin 11:00PM Metro FILMY 9:00AM Santosh 11:30AM Infomercial 12:00PM Vaah! Life Ho Toh Aisi! 6:00PM No Entry 9:00PM Malamaal Weekly
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“The language I speak,
Perhaps, in a tale that centres around cultural clash, some stereotyping is bound to exist. But, then we all know North and South continue to view each other with blinkers on. So if Tamilians are condescending about the uncouth uncultured Punjabis, the Punjabis too dismiss them as a dark-skinned race from another planet. And all of this is brought alive through witty one-liners both with and without pun intended. Among the many delectable dialogues, sample this "Saari South Indian heroines ne Punjabi munde phasaye hain, Budhi ho ya jawan har aurat ke khoon mein melodrama behta hai." And there is a dig aimed at the hallowed tribe of critics too.
It acts as a pointer to the decay in political discourse today, the over-dependence on aggression and hate-mongering. Caught in the midst of this is a hapless police officer (Vinay Jain), newly transferred, who has to find out the religious affiliation of a corpse felled by a giant hoarding of Mitha (Satish Kaushik), a local businessman and hustler standing for elections in a volatile coastal township somewhere in Maharashtra. 
The rabid Hindu community wants the body to be cremated according to Hindu rites while the strident Muslim community seeks its burial. The court is drawn into the macabre melee and for want of substantive proof decides to hand it over to the brother of the deceased, a low-caste Hindu. While riots erupt, the cop manages to steal the body away and hand it over to the brother who gets it buried, according to the low-caste Hindu custom. 
Saturday April 19
Sunday April 20