31122013 aseema december 2013 final to web by aseema magazine

Vol. 15 Issue 05 Pages 52 December 2013 MaArgasheersha PRICE ` 25 www.aseema.net.in

Mission Red Planet Doyens of Pure Journalism

IN THIS ISSUE

The Jewels of India

Heading for Balkanisation? 16 To Ban Opinion Polls or Not 18 Pros and Cons of Smaller States demand

Rank Violation of Journalistic Principles 20

Mission Red Planet

The CBI Conundrum Is it a Constitutionally Barred Institution?

8 The Blast Politics Why Bihar govt soft on Islamic Terrorism?

Doyens of Pure Journalism

Away from pulls and pressures of advertisements

IN THIS ISSUE

Transcending Boundaries Volume: 15 Issue: 05 December 2013 Maargasheersha (Vijaya)

Published & Printed by NARAYAN SEVIRE for and on behalf of the owners JNANA BHARATHI PRAKASHANA, Mangalore. aseemamagazine@gmail.com / 0824-2497091

IN A TIGHT CORNER AGAIN Case against Jagdish Tytler Reopened

Taliban: Bhasmasura of Pakistan Now It Shivers in Fear at the Sight of Its Own Child

PM’s visits to Russia, China Twists & turns of India’s foreign relations

Politicians vs Bureaucrats

The unending game of transfers and postings

Political Slush Money

Source of Funding of Parties Still a Mystery

Printed at DIGANTHA MUDRANA LTD., Yeyyadi Industrial Area, Yeyyadi Mangalore 575008. Editor NARAYAN SEVIRE

Editorial Team CP NAMBIAR, RAJU SHANBHAG NARAYAN A, SHRIDHARAN MK Production | Logistics JAYAVANTH

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The Famous Two Who Made the Nation Proud

The Jewels of India H

is parting speech had the nation in tears. It moved a million hearts who were in the stadium and were glued to their television sets all over the world. Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar, arguably the most famous, richest cricketer in the world, hung his boots and the world sat up and took notice. And so did the Prime Minister’s office in New Delhi. Soon after Sachin had a ceremonious send-off on his last Test, the Prime Minister’s office announced his name, along with that of scientist CNR Rao, for the Bharat Ratna award. While CNR Rao’s nomination for the highest civilian award in the country was met with universal approval, Sachin’s nomination resonated with voices of dissent. It was also noted that the PMO had bent the rules to confer Bharat Ratna on Sachin. Earlier, sports personalities and film artistes were kept outside the purview of this award. But the PMO changed the rule book to include Sachin for this prestigious award. The main complaint against conferring the honour on Sachin Tendulkar is that he hardly sacrificed anything for the country. He had a glorious career, he made millions while continuing to be the idol of all cricket lovers; and yes, the game has given him more than what he has given to the game. So why should Sachin Tendulkar be given this award; why other deserved candidates like the hockey legend Dhyan Chand were continuously ignored by the government,

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Some people may say that for Sachin Tendulkar Bharat Ratna has come too early (he is only --40) and for Prof. CNR Rao, a bit too late. All the same, the talent of both these shining stars has been acknowledged in ample measure by the government. It is not ‘sacrifice’ alone that should be the criterion for conferring the Bharat Ratna award as some people want it to be; it is also the substantial contribution that one makes in the field in which one excels. Viewed thus, no one can have any room to rake up a controversy over the decision to confer the nation’s most prestigious honour on these two leading lights of the country.

Bharat Ratna Controversies they ask. While it is true that Dhyan Chand deserved every bit of this award, probably more than Sachin did, it is also true that Sachin has opened the doors for sportsmen and film artistes to be honoured with this coveted award. Maybe Sachin’s nomination is an attempt by the Central government to cash in on the prevailing Sachin worship in the country, but no one can deny the fact that Bharat Ratna can now be conferred on sportspersons and that has been made possible by Sachin Tendulkar. Those who oppose giving Bharat Ratna to sportspersons and film artistes forget the fact that sports and arts are an integral part of any civilized society. Just because Sachin earned lot of money and reputation, his contribution to the game cannot be underestimated. He was a role model on and off the pitch and if any aspiring sportsman takes Sachin’s conduct as a model, one can be rest assured that the country’s sporting future has some really bright days

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This is not the first time a Bharat Ratna award has come under controversy, and this will not be the last time either. In 1992, The Indian Government issued a communiqué that Bharat Ratna would be conferred on Subhas Chandra Bose posthumously. The Supreme Court annulled it following a public interest litigation filed against the posthumous nature of the award due to the mystery surrounding the death of Subhas Chandra Bose. The government gave an affidavit that in deference to the sentiments expressed by the public and the Bose family, the government did not proceed to confer the award. When the award was offered to the freedom fighter and India’s first Minister of Education, Abdul Kalam Azad, he promptly declined it saying that it should not be given to those who have been on the selection committee. However, he was awarded the title posthumously in 1992.

ahead. If a sportsperson inspires millions of youths to take up the game and be a model of conduct with his unwavering dedication to the game, then he sure deserves all the accolades that come his way. The second Bharat Ratna awardee, Chintamani Nagesa Ramachandra Rao (CNR Rao), is the legendary Indian chemist who has worked mainly in solid-state and structural chemistry. He currently serves as Head of the Scientific Advisory Council to the Prime Minister. Dr. Rao has Honorary Doctorates from 60 universities worldwide and has authored around 1,500 research papers and 45 scientific books. Awards and felicitations are not new to Prof. Rao. He was awarded the Hughes Medal by the Royal Society in 2000, and he became the first recipient of the India Science Award, instituted by the Government of India, for his contributions to solid state chemistry and materials science, in 2004. He was awarded Dan David Prize in 2005 by the Dan David Foundation, Tel Aviv University, which he shared with George Whitesides and Robert Langer. The same year, he was conferred the title Chevalier de la Légion d’honneur (Knight of the Legion of Honour) by the French Government. He is a Foreign Fellow of Bangladesh Academy of Sciences. He was also awarded an honorary Doctor of Science by the University of Calcutta in 2004. Dr. Rao has also been conferred China’s top science award for his important contributions in boosting Sino-Indian scientific cooperation.

Mission Red Planet

Money spent on Mangalyaan is really worth it

he red planet is about to be conquered. The Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM), called Mangalyaan, has been successfully launched by the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO). With this, the space agency has displayed its ability to construct and deploy high-end space missions to the whole world. The big day for the country’s space research organisation came on November 5, when the MOM probe lifted off from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre at Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh, using a Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV-C25) at 09:08 UTC (2:38 PM IST). The MOM probe will stay in earth’s orbit for a month-long process of making six altitude-raising orbital manoeuvres before a planned insertion into a heliocentric Mars transfer orbit on December 1, 2013. For some years now, ISRO has been working relentlessly to showcase its space engineering capabilities to the world. The hopes of the space agency reached the skies after the successful launch of the lunar satellite Chandrayaan-1 in 2008, which culminated in a feasibility study of Mangalyaan in 2010. After getting all the necessary permissions from the Indian government, ISRO initially planned the launch on October 28, 2013, but later postponed it to November 5, 2013 because of the inability of ISRO’s spacecraft tracking ships to take up pre-determined positions due to poor weather in the Pacific Ocean. If the mission succeeds, India will become the fourth country or group of countries to reach the red planet, after the Soviet Union (Russia), the United States and Europe. Once Mangalayaan reaches the orbit of Mars, it will primarily gather data to help determine how Martian weather systems work and what happened to the water that is believed to have once existed on Mars in large quantities. Mangalyaan is expected to have at least six months to investigate the planet’s landscape and atmosphere.

DECEMBER 2013

Mars, also called the Red Planet because it is covered with a thick layer of red dust of iron oxide, has always fascinated the astronomers. That is because there are on the dry Martian surface features that appear to have been formed by free-flowing water. Also there are signs of frozen water on its polar areas. It is to confirm this and to carry out many other tests that the ISRO launched its Mars Orbiter from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre at Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh on November 5. This is undoubtedly the ‘D’ Day not only for the ISRO but also for the whole country. Let us hope Mangalyaan will fetch us ample rewards!

While we have every reason to feel proud of the technological feat achieved by ISRO, this Rs.465-crore project also poses another pertinent question. Does an economically backward country like India need to spend so much on studying the weather in another planet? Couldn’t this sum have been utilised for something more useful and practical like providing health care to the poor or improving the infrastructure of our country? Also, the mission is not complete yet and the success rates in earlier Mars missions undertaken by other countries have not been encouraging either. So far, only 21 of 51 total missions to Mars have been successful. It is also to be noted that China and Japan, the other two Asian countries who have tried to send their orbiters to Mars, have failed. In 1999, Japan’s Nozomi Mars spacecraft failed, while in 2011 China’s first Mars satellite Yinhuo-1 was destroyed when its carrier spacecraft - Russia’s Phobos-Grunt - failed to leave the Earth orbit. These are the arguments against Mangalyaan. But that does not mean that a poor country should

not have scientific ambitions. The nation should economise on its spending, but it should not look to cut the scientific development as that, too, is a very important segment for a country trying to make its mark in the international science scene. There are numerous areas where the government can look to spend less and spend well on infrastructure development. It is also to be noted that ISRO has completed this project at astoundingly lower costs than the international standards. Close on the heels of the India launch, American Space Research Agency NASA will launch its latest Mars probe, called Maven, from Cape Canaveral on November 18. The project will cost America almost 10 times the cost India incurred. Also, Mangalyaan may not be a castle in the air after all. If ISRO manages to pull this off, it will make the world sit and take notice. If India can complete a Mars mission at a fraction of cost of the US, then countries all over the world will surely look to India in future when it comes to their ambitious space missions. If one looks at the cost, every Indian will have to bear about

ISRO Chairman Radhakrishnan displaying a replica of the satellite

DECEMBER 2013

Money Spent Well While the world marvels at India’s low cost space programme (even Forbes has carried an article on it), many in India are busy questioning the feasibility of this project. Remember, ours is a country which spends crores of rupees every year on crackers during Deepavali. We also spend lavishly on big weddings, ‘Z’ level securities for VIPs and their kin and on populist government programmes, the feasibility of which no one has questioned. ISRO adopted a modular approach to its Mars Mission to keep the costs down. This means, for every suc-

cessive launch, ISRO has taken the base of its previous, successful launch technology and modified and built on it. Also, when it conducted the ground tests, it kept the number of tests small but took the best out of each test. ISRO used a couple of other strategies to bring down the cost of fuel consumption drastically. While space scientists in Europe work about 35 hours a week, scientists worked about 18-20 hours a day for this mission. Kudos to ISRO for all the hard work and for being on the right track!

four rupees each for Mangalyaan. There are many benefits that are associated with such space programmes. It’s with such programmes that the country has built satellites for communication, remote-sensing, forecasting weather and navigation. Thanks to its advances in the field of science, India has now become a world leader in building remotesensing satellites and its weather satellites were used for disaster management. All these have been of immense benefit to decision-makers and people at the ground-level. Thousands of lives were saved recently when INSAT beamed the pictures of the approaching cyclone Phailin. The India Meteorological Department used them to warn people and they were evacuated to safer places. Needless to say, advancements in science and technology, even in a seemingly unrelated domain like astronomy, have their benefits and they are never a waste. No knowledge is ever a waste.

DECEMBER 2013

Doyens of Pure Journalism

Away from pulls and pressures of advertisements

Subir Kumar Sen – Editor of Truth

Joynarayan Sen – Editor of Bharatajira

Aseema: ‘Truth’ and ‘Bharatajira’ are being published for the last 81 years. What are the challenges you are facing? l Subir Kumar Sen: TRUTH is being published for the last 81 years. It was first published in the year 1933 (April) and is being published continuously since then. BHARATAJIRA (Bengali) is being published continuously since 1936 and it is running for 78 years. l Joynarayan Sen: BHARATAJIRA is being published for the last 78 years. ( The word BHARATAJIRA has been chosen from Srimad Bhagabatam’s verse no.5/19/21 . The meaning of the Sanskrit word AJIRA is courtyard. The implication is - This land of Bharatavarsha is the courtyard of Vaikunthadhaama. ) The most important challenge that I face is my personal shortcomings, insignificance and incompetence to perform my task. And this feeling of incompetence becomes the reason of Sree Hari’s Grace Absolute to be showered on us to perform. Sree Hari creates the challenges, and He meets and solves them.

The most important challenge that I face is my personal shortcomings

The magazine is published by SDPS. What is its legal standing? What are its objectives? l Subir Kumar Sen: SDPS (SHASTRA DHARMA PRACHAR SABHA) is a registered body, which is functioning since 1931. The main objective of the SDPS is to uphold Truth, by showing the infallibility of our Shastras, and at the same time, to carry on relent-

DECEMBER 2013

BHARATAJIRA means Bharatavarsha is the courtyard of Vaikunthadhaama

The main objective of the SDPS is to uphold Truth, by showing the infallibility of our Shastras, and at the same time, to carry on relentless struggle against sin, which is polluting and destroying our society, our culture and our tradition, appearing in its hydraheaded forms.

less struggle against sin, which is polluting and destroying our society, our culture and our tradition, appearing in its hydra-headed forms. SDPS not only publishes these two magazines, but also holds meetings and seminars at different places to make people understand about the salutary effects of the shastric injunctions and to exhort them to fight against rampant sin, which is challenging our very existence. Besides this, SDPS publishes literature and many pamphlets and books relating to our Shastras and Dharma. l Joynarayan Sen: SDPS is an organisation which was founded in 1931. The objectives of BHARATAJIRA are i) to propagate the invaluable messages of Sanatan Dharma to the readers. ii) to remove doubts about various Shastric injunctions. These doubts crop up due to atheistic West-aped education and also incessant mispropaganda against everything Hindu by pseudo-Hindu political mafia and press-pack and also pseudo intellectuals. iii) to uphold truth, to demolish the domain of falsehood, and to ensure real good of humanity. iv) to wage a constant war against all attacks on Hindu gods and goddesses, Hindu saints and savants, Hindu Shastras, Hindu ethics values and culture, Hindu social systems and traditions, - in short anything holy.

I donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t see advertisements in the magazines. The subscription is very nominal. Then How are you sustaining? 3a) is it profit making? loss incurring venture? l Subir Kumar Sen: As a matter of principle we do not publish or accept any advertisement. Our Founder Shrimat Upendramohan was greatly averse to accept advertisement, lest it might cast any shadow on our policy matters and objectives. Our Founder started this magazine with the intention of making people aware of the basic tenets of our Shastras and to emphasise the fact that the injunctions of our Shastras, which are based on the truths revealed to our Rishis, Seers and Apta-purushas, are meant for the highest benefit of the humanity and the entire world. At the same time, he carried on relentless struggle against Sin. Because, in this Kaliyuga, when sin is burgeoning in many forms, and men are being bemused and attracted by worldly objectives and physical pleasures, constant war against sin to keep it at bay is absolutely necessary. Subscription: The subscription of these magazines have been kept very nominal, so that anybody who likes these magazines and intends to derive benefit from them may afford to obtain them. These magazines are not profit-making. In fact the amount of postage paid for despatching the magazines far exceeds the amount received through subscriptions. Neither is it loss incurring. Because, SDPS has a veritable fund, which finances the publications. This fund is formed by regular do-

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nations of many members of the SDPS and it initially started through a sizeable amount maintained like a trust. l Joynarayan Sen: The activities of SDPS and its mouthpieces - TRUTH and BHARATAJIRA â&#x20AC;&#x201C; are taken up as humble service to Sree Hari. Fortunately, He has arranged funds to carry on. Subscription is nominal, and many of Sadhus get BHARATAJIRA free of cost.

How do you maintain the high quality of the magazine? l Subir Kumar Sen: The quality of the magazine is maintained by the Infinite Grace of our Founder, who had set a very high standard of upholding the Sanatan Satya which like the needle of the balance always remains straight without any bias, fear or favour. The present editor, when he starts writing the editorial comments, always meditates upon the Infinite Strength of our Founder and thinks of himself as a mere quill in the hands of the Founder. Then follows what are expressed as our views. l Joynarayan Sen: The great poet Kalidaasa has said that while making a diamond necklace it is the drill that pierces the diamond bits to create small holes; and the thread which loops a needle do the rest. Our Founder Sreemat Sree Upendramohan has done the job of the drill and the needle. We try to remain attached to the needle like a thread so that the readers get the diamond necklace. He is the trend setter, we are His followers. What is your reach now? And what are your plans for growth? l Subir Kumar Sen: TRUTH is, more or less, an exclusive magazine, but it has a wide circulation all over India and abroad. There are many subscribers and readers of TRUTH in different countries of the world. Moreover, the contents are forwarded through e-mail to many interested readers. In India most of the important Dharma-Sansthas, as well as the Jagad Guru Sankaracharyas receive TRUTH regularly and these are read by many of their followers. About the plans for growth we are solely dependent on Divine Inspiration and dispensation. l Joynarayan Sen: As BHARATAJIRA is written in Bangalee, its readers are mostly Bengalis, and some Bangla knowing non Bengalis. We have been told, and also observed that, the moment a copy of BHARATAJIRA reaches a mutt or an ashram, immediately all the inmates read it one by one with utmost interest. Readers abroad get it through e-mail without any delay. We concentrate on Seva (service), try to please Sree Hari, and normally do not bother about growth.

While writing the editorial comments, I always meditates upon the Infinite Strength of our Founder and thinks myself as a mere quill in the hands of the Founder

Growth and impact are rewards of Sree Hari. Our attention remains to please Him and Him only

What is your impact? How do you enhance your impact levels? l Subir Kumar Sen: About our impact, I can say only this much that we receive blessings and inspiration from the highest religious leaders of the country. Also, we receive many inquiries and encomiums from many readers from inside and outside the country regularly. Joynarayan Sen: Growth and impact are rewards of Sree Hari. Our

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Present day media fail to uphold the glory and traditions of the hoary culture of this ancient civilization

Mainstream media channels are busy in maximising profits. They are entertainers, not educators

The ideals of Vaishya-s as enjoined in the Shastras can lead to proper distribution of wealth”

attention remains to please Him and Him only, with nominal but necessary mundane efforts and activities.

What are your views on the present day media channels? so called “mainstream media”. l Subir Kumar Sen: It is very unfortunate that in a country like Bharatvarsha, most of the present day media fail to uphold the glory and traditions of the hoary culture of this ancient civilization, which enlightened the entire world, and still possess the potentiality of setting the entire materialistic world in the right path for the improvement of the world order. Most of the present day media are influenced by political parties, or interested individuals and are not free from impartiality or bias. Partisan message cannot reap benefit for all in the country equally. Even the term secularism is more abused than observed properly while preparing reports. This only creates rift and harms the motto of India of Unity in Diversity. l Joynarayan Sen: Mainstream media channels are busy in maximising profits. They are entertainers, not educators. A viewer of the Ramayana feels frustrated to view Kamayana with interspersed ugly Ads showing half – naked women. What is your suggestion for mainstream media? What should they cover? How should they change? l Subir Kumar Sen: I am not sure that my suggestions will hold water. But my only suggestion is that the news media should try to adhere to truth strictly. l Joynarayan Sen: Do you think mainstream media will take a look at our suggestions? Mainstream media are propelled by two things only (a) public demand and political influence and (b) prevalent laws and Govt. Notifications. Our ideas, ideals, taste, etc. stand at the opposite pole of the above two. We regret that the wonderful media for mass education are being misused as mass-entertainment, resulting in mass degeneration. The only silver-lining is that some TV channels like Aastha, Sanskaar, Bhaktisagar, etc. are doing a wonderful job. How do we overcome the commercial motive in the media business? l Subir Kumar Sen: We are not guided by any commercial motive. Our goal is the highest welfare of humanity. l Joynarayan Sen: We are not against commercial motive in the media business. We are concerned with what they are delivering. We want that they should deliver milk & honey and not liquor & meat. In the management lobby, we hear words like maximisation of profit with social responsibility. Subsidies to sports or orphanage etc. have been taken up by some business houses. I feel that, the ideals of Vaishyas as enjoined in the Shastras can lead to proper distribution of wealth. Today that is a pipedream. What is your viewpoint on freedom of speech?

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Subir Kumar Sen: Freedom of speech must be accorded its proper importance as an inalienable and inviolable right of every citizen of India. l Joynarayan Sen: Freedom of Speech is baak- swadheeenata. baakswadheenata and ‘baak-samyama’ should be co-equal. One should remember that ‘swadheenata’ does not mean unbridled licence . Lack of this sense has led people to talk idle, talk rubbish and nonsense, and tell lies. The entire media – print or electronic – are a huge mass of nonsense of verbiage – words words and words. What is the result? swadheenataa = swa + adheenata = antaryaamee + adheenataa = Subservience to the (voice of) God within. 1 baak- swadheeenata is also spelt as vaak- Swadheeenata 2 baak-samyama is also spelt as vaak-samyama l

Freedom of speech (BaakSwadheenata) is “Subservience to the (voice of) God within”

Why SHASTRA DHARMA PRACHAR SABHA was founded?

ropagation of a valueless education and materialistic civilization together with the fabrication of fine falsehoods were the characteristics of 200 years of British regime in India. A close and intimate contact with those foreigners who idolized lust and luxury made the Hindus averse to their religion and Shastras. Baseless and ceaseless condemnation of Sanatana Dharma and constant and scurrilous attacks on our gods and goddesses and Shastras are being launched today not only by the foreigners but also by a section of Indians. These sworn enemies of Dharma have entered into an unholy alliance with a section of the Press. Even the legislature is forced to toe the mischievous course initiated by them by passing anti-Hindu legislation. To preserve Dharma, SHASTRA DHARMA PRACHAR SABHA (SDPS) was founded by Sri Upendra Mohan. URL of SDPS: http://sdps-us.hpage.co.in/

Profile of Sri. Upendra Mohan Sen Gupta

e was born on 11th Aug 1872 at Halisahar. He was Hinduism. Most unreasonable onslaughts were bethe eigth son of Sri. Girish Chandra Sen, a ‘vaid’ by ing made on the Dharma in the name of reason. So he profession. He lost his father when he was four years decided to establish SDPS, write books and tracts in old and was brought up by his eldest brother in Halisa- defense of Hindu Dharma and started the magazine har in 24 Paraganas. His ancestors about six genera- ‘Truth’. tions back were Vaishnava Gurus. He wrote a veritable stream of books. They were He completed his B.A from Presidency College, printed in thousands and were meant for free distribuCalcutta, in 1893. He served the British government tion. He also published books in other’s names. ‘Open as an officer without compromising Letter to M. K. Gandhi’ was one of on truth and fairness and up to the the first books published under the age of 36, he was a brilliant man, name Dr. Nalini Ranjan. ‘Hindu Dharextra-ordinary in everything. During ma O Parisishta’ was published unthis period, he always maintained der the name of Kaviraj Sakticharan achara (Good conduct). Roy. He wrote ‘Caste System’, ‘Early Front page of TRUTH magazine He came into contact with Sri Vaishmarriage’, ‘Reason Science and Shastras’, ‘Shastra Maniba Kena’, ‘Interpretations of navism and one of its apostles Sri Balaram Swamiji of the Sree Ramanuja Vaishnava sect at Ayodhya. From Shastra’, ‘Sanskrit Animus begotten of sin’. Sri Upen1915 onwards, He inspired devoted followers to get dra Mohan drafted sankalpa (the pledge) of the SDPS. initiated by Acharya Balaram Swamiji. Upendra Mo- More than 3 lakh people from every corner of India, han did not enter the Sri Vaishnava fold himself. He have signed the pledge. The pledge has been translatnoticed that Science was used as a platform to attack ed to many languages including Dutch and Sinhalese.

DECEMBER 2013

Heading for Balkanisation? • K G Suresh

he Group of Ministers (GoM), set up to look into the proposed bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh is expected to submit its report to the Union Cabinet before the winter session of Parliament. The high-powered ministerial panel had detailed discussions on sharing the river water, power, distribution of assets and demarcation of boundaries in its two meetings held early this month. The GoM will also look into the legal and administrative measures required to ensure that both Telangana and the residuary state of Andhra Pradesh can function efficiently from Hyderabad as the common capital for 10 years. Earlier, following the Cabinet decision to bifurcate the state in pursuance of a Congress Working Committee resolution, Andhra Pradesh was up in flames paralysing the entire Seemandhra region, bringing even basic services to a grinding halt and in the process causing immense hardship to the people and loss of billions to the exchequer. But for the distraction caused by cyclone Phailin, the protests would have continued for a longer time. The demand for Telangana comprising the Telugu-speaking areas of the erstwhile princely state of Hyderabad has been there right from the time of India’s independence. Though the language of the two regions was the same, a pre-requisite for the creation of states on linguistic lines, there was and is very little in common between the peoples of Telangana and other regions of the state, namely, Rayalaseema and coastal Andhra. According to the proponents of a separate state, Telangana is not only

Pros and Cons of Smaller States demand the largest of the three regions of Andhra Pradesh, covering 41.47% of its total area and inhabited by 40.54% of the state’s population but also contributes about 76% of the state’s revenues, excluding the contribution of the Central government. They also cite perceived injustices in the distribution of water, budget allocations and jobs. They allege that budget allocations to Telangana are generally less than one-third of the total Andhra Pradesh budget. There are also allegations that in most years, funds allocated to Telangana were never spent. According to the proponents of separate statehood, only 20% of the total government employees, less than 10% of employees in the secretariat, and less than 5% of department heads in the Andhra Pradesh government are from Telangana. Following widespread protests, the UPA Government announced a fivemember committee on Telangana, headed by retired Justice B N Srikrish-

na, to look into the issue. But instead of coming up with a strong recommendation, the committee, in its report, offered six options ranging from maintaining the status quo to creation of a separate state with the contentious Hyderabad as a Union Territory as also acceptance of the demand for carving out a separate state with Hyderabad as its capital in toto. Continuing with its dilly-dallying tactics, the Centre sat on the recommendations till recently. Over the years, with an eye on the Telangana voters, almost all political parties have, at one point or the other, supported the creation of a separate state. Therefore, political parties such as Telugu Desam Party (TDP), whose leader Chandrababu Naidu want on a protest fast against the move, which had favoured the creation of Telangana earlier, are only protesting against the manner in which the ruling UPA had gone about the de-merger. Having kept the issue

DECEMBER 2013

‘With 28 states alone, India has so many regional parties that fractured verdicts and consequent instability have become an integral part of polity, both at the Centre and the states. A dozen more states going by the demands, including those made by letterhead organizations with no ground support, would mean scores of regional parties and thereby more blackmail, more fractured mandates and a more fragmented polity.’ on the backburner during its decade long rule at the Centre and even reneging on its promise, prompting KCR of Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) to walk out of UPA-1, the Centre had suddenly woken up to the demand ahead of the Lok Sabha elections and announced the creation of the state in a hurry, which clearly smacks of political motives. United Andhra Pradesh, led by the charismatic YSR, had contributed much to the formation of UPA-2 and in his absence and following the emergence of Jaganmohan Reddy as a force to reckon with in Seemandhra, the Congress apparently felt it could gain lost grounds by ceding Telangana. With TRS likely to merge with Congress in the new state, party strategists are hoping for Jagan’s homecoming post-polls, thereby retaining its entire base in the region. Apparently, the biggest loser would be the TDP, having lost its base in Telangana and staring a wipe-out before the Jagan juggernaut. Therefore, Naidu was forced to sit on a fast while Jagan is trying to encash hard on the anti-Telangana sentiment to consolidate his base. Apart from the major bone of contention, i.e., Hyderabad, there are also key issues such as the status of government employees, water and power sharing, distribution of assets, et al, which need to be sorted out ahead of the proposed de-merger. The Centre would have done well to take into confidence all the stake holders on both sides of the divide as also regional and national political parties before taking such a major unilateral decision. In the absence of

DECEMBER 2013

clarity, the utterances of TRS leaders on contentious issues such as the fate of Government employees are only adding to the anger and confusion among the people. At stake are not just political fortunes but also the fate of millions of citizens, which remains uncertain in the present scenario.

Demand for Smaller States The announcement pertaining to Telangana has also once again sparked a nationwide demand for smaller states and a debate on their viability, with both its advocates and opponents taking extreme stands. While political parties such as the BJP and BSP are in favour of small states on the grounds that such states are administratively more convenient and give greater say to the local populace in matters of governance, states such as Jharkhand, where independent MLAs like Madhu Kora became chief minister and amassed wealth vastly disproportionate to their income, showed the inherent fragility of polity in the newlycarved out utopias, often touted as the ultimate panacea for misgovernance and mal-administration in large states. There are also fears that creation of small states can lead to increased regionalism or parochialism which can fuel separatist sub-national tendencies. Some of the demands are based purely on irredentist claims. For example, the demand for Gorkhaland on ethno-linguistic grounds. A look into the history would reveal that in the late 18th century, Darjeeling was

part of the Sikkim Chogyal’s territory, which was overrun by the Gorkhas of Nepal at the beginning of the 19th century. Following the Anglo-Gorkha war in 1814, Nepal had to cede all the territories annexed by the Gorkhas from the Chogyal, who subsequently gave it to the British East India Company. The question is how far do we go into history? Going by that logic, perhaps some decades later, illegal Bangladeshi immigrants settled in Assam and elsewhere in the country can seek separate statehood. As for language, dialect and cultural issues, there cannot ever be an end to such demands. From Bodoland to Karbi-Anglong, Assam is up for grabs. Kumaonis and Garhwalis in Uttarakhand too are different in terms of language and culture though there is no such demand till now. By conceding to such demands, will we be undoing the Herculean efforts made by Sardar Patel to integrate the country into a single entity? Even as many political and militant groups in Nagaland have been demanding creation of Greater Nagaland or Nagalim, including the Nagainhabited areas of Assam, Arunachal Pradesh and Manipur, four districts of eastern Nagaland — Tuensang, Mon, Longleng and Kiphire — have placed demand for a separate state citing neglect by the “stronger Naga tribes”. With 28 states alone, India has so many regional parties that fractured electoral verdicts, and the consequent instability has become an integral part of the polity, both at the Centre and the states. A dozen more states going by the demands, including those made by letterhead organisations with no ground support, would mean scores of regional parties and thereby more blackmail, more fractured mandates and a more fragmented polity. Will it ultimately lead to the balkanisation of India? (This is an abridged version of the article that appeared in the Vivekananda International Foundation magazine. The author is Senior Fellow and Editor, VIF).

To Ban Opinion Polls or Not

• By Hemalatha Hegde

olitical parties are mounting pressure on the Election Commission to ban opinion polls, on the ground that they manipulate electoral outcomes denying people the right to vote freely and fairly. The ruling Congress party has criticised the practice, with other political parties such as BSP and SP joining the chorus in support of the Congress. The only party that stood by the opinion polls is the BJP. Interestingly, the majority of pre-poll surveys conducted in the recent past have predicted victory for the BJP in the ongoing Assembly elections in the northern states. Leave out BJP’s opinion. Can the Election Commission ban pre-poll survey? Opinion polls are common in most of the democratic countries across the world (There are exceptions, of course. Countries like Sri Lanka, South Korea, Mexico and

Russia restrict publishing pre-poll results). Most of the democratic countries have long resisted the call to ban opinion polls, because they feel that such a move would undermine the very foundation of the freedom of speech. You will wonder asking why the Election Commission is seeking the views of political parties to decide whether or not it should ban pre-poll surveys. In 2004, Attorney-General of India Soli Sorabjee had said that prohibition of publication of opinion/ exit polls would be a breach of Article 19(1) of the Constitution of India. Opinion poll results represent nothing more than mere opinion of the people who may ultimately vote or may not. The first opinion poll conducted in the country was in 1957 by the Indian Institute of Public Opinion. They have become a regular feature of every election in the past 25 years. These days, the call to ban opinion

polls has sparked noisy debates on television channels and social media. In an opinion posted on Churmuri. com, a reader asks the Congress party what if it called for banning predictions on economic growth as well. “If opinion polls are to be banned for being inaccurate, then government should stop doing projections on CAD, fiscal deficit, inflation or economic growth, as it has got them wrong consistently,” he wrote without disclosing his name. “In 2009, our ‘economist’ PM told us that inflation would be controlled in 100 days. Four years on, inflation has continued to rise,” he adds. Opinion polls read the pulse of the voter and are scientific. Yet they can never be PERFECT as these polls are based on samples of a tiny portion of the electorate. Secondly, political parties have no reason to bother that they falsify the truth, because at the end of the day the reputation of the publication that conducts the survey will be at stake. If the survey proves correct, then the publication grows in value; if it goes wrong, its image will be tarnished. It will certainly have an impact on the voter, but it is left to the wisdom of the voter to decide whom he should vote for. Pre-poll surveys have proved to be true most of the times but they also had their share of “defeats”. In 2004, it was predicted that the Vajpayee government would storm back to power, but it didn’t. Again, in 2007, no opinion poll predicted that the BSP would be able to form the government on its own. The Election Commission may have to demand that these opinion polls should be transparent and publications should not carry out such polls sitting in the comfort of their air-conditioned offices.

DECEMBER 2013

Rank Violation of Journalistic Principles

• By MK Shridharan

arun Tejpal, Editor of Tehelka weekly magazine, is being investigated by the Goa police for his reported act of sexual assault on a female subordinate. The young journalist, who is the daughter of Tejpal’s friend and a close friend of Tejpal’s daughter, has alleged two sex crimes against her in an e-mail complaint. According to the leaked e-mail, Tejpal sexually assaulted her on two occasions during the Think Fest 2013, organised by Tehelka in Goa from November 8 to 10. After the first, Tejpal reportedly told the victim that this was the easiest way for her to keep the job. He is alleged to have sexually assaulted her again the next day.

The graphic details of these incidents have shocked the entire journalist community, especially the Tehelka journalists, and generated outrage among the public, culminating in the Goa police filing a suo motu FIR against Tejpal. Already, Consulting Editor Jay Mazoomdaar has resigned and Revati Laul, a special correspondent of Tehelka in Delhi, is also said to have put in her papers. A few other journalists, including literary editor Shougat Dasgupta and online editor Kunal Majumder, are also thinking of resigning. Tehelka, managed by Tejpal, his sister COO Neena Tejpal and Managing Editor Shoma Chaudhury, has exhibited unprofessionalism but also double standards with respect to is-

sues related to truth, justice, freedom and crime. The outcome of such an exposure will be damning; it is bound to affect the image of not only Tehelka but also the other institutions and individuals who work in this field. Tarun Tejpal is anti-establishment and has hobnobbed with suspicious personalities, inviting a Taliban leader (founder member of the Taliban and former Afghan ambassador to Pakistan, Mullah Abdul Salam Zaeef) to the Think Fest. Ironically, he had organised a session on “rape” at which the victims narrated their harrowing tales. Think Fest also hosted a number of ground left extremists, proponents of promiscuous culture and distorters of history. There were sessions unkind to Hindutva and ageold Hindu culture. Meanwhile, there have been some rescue attempts, sympathy and support in the public domain. Javed Aktar described Tejpal as one with “impeccable values” in a tweet and continued to justify his support through another warped argument. Arundhati Roy’s silence too has attracted the attention of social media. The Congress party is suspected to be sympathetic to Tejpal as P Chidambaram was one of the participants at the Think Fest. Tejpal’s alleged crimes are in gross violation of accepted and time-tested journalistic principles. It is another exposure of the value system supported by men like Tarun Tejpal.

DECEMBER 2013

The CBI Conundrum

Is it a Constitutionally Barred Institution?

his is nothing short of a parody. The Central Bureau of Investigation, the institution that the entire country looks up to when all other forms of legal investigative methods fail, has been declared unconstitutional. If the verdict of the Gauhati High Court stands -- the Supreme Court has stayed the order -- the CBI, as we fondly call it, may cease to exist. It all started when one Mr. Navendra Kumar filed a writ application against the CBI which had filed a chargesheet against him. The lawyers of Navendra Kumar argued that the CBI was neither established under the Delhi Special Police Establishment Act, 1946, nor was it an organ or part of the DSPE. Taking note of this petition, the Gauhati High Court has ruled that “it holds that the CBI is neither an organ nor a part of the DSPE and that the CBI cannot be treated as a ‘police force’ constituted under the DSPE Act, 1946. We hereby also set aside and quash the impugned resolution (of the Union Home Ministry) dated 01.04.1963, whereby the CBI has been constituted.” The court’s 89-page verdict has farreaching consequences in the already maligned justice system of the country. If this decision stays, all cases hitherto investigated by the CBI automatically will become null and void. The Government of India was quick in its response and swiftly challenged the decision in the Supreme Court which has granted a stay on the order. But what forms the crux of this allegation against the CBI? The writ petition contested that the CBI was not a statutory body, because it was not constituted under any statute. In fact, the CBI was established with an executive order/resolution No 4/31/61-

DECEMBER 2013

The Gauhati High Court ruling on the legal status of the CBI has rattled not only the Government, but the entire nation. All along, it was taken for granted that the CBI is an institution like any other that is vested with powers for carrying out its assigned functions. But now comes an unexpected blow. Although the government has swiftly obtained a stay on the order from the Supreme Court, there is a great deal of anxiety about the future of this premier investigating agency. T, dated 01.04.1963 of the Ministry of Home Affairs. Also, the court stated that the resolution does not refer to any provisions of the DSPE Act, 1946, as the source of its power. In other words, deriving strength from the DSPE Act, 1946, the CBI has not been constituted. One cannot, therefore, treat the CBI as an organ or part of the DSP either. Historically, the CBI traces its origin to the Special Police Establishment which was set up in 1941 by the Government of India. The functions of the

SPE then were to investigate cases of bribery and corruption in transactions with the War & Supply Department of India during the World War II. Superintendence of the SPE was vested with the War Department. Since then, the CBI has grown to be the premier investigation agency of our country. Ironically, many courts have referred various cases to the CBI. Unlike the general police in our country, the image of CBI has been that of an agency filled with honest and intelligent officers.

are provided, in addition to a press briefing room and media lounge. Until now, no one contested the fact that the legal powers of investigation of the CBI were derived from the DSPE Act 1946. This Act confers powers, duties, privileges and liabilities on the Delhi Special Police Establishment and officers of the Union Territories. The Central Government may ask the CBI to conduct its investigations in any area of the country if the government of that particular state has agreed to this investigation. Members of the CBI at or above the rank of sub-inspector may be considered officers in charge of police stations. Under the Act, the CBI can investigate only with notification by the Central

2009

67.7

2010

66.2

2011

Not available

To counter the charges of corruption and nepotism, the CBI has been demanding autonomy for many years now. It has also stated that the CBI director requires sufficient financial and administrative power (including a minimum three-year tenure to ensure “functional autonomy”). But in spite of its flawed track record and interruptions by the governments, the CBI has managed to have a very good conviction rate. See the chart.

70.8

Autonomy demand

Conviction rate

Legal or not, the CBI makes the exchequer pay for its services. Its headquarters is a 186- crore, stateof-the-art 11-storey building in New Delhi, housing all its branches. The 7,000-square-metre (75,000 sq ft) building is equipped with modern communications system, advanced record-maintenance system, storage space, computerised access control and additional facility for new technology. Interrogation rooms, cells, dormitories and conference halls are also provided. The building has a staff cafeteria with a capacity of 500, men’s and women’s gyms, a terrace garden and bi-level basement parking for 470 vehicles. Advanced firecontrol and power-backup systems

government and it is exempted from the provisions of the Right to Information Act. But in spite of providing the best of equipment and great powers, the CBI has been blamed for being a puppet in the hands of the ruling Central governments. Charges of corruption and nepotism are rife within the organisation and many of its former officers have come forward to blow the lid off scandals that rocked the CBI from time to time. In fact, B R Lall, former joint director of CBI, has written a book titled Who Owns CBI and has made serious allegations against the agency. On various instances, the CBI has been criticised for mismanaging investigations to favour of its political bosses. Its investigative methods have been widely criticised in Bofors scandal, Hawala scandal, Priyadarshini Mattoo murder case, Sohrabuddin case, Sant Singh Chatwal case and the Indian coal allocation scam. As the latest wave of problem hits the CBI, the investigating agency is confident of coming out with flying colours. It believes that the ruling will be set aside by the Supreme Court. But the question still lingers in our minds. Why has the premier investigative agency in the country such shoddy roots and why the government did not think of legalising the existence of CBI? Maybe we need to hand over this case to the CBI itself!

2008

2007

DECEMBER 2013

The Blast Politics Why Bihar govt soft on Islamic Terrorism?

JP’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi’s popularity is constantly on the rise. While the opposition parties continue to feign ignorance of Modi’s escalating fame, there is one unwanted group that is not only jealous of his growing support among the people, but is also trying to bring him down: The terrorists. On October 27, 2013, Modi’s Hunkar rally in Patna was preceded by a number of low-intensity blasts around the rally site. Five people died, while 50 others were injured in the explosions. Needless to say, the target was Nar-

DECEMBER 2013

endra Modi who continued with his planned rally despite the blasts. Allegations and counter-allegations started exploding faster than bombs right after these unfortunate incidents. While the BJP alleged that there were serious security lapses, the Bihar Government, headed by the party’s friend-turned-foe Nitish Kumar, was busy defending itself. Nitish Kumar even went to the extent of claiming that the BJP had gained political mileage with these blasts in its otherwise “flop rally”. Ironically, he was the man in charge who could have prevented the BJP

from gaining ‘political mileage’ by preventing these blasts! Right from the beginning, the security arrangements made by Bihar police at the Patna rally addressed by two NSG protectees, Narendra Modi and BJP President Rajnath Singh, were lacking in effort. This was even more evident when compared to the arrangements made by the Delhi police for the rally of SPG protectee Rahul Gandhi in Delhi on the same day. Foolproof security for a rally, which is attended by lakhs of people, needs measures like door-frame metal detectors, CCTVs and frisking. These

Pranab Mukherjee’s Narrow Escape President Pranab Mukherjee cut short his scheduled visit to Bihar by a day, because it was clashing with the BJP’s rally. Rashtrapati Bhavan clarified that the President had cancelled the October 27 programme a week back following a request from the organisers. The President was scheduled to unveil a statue of Babu Jagjivan

were not strictly followed in Patna. For SPG protectees (Prime Minister and families of PMs and ex-PMs), SPG provides anti-sabotage checks at the rally site before the event. It also takes over the security of the dais and VIP security area and coordinates with the state police. But in the case of NSG protectees, local police should take up the sole responsibility of security. In Patna, the Intelligence Bureau informed the Home Ministry that the Bihar police did not even conduct an “advance security liaison” in the vicinity of Gandhi Maidan despite an advisory to this effect. Apart from the obvious security lapses, it is also intriguing to see why the Central government is not willing to come out openly against Islamic terrorism. A day after the serial blasts in Patna, police exposed the mastermind behind the terror attack. Tehseen Akhtar, who is called the right hand of arrested Indian Mujahideen (IM) terrorist Yasin Bhatkal, is reportedly the man who had asked the terrorists to set off the explosives. The modus operandi and low-intensity bomb blasts appear to be the part of the IM operations. The Bihar police discovered Jihadi literature, pressure cooker bombs and detona-

The explosions at the Patna rally of Narendra Modi took place definitely due to a serious security lapse on the part of the Bihar Government, but CM Nitish Kumar doesn’t want to accept it. Now it has come to light that the checks carried out by the police before the rally were cursory and not up to the expectations prior to a political rally of this magnitude. The government must have been fully aware that lakhs of people will attend the meeting because of the growing popularity of the BJP’s prime ministerial candidate, and yet the intriguing question is why proper security arrangements were not in place.

Ram. The clash between the President’s visit and Modi’s rally had become an issue between the BJP and its former ally JD (U). The BJP had alleged that Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar had deliberately invited the President on October 27 as well to scuttle the party rally. The Bihar unit of the party has charged Nitish Kumar with misleading the people on finalising the date of the president’s visit. Senior BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi had said that the party had finalised the date of the rally way back on March 20 and Kumar was fully aware of it.

tors from the residence of one Imtiaz Ansari who has been arrested over his alleged link with the IM and Bhatkal. It is he who reportedly exposed the mastermind. But still the Bihar government has not given an official statement about the nature of the attackers. The heinous acts of terrorism, coupled with utter disregard for security by the state government, has made Bihar a dangerous place. For years, the state had had a relatively harmonious and peaceful existence. But since the time Nitish Kumar broke his alliance with the BJP earlier this year, there is no love lost between these two parties. When the JD (U)-BJP alliance was in power, Nitish made it a point not to allow Modi in Bihar. He refused to accept funds for flood relief operations from the Gujarat Government and had even made a public show of displeasure for being shown on the same poster as the Gujarat Chief Minister. Was it the rivalry between the two leaders the reason for the atrocious security lapse? Only Nitish Kumar has the answer; but he is busy gauging the political mileage gained by the BJP over it.

DECEMBER 2013

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Tr a n s c e n d i n g B o u n d a r i e s

Until a few years ago, it was unthinkable: The man or woman you took for granted as a civil citizen like any other turns out to be a key link in a notorious and dangerous network of terrorists receiving huge cash and other allurements from Pakistanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ISI to wreak havoc in India. But alas, that seems to be what is happening. The arrest of Ayesha Bano, living like any other middle class woman in the town of Panjimogaru, near Mangalore, is a case in point. The Bihar police swooped down on her house on November 12 and arrested her, as their trail led to this town when they questioned some terror suspects in Bihar. Behind the veil of innocence, it is alleged that she, along with her husband, was operating various bank accounts and transferring huge cash to terror modules in return for a handsome commission.

DECEMBER 2013

Devil Behind the Mask of Sweet Smile

â&#x20AC;˘ Raju Shanbhag

errorism has many faces. Not all of us are familiar with each and every one of them, and sometimes we are caught by surprise. On November 12, 2013, the sleepy town of Panjimogaru, near Mangalore, woke up to an unexpected event. Ayesha Bano, an unassuming Muslim woman living in the town, was arrested by the Bihar police on charges of money laundering and abetting terrorists. Ayesha Bano lived like any other middle class family in the area. She is married to Zubair, who is a beedi contractor. The couple has three children. The eldest works with his father and the daughter goes to school. The youngest is a boy, four months old. Ayesha was a

DECEMBER 2013

mild mannered housewife who didn’t mix with people all that much. There were some problems in their marriage and even a case was registered about the same in the local police station, but everything was good between the couple now. Much like a typical Indian lower middle class family. And that’s what worries the police a lot. The faces of terror peeping through the normal looking, middle class houses in India are posing a new worry for the Indian intelligence agencies. These new-age terrorists or those who assist the terrorists are not the gun brandishing, easily identifiable extremists. They reside among us; they look like us and apparently they do things we do. The difference is, under the caparison of civility, they are linked to terrorists. They are the blood veins of the modern terror network spread across the country; and their operations are clandestine, making it difficult to nail them. Before Ayesha Bano and her family were arrested, no one in the neighborhood suspected anything fishy about this family. Apparently they

Ayesha Bano lived a normal life, but unknown to many, Ayesha operated through innumerable bank accounts opened in various names. The modus operandi was simple. The couple lured poor youth to open accounts in their

The deadly art of making bombs

names by offering them commission on every transaction. The poor needed money and the terrorists needed safe accounts to transfer money for their activities. The people in whose name the accounts were opened hardly asked any question; and terror activities carried on without any hitch. So what was Ayesha’s role in this entire terror network? Her major role was to transfer funds, lots of them, to various terrorists across the country. Police sources claim she received money in her account from countries like Pakistan and she facilitated smooth transfer of this money to various other accounts. This money was used for terror activities. Ayesha was careful to avoid prying eyes of the tax authorities and other law enforcement agencies by keeping the amount of transaction to less than Rs. 50,000 at a time. It is obvious that while providing accounts to these customers, the banks didn’t follow the RBI guidelines about signing up new customers. The RBI prescribes KYC (Know your Customer), a term used for customer identification process. It involves making reasonable efforts to determine the true identity and beneficial ownership of accounts, source of funds, the nature of customer’s business, reasonableness of operations in the account in relation to the customer’s business, etc. which in turn help the banks to manage their risks prudently. The objective of the KYC guidelines is to prevent banks being used, intentionally or unintentionally, by criminal elements for money laundering. KYC has two components - Identity and Address. While identity remains the same, the address may change and hence the banks are required to periodically update their records. Police claim Ayesha and her husband Zubair got commissions to carry out this transaction. They got Rs one lakh for every crore transferred. Apart from Ayesha, other Bihari residents caught in this heinous crime are Gopal Prasad Goyal, Ganesh Prasad, Vikas Kumar and Pawan Gupta. Po-

DECEMBER 2013

A Side Effect of

Love Jihad

yesha is from Devanahalli in Virajpet. She was a Hindu by birth but converted to Islam after marrying Zubair. The conversion was done at a Darga in Hunasur and later Zubair married another woman named Zareena. Ayesha was named Putthali when she was born. Was Ayesha’s marriage to Zubair part of Love Jihad allegedly conducted by Muslim fundamentalists? Many organisations claim that Love Jihad is rampant in parts of Karnataka and Kerala. Hindu Janajagruti Samiti claims that more than 30,000 girls have been lured into love affairs with young Muslim boys and have been converted to Islam in this part of the country alone. In October 2009, the Karnataka Government announced its intentions to counter “Love Jihad”, which “appeared to be a serious issue”. A

week after the announcement, the government ordered a probe into the situation by the CID to determine if an organised effort existed to convert these girls and, if so, by whom it was being funded. One woman whose conversion to Islam came under scrutiny as a result of the probe was temporarily ordered to the custody of her parents, but eventually permitted to return to her new husband after she appeared in court, denying pressure to convert. In April 2010, police used the term to characterise the alleged kidnapping, forced conversion and marriage of a 17-year-old college girl in Mysore. Love Jihad is not an isolated propaganda against the Hindu community. Even Christian groups have alleged conversion of Christian girls into Islam through this activity.

The Hawala Racket S

o what is hawala and why is it a safe method of money transaction for all the anti-social elements? In the most basic variant of the hawala system, money is transferred via a network of brokers, or hawaladars. It is the transfer of money without actually moving it. In fact, a successful definition of the hawala system that is used is ‘money transfer without money movement’. The unique feature of the system is that no promissory instruments are exchanged between the hawala brokers; the transaction takes place entirely on the honour system. As the system does not depend on the

DECEMBER 2013

legal enforceability of claims, it can operate even in the absence of a legal and juridical environment. Trust and extensive use of connections, such as family relations and regional affiliations, are the components that distinguish it from other remittance systems. Informal records are produced of individual transactions, and a running tally of the amount owed by one broker to another is kept. Settlements of debts between hawala brokers can take a variety of forms (such as goods, services, properties, transfers of employees, etc.), and need not take the form of direct cash transactions.

lice have recovered more than 39 Pakistani mobile numbers from the SIM cards of these people, one more proof that Pakistan and ISI are trying their best to spread terrorism in the country. In fact, the police tracked Ayesha and her sordid deeds when they were tracing the transactions of some hawala racket. Ayesha’s husband Zubair was in Al Khobar, Saudi Arabia, from 1995 to 2001 and he is said to have come into contact with anti-India elements there at that time, among them one Liyakhat from Pakistan. Zubair returned to India in 2001 and started working as a beedi contractor and driver. Four years ago, Zubair received a call from Liyakhat who said he needed Zubair’s help in transferring money. Zubair and Ayesha were lured into this ‘business’ with a promise of commission. Crores of rupees were transferred by the couple during these four years. Sometimes, this money was transferred manually by Zubair to various places in Karnataka and some other times people came to his house to collect the money. The couple knew not everything was right with this deal, but the enticement of easy money did them in. It’s hard to tell if Ayesha Bano knew how the money she was illegally transferring to various accounts was being used. Maybe her motive was just to get some easy money for her family; or maybe she really did know what was happening with all the money she transferred. But she definitely knew she was doing something illegal and still carried on to make a fast buck. Whatever the motive of Ayesha Bano, her arrest and the subsequent revelations have given us a glimpse of Pakistan-sponsored terror programmes in our country. It has also shown how deeply this rot runs into our system and is spreading like cancer.

IN A TIGHT CORNER AGAIN It has been nearly three decades since the riots broke out against the Sikh community in Delhi and other parts of North India following the assassination of Indira Gandhi, but there has not been any marked progress in the investigation against the perpetrators of the worst genocide the country witnessed since Independence. Now, after a lapse of so many years, the case against the Congress bigwig, Jagdish Tytler, who is alleged to be one of those who instigated the mob violence, has been reopened.

Case against Jagdish Tytler Reopened

he past returns to haunt Congress leader Jagdish Tytler. The case involving his alleged role in the 1984 violence against Sikhs has been reopened and his attempts to stop the investigation have been quashed by the court. While Tytler continues to claim he is innocent, many in the Sikh community, especially those who were the victims on that fateful day, refuse to believe it. After Indira Gandhi was assassinated on October 31, 1984, the nation witnessed widespread violence against the Sikh community. Though sporadic at first, the violence soon took the shape of an organised crime perpetrated by men in powerful positions targeting a particular community. Adding fuel to the fire was Rajiv Gandhi’s controversial statement, “When a big tree falls, the earth

shakes.” Indeed it did. More than 8,000 people died in the riots, of whom more than 3,000 died in Delhi alone. The government reported that 20,000 had fled the city in the aftermath of the violence and the human rights organisations and newspapers across the country believe the massacre was an organised one. Even the CBI, which has been conducting an investigation into this riot, believes that Delhi police were mute spectators to this whole violence. Like in many other cases involving high-profile politicians, the details about Tytler’s involvement in this riot are shrouded in mystery. Many eyewitnesses claim that Tytler, who was then an MP from the Sadar Constituency of Delhi, was seen near a Gurudwara, instigating mobs and shouting

slogans like “Khoon ke Badle Khoon.” But the CBI, in its initial report, has given him a clean chit and claimed Tytler was at Teen Murti Bhawan, the residence of late Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, at the time of riots. Tytler is being investigated about his involvement in the murder of three men; Badal Singh, Thakur Singh and Gurcharan Singh, who were lynched by the mob. Depite the CBI’s clean chit to Tytler, the families of the victims feel that the premier investigating agency is shielding powerful leaders. Lakhwinder Kaur, the widow of one of the three men killed, had challenged the CBI’s closure report pointing out that the investigating agency has not recorded the testimony of some key witnesses. It has been almost 29 years since this happened and many witnesses in the case have

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either become infirm or have died. The investigations about the 1984 violence against the Sikhs have been slow and shady right from the start. Even though names of four top Congress leaders (HKL Bhagat, Jagdish Tytler, Sajjan Kumar and Dharam Dass Shastri) were cited by victims and eyewitnesses as the leading instigators, the then Congress government hardly took any action against them. In fact, Rajiv Gandhi rewarded

both Bhagat and Tytler with ministerial posts in his government. Various investigating committees have been set up by the government in the past to probe this violence. While the Mariah Commission, set up in 1984 soon after riots, stopped midway for mysterious reasons, the Misra Commission, set up in 1985, recorded the statements of many eyewitnesses but no action was taken. The Dhillon Committee, set up in 1985, recommended various compensatory measures such as the victims’ rehabilitation and financial assistance, but the government rejected these recommendations. The curious case of setting up numerous committees continued with the formation of Kapur-Mittal Committee in 1986. This committee identified 72 policemen for negligence and recommended dismissal of 30 of them. Again, not a single policeman was touched. In the same year, the Jain-Banerjee Committee set up by the government suggested registering the cases against Bhagat and Jagdish Tytler. But the committee itself was cancelled by the Delhi High Court. In 1990, the Jain-Aggarwal Committee recommended filing cases against prominent Congress leaders. But, instead of looking into the committee’s suggestions, the government promptly wound up the com-

mittee. Finally, when the Nanavati Commission submitted its report in 2005 to the government, in which it stated that it had credible evidence against Tytler and other leaders, the government merely asked Tytler to resign. No further action was taken and the committee was wounded up. It is evident which way the government is leaning in this case. In spite of recommendations from various committees and the existence of evidence, against him, Jagdish Tytler has continued to enjoy great support from his party, including tickets to contest the elections and plum party posts. Even today, Tytler serves as an active member of the Congress Working Committee (CWC), the topmost decision-making body in the party, and oversees party affairs in Odisha. It is no coincidence that those who were protecting Tytler were given their rewards too. Ashwani Kumar, the man who, as CBI Director, overruled a recommendation by former Joint Director Arun Kumar, for prosecution of Tytler, today serves as the Governor of Nagaland. While the Congress Party and its leaders raise their voice and cry for action against politicians allegedly involved in the 2002 Godhra riots, the same leaders have been busy defending their colleague who was allegedly involved in the worst genocide in the history of independent India. In case you were looking for an ideal definition for double standards, you need not go any further.

The Witness Speaks The Justice Nanavati Commission has recorded the statements of Jasbir Singh, a key witness in the 1984 riots. He has given some damning witness against Jagdish Tytler. According to Jasbir Singh, he saw Jagdish Tytler on 3rd November, 1984, at 11.00 p.m. near the gate of the T.B.Hospital, rebuking a group of people saying that his “instructions had not been faithfully carried out. There had been only a nominal killing in the constituency compared to other places, as I had promised.”

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Suicide bomb blasts of this kind have become the order of the day in today’s Pakistan.

Now It Shivers in Fear at the Sight of Its Own Child

Taliban: Bhasmasura of Pakistan • Narayan Ammachchi

hen Pakistan gave birth to an innocent-looking organisation and named it the Taliban, all its aim was to protect Baluchistan from Russian invasion. The kid looked handsome and as he grew up, he carried out faithfully every task that was assigned to it by its parent. In fact, he did more than that: Not only did he chase the Russians out of Afghanistan, but he also established his own reign of terror in that war-torn country. Unfortunately, the Taliban has now turned out to be

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a Bhasmasura for Pakistan, with the Islamic fighters launching wave after wave of bomb attacks across its cities and valleys bordering Afghanistan almost every day. Every time the United States smashes its hideouts with air raids, the Taliban punishes Pakistan with suicide bomb attacks. Pakistan is thus increasingly feeling caught in this crossfire –– it can neither influence the US nor can it calms the nerves of the Taliban who rage in anger every time the US drone lurks in the sky looking to kill their members. This rag tag army of Islamic fanat-

ics has now infiltrated ISI, Pakistan’s intelligence agency, as well as its army. They have killed thousands of Pakistanis in cold blood over the past couple of years. Two years ago, their goal was to establish their own kingdom in Pakistan’s tribal region. Today the goal is to force the Pak government to exert influence on America to stop drone attacks. A US drone attack recently killed the Taliban chief, Hakimulla Mehsud. Pakistan should have felt relieved to know about his death; but it has only raised the tension instead. Today, a far more fanatical Mullah Fazlullah

Sow wind and reap the whirlwind, so goes the saying. Today this is perfectly applicable to Pakistan, which is rocked almost every day by explosions set off by Taliban’s hardened suicide bomb attackers. Remember the Taliban is Pakistan’s creation. It was formed in 1980s to fight the Russians in Afghanistan, and now the same organisation, seething with virulent fanaticism, is wreaking havoc in Pakistan’s territory. They have already created a “kingdom” in Swat Valley, but they won’t be satisfied until the whole of Pakistan is brought within their fold.

has taken control of the Taliban and he is increasingly threatening to wreak havoc in the Islamic republic. A recent report from Reuters has quoted an unnamed Taliban commander as saying: “This is the start of our fight with the Pakistan government, an American puppet.” He goes on to say: “Those who forced the Soviet Union out of Afghanistan are capable of breaking up Pakistan.” The lesson Pakistan has learnt could be a lesson for every country grooming private armies to wage war on its enemies. For Pakistan, it all began in 1980, when General Zia-ulHaq was the president. Those were the days of Cold War and the Soviet Union had occupied Afghanistan in a desperate attempt to prevent the civil war in that country from spreading to its own territory. ISI told Zia ul-Haq that the Soviets could invade Pakistan’s Baluchistan region. So Zia sent an emissary to Saudi Arabia to garner support for the Afghan resistance against the Soviet occupation forces. His plan was to make Russians busy themselves within Afghanistan so that they would not think of invading Pakistan’s territory. Zia was not a shrewd leader nor had he the foresight. He aligned himself with Pakistan’s Jamiat Ulema-eIslam and later picked General Akhtar Abdur Rahman to lead the insurgency. In 1980, Pakistan trained as many as 80,000 Islamic fighters (most of them were students at its own madrasas) and named them as the Taliban before sending them into Afghanistan. That’s why history labels Zia as the

to Al Qaida and its founder Osama Bin Laden. For the Taliban, Kandahar was its capital, not Kabul. Remember, it was here the hijacked Indian Airlines flight was landed. After the Indian Government handed over the four Islamic terrorists in exchange for the safe release of the passengers, the hijackers walked freely out of the Kandahar airport as if that was their regular hangout. Such was the influence of Pakistan on the Taliban. The September 11 terrorist attack on the United States changed all that. The Islamic Republic has not breathed in peace since then. Up until 9/11, Pakistani military and ISI officers, along with thousands of regular Pakistani armed forces personnel, had been involved in fighting in Afghanistan. As the US war jets pounded the streets of Afghanistan, thousands of Pakistani fighters fled to their homeland. The Pak government rescued hunRecently, US drone killed Hakimulla Mehsud. dreds of ISI agents and its own soldiers, who were in the “grandfather of Islamic jihad.” Of the estimated 28,000 Pakistani guise of the Taliban, in a cargo flight. nationals fighting in Afghanistan, With them came Osama Bin Laden 8,000 were militants recruited in ma- and thousands of Al Qaida and Talidrasas, filling regular Taliban ranks. A ban fighters. report from the US State Department The Islamists, hardened by years has stated that 20–40 percent of (reg- of fighting in Afghanistan, could not ular) Taliban soldiers were Pakistanis. keep quiet in Pakistan. They launched The document further stated that the a Pakistani version of the Taliban and parents of those Pakistani nationals took control of Waziristan. The Taliban is condemned inter“know nothing regarding their child’s military involvement with the Taliban nationally for its brutal treatment of until their bodies are brought back to women. The majority of Taliban are Pakistan.” made up of Pashtun tribesmen and As the United States started to fi- are influenced by the Deobandi funnance and arm the fighters, Pakistan damentalism. In areas like Swat Valwatched in glee. The Taliban soon ley, the Taliban has pitted tribal leadtook control of much of Afghanistan ers against one another. As a result, and began to enforce the strict Is- they are dying one after another in lamic Sharia law. It gave safe haven tit-for-tat retaliations.

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One day, Richard Armitage, the former US deputy secretary of state, said that Pakistan would be “bombed back to the Stone Age” if it continued to support the Taliban, though Armitage has since denied using the “Stone Age” phrase. Another report published by the London School of Economics says that Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence agency has an “official policy” of support for the Taliban. It said the ISI provides funding and training for the Taliban, and that the agency has representatives on the so-called Quetta Shura, the Taliban’s leadership council, which meets inside Pakistan quite often.

American Gamble American drones often zero in on Taliban’s supreme leaders and kill them in surprise attacks. The US has so far killed three successive chiefs of Pakistani Taliban, including Waliur Rehman and Baitullah Mehsud. First, the US agents on the ground keep track of the convoy of Taliban leader in the tribal area and the CIA’s drone lifts up into the air and heads in the direction where the Taliban leader is moving. The pilotless aircraft (drone, as it is called) fires missiles precisely onto its victims, killing them in a bunch. Its recent raid not only killed the Taliban chief but also his deputy and half-a-dozen senior commanders. The aim behind such attacks is to set off a leadership battle within the terrorist group. When it killed Baitullah Mehsud in 2009, the Taliban held a meeting to appoint his successor. Fighting broke out during the meeting between Hakimullah Mehsud and Wali-ur-Rehman. Both of them became chiefs of the Taliban later on. And now both are dead.

India’s Largest Nuclear Reactor on the Cards S

cientists have reportedly designed India’s first 900-MW lightwater nuclear reactor to take the country into the next stage of nuclear energy. The pressurised water reactor’s conceptual design is already prepared, and it would be a joint effort between the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) in Mumbai and the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL). NPCIL hopes to start the construction work in five years. It is waiting to get the requisite permissions. For the first time, it will forge such a big reactor vessel in India. A new enriched uranium plant that feeds the reactor is proposed at Chitradurga. The forging will be carried out at L&T and NPCIL’s new joint venture at Hazira. The turbine will come from Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited. Over the years, the NPCIL has perfected the design of 220-MW nuclear reactors, which have been duplicated all over the country for the last two decades. The two biggest indigenous reactors are of 540-MW capacity. The NPCIL is now constructing four 700-MW reactors for Kakrapar and

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Rawatbhata. Over the next 10 years, the NPCIL intends to set up 16 more 700-MW indigenous reactors. Civil work on these would begin by 2017. These include the fifth and sixth units at Kaiga. Another six reactors will be installed at Gorakhpur in Haryana, Chutka in Madhya Pradesh and Mahi Banswara in Rajasthan. Each site will have two reactors of 700 MW each. The first 500-MW prototype fast-

breeder reactor (PFBR) at Kalpakkam will be operational by September 2014, and construction work for two more fast-breeder reactors will start within the Twelfth Plan period. The PFBR has been delayed by several years due to delay in construction and technical complications. According to the government, these issues have come up because of the plant’s necessity to handle hazardous liquid sodium at 400-550 degrees Celsius.

PM’s visits to Russia, China Twists & turns of India’s foreign relations • Kanwal Sibla

rime Minister Manmohan Singh’s back to back visits to Russia and China from October 20 to 24 reflect the evolution of India’s external relations in a world with shifting power balances and the challenges faced in consolidating relations with tried and trusted friends with declining power and forging understanding with adversaries with rising influence who seek to advance their interests through tactical overtures of friendship. Russia remains a vital strategic partner of India. The long-term geopolitical interests of both are compatible. Russia is not interfering in subcontinental affairs where it recognises India’s primacy. On principles that should govern international relations such as respect for sovereignty and non-interference in the internal affairs of countries, combating international terrorism without double standards and opposition to regime change policies, India and Russia have shared views. Russia is India’s principal defence partner, offering over the years platforms and technologies that have fortified our defence capabilities, whether it is the aircraft carrier Vikramaditya, the leased nuclear propelled submarine Chakra, technical assistance for Arihant, licensed manufacture of front-line combat equipment such as the Sukhoi 30 MKI aircraft and T90 tanks, the joint development of the potent supersonic missile Brahmos, besides participation in codeveloping the fifth generation fighter aircraft as well as a multi-role transport aircraft. Russia’s politically significant role

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has just visited both Russia and China, the two countries with which India has diplomatic relations, but at the same time has two different approaches. With the former India has shared interests on matters political and economic; but with the latter we have sharp political differences though on the economic front there has been a sharp upturn in trade and commerce. At the same time, Russia is facing geopolitical and economic pressure from the West. As the author says, “our triple challenge is to avoid entanglement in Russia-US tensions, manage to our advantage US-China strategic competition and attenuate the negatives for us of increased Russia-China collaboration.”

PM Manmohan Singh and Vladimir Putin

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in India’s civilian nuclear sector is epitomised by the construction of two 1000 MW nuclear power plants at Kudankulam, honouring a commitment made prior to its Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) membership. The techno-commercial negotiations for building two additional reactors at Kudankulam have been completed, but the contract’s finalisation awaits resolution of issues raised by India’s nuclear liability legislation. With China our territorial disputes endure. China has strengthened its military infrastructure on our frontiers, forcing India to belatedly raise additional forces and allocate enhanced infrastructure expenditure on its side. China seeks substantial territorial concessions by India, not simply an agreement on border adjustment, which makes settlement a distant prospect. The confidence building border measures that China backs are intended to prevent military incidents that would distract it from dealing with far bigger challenges in the east presented by US and Japan constraining China’s regional dominance and its naval power expansion.

China’s intervention China interferes actively in our region, feeding fears of Indian hegemony amongst our smaller neighbours and preventing India from raising its global profile by consolidating its regional base. Pakistan, which has been fully complicit in this, receives Chinese political and military backing for pursuing its confrontational policies towards India. China is Pakistan’s principal defence partner. By transferring nuclear weapon and missile technology to Pakistan, China has profoundly damaged India’s security. In the civilian nuclear field, as a counter to India-Russia nuclear ties, before joining the NSG, China “grandfathered” its supposed commitment to supply two nuclear reactors to Pakistan. It then decided to supply two additional reactors on the same pretext, this time as a riposte to the India-US nuclear deal. China is aiding

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Manmohan Singh with a top communist party official He Yiting in Beijing in the construction of plutonium reactors in Pakistan to enable it to build smaller warheads for tactical nuclear weapons. Despite political closeness, India’s economic relationship with Russia remains modest, with two-way bilateral trade at only $11 billion plus last year. The target of $20 billion by 2015 seems unachievable. Several business promotion efforts have failed to boost economic exchanges. India is proposing Russian investments in the Delhi-Mumbai industrial corridor, while the expanded energy partnership with Russia that India has long sought remains unrealised. In contrast, despite serious political differences, India-China trade relations have flourished, expanding to nearly $70 billion in 2012, making China India’s largest trading partner in goods despite the damage done to our manufacturing sector in the process and security concerns emanating from China’s huge penetration of our power and telecom sectors. However, the $100 billion target set for 2015 is unlikely to be achieved because the trade deficit- likely to reach $40 billion this year- is becoming unsustainable. Strategy improved India-US ties impact our relations with both Russia and China. Russia’s primary concern would be the erosion of its dominant position as our defence partner as we increase our acquisitions of US defence equipment, as this affects political equations. India will need

to continually re-assure Russia concretely that its expanded strategic ties with the US would not be at Russia’s expense. China closely monitors US arms sales to India, viewing them as integral to the American strategy to create a security ring around China. With China under an arms embargo by the West, Russia has been China’s principal arms supplier, with the potential sale of Russia’s Su 35 combat aircraft to China under discussion. Russia’s concerns about Chinese reverse engineering are pitted against its need to export to sustain its domestic defence industry, besides solidifying strategic understandings with China as a consequence of Western geopolitical and economic pressures on it. Russia has also supplied RD93 engines to power the JF-17 fighter aircraft, a China-Pakistan joint venture. Our triple challenge is to avoid entanglement in Russia-US tensions, manage to our advantage US-China strategic competition and attenuate the negatives for us of increased Russia-China collaboration. Our challenge then is to build a larger edifice of relations with Russia on existing strong political and security foundations, whereas with China it is ensuring the safety of the impressive edifice that is rising on foundations that are not only weak but can shift. (The author is Dean, Centre for International Relations and Diplomacy, Vivekananda International Foundation).

Politicians vs Bureaucrats

The unending game of transfers and postings

• Narayan Ammachchi

he recent Supreme Court judgment regarding setting up of a board to protect the civil servants (IAS officers) from political interference will go a long way in stamping out corruption. The board, to be formed in three months or so, will look into transfers, promotions and disciplinary matters involving the civil servants. From Ashok Khemka to Durga Shakti Nagpal, we have a long list of bureaucrats who are in a dilemma whether they should go by the law or by the wishes of their political bosses. It is a well-known fact that politicians mistreat the babus who ignore their orders. Take for example Khemka, the IAS officer in Haryana, who has been transferred for more than 45 times in his 20 years career. And Nagpal was suspended for carrying out her job in accordance with the law of the land. Everybody knows that Khemka is being hounded for cancelling a land deal involving Congress President Sonia Gandhi’s son-in-law Robert Vadra. When Akhilesh Yadav became the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, all the top officials who worked closely with Mayawati were sent out on forced leave. Weeks later, they got postings in innocuous departments. Thus, the principal secretary to the former chief minister is today principal secretary to the Department of Home Guards. The Supreme Court judgment is the result of a plea submitted jointly by nearly a hundred retired IAS officers. They know it first hand what would be the consequences if a civil servant does not obey the commands of their political bosses. In a country, where politics is seething with corrupt netas, only a transparent system can ease the task of accessing government services. The special board being set up will naturally make the system transparent, because it will bar babus from acting upon the verbal orders of politicians. “If the civil servants act on oral instructions, they must record it in writing, otherwise the purpose of the RTI will be defeated,’ the court said. No politician, who is aware of the power of the Right to Information Act, will dare issue an order that is against the law. And the system will also blow off the

Durga Shakti Nagpal

It has become a crime to be an honest official in our country, so it seems, considering the way in which the bureaucrats are shunted from one department to another as soon as there is a change of guard at the state or central level. The new party that comes to power sees to it those who worked with their political foes earlier are no longer in their team; so they are transferred to remote corners, there to spend years attending to some unimportant works assigned to them. The case of Ashok Khemka and Durga Shakti Nagpal is fresh in our memory. Now the judiciary has intervened and directed the Central government to set up a board to protect the IAS officers from political interference.

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cover of corrupt bureaucrats, most of whom are currently blaming their mismanagement on political pressure and interference. The existing system has weakened the probity and accountability in the bureaucracy, allowing inefficient babus to hide behind their political bosses. The common man has become the loser, as both of them accuse each other for the failure of governance. â&#x20AC;&#x153;If the civil servant is acting on oral directions, he will be taking a risk, because he cannot later say the decision was in fact not his own. Recording of instructions and directions is, therefore, necessary for fixing the responsibility and ensuring accountability in the functioning of civil servants and to uphold institutional integrity,â&#x20AC;? the court said. In other words, the court wants someone to own up inefficiency and corruption charges. Now the only question is: Will the Union government set up such a board as directed by the Supreme Court? A similar order delivered by the court seven years ago is gathering dust. In September, 2006, the court had ordered the state governments to fix a tenure for the police officers to protect them from repeated transfers. But hardly any state government has enforced such a system. The court also asked Parliament to enact a law to regulate postings, transfers and disciplinary action against bureaucrats. Much of the deterioration in bureaucracy is due to political interference, the court said. If the order is enforced to the letter, the Central and state governments may have to set up a civil service board to decide on the transfer and posting of bureaucrats. There are nearly 5,000 IAS officers working in different parts of the country and a large number of them are today blaming politicians for their failure. It is also true that the politicians have misused several of them. Take the example Umashankar, an efficient officer in Tamil Nadu. He has unnecessarily become an enemy of

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Umashankar, IAS officer, cought in the crossfire

Akhilesh Yadav the AIADMK for acting on the orders of the DMK government. Luckily, the media and the general public recognised his virtue for the extraordinary work he did when he was the principal secretary for the E-governance Department. In 1992, he exposed large-scale mismanagement in cyclone relief works. That made the government shift him from one department to another. One day he exposed how an AIADMK minister had made lakhs of rupees in a land deal involving a cremation ground. And he got transferred. When the DMK came to power, it made him chief of the vigilance de-

partment. Most of the cases he had to deal with there were related to former AIADMK ministers. To prove that he is efficient he had to go against them. That was, in fact, a dangerous act in the state where the two regional parties exchange power every five years. And when the AIADMK came back to power, he was transferred to a remote district to carry out silly inquiries. This time his investigation went against the interests of the DMK and it suspended him on a silly allegation soon after it got back the power. Today, this officer has a load of court cases to attend.

The data collected by the Associaiton for Democratic Reforms are incredible: India’s six political parties received about Rs.4,895 crore between 2004-05 and 201112, of which only 8.9% was from known donors, and about Rs.3,674 crore (or 75.5%) from “anonymous contributors”. UPA’s ally NCP received the largest sum from “unknown sources” --- Rs.181.48 crore. Most of these fundings are in cash and that makes the whole issue intriguing. And that is why all of them are one in keeping them out of the ambit of the RTI Act.

Political Slush Money Source of Funding of Parties Still a Mystery • Gourav Ghosh

he Union government has ordered an inquiry into the political funds received by Aam Admi Party (AAP). For the Congress Party launching a such an investigation brings the risk of exposing itself, because the Congress too has received crores of rupees of foreign money in political funding. According to the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), an NGO that collects data from the governments using the Right to Information Act (RTI), Congress and BJP have received crores of rupees in political funding and much of the money they received has come from “unknown sources”. Given ADR’s data, India’s six politi-

cal parties received about Rs.4,895 crore between 2004- 05 and 2011-12, of which only 8.9% was from known donors, and about Rs.3,674 crore (or 75.5%) from “anonymous contributors”. Under the existing law, political parties do not need to reveal the source of donations if the amount is less than Rs.20,000 and so they made the most of this loophole. The Congress tops the list with Rs.1,951 crore (82.5% of the total sum) received from anonymous donors. UPA’s ally NCP, which rules India’s commercial capital Mumbai, has received the largest sum from “unknown sources.” It received Rs.181.48 crore and more than 91 percent of this money has come from anonymous donors. About 73% of BJP’s contributors

and 61.8% of BSP’s donors are also ‘nameless’ people. This is not ADR’s allegation but it is the actual data reported by these political parties to the Election Commission and the Income Tax Department. That’s why AAP has been demanding that every rupee received by political parties should be scrutinised. You get your tax reduced if you donate to political parties and then report to the Income Tax Department. Yet a large number of people have chosen to pay in cash. Such an investigation may prove fatal to all the political parties. Every penny AAP received has been announced on its website. It is the most transparent party India has ever seen in terms of political funding. Then why the Congress Party is running the risk of

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exposing itself? Making such errors is becoming common for the party, whose leadership lacks foresight and runs it as its fiefdom. Knowing about these political funding was not easy, however. ADR had to invoke RTI hundreds of times. At one point of time, courts intervened to help it access information about political funding. When the court confirmed that even political parties come under the RTI Act, the Congress Government proposed an amendment to the very RTI Act. The talk about amending the Act has died down now but how political parties are raising money is raising eyebrows. The Congress accepted 90.38% of its total funds between 2008 and 2012 in cash and only 9.62% were in cheque. Over 67% of BJP’s total funds and 83% of NCP’s were in cash. Some political pundits are demanding that someone must audit the accounts of political parties as char-

tered accountants audit the accounts of business firms. But all the parties appear united in defending the political donation. Recently, the Election Commission sought views from parties on 10 guidelines it proposed to bring transparency in political funding. September 30 was the deadline for response. At the end of the deadline, only three parties had sent in their opinions. Neither the Congress nor the BJP responded. Then the commission extended the deadline by 15 more days. This time the Congress and the CPI did respond, but not the BJP.

No Coupons; No Receipts The Election Commission wants the parties to issue receipt in return for political funding received in cash. In a letter to the commission on October 15, Congress treasurer Motilal Vora made it clear that his party would oppose the commission’s plan to make it

mandatory to issue an acknowledgement to every contributor. Why? Because, Vora said, it is ‘not practical’. In India, hardly any political party reports to the tax authorities and very few parties file income-tax returns. There are many dubious political fundings. An example is Jindal Steel and Power Ltd (JSPL), which donated more than a crore to the Congress party between 2004-05 and 2009-10. JSPL is owned by Congress MP Naveen Jindal and it was allocated as many as 12 coal blocks. The coal scandal is raging now and some people must attempt to find a link to this funding and coal allocation. Interestingly, a major source of donations has been the trusts affiliated to corporate conglomerates and companies in the mining, construction, infrastructure, power and telecommunications industries. These are firms that rely on government contracts to expand their business.

Potato Price Scare T

he potato price spiral has had its major victim. The West Bengal Minister Arup Roy lost his job because of the rising price of potatoes. This happened after Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee took over the charge of agricultural marketing department. Roy, however, will remain in her cabinet without a portfolio. After making a trip to Kolkata’s vegetable markets, the Chief Minister summoned Roy and informed him about her decision. Speaking to media persons, Mamata narrated how she conveyed her decision to the minister. To check the price of potato, which started selling at Rs 20-22 per kilo, the government had fixed a ceiling of Rs 13 per kg in retail. But it has not proved effective as yet. It has been reported that the highpriced potato seeds procured from Jalandhar in Punjab are pushing up

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the potato production cost in West Bengal. Had the seeds been cheaper, the production cost could have been brought down thus pushing down the price of potato in the retail market. Arup Roy has claimed that if the Union government’s potato research centre at Kalimpong in Darjeeling district had been running, then cheaper variety of potato seeds could have been procured from there for the West Bengal market. While warning of stern action against those who indulged in hoarding of potato, Mamata also unveiled measures to check the prices of potato. She said the government has a list of hoarders who are responsible for this artificial crisis. Some of them have fled to places such as Ghatsila (Jharkhand) and Jalandhar (Punjab), she claimed. The chief minister had last week

fixed the ceiling price of potato at Rs 11 per kg in the wholesale market and Rs 13 per kg in retail. However, it proved counter-productive as the potato started disappearing from the markets.

Manufacturing Sluggish Gold Import at record low

here is some good news on the economic front, but they are offset by the demon of inflation, which doesn’t show any sign of tapering off. On the positive side, industrial production grew by 2% in September though the overall situation is dull. Exports rose by 13.5% during October, fastest in two years, to $27.3 billion, as a result of a pickup in demand for goods in the US and Europe. Industrial output showed signs of rebound in September owing to some strength in key infrastructure sectors but the overall picture still remains sluggish. Official data released on Tuesday, November 12, showed that the IIP rose by 2% in September, faster than a revised 0.4% in August and higher than the 0.7% decline in the same period last year. The IIP in the first six months of 2013-14 rose by 0.4% compared to 0.1% expansion in the April-September period of last year. The 8% growth in the eight core infrastructure sectors, accounting for 40% of the index, had raised hopes of a sharp turnaround in overall industrial output. Manufacturing continued to remain sluggish, growing by 0.6% in September compared with a decline of 1.6% in September last year. According to economists, the sector is still under pressure and hoped there would be a turnaround in the near future. They cautioned that it would be difficult to achieve 1.2% growth if the current situation continues to prevail. Madan Sabnavis, economist at Care Ratings, said: “It does appear that stagnation continues to prevail in this segment. We are

The economy is still staring at high inflation and India Inc. may have to wait a little longer for a cut in interest rates by the RBI, though in recent months some of the other key economic parameters have shown positive signs. Exports grew fastest in two months in October and the IIP rebounded in September. The higher exports and lower imports have given a veneer of hope to the Finance Ministry that it can lower the annual estimate for current account deficit to $60 billion against $70 billion projected earlier. hoping that there is a turnaround in consumption spending in OctoberNovember; else obtaining growth of even 1.2% for the entire year will be a challenge.” The government hopes that the projects approved by the Cabinet

Committee on Investment will take off soon, stimulating the investment cycle. It also expects the growth because of the farm-led recovery in the second half of the current fiscal year. The data showed the capital goods sector, a key indicator of industrial

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activity, declined by 6.8% in September against 13.3 % fall last year. The electricity sector, however, rose by 12.9% compared with a growth of 3.9% in the same month last year. The mining sector also showed some signs of revival (3.3% against 2.2% last year). High interest rates, stubborn price level, policy delays and a slack demand both at home and for exports have hurt the industrial sector. Exports rose 13.5% to $27.3 billion during October, fastest in two years. Gold and silver imports fell almost 80% to around $1.4 billion against $6.9 billion in October 2012, resulting in trade deficit narrowing to around $10.6 billion, nearly half the level seen a year ago. Oil imports too provided some comfort, rising 1.7 % to $15 billion. Trade deficit has been a major policy headache for the government with investors raising concerns over financing the huge gap. In recent months, however, with a fall in imports and resurgence in exports, trade deficit is seen to be more manageable. This has prompted Finance Minister P Chidambaram to lower the annual estimate for current account defect to $60 billion lower, compared to $70 billion projected earlier. There was a further plunge in the consumer goods industry in September as the consumers cut back their buying of soaps, shampoos and food items, companies said quoting Nielsen data. True, there was a slide in consumption over the past year, in September the sector grew by a mere 5.3% as against 7.3% and 7.9% in August and July, respectively. This trend in an otherwise buoyant industry shows how inflation and negative economic sentiment are holding back consumers from purchasing essential and non-essential products. Meanwhile, Indian services firms recovered slightly last month from the worst slump in over four years in September but activity still shrank

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and a shortage of new orders means a rebound looks some way off, a survey showed on Tuesday. The HSBC Services Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI), compiled by Markit, rose to 47.1 last month from 44.6 in September. This is the weakest reading since April 2009, but the PMI still lingered below the 50-mark. “The continued contraction in the services sector activity is testament to the dampening effects of the heightened macroeconomic uncertainty, which is making businesses and consumers more cautious about spend-

ing,” said Leif Eskesen, chief economist for India at survey sponsor HSBC. “While activity readings may be stabilising, a notable recovery is not on the cards for a while.” Although the PMI’s new business index edged up to 48 in October from 45 in September, it was the fourth month running that demand has delcined. A manufacturing survey released on Friday, November 1, showed factory activity contracted for the third straight month in October as order books shrank at a quicker pace. The rating agencies have begun to assess the strength of the economy with Standard and Poor are retaining India’s BBB (minus) tag. It has said that it will review its rating after the

2014 general elections but cautioned that it may lower it within a year if there is continued policy drift. However, it also said that it may revised the outlook to stable if it believes that the new government can restore the country’s lost growth potential, consolidate its finances and ensure an effective monetary policy. The agency retained its BBB (minus) rating on India and said a negative outlook indicated that it may lower the rating to speculative grade next year if the government that takes office after the general elections does not appear capable of reversing the country’s low economic growth. The BBB (minus) is the lowest investment grade rating. “Barring an unexpected deterioration of the fiscal or external accounts before the election, we expect to review the rating on India after the next general elections when the new government has announced its policy agenda,” the agency said in a statement. The government has been expecting a ratings upgrade and had cited the measures taken to contain the current account deficit and the fiscal deficit. A downgrade at this point would have hurt the confidence and the nascent recovery, choked foreign fund inflows and made it difficult for domestic companies to raise funds abroad. It would also have been difficult to defend a downgrade at the time of elections. S&P said India’s strengths are counter-balanced by significant weaknesses, which include an onerous burden from its public fiancé, lack of progress on structural reforms and shortfalls in back services. It said that the new government, regardless of its composition, will face several challenges. The 13th Finance Commission has recommended a central government fiscal deficit target of 4.2% of GDP in the fiscal year ended March 30, 2013.

No Fairytales for Punjab Children

board officials and members of the society in this regard. But sit is felt that removing such mythical and imaginary characters like fairies could also hamper the creativity and imaginative thinking of children.

Yoga to the Rescue of Delhi Police

ooking to promote rational thinking and reduce superstition, the Punjab School Education Board has announced that it will remove from the syllabus of junior classes references to fairies, angels, devils and other such bogeys. This move has been taken on the recommendation of the rationalist organisation, Punjab Tarksheel Society. The society, in its detailed report, examined the books of Classes I to VII in government schools and stated that the school board authorities should teach children with a scientific approach and that they should not be fed on superstitions. According to the president of the society, Mr Jarnail Singh Kranti, almost all textbooks except those on mathematics have such contents relating to gods, fairies and angels and the fictitious stories of emperors and queens, among others. A meeting was held between the board officials and the members of the society in this regard a few months back. The Punjab Education Board chairperson, Tajinder Kaur Dhaliwal, said the society’s recommendation would be implemented soon. In fact, the board has already issued instructions to subject experts to start removing the content in question in a phased manner. According to the board, such content could have an unscientific effect on the children’s temperament. On June 22, a meeting was held between the

ighting crime in a city like Delhi will definitely take its toll on the policemen. So the Delhi police have resorted to yoga, meditation and Ayurveda to beat the stress and fatigue of their staff. The top brass Delhi police have organised a ‘Stress Management’ workshop and about 35 senior officials turned up for the event. Well-known spiritual healer Amrit Raj delivered a two-and-a-half hour lecture to the policemen on how they can ensure proper coordination between body, mind and soul using yoga, meditation and Ayurveda. During the lecture, different yoga postures were taught. These practices will ensure a healthy and stress-free life. He also taught the policemen meditation “mudras” and deep breathing exercises to reduce tension. According to Raj, the ancient science can be applied only after determining the ‘prakriti’ or constitution of an individual’s body. There are three types of constitutions, Vata, Pitta and Kapha. We all know that police officials often have a physically and mentally challenging work schedule. Naturally, they are prone to stress and fatigue. Factors like irregular work hours, taxing environment and lack of sleep also add to the problem. The police officers admitted that the workshop will come in handy to beat stress at work. At the end of the session, many officials demanded that things discussed during the lecture should be documented in the form of a small booklet or a video and distributed among cops. The responsibility for the same was given to Joint Commissioner of Police (Training) Robin Hibu. The workshop was part of the weekly refresher programme initiated by the Delhi Police Commissioner, B S Bassi, in which officials above the rank of DCP are given a lecture or session on a subject every

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Saturday. But one wonders why this programme was restricted only to the top cops of the Delhi police. The policemen in junior levels bear equal amount of mental and physical stress like their seniors, if not more. So when will the Delhi police extend this service to their junior colleagues too?

Insurance for Indians Working Overseas

he Government of India is all set to initiate an ambitious scheme that will offer insurance and financial cover to more than a million blue-collar expatriate workers living in the Gulf countries. The scheme, being seen as an important accomplishment of the government, was officially launched by Vayalar Ravi, the Minister of Overseas Indian Affairs. The Mahatma Gandhi Pravasi Suraksha Yojana is a pension and life insurance fund that could benefit up to two million expatriate workers. Strengthened with a considerable government

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contribution, the scheme encourages expat employees to save part of their funds, which they can utilise for their resettlement on their return to India. The scheme will also offer a life insurance cover against natural death during the period of coverage. The Indian workers, who are working abroad and are between the age of 18 and 50 and who have emigration check, required status stamped on their passport, and have migrated on employment or contract visa, can benefit from this scheme. Enrolments can be made with the assistance of the service providers appointed by the Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs. Subscribers will then have to open a non-resident external account that allows non-resident Indians to remit funds in any permitted foreign currency, which is converted to Indian rupees and credited to their account. The participantâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s contribution will be automatically deducted from this account and credited to the scheme. The ministry has come up with a clear-cut formula that administers the governmentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s contribution to the holders of the scheme. Under this arrangement, the government will make an annual contribution of Rs.1,000 for those who save between Rs.1,000 and

Rs.12,000 a year. Women workers are eligible for an additional contribution of Rs.1,000, which would be valid for a period of five years or the return of the worker to India, whichever is earlier. Those who save more than Rs.4,000 a year are eligible for an additional payment of Rs.900 by the government.

A non-secular ad

leading property portal is in the news for all the wrong reasons after a broker posted an advertisement for the sale of a flat in Mumbai. In that ad, he clearly mentioned that Muslims will not be entertained. The advertisement about a flat located at Dadar’s Hindu Colony in Mumbai was put up on 99acres.com by broker Vishal D’Souza. The advertisement read: “Excellent brand new 2BHK fully furnished flat with cross ventilation, natural light. Cosmopolitan society, no Muslims, with car parking on immediate sale, fifth floor interested please call.” This advertisement was noticed by a young lawyer and social activist Shehzad Poonawalla and he filed a petition with the National Commission for Minorities (NCM) seeking action against the broker and 99acres.com. Shehzad Poonawalla said he was seeking to draw the immediate attention of the NCM to the discriminatory approach of 99acres.com and Vishal D’Souza, claiming that the advertisement reflects unethical standard of business and also runs contrary to the Indian Constitution which upholds secular views.

Poonawalla said that such cases are increasingly coming to light where Muslims are denied houses in certain localities of Mumbai because of their religion. 99acres.com has issued a statement claiming the company was totally against discriminatory practices. “This has reference to the posting of a classified advertisement placed by M/S Jacinta Estates for sale of a property on our website 99acres.com. The said listing contained offensive references to a religious community. Our company is totally against such discriminatory practices. At any point of time, 99acres has over 4,00,000 classified listings. These are uploaded directly by the advertisers on the site using our self-service online interface. The offensive text was removed from the listing by the advertiser before the matter was brought to our notice. We are in the process of investigating the matter in more detail. We are a platform or an intermediary and as per industry practice, it is our responsibility to remove any illegal content from our site after it is brought to our notice. We are also examining other listings on the site for any such objectionable content. We are in the process of putting in place checks and processes to prevent the recurrence of such acts. We are deeply embarrassed that our site was misused in this manner,” the statement said.

Quit Tobacco for a Job

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f you want to land a government job in Rajasthan, you had better be a non-smoker or at least you should promise to quit. The department of personnel has issued a circular to all government departments and district collectors to get an undertaking from candidates to the effect that they will not smoke or consume gutka while in government service. A copy of the circular, issued on October 4, has been sent to the Governor, Rajasthan Public Service Commission, secretary, Rajasthan Vidhan Sabha and to the registrar, Rajasthan High Court Jaipur/Jodhpur. The circular was issued on the same day when the model code of conduct for Assembly elections came into effect in Rajasthan. In November 2012, the state-level co-ordination committee for tobacco control had recommended an undertaking from the candidates. This undertaking had to be obtained before giving them government jobs. According to the commission, such an undertaking would help young smokers to quit the habit in the initial stages, which otherwise would result in cancer. State nodal officer, tobacco control, Dr Sunil Singh, said, “It’s not only in India but probably first in the world that such a decision has been taken to discourage tobacco consumption.” He said the first

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state-level meeting was held in November and the next meeting will discuss the penalty on a person who violates the undertaking. Those working for tobacco control welcomed the decision though they said a lot more has to be done for tobacco control. Oncologist Dr Rakesh Gupta, who was one among the five recipients for WHO’s award (in May 2013) for their efforts in tobacco control, including promotion and implementation of anti-tobacco policy and capacity building to control tobacco consumption in the state, said it was a good decision but a lot more brainstorming is needed. There’s hardly any facility to help tobacco users quit the habit and there is also a shortage of experts who can help the addicts quit using tobacco.

Kannur in Kerala, First ZeroLandless District

he Government of India has declared Kannur in Kerala as the first zero-landless district in the country. This announcement has marked a major development in the government’s efforts to make Kerala a zero-landless (citizens) state by 2015.

A total of 11,118 people, including 85 belonging to scheduled tribes, received title deeds on “Kerala Piravi” day. The district administration has identified 500.81 acres for distribution. The identified land included 485.13 acres of excess land (“michcha bhoomi”) and 15.68 acres of government (“puramboke”) land in Thaliparamba, Kannur and Thalassery talukas. Under the project, all landless families would get three cents each, while scheduled tribe members would get an acre each in Aralam village. The beneficiaries—from Thaliparamba, Kannur and Thalassery talukas—were selected from a total of 12,179 applicants. Those eligible people who were not allotted land would be considered in the next phase. The title deeds were distributed among the beneficiaries at the function, which was also attended by Union Minister Mullappally Ramachandran and state ministers P K Kunhalikutty, K M Mani, K C Joseph, and K P Mohanan, besides MPs and MLAs from the district. “Landlessness” has been a key issue especially in a land dearth state like Kerala. One out of three city dweller lives in inadequate living space worldwide and Kerala is not an exception. The rural poor too have housing issues in Kerala due to the massive urbanisation even in panchayat areas. Giving secure titles in the form of “pattayam” is a formal recognition which will help the poor and the under-privileged better access to legal and financial services to raise capital and to invest in avenues of productive and sustainable nature. It is a well-known fact that there are situations wherein people who are not eligible for getting assignment of government land get the land assigned in their favour and there are situations where the eligible people are being deprived the chance always.

Lotus Fright

t’s hard to predict what the Congress finds objectionable these days. Currently, the party is upset about lotuses in full bloom in the water bodies of Mahakaushal, Malwa and Bundelkhand regions in poll-bound Madhya Pradesh. The party recently appealed to the Election Commission (EC) to “hide” the

national flower from public view so that voters aren’t unfairly drawn to the BJP symbol. The MP Congress appealed to the EC for suitable directions to cover all ponds where the lotus is cultivated to be sold across the country. BJP spokesperson Vishwas Sarang claimed it showed the mental bankruptcy and despondency of the Congress. However, the odd request has put the Jabalpur election officer Rajesh Jain in a fix. He said he was not authorised to take a call on such an issue and would refer it to his superiors. If stone elephants (BSP’s symbol) could be seen as having a possible impact on polls in UP, so can the lotus in MP, argued Congress corporator Amar Chand Bawaria. The EC ordered draping of Mayawati’s stone elephants across parks and memorials in Lucknow and other places in UP in run-up to the polls. The elephants were covered with sheets because the poll panel did not want BSP’s symbol to unfairly affect the voters. Another local Congress leader Manmohan Agrawal said the district election officer in Dhar, CB Singh, has already assured him that a pond adjacent to a polling booth in Manawar constituency would be draped with a canvas during the elections. Agarwal recalled how AICC general secretary Digvijaya Singh had led a delegation to the EC in 2008 with a demand that Class VI social sciences textbooks in government schools be taken off as they carried the imprint of the lotus. The CEC had expressed displeasure with the MP government and

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given it a two-week deadline to carry out the necessary changes.

Rare Manuscripts to be Available Online

ome of the rare manuscripts of yesteryear can now be accessed with the click of a mouse. The National Mission for Manuscripts, which possesses a huge database of the manuscripts on its website, has announced that it will be offering a national digital manuscripts library. Digitisation work of more than 70,000 manuscripts, which include 94 lakh pages, has already been completed. In total, there are 58,045 DVDs consisting of digital images of the manuscripts that have been collected from numerous repositories. In this first project, the NMM has digitised 16,018 manuscripts, consisting of 10,591 manuscripts at Oriental Research Library, Srinagar; 340 ‘‘Kutiyattam’’ manuscripts from Kerala; 1,938 Siddha manuscripts from Tamil Nadu; 1,749 rare manuscripts from Orissa; and 1,000 Jain manuscripts in Lucknow. In the second project, 55,255 documents were digitised. As the process of getting the national library

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of manuscripts online proceeds with full force, the digitised copies may be accessed on the consent of the repository holding the manuscript. Interested institutions or individuals may contact the repositories directly. The Visweshvarananda Biswabandhu Institute of Sanskrit and Indological Studies at Hoshiarpur is an important repository of manuscripts in the northwest zone of the country. The collection of the department is distinctive with 2,685 manuscripts. These include the North Indian and South Indian languages and scripts pertaining to different subjects such as the Vedas, Upanishads, Puranas, astrology, astronomy, and Ayurveda written on different materials like birch bark, palm leaf and hand-made paper. VBIS project director Prem Lal Sharma said the institute had been collecting information on manuscripts through surveys. Out of the 125 surveys conducted so far, information was collected on 26,000 manuscripts from different repositories. The entire digitised data will be available online soon. The state of Kerala was surveyed for ‘‘Kutiyattam’’ manuscripts with the help of the digitising agency, the Centre for Development of Imaging Technology, Kerala. The scanning was done in the repositories itself by transferring the scanning equipment.

[ From the world of books ]

THE THIRD CURVE : The End of Growth as we know it Author and Publisher : Mansoor Khan 202 pages/ Rs. 495

A Must Read for Energy Policy Makers T

here is no dearth of books on the looming energy crisis. But Mansoor Khan’s book stands out, as it narrates the story in his own theory. His theory is not dry, but supported by sheer facts. Starting from cover-page to the end notes, the reader is presented with a graph of two curves, which form the focal point of his arguments. ‘The Third Curve’s main idea is to analyse the energy scenario on the generally accepted phenomenon called Peak Oil. According to M. King Hubert’s Hubbert peak theory, Peak Oil is the point in time when the maximum rate of petroleum extraction is reached, after which the rate of production is expected to enter terminal decline, Wikipedia says. Mansoor Khan refers to this event that has already happened somewhere around 2005. Mansoor Khan’s prophecy is simple and straight forward: The world’s greed to ‘develop’ and raise the GDP in an exponential pace, irrespective of the supply of resources, is bound to result in a global economic collapse. Any other alternative to supplement the gap in energy resources and demand can never fill up the huge gap. After analysing this scenario of demand-supply of oil for the ever growing industrial world, Mansoor Khan dwells on the futility of the so-called alternative energy sources. He is alert and cautious in measuring the carbon foot print it makes to develop other sources of energy. His comparison of alternate energy

sources to his own set five rules like Net Energy (Energy returned on Energy Invested – EroEI), Oil Dependency, Energy Density, Scalability, By-products, -- is the best part of his arguments. Written in simple sentences, supported by a large number of illustrations, annotated by coloured texts (which remind me the beautiful production of ‘The Universe in a Nutshell’ by Stephen Hawking) the book by Mansoor Khan’s book is a path-breaking analysis of the mankind’s biggest crisis. His mastery over the present data is evident going by the Reading and Reference Material he provides. Mansoor Khan has been visiting places in India to propagate his ideas and educate the people about the imminent bleak future. This shows his passion for the subject. His private farm is known to follow his own solutions the issue: Moving from Global back to local; Local food, Alternative Agriculture, Local Materials and Products and finally Peak Oil Awareness. His reference about Cuba’s A Real Peak Oil Story is the only topic subject to a neutral analysis. From being a popular Bollywood Director (‘Qayamat se Qayamat Tak’, ‘Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikandar’, ‘Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na’), to an energy expert, Mansoor Khan has come a long way to capture the very essence of life and its goals. `The Third Curve’ is a must read for social activists, scientists and policy makers. - Beluru Sudarshana

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