Terrror in Mumbai.

Teror in Mumbai.

Terror has to be tackled in two ways - one be called hardware and the other, software. India has failed in both.

The hardware, of course, is the well-equipped police with an intelligence network, telecommunications and transport, well-trained, well-paid and well-motivated personnel, and the latest defensive and offensive weapons, legal frame-work etc. The police also need functional autonomy to do its job without any political interference.

The software is equally important and that is, the education of the people. We are a sovereign secular democratic republic which assures liberty, equality and fraternity. We have not taught our people that this is the essence of all religions as well whatever be the name of God, rituals and myths of every religion.We want to build a casteless and creedless society of equals.The state offers equal opportunities to all and if you don't get it, you can avail many avenues of redressal. When there is a general election, there is no need for a general strike or a teror strike. You can change your government. There is no place for violence. Democracy means respecting every individual and his beliefs. Of course, our demcracy is not perfect but it it requires participation of all the people for good governance. It also requires patience and compromise. We have failed to convey this message to our younger generation. Our constitution and its message has to be taught to every child so that nobody becomes a fanatic or a terrorist. Merely singing national anthem and saluting the flag which we do is not enough.

There have been many terror strikes in India during the last four years of UPA goverment. But nothing has been done to book the culprits except of course the Malegoan blast.

November 29,2008.

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Looking for the real Nehru.

Looking for the real Nehru.

Walter Crocker, Australia's High Commissioner in India in the early 1960s and the author of 'Nehru: A Contemporary's Estimate' and Swapan Dasgupta (TOI,16/11) have missed one important aspect of Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru – that he was a consummate politician. As soon as Sardar Patel passed away, he removed Purushottamdas Tandon who was the duly elected president of the Congress and brought in Acharya Kripalani in his place to establish his supremacy. There was no strong opposition at that time and most of the English press was against some of his policies, especially economic policies. He blunted its attack by calling it " jute press" as some of the press barons were owners of jute mills.

When BJS was formed by Shyma Prasad Mukherjee to protect the Hindu interests after the refugee flood came from East Bengal, he said 'majority communalism is worse than the minority communalism' and branded it 'communal' which is still the Congress policy. He controlled the aggression/ expansion of the Communist Party with his friendship with Soviet Russia. He enfeebled the Socialist Party by adopting the policy of 'Socialist Pattern of Society' by the Congress. It was no less than stealing the thunder or stealing the dress – vastrapaharana. Ashok Mehta joined the Planning Commission citing 'the compulsion of a backward economy'. Jaya Pakash Narayan joined Vinobha Bhave in Bhoodan movement. Only Ram Manohar Lohia took the socialist party flag with his trenchant criticism saying poor do not earn as much as it costs Nehru feed his dog. He deflated Swatantra Party of Rajaji and Minoo Masani by calling it, 'Maharaja's Party' as it had many from the royal families.

Real opposition started when Ram Manohar Lohia initiated his movement for a 'non-Congress government' as Congress never received more than 50 percent in almost any election except when Rajiv Gandhi garnered sympathy vote. The victory of Janata Party is the culmination of Lohia's strategy though it was headed by Jaya Prakash Narayan. Of course, emergency created the right environment. His strategy of Brahmin-Dalit-Muslim vote bank is still the mainstay of the party which was dented after the fall of Babri Masjid/Ram Temple. He is the architect of 50 years of Congress rule.

November 23,2008

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India cannot progress without UP and Bihar.

India cannot progress without UP and Bihar.

A Bihari youth was killed in a fight for a seat near the window in a train on the way to Mumbai. Another Bihari was killed by the police for for hurting a passenger and brandishing a pistol. A few weeks ago the Bihari candidates who came for a test organised by the Indian Railways for recruitment for the post of guards and such other posts were thrashed in Mumbai. Biharis have become the whipping boys all over the country - Punjab, Assam, Delhi and now in Maharashtra .

Two questions arise from the above – why citizens of Bihar and UP are are being victimised in all other states in India? Are they victims of their own politicians ?

The Indian constitution gives the right to travel, work, own and reside for all citizens anywhere in India except of course in Jammu & Kashmir. These rights are available to citizens of Bihar and UP like all citizens in the other parts of the country. Secondly, these people who get employment fill a need. Otherwise, they would be on the street. It is possible that the local people do not like to work in the informal sector or for a small wage which immigrant workers would not refuse. Their motto - survive and prosper. Local people always take it easy and they want a job on their terms. It is so all over the world.

It is possible that in the case of Railways the advertisements in the local Marathi papers were not published in the right way and it appears there was some amendment to the rule which enabled students from Bihar and UP to apply in Mumbai and give their tests in Hindi. However, this should not lead to disruption of these tests and beating the innocent students. There are always rational and legal solutions to these problems.

No individual or a political party should be allowed to take the law into its hands and disturb normal life. If the government does not take proper action immediately, it is a great dereliction of its primary duty of maintaining the law and order. The Central Government should intervene or the Court should be approached. The guilty have to be punished.

Only good thing the Maharashtra Government has done is to issue an ordinance to collect fine from the group or a party which indulges in destroying the private and public property. This was long over-due. It should be applied all over the country and all such activities.

It is time to give some functional autonomy to the police to act immediately without getting any cue or permission from the government of the day. This would have prevented many such violent activities in the country in the last 60 years. It is sad that the repeated suggestions by the Supreme Court in this regard has not received proper attention from political parties. NGOs and other public organisations should ask all the political parties to include this in the manifesto in the coming general election.

The uneven economic development.

Illiterate and semi-literate people going thousands of miles away from hearth and home for manual labour or for a petty job is the tragic result of the uneven economic development in the country. Mahatma Gandhi wanted village-centric growth. He used to say, if a man can grow two leaves of grass where one grew before, he would be a great benefactor to the mankind. Our economic development has been capital-intensive and state-centric. The planned economy meant state having the 'commanding heights' of the economy and the permit-license raj favoured a few businessmen. Factories and irrigation facilities reached a few areas. Rain-fed areas are all prone to drought and have to go in search for a job.

Where ever there was no economic growth, villagers left their natives places in search of employment to the cities and towns leaving their native places which did not have schools, health facilities and even water for agriculture .This is the case with most of the villages of UP and Bihar.

India's agricultural revolution is confined mainly to Panjab, Haryana, Andhra and Tamilnadu, and now also West Bengal. The industrial revolution has taken place only in Maharashtra, Gujarat, Karnataka, Tamilnadu, West Bengal and Haryana. The service industry ( banking, insurance, tourism, software etc.) is mainly in Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamilnadu, Haryana, Rajasthan, Kerala, Himachal Pradesh,Goa and Jammu & Kashmir.

UP and Bihar do not figure in any of the development areas - agriculture, industry and service sector. Of course, Buddhist Tourism is being encouraged in Bihar and sugar-cane, potatoes and mango are being cultivated in UP. Taj Mahal is the only tourist attraction in UP apart from the prilgrim-centres such as Kashi, Ayodhya & Mathura.

Without job opportunities, kidnapping and 'supari' killings flourish in these states. Even the construction of National Quadrangle has been delayed due these law and order problem. Land distribution has not been undertaken properly and fishing in rivers is also a monopoly of the local land-lord. We hear bogus degrees and students fighting to get the right to copy during examinations.

Good Governance.

UP and Bihar are the cradles of Indian civilization. Bihar is the land of Buddha and UP is the birth-place of Ram and Krishna. That people of these two states have to go all over India for lowly employment is a sad commentary on the bad governance in these states – poor law & order situation, poor health & education, poor industralisation and poor infrastructure.

One cannot blame the recent empowerment of Yadavs in these states though one has to admit that they did not improve the economic conditions of the people. They were busy enjoying the new found power and had no time for good governance. Mayawati is also busy with statues and moving to the Delhi gadi than providing good governance to the state. Both the states and the centre were ruled by the Congress for many decades. It has failed to build a strong foundation for industry and in promoting agricultural growth.

In the case of Bihar, it started with the ' freight equalisation' for iron and coal in the 'fifities. The comparative advantage Bihar had for industrialisation was negated with this policy. Kosi deluge that happened this year was another instance of the neglect of Bihar. If there was a proper multi-purpose dam like the Bakra-Nangal in Bihar, Bihar would have been a granary of India just like Punjab. The same is the case of UP. A network of canals to all the rivers of UP could have provided water to all the remote corners of state and would have made it another agricultural power in the country. There was no serious effort to promote industrialisation in the state.

Most of the Hindi film actors, story-writers, script-writers are from UP but there is no encouragement for this industry in the state. With some support, Lucknow or Delhi would have been the capital of Bollywood.

UP and Bihar have produced many eminent personalities in art and literature, administration and medicine, and many other disciplines. They have spread all over India and the world. Some of them should be encouraged to come back to UP and Bihar and set-up educational institutions and small-scale and medium-scale industries. Industrialists from other states should be given special incentives to invest in these two states. The most important incentive would be the enforcement of law & order and rule of law without any fear or favour.

The time has come for all political parties in these two states to provide good governance. Law and order, education and health, agriculture and industry should be the focus just as it is in many of the states in the south and the west. The central government has to play a big role in this. If people are empowered with health and education and if agriculture and industry flourish, there is no need for people to go all over the country for small jobs. Then, it would be a win-win situation for all.

If these two states fail, India cannot succeed.

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