For Whom the BELL Tolls as National Revenue is Pumped into KILLER Money Machine! While, Obama's Promise to Create 2.5m Jobs! Blame! Whom? Always Choos

For Whom the BELL Tolls as National Revenue is Pumped into KILLER Money Machine! While, Obama's Promise to Create 2.5m Jobs! Blame! Whom? Always Choosing the Wrong Persons and Giving them ABSOLUTE Power. You Do Sign on Your DEATH WARRANT! So Cliche! MONO TYPE!


Troubled Galaxy Destroyed Dreams: Chapter 120

Palash Biswas

Ind US Strategic Realliance works for the SUPERSLAVEs holding Power in India as Congress party succeeded in defying predictions of a political battering after both an economic slowdown and the militant attacks on Mumbai.Some analysts said that the Mumbai terror attacks could have rallied voters behind the government, as can often happen in times of crisis. The emerging results to Assembly polls show a 3:2 split in favour of Congress, providing a much-needed boost to the UPA just ahead of general elections due in April-May 2009.Contrarily,All government offices in Pakistan sacrificed their Eid-ul-Azha holiday for dealing with the tense situation.Resurgence of MANMOHAN SINGH as planted FINANCE MINISTER of INDIA replacing Chettiyar Chidambaram planting the World bank gangster in HOME MINISTRY on Washington Dictation does the WONDER for RULING HEGEMONY as NATIONAL REVENUE is PUMPED into KILLER MONEY MACHINE! It was one of those rare days for the market where every cue indicated a strong day ahead. Equities opened with a gap-up as traders welcomed the government’s fiscal stimulus coupled by Reserve Bank of India’s decision to cut interest rates. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) may cut its short-term rates sharply in 2009 to check the economic slowdown, Nomura Financial Advisory and Securities Ltd said on Monday.

Evidently stung by Washington's whiplash, Pakistan is to send an "important" message to India through its envoy in New Delhi to defuse tensions in the wake of the Mumbai terror attacks, a media report Monday said.Pakistan's decision to move against Lashkar-e-Taiba has come as a surprise to analysts in the country. It also suggests a possible shift in policy by Islamabad towards the militant organisation!

For Whom the BELL Tolls!FIVE STAR Mourning for Five STAR People at Five STAR places continues but our People are being KILLED as unsung COMMONERS, LAWARISH! NO MOURNING! NO IDENTIFICATION! NO REGISTRATION! NO COMPENSATION! NO PACKAGE! NO BAIL OUT!

India is now a FULL FLEDGED US Partner in the War against Terrorism and the Ruling Hegemony made the Ethnic problems more complicated as DEAFEATED RSS and HINDUTVA forces are BOUND to BOUNCH back with All OUT HINDUTVA RESURGENCE as DAMAGE Control before the Next LOK SABHA Elections!

India is not to be allowed to do what Mrs Indira gandhi would have liked to in these circumstances or what PRANAB promised to be Visible Enough , until and unless Washington sanctions the MILITARY Option. Which is IMPOSIBLE since the Ongoing FACE to FACE war in Afganistan and adjacent pakistan against AL Quaeda needs Islamabad Support to sustain US MILITARY Strategies!

Then just ask your self what we got despite the HUE and CRY for War against Pakistan as Five Star Class of India has been directly HIT in Mumbai!

Just look!

Pak rejects India's demand to hand over Dawood, Memon, Masood!

Amid heightened tensions with India following the Mumbai terror strikes, Pakistan has called its envoy to New Delhi for consultations here on the latest situation. Pakistani High Commissioner Shahid Malik is expected to arrive in Islamabad later this week for discussions with the Foreign Ministry, sources said.

Islamabad is also sending an "important message" to the Indian leadership this week, which is expected to "greatly help in easing" the tensions, local daily The News reported on Monday. It said Malik would carry the message to New Delhi.

It is reported by PTI from Islamabad which happens to be OFFICIAL!

Pakistan on Monday rejected India's demand to hand over three terrorists and criminals, including underworld don Dawood Ibrahim, saying that action would be taken against individuals found involved in terrorist activities under Pakistani law.

Islamabad's response to a demarche from India seeking the handing over of the three came hours after security forces launched a crackdown on Lashker-e-Toiba, arresting suspected Mumbai attack mastermind Zakiur Rehman Lakhwi and eight other militants.

India had made the demand in the second demarche handed over to Pakistan in the wake of last week's terror attacks in Mumbai that killed over 180 people and injured dozens more.

Pakistan's response, handed over by Foreign Secretary Salman Bashir to Indian High Commissioner Satyabrata Pal during a meeting this evening, indicated that Islamabad would itself take action against individuals if information provided by New Delhi proved they were involved in terrorism, diplomatic sources told PTI.

The sources said the reply stated that action would be taken against such individuals "with the ambit of Pakistani law". The response also stated that Pakistani authorities would act on any information provided by India on the Mumbai attacks, they said.

The response also reiterated Pakistan's offer to conduct a joint investigation with India into the Mumbai attacks and for full cooperation, including intelligence sharing, the sources said.

Even the SHINING FREEsenSEX India may not make Government of Superslaves ACT without US Permission and Islamabad is well AWARE of it!

if India looks a SOFT STATE it is just because we LOST FREEDOM, DEMOCRACY and Sovereignity to LPG MAFIA!

it makes no difference to our Miserable Position as a NASTION that US president-elect Barack Obama has reiterated the “basic principle” that if attacked a country has the right to defend itself, but would not say if India had the right to go after terrorists inside Pakistan after the Mumbai terror attacks.

“Well, I’m not going to comment on that. What I’m going to restate is a basic principle,” he told NBC when asked if India now has the right of hot pursuit since he had said that the US reserves the right to go after terrorists in Pakistan if it had targets of opportunity.

“Number one, if a country is attacked, it has the right to defend itself. I think that’s universally acknowledged.

“The second thing is that we need a strategic partnership with all the

parties in the region — Pakistan, and India, and the Afghan government — to stamp out the kind of militant, violent, terrorist extremists that have set up base camps and that are operating in ways that threaten the security of everybody in the international community.”


Blame! Whom?

With some terror strike trails leading to West Bengal, Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram, on Monday chaired a high level law and order meeting, but Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhatacharya was not available .

The review comes in the backdrop of arrests of two people who had allegedly purchased SIM cards on fictitious addresses and given to some Kashmiri businessmen. These SIM cards later found their way to Pakistan and were used by those involved in the Mumbai terror attacks.

Despite the shadow of global recession and Mumbai terror strikes, international firms continue to bet high on India because of its economic growth and market potential and the country could emerge a winner out of the crisis, Dr Andreas Gruchow, Member of the Board of Management at Deutsche Messe AG, said in Banglore on Monday!

Karunanidhi sees second term for Cong in Centre!

The good showing of the Congress in the assembly elections in five states is a pointer to the fact that the Congress-led UPA would retain power at the Centre in the next Lok Sabha elections, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi said in Chennai on Monday.

Asked for his comments on the results, he told reporters here that though the results were incomplete, the Congress had won the elections.

On reports of a cabinet reshuffle at the Centre, he said "I will be happy if Tamil Nadu gets more representation in the Union ministry."

Asked to comment on the reported remarks of Sri Lankan Army chief Lt Gen Sarath Fonseka, that some politicians in Tamil Nadu like MDMK chief Vaiko and Tamil Nationalist Movement leader P Nedumaran were 'political jokers', he said if Fonseka had really said it, it was highly condemnable.

"It is totally unacceptable for us to accept the comments of a foreigner on politicians of Tamil Nadu," he said.


Thanks to MAJORITARIAN BRITISH PARLIAMENTARY System and ELECTIONS, We are always made to choose the wrong persons and vest ABSOLUTE POWER to destroy us, dislodge us, deport us, deprive us! We do sign on our DEATH WARRANTS! Anti-incumbency factor, which is dreaded like plague, did not work in at least three of the five states---two ruled by BJP and one by Congress! ISSUES are always made NON ISSUES. Pro US, Pro Globalisation, PRO Market Biased Brahaminical Media Played Well the MIND CONTROL and BRAIN WASHING games to sustain the Ruling Hegemony and the KILLING FIELDS have no opportunity to feel any RELIEF. ALL RELIEF is meant for the GREEDY MONEY MACHINE! PETRO PRICES proved it very well as common consumers got NO RELIEF. COOKING GAS and KEROSENE prices remained the same. The Rich in India enjoy all concessions, all projects, all avenues and we remain deprived. The union government is planning to define cyber crimes under the IT Act 2000 and is likely to introduce Amendment Bill in the winter session of parliament.Information Explosion transformed into MISINFORMATION MASS DESTRUCTION is to be enhanced more and more to kill all the Black Untouchables, all the Aboriginals, all the Indigenous, SC, ST, OBC and Minorities! RESERVATION, already made IRRELEVANT with Neo Liberalism introducing LPG , is not going to help anyone either to sustain livelihood, land, property and life or creating Job opportunities. No matter, how hard strives the CREAMY LAYERS to sustain itself and make new adjustments!


SEE What BARRACK OBAMA did to bail out the ECONOMY. An Unprecedented NATIONAL REBUILDING Project. And feel the pangs of Manmohan`s MINI Budget to help INDIA Incs, Corporates, Builders and Promoters and the CRIMINALS! Just Compare between a Sovereign People empowered and the Enslaved people of a PERIPHERY!Industry feels the package on rate cuts and steps to boost housing and small and medium industries announced by the Reserve Bank is not enough and expects the government to come out with more stimulants.While welcoming the RBI measures, apex trade and industry chambers said sectors such as automobiles and white goods needed more support.Assocham said cuts in repo and reverse repo rates will give relief to interest-sensitive sectors such as automobiles, real estate and infrastructure but said much more was needed.

The government on Sunday unveiled a Rs 30,700-crore fiscal stimulus package mainly comprising additional spending and excise duty cuts Global stimulus pkg
India battles crisis aimed at boosting consumption, the latest in a flurry of measures being rolled out by policymakers, keen to steer the economy away from a painful slowdown. The government’s fiscal package, announced a day after the central bank cut a key interest rate, has Rs 20,000 crore in additional expenditure, an across-the-board 4% excise duty cut amounting to Rs 8,700 crore and benefits worth Rs 2,000 crore for exporters. In addition, the government hopes to precipitate infrastructure projects worth Rs 100,000 crore through faster clearances of public-private partnership projects, and ensure their easier financing by way of a tax break on fund raising by the India Infrastructure Finance Company, a specialist lender to the infrastructure sector. The government will also take steps to ensure that already budgeted expenditure of Rs 300,000 crore will actually be spent over the next four months of the current fiscal to end-March 2009, as it increasingly resorts to pump-priming to shore up the economy that continues to face headwinds from the global financial market turmoil.

On the other hand,Barack Obama sets out some ideas for boosting America's economy! ON THE heels of more grim unemployment news, the US president-elect, Barack Obama, has offered the first glimpse of what would be the largest public works program in the US since the 1950s.Mr Obama said the massive government spending program he proposes to lift the country out of recession will include a renewed effort to make public buildings energy-efficient, rebuild the nation's highways, renovate ageing schools and install computers in classrooms, extend high-speed internet to undeserved areas and modernise hospitals by giving them access to electronic medical records.

mind you, as The Economists, describes it very well:
BARACK OBAMA was elected on a wave of jubilation and a big majority of Americans think that he is doing a splendid job with his transition to the White House. But the president-elect is in a glum mood and with good reason. On Sunday December 7th he said that the recession is still “rippling” through America’s economy and that the pain will be neither mild nor short-lived.

His gloomy prognosis has plenty to back it up. Yet more worrying news of the economy’s fragility came with figures released on Friday by the Bureau of Labour Statistics. These showed that America had shed more than half a million jobs in November, the biggest monthly drop since the dire days of 1974. Upward revisions for September and October mean that 1.2m jobs have been lost in the past three months.

Mr Obama unveiled a specific stimulus package on Saturday to deal with America’s economic malaise. It included one of the biggest public-works programme since the building of the Interstate Highways system—America’s economic arteries—shortly after the second world war. He intends to spend a huge sum on infrastructure projects that are on the starting blocks. Last week state governors said that they had $136 billion worth of road, bridge, water projects and were ready for the diggers to go in as soon as money is available. Alongside this he wants to refit federal office buildings with green technologies and create a raft of green jobs, repair schools, expand broadband-internet access and modernise information storage and sharing in healthcare.
http://www.economist.com/world/unitedstates/displaystory.cfm?story_id=12753485

Barack Obama's transition team is resisting Bush administration overtures to coordinate more on the financial-sector rescue, convinced that neither the lame-duck President George W. Bush nor the president-elect has the clout to win a smooth congressional release of more bailout funds. Meanwhile,the White House said Monday that it was "very likely" to reach a deal with Congress to help failing U.S. automakers but warned that Democratic lawmakers need to quickly provide their specific proposal.Pelosi backed off her insistence that the Bush administration bail out the automakers from the $700 billion bank rescue fund, agreeing to tap $25 billion ...



With the first $350 billion of the bailout money nearly allocated, transition aides are pressing Treasury officials to convene a bipartisan meeting on Capitol Hill this week. Obama aides say the Treasury needs to sound out congressional leaders and rank-and-file lawmakers on what information they need to release the second, $350 billion tranche from the government's Troubled Asset Relief Program, or TARP.

We need to act with the urgency this moment demands to save or create at least 2.5 million jobs so that the nearly 2 million Americans who've lost them know that they have a future," Mr Obama said in his weekly address, broadcast on the radio and posted as a YouTube video.

Mr Obama offered few details and no cost estimate for the investment in public infrastructure. But it is intended to be part of a broader effort to stimulate economic activity that will also include tax cuts for middle-class Americans and direct aid to state governments to forestall lay-offs as programs shrink.

The Democratic leader of the House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, has called for spending $US400 billion ($618 billion) to $US500 billion on the overall package. Some Senate Democrats and economists have suggested spending even more — potentially $US1 trillion — in the hope of jolting the economy into shape more quickly.

Last Friday the Government reported that 533,000 jobs were eliminated in November, the largest one-month drop since 1974, raising unemployment to 6.7 per cent.


In Mumbai, JPMorgan said on Monday it was sceptical about the government's ability to boost spending in the remaining months of the 2008/09 fiscal Global stimulus pkg
India battles crisis year, given its preoccupation with elections.

The government on Sunday unveiled a $4 billion stimulus package of extra spending for the rest of this fiscal. The government will also issue an extra $9 billion of bonds by Feb. 20, slightly higher than market expectations of $6-$8 billion.

JPMorgan said the government might implement additional measures in the coming weeks but concerns exists that from the time of the announcement of the next election date and the formation of the new government, major fiscal policy change will not be possible under the Election Commission rules.

This period could be as long as 3-4 months and could rule out any significant counter-cyclical measure in the first quarter of 2009, it said.


What MARADONA, a MAN from a LATIN America SLUM does understand , we would not dare ever in near FUTURE!

Argentina coach Diego Maradona rounded off a trip to Kolkata by re-opening the war of words between himself and long-time rival Pelé, and went on to blast the decision making of the Bush administration. For some, Pelé is the greatest exponent of the beautiful game, while for others, it is El Pibo d'Oro who stands alone at the highest reaches of the game's masters.

El Diego suggested that Pelé is a friend of the moneymen around the game, while professionals themselves plump for the 1986 World Cup winning captain as the football's golden boy.

He told the Times of India: "The biggest and main difference between Pele and Maradona is I have the respect of all footballers, which Pele does not have.

"Pele is a friend of those who manage football. I am not friends with them. I am with the players.

"I do not have anything against Pele, but Pele has against me. Because he was second to Ayrton Senna (triple Formula One World Champion), and second to Maradona as well."

Diego, The Left-Winger



Maradona went on to detail his friendship with Fidel Castro, the former president of communist Cuba.

He said: "You get enriched every moment you spent with him, even when you say hello. We talked about football, politics, baseball. We talked of the USA as well. We talked about the dark sides of imperialism."

The highly politicised Argentinean, an ally of leftist leaders Evo Morales of Bolivia and Hugo Chavez of Venezuela, laid the blame for the world's woes at the door of the United States, and urged smaller nations to stand up for themselves in the wake of the global economic downturn.

He continued: "The problems have been mainly created by the US. They say they are big, others small.

"They decide, and then we have to go by their decisions. But now, after what has happened to the US (economy), the time has come for every nation to take their own decisions.

Grasping at thorny issues, Maradona also lamented the problem of terrorism in the world, whereby children were being made innocent victims of illicit warfare.

He concluded: "We have to stop this because there are many innocent people, innocent kids, paying the price. They should not be paying the price."


ZIONISTs claim they not only run the GLOBAL Finances , they also run the GOVERNMENT all over the world! Zionist Links to our leadership is yet to be traced out! RSS did the BLUNDER to allow the INDO US deal operationalise and they would never accept that they did this CRIME to STOP MAYAWATI as the HATE most the BLACK UNTOUVCHABLES! Indo US Nuclear DEAL with Strategic realliance in US lead has made CONGRESS the most convenient TOOL for US CORPORATE IMPERIALISM. Manmohan, PRANAB, Chidambaram, KAMALNATH, RAMOOWALIA make as excellent TEAm to serve US interests in this part of the world. RSS failed to compete Congress in LOYALITY to CAPITALISM, IMPerialism, Corporates, India Incs and MNCs. SEMI FINAL RESULTS for the coming Loksabha POLL herald that the UPA wins the BATTLE in COLONISATION. RSS rigidity on Manausmriti and Apartheid, the HINDUTVA caused the FAILURE to strike an equation to defeat Congress and its ex ALLY, the LEFT. Ironically, Maywati succeeded to gain more Power, more bases and proved herself as the greatest HEAD ACHE for Congress and its allies including the LEFT as well as RSS and NDA combined!

Pakistani security forces on Sunday raided a camp used by Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), two sources said, in a strike against the militant group blamed by India for last month's deadly attacks on Mumbai.An official with the Jamaat-ud-Dawa charity, which is linked to LeT, said security forces had taken over the camp. India has demanded Pakistan take swift action over what it says is the latest anti-India militant attack emanating from Pakistani soil. No comment on the raid was immediately available from Indian officials. On the other hand, India's External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee has regretted that Pakistan is giving credibility to a 'hoax' call, and charged it with resorting to a tactic to confuse the public by only releasing part of the story! But President-elect Barack Obama offered guarded praise for the actions of President Asif Ali Zardari in the aftermath of Mumbai bombings saying “he has sent the right signals”, and expressed hope for establishing “close, effective working relationship”.

In an interview with NBC News for the ‘Meet The Press’ programme on Sunday, Mr Obama was asked about President Zardari’s response to the terrorist attacks in India. He said: “Thus far, President Zardari has sent the right signals. He’s indicated that he recognises this is not just a threat to the United States but is a threat to Pakistan, as well.”

Mr Obama also observed: “There was a bombing in Pakistan just yesterday that killed scores of people. And so you’re seeing greater and greater terrorist activity inside Pakistan.”

“I think this democratically elected government understands that threat, and I hope that in the coming months that we are going to be able to establish the kind of close, effective working relationship that makes both countries safer,” Mr Obama said.

He declined to weigh in with any great detail on the aftermath of the bombings in Mumbai.

He said he expected his national security team – including Hillary Clinton whom he’s designated as secretary of state, and Robert Gates who will remain defence chief – to come up with a “comprehensive strategy” for dealing with the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and the threat of terrorism.

Mr Obama said he still wanted to refocus military strategy on Afghanistan from Iraq. The US should proceed with plans to draw down US forces in Iraq as “quickly as we can to maintain stability in Iraq”.

“We have to have more effective military action” in Afghanistan, he said.

That includes adding more US troops, greater coordination with the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation and more vigorous diplomacy in the region, he said.

On Iran, Obama said the US must “ratchet up tough but direct diplomacy” that will make clear “that their development of nuclear weapons would be unacceptable”.


The Mumbai Police investigators say all 10 terrorists responsible for 26/11 attacks on India's financial capital were from Pakistan!

EVEN all out HINDUTVA, Hindutva BOMB, Fascism and Blind nationalism could not Bail OUT Hindutva Forces, RSS and NDA and BJP! The Wait for the much hyped Prime Minister waiting may prove to be INFINITE! RSS miscalculated the US and CIA impact on Indian Polity. NASA and ISRO work together! We are proud!India would be able to send a manned mission to the moon by 2020, while the second unmanned spacecraft would be ready by 2012, said a top space scientist who was involved in the successful launch of Chandrayaan-1. In the same way, RSS never does understand how Washington and NEW DELHI are working together! It refers to Italian Remote control but never detects the Washington REMOTE CONTROL!



Putting up an impressive show in the Assembly elections, the Congress worsted BJP in Rajasthan, scored a hat-trick in Delhi and regained power in Mizoram while the saffron party had to remain content with retaining Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. While the Congress got clear majorities in Delhi and Mizoram, it may be slightly short of the majority mark of 101 in Rajasthan winning 74 seats and ahead in 23 others. The ruling BJP has won in 52 seats and was ahead in 26.

The BSP has won four seats and was leading in one while independents have bagged 11 and were ahead in four.

Others won four seats and were leading in one.

The BSE benchmark Sensex climbed 2.2 per cent on Monday after an economic stimulus package and strong global markets boosted sentiment, but the gains were clipped on news of a fire at Reliance Petroleum's new refinery.

News of the US officially slipping into recession seems to have spurred another round of massive retrenchment, as the first week of December alone saw a stunning 30,000 layoffs, with more than half happening in the world's largest economy. The whopping numbers are just a continuation of a strained labor market as employers in America slashed 5,33,000 jobs in the month of November, the maximum downsizing in 34 years.


Terrorism, the focus of BJP campaign in the assembly elections in four states, appears to have failed to enthuse voters as the party lost government in Rajasthan and was unable to wrest power in Delhi. Even in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, where BJP retained power, the victory was attributed by the party leaders to development rather than terror plank.

Global financial turmoil and recent attacks in Mumbai will likely spur foreign fund houses still looking to enter the high potential India market to hedge their risks with local partnerships rather than going it alone. Factors such as high brand building costs and knowledge of local issues have already spurred most international players to favour joint ventures over "greenfield" operations as they seek to tap the relatively fast-growing and savings-rich economy. The requirement that foreign fund houses put up $50 million in capital for a wholly owned operation, compared with a tenth of that or less for a joint venture, is also seen fuelling the trend as hard-hit Western money managers seek to preserve cash.

Meanwhile, The suspected planner of last month's attack by gunmen on Mumbai was arrested by Pakistani security forces in a raid on a militant camp, an official with a charity linked to the militant group said on Monday. The Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) official, who requested anonymity because of the sensitivity of the subject, said Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi was among four men taken into custody following Sunday's raid on a camp used by Lashkar-e-Taiba fighters outside Muzaffarabad, the capital of Pakistani Kashmir. Pakistani intelligence officers said six men have been arrested, but gave no names, and there has been no official confirmation of the raid.Lakhvi, one of Lashkar's operations chiefs, was named as a ringleader in the Mumbai plot by the lone surviving gunmen captured in India, according to Indian officials.

On the other hand,Pakistan and India have reportedly agreed to suspend their composite dialogue in the wake of the November 26 Mumbai attacks. Diplomatic sources told the Daily Times on Sunday that “India believes that Pakistan-based elements are involved in the Mumbai attacks and is in no mood to talk to Pakistan until its concerns are adequately and timely addressed.” The sources said India had issued two demarches to Pakistan. Pakistan has formally responded to the first one, but has not responded to the second demarche until now, in which India levelled allegations about the involvement of elements in Pakistan.

Led by Shiela Dikshit, the Congress retained power for the third consecutive term in Delhi, winning 40 seats in the 70-member Assembly in a keenly fought battle.

The BJP, which was hoping to wrest power after 10 years, was left behind at 22 seats. The BSP won two seats while INLD and LJP bagged one each. Results for three seats are yet to be declared.

Bagging a two-thirds majority in Mizoram, the Congress wrested power from the Mizo National Front after a decade, winning 29 of the 40 seats.

The elections, seen as the 'semi-final' ahead of the Lok Sabha polls next year, brought cheer to the Congress which had faced a debacle in 13 states after coming to power at the head of a coalition at the Centre in 2004.

The BJP, which hoped to cash in on the terror card and sweep in all the states barring Mizoram, managed to retain their grip on power in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh on the development plank, breaking the jinx of failing to get re-elected in any state other than Gujarat.

After suffering several poll debacles since 2004, the Congress, with its victories in Rajasthan, Delhi and Mizoram, has brought cheers to the party camp ahead of the Lok Sabha polls.
This has been especially so, as initially nothing seemed to be going right for the Sonia Gandhi-led party with the Congress President herself down with illness for almost a week during campaigning in the midst of the assembly polls.

Chidambaram reviews law and order in Bengal
KOLKATA: In view of the terror link of the State with the November 26 Mumbai terror attacks, the Union Home Minister, Mr P. Chidambaram, on Monday reviewed law and order of West Bengal at a high-level meeting here.

The Chief Secretary, Mr A.K. Deb, and the Director-General of Police, Mr A.B. Vora, were present at the meeting held at the Raj Bhavan. This was Mr Chidambaram's first visit to the State after becoming the Union Home Minister. - PTI

Gorkha Janmukti Morcha, fighting for a separate state of Gorkhaland, on Monday claimed that it had closed all offices of West Bengal!

One person was killed and six others, including three police personnel, were injured in a retaliatory fire by the police to quell violent activists of the 'Ulgulan Manch' at Saharijori village in Dumka on Saturday.

Police claimed that the agitation had the backing of Maoists.

"One villager Lakhiram Tudu was killed after police open fire to counter the hurling of arrows by the activists of the manch," Superintendent of Police Arun Kumar Singh said, adding three policemen - including two officers - were injured in the arrow attack.

"The Maoists were dictating the Ulgulan Manch's agitation from behind, as women and children were sent upfront to clash with the police, resulting in arrow injuries to two police officers and a havaldar," the SP said.

Kathikund police inspector Rakesh Mohan, Ramgarh police station in-charge Audhesh Singh and havaldar Suresh Ram were injured in the arrow attack, he said. Ram, whose chest was pierced by dart, has been operated upon.

Three more villagers suffered bullet injuries and were admitted to Dumka Sadar Hospital. Maoist literature and bagful of cartridge were later found at the site.

The manch activists, despite prohibitory orders, earlier took out a protest march demanding release of their leaders Moni Hansda, Raj Charan Murmu, Hophon Baski and Charan Murmu who were arrested on November 26 on charges of snatching motor-cycle and misbehaving with a government employee.

The manch is spearheading a campaign against a proposed power plant by the RPG Group in Kathikund in the district.

The tribals of Lalgarh suspended their agitation and gave the West Midnapore police chief a week to visit their area and apologise for alleged atrocities on the community!

The agitation by a section of the tribal population against alleged police excesses, which had resulted in parts of West Bengal’s Paschim Medinipur district being virtually cut off, was called off on Sunday after more than four weeks.

The decided to call off the agitation was arrived at by leaders of the “people’s committee” after a meeting lasting more than three hours with officials of the district administration at the local thana in Lalgarh — an area from where the stir spread to other parts of the district’s Jhargram sub-division and even spilled over to areas in adjoining Bankura district.

The district authorities assured the agitators that necessary action will be taken against the policemen found guilty in the course of an inquiry into the excesses that the protestors claim was committed on local villagers during raids to track down those responsible for the IED blast that narrowly missed Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee’s convoy on November 2.


Tribal ‘torture’ in Mamata talks
OUR SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT
Calcutta, Dec. 6: Trinamul Congress chief Mamata Banerjee and the state Congress brass today met Manmohan Singh separately and told him about “police brutalities” on tribals in and around Lalgarh and the “prolonged neglect” the community faced.

Mamata said: “I told the Prime Minister how the police have been torturing the poor tribals of Lalgarh and Binpur since the landmine blast. I narrated the plight of innocent women who were dragged to police stations there. The Prime Minister was surprised to hear about the treatment meted out to the tribals by the state government.”

The tribals have laid siege to Lalgarh to protest the alleged police atrocities since Maoists targeted the chief minister at Salboni in November.

Mamata said she had asked Singh to “send a central team to Lalgarh and he assured me he would consider that’’.

Lalgarh also figured in the Prime Minister’s talks with his party men. Foreign minister Pranab Mukherjee and party working president Pradip Bhattacharya were among those present.

“We briefed him on the situation and the manner in which the tribal community is protesting against police brutalities. The Prime Minister wanted us to ensure justice for the backward community,” said Bhattacharya.

The Congress leaders also raised the agitation for Gorkhaland in Darjeeling. “The Prime Minister said tripartite meetings were being held and he was hopeful of a solution,” Bhattacharya said.

Mamata spoke to Singh about the thousands of students of primary teachers’ training institutes that had been shut down by the court.

The Prime Minister, she said, has promised to take it up with the human resource development minister.
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1081207/jsp/bengal/story_10218218.jsp

Gangrape slur on CPM six
OUR CORRESPONDENT
Tamluk, Dec. 6: An anti-land acquisition activist was allegedly raped by CPM supporters in Nandigram on Friday.

The woman’s husband, a Trinamul Congress supporter, lodged a police complaint today accusing six local CPM workers of gangraping his wife in the presence of his 60-year-old mother.

Sahadeb Maity (name changed) alleged that the gang came to his house after most Trinamul men had fled the area following a series of CPM attacks. This was retaliation for a Trinamul bid to block the convoy of MP Lakshman Seth, who went to Nandigram to address a rally on Wednesday.

“We were so scared that we ran away to Tekhali. My wife and mother were at home. Around 2am on Friday, six CPM workers tied up my mother and raped my wife,” he said.

“We have started a case of rape and sent the woman for tests,” said East Midnapore police chief Ashok Prasad.

Rabindranath Maity, the head of the district hospital, said: “She didn’t have any external injury, but we won’t make any further comment.”

The CPM denied the party’s involvement in the alleged incident. “The allegations are baseless,” said district secretariat member Ashok Guria.

Sahadeb said the alleged rapists had threatened his wife and mother against going to the police. “The goons told them they would be killed if they spoke a word to anyone. So they did not venture out yesterday. My mother slipped out this morning and came to tell me about what happened.”
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Day after, Dumka continues to simmer Stephen fears another Singur in making
OUR CORRESPONDENT

Up in arms: A boy with a sickle during the rally in Kathikund on Saturday. Picture by Mani Keshri
Kathikund (Dumka), Dec. 7: A day after police and mob comprising tribal men, women and children clashed 3km from the Kathikund police station, tension spread to the Dumka township.

The town wore a deserted look following a dawn-to- dusk bandh called by Sanjukt Charta Morcha, a body of tribal students, along with SFI and AISA. Traffic on the busy Dumka-Pakur-Sahebganj road came to a halt, as students blocked the area near the Sidho-Kanho-Murmu University.

Students alleged that injured villagers, such as Ravan Soren of Balaikandar, Kathikund, did not receive medial aid till it was too late, because of administration lapses.

Their complaints found an echo in the statements made by deputy chief minister Stephen Marandi who has been camping in Dumka from yesterday. He spoke to reporters today.

Marandi held the district administration responsible for the clash, however, also echoed the administration’s claim of the Naxalite angle.

He apprehended a Singur-like (Bengal) situation in the state and feared that the proposed power projects — one being funded by CESC and another by the Goenkas — may have to wind up due to the adverse condition.

Marandi added that the government was considering a judicial inquiry into the firing and admitted to the possibility of “lapses” on the district administration’s part, particularly in the ongoing acquisition drive for the two 1,000KW power plants in the district.

“The villagers should have been taken into confidence first before the land was allotted,” he admitted, and then assured that a balanced rehabilitation and resettlement policy was on the cards.

He rued that yesterday’s victims were from poor tribal families who did not share “links” with the Jharkhand Ulgulan Manch.

Apart from the Dumka administration, Marandi, too, is under the scanner for his alleged involvement in wrongful dealings related to a Pakur coal project. The charges were levelled against the minister by members of Penam land oustees — a tribal right’s organisation.

Marandi has also been under fire for not being prompt enough while answering to an SOS call made by the tribals to send in medical aid for those who were hit by the police bullets.

Deputy commissioner Prasant Kumar and superintendent of police Arun Kumar Singh today harped on the Naxalite angle yet again.

“Ulgulan Manch is being used as a ruse by Maoist outfits. Some rebels were scheduled to raid the Tongra police station while keeping the administration busy in the so-called jail bharo movement,” the officer alleged. “We recovered 15 cartridges and five empty cartridges of 7.62 automatic rifles that are often used by Maoists from the clash site,” Singh claimed.

He alleged that the police also recovered Naxalite literature from a Tata Sumo (BP/47- 5585) that was seized last night and also nabbed four persons.

Thousand today bid farewell to Lukhiram Tuddu whose last rites were performed in Amgachi village, 7km from Kathikund market. Tuddu a native of Daldali, succumbed to his bullet injuries last evening.

Women and children lit candles and shouted slogans against Shibu Soren and the administration. “We have started mobilising support from remoter parts of Santhal Pargana,” warned Banku, a manch activist. He said that the manch and its members’ satyaghraha would continue till December 14 and villagers would observe a black day in protest of the clash.
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1081208/jsp/jharkhand/story_10221355.jsp

Beyond public anger
Putting national security above partisan politics is the first step
Not since the Kargil conflict of 1999 has the national conscience been so aroused, inflamed and saddened as it has been in the reaction to the terrorist carnage at Mumbai starting on the night of November 26. The reasons are not far to seek. The form... | Read..
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1081208/jsp/opinion/index.jsp

Slash-and-cash stimulus
- Centre cuts tax, spends more to help real estate and job-intensive units
JAYANTA ROY CHOWDHURY

New Delhi, Dec. 7: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has marked his takeover of the finance ministry by clearing an economic stimulus package aimed at shielding India from a deepening global economic crisis and creating jobs.

The proposals include beyond-the-budget expenditure of Rs 20,000 crore on infrastructure and pro-poor schemes and an across-the-board cut in central value added tax that will make cars, consumer durables and construction material cheaper. (See chart)

“The government has decided to seek authorisation for additional planned expenditure of up Rs 20,000 crore in the current (financial) year,” the Prime Minister’s Office said.

The decision echoes similar stimulus packages announced abroad. US President-elect Barack Obama had yesterday unveiled the contours of his package, which looks set to unleash the largest public works programme in 60 years in America.

Under the “mini-budget” unveiled today, state-run banks are expected to announce soon a package for those seeking home loans up to Rs 20 lakh. The RBI will put in place a refinance facility worth Rs 4,000 crore for the housing sector.

Ailing export-led industries such as textiles and gems and jewellery will be given interest subsidy. These industries are labour-intensive and downturn-induced job losses could work against the government in the approaching election year.

Officials added that banks would also restructure loans to companies and real estate players, giving some relief to firms hit by cash shortages.

Government departments, which had been asked to refrain from buying new cars, will now be allowed to replace vehicles within the permitted budget. The permission is expected to help the auto industry that has been facing sluggish demand.

“Fresh investments in infrastructure should create fresh jobs here,” said Planning Commission deputy chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia, who has emerged as the Prime Minister’s point man on economic issues since P. Chidambaram was shifted to the home ministry.

“The package will minimise the impact of weak global economy on the Indian economy.... (It should) make 7 per cent growth rate quite feasible,” Ahluwalia added.

Industry reacted with cautious optimism, waiting for more incentives. “The fiscal package is pointing in the right direction, but could have done even more of stimulation to increase the growth trajectory,” said Amit Mitra, Ficci secretary general. “We hope this is the first tranche and more needs to follow.”

The government hinted at more steps if needed. “The government… will not hesitate to take any additional steps that may be needed to counter recessionary trends,” the PMO said.

The extra spend, coupled with the tax giveaways that some officials said could lead to a revenue loss of Rs 8,700 crore in the next four months, will mean the government will end up borrowing more money.

But Ahluwalia refused to quantify the package. “It’s just a very good stimulus package, if you want one word for it,” he said.
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Glare on aid diverted to needle India
DAVID E. SANGER
Bush: Review mode
The review contains an array of options, including telling Pakistan’s military that billions of dollars in American aid will depend on the military’s being reconfigured to effectively fight militants. That proposal amounts to a tacit acknowledgment that roughly $10 billion in military aid provided to Pakistan as “reimbursements” for its efforts to root out militant groups has largely been wasted.

The payments have been the source of increasing criticism on Capitol Hill and from independent review groups, which have concluded that Pakistan diverted much of the money to build up its forces against India.

Revamping the aid to the military was part of a three-month study of what has gone wrong in the seven-year war along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border. The study calls for a new and broadly regional approach to insurgencies that move freely across the mountainous border between Afghanistan and Pakistan.

In the short term, it calls for continued covert strikes into Pakistani territory from Afghanistan, though the American military has been reluctant to repeat the kind of ground attack that led to an open exchange of fire with Pakistani border forces in September.

The report, which is expected to be presented to Obama’s top national security advisers in the next week or two, was the product of a highly unusual strategy review that was begun in mid-September, just four months before President Bush leaves office.

“We’ve gone seven long years proclaiming that Pakistan was an ally and that it was doing everything we asked in the war on terror,” said one senior official involved in drafting the report. “And the truth is that $10 billion later, they still don’t have the basic capacity for counterinsurgency operations. What we are telling Obama and his people is that has to be reversed.”

The drafts prepared for the incoming Obama administration suggest that the US has never focused sufficiently on nation-building, jobs creation, construction of schools and roads, and, most important, pushing the Pakistani government to focus on counterterrorism and counterinsurgency.

The report includes options, not “recommendations,” so that Obama would not be put in the position of endorsing or rejecting Bush’s suggested policies.

It was completed just before the terrorist attacks in Mumbai last month, and the reaction to those events is likely to complicate some of the central options even before they are handed off to Obama.
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The '26/11', dubbed as the worst terror strikes on India, had also come during the electioneering raising fears that the issue of terrorism could wipe out the party's chances in the five states.

But the poll outcome is a clear morale booster for the Congress and has come as more than a straw for the organisation which was dubbed as a 'sinking ship' by its detractors.

The latest poll debacles were those in Karnataka few months back and that in Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat, a year ago.

The Gujarat setback was a real shock for the party with Gandhi personally leading the campaign against the BJP in order to oust Narendra Modi, who had the last laugh.

The grand old party lost elections galore since the Lok Sabha polls in 2004 and its victories were only limited to Haryana and Assam. It won Maharashtra after an alliance with NCP.

The states where it lost power include Uttarakhand, Punjab, Kerala while it failed to make any impact in Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and some other states.


BJP had made terrorism its main electoral plank, accusing the Congress of being "soft" on dealing with the scourge and projecting itself as the party which could insulate the country from it.

After the November 26 Mumbai attacks, the BJP intensified its campaign on terrorism. In this connection, the party issued advertisements in newspapers and its leaders, including L K Advani and Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, raised their pitch against Congress over the issue.

However, this plank failed, significantly in Delhi and Rajasthan, which have suffered terror attacks repeatedly. As electoral results trickled in, BJP President Rajnath Singh virtually admitted the failure of terrorism as a poll plank when he said that local issues played a crucial role in the elections.

At the party headquarters here, BJP leaders were silent on the issue of terrorism and instead attributed victories in Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh to the development plank.

"It is for the first time in the history of BJP, with the exception of Gujarat, people have voted us to back to power on the basis of performance. The vote for BJP in Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh is a vote for performance," senior BJP leader Venkaiah Naidu said.

In Madhya Pradesh, Congress feels that the Mumbai attacks could have influenced the voting pattern to some extent.

For Congress, development plank worked in Delhi, where it retained power for third time, as also in Rajasthan, where it wrested power from BJP.

Congress General Secretary Ashok Gehlot said the development agenda worked for them in Rajasthan where it is set to emerge as the single largest party.

"As against the BJP, the Congress made development an issue. We went to the people with a positive agenda. Rajasthan had been living in the shadow of terror for the last five years," he said referring to the BJP rule under Vasundhara Raje.

Mumbai militants used Pakistani soil: Rice

Reutersreports from WASHINGTON:

Pakistani territory was used to stage recent attacks on Mumbai, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said on Sunday, as she again urged Islamabad to help bring perpetrators to justice. Pakistan has called for India to back up its charges of Pakistani involvement with proof. But in interviews with US television networks, Rice said there was no doubt the militants behind the Mumbai attack had operated from Pakistani soil, although she said probably ‘non-state’ actors were involved.

With Islamabad's ties with Washington as well as with India at stake, Pakistan must take action against the militants, Rice said. Pakistan is a long-time US ally that has received billions in US aid to root out militant groups.

India has blamed Islamist militants based in Pakistan for the three-day assault on India's commercial capital that killed 171 people, including six Americans.

Pakistan has condemned the attacks, denied any involvement by its state agencies and vowed full cooperation in investigations. It has called for evidence from New Delhi about any Pakistani role in the assault.

"I think there's no doubt that Pakistani territory was used, by probably non-state actors," Rice told a television news channel.

She has just returned from a trip to the region to urge cooperation between the old enemies India and Pakistan. They have fought three wars since independence in 1947.

"I don't think that there is compelling evidence of involvement of Pakistani officials," she added.

Earlier, in an interview with Fox News Sunday, Rice said that the United States had passed information about the attacks to both India and Pakistan.

"I have made it very clear (to Pakistan) that Americans also died in that attack," said Rice, who will leave her job when President George W. Bush steps down on Jan. 20.

"And that the United States expects the full and complete cooperation of Pakistan, and Pakistani action. And that yes, it is a matter for our relationship," she said.


ROLE OF PAKISTAN-BASED GROUP DEBATED


Mumbai police have said the gunmen were controlled by the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) group, blamed for earlier attacks including a 2001 assault on India's parliament. But Rice declined to say whether the US thought the group was involved or to describe the evidence she cited in the attacks.

LeT was formed with the help of Pakistan's intelligence agencies to fight Indian rule in Kashmir, but analysts say it is now part of a global jihadi network sympathetic to al Qaeda and may have direct ties with the al Qaeda network.

Britain's Observer newspaper on Sunday reported the only gunman captured alive came from a village in Pakistan's Punjab. The gunman had already told Indian police he came from there. But Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari and other Pakistani sources have expressed doubt he was from Pakistan.

President-elect Barack Obama said on Sunday it was important to calm tensions between India and Pakistan because the United States needed Pakistan's help in fighting militants in neighboring Afghanistan.

"We can't solve Afghanistan without solving Pakistan. We are going to have to make sure that India and Pakistan are normalizing their relationship if we are going to be effective in some of other these areas," he told NBC.

The New York Times said on Sunday that the Bush administration was preparing to recommend that Obama's team consider telling Pakistan that continued US aid will depend on the military's being reconfigured to effectively fight militants.

Many al Qaeda and Taliban militants fled Afghanistan to Pakistan's border lands, which have never come under the full control of any government, after US-led forces ousted the Taliban in 2001.

Panchayats spurn grant for poorest of poor
OUR CORRESPONDENT
Krishnagar, Dec. 7: Over 20 gram panchayats in Nadia have refused to take housing grants under the Indira Awaas Yojana saying the below-poverty-line list for the scheme’s beneficiaries is faulty.

Over 100 panchayats run by the Trinamul Congress or the Congress or jointly by the two had earlier refused to take the money. The Nadia administration persuaded 79 of them to accept the funds after a series of meetings last month.

However, 21 panchayats refused to budge from their stand, which means nearly 2,500 families that had applied for the funds will be deprived.

“These 21 gram panchayats will also not get any money under the scheme next year for failing to utilise what they had been sanctioned. The amount that they did not use will have to be returned to the Centre,” said district magistrate Onkar Singh Meena.

The amount that will go back to Delhi is yet to assessed, he added.

A person living below the poverty line is entitled to Rs 35,000 under the Indira Awaas Yojana for a new house. The money is sent to the gram panchayats every quarter, depending on each panchayat area’s requirement.

“In Nadia, the BPL list is faulty. The people who deserve the funds are not on the list. Instead, most of those on the list have concrete houses and television sets at home,” said Sunil Ghosh, the panchayat upapradhan of Gajna in Hanskhali. “We cannot accept such a list and let the wealthy get access to poor people’s money.”

Nadia got Rs 25 crore in September for about 11,000 families which wanted to build houses. Of the eight lakh families in rural Nadia, three lakh live below the poverty line, according to the government’s figures.

Tapas Singha Roy, the Trinamul pradhan of Gobindapur panchayat in Krishnagunj, said he had requested the administration to give money under the scheme to the 170 people he had identified as “needy”. “But the government is giving it only to the 40 people who figure on its list. Most of them don’t deserve the money.”

The Opposition parties had won 120 of the 187 Nadia gram panchayats in the May elections.

Meena said he had asked the pradhans to delete the names of those they felt were not eligible for the grant.

“The state government has recently empowered panchayats to delete names from the list of beneficiaries (of schemes) if they think they are not eligible. But panchayats are not allowed to add new names. The panchayats opposing the grant want to add new names. We told them that is not possible,” the district magistrate said.

Tapash Ghosh, the upapradhan of Hatra gram panchayat of Chapra, said his panchayat decided not to take the money as it believed it would not reach the deserving. “Therefore, we have decided not to apply for it. We may reconsider our decision if the government includes the names of the people who are really poor,” said the Congress leader.
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1081208/jsp/bengal/story_10221911.jsp

Undercover tag on catch by city cops
OUR BUREAU
Dec. 7: A SIM card suspect arrested by Calcutta police could be a counter-insurgency policeman from Kashmir on an undercover mission, according to highly placed sources.

If the claim is established, it will mean the law enforcement network unwittingly helped the Mumbai attackers procure communication cards. It will also blow the cover of an undercover operative, which puts his life and that of his family at risk.

Calcutta police, unaware that the suspect could be associated with counter-insurgency, though he screamed “I too am a police constable” at the time of his arrest in Delhi, had publicly announced his name yesterday. The Telegraph is mentioning his name as it is already in the public domain.

Mukhtar Ahmed was arrested after a SIM card found on a slain terrorist in Mumbai was traced to him, according to Calcutta police, which are still to verify whether he is a policeman.

The sources said senior police officers in Kashmir have demanded Mukhtar’s release, saying he was one of their own and had infiltrated the Lashkar-e-Toiba. However, Calcutta police said they had not heard from Kashmir.

The arrests of Mukhtar, 37, and Tausif Rehman, the Calcutta youth who allegedly bought 22 SIM cards for him, were the first after the Mumbai attacks.

“Several days back, my son told me he is going to Jammu. This morning, I received a call from him and he said he is fine and would be home in a day or two,” Mukhtar’s father said in Srinagar today.

The father, a shopkeeper, said his son was in the police and was working with a senior officer. “After reports that Mukhtar was arrested, I approached (the officer) and he told me my son is perfectly all right,” he added.

The officer, however, told The Telegraph in Srinagar: “I know nothing about him. There were thousands of policemen working under me (in his last posting).”

Kashmir police are not commenting on the arrest officially. “I have not been informed about the issue. How can I order an investigation when I have no information?” state police chief B. Srinivasan said.

But police sources said Mukhtar was on an undercover mission and had “successfully” penetrated the Lashkar. He was recruited some years ago after his brother Aijaz was killed by militants, and had been promoted as constable.

Such undercover operations have helped crush the Hizb-ul Mujahideen and fight the Lashkar and the Jaish-e-Mohammed, a source said.

“Lashkar men had sought his help for procuring some SIMs, for which he had approached Tausif Rehman in Bengal,” a source said. “The central agencies were informed about these SIMs and they were told to monitor them.”

One of those SIMs was found in the belt of slain terrorist Abu Ismail in Mumbai.

The sources said one phone connection was first activated on October 9 briefly, probably for testing. Thereafter, signals from the SIM were picked up on November 26 — the night of the Mumbai attacks, the sources added.

A senior police officer said: “Sometimes we use our men in counter-insurgency operations to provide SIM cards to (militant) outfits so that we track their plans down.”

Another source in Delhi said Calcutta police had gone by an alert from Mumbai and the eastern force would not have had any information on the counter-insurgency operation in Kashmir. “In intelligence operations, the left hand need not always know what the right hand is doing.”

However, the source added, Calcutta police should have verified Ahmed’s claim thoroughly as soon as he cried out that he was a constable. The reported site of the arrest in Delhi, the J&K House, should also have alerted the police to the possibility of a government link.

Calcutta special task force officer Rajeev Kumar said: “We inquired about it and there was no confirmation. We will request our counterparts in Jammu and Kashmir to inform us in writing about Mukhtar’s background.”

He underscored that terror charges had not been pressed against Mukhtar. “We booked him under the particular charges applicable for the crimes that he committed in Calcutta. Whether he had any role in the terror attack in Mumbai is for our counterparts in Mumbai to find out,” Kumar added.
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Hang-out crowd at trade hub
- Loaded with cash but nothing to carry
MEGHDEEP BHATTACHARYYA

The crowd outside Metro Cash & Carry on Sunday evening. Picture by Bishwarup Dutta
Xavier and Elena Martin from Salt Lake had turned up at Metro Cash & Carry on Sunday evening planning to buy groceries. The middle-aged couple waited in the serpentine queue of over a thousand for over half an hour to enter the wholesale hub.

But they were shocked on reaching the first checkpoint outside the gates. The guards blocked their way as they were retail buyers, not retailers.

The Martins were unaware of the agreement between Metro Cash & Carry and the state government, which barred the German wholesale major from doing business with retail buyers.

Bona fide customers will have to get a card from the company after producing their trade licence.

“We were surprised. We had no idea that customers had to possess a card to gain entry. This is absurd. Our Sunday evening got marred,” said Xavier Martin, 41, a schoolteacher.

Like the Martins, most who had gathered outside the store were unaware of the curb — they had been lured by the news of almost every item under the sun being available cheap at the Bypass trade hub.

“Some retail customers are coming in but we have to turn them away. On an average, around 5,000 people with valid Metro Cash & Carry cards are entering the store every day,” said a spokesperson for the store.

Not just ignorance. The curiosity factor, too, is drawing crowds around the 100,000-sq-ft store, thrown open on December 4, slowing traffic to a crawl even on a weekend evening.

Bimal Basak, a state government employee from Lake Town, knew that he could not shop at Metro but still came with his 16-year-old son Bishesh.


“I came with my son just to see the gigantic outlet. But after around 40 minutes in the queue, we were told that we couldn’t even enter. It’s sad but rules are rules,” said Basak, as he stepped out of the queue.

“I have come to check out the prices and the best deals they are known to offer. I had visited one such store in Bangalore,” said Tarak Singh, a grocery store owner.

The 33-year-old trader from Park Circus emerged happy from the store which sells over 18,000 items — from tuna fish to chocolate sauce.

“It’s great that Calcutta has a store like this. I will come back and pick up some products,” said Singh before leaving the store, which attracted customers and curious onlookers till 10pm.

Taufiq Abbas, 21, a B.Com student from Ballygunge, dropped by around 8.30pm with his friends, mistaking the well-lit-up hub as a new hangout zone, much like their favourite City Centre.

“But we soon discovered that the store was only for business. We have nothing to do here… Let’s hope retailers buying goods cheap will pass on the benefits to us,” smiled Abbas, before heading for City Centre.

Metro Cash & Carry, the Indian arm of Metro AG, opened its first outlet in the city on Wednesday, nearly two months after it was granted the licence to sell farm commodities and other food items in Bengal. With an investment of Rs 140 crore, the store has created 350 jobs.

http://www.telegraphindia.com/1081208/jsp/calcutta/story_10220382.jsp

Paranoia
The terrorist strike on Mumbai has triggered an overwhelming feeling of fear and insecurity in people. Varuna Verma looks at the panic everywhere

DESTROYED: A gutted portion of the Taj hotel
Two days after terror struck Mumbai, Padma Sharma laid down a new set of rules in her house. No one was to switch on the television. No one was to answer the door. “Sharma felt some fresh terror attack would be telecast on TV. If someone knocked on the door, she would repeatedly ask who it was before opening,” says Y.A. Matcheswalla, head of the department of psychiatry, Masina Hospital, Mumbai, where the 33-year-old company professional was brought for counselling.

Matcheswalla recalls that Sharma was in a state of complete panic. “We had to give her sedatives to calm her down,” he says.

In the last 10 days or so, Masina Hospital’s psychiatric helpline has received over 60 calls a day from people who feared they would be the next victim of a terrorist’s bullet. About 10 to 12 people reported for counselling at the hospital’s out patient department daily. “People come with problems of phobias, panic reactions, palpitations, acidity, hallucinations and delusions,” says Matcheswalla.

If you think terrorists are lurking out there, waiting to pounce on you or spray you with bullets, you are not alone. Actor Amitabh Bachchan wrote in his blog that on the night of the Mumbai terror attack, he loaded his licensed revolver and kept it under his pillow before going to bed. And psychologists across India are counselling an increasing number of people with complaints of insecurity and fear. “People feel that they are not in control of their lives,” says Dayal Mirchandani, psychologist and founder, Behavioural Science Foundation, Mumbai.

An event manager told Mirchandani that he was looking for a job closer home because he didn’t want to travel by train any more. A 40-year-old woman told him that she would not attend any weddings this season. “Terrorism, along with an increasing crime rate, kidnappings and Naxal problems, has fuelled fear in the common man,” says Mirchandani.

Paranoia — which psychologists define as an exaggerated or unfounded fear that others are trying to hurt you — is clearly becoming a way of life in urban India. Rajat Mitra, psychologist and director, Swanchetan, a Delhi-based non-governmental organisation, says he has seen a three-fold increase in the number of people coming with problems of fear, anxiety and sleep disturbances in the last one year. “A few years earlier, people were paranoid about being poisoned or robbed. But now they are paranoid about losing their lives in terror attacks, plane crashes and train blasts,” says Mitra.

It’s not just India — the world seems to be living in fear. A decade-long study conducted by the Institute of Psychiatry at King’s College, London, which concluded in October this year, found that one in four people in London regularly faced fears of either being threatened or being in danger. “Fears about other people seem to have reached new heights — whether they be terrorists, binge-drinking youth, child abusers or criminals,” says Daniel Freeman, consultant clinical psychologist, Institute of Psychiatry, King’s College, who conducted the study. Freeman, who has authored a book Paranoia: The 21st Century Fear, adds that after a terrorist event, mistrust, suspiciousness and paranoia are at an all-time high. “Many people choose to avoid public spaces and will look at strangers as potential terrorists,” he explains.

That’s how urban India reacted after the Mumbai attacks. P.S. Murthy has been working as a psychologist at Bangalore’s Manipal Hospital for 10 years. He is a familiar face there. But after Mumbai was attacked on November 26, for the first time Murthy was put through a strict security check before entering the hospital. “My bag was checked and my identity card examined,” he says.

The psychologist also reports a sharp rise in the number of people coming to him with complaints of sleep disturbances and anxiety. “Last week, a 30-year-old software professional told me that if she hears any noise outside her house at night she jumps out of bed to check if everything is alright,” says Murthy.

Indian cities have seen terror before. But psychologists say paranoia levels peaked after last week’s Mumbai attack. Historian Ramachandra Guha believes the 24x7 live coverage of the attack also fanned mass hysteria across the country. “There was non-stop coverage and people were hooked to their television sets. It disturbed many people and led to greater paranoia,” says Guha.

Mumbai’s Masina Hospital was flooded with calls from people who watched television round the clock and then felt they too had been part of the attack, says Matcheswalla. “Many people said they did not dare leave their house. Some complained that their children wouldn’t go to the bathroom alone,” he says.

What probably rattled the collective Indian psyche was the fact that the Mumbai attack made the country’s rich and powerful its victim, says Sandeep Vohra, president, Indian Association of Private Psychiatry, Delhi. “In India, the general feeling is that the rich lead a charmed, protected life. When they were hit, no one felt safe,” he explains.

Vohra adds that there is a growing sense of cynicism among the common man. “People feel no one can fix the mess. If you feel there is no way out, it further fuels paranoia and insecurity,” he says.

Also, this was the first time in urban India that a terror attack went on for so long. “This was not just one bomb blast but a 60-hour attack. So it left deeper scars,” says Guha. Jai Ranjan Ram, consultant psychiatrist, Apollo Gleneagles Hospital, Calcutta, too feels that the magnitude of the attack triggered feelings of insecurity and depression.

Gujarat has been through the after effects of a long tryst with terrorism and violence. After communal riots ripped the state, a post-riot psychiatric OPD was set up at Seth Vadilal Sarabhai (V.S.) General Hospital, Ahmedabad. “We saw 260 patients in three months. Most did not have a history of psychiatric problems,” says Laxman Dutt, associate professor, psychiatry, V.S. Hospital. Patients came with problems of post traumatic stress disorders, fear, anxiety and depression.

A housewife, Lata Shah, suffering from severe anxiety, was brought to the V.S. Hospital by her husband. “Shah lived in a communally sensitive area and felt that bombs had been planted around her house. She would check every corner of her house before going to bed,” says Hitendra Gandhi, head of department, psychiatry, V.S. Hospital, who treated her.

Mrugesh Vaishnav too has a sense of déjà vu after the Mumbai attack. The president of the Indian Psychiatry Society, west zone, Ahmedabad, says it has triggered the same psychological trauma that the Gujarat riots had done. Last week, a 12-year-old boy was brought to Vaishnav for counselling. “He wet his bed three times on the night of the Mumbai attack. He felt the terrorists would come to his house and kill his parents,” says Vaishnav.

In Mumbai psychologist Dayal Mirchandani saw three children with anxiety problems in the week after the terror attack. “One child asked his parents if the terrorists would go to his school and shoot him,” recalls Mirchandani.

Psychiatric centres across India are now rolling out plans to tackle the growing terror-related public paranoia. In Delhi, Swanchetan has put forward a proposal to schools to conduct self-preservation programmes for children. “This is common in schools in Israel and the US. It teaches children to be prepared against terror attacks and school shootouts,” says Mitra.

The psychiatry department at Masina Hospital has also sent a proposal to the Maharashtra government to start a counselling booth at Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (CST) station. “People are scared of going to the station. Counsellors at the booth will help them overcome their paranoia,” says Matcheswalla. Psychologists from the hospital are also visiting people who call in to say that they are scared of leaving their houses.

Smriti Dutt, a Mumbai college student, still hasn’t summoned the guts to leave her house. “Since hotels, malls and trains have already been targeted, she feels colleges are next on the terror hit list,” says psychologist Harish Shetty, who is counselling her. He is yet to convince Dutt to get back to college.
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1081207/jsp/7days/story_10216902.jsp

High-voltage stir in Dumka
- Police open fire on mob against power plants, 1 dead
GAUTAM SARKAR

Police stand guard as the mob approaches them. Picture by Mani Keshri
Dumka, Dec. 6: Armed with bows and arrows, thousands of villagers fought a pitched battle with the police here to protest the arrest of four activists at the forefront of an ongoing agitation against two power plants that are coming up in the region, dealing another blow to the already strained ties between industry and the rural populace of Jharkhand.

While one villager, identified as Sibram Soren of Saraikhani, was killed allegedly in the police firing that followed, five others were injured. Three policemen were also hurt.

Villagers opposed to the land acquisition drive for the two power plants in tribal-dominated Kathikund and Shikaripara blocks, both around 25km from the district headquarters, were protesting against the recent arrest of Munni Hansdak, Charan Kumar, Hopna Baski and Rajcharan Murmu, activists of Jharkhand Ulgulan Manch, at the centre of protests against land acquisition for the plants.

As per an MoU signed in 2005 when Arjun Munda was chief minister, two 1,000MW power plants were to be set up — one by CESC of the RPG Group of Calcutta at Pokharia in Kathikund block and the other by Jindals at Amgachi under Shikaripara block.

With the beginning of land acquisition, the two blocks have seen widespread protests under the banner of the manch that vows to protect villagers’ ancestral property. Villagers allege Munni, a popular leader in the area, was falsely implicated by the police and arrested along with three others on November 26.

To protest the arresting, the manch activists along with Manjhi Baisi (bodies of traditional village heads) today called for offering arresting in the large numbers. Security measures have been beefed up, especially at Kathikund.

Trouble started around 1.30pm when thousands of villagers, including women and children, began surrounding the Kathikund police station from a radius of 3km. They threatened to court arrest if the four manch activists weren’t released. The police, however, asked the villagers to move the Rampur-Kathikund road, some 3km away, and court arrest there. This infuriated the already agitated mob and they started attacking the police station with traditional weapons.
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1081207/jsp/jharkhand/story_10216246.jsp

World must force Pakistan to crack down on terrorism

8 Dec 2008, 1618 hrs IST, G PARTHASARATHY,
On December 13, 2001, well-armed terrorists stormed India’s Parliament and were gunned down by alert security personnel. Investigations revealed India’s most Wanted
Forces that tackled terrorists
What to do during terror attacks?
that the terrorists had come from Pakistan and worked together with local contacts. I recall going with a parliamentary delegation to Arab countries giving them details of evidence we had, including wireless intercepts, and describing how the group, comprising members of the Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) led by Maulana Masood Azhar, had been in touch with handlers across the border. Pakistan, however, accused us of indulging in a “blame game” and feigned injured innocence.

But, on March 6, 2004, Lt Gen Javed Ashraf Qazi, a former directorgeneral of the ISI and then Pakistan’s minister for railways, told Pakistan’s parliament: “We must not be afraid to admit that the Jaish-e-Mohammed was involved in the deaths of thousands of innocent Kashmiris, the bombing of the Indian parliament, (American journalist) Daniel Pearl’s murder and an attempt to assassinate President Musharraf.” Pakistani protestations of injured innocence are not new. Interpol investigations established that the ISI gave hijackers of an Indian Airlines flight a pistol at Lahore airport in 1984.

Words like “blame game” continue to emanate from Islamabad even after Indian, British and American intelligence know the route taken by the terrorists from Karachi. The proposal for a “joint investigative mechanism” by Pakistan is laughable, as Pakistan will stall or deny culpability as it has done on the presence of Dawood Ibrahim in Karachi, whose mansion one has, incidentally, personally driven past in 1999. One does not provide evidence to a burglar in the investigation of a burglary.

Like it denied involvement of the JeM in the attack on our Parliament, Islamabad now denies the involvement of the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) in the Mumbai carnage. The LeT leader Hafiz Mohammed Saeed proclaims that “Christians , Jews and Hindus are enemies of Islam” , adding that it was the aim of the LeT to “unfurl the green flag of Islam in Washington, Tel Aviv and New Delhi” . His organisation has actively contributed to so-called jihad not only in India, but also in the Philippines, the Middle East, Central Asia and Chechnya. Pakistani immigrants in the UK have been motivated and trained by the LeT. Its members were arrested, undergoing military training for “jihad” in the US, from where Saeed’s brother was recently deported.

On January 13, 2001, LeT terrorists attacked the Red Fort in Delhi. Shortly thereafter, Saeed boasted to a gathering of leaders of religious parties in Pakistan that he had unfurled Pakistan’s flag in the capital of the country’s past Muslim rulers. Saeed does not confine his territorial ambitions to Jammu and Kashmir. He proclaims that “Hyderabad Deccan” and Junagadh are parts of Pakistan and that his aim is to “liberate” the Muslims of India from “Hindu oppression” .
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/World_must_force_Pakistan_to_crack_down_on_terrorism/articleshow/3808762.cms

Obama asked to inquire into "pro-Hindu" groups' Indian link

8 Dec 2008, 1408 hrs IST, PTI

NEW YORK: A rights watchdog has asked US President-elect Barak Obama to closely scrutinize the linkages of "pro-Hindu" groups with communal forces
in India.

Expressing concern over some Non-Government Organisations (NGOs) and other outfits sending money to Hindu fundamentalist groups, the Coalition Against Genocide (CAG) yesterday wrote a letter to Obama and called for closely scrutinizing their linkages to communal forces in India.

In the letter, CAG identified VHP America, India Development and Relief Fund and Ekal Vidyalaya as among the organisations funding fundamentalist bodies in India.

They claim to be independent of RSS and VHP in India but are connected with them and share their ideology and project partnerships, the letter added.

Community campaigns for UN authorisation for strikes at Pakistan terror camps

8 Dec 2008, 1159 hrs IST, IANS

NEW YORK: The Indian American community has launched a petition campaign all over the country urging the US to support a resolution in the UN
Security Council that would permit strikes against terrorists camps inside Pakistan.

Thousands of people have signed this petition, which is being kept outside for signatures, at the scores of condolence meetings and candle light vigil in memory of the victims of Mumbai terrorist attacks, being held across the US in the past week.

"We urge the US to support a UN Security Council resolution to permit strikes against terror camps within Pakistan, in cases where they are unable or unwilling to act," says the petition, which according to its organizers would be submitted to the US g overnment soon.

"There is a spontaneous response to this petition. Thousands of people have already signed it," Kiran Desai, one of the community leaders and organizers said, at a condolence meeting held in New Jersey Sunday afternoon. New Jersey, alone has hosted at least 15 condolence meetings for victims of Mumbai terror attack.

Observing that the Indian American community is generally against a direct military confrontation with Pakistan at this point of time, the petition urges the United States to demand that Pakistan should close down all its terrorist camps.

"Pakistan's failure to comply must result in declaration of Pakistan as a terrorist State by the US Government," it said. It also urges the US Congress to cut all financial aid to Pakistan.

In the aftermath of the Mumbai attack, several other petition campaigns ha ve been launched by the community here. In fact, two of those petitions figured in top ten of www.petitiononline.com.

Another petition launched by the US India Political Action Committee has urged the US Congress that funding to Pakistan should be contingent on it extraditing Dawood Ibrahim, one of the region's most deadly underworld criminals.

"We believe that in the interests of broader peace - America needs to demand that Pakistan close down all terror camps in its territory or risk losing US funding that has amounted to over $10 billion in US Tax payer dollars since 9/11," the petition said.

'LeT will fight with army against India'

8 Dec 2008, 0905 hrs IST, Times Now

New Delhi: “The Army is responsible to safeguard Pakistani geographical frontiers against any external aggression . And like any other patriotic
Pakistani, we will also stand behind the armed forces if the Indians resort to any aggression against the sovereignty of Pakistan,” said Hafiz Mohammed Saeed, amir of the Jamaat-ud-Dawa , renamed version of Lashkar-e-Taiba which is the primary accused in the Mumbai attacks last week.

It shows in no uncertain terms that despite the post-9 /11 ban on the LeT, the organisation is alive and well and not nearly as opposed to the Pakistani military-intelligence establishment as it would have others believe.

In an interview where he proclaims the LeT’s innocence in the Mumbai attacks, Saeed said of the Indian demand for his extradition, “I can’t stop them from making any such demand which is actually a crude attempt to divert attention of the Indian people from their massive security and intelligence failure that led to the Mumbai attacks.”

He takes the standard Pakistani line that since Malegaon and Samjhauta Express blasts have shown Indian involvement , this was also true for the Mumbai attacks. The US leadership has apparently told the Pakistan government that it needs to take swift action on Saeed and JuD within days.

Meanwhile, reports indicate that Pakistan would be sending back a response to the Indian demarche early this week.
This would include the Pakistani counter-suggestion for a joint investigation under a commission led by the two national security advisers (NSA) and more “solid” evidence by India. It’s also unlikely that any ISI official will be allowed to come to India, after the PM asked for the DGISI to visit.

ISI backed LeT, gave protection during Mumbai attack:Report

8 Dec 2008, 1811 hrs IST,

NEW YORK: Lashkar-e-Toiba, the Pakistan-based militant group, had the backing of the Islamic nation's spy agency ISI, which shared intelligence
with Lashkar and provided protection to it in the Mumbai terror attacks, a media report said on Monday.

American intelligence and counterterrorism officials were quoted by the New York Times as saying that LeT has quietly gained strength in recent years with the assistance of Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), which has allowed the group to train and raise money while other militants have been under siege.

Officials said though there is no hard evidence yet to link the spy agency to the Mumbai attacks, ISI shared intelligence with Lashkar and provided protection for it. The ISI has shared intelligence with Lashkar and provided protection for it, the officials told the paper, and investigators are focusing on one Lashkar leader they believe is a main liaison with the spy service and a mastermind of the attacks.

"People are having to go back and relook at all the connections," one American counterterrorism official, who was among several officials who spoke on condition of anonymity to the paper, was quoted as saying. American and Indian officials believe that one senior Lashkar commander in particular, Zarrar Shah, is one of the group's primary liaisons to the ISI. "He's a central character in this plot," one American official said.

As a result of the assault India's financial hub, American counterterrorism and military officials say they are reassessing their view of Lashkar and believe it to be more capable and a greater threat than they had previously recognised. Pakistani officials have denied any government connection to the siege on November 26-29, in which nearly 200 people were killed in Mumbai.

Govt working on plan to prevent aerial attacks

8 Dec 2008, 1531 hrs IST, PTI

NEW DELHI: After a severe beating of security arrangements at the hands of terrorists coming through the sea route to commit 26/11, the government
is now trying to piece together a plan to declare airspace over strategic installations no-fly zones to prevent 9/11-type attacks.

As the terrorists came on speed boats to launch the deadliest attack on Mumbai nearly two weeks ago, the Navy and the Coast Guard may patrol the mouth of Gulf of Cambay more frequently to protect oil and gas wells and other such installations in the western offshore, besides ships carrying crude oil and LNG into the country.

The need is being felt for securing the airspace as well. Oil Minister Murli Deora has met Home Minister P Chidambaram and Defence Minister A K Antony to "flag possible threats to oil and gas installations," official sources said.

Ninteen public and private sector oil refineries and installations such crude import hubs at Kandla in Gujarat and liquefied natural gas receiving facilities at Dahej and Hazira, in the same state, may be covered by the no-fly zone.

The Indian Air Force would be responsible for reinforcing the 'no-fly-zones', they said pointing a suicide mission like the 9/11 strike in US or even a remote-control operated unmanned plane could create havoc at oil installations.

Navy and Coast Guard may be pressed for increasing patrol in western offshore, home to India's largest oil and gas producing fields of Mumbai High and Bassein, to guard against terrorists strikes on facilities like oil wells - most of which are unmanned.

While the Navy, Coast Guard and the security apparatus of the oil companies would guard the entire perimeter of the installations, sources said a "quick-response" team may be constituted to respond to any emergency.

The real empowerment of India

It is important that a balance is maintained between the role of women and men and they function in harmony. If there is conflict in the basic structure like the family, the entire edifice of the society will crumble.
CJ: INDIAN , 4 Nov 2008 Views:431 Comments:2
TODAY, EVERYONE is talking of women empowerment. Well, definitely for the progress of a huge country like India the empowerment of women is essential. But, we have to understand what do we truly mean by the empowerment of women in India. Yes, the women have been exploited by men from past times and the times are changing.

Today, the India women are coming up on their own and making a mark for themselves, which is a very encouraging. Women like late kalpana chwla, Sunita Williams and numerous others are working successfully in a range of professions. They constitute great doctors,engineers, sports persons, who are making our country proud.

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But with women empowerment comes another unnoticed aspect, which causes great trouble. The problem is that due to the changes in law giving more protection to women, some have started using it in a wrong way.

Recently, in a conference former police official Kiran Bedi emphasised that women should be given more protection but that does not mean that they have the license to misuse the law. The basic point is that though the women need to be empowered but a line has to be drawn between what is right and what is wrong. In the name of women empowerment, people cannot take law into their own hands and misuse it.

It is important that a balance is maintained between the role of women and men and they function in harmony. If there is conflict in the basic structure like the family, the entire edifice of the society will crumble.

http://www.merinews.com/catFull.jsp?articleID=146143

In a country as diverse and complex as India, it is not surprising to find that people here reflect the rich glories of the past, the culture, traditions and values relative to geographic locations and the numerous distinctive manners, habits and food that will always remain truly Indian. According to five thousand years of recorded history, India has been invaded by armies, traders and immigrants who brought with them their own habits, faiths, practices and observances which have all contributed to the rich texture of Indian life and living.
From the eternal snows of the Himalayas to the cultivated peninsula of far South, from the deserts of the West to the humid deltas of the East, from the dry heat and cold of the Central Plateau to the cool forest foothills, Indian lifestyles clearly glorify the geography. The food, clothing and habits of an Indian differ in accordance to the place of origin.

Deep-rooted family values continue to exist in Indian families. The surname of an Indian is based on his caste or place of origin or his family occupation. Men are still considered the head of a family and are consulted for all decisions though they no longer continue to be the single breadwinner. A wife will always serve her husband before she eats. Parents are looked upon with respect and regard. Children are financially supported by their parents throughout their education.

Indians believe in sharing happiness and sorrow. A festival or a celebration is never constrained to a family or a home. The whole community or neighborhood is involved in bringing liveliness to an occasion. A lot of festivals like Diwali, Holi, Id, Christmas, Mahaveer Jayanthi are all celebrated by sharing sweets and pleasantries with family, neighbours and friends. An Indian wedding is an occasion that calls for participation of the family and friends.Similarly, neighbours and friends always help out a family in times of need.

Though ethnically Indians speak different languages, follow different religions, eat the most diverse varieties of food, there is still a richness in Indian arts and culture which is unparalleled anywhere else in the world. The beauty of the Indian people lies in the spirit of tolerance, give-and-take and a composition of cultures that can be compared to a garden of flowers of various colors and shades of which, while maintaining their own entity, lend harmony and beauty to the garden - India!
http://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/Shrine/4287/people.htm

Global Problems
India and the World
by Rajesh Talwar

Many years ago, Rabindranath Tagore wrote that the problems of India today are the problems of the world tomorrow. His prescience is astonishing because half a century later it appears clear that the problems of India will be the problems of the world in not so much time if they are not so already. Despite its recent economic growth, whether it is the degradation of land, its burgeoning population, problems with democracy, the urban –rural divide – all these questions have a resonance with issues and problems in other parts of the globe. In a sense therefore when a writer writes about the problems of India he is simultaneously writing about the problems of the world.

Can anyone write about the problems of the world today with a combination of simplicity and wisdom or is the modern world simply too complicated for this? Where would someone start were he to attempt such a monumental undertaking? He would certainly look at broad facts and information concerning important issues, but would this provide sufficient material for proper analysis.

Each major global problem has hundreds of ramifications and thousands of articles and essays have been written about them but if one were to incorporate references to all those studies, simplicity would go out of the window.

If simplicity is affected the next casualty is dissemination, for very few people will understand an argument that is not simply presented. This lack of communication is fatal in the social sciences even though it may not pose a problem on scientific issues. Very few people in the world understood Einstein’s theory of relativity but it did not stop the Americans from making (and indeed dropping) the atom bomb.

We are in an age of super specialization and this is not only in the physical sciences but also in the social sciences. Researchers don’t take out time to write books anymore for fear that their writings will be outdated. Academics concentrate on having their articles published in scholarly journals for in academic life they have to either publish or perish. While inter-disciplinary approaches are welcomed in academia, few are willing to take the risk of combining three or four different social sciences. In doing so, they forget that knowledge is a unity and its division into the physical and social sciences is to help people make concentrated efforts. In the academic world we are all like moles burrowing into the ground, but we need to take the utmost care that our focus does not become too narrow and we must not lose sight of the bigger picture.

The modern way of producing a book on global problems and their solutions is not to write it, but first to establish an interdisciplinary committee to decide what are the global problems and once these had been determined to ask globally acknowledged experts to write a chapter each on the global problems of the world.

This may seem the best way to proceed, but it is this writer’s modest assertion that it is not. Such an approach is flawed on two accounts. Firstly, there is a hidden assumption here that one can study each global problem in isolation and therefore we should hire an expert in demography to write on population issues, an expert in post conflict resolution to write on conflicts around the globe and so on and forth. The second problem with such an approach is since there are many writers working on separate problems the nature of discourse in each individual chapter can be very different. Each writer is coming with a different background and while this can in some cases be a strength it is more likely to be a failing in the presentation of a composite work of this nature.

There is quite often a third problem in such an approach and that is that is has been funded by an organization which is not bipartisan. In other words there is possibly a grant of several million dollars to have such a study conducted for these experts do not come cheap and consultants will need to be hired in the organization of this venture. Committee members who determine what are the global problems will have to be flown in from different parts of the world to a specific central located, housed in five star accommodation and provided secretarial help. A secretariat will need to be set up to organize the event and there will be additionally consultants on loan or on appointments of limited duration who will be paid to organize everything.

Nothing wrong with this, it could be argued.

I would not agree. There is a purity to work that is done (even academic work) without any thought of benefit or reward. Also, those who fund such an undertaking quite often have a not so apparent, hidden agenda and the recommendations may therefore not follow the studies but precede them!

The problems of India today are the problems of the world tomorrow, wrote Rabindranath Tagore many decades ago and his prediction has come true. Growing up in India provides a writer with a unique qualification to think not only about the problems of India but the problems of the world for the two are no longer separate.

November 5, 2006

Image under license with Gettyimages.com
http://www.boloji.com/perspective/216.htm


India's Democracy Has Many Voices
By Lea Terhune
The world's largest democracy is distinctive. With dozens of languages and hundreds of dialects spoken, India's population is among the most diverse in the world.

"It's very fluid, very dynamic, almost chaotic when viewed from the outside," said Mira Kamdar, author of Planet India, a book that examines "the turbulent rise of the largest democracy and the future of our world."

India is a country "going through a continued phase of incredible evolution and change," she told America.gov. In recent decades, India has moved from the tight control of a political dynasty to a rough-and-tumble era of coalition governments that must respond to broader constituencies.

"You are watching the enfranchisement into the political process of whole blocks of a population whose specific interests and needs really never found expression in that process before in any kind of direct way," Kamdar said. New parties are coming up and old parties that used to be powerful are losing influence.

According to Sevanti Ninan, media analyst, author and co-founder of www.thehoot.org, regional newspapers have helped that process. "It's a post-liberalization phenomenon," she said. In the early 1990s, growth in advertising made it lucrative for vernacular papers to expand regional editions.

There are upwards of 70 such papers in the politically important and populous Hindi Belt in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh alone.

"There's an emerging rural middle class, it has purchasing capacity, it's interested in buying newspapers, it's upwardly mobile," and it delivers a new, "very broad segment to the advertiser," Ninan said.

These papers do a great deal of local reporting. "If a bridge collapses, or a shoddily built hospital or road, you start saying, 'Who built it?'

"When the press gets more local, there is more scrutiny of local institutions and local governments, and in that sense people have a greater say, they know what's happening, the little fellow who wants to get elected from there becomes accountable."

LOCAL GOVERNANCE
Ninan said the institutionalization of the panchayat, or council of five, as a formal village governance system has spurred more citizen involvement.

Election of five elders to a village council to arbitrate local disputes is a tradition in India. But in 1994, a constitutional amendment delegated more administrative authority to these councils and reserved one-third of the seats for women and some for lower-caste individuals.

Panchayats now look after village infrastructure, schools, public health and water supplies and keep local records. Their flowering coincided with the rise of regional newspapers, Ninan said.

"They did a lot of panchayat coverage. ... Village-level democracy gets a big boost from newspapers." The newspapers helped to localize concerns and give the panchayat members a platform: "It's another level of democracy. ... You have democracy because of local self-governance; you have democracy because of the local press interacting with the local self-governance process."

Despite big, urban newspapers becoming more consumer-driven, Ninan said, "more than TV, which isn't really able to do justice to complex issues, I think the Indian press is still doing a good job."

VOICE OF THE PEOPLE

The people's voice is being heard in India, but sometimes its volume can pose problems. Kamdar said representation of many interests is healthy, but a coalition government of 15 or more parties makes it "difficult to push through certain kinds of legislation or initiatives" that lack popular appeal. She cited the U.S.-India Civil Nuclear Agreement as an example.

That agreement to transfer nuclear technologies for the purpose of clean power generation has been stalled in India by political opposition. (See "President Bush Signs U.S.-India Civil Nuclear Agreement ( http://www.america.gov/st/washfile-english/2006/December/20061218155402idybeekcm0.1876795.html ).")

Analyst Michael Krepon, co-founder of the Stimson Center, agreed. "India's fractious democracy has to rely a great deal on consensual agreement. The country is so diversified, a high value is placed upon consensus."

"I think India's vibrant democracy is a great strength, and it's also a great inconvenience when it comes to making hard political decisions," he told America.gov.

"We see it in our own country, where a party that supports something when it's in office opposes it when it's in the opposition. That's part of how democracies work," Krepon said.

Kamdar said he sees another similarity between Indian and American politics: supporting a candidate "so that he can get his hands on the goody pot and pass some goodies back to us" rather than for "his or her ideas and policies they propose."

India contends with violent domestic militancy, so security issues influence its democratic processes. "All of India's neighbors are very unsettled. India lives in a very tough neighborhood. It's not just China, the big guy, which seems to be settled, it's also the smaller countries, that have great domestic turbulence and provide breeding grounds for violent acts," Krepon said.

India foreign policy expert C. Raja Mohan, currently at Nanyan Technological University in Singapore, added, "The relationship with Pakistan and Bangladesh is very central to the foundation and evolution of Indian democracy, for these two relations are as much domestic as they are bilateral." Both countries were part of British India.

"The positive evolution of ties with Pakistan," he said, is "definitely a signal of [India's] maturation."

Kamdar said Indian democracy is not like U.S. democracy, but she sees a tremendous opportunity for future cooperation between the two countries, particularly in tackling big issues of mutual concern like global warming.

Source: U.S. Department of State

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http://newsblaze.com/story/20080522064819tsop.nb/topstory.html

Bombs found at CST even as Mumbai remembers victims

Zeenews Bureau

Mumbai, Dec 03: Two time-bombs were defused at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus on Wednesday even as thousands thronged at the Gateway of India to protest the terror strikes that rattled the city a week ago.

Related Stories
We will not bow down before terrorism: Sonia Four kilograms of RDX explosives were put in 2 school bags each that were kept at the parcel wing of the station, near platform 15. The bags were spotted amongst the luggage of 26/11 victims.

The bombs were defused by the Bomb Disposal Squad that has been on alert since last week incident. Fire tenders and medicos were also put on high alert as the news of a bomb at the station came in.

The bags were found when police officials were going through abandoned luggage, said Mumbai deputy police commissioner Rakesh Maria. It was a left over by the terrorists, he added.

Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh along with top police officers was on a tour of the station which saw the maximum killings by two terrorists. He was immediately escorted out of the station. Security forces have surrounded the station.

The city has been on high-alert ever since 10 terrorists targeted high profile and crowded areas in Mumbai, killing 200 and injuring over 300.

Mumbaikars throng Gateway of India

A week after Mumbai was struck by coordinated terror attacks, hundreds of its residents today gathered near the Gateway of India for a protest rally to condemn the strikes and pay respects to the victims.

The Gateway of India is a stone's throw away from heritage Taj hotel, one of the locations hit by the audacious attacks.

People carrying candles and placards in memory of the victims reached the Gateway, some of them in processions via Dadabhai Naoroji Road and paid tributes to those who had fallen to the terrorists' bullets and grenades, including brave heart policemen and NSG commandos.

People were seen shouting slogans against politicians, blaming them for the state of affairs in the country.

"I feel that politicians should be made answerable for their actions, or like in this case, inactions which are causing the country dearly," Ram Varma, a resident of suburban Bandra, said.

It was biggest gathering in India's financial hub since terrorists struck at 10 places on the night of Nov 26 and went on to massacre 161 Indians and 22 foreigners and injure more than 300 in the most audacious terror strike in the country.

By evening, the police were estimating the sea of people at several thousands - a spontaneous show of citizen power and mass homage to the innocents gunned down in cold blood by terrorists who India says came from Pakistan by boat. There were also a few foreigners - men as well as women.

The Mumbai demonstration coincided with similar angry protests across India - in Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, New Delhi, Noida and Jaipur.

“Love All, Hate None” - read one cardboard banner carried by a young man. “The only thing necessary for evil to flourish is for good men to do nothing,” read another. Yet another with a woman showed mug shots of “most hated politicians” - Chief Ministers Vilasrao Deshmukh of Maharashtra and V.S. Achuthanandan of Kerala.

There was also anger against Pakistan, which has denied all connections with the Mumbai killers. “Time to make Pakistan history,” threatened one banner.

A Sikh trader was emphatic that terrorism can be defeated. "If it can be overcome in Punjab, it can be done in Mumbai also."

IANS input
http://www.zeenews.com/nation/2008-12-03/488121news.html

What Do You Mean, Terrorists Still Target Americans After We Elected Obama?
American Sentinel ^ | November 26, 2008 | Michael Eden

Posted on Thursday, November 27, 2008 10:25:06 AM by Michael Eden

We've been told stuff like, "A Barack Obama Presidency Will Restore America's Prestige." We've been told Obama "would begin a presidency with tremendous potential to heal U.S. relations with much of the world."

We've been told all kinds of moronic drivel. And a great deal of it has come in the form of "objective news analysis."

The reality is that everybody who hated us before will still hate us now. The only difference after this election is that those enemies know that we elected an appeasing lightweight whom they think they can push around. Essentially, we decided we wanted a poodle instead of a rottweiler.

Regardless of the "If we elect Barack Obama, the world will love us, all the prestige we lost under Bush will be restored, the world will respect us, and the sugar plum fairies will sprinkle pixie dust on the whole wide wonderful world" narrative we've been fed, the reality just aint going to be like that.

You've heard of the massive, well-coordinated attack in seven locations in India's financial capital, Mumbia? Maybe you also heard stuff like this:

"They were talking about British and Americans specifically. There was an Italian guy, who, you know, they said: 'Where are you from?" and he said he's from Italy and they said 'fine' and they left him alone. And I thought: 'Fine, they're going to shoot me if they ask me anything — and thank God they didn't," he said.
That from an Associated Press story entitled, "Terrorist attacks in India target Americans; hostages taken, death toll rising."
Well, that isn't very nice of them.

Maybe they didn't hear that we elected this glorious "transformational figure" to be our new prom-king-in-chief?

At the same time we've got terrorists trying to target Americans in India, we've got terrorists threatening to attack the New York subway system.

Liberals gave George Bush as much hell as they possibly could have during his presidency. They opposed the Patriot Act, opposed Gitmo, opposed interrogating terrorists, opposed domestic wiretapping of international calls from terrorists, opposed that we didn't give full constitutional protections to terrorists, opposed pretty much everything President Bush tried to do to fight the war on terror or to keep us safe at home. And what would they have done if we HAD suffered another attack during his presidency? They would have screamed that he didn't keep us safe!

We've also got Russia threatening the United States over US missile defense plans in eastern Europe. And we've got Venezuelan warships taking part in war exercises with a Russian naval group during an unprecedented visit to Venezuela by a Russian leader to further solidify an alliance between oil giants.

Of course, that's a drop in the bucket compared with the very real possibility that Israel will attack Iran over that country's nuclear weapons program precisely because they may not believe that a President Obama would be up to the job.

Here we are, waiting for the brand new wonderful world that Dear Leader Barack Obama's "gonna lead us" into. So far, the media has been unrelentingly unfair in its biased coverage of the political campaign. The same media that wouldn't let Bush do anything right won't let Obama do anything wrong.

But some point, we're going to be forced to wake up, smell the coffee, and deal with reality. And media sugarcoating won't be enough to make our problems go away.

If we're attacked by terrorists during Obama's administration, it will be because he's a weak, pathetic leader who can't protect us. If he fights our enemies, it's because he's a vicious bloodthirsty warmonger. If he doesn't fight our enemies, it's because he's an appeasing coward who would rather bow down and cringe than stand up and fight. In other words, he's going to find out that constant demonization swings both ways.



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TOPICS: Government; Military/Veterans; Miscellaneous; Politics
KEYWORDS: americanvalues; bho2008; india; islam; jihad; media; mohammedanism; stealthjihad; targetamericans; terrorists


1 posted on Thursday, November 27, 2008 10:25:07 AM by Michael Eden
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To: Michael Eden
Nothing to see here..Rainbows and Puppies. Rainbows and Puppies.



2 posted on Thursday, November 27, 2008 10:26:16 AM by Per-Ling
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To: Michael Eden


3 posted on Thursday, November 27, 2008 10:28:31 AM by pillut48 (CJ in TX --"God help us all, and God help America!!" --my new mantra for the next 4 years)
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To: Michael Eden
Would this be the “change” we were promised?



4 posted on Thursday, November 27, 2008 10:28:38 AM by Volunteer (Just so you know, I am ashamed the Dixie Chicks make records in Nashville.)
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To: Michael Eden
When you demonstrate weakness — which we have, you invite attack — which we will endure.



5 posted on Thursday, November 27, 2008 10:29:01 AM by Mad_Tom_Rackham (The committed will surely dominate the complacent.)
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To: Per-Ling
Obama is nothing but a fraud and people will soon start to see they elected an empty suit that is also EVIL.



6 posted on Thursday, November 27, 2008 10:29:14 AM by LegalEagle61 (If you are going to burn our flag, please make sure you are wearing it when you do!)
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To: Michael Eden
We've been told stuff like, "A Barack Obama Presidency Will Restore America's Prestige." We've been told Obama "would begin a presidency with tremendous potential to heal U.S. relations with much of the world."
Yeah, well, what good is a Memory Hole without stuff to throw down it?

Just drink your room temperature gin and everything will be just fine, Winston....ummmm....errr....I mean Michael.


7 posted on Thursday, November 27, 2008 10:29:47 AM by Texas Eagle (If it wasn't for double-standards, Liberals would have no standards at all.)
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To: Michael Eden
It may even get worse.
Look, the Iranian students marched right into the US Embassy in Teheran and took over the place knowing CLEARLY they had to answer to the likes of ....JIMMY CARTER!!

Obama will be terrorist bait. They are going to go to town under his rule. Too bad lots of Americans overseas may suffer as a result. Because they, the deadly enemy, know he wont do jackshit. This is just the opening salvos.


8 posted on Thursday, November 27, 2008 10:34:16 AM by AmericanInTokyo (Shouldn't we form "Committees of Correspondence" thru Freepmail & V-Cards if FR is to be shut down?)
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To: LegalEagle61
I was a fine arts major back in my college days and subscribed to all this amorphous “change” crap, until I grew up. Obama is a college student’s/academician’s whet dream. His platitudes are vacuous, yet familiar enough to make ignoramouses feel good. This is the same crowd that likes to dwell on what the world COULD be, while the adults must deal with the world that is reality.



9 posted on Thursday, November 27, 2008 10:34:18 AM by Per-Ling
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To: Michael Eden
Even if the jihad returns in force to commit violence against us, due to the weakness of the Appeaser in Chief, you’ll never hear the phrase, “It’s all Obama’s fault!”



10 posted on Thursday, November 27, 2008 10:36:27 AM by Windflier (To anger a conservative, tell him a lie. To anger a liberal, tell him the truth.)
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To: Volunteer
Somebody ought to splice together two videos:
One, of the CST Train Station in Mumbai a few hours ago where they were cleaning up liters of blood and brain matter on the floor of slain Indians, next to that video of the little brainwashed kids just a few months ago ridiculously singing in Venice California, "Obama's gonna change the world!" "Yes we can..cann....cannn.."


11 posted on Thursday, November 27, 2008 10:36:42 AM by AmericanInTokyo (Shouldn't we form "Committees of Correspondence" thru Freepmail & V-Cards if FR is to be shut down?)
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To: Per-Ling
Obama’s “defining moment” seems to be looming sooner rather than later.



12 posted on Thursday, November 27, 2008 10:38:16 AM by Twinkie (REPENT! Look Up! The Lord's Return Is At Hand . . . . .)
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To: Mad_Tom_Rackham
"When you demonstrate weakness — which we have, you invite attack — which we will endure."
Obama is a puss. Putin spotted that.


13 posted on Thursday, November 27, 2008 10:44:56 AM by blackbart.223 (I live in Northern Nevada. Reid doesn't represent me.)
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To: Per-Ling
I’ve often though how I and many of my college-age friends (back in the Nixon Adminstration) read this radical crap and BSed ourselves into oblivion (with the help of cheap wine) about how the revolution is comin’, man...

But we outgrew it. He didn’t.



14 posted on Thursday, November 27, 2008 10:50:27 AM by bigbob
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To: Texas Eagle
Just drink your room temperature gin and everything will be just fine, Winston....ummmm....errr....I mean Michael.

Even in the darkest of times,


there's something to look forward to.


No matter how it will end.


15 posted on Thursday, November 27, 2008 10:53:11 AM by CE2949BB (Fight.)
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To: blackbart.223
Imagine Putin sitting across from Obama at a meeting. Putin is a cold , calculated killer , an international pro , a spy right out of 1960s James Bond. And there is Obama , the little local “organizer” no nothing fraud. Putin will spit in his face and smile when they meet.



16 posted on Thursday, November 27, 2008 10:57:42 AM by sonic109
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To: sonic109
Putin will spit in his face...
And Soetero....errr...I mean Obama...will thank him for the drink.


17 posted on Thursday, November 27, 2008 11:04:42 AM by Texas Eagle (If it wasn't for double-standards, Liberals would have no standards at all.)
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To: Michael Eden
Swap the highest ranking muslim, Obama for the gunman and hostages.



18 posted on Thursday, November 27, 2008 11:04:50 AM by NoLibZone (To All those that have sworn the Oath- Time Has Come. Or your service has been for the benefits.)
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To: sonic109
"Imagine Putin sitting across from Obama at a meeting. Putin is a cold , calculated killer , an international pro , a spy right out of 1960s James Bond. And there is Obama , the little local “organizer” no nothing fraud. Putin will spit in his face and smile when they meet."
Russia is off the coast of South America conducting war games. Not too hard to figure out why.


19 posted on Thursday, November 27, 2008 11:08:20 AM by blackbart.223 (I live in Northern Nevada. Reid doesn't represent me.)
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To: Per-Ling
There was a reason the drinking & voting age was 21 for so many years. As my dad use to say “They are barely out of diapers and still sucking their thumbs.” A little harsh I know, but I got the idea.



20 posted on Thursday, November 27, 2008 11:13:19 AM by SweetCaroline (I would rather suffer than fail to please GOD!)
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To: AmericanInTokyo
Israelis 3 to 1 wanted McCain. They knew their survival mattered.

78% of (liberal) American Jews voted for Obama even though most knew ...... or should have known.

50%+ of Catholics did the same dumb thing. :-(

Muslims will go to town and the new “govt” will crack down on normal Americans, try to disarm us and be weak towards the jihadists.

We just elected a nightmare.



21 posted on Thursday, November 27, 2008 11:24:49 AM by Frantzie
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To: Michael Eden
I live in Florida. The Gulf of Mexico has already receded three inches, I swear. Porpoises have stopped beaching themselves, I swear. It’s only raining at night, I swear. There is music in the air all the time, I swear. African Americans have stopped robbing and killing people, well scratch that last one.



22 posted on Thursday, November 27, 2008 11:41:18 AM by Rembrandt
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To: sonic109
Putin knows how to handle Muslimes. Now Ingushetia, next Iran and Turkey. Istanbul back to Constantinople



23 posted on Thursday, November 27, 2008 12:05:55 PM by Cronos ("Islam isn't in America to be equal to any other faith, but to become dominant" - Omar Ahmed, CAIR)
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To: Cronos
What BS. Putin is building the ayatollahs a nuclear reactor and supplying them enriched uranium. Russia is too busy ethnically cleansing Christian Georgians to fight Islam.



24 posted on Thursday, November 27, 2008 12:23:44 PM by Tailgunner Joe
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To: Michael Eden
Nope. Obama’s election will open us up to attack again.

As such, I do hope that my population center does not get hit. I would like to think they’ll make a point and hit Chicago, Boston, San Francisco or New York first.

Maybe they’ll even use Billy Ayers as a spotter.



25 posted on Thursday, November 27, 2008 1:14:05 PM by VeniVidiVici (All hail the Obamasiah! Kneel before Obamohammad!)
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To: All
The best way to confront all of these sudden bullies is for American to decide they did make a mistake and remove Obama from being nominated by the electoral college, doing so would create the image of strength and unity.

We have a warrior available that has the courage, its time to call in the reserve.



26 posted on Thursday, November 27, 2008 1:28:58 PM by Eye of Unk (Aleutica, the new name of Free Alaska)
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To: Windflier
You wrote:
Even if the jihad returns in force to commit violence against us, due to the weakness of the Appeaser in Chief, you’ll never hear the phrase, “It’s all Obama’s fault!”

Well, you’ll never hear it from the mainstream media. But if you’re anywhere near me, you’ll pretty much hear it all the time.

I wrote back in March that an Obama presidency was pretty much a vote for a nuclear-armed Iran. I simply could not understand how he could oppose a war against Iraq and wage one against Iran. And the fact is that the idential situations apply. To wit: 1) Are we SURE Iran has nukes? How do we know? 2) Will we get truly tough UN sanctions through Russia and China’s veto? 3) Will the international community be willing to go to war with Iran in real force?

If Obama doesn’t attack Iran (and ONLY military action will stop Iran from nukes), then Israel will have no choice but to attack them. And that will tear apart the world something fierce.

John Bolton predicts that Israel will attack Iran before Obama is sworn in because they don’t want that weakling stopping them (I wrote about that, too). If so, we literally voted for the world to go to hell, as it wouldn’t have happened had we elected McCain (whom Israel could trust to stand strong against Iran).

McCain could have told Iran, “I supported the war against Iraq because we believed Saddam had WMD, and I’ll go to war against you unless you verifiable end your nuke program. You can count on it.” What the hell is Obama going to tell them? “You’d better not develop nukes or I’ll condemn your behavior!”



27 posted on Thursday, November 27, 2008 1:46:07 PM by Michael Eden
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To: CE2949BB
Orwell’s “1984” is a genuinely terrifying vision of the future, and it’s coming.

But first we have to go through the “Animal Farm” phase where we abandon our freedom and our dignity for pleasure and for “political correctness.”

We voted for the “Prom-king-in-chief” because he just made us feel so warm and fuzzy. And the media will keep telling us how wonderful he is even as he runs the country into the ground.

And then the Antichrist can show up and give us “1984.”



28 posted on Thursday, November 27, 2008 1:52:54 PM by Michael Eden
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To: Michael Eden; All
If we aren't all rounded up and re-educated at

Camp Obama
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2139056/posts

PM has no right to represent Assam, says ULFA

The banned ULFA claimed PM Manmohan Singh had no right to represent Assam as neither he or his ancestors have had ‘no contribution’ towards the formation of ‘intrinsic principles of the state's social life’.

Click here to read the article

The views represented here are not neccesarily endorsed by www.expressindia.com and its allied websites.
Total comment[s]: 11 Post your comment
Page[s]: 1 2 Next »



• I cannot change their "pishab" drinking habit!


THE COMMENTS MADE ON MY "ROTI" ID (Posted by: roti, India, 28-05-2007 at 1219 hours IST) ARE NOT MINE, BUT A "JANSANGHI" OR A BROTHER OF ADVANIJI ALIAS "VISHNUJI".

STATEMENT: MY "ROTI" COMMENTS ARE MAINLY RELATED TO BJP, BECAUSE THESE JERKS ARE THE ONES WHO ARE NOT ONLY BLOTTING OUR HINDU DHARMA, BUT THEY ARE ALSO INVOLVED IN ANTI-INDIA AND ANTI-SOCIAL ACTIVITIES. EVEN MADAN LAL KHURANA HAS CLEARLY STATED THAT BJP LEADERS ARE ASSOCIATED WITH DAWOOD IBRAHIM.

FROM NOW ON I DO NOT HAVE TO JUSTIFY MY COMMENTS IF THE UPA OR ANY OTHER PART OR ANY COMMUNITY IS SCORNED BY THESE "SANGHI" JERKS IMPSOING AS ME ("ROTI").

MAY THE GOD ITSELF PISS ON THESE "PISHAB" (URINE) DRINKERS.

NORMAL PEOPLE DRINK MILK, TEA,COFFEE, WATER, MANGO OR OTHER FRUIT JUICE, LASSI, SHARBAT, COCONUT WATER, BUT BJP ASSOCIATES DRINK "PISHAB" (AS GRIPE WATER)AND EATS DUNG TABLETS AS ASPRO AND CLAIMS TO BE HINDU WHICH IS UNTRUE.




Posted by: roti, India, 28-05-2007 at 1624 hours IST


• Assam


PM has no right to represent India so long as he has not won Loka Sabha election. Of course he represent Italy or US(he is a CIA agent)

Posted by: roti, India, 28-05-2007 at 1219 hours IST


• It is not his fault that he represents you



Dear ULFA Ji:

Please don't get mad. You are right that PM MM Singh has no right to represent Assam. But the decision who represents whom is not decided by by him, rather by the Supreme power. Assam is lucky that it is not represented by Mr. Q

So please forgive Dr. Singh because it is not his fault that he is misrepresenting you for the last over 15 years.

Posted by: G Mohant, India, 26-05-2007 at 1546 hours IST


• ManmohanSingh has no right to represent Assam


I agree.But we should discuss a broader issue, do we need horde of such guys who are elected by our corrupt politicians.
Why should we have backdoor entry system,to be ruled by people like Arjun Singh and
Manmohan Singh!
There should be general election for Rajya Sabha also.

Posted by: ramesh kumar, India, 17-05-2007 at 0343 hours IST


• PM has no right to represent..


Center has Cong-led UPA government and Assam has Congress Government. Hence, the government should come out with heavy hands on terrorists to stop killing of only Hindi speaking innocents. Of course, Manmohan has never won any election so far. He is a puppet PM and nothing else.

Posted by: Y.P. Khullar, United States, 17-05-2007 at 0330 hours IST


• PM has no right to represent Assam-----


In Republic of India every citizen has the right to choose or opt any state to live,work or do business but to represent a state on high level on should be domicile of that adopted state.
To justify that status one must have some property or business in the state.The PM has,as declared by him,a house in Chandigarh and a flat in Dehli while his statement/declaration porports that he is living on rent with some Congress political person.Can he prove and show the receipts fo the rent paid by him?Can he speak Assamese language to some reasonable standard of possible conversation if not fluently?
How far he knows about the culture of that place except Bihu or little bookish knowledge?Though I am absolutely against criminal acts of ULFA but for this objection I find them correct.The PM should try from Punjab or Dehli. Mr clean was never clean but a Bagla-Bhagat.

Posted by: romesh.sharma, Germany, 17-05-2007 at 0101 hours IST


• Manmohan the greatest PM


Rajamohan -No Indian PM ever has a cleaner record than Manmohan Singh...To win an election in India, one has to be corrupt from head to toe. Its a privelege for all true Indians to be represented but an economist first then a politician. No other person in office has the humility and sincerity of Manmohan Singh. A man of principle and honesty - no one can question his commitment. Manmohan Singh is the architect of modern India that I feel you are not fit to ever live in...You need to migrate to Afganistan were you'll find it more at home.

Posted by: Colin, Qatar, 16-05-2007 at 2254 hours IST


• Assam and PM



I don't know anything about ULFA, so I can't comment on them, but their concern is genuine.

I find it funny that our Present puppet PM has been representing Assam for 15 years. He is as ignorant about Assam's food, culture, life style, as I am. Only thing is he has rented a subsidized apt and pays Rs 500 (?) p.m. as rent and visits Assam once every 5 years for few hours.

If i get a chance, I will ask him what way he honestly feels that he is representing Assam or he is just abusing our political system.

He should be ashamed of himself for betraying his own people for the greed of the KURSI.



Posted by: Maya, Canada, 16-05-2007 at 2207 hours IST


• CLEAN THE ULFA FROM INDIAN SOIL


INDIA HAS MILITARY POWER, THAN WHAT, IT IS WAITING FOR ?
WHY INDIA IS NOT USING ITS MUSCLE POWER AND FINISH ULFA, ONCE AND FOR ALL ?
SHAME ON THIS U.P.A. GOVERMENT WHICH INCLUDES COMMIES.

Posted by: N.R.I., United Kingdom, 16-05-2007 at 2127 hours IST


• PM has no right to represent Assam


This PM Manmohan Singh has never won an election with public mandate! And Assam is the only place he can go and claim to be the representative to get elected to the Rajya Sabah through the legislators. Otherwise, this poor (puppet) prime minister will not get elected anywhere. It is a shame that we have a prime minister who became prime minister without popular mandate!

Posted by: rajmohan k, India, 16-05-2007 at 1917 hours IST










Total comment[s]: 11 Post your comment
Page[s]: 1 2 Next »



The views represented here are not neccesarily endorsed by www.expressindia.com and its allied websites.
http://www.expressindia.com/news/messages.php?newsid=86598



An editorial in the CPI-M's official party journal said: "It is for the Congress leadership to decide whether it wants to be seen as kowtowing to the pressures of the Bush administration or acting democratically and heeding the voice of Parliament and the people." Heeding the voice of Parliament is all right. But of the people? The N-deal never figured in the last poll campaign. How do we know what people think of it? It is possible they might oppose it. But does that not need to be tested?

Forget the N-deal. A much larger question needs consideration: how far really is the will of Parliament indicative of popular opinion on any issue? Merely because MPs are elected by people, it is facile to conclude that the majority view in Parliament represents the majority view of the public. This conclusion is facile because our Constitution is subverted, our political system is debased, and our electoral system is perverted. The lofty principles of democratic representation crumble in the dust of ground realities. Our honorable MPs rarely speak for the people. They speak for themselves, for their narrow partisan interests.

No national leader has emerged who did not participate in the freedom struggle. People’s sentimental attachments to freedom struggle personalities enabled political dynasties to flourish. No national leader has emerged in post-Independence India because the last national issue that engaged the public mind was our freedom struggle. Leaders who participated in that struggle obtained national relevance. True, the opposition to the Emergency did become a national issue. But the Emergency was provoked by an official miscalculation. It was led by events, not consciously planned by political leaders.

Are there really no national issues debated and decided upon by the nation? Or is our electoral system perverted? Consider the issue of OBC job reservation. It is perceived by both media and politicians as a powerful election issue. In fact, this issue, as declared election policy, has never delivered results. When VP Singh first took it up in the UP Assembly poll after demitting office as PM, he, in partnership with Laloo Yadav, was trounced by the Mulayam Singh-Kanshi Ram combine. The latter never made OBC reservation an election issue. The former did. Mulayam Singh and Kanshi Ram simply got their respective Yadav and Dalit vote banks together to win handsomely. That is what politicians have been doing without fanfare since the days of Pandit Nehru.

Local ground realities that dictate caste alignments are wholly different from caste based reservation as national policy over which media pundits swoon with emotion. If Mulayam Singh indeed signifies OBC reservation as his policy, why have the Kurmis and the Lodhs not joined up with him, creating instead their own parties? Why do the Vannyars of the PMK heed Ramdoss and not blindly follow Karunanidhi, who fancies himself as the champion of OBC interests? The truth is that caste based reservation as principled national policy was propagated only by Lohia, VP Singh and, briefly, by Charan Singh. Lohia was never properly tested on this policy. Both VP Singh and Charan Singh failed miserably after they officially adopted it as election agenda.

Elections here are in fact fought solely on local issues, in 543 constituencies. No aggregate of local issues can be magically transformed into a mandate for any national agenda. The majority view of MPs therefore does not necessarily represent the majority of the electorate, since national issues have never figured as such in a general election. The thirty or forty odd political parties that enter Parliament do observe the ritual of preparing their election manifestos. Do their supporters really read them? That is why, over the years, elections have degenerated into tribal battles fought on caste and communal loyalties. This is the ground reality. It could be dangerous to continue ignoring it.

The electorate should not be blamed for getting divided into caste and communal groups. Indeed, the Indian people deserve praise for displaying a dogged faith in democracy: they continue to vote in elections despite the political betrayal they repeatedly suffer. Politicians are a class that seeks power any which way. With local issues dominating over national issues in the polls, politicians are led inevitably into whipping up sentiments related to local identity. These offer the surest and swiftest way of garnering support. That is why frustrated aspirants for power in fringe societies slip into separatist movements based on ethnicity or religion. That is why even mainstream regions like Maharashtra are throwing up politicians fanning separatism for quick poll dividends.

National leaders could stop the rot. But where are national leaders? Are there any left in India? How might they be created? In this, we could take a leaf from America. The US electoral system itself ensures that by the time a party chooses its Presidential candidate he or she becomes a national icon to be studied under a national scanner: to win nomination an aspirant must campaign across the nation and give his views on national issues. This process identifies national issues and creates national leaders. Who had heard of Arkansas Governor Bill Clinton before he got the Democratic nomination? Who had heard of Barak Obama before he became aspirant for the Democratic nomination? Today, all America -- indeed the world -- is aware of Obama and deliberates on his enunciated policies.

India needs to reappraise its political system. The main executive needs to directly approach the electorate with his agenda and obtain a direct mandate from the public. That will concretize accountability. It will identify national policies. It will deliver a national mandate.

If the Constitution is interpreted as originally written our political system would become Presidential without constitutional change. As suggested earlier in these columns, the only amendment required to accomplish this would be to make the election of the President, Parliament, and all the assemblies concurrent. And also give them fixed simultaneous terms. Such an electoral change would not in any way alter the basic structure of the Constitution. Newly elected MPs and MLAs would elect the new President. That would give the President a popular mandate as in a direct election.

Whether this or any other amendment to the present system is adopted, one thing is clear: the present system is neither democratic, nor does it deliver.

March 10, 2008

Top | My Word
http://www.boloji.com/myword/mw106.htmDevelopment projects and the Adivasi
What kind of country do we want India to be ?


Jai Sen
published in Mainstream, Aug 19 2000

What is the one, single, biggest, most outstanding issue in the Narmada affair ? In my estimation, it has to do with nothing less than what kind of country we want India to be.

Since July 15, members of the Narmada Bachao Andolan have once again gone into satyagraha on the banks of the river, in defence of their demands for the rights and entitlements of the peoples of the Narmada valley, and in the face of the waters of the river that are once again relentlessly rising with the monsoons that have set in. This is therefore once again a time for reflection on the issues that the movement has raised, and on the issues many of them profound that this and other contestation over this project has helped to articulate.

At this very same time, the Supreme Court is in the final stages of its deliberations on the case that the NBA filed around the project, in 1994. Its final orders are due any time now. I have already argued, in another recent article, that of all the issues that surround the case that the Court is hearing, there are two that seem to me to be by far the most important. These are the struggle real and conceptual - that is involved in such projects and planning between the sovereignty and primacy of corporate, centralised power in a country (in particular, in the form of the state) and the sovereignty and freedoms of that country's peoples; and the question of the legitimacy and authority of the state.

These two issues are not limited to the Narmada situation alone; they burn through the texture of all such situations in the country today, and at the risk of generalising too much possibly also through the texture of all such situations all over the world. They do so because such projects and planning are creatures of a particular model of national 'development' (and within this, of a particular stage of development), and for all the good that they have also brought in, they also represent in such situations grotesque deformity in social relations, where the state (and corporate power in general) has become too large and too powerful.

As a consequence, at one level their flames threaten to burn large holes in the fabric of society itself; but at another, the light that the flames also radiate as in the case of all fires that rage illuminates a whole terrain of issues, and the sheer intensity of the light they shed makes clear (or can, to those who are wanting to see) what is really at stake. The Narmada case, as in all such cases, is not simply about the height of a dam, or the scale of a project, or even the success or otherwise of resettlement, which is what they tend to get reduced to. The fire that is burning is about things that are far more fundamental.

'Narmada' is also symbolic of a much larger whole As I have also argued before, in the article mentioned and also elsewhere, it is my hope that the Court will be able to see its way out of the morass of details and into this larger universe of fundamentals. This is especially important in this particular case because 'Narmada' has become a symbol, an icon, for the larger and world-wide struggle over development and social justice. In a sense, it has become symbolic of the very age that we are living in, and of the stage of development we are going through, here in India and across the world. It is nothing short of essential that we find our way through this, towards more humane, sustainable, and just social relations. The judgement that the Court offers in this case therefore will have far-reaching consequences, not just in concrete terms but also in the minds of peoples across this country and, indeed, across the world, and in relation to the many rivers of social thought and action that flow across this planet.

But there is something else that is burning in the Narmada debate, and in the Narmada valley in these days of rising waters, and in some senses even more deeply, and urgently, than the other two issues. This is the fundamental and cruel injustice that this situation confronts the hill Adivasis of the Narmada valley with at this time, more than anybody else. As this article will show, while other sections of people in the Narmada valley especially the far more prosperous members of mainstream Hindu society may quite possibly gain some relief from a wise decision made by the Courts, the hill Adivasis - people who have been structurally marginalised and discriminated against throughout history - are in a situation where they will lose everything, almost no matter what decision the Court takes.

This situation then is something that even the Supreme Court of the land may not be able to redress, because it is the product of a larger question, of the injustice and prejudice that runs so deep in our society. But one thing is certain : The Court will only be able to address this situation if it is willing to ask and address the question that underlies it, of what kind of society we want to be.

The situation I am speaking of is of course nothing new in history. Those at the 'lower' ends of societies, in India and all over the world, have always been made to bear the price of progress and development of 'society as a whole', and it has always been said that this is the sacrifice they have to make, again for 'the larger good'. But in 'India', when it became independent and its ruling classes drew up its own constitution I use a small 'c' deliberately, because I refer to the health and mentality of the society, and not only to the document, no matter how important it was agreed that the struggle to become a country, a nation, could only be achieved if there was equality in society : Between castes, between classes, between ethnicities and races, even between ages (though not gender, explicitly; such differences were not recognised then). And precisely on account of the profound discrimination and injustice that they had historically suffered, and in order to make this historical project that 'tryst with destiny' - absolutely clear, the Adivasis and the Dalits of the country were given a special place in the constitution and in the dynamic that was expected to unfold.

But in the Narmada case as is so many cases in the country - history and social dynamics have relentlessly forged their own course; and the only way the Adivasi are special here is that they are singled out as victims no matter what. Although this issue has not featured anywhere in recent debate in India around the Narmada project, or in the court case because, all too typically, it has got submerged by a flood of other issues it today, once again, and as the Narmada satyagrahis face history and the forces of nature once again, surfaces. Subliminally, this issue is once again there, confronting the country, and the Supreme Court, with a choice : What kind of country do we want India to be ? Is this kind of structural discrimination and prejudice acceptable ? Is it not time that this general struggle is taken up once again ?

Fifty years and more after independence fifty years after we adopted our constitution do we, 'The People', as citizens of this country, have anything to say about the manner history here, in the form of 'development projects' ? is relentlessly rolling on ? And after all is said and done, this is a question of Justice of historical justice, of social justice, of economic justice : Is this not something that the highest court of the land should be alive to, and saying something about ? And especially when it is staring it in the face ?

'Narmada' is not about the Adivasis alone



Before continuing, let me make a couple of things clear. First, the 'Narmada issue' is often mistakenly assumed to be about Adivasis alone, and the NBA is all too often portrayed as being a 'tribal movement'. Both are incorrect, and very substantially so, and by raising the issue I am in this article and at this point in time - , it is certainly not because I want to reinforce these unfortunate stereotypes. To the opposite, I wish to bring out the situation that they are only one among other communities that are affected by the project, but almost precisely because of this, and because they have historically been the least 'organised' (in terms of conventional politics) and this, in turn, in large part because they have been historically marginalised the project was planned by non-Adivasis as it was. That the dam would be located there; that it would be a high dam; and that they, the Adivasis, could 'make the sacrifice' for the good of the country. (More accurately, that they should be the sacrifice, for the good of the country.) And that because of this history both the general and the more particular - today, when there is a very real choice, as I will show, of very substantially reducing the impact of the project on some of the other sections of society that could also be affected, the Adivasi is going to be sacrificed in any case.

Second, I must emphasise that the discussion in this essay is about the Sardar Sarovar dam alone. Though commonly referred to as 'the Narmada project', the Sardar Sarovar Project is in fact only one part of a much larger project, the Narmada Valley Development Project (which is the real 'Narmada project'). The Sardar Sarovar dam is one of two giant dams in this larger project but these two are among a total of 3,300 dams and weirs that have been planned, one of the largest such projects that have ever been planned in the world. The class and ethnic composition of people affected by the different projects also varies considerably. So even if I too use the term 'Narmada' in this article because it is popularly used it should be clearly understood that I am referring here only to the SSP.

Far from Adivasis being the only people affected by the Sardar Sarovar / Narmada project, it is a fact too little known that a very substantial proportion of those who will be displaced and/or affected by the project if it is implemented as a whole if the height is raised to the 455 ft (139 m) proposed, and the full canal network is built are non-Adivasi : Or in other words, members of mainstream caste Hindu society (and to a limited degree also, Muslims).

At least 40 per cent of the total population of about two lakhs who will be displaced for the Sardar Sarovar 200 km-long project's reservoir alone, are non-Adivasi. This very large chunk of people lives in the Nimar valley in Madhya Pradesh. This valley lies somewhat upstream and east of the Sardar Sarovar dam site at the village of Navagam, which is located near the border of Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh, and is the stretch of the river where the valley between the Vindhya hills to the north of the river and the Satpuras to the south widens to reveal a rich alluvial plain.

Aside from this group - who are actually being displaced for the reservoir - two other large chunks of non-Adivasis who will be badly affected by the project lie on the other side of the dam. One of these chunks lies west and downstream of the dam, towards and past the town of Bharuch. This largely fishing population will not be displaced as such, but it will be badly hit by the drastic reduction in the flow of the river once it is impounded for the project (and the waters diverted along the giant canal system that has been built to take the river into central and western Gujarat). The other chunk are farmers in the command area of the project, in south and central Gujarat, some of whom have been displaced but most of whom have lost land to make way for the canal system ("the world's largest"); and along with them will be affected the largely Dalit agricultural workers who work on their land.

Aside from these however, there are also other groups of Adivasis who have been displaced for the project, such as from the six villages who were summarily evicted from their homes in 1961 to make way for the project construction township (now called Kevadia Colony), and who have still not been resettled, as well as those who have been displaced to make way for the Shoolpaneshwar Sanctuary.

The total number displaced and/or affected by the Sardar Sarovar project is about half a million. But it is hopefully clear from this summary that it is by no means the Adivasis alone who are going to be affected by the project. But my purpose in making this clear is that I want to argue that ironically, this is precisely where the rub lies : Where the question of gross and fundamental injustice arises.

The options



To grasp the meaning of this assertion, we have to look briefly at the geography of human settlement in the Narmada valley and also at what the Court might decide with regard to the height of the dam.

In terms of geography, the Sardar Sarovar dam is being built at the point where the Narmada river emerges from a gorge formed by the two ranges of hills that bound it. The hills in this part of the river have traditionally been inhabited only by the Adivasi (barring a few traders, who are generally outsiders). The Nimar valley lies upstream from the gorge. Largely because of its rich alluvial soil as well as the fact the Hindus consider the Narmada the most sacred of all rivers - the valley has always attracted pilgrims as well as settlers from outside. This situation was radically altered by the British raj in the late 19th century, which brought in farmers into this general region from other parts of the country including Gujarat - to open it up to cash cropping. The population density in the Nimar valley is therefore far higher than in the hilly region, and its composition is dominantly non-Adivasi, in particular made up of middle caste Patidars who originate from Gujarat.

These differences have very direct and important implications for the displacement that might be caused. If the Sardar Sarovar dam is built to its full height, the reservoir will stretch some 200 km upstream and it will submerge most of the flatter and more densely settled reaches of the Nimar valley, as well as the gorge. (Too few people talk about the sheer scale of this monster. To get a sense of its enormous size, according to my atlas this length will be greater than the distance from Delhi to Agra; about the same as the distance from Chennai to Bangalore or from Calcutta to Bhubaneshwar; and more than double the distance, as the crow flies, from Ahmedabad to Baroda or from Mumbai to Pune. In other words, if the dam were to be built at Delhi, the reservoir would submerge the Taj and vice versa.)

What this option means that both the hill Adivasis and the Nimar Patidars will be displaced. But if the height is built to a lower height, then it is very likely that that only the hill Adivasi will be affected (depending on the height decided upon), and that most of the dominantly non-Adivasi people of the Nimar Valley will be 'saved'.

With regard to the height of the dam, there would seem to be only three real possibilities that the Court has. The first involves rejecting the NBA's petition and confirming that a dam at the full height approved by the Narmada Waters Disputes Tribunal back in 1979 should be built (at 455 ft); and that all those who would be displaced, should be rehabilitated by the state governments concerned. In other words, a more or less 'no change' judgement, though doubtless riddled with instructions to the governments to do their job better.

The second option, which is at least a reasonable possibility, is that the Court will come down in favour of a dam with a reduced height of about 436 ft, which is the figure which the Madhya Pradesh government in particular has been proposing, on the argument that this will very substantially reduce the amount of land submerged and therefore people displaced and that if this is done, it is willing to forego the power that it stood to gain from the project at full height.

A variation on this second possibility is that the Court would come up with yet another intermediate height, which would accordingly affect the amount of land submerged and number of people displaced (a dam higher than 436 ft meaning more land and people, and a lower one meaning less). The possibility of a higher dam but yet less than the full height seems unlikely; but the possibility of a lower dam seems even more unlikely, since the consequent reduced amount of water to Gujarat will raise huge protest from that state, which has invested very substantial financial and political capital in the probability of the waters coming through. Any such decision and lack of sufficient protest to it - could even mean the toppling of the state government in power at that point, given the symbolic importance of the Sardar Sarovar project in the history and politics of the state.

A fourth but extremely distant possibility is that the Court would be so impressed so traumatised - by what it has seen and heard that it proposes a radical revision of the project. This might mean limiting the dam height to more or less what it is today (85 m, or 279 ft), or in its extreme version even demolishing some or all of the dam wall, in an attempt to undo the social and environmental damage that has been done and that will be done by the project. This is not a completely academic possibility, since this has happened in history, such as in the case of a dam across the Danube in Hungary in the 1980s, or more recently, a series of smaller dams in the US. But given the way the case has been conducted in the Court and moreover that no party has ever specifically voiced this demand in the court, and most centrally the symbolic importance of dams in the development theology of modern India, it can safely be assumed that this possibility also is not in the running at all.

In my estimation, the second possibility seems the most likely (though what the odds are on this, I cannot guess). This difference of 19 ft in over 400 - may seem trivial to someone unfamiliar with the details of the project, but the consequences of this small reduction are enormous : For reducing the height by this amount will according to the Madhya Pradesh government almost halve the number of people to be displaced, and also save a large proportion of the forests of the Nimar valley and a good proportion of its fertile agricultural land. For the moment just looking at the overall figures, given the number of people who stand to be affected this does indeed seem to be a huge gain. (The numbers of those affected downstream and west of the dam however, in either of the two other chunks outlined above, will remain the same.) And at the same time, Madhya Pradesh has argued that a dam of this height will ensure that Gujarat will still have the amount of water that was allocated to it by the Tribunal (with the extra 19 ft having been added only to give Madhya Pradesh electricity in return for the huge loss the state more to the point, its people - was going to suffer).

The victimisation of the Adivasi



With this background, let us now look at what the consequences of the different possible heights will be for the various communities in the valley most particularly for the Adivasis and for the non-Adivasi Patidar community that is dominant in the Nimar valley.

As already shown, if the dam is built to its full height both the Adivasi and the non-Adivasi communities will be fully flooded out by the reservoir; an estimated total of about two lakh people in all. Of this total number, less than forty thousand have so far been relocated and 'resettled'. All those displaced and relocated so far have been the hill Adivasi; the reservoir has so far not reached into the Nimar valley. Most of these resettlement sites are in Gujarat, a few in Maharashtra, and so far none in Madhya Pradesh at all, which on the claim that there is no land for resettlement in the state at all - has so far very uncooperative and unimaginative in this regard. It is evident however, that it is hoping that if none of the oustees can manage to settle within the state, then Gujarat will have to provide space for all of these people (since this is the default condition of the Tribunal award). This latter position would seem to be in sharp contrast to its seemingly sensitive position on the height of the dam, but in my view, this is also a part of the larger pattern of politics that adds up to being the victimisation of the Adivasis.

While relocation seems to have been successful for some of the resettlers, a very significant proportion of them have now also returned to live near their original village sites after finding it impossible to live in the resettlement sites. Some found themselves on waterlogged land; some a lack of irrigation facilities; others have faced intense hostility from local communities, for whom these settlers have represented intrusion into their lives, economies, and cultures; and yet others have found it impossible, as Adivasis, to adjust to the social conditions, norms, and requirements of living as a small minority in an area completely dominated by caste Hindu society. This has been perhaps especially true for the women members of the community, whose traditional freedoms under Adivasi culture have been greatly curtailed.

One condition that is common to all of them is their lack of familiarity with the market economy that they have now, necessarily, been forced to enter and become a part of. Another is the fact that what were coherent village communities socially organised however, according to the Adivasi's own distinct social structure, and this in turn reflected in the physical layout of the villages into falias (hamlets) have now been destroyed completely; and with it the sense of security that comes from living within a known and familiar structure. (For instance, the inhabitants from the 19 villages that have been displaced for the reservoir from within Gujarat have been shattered across nothing less than 175 different resettlement sites spread across southern and central Gujarat.) And perhaps most profound of all has been their being uprooted and torn away from their forests and from their river itself, and from the spirits of their ancestors, each of which are key elements of their culture, and then being scattered like this in a virtually treeless and riverless environment, far away from where their spirits dwell. There are some things in life that can never be recovered except by returning, which is what many have now done, to live if necessary higher up on the slopes of their hills the lower reaches of which have now been submerged.

Earlier this year, the Supreme Court appointed special Commissions to hold Public Hearings in the concerned states over the subsequent months, to hear grievances about resettlement practice till date and to report back to it. These were due on July 1. These reports should ideally give a much more accurate picture of this situation, but the experience so far would seem to indicate an extremely grim future for the Adivasis who are uprooted; because when and if the dam is built to full height, for most there will be no slopes left to return to. All experience, from around the world, has shown that being uprooted and 'resettled' such a polite word is profoundly traumatic and life-destroying for such peoples; and even if resettlement practices are improved very significantly, in a mass relocation like this will be there is every likelihood that this will remain the case.

Relative to this future, the trauma that the non-Adivasi communities of the Nimar valley who are facing resettlement will suffer is likely to be far less. They are already completely a part of the market economy, their social, economic, and political networks extend across this whole region, and they are a very definite part of the mainstream society (with the Patidars forming an important and in general prosperous middle caste community). Unlike the Adivasi communities, most of whom have so far either chosen or been persuaded to move to Gujarat, most of them will in fact almost certainly just shift across to another part of Madhya Pradesh, outside the submergence zone. And the delicious irony and coincidence of history is that even if they were to choose to go to Gujarat, in a very real sense they would in fact be going 'home' since, as mentioned above, the Patidar community now living in the Nimar valley in fact migrated across from central Gujarat in the late 19th century. Relatively speaking therefore, relocation is likely to be far less traumatic for them, and more akin to being inconvenient; for after all, who likes to leave home ?

In a curious way, the most cruel irony, and tragedy, and therefore injustice, however lies in what would otherwise seems to be the preferred design of a reduced dam height. For in this case, what will happen is that while a very large proportion of the dominantly non-Adivasi population of the Nimar valley will be 'saved', virtually the entire population of the hills all of which is Adivasi - will still be flooded out. They will be exposed to the entire trauma that has been described above, but in this case the trauma will be exclusively reserved for them alone. In other words, those who have been historically marginalised and neglected and exploited, will now be alone on the altar of progress, as the sacrifice to the future. And those who by birth and circumstance and prejudice and power are members of the dominant society will be the gainers. This will not literally be one hundred percent true, insofar as there is also a small proportion of Adivasi farmers and labourers in the Nimar valley and they too will gain from a reduced height, but the overall pattern is clear.

The logic of history and conventional politics
I suggest that this 'pattern' is not accidental at all, but rather is embedded both in the history of the project and of all such projects and more specifically, and importantly, in the politics of areas and countries with such populations.

What I am referring to as the 'preferred design' is not a new proposal at all. In its present incarnation, the proposal for a reduced height has been put forward by the present Digvijay Singh government in Madhya Pradesh since about 1994-95, when it was worked out by the then Chief Engineer of the state, the late Matin Ahmed, that a reduction of this amount would lead to no reduction of water for Gujarat but a major reduction in displacement within the state. But this proposal also has a long history in the state, dating from the late 60s from soon after the proposal for a high dam at this site became serious.

Although not framed in these terms specifically, of no loss for Gujarat there was a mass mobilisation among the Patidar farmers and traders of the Nimar valley in 1968-69 called the Narmada Bachao, Nimar Bachao Samiti ('Save Narmada, Save Nimar Committee'), demanding a reduced height. The objectives of the mobilisation were very simple : They just wished to defend their own interests and to ensure that they were not displaced. This same community was then once again mobilised a decade later, in 1979, though this time for more overtly political ends, by the Congress(I), under the banner of a Nimar Bachao Andolan ('Save the Nimar Movement'), with height reduction once again as their ostensible demand. And the same community was then once again mobilised almost a full further decade later, but this time not for a reduced height but first for more information about the project and then, from 1988 on, to oppose the project outright, and not alone but on a joint platform with the hill Adivasis by what came to become (in 1989) what we now know as the Narmada Bachao Andolan.

That prosperous farmers and traders belonging to the mainstream could be mobilised in defence of their own homes and interests is perhaps not unexceptional; but what is important is that for twenty years, at no time - till the present NBA was formed - did any of those who did the mobilising in Madhya Pradesh think of the lives and interests of the hill Adivasis. Socially and economically marginalised as they were, the Adivasis were also politically marginal in the state; they had no independent voice. So they were dispensable. As they were for the planners also. One of the specific reason for the government of Gujarat choosing this particular site for the high dam in the early 1960s because in the opinion of its surveyors 'the area is sparsely populated' (and by implication, the communities who happened to live there could be moved, since it was inexpensive to do so); and the governments of Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra then also totally ignored these peoples and their entitlements in the subsequent inter-state dispute that hung the project for a decade.

But the cruel irony of the present situation is despite having now been brought onto the agenda by civil groups such as ARCH Vahini in Gujarat, by the NBA, by the Morse Commission, and by the World Bank the Adivasis seem to continue to be blanked out of the picture; sealed by the topology of history and geography. And we are now at the final stages of this drama.

Nothing can 'save' those who have already been displaced, short of the dam wall so far built being destroyed and the valley brought back to its original condition; and this gross twist of history where the Adivasis are the only victims - can only be avoided if a much reduced height is the option chosen by the Court. This is a choice that the Court has before it, but which it so far does not even seem to be conscious of even though it must surely be aware of the less complicated fact that a reduced height will mean reduced numbers of people to be displaced.

But is this too much to expect from the Court ? After all is said and done, the question of R&R (resettlement and rehabilitation) whether or not what has so far been done has been adequately done, and what should now be done is in many sense the key issue before it. As already mentioned the reports commissioned by the Court are now meant to have been handed in, by July 1. Whatever the findings of the Commissions, it was clear from the tenor of the Bench that was hearing the case during the final sessions during February-April and especially of the well-respected Justice Bharucha that it was extremely concerned about this question. It kept insisting on information from the concerned state governments as to how much land they had available for resettlement, and it was obvious that this was going to a key consideration for it in its deliberations.

(Although it often seemed that the Court was refusing to listen to the arguments put forward by the state of Madhya Pradesh about the positive impact of a reduced dam height curiously saying that this did not seem relevant to the case - , it was also fairly clear that it was doing this because it suspected that Madhya Pradesh was using this as a pretext for wriggling out of its commitments to resettlement and rehabilitation according to the original project design, and that is was not going to allow this. While this strictness has its own virtue, on the other hand it was also distressing to see that the Court seemed far more interested in getting stuck on rules than seeing whether and how it could itself contribute to reducing the number of people who would have to undergo the trauma of displacement.)

This question of resettlement indeed, was one of the main grounds of the case that was filed by the NBA in 1994 that the Court is now concluding : That there just is not enough land available in the three concerned states to resettle the total number of people that will be displaced, in all and that the state governments and project authorities are drowning and deceiving not just the oustees but the whole country, and world, by their promises that 'everything is okay', that 'there is plenty of land available', and that 'everyone being resettled is happy' when this is patently nothing like the case.

It was largely on this basis also both the question of resettlement and the very apparent mendacity on the part of the project authorities and its financiers, including the World Bank - that the NBA and its supporters world-wide managed to force the government of Japan out of the project in 1990, and then the World Bank in 1993. It was also on this basis that the World Bank commissioned an unprecedented independent review of the project in 1991, headed by the former head of the UNDP, the late Bradford Morse. And it was again on this basis confirming most of the NBA's arguments - that the independent review recommended to the Bank in its path-breaking report in 1992 that the project could only be completed 'using unacceptable means', and that the Bank should therefore 'step back' and which led the Bank to ultimately have to do this, even though India was and remains one of its most important clients. And it was also largely on this basis, and on the specific experience of the Narmada project (though after similar other experiences with other projects in Brazil and other parts of the world), that the Executive Directors of the World Bank also brought in some important changes in the structure and culture of the Bank's management and functioning, during 1990-93.

The same then took place within India, with the semi-independent review of certain aspects of the project that the central government commissioned in 1994, under pressure from the NBA and public opinion, the so-called 'Five Member Group'. This review also, though in more muted terms, found severe problems with the project. And it was only near the end of this long and sustained struggle that the NBA itself, based on all of the above, elected to approach the courts for directions in the deadlock that had developed.

It now therefore, finally, remains to be seen whether the same will also be true of the Court in this arena of last resort. But this time the situation is different. First, because the decision will in theory, at least be 'final'. But second, and more important, because it surely has to be in this forum in principle, the supreme forum in this country for the resolution of justice that the issue of social justice should be addressed most directly.

This is not the first time in the long contestation around the Narmada project that the issue of social justice has come up, but I would argue that what has not been raised sufficiently sharply till date is the specific question of discrimination against the Adivasi. As far back as in the early to mid 80s, civil activists of the Chhatra Yuva Sangharsh Vahini and a voluntary organisation called ARCH (Action Research in Community Health; later to join together to become 'ARCH Vahini') successfully raised the issue that the hill Adivasis in Gujarat were being denied justice under the Narmada Waters Disputes Tribunal award, and with the help of Oxfam and also the World Bank, forced the government of Gujarat to recognise their rights. But this was not in terms of their being discriminated against as Adivasis but because they were being deprived of project benefits. Similarly, the international civil organisation Survival International also took the matter up in 1985, including lodging a case about the Sardar Sarovar Project at the ILO under international human rights law but again, not in terms of discrimination.

Dr B D Sharma, at that time Commissioner for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, then also raised this issue, in April 1990, in his 'A Note on Urgent Consideration of Some Basic Constitutional and Human Rights Issues in relation to the Narmada Project', which was reprinted as an Annexure to his twenty-ninth report to the government of India but again, he addressed himself to the question of their entitlements as Adivasis, and not to the politics of discrimination that is embedded in the project.

The Morse Review also clearly identified the gross injustice being done to the Adivasis as being one of the key issues involved, in its report in 1992. This observation was of specific relevance to the World Bank because the institution had a standing policy regarding the entitlements of 'tribal and indigenous peoples' and it was confronted by activists and then its Executive Directors with the argument that by allowing the project authorities to violate this policy, which was a conditionality to the loan that the Bank had made available to India in 1985, the Bank was guilty of violating its own policies. This was one of the many arguments that eventually forced the Bank out of the project. Even if there was a long struggle in the Bank over accepting the logical conclusion of the review's recommendations, and a major attempt was made from within the institution to avoid cancelling the project, and even if the Bank was finally only forced to this by the mobilisation of public and political opinion in important share-holding countries of the North, the fact remains that it did finally accept this.

The crucial question now however, is whether the Supreme Court of the country will have the supreme hubris to also do so ? but now, looking at the question not only in terms of the deprivation of freedoms and entitlements but also, and additionally, in terms of the patently gross discrimination that is taking place.

As many others have argued before me, the general shape of this situation is nothing new. All over the country, it is the Adivasi and Dalit communities that always, by rule and without exception, form the majority of those who are displaced, ousted, marginalised, and subjugated, whatever the project might be. All over the world, it is indigenous peoples who have faced the brunt of the assault of the project of 'national development' most fiercely, and where in some countries such as Brazil it has led to virtual genocide.

But as I said at the outset of this essay, and have also argued in my other articles, the Supreme Court has a very special opportunity before it in this case. 'Narmada' now no longer refers only to the river but also to the struggle over this project, to the case, and to all such struggles. It has become a universal symbol, an icon. Most certainly, it must be allowed that the Supreme Court has many crucial cases on its hands, and has to decide on many key issues. Most certainly, it is agreed that the question that this essay has tried to bring out is only one of them. But the questions remain : Has the Court been able to recognise the very special nature of the case it has in its hands ? Has it recognised that it is its manifest duty to address not only the technical aspects of the case but also the question of social justice that is contained in this project and thereby set an example ? And will it have the courage, and the vision, to struggle with the topology of history and attempt to answer the fundamental underlying question - of what kind of country it believes India is to be ?



Jai Sen
A-3 Defence Colony,
New Delhi 110 024, India
Ph+fx 91-11/464 2109 Email: jai.sen@vsnl.com

References

A massive demonstration was held in Khandwa by thousands of people affected by dams in the Narmada valley. In the "Displaced Peoples' Right and Dignity Maha-Rally" (Visthapit Adhikar aur Swabhiman Maharally) organized under the banner of Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA), around 20,000 people affected by Indira Sagar, Onkareshwar, Maan, Upper Veda, Bargi and other dams marched in Khandwa. The people declared that they will fight till the last breath and demanded that all candidates standing in the upcoming state assembly elections in the Narmada valley regions will have to clarify their stand about the rights of the displaced people. Representatives from many peoples' organizations from different parts of the state and country participated in this Maha-Rally.

Charul and Vinay, activists and celebrated singers from Gujarat, and Amit bhai and the adivasi children of Adharshila Shala of Sendhwa rocked the entire assembly with their songs of struggle and peace.

The rally passed through the main streets and the city of Khandwa reverberated with its resonance. The sea of affected women, men and children raised slogans about their rights with blue flags in their hands. A huge public meeting was held in the city stadium after the rally.

Addressing the public meeting, Alok Agarwal of NBA said that the entire Narmada valley has come together in a single chain. He said that the displaced people from the valley have pledged that they will no longer tolerate falsehood, oppression and injustice, and will fight for and take their due rights. The force of this uprising of people in the Narmada valley will prove to be a milestone in the history of peoples' fight for human rights.

Chittraroopa Palit, activist of NBA, said that the rights of farmers over land and of labourers over the fishing and draw-down rights in the reservoirs will have to be given otherwise the affected people will go back and reclaim their original lands and prevent private contractors from fishing in the reservoirs. She said that the affected people are determined to stop the arbitrariness, tyranny and oppression of the Madhya Pradesh Government, Narmada Hydro Development Corporation, and establish the rule of justice in the Narmada valley. This way the people will challenge corporate rule in this country, whether it is Union Carbide or NHDC or S. Kumars. The companies are exploiting and destroying the waters and lands of this country and subordinating human survival to their super profits. But everywhere the ordinary people of this country are challenging them. Activists of the Anti-Coca Cola struggle and Bhopal Gas Peedit Mahila Udyog Sangathan also expressed their solidarity in this struggle against the corporate rule.

Shri Anil Trivedi, a senior advocate of the High Court, said that this extraordinary power of the ordinary people will produce significant results. The affected people who came from different districts of the state said that the requirement of law and the constitution have been grossly violated in the Narmada valley due to which the affected families have been pushed to the brink of pauperisation. The government itself admits that 90 percent of affected families have not been able to purchase any land and have also been deprived of most of the other rehabilitation and resettlement rights. But now the affected people are prepared to unite and fight for their rights till the end.

Sudha Bharadwaj of Chattisgarh Mukti Morcha, Madhuri of Jagrut Dalit Adiwasi Sangathan, and Shamim of Samajwadi Jan Parishad said that the struggling people of Madhya Pradesh and Chattisgarh are united in their struggle for justice.

Candidates in election must raise the issue of displaced peoples' rights

Ramkunwar and Bhagwanbhai of NBA stated that the affected people demand that the candidates in the Narmada valley standing in the upcoming state assembly elections must make their stand for the rights of the displaced clear. They said that the incumbent M.P. state government will have to pay the price for not granting the basic livelihood rights to the affected people of the valley. It may be noted that about 25 Vidhan Sabha seats fall in the affected areas of Narmada valley.

Numerous peoples' organizations from different parts of the state and country came in support of the displaced people

Many representatives from various organizations from M.P. and other parts of India participated in this rally and declared their whole-hearted support for the struggle of the displaced people in the valley. The representatives who participated were senior members of the following organizations: Bhopal Gas Peedit Mahila udyog Sangathan, Abhivyakti (Maharashtra), Jagrit Adiwasi Dalit Sangathan, Kisan Adiwasi Sangathan, Shramik Adiwasi Sangathan, Samajwadi Jan Parishad, Loknaad (Gujarat), Khedut Mazdoor Chetna Sangathan, Adharshila, Chattisgarh Mukti Morcha, Adiwasi Mukti Sangathan, Manthan Adhyayan Kendra, Loksamiti (U.P.), Sandarbh, Tarashi, Muskaan, Baghelkhand Adiwasi Morcha Sangathan, Bargi Baandh Visthapit Evam Prabhavit Sangathan, Adivasi Ekta Sanghthan and several others.


Ramkunwar Rawat, Bhagwan Mukati, Sangeeta Kanera, Shruti Jain,Gajraj Singh


In Frontline, May 12 2000.

The other articles were 'Setting a tide mark', in The Hindu, March 8 and March 9 2000, p 10; 'Milestone or Landmark ? Narmada Case in Historical Perspective', in Mainstream, March 11 2000, pp 7-10 + 34-35; and 'Narmada needs a historic judgement', in The Hindustan Times, March 12 2000, p 15.
May 1990 Twenty-ninth Report of the Commissioner for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, 1987-89. New Delhi : Govt of India.

http://www.narmada.org/articles/JAI_SEN/whatkind.html

NBA Press Release
06 November 2008

Massive Demonstration by the People Displaced by Narmada Dams 2, Sai nagar, Mata Chowk,
Khandwa,
Madhya Pradesh
Tel/FAX: 0733-2228418, 9425394606, 9425928007
Email: nobigdams[at]sancharnet.in
Declaration of Struggle until the Last Breath

Candidates in M.P. State Election will have to answer to the Concerns of the Displaced