http://www.chakpak.com/video/40-years-of-naxalbari-uprising---maoist-naxalite-india/1768521
Now, get it! Mi5 was formed and still run by Zionists! I wonder what we will know in the next. Hitler as well!!!???!!! Wish to know about NY 9 11 & London 7 7!
Mussolini was paid by MI5 to be a warmonger
Dear Palashjee,
The updated version of my forthcoming book "Ulgulaan chalu akana..."
is available on-
www.cipra.in
and
http://babatilkamanjhi.ning.com/
My Social networking site on Tantra:
http://dushmahavidya.ning.com/
My own website:
http://www.dushmahavidya.org/
Blogspot:
http://groups.google.co.in/group/dushmahavidyainsight?hl=en-GB
Hope you would like to have a look on them.
May Ma Kaali shower blessings on you.
Thanks,
Pankaj Prasoon
|
Email this story
|
To: Government of IndiaPetition for the Repeal of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act
For 46 years millions of people living in India’s Northeast have been forced to live under virtual army rule. They have faced daily humiliation, arbitrary arrests, rapes, and custodial murders by branches of the Indian armed forces, without any possibility of redress. This state of affairs has been sanctioned by a draconian legislation called the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA), which has been on the statute books in various forms since 1958, when it was introduced to help crush secessionist movements in the Northeast. It is currently in operation in large parts of the Northeast as well as Jammu and Kashmir.
Under this Act a non-commissioned army officer of the lowest rank has the power to shoot to kill anybody, to enter and destroy any building and to arrest anyone without a warrant. The officer needs no permission from a superior, is not answerable to anyone, and does not have to justify his action to anyone. Under this Act the affected people have no right to approach the court for redress.
In effect, the Act has made the people subject to its extraordinary power second-class citizens of the country, who do not even on paper, enjoy the constitutionally guaranteed rights and freedoms supposed to be the due of every citizen.
The latest atrocities committed by the armed forces under the protection of this Act in the state of Manipur have been the killing of Zamkholet Khongsai, a 60 year old pastor, on 8th July, followed by the brutal rape and murder of 32 year old Manorama on 11 July. In the wake of these incidents there have been widespread protests against the AFSPA in Manipur, which still continue. Hundreds of people, including elderly women and students, have been arrested in the protests, and sent to jail. Unmoved by this display of public anger, the Central Government has been pressing the Manipur State Government for more repression on the protesters.
The demand for the repeal of the Act is an old one, and the current protests have a long history. In fact, for the past 45 months a young Manipuri woman, Irom Sharmila, has become a symbol of this struggle. Sharmila is on a fast-unto-death, demanding the withdrawal of this Act. She has been forcibly fed in hospital, under judicial custody, all this while.
A country that calls itself a democracy cannot sanction a part of its people living under legalized martial law for almost six decades. We join the people of Manipur in opposing this Act. We demand that it be withdrawn from the entire country and be repealed.Sincerely,
|
15/10/2009
A record 1 billion go hungry: UN
The world’s most populous region, Asia Pacific has the highest number of hungry people – 642 million, followed by Sub-Saharan Africa with 265 million.
Parents in some African countries are not sending their children to school and are cutting back on basic necessities like clothes and medical care, just to give their children a single meal a day, experts say. That is still not enough.
A record one billion people are hungry worldwide and a new report says the number is only going to increase if governments don't start spending more on agriculture. According to the UN food agency, which issued the report, 30 countries are in need of immediate aid, of which 20 are in Africa.
The trend continues despite a goal set by world leaders 9 years ago to cut the number of hungry in the world by half, by 2015.
"It's actually a world emergency that calls for action from both developing and developed countries," said Otive Igbuzor, the head of international campaigns for ActionAid International.
``We know a child dies every six seconds of malnutrition,'' he said.
A record 1 billion go hungry: UN
The world’s most populous region, Asia Pacific has the highest number of hungry people – 642 million, followed by Sub-Saharan Africa with 265 million.
Parents in some African countries are not sending their children to school and are cutting back on basic necessities like clothes and medical care, just to give their children a single meal a day, experts say. That is still not enough.
A record one billion people are hungry worldwide and a new report says the number is only going to increase if governments don't start spending more on agriculture. According to the UN food agency, which issued the report, 30 countries are in need of immediate aid, of which 20 are in Africa.
The trend continues despite a goal set by world leaders 9 years ago to cut the number of hungry in the world by half, by 2015.
"It's actually a world emergency that calls for action from both developing and developed countries," said Otive Igbuzor, the head of international campaigns for ActionAid International.
``We know a child dies every six seconds of malnutrition,'' he said.
The Armed Forces (Jammu & Kashmir) Special Power Act, 1990 No. 21 of 1990
An Act to enable certain special powers to be conferred upon members of the armed forces in the disturbed areas in the State of Jammu and Kashmir.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Forty-first Year of the Republic of India as follows :-
1. Short title, extent and commencement.- (1) This Act may be called the Armed Forces (Jammu and Kashmir) Special Powers Act, 1990.
(2) It extends to the whole of the State of Jammu and Kashmir.
(3) It shall be deemed to have come into force on the 5th day of July, 1990.
2. Definitions.- In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,-
(a) "armed forces" means the military forces and the air forces operating as land forces and includes any other armed forces of the Union so operating ;
(b) "disturbed area" means an area which is for the time being declared by notification under section 3 to be a disturbed areas;
(c) all other words and expressions used herein, but not defined and defined in the Air Force Act, 1950(45 of 1950), or the Army Act, 1950(46 of 1950), shall have the meanings respectively assigned to them in those Acts.
3. Power to declare areas to be disturbed areas.- If, in relation to the State of Jammu and Kashmir, the Governor of the State or the Central Government, is of opinion that the whole or any part of the State is in such a disturbed and dangerous condition that the use of armed forces in aid of the civil power is necessary to prevent -
(a) activities involving terrorist acts directed towards overawing the Government as by law established or striking terror in the people or any section of the people of alienating any section of the people or adversely affecting the harmony amongst different sections of the people ;
(b) activities directed towards disclaiming, questioning or disrupting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of India or bringing about cession of a part of the territory of India or secession of a part of the territory of India from the Union or causing insult to the Indian National Flag, the Indian National Anthem and the Constitution of India,
the Governor of the State or the Central Government, may, by notification in the Official Gazette, declare the whole or any part of the State to be a disturbed area.
Explanation.- In this section, "terrorist act" has the same meaning as in Explanation to article 248 of the Constitution of India as applicable to the State of Jammu and Kashmir.
4. Special powers of the armed forces.- Any commissioned officer, warrant officer, non-commissioned officer or any other person of equivalent rank in the armed forces may, in a disturbed area,-
(a) if he is of opinion that it is necessary so to do for the maintenance of public order, after giving such due warning as he may consider necessary, fire upon or otherwise use force, even to the causing of death, against any person who is acting in contravention of any law or order for the time being in force in the disturbed area prohibiting the assembly of five or more persons or the carrying of weapons or of things capable of being used as weapons or of fire-arms, ammunition or explosive substances ;
(b) if he is of opinion that it is necessary so to do, destroy any arms dump, prepared or fortified position or shelter from which armed attacks are made or are likely to be made or are attempted to be made, or any structure used as a training camp for armed volunteers or utilised as a hide-out by armed gangs or absconders wanted for any offence ;
(c) arrest, without warrant, any person who has committed a cognizable offence or against whom a reasonable suspicion exists that he has committed or is about to commit a cognizable offence and may use such force as may be necessary to effect the arrest ;
(d) enter and search, without warrant, any premises to make any such arrest as aforesaid or to recover any person believed to be wrongfully restrained or confined or any property reasonably suspected to be stolen property or any arms, ammunition or explosive substances believed to be unlawfully kept in such premises, and may for that purpose use such force as may be necessary, and seize any such property, arms, ammunition or explosive substances ;
(e) stop, search and seize any vehicle or vessel reasonably suspected to be carrying any person who is a proclaimed offender, or any person who has committed a non-cognizable offence, or against whom a reasonable suspicion exists that he has committed or is about to commit a non-cognizable offence, or any person who is carrying any arms, ammunition or explosive substance believed to be unlawfully held by him, and may, for that purpose, use such force as may be necessary to effect such stoppage, search or seizure, as the case may be.
5. Power of search to include powers to break open locks, etc. - Every person making a search under this Act shall have the power to break open the lock of any door, almirah, safe, box, cupboard, drawer, package or other thing, if the key thereof is withheld.
6. Arrested persons and seized property to be made over to the police.- Any person arrested and taken into custody under this Act and every property, arms, ammunition or explosive substance or any vehicle or vessel seized under this Act, shall be made over to the officer-in-charge of the nearest police station with the least possible delay, together with a report of the circumstances occasioning the arrest, or as the case may be, occasioning the seizure of such property, arms, ammunition or explosive substance or any vehicle or vessel, as the case may be.
7. Protection of persons acting in good faith under this Act.- No prosecution, suit or other legal proceeding shall be instituted, except with the previous sanction of the Central Government, against any person in respect of anything done or purported to be done in exercise of the powers conferred by this Act.
8. Repeal and saving.- (1) The Armed Forces (Jammu and Kashmir) Special Powers Ordinance, 1990(Ord.3 of 1990), is hereby repealed.
(2) Notwithstanding such repeal, anything done or any action taken under the said Ordinance shall be deemed to have been done or taken under the corresponding provisions of this Act.
India's third biggest passenger vehicle maker, Tata Motors, launched the Manza sedan, priced at Rs 4.8 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi). The bookings commence on Thursday. This will replace the Indigo as the company's new entry-level sedan...
Other Top Stories
An Act to enable certain special powers to be conferred upon members of the armed forces in the disturbed areas in the State of Jammu and Kashmir.
BE it enacted by Parliament in the Forty-first Year of the Republic of India as follows :-
1. Short title, extent and commencement.- (1) This Act may be called the Armed Forces (Jammu and Kashmir) Special Powers Act, 1990.
(2) It extends to the whole of the State of Jammu and Kashmir.
(3) It shall be deemed to have come into force on the 5th day of July, 1990.
2. Definitions.- In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,-
(a) "armed forces" means the military forces and the air forces operating as land forces and includes any other armed forces of the Union so operating ;
(b) "disturbed area" means an area which is for the time being declared by notification under section 3 to be a disturbed areas;
(c) all other words and expressions used herein, but not defined and defined in the Air Force Act, 1950(45 of 1950), or the Army Act, 1950(46 of 1950), shall have the meanings respectively assigned to them in those Acts.
3. Power to declare areas to be disturbed areas.- If, in relation to the State of Jammu and Kashmir, the Governor of the State or the Central Government, is of opinion that the whole or any part of the State is in such a disturbed and dangerous condition that the use of armed forces in aid of the civil power is necessary to prevent -
(a) activities involving terrorist acts directed towards overawing the Government as by law established or striking terror in the people or any section of the people of alienating any section of the people or adversely affecting the harmony amongst different sections of the people ;
(b) activities directed towards disclaiming, questioning or disrupting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of India or bringing about cession of a part of the territory of India or secession of a part of the territory of India from the Union or causing insult to the Indian National Flag, the Indian National Anthem and the Constitution of India,
the Governor of the State or the Central Government, may, by notification in the Official Gazette, declare the whole or any part of the State to be a disturbed area.
Explanation.- In this section, "terrorist act" has the same meaning as in Explanation to article 248 of the Constitution of India as applicable to the State of Jammu and Kashmir.
4. Special powers of the armed forces.- Any commissioned officer, warrant officer, non-commissioned officer or any other person of equivalent rank in the armed forces may, in a disturbed area,-
(a) if he is of opinion that it is necessary so to do for the maintenance of public order, after giving such due warning as he may consider necessary, fire upon or otherwise use force, even to the causing of death, against any person who is acting in contravention of any law or order for the time being in force in the disturbed area prohibiting the assembly of five or more persons or the carrying of weapons or of things capable of being used as weapons or of fire-arms, ammunition or explosive substances ;
(b) if he is of opinion that it is necessary so to do, destroy any arms dump, prepared or fortified position or shelter from which armed attacks are made or are likely to be made or are attempted to be made, or any structure used as a training camp for armed volunteers or utilised as a hide-out by armed gangs or absconders wanted for any offence ;
(c) arrest, without warrant, any person who has committed a cognizable offence or against whom a reasonable suspicion exists that he has committed or is about to commit a cognizable offence and may use such force as may be necessary to effect the arrest ;
(d) enter and search, without warrant, any premises to make any such arrest as aforesaid or to recover any person believed to be wrongfully restrained or confined or any property reasonably suspected to be stolen property or any arms, ammunition or explosive substances believed to be unlawfully kept in such premises, and may for that purpose use such force as may be necessary, and seize any such property, arms, ammunition or explosive substances ;
(e) stop, search and seize any vehicle or vessel reasonably suspected to be carrying any person who is a proclaimed offender, or any person who has committed a non-cognizable offence, or against whom a reasonable suspicion exists that he has committed or is about to commit a non-cognizable offence, or any person who is carrying any arms, ammunition or explosive substance believed to be unlawfully held by him, and may, for that purpose, use such force as may be necessary to effect such stoppage, search or seizure, as the case may be.
5. Power of search to include powers to break open locks, etc. - Every person making a search under this Act shall have the power to break open the lock of any door, almirah, safe, box, cupboard, drawer, package or other thing, if the key thereof is withheld.
6. Arrested persons and seized property to be made over to the police.- Any person arrested and taken into custody under this Act and every property, arms, ammunition or explosive substance or any vehicle or vessel seized under this Act, shall be made over to the officer-in-charge of the nearest police station with the least possible delay, together with a report of the circumstances occasioning the arrest, or as the case may be, occasioning the seizure of such property, arms, ammunition or explosive substance or any vehicle or vessel, as the case may be.
7. Protection of persons acting in good faith under this Act.- No prosecution, suit or other legal proceeding shall be instituted, except with the previous sanction of the Central Government, against any person in respect of anything done or purported to be done in exercise of the powers conferred by this Act.
8. Repeal and saving.- (1) The Armed Forces (Jammu and Kashmir) Special Powers Ordinance, 1990(Ord.3 of 1990), is hereby repealed.
(2) Notwithstanding such repeal, anything done or any action taken under the said Ordinance shall be deemed to have been done or taken under the corresponding provisions of this Act.
India's third biggest passenger vehicle maker, Tata Motors, launched the Manza sedan, priced at Rs 4.8 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi). The bookings commence on Thursday. This will replace the Indigo as the company's new entry-level sedan...
Market Update
The major indexes hit new highs for 2009 as JPMorgan Chase and Intel provide the fuel for a big rally. Crude oil closes above $75.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average ($INDU) closed above 10,000 today for the first time in about a year, as all three major indexes hit new highs for 2009.
The rally was prompted by strong earnings from banking giant JPMorgan Chase (JPM) that boosted financial stocks and Intel (INTC), which helped technology shares move higher.
While financial shares were the market's strength, energy and metals stocks pushed higher as the dollar fell again. Crude oil topped $75 a barrel for the first time since Oct. 14, 2008. Gold was flat at $1,064.70 an ounce.
Some traders on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange sported new baseball caps to commemorate the close.
PM visit to Arunachal snubbed
;PTI & SNS
BEIJING/NEW DELHI, 13 OCT: As Arunachal Pradesh went to polls today to elect a new Assembly, China today once again raked up its claim over the state questioning Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh's visit there, which was immediately rejected by India.
Ten days after Dr Singh went to Arunachal Pradesh for campaigning, Beijing chose today to react to the event, saying it was “strongly dissatisfied with the visit to the disputed region by the Indian leader disregarding China's serious concerns.”
“We demand the Indian side address China's serious concerns and not trigger disturbance in the disputed region so as to facilitate the healthy development of China-India relations,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Mr Ma Zhaoxu said.
He noted that China and India had “never officially settled” demarcation of their border, and China's stance on the eastern section of the China-India border was “consistent and clear-cut”.
As reports of the Chinese statement trickled in, Beijing's Ambassador to India Mr Zhang Yan drove to South Block housing the Ministry of External Affairs and met the joint secretary in charge of China, Mr Vijay Gokhale, but it was not clear what they had discussed.
External affairs minister Mr SM Krishna rejected Chinese objections to the Prime Minister's visit, saying Arunachal Pradesh is an integral part of the country.
“Arunachal Pradesh is an integral part of India. We rest at that.
Regardless of what others have to say, it is the Government of India's position that Arunachal Pradesh is an integral part of India,” Mr Krishna said.
The external affairs ministry also issued a statement expressing disappointment and concern over Chinese objection to Dr Singh's visit to Arunachal Pradesh.
Arunachal Pradesh chief minister Mr Dorjee Khandu also took strong exception to China's objection to Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh's visit to the state, saying that country should “accept the reality” and refrain from laying claim to the state.
http://www.thestatesman.net/page.news.php?clid=1&theme=&usrsess=1&id=271535
Shut up, please
CONSIDERING the magnitude of the Maoist challenge and the nature of the offensive on the anvil, the competitive exchange of invectives is sickening even as a sideshow of the political class. Across the spectrum, leaders are confronted with issues of far greater import; short of the military’s involvement, the blitz against the Left radical may turn out to be quite the most drastic manifestation of internal policing. Neither any head of government nor an opposition leader has countenanced so awesome a scenario. At a juncture such as this, verbal skirmishes can only deflect attention from the core issue. And it would be no over-reaction to submit that West Bengal’s Chief Minister as much as a representative of the CM-in-waiting have spoken the unparliamentary language of overgrown juveniles.
That said, there is no denying that there was a provocation for Monday’s outburst by Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee; his performance in Delhi is almost invariably more robust than it is in Kolkata. Truth to tell, there was no call for Mamata Banerjee to demand his dismissal and arrest. Nay more, that Bengal would burn if any “intellectual” ~ the most loosely used term in the English vocabulary ~ was touched. Any chief minister would have had his dander up in the face of such outrageous statements by a union minister. The CM ought to have been restrained, he was not. His diagnosis of Mamata as a victim of “juvenile disorder” has been countered by Trinamul’s Partha Chatterjee, with the barb that the Chief Minister is suffering from “mental disorder”. The CPI-M and the Trinamul Congress owe the state a lot more than this nauseating slanging match. Is it possible that the railway minister is peeved over the fact that the Chief Minister has had his way in his interaction with the PM ~ “an honourable man” ~ and the home and finance ministers? As on Monday, the Centre has acceded to the state’s demand that joint operations against the Maoists would continue.
Unwittingly or otherwise, Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee has extended the use of the trademark invectives ~ beyond Jyoti Basu’s description of Mamata Banerjee as “a 420” in the context of her claimed Ph.D, to Anil Biswas’s “even the devil wouldn’t touch her”, to Subhas Chakraborty’s “if Mamata can become chief minister, hair can grow on my bald pate”. Enough is enough. Let there be a scintilla of sense and sensibility in West Bengal.
http://www.thestatesman.net/page.news.php?clid=3&theme=&usrsess=1&id=271550
US Ambassador meets Buddha
;Statesman News Service
KOLKATA, 13 Oct: US Ambassador to India, Mr Timothy J Roemer (in SNS photo) today met chief minister, Mr Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, at Writers’ Buildings and discussed several issues including American investment and the Maoist problem. Senior officials at Writers’ Buildings said the chief minister and Mr Roemer discussed about international terrorism, climate change, industrial development apart from other issues during their hour-long meeting.
Later, senior officials said the chief minister showed interest in getting American investment in the state. In reply, the Ambassador said he had discussed the issue with the American Chambers of Commerce before holding a meeting with the chief minister and he came to know that American chambers have a positive impression about the state. The chief minister was also told that Mr Roemer would hold discussions with the American companies which have already invested in India and urge them to invest in the state.
It was also learnt that Mr Roemer asked the chief minister about the Maoist problem in the state and the chief minister briefed him about the menace in details. The chief minister and Mr Roemer also discussed the possibilities of collaborations between the universities of the state and the USA. The chief minister mainly laid stress on the possibilities of collaboration between polytechnic colleges of the state with the community colleges of USA.
http://www.thestatesman.net/page.news.php?clid=6&theme=&usrsess=1&id=271570
FDI inflow growth up 40%
Demonstrating growing confidence in the Indian economy, foreign investors stepped up capital infusion into the country by more than 40 per cent in August.
The country received foreign direct investment of $3.26 billion in August against $2.32 billion a year ago, although concrete signs of recovery are yet be seen in the global economy. However, inflows in August were less than the July level of $3.47 billion, as per an RBI data. The inflows in July had risen by 56 per cent on an annualised basis. The country has attracted $100 billion of FDI in equity from the year 2000 till July this year. Experts see signs of recovery as also growing confidence of global investors in the Indian economy. “Foreign investors are confident about the India growth story,” Axis Bank economist Mr Saugata Bhattacharya said.
HDFC Bank economist Mr Jyotinder Kaur said that as the recovery becomes apparent, FDI inflows are likely to rise in the coming months. Factory output grew by 10.4 per cent in August on the back of robust growth in mining and manufacturing sectors, a data yesterday said.
Meanwhile,against the backdrop of demands for the withdrawal of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA), Home Minister P. Chidambaram said in Srinagar that amendments to the controversial legislation had been finalised and sent to the Union Cabinet for approval.
“Amendments to the AFSPA have been finalised and sent to the Cabinet. Once the Cabinet clears it, it will be applicable throughout the country -- be it Jammu and Kashmir or the Northeast,” he said at a press conference when asked whether the Centre was revisiting the Act.
He said the rehabilitation of migrant Kashmiri Pandits had shown slow progress.
The Home Minister said pre-paid mobile phone connections may be banned. National identity cards to all under the National Population Register would be issued by 2011, he added.
Agencies in the PoK pumping fake currency into India could not destablilise our economy, he said.
In kolkata, Mamata NAUTANKEE unfolds in ODD Manner, quite Different fromthe Classical Mode of Waheeda Raj Kapoor Fame TEESRIT Kasam as the Trinamul Congress today lodged a police complaint alleging that three “supari killers” had “hatched a conspiracy to eliminate Mamata Banerjee”.Amusingly enough trying DIE Hard topose as te SAVIOUR of Aboriginal Tribal Population of Lalgarh and Screaming for WITHDRWAL of Security Forces from Lalgarh amidst MAOIST Talk offer, the FIRE BRAND Brahmin Super Icon Mamata plays a Superb SUMMER Salt with a CURVING Turnaround. Now, Mamata has NO Objection against Merciless Military Option, Zero Intolerance and License to Kill the Maoists in an UNPRECDENTED Offensive already logged in with IAF Proactivism and AFPSA Nationalisation!
The complaint said the trio’s car had allegedly come “dangerously close” to Mamata’s vehicle. The police said the three were TV journalists.
The journalists have filed a counter-complaint of harassment against Trinamul leaders.
Thus, the Hype against Muslim Terrorism with a Rhetoric BLEND of Blind Nationalism, Hindutva Hate Campaign, Media Blitz and War Against Terror have been putaside.Terror strikes forgotten and KASAV makes no hedlines these days. United States has managed a new War for India and it is against China coinciding with MAOIST Menace Projectd so well in Presence of Countless NGOs funded by World Bank, UNESCO and USA.
Manwhile,a low-pressure area over the Bay of Bengal may cast a cloud on Diwali though the weatherman is in wait-and- watch mode.
The 2.5mm of rain the city received on Wednesday was because of localised thunderclouds and not the Bay formation.
“The low pressure has formed over the east-central Bay. We will get a clearer picture by Thursday. Till then we can’t say for sure whether it’ll be a wet Diwali this year,” said G.C. Debnath, the director of the Regional Meteorological Centre in Alipore.
Met officials said the low pressure has started weakening and chances are it may fizzle out by Thursday.
Mamata is being proved a DISASTER in the Railway Ministry despite her Train packed up with Bengali Brahmin Intelligentsia and CIVIL Society and so many NEW Bottles with OLD WINE!Kolakta is well Habitual to absorbe the Suffocating Humadity as Metro Railway services were stalled for the second time in a week when a device to draw power from the third rail came off a Dum Dum-bound rake at Jatin Das Park station on Wednesday morning.
Rush-hour commuters had a harrowing time as trains could not run between Maidan and Garia Bazar (Kavi Nazrul) stations between 9.50am and 10.54am, shortly after a probe panel filed a report on a similar glitch in service last Thursday.
“The services are being disrupted almost every other day ever since the route beyond Tollygunge was opened on August 23. Why did they inaugurate the extended route in such haste since it’s apparent they did not have the infrastructure to run trains from Dum Dum to Garia Bazar,” asked Pradip Basu, a Metro commuter who was forced on Thursday morning to take a taxi to his central Calcutta office from Kalighat.
Trains, however, plied normally between Maidan and Dum Dum.
“A third rail current collector — each coach has two such devices — came off a Dum Dum-bound train while it was entering Jatin Das Park station and got stuck in the third rail. The train could still have made the journey but the motorman, wiser after last week’s glitch, decided to get the coach inspected first,” said a source.
On October 8, a motorman drove a train with a faulty current collector at Birji (where rakes change tracks), shifting the alignment of the third rail and setting off a chain reaction that disrupted service on the extended route for more than three hours.
Once the snag was detected on Thursday, the passengers were evacuated and the train was sent to the Noapara car shed.
More than half the Metro coaches are 25 years or older. “Most of the coaches that are developing snags have crossed the ‘use-by’ date. The problem has been compounded since the inauguration of the extended route which has left the coaches overworked, resulting in current collectors coming off rakes,” said an official.
Metro officials refused to comment on the report on last week’s snag. The rake that had developed the snag was pressed into service on Monday.
Indian Air Force chief to China: Stay off Indian affairs
A day after China objected to Indian Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh's visit to Arunachal Pradesh, the Vice Chief of the Indian Air Force, Air Marshal P K Barbora said Beijing should not interfere in Indian affairs.
"So it is again I repeat here, nothing to do with raising tension, I haven't said anything about Chinese having constructed any airfields on their side in Tibet area. No, I don't think they should say anything about our construction or improvement in infrastructure in the northeast or in the Ladakh area," Air Marshal Barbora said here on the sidelines of a function to launch the India-Oman air force exercises.
Air Marshal Barbora also downplayed Beijing's comment's on Prime Minister Singh's visit to Arunachal Pradesh.
"I don't know why the Chinese are talking about our prime minister's visit to Pasighat, which took place I think about a week or 10 days back. But they did not say anything when our President visited Tawang...The President is the head of the armed forces, so you can read between the lines if you want to," he said.
Indo-Russia to extend military cooperation till 2020
Moscow: India and Russia will sign a pact tomorrow to extend their military cooperation programme till 2020 as Defence Minister A K Antony and his counterpart Anatoly Serdyukov discussed a wide range of issues, including the upgradation of aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov.
Inaugurating the 9th session of the Intergovernmental Commission on Military-Technical Cooperation co-chaired by Antony, Serdyukov declared that closest defence cooperation with India would remain the "key pillar" of bilateral strategic partnership.
Antony, who arrived here yesterday on a three-day visit, had over one hour long t?te-?-t?te with Serdyukov, instead of the initial 30 minute one-to-one session.
Gorshkov upgradation, modernisation of the older fleet of Sukhoi Su-30 warplanes, serial production of T-90S main battle tanks in India and under the transfer of technology were among some of the issues reviewed by Antony and Serdyukov, Defence Ministry spokesperson Irina Kovalchuk said.
Source: PTI
US unveils first batch of new F-16 fighters for Pak
Washington: The US has unveiled the first batch of the 18 sophisticated multi-role F-16 combat jets being produced for Pakistan, to be delivered to that country in June next year.
Chief of Air Staff of Pakistan Air Force, Air Chief Marshal Rao Quamar Suleman, accepted the first F-16 Block 52 aircraft on behalf of the country at an event at the Forth Worth facility of manufacturer Lockheed Martin, also attended by Pakistan Ambassador to the US, Husain Haqqani.
Speaking on the occasion, Suleman said the roll out shows that the programme is "on track" despite it experiencing many ups and downs.
The first batch of F-16 aircraft is scheduled to arrive in Pakistan in June next year and the delivery of all 18 jets is planned to be completed by December 2010.
Source: PTI
Stay order on Gujjar quota enforcement
Rajasthan government’s attempt to pacify Gujjars demanding ST status with five per cent special reservation quota in the state received a legal jolt with Rajasthan High Court staying implementation of the quota.
Five per cent reservation for Gujjars, Raicas and Banjaras along with 14 per cent quota for economically backward classes in the education and government employment sectors was sought by the government.
A reply has also been sought from the government and advocate-general on the legal validity of the special reservation package which got clearance from the state governor on 30 July.
“The government will study the court order and take appropriate measures,” said chief minister Mr Ashok Gehlot. Gujjar leader retd Col. KS Bhainsala said that it was the duty of the state government to fulfill its promise and extend the reservation to the deserving Gujjars.
The division Bench comprising Chief Justice Mr Jagdish Bhalla and Mr Justice MN Mathur observed that the implementation of the excess reservation quotas had to be stayed since it was not in consonance to the existing legal norms laid down by the Supreme Court.
While posting the matter for 14 December, the division bench of the high court comprising Chief Justice Mr Barin Gosh and Justice Mohammad Yaqub Bhat said it should not be deemed as granting more time to CBI to complete the investigations and observed that both the court and the people of the state wanted the agency to expedite probe into the case.
The CBI, which had exhumed the bodies of the two victims on 28 September after obtaining permission from their family, submitted its report to the court today in a sealed envelope as was directed by the court on 30 August.
Seeking reasonable time to complete investigations into the case, CBI counsel Mr Anil Bhan said that since the report from forensic laboratory is awaited, it will take the probe agency some time to conclude its investigations.
The Chief Justice also directed the CBI to file a chargesheet before an appropriate court after completing its probe in the case.
Meanwhile, in a forest area of Thanamandi in Rajouri district an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) was recovered by the security forces, a defence spokesman said.
In another development, a 25-year-old woman was allegedly burnt to death and her husband has been arrested on a complaint from her family in Bandipora district. The victim's brother alleged that his sister was set ablaze by her husband and in-laws last night. They had married last year.
Lahore under attack again, ultras strike FIA building
Lahore: Heavily armed terrorists stormed into the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) building in a congested area of this Pakistani city Thursday morning. Two of them were killed in the exchange of bullets that followed, reports said.
Senior police officials said the building, housing the office of the elite security force, had been cleared and a suicide jacket and grenades recovered from the militants.
An official said that four men attacked the FIA building. While two of the men had been gunned down, one was taken into custody, media reports said.
An eyewitness said the four people, in uniform, were carrying bags and guns and began firing indiscriminately.
The Lahore office of the FIA, Pakistan's federal law enforcement agency, is located close to a school.
Earlier in the morning, a suicide bombing in the northwest town of Kohat killed eight people.
Spate of attacks in Pak
This is the latest in a string of terror attacks to hit Pakistan in the last 10 days.
On Saturday, terrorists laid siege to the Pakistani army's headquarters in Rawalpindi. The two-day standoff ended with 19 people being killed.
The day before, on Friday, a suicide bomber detonated a car stuffed with explosives in a busy market of Peshawar, killing 53 people and injuring over 100.
On Oct 5, a suicide bomber blew himself up at the UN World Food Programme office in Islamabad, killing five people.
Can things get any worse for Pakistan?
Meanwhile, Reuters reported that Pakistan's military is gearing up for an offensive against Taliban strongholds in South Waziristan, following a week of violence in which militants killed more than 100 people and stormed the army's headquarters.
The number of such people in the world's fastest growing economy has climbed to 130 from 101 last year.
As per the 2009 Hurun Rich List, there has been a big shake-up among China's top 10 wealthiest people and the league is topped by Mr Wang Chuanfu, who is the chairman of auto maker BYD which is backed by US legendary investor Mr Warren Buffett.
With fortunes to the tune of $5.10 billion, Mr Chuanfu has been named as the richest in the list of 1,000 people.
He is followed by Paper Queen Ms Zhang Yin ($4.9 billion) at the second place. Ms Zhang, had seen her networth falling down to $350 million at the height of the credit crunch in late October last year before rising back to the second spot with $4.9 billion.
“Mr Wang Chuanfu has made it to Number One in China on the combination of a 30 per cent growth of the Chinese car industry and the Warren Buffett Midas touch,” Mr Rupert Hoogewerf, founder and compiler of the Hurun Rich List said.
Rebounding capital markets and property prices pushed the collective net worth of The Hurun 1,000, an annual tally of China's richest people, up by $130 billion in the past 12 months to $571 billion from $439 billion, Hurun Research said in a statement. ; PTI
CAG audit of RIL books yet to begin
NEW DELHI, 13 OCT: Caught in a web of rules relating to vetting of books of private firms, the Comptroller and Auditor General has not been able to start scrutiny of Mr Mukesh Ambani-led RIL's accounts, even after the company agreed to special audit of gas field expenses nearly two-months ago.
CAG was asked by the oil ministry to audit the accounts of RIL, which is facing allegations of gold-plating gas field costs that has increased four-fold to $8.8 billion.
The auditor has so far sought from RIL only a list of relevant documents for KG-D6 fields, as issues such as legal tenability of audit of Production Sharing Contract (PSCs) and enforceability of corrective steps are being debated.
CAG had earlier complained that it could not make any headway in the last two years in the absence of access to the books of private operators, including RIL.
According to a 3 October note signed by Mr VK Dewangan, director (exploration) in the petroleum ministry, the 22 September meeting between CAG's principal director of audit (PDA), oil regulator DGH and RIL that was supposed to be the 'entry meeting' signifying beginning of audit, was later converted into a 'clarificatory' meeting because of internal issues.
PDA has held three meetings to deliberate if the special audit of KG-D6 and other fields sought by the oil ministry was as per the provisions of PSC and who ~ RIL or the ministry ~ would be the auditee, it said. ; PTI
Videocon’s Bengal plan hits roadblock
; Statesman News Service
KOLKATA, 13 OCT: Another upcoming industrial project in the state, the proposed steel and power plant of the Videocon group in Jamuria near Asansol, has hit a roadblock after Coal India Limited wrote a letter informing them that the land earmarked for the project has underlying coal beds.
Mr Venugopal Dhoot, chairman of the Videocon group, met the chief minister, Mr Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, here today to discuss the problems faced by the group for its various projects.
After the meeting Mr Dhoot said: "We have asked for realignment or relocation of the project after CIL informed us about the existence of coal seams underneath. In case of mineral reserves, the land belongs to the Central government."
However, the state government which is facing a crisis with regard to allocation of land for industrial projects, has suggested realignment by the private party. The Central Mine Planning and Design Institute (CMPDI) will be approached to study the location of the coal seams.
"There may be space between two coal blocks. So the project can be implemented after realignment. But the CMPDI should be approached for a study of the location of the blocks," said a state government official.
The Videocon group had asked for 4,200 acres of land but the state Cabinet had cleared 3,000 acres which will be acquired by the private party.
The group signed a memorandum with the state government in October 2007 for setting up a three-million-ton integrated steel plant and a 1,200-MW thermal power plant in the Jamuria-Barabani area. Mr Dhoot also said that they would require coal reserves for the power plant and hence the Central government can be approached by the state government for allotment of the new found coal reserves to them.
However, the group's IT SEZ project at Dabgram which is facing a problem with regard to land ceiling, will be sorted out soon, the state government assured Mr Dhoot.
Land hurdle for Shyam Steel plant
; Statesman News Service
KOLKATA, 13 OCT: Shyam Steel's proposed integrated steel plant at Raghunathpur in Purulia district of West Bengal is struck due to procedural delay in land acquisition by the state government.
Speaking at his maiden Press meet as the president of Merchants' Chamber of Commerce here today, Mr Shyam Sunder Beriwala, chairman of the company said: "We are yet to get any land for the project. We purchased 100 acres on our own against a requirement of 1,200 acres for the purpose. That remains with us. This apart, the government is yet to provide us with any land for the plant though we paid Rs 11 crore to the state government towards advance payment six months back."
Mr Beriwala attributed the delay to procedural hurdles attached with land acquisition in the state. "Some of the procedural hurdles have already been cleared but some are still pending. But, I am hopeful that within two to three months, we will get the land," he said.
According to him, the project is already delayed by six months and a further delay will increase the installation cost of the plant as the company won't be able to take advantage of the low-cost machinery and other materials due to recession.
The proposed plant will have a capacity to produce 1.2 million tons per annum. The West Bengal Infrastructure Development Corporation (WBIDC) has been entrusted with the responsibility of acquiring the land. The cost of the project is estimated to be Rs 3,000 crore.
In the first phase of the project, which will have a capacity of 0.6 million tons per annum, the company will require 600 acres. Mr Beriwala said that the first phase of construction would be completed within one to one-and-half-year after allotment of land by the government.
Car sales poised for double-digit growth: Siam
; SNS & PTI
NEW DELHI, 13 OCT: Domestic car sales are likely to see a double-digit growth this fiscal compared with just 1.31 per cent last year on the back of record deliveries in September and buoyant off-take in the first half of 2009-10, the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (Siam) said today.
While car sales in September registered a jump of 20.61 per cent at 1,29,683 units ~ the highest ever witnessed in a month ~ from 1,07,517 units in the same month last year, for the first half of the year it stood at 6,89,339 units as against 6,00,738 units, a growth rate of 14.75 per cent.
“The main factors driving the growth include stimulus package and reduction in interest rates. Now we are cautiously optimistic for the future, but hopeful of a double-digit growth this fiscal,” Siam director general, Mr Dilip Chenoy told reporters here.
He said the passenger car segment benefited from the revival in stock markets, pre-Diwali sales and resurgence of monsoon helping firms register good growth in September.
Other factors such as new model launches, festive discounts, reduction in tax structures, improved liquidity and hike in salary by the pay commission will help boost further sales, he added.
He, however, said fluctuating commodity prices, multiple tax structures, issues relating to repossession of vehicles, pace of infrastructure growth and availability of upgraded fuel for implementation of new emission norms continued to be areas of concern for the auto industry.
Yet, Mr Chenoy said the trickle effect of the Indian economy receiving foreign institutional investment to the tune of $12 billion during the April-September period has been felt in the automobile industry. “This has improved the liquidity situation, besides rates of auto financing in the passenger vehicle segment is also down to 10 per cent from about 14 per cent,” he said.
The buoyancy seen in the car segment during September were, however, missing in the two-wheeler segment, specially in bikes. Motorcycle sales in the country was up by just 6.56 per cent at 6,73,891 units and total two-wheeler sales grew by 7.67 per cent to 8,38,150 units.
Commercial vehicles sales in September also reported an increase for the third consecutive month and grew by 6.46 per cent in September to 45,451 units from 42,693 units in the year-ago period, Siam said.
Sales of commercial vehicles have been on a downward spiral for almost a year before bouncing back in July.
The total sales of all vehicles across categories also rose by 9.6 per cent to 10,92,262 units in September this year against 9,96,586 units in the same month last year, it added.
Exports surge 36%
NEW DELHI, 13 OCT: Indian car exports in the first half of this fiscal jumped by 35.73 per cent as major makers such as Hyundai Motor and Maruti Suzuki cashed in on Europe giving incentives on buying new cars in exchange for old ones, despite other segments of the auto industry witnessing a dip.
According to the Siam, car exports during April-September stood at 2,10,088 units against 1,54,783 units in the year-ago period.
The European Union nations had incentivised buying of new cars in exchange for the old ones under a scrappage programme in May that will run till February 2010. ; PTI
 |
| Chidambaram in Srinagar on Wednesday. (PTI) |
Srinagar, Oct. 14: Home minister P. Chidambaram today reached out to Kashmir separatists with an offer of talks with “every section” but didn’t call for laying down arms as he made a distinction between Northeast insurgents and political groups in the Valley.
“In Kashmir, there are political groups, some of which may be advocating separatism. But we have made it clear that we will talk to different schools of opinion here and consult every section,” the minister told an editors’ meet.
Chidambaram, however, made it clear there would be no talks with insurgent groups in the Northeast if they “continue to insist on secessionism”.
“We have made it clear that insurgent groups in the Northeast have to give up demand for secessionism and lay down their arms and then only will we talk to them,” he said.
Asked if the two conditions also applied for talks with Kashmir separatists, he said: “There is no need to copy (in Kashmir) the solutions that have worked in other parts of India.”
Kashmir, he explained, had a “unique geography and history” and needed a “unique solution”.
Moderate separatist leader Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, chairman of the separatist amalgam Hurriyat Conference, welcomed the minister’s offer as a “good step”, but pro-Pakistan hardliner Syed Ali Shah Geelani said it was “meaningless” and insisted on “tripartite talks” aimed at self-determination.
Chidambaram set the stage for talks with separatists, saying amendments to the Armed Forces Special Powers Act had been finalised. The revocation of the act, which gives unbridled powers to security forces to arrest, raid or open fire without the permission of a magistrate, is one key demand of mainstream and separatist groups.
The amendments, he added, will be implemented uniformly, be it in Kashmir or the Northeast.
Chidambaram, on a two-day visit to the Valley, said the Congress-led central government wanted a “honourable, equitable and acceptable” solution to the Kashmir problem.
“There will be political differences and political opinions. There will be shades of opinion, which are described as extremist. There will be some voices who will be pleading for a separate nation. We accept that and it is a reality.”
There are groups, he said, that don’t contest elections but have a point of view. “We recognise there are several points of view and we will have dialogue with every section of society.”
But the talks can’t be held in the full glare of cameras. “A dialogue can take place with quiet diplomacy, we have to hold it quietly,” he said.
Although he didn’t call for surrender of arms by militants in Kashmir, Chidambaram said the Centre had “zero tolerance” for violence.
“Whatever the cause you have there is no place for violence,” he said, listing the number of militant strikes this year. “For the first nine months of the calendar year, around 395 incidents have taken place, (the) lowest in nine years. Sixty civilians and 66 security force men have died while 185 militants have been neutralised during this period.”
Without mincing words, Chidambaram blamed Pakistan for infiltrations across the Line of Control and fomenting trouble in the Valley. “The authorities in Pakistan are recruiting young boys, training and brainwashing them,” he said, before pushing them into India “to create mayhem”.
The minister said the government might have to ban prepaid mobile phone SIM cards in Kashmir because of security reasons. “At this moment there is no move to ban prepaid cards. But if our efforts to persuade people to switch over to post-paid cards do not materialise we may have to ban prepaid SIM cards in the Kashmir valley,” he said.
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1091015/jsp/nation/story_11617502.jsp
 |
New Delhi, Oct. 14: A brinjal engineered through biotechnology to kill plant-eating insects, the focus of a sharp and bitter debate about the safety of genetically modified plants, has leapt closer to dinner tables in India.
The government’s apex safety review panel for genetically engineered products today approved the release of the brinjal into the environment, turning it into India’s first GM food crop ready for commercial cultivation. The final clearance now rests with the government.
Agricultural biotechnologists welcomed the approval from the Genetic Engineering Approval Committee (GEAC) which functions under the environment and forest ministry, saying the engineered brinjal would reduce the use of pesticides. But consumer and non-government activists who had in the past raised concerns about safety issues have decried the decision.
The brinjal, developed by a consortium of scientists with private company Mayco and universities in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, is designed to secrete a protein that kills insects called fruit borers that routinely attack brinjals.
The GM brinjal had been under field trial at several sites across the country for more than four years to assess its performance on farms.
Environment and forests minister Jairam Ramesh said he had received the GEAC’s recommendation this afternoon and would examine it before taking a decision.
“There are arguments for and arguments against GM food crops,” Ramesh said. “We’re not going to act under any pressure — from either companies or from non-government organisations,” he said.
But at least three members of the GEAC had expressed concerns over GM brinjal during a meeting today and had dissented on the approval, a senior biologist who participated in the meeting told The Telegraph.
“It’s intellectual corruption — it appeared to be a predetermined decision. The others had already decided what they wanted to do,” said Pushpa Bhargava, former director of the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, Hyderabad.
Bhargava had raised several technical issues over the design and implementation of safety studies that had been submitted by the developers of the GM brinjal to the GEAC in seeking approval for commercial cultivation.
The approval has sparked a fresh call from consumer representatives about the need for labelling of all GM products and produce in the country, something the government had agreed to introduce but has not implemented yet.
“I’m disappointed. In the absence of labelling of GM food, this is a threat to consumers’ right to choose what they want to eat,” said Bejon Misra, a member of the government’s food safety and standards authority, and a consumer activist.
But Kailash Bansal, a scientist at the Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi, said: “People in North America have been consuming genetically modified soyabean, corn and papaya for years. Genetic engineering introduces a precise change in the make-up of the plant — the GM brinjal will allow farmers to use much less pesticide.”
However, activists campaigning against GM crops said an expert committee that the GEAC had set up had not responded adequately to all the safety concerns raised by Bhargava and a French scientist.
“Two members of the expert committee had been earlier involved in biosafety research commissioned by the private company and they sat in this committee to review their own findings,” said Kavita Kuruganti, an activist and member of the Coalition for a GM-Free India. “One expert committee member is a GM crop developer himself.”
India’s 500,000 hectares of brinjal farms are spread across Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Bengal. Some scientists estimate that fruit borers eat up about 50 per cent of the crop.
New Delhi, Oct. 14: The Indian Air Force has created a task force for the counter-Naxalite offensive and has appointed a Group Captain as its commander.
The task force commander will be a member of a central operations command to be set up by the Union home ministry.
The involvement of the air force in the counter-Naxalite operations being carried out and planned to be intensified next month is turning out to be much bigger than was originally envisaged.
At first, the air force was called upon to deploy its helicopters to fulfil a role that should have been the central forces’, specifically that of the Border Security Force, which has dedicated helicopters.
But now the home and defence ministries have concluded that the BSF’s helicopters are not enough. Anticipating that its role may increase, the air headquarters has sought permission from the defence ministry to open fire in self-defence, a senior IAF source said here today
The Vice Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal P.K. Barbora, said the air headquarters had not received any official communication yet on its request. But defence minister A.K. Antony has said the IAF will have the right to self-defence. The IAF is also waiting for a response on the “rules of engagement” (ROE) that it has proposed.
In Srinagar today, Union home minister P Chidambaram said: “The helicopters will be primarily used for evacuation and transportation of security forces. They will not be used for any offensive action.”
Asked about Antony’s statement that IAF helicopters would be given permission to open fire in self-defence, Chidambaram said he did not see any contradiction of policies between the home and the defence ministries. “If the defence minister has said that the IAF will fire in self-defence, then that is the policy.”
Barbora said the air force had to seek formal permission to open fire because it was not a routine measure. He pointed out, though, that there was an instance of the IAF being used offensively in internal security missions. That was in the 1960s against Mizo National Front guerrillas.
Air Chief Marshal P.V. Naik has said the air force wanted to arm its Mi 17 helicopters in the counter-Naxalite offensive and put its Garud commandos on board. Over the past week, air force heavy transport planes — the Ilyushin 76 — ferried more than 3,000 central forces from bases in the north and the west to Maharashtra after 18 Maharashtra police commandos were killed in an attack by the Maoists, said Barbora. Just last evening, air force helicopters flew sorties to transport security forces near a polling station in Gadchiroli district after learning that the Naxalites were moving to raid it.
“But we are really quiet about our involvement. There is a structure. We have assigned some assets for the job and we will be part of the operations command — it will be inappropriate to call it a ‘war room’ — there will be a central operations command, we are told,” the senior officer said. The air force does not want to publicise the number of helicopters it is deploying for the offensive.
With the air force’s involvement set to be integral to the offensive, the risk factor for the service also increases. During the general elections in April-May this year, IAF helicopters flew 930 sorties from 13 airbases in 14 states, seven of them where Naxalites are active.
Between April 26 and 28, two Ilyushin 76s and four AN32 airlifters flew 3,234 central paramilitary forces from Imphal in Manipur to Bengal’s Kalaikunda, from where aerial surveillance for Lalgarh was also carried out.
The Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958
Act 28 of 1958, 11th September, 1958
An Act to enable certain special powers to be conferred upon members of the armed forces in disturbed areas in the State of 1[Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura].
Be it enacted by Parliament in the Ninth Year of the Republic of India as follows:
1. Short Title and Extent – (1) This Act may be called2 [The Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958].
3[(2) It extends to the whole of the State of 4[Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura].
2. Definitions – In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires:
(a) "armed forces" means the Military forces and the air forces operating as land forces, and includes any other armed forces of the Union so operating;
(b) "disturbed area" means an area which is for the time being declared by notification under section 3, to be a disturbed area;
(c) all other words and expressions used herein, but not defined and defined in the Air Force Act, 1950 (45 of 1950), or the Army Act, 1950 (46 of 1950) shall have meanings respectively assigned to them in those Acts.
3[3. Power to Declare Areas to be Disturbed Areas – If, in relation to any State or Union territory of which the Act extends, the Governor of that State or the Administrator of that Union territory or the Central Government, in either case, if of the opinion that the whole or any part of such State or Union territory, as the case may be, is in such a disturbed or dangerous condition that the use of armed forces in aid of the civil powers in necessary, the Governor of that State or the Administrator of that Union territory or the Central Government, as the case may be, may, by notification in the Official Gazette, declare the whole or such part of such State or Union territory to be a disturbed area].
4. Special Power of the Armed Forces – Any commissioned officer, warrant officer, non commissioned officer or any other person of equivalent rank in the armed forces may, in a disturbed area-
(a) if he is of opinion that it is necessary so to do for the maintenance of Public order, after giving such due warning as he may consider necessary, fire upon or otherwise use force, even to the causing of death, against any person who is acting in contravention of any law or order for the time being in force in the disturbed area prohibiting the assembly of five or more persons or the carrying of weapons or of things capable of being used as weapons or of fire-arms, ammunition or explosive substances;
(b) if he is of opinion that it is necessary so to do, destroy any arms dump, prepared or fortified position or shelter from which armed attacks are made or are likely to be made or are attempted to be made, or any structure used as a training camp for armed volunteers or utilised as a hide-out by armed gangs or absconders wanted for any offence;
(c) arrest, without warrant, any person who has committed a cognisable offence or against whom a reasonable suspicion exists that he has committed or is about to commit a cognisable offence and may use such force as may be necessary to effect the arrest;
(d) enter and search without warrant any premises to make any such arrest as aforesaid or to recover any person believed to be wrongfully restrained or confined or any property reasonably suspected to be stolen property or any arms, ammunition or explosive substances believed to be unlawfully kept in such premises and may for that Purpose use such force as may be necessary.
5. Arrested Persons to be made over to the Police – Any person arrested and taken into custody under this Act shall be made over to the officer-in-charge of the nearest police station with the least possible delay, together with a report of the circumstances occasioning the arrest.
6. Protection to Persons acting under Act – No persecution, suit or other legal proceeding shall be instituted, except with the previous sanction of the Central Government, against any person in respect of anything done or purported to be done in exercise of the powers conferred by this Act.
7. Repeal and Saving – [Repealed by Amending and Repealing Act, 1960 (58 of 1960), First Schedule, sec. 2 (26-12-1960)]
- Subs. By Act 69 of 1986, sec. 43, for "Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura and the Union Territory of Arunachal Pradesh" (w.e.f. 20-2-1987).
- Subs. By Act 7 of 1972, sec. 3, for "the Armed Forces (Assam and Manipur) Special Powers Act., 1958" (w.e.f. 5-4-1972)
- Subs. By Act 7 of 1972, sec. 4 (w.e.f. 5-4-1972)
- Subs. By Act 69 of 1986, sec. 43, for "Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura and the Union territory of Arunachal Pradesh" (w.e.f. 20-2-1987).
Repeal Armed Forces Special Power act
-- By Pushkar Raj and Mahipal Singh, PUCL-Delhi, 13 August 2004
The ongoing agitation in Manipur for the repeal of AFSPA, started in the wake of alleged torture, arrest, rape and killing of Manorama Devi by personnel of the 17th Assam Rifles, is gaining more and more support of the people of Manipur, notwithstanding the partial withdrawal of the Act by the state government.
Manorama Devi’s killing once again exemplifies how the unrestricted powers granted by the Act to the armed forces are misused with impunity. The UPA government which claims that it is in favour of the repeal of the Act, also wants to bring in another Act in its place whenever AFSPA is withdrawn and it is very much doubtful that the said Act will not be as draconian as the present one. The history of MISA, TADA, POTA and AFSPA is enough to prove that all of them have been blatantly misused by governments to gag opposition and by police and armed forces to torture, arrest and kill innocent people and to deprive people of their civil liberties against the spirit of fundamental rights as enumerated in the Constitution of India and Human Rights as enumerated under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 1948 by the UN and the two Covenants that followed it and to which the country is a signatory.
Besides, that the central government does not seem to be in a hurry to withdraw AFSPA from the North Eastern states, or even the Assam Rifles from Manipur, is clear from the statements of Union Home Minister, Sh. Shivraj Patil who said that there is no unanimity in the state on the question of withdrawal of the AFSPA, since “many say that this law should be continued,” as reported by the press, and also as per the statement of Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee on August 10, 2004 that there was no move to withdraw Assam Rifles from Manipur and that the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act would continue to be in vogue in the troubled state. The intentions of the central government are also clear from the fact that first it wants to bring in another Act in its place for which it proposes to bring a bill before Parliament in its monsoon session.
It is absurd to say that ‘many people’ from Manipur ‘suggest that this law should be continued’ as it would virtually mean that the Vice-Chancellor of Manipur University along with the faculty members who sat on a dharna in Imphal on August 10, the students, women, nurses are all waging a movement not against the removal of Assam Rifles personnel and AFSPA from the state but for continuing them there so that tortures, arrests, rapes and killings of innocent people continue there. That the personnel of the armed forces posted there treat the Commissions of Enquiry and the rule of law with contempt is clear from the fact that Col. Jagmohan Singh, Commandant of 17th Assam Rifles and the four other witnesses from the same force, who were to appear before the Upendra Commission enquiring into the death of Manorama did not think it necessary to appear before it. The unlimited powers and immunity from being prosecuted granted to them under the AFSPA has made personnel of these forces arrogant to the extent of becoming a law unto themselves.
In the light of the popular demand of the repeal of AFSPA and for the restoration of the human rights and civil liberties of the people of all the North-Eastern states where this act is in force, including Manipur, People’s Union for Civil Liberties Delhi supports the peaceful movement of the people of Manipur and other North-Eastern states to secure their democratic rights and fundamental freedoms and demands that:-
- The Central Government should give permission to the local police, as required under Section 7 of the AFSPA, to file a case against the alleged rapists and killers of Manorama Devi. Pending enquiry into the allegations by the enquiry commissions, Assam Rifles should be shifted from Manipur. The family of Manorama Devi should be adequately compensated.
- Along with POTA, Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act should also be repealed immediately and cases instituted under them and allegations of misuse should be enquired into by review committees within a specified period and innocent people should be provided relief and compensation by the government and those found guilty of misuse should be punished.
- The government should build an atmosphere of confidence and talk to all concerned parties for a political and peaceful solution of the problems facing the North-Eastern states with an open mind, without any preconditions, within the framework of the Constitution of India and all such groups should also reciprocate
- http://www.pucl.org/Topics/Law/2004/manipur-afspa.htm
Kingpins? Andhra couple behind spurt in naxal violence
Hazaribagh (Jharkhand): A couple based in Andhra Pradesh were responsible for the spurt of naxal violence in Bihar and Jharkhand, a senior police officer claimed today. Confirming the arrest of Agriculture scientist-cum-Maoist Central Committee member Ravi Sharma and his wife B Anuradha here on October 10, Hazaribagh Superintendent of Police Pankaj Kamboj produced them before a news conference and claimed that they were running the Maoist outfit in Bihar and Jharkhand.
"Ravi Sharma alias Arjun alias Mahesh alias Ashok and his wife B Anuradha alias Rajitha hail from Andhra and run the Maoist outfit in Bihar and Jharkhand since 1999," he said. "The duo, arrested under Ichak police station in the district, are responsible for the sudden increase in Naxal violence in these two states.
With their arrest, the Maoist movement is jolted," the SP said adding, "Police found the whole strategy of the movement recorded in a laptop seized from them." Vital information would also be available in the diaries and letters recovered from them, he said.
Police also found one 9 MM foreign-make revolver, cartridges and documents relating to the Maoist operation and its strategies in Bihar and Jharkhand, Kamboj said.
No Nano, but US Ambassador is positive on Brand Bengal
Kolkata: Barely a year after Ratan Tata shifted his small car project to the other end of the country, the US ambassador to India, Timothy J Roemer, on Wednesday remained optimistic of further American investments flowing into the state.
At the end of his two-day maiden visit to Kolkata, Roemer said that he disagreed with the idea that the interest of US investors in the West Bengal had fizzled out and maintained that the prospects here remained positive.
Roemer's visit comes shortly after Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary Michael S Owen came to the city last month. "I think the people on the ground are positive about the relationship.
But as with any other part of the country, they say that transparency, the rule of law, equal opportunity and reward for risk will help to bring in more American investments," Roemer said, referring to his meeting with representatives of the American Chamber of Commerce (Amcham) here.
Citing the example of US snack food company Frito Lays, which is continuing a successful innings in the state since setting up shop here in 2004, Roemer said that American investors were interested in sectors such as mining among others. "There is a lot of potential in the state," he added.
Although the rhetoric around Brand Bengal has been around for almost six years, the state receives substantially less American investments compared to the rest of the country.
Rs 500 crore brand, Dove aims for a high, gets real
The faces that represent the Rs 500 cr premium brand are of ordinary women
Last month, the fast moving consumer goods major put all of them on billboards, newspapers and on television to endorse the Rs 500 crore brand in a high voltage advertisement campaign.
That's Dove's way of going off the beaten track in its communication strategy. Unlike other soap advertisements, the premium brand did not use the usual models or movie stars. Instead, it got real women who use the product to give testimonials of their experience with the brand.
For Dove's hair wash variant too, HUL initiated huge sampling in malls by setting up counters where consumers could get their hair washed and then photographed. These pictures were showcased in the Dove Gallery. As a result, testimonials were not just on TV, but also online through consumer-generated content and in print.
Gopal Vittal, Executive Director -- home and personal care of HUL, says the process is two-pronged, comprising "conviction and proof". Thus, the first phase of the campaigns showed the performance of the product on the face, which was quickly followed up by testimonials from 'real people'.
Interestingly, HUL adopted an old commercial from its American counterpart and Ogilvy & Mather tweaked it for the Indian audience. A mandatory 360 degree campaign is on as well. What's more, it has even been running roadblocks across channels like Star and Zee, where it bought out all the commercial advertising time on an exclusive basis.
This at a time when all other companies have tightened their purse strings. "Investments have been stepped up for Dove given the high media elasticity. The brand has an enormous growth opportunity," adds Vittal.
Kohima, Oct. 14: The Centre today said the NSCN (Isak-Muivah) has been procuring arms from China. At the same time, it disclosed that the Constitution could be amended as a part of the “political package” to be offered to the outfit by November.
Union home secretary G.K. Pillai, who is on a two-day visit to Nagaland, said the government had information that some top NSCN (I-M) leaders “have gone to China” and that the neighbouring country had been supplying sophisticated arms to the Naga militants.
The senior bureaucrat was speaking to reporters here after holding consultative meetings with top government officials and leaders of various civil organisations.
Replying to a query, he, however, said there was no concrete report of any camp being set up by the outfit in that country.
The home secretary was quick to add that India was not worried about China. “We don’t have to worry about China. We will handle China,” he asserted.
Pillai was here to seek the opinions and views of all sections of Naga people and incorporate the same in the “political package” before finalising it. He said the Centre’s cabinet committee on political affairs would review the package before it was placed before the NSCN (I-M).
The home secretary said the government was working out a mechanism to hammer out a solution that would be “honourable and acceptable to both the Centre and the Naga people” through negotiation. “We are not offering any conditional package to the NSCN (I-M). It is upto them to accept it or not,” he added.
He said Naga group had not asked for an economic package in its proposals submitted to the Centre and that monetary aspect would not be included in the “political package.”
Pillai said the “political package” would be offered to the NSCN (I-M) and ruled out talks with any other Naga outfit in the immediate future.
He said to evolve a consensus on the “political package,” the Centre was holding broad-based discussions with all Naga civil societies, tribal hohos and other principal organisations from Nagaland, Manipur, Assam and Arunachal Pradesh.
Pillai skirted the contentious issue of integration of all Naga-inhabited contiguous areas under one administrative umbrella, saying the “political leadership” in New Delhi would take a call on it.
He said once the “political package” was placed before the NSCN (I-M), all substantive issues would be discussed and that the Centre was prepared for an open discussion on all aspects of the Naga problem. He said there had been a decline in violence in Nagaland but the state government had failed to curb extortion. The Centre has discussed the matter with the Neiphiu Rio government.
“The state government should have the will to act against anti-social activities,” he said.
During his stay here, Pillai met Rio and his cabinet colleagues, top security officials, civil officials, the Naga Hoho, the Naga Mothers’ Association, the Naga Students’ Federation, the Eastern Nagaland People’s Organisation, the Eastern Nagaland Students’ Federation and other leading Naga organisations.
In the evening, he met the army top brass at 3 Corps headquarters at Rangapahar in Dimapur.
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1091015/jsp/frontpage/story_11616849.jsp
 |
| Pranab Mukherjee with MP Deepa Das Munshi at the Congress office. (Amit Datta) |
Calcutta, Oct. 14: Pranab Mukherjee today dismissed complaints of state Congress leaders that Trinamul Congress supporters were working against them and insisted that the alliance between the two parties must be kept going.
State leaders also told Mukherjee that Trinamul had “decimated” the Congress in Nadia by inducting all 16 party councillors of the Congress-run Ranaghat municipality into its fold.
But the state Bengal Congress president, who chaired an extended secretariat meeting of the state unit, made it clear that they were “minor hitches”. He reminded the leaders how the CPM had tried to “back-stab” the Congress by withdrawing support to the Manmohan Singh government over the Indo-US nuclear deal.
“Sort out the minor problems in the alliance (with Trinamul) through talks. We will have to take the alliance forward to the 2011 Assembly polls,” Mukherjee said.
State Congress general secretaries Kanak Debnath and Binodananda Banerjee accused Trinamul men of attacking their alliance partners in Nadia, Howrah and other places, and wanted to know if the tie-up could be strengthened in such a situation.
Another general secretary, Jagadish Mitra, pointed out Trinamul’s Ranaghat stab and pleaded with Mukherjee to “please do something to prevent Trinamul from destroying our party”.
MP Adhir Chowdhury had complained last week that Trinamul was posing a threat to the Congress’s existence.
In an apparent bid to lift party workers’ morale, Mukherjee announced a chintan baithak (brainstorming session) in Nadia’s Krishnagar in the second week of November.
The Congress has accepted Mamata Banerjee’s seven-three formula and agreed to contest only three of the 10 bypolls on November 7. “So there will be no problem in conducting a joint campaign. We are optimistic about winning all 10 seats,” Mukherjee said.
Mamata on Maoists
The Trinamul Congress chief tonight backed the Centre’s planned offensive against Maoists after Diwali, but opposed its joint action with the state in Lalgarh.
“There is nothing wrong if the Centre starts a fresh offensive against the Maoists. We are opposed to the killings (by Maoists),” Mamata said, adding that the central forces should be pulled out of Lalgarh.
The chief minister had accused her of speaking in a different tone from the Prime Minister’s on the Maoists.
 |
| Ambassador Roemer on a rickshaw with consul-general Beth Payne. Picture by Pabitra Das |
Calcutta, Oct. 14: US ambassador to India Timothy J. Roemer today said the highest ever turnout in the Arunachal Pradesh Assembly elections was a “positive” sign.
“It is very positive to see people turning out in thousands at polling places yesterday. We will respect the outcome of the election,” said Roemer, in Calcutta on a two-day trip.
His comments will surely please North Block in the wake of the diplomatic tussle with China over its claim to the Indian state. However, the US diplomat made it clear that the India-China dispute was a bilateral issue. “The US is confident that they will peacefully resolve this,” Roemer said.
He was much more forthcoming on the shared concern over terrorism and said the US was working with India in “unprecedented” ways by sharing information and intelligence on potential threats and suspects. “It is very important that Pakistan prosecutes successfully the seven suspects of the Mumbai terror attacks… takes the facts and evidences about Hafiz Saeed and prosecutes him,” Roemer said.
The US-India relationship, he added, is based on a shared strategic interest and “agreement about the threat of extreme radicalism that can come from places like Pakistan”.
The diplomat who had begun his visit to the city with a trip to the Tagores’ Jorasanko home went to Mother House today. After the morning mass, he went to Shishu Bhavan where he distributed khichdi and boiled eggs to the destitutes.
“I am inspired by your devotion and hard work. You can feel mother Teresa’s spirit here,” he told the nuns of the Missionaries of Charity at Mother House.
President Barack Obama had requested him to meet “as many of the billion people” as he could during his stint in India and Roemer appeared to be doing his best.
He went to hand out English language proficiency certificates at an institution for the underprivileged — Great Hall WSA English Medium School — in Kidderpore and stopped a motorcyclist on the way to ask “what do you think about your country?”
“My country is the best,” the man behind the helmet said on Dr Sudhir Bose Road.
On a rickshaw with US consul-general in Calcutta, Beth Payne, Roemer went to see St Barnaba’s Church. He could not because the church keys were with the priest. “He visited our quarters instead,” said caretaker Robert D’Cruz.
On his way to catch a plane out of Calcutta, Roemer said: “I leave this evening wanting more.”
Rahul marches to new beat, Cong struggles to keep pace
| Font Size |
D K Singh
Posted: Oct 15, 2009 at 1118 hrs IST
New Delhi As AICC general secretary Rahul Gandhi seeks to capture the imagination of the Gen Next with his out-of-the-box and somewhat iconoclastic approach to politics and governance, the 124-year-old Indian National Congress, it seems, is finding it difficult to keep in step.
Last week, Rahul’s attribution of Naxalism to lack of development and states’ inability to reach out to people, for instance, only reiterated the Congress’s long-held stance on this issue that invariably bracketed the law and order aspect with socio-economic problems at its roots. The party’s thinking was often encapsulated by Sonia Gandhi’s description of Naxalites as “misguided youth”.
Barely 48 hours after Rahul pronounced the party line on this issue, the Congress made a significant shift de-coupling the law and order aspect from the socio-economic aspect and recommending “firm” action against those who believe in violence “and nothing else”.
Again, days after the Congress expressed outrage against Union Minister Shashi Tharoor for his defiance of the party’s diktat on austerity by staying in a five-star hotel and then ridiculing it on Twitter by his infamous cattle class remark, Tharoor got succour from unexpected quarters. Last Wednesday, Rahul declared in Thiruvananthapuram, “Shashi Tharoorji is a Minister of State also. So, he has to also spend a lot of time in travelling. So, it is bit unfair to say you know he comes, at times, on computer. I have spoken to him a couple of times between and after the elections and I get a sense that he is working hard for the country.”
Rahul’s support failed to mollify the Congress as was evident from the editorial of the Congress Sandesh, the party mouthpiece that was released on Saturday. “Being wealthy does not by itself give us a right to spend as we please. People who have nothing to do with the basic values of life normally end up offering wrong reasoning to hide their violation of values,” said the editorial in an apparent jibe at Tharoor.
These were only the latest instances of incompatibility between the current establishment of the Congress, in terms of its institutional response to issues, and the party’s heir apparent. Consider a few more examples:
n In Chennai last month, Rahul opposed the inter-linking of rivers project saying, “We should not play with nature on such a massive scale.” While the Congress had never opposed the project, the UPA government had actively sought to implement it in its first term. After Rahul’s opposition, Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh was quick to seize the opportunity and term the project a “disaster”. Although the Congress later tried to wriggle out of the situation stating that the jury was still out on different aspects of the project and nobody was accepting or rejecting it, the party refrained from endorsing Rahul’s views.
n Engaged in a debate on 27 per cent OBC quota by students of a university in Uttarakhand last year, Rahul did not support it unequivocally as the party had. He said he would look beyond reservation and would rather have more educational institutions that would make the entire issue irrelevant. His declaration that he does “not believe in caste (system),” may have upset quite a few party leaders.
n A propagator of internal democracy in the party, Rahul chose to voice his reservation against dynastic politics as also the role of money. Though his remarks did generate some debate in the party, there were few takers as is evident from the way family members and relatives of leaders unfailingly managed to get party tickets in elections.
Rahul had caused a flutter in the party in May this year when he favoured the one-man-one-post system. Explaining why he decided not to join the government, he said he believed in doing one piece of work at one point of time and therefore, would stick to his plans for the Youth Congress and the NSUI. But there are about half-a-dozen ministers who also hold the office of AICC general secretaries and states in-charge.
The Congress seems ill at ease with Rahul’s radical approach that seem to challenge its century-old thought process and functioning.
According to Rahul’s aides, his ideas were formulated after sound and informed reasoning, and debates with experts as also empirical experience. His opposition to inter-linking of rivers project, for instance, is traced to his long association with Sunderlal Bahuguna — right from the days Bahuguna visited St Stephen’s for lectures when Rahul was a student. “It is not an instructive approach. He is only putting forth an idea for an informed debate,” said one of his close aides.
A Youth Congress leader pointed out that Rahul was addressing the youth who were already disenchanted with politics. Out-of-the-box thinking and a fresh approach to politics and governance were required to inspire and motivate them to take interest in the nation’s development , he said.
In the last Assembly elections in UP, Rahul had prepared a huge database of candidates and interviewed them personally. His questions during the interview — for instance, how many LPG connections are there in your constituency? How many people have got job cards under NREGA? What do you want to do for your constituency? — would unnerve ticket aspirants who had come armed with caste statistics.
However, faced with non-cooperation from party leaders, Rahul stopped taking interest in the ticket distribution exercise — except to recommend some Youth Congress candidates — in subsequent elections.
For now, he seems to have decided to address the larger constituency of youth and make them the instrument of change in the country’s polity, including his own party.
Canvassing on campus
AICC general secretary Rahul Gandhi has been doing the rounds of college campuses across the country, telling youth what he plans to do for them and how they can chip in.
Ramnagar
Uttarakhand, October 20, 2008
Interacting with girl students at a resort adjoining Jim Corbett National Park here, Rahul said, “If I had not come from my family, I wouldn’t be here. You can enter the system either through family or friends or money. Without family, friends or money, you cannot enter the system. My father was in politics. My grandmother and great grandfather were in politics. So, it was easy for me to enter politics. This is a problem. I am a symptom of this problem. I want to change it.”
H N Bahuguna Garhwal University
Uttarakhand, October 20, 2008
“We don’t ask people to ask questions. When I was studying at St. Stephen’s, asking a question was not (perceived to be) good in our class.”
“I am open to that (reservation in educational institutions). But we should focus on solving the problem. Let’s not worry about how the seats are divided. The problem is there are not many seats and that is why this is an issue. If the number of seats in India becomes unlimited, would reservation be relevant? So, let’s not start dividing people.”
Don Bosco Institute
Guwahati, July 22, 2009
“India is yours and you are Indians... never feel isolated. Travel the country for exposure.”
Jawaharlal Nehru University
New Delhi, September 30, 2009
“The UPA govt aims at distribution of growth, but the Left only talks of distribution. They have no way to grow.”
Maharaja’s College
Kochi, October 7, 2009
To a question on why there could not be a common curriculum for all universities and colleges in the country, Rahul reportedly said, “India is a diverse country with a lot of cultural differences from region to region. It would not be apt to have the same curriculum in Uttar Pradesh as that in southern India.”
“Hiking the salary of the people’s representatives is not the answer to fight corruption. Members of the Parliament and the Assemblies are already drawing decent salaries. Moreover, can we expect US president Obama’s salary in India?”
St Theresa’s College
Ernakulam, October 7, 2009
Advice to budding politicians: “Just listen to people and ask questions.”
Mar Ivaniose College
Thiruvananthapuram, October 7, 2009
“It is not a must that one should be a minister to serve the nation. Now, I am focusing on strengthening the Youth Congress and the NSU. A ministership would have hampered me from undertaking these types of interactions.”
Farook College
Kozhikode, October 7, 2009
“Service-oriented youths should enter politics. In future, the Congress candidates for elections would not be decided in closed-door discussions. You would be asked to pick up your own candidates.”
Himachal Pradesh University
Shimla, October 13, 2009
“The Bharatiya Janata Party has 1,000-year-old ideas. They are only talking about Jinnah, which is history. I at least can not think about Jinnah even for five seconds... not for one second. He is gone, finished. We should think of the future, not the past.”
Drawing comparisons among Manmohan Singh, Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Lal Krishna Advani, he said, “”The first two are open with ideas and have flexible approach, while Advaniji is not flexible to new ideas.”
War of words between China and India continues
Ananth Krishnan
| China’s Communist Party accuses India of “hegemonic” ambitions in South Asia |
BEIJING: The war of words between China and India intensified on Wednesday with China’s ruling Communist Party accusing India of harbouring “hegemonic” ambitions in South Asia and “provoking” China on the border issue.
In what is possibly the strongest diatribe China’s ruling party has directed at India in recent memory, the Communist Party in two editorials in its official newspapers accused the Indian government of “recklessness and arrogance” and “turning a blind eye” to China’s “concessions” in resolving the long-running boundary dispute.
The remarks come a day after China said it was “strongly dissatisfied” with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s recent visit to Arunachal Pradesh, parts of which China still has claims on.
On Wednesday, the People’s Daily, the Communist Party’s official newspaper, and the Global Times, an English-language paper run by its information department, launched a verbal onslaught on India in their editorial pages. The People’s Daily said India was “obsessed” with a “hegemonic mentality” and “refused to drop the pretentious airs when dealing with neighbours like Pakistan.” Pakistan’s Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani, incidentally, is currently in Beijing and on Tuesday discussed a highway project in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir with Chinese President Hu Jintao, raising concerns in New Delhi.
Wednesday’s statements underscore how the atmosphere between the two neighbours has fast soured in recent months, and are a stark contrast from the conciliatory positions the two governments had seemed to adopt over the border dispute following the thirteenth round of talks in August. Officials in Beijing and New Delhi spoke of positive progress then.
The People’s Daily, a nationalistic newspaper run by the Communist Party’s propaganda wing, often articulates the party’s positions on foreign affairs in more strident tones than the official positions stated by the Chinese government’s Foreign Ministry.
Alluding to India’s strategic relationship with the United States, the paper said India followed a policy of “befriend the far and attack the near.” It said “resentment still simmered” from India’s wars with China and Pakistan. “If India really wants to be a superpower, such a policy is short-sighted and immature,” it said in the editorial.
The Global Times, an English-language newspaper which often reflects the party’s views on foreign policy and is directed towards an international audience, said India would make “a fatal error” if it mistook “China’s approach for weakness.The Chinese government and public regard territorial integrity as a core national interest, one that must be defended with every means,” the paper said. “The disputed border area is of strategic importance, and hence, India’s recent moves including Singh’s trip and approving past visits to the region by the Dalai Lama send the wrong signal. That could have dangerous consequences.”
The papers also accused India of “ignoring” China’s “concessions” on the border issue, but did not specify what the concessions were.
Indian analysts say China’s positions on the boundary issue have hardened in recent months, with Chinese objections to visits by Indian leaders to Arunachal Pradesh becoming more frequent and strong.
The Global Times also claimed that 96 per cent of the over 6,000 respondents of an online poll on its Chinese-language website said they felt “agitated” by the frequent visits by Indian leaders to the disputed area.
http://www.hindu.com/2009/10/15/stories/2009101560441000.htm
GUANTANAMO BAY
Nobel Prize draws wonder, bewilderment at Guantánamo
Word of the Nobel Peace Prize reached the prison camps at Guantánamo with a mixture of wonder and bewilderment.
BY CAROL ROSENBERG
crosenberg@MiamiHerald.com
GUANTANAMO BAY NAVY BASE, Cuba -- Here in the land of limbo, the news of President Barack Obama's Nobel Peace Prize landed with more of a whimper than wild enthusiasm among those waging their part in the war on terror.
Most troops interviewed this week reflected the surprise of their commander in chief on waking up to the news Friday morning. More than a few hadn't heard about the award for the president who pledged to empty the prison camps here until they were asked about it in an interview with The Miami Herald.
``I've been fishing,'' said Navy Petty Officer Daniel LeBoy, 23, of Puerto Rico, a Yeoman Third Class who was mobilized from a personnel job on a West Coast aircraft carrier.
Now he walks the cellblocks in Camps One, Two and Three on 12-hour shifts and mostly shuns the news, he said. ``But I think it's a great thing,'' he said Wednesday, crediting Obama's campaign to ``reach out to the entire world'' with a message of friendship.
Others disagreed. ``Someone else got gypped!'' cracked Army Sgt 1st Class Steve Rougeau, 52, of Orlando, a former corrections officer now with the Florida National Guard escorting visiting reporters.
``On the first day, everyone was surprised,'' Rougeau said. ``I didn't know that he had done something on a grand scale. So many people deserve the peace prize who've done more than he has in his 10-month tenure.''
Obama turned the spotlight on this isolated outpost in the Caribbean -- and earned international admiration -- on his second full day in office by pledging to empty the prison camps by Jan. 22, 2010.
With 14 weeks to go and White House officials warning they may miss their own deadline, defense lawyers have reported that it has fed cynicism among the 221 remaining detainees. Most are approaching their eighth year in detention, most without charges.
``I would not be surprised if the common reaction is, `What did he do to earn it?' '' said defense attorney David Remes, who represents 17 Yemenis awaiting word on whether the Obama administration can reach a repatriation agreement with their government in Sana. ``As far as they're concerned, he's all sizzle and no steak.''
Still, the Nobel news did provide a distraction in the cellblocks. Word reached the men ``the same day -- through family phone calls, through the lawyers, through the live TV they give them,'' said a Jordanian-American named Zak who is on contract to the Pentagon to work as the command staff's cultural adviser.
Arabic and Pashto language linguists who work at the camps got the first word not from news reports from Oslo but from the captives themselves, Zak said.
``They see it as something good,'' he said. ``The detainees are waiting, just like everyone else, to see what Jan. 22 brings. We are all in limbo. We don't know.''
Moreover, the prize is likely to feed the fascination with the new American president among the detainees who learned of his election the very same night in November and taunted their captors with chants of ``Obama, Obama, Obama.''
Since then, copies of Dreams of My Father and The Audacity of Hope -- both in English -- have been in hot demand at the detention center library, reported Rosario, a civilian librarian who declined to give her full name to reporters during a recent visit by Dutch and Belgian TV crews.
Camp staff ordered 10 copies each about three months ago through the Pentagon's requisition program, she said. But they had yet to arrive, leaving the single copies in constant circulation.
What do they like about his books?
``Maybe because Obama traces back to a Muslim family,'' she said, then demurred. ``We don't ask, and they don't tell.''
The chief jailer, Army Col. Bruce Vargo, learned about the prize the same day on the news -- not from detainees.
Still, Vargo declared himself ``happy'' for his commander in chief, then added a bit wistfully: ``I wish I could win the Nobel Peace Prize.''
- Cost scare for industry
 |
Calcutta, Oct. 14: The river draft for ships calling at Haldia has reached its lowest level ever, Calcutta Port Trust declared today, dealing a blow to industry which is left with little choice but to spend more on transportation.
The port trust said the average draft in the Auckland channel — an imaginary waterway that ships sail through in the Hooghly — has gone down to 6.9 metres from 7.2 metres last month and 7.6 in end-August.
Today’s level means ships with capacity to carry 55,000 tonnes of cargo can bring at best 22,000 tonnes to Haldia.
This will turn transportation via Haldia, about 90km from Calcutta, costlier because industries will have to use more ships to bring the same volume of cargo.
Steel Authority of India, Tata Steel, Haldia Petrochemicals, Mitsubishi PTA and Indian Oil Corporation are among the heavy users of the port apart from some of the power companies. Coal, iron ore and petroleum products are the three main goods handled.
Anindya Majumdar, the acting chairman of Calcutta Port Trust, called the situation “critical” but promised to ensure operations continued. “We will not let the port shut down,” he told a hurriedly called news meet in Calcutta.
However, Rajeev Dubey, deputy chairman of the Haldia port, sounded fatalistic. “No one can fight nature,” he said, sitting next to Majumdar.
Six dredgers owned by the Dredging Corporation of India are working at Haldia, though their efficacy has been under the scanner for long.
Majumdar said two more, one from Paradip and another from Goa, were on their way. Dredging Corporation is also planning to hire two “effective” dredgers to replace two of those at work.
However, the port appeared to be running out of ideas on how to tackle siltation.
The Centre does not allow any company but its own corporation to work in Haldia.
Captain A.K. Bagchi, director of the marine department of the port trust, said Haldia was doing the best it could.
The port can keep a maximum of nine dredgers, said experts. Keeping any more of them on the river will affect shipping movement.
Some port officials said the only viable long-term option was to open a new channel for ships bypassing the existing Auckland and Jellingham.
Bikash Choudhary, the chief hydraulic engineer of the port trust, said a 2.5km stretch had to dredged for that. It can be done only when the weather is good, between October and March, he added.
However, commissioning the project this year is near impossible as the port has to first issue a global tender.
The Haldia crisis comes at a time space crunch at Calcutta port has prompted shipping lines to slap a $250-surcharge on every container.
Midnapore, Oct. 14: Police have planned to file a slew of fresh cases, from arson and abduction to murder, in their bid to get Chhatradhar Mahato back in their custody from judicial remand.
They petitioned the additional chief judicial magistrate’s court in Jhargram town on Monday to add a murder to the list of charges already filed against the Maoist-backed tribal resistance leader there.
Another case will be filed soon in Midnapore, for the murder of two CPM supporters in Salboni, adjoining Lalgarh, in April. The lynching had followed a kangaroo court trial held by activists of the People’s Committee Against Police Atrocities, led by Mahato.
On June 14, CPM supporter Prabir Mahato was picked up from his house near Lalgarh town by alleged People’s Committee activists. He was never found. On August 14, his brother Amiya lodged an FIR alleging Prabir had been murdered and naming Mahato among the accused.
A West Midnapore police officer said Mahato’s custody was essential to find out more about his Maoist bosses. “We need to have Chhatradhar in our custody because he has a lot of information about the Maoists and their activities, including how they smuggled arms into Lalgarh,” he said.
But the Jhargram court has already turned down a plea to extend Mahato’s police custody. So the need to file cases in Midnapore as well.
When the police petitioned the Jhargram additional chief judicial magistrate for further police custody of Mahato on Saturday, the judge accused them of not being able to get much out of him in the three days he was with them. He said the case diary did not mention any “fresh development” and refused to extend the remand. The same judge will hear the August murder charge against Mahato tomorrow.
A team of CID officials led by additional director-general Raj Kanojia held a meeting with senior West Midnapore police officers and lawyers on Monday to find ways to get Chhatradhar’s custody.
The Bengal police also fear that their Jharkhand counterparts might get Mahato’s custody in connection with the cases lodged against him there and he might become more inaccessible to them.
Mahato’s jail custody ends on October 23. He will have to be produced in a court in the neighbouring state on October 19. “We need to have him in our custody by October 18,” said a CID officer.
The other charges against Mahato are waging war against the state, having a hand in the demolition of the police outpost at Ramgarh, near Lalgarh, and two attempts to blow up police patrols.
Patna, Oct. 14: The Bihar government has decided to use the services of the Indian Army to train police personnel to counter Maoists spreading their tentacles in fresh areas and resorting to guerrilla warfare against security forces on a stepped-up scale.
“Also, the government has decided to appoint 5,000 former army servicemen in police ranks,” said the additional director-general of police (headquarters), Neelmani, adding: “We will take army’s help to train cadre especially in guerrilla warfare.”
Sources revealed that the Danapur cantonment has agreed to impart out-door training to the policemen.
The rebels have caught the state policemen unawares in at least six raids this year alone and have snatched 28 firearms. As many as 24 policemen have lost their lives in these attacks. The police top brass feels that Bihar’s set up was not specifically trained in Maoists warfare.
The government has also decided to open counter insurgency and jungle warfare schools at Dehri-on-Son, Katihar, Bodh Gaya and Darbhanga, so-called Maoist hubs.
The government has set in motion processes to militarise police units engaged in counter-Naxalite operations. The Nitish Kumar-led government constituted Special Auxiliary Police, primarily is made up of former army servicemen between 40 and 45 years and has decided to appoint 5,000 more personnel.
The state recently added 10 more units to the Special Task Force (STF) with each unit comprising of 40 jawans armed with Insas and AK-47 rifles. The state previously had only 10 STF units. Now, there are 20.
Sources in the home department revealed that the state is proposing to sanction Rs 102 crore for this training and modernisation of the force.
Maoists were earlier confined to Magadh division and Old Sahabad in south and central Bihar. According to police sources, now the rebels have spread their operations in several north Bihar districts including Khagaria, Darbhanga, Madhubani, Sitamarhi and Sheohar on the India-Nepal borders.
They have also launched attacks on pickets in Jamui and Munger in the recent past, demonstrating firepower in districts bordering Jharkhand.
As many as 31 out of the 38 districts are believed to have rebel presence.
Bhubaneswar, Oct. 14: Normal life was paralysed in most parts of Mayurbhanj due to the JMM-sponsored daylong bandh in protest against the attack on their leader Sudam Marandi.
Three security men, including an assistant sub-inspector, were killed in the attack, while Marandi and former zila parishad chairman Bhadav Hansda escaped unhurt.
The deceased were identified as assistant sub-inspector of Chandua police station Narayan Pradhan and Marandi’s personal security officers Gama Hembram and Rajendra Hembram. JMM activists are peeved over the intelligence failure and inadequate security, though the chief minister Naveen Patnaik ordered a probe into the incident.
Protesters blocked railway tracks at Bhubaneswar railway station leading to the termination of Baripada-Bhubaneswar Superfast Express. The blockades led to the cancellation of Rupsa- Baripada DMU train.
The bandh began at 6am with JMM activists burning tyres and shouting slogans at important locations including district headquarters town of Baripada. Activists marched on the streets and blocked roads at several places. Few of them also tried to block NH-5 that witnessed a thin run of vehicles.
Schools, institutions and shops remained closed and vehicles kept off the roads for the better part of the day, while markets wore a deserted look.
Mayurbhanj SP Dayal Gangwar said the bandh passed off peacefully without any major untoward incidents. “We had arranged for tight security and kept a strict vigil,” he said.
Unidentified armed men yesterday gunned down three police persons during a football tournament at Bandap village under Chandua police station on Orissa-Bengal border where Marandi was the chief guest.
Describing the incident as “unfortunate”, a visibly upset Marandi said a few armed men hiding themselves behind the bush had shot at his bodyguards, when he was getting in his vehicle after prize distribution. Hearing the shots, he ran for cover and managed to reach the district headquarters late night after walking down kilometres and then hitchhiking.
Chief minister Naveen Patnaik today condemned the attack and said combing operation was on. He assured that security around Marandi would be strengthened and police protection would be provided to any politician, whose life is under threat.
Police remained tight-lipped as to whether yesterday’s attack was a handiwork of Maoists. “Investigations are on and we are looking into all angles,” said Gangwar SP, who had rushed to the spot last night.
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1091015/jsp/nation/story_11614384.jsp
 |
New Delhi, Oct. 4: A slowdown in the economy has forced developers of some special economic zones to withdraw their proposals. As many as 10 developers have approached the government to denotify their planned units.
The board of approval for SEZs will take a decision on the exit proposals at its meeting on October 5.
The withdrawal plea has been sought for three SEZs in Maharashtra, two each in Punjab and Tamil Nadu and one each in Bengal, Kerala and Karnataka. The board will also take a call on setting up a panel that will meet every week to look into the routine approvals required for tax-free industrial enclaves.
Of the units that want to exit, nine have the formal approval as they have land under possession; one is notified and eligible for tax benefits.
The board had earlier cleared more than five exit proposals of notified infotech SEZs on the condition that they would cease to enjoy the tax sops after the withdrawal.
Tax concessions for SEZs include duty-free import, 100 per cent exemption on export income for the first five years followed by a 50 per cent discount for the next five years and a 50 per cent relief on the ploughed back export profit for the next five years.
The special zones are eligible for external commercial borrowings of up to $500 million a year without any maturity restriction. They are also exempted from various central and state levies.
Ambani project
The Mukesh Ambani-promoted Navi Mumbai SEZ has asked the government to scrap the condition of maintaining geographical contiguity for the project. If the condition is not fulfilled, the government will not give its approval to companies interested in setting up units in the area.
The board of approval cleared the multi-product SEZ on the condition that the developer would build the required underpasses and bridges before the units were set up in the zone.
According to the government’s instructions, the developer is expected to set up three bridges and five underpasses. The Navi Mumbai SEZ has proposed that it should be allowed to build two skywalks instead of the flyovers.
The zones getting in-principle approval have to complete land acquisition within one year of the approval. An SEZ having a formal approval along with land under possession has to operationalise the tax-free enclaves within three years. Exports from SEZs in the first quarter of 2009-10 were valued at Rs 34,000 crore. Shipments from SEZs grew 36 per cent to Rs 90,416 crore in 2008-09.
 |
New Delhi, Oct. 4: Consumer durable firms are spending more on advertising and betting on interest-free loans to push sales in the festive season.
Samsung has tied up with Bajaj Finance for a zero finance scheme that translates into nil initial payment, processing fee and interest, covering all products till the end of this month.
“The offer will help consumers upgrade to premium products easily,” said R. Zutshi, deputy managing director of Samsung India.
Under the scheme, the manufacturer bears the interest cost on the loan, while the processing fee is either passed on to the consumer or shared between the dealer and the manufacturer. So, while the consumer benefits by buying the product on easy instalments, the company earns revenues on bulk sales.
Tata group firm Voltas offers traditional finance schemes throughout the year under which partial payment is made at the time of purchase and the rest is financed according to market rates. It has now launched a zero per cent finance scheme on its mid and high-end air conditioners and water coolers.
Till early last year, financed consumer durables constituted 15-20 per cent of overall sales. This came down to 8-10 per cent after banks and finance companies drastically reduced lending during the end of last year.
The festive season accounts for almost 35-40 per cent of the annual sales of durables firms.
Kamal Nandi, vice-president (marketing), Godrej & Boyce, said, “This festival season we are optimistic of a growth rate of 30 per cent over last year. There was a dip in sales last year because of a slump in the market.”
Godrej & Boyce, which registered a 20-25 per cent growth in sales in the April-June quarter, expects to earn nearly Rs 600 crore between September and December. This will be Rs 140 crore more than the corresponding period last year.
Electronics and home appliances firms are increasing their advertising and marketing spends by 15-60 per cent this year. The market for consumer durables is estimated at around Rs 25,000 crore
LG Electronics India is eyeing Rs 2,800 crore this festive season — a sales growth of 35 per cent over the year-ago period. Amitabh Tiwari, business head (consumer electronics) of LG, said, “Last year, consumer sentiment was bad. But it has improved substantially now. So we are spending Rs 110 crore on advertising and promotions, up from Rs 68 crore last year. We are also looking at investing more in television commercials.”
LG has set a target to close this year with a turnover of Rs 11,500 crore, up from Rs 10,000 crore last year. Whirlpool India plans to increase its investment in advertising and marketing by 10-15 per cent from Rs 45 crore last year.
“We are now a debt-free company and we are looking at improving our sales, quarter-on-quarter in this festive season. While last year was uncertain because of the global recession, markets are already improving now,” said Shantanu Dasgupta, vice-president (corporate affairs and strategy), Whirlpool.
The firm is looking at earning Rs 500 crore between September and November, a 25-30 per cent growth over the year-ago period.
Chandigarh, Oct. 4: The Congress seems to believe the key to the common man’s heart is held by moneybags — 72 of its 90 candidates in Haryana are crorepatis.
If the Congress’s crorepati collection looks impressive, its rivals are not exactly paisaless paupers. Over half the contestants for the October 13 Assembly polls from mainline political parties have declared assets of over Rs 1 crore, marking a growth from less than a fifth in 2005.
The survey was conducted by National Election Watch and Association for Democratic Reforms, a conglomeration of 1,200 NGOs. It was based on affidavits submitted to the Election Commission by the 489 candidates from mainstream political parties, including the Congress, BJP, Indian National Lok Dal, BSP, Samajwadi Party and the Haryana Janhit Congress.
Recent reports have suggested that Rahul Gandhi had a hand in selecting the Haryana candidates. While cash hoards might not have been a criterion for picking them, the 72 out of 90 score sits uncomfortably with spending nights in Dalit houses and even eating their food.
The queue of crorepati candidates could also raise a politically correct eyebrow or two in Congress’s Delhi headquarters.
According to the survey, 31 Congress legislators in the outgoing Assembly who are contesting again have seen their assets multiply by 52 per cent to a breathtaking 55times.
Sharda Rathore from Ballabgarh had declared assets worth Rs 81,663 before the 2005 Assembly polls, which have now swollen to Rs 45 lakh.
Either understated her wealth in 2005, something that no politician is expected to do, or she has the key to Aladin’s cave if not to the aam aadmi’s heart.
At 55 times, Sharda Rathore, a lawyer who runs an NGO, has outperformed the Bombay Stock Exchange sensitive index, which has merely doubled in the period. It might have helped the economist in Manmohan Singh to know how some people — his own party people — are making such money in a downturn.
While the Congress heads the list with average assets per candidate of over Rs 5.59 crore in 90 constituencies, the INLD comes second with Rs 3.42 crore, followed by the Haryana Janhit Congress with Rs 3.03 crore, the BJP with Rs 2.23 crore and the BSP with Rs 2.03 crore.
 |
| Syed Ali Geelani |
Srinagar, Oct. 4: Amid Indian worries over what it sees as interference in its internal affairs by Islamic countries and China, the foreign hand has breathed life into Kashmir’s moribund separatist camp.
Triggering howls of protest from India, the Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC) has for the first time appointed a special envoy on Kashmir.
The appointment of Saudi national Abdullah Bin Abdur Rahman, during the OIC’s recent New York meeting which was attended by moderate Hurriyat chairman Mirwaiz Umer Farooq, has given a boost to the separatists who had been forced on the backfoot following the more-than-expected turnout during the Assembly elections.
Also bringing cheer to the separatists was China, which started issuing stapled visas for Kashmiris heading for the neighbouring country, a move seen here as its acceptance of Kashmir as a disputed territory.
The separatists were virtually ruling the streets in Kashmir last year at the peak of the anti-Amarnath land agitation, but massive public participation in the Assembly elections later, in defiance of their calls for boycott, pushed them to the margins of Kashmir polity.
New Delhi too has been indifferent to the calls of moderates for a dialogue for resolving the Kashmir issue after they refused to take part in a round-table conference in 2006, arguing they will not share the table with the mainstream leaders.
India has been crying foul over the “interference” by OIC, an organisation of 57 Islamic countries, and China, but the separatists are on cloud nine.
“The OIC appointment of a special envoy on Kashmir is significant. We believe Muslim countries would use their good offices to persuade India to work on Kashmir,” said Mirwaiz Farooq, who returned from New York yesterday to a rousing reception.
Hurriyat hawk Syed Ali Geelani, who otherwise minces no words in hitting out at Farooq, hailed the separatists for “achieving this breakthrough”, though he refrained from naming the mirwaiz.
“For the first time, OIC has taken a giant step to address the issue of Kashmir. We hope New Delhi will now shun the rigid attitude and solve the Kashmir issue,” Geelani said.
The Hurriyat hardliner now plans to visit the Chinese embassy in Delhi to personally convey his gratitude to Beijing for issuing visas on a separate paper, an indication that it sees Kashmir as a disputed territory.
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1091005/jsp/nation/story_11574580.jsp
New Delhi, Oct. 4: The Centre has deferred till November-end cabinet clearance for a US-style, counter-terror agency as it wants work on an intelligence network to be completed first, sources said.
The cabinet committee on security, which is to sanction the proposed National Counter-Terrorism Centre (NCTC), has put off a decision till November 30, The Telegraph has learnt.
Home minister P. Chidambaram is keen to have such an agency in place. His ministry had aimed to finalise the proposal and get all required approvals by September 30.
But now the ministry feels priority must be given to completing the national intelligence grid, a channel for flow of intelligence information from a variety of sources.
“We will go ahead with the NCTC over a period of five years but only after the intelligence grid has been put in place,” a ministry official said. The counter-terrorism centre will have officials from various agencies, an arrangement similar to the multi-agency centre (MAC) that was revived after the 26/11 attack.
The only difference will be that the NCTC will be a bigger set-up. Once it is in place and starts functioning, the ministry may do away with the MAC, which now co-ordinates intelligence from various agencies.
The apex body in the intelligence system will cost crores to be set up. The NCTC will be responsible for analysing and maintaining information on internal threats and external proxy wars.
Setting up an agency like the NCTC and getting the desired results will take time, the ministry official said, and pointed out that it was so even in the US, which spent a billion dollars on setting up its counter-terror agency a few years back. “But even they (the agency) have not been able to achieve much,” he added.
During their visit to the US last month, Chidambaram and his officials were given a presentation on the American agency. On return, the ministry took some key decisions to empower government agencies to scan the financial dealings of suspected terror outfits and individuals.
Gosaba, Aila and Oz
Prabir Chatterjee
We reached Kolkata on the 25th of May, a few days after the school holidays began. It was drizzling from morning, making a mess of our journey to Picnic Gardens. It was later in the afternoon that the TV announced a new arrival ~ the Cyclone Aila.
Nearly a month later I went to Gosaba for the first time in my life. I have travelled widely in West Bengal and all over eastern India but like many Kolkatans I had never been to the Sunderbans before.
Large areas of Gosaba block and its 11 inhabited islands are connected by ferry ghats and by brick roads. It looks rather like the picture I had of the yellow brick road in Oz. One almost felt like singing, "We are off to see the Wizard! The Wonderful Wizard of Oz!"
These brick roads ~ largely planned and maintained by the panchayats, are the main route of communication in the islands. Motorised van-rickshaws ply on many of these roads with ordinary van-rickshaws on others, while launches and motorised boats ply between the ghats. There is very little government sponsored public transport here.
However, the beautiful new road from Science City via Bantala has many government buses. And the bridge to Basanti over the Hoghla as well as the bridge being constructed from Canning to Dock Ghat are government efforts in South 24-Parganas that will certainly help passengers in these outlying delta areas. Later, I found that transport is an even bigger issue in Hingalganj, which is in North 24-Parganas. A lot of bridges have been built. Quite a few more are needed. And of course strong embankments are necessary too. It is good to see that many embankments have been quickly repaired with local materials and using local labour.
A major development in India in the last decade is the communication system. The growth of communications has really accelerated in the last five years. We found a wireless communication set at Chhoto Mollakhali PHC, 3 hours from Gosaba. It is now redundant since some mobiles work in the area. Hopefully e-mail and skype facilities will be used in the future.
The ATM in Gosaba is another big step forward. All staff are now paid through their bank accounts. Of course one still needs to check whether they are in the field and doing their allotted work. ATM services will also need to grow and reach the more distant islands.
Electricity is provided by a Power House with five generators in Gosaba, running on a mix of diesel and bio-fuel (wood here). However, this only supplies 12 hours of electricity on this island. Others on these islands use a lot of solar power ~ many are willing to travel and buy solar panels. People here, like everywhere else, hope for 24-hour electricity some day.
Water is plentiful on the islands. Salt water! Thank goodness for the Public Health Engineering that has provided pumps every 5 km to extract sweet water. These first came up a decade ago and some areas first saw piped water about three years ago. The next step will be to test water quality at block level and to disinfect water and store it. It may take some time before a continuous piped water supply is developed for all areas.
There was an occasion when lack of diesel led to an island being deprived of drinking water for five days. Not surprisingly ~ diarrhoea outbreaks occur and are difficult to control.
There has been some delay in implementing the decision to make school and textbooks free for the Aila affected. Different organisations blame each other for these delays. Gheraos have occurred and there is continuous flurry of posters.
Anganwadis have been hit by the food stocks getting wet. This was followed by a change in officers. Now there a delay in giving routine stocks of rice and dal. Some supplementary food reached the ICDS centres in September.
Sunderbans and tiger reserves mean that tourism after the rainy season along with prawns and fish will bring revenue to South 24-Parganas. But for universal food supply there is a need to desalinate fields and ponds. The government decision to supply salt-resistant varieties of rice needs to be followed up.
Oz had a Good Witch and a Wicked Witch. And of course the Wizard. In a sequel, Dorothy finally met the Wizard along with the Tin Man (who had no heart), the Scarecrow (who had no brain) and the Lion (who had no courage). Maybe one day I will meet the Wizard. Gosaba is very much like Oz!
The writer, a doctor, is a freelance contributor
http://www.thestatesman.net/page.news.php?clid=4&theme=&usrsess=1&id=271554
Fresh controversy over Land Acquisition Act
KOLKATA 13 OCT: A recent directive by the Supreme Court may put an end to the practice by the Housing and Infrastructure Development Corporation (HIDCO) to use the emergency clause of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894 for acquiring land for Rajarhat New Town and denying the opportunity of public hearing to the land losers.
HIDCO citing a Cabinet decision taken way back in the 1990s had been acquiring land under the emergency clause which allows quicker acquisition in the event of natural catastrophe, such as floods and earthquake, for construction of railway tracks and roads. Under this clause the scope of public hearing is absent. The state land and land reforms minister, Mr Abdur Rezzak Mollah today said: “ After the Supreme Court's recent directive there is no scope of acquiring land under clause 17 other than in case of natural disaster. If there is any such proposal we have to turn it down. I will seek legal opinion on the issue.”
A senior official of HIDCO said 7000 acres of land had been acquired for the new town at Rajarhat under section 17 of the Land Reforms Act “ as the state government had no other option.” He said land even today is being acquired under the same section of the Act. However, he refused comment when asked why that particular section, which can be used only under emergency situation, was applied to acquire land to construct a township.
The state housing minister, Mr Gautam Deb, said the decision to acquire land under section 17 had got the nod of the Cabinet. ;SNS
Bodos must unite to take their fight to a logical end
ON 4 October some overzealous cadres of the anti-talk National Democratic Front of Boroland went on a shooting spree — so reminiscent of the 1990s — that accounted for 12 innocents at Biswanath-Chariali in Sonitput district. Coming as this did soon after the pro-talk group started formal discussions with the Centre last month, the outrage was possibly intended as a warning to Delhi that if it continued to engage only the pro-talk faction there would be more bloodshed.
This also confirms the thinking that a piecemeal settlement with Assam’s ethnic militant outfits will not ensure lasting peace. The region has been on the boil again following the leadership change in the NDFB early this year. It all started with the pro-talk NDFB group, which is observing a truce with the Centre since 2005, giving in writing that it had dropped the demand for sovereignty and was prepared to settle its demands within the framework of the Constitution. Obviously, NDFB general secretary Govinda Basumatary, who signed the letter, did not consult chairman Ranjan Daimary who, after signing the truce in 2005, had disappeared from the scene and was said to be living in Bangladesh. His prolonged absence prompted the pro-talk group to oust him. Now he is trying to stage a comeback through violent means.
October is a bad month for Assam. Most killings have taken place at this particular time of year. On 2 October last year in the Bodo-Muslim migrant clashes in Udalgiri and Darrang districts, 51 people lost their lives — 15 in police firing alone. Significantly, this was a major ethnic clash after the Bodos achieved their Territorial Council under the Sixth Schedule. The NDFB was blamed for masterminding the communal riot. Some journalists from Guwahati claimed to have seen Pakistani flags fluttering in the migrant-dominated areas.
Again, on 30 October, Guwahati, Kokrajhar, Barpeta and Bongaigaon were rocked by serial blasts that left 87 dead and more than 150,000 homeless, some of whom are said to be still languishing in relief camps. Dispur suspected the NDFB, Ulfa and also “an outside force”, an obvious reference to the Bangladesh-based Huji. Army sources seem to feel that the latest attack was provoked by growing public resistance to militants’ extortion demands. In the background of last year’s serial blasts, that the situation in the region needed to be closely watched was never in doubt. That militants could strike with ease and impunity suggests the administration’s failure to provide adequate protection to non-Bodos. Chief minister Tarun Gogoi described the killing as a “dastardly act” and, as is the reaction after such an outrage, the government announced ex gratia of Rs 3 lakh to the next of kin of each victim, Rs 50,000 for the seriously injured and Rs 10,000 for those sustaining minor injuries. Soon the incident will be forgotten until another one shakes the administration and the charade will continue, with non-tribals at the mercy of militants. It needs to be noted that the anti-talk NDFB is known for its ethnic cleansing, its main objective being to evict non-tribal minorities in a selective manner to obtain a Bodo majority.
What is happening in the region is an open power struggle between two NDFB factions, but unless they unite to take their fight to its logical conclusion, the region can look forward to little progress for peace. This, however, is not an end in itself. For lasting peace, they have to cast their lot with the Hagrama Mohilary group of the Bodo People’s Progressive Front, which is now at the helm of affairs of the mandated Bodo Territorial Council and, significantly, is also part of Tarun Gogoi’s Congress government.
Since law and order is Dispur’s responsibility, it cannot remain a mute spectator to the many massacres of innocents. For one, the anti-talk group’s potential for mischief cannot be underestimated because of its nexus with the Ulfa and NSCN(IM). JB LAMA
The many faces of terror
Patricia Mukhim
TERRORISM that is founded on religious fundamentalism and goes by the popular slogan of jihadi is different from the thoughtless mayhem perpetrated by groups that rebel against state indifference and negligence of their basic needs for decades together. An analytical study of the Maoist rebellions that find intellectual support from Left-leaning intellectuals reveals a peoples’ desperation to get what others take for granted. Visiting parts of Chattishgarh, Jharkhand and even Uttar Pradesh, one encounters appalling levels of poverty, such that getting two square meals a day is wishful thinking for many. Suicides on account of stark poverty should actually make India ashamed that it sits with the most powerful nations at G-20 summits and lectures the world on poverty reduction.
Perhaps a few, if any, of the G-20 countries have the poverty indicators that India has. The Sengupta Report says about 80 per cent Indians live on less that Rs 20 a day. Those of us living in urban centres and the national capital might consider such findings ludicrous, but development activists like Jean Dreze, who traverse the roads less travelled, will bear testimony to the fact that a huge number of Indians do not even have a job. The National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, that is touted to have worked wonders in Andhra Pradesh, has not worked equally well in many of the backward states mentioned above. Implementation is weak, particularly at the ground level closest to the stakeholders because the implementors are largely government employees without the capacity required to understand and appraise what rural populations need most, what resources they can access and how they can access them. Most schemes are target-oriented instead of being people-centric.
Even the so-called graduates of Social Work from some of the most reputed universities tend to get lethargic once they join government service. They prefer desk jobs even when they are trained to be out with people in the villages, building the capacities of rural folk in cooperative enterprise and cottage industries, which are the backbone of this country. Very often the problem is not of scarcity of resources but of the inability to identify those resources and use them judiciously. Tribals live close to the land and have for centuries inhabited forest lands. Today they are ousted from their living spaces because those have become “government reserved forests”.
The tribes have lived in perfect harmony with nature. It is the market that has commodified and monetised every natural resource in these tribal lands that uncannily are rich in minerals and have abundant forest wealth. The state, working in tandem with market forces, has exploited these resources and the tribals have willy-nilly become party to this exploitation. Gone is the conjunction with nature and the values of coexistence with mother earth. It is not as if the tribes do not know that they need to replenish what they take from the bosom of the earth. It is simply that the exploitation has outdone the replenishment. Large tracts of forests in the entire North-eastern region, which sustain 63 per cent of the forest eco-system of this country, are now bald, brown patches. Climate change has come with a vengeance. Cropping patterns have changed drastically even while the strategies to mitigate climate change are still unknown to us.
It is in such a scenario that militancy thrives. The irony is that our verdant forests have themselves become the source of funds for militant activities. Each of the armed movements was based on sound ideologies. All of them demand greater attention from the Centre and better development packages. These demands have a ring of honesty because large swathes of tribal territory also happen to be the most backward, woefully lacking in health and education facilities, the two pillars on which a modern, progressive society should rest. Sadly, the Centre very often responds too late, believing that is should step in only when state governments fail.
In the case of Assam, this is like expecting a stepmother to have a heart that flows with the milk of human kindness. The Centre has never tried to understand the intricacies of state politics. When the reins of governance are in the hands of a dominant non-tribal community that rules over a tribal-majority population, the equations are bound to defy answers.
The recent statements of Ranjan Daimary, leader of the National Democratic Front of Bodoland, seeking the help of Bangladesh and China to overcome the might of India could rankle a section of patriotic Indians. But the fact of the matter is that the contours of racial origins clash sharply with what is often seen as imposed nationalism. Over the years, these contours should have lost their jaggedness if the Indian state had embarked on a holistic development framework based on justice and equitable distribution of state resources. But such concerns were swept aside, often out of complete ignorance of the ethnic conundrum and the different layers of politics that such ethnicities give rise to. Daimary made a call to his “loving countrymen” on the occasion of the 23rd Founding Anniversary of the NDFB. He reminded Bodos how 77 Bodo youth, on 3 October 1986, took a pledge to redeem the Bodo people from subjugation.
Daimary claims the NDFB has brought a ray of hope to his people. But sharply contradicting him is a growing movement among a section of Bodo youth under the banner of the All Bodo Students’ Union who are seeking to end bloodshed and violence in Bodoland. This well-meaning group is seeking the support of their North-eastern neighbours, particularly those with experience in peace-building, to help them get out of the vicious whirlpool of violence and vengeance. For this group, the recent bomb blast in Sonitpur district coinciding with the NDFB founding day, which killed and maimed several innocent victims, many of them children, is a major setback to their peace attempts.
That there is a genuine aspiration by the large sections of tribes who have experienced the futility of living with terror and in the shadow of the gun needs to be appreciated. In fact, the recent surrender by the Dima Halam Daogah (Jewel) brings hope to the North Cachar Hills which had remained a theatre of heightened armed violence and ethnic massacres for a while now. But the point is whether this surrender of arms will be adequately reciprocated with development programmes that would make people active stakeholders and owners of the infrastructure created. If the state fails to address the issue of livelihood that is triggering all armed movements in India today, chances are the peace will be shortlived. Access to health care, basic education, followed by good institutes of higher learning with ample scope for vocational training, will help reduce the friction and change the topic of discourse in the North-eastern region.
Hardened stances such as the one adopted by the Naxalites and pitched battles between the Indian state and non-state actors, spiced up by the sound bytes of the Union home minister, are unlikely to take us far. What India needs now are not more wealth creators or billionaires with wealth rankings that are at odds with the reality that is the country, but a band of committed souls who can work at peace-building. It is indeed a sad commentary on the intellectual prowess of this country that we have only recently set up peace studies centres in a couple of universities. Our civil societies are badly equipped to be negotiators. At best, we have people praying for peace. But praying is not much good unless we possess the tools and skill for peace-building and are trained to use these effectively.
Recently the Indian Air Force offered to make pre-emptive strikes on the Naxal-affected areas of Chattisgarh, Jharkhand and Orissa. This news created much consternation for the people of the North-east. It reminded them of the Air Force strikes on Mizoram two decades ago to fight insurgency in that state. It would be a sad day when the Armed Forces that are trained to dismiss an external enemy are used to fight fellow Indians to the finish. It is time for the Indian state to do a reality check and discover its own culpability in the creation of avoidable conflicts across large swathes. The state needs to determine why large stretches are today ungovernable, much like the Taliban-ruled areas of Afghanistan.
Patnaik mum on Senators’ concern over Kandhamal
BHUBANESWAR, 13 OCT: The BJP today demanded a statement from the Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh and chief minister Mr Naveen Patnaik on the letter written by 21 US Senators expressing their ‘concern’ over Kandhamal riots of 2008.
Talking to reporters here today BJP state unit leaders Mr Nayan Mohanty and Mr Ashok Sahu said it was shocking that CM Mr Naveen Patnaik has remained mum over the entire matter which smells of a ‘international conspiracy to defame Orissa’. The Senators had written to the CM and the matter was widely reported by the media, yet Mr Patnaik who cries hoarse and writes letters so frequently has not yet reacted, charged Mr Sahu. Ever since the Kandhamal riots of 2008, we have been suspecting an ‘international conspiracy’ and this has proved us correct, stated Mr Sahu. He wondered why the US Senators had raked up the issue at a time when a judicial probe was on and bombs as well as arms were found in rehabilitation colonies at Kandhamal. “Why is the CM silent, we are told he has not received the letter, but he must have read about it in newspapers,” remarked Mr Sahu.
The depositions before the judicial commission have reflected matters relating to conversion and many sensitive issues , he noted. The international community was quick to damn India when the riots took place, they said it was a shame and today again there is an attempt to tarnish the image of the state, charged Mr Sahu who had contested the LS seat of Kandhamal on a BJP ticket. ;SNS
When the queen invited Bollywood dancers to Buckingham Palace ...
London: After honouring a Bhangra singer and choosing Sikhs to be her personal bodyguards, Britain's reigning monarch has notched up another first by hosting a racy Bollywood dance in her gentle royal residence.
Queen Elizabeth II (2ndL) meets dancers, after having watched a performance by Nutkhut, a London-basedBritish-Indian dance company, who had presented an extract of Bollywood Steps, during a reception on October 13, 2009 inside the ballroom of Buckingham Palace in central London.
Queen Elizabeth II, her husband Prince Phillip and Princess Michael of Kent were among British royals who watched dancers from the British Asian group Nutkhut swing to the throbbing rhythms of Bollywood tunes in steps that could have come right out of a film set in Mumbai.
The event, an advance reception in honour of the October-end visit by President Pratibha Patil, was held Tuesday in the ornate ballroom in Buckingham Palace - the largest of its 775 rooms and one that is more used to hosting stately dinners than Bollywood shows.
Stood under a 30-ft domed red velvet canopy used at the 1911 coronation durbar of King George V and Queen Mary in Delhi, some 350 invited guests watched a dance that was described by its creator as "really sexy and hot".
One guest called it "progress".
"I was watching the performance and thinking this is the place where the head of state has sat and received people," said Meera Syal, a well-known actor of Indian origin.
Maruti, Hyundai keep up festive cheer
Domestic car sales recorded their eight consecutive jump in September. Figures released by the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (Siam) said that car sales in India grew 21% in September at 1.29 lakh units as against 1.07 lakh units in the same month last year. Thirteen of the 16 car carmakers saw sales going up in September, the exceptions being Mahindra Renault, Mercedes Benz and Toyota Kirloskar.
In the first half of the financial year, local car sales have increased 14.8% to 689,339 vehicles. In August, car sales were up 26%, while July saw a 31% jump. The resurgence in demand has been led by government's stimulus packages, including tax cuts, apart from lowering of interest rates by banks who till last year were hawkish in extending loans, which were also expensive.
Maruti Suzuki India
India's biggest carmaker posted a 12% sales increase in passenger car sales to 71,368 units compared with 63,917 units in 2008.
Sales of the company's once bread-and-butter model M800 declined by 7.5% at 3,207 units compared to 3,467 units in September 2008, while the A2 segment (comprising Alto, Wagon R, Estilo, Swift, A-Star and Ritz) witnessed growth of 15.1% at 52,508 units compared to 45,621 units in the same month a year ago, the company said in a press release.
The A3 segment sales (consisting of SX4 and DZiRE) decreased 0.8% to 7,356 units compared to 7,413 units in the corresponding period last year, the company said. The production of its mid-sized Sedan SX4 was halted during the month for a change over to an upgraded version.
Armed Forces Special Powers Act:A study in National Security tyranny |
1. INTRODUCTIONThe Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act of 1958 (AFSPA) is one of the more draconian legislations that the Indian Parliament has passed in its 45 years of Parliamentary history. Under this Act, all security forces are given unrestricted and unaccounted power to carry out their operations, once an area is declared disturbed. Even a non-commissioned officer is granted the right to shoot to kill based on mere suspicion that it is necessary to do so in order to "maintain the public order". The AFSPA gives the armed forces wide powers to shoot, arrest and search, all in the name of "aiding civil power." It was first applied to the North Eastern states of Assam and Manipur and was amended in 1972 to extend to all the seven states in the north- eastern region of India. They are Assam, Manipur, Tripura, Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram and Nagaland, also known as the "seven sisters". The enforcement of the AFSPA has resulted in innumerable incidents of arbitrary detention, torture, rape, and looting by security personnel. This legislation is sought to be justified by the Government of India, on the plea that it is required to stop the North East states from seceeding from the Indian Union. There is a strong movement for self-determination which precedes the formation of the Indian Union. 2. HISTORICAL BACKGROUNDAs the great Himalayan range dividing South and Central Asia runs down the east, it takes a southward curve and splits into lower hill ranges. The hills are punctuated by valleys and the valleys are washed by the rivers that drain into to the Bay of Bengal. Waves of people settled in these blue hills and green valleys at various times in history. They brought with them cultures and traditions. The new interacted with the old and evolved into the unique cultural mosaic that characterizes the region. Through the centuries, these hills and valleys have bridged South, South East, and Central Asia. On today's geo-political map, a large part of the original region constitutes the seven states of the Republic of India, but its political, economic and socio-cultural systems have always been linked with South East Asia. The great Hindu and Muslim empires that reigned over the Indian sub-continent never extended east of the Bhramaputra river. India's British colonizers were the first to break this barrier. In the early 19th century, they moved in to check the Burmese expansion into today's Manipur and Assam. The British, with the help of the then Manipur King, Gambhir Singh, crushed the Burmese imperialist dream and the treaty of Yandabo was signed in 1828. Under this treaty, Assam became a part of British India and the British continued to influence the political affairs of the region. This undue interference eventually led to the bloody Anglo- Manipuri conflict of 1891. The British reaffirmed their position but were cognizant of the ferocious spirit of independence of these people and did not administer directly but only through the King. It was during the Second World War, when the Japanese tried to enter the Indian sub-continent through this narrow corridor, that the strategic significance of the region to the Indian armed forces was realised. With the bombing of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki, a disenchanted Japanese had to retreat from Imphal and Kohima fronts, however the importance of control over the region subsequently remained a priority for the Government of India. With the end of the war, the global political map was changed over night. As the British were preparing to leave Asia, the Political Department of the British Government planned to carve out a buffer state consisting of the Naga Hills, Mikir Hills, Sadiya Area, Balipara Tract, Manipur, Lushai Hills, Khasi and Hills in Assam, as well as the Chin Hills and the hills of northern Burma. The impending departure of the British created confusion and turmoil over how to fill the political vacuum they would leave behind. Ultimately, the various territories were parceled out to Nehru's India, Jinnah's Pakistan, Aung Sang's Burma and Mao's China according to strategic requirements. As expected, there were some rumblings between the new Asiatic powers on who should get how much - India and Burma over Kabow valley, India and East Pakistan over Chittagong Hill Tracts, and India and China over the North-East Frontier Agency (NEFA), present day Arunachal Pradesh. Compromises were made, and issues were finally settled in distant capitals, to the satifaction of the new rulers. The people who had been dwelling in these hills and valleys for thousands of years were systematically excluded from the consultation process. The Indian share of the British colonial cake in this region constitutes the present "Seven Sisters" states of the North-East. Over the years, thanks to the British, the advent of western education and contact with new ideas brought about the realization that the old ways had to give way to the new. Indigenous movements evolved as the people aspired to a new social and political order. For example, in the ancient Kingdom of Manipur, under the charismatic leadership of Hijam Irabot, a strong popular democratic movement against feudalism and colonialism was raging. After the departure of the British, the Kingdom of Manipur was reconstituted as a constitutional monarchy on modern lines by passing the Manipur Constitution Act, 1947. Elections were held under the new constitution. A legislative assembly was formed. In 1949, Mr V P Menon, a senior representative of the Government of India, invited the King to a meeting on the pretext of discussing the deteriorating law and order situation in the state at Shillong. Upon his arrival, the King was allegedly forced to sign under duress the merger agreement. The agreement was never ratified in the Manipur Legislative Assembly. Rather, the Assembly was dissolved and Manipur was kept under the charge of a Chief Commissioner. There were protests, but the carrot-and-stick policy launched by the Indian Government successfully suppressed any opposition. The Naga MovementAt the beginning of the century, the inhabitants of the Naga Hills, which extend across the Indo-Burmese border, came together under the single banner of Naga National Council (NNC), aspiring for a common homeland and self-governance. As early as 1929, the NNC petitioned the Simon Commission, which was examining the feasibility of future of self-governance of India. The Naga leaders were adamantly against Indian rule over their people once the British pulled out of the region. Mahatma Gandhi publicly announced that the Nagas had every right to be independent. His assertion was based on his belief in non-violence, he did not believe in the use of force or an unwilling union. Under the Hydari Agreement signed between NNC and British administration, Nagaland was granted protected status for ten years, after which the Nagas would decide whether they should stay in the Union or not. However, shortly after the British withdrew, independent India proclaimed the Naga Territory as part and parcel of the new Republic. The NNC proclaimed Nagaland's independence. In retaliation, Indian authorities arrested the Naga leaders. An armed struggle ensued and there were large casualties on either side. The Armed Forces Special Powers Act is the product of this tension. In 1975, some Naga leaders held talks with the Government of India which resulted in what is known as the Shillong Accord. The Naga leaders who did not agree with the Shillong accord formed the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN) and continue to fight for what they call," Naga sovereignty". Problems of IntegrationMuch of this historical bloodshed could have been avoided if the new India had lived up to the democratic principles enshrined in its Constitution and respected the rights of the nationalities it had taken within its borders. But in the over-zealous efforts to integrate these people into the "national mainstream", based on the dominant brahminical Aryan culture, much destruction has been done to the indigenous populations. Culturally, the highly caste ridden, feudal society is totally incompatible with the ethics of North-East cultures which are by and large egalitarian. To make matters even worse, the Indian leaders found it useful to club these ethnic groups with the adivasis (indigenous peoples) of the sub-continent, dubbing them "scheduled tribes". As a result, in the casteist Indian social milieu, indigenous peoples are stigmatized by higher castes. The languages of the North-East are of the Tibeto- Chinese family rather than the Indo-Aryan or Dravidian. Until the recent Eighth Schedule of the Indian Constitution, none of the Tibeto- Chinese languages were recognized as Indian languages. The predominantly mongoloid features of the people of the North-East is another barrier to cultural assimilation. Politically dependent, the North East is being economically undermined; the traditional trade routes with South East Asia and Bangladesh have been closed. It was kept out of the Government of India's massive infrastructural development in the first few five-year-plans. Gradually, the region has become the Indian capitalist's hinterland, where local industries have been reduced to nothing and the people are now entirely dependent on goods and businesses owned predominantly by those from the Indo- Gangetic plains. The economic strings of this region are controlled by these, in many cases, unscrupulous traders. All the states of the North-East are connected to India by the "chicken's neck", a narrow corridor between Bangladesh and Bhutan. At partition, the area was cut off from the nearest port of Chittagong, in what is now Bangladesh, reducing traffic to and from the region to a trickle. The states in the region are largely unconnected to India' vast rail system. India freely exploits the natural resources of the North-East. Assam produces one-fourth of all the petroleum for India, yet it is processed outside of Assam so the state does not receive the revenues. Manipur is 22% behind the national average for infrastructural development, and the entire North-Eastern region is 30% behind the rest of India. Observers have pointed out that "...it is clear that in the North East, insurgency and underdevelopment have been closely linked; in such a situation strong-arm tactics will only help to further alienate the people." The shifting demographic balance due to large-scale immigration from within and outside the country is another source of tension. The indigenous people fear that they will be outnumbered by outsiders in their own land. Laborers from Bihar and Bengal who live under rigidly feudal, casteist socio-economic conditions in their states are ready to do all kinds of menial jobs at much lower wages. As they pour in, more and more local laborers are being edged out of their jobs. Illegal immigration from Bangladesh and Nepal is also percieved as a threat. In Tripura, the indigenous population has been reduced to a mere 28% of the total population of the state because of large scale immigration from then East Pakistan and now Bangladesh. In Assam, a similar fear of " immigrant invasion" was at the root of a student movement in the early eighties. The student leaders formed a political party called the Assam Gana Parisad (AGP) and contested state elections and won. In 1984, the Assam Accord was signed with the Central Government. However, the provisions of the Accord were never implemented. The failure of the AGP to bring about change in the state of Assam fostered the growth of the armed and overtly seccessionist United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA). MizoramIn the Lushai hills of Assam in the early sixties, a famine broke out. A relief team cried out for help from the Government of India. But there was little help. The relief team organized themselves into the Mizo National Front (MNF) and called for an armed struggle, " to liberate Mizoram from Indian colonialiasm." In February 1966, armed militant groups captured the town of Aizawl and took possession of all government offices. It took the Indian army one week to recapture the town. The army responded viciously with air raids. This is the only place in India where the Indian Security Forces actually aerially bombed its own civilian population. The armed forces compelled people to leave their homes and dumped them on the roadside to set up new villages, so that the armed forces would be able to better control them. This devastated the structure of Mizo society. In 1986, the Mizo Accord was signed between the MNF and the Government of India. This accord was identical to the Shilong Accord made with the Nagas earlier. The MNF agreed to work within the Indian Constitution and to renounce violence. The Government of India's primary interest in the North East was strategic, and so was its response to the problems. A series of repressive laws were passed by the Government of India in order to deal with this uprising. In 1953, the Assam Maintenance of Public Order (Autonomous District) Regulation Act was passed. It was applicable to the then Naga Hills and Tuensang districts. It empowered the Governor to impose collective fines, prohibit public meetings and and detain anybody without a warrant. On 22 May 1958, a mere 12 days after the Budget Session of Parliament was over, the Armed Forces (Assam-Manipur) Special Powers Ordinance was passed. A bill was introduced in the Monsoon session of Parliament that year. Amongst those who cautioned against giving such blanket powers to the Army included the then Deputy Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, (Upper House of the Indian Parliament), Mr P N Sapru. In a brief discussion that lasted for three hours in the Lok Sabha and for four hours in the Rajya Sabha, Parliament approved the Armed Forces (Assam- Manipur) Special Powers Act with retrospective from 22 May 1958. 3. THE ACT AND ITS PROVISIONSSection 1: This section states the name of the Act and the areas to which it extends (Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Tripura, Arunachal Pradesh and Mizoram). Section 2: This section sets out the definition of the Act, but leaves much un-defined. Under part (a) in the 1972 version, the armed forces were defined as "the military and Air Force of the Union so operating". In the 1958 version of the Act the definition was of the "military forces and the air forces operating as land forces". In the Lok Sabha Debates which led to the passing of the original Act, Mr Naushir Bharucha commented, "that probably means that the Government very mercifully has not permitted the air forces to shoot or strafe the area ... or to bomb." The Minister of Home Affairs did not confirm this interpretation, but certainly "acting as land forces" should rule out the power to resort to aerial bombardment. Nevertheless, in 1966, the Air Force in Mizoram did resort to aerial bombardment. Section 2(b) defines a "disturbed area" as any area declared as such under Clause 3 (see discussion below). Section 2(c) states that all other words not defined in the AFSPA have the meanings assigned to them in the Army Act of 1950. Section 3: This section defines "disturbed area" by stating how an area can be declared disturbed. It grants the power to declare an area disturbed to the Central Government and the Governor of the State, but does not describe the circumstances under which the authority would be justified in making such a declaration. Rather, the AFSPA only requires that such authority be "of the opinion that whole or parts of the area are in a dangerous or disturbed condition such that the use of the Armed Forces in aid of civil powers is necessary." The vagueness of this definition was challenged in Indrajit Barua v. State of Assam case. The court decided that the lack of precision to the definition of a disturbed area was not an issue because the government and people of India understand its meaning. However, since the declaration depends on the satisfaction of the Government official, the declaration that an area is disturbed is not subject to judicial review. So in practice, it is only the government's understanding which classifies an area as disturbed. There is no mechanism for the people to challenge this opinion. Strangely, there are acts which define the term more concretely. In the Disturbed Areas (Special Courts) Act, 1976, an area may be declared disturbed when "a State Government is satisfied that (i) there was, or (ii) there is, in any area within a State extensive disturbance of the public peace and tranquility, by reason of differences or disputes between members of different religions, racial, language, or regional groups or castes or communities, it may ... declare such area to be a disturbed area." The lack of precision in the definition of a disturbed area under the AFSPA demonstrates that the government is not interested in putting safeguards on its application of the AFSPA. The 1972 amendments to the AFSPA extended the power to declare an area disturbed to the Central Government. In the 1958 version of the AFSPA only the state governments had this power. In the 1972 Lok Sabha debates it was argued that extending this power to the Central Government would take away the State's authority. In the 1958 debates the authority and power of the states in applying the AFSPA was a key issue. The Home Minister had argued that the AFSPA broadened states' power because they could call in the military whenever they chose. The 1972 amendment shows that the Central Government is no longer concerned with the state's power. Rather, the Central Government now has the ability to overrule the opinion of a state governor and declare an area disturbed. This happened in Tripura, when the Central Government declared Tripura a disturbed area, over the opposition of the State Government. In the 1972 Lok Sabha debates, Mr S D Somasundaram pointed out that there was no need to extend this power to the Central Government, since the President had "the power to intervene in a disturbed State at any time" under the Constitution. This point went unheeded and the Central Government retains the power to apply the AFSPA to the areas it wishes in the Northeast. Section 4: This section sets out the powers granted to the military stationed in a disturbed area. These powers are granted to the commissioned officer, warrant officer, or non-commissioned officer, only a jawan (private) does not have these powers. The Section allows the armed forces personnel to use force for a variety of reasons. The army can shoot to kill, under the powers of section 4(a), for the commission or suspicion of the commission of the following offenses: acting in contravention of any law or order for the time being in force in the disturbed area prohibiting the assembly of five or more persons, carrying weapons, or carrying anything which is capable of being used as a fire-arm or ammunition. To justify the invocation of this provision, the officer need only be "of the opinion that it is necessary to do so for the maintenance of public order" and only give "such due warning as he may consider necessary". The army can destroy property under section 4(b) if it is an arms dump, a fortified position or shelter from where armed attacks are made or are suspected of being made, if the structure is used as a training camp, or as a hide-out by armed gangs or absconders. The army can arrest anyone without a warrant under section 4(c) who has committed, is suspected of having committed or of being about to commit, a cognisable offense and use any amount of force "necessary to effect the arrest". Under section 4(d), the army can enter and search without a warrant to make an arrest or to recover any property, arms, ammunition or explosives which are believed to be unlawfully kept on the premises. This section also allows the use of force necessary for the search. Section 5: This section states that after the military has arrested someone under the AFSPA, they must hand that person over to the nearest police station with the "least possible delay". There is no definition in the act of what constitutes the least possible delay. Some case-law has established that 4 to 5 days is too long. But since this provision has been interpreted as depending on the specifics circumstances of each case, there is no precise amount of time after which the section is violated. The holding of the arrested person, without review by a magistrate, constitutes arbitrary detention. Section 6: This section establishes that no legal proceeding can be brought against any member of the armed forces acting under the AFSPA, without the permission of the Central Government. This section leaves the victims of the armed forces abuses without a remedy. 4. LEGAL ANALYSISThe Armed Forces Special Powers Act contravenes both Indian and International law standards. This was exemplified when India presented its second periodic report to the United Nations Human Rights Committee in 1991. Members of the UNHRC asked numerous questions about the validity of the AFSPA, questioning how the AFSPA could be deemed constitutional under Indian law and how it could be justified in light of Article 4 of the ICCPR. The Attorney General of India relied on the sole argument that the AFSPA is a necessary measure to prevent the secession of the North Eastern states. He said that a response to this agitation for secession in the North East had to be done on a "war footing." He argued that the Indian Constitution, in Article 355, made it the duty of the Central Government to protect the states from internal disturbance, and that there is no duty under international law to allow secession. This reasoning exemplifies the vicious cycle which has been instituted in the North East due to the AFSPA. The use of the AFSPA pushes the demand for more autonomy, giving the peoples of the North East more reason to want to secede from a state which enacts such powers and the agitation which ensues continues to justify the use of the AFSPA from the point of view of the Indian Government. A) INDIAN LAWThere are several cases pending before the Indian Supreme Court which challenge the constitutionality of the AFSPA. Some of these cases have been pending for over nine years. Since the Delhi High Court found the AFSPA to be constitutional in the case of Indrajit Barua and the Gauhati High court found this decision to be binding in People's Union for Democratic Rights, the only judicial way to repeal the act is for the Supreme Court to declare the AFSPA unconstitutional. It is extremely surprising that the Delhi High Court found the AFSPA constitutional given the wording and application of the AFSPA. The AFSPA is unconstitutional and should be repealed by the judiciary or the legislature to end army rule in the North East.
B) INTERNATIONAL LAWUnder relevant international human rights and humanitarian law standards there is no justification for such an act as the AFSPA. The AFSPA, by its form and in its application, violates the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (the "UDHR"), the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (the "ICCPR"), the Convention Against Torture, the UN Code of Conduct for Law Enforcement Officials, the UN Body of Principles for Protection of All Persons Under any form of Detention, and the UN Principles on Effective Prevention and Investigation of Extra- legal and summary executions. A UDHR argument would just be repetitive with ICCPR so SAHRDC has not done it but the UDHR articles which the AFSPA violates are the following: 1 - Free and Equal Dignity and rights, 2 - Non- discrimination, 3 - Life, liberty, security of person, 5 - no torture, 7 - equality before the law, 8 - effective remedy, 9 - no arbitrary arrest, 17 - property.
5. CONCLUSIONSThe Supreme Court of India reached a low for its lack of enforcement of fundamental rights in the Jabalpur case of 1975. The country was in a state of emergency and the high courts had concluded that although the executive could restrict certain rights, people could still file habeas corpus claims. The Supreme Court rejected this conclusion and said the high court judges had substituted their suspicion of the executive for "frank and unreserved acception of the proclamation of emergency." Noted Legal luminary, H M Seervai notes that this shows the lack of judicial detachment. Indeed, it exemplifies a deference to the executive which leaves the people with no enforcement of their constitutional rights. Jabalpur has since been deemed an incorrect decision, but it remains an apt example of the judiciary's submission to the executive. The Supreme Court has avoided a Constitutional review for over 9 years, the amount of time the principal case has been pending. The Court is not displaying any judicial activism on this Act. The Lok Sabha in the 1958 debate acknowledged that if the AFSPA were unconstitutional, it would be for the Supreme Court to determine. The deference of the Delhi High Court to the legislature in the Indrajit case also demonstrates a lack of judicial independence. The Basic Principles on the Independence of the Judiciary was adopted by the seventh UN Congress on the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders and was also adopted by the UN General Assembly. Principle 2 of this document says, "The judiciary shall decide matters before them impartially, on the basis of facts and in accordance with the law, without any restrictions, improper influences, inducements, pressure, threats or interferences, direct or indirect, from any quarter or for any reason." The Indian judicial system is not subject to direct interference. It seems to function independently, but under the surface it is possible to discern indirect pressure. For example, the practice of appointing retired judges to commissions may well influence judges while they are on the bench. There may not be direct pressure to render decisions favorable to the executive, but certainly a judge who has "towed the government line" is more likely to be appointed by that same government to a position of prominence upon retirement. Moreover, there is an absence of creative legal thinking. When the Guwahati High Court was presented with international law argument in People's Union for Democratic Rights, the court ignored it. Justice Raghuvir said in a personal interview that the court could not use international law. If the government has signed an international convention like the ICCPR which requires the government to guarantee rights to its citizens, how can these be enforced if the judiciary does not turn to the text of the convention in its rendering of decisions? The courts are not turning to the spirit of the law which guarantees the fundamental right to life to all people and as a result violations of human rights go unchecked. The UN Special Rapporteur on the Independence and Impartiality of the Judiciary, Jurors and Assessors and the Independence of Lawyers, Mr Param Cumaraswamy, stated in the 51st Session of the Commission on Human Rights on 10 February 1995, at the United Nations in Geneva that," The power of judicial review is vital for the protection of the rule of law." He also quoted from Mr L M Singhvi's 1985 report that "the strength of legal institutions is a form of insurance for the rule of law and for the observance of human rights and fundamental freedoms and for preventing the denial and miscarriage of justice." 6. RECOMMENDATIONSThe only way to guarantee that the human rights abuses perpetrated by the armed forces in the North East cease is to both repeal the AFSPA and remove the military from playing a civil role in the area. Indeed with 50% of the military forces in India acting in a domestic role, through internal security duties, there is a serious question as to whether the civil authority's role is being usurped. As long as the local police are not relied on they will not be able to assume their proper role in law enforcement. The continued presence of the military forces prevents the police force from carrying out its functions. This also perpetuates the justification for the AFSPA. Among the recommendations made by the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, from 1994 was the statement that "Governments which have been maintaining states of emergency in force for many years should lift them, limit their effects or review the custodial measures that affect many persons, and in particular should apply the principle of proportionality rigorously." The National Human Rights Commission is now reviewing the AFSPA. Hopefully, the NHRC will find that the AFSPA is unconstitutional and will submit this finding to the Supreme Court to influence its review of the pending cases. However, the NHRC has a very limited role. In past cases, the Supreme Court has not welcomed such intervention by the NHRC. This was evident when the NHRC attempted to intervene in the hearing against the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act (TADA). If the AFSPA is not repealed, it must at a bare minimum comply with international law and Indian law standards. This means the powers to shoot to kill under section 4(a) must be unequivocally revoked. Arrests must be made with warrants and no force should be allowed in the search and seizure procedures. Section 5 should clearly state that persons arrested under the Act are to be handed over to the police within twenty-four hours. Section 6 should be completely repealed so that individuals who suffer abuses at the hands of the security forces may prosecute their abusers. Moreover, the definition of key phrases, especially "disturbed area" must be clarified. The declaration that an area is disturbed should not be left to the subjective opinion of the Central or State Government. It should have an objective standard which is judicially reviewable. Moreover, the declaration that an area is disturbed should be for a specified amount of time, no longer than six months. Such a declaration should not persist without legislative review. Armed forces should not be allowed to arrest or carry out any procedure on suspicion alone. All their actions should have an objective basis so that they are judicially reviewable. This will also assist those who file suit against the security forces. All personnel acting in a law enforcement capacity should be trained according to the UN Code of Conduct for law enforcement personnel. The instructions and training given to the armed forces should be available to the public. Complete transparency should be established so that a public accountability is rendered possible. Having the armed forces comply with the Indian CrPC would also be a bare minimum. The CrPC itself does not fully comply with international human rights standards, so making the AFSPA comply on its face with the CrPC provisions for the use of minimal force, arrest, search and seizure would only be a rudimentary step in reducing the abuses committed under the AFSPA. If the Indian Government truly believes that the only way to handle the governance of the North Eastern states is through force, then it must allow the ICRC to intervene. This can only have a calming influence. Acceptance of ICRC services would demonstrate that the fighting parties want to bring an end to the violence. The ICRC's involvement could help protect the residents of the North East who are currently trapped in the middle between insurgents and the military. Top / About SAHRDC / Action Alerts / Human Rights Features / Online Resource Centre / Publications / Home |
Police to get law and order duty: PC
Ehsan Fazili
Tribune News Service
Srinagar, October 14
With a “marked improvement” in the security situation in the state, the main responsibility of maintaining law and order is being given to the police and it will be assisted by the central paramilitary forces.
Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram announced this here today and said the presence of local police made an altogether different situation as people did realise the difference. “As and when the police is ready to take more and more responsibilities, it will be given,” the Home Minister said.
Interacting with mediapersons at the two-day All India Editors’ conference, which began here yesterday, Chidambaram said the police would be assisted by paramilitary forces in the second line, and the Army in the third line, wherever needed. He said the Army would be assisted by the BSF on and along the border.
Chidambaram said in order to take greater responsibilities, the recruitment process in the police had already been set into motion. Over 7,000 men had been recruited this year so far, while 2,000 others were undergoing training.
Replying questions, the Home Minister said the number of protests had drastically come down during the past 10 weeks and there were no Friday protests, which had become a routine for some time. “I think some forces were trying to test the mettle of the government,” he commented and added that initially there were some hiccups. He said the police and the CRPF were going through a period of re-training in handling of civilian protests for over 12 weeks, and the results would be seen ahead, he added.
Elaborating on the “marked improvement” in the security situation, the Home Minister said the situation was much better as compared to last eight to nine years, when thousands of violent incidents took place, and a large number of people killed. During the past nine months this year since the Omar Abdullah government took over, Chibambaram said 395 incidents had taken place and that was lowest in the past nine years. At least 60 civilians, 66 security forces personnel and 185 militants were killed in these incidents while security forces achieved major successes this month. The figure of 395 incidents was ‘not to be proud of’, which means more than one incident a day, but it was comparatively lesser, he said.
Meanwhile, Chidambaram met Governor NN Vohra at the Raj Bhawan here this morning.
The Governor and the Union Home Minister discussed the overall security situation in the state and important developmental issues during the meeting lasting nearly an hour.
Chidambaram, who arrived here on a two-day visit yesterday, also interacted with the participants of the All India Editors’ Conference here today before his departure to the National Capital. He also had a meeting with Congress party leaders at the PCC headquarters here last evening.
CM: Autonomy needed to address identity issue Srinagar, October 14 In his lecture on basic ingredients for peace, progress and prosperity of the state at Amity University, Noida, today, Omar said re-structuring of political arrangements was required neither as a sentimental sop nor as a concession to the secessionist propagation. “Autonomy for Jammu and Kashmir had been designed to address the genuine issues of identity, borders and governance in a consensual democracy. It prevents these issues from escalating and taking the form of nation, territory and statehood, which sow the seeds of secession,” he maintained. Giving a brief account of the historical background of the autonomous status accorded to Jammu and Kashmir in 1951 as a result of which the state enjoys its own constitution, flag and residuary powers, Omar said the basic contours of the autonomy worked out in 1951 were designed to preserve the identity of the people. “Between then and now much of this status has been eroded. This has impacted everything from political discourse to personal conduct, from economy to emotions, from society to sensibilities and from institutions to ideologies,” he added. Omar said today retaining some form of sovereignty was required to empower the people of the state not only to get a fair share of the national power and resources but also to be able to withstand and benefit from the new economic regime of globalisation, an official spokesman said. The Chief Minister said, “Much has been said about the failure of successive governments in the state and also the national governments in delivering the goods in Jammu and Kashmir. True as that may be, the fact is that the Indian civil society as well as the local civil society of Jammu and Kashmir has not played its role in bringing about peace and prosperity in the stae. The political distancing of Jammu and Kashmir from the Indian state is directly linked to the disengagement of the civil society”. Omar said the state had never occupied the mental space of the Indian civil society quite the same way as it had in the political arena. “It needs to do so now,” he added. He said for the vast majority of people in India, it was either a beautiful place to visit or a dangerous place not to be visited. |
Talks with separatists must deliver results: Farooq Jammu, October 14 The dialogue process should address the core issue and it hardly matters if the talks were conditional or unconditional, Farooq said this while responding to media queries at his Bhatindi residence here today after felicitating the under-16 cricket squad of the state that recently lifted the north-zone Poly Umarigar trophy. Chidambaram, yesterday, had hinted at resuming talks with separatists, saying Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had opened the doors of dialogue and wanted to invite people from different shades of society. He, however, expressed regret that the Centre still had to act upon four out of five reports submitted to it by working groups constituted by the Prime Minister. He hoped that in the fresh endeavour people from all shades of opinion in Kashmir would find a place so as to find an amicable solution to the problem. Farooq denied that he and his son Omar had any difference of opinion over dialogue with separatists. Omar, too, wants dialogue with separatists and I would even prefer a similar exercise started afresh between India and Pakistan, said senior Abdullah. Peace was indispensable for both countries and I am hopeful that the talks (Indo-Pak) would resume soon, he added. He also sounded optimistic of impetus to development when the Prime Minister visits the state to inaugurate Qazigund-Baramulla rail link. On China’s objections to the PM’s Arunachal visit, Farooq said the state would remain an integral part of India. |
Involve Kashmiri Pandits for ‘meaningful dialogue’ Jammu, October 14 According to a statement issued here, chairman of the APMCC Vinod Pandit said the Centre had always adopted an appeasement policy towards separatists, while nationalist Kashmiri Pandits were always ignored. He said: “Without the participation of the Kashmiri Pandit community, no dialogue would be meaningful as they are more concerned for any solution of the Kashmir issue.” Pandit warned that the community won’t sit silent if they were ignored during the PM’s visit to Kashmir. He said since the government had already constituted the Apex Committee of Kashmiri Pandit leaders they must be involved in any dialogue taking place over Kashmir. |
CBI probe into Rajnish’s death Jammu, October 14 And if we did not get justice from the Prime Minister, me, my mother-in-law Raj Kumari and brother-in-law Pawan Sharma would immolate ourselves, the widow of Rajnish, Anchal Sharma, aka Amina Yousuf, told mediapersons here this afternoon. Rajnish Sharma, 29, died in the Srinagar police custody on October 5 evening after he was picked up from the Rehari residence of his elder brother Pawan on September 29 on the charges of kidnapping Amina Yousuf. Rajnish had married Anchal Sharma before a Jammu court on August 21 and the same day the couple had solemnised the marriage in an Arya Samaj Mandir here. The grief-stricken family has refused to accept a compensation of Rs 3 lakh and two jobs being offered by the state government. “I didn’t marry Rajnish for Rs 3 lakh and two jobs. I want to see the culprits, including my father Mohammed Yousuf Mirazi, brothers Tariq Ahmed and Javed Ahmed, besides guilty police officers, punished the way they killed my husband,” said Anchal. Seeking the personal intervention of Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, she said making the mockery of the law culprits were still roaming freely in Kashmir. Besides a CBI probe, she also wanted the registration of an FIR under Section 302, RPC, against her father, two brothers and police officers of Ram Munshi Bagh police station. My husband’s body bore marks of third degree torture, including burn injuries, and if the state government failed to order a CBI probe within three days, we would go to New Delhi to meet the Prime Minister, she said. Describing Rajnish’s death as murder in cold blood and the gravest form of human rights abuse, his elder brother Pawan Sharma said the government’s inaction against the ‘killers’ spoke volumes about its criminal psyche. | |
Crime branch told to probe Rajnish’s death Jammu, October 14 Accusing the SSP, Srinagar, and the SHO Munshi Bagh police station, Srinagar, of murdering her husband in police custody, she submitted that she married Rajnish Sharma on August 21, 2009, in Arya Samaj Mandir out of her free will and emotions. Her father, who enjoys considerable clout in the police administration, hatched a conspiracy when her decision to convert to Hinduism irked her family members. They succeeded in lodging a complaint against her and her husband with Munshi Bagh police station, Srinagar, in connivance with the SSP, Srinagar, and kidnapped her husband calling him Pawan Sharma. The Bakshi Nagar police in Jammu did not get Rajneesh Sharma’s identify confirmed from his relations as no Fard Jamatalashi was made. On October 6, 2009, SK Chauhan, Dy SP, asked for Pawan Sharma’s wife to intimate her about Rajnish’s death in the police station. Anchal sought a detailed investigation by the Crime Branch, considering the gravity of the offence and the involvement of police officials. | |
Mentally challenged people being ‘pushed into’ Jammu Jammu, October 14 However, the Jammu police has accuse police and residents of other states of pushing mentally challenged persons into the state through trains. “We have noticed a number of mentally challenged persons travelling to this part through trains. They are later seen roaming around in the city,” a senior police official said. Inspector of Railways Kundal said: “We have information that these mentally challenged persons are lodged on trains and sent to Jammu. A number of those cured later reveal they belong to Uttar Pradesh or Punjab, though they don’t remember how they reach here.” Not just Jammu city, there have been cases where such persons even reach the border, where some were killed after security agencies suspected them of trying to cross border. “Yes, there have been such instances with some even getting killed. But you can never say whether the killed man was a militant or not. He may be feigning loss of memory in their attempt to cross over,” an official said. A few weeks ago, a mentally challenged person was captured along the border. He was later shifted to a government hospital in Jammu for psychiatrist treatment. His identity is still not known. Many such mentally challenged persons or aimless wanderers, as the doctors prefer calling them, are seen in the city alone. The Tribune had recently carried news reports in which a girl got treated and her family, hailing from Shopian in Srinagar, identified her. World Mental Health Day was observed on October 10 all over the world. But despite a Mental Health Act, there is no foolproof system for providing treatment to people wandering on roads here. Doctors at the psychiatry hospital have told The Tribune that it was the job of the police and NGOs or public to bring the mentally challenged persons to the hospital. Police officials say whenever they do so, two or three policemen have to be deployed for guarding the patient till he is identified by his family. This takes even months, they say. | |
Special teams to make Diwali safe Udhampur, October 14 Detailed discussions were held to sensitise the inhabitants of Udhampur town regarding the safe use of fire crackers. Civil defence wardens were directed to launch a campaign in their respective wards to avoid any untoward incident. Civil defence and fire services departments also constituted special teams to educate people about precautionary measures to be taken. While the Fire Services Department has constituted mobile teams, who would be working round-the-clock, the Civil Defence Department has directed its wardens to monitor the situation properly. Meanwhile, a meeting of officers of various departments and representatives of trade unions was held under the chairmanship of Udhampur Deputy Commissioner Ajay Khajuria yesterday. It was decided that 36 stalls of firecrackers would be installed near the Town Hall, Udhampur, duly permitted by the Deputy Commissioner who sought permission before October 14. The Additional DDC was made as nodal officer in granting permission for installation of crackers stalls and monitor other related arrangements. The Udhampur SSP would deploy adequate police personnel in the town to check any untoward incident and traffic police to regulate one-way traffic in the town to avoid congestion. The DDC also asked the police to check illegal sale of crackers in the town. |
China begins building dam on its side of the Brahmaputra
| Font Size |
Pranab Dhal Samanta
Posted: Oct 15, 2009 at 0842 hrs IST
New Delhi
It’s learnt that the Zangmu hydroelectrical project was inaugurated on March 16 this year and the first concrete was poured on April 2.
The 1.138-billion Yuan (1 Yuan = $0.15) project has been awarded to a five-company consortium with China Gezhouba Group along with NIDR (China Water Northeastern investigation, design and research) involved in its construction.
Involved in its financing is the Huaneng Corporation, one of China’s biggest power companies.
From preliminary information available with India, the Chinese plan to have a series of five medium-sized dams along the river in the Nanshan region of Tibet at Zangmu, Jiacha or Gyatsa, Zhongda, Jiexu and Langzhen.
Of this, sources said, detailed information so far is available on the Zangmu dam.
This dam is expected to generate 540 MW; its height will be 116 m and length 389.5 m, it’s 19 m wide at the top and 76 m wide at the bottom.
According to information that is being circulated by companies involved in the project, the Zangmu dam is a gravity dam with water-blocking structures which could mean construction of a reservoir.
Some academic articles had set off fears of hydroelectric projects and water diversion plans on the Brahmaputra in Tibet about three years ago.
A worried India, as a lower riparian country, had taken up the matter with China. Beijing had then assured New Delhi that these were just articles in the press and “no concrete decision” had been taken.
The assumption here was that China was only looking at tributaries of the Brahmaputra but the Zangmu dam project is well after all tributaries have joined the river.
The two countries had then agreed to establish a joint mechanism for sharing technical data on rivers like the Brahmaputra and Sutlej.
This exchange, however, has been restricted to flood season data and Indian efforts to widen the scope of information-sharing have not moved forward.
China, sources said, never informed India about its plans or this specific project.
Significantly, according to information received here, the Nanshan Regional Administration issued orders as early as October 30, 2007 for evacuation of people from the area from November 1, 2007.
According to the order, the dam site will include all areas up to 3310 m above sea level and people inhabiting these heights were asked to vacate.
Earlier this month, the Gezhouba group is said to have gone public saying it had successfully completed setting up the concrete feed line.
Satellite images from February show construction activity in Zangmu and Jiacha with evidence of labour quarters.
The consequences to India from this project and the others about which little information is known — can only be ascertained if more information is shared and teams are allowed to access the site.
It’s learnt that the tendering process for this entire project is being overseen by the Three Gorges International Corporation.
Along with India, Bangladesh is another country that would be affected by dams and has often voiced concerns in this regard.
|
Asst. Treasury Sec.: Banks Back US Intervention
by Jason Ditz
October 12, 2009
http://news.antiwar.com/2009/10/12/treasury-department-at-the-center-of-us-invention-abroad/
When covering America's interventionist foreign policy, certain departments and agencies come up a lot. The Defense Department, certainly. The CIA, usually. The State Department, the NSA, the list goes on. Rarely does the Treasury Department come up, but maybe it should.
Assistant Secretary CohenSpeaking at a conference for the American Bankers Association, Assistant Secretary of the Treasury David S. Cohen went into excruciating detail about his department's role in ensuring that the American banking industry is on the front lines of fights the world over.
And it really is the world over. From propping up Mexico's government in what he called "a courageous fight against the drug cartels" to preventing Iran from "developing nuclear weapons," there appears to be no overseas endeavor in which Secretary Cohen doesn't envision a massive role for the Treasury Department, and for the ostensibly private organizations that make up the banking industry.
Though Cohen made some interesting revelations with respect to Afghanistan, including the somewhat surprising claim that the Taliban is much better financed than al-Qaeda, the bulk of his speech detailed a chilling ambition to see the banking industry pulled ever deeper into the war at home as well as abroad, and his claim that "routine suspicious activity" could be the centerpiece of uncovering international terror networks suggest that the average person's financial transactions will be under ever-increasing scrutiny.
Confronting guns of peace : Bastar faces its worst crisis by Himanshu Kumar
"Salwa Judum (Phase I) resulted in a near civil war that destroyed over 644 villages and displaced 3.5 lakh tribals in one way or the other and filled the lives of tribals with fake encounters, gangrape of tribal women, looting and burning of livestock and belongings of poor tribals, brutal suppression of any resistance or protest has become the order of the day in the name of combating Naxals. This makes us wonder whether they are still bonafide denizens of this country or have they been obliterated as people of India !?"
As I write this critical note on the worst ever crisis undivided Bastar is facing, ambushes and gun battles between para-military,
Salwa Judum and State Police forces and Naxal cadres are being played out in jungles of Dantewada and Bijapur districts of undivided Bastar
in South Chhattisgarh. To understand this crisis one needs to have a brief knowledge of the previous crises that have confronted Bastar. It
must be stated upfront that since historically this region has been a forested, tribal dominated and physically difficult terrain, it has
also been a malgoverned region ! And this malgovernance manifested itself in injustice and denial of rights for the tribals inhabiting
this region with the State eyeing it only for its mineral deposits and forest resources. This somewhere laid the ground for the crisis that
is unfolding here since June 2005.
In June 2005, as part of a larger plan to tighten control over the rich mineral and forest resources of Bastar, the State, backed by
private capital, launched a major offensive on tribals of this region and called it ironically Salwa Judum or peace movement. On the face of
it Salwa Judum was a people’s uprising for peace against Naxal violence but the hidden agenda, as is gradually unfolding, was the
corporate grabbing of resources. The sum total of four years of Salwa Judum has been the internal and forced displacement of more than 3.5
lakh people from their villages, a 30 fold escalation of violence and a 22 time swell in support base and area under control by the very
Naxals whom the Judum aimed at decimating ! But the State never learns from failures – even after unleashing the loosing battle of horrifying
violence on tribals of Bastar in name of Salwa Judum, it has launched a phase two in the name of Operation Green Hunt and Operation Godavari
in Bastar and adjacent districts of Malkangiri (Orissa). This confrontation of Bastar’s tribals with the ‘guns of peace’ will
unleash the worst crisis this region has ever seen or will ever see …. but that is only if remaining tribals ever survive these ‘guns of peace’.
So through this note I am attempting to simply analyse each strategy and act of the State and map its impact on tribals of Bastar and how counterproductively it has benefited the CPI (Maoist) party !
The State launched Salwa Judum in 2005 to counter insurgency by cadres of CPI (Maoist) or Naxalites through civil defense by recruiting and training civilians in ‘armed resistance’
But soon Salwa Judum cadres went beyond the control of para-military and police forces under whom they were supposed to function and began
looting, burning, raping, murdering and kidnapping of tribals and remained beyond any accountability due to political support
The State forcefully evicted tribals from 700 villages and dumped them in 30 odd camps built for them and cordorned by security forces –
it was protecting people from Naxal violence ! It was following the American counter insurgency strategy of ‘draining the water and
killing the fish’ …. State forgot that tribals are not fish and villages are not fish bowls !
But freedom loving and nature-dependent tribals refused to move into camps and fled for fear of being captured, tortured and then deported
to camps – reminds one of the Jewish Holocaust. While a meager 50,000 population shifted to camps, about 50,000 fled to the adjacent
district in Andhra Pradesh and Orissa where they had relatives and clan families and remaining 2.5 lakh people hid deeper in jungles
living a life of fear, hunger and death
Human rights and civil society groups watching over the State’s warfare, challenged its American copy of counter insurgency. And when
they were tried to be silenced, they went up to State High Courts and Indian Supreme Court challenging the notions and strategies of
mitigating Naxal violence and restoring peace
The State retaliated by creating an imaginary divider, obviously through corporate media houses, in the minds of the middle class. If
you are in its camps, you are with the State and if you are in the jungles, then you are Naxalite …. thus declaring the 2.5 lakh tribals
hiding in the jungles as Naxalites and thereby justifying training its guns of peace on them ! And another divider declared anyone supporting
the ‘Naxal tribals’ as Maoist sympathizers or informers and liable to imprisonment and torture under the draconian Public Securities Act. It
unjustly put activists who questioned it behind bars or bulldozed their premises, not even soaring sources of drinking water or simply
diverted them by bribing them with funds, contracts and opportunities for sharing the great wealth created through Salwa Judum !
Indian Supreme Court, hearing out petitioners against Salwa Judum ordered the State to reconsider its civil defense strategy and stop
evicting tribals from villages. Instead it asked the State to launch a rehabilitation drive to resettle tribals, provide them with basic
services and entitlements and asses damages to life and property. This damage assessment was to be followed by compensation and registering
of criminal cases against the offenders, in particular Salwa Judum and para-military forces. This was aimed at cleaning up the mess of Salwa
Judum and starting afresh all attempts at just and democratic governance.
The State responded by blatantly violating the Supreme Court orders,speaking white lies before Court when questioned about its inaction.
It neither attempted rehabilitation efforts nor set up district and State committees to look into damage assessment or filing of cases
against offenders and also it did not make any attempts at rethinking its strategies. Rather it continued its forced evictions, its looting,
burning, rape, kidnap and murder and printed in bold letters its justification of continuing Salwa Judum. In fact it even went a step
further by sabotaging and blocking any civil society attempts at rehabilitation, damage assessment and filing of cases against
offenders. It used the Public Securities Act against volunteers working for the rehabilitation of internally displaced tribals !
Tribals who fled their villages and hid in jungles are still living
nomadic and terrorized lives. In the face of an inhuman onslaught on
them, they clung to the only support they got in the forests …. that
of the Maoists who appeared more human to them than persecuting State
forces ?! Their attempts at seeking justice and dignity as citizens of
this country were met with arrests and abuses. Their faith in the
State dwindled and converted into anger and despair. It was therefore
natural for them to pick up their traditional weapons in their
self-defence because the State had left no option before them
How did the State respond ? Whenever tribals came seeking justice
through democratic and legal means, their FIRs were not registered,
their court cases were dismissed without a hearing and they were
arrested for being Naxalites. And any sympathetic judge or officer to
the tribal cause was either sent on forced leave or transferred out.
No one was ready to listen …. not even local mediapersons who
benefited from State dole outs of contracts, advertisements and
general patronage. National media too ignored the Bastar question or
made half-hearted attempts at covering truth because they were
bankrolled by corporates eyeing the mineral and forest resources of
Bastar ! How could they let the cat out of the bag and lock out
opportunities of profiteering ? Tribals were isolated and rendered
helpless
In such a complex situation of denial and injustice, the State has
been expecting tribals to show loyalty to it, abide by its laws and
support it in restoring peace. These expectations could be justified
and binding on tribals had the State shown respect for the same
virtues !
The State talks of loyalty when it has itself distrusted its own
tribal citizens and branded them Naxals when they have come seeking
justice at its doors … State talks of abiding by its laws when it has
itself made a mockery of its own laws – holding Gram Sabhas at gun
point to coerce tribals into giving away their lands to mining
corporations, subverting laws protecting the tribals’ rights to land
and forests as stated in PESA, disrespecting Supreme Court’s orders to
rehabilitate villages, deliver entitlements and services, co-opting
judiciary, executive and legislature to ratify and justify violence
and terror by its forces and so on. In fact the State has been
attacking its poor to secure the interests of the rich and still it
expects the poor to abide by, put faith in it and support it ? There
are thousands of cases where the law of the land has been bent
backwards to accommodate corporate interests but when it comes to
tribals State puts on false pretence of legal systems and democracy !
The State wants tribals to help it in restoring peace – but when did
the State believe that peace was possible without justice or that
tribals could make peace with guns firing around them – does the State
believe that tribals will confront its guns of peace without first
arming themselves in their self-defence ? And what peace is the State
talking of restoring – had it wanted peace it would have allowed
rehabilitation, it would have allowed the nation to know the truth of
Bastar, it would have respected its laws and would have adhered to the
democratic governance systems it has put in place ??
Despite all that I have stated above (not that people in the State do
not know what I have stated ?), the State has launched its second
Salwa Judum through its strategic military operations called Green
Hunt (hunting whom ?) and Godavari. But what will be the net impact of
this Salwa Judum II ? The same, if not worse. The crisis will just
deepen, the tribals will get further terrorized, Naxals will further
consolidate their support base and area under control and voices of
sanity among civil society and human rights groups will further get
silenced and decimated. This military offensive will only isolate the
tribals more and they will begin to look upon every non-tribal as an
aggressor. And do we believe that in such a situation peace and
democracy can prevail ? Thus military operation will simply push
democracy further away and endanger the Indian socio-political system.
Thus, as tribals continue resisting corporate grab of land and
resources in the garb of Salwa Judum and Operation Green Hunt, State
repression will just rise manifold. One must remember that it is not
as if repression never happened but it has got heightened with dash of
corporates to set up mining and industrial units while the great
global market goes booming. Corporates are just making hay while the
sun is shining and all this at expenses of the State ! And Governments
have also readily complied by disposing off their socialist agenda to
follow routes tread by private capital. And to make this a reality,
these proxy wars are being fought on tribal territory.
But who really will be targeted ? Not Naxals who are deft at guerilla
warfare and will escape bullets of Salwa Judum and para military
forces. It will be the tribals who will be caught in the crossfire.
Salwa Judum (Phase I) resulted in a near civil war that destroyed over 644 villages and displaced 3.5 lakh tribals in one way or the other and filled the lives of tribals with fake encounters, gangrape of tribal women, looting and burning of livestock and belongings of poor tribals, brutal suppression of any resistance or protest has become the order of the day in the name of combating Naxals. This makes us wonder whether they are still bonafide denizens of this country or
have they been obliterated as people of India !?
We have gone to villages to understand the truth behind encounters,
have interviewed dozens of tribal women gangraped or enslaved for
months by Salwa Judum and para military forces and witnessed the total
demolition of my house and office premises because we dared to expose
these acts of violence through several cases filed in Chhattisgarh
High Court. Is this the democracy and tribal development our
Governments want us to espouse? I shudder to think what will be the
outcome of Salwa Judum (Phase II) …….. yet another fake encounters,
yet more gangrapes and yet more souls gone down fighting injustice and
repression in the name of peace and democracy ?
But for how long are tribals going to bear the brunt of a brutal and
inhuman police force? For how long will tribals stand in the crossfire
between Naxals, a militarized State and a demonized police? For how
long will middle class ‘bhadralok’ remain silent spectators to State’s
colonization of tribal territory to subsidize urban growth in the name
of ‘tribal development‘ ? And for how long will we look on helplessly
as tribals get butchered, raped and exterminated? We believe that some
day the tribal specter will rise and fall heavily on those who repress
loot and pauperize them. But who will get sacrificed and who will
survive? The fittest … as Darwin eulogized evolution? The question is
who is fitter – you and me who enjoy privileges of a subsidized
consumer culture or tribals whom we have hanged giving them the name
of savage, backward and poor ? I guess we all know the answers …. but
don’t want to articulate it, preferring to ignore it exists. But we
cannot so this and so we strive to call the State’s bluff and turn
every stone in our path in the attempt to bring justice, peace,
dignity and democracy into Bastar so that we never have to confront
the guns of peace !
Himanshu Kumar
Vanvasi Chetna Ashram
Dantewada
vcadantewada@ gmail.com
Mobile – 09425260031
Statement from national platform of adivasi and forest dwellers’ mass
organisations (Campaign for Survival and Dignity) on Government
offensive
Posted by indianvanguard2010 on October 13, 2009
October 12 2009
A Pretext to Impose Brutal Repression: the Government’s “Offensive” Is
a Formula for Bloodshed and Injustice
The Campaign for Survival and Dignity, a national platform of adivasi
and forest dwellers’ mass organisations (listed below) from ten
States, unequivocally condemns the reported plans for a military
“offensive” by the government in the country’s major forest and tribal
areas. This offensive, ostensibly targeted against the CPI (Maoist),
is a smoke screen for an assault against the people, especially
adivasis, aimed at suppressing all dissent, all resistance and
engineering the takeover of their resources. Certain facts make this
clear:
The government tells us that this offensive will make it possible for
the “state to function” in these areas and fill the “vacuum of
governance.”
This is grossly misleading. The Indian state is very, very active in
these areas, often in its most brutal and violent form. A vivid
example is the illegal eviction of more than 3,00,000 families by the
Forest Departments a few years ago. Laws have been totally
disregarded; Constitutional protections for adivasi rights blatantly
ignored and their rights over water, forest and land (jal, jangal,
jamin) glaringly violated. Every month an increasing number of people
are jailed, beaten and killed by the police. If this is the picture of
what “absence” of the state means, people are terrified of what the
“presence” of the state will mean. It can only mean converting
brutalized governance into militarized rule, a total negation of
democracy.
This is not a war over “development”. People’s struggles in India
today are over democracy and dignity
Meaningful development must contribute to strengthening the right of
all people to their resources and their production, and thereby to
control over their own destiny. For generations, adivasis have fought
for their Constitutional rights and entitlements. More recently, mass
democratic movements have fought for new laws and policies, such as
the Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act (PESA), the Forest
Rights Act, the right to work and the right to food, in addition to
earlier laws like the Minimum Wages Act, the Restoration of Alienated
Lands Acts, and land reform and moneylending laws. These laws make it
possible for people to fight for greater control over their lives,
their livelihoods, their lands and their forests. However these laws
are respected more in the breach; if the government wants
“development”, let it first stop the blatant disregard of its own
laws. Let people determine the path of their own development, in
accordance with their rights over their resources and the type of
infrastructure they desire. The Constitution itself requires this kind
of planning. The claim that “development” can be provided through
military force is both absurd and ridiculous.
This war is not about “national security”; it is about ‘securing’ the
interests of global and Indian capital and big business.
Any government worried about security would send its troops against
mining mafias, the forest mafias, violent vigilante groups like the
Salwa Judum and others. Rather than being curbed, these killers are in
fact supported by the police. Have the security forces ever been
deployed to defend the people struggling to protect themselves, their
forests, their livelihoods and their futures? The answer is no. The
notion of “security” being advanced by the government clearly has
nothing to do with the people. Rather, it is to enable big business to
engage in robbery and expropriation of resources, which they have
decided will be one of their main sources of accumulation. Hence,
mining, “infrastructure” , real estate, land grabbing, all aimed at
super-profits, are being projected as “development” needed by the
people. Huge amounts of international and government money are being
pumped into so-called “forestry projects” which displace people from
their lands and destroy biodiversity (even while they are trumpeted as
a strategy for climate change). The UPA is rushing into agreements
with the US and other imperial countries to throw open mining and land
to international exploitation. But where do the forests, land, water
and minerals lie? They are found in the forest and tribal areas, where
people – some organised under the CPI (Maoist), some organized under
democratic movements, some in spontaneous local struggles, some simply
fighting in whatever manner they can – are resisting the destruction
of their homes, resources and their lives. The “offensive against the
Maoists” is only a subterfuge to crush this citizens’ resistance and
to provide an excuse for more abuse of power, more brutality and more
injustice.
The government knows perfectly well that it cannot destroy the CPI
(Maoist), or any people’s struggle, through military action.
How can the armed forces identify who is a “Maoist” and who is not?
The use of brute military force will result in the slaughter of
thousands of people in prolonged, bloody and brutal guerrilla warfare.
This has been the result of every “security offensive” in India’s
history from Kashmir to Nagaland. So why do this? And why now? Unless
the goal has nothing to do with “wiping out the Maoists” and
everything to do with having an excuse for the permanent presence of
lakhs of troops, arms and equipment in these areas. To protect and
serve whom?
Hence the need for fear mongering and hysteria about Maoist
“sympathisers” and their “infiltration” into “civil society.”
The government has a very long history of labeling any form of dissent
as “Naxalite” or “Maoist.” The Maoists’ politics are known; their
positions are public; the only secret aspect of their work is their
personal identities and military tactics. We who work in these areas
do not fear this bogey of “infiltration” in our groups by Maoists, for
the different stands taken by our organizations and theirs are clear,
and in some areas there are open disputes. This scaremongering is just
an excuse to justify a crackdown on all forms of dissent and
democratic protest in these areas, a crushing of all people’s
resistance, and the branding of any questioning, any demand for
justice, as “Maoist.”
In the final analysis, peace and justice will only come to India’s
workers, peasants, adivasis, dalits and other oppressed sections
through the mass democratic struggle of the people. A democratic
struggle requires democratic space. The conversion of a region into a
war zone, by anyone, is unacceptable. In the forest areas in
particular, there is now a need for a new peace, one that can only be
achieved through a genuine democratic dialogue between the political
forces involved. For this to happen, this horrific “offensive” must
first be called off. If the government really wishes to claim that it
is committed to protecting people and their rights, let its actions
comply with the requirements of law, justice and democracy.
Endorsing organisations
Bharat Jan Andolan
National Front for Tribal Self Rule
Jangal Adhikar Sangharsh Samiti (Mah)
Adivasi Mahasabha (Guj)
Adivasi Jangal Janjeevan Andolan (D&NH)
Jangal Jameen Jan Andolan (Raj)
Madhya Pradesh Jangal Jeevan Adhikar Bachao Andolan
Jan Shakti Sanghatan (Chat)
Peoples Alliance for Livelihood Rights
Chattisgarh Mukti Morcha
Orissa Jan Sangharsh Morcha
Campaign for Survival & Dignity (Ori)
Orissa Jan Adhikar Morcha
Adivasi Aikya Vedike (AP)
Campaign for Survival and Dignity – TN
Bharat Jan Andolan (Jhar)
'... Across a swathe of land 2,500 km long and 200 km deep, tribals face expulsion from their lands because state governments want to build dams, power stations, roads, and allow private companies to build steel, chemicals, automobile plants and aluminium smelters. ...'
*A Million Mutinies Now*
*Tribal alienation in India's central forest belt has caused the Maoist resurgence*
*PREM SHANKAR JHA*, Senior Journalist
NOT LONG ago, at Lalgarh in West Bengal, the country witnessed the first fully televised confrontation between the Indian State and its subjects, in which the goal of the insurgents was not to create a separate state or country, but to capture the Indian State itself. The media coverage forced the West Bengal government to shed its ambivalence towards the Communist Party (Maoist) and launch a full-scale operation to 'liberate' Lalgarh from its grip. Heads were broken, lives were taken and hundreds of 'miscreants', mostly local tribals, were arrested and bundled into police vans for the trip to jail, while the Maoist guerrillas melted away into the forest.
After two weeks, the Lalgarh 'operation' was declared a success. The media packed their bags and left, the police came back to their abandoned and ransacked stations and the local CPM cadres began to rebuild the homes and party offices that the Maoists had destroyed.
But one question remained unanswered: How did the Maoists manage to 'liberate' Lalgarh in the first place, and why did hundreds, if not thousands, of local tribals give them their support? For that matter, what new element in New Delhi's politics and economics has made 20 squabbling groups of 'Naxalites' unite and form the single most formidable challenge that the Indian State has faced? And is it a mere coincidence that they did so in 2004, the very first year of India's present, heady, growth? If anyone asked these questions then, like Jesting Pilate, they did not wait for an answer.
Journalists live in a constant present. So they can be excused for being less than enthusiastic about 'underlying causes'. But Delhi has no such excuse, for it is becoming obvious that the Maoist revolt will seriously hamper the future growth of the country, if not stop it altogether.
Earlier this week, Lakshmi Mittal of Arcelor-Mittal announced that he was likely to withdraw from his project to set up a 24 million tonne steel plant in Jharkhand and Orissa because the state governments had not been able to provide the required land. This devastating setback is only the last of a long and growing list that includes the failed chemical complex at Nandigram, the failed Tata and POSCO steel plants in Orissa and the failed Tata Nano plant at Singur. Singur was, indeed, a beginning and an end for five other large investors who had lined up behind the Tatas to enter West Bengal.
There are other serious failures that have largely escaped the media's eyes. How many people know that 68,000 MW of private power projects were held up in 2007 because the government could not give them an assured supply of coal. The government could not do so because Coal-India's output was fully bespoken and none of the hundreds of coal prospecting licenses that state governments had issued to private prospectors had borne fruit, because of the stiff opposition of the local inhabitants who stood to lose their land.
To anyone who has spent even a week in the Maoist-affected areas, it is as plain as the nose on his or her face that land has become the key bone of contention between the State and the poor of India. As the rate of growth has spurted, the need for more land, for roads, power stations, mines and manufactories, has spurted. As land acquisitions have multiplied, and as it has become clear that the acquisition is not for a public, non-profit purpose such as building a school or a hospital, but to hand it over to other private parties to make a profit from, the determination of the oustees to fight the acquisition has hardened. The Maoist uprising is the armed spearhead of that revolt.
In the India of Gandhi, Nehru and Govind Ballabh Pant it is possible that the cry of the poor would have been heard, even when it was expressed as the crack of a rifle. But today's India is a hard State which has made economic development its new God and willingly offers up sacrifices at its altar. To quote Home Minister P Chidambaram, the Maoists must be crushed first, no matter what their cause. Redress can follow only after the rebels have deposited their arms and come into police-run camps, i.e. after they have surrendered every shred of bargaining power that they ever possessed.
The antidote to the Maoist appeal, according to him, lies in still more and better administered development, for it will create new jobs in infrastructure building, mines, industry and associated services that will more than compensate for the loss of their user rights to this land. What he seems not to have realised is that economic development is not the solution but the problem. For there can be no development without land - the industry, dams and power stations that come up on it and the minerals that lie underneath it. Free, democratic, socialist and Gandhian India is one of the few democracies that does not formally recognise the traditional rights of indigenous communities. So, for 60 years most of the tribal development has meant only expropriation and destitution.
The blindness to these rights that is displayed by the Home Ministry is part of a much larger turning away from the poor that has been taking place ever since India began to grow rapidly and a muscular urban new middle class began increasingly to dictate the political agenda. It is reflected in an increasing propensity in the State to use violence against its citizens, and an impatience with the problems of the poor, which is accurately reflected by the media. With no guarantees for their future, tribals are flocking, in desperation, to the Maoists
The rapid acceleration and privatisation of economic development has increased the pace of expropriation. For instance, within its first three years as a separate state the government of Chhattisgarh issued more than 150 licenses to private companies to prospect for minerals in the state. There has been a similar scramble for mineral exploitation rights in Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh, Orissa and the coal belt in Assam. Across a swathe of land 2,500 km long and 200 km deep, tribals face expulsion from their lands because state governments want to build dams, power stations, roads, and allow private companies to build steel, chemicals, automobile plants and aluminium smelters.
Today the Maoists have a minimum of 10,000 trained and well-armed cadres, and operate in an area covered by 4,000 out of the country's 14,000 police stations. Since they are not interested in political compromise they cannot be bargained with, only defeated. But the road to their defeat lies through recognising the rights of indigenous peoples and offering them a royalty in perpetuity for the use of their land for development, in order to make them stakeholders in development - its beneficiaries, instead of its victims.
Unfortunately, a land acquisition bill that made no more than a half-hearted attempt to give them this right is languishing in Parliament because the government is simply not interested in pushing it through.
*(This is the third of four articles that deal with the challenges before the Indian nation)*
*WRITER'S EMAIL* premjha@airtelmail.in
*From Tehelka Magazine, Vol 6, Issue 41, Dated October 17, *
Dear All, Islamophobia has replaced Judeophobia & is the scourge & a plague upon the world. The latter led to the Jewish Shoah, whilst the demon of Islamophobia is devouring millions of Muslims who continue to perish in wars. The monster fueling Islamophobia is the 'Global War on Terror' where any & every Muslim has become fair game for the State & it's increasingly communalised & fascist security police apparatus. Till we don't challenge this bogus game of 9/11's, 7/11's or 26/11's - we will be unable to win the battle. The truth of the politics of terror needs to be laid bare, or the ongoing Muslim Holocaust, that has claimed more than '6 million' lives only in Iraq & Afghanistan will only get worse.
In solidarity with the victims of all Holocausts.
Feroze
The enemy within? Fear of Islam: Britain's new disease? by Peter Oborne &
"Muslims feel like 'Jews of Europe' and the "Minister's shock warning on rise of anti-Islamic prejudice," by Ed Corrigan
by Ed CorriganBy Peter Oborne
Suspicion of the Muslim community has found its way into mainstream society – and nobody seems to care.
Islamophobia is "an outlook or world-view involving an unfounded dread and dislike of Muslims, which results in practices of exclusion and discrimination"
"I am an Islamophobe," the Guardian columnist Polly Toynbee
"There is a definite urge; don't you have it?", the author Martin Amis told Ginny Dougary of The Times: "The Muslim community will have to suffer until it gets its house in order. Not letting them travel. Deportation; further down the road. Curtailing of freedoms. Strip-searching people who look like they're from the Middle East or Pakistan. Discriminatory stuff, until it hurts the whole community and they start getting tough with their children." Here, Amis is doing much more than insulting Muslims. He is using the foul and barbarous language of fascism. Yet his books continue to sell, and his work continues to be celebrated.
Three years ago, four young suicide bombers caused carnage in London. Their aim was not just to kill and maim. There was also a long-term strategic purpose: to sow suspicion and divide Britain between Muslims and the rest. They are succeeding.
In Britain today, there is a deepening distrust between mainstream society and ever more isolated Muslim communities. A culture of contempt and violence is emerging on our streets.
Sarfraz Sarwar is a pillar of the Muslim community in Basildon, Essex. He is constantly abused and attacked, and the prayer centre he used has been burnt to the ground.
Mr Sarwar, who has six children and whose wife is matron of an old people's home, is a patently decent man. His only crime is his religious faith. He and his fellow worshippers now meet in secret to evade detection, and the attacks that would follow.
The first abuse that Mr Sarwar's family suffered was in October 2001 – just after the 9/11 attacks – when pigs' trotters were left outside their door, the walls of their house were covered with graffiti and two front windows were broken.
Since then, the family has suffered many attacks, including a failed fire-bombing. In February, the tyres of Mr Sarwar's new car were slashed; in March his windows were broken again. He has now installed CCTV cameras, replaced his wooden back door with one made of steel and erected higher fences.
An investigation for Channel 4's Dispatches programme discovered many violent episodes and attacks on Muslims, with very few reported; those that do get almost no publicity.
Last week, Martyn Gilleard, a Nazi sympathiser in East Yorkshire, was jailed for 16 years. Police found four nail bombs, bullets, swords, axes and knives in his flat. Gilleard had been preparing for a war against Muslims. In a note at his flat he had written, "I am sick and tired of hearing nationalists talking of killing Muslims, blowing up mosques and fighting back only to see these acts of resistance fail. The time has come to stop the talking and start to act."
The Gilleard case went all but unreported. Had a Muslim been found with an arsenal of weapons and planning violent assaults, it would have been a far bigger story.
There is a reason for this blindness in the media. The systematic demonisation of Muslims has become an important part of the central narrative of the British political and media class; it is so entrenched, so much part of normal discussion, that almost nobody notices. Protests go unheard and unnoticed.
Why? Britain's Muslim immigrants are mainly poor, isolated and alienated from mainstream society. Many are a different colour. As a community, British Muslims are relatively powerless. There are few Muslim MPs, there has never been a Muslim cabinet minister, no mainstream newspaper is owned by a Muslim and, as far as we are aware, only one national newspaper has a regular Muslim columnist on its comment pages, Yasmin Alibhai-Brown of The Independent.
Surveys show Muslims have the highest rate of unemployment, the poorest health, the most disability and fewest educational qualifications of any faith group in the country. This means they are vulnerable, rendering them open to ignorant and hostile commentary from mainstream figures.
Islamophobia – defined in 1997 by the landmark report from the Runnymede Trust as "an outlook or world-view involving an unfounded dread and dislike of Muslims, which results in practices of exclusion and discrimination" – can be encountered in the best circles: among our most famous novelists, among newspaper columnists, and in the Church of England.
Its appeal is wide-ranging. "I am an Islamophobe," the Guardian columnist Polly Toynbee wrote in The Independent nearly 10 years ago. "Islamophobia?" the Sunday Times columnist Rod Liddle asks rhetorically in the title of a recent speech, "Count me in". Imagine Liddle declaring: "Anti-Semitism? Count me in", or Toynbee claiming she was "an anti-Semite and proud of it".
Anti-Semitism is recognised as an evil, noxious creed, and its adherents are barred from mainstream society and respectable organs of opinion. Not so Islamophobia.
Its practitioners say Islamophobia cannot be regarded as the same as anti-Semitism because the former is hatred of an ideology or a religion, not Muslims themselves. This means there is no social, political or cultural protection for Muslims: as far as the British political, media and literary establishment is concerned the normal rules of engagement are suspended.
"There is a definite urge; don't you have it?", the author Martin Amis told Ginny Dougary of The Times: "The Muslim community will have to suffer until it gets its house in order. Not letting them travel. Deportation; further down the road. Curtailing of freedoms. Strip-searching people who look like they're from the Middle East or Pakistan. Discriminatory stuff, until it hurts the whole community and they start getting tough with their children." Here, Amis is doing much more than insulting Muslims. He is using the foul and barbarous language of fascism. Yet his books continue to sell, and his work continues to be celebrated.
And we found the language of Islamophobic columnists such as Toynbee, Liddle, or novelists such as Amis, duplicated by the British National Party and its growing band of supporters.
All over Europe, parties of the far right have been dropping their traditional hostility to minorities such as Jews and homosexuals; in Britain, the BNP has come to realise that anti-Semitism and anti-black campaigning won't work if they are serious about electoral success.
To move to mainstream respectability, they need an issue that allows them to exploit people's fears about immigrants and Britain's ethnic minority communities without being branded racist extremists.
They have found it. Since 9/11, and particularly 7/7, the BNP has gone all out to tap a rich vein of anti-Muslim sentiment. The party's leader, Nick Griffin, has described Islam as a "wicked, vicious faith" and has tried to distance himself and the party from its anti-Semitic past. Party members are now rebuked for discussing the Holocaust and told to focus on terrorism, the evils of Islam, and scare stories of Britain becoming an Islamic state.
Griffin's strategy has been inspired by the press. He said: "We bang on about Islam. Why? Because to the ordinary public out there it's the thing they can understand. It's the thing the newspaper editors sell newspapers with."
Last month, we visited Stoke-on-Trent, a BNP heartland with nine BNP councillors, a council second only to Barking and Dagenham in far-right representation. The party has made this progress in large part by mounting a vicious anti-Muslim campaign. Stoke has one of the lowest employment rates in the country since the pottery industry collapsed. The BNP has tried to link this decline to Muslim immigration.
Other campaigns have focused on planning issues over mosques, a flashpoint elsewhere too. The BNP accuses the Labour council of cutting special deals with Muslim groups in exchange for support. Wherever we explored tension between Muslims and the local community we tended to discover the BNP was present, fanning discontent.
Many categories of immigrants and foreigners have been singled out for hatred and opprobrium by mainstream society because they were felt to be threats to British identity. At times, these despised categories have included Catholics, Jews, French and Germans; gays were held to subvert decency and normality until the 1980s, blacks until the 1970s, and Jews for centuries. Now this outcast role has fallen to Muslims. And it is the perception that Muslims receive special treatment that fuels the most resentment. When we investigated clashes at a Muslim dairy in Windsor, we found the perception that police had failed to investigate what seemed to be a racist attack by Asian youths on a local woman played a powerful role in fanning resentments.
But by the same token we believe that Muslims should be given the same protection as other minority groups from insults or ignorant abuse. This protection is not available. Ordinary Muslim families are virtually a silenced minority.
We should all feel ashamed about the way we treat Muslims, in the media, in our politics, and on our streets. We do not treat Muslims with the tolerance, decency and fairness that we often like to boast is the British way. We urgently need to change our public culture.
Peter Oborne's Dispatches film, "It Shouldn't Happen to a Muslim", will be screened on Channel 4 at 8pm on Monday. The pamphlet Muslims Under Siege, by Peter Oborne and James Jones, is published next week by Democratic Audit
-------------------
"Muslims feel like 'Jews of Europe' and the "Minister's shock warning on rise of anti-Islamic prejudice,"
Two important articles on the rising Islamophobia in Britain. It is also relevant to North America. The articles are from the respected British paper The Independent.Ed Corrigan
Muslims feel like 'Jews of Europe'
AddThis
BlogAdda
Hi Friends!
No comments:
Post a Comment