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Army convicts its own No library access for girls |
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New balance of power in Asia?
And we say we celebrate Children's Day!
A first for science and humanity Rosetta and the experiments planned
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Army convicts its own THE Army has finally done justice in the Machil fake-encounter case of Kashmir in which three innocent villagers were killed by soldiers near the LoC in 2010 and shown as infiltrators. Two officers and five other personnel have been sentenced to life imprisonment by a General Court Martial. This is in sharp contrast to the Pathribal encounter in Anantnag district in 2000, in which five persons were killed and falsely declared militants. The Army had taken over the case from the civilian authorities and subsequently declared that there was no prima facie evidence to proceed against the personnel involved. That case was cited particularly by people agitating against the Armed Forces Special Powers Act imposed in Kashmir, under which troops are protected from legal action. The Machil case can thus be seen as coming of age of the Army, which is otherwise one of the most respected organisations in the country. This is particularly so when seen with the recent acceptance by the Army that the shooting at five youth in a car by its troops in Srinagar was a mistake. Two persons had died in the incident in which soldiers displayed inexplicable zeal in opening fire at a vehicle that was moving away from them. Correctives are required at many levels. The Srinagar shooting was obviously the result of inappropriate training and supervision. The basic training of soldiers is not in handling law and order problems. Thus before deployment in civilian areas they have to be particularly briefed and closely monitored while on duty. The Army also needs to relook at its 'rules of engagement'. Fake encounters, however, are a failure of the entire reward and punishment system within the Army that has led some officers to believe that showing ‘kills’ at any cost is must for their careers. Finally comes the matter of justice. It requires great fortitude for an organisation to indict its own, especially when the blot will be on the entire force. The need is now to sustain the courage the Army has shown.
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No library access for girls ONE wonders what would have been Maulana Azad's reaction to the news of girls being denied access to the library in Aligarh Muslim University, among the best in Asia, founded by him. Known for his liberal views, Azad was of the view that, “Every individual has a right to an education that will enable him to develop his faculties and live a full human life. Such education is the birthright of every citizen….” Apparently, the Vice-Chancellor of the university and the principal of the Women's College on the AMU campus do not subscribe to the founder's belief. They not only believe in the segregation of sexes but also see nothing amiss in denying undergraduate students the right to visit the library. The excuse of disciplinary issues cropping up and more boys thronging the library if girls are allowed seems facile. Neither the paucity of space nor security reasons, nothing justifies the denial of access to any institution on the basis of gender. This retrogressive attitude puts a question mark on the mindset of those in positions of authority. The onus is on them to counter gender-based discrimination rather than reinforce sex-specific stereotypes and enforce such ridiculous bans. Rather than bar women from public spaces, there is a need for a sustained campaign to make such spaces safe for women and address security issues, if any. Neither religion nor custom can be used to endorse outdated, regressive notions of what girls should or should not do. Gender equality and freedom of movement are fundamental human rights which have to be safeguarded and not violated. The HRD Ministry should ensure that AMU's undergraduate girl students too can use the library in person. Why must they depend only on online catalogues or wait for books to be delivered? There is no place in the 21st century for such medieval, prescriptive rules that curb and thwart the freedom of girls.
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Thought for the Day
When a man tells you that he got rich through hard work, ask him: 'Whose?'
—Don Marquis
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Indian co-operative stores THERE is, it must be admitted regretfully, very little Swadeshi spirit in the Punjab, though there are certain excellent local manufactures that deserve public patronage. Most of our tradesmen, whose attention has been drawn to this neglect, complain that popular taste is against local made goods on account of their unattractiveness as compared with cheap German goods. But now a new situation has arisen which it is well to utilise to support the Swadeshi movement. Since the establishment of Swadeshi stores by enterprising merchants does not receive the support of the public, it seems that a co-operative stores may be started with capital raised by shares. Business on these lines has met with remarkable success in Bombay city. The Bombay Swadeshi Co-operative Stores, Ltd., is one the best equipped sale house dealing in all kinds of India-made goods on a pretty large scale. High prices and war WRITING to the Civil and Military Gazette on the subject of high prices a correspondent asks the following significant questions:-"Is there, or has there been, a famine in India? Or has all the grain been sent out of the country? Or are the big grain operators, or the bunias hoarding their stocks to sell either to Britain or Germany (whichever wins)? Or is it a political move to cause unrest in India?" The last is unthinkable. That there is no famine or anything approaching it in the sense that the harvests have failed is certain. But whether there is famine in the sense that the food stocks have been depleted by exportation to foreign markets, Government alone can tell. If our exports have been normal it is difficult to resist the conclusion that extraordinary attempts are being made by a few land sharks to rig the market.
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New balance of power in Asia? India’s decision to help Vietnam boost its defence modernisation - against China's wishes — raises yet again the question whether a new balance of power is emerging in Asia. India, Vietnam and Japan will try to coordinate security and economic policies. That suggests India is challenging China's assertiveness in the Asia-Pacific region and staking a claim to explore the energy-rich resources of the South China Sea. Mutual economic interests are not enough for India to increase its contribution to Asian and global security. The simultaneous interest of Japan and the US in India's development and its greater role in Asian security only highlight India’s economic weakness and the blunt fact that its ability to enhance its regional role will hinge on its economic performance improving quickly and steadily. India has much to gain — and learn — from closer ties with Japan, which is Asia’s oldest democracy. Neither history, nor political/territorial disputes divide India and Japan. As Asia's post-1945 economic wunderkind Japan had surpassed India, China and many west European countries by the early 1960s. India and Japan are already collaborating on maritime security, counter-terrorism, and energy security. At their summit talks, Modi and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe decided to strengthen defence ties and forge a special strategic global partnership, emphasising that a developed India and a prosperous Japan were important for Asia and for global peace and security. Economics and strategy mixed again when Modi met Japanese business leaders. The 21st century, Modi asserted, would belong to Asia — exactly how would depend on “how deep and progressive” the Indo-Japanese relationship is. This is the immediate context in which he deplored the “expansionist” tendencies among countries, caught in an 18th-century time-warp, to “engage in encroachment” and “intrude” into the seas of others. Evidently Modi was not letting trading interests blur the real political differences with such countries. These comments, made before President Xi Li Ping visited India, were widely interpreted as anti-China. The state-steered Chinese Global Times has downplayed any idea that China counted less than Japan with India. “China’s GDP is five times that of India’s. Mutual trust between Beijing and New Delhi, facing strategic pressure from the north, is difficult to build as there is also an unresolved border conflict between the two," its editorial said. That appeared more of a threat than an olive branch to India. Modi carefully avoided running China down. Before leaving for the US he stated that the world should trust China to observe international law. But Xi’s visit did not enhance trust between New Delhi and Beijing. Even as Xi assured Modi of $20 billion in investment in Gujarat Chinese troops made one of their frequent forays into north-eastern Indian territory, which Beijing claims belongs to China. Those forays followed a pattern. China unilaterally invokes “history” (its version) when referring to territorial conflicts with India — and other neighbours. China's attitude to India echoes that with its Asian neighbours, including Japan, Vietnam and the Philippines. By claiming a territory in the name of history it creates a dispute, dispatches its ships or aircraft - (or in India’s case, troops) — to back up that claim. That is how it unilaterally outlined last November an “air-defence identification zone” over an area of the East China Sea covering Senkaku islands that are also claimed by Japan (and Taiwan). Strong trading ties have not stopped China from using history to make claims on neighbouring territories. In fact Japan is the largest foreign investor in China. And China is ASEAN’s largest trading partner. In New Delhi Xi’s reference to historical ties between ancient civilisations was marred by the assertion that the Sino-Indian border dispute had historical roots. Such statements imply that the border disputes will remain unsettled; more importantly, that Beijing will continue to lay claim to the Arunachal Pradesh and Ladakh regions. In that case India — like Japan and Vietnam — may find itself simultaneously taking up the political-strategic gauntlet and engaging in much-needed trade with China. China does nothing to dispel the fears of its neighbours and insists on bilateral solutions. Its claims to un-demarcated maritime waters, including the East and South China Seas (Beijing defines the latter as a ‘core’ interest) are contested by its neighbours, who want the disputes those claims give rise to be settled through international arbitration. That explains why, without naming China, the Obama-Modi communiqué, called on all parties to avoid the use, or threat of use, of force in advancing their claims. It also urged a resolution of their territorial and maritime disputes through all peaceful means, in accordance with the international law, including the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea. At another level, China has taken advantage of America's planned withdrawal from Afghanistan and is increasing investments there. It is also securing its energy supplies in the oil and gas fields of Central Asia. Moreover, it is India’s main competitor for influence in the Indian Ocean area, which is bounded by Asia on the north, on the west by Africa, on the east by Australia, and on the south by the Southern (Antartic) Ocean. There is nothing improper about these activities. But they alarm China's neighbours and the US, none of whom wants China to gain primacy in Asia. Unsurprisingly, Obama and Modi stressed the need to accelerate infrastructure connectivity and economic development corridors for regional economic integration linking South, Southeast, and Central Asia. The US and India want to promote the India-Pacific Economic Corridor, which will link India to its neighbours and the wider Asia-Pacific region, with a view to facilitating the flow of commerce and energy. That will not be lost on China. Meanwhile uncertainty hovers over the nature of America's rebalance or pivot to Asia since it has been announced at a time when Washington is cutting defence expenditure. India must increase investments in education and infrastructure, achieve more equitable economic development if it is to emerge as a major driver of the global economy. Only then will it be able to make a significant contribution to Asian and international security and contribute to a new peace-promoting balance of power in Asia. The writer is a visiting professor at the Centre for Peace and Conflict Resolution, New Delhi
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And we say we celebrate Children's Day! I vividly recollect the day when newspapers revealed the plight of a working mother who had gone to work leaving her child under the care of Nature, and after some time she started crying finding her child not there! But she was immensely pleased to see her dust-laden child playing merrily in the arms of Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru. That's the spirit which the celebration of the Children’s Day requires today, irrespective of caste, creed, religion and politics. I also remember a story my mother would tell me as a lullaby when I used to be a child. The story reveals that even birds care a lot for children. Mother would sing how a dove would care a lot about her offspring which lay in a nest on a sheesm tree: “Tahli te mere bachde, je nheri aai ud jange, je ag lgi much jange...” (My children are in the nest on a sheesm tree, if a storm blows they would be flown off, if a fire breaks, they would get burnt!) And our schoolchildren are so carelessly treated! The best way to celebrate the Children's Day is to inculcate in them the spirit of equality. Even the uniform dress code which intends to make them feel equal goes astray. The children of the rich get stitched better quality uniforms than the ones got by those of the poor. The wave of Swachh Bharat can help much better if we can wash away this distinction first. We all need to clean our minds first, forgetting our caste, creed and party politics, and help our children grow in such a clean atmosphere where our pure “atma” can become “param-atma”. Only that cleanliness is next to God. To implement it, which day can be better than the Children's Day?
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A first for science and humanity THE Philae lander has become the first-ever spacecraft to land safely on a comet after travelling through space for more than 10 years and covering a distance of some 4 billion miles. “We are there and Philae is talking to us,” confirmed Philae Lander Manager Stephan Ulamec from the European Space Agency (ESA) mission control. “The landing gear has been moved inside so we are sitting on the surface — and there's more data to come but we are there: it's done its job, we're on the comet!”
Although details of the landing are still emerging, the ESA operations hub say that it was “a fairly gentle touch down based on amount of landing gear damping,” but that the harpoons intended to secure the craft did not fire sucessfully as had first been thought. This means that there's a possible danger that the lander will not be stable as the comet moves closer to the Sun and becomes more “active” (this happens as the Sun's rays heat up the surface), but the ESA still stress that Philae is in “great shape” for the moment and that they will re-fire the harpoons shortly. “We have no reason to think it won't work,” said Paolo Ferri, Head of Mission Operations at the ESA, “but we have no understanding of why it is doing this.” The comet itself is about as big as a mountain: 2.5 miles wide and around 2.3 miles high. If placed on Earth it would be taller than Mount Fuji, although early images of the 67P lent themselves to more unusual comparisons: apparently fused from two separate icy bodies, the comet was most often compared to a rubber duck. Rosetta and Philae have also sent back their first images to Earth — although none from the surface of the comet. Instead, they took snaps of one another as the lander detached from its parent craft. How big is 67P? Bigger than you think. Philae's ten onboard sensors and instruments will now begin the important work of analysing material from the comet's surface as well as the surrounding atmosphere of gas and dust. Rosetta will stay in orbit around the comet for the next year, peeling off sometime around December 2015. The information Philae gathers from the surface of the comet will provide new insight into the mechanisms of our solar system and could even help us answer questions about the origins of life on Earth. It's long been theorised that life was “seeded” on Earth after hitching an interstellar ride on a comet and previous fly-bys of similar bodies have detected complex organic molecules. If Philae manages to find any water ice or amino proteins (compounds that are key to life) then it could offer some evidence for the theory.
Markers of the mission
Cost: The total cost of the mission is 1.4 billion Euro, of which the total Philae costs are 220 million Euro. This includes the launch, the spacecraft, the science payload (instruments and lander) and mission and science operations. Launch:
Rosetta was launched on March 2, 2004 by an Ariane-5 from Europe's Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana. Planned mission lifetime: Rosetta's mission will last for almost 12 years — until December 2015. Spacecraft design: Rosetta resembles a large black box. The scientific instruments are mounted on the top of the box (the payload support module), while the subsystems are on the “base” (bus support module). On one side of the orbiter is the steerable 2.2 m-diameter communications dish, while the lander is attached to the opposite face. Two enormous solar wings extend from the other sides. Both panels can be rotated through ±180° to catch the maximum amount of sunlight. Mass & dimensions: Approximately 3,000 kg (fully fuelled), including 1,670 kg propellant, 165 kg scientific payload for the orbiter, and the lander weighs about 100 kg.
The main spacecraft is 2.8 x 2.1 x 2.0 m, on which all subsystems and payload equipment are mounted. Two 14 m-long solar panels with a total area of 64 m2 provide electrical power. Facts about Philae lander Design: The lander's structure consists of a baseplate, an instrument platform and a polygonal sandwich construction, all made of carbon fibre. Some of the instruments and subsystems are beneath a hood covered by solar cells. An antenna transmits data from the surface to Earth via the orbiter. The lander carries nine experiments, with a total mass of about 21 kg. A drill will sample the subsurface material. Alpha Proton X-ray Spectrometer — APXS: Lowered to within 4 cm of the ground, APXS will detect alpha particles and X-rays to gather information on the elemental composition of the comet's surface. Rosetta Lander Imaging System— ÇIVA/ROLIS: It is a CCD camera that will obtain high-resolution images during descent and stereo panoramic images of areas sampled by other instruments. Six identical micro-cameras will take panoramic pictures of the surface. A spectrometer will study the composition, texture and albedo (reflectivity) of samples collected from the surface. Comet Nucleus Sounding — Cometary Sampling and Composition experiment — COSAC: It is one of two 'evolved gas analysers'. It will detect and identify complex organic molecules from their elemental and molecular composition. Evolved Gas Analyser — MODULUS PTOLEMY is another evolved gas analyser that will obtain accurate measurements of isotopic ratios of light elements. Multi-Purpose Sensor for Surface and Subsurface Science — Mupus: This will use sensors on the lander's anchor, probe and exterior to measure the density, thermal and mechanical properties of the surface. Rosetta Lander Magnetometer and Plasma Monitor — Romap: This is a magnetometer and plasma monitor that will study the local magnetic field and the interaction between the comet and the solar wind. Sample and Distribution Device — SD2:
This device will drill more than 20 cm into the surface, collect samples and deliver them to different ovens or for microscope inspection. Surface Electrical, Seismic and Acoustic Monitoring Experiments — SESAME's: These three instruments will measure properties of the comet's outer layers. The Cometary Acoustic Sounding Surface Experiment will measure the way sound travels through the surface. The Permittivity Probe will investigate its electrical characteristics, and the Dust Impact Monitor will measure dust falling back to the surface. Operations Mission Operations Centre: European Space Operations Centre (ESOC), Darmstadt, Germany. Prime Ground Station: ESA Deep Space Antenna in New Norcia, near Perth, Australia. Rosetta Science Operations Centre: European Space Astronomy Centre (ESAC), in Villafranca, Spain. The Independent
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Rosetta and the experiments planned THE European Space Agency has released the following information regarding the mission, its parameters and objectives: Rosetta is the first mission designed to orbit and land on a comet. It consists of an orbiter, carrying 11 science experiments, and a lander, called “Philae”, carrying 10 additional instruments, for the most detailed study of a comet ever attempted. Rosetta's launch was originally scheduled for January 2003 on an Ariane-5 rocket. Rosetta's target at that time was Comet 46P/Wirtanen, with the encounter planned for 2011. However, following the failure of the first Ariane ECA rocket, in December 2002, ESA and Arianespace took the joint decision not to launch Rosetta during its January 2003 launch window. Objectives ESA's comet-chaser will be the first to undertake a lengthy exploration of a comet at close quarters. After entering orbit around Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko in 2014, Rosetta will release its Philae small lander onto the icy
nucleus as it did two days ago. Rosetta will orbit the comet for about a year as they head towards the Sun. Once they have passed perihelion (closest distance to the Sun), Rosetta will keep orbiting the comet for another half year, while the comet moves back out towards the orbit of Jupiter. As the most primitive objects in the solar system, comets carry essential information about our origins. Their chemical compositions have not changed much since their formation, therefore reflecting that of the solar system when it was very young and still “unfinished”, more than 4,600 million years ago. Rosetta will also help to discover whether comets contributed to the beginnings of life on Earth. Comets are carriers of complex organic molecules, delivered to Earth through impacts, and perhaps played a role in the origin of life. Moreover, volatile light elements carried by comets may also have played an important role in forming Earth's oceans and atmosphere. During its long journey, Rosetta was scheduled to have two close encounters with asteroids of the main asteroid belt that lies between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. The first was with (2867) Steins, a rare E-type asteroid. The flyby started on August 4, 2008 with optical navigation of the asteroid itself — a technique never before used in ESA spacecraft operations. Rosetta orbiter The orbiter's scientific payload includes 11 experiments, in addition to the lander. Scientific consortia from institutes across Europe and the United States provided these state-of-the-art instruments. The Ultraviolet Imaging Spectrometer — ALICE will analyse gases in the coma and tail and measure the comet's production rates of water and carbon monoxide and dioxide. It will provide information on the surface composition of the nucleus. Comet Nucleus Sounding Experiment — CONSERT will probe the comet's interior by studying radio waves reflected and scattered by the nucleus. Cometary Secondary Ion Mass Analyser — COSIMA will analyse the characteristics of dust grains emitted by the comet, such as their composition and whether they are organic or inorganic. Grain Impact Analyser and Dust Accumulator — GIADA will measure the number, mass, momentum and velocity distribution of dust grains coming from the cometary nucleus and other directions (deflected by solar radiation pressure). The Micro-Imaging Dust Analysis System, MIDAS, will study the dust around the comet. It will provide information on particle population, size, volume and shape. Microwave Instrument for the Rosetta Orbiter — MIRO will determine the abundances of major gases, the surface outgassing rate and the nucleus subsurface temperature. Optical, Spectrocopic and Infrared Remote Imaging System — OSIRIS has a wide-angle camera and narrow-angle camera that can obtain high-resolution images of the comet's nucleus. Rosetta Orbiter Spectrometer for Ion and Neutral Analysis - ROSINA will determine the composition of the comet's atmosphere and ionosphere, the velocities of electrified gas particles and reactions in which they take part. Radio science investigation signals Rosetta Plasma Consortium — RPC will measure the physical properties of the nucleus, examine the structure of the inner coma, monitor cometary activity, and study the comet's interaction with the solar wind. Radio Science Investigation - RSI will, by using shifts in the spacecraft's radio signals, measure the mass, density and gravity of the nucleus, define the comet's orbit, and study the inner coma. Visible and Infrared Mapping Spectrometer - VIRTIS will map and study the nature of the solids and the temperature on the surface. It will also identify comet gases, characterise the physical conditions of the coma and help to identify the best landing sites.
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Economic and strategic diplomacy were intertwined when Prime Minister Modi visited Japan and the US — and when Chinese President Xi Jinping visited India in mid-September. India needs investment to improve its rickety infrastructure and Japan, China and the US have come forward with offers to help India renew it. Companies in all three countries seek new investment destinations and potentially India is one of the biggest. 
Under the nostalgic spell many memories of the distant past caught hold of my imagination. I also remembered how once when I was invited to say a few words about the Children's Day, where the Health Minister was invited at a well-known school as the top-notch students were to be honoured. The son of a rickshaw-puller had got the top position in the district, and his poor father having saved from his meagre income had got readied a new suit for his only son who was going to be honoured by the minster. But as the child was coming by his bicycle he was hit hard by one of the vehicles following the Health Minister’s car. Though the Headmaster was duly informed about the accident, he instead of caring for the child’s treatment, got honoured some other fellow, even pointing out in his speech that he and his school had been doing a lot for children's welfare. The next day's newspapers showered a volley of condemnation that the Children’s Day celebration doesn’t mean the heads of institutions may make their own marks before the ministers rather than glorifying and helping children!