tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28655015962654954542024-03-14T16:09:51.288+05:30News KvarthaThe NewsWeb desk Editorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04740409279812633583noreply@blogger.comBlogger46125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2865501596265495454.post-32818032115705505562020-09-24T18:59:00.004+05:302020-09-24T18:59:25.325+05:30The Drug Addicted Bollywood?<b>Ajay Padnekar</b><br /><br /><b>(news.kvartha.com 24.09.2020)</b> Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput's death is still a mystery but this incident enhanced the clarity of Bollywood's connection with the drug mafia. Rhea Chakraborty, who has been sent to 14-day judicial custody by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) on 8 September, in connection to the Sushant Singh Rajput death, revealed the names of many prominent Bollywood stars with drug connection. More than 20 top celebrity's names cropped up during this investigation and now it has been hot cake for social media handlers.<br /><br />Confessions and revelations do not end here. <br /><div><br /></div><div>Bollywood Queen" Kangana Ranaut made a statement that 90% of Bollywood take drugs and also demanded a drug test. Actor Shekhar Suman said that Bollywood's connection with drugs was a very serious problem for a long time. Vivek Agnihotri stated that drug mafias do exist in Bollywood.<br /><br />A video of an alleged drug party hosted by Karan Johar in 2019 was viral. A complaint against Karan Johar, Deepika Padukone, Vicky Kaushal has been forwarded by the Narcotic control bureau, and the investigation is not started.<br /><br />Bollywood's connection with drugs is not new. <br /><br />The drug problem in Bollywood is deep-rooted. Actor Sanjay Dutt was among those confessed his addiction to drugs and been arrested in 1982. Dutt is now a part of the Drug-Free India campaign.<br /><br />Actor Vijay Raaz was arrested in 1997, Fardeen Khan in 2001, Mamta Kulkarni's husband Vicky Goswami in 2014, Rhea Chakraborty in 2020 are few of them. Confessions to drug addiction by actors are surfaced earlier. After the arrest of Rhea Chakraborty and the recent revelation of Kankana Ranaut, more confessions from Bollywood are expected soon. <br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKHnX-EoQiaaxCiJ3w623UadMA-QfmEYL9MbQl_eQRmnAym1U7rITc6RvZrUaTYdp7x53bjTa8lncDTuJYoTybDb1TNTPnPPKt5XhaKd-mjUbWojoUNysfP58OFSjz2mga41ba_F3cJaRj/s450/Sushanth-and-Riya.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="337" data-original-width="450" height="395" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKHnX-EoQiaaxCiJ3w623UadMA-QfmEYL9MbQl_eQRmnAym1U7rITc6RvZrUaTYdp7x53bjTa8lncDTuJYoTybDb1TNTPnPPKt5XhaKd-mjUbWojoUNysfP58OFSjz2mga41ba_F3cJaRj/w526-h395/Sushanth-and-Riya.jpg" width="526" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>Keywords: <b>The Drug Addicted Bollywood?, Article,Mumbai,Bollywood,Actor,Social Network,National.</b></div>Web Desk Prehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06902552780510892020noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2865501596265495454.post-86592744184347974002020-09-18T18:42:00.009+05:302020-09-18T18:42:54.370+05:30 Is India Witnessing the Second Wave of Coronavirus?<b>Ajay Padnekar</b><br /><br /><b>(news.kvartha.com 18.09.2020) </b>There is no official confirmation from the government on the second wave also claims that there is no sign that shows that we are at a peak.<br /><br />The number of new coronavirus cases is rising exponentially across the country. The average daily cases have reached nearly one lakh. Since March 2020, India has recorded over 5 million cases.<br /><br />The worst affected states, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Delhi, Andhrapradesh, Kerala, etc.. are facing a massive rise in the number of new cases reported daily. This makes everyone including some experts to doubt whether India witnessing the Second wave.<div><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqRchaJJ6l8w7mPaLzxXcnQzTgcmQ6cT4-1AK-30Xq-ad9Ec68L6W0wsfhVfwhOdMpScXUuWEGPdAOtxomLq3ocQ-Pivp-_9mXuepQlqmpASykDLsNcNssiSHO7G4RHuf_GOiCR6IHj04Y/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img alt="" data-original-height="394" data-original-width="700" height="294" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqRchaJJ6l8w7mPaLzxXcnQzTgcmQ6cT4-1AK-30Xq-ad9Ec68L6W0wsfhVfwhOdMpScXUuWEGPdAOtxomLq3ocQ-Pivp-_9mXuepQlqmpASykDLsNcNssiSHO7G4RHuf_GOiCR6IHj04Y/w522-h294/image.png" width="522" /></a><br /><br /></div><div><b>What is Epidemic Wave?</b><br /><br />A wave by definition is, "A constant rise in the number of new cases of infected people to a peak and then to decline."<br /><br />The above data shows that the first wave has not subsided by the number of new cases. This graph also doesn't show the new cases are declining. It clearly says the number of cases is still rising rampantly.<br /><br /><b>What Medical Experts Say?</b><br /><br />There are disagreements among medical experts on confirming the second wave in India. Dr. Randeep Guleria, Member of Indian National Task for Covid 19 and the Director of AIMS, Delhi, agrees that some parts of the country are witnessing a second wave of infection. Though the second wave is not confirmed by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), community transmission of coronavirus in many states cannot be ruled out.<div><br /></div><div>Keywords:<b> Is India Witnessing the Second Wave of Coronavirus?, Article,Health,Maharashtra,Karnataka,New Delhi,Kerala.</b></div></div>Web Desk Prehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06902552780510892020noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2865501596265495454.post-28151685481292168442016-03-08T16:18:00.001+05:302016-03-08T16:18:27.698+05:30If I were a mobile / TV……. ….!!! <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<b>Mrs. Jolly Johns, Irinjalakuda</b><br />
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Do you think that I am kidding……? No...I will define .Then you could understand why and how this title apt for this message.<br />
A teacher, who was too attached to her students, thought of a plan to understand their ambitions.”All of you take a piece of paper and write down your ambition and name overleaf” said the teacher .As she collected one by one .She could see doctors, engineers, teacher as many professions noted down by her students. She too was curious to collect and have a look. By seeing these, she laughed, advised and commended in a manner, which couldn’t hurt the pupil.<br />
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Finally, she came to the last one, collected from him and noticed “TV/Mobile”!! She called the student and asked him, “Why do you write like this? You don’t have any other ambitions...”???<br />
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The boy started crying...…Saying “It’s true; If I were a Mobile /TV, my parents could keep looking at me or will hold me for whole day .As now am their kid, I couldn’t get any attention ,care ,love or concern. I need them .Wants to play, lay besides them, could hug…..and much more...That’s the reason …! Am I wrong Mam..?? Hearing this, the teacher hugged him and kissed on his forehead and decided to convey his feelings to parents…<br />
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Just one thing to say:”Parents….Love…Care and has to be concerned about your child…They are Gods Gifts……”</div>
Web Desk - Main http://www.blogger.com/profile/04713480224953163790noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2865501596265495454.post-46881476235342956382016-01-23T14:46:00.000+05:302016-01-23T20:46:58.023+05:30'ARE YOU SATISFIED'........??<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<b>Mrs. Jolly Johns, Irinjalakuda</b></div>
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The tourists, who reached india, were enjoying the natural beauty of ' Gods Own Country', Kerala. As they moved to a village, they noticed a temple which was under maintenance. One of the tourists was astonished by the sculptures and paintings in the temple. </div>
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He moved on with his camera, picking out each and every painting into pictures. Suddenly his eyes stuck on an architect who was forming his new statue. The architect was deeply immersed in his work. Moving towards him, tourist noticed, another statue as same as the other, lying down nearest to the architect. In his curiosity, tourist asked: Why are you forming the same statue...Do you need both of them...??</div>
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Without facing towards the tourist, the architect replied; I made a mistake at the time of final touch. 'Hearing this, tourist eagerly started to find out the mistake. Finally he surrendered and asked:" I couldn't notice any kind of mistake. Can you trace it out?' There is a acratch on the sculpture's nose'; replied the architect. <br />
Tourist noticed a slight scratch. On his wonder he asked; ' Where do you think to locate this statue...?' Pointing to a twenty feet high pillar, architect said; ' over there; on that pillar. ' Tourist was really surprised. 'On this height ....!! Who ever notice the scratch....? No chance....!' The very next moment he flushed out his comment. <br />
The architect, who was well concentrated, stopped the work, turned towards the tourist and said with a smile ' ok... May be no one will trace it. But I knew it. Isn't it....!'<br />
Dedication...., is not an external factor...Or can't be purchased.... it comes from us... deep from the heart... It doesn't depend on external conditions...Our duties should, not to be evaluated by others... or to receive their congrats..., but we should have the satisfaction- ' Job Satisfaction'... Then we could feel the joy, happiness in our mind, wich can increase our mental strength, make us comfortable....<br />
Suppose, if we reach the peak of a mountain; don't think that ' I overcame the heights or defeated it' but ' I want to see the world from this height'....Couldn't you feel the difference...Be polite, honest, and hardworking and enjoy the satisfaction in our small lifetime......</div>
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Web Desk - Main http://www.blogger.com/profile/04713480224953163790noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2865501596265495454.post-78036893137106107062016-01-18T14:58:00.001+05:302016-01-18T16:33:08.341+05:30'CAN YOU ANALYSE YOUR THINKING'......??<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<b>Mrs. Jolly Johns, Irinjalakuda</b><br />
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An old, well known and efficient carpenter, who decided to resign from his job, presented his wish to his boss, He wants to spent rest of his life with family members. The boss who loved him requested to be together for the last work of constructing a house, as the carpenter was sincere, efficient and honest too. !!1<br />
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As the request was made by the boss, the carpenter decided to be together. But was not able to concentrate in his work as though he decided to resign. He was not at all bothered about the quality of materials and even the perfection also. Somehow, he finished the construction and handed over the key. But the boss surprised him by returning the keys and asked him to receive this as a small gift for his sincerity !!!....<br />
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The carpenter was shocked and thought "if I were aware of it, I could have concentrated much more. " This is how we people do our duties. We are also building our lives....planning our future....but, without giving the best, what we could do!!! We are spending days without any preparations... We may recognize it, only when the countdown begins....So we all should be much bothered about our days, future and step forward with great plans and decisions which helps us to build a bright future....!!!<br />
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Web Desk - Main http://www.blogger.com/profile/04713480224953163790noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2865501596265495454.post-44190340487916916432013-06-04T22:44:00.001+05:302013-06-07T23:48:52.992+05:30 Bradley Manning's trial threatens the rights of all future whistleblowers;'Trevor Timm<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<b>D</b>o you know the government's main charge against Bradley Manning hinges on a case decided in the 1860s?<br />
Most people don't. And that's because the trial of Manning, the Army private who has admitted to giving 700,000 government documents to WikiLeaks, is shrouded in secrecy, despite being one of the most important cases involving whistleblower right<br />
s in the United States in forty years.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzgrFWJKZD9mgd57a1XN4o4IV-ajLqXbAE75BHIfVjBsyIOpgN6lvM_9DMKSTshy_CTwAtr5htPZJfKvoGdve-OVhyphenhyphenvLPP7tJT5NxXDgbKqtsPWacFWqVtov7AsDllXgKanJjO_dbgovhZ/s1600/bradley.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzgrFWJKZD9mgd57a1XN4o4IV-ajLqXbAE75BHIfVjBsyIOpgN6lvM_9DMKSTshy_CTwAtr5htPZJfKvoGdve-OVhyphenhyphenvLPP7tJT5NxXDgbKqtsPWacFWqVtov7AsDllXgKanJjO_dbgovhZ/s320/bradley.jpg" width="320" /></a>The government has charged Manning under the Espionage Act and with "aiding the enemy", under article 104 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice, which if convicted, could change both whistleblower rights and the First Amendment rights of US military men and women forever.<br />
Regardless of one's opinion on Manning's act, it's important to point out he has already taken responsibility for leaking documents and will face a steep punishment. He has already pleaded guilty to ten charges, for which he will reportedly face twenty years in jail, no matter what happens in his trial in the coming months.<br />
The government's argument is basically this: Manning "aided the enemy" because he gave classified information to a media organisation. The media organisation published this information on the internet. Al-Qaeda has access to the internet, and because some WikiLeaks cables were allegedly found on Osama bin Laden's computer, Manning should be tried as someone akin to a traitor.<br />
The most alarming part is the government doesn't even have to prove the enemy actually used the information to damage the US. All they have to prove is Manning had "reason to believe" that the leaked documents could be used to harm the United States or to aid a foreign power.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTpuHpbpsQ7t4hJMehjQG7EeqtlfgXu-pC2La3vbhVtcrfSP7GvErpRIiCVKZHpDw8hes9141cj_nMdJX5b3oBd_5RiO4KrD2ccBvw7QCDanI1buhaAUrdCBPgHz974Vv2n4qdvsiizrUu/s1600/tre.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTpuHpbpsQ7t4hJMehjQG7EeqtlfgXu-pC2La3vbhVtcrfSP7GvErpRIiCVKZHpDw8hes9141cj_nMdJX5b3oBd_5RiO4KrD2ccBvw7QCDanI1buhaAUrdCBPgHz974Vv2n4qdvsiizrUu/s1600/tre.jpg" /></a>The US should be a beacon of justice, not a bully. Any further pursuit of Manning is a propaganda gift to the country's enemies.<br />
Of course, newspapers publish classified information all the time. Open the New York Times or Washington Post any given day and you will find supposedly "secret" information on the front pages. The idea that relaying truthful information to a news organisation for public consumption could be akin to aiding the enemy should send shutters down the spines of all Americans, whether one believes what Manning did was right or wrong.<br />
Take the nation's most famed journalist, Bob Woodward. Osama bin Laden once recommended his followers read one of his books on President Obama's war strategy. This book was also full of information considered classified. Does that mean every Army and Air Force general who was a source for Woodward "aided the enemy" as well? Of course not, but that's where the Manning charge leads.<br />
But as the ACLU's Ben Wizner explained: "Article 104 is not limited to sensitive or classified information... the threat of criminal prosecution hangs over any service member who gives an interview to a reporter, writes a letter to the editor, or posts a blog to the internet." Wizner continued, "In its zeal to throw the book at Manning, the government has so overreached that its 'success' would turn thousands of loyal soldiers into criminals."<br />
There's simply no modern precedent for this charge. University of Chicago law professor Geoffrey Stone is one of the few who have analysed the case that is being used against Manning. In the Huffington Post, Stone explained the Civil War case the government is relying on:<br />
"In defense of its position, the military invokes an 1863 case in which a member of the Union army, Henry Vanderwater, published the roster of Union soldiers in a local newspaper. He did so using a code, so the import of the information would not be known to others. His purpose in doing this was to aid the Confederate army so they would know how many Union soldiers were available to defend the city. He was found out, court-martialled for aiding the enemy, and served several months in the brig before being dishonorably discharged."<br />
Manning, of course, did not publish any codes or purposefully release any information for the benefit of any enemy, but to "spark a domestic debate over the role of the military and our foreign policy in general". He thought the information may be embarrassing to the United States, but certainly not harmful, and has been proven right. The US has not been able to point to a single person harmed by the disclosures in the three years since they were made public.<br />
Even those who do not agree with Manning's behaviour recognise the government's folly. Floyd Abrams, who does not believe Manning is a whistleblower, wrote in the New York Times with Harvard Law Professor Yochai Benkler that the "aiding the enemy" charge could have huge implications for future whistleblowers, regardless of how Manning was categorised. They wrote:<br />
"Under the prosecution's theory, because Private Manning knew the materials would be published and that Al Qaeda could read them once published, he indirectly communicated with the enemy. But in this theory, whether publication is by WikiLeaks or The Times is entirely beside the point. Defendants are guilty of 'aiding the enemy' for leaking to a publishing medium simply because that publication can be read by anyone with an internet connection."<br />
They conclude: "Anyone who holds freedom of the press dear should shudder at the threat that the prosecution's theory presents to journalists, their sources and the public that relies on them."<br />
Similarly, Former State Department spokesman PJ Crowley, who once led the anti-WikiLeaks task force in the State Department, wrote, "The US should be a beacon of justice, not a bully. Any further pursuit of Manning is a propaganda gift to the country's enemies." He concluded: "Whatever one thinks of [Manning's] judgment, there is no indication he did anything with the intention of helping any adversary."<br />
So why aren't the government's extreme and unprecedented arguments more widely known? Part of the reason is the absurd secrecy surrounding the trial. As the Washington Post noted on Sunday, Manning's judge "has read lengthy rulings from the bench but not made them available. More than 30,000 pages of classified and unclassified motions have been produced in the case, but none of the unclassified material has been released."<br />
Transcripts of the pre-trial hearings have not been released either. The media that shows up to the court hearings are left furiously scribbling as the participants run through a complicated set of acronyms and dates that leaves everyone confused. Media organisations that don't send a reporter to the court have no way of accurately reporting on the government arguments, leaving the public with no way to properly analyse the scope of the government's arguments.<br />
At Freedom of the Press Foundation, we've crowd-funded almost $60,000 to pay for two court stenographers to sit in the media room to transcribe the trial for the public, since the government refuses to release transcripts of their own. Unfortunately, the government granted only 70 media passes, despite more than 350 media organisations requesting them. We at Freedom of the Press Foundation are left without a press pass for the start of the trial, along with more than 280 other media organisations, with no way to report on the trial.<br />
We hope the military will reverse this impediment to public access - and if a media organisation would like to let us borrow their press pass for this endeavour, please let us know. We'll be posting the transcripts hours after each day's proceedings and hope we can bring a little transparency to this trial, since the government seems unwilling to bring it to the public itself.</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00436070793596735411noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2865501596265495454.post-91994066798604204542012-11-24T11:06:00.001+05:302012-11-24T12:04:26.330+05:30Attack on secular higher education by 10 Janpath<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<b><span style="color: red;">W</span></b>hile opinions vary on the performance of the first Indian governments in different sectors, higher education is a sector where India’s first steps usually evoke a positive response across the board. One can clearly see the success of secular advanced education that has paid dividends in India in a strong contrast to the other countries of the Indian subcontinent where either higher education was not given enough emphasis or was not secular in its character. Do not get me wrong, higher education in India has clearly not been an all-sunshine story, as India is far from its true potential but what I am trying to emphasize is that it is not a complete failure as yet. You will get to see that ‘as yet’ is the operational word, as we are soon heading down the lane of Pakistan and Afghanistan, courtesy of the dirty politics of New Delhi.<br />
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Even though initial seeds of education were sowed with a foresight of modern secular thinking, Indian academia has failed to truly blossom. We certainly need to explore all the reasons for the Indian failure to launch but right now the call of the hour is to protect the barely-alive academia from the ongoing onslaught of the myopic, vindictive and dictatorial UPA regime that is hell bent on destroying secular character of our advanced education system. Indian central universities are now facing a threat to their secular and modern character due to opportunistic politics and rise of religious fundamentalism. Let us take the example of the University of Delhi, one of the largest of the central government universities that once used to be projected as a pride of India. The University is structured such that power is in the hands of few people who are politically appointed, instead of entirely merit-based autonomous council that is outside the influence of politicians. The University of Delhi has a Visitor who in theory has the ultimate power. This Visitor is the President of India. Then comes the Chancellor, who is the Vice President of India. The president of India on the advice (but in reality on the dictates) of the office of the Prime minister and the ministry of Human Resource Development appoints the Vice-Chancellor. The Vice Chancellor (VC) is in effect the head of the University. The VC can act like the dictator of the University, if he or she wants to, with obviously no reporting to the constitutional namesake head of India – the President. The VC appoints his team that plays a role in deciding the allocation of resources, approval of course work, appointment of college principals, teachers and eventually all policy matters. Although certain academic bodies involved in decision-making, like the executive and academic council have some elected members, usually no member gets elected without a political affiliation and backing.<br />
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This structure is in a strong contrast to the free merit-based truly autonomous academia in the developed parts of the world. The reason this structure worked to some extent in the first few decades after independence is because educated ruling class understood that academia should be run mostly on merit if the nation has to prosper. Unfortunately the structure that was evolved depended on the wisdom of the Prime Minister but not a structure that was free from political intervention. This structure although constitutionally has some balances and checks in the form of some elected members in the administrative bodies and vibrant trade unions but to overcome this menace of democracy, Kapil Sibbal’s men have decided not to call any meetings of these bodies and rule by decrees. With Sibbal’s blessing, these men have forced academics to knock the doors of court on every matter if they do not like their dictatorial and inane decisions. Given the direct influence of the Vice chancellor in the appointment of college faculty through his appointed members in the interview panels and indirect influence through college principals, the system is designed such that rarely can a new teacher unfavorable to 10 Janpath be offered a position, whatever be their merit. If one is looking for obvious examples of this corruption, one can see a blatant hiring scam in the recruitment of several new teachers in some of the new colleges of the Delhi University. In a central university where everyone is supposed to be paid by the University Grant Commission (UGC) there are now many teacher appointments within the University of Delhi that are illegally paid from the chauffeurs of the state of Delhi. This constitutional breach of paycheck coming from state budget for a central university in its most optimistic scenario reeks of lack of any planning by the incompetent men and at its worst and more likely scenario, a tool to change demographic to less competent but more sympathetic to 10 Janpath. A simple look at the recent appointments of college Principals can show you the infestation of Indian academia by Congress honchos. For some merely accidental reasons (pun intended) an overwhelming number of recent College Principal appointments seem to be of young Punjabi female teachers who once used to teach science and are strongly affiliated with Yuvraj Rahul’s gang. I have nothing against young age, being a young scientist myself, neither against women, for whose rights, I have been fighting for all my adult life and nothing against Punjabis, which is my paternal ethnic heritage but I cannot stand having any other criteria than merit to decide the future of our country. What sense does it make to appoint a science faculty as Principal to a college with only humanities subjects, unless it is for simple political reasons? From over a decade ago, before I moved to top Indian research institution and then to top US research facilities, when I was young undergraduate student at this same university, I knew a very incompetent teacher who used to knit sweaters in our classroom, while reading textbooks verbatim. Her acts and intelligence could have made middle school teacher look Aristotle or Socrates in comparison, though she did order free tea for us in cold December months. In sympathy with other women, she frequently advised my female classmates against pursuing a postgraduate degree telling of non-academic compromises it took for her to get a Ph.D. The last I heard from her is when she became a Principal of a new college under this new administration because of proximity to Indian National Congress. Sitting in a U.S. research institution that has produced one of the most numbers of Nobel laureates in the field of Medicine, I have no problem pointing out some individuals in India but pointing few such examples would not solve much and it would be unfair for only one or two incompetent political puppets to be recalled due to my finger pointing while the epithet of corruption remaining the same. <br />
<br />
Few years ago at the University of Delhi, a collusion of BJP and Congress’s political interests, led to a laughable act of allowing astrology (no, not astronomy but dumb stone age astrology) to be part of its curriculum. After much of controversy and worldwide ridicule acclaimed intellectuals it was eventually withdrawn. One may wonder that after such infamy the government would not redo such mistake again but alas. The trend of non-secular intervention continues unabated. Somehow magically fundamentalist administrators, be it a Muslim, Sikh, Christian or Hindu whosoever suits Congress’s electoral play continues being appointed. Some of the ethnically focused institutions, whether for segments within minorities or majorities were created to encourage enrollment of students from segments who otherwise faced the danger of being left out without such privileged institutions. The goal was to create a modern alternative to inadequate and often sectarian madarasa or ashram kind of religious education that these youngsters might be turned to in absence of secure modern alternatives. To provide such education faculty from all ethnicities were hired and promoted. Now with politicization, somehow the faculty enrollment has started paralleling the bias in student enrollment, throwing the criteria of merit of faculty in the dirty ditch of politics. Such bias denies good quality education to target segments that these institutions were in the first place set up to provide for.<br />
<br />
While a trip around the University of Delhi would bear out many such examples of decadence of this administration, I would like to point out a single notable piece of capitulation to religious fundamentalism so you can better see how appeasement of different ethnic group works for political convenience. Recently based on orders from Congress headquaters, the Vice Chancellor forced the University to withdraw ‘Three Hundred Ramayans’, a great text by AK Ramanujan that quite clearly captures the ubiquitous nature of Ramayana tales in the whole of Indosphere, even beyond Indian subcontinent like in the islands of Indonesia or lands as distant as Cambodia. The text educates to the fact that Ramayana has many local variants and it is a truly a tale of all Indic region with amazingly deep cultural penetration that has sway in shaping even an atheist like me, leave alone some orthodox Vaishnav Hindu. After saffron politicians stroke trouble objecting to this long-standing course material the talibanized RSS goons of akhil bhartiya vidyarthi parishad (ABVP), the student wing of BJP got offended to this whiff of knowledge. Their argument (or more accurately non-argument) was that Valmiki Ramayana is the accurate one. The claim that one version of Rmayana is celebrated more is correct, especially when viewed with strictly North Indian Vaishnav lenses but the argument is ridiculous, as the material was not taught as a course on religion. This text was not an effort to say one version is right or wrong or which imaginary fried should one believe in or which organize religion is better but a historical collection of different texts that exist in the Indosphere. Five exemplary texts that captured the largest heterogeneity were chosen to capture the diversity of cultural heritage. Congress did not want to loose Hindu fundamentalist votes to BJP, so to one up the idiots of sangh, Sibbal decided to use his bully pulpit to remove the text from the course work all together. This move, where history and literatures appropriateness is decided by the sentimentality of ill educated political goons instead of facts, is no different than banning some book because of a fatwa by some crazy Mullah in streets of Lahore, Ryadh or Kabul. Such yielding to pressure from religious bigots in general public life of India is not new and not even unique to Delhi’s Congress-BJP dominated politics. Who can forget unsympathetic treatment meted out to Taslima Nasreen by the stalwarts of left, the so-called secularists? What is new is the systematic attack on academic integrity by a demon of religious fundamentalism, corruption and dictatorship that is unleashed by Sibbal on the commands from 10 Janpath. This removal of highly acclaimed assay is being condemned worldwide and such acts continue to degrade the legitimacy of Indian education and validity of higher academic degrees. More than the damage to Indian image or to the validity of Indian educational credentials, the impact from such acts, if recurrent, will render an already barren Indian innovation and academic landscape to become completely sterile. A healthy academic culture, where one can discuss life stories surrounding the myth and reality of lives of Prophet Mohammad, Guru Nanak, Jesus Christ or Lord Rama, when in the context of history or of linguistic style, independent from the sentimentality of religion or conduct research on the impact of a particular pesticide on human health, independent of the connections of that pesticide company to the ruling party, is a necessary backbone of any country aspiring to innovate and grow. I am actually not much of a Nehru fan on most socioeconomic and defense issues but what I think was his singular undisputed legacy of sowing the seeds of higher education is now being destroyed by his own great grandson.<br />
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I also want to this article to serve as warning that if the state of affairs of Indian academia gets worse then international condemnations, signature by top academics including Nobel laureates, boycotts and derecognizing several academic degrees would have to initiated to stop this rot of academia in India. Such actions to improve India would not be entirely unprecedented for Indian expatriates. Recently, to stop the murder of the rule of law by Indian judiciary that was allowing indefinite detention of people without evidence, the international community including many notable Indian expatriates jumped into action, shaming India at the world stage. This external ridicule and pressurization is the least pleasant and most painful thing an Indian can do but when reform does not come from within then one is not left with any other option. One may be aware of the fact that many degrees from India are not recognized internationally and the list is not shrinking. If this corrupt management run by Sibbal’s cronies continues ruining the quality of graduate and post graduate education and stifles the intellectual output then whether one likes it or not, several more Indian academic honors, intellectual exchange programs will almost justifiably face an international axe. While there shall soon be action from international intellectual community if the victimization of secular teachers and Talibanization of education continues but what is truly needed in India is an internal change. No international pressure, punishment or encouragement can drag India to the modern era. Only Indians living in India can do so. The sleeping elephant has to wake up on its own, assuming the elephant is sleeping and not comatose or cold dead. It is unlikely that academic causes on their own would generate equal anger as has the corruption on street but all versions of Ramayana teach us that all sins add up. This murder of intellectual culture of central universities may provide additional fuel to the funeral pyre being readied for the political class if change does not come soon. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKrZjH9EK2o5MyyCO7YXvRqIoFRYj50wyznCKoA5EnakQGFN5Lhbr3kYTrkp7sRIffZbtl1mRzC1O65DdqD3JeE4ikgLO4erGU9KALDr9HWRn8Su8Yk-y0kD7nOzn9Rqz30r27wkH7imF4/s1600/Sukanth-Khurana.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="160" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKrZjH9EK2o5MyyCO7YXvRqIoFRYj50wyznCKoA5EnakQGFN5Lhbr3kYTrkp7sRIffZbtl1mRzC1O65DdqD3JeE4ikgLO4erGU9KALDr9HWRn8Su8Yk-y0kD7nOzn9Rqz30r27wkH7imF4/s200/Sukanth-Khurana.jpg" width="160" /></a></div>
<b><br />Sukant Khurana, Ph.D.</b><br />
sukantkhurana@gmail.com<br />
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, <br />
New York, USA</div>
Desk Deltahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16130382101986230575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2865501596265495454.post-46596127655733996582012-07-23T11:48:00.000+05:302012-07-23T11:48:05.078+05:30Time to frame rules to protect our fisherfolk<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="background-color: white;"><b>By Arun Prakash </b></span></div>
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<br />The near-simultaneous emergence of maritime terrorism and the revival of piracy have added a new dimension to the existing hazards that have traditionally confronted those who choose a seafaring life, and innocent fisherfolk have now been added to the list of victims.<br /><br />On the evening of July 16, an Indian fisherman was killed and three Emirati nationals injured when US Navy personnel on board USNS Rappahannock, a replenishment ship of the US 5th Fleet, opened fire on a small motor vessel near Jebel Ali port off Dubai.<br /><br />According to an official statement from the US Navy's Central Command, "An embarked security team aboard a US Navy vessel fired upon a small motor vessel after it disregarded warnings and rapidly approached the US ship." <br /><br />The statement adds, "... the Navy vessel followed its force protection protocol by first attempting to warn away the approaching craft with a series of non-lethal procedures using voice, radio, and lights. <br /><br />"After those failed, the Rappahannock escalated to lethal force, firing on the approaching vessel with a .50-caliber machine gun, killing an Indian fisherman on board and wounding three others."<br /><br />The incident has, understandably, caused great indignation in the country, and especially in the state of Tamil Nadu to which the unfortunate fisherman belonged. India has asked the UAE authorities to open a criminal investigation into the incident and the Dubai police authorities are understood to be complying.<br /><br />While it would be quite inappropriate to pass judgement of any sort on this unfortunate incident, it is necessary to examine a few aspects, merely to see whether any preliminary lessons can be drawn. <br /><br />With a fishing-fleet of nearly 200,000 vessels, of all sizes, shapes and manner of propulsion, the traffic density off the Indian coast invariably remains high; and it is probably the same off Africa or the Arabian Peninsula. Fishing communities in this part of the world are a law unto themselves, and, as any warship daptain will vouch, this makes a coastal passage a nightmare experience, especially by night. Merchant ships are fortunate, because they sail, mostly, in deeper waters far from the coast.<br /><br />And yet, on Feb 15 this year, two other Indian fishermen were shot dead by marines on board the Italian-registered merchantman MV Enrica Lexie. The oil tanker, on passage from Singapore to Egypt, was reportedly between 14 and 22 miles from the Kerala coast (outside territorial waters but within the contiguous zone) when it encountered the fishing vessel. Mistaking it for a pirate skiff, two marines, borne by the ship as a "vessel protection detachment", opened lethal fire, killing two of the fishermen. The Italian ship was asked to enter Kochi port where the two marines were placed under <br />arrest and await trial for murder.<br /><br />For a warship captain, it would be inconceivable that a band of outlaws, no matter how well armed, should threaten or attempt to board his ship, and he would act in accordance with his navy's 'Force Protection' doctrine and rules of engagement (RoE) given to him by his government. In October 2000, the RoE given to the destroyer USS Cole did not allow security sentries to open fire on any craft or boat, unless known to be a threat, without prior permission from the Captain. While at anchor in Aden harbour, a boat approached the ship at high speed and exploded alongside, blowing a huge gash in the hull and killing 17 sailors.<br /><br />As the Rappahannock incident clearly shows, the latest RoE framed by the US Navy (as well as other navies) have been relaxed in terms of the discretion that they give to the man on the spot. It has to be this way, because given the current threat environment, a moment's hesitation could result in loss of a warship and many lives.<br /><br />In the case of merchantmen, since there are (normally) no combatants on board, the ship's master, having taken all possible preventive and evasive measures, has no choice but to permit boarding and submit to the demands of the pirates/terrorists. It is only recently that merchant ships have been allowed, by flag states, to carry privately contracted armed security personnel (PCASP) in high-risk areas.<br /><br />The guidance issued by the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) with regard to PCASP states that a ship's master will exercise command, and will retain the overriding authority (and responsibility?) on board. This IMO guidance does not provide any RoE, nor offers any other directions about if and when to use lethal force. Moreover, it deals only with civilian contracted personnel and not with the presence of government military personnel on board merchant ships.<br /><br />Given the unfortunate experience of MV Enrica Lexie, the decision of the Italian government to place military personnel on board merchant ships can be termed as unwise. No matter what the outcome of the trial of the two Italian marines, it would be most imprudent for any government to put its armed forces personnel in such an invidious situation ever again.<br /><br />Given the precedent of the Enrica Lexie, the Rappahannock case, too, has the potential to assume complex overtones. The ship bears the prefix 'USNS' (United States Naval Ship) rather than 'USS' (United States Ship) because it is a non-commissioned auxiliary support vessel owned by the US Navy and operated by the Military Sealift Command. Such ships are crewed by civilians rather than US Navy personnel. Should the Indian government take the same view of this incident as it did of the Enrica Lexie, it could, in theory, ask the UAE government to prosecute the US Navy personnel or extradite them to India.<br /><br />Fishing communities of this region are likely to be up in arms against the risk posed to their kith and kin from "trigger-happy" armed personnel carried by ships for self-protection. This is, perhaps, an opportune moment for concerned states to come together and evolve procedures for ensuring protection of shipping without endangering safety of fisherfolk.<br /><br />(Admiral Arun Prakash is former chairman, Chiefs of Staff Committee and Chief of Naval Staff. He is a member of the National Security Advisory Board and was till recently chairman, National Maritime Foundation. He can be contacted at arunp2810@yahoo.com)<br /></div>
</div>Web Desk Srehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16670626988253604956noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2865501596265495454.post-9240432954799481882012-07-21T16:17:00.003+05:302012-07-21T16:18:01.414+05:30India at Olympics: Indians abroad have high expectations<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<b>By Kul Bhushan </b><br />
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No matter where they live in the world, non-resident Indians, particularly the older generation, will cheer for Indian participants at the London Olympics. Even those born in their countries of residence will follow the medal tally of the Indian teams although they support the teams of their adopted country.<br />
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"There are a lot of Indians in the US and the UK who will take keen interest in India's performance at the Olympics. There may be a lackluster interest from US or UK-born Indians because they have not been visiting the ancestral country and are not exposed much to India except from what they hear from their parents. I foresee a lot of interest from recent Indian arrivals in the US and the UK - a lot of educated young techies," said Shanti Shah from New Jersey.<br />
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"Like most of my British compatriots, I will be supporting the UK team. We have now lived in the UK more than in Kenya and have little sentimental value for India," said Karam Bharij from Northampton, a Kenya-born Briton who hopes India does better this time, betraying his Indian roots.<br />
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Cyprian Fernandes, a former sports correspondent now retired in Australia, wrote: "India is not on my radar as a must watch country. I expect Indians to win one or two medals in shooting where there has been a tradition of Indians doing well. Other than that I have not seen any evidence of medal chances. I am hoping that they will be able to surprise the world as they did at the Commonwealth Games athletics. I will keep an eye through the heats.<br />
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"In hockey, it would have to be an upset of world shattering proportions for the Indians to win a medal," he wrote, adding: "Of course, I will be rooting for Australia, a major sporting power."<br />
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Tushar Shah from South Africa said: "I am sure India will win more medals than Beijing, sending the largest-ever contingent. I don't think India can get a medal in hockey, I predict they will be in 6-8 position. But I will be very glad if they can prove me wrong."<br />
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A veteran journalist and an author, Shamlal Puri, from London, wrote: "As an NRI I would like to have cheered the Indian contingent. I have lived here well over 40 years, so I owe loyalty to the British too! To be fair, I will cheer the best athletes - wherever they are from - even from Kenya or Tanzania, the countries where I have lived in the past!"<br />
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"India's image has certainly changed after Beijing. It is a sporting nation of note globally in badminton, tennis and shooting. But in the same way as it has turned cricket into a religion, India should also work hard to ensure other sports are not left behind at the cost of promoting cricket and the big money behind it. Indian sports deserve much more attention than just cricket alone. The Indian hockey team is much better and has a golden opportunity to shine. India has bright prospects to win more medals than Beijing," he went on.<br />
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Liladhar Bharadia, a photographer from Nairobi, wrote: "I think India will win a few more gold medals, maybe two or more, at the most, during the London Olympics. I am going to cheer both teams from Kenya and India. Let us hope for more gold medals for both the countries."<br />
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Mervyn Maciel, a British Goan in London, thought India should do well. "As for loyalty - well, you may remember what a former Conservative minister, Norman Tebbit, said whether Indians here would pass 'the cricket test'. Would they support the team of their host country or the country of their adoption? Having lived here for 40+ years, I naturally want Brits to win - no disloyalty to India though!"<br />
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Anil Vidyarthi, director of a printing press in Nairobi, wrote: "As much as I love India, I am a Kenyan through and through when it comes to athletes in long-distance running, they have collected more gold medals than India. I wish the Indian team all the best and hope they will prove that India has come of age in the Olympics. I will be cheering the Kenyan team and then the Indian team."<br />
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Sultan Jessa from Montreal wrote: "I am a Tanzania-born retired Canadian journalist, whose ancestry is from Gujarat. My absolute loyalty is to Canada. So, naturally I will be cheering for Canada all the way. I have always been fascinated by India and I will be cheering for the Indian contingent as well. Unfortunately, India, despite its massive population, has not performed well at the Olympics.<br />
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"India's image has changed by winning three medals at the last Olympics. But India has a very long way to go. I am hoping and praying the Indian contingent will do better this time around. I expect India to win more medals in London than at Beijing; if it does not, it will be a tremendous disappointment. Millions in India and NRIs around the world are depending on India to do its best."<br />
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(Kul Bhushan writes on diaspora issues. He can be contacted at kul@kulbhushan.net)</div>
</div>Web Desk Srehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16670626988253604956noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2865501596265495454.post-62013478691022287832012-07-21T12:05:00.003+05:302012-07-21T12:06:12.127+05:30Rahul will need to deliver - and fast<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<b>By M.R. Narayan Swamy </b><br />
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For a political party bruised by corruption scandals, charges of poor governance and electoral defeats, Rahul Gandhi will have to be a miracle man to help restore the health of the Congress, India's oldest political party.<br />
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Three years ago, the 42-year-old did have stature, largely due to the overall performance of the Congress in the Lok Sabha elections and its remarkable run in Uttar Pradesh.<br />
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Instead of capitalizing on the goodwill he had earned then, the young Gandhi squandered it away, by repeatedly turning down suggestions that he play a bigger role in the Manmohan Singh government. Had he joined the government at the start of UPA-II, Gandhi would have had three years of administrative experience by now, a vital necessity for one seen as a possible prime minister of the world's second most populous country.<br />
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Naturally, the announcement now by Gandhi that he was ready to play a proactive role in both the government and the Congress hasn't ignited the sparks it was expected to.<br />
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At one level, what Gandhi has said is not surprising. It was always clear that he was the chosen successor in a party controlled by the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty since the time India gained independence. That he is already the de facto number two in the Congress is also not in doubt. Whatever his designation, it is Rahul Gandhi who counts the most in the Congress after his mother and president Sonia Gandhi. His word is supreme.<br />
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So if he is named the "working president", it will be a mere nomenclature. That is what he is now for all practical purposes and intent.<br />
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Despite being a member of parliament since 2004 and one of the general secretaries of the Congress since 2008, Rahul Gandhi's overall performance in the Lok Sabha and elsewhere has been below par.<br />
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After some initial hopes, he also failed to inject life into the Indian Youth Congress and the National Students Union of India (NSUI).<br />
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No doubt, he overcame initial hiccups as he entered politics when he was frequently compared with his charismatic younger sister Priyanka. As he began to play a larger role, he did gain public support. Many thought he had charm.<br />
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He won admirers by refusing to hanker after a government post - when any could have been his for the asking - for the five years of UPA-I.<br />
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When the 2009 Lok Sabha battle was waged, he led from the front in Uttar Pradesh, where the Congress had been virtually written off, and pulled off a coup. The Congress finished second after the Samajwadi Party.<br />
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By then whispers of Rahul-should-be-PM had started in the Congress. This was when Gandhi should have taken the plunge.<br />
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Instead, he chose to be outside the government.<br />
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Today, if Gandhi were to become the Congress president or assume a major role in the government, only then would it be deemed significant.<br />
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But it would not necessarily fetch more votes for the Congress. Indeed, it could even prove to be a liability for the younger Gandhi as he would pay the price for the government's present battered image.<br />
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In politics, innate strength and abilities do mater; dynasty can help, only up to a point.<br />
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Whatever Rahul Gandhi does now, he will have to deliver - and fast. The next Lok Sabha election won't be easy for the Congress. And it is less than two years away.<br />
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(21-07-2012 - M.R. Narayan Swamy is Executive Editor at IANS. The views expressed are personal. He can be reached on narayan.swamy@ians.in)</div>
</div>Web Desk Srehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16670626988253604956noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2865501596265495454.post-25647784289996138742012-07-14T16:49:00.000+05:302012-07-14T16:49:25.249+05:301968 Olympics: India's slide in hockey begins<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="background-color: white;"><b>By Anand Philar </b></span></div>
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Behind the veneer of "unity" and "team spirit" that was projected to the public, Indian hockey was almost torn apart by petty politics, groupism and ego clashes in the months leading to the 1968 Mexico Olympics where Indian hockey's slide well and truly began.<br /><br />Just four years after regaining the Olympic hockey gold medal, the squad was split vertically as two players, Prithipal Singh and Gurbux Singh openly fought for captaincy that put Indian hockey in poor light. Eventually, a "compromise" was struck and the two were named "joint captain". It was a recipe for disaster.<br /><br />Also, complacency had set in as India had won the Asian Games gold medal in 1966, triggering euphoria and a false sense of well-being. The fact that other international sides were fast catching up was glossed over as was the bickering within the team until the captaincy issue raised its ugly head.<br /><br />The team was provided some high-altitude training in the Nilgiris considering the conditions in Mexico City that is located some 2,300 metres above sea level. The players did benefit physically, but it was offset by the split in the team.<br /><br />Besides two captains, the team also included three players with same name - Balbir Singh. One of them was from the Railways and the brother of skipper Gurbux Singh playing at outside-right, the second was from the Services at right-half, and the third from Punjab Police in the inside-right position. All the three played together only in one match, the bronze medal play-off against Germany.<br /><br />The start to the campaign was rather ominous as India went down 1-2 to New Zealand, but victories against West Germany (2-1), Mexico (8-0), Spain (1-0) and Belgium (2-1) put the team back on track. India were gifted five goals, though they did not score even one, when their opponents Japan walked out protesting a penalty stroke awarded against them in the 55th minute.<br /><br />India then beat East Germany 1-0 in their concluding league game to come up against Australia in the semi-finals that they lost 1-2, but overcame West Germany 2-1 in the bronze medal playoff to finish third. It was the first time that India did not figure in an Olympic hockey final. The discerning, who did not include the federation officials, saw the "demotion" as another definite sign of Indian hockey's slide, but they were in the minority.<br /><br />Indian team: Prithipal Singh (joint captain), Gurbux Singh (joint captain), Munir Sait, Rajendran Absolem Christy, Dharam Singh, Balbir Singh (Services), Jagjit Singh, Perumal Krishnamurthy, Harmek Singh, Ajit Pal Singh, Balbir Singh (Services), Victor John Peter, Harbinder Singh, Inder Singh, Balbir Singh (Railways), Inam-ur Rehman, Tarsem Singh, Gurbaksh Singh(Railways).<br /><br />League - India lost to New Zealand 1-2 (Prithipal Singh 1).<br />India beat West Germany 2-1 (Harbinder Singh 1; Balbir Singh (Services) 1).<br />India beat Mexico 8-0 (Harbinder 3; Balbir Singh (Services) 1; Prithipal 2; Ajit Pal Singh 1; Inder Singh 1).<br />India beat Spain 1-0 (Prithipal Singh 1).<br />India beat Belgium 2-1 (Prithipal Singh 1; Harbinder Singh 1).<br />India beat Japan 5-0 (Walkover after 55 minutes after Japan walk out in protest).<br />India beat East Germany 1-0 (Prithipal Singh 1).<br />Semi-finals: India lost to Australia 1-2 (Balbir Singh (Services) 1)<br />Bronze medal playoff: India beat West Germany 2-1 (Prithipal Singh 1; Balbir Singh (Railways)1).<br /><br />Positions: Pakistan 1; Australia 2; India 3; West Germany 4; The Netherlands 5; Spain 6; New Zealand 7; Kenya 8; Belgium 9; France 10; East Germany 11; Great Britain 12; Japan 13; Argentina 14; Malaysia 15; Mexico 16.</div>
</div>Web Desk Srehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16670626988253604956noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2865501596265495454.post-91156843522469715382012-07-12T10:22:00.002+05:302012-07-12T10:22:55.760+05:30Pakistan's 'deep state' will remain abiding challenge for India<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="background-color: white;"><b>By C Uday Bhaskar </b></span></div>
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The manner in which the Pakistan government dealt with an Air India plane en route from Abu Dhabi to Delhi that had to make an emergency landing on Monday in the small town of Nawabshehr in Sind province is to be welcomed but it would be misleading to infer that this marks a radical departure as regards the orientation of the 'deep-state' in Pakistan towards India.<br /><br />The larger context in which Islamabad (seat of the civilian dispensation) and Rawalpindi (GHQ of the military where actual power rests) have made certain security and foreign policy choices is better reflected in the regional events of early July. Two sets of differently troubled bilateral relationships, namely that between India and Pakistan on one hand and the US-Pakistan on the other, were reviewed over the last week - with results that may be described as "more of the same."<br /><br />On July 5, the foreign secretary-level talks between India and Pakistan ended inconclusively in Delhi against the backdrop of fresh revelations about the November 2008 Mumbai terror attack. The handing over by the Saudi authorities of one 26/11 suspect, Abu Jundal (aka Ansari), an Indian Muslim citizen who was part of the LeT led attack on Mumbai, has provided fresh evidence of Pakistani complicity. The cooperation and coordination between India, Saudi Arabia and the US in apprehending a 26/11 suspect from Saudi territory has added to the dismay of Islamabad, but predictably, there was no explicit reference to this matter in the joint statement issued by the two countries after the foreign secretary talks.<br /><br />Concurrently, the severely strained relations between the US and Pakistan were reset on July 3 with US Secretary of State Hilary Clinton stating that she was "sorry" for the death of Pakistani soldiers in the November 2011 during a US air strike. The Pakistan government which had sought an "apology" from the US to assuage growing anti-American sentiment, accepted this olive branch and agreed to resume the movement of supply convoys that had been halted for the last seven months.<br /><br />This compromise was expected since the Pentagon is critically dependent on the Karachi-Afghanistan access to sustain its logistics supplies for US troops in the region and to plan the re-location of huge inventory and heavy equipment in the run-up to the 2014 withdrawal. It is evident that some hard bargaining was done by both sides and while Pakistan has not insisted on a higher price per truck, the US has agreed to release to Islamabad direly needed funds that had been put on hold. The opposition and the right-wing parties in Pakistan have threatened to oppose this rapprochement.<br /><br />However, this is an uneasy truce since the terror issue - or the support to this malignancy that the Pakistani deep-state provides - has been left to fester and this has implications for Delhi and the India-Pakistan bilateral relationship. Rawalpindi, the HQ of the Pakistan military, has not been persuaded to sever its links with the Haqqani group in Afghanistan - which is of relevance to the US - and the endorsement of terror units such as the LeT and its leader Hafeez Saeed whose focus is India. Having compelled the US to "blink" first on the apology issue, there appears to be a sense of triumph within the Pakistani "deep-state" that it can continue with this policy of selective support to terror groups and extremist ideologies even while dealing with the sectarian forces that now challenge the Pakistani state with impunity.<br /><br />The confluence of certain dates in July over the last four decades merit recall to place the two bilateral relations in perspective. On July 2, 1972 India and Pakistan signed the Simla Agreement and the salient section of the preamble includes the following: "That the two countries are resolved to settle their differences by peaceful means through bilateral negotiations or by any other peaceful means mutually agreed upon between them. Pending the final settlement of any of the problems between the two countries, neither side shall unilaterally alter the situation and both shall prevent the organization, assistance or encouragement of any acts detrimental to the maintenance of peaceful and harmonious relations."<br /><br />The Simla Agreement remains the most magnanimous war termination accord in recent history but regrettably 40 years later, a review of the spirit of Simla is disappointing. Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto reneged on the promises made and in the years that followed, a deep anti-India orientation became the dominant characteristic of Pakistan.<br /><br />In keeping with its tumultuous history, on July 5, 1977, General Zia-ul Haq seized power from Bhutto, who was subsequently sent to the gallows on July 4, 1979. The steady and corrosive Islamisation of Pakistan began under General Zia and this was compounded by the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan in late 1979 which in turn led to the US-Pakistan alliance and the birth of the Kalashnikov-wielding, theologically motivated mujahedin.<br /><br />The US has made a Faustian bargain with the Pakistan military and, notwithstanding the enormity of the Osama bin Laden episode which demonstrated beyond doubt the duplicity of Rawalpindi apropos terrorism, the US has chosen to accept this contradiction - as it did with the A.Q. Khan revelations. The fact that Pakistan is in possession of nuclear weapons and that this in turn resulted from extended China-Pakistan cooperation which the US, during the Reagan years, ignored due to compulsions in Afghanistan at the time is part of the complex history of the Pentagon-Rawalpindi relationship.<br /><br />The "more of the same" syndrome is evident in the fact that in a US election year, the Afghanistan card is back in play and President Obama has little room to make any radical changes in US policy.<br /><br />For India, the terror supporting strategy of the Pakistani military - that was refined during the Zia years - will remain the abiding challenge in the years ahead. More discerning voices in Pakistan are deeply concerned but helpless to change the orientation of their own guardians and as the Daily Times, Lahore, noted editorially (July 6): "The ramifications of Zia's legacy have proved manifold and insidious. The genie of extremism released from the bottle by him has given birth over time to various jihadi groups operating in Pakistan with impunity, with help from the deep state."<br /><br />India has to accept the grim reality that the spirit of Simla (July 1972) will remain elusive, while insulating itself from the distorted malignancy that General Zia has bequeathed to his country.<br /><br />(12.07.2012 - C. Uday Bhaskar is a well-known strategic analyst. He can be reached at cudayb@gmail.com)</div>
</div>Web Desk Srehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16670626988253604956noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2865501596265495454.post-49907003923737845472012-07-05T11:52:00.004+05:302012-07-05T11:52:48.750+05:30'Kyaa Super Kool Hain Hum' music a 'kool' affair<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="background-color: white;"><b>By Bhaskar Pant </b></span></div>
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<br />Film: "Kyaa Super Kool Hain Hum"; Music Director: Sachin-Jigar, Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy, Meet Bros Anjjan; Lyricist: Mayur Puri, Kumaar; Singers: Vishal Dadlani, Sonu Nigam, Sukhwinder Singh, Daler Mehndi, Riteish Deshmukh, Neeraj Shreedhar, Kailash Kher, Swaroop, Meet Bros Anjjan, Rating: ***<br /><br />In 2005, "Kyaa Kool Hai Hum" wrote a new chapter in the genre of comedy films and its much awaited sequel promises to tickle our funny bone once again. One gets a feel of it through the soundtrack of "Kyaa Super Kool Hain Hum" -- a peppy and funny album, totally in sync with the essence of the movie.<br /><br />The album starts off with "Dil garden garden ho gaya", which has Vishal Dadlani crooning in his high-pitched voice well supported by modern techno sounds. The track has a very youthful touch and is bound to be noticed. It also has a remixed version, which isn't radically different from the original track.<br /><br />Some electronic beats have been added to the composition, but the remixed song fails to create the desired effect. It's better to stick with the original. <br /><br />Next up is "Shirt da button". It is an unusual title for a romantic song. The lyrics are a bit comical, but Sonu Nigam's voice carries the track on its shoulder and delivers it with perfection. Sonu has sung it so beautifully that the song touches you instantly. The use of handclaps to give it a qawwali feel in between also works well for the composition. It also has a second version, albeit in a slower avatar.<br /><br />The alternate track has been sung by the soulful Kailash Kher in a mellowed down manner. It has more of a qawwali touch, which takes one back to the song "Tu jaane na" from "Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani". It's hard to choose the better one here as both the versions are equally compelling and are an absolute treat to the ears. <br /><br />"Hum toh hain cappuccino (UP-Bihar lootne)" is a twisted version of Shilpa Shetty's famed dance number "UP-Bihar lootne". It has vocals by Daler Mehndi, Sukhwinder Singh, Swaroop and actor Riteish Deshmukh. The song fills you with nostalgia and instantly grows on you with the array of voices that keep you hooked. The song has a very raw feel and has a surprise as Riteish donned the writer's hat and penned the Marathi lyrics for it.<br /><br />Next up is an out and out dance number titled "Volume high karle". Sung by NeerajSridhar, the song is high on electronic and techno beats, but the lyrics are very ordinary and the composition deserved a better treatment. It also has a remixed version, which like the original, falls short of expectations. Even with the addition of powerful beats, it doesn't create the desired effect. <br /><br />The final verdict - the music of "Kyaa Super Kool Hain Hum" has some highs and lows, but deserves a hear as it manages to lift your 'kool' quotient. </div>
</div>Web Desk Srehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16670626988253604956noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2865501596265495454.post-38673222601999254662012-06-29T11:43:00.001+05:302012-06-29T11:43:40.764+05:30'Supermen of Malegaon' - poignant, hilarious ode to filmmaking<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<b>By Satyen K. Bordoloi </b><br /><br />Film: "Supermen of Malegaon"; Cast: Sheikh Nasir, Akram Khan, Shafique and Farogh Jafri; Director: Faiza Ahmad Khan; Rating: 4.5/5 <br /><br />There is global cinema and national cinema. In a country like India, there's also regional cinema. What many don't know is that India is also home to what can be called - 'local cinema' where films are produced and consumed locally. <br /><br />"Supermen of Malegaon" is a hilarious, poignant and well-researched take on one of the dozens of local film industries existing in the country.<br /><br />It is a love poem to cinema, an ode to the spirit of human ingenuity, a passionate tale about making films and it's hilarious to boot. For most of the audience, this might be the funniest documentary ever made. <br /><br />A film crew follows Sheikh Nasir, a resident of Malegaon, as he tries to make a parody of Superman called "Malegaon Ka Superman" with actors, cast, technicians and props sourced from his town. We get a glimpse of the joys, the agony, the achievement and the epiphany of creating cinema. <br /><br />That he is making a low budget, made for a local audience film without the aspiration of making money, lends it the poignancy and innocence missing from the biggest filmmaking centres of the world. <br /><br />If Marin Scorsese's "Hugo" was the feature film version of the depiction of one man's passion for making special effects laden cinema, "Supermen of Malegaon" is the documentary version of the same passion. <br /><br />Like Georges Melies, who desired to make a rocket fly and men disappear at a time when it was considered impossible, Sheikh Nasir tries to find cheap alternative to making superman fly, to find local solutions to complex cinematic problems at a budget where such special effects seem impossible.<br /><br />"Supermen of Malegaon" is thus a study in ingenuity, of a die-hard but untrained film crew's intense desire and ability to conjure up tricks to create magic on screen. Thus we see Sheikh locally making the green chrome background used for special effects. <br /><br />We see our crew tear up our Superman's external undergarment and another mans jeans to hoist them through an iron bar before the green chrome screen to show them flying. We see Sheikh using a cycle as a trolley and an empty bullock cart as a jimmy jib. <br /><br />While it is a serious film about someone making a parody, it also becomes a metaphoric parody of commercial cinema, and all the cliches they belt out in a spirit of self-righteous megalomania.<br /><br />For this is how filmmaking can and should be - a work of passion first and commercial considerations second, just like Georges Melies and Sheikh Nasir saw and like thousands of aspiring filmmakers globally dream of but are not allowed to make. <br /><br />Ironically, this tale of Malegaon's filmmaking 'Supermen' has been made by a motley group of talented super women. Director Faiza Ahmad Khan's keen sense of satire and irony are amply visible. <br /><br />Sneha Khanwalkar ("Oye Lucky! Lucky Oye!" and "Gangs Of Wasseypur") gives a rustic feel to the film with her earthen music while editor Shweta Venkat Matthew lends the film its poignancy with her observant edits. <br /><br />Two superhero films release this week in India - "Supermen of Malegaon" and "The Amazing Spiderman - The Untold Story". Ironically, it is "Supermen of Malegaon" that has an amazing story that has not yet been told. While the world has watched Spiderman on three previous occasions but this is perhaps the first time anyone is telling the funny, hugely inspiring and globally awarded story of a local film industry. </div>
</div>Web Desk Srehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16670626988253604956noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2865501596265495454.post-73603646291885304522012-06-22T15:00:00.002+05:302012-06-22T15:00:22.790+05:30'Gangs Of Wasseypur' - a romp into raw, rugged heartland<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<b>By Subhash K. Jha </b><br />Film: "Gangs Of Wasseypur"; Cast: Manoj Bajpayee, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Richa Chadha, Huma Quershi, Reema Sen, Piyush Mishra and others: Director: Anurag Kashyap; Rating:****<br /><br />Bleeding brilliance in almost every frame, breathing fire through every available orifice that the characters possess, and whipping up a kind of frenzied, flamboyant bloodshed that was once associated with the Spaghetti Westerns of Sergio Leone and Sam Peckinpah, "Gangs Of Wasseypur" is, briefly, one huge gang-bang. No protection provided.<br /><br />From its bludgeoning opening when merciless marauders ambush a powerful enemy's fortress-like home with army-like meticulousness, "Gangs Of Wasseypur" takes us into a world where compassion is a dinosaur, forgiveness a faux pas, and kindness an unforgivable sin.<br /><br />Welcome to Kashyap's Wasseypur. This is no country for the weak-hearted. Country-made guns go off without warning, bombs are hurled from two-wheelers and abuses fly out even faster than the bullets. If you are the kind of moviegoer who doesn't enjoying hearing and seeing the unimaginable things that can't be done to various parts of the human anatomy, then I suggest you try something more sugary and safe.<br /><br />The world of Wasseypur is soaked in blood and revenge. The mafia in one form or another rules the little town. To mainstream Hindi moviegoers, this is not an unknown territory. At least four other recent films - "Paan Singh Tomar", "Ishaqzaade", "Rowdy Rathore" and "Shanghai" - have hurled audiences right into the notorious anarchy of the North Indian small-town where the barrel of the gun speaks an irresistible language of mayhem.<br /><br />It's a strangely dichotomous world where music and songs (Sneha Khan walk) mock the characters' subverted 'herogiri'. While the characters indulge in their unmanned violence, audience become numbed participants in the rites of the wrong-doing. <br /><br />The almost-ritualistic slaughter of all rules of civil conduct in "Gangs Of Wasseypur" is not redeemed by the presence of any hero. <br /><br />Even the main protagonist in the blood thirsty saga is a certifiable rogue named, Sardar Khan. As played by Manoj Bajpayee in what is arguably his most feisty and filled-out performance to date, Sardar Khan is a second-generation criminal and social outcast. <br /><br />In the film's unforgettable prologue, Sardar's father (Jaideep Ahlawat) serves as a henchman to the powerful local politician (Tigmanshu Dhulia). Politician has daddy killed by a hired assassin and Sonny-boy grows up swearing revenge.<br /><br />This in a nutshell, could be the plot for a cheesy 1980s' potboiler. In taking the grammar and language of the formulistic vendetta drama from the 1970s and 1980s and converting it into a crackling saga of compelling contemporary currency, Kashyap turns all the rules of mainstream Hindi cinema on its head. He uses the language of Manmohan Desai and Narinder Bedi's cinema. But he applies these to characters who are as far removed from the world of escapism is Sicilyis from Wasseypur.<br /><br />Oh, did we really say "Gangs Of Wasseypur" was derived from "The Godfather"? Nah. The two worlds are inter-connected only by their legacy of lineage and violence. Beyond that Kashyap's mode of storytelling, and the way his characters loo mover the proceedings without become caricatural, are frighteningly original and as liberated of reference-points as any of the path-breaking films on gangwars that have emerged out of Hollywood in the last 25 years.<br /><br />Kashyap celebrates the drama of the grotesque with the relish of a seven-'coarse' meal. We can count the number of thuds and stabbing sounds every time a victim is cornered and done to death. Violence on this level has never really been a part of mainstream Hindi cinema before. The end of cinematic niceties is here. Take it or leave it.<br /><br />Kashyap, in Wasseypur, legitimizes gore with glorious gusto. In the gang war that he portrays with such feral immediacy, victims are chopped up piece by piece, their body parts sent to the butcher's to eliminate legal evidence. A finger floating in a cesspool of stale blood is a commonplace sight in the world of unchecked mayhem that Kashyap has constructed with such casual resplendence. <br /><br />His team of technicians are unconditionally mired in the mood of violence. Rajeev Ravi's camera mows through the imaginary world of Wasseypur with a devilish dispassion.<br /><br />The film looks layered and even luminous in texture. But the tone of narration is detached. The dereliction of the damned and doomed characters is neither romanticized nor demonized.<br /><br />Indeed "Gangs Of Wasseypur" invents a new language of cinematic expression. It creates a world where the characters inhabit a universe of vapid stagnant violence. And yet the narration, never short of breath even in the most breathless state of violence, exudes a kind of vibrancy that comes from neither rejection not acceptable of an undesirable situation. It comes from within the characters. As they battle each other in bitter futile feuds, they also seem to be battling the demons within themselves. The synthesis of what lies within and without is devastating.<br /><br />And yet for all its outward show of ruthless machismo "Gangs Of Wasseypur" is a film with a heart. There is a rather enticing love story featuring Manoj, his screen wife(debutante Richa Chadha) and the other woman (Reema Sen) tucked away in the folds of the ferocious tale. <br /><br />Manoj's wife is a very happy happening in this sad but savagely funny tale. She is quite the discovery of the year, and that too in a film mottled with exceptional performances by Manoj, Nawazuddin as his son (more of him in "Wasseypur 2"), Tigmanshu Dhulia who is clenched, controlled and combative as the villain in chief, Pankaj Tripathi riveting as Manoj's belligerent enemy, Piyush Mishra remarkably restrained and wise as Manoj's mentor and guide and Huma Qureshi, another whammy performer whom we will see more of in the sequel.<br /><br />In fact, every character, big or small, is cast with what looks like first-and-last options. You can't imagine any other actor playing any of the myriad parts.<br /><br />Brutal, brilliant, dark, sinister, terrifying in its violence and yet savagely funny in the way human life is disregarded "Gangs Of Wasseypur" is one helluva romp into the raw and rugged heartland. Not to be missed. I can't wait to see the sequel. But be warned. Avoid meals half an hour before and after viewing.<br /></div>
</div>Web Desk Srehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16670626988253604956noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2865501596265495454.post-68133569298132976832012-06-18T11:26:00.002+05:302012-06-18T11:26:16.317+05:30India unveils ambitious 'Connect' with Central Asia<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<b>By C. Uday Bhaskar</b><br />A little noticed but major Indian policy initiative was unveiled in distant Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan, last week.<br /><br />Indian Minister of State for External Affairs E Ahamed announced a new policy initiative for the Central Asian Region (CAR) appropriately packaged as 'Connect Central Asia'. He was inaugurating the first India-Central Asia Dialogue under the joint aegis of the Indian Council for World Affairs (ICWA) and the World Diplomatic Academy, Bishkek.<br /><br />Just as India's 'Look East Policy' formulated during Prime Minister P.V. Narasimha Rao's tenure paved the way for a deeper engagement with Southeast Asia and East Asia with attendant strategic implications, it may be averred that the 'Connect Central Asia' policy has the potential to be a game-changer regarding Delhi's profile in the central heartland of Asia.<br /><br />This initiative is commendable and is illustrative of the manner in which India's foreign ministry and a dynamic Indian ambassador in a remote capital can put in place strategically significant policies. While the final outcome will be dependent on Delhi's ability to translate word into deed, the scope of this 'Connect' initiative is innovative and plays to India's traditional strengths.<br /><br />Outlining the policy, Minister Ahmed noted: "India is now looking intently at the region through the framework of its 'Connect Central Asia' policy, which is based on pro-active political, economic and people-to-people engagement with Central Asian countries, individually and collectively."<br /><br />This has been further disaggregated into a 12-point formula which includes: building on strong political relations through the exchange of high level visits; strengthening India's strategic and security cooperation with Central Asian countries, wherein the focus will be military training, joint research, counter-terrorism coordination and close consultations on Afghanistan; stepping up multilateral engagement with Central Asian partners using the synergy of joint efforts through existing fora like the Shanghai Cooperation Organisastion (SCO), Eurasian Economic Community (EEC) and the Custom Union; harnessing Central Asia's energy, agriculture and natural resource potential; and enhancing medical and pharmaceutical engagement through greater investment and joint production in this sector.<br /><br />Furthermore, higher education including setting up of a Central Asian University in Bishkek that could evolve as a centre of excellence to impart world class education in areas like IT, management, philosophy and languages; setting up a Central Asian e-network with its hub in India to deliver tele-education and tele-medicine connectivity, linking all the five Central Asian states; and showcasing India's capability in the construction sector to build world class structures at competitive rates, since Central Asian countries, especially Kazakhstan, have almost limitless reserves of iron ore and coal as well as abundant cheap electricity. India can help set up several medium size steel rolling mills.<br /><br />Poor transport links to the CAR from India are a major constraint. Hence increasing land connectivity, through the reactivated International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC); creating a viable banking infrastructure in the region (whose absence remains a major barrier to trade and investment) wherein Indian banks can expand their presence if they see a favourable policy environment; jointly working to improve air connectivity between India and CAR countries, given that India is one of the biggest markets for outbound travellers estimated at $21 billion in 2011 and encouraging Indian tourists to visit Central Asia as attractive holiday destinations; exploring the potential for the Indian film industry; and finally building on the people-to-people contact which will remain the most vital linkages to sustain deeper India-Central Asia engagement.<br /><br />Kyrgyzstan, while being amongst the smallest of the CAR states with a population of under six million people, has one unique feature. It is the first CAR state to move tentatively towards democracy and has the distinction of electing the first woman president in the region, Madame Roza Otunbayeva, after ethnic clashes led to the removal of the previous regime.<br /><br />Holding charge as caretaker president from April 2010 till December 2011, Madame Roza oversaw the first parliamentary elections. Kyrgyzstan has emerged as a role model for the smooth transition of power in a region that is better known for authoritarian regimes that have lasted decades.<br /><br />China, Russia and the US are engaged in a complex contestation to establish their presence in Central Asia. The post-2014 Afghan scenario is to have significant implications for India. Thus it is timely that Delhi has put in place a long-term policy with a comprehensive agenda to engage with Central Asian states.<br /><br />Central Asia represents the confluence where energy, water and food will emerge as determinants of the new 'Great Game'. India has to position itself innovatively - and this hopefully is what 'Connect Central Asia' will enable.</div>
</div>Web Desk Srehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16670626988253604956noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2865501596265495454.post-68513696772611441432012-06-16T11:37:00.001+05:302012-06-16T11:37:27.506+05:30Mamata's historic blunder<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<b>By Amulya Ganguli </b></div>
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Even as Pranab Mukherjee basks in the sunshine of an almost certain victory in the presidential election, there are inevitably a number of losers, such as P.A. Sangma, who banked on the perception of the Congress's political weakness and habitual dithering to fish in troubled waters. But, the biggest among them is Mamata Banerjee, who has undoubtedly made the most egregious mistake of her career.<br /><br />Coming on top of her other follies as chief minister - intolerance of dissent, inability to control her unruly cadres, lacking a game plan for the state's development - her latest bungle is bound to haunt her for a long time, especially because she tried to prevent a fellow Bengali from rising to the country's highest constitutional office.<br /><br />What is more, she tried to do so not because of any ideological kink, like the roadblock put up by the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M)'s Prakash Karat and his supporters in the politbureau against Jyoti Basu becoming the prime minister in 1996, which the then West Bengal chief minister called a "historic blunder". Instead, Mamata was guided solely by her petty, personal angularities. As a result, what could have been a routine exercise involving adherence to coalitional loyalties turned into an unedifying spectacle of hectoring, subterfuge and double-talk.<br /><br />Yet, none of this political vaudeville would have occurred if she had simply agreed, or disagreed, with Sonia Gandhi's list of two names for the president's post - those of Pranab Mukherjee and Hamid Ansari. If the Trinamool Congress chief disagreed, as her subsequent actions showed, she could have informed the Congress president accordingly and, as political propriety demanded, announced her decision to leave the ruling United Progressive Alliance (UPA).<br /><br />But, such a simple observance of norms was apparently alien to Mamata's volatile nature. So, she chose to remain in the UPA - while daring the Congress to oust her - but still walked over to what could be deemed a parallel, if not a rival, group and announced the names of three other candidates, including the prime minister's - to rub salt in the Congress's wounds, as it were. And the reason for all this play-acting was her personal prejudice against Mukherjee, presumably because the latter had not treated her with adequate respect when she was in the Congress. Nor perhaps later when her rabble-rousing tactics enabled her to rout the CPI(M) and gain huge popular acclaim in West Bengal. That her popularity is still widespread is evident from her party's success in recent elections in the state. But, there is little doubt that the extent of the dent in it which has been caused by her display of pique against an elderly political colleague will become evident in course of time.<br /><br />What made her adopt such an uncompromising position is difficult to say. But, it is not impossible that having had her way in a number of confrontations with the centre - on foreign investment in the retail and aviation sectors, land acquisition, the setting up of the National Counter-Terrorism Centre (NCTC), pension funds, et al - she apparently thought that she could browbeat it on the matter of the presidential nominee also. That she was working to a plan in this respect was evident, first, from her dismissive references to Mukherjee several weeks ago when she called him a "son of the world" when asked whether he was a son of Bengal; and, secondly, from her decision to be in touch with the Samajwadi Party (SP) before and after her meeting with Sonia Gandhi.<br /><br />Why the SP initially fell for her strange, even infantile, tactics is not clear unless it simply wanted to keep the centre off-balance for a while. On Mamata's part, by including Somnath Chatterjee's name in the list of candidates drawn up along with Mulayam Singh Yadav, she obviously wanted to atone for her decision to oppose Mukherjee. The choice of A.P.J. Abdul Kalam was a part of the typically cynical Muslim-appeasing tactics of Indian politicians. Regrettably, the former president, too, played along probably because he is too simple-minded to detect their cynicism.<br /><br />But, the house of cards which Mulayam and Mamata were building was too fragile to withstand the gusts of realpolitik. It didn't take long for the far more experienced Mulayam to understand that none of the trio of Kalam, Manmohan Singh and Chatterjee will be acceptable to anyone as president. Unfortunately for her, Mamata did not see the writing on the wall although the SP's functionaries had begun singing a different tune even before she left Delhi for Kolkata. Now, she is in a quandary. <br /><br />If she stays on in the UPA, it will be at the cost of her self-respect, especially now when there are bound to be murmurs in her own party at her immaturity. But, she will be isolated as never before if she leaves the UPA. Although she was all alone when she fought the CPI(M) for three decades, that was when her political stars were rising, even if unknown to herself. Now, they seem to be sinking.</div>
</div>Web Desk Srehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16670626988253604956noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2865501596265495454.post-83318587209353576092012-06-02T14:55:00.002+05:302012-06-02T14:55:51.563+05:30'Rowdy Rathore' - action with no gore, but doesn't bore<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<b>By Subhash K. Jha </b><br />Film: "Rowdy Rathore"; Cast: Akshay Kumar, Sonakshi Sinha, Yashpal Sharma; Director: Prabhu Deva; Rating: ***1/2<br /><br />"Rowdy Rathore" races on the premise that heroes are made by circumstances, not design. That's how the street-smart Shiva ends up in a town run by garish goons, where homes, humans and hopes are burnt in effigies mocking human rights.<br /><br />It is an old-fashioned good-versus-evil comedy-action-drama with paisa-vasool written in every frame. <br /><br />Prabhu Deva, who earlier directed Salman Khan's cop-on-a-rampage saga "Wanted" puts Akshay on the same page. To his credit, Akshay manages to create his own world in that Salman-space. Never letting go of that twinkle in his eye, Akshay sinks his crooked teeth into the meaty double role with the warmth, affection and relish of a dinner guest who knows all the yummy dishes on the table have been cooked only for him.<br /><br />Akshay goes for the sumptuous meal with the hunger of a man who may not see tomorrow. It's high-octane performance full of warmth and fury, never over-the-top, even when all hell breaks loose.<br /><br />The fights are ferocious, but never gut-churning. You can watch the bloodshed with the kids. They'd know, Uncle Akshay is going to win.<br /><br />The thing about "Rowdy Rathore" is it never takes itself seriously. The cop and his double won't kow-tow to the powers-that-be. Ironically, the film grandly bows its head to the Great Bollywood Formula. The dialogues are bombastic, bordering on the corny, nevertheless fun in their intended ideological inferences.<br /><br />A profound reverence for every trick in the book of filmic formulas sees the accelerated narration to its breathless finale. Even when the going gets gory, there is a tongue-in-cheek humour in the violence. <br /><br />It's not the arrogant aggression of Salman in "Dabangg" or "Wanted". In "Rowdy Rathore", Akshay creates a new language of heroic aggression. He is goofy, wonky, clumsy and oafish. He has no respect for the rules of the office. But his character loves doing what he does, because a man has got to do what he has to do, and really someone has to do the dirty job of cleaning up the mess we've created.<br /><br />Metal rods from rickety machines are wrenched out and used to teach the anti-socials a lesson. The 'ouch' is never unwelcome. Akshay creates a 'no wince' situation.<br /><br />Whether its wooing a Patna girl (Sonakshi Sinha) all over Mumbai streets and right into a wedding venue, or in the second half, taking on the vile villainy of a self-appointed lord of diabolism named Baapji (Nasser), who is so uncouth, unwashed and unmannered that he is downright funny in his obscene rowdyism.<br /><br />The generous splash of colour and music (Sajid-Wajid at their peppy pinnacle) pitches the film at a massy level without toppling over into a revolting rowdyism.<br /><br />Formulistic cinema has never been celebrated with more gusto.<br /><br />"Rowdy Rathore" revives the years of Eastman colour cinema in the 1960s and 1970s, when movies were crazily colourful and rollicking fun, when you knew the villains would get their cacaphonic come-uppance.<br /><br />Pulling out all stops to give us a spicy meal, Prabhu Deva succeeds in putting a dizzying spin into Akshay's double-role act. Twirling his moustache in Rajputana pride, romancing the spirited small-town chick or beating up 23 goons with one weapon (self-determination), Akshay delivers a performance that makes you want to jump out of your seat, clapping, whistling and cheering in appreciation.<br /><br />While the fights are brilliantly conceived and executed, it's Akshay's courtship with Sonakshi that had me giggling non-stop. If he is outrageously coy in his wooing act, Sonakshi gives him tit-for-tat, matching steps with her far more experienced co-star, never letting the age difference daunt her.<br /><br />The rest of the cast only has to stand around to extol and cheer our down-to-earth superhero cop. All the while, the narration never loses its tempo, warmth or humour. <br /><br />The choreography ensures that the dances merge with seamless elan into the action.<br /><br />"Rowdy Rathore" is quite a gravity-defying feat. It often finds the villains being hurled into the air. But the narration manages to keep its feet on the ground. Really, Akshay as the angry cop is more entertaining than intimidating.<br /><br />Three cheers for producer Sanjay Leela Bhansali for coming out of his comfort zone to celebrate the spirit of Hindi commercial cinema at its dizziest and craziest.<br /><br /><br /><br /></div>
</div>Web Desk Srehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16670626988253604956noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2865501596265495454.post-73050280417803514832012-06-02T13:31:00.002+05:302012-06-02T13:31:29.191+05:30'Snow White And the Huntsman' - good try, but full potential untapped<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<b>By Satyen K. Bordoloi </b><br />Film: "Snow White And the Huntsman"; Cast: Kristen Stewart, Chris Hemsworth, Charlize Theron; Director: Rupert Sanders; Rating: ***<br /><br />Fairytales have a unique ability. Depending on one's perspective, one can see them as either light or heavy, as funny or serious. So, while barely two months back you had "Mirror Mirror", now you have "Snow White And the Huntsman" - both different and unique renderings of the Snow White fairytale. <br /><br />While "Mirror Mirror" was a light, funny reading, this one's mood is dark and mysterious.<br /><br />After killing Snow White's (Kristen Stewart) father, Ravenna (Charlize Theron) becomes queen and imprisons Snow White in the castle. She preys on young women to maintain her own beauty. When she is told by her faithful mirror that the only one who can permanently give her youth or take it away forever is the pure and innocent Snow White, she sends for her. <br /><br />Snow White escapes into the dark woods and Ravenna sends a huntsman (Chris Hemsworth) to find her and bring her back. But on realising who she is, the Huntsman and a ragtag group of dwarfs join her in her quest to return her kingdom to its former glory. <br /><br />"Snow White…" begins on shaky ground. The scene conceptualisation and execution seem lacklustre and uncertain in the beginning, but it picks up pace as it progresses. <br /><br />The film tries very hard to be dark and gloomy. But despite a good try, it does not entirely reach its intention.<br /><br />The shooting locations are fabulous. Some of the scenes use fantastic imaginations to thrill the viewers. The cinematography, production quality and costumes are simply stunning. However, the biggest let down is the direction, which fluctuates from excellent to average. <br /><br />Chris Hemsworth is his usual groggy self in the film, while Kristen Stewart looks clueless throughout the film and her transformation, from a damsel in distress to one who leads an army, is not convincing. The dwarfs, who for a change are played by actual tall characters then digitally altered to look small, aren't exciting either. <br /><br />However, it is Charlize Theron as the evil queen Ravenna who is the best. She steals the show with her villainous, ruthless act.<br /><br />Overall, there was much scope to better the film, but it remains unutilised. One cannot accuse it of not trying. It tries really hard. All you can accuse it of is not succeeding.<br /></div>
</div>Web Desk Srehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16670626988253604956noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2865501596265495454.post-21939288692356910882012-05-19T11:26:00.002+05:302012-05-19T11:26:22.477+05:30Politics then and now: Nehru, Ambedkar didn't object to cartoon<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<b><i>By Amulya Ganguli </i></b>What is noteworthy about the cartoon row is that neither Jawaharlal Nehru nor B.R. Ambedkar found anything objectionable about it when it was published in 1949. Nor did all the politicians in the intervening decades, among whom were luminaries such as Vallabhbhai Patel, J.B. Kripalani, Ram Manohar Lohia, Indira Gandhi, Morarji Desai, Jagjivan Ram, A.K. Gopalan, Hiren Mukherjee and scores of others whose names are likely to last in textbooks longer than of some of their successors in the political field today.<br /><br />It may be worthwhile, therefore, to mull over the differences in response between an earlier generation of politicians and the latest ones, especially when, by common consent, the calibre of those who graced the hallowed chambers of Parliament House and of public life in the past was of a higher order than of those who came in their wake. There is little doubt that what places them on a higher pedestal in the eyes of their countrymen is their accomplishments in personal and political life.<br /><br />Among the attributes which gave them a higher status was an ability to take a critical look at themselves. Nothing showed this exemplary trait more than Nehru's searing observations on himself which surpassed anything which his critics might have said. Writing anonymously in the Modern Review in 1937, the hero of the independence movement said: "Caesarism is always at the door and is it not possible that Jawaharlal himself might fancy himself as a Caesar."<br /><br />If the builder of modern India detected an unworthy trait in himself, Ambedkar, the architect of the constitution, sounded a warning about a dubious characteristic of the nation, "where 'bhakti' or the path of devotion or hero worship plays a part in its politics unequalled in its magnitude by the part it plays in the politics of any other country. Bhakti in religion may be a road to the salvation of the soul. But in politics, bhakti or hero worship is a sure road to degradation and to eventual dictatorship".<br /><br />Central to this attitude is an uncluttered vision and a self-deprecatory sense of humour about one's personal self and the country. It is this broad-minded outlook which must have made them see Shankar's cartoon about Ambedkar being harried by Nehru in the matter of framing the constitution as a droll, inoffensive interpretation by a humourist. To them, raising a hue and cry over a form of popular art common to all democracies would have been like taking the "road to degradation".<br /><br />But, there was another, deeper reason for their response - or the lack of it - which underlined their culture and academic temperament. It was the fact that they took it for granted that their popular base was the entire nation, not segments of it which had to be assiduously cultivated. Instead, they drew their strength from the adulation of all sections of Indians, irrespective of their caste or creed.<br /><br />If the reactions of those who have replaced them in the political field to Shankar's cartoon are so very different from Nehru's and Ambedkar's, the explanation lies in the heavily truncated nature of their perceived bases of support. None of today's politicians can claim to represent the nation. Instead,they seem to see themselves as representatives of particular religions or castes or provinces or regions. What is more, since they are uncertain of their hold on their targeted communities, they constantly need to exploit issues which can enable them to retain their influence.<br /><br />So, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has to harp on the temple on which it has set its heart lest the Hindus slip out of its grasp, the caste-based outfits like the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) of the Dalits, the Samajwadi Party of the Yadavs and others have to use real or imaginary slights on their castes to mobilise their supporters and provincial groups like the Shiv Sena have to call for the banning of a book seemingly offensive to Maratha icon to retain their bases. But, interestingly, all these parties also have to pander to the supposedly hurt sentiments of the other communities in the hope of winning over some of them. Hence, the outrage voiced across the board after a Dalit organisation criticised the cartoon.<br /><br />The pity is that Nehru's own party, the Congress, with its history of non-partisan politics, has fallen prey to this cynical game to pander to the Dalits just as it had banned Salman Rushdie's "The Satanic Verses" to please the orthodox Muslims and offered muted support to the ban on James W. Laine's biography of Shivaji to keep the Marathis in good humour. Yet, there is nothing to suggest that anyone other than the backward-looking sections in these communities are impressed by such kowtowing to self-serving propaganda which makes a mockery of democratic values, intellectual acuity and freedom of the media.</div>
</div>Web Desk Srehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16670626988253604956noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2865501596265495454.post-16269861355144834942012-04-25T09:59:00.002+05:302012-04-25T10:05:13.547+05:30Story of an unsung hero from Uttarakhand<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<b>By Suparna Banerjee </b><br />
Book: "Johaar Kinkar: Babu Ram Singh"; Author: Gajendra Singh Pangti; Publisher: Dolka Innovations, New Delhi; Pages: 128; Price: Rs.150<br />
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Nestled in the higher Himalayas, near the Milam glacier, is Johaar valley -- home to the Shaukas. Before the India-China war of 1962, the Shaukas, then numbering a mere 5,000, were engaged in Indo-Tibetan trade, a tradition dating back to the 3rd or 4th century BC.<br />
Traversing treacherous valleys and high mountain passes in what is today Uttarakhand, the Shaukas traded with the Tibetans until war forced them to abandon their pristine land for mainstream occupations -- a fate shared by many communities which lived lives that took no note of political boundaries.<br />
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Their fate could have been worse but for a visionary in their midst. Babu Ram Singh helped the community survive and make a transition to modernity. Also, the orally handed down traditions of the Shaukas have been chronicled, thanks to him. This book tells his inspiring story.<br />
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Babu Ram Singh wanted the community to be prepared for any calamity and showed them the way - for instance, he tasted, at great personal risk, almost every wild leaf and fruit around to ascertain which was fit for human consumption. He recorded his findings, helping his people survive adversities such as famine.<br />
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He was prescient enough to have seen that the Tibetan trade could become unviable or cease altogether due to unforeseen circumstances. As a Gandhian and a freedom fighter, he propagated the idea of producing and trading in swadeshi goods.<br />
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Babu Ram Singh was a reformer as well. He spoke against social evils and, to foster change, he launched a local newspaper and built organisations tasked with empowering women and promoting agriculture. He also set up cooperatives for swadeshi goods and started schools. But his greatest contribution to the community and to the history of Uttarakhand is his documentation of the Shauka story.<br />
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There was hardly any written history of the community and Babu Ram Singh -- who preferred to be called 'Johaar Kinkar', or one who serves Johaar -- took upon himself the work of meticulously recording the oral history of the Shaukas and to prepare genealogical charts. Most of the known history of the Shaukas would have been lost but for him.<br />
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For a man without formal education, the work that Babu Ram Singh did in his lifetime makes him a historian, social activist, freedom fighter, writer, poet, agri-scientist, journalist, social entrepreneur -- all rolled into one. Thanks to this book by Gajendra Singh Pangti, a former CEO of Nepal Life Insurance, the life and times of this unsung legend have now been documented for posterity.<br />
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The book is rich in biographical detail, but also goes beyond Babu Ram Singh to give a tantalising glimpse of the life of the Shaukas - who now number around 25,000 -- their struggle against the vagaries of time and nature, and their fragile and harshly beautiful land.<br />
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It is tough today to imagine the times when the Shaukas had to walk all the way from Johaar to the Himalayan foothills and proceed to cities like Delhi, Calcutta (now Kolkata) and Bombay (Mumbai) for trade. Even now, Babu Ram Singh's village, Milam, the largest in the valley, is a three-day trek from the nearest roadhead.</div>
</div>Web Desk Srehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16670626988253604956noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2865501596265495454.post-21967392645266919472012-04-12T11:17:00.000+05:302012-04-12T11:17:08.890+05:30Afreen, Falak and fair vaginas - when will it change for India's women<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<b>By Minu Jain </b><br />Another baby girl killed before she got a chance at life, another father unable to contain his disappointment at begetting a daughter, another mother mourning her child and her helplessness. The sickeningly familiar story has been repeated once again in Bangalore with the death of three-month-old Afreen from burns and bites allegedly by her father.<br /><br />It is the latest chapter in the sorry tale of women in India, where regressive practices and age-old traditions continue to sit uneasily with claims of progress and rising economic prowess.<br /><br />Afreen died of grievous head injuries, a dislocated neck, cigarette burns and even bite marks, just three days after she was admitted to hospital. Her mother Reshma, just 19 and as much a victim, sobbed uncontrollably as she recalled her husband's brutal assault on the baby because he wanted a male child.<br /><br />In a continuing chain of exploitation, Reshma, it is reported, also alleged that her husband, car painter Umar Farooq, tried to poison her and harassed her for dowry. She did attempt to fight back and even approached the Bangalore Child Welfare Committee.<br /><br />But it was clearly a losing battle for the young mother and her infant daughter. In the end, despite the very best in healthcare, Afreen died of a cardiac arrest shortly before noon Wednesday.<br /><br />Less than a month ago, on March 16, another baby died in horrifically similar circumstances, also in the public gaze. The subject of countless headlines, two-year-old Falak also had a cardiac arrest and died after 60 days at New Delhi's All India Institute of Medical Sciences, unable to recover from the broken skull, fractured limbs and bite marks inflicted on her.<br /><br />Falak, like Afreen, was just the smallest link in a chain of sexual exploitation and gender disparity. Hers was a twisted tale of human trafficking that revealed a fresh atrocity at each turn. It started with her biological mother, the victim of an abusive husband, and ended with a 14-year-old girl, who took the battered baby to hospital and claimed to be her mother.<br /><br />She was of course not the mother. Barely a teen, she was just another oppressed girl who was trafficked herself and given custody of the baby by her abusive boyfriend.<br /><br />And this is the proverbial tip of a very deep iceberg in a country where there are only 914 women for every 1,000 men.<br /><br />For every Falak and Afreen who become the talking points of an entire nation thanks to the media - but still don't survive -- there are millions of girls who die in oblivion, or are killed in the womb itself. Like the two-day-old child in Madhya Pradesh's Gwalior town who was given nicotine by another father desperate for a son. <br /><br />So, where does it end?<br /><br />It probably doesn't, not even in the India of today that prides itself on its many achievements, its woman president, its woman speaker, its woman leader of opposition and woman chair of the ruling alliance.<br /><br />Because it is the same country where one end of the spectrum of discrimination constitutes Falak and Afreen and the other, the buyers of the latest fairness cream in the market - a 'clean and dry intimate wash' that promises fair private parts. It's a wide arc that takes in dowry victims, foeticide, domestic violence, rape and so much more.<br /><br />The woman who buys the wash - the ad promising that it will liven up your love life - is subject to the same bigotry that the two babies were. She will use it, hoping to induce greater romance in her life and succumb a little more to the pressure of looking good -- even in her most private parts.<br /><br />The product addresses the insecurities of millions of women - and rakes in the moolah. The fairness industry is a multimillion rupee one, just as the foetal sex determination and selective abortion industry that Unicef estimates is now worth Rs.1,000 crore ($244 million).<br /><br />It's a brave new world out there, but for Indian women, and doubtless women elsewhere too, it is a question of many steps backward and one step forward. The momentum of backwardness stays unchanged, despite Afreens and Falaks tugging at our conscience every now and then.<br /><br />It's the tired cliche, the more things change the more they remain the same.<br /><br />(12.04.2012 - Minu Jain is a senior journalist. She can be contacted at minu.jain@ians.in)<br /><br /><br /><br /></div>
</div>Web Desk Srehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16670626988253604956noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2865501596265495454.post-71539294602605621582012-04-07T12:31:00.000+05:302012-04-07T12:31:24.087+05:30No 'c' word in Indian Army's lexicon<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<b>By Amulya Ganguli</b>The dreaded 'c'-word has rarely been uttered in connection with the Indian Army because it is supposed to have inherited in full measure the professional traditions of its colonial mentors about the military being subservient to the civil authorities. Hence, the idea of a coup d'etat has always been deemed to be alien to its mindset.<br /><br />That does not mean fears about what happens with distressing frequency in neighbouring Pakistan being repeated in India haven't been expressed. For instance, according to a biography of Field Marshal K.M. Cariappa written by his son, the retired commander-in-chief, as the post was known then, was appointed as India's high commissioner to Australia in 1953 to forestall such a possibility.<br /><br />Cariappa did feel that "an indefinite President's rule all over the country would do us a lot of good". He said in an interview that during this period, "only such areas which may be unruly can be given in the hands of the army" and that "only after the restoration of normalcy can elections be held". This was in 1974. A year later, the Emergency, which the enfant terrible of the time, Sanjay Gandhi, wanted to be "indefinite", was imposed. But that is another story.<br /><br />What is relevant is that since Cariappa's time, all the army chiefs have stuck to the straight and narrow path of neutrality. Whether during defeat, as in 1962, or at a time of triumph, as in 1971, there hasn't been a whisper about the army nurturing political ambitions.<br /><br />The latest brouhaha, therefore, would have been seen as a storm in a tea cup even if the prime minister had not called the report about supposedly suspicious troop movements in January "alarmist". Manmohan Singh's comment was followed by the army chief, Gen. V.K. Singh, describing the Indian Express report as "stupid".<br /><br />To complicate matters, the Free Press Journal of Mumbai claimed that "some time in late January the services of this newspaper were sought to be enlisted by elements hostile to the army chief for putting out a report that he could even consider the unthinkable if he did not get his way in his dispute over his actual year of birth. Indeed, sources close to the government suggested that he had given up the idea of the unthinkable only because he had failed to enlist the support of the top army brass".<br /><br />Several factors can be held responsible for the rumpus, of which competitive journalism is one. Of the others, the government's palpable weakness because of its embroilment in various scams provides an ideal setting for rumours about a coup, for it is precisely such conditions which the armies elsewhere use to overthrow a stumbling government.<br /><br />Considering that responsible columnists believed that an Arab Spring could not be ruled out in India, and even saw its first signs in Anna Hazare's movement last year, showed how conducive Delhi's hot house atmosphere was for such fanciful speculation. If an Arab Spring could be envisaged, why not a coup?<br /><br />There is little doubt that the "breaking news" syndrome - "there are lots of people who want to make stories these days", to quote Gen. Singh - plays a crucial part in sustaining the capital's endless quest for gossip. To return to Cariappa, when the field marshal sent an article to the Indian Express about his pet idea of an "indefinite" President's Rule, the editor of the time, Frank Moraes, returned it saying that it would embarrass the newspaper and harm the former commander-in-chief's reputation.<br /><br />Today, any newspaper or magazine or television will lap up any such article sent by a retired general. At the same time, it also has to be admitted that despite the cut-throat competition in the media world, and the eagerness with which "experts" articulate their views in "prime time" shows, instances of gross irresponsibility are few and far between in spite of what the irrepressible Press Council chief, Markandey Katju, may say.<br /><br />But as the Niira Radia tapes showed, there are elements in the government and outside who are involved in all kinds of games. The "leakage" of the tapes and the "leakage" of Gen. Singh's letter to the prime minster on the army's obsolescence are evidences of insiders trying to undermine other insiders with the help of journalists during a turf war.<br /><br />However, the good news is that the institutions have stood firm. There are no signs that anyone in the army wants to emulate Ayub Khan or Zia-ul Haq. The media has tried to look at the scene dispassionately even if some of them are momentarily swept off course, as during Anna Hazare's agitation last year. The judiciary, the Election Commission and the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) are acting as the guardians of a free society.<br /><br />Even the bumbling government has had the sense to respond with dignity to attempts to create a mountain out of a molehill, as the prime minister's reference to the "exalted office" of the army chief shows.</div>
</div>Web Desk Srehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16670626988253604956noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2865501596265495454.post-65387819830770483962012-04-06T16:38:00.003+05:302012-04-06T16:44:51.827+05:30Silvio Gesell’s Free Economy and the Miracle of Wörgl<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: -webkit-auto;"><b>Silvio Gesell</b></span>
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The Freiwirtschaft (‘Free economy’) is an economic theory conceived by Silvio Gesell in 1916. It calls for the abolishment of interest and focuses on the free flow of money in the economy that is kept moving through the application of negative interest. The system was seen as ‘natural economic order’ but it has never been put into practice by any national government..<br />
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Silvio Gesell was a merchant and private scholar of German-Argentinian descent. He developed his system based on observation rather than mainstream economics.</div>
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Freiwirtschaft consists of three central premises (The Three Fs):</div>
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<b>Freigeld </b>(free flowing money): All money is issued for a limited period at constant value (neither inflation, nor deflation). Hoarding (holding back) of money is discouraged by the application of a negative interest rate on a monthly or annual basis. Long-term saving requires investment in bonds or stocks or Savings Banks; both methods avoiding losses in value due to negative interest.</div>
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<b>Freiland</b> (free land): All land is owned by public institutions and can only be rented, not purchased in order to avoid speculative withdrawal of land from the market.</div>
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<b>Freihandel </b>(Free Trade): Free Trade has long been a mainstream position in a perverted form until now, but the anti-globalization movement largely opposes it in the present form.</div>
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Gesell saw his system having the following results:</div>
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More private spending for consumption and investment</div>
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Consumers investing surplus money in expanding companies</div>
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Full employment: work for everyone who can work</div>
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The rate of economic growth set by the society based on the GDP</div>
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Interest rates dropping to almost zero percent over time.</div>
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Freiland preventing high real estate prices</div>
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Social disparities ceasing to exist</div>
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As mentioned before, this economic theory has never been put into practice by a country but in 1932, an Austrian mayor used Gesell’s ideas to rescue the economy of his town.</div>
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<b>THE MIRACLE OF WÖRGL</b></div>
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In the early 1930s, the world was in the midst of an economic crisis. World trade had fallen by 60% and the flow of financial capital internationally had fallen by 90%. One of the most serious consequences was the emergence of mass unemployment; in 1932 the unemployment rate in Austria was 24.7%. </div>
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Some local communities tried to find solutions aimed at easing the crisis. One of the initiatives was the so-called ‘miracle of Wörgl’ - the ‘free flowing money experiment’ that took place between summer 1932 and summer 1933 in the town of Wörgl, Austria. In 1932, cement and pulp production at Wörgl declined sharply and unemployment rose dramatically. Many citizens were unable to pay their municipal taxes at a time when the municipality was faced with high expenses in the form of assistance payments to the unemployed. The town’s treasury was empty, and the end was in sight. It was decided that a welfare committee should be established to organize the issue of emergency money.</div>
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The mayor of Wörgl Michael Unterguggenberger (1884-1936) searched for solutions for the crisis within his community and finally opted for a monetary system experiment. The theoretical basis for the experiment was the free economics of Silvio Gesell, which prescribed depreciating money as a remedy for low economic activity. The basic observation that Unterguggenberger made in his community experiment was the sluggish movement of money during the deflationary period. The citizenry of Wörgel held (hoarded according to Gesell’s Theory) their money back rather than spending it on goods and services. Unterguggenberger saw that this needed to change. Local money was provided in the form of ‘employment confirmation slips’ or ‘AB-notes’ for use in the town of Wörgl only. It was arranged that these slips would lose value by a steady current security fee of 1% per month with the result that the holder of that money would be strongly encouraged to circulate it, for holding the money meant loss of value. In practice, this concept was implemented so that as each month passed, tokens worth 1% of the slip had to be attached to it, so that the note retained its validity – see example below. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: left;"><b>An AB note showing the typical 12 fields for the monthly token stamp</b></span> </td></tr>
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When the program was implemented on the 5th July 1932, Unterguggenberger gave the following explantion: </div>
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“Slower money supply is the main cause of the current economic paralysis. Money as a medium of exchange slips away more and more from the hands of creative people. It seeps into interest channels and accumulates in the hands of people who render the money unavailable to the market by holding it back as speculative funds”. </div>
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Unterguggenberger introduced the free flowing money on a voluntary basis. It was equivalent to the existing Austrian Schilling. Municipal employees were paid initially up to 50% of their wages and later up to 75% in AB notes. In addition, there was a job program for the unemployed set up and they were completely paid for their work in AB notes. The initiative of mayor Unterguggenberger found much support in the community; all commercial businesses in the city participated in the AB note scheme because communal taxes could be paid with the notes. </div>
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After a short time the positive effects of the experiment emerged. The movement of money was very high, investments in the infrastructure of the community took place and unemployment fell by about 14% at a time when unemployment in Austria as a whole rose by 19%. </div>
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The Wörgl experiment with free flowing money found some resonance in the international press. Unterguggenberger was invited to undertake international lecture tours and the French Finance Minister and later Prime Minister Daladier visited Wörgl in 1933 because of the free flowing money experiment. Further, an economist, Irving Fisher was sent to Wörgl by the American government. Fisher later tried, albeit unsuccessfully, to introduce a Wörgl-like money under the name Stamp Scrip in the USA in an attempt to overcome the economic crisis there. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: left;"><b>Wörgl Mayor Michael Unterguggenberger</b></span> </td></tr>
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The miracle of Wörgl came to a sudden end. In January 1933 an injunction to prohibit the experiment was issued by the Austrian authorities against the community of Wörgl. The Austrian National Bank was behind this; it saw its monopoly on money threatened. The community of Wörgl appealed against the decision but was not successful. The use of AB notes continued illegally in Wörgl until late 1933 when the Austrian State threatened to use force. The miracle of Wörgl ceased on 15 September 1933 amidst comments from the Swiss government that the Wörgl example could undermine the monopoly of the Swiss Central Bank as well. Unterguggenberger was even prevented from lecturing in Switzerland afterwards. </div>
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Following the prohibition of free money Unterguggenberger made the following comment: </div>
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“I had foreseen that the whole affair would be banned! I only did it because I wanted to give the world a sign that it was possible! To me and the world I have proven it! Now this knowledge has to slowly mature in the minds of men! The introduction of the railway was in the beginning threatened by prohibition as well”.</div>
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<b>CURRENT CURRENCY INITIATIVES</b></div>
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The Wörgl experiment is not forgotten by proponents of alternative currency systems today. There are currently regional initiatives in Germany, Switzerland and Austria, inspired by Wörgl and Silvio Gesell’s Theory. And in the town of Wörgl itself, an Unterguggenberger Institute was established in 2003, dedicated to the documentation of the Wörgl experiment and the collection of information about current complementary currency projects. </div>
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Immediately after the First World War, Silvio Gesell himself made the following comment:</div>
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„Trotz der heiligen Versprechen der Völker, den Krieg für alle Zeiten zu ächten, trotz der Rufe der Millionen: 'Nie wieder Krieg', entgegen all den Hoffnungen auf eine schönere Zukunft muß ich sagen: Wenn das heutige Geldsystem, die Zinswirtschaft, beibehalten wird, so wage ich es, heute schon zu behaupten, daß es keine 25 Jahre dauern wird, bis wir vor einem neuen, noch furchtbareren Krieg stehen. Ich sehe die kommende Entwicklung klar vor mir. Der heutige Stand der Technik läßt die Wirtschaft rasch zu einer Höchstleistung steigern. Die Kapitalbildung wird trotz der großen Kriegsverluste rasch erfolgen und durch Überangebot den Zins drücken. Das Geld wird dann gehamstert werden. Der Wirtschaftsraum wird einschrumpfen, und große Heere von Arbeitslosen werden auf der Straße stehen. An vielen Grenzpfählen wird man dann eine Tafel mit der Aufschrift finden können: 'Arbeitssuchende haben keinen Zutritt ins Land, nur die Faulenzer mit vollgestopftem Geldbeutel sind willkommen. Wie zu alten Zeiten wird man dann nach dem Länderraub trachten und wird dazu wieder Kanonen fabrizieren müssen, man hat dann wenigstens für die Arbeitslosen wieder Arbeit. In den unzufriedenen Massen werden wilde, revolutionäre Strömungen wach werden, und auch die Giftpflanze Übernationalismus wird wieder wuchern. Kein Land wird das andere mehr verstehen, und das Ende kann nur wieder Krieg sein“,</div>
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Translated into English Gesell’s comment reads: </div>
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“Despite the holy promise of the peoples, to abolish war for all times, despite the cry of millions ‘never again war!’, against all the hopes for a better future, I must say that: if the current monetary system, the economy based on interest, stays continuously in use, then I dare to opine that it will take not even 25 years before we are faced with another horrible war. I see this development clearly before me. Today’s state of technology enables us to increase the world economy towards highest performance. Accumulation of capital will take place fast despite the losses incurred through the war and by over supply the interest rates will be lowered. Money will be hoarded then, people will keep it available in cash. The economic area will shrink and huge armies of unemployed will be on the streets. At many borders one will find a sign where is written: ‘people looking for employment must not enter this country; only the Lazy with stuffed wallets are welcome’. Like in olden times, there will be the idea to steal lands from other countries and canons will be manufactured and at least one will have created work for the unemployed again. Within the unsatisfied masses there will awaken wild, revolutionary currents and the poisonous plant ‘Over-Nationalism’ will proliferate also. No country with understand the other country anymore and the end of all this can only be war again.”</div>
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History reports that it took only 22 years before WWII began and the mechanism that Gesell described so well near to one hundred years ago is right now at work in the contemporarily ‘Euro Crisis’ and ‘Dollar Crisis’.</div>
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<b>REFERENCES</b></div>
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http://www.fritzschwarz.ch/woergl.htm</div>
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http://www.enotes.com/topic/Freiwirtschaft</div>
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http://www.unterguggenberger.org/page.php?id=54</div>
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www.deweles.de/globalisierung.html</div>
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http://www.vivomondo.com/de/rathaus/woergl/wissenswertes/geschichte/michael_unterguggenberger_biographie</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiemGqxaJTkUTJgFeUJpOk9OvrW4cqaG7NjO-BvFaMweF59xf7l_wbxgePC1rRpAaWG40Gh1Biv7TUGsmRiqZYlCZ22teTqPeUxflEhG89Xn5MBhbAoTIdURBl2Pr8nrHSqTulfXONp2I-X/s1600/Dr-George-Reiff.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiemGqxaJTkUTJgFeUJpOk9OvrW4cqaG7NjO-BvFaMweF59xf7l_wbxgePC1rRpAaWG40Gh1Biv7TUGsmRiqZYlCZ22teTqPeUxflEhG89Xn5MBhbAoTIdURBl2Pr8nrHSqTulfXONp2I-X/s1600/Dr-George-Reiff.jpg" /></a>Dr George Reiff is Professor for History at St. Clements University. He holds a PhD in History from Universidad Empresarial de Costa Rica. As a former Ambassador of the Parlement Mondial, George has travelled widely to promote peace and understanding. He now serves as a Representative of the Bunyoro Kingdom, a constitutionally empowered Kingdom in Uganda and also as Chapter Commander for Thailand of the Order of the Knights of Rizal of the Philippines. George actively supports the Campaign for a United Nations Parliamentary Assembly. </div>
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</div>Webdesk Vihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15457021660742192786noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2865501596265495454.post-64368043448125407142012-04-02T11:47:00.000+05:302012-04-02T12:44:53.574+05:30ATOMIC BOMB<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<b>Federal Republic of Germany or German Reich – which one it is?</b><br />
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Usually, contemporary people know Germany as a key member of the European Union having the full legal name Federal Republic of Germany. However, many legal anomalies have surfaced that will be shed light upon by this article.<br />
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One of the lesser known fact is for example that Germany still does not have a peace treaty with the former allies of World War II. Instead, since 1990, there exists a memorandum of understanding, (the 2+4 agreement) and the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) has pledged in writing to the former war allies of WW II not to seek one.</div>
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Moreover, discriminatory articles 57 and 103 of the UN Charter are still fully in force against Germany and Japan and, again, a memorandum of understanding states that the articles should not be "considered" anymore. But only a complete abolition of both articles would put UNO "Paymasters No 2 and No 3" (Japan and Germany) in an equal position with the other 191member countries. One must know that UNO was originally founded as organization of the countries that we at war with Germany and Japan in 1945.</div>
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Within the FRG prerogative, legislation emanating from SHAEF as of 1945 (Supreme Headquarter of the Allied Expeditionary Forces) has been incorporated into German law; the so called Military Laws. The best example (among many others) for this is Military Law No. 67 under which the fiscal policies of the FRG are governed 64 years after WW II!</div>
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In order to understand the FRG one must first understand the legal nature of the German Reich. When we speak about the German Reich (Reich_= realm or empire) here, one must understand that we speak about the Weimar Republic, that was the successor as of 1919 of the first German the state with the name German Reich which was founded in 1871. Most people would certainly believe that the German Reich perished after WW II. This is, however, not true as it had been artificially kept alive legally by the allies of WW II who only had the Regular German Army (Wehrmacht) unconditionally surrender on the 8th of May 1945. It is noteworthy that the English officially kept alive the Government of the German Reich in the city of Flensburg, Northern Germany till 23rd of May 1945.<br />
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Afterwards, they imprisoned this government. On the same day four years later, the allies created the Western Separate Vassal Protectorate "Federal Republic of Germany", decreeing that the Germans had to convene in a "parliamentary council" under SHAEF Control and to "deliberate" a constitution which had to be endorsed by the SHAEF. The founding fathers of the Federal Republic of Germany were, however, educated enough to know that they had no right to produce a constitution and so a provisional "basic law" was presented which was supposed to be supplanted by a real constitution after Germany could decide her own fate in freedom again according to Article 146 Basic Law of the FRG.<br />
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Because of the long legal existence of the FRG not many people would believe that the German Reich legally still exists. But the Federal Constitutional Court of the Federal Republic of Germany has another view, which it expressed in its 1973 rulings 2BvL6/56, 2Bvf1/73 and 2BvR373/83. There the Constitutional Court of the FRG states legally binding to date that the German Reich is still in existence within its borders as defined on the 12th December 1937.<br />
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The formula " as defined on the 12th of December 1937 stems from the Allies as they also wanted to illegalize German land gains made before the war.</div>
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Excerpt from sentence 2Bvf1/73: " ... it is held on to it (see BVerfG, 1956-08-17, 1 BvB 2/51, BVerfGE 5, 85) that the German Reich endured the break down in 1945 and neither perished with the capitulation nor with execution of foreign state rule through the Allies in Germany; it is still endowed with a judicial body but not able to act as a state due to the lack of organization. Therefore, "with implementations of the FRG there was no founding of a new West German state but only a re-organization of a part of Germany" as Constitutional Law Legal Expert and Member of the FRG Parliamentary Council Prof. Dr. Carlo Schmid expressed it in 1949.<br />
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And so the FRG does not have a Constitution (Verfassung) but a so-called Basic Law (Grundgesetz). </div>
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The German people are forced to endure continuous moral economic and military black mailing; how else could one explain that German soldiers are now for years under US command in Afghanistan in order to guard US interests there, despite the fact that the broad majority of citizens wish their soldiers were not there.</div>
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Another indicator that something must be very wrong in Germany is that a German cannot be citizen of the FRG. In documents proving citizenship, FRG officials write "German" or has German Citizenship as citizenship, they do not write "Citizen of the Federal Republic of Germany". This is all due to the aforementioned artificial legal existence of the German Realm, though without organization because the German Citizenship law/Staatsangehörigkeitsgesetz has been renamed just in 2000. Before, this the law, as introduced in 1913 by William II, then Emperor of Germany, was called Reichs und Staatsangehörigkeitsgesetz (German Citizenship and Citizenship of the Reich law). <br />
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The old legal question is: what for and who profits from this?<br />
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The answers are easily found in history. When the World War II allies were on the losing side, they tried to illegalize Hitler's land gains by outlawing all annexations world-wide in a treaty called the Atlantic charter on 24 September 1941. They even paid lip service to the Atlantic Charter during Londoner Protocol of 12. September 1944. However, when finally winning the war in 1945, Comrade Stalin of the Soviet Union though being cosigner of said charter demanded his pound of flesh and kept half of Poland (East Poland) and half of Germany's East Prussia Province in Russian possession. In keeping with their own legal framework of the Atlantic charter, the Allies then simply put the eastern third of the German Reich under "Polish Administration" in order not to call it annexation in 1945. Nonetheless they had a thorough ethnical cleansing going on in the next 18 months to come. Afterwards, the empty land was resettled with Polish people who in turn were evicted by the Soviet Russians in East Poland. In the aftermath two puppet states were erected on the rest of the German territory, the FRG in the West and the German Democratic Republic (GDR) in the East. Both were not declared successors of the German Reich in order to circumvent the legalization of the de fact annexation of the German East into Poland and Russia. Therefore, the surviving FRG never created her own citizenship but had to uphold the citizenship of the German Reich instead. For that reason people living in the GDR could flee the country and always get immediately FRG passports. <br />
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Passport of the German Reich during the Hitler Regime, indicating the German Citizenship as "German Realm/Deutsches Reich)<br />
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FRG Authorities confirmed in writing that they always kept the one German citizenship as means "not to lose the last binding bracket" with the Germans in the Russian dominated GDR. After the dissolution of the bankrupt GDR into FRG in 1990, the aforementioned 2+4 Memorandum of Understanding has been made, again, in order to avoid the question of legalization of the de facto annexation of German territory into Poland and Russia. Due to this, the German Reich still remains in a legal wake coma and underlies contemporary FRG Germany like the old-fashioned DOS system still underlies the modern Operating System Windows.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiemGqxaJTkUTJgFeUJpOk9OvrW4cqaG7NjO-BvFaMweF59xf7l_wbxgePC1rRpAaWG40Gh1Biv7TUGsmRiqZYlCZ22teTqPeUxflEhG89Xn5MBhbAoTIdURBl2Pr8nrHSqTulfXONp2I-X/s1600/Dr-George-Reiff.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiemGqxaJTkUTJgFeUJpOk9OvrW4cqaG7NjO-BvFaMweF59xf7l_wbxgePC1rRpAaWG40Gh1Biv7TUGsmRiqZYlCZ22teTqPeUxflEhG89Xn5MBhbAoTIdURBl2Pr8nrHSqTulfXONp2I-X/s1600/Dr-George-Reiff.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: small; text-align: left;">Dr George Reiff</span> </b></td></tr>
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Dr George Reiff is Professor for History at St. Clements University. He holds a PhD in History from Universidad Empresarial de Costa Rica. As a former Ambassador of the Parlement Mondial, George has travelled widely to promote peace and understanding. He now serves as a Representative of the Bunyoro Kingdom, a constitutionally empowered Kingdom in Uganda and also as Chapter Commander for Thailand of the Order of the Knights of Rizal of the Philippines. George actively supports the Campaign for a United Nations Parliamentary Assembly. </div>
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<b>References: </b></div>
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www.bundesverfassungsgericht.de</div>
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2BvL6/56</div>
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2Bvf1/73 <br />
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2BvR373/83<br />
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BVerfGE 2, 266 (277, Zit. Abs. 30<br />
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BVerfGE 3, 288 (319 f., Zit. Abs. 92<br />
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BVerfGE 6, 309 (336 ff., Zit. Abs. 160, Abs. 166)<br />
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BVerfGE 36, 1 (15 ff.)<br />
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BVerfGE 77, 137 (150 ff.)</div>
</div>Webdesk Vihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15457021660742192786noreply@blogger.com1