10 | 1ias.

com EDITORIAL THE HINDU THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 1, 2016

NOIDA/DELHI

Republic of Unreason
If Parliament were to pass the Surrogacy Bill in its present form, the law would certainly violate the
constitutional pledge of equal treatment
reproductive technology, though, as the this law, organ trading for commercial con-
T H U R S D AY , S E P T E M B E R 1 , 2 0 1 6 Harvard Law School professor Martha A. sideration was legal. As the Andhra Pradesh
SUHRITH PARTHASARATHY Field has explained, fails for the reason that High Court observed in upholding this leg-
surrogacy involves using another persons islation, whether the law intended to pro-
body, albeit with their ostensible consent. A hibit dealing in human organs or not no
Advance In August 2011, Premila Vaghela, 30, the wife
personal right to do something, Field
wrote, does not necessarily carry over to a
one could or can deal in human organs as a
matter of right.

the Budget of a daily-wage labourer from a poor Ahme-

dabad suburb, had agreed to become a sur-
rogate mother for an American couple. She
right to enlist the assistance of another.
That surrogacy hasnt been previously regu-
lated also does not now give a person a spe-
A didactic approach
While a complete ban on surrogacy is ca-

F
ifteen years after the timing of the Union Bud-
get was advanced by six hours from 5 p.m. on
the last working day of February, the Centre is
contemplating unveiling it a month or more ahead.
This may appear to be a superfluous shift to some,
but it could significantly alter governance out-
comes if managed well. As of now, though the Bud-
get is tabled before the commencement of a new fi-
nancial year in April, its provisions often do not
become the law of the land till some time in May,
when Parliament passes the Finance Bill. So wheth-
er it is a new social sector scheme, a highway pro-
ject for which the Finance Minister has allocated
funds, or simply the transfer of funds to States,
there is little action till, say, June. Oicial expendi-
ture data confirm that spending remains particular-
ly low in the first two months of the financial year.
There is a spike in the last two quarters not just be-
cause ministries scramble to exhaust their allocat-
ed funds, but also because, for instance, the onset of
the monsoon season in June makes it diicult to ex-
ecute infrastructure projects in the second quarter.
Efectively, proposed annual capital expenditure is
rushed through from October to March rather than
through the year, creating a tardy and bumpy trans-
mission mechanism for any intended stimulus.
This now assumes greater importance especially
since in the past two years public investment has
been the governments mantra to revive growth,
and is likely to remain the key determinant of the
economys direction for a while. Whether present-
ed in the end of December or in January, a budget
endorsed by Parliament by the end of March could
allow ministries, State governments and businesses
to get down to implementation as soon as the year
begins and plan their spending based on the re-
quirement for a project rather than weather exigen-
cies. There is, of course, the challenge that the gov-
ernment may lack enough data about the state of
the economy by January, be it tax collections or
GDP numbers. So the Chief Economic Advisers
team will have to grapple with tighter deadlines to
put together the Economic Survey with less data at
its disposal. Then again, the February 28 Budget al-
so relies on revised estimates. And while Finance
Ministry mandarins may find themselves pressed
for time if Finance Minister Arun Jaitley manages
to move to an earlier Budget in 2017, the Goods and
Services Tax rollout deadline of April 2017 would
mean much less work for them at least on the indi-
rect taxes side of the Budget document. Around 51
per cent of the 738 promises in the UPAs 10 full
Budgets remained works in progress (that is, un-
met) by the time the next Budget was presented. If
switching the Budget presentation date can turn
this around, it would be well worth it.
thought that by renting her womb for money
she could provide a better education for her
own two children. But eight months into her
pregnancy, in what was meant to be a stan-
dard medical visit, she crumpled to the floor
of her doctors clinic, clutching her stomach
in agony. She died four days later. But the ba-
by survived.
Although there is no specific indication of
any wrongdoing (the police recorded Vagh-
elas death as accidental) the doctors pri-
orities were clear from the terms of the sur-
rogacy contract that she had signed. Not
only did this agreement (typical of all com-
mercial surrogacy arrangements) absolve
the doctors and the foreign couple of any lia-
bility, it also noted that the surrogate and her
husband had agreed that if Vaghela sufered
an injury or a life-threatening instance dur-
ing the third trimester of her pregnancy, she
will be sustained with life support equip-
ment to protect the foetus viability and in-
sure a healthy birth on the genetic parents
behalf.
Clampdown on commercial surrogacy
Conventionally, commercial surrogacy
involves an agreement in which a woman, in
exchange for money, agrees to carry a child
for another person to whom she will surren-
der the child when it is born. The woman
can either be the childs genetic mother
which is the more traditional form of surro-
gacy or, alternatively, if implanted with an
embryo, she could merely be a gestational
carrier owning no genetic connection to the
child whatsoever. Since 2002, when the In-
dian Council for Medical Research issued a
set of non-binding regulations that envi-
saged transactional surrogacy, these forms
of arrangements have flourished in India.
According to some reports, the assisted-re-
production sector may now be worth as high
as $2 billion, with more than 25,000 surro-
gate children being born every year in the
country. But in the absence of any legislation
controlling the industry, Vaghelas case has
scarcely proved an exception.
It is perhaps with these considerations in
mind that the Union Cabinet, last week, ap-
proved the draft of the Surrogacy (Regula-
tion) Bill, 2016. The proposed legislation, in
CARTOONSCAPE
mental right to contract, and a fundamental
The object is to curb the
exploitation of poor women. Its
hard to understand, though, how
such an object can bear relation
to the classification the Bill makes
short, seeks to ban commercial surrogacy al-
together, while limiting the availability of
what the Bill terms as altruistic surrogacy
to childless, heterosexual Indian couples
married for at least five years. That is, per-
sons who are eligible to seek surrogacy are
required to engage a close female relative,
not necessarily related by blood, in a trans-
action where no money exchanges hands
between the commissioning couple and the
surrogate mother, except to meet medical
expenses. Unfortunately, though, well-in-
tentioned as the proposal might appear at
first blush, the Bill fails to address the moral
questions at the roots of the controversy,
and, if ultimately enacted into law, would al-
so transgress some of the Constitutions
core guarantees.
The arguments at stake
Now, there is little doubting that any rea-
sonable government ought to concern itself
at some level with the ethics of procreation,
especially given the power equations at play
in a contract of surrogacy. But is a complete
proscription on commercial surrogacy a
neutral position to take? There are two basic
arguments against such a ban. First, that
people, both foreigners and Indians, have a
fundamental right to procreate, and to
choose whichever method they desire to
achieve this objective. This airmative ar-
gument in favour of a right to use assisted-
cific constitutional right to procreate. After
all, every practice tolerated by the state
doesnt emanate out of a pre-existing natu-
ral or positive right. Whats more, in any
event, given that an infertile couple could
take recourse to adopting a child, a ban on
commercial surrogacy doesnt necessarily
afect ones right to raise a family.
The second argument a classically lib-
ertarian one that women have a funda-
sons. First, the distinction that the law draws
right to personal liberty, which together per-
mit them to use their bodies as they please,
however, cannot be readily dismissed. As
Amrita Pande wrote in The Hindu, in the ab-
sence of any evidence that shows that all ec-
onomic choices made by a woman are unin-
fluenced by a lack of informed consent,
denying Indian women the ability to enter
into contracts of surrogacy alone might
seem misplaced. But the philosophical basis
for such an argument may not quite be
carved in stone. From the 1980s onwards
many feminist scholars Andrea Dworkin
the most prominent among them have
warned against the commodification of sur-
rogacy in an inherently unequal world. For
Dworkin, surrogacy is like prostitution, be-
cause the surrogate has no choice. The ques-
tions that concern the validity of a commer-
cial surrogacy agreement, she wrote, are not
indiferent from those concerning prostitu-
tion. When the state has constructed the
social, economic, and political situation in
which the sale of some sexual or reproduc-
tive capacity is necessary to the survival of
women, Dworkin wrote, to believe that
such women are exercising their free will in
choosing to sell the use of their womb in a
commercial transaction is simply amoral.
Dworkins claims, from an Indian context,
are only bolstered by the boilerplate terms
of the surrogate contract, which tend to
deeply undermine the surrogate mothers
freedom and sense of bodily autonomy. Her
assertions, therefore, provide the state a le-
gitimate constitutional reason for restrict-
ing surrogacy altogether. After all, similar
concerns about agency and free will were at
play when the Union government brought
into force the Transplantation of Human Or-
gans Act in 1994. Prior to the enactment of
pable of being legally justified even if it
arguably makes for poor strategy the
Bills proposal to allow altruistic surrogacy
for certain classes of persons is not only in-
defensible but is also scandalous in that it
exemplifies the governments didactic am-
bitions. Under Indias constitutional struc-
ture, every time a law seeks to treat equal
persons diferently, it must justify the classi-
fication that it so makes with cogent rea-
must be intelligible; the classes of persons
sliced out by the law must be capable of be-
ing easily ascertained. And second, the state
must show that there is a rational nexus be-
tween the object that the law seeks to
achieve and the classification that it makes.
In the case of the Surrogacy Bill the object
of the proposed law is ostensibly to curb the
exploitation of poor women who often act as
surrogate mothers. Its hard to understand,
though, how such an object can bear any re-
lation to the classification that the Bill
makes in distinguishing couples married for
five years or more from all others, including
live-in couples, single parents, and those
from the LGBT community. We do not rec-
ognise homosexual or live-in relationships,
that is why they are not allowed to commis-
sion babies through surrogacy, said Exter-
nal Afairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, while
announcing the Cabinets approval of the
Bill. It is against our ethos. These pro-
fessed reasons though neither emanate out
of any legitimate governmental interest nor
do they contain any link to the Bills object
and purpose. They merely comprise the
states expression of disgust at practices that
it deems depraved. If Parliament were to
pass the Surrogacy Bill in its present form,
the law would certainly violate the constitu-
tional pledge of equal treatment.
Flawed assumptions at play
Whats more, in seeking to permit altruis-
tic surrogacy alone, the Bill also makes a cu-
rious, and flawed, assumption: that if a
woman is not being paid to be a surrogate,
she isnt being exploited in any manner; that
questions involving free will are somehow
applicable only to cases of commercial sur-
rogacy. But the notion that surrogacy can at
all be altruistic, as the Swedish journalist
Kajsa Ekis Ekman wrote earlier this year in
The Guardian, apart from being a red
herring, since it barely happens in reality
has a very strange ideological underpinning.
As if exploitation only consisted in giving
the woman money. In that case, the less she
is paid, the less she is exploited.
A complete ban on commercial surrogacy
may not altogether remedy the situation
faced by those such as Vaghela there is af-

Turkeys dangerous ter all a belief, in many quarters, that such a

law would tantamount to reacting to moral
panic. However, regardless of its constitu-

move on Syria tional permissibility, given the lack of con-

sensus on such a complete ban, it would be
prudent to conduct a wider public delibera-

T
urkeys incursion into Syria has opened a
new front in the already complicated Syrian
civil war. Turkey and the other regional
powers in West Asia, such as Saudi Arabia, Qatar
and Iran, have been active players in the Syrian con-
flict since 2011, but this is the first time one of them
has sent its army into Syria to join combat. Ankara
says the move is to fight the Islamic State; within
days of rolling its tanks into Syria, Turkey declared
that it had cleared the border town of Jarabulus of
IS fighters. But there is little doubt that the real tar-
get of the Turkish forces are the Kurdish militias.
The IS had been active in Jarabulus since 2013, and
used the town as a key supply route for men and
materials. Over the last few years, Turkey had
largely ignored IS activities on the Syrian side of the
border. It moved into action only after the U.S.-
backed Kurdish forces recaptured Manbij, another
town close to the border, from the IS. After taking
positions in Manbij, Kurdish rebels had moved to-
wards Jarabulus. If Kurds seize Jarabulus as well, it
would allow them unprecedented control over the
Syrian-Turkish border region and also cut Turkey
of from the last remaining cross-border supply
routes. Unsurprisingly, after taking control of Jara-
bulus, Turkish aircraft and ground troops started
attacking Kurdish positions in Manbij, demanding
that they retreat to the east of the Euphrates.
Turkey has two concerns. First, if it loses cross-
border access to Syria, the Ankara-backed rebels
would be in a weaker position in the Syrian civil
war, which would in turn jeopardise Turkeys plans
for a future Syria. Second, if Kurdish militias are al-
lowed to further consolidate in the semi-autono-
mous Syrian Kurdistan, that would pose a direct
strategic threat to Turkey, given the Syrian Kurds
deep ties with their Turkish counterparts who are
at war with Ankara. So Turkey wants to rupture the
Kurdish momentum. This move, however, marks a
dangerous turn of events. Kurds have proved the
most efective ground force against the IS. All the
major border towns they control, such as Kobane,
Tal Abyad and now Manbij, were recaptured from
the IS after long and bloody ground battles. In fact,
the decline of the IS started with their defeat by
Kurds in Kobane. Besides, the Turkish incursion
makes the Syrian war more complicated. Given
their recent battle history, Kurds wont give up their
position easily. This means that if Turkey persists
with its operation, the border towns could witness
another spell of war, while making the task of re-
solving the Syrian conflict more diicult. Unfortu-
nately, Turkey seems less bothered about the chaos
in Syria than the growing clout of Kurds.
CM
YK
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Letters emailed to letters@thehindu.co.in must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.
Kerrys anti-terror advice
It will be a bitter pill for Pakistan to
swallow now that U.S. Secretary of
State John Kerry has sought action
from Islamabad on specific
instances of terrorism (Act against
terror, Kerry tells Pak., Aug. 31).
Pakistan will also stand isolated
once the U.S. goes ahead with the
trilateral talks to fine-tune counter-
terror measures. The development
is a huge boost to Indias eforts in
trying to talk peace with a diicult
neighbour.
C.K. Subramaniam,
Navi Mumbai
Nothing much should be read into
Mr. Kerrys statement as the U.S. is
one country that has been arming
Pakistan to the teeth while doing
flip-flops on various issues
concerning Delhi and Islamabad.
Ultimately, we will have to fight our
own battles and it would be futile to
expect superpowers like the U.S. to
constantly back us on all matters. If
the U.S. is really serious about the
issue, it could issue an ultimatum to
Pakistan, setting it a time frame to
shut down all terror camps on its
soil.
C.V. Aravind,
Bengaluru
The LEMOA deal
Despite the advantages in the
signing of the Logistics Exchange
Memorandum of Agreement or
LEMOA (Editorial and India, U.S. to
share defence facilities, both
Aug.31), it is a clear sign that the days
of Indias non-alignment policy are
long gone and that New Delhi is
edging closer to the U.S., for better
or for worse.
What could have prompted India to
suddenly strengthen defence ties
with the U.S. is Chinas belligerent
posture towards India. Given the
U.S. past, of ruthlessly pursuing its
own goals and riding roughshod
over the less powerful nations it
allies with, it is not without reason
that the Opposition in India has
raised serious concerns about India
running the risk of making
compromises on its strategic
autonomy. The intrusive, self-
protecting clauses that the U.S. has
tried to incorporate into the India-
U.S. nuclear deal, exemplifies its
self-serving nature. India should
ensure that its ties with the U.S. are
on an even keel and in the mould of
arrengements with Japan, South
Korea and the Philippines.
Nalini Vijayaraghavan,
Thiruvananthapuram
The impact of the agreement on
Indias foreign and defence relations
has been blown out of proportion,
either out of ignorance or for
political mileage. The government
must now nip this by placing the
terms of the agreement in the public
domain and addressing the concerns
of the Opposition. This will also help
to dispel the misgivings of Indias
other strategic partners.
Arjun K.V.,
Bengaluru
The agreement will now bring the
two nations even closer strategically.
However, India must take care of its
NAM obligations as well as maintain
its close ties with Russia. Leaning
towards the U.S. in a military sense
should not be at the cost of peaceful
ties with neighbours.
Kuldeep Mohanty,
New Delhi
It is not clear whether providing the
kinds of logistical support envisaged
in the agreement would also extend
to U.S. warships and its aircraft on
combat missions destined for
conflict zones. Unless providing
such facilities is specifically barred
in the agreement, it would be a
significant shift in our time-tested
foreign policy of military neutrality
and would justifiably be seen as
more than merely overcoming the
hesitations of history. Such a
nature of cooperation would also
run the risk of India letting itself
become a party to a conflict with all
its attendant adverse consequences
on our relations with the countries
in such conflict zones.
S.K. Choudhury,
Bengaluru
This seems to be a new mechanism
tion before the prohibition is enforced as
law. But what is certainly unhelpful is the
proposal to permit only a limited form of al-
truistic surrogacy. This represents bad so-
cial policy, and, if such an exception fructi-
fies into legislation, would also be forbidden
under our constitutional structure. India, to
borrow a phrase used by the American legal
scholar Cass Sunstein, is meant to be a Re-
public of Reasons. The Surrogacy (Regula-
tion) Bill, 2016, regrettably flouts this vision.
Suhrith Parthasarathy is an advocate practising at the
Madras High Court.
for the welfare of mankind. Indian The pact must be viewed in the
warships and military aircraft could context of Americas ambition of
now substantially extend their deploying 50 per cent of its naval
operational reach in the Asia-Pacific force in the Asia-Pacific region and
region to U.S. bases in Djibouti, will silence Indias non-alignment
Diego Garcia in the southern Indian stance followed religiously from the
Ocean and Guam in the western time of Nehru. India will now be
Pacific Ocean. It will help in viewed with suspicion as a U.S.
checking wars, but in case of an military presence will disturb the
eventuality, an option must be open. power balance of the region. The
One hopes that there will be clarity NDA government needs to tread
on the other foundational with caution.
agreements the Communication Philip Sabu,
Interoperability and Security Thrissur
Memorandum of Agreement
(CISMOA) and the Basic Exchange
and Cooperation Agreement for A rare mother
Geo-Spatial Cooperation (BECA). The report, IIT a no go, but
H.S. Dimple, unschooled 17-year-old makes it to
Jagraon, Punjab MIT (Aug.31), is exciting and
inspiring. More than the girls
India should take care that by achievement, it is the attitude of her
entering into this agreement, its mother towards formal education
degree of autonomy is not lost. The and her commendable pragmatic-
benefits of the agreement should be cum-philosophical view that
confined to logistics support in case happiness is more important than
of a military exercise or disaster conventional knowledge which is
management. exceptional. The situation has a
Bhuvan Gupta, parallel with the life of Thomas Alva
Bharatpur, Rajasthan Edison, whose schoolteacher called
him mentally ill in a letter to his
I feel the agreement will be deeply mother. But the lady reportedly hid
discomforting for Russia and Asian the letter and homeschooled him.
powers. India has never teamed up Such mothers are rare in the
with any nation and has taken pride educational system in which
in its autonomy. It would have been marks speak louder than real
wise had India waited till after the merit. One hopes this will awaken
change in the U.S administration. parents to a new way of thinking.
Leo Sebastian, R.K. Jacob,
Kollam San Jose, California, U.S.
ND-ND
10 | 1ias.com EDITORIAL THE HINDU FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, 2016
NOIDA/DELHI

The road to genuine reform

The only way to break the executive-judiciary impasse is to make public future correspondence on the
Memorandum of Procedure. This will be a precursor to infusing transparency in judicial appointments
Delay in the judiciary is a multifaceted prob- marily the product of an inadequately rea-
F R I D AY , S E P T E M B E R 2 , 2 0 1 6 lem which difers also from court to court, soned judgment that is less an expression of
State to State. However amongst some com- constitutional law and more an assertion of
mon factors is the pressing concern that law, judicial self-belief. In an uncommon and un-
AJIT PRAKASH ARGHYA as laid down by the Supreme Court and high necessarily strident majority view, the Su-
Full circle SHAH SENGUPTA

The Chief Justice of Indias (CJI) high-oc-

courts in a large number of areas, is unclear
and inconsistent. This necessitates constant
and overlapping appeals clogging the sys-
preme Court not only struck down the Na-
tional Judicial Appointments Commission
(NJAC) but also criticised the government
in Singur tane laments about vacancies caused due to
the stand-of between the judiciary and gov-
tem. While disposing such cases, very rarely
are timelines followed. In the recently enact-
and the political class as a whole. In the proc-
ess, it missed a genuine opportunity of re-

T
he Supreme Courts verdict on the Singur
land acquisition issue is a re-statement of
first principles relating to the limitations of
eminent domain. By quashing the entire land ac-
quisition process done by the erstwhile Left Front
government in West Bengal, the court has reiterat-
ed that the term public purpose cannot be arbitra-
rily invoked to acquire land and hand it over to a
private party. One of the two judges has categorical-
ly held that there was no public purpose in the land
acquisition as it was solely for the benefit of Tata
Motors. The other judge has conceded that given
the governments policy of industrialisation and
the potential for employment generation, the ac-
quisition was indeed for a public purpose. But he al-
so ruled that the failure to hold a proper inquiry in-
to objections from the public, and the fact that the
State Cabinet had decided to acquire land for the
project even before the acquisition was notified as
per law, rendered the entire process void. The rul-
ing is undoubtedly a political victory for West Ben-
gal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who took up
the cause of those whose lands were taken away in
Singur, making it a key election issue of the pivotal
Assembly election of 2011, when she wrested power
from the long-serving Left Front. With the farmers
set to get back their land, and the court allowing
them to keep the compensation they had earlier re-
ceived or claim it now if they are yet to get it, this al-
lows her to score points afresh over the CPI(M).
The judgment does not lay down any new law.
The dispute over whether the Singur land was ac-
quired for a public purpose or not is largely aca-
demic, now that the outdated Land Acquisition Act,
1894, has been repealed and replaced by legislation
that aims at transparency in acquisition and makes
fair compensation and resettlement a statutory
right of those who lose their land. The Right to Fair
Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisi-
tion, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act sets out
the categories of projects that would fall under pub-
lic purpose, and allows acquisition for private com-
panies subject to provisions related to consent,
compensation and rehabilitation. There may be
some apprehension that the judgment will deter
fresh investment by the private sector, inasmuch as
it may preclude land acquisition for major projects.
However, courts have by and large interpreted
public purpose liberally, often allowing the gov-
ernments view to prevail. The lesson from Singur
is that thoughtless and fast-tracked acquisition, of-
ten to the detriment of due process and the inter-
ests of those deprived of land and livelihood, is the
real issue and not promotion of industrialisation.
The rise and fall of
ernment in appointing judges has brought a
renewed focus to delays in the judicial sys-
tem. The CJI holds vacancies responsible for
creating delays, bringing justice delivery to a
grinding halt for several litigants. By all ac-
counts, the judicial system is painfully slow
as of December 31, 2015, 51.2 per cent of all
cases pending in the subordinate courts have
been pending for more than two years and 7.5
per cent for more than 10 years; in the high
courts the corresponding figures are 68 per
cent and 19.22 per cent. This is unacceptable
for any state that promises the rule of law to
its citizens. At the same time, to view the
stand-of on judicial appointments and the
consequent vacancies that are created
through the lens of judicial delays is to miss
the wood for the trees.
Long-standing vacancies
First, it is essential to clarify the contours
of this stand-of the government and the
collegium have been unable to agree on a
Memorandum of Procedure for appoint-
ment of judges for the better part of this year.
Second, the government has neither cleared
nor returned the files sent by the collegium
regarding several high court appointments
and transfers, unlike Supreme Court ap-
pointments and some transfers which were
cleared earlier this year.
According to the apex courts own publi-
cation, as of May 2016, there were 2 vacan-
cies in the Supreme Court (out of 31 sanc-
tioned posts) and 432 vacancies in the high
courts (out of 1,065 sanctioned posts). This
constituted a vacancy rate of 6.45 per cent
and 40.5 per cent, respectively.
However, looking at figures from Decem-
ber 2012, much before this stand-of, may
provide some perspective. At that time,
there were 4 vacancies in the Supreme Court
(out of 31 sanctioned posts) and 281 vacan-
cies in the high courts (out of 895 sanctioned
posts). This constituted a vacancy rate of 12.9
per cent for the Supreme Court, higher than
the present, and 31.3 per cent for high courts.
These figures point towards two funda-
mental propositions: first, high vacancies
CARTOONSCAPE
Vacancies are a product of a
systemic lack of incentives
for persons of high quality
and integrity to take up
judgeships
are not solely caused by the stand-of they
are endemic to the higher judiciary. Second,
even if the current impasse between the ex-
ecutive and judiciary were to end, vacancies
would not be even substantially filled, let
alone delays being significantly reduced.
This is because vacancies are a product of
a systemic lack of incentives for persons of
high quality and integrity to take up judge-
ships. Judicial pay is poor, pensions are poor-
er. Further, the collegium which selects judg-
es and elevates them to the Supreme Court is
a closed brotherhood. As former Supreme
Court judge Justice Ruma Pal has noted, A
chance remark, a rumour or even third-hand
information may be suicient to damn a
judges prospects. Contrariwise a personal
friendship or unspoken obligation may col-
our a recommendation.
It is thus no surprise that several worthy
candidates pass up the travails associated in
the process of being appointed to and pro-
gressing as a judge.
Delays as a multifaceted problem
At the same time, vacancies are not the
sole reason for debilitating judicial delays.
ed Commercial Courts Act, 2015, strict time-
lines as well as case management provisions
have been carefully incorporated. Unfortu-
nately, similar provisions in the Code of Civil
Procedure have been held by the Supreme
Court to not bind the inherent discretion of
courts to extend time or grant repeated
adjournments.
In the same vein, the potential for alterna-
tive dispute resolution (ADR) methods,
such as arbitration, to reduce judicial delays
has not been explored owing to the constant
interference of courts. Constant interference
has not been limited to ADR but is endemic.
A recent study found that the Supreme Court
admits 41 per cent of all cases filed before it
for hearing, a staggering number for the
highest constitutional court of a country. It is
little surprise that litigants take a chance be-
fore the higher judiciary since securing an
admission is often perceived as a game of
roulette. This is especially so since the qual-
ity of justice, particularly in the lower judici-
ary, is often perceived as unsatisfactory.
These factors are merely illustrative of the
multifaceted nature of delays. They are how-
ever united by a common thread that, unlike
filling of vacancies, they are all within the re-
mit of the judiciarys self-correction.
Power struggle over appointments
The complexity of causes responsible for
judicial delays should make it amply clear
that it is merely a by-product when it comes
to the vexed question of judicial appoint-
ments. Talking about delays caused by the
stand-of in appointments is an euphemism
for the power struggle that has ensued be-
tween two organs of state over dictating the
future course of judicial appointments. This
is not unprecedented appointments have
similarly been stalled in the past, most re-
cently during the Chief Justiceship of Justice
M.M. Punchhi in 1998, when the government
and the CJI disagreed on the proper proce-
dure for appointment of judges. No appoint-
ments were consequently made for over six
months.
Like in 1998, the current impasse too is pri-
forming a system that it itself recognised as
flawed neither did it institute safeguards
into the NJAC that would have made it con-
stitutionally valid nor did it substantively re-
form the collegium itself to satisfy concerns
that were shared by some petitioners, the
government and the Supreme Court itself.
Time to walk the talk
If one ignores the rhetorical images of
lockdown associated with a stand-of and in-
quires into the real reasons for disagree-
ment, the matter becomes curious. As per
news reports, the government proposed a
screening committee for all judges-elect
comprising eminent persons and retired
judges to ensure criteria-based selections;
second, the government has asked for a na-
tional security veto. The collegium appar-
ently has rejected both proposals.
The first suggestion appears unobjection-
able. In the NJAC judgment, some judges ad-
vert to a similar committee; its importance in
order to ensure accountability and citizen
participation cannot be disregarded. The
collegiums objections to such a proposal, if
true, are perplexing and should be made
public. As far as a national security veto is
concerned, the judges are rightly concerned
about national security (or national interest)
becoming a fig leaf for state unaccountabili-
ty, a blunt instrument used to end all require-
ment for further explanation. Given this pos-
sibility, rather than national security being a
ground for veto, a healthy convention should
be adopted by the collegium that ordinarily a
rejection by the government on these
grounds will be heeded, provided they are
subjectively satisfied.
But without entering into matters of de-
tailed disagreement, the entire process of
formulation of the Memorandum of Proce-
dure is deeply discomforting. First, it ap-
pears that the role of the collegium is limited
to accepting or rejecting reform suggestions
given by the government. If true, this is dis-
turbing if the Supreme Court is serious
about reform as it said it was in the NJAC
judgment, it is now time to walk the talk and
propose reforms itself.
Second, a combination of the secrecy of
the process and the apparent hostility be-
tween the judiciary and government means
that a document that was designed to ensure
real reform has descended into a plaything of
the powerful, with neither side showing any
genuine desire for change. Substantive pro-
posals such as transparently outlining a zone
of consideration, setting up a process for
nominating and interviewing candidates,
outlining criteria for appointment, clarifying
the importance of seniority, presenting an
annual report of candidates considered, in-
terviewed, appointed and rejected and many
others, suggested by scores of civil society

Dilma Roussef representatives, are gathering dust. The only

way to break this impasse and ensure that a
kernel of reform is salvaged from the inter-

T
he fall of Dilma Roussef from being one of
the most popular politicians to an im-
peached leader is much more than a story of
a corrupt President being stripped of her powers
by a righteous legislature. The exit of Brazils first
woman President brings the 13-year rule of the left-
leaning Workers Party (PT) to an end. The charge
levelled against her is that she used illegal book-
keeping manoeuvres to hide a growing deficit.
Though this is a crime in Brazil, several of those
who piloted the impeachment process in Congress
have themselves been charged with corrupt prac-
tices. Almost all the leading political parties, in-
cluding new President Michel Temers Brazilian
Democratic Movement Party, were implicated in
the Petrobras corruption scandal. Ms. Roussef is in
fact one of the very few high-profile politicians not
to be implicated in the Petrobras scam. Moreover,
her presidency was not quite the failure it is made
to appear as. She completed her first term and was
re-elected in 2014 with a clear majority. Through all
this, she purposefully continued the welfare pro-
grammes initiated by her predecessor, Luiz Inacio
Lula da Silva, particularly in the education, health
and housing sectors.
To understand Ms. Roussefs fall, one has to look
instead at the complex layers of Brazils polity. It is a
comparatively young democracy in which the PT
rose to power defying established structures. The
power struggle within Brazils political class has
never been a settled afair. When Mr. da Silva was
President, he was able to keep in check the class in-
terests stacked against him with his immense pop-
ularity. Ms. Roussef not only lacked his charisma
and mass appeal, but also failed to right the econo-
my when a steep fall in global commodity prices hit
Brazil hard. The consequences were devastating:
for instance, the Brazilian economy grew 7.6 per
cent in 2010, the year she won her first term; it is es-
timated to contract 3.2 per cent this year. It is amid
this economic gloom and nationwide anger against
corrupt politicians in the wake of the Petrobras
scandal that her opponents used the charges of
fudging books to build a case for impeachment. But
the impeachment doesnt solve the problems Brazil
faces. The economy is still in the doldrums, and is
unlikely to bounce back in the near future given the
global headwinds. President Temer is as unpopular
as Ms. Roussef had become, as was evident from
the loud boos he received from spectators at the
opening ceremony of the Rio Olympics. Brazils op-
position may have gained power after a long wait
through a parliamentary coup, but the political and
economic turmoil is likely to remain for long.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Letters emailed to letters@thehindu.co.in must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.
Singur verdict
It is heartening that the decade-long
peoples struggle in Singur has
finally yielded result (Return land
to Singur farmers: SC, Sept. 1).
Acquisition of land has long been a
tool in the hands of the
establishment for colourable
exercise of power. Thus, justice to
the poor was imperative. However,
it is interesting that the two-judge
Bench difered on whether the land
in Singur was acquired for public
purpose or not. Public purpose is
perhaps the most used, and yet least
defined, term in public
administration. On the one hand, it
is true that industrial growth would
mean new employment
opportunities, thus providing an
impetus to socio-economic
development. However, today, we
have more refined indicators of
development and the employment
factor cannot supersede other
factors such as damage to ecology
and biodiversity, and the loss of
traditional ways of living.
Sachin V.K. Jadhav,
Washim, Maharashtra
The Supreme Courts verdict has
come as a huge relief for the
hundreds of farmers of Singur, and
is surely a victory for West Bengal
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee
who has been fighting for this cause
for a while.
However, what is to be seen is how
and in what shape the land will be
returned to the farmers. If the land
was made vacant to set up
industrial units, the government
should suitably compensate the
farmers so that they can use it for
farming purposes again.
Also, private sector companies and
the state-owned industrial sector
should draw a lesson or two from
this judgment they should not
use the phrase public purpose
when they set out to acquire the
lands of poor peasants. What public
purpose is served in depriving
people of their livelihoods?
S. Nallasivan,
Tirunelveli , Tamil Nadu
The term public purpose needs
clarification. The Tata project
would have created employment
and boosted industrial activity in
the State. But acquisition of
agricultural land, that too without
the consent of the farmers,
undermined public interest in
terms of right to life and livelihood.
The farmers would have worked as
casual labourers if the project had
been approved, at the mercy of
labour contractors. Further, lack of
education for an industrial job
would have resulted in them being
exploited further.
Dattatrey Kedare,
Nashik, Maharashtra
At the outset, this is a victory for all
those farmers whose fertile lands
were taken to build Tata Motors
factory. Ms. Banerjee also has the
right to feel vindicated now. This
judgment should be a lesson not
only for West Bengal but also for
other States. Industrialisation
should not be done until every
landowner is suiciently
compensated and given alternative
sources of income.
Also, now Ms. Banerjee is happy but
she also says that her State will
emerge as the number one
industrial destination. Im not sure
how this is possible given that
companies will only shy away from
West Bengal now. She will have to
learn the art of maintaining a
balance between politics and
economics.
Bal Govind,
Noida
Advancing the Budget
Advancing the presentation of the
Union Budget by a month is a good
idea (Advance the Budget, Sept. 1).
But this should be followed by
lifting the veil of secrecy over the
entire exercise. Advancing the
Budget obviates the need to get a
Vote on Account. This, in turn, will
assure certainty and enable
ministries to start spending from
the beginning of the fiscal year
instead of bunching their
expenditures in the last quarter.
Unfortunately, supplementary
demands for grants have become
stices of a power struggle is to make all fu-
ture correspondence on the Memorandum
of Procedure public. This will transparently
demonstrate how substantive reform is be-
ing efected or stalled and serve as a precur-
sor to infusing a culture of transparency in
judicial appointments. Otherwise, the coun-
try will sufer the consequences of a bitter
power struggle where whoever wins, the
cause of justice for the people of India loses.
Ajit Prakash Shah is former Chief Justice of the Delhi High
Court and former Chairman of the Law Commission of
India; Arghya Sengupta is the Research Director of Vidhi
Centre for Legal Policy, a New Delhi-based think tank.
common as Budget estimates have the related ground work. We need a
lost their sanctity. Every ministry little mending, not wholesale fixing.
should be made to understand that
M. Balakrishnan,
once a Budget is passed, it cannot Bengaluru
get a rupee more than what has
already been allocated. Treating
budgetary allocations as sacrosanct Embarrassment for AAP
will lead to better expenditure This refers to the report Kejriwal
management and bring in fiscal sacks Minister over objectionable
discipline. This calls for a change in CD (Sept. 1). This incident doesnt
the style of governance. augur well for the AAP government
C.J. Seshagiri, which rode to power as a party
Mysuru with a diference. First the Delhi
Law Minister was asked to resign
This could be another gimmick by on allegations that his college
this government, much in the way degree was forged. This was
the Planning Commission was followed by allegations of
replaced by the Niti Aayog, as is the corruption against the Food and
proposal to scrap the Railway Environment Minister. Now it is a
Budget and merge it with the sex scam. To me, the party seems no
General Budget. All this could mean diferent from any other.
nothing worthwhile on the ground. Devadas V.,
The Budget provides for twelve Kannur
months, not for ten. In practice,
there should be no lack of funds in
April and May, as the provisions of A road not taken
the previous Budget will remain In India, any diversion from the
operational from May to May. conventional educational system is
Alternatively, instead of letting the often glared upon (I was lucky I
Finance Bill be passed only by the wasnt good in studies: Gopichand,
end of May, a special session of August 31). In a system where
Parliament can be had on March 30 grades determine success, Pullela
and 31 to get the Bill passed, and Gopichands statement is important
available formally on April 1. This as it proves that we can go to any
will provide two months ahead of extent to achieve our dreams, and
the monsoon for the government to there are career options that we can
begin implementing new proposals, excel in even if we are not good in
schemes and projects. And that academics.
leaves the whole of March available Akash Katawati,
for planning implementation and all Pune

ND-ND
10 | 1ias.com EDITORIAL THE HINDU SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 3, 2016
NOIDA/DELHI

S AT U R D AY , S E P T E M B E R 3 , 2 0 1 6
A disruptive
A journey to sainthood
Mother Teresas greatest miracle was her life itself. Armed only with an abundance of faith, she created
a multinational organisation that served her special constituency of the poorest of the poor
with teeming millions uprooted by the Parti- cise her for not doing. I knew that a hospital
tion, who had joined the hapless suferers of would tie down dozens of her Sisters to a sin-
NAVIN CHAWLA the Great Bengal Famine. Into this sea of trag- gle establishment, and then who would care
edy, homelessness, disease and despair for those who fell by the wayside? The infant
stepped a 38-year-old nun, dressed not in a abandoned on a street, the sick and elderly
Mother Teresa will enter into sainthood on
recognisable nuns habit, but a sari similar to
what the municipal sweepresses wore. She
turned out of their homes, the leprosy sufer-
ers or AIDS patient that no one wanted to go

debut September 4, 2016, after a relatively short pe-

riod of 19 years since her passing away on
September 5, 1997. Pope Francis recently rec-
had no companion, no helper and no money
to speak of. What she did have was a secret
calling that her God wanted her to leave the
near, let alone touch? How many of us step
out of our cars to do anything for the desper-
ately poor we see on the streets? We only

T
hat Mukesh Ambanis roll-out of fourth-gen-
eration telecommunication services
through Reliance Jio would shake up the
telecom market was anticipated. Still, the specifics
of the ambitious pricing and customer acquisition
plans unveiled at the Reliance Industries annual
shareholders meeting were audacious. From mak-
ing voice calls and domestic roaming completely
free to ofering 4G data connectivity at a fraction of
the average market tarif, the latest entrant has, in
one fell swoop, altered pricing dynamics in the sec-
tor for the foreseeable future. In the process, the
company has also ended up putting the spotlight on
data being at the core of mobile telephony services.
With more than 90 per cent of almost 350 million
Indians currently accessing the Internet on mobile
devices, the availability, afordability and quality, in
terms of browsing speeds, of the data service be-
comes critical. This is particularly pertinent as In-
dia makes more and more public goods and servic-
es accessible online. For a nation seeking to
leverage the explosive growth in mobile telephony
that has resulted in more than one billion subscrip-
tions, the future lies in moving an increasingly
larger share of economic activity across industries
on to digital platforms. By setting out to provide its
services at a significantly lower cost than most
competitors, Reliance is attempting to alter the
benchmark for consumer expectations on data
quality. It seeks to make the proposition more
sticky by bundling in mobile applications that will
enable users to tap into a range of media.
How significantly the industry landscape is al-
tered will ultimately depend on the reliability of the
service that Reliance ends up providing. To be sure,
the largest rival mobile phone operators have been
quietly making their own preparations for Relianc-
es entry and are certain to have factored in various
strategic scenarios. As consumers opt to sample
Reliances 4G services, it is inevitable that the com-
petition will take a short-term knock on some oper-
ating parameters such as average revenue per user,
average margin per user, subscriber churn, and data
revenue growth. But the long-term health of the in-
dustry is unlikely to be seriously impaired as the
size of the market in India is large enough to absorb
one more player. Given the low operational costs of
the business and the groups overall capacity to
raise capital at will, Mr. Ambani has the leeway to
wait until Reliance Jio turns profitable. Fortunately,
it is the consumer that stands to gain the most by
this latest disruption.
The terror
ognised a second miracle attributed to her in-
tercession which cured a Brazilian patient,
awaiting surgery, of an incurable infection in
his brain. This ceremony to be performed at
St. Peters Square in Vatican City will come a
mere 13 years after she was beatified on Octo-
ber 19, 2003. While the Church demanded
one proven miracle for her to be beatified
and another for sainthood to be conferred,
the real miracle, I believe, was Mother Tere-
sas life itself. It was extraordinary that the
strand of divinity remained un-eclipsed from
her childhood to her death. For me as well as
for millions around the world, her goodness
and compassion were so transparent that she
was anointed a saint in her lifetime.
The young woman from Skopje
Let me briefly encapsulate the many chal-
lenges that she faced when she began her
work. She was 18 when she was convinced
that her lifes vocation lay in her becoming a
missionary in far-of India; Skopje, where she
was born on August 26, 1910, was so far re-
moved from Bengal that, barring a few Yu-
goslav Jesuits who fired her young imagina-
tion, no one in the small Catholic community
would even have known where India lay. Yet
the early seeds of her faith and determination
impelled her to leave her closely knit family.
She found that the route to India lay in her
joining the Loreto Order of teaching nuns,
CARTOONSCAPE
to Him in his distressing disguise of the poor-
ILLUSTRATION: KESHAV
Although she herself remained
staunchly Catholic, her brand of
religion was not exclusive...
She reached out to people
of all faiths
who were headquartered in faraway Calcut-
ta. Here she taught for close to 20 years be-
fore her true calling propelled her to serve
the poor in the streets and slums. The Vati-
can, fantastically, gave her permission to step
outside the Cloister, not as a lay worker but
with her religious vows intact, to set up her
own order, the Missionaries of Charity. In
1948, Calcuttas pavements were swarming
security of the Loreto Convent and minister
are quick to criticise her are unwilling to do
est of the poor, the abandoned infant, the lep-
rosy suferer shunned by society and the dy-
ing destitute.
At a time when the Raj had left no health
care to speak of (1948), she confronted death
at every turn. She did what was to become
her hallmark. Finding a man dying in the
street, she took him to a public hospital,
which refused to admit him, precisely on the
grounds that since he was about to die they
would not waste a hospital bed on a life they
said they could not save! Only when she sat
before the hospital on a dharna did they re-
lent. The man died within a few hours. It was
then that she began to search for a place
where she could take those people whom
hospitals refused, where she could nurse
them she had some medical training
and they could at least die being comforted
and with some dignity. She begged various
authorities, and finally an oicer in Calcutta
Municipality gave her a pilgrims hall adja-
cent to the Kalighat temple, where she re-
quested the police and municipal authorities
to bring her all and any of those dying whom
the hospitals refused. That policy continues.
I have been so many times to this hospice
at Kalighat, that I did not need to ask Mother
Teresa why she had not set up the hospital
that Christopher Hitchens would later criti-
have to look within us to know that those who
anything to help with their own hands.
One determined step at a time
Once described as a religious imperialist
and more commonly regarded as a saint,
Mother Teresa was at many levels a very or-
dinary woman, yet someone who led one of
the most extraordinary lives of her century.
Armed only with an abundance of faith, she
proceeded with one small but determined
step at a time. By the time she passed away 19
years ago, she had created a multinational or-
ganisation that spanned 123 countries that
served her special constituency of the poor-
est of the poor. In the process, she was ac-
knowledged as one of the worlds principal
conscience-keepers.
Although she herself remained staunchly
Catholic, her brand of religion was not exclu-
sive. Convinced that each person she minis-
tered to was Christ in sufering, she reached
out to people of all faiths. The very faith that
sustained her infuriated her detractors, who
saw her as a symbol of a right-wing conspir-
acy and, worse, the principal mouthpiece of
the Vaticans well-known views against abor-
tion and birth control. These were indeed her
views and she was undeterred by such criti-
cism. It was the one subject that she and I
never did agree upon. I would cite the Malth-
usian formula while she would answer that
she could take care of every unwanted child.
In the course of researching my biography,
I asked her why she took money from dodgy
characters like Haitis dictator Duvalier. Her
answer was concise. Everyone, she said, had a
right to give in charity. How was this diferent
from thousands of people who each day fed
the poor? I have no right to judge them. God
alone has that right. And again, I accept no
salary, no government grant, no church fund-
ing, nothing. I do not ask for money. But peo-
ple have a right to give.
She had a clear vision of the street and a de-
termination that she often tempered with a
sense of humour.
In the end, she gently but unmistakably left
her imprint at the heart of the Vatican itself.
Finding in Pope John Paul II a kindred spirit,
she cajoled him into opening a small soup
kitchen around the corner from the Great
Basilica of St. Peters where the grand cere-
mony will be held to declare her a Saint. At
four every evening, Romes homeless and
hungry queue up to be fed by Mother Tere-
sas Sisters and a dozen volunteers. At a
stroke this frail nun, indisputably the worlds
most decorated person, helped to demystify
the Vaticans centuries-old aura of wealth
and power.

in the Philippines Navin Chawla is a biographer of Mother Teresa and a

former Chief Election Commissioner of India.

I LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

t may be unfair, or at least much too premature,
to suggest that Philippines President Rodrigo
Dutertes strongman rule is a throwback to the
brutal dictatorship of Ferdinand Marcos. But the
fact is that after a period of sustained and often
spectacular economic growth, even if there has
been little of the trickle-down efect, the country
has suddenly become a political hot spot under the
rule of what global investors describe as a wild card
President. Hopes that his landslide win in May
would influence the brusque-mannered maverick
to moderate his populist rhetoric have been belied
as Mr. Duterte seems determined to carry out his
pledge to kill 100,000 criminals to bring security to
the country. Oicial figures state that about 1,800
people have been killed by the police and in extra-
judicial murders committed by vigilante groups in
pursuit of Mr. Dutertes so-called war on drugs
since he assumed oice in July. He has also threat-
ened to restore the death penalty to root out crime
and drugs. In fact, in a brazen display of his alleged
complicity in criminal conduct, Mr. Duterte once
quipped that the death squads he backed had in fact
eliminated more than twice the number that hu-
man rights groups claimed. His reign has struck
such terror among the people that some 600,000
potential suspects have thought it better to simply
turn themselves in to the authorities.
Mr. Dutertes abrasive style is apparently fettered
neither by respect for the religious sensibilities in
his majority Catholic country nor the diplomatic
niceties expected of a nations leader. He resorted
to an expletive to vent his ire at the traic snarl dur-
ing the visit of Pope Francis. On another occasion,
he lashed out against the United Nations for criti-
cising the human rights situation in the Philippines,
saying that his country would quit the organisation.
Mr. Duterte is evidently unmindful of the jarring
note his remarks strike; as many as 10 per cent of
Filipinos are resident overseas, contributing sub-
stantial remittances to the domestic economy. Mr.
Dutertes shrill rhetoric is, perhaps quite predict-
ably, prompting comparisons among activists and
commentators with the equally pugnacious U.S.
presidential nominee, Donald Trump. But there is a
larger long-term significance for any society from
the electoral success of a rabble-rouser political fig-
ure such as Mr. Duterte. This is the imperative of
timely intervention to contain and correct the so-
cial and political damage that inevitably results
from economic growth, if it is not inclusive or sus-
tainable. The mandate handed to Mr. Duterte was
not out of the way for large sections of the people
that were impatient for more. Change was what
they yearned for; what shape it would take was per-
haps beyond their grasp.
Letters emailed to letters@thehindu.co.in must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.
Rahuls RSS remark
Ever since the Congress party has
faced successive electoral defeats
since 2014, its leadership has been
failing in its eforts to rebuild the
partys base and regain the trust of
the people. Rahul Gandhis
pragmatism lacks positivism and is
always directed towards running
down the ruling party and the right
wing. In every step he takes, he
appears to lack political maturity
and leadership traits. One hopes that
his readiness to face trial now is not
a political gimmick and does not
backfire (Ready to stand trial for
RSS remark: Rahul, Sept.2). He
should be focussing on removing the
scars of the UPAs scam-tainted
regime during 2004-2014.
N. Visveswaran,
Chennai
Rahul Gandhi seems to be ignorant
of the history of India. Perhaps he
needs to read the proceedings of the
Gandhi murder trial (1948-49) which
might help him understand many of
his issues with the right wing.
Bharat R. Sant,
Hyderabad
Executive-judiciary impasse
The confrontation between the
judiciary and the executive is bound
to happen due to the federal
structure and the system of checks
and balances in the Constitution.
However, disagreement should lead
to the betterment of the institutions
rather than their deterioration. The
reluctance of the judiciary to
overhaul its process of appointments
and even come under the RTI is a
matter of concern. Increased
transparency and accountability are
what strengthen an institution.
Long-drawn corruption and unfair
practices in appointments are what
have hollowed the system (The
road to genuine reform, Sept.2).
Gagan Pratap Singh,
Noida, Uttar Pradesh
In a republic, it is the public which is
supreme; all other organs of the state
derive their authority from the
citizenry. The Supreme Court must
realise that it cannot forever stall
much-needed reforms in the judicial
appointment process. If it cant
accept the governments draft
memorandum, then it must take up
the initiative of designing one which
is acceptable to both the judiciary
and the government. The grave
mistrust the legal system has of the
political class is odd. The deadlock
must end or else it will deprive
litigants of their fundamental right
to constitutional remedies. Perhaps
the President should ask the Cabinet
and the collegium to meet and come
to an acceptable solution.
Gaurav Singhal,
Rewari, Haryana
Surrogacy Bill
Most of us will agree that a law
regulating and monitoring surrogacy
is mandatory in an unequal society
such as India, especially when big
money is concerned. The raging
debate the issue has now generated
in the country has exposed some
glaring, but less talked about,
hypocrisies like societal pressure
and ostracism, in the absence of
of bearing children along with the
imperative of having genetic
continuity to carry forward the
family name. This means that
adoption is percieved to be a less
worthy second daughter option,
where the adopted child may not
have the same level of acceptance as
one with the parental genes. This
makes surrogacy a virtual jackpot.
So while people might go hoarse
protesting against the antediluvean
mindset of the government, they are
not free from the parochial shackles
of familyhood. While very specific
conditions must be laid down
regarding the terms of contract and
level of compensation for the
surrogate mother, so that she is not a
baby manufacturing machine whose
welfare can turn a liability for the
other parties, the criteria for availing
surrogacy and the type allowed
should be thrown open for wider
debate. The draft in its present form
would be legally, constitutionally
and morally untenable (Republic of
Unreason, Sept.1).
Dr. Kamolini Ghosh,
Kolkata
Supreme Court on Singur
The Supreme Courts directive to
return the land acquired for the Tata
Nano car project to the farmers of
Singur is welcome (Editorial,
Sept.2). At the same time it gives rise
to the issue of whether Bengal will
now be labelled as being investment-
unfriendly. The goal of
industrialisation must be to ensure
that the interests of farmers are
upheld on an equal scale as those of
industrialists. While it may be seen
as a victory for some, the focus on
how the land at Singur can be
reclaimed and made cultivable again
should not be lost.
Nisha P. Hashim,
Vaikom, Kerala
The Supreme Courts verdict has
redressed the grievances of
downtrodden farmers and
established their legitimate demand
about ownership of the land. The
soft touch and humane element in
the verdict should pave the way for
more such rulings for the proletarian
class.
Neelakantan Nair K.,
Thiruvananthapuram
country, why not have a zone for
The Left parties always claim to be
on the side of the poor and the
marginalised. How then did a Left
government in West Bengal
perpetrate such injustice on an
agricultural community to favour
one corporate house? The
apprehension that corporate
investment will now be hindered is
unwarranted. Industrialists can
aford to buy land through justifiable
methods. The new Land Acquisition
Act should put an end to the unholy
alliance between corporates and the
government in the name of
industrialisation, which ends up
exploiting small landowners.
Rameeza A. Rasheed,
Chennai
It is ironic that a decision taken by a
party, which is ideologically
considered to be one with peasants
and industrial workers, has now
been quashed by the highest court in
the land calling it as anti-poor and
anti-farmer. Although West Bengal
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee can
soak in the glory, the message of the
verdict should not be lost that the
due process of law must be followed
by all State governments and care
taken in addressing all concerns and
grievances of those concerned
before embarking on such projects.
Mohanan Anandan,
Kollam, Kerala
There was a calculated
misinterpretation of the term
public cause. The story of
Gannavaram airport at Vijayawada is
another example, having sufered on
account of land acquisition troubles
for over half a century. This acquires
significance in light of the new
capital coming up at Amaravati.
Suddapalli Bhaskara Rao,
Muscat, Sultanate of Oman
The verdict gives hope not only to
those facing a similar predicament
in West Bengal but also to all Indian
farmers. There can be development
but not at the expense of the poor
farmers. They are the backbone of
India in every sense. As India is
predominantly an agricultural
industry so that it does not afect
fertile agricultural land?
Anitha Karunakaran,
Madurai
Extended maternity leave
The move by the Tamil Nadu
government to increase maternity
leave from six to nine months is a
move that must be adopted by all
organisations in the State which
include those in the private and
quasi-government sectors (Sept.2).
With most households comprising
working couples, the nine-month
rest period will help a working
woman get mentally and physically
ready to resume work. The child will
also be nearly a year old and the
mother will be happy that she has
been able to look after the child for a
significant period of time.
J. Rachel Bhuvaneswari,
Madurai
Yogeshwars gesture
One is full of admiration for Indian
wrestler Yogeshwar Dutts
humanitarian gesture over the
upgraded silver medal from the
London Olympics (Sport page
Let Kudukhovs family keep
London silver: Yogeshwar, Sept.1).
The wrestlers tweet that he respects
the Russian wrestler speaks volumes
about true sportsmanship. One
wishes Yogeshwar great success in
Tokyo.
S. Nallasivan,
Tirunelveli, Tamil Nadu
Yogeshwar Dutt has won himself
more admirers now by expressing
the noble thought that the family of
the Russian wrestler, and his
competitor at the London Olympics
in 2012, Besik Kudukhov, be allowed
to keep the silver medal. His remarks
on Twitter, He was a magnificent
wrestler For his family, the honour
will be intact if they are allowed to
retain the medal. For me, humanity
is above everything else, leaves one
speechless. Bravo Yogeshwar.
Deepak Bhatia,
Chennai
A corner for nature
The project to make a large forest
patch in Bengaluru Indias first
Butterfly Conservation Reserve (A
little neglect helps butterflies thrive
in Bengaluru oasis, Sept.1) is one
that should be replicated across
India. Our cities are fast becoming
concrete jungles where there is
absolutely no green space left. Its
our duty to protect wildlife and help
conserve fauna and flora. With such
a project, Bengaluru should once
again try to get back its name as the
Garden city.
A. Sankara Mahadevan,
Pudukudi, Tamil Nadu

ND-ND
10 | 1ias.com
DR HUMERUS
Keshav
AROUND THE WORLD
Parent-child
maths link
Parents who excel
at mathematics
produce children
who excel in the
subject. This is PHOTO: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
according to a
recently released study by the University of
Pittsburgh, U.S., which shows a distinct transfer of
maths skills from parent to child. The study
specifically explored intergenerational transmission
the concept of parental influence on an
offsprings behaviour or psychology in
mathematic capabilities. Our findings suggest an
intuitive sense for numbers has been passed down,
knowingly or unknowingly, from parent to child.
Meaning, essentially, the math skills of parents tend
to rub off on their children, says lead researcher
Melissa E. Libertus, an assistant professor at the
Department of Psychology and a research scientist
at the Universitys Learning Research and
Development Center. Eureka.
Learning at the
dinner table
At the dinner table,
babies do a lot more
than play with their
sippy cups, new
PHOTO: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
research suggests.
They pay close
attention to what food is being eaten around them
and especially who is eating it, according to a study
published in the Proceedings of the National
Academy of Sciences. The study adds evidence to a
growing body of research suggesting that even very
young children think in sophisticated ways about
subtle social cues. The authors found that one year
olds expect people to like the same foods, unless
those people belong to different social or cultural
groups, such as those that speak a different
language. The study underscores just how tightly
our food choices are coupled with our social
thinking, says Katherine Kinzler, a co-author of the
study. Eureka
Languages and
brain power
Scientists from the
Higher School of
Economics (HSE)
together with
colleagues from the PHOTO: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
University of
Helsinki have discovered that learning foreign
languages enhances the brains elasticity and ability
to code information. The more foreign languages we
learn, the more effectively our brain reacts and
processes the data accumulated in the course of
learning. The study was published in Scientific
Reports. The author of the study, Yuriy Shtyrov,
commented that the more languages someone
mastered, the faster the neuron network coding the
information on the new words was formed.
Consequently, this new data stimulates the brains
physiology: loading the mind with more knowledge
boosts its elasticity. Eureka
Made of ice
Ahuna Mons is a
volcano that rises
13,000 feet high
and spreads 11 miles
wide at its base.
This would be
impressive for a PHOTO: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
volcano on Earth. But Ahuna Mons stands on Ceres,
a dwarf planet less than 600 miles wide that orbits
the Sun between Mars and Jupiter. Even stranger,
Ahuna Mons isnt built from lava the way terrestrial
volcanoes are its built from ice. Ahuna is the one
true mountain on Ceres, says Dr. David Williams,
associate research professor in Arizona State
Universitys School of Earth and Space Exploration.
Dr.Williams is part of a team of scientists working
with NASAs Dawn mission that has published
papers in the journal Science this week. His
speciality is volcanism, and that drew him to the
Ahuna puzzle. Ahuna is truly unique, being the only
mountain of its kind on Ceres. It shows nothing to
indicate a tectonic formation, so that led us to
consider cryovolcanism as a method for its origin.
Eureka
DEMYSTIFYING SCIENCE
What is the Kardashev scale?
Last week, a blip of excitement pulsed through
those tuned into the search for alien life. Russian
astronomers reported a strange signal that
appeared to originate from a solar star system,
HD164595, about 94 light years away.
Astronomy websites wondered whether this
was from an alien civilization and if so, where it
ranked on the Kardashev scale. At its coarsest,
this scale named after Soviet astronomer
Nikolai Kardashev rates the technological
advancement of a civilization. A type 1
civilization on the Kardashev scale is equipped to
harness the energy available to it from its sun, a
type 2 strong enough to harness all of its stars
energy, and a type 3 powerful enough to
capture all the energy from its galaxy. Suffice to
say, us earthlings (a type 0 civilization)
wouldnt stand a chance even against a hostile
type 1 civilization. Thats a relief, because the
alien signal finally turned out to be from a
secret Russian military satellite.
LEARNING OUTCOMES
A dyslexia test for non-English speakers
A new questionnaire offers hope for early detection of dyslexia among speakers of regional languages, which would
make intervention more effective
JACOB KOSHY
F
or over a decade now the
Annual Status of Educa-
tion Report (ASER) an
annual survey of learn-
ing proficiency in pri-
mary schools in India has been
hammering the point that in spite
of high enrolment, learning out-
comes have barely improved. The
proportion of Class V children able
to read a Class II text has de-
creased, more so in government
schools, according to the 2014 edi-
tion of ASER. When judged for En-
glish language comprehension,
60.2 per cent of children in Class
VIII could read simple sentences
in English in 2009, as compared to
46.8 per cent in 2014.
A culture-specific test
Under-qualified teachers, pov-
erty and ill-equipped schools not-
withstanding, a less acknowledged
reason for poor learning is dyslex-
ia. Whats worse is that there arent
standardised tests to detect dyslex-
ia a learning disorder in which
people find it diicult to spell and
process verbal and written instruc-
tions among non-English speak-
ers. Generally 5-20 per cent of
children around the world are dys-
lexic, says Nandini Chatterjee
Singh, who at the National Brain
Research Centre in Manesar, Ha-
ryana, works on how the brain
processes language, The same
numbers apply in India, where its
tougher because children are
schooled in multiple languages.
To address this bit, Ms. Singh
and her colleagues developed a
Pricing backlash
EPISPIKED: Pharmaceutical giant Mylan is under severe criticism from users, lawmakers and consumer groups
who have accused it of price gouging. The companys life-saving EpiPen auto-injector, which administers
emergency allergy shots, and with little competition in the marketplace, has surged some 500 per cent in
cost to over $600 a pair, triggering the public outrage and even an investigation by the U.S. House Oversight
and Government Reform Committee. Picture shows protesters in New York, outside the office of Paulson
hedge fund, which is a major investor in Mylan. PHOTO: GETTY IMAGES
DERMATOLOGY
An era of untreatable skin infections
Indiscriminate use of topical steroid cream preparations is leading to fungal infections
becoming resilient, say dermatologists
ROLI SRIVASTAVA
D ermatologists across India have
warned of an epidemic of fungal
infections that even the strongest an-
tifungal creams are failing to treat. The
bigger concern: topical steroid creams,
which doctors say have turned these
infections resilient, are fast-selling
products and are readily available over
the counter, even as their eicacy re-
mains questionable.
A host of fungal skin infections have
turned recurrent, relapsing soon after
the drug dosage is over. This is a fun-
gal epidemic. A fungal infection that
was so easy to manage and was 100 per
cent curable is now so diicult to treat.
At least 50 per cent of these infections
are not reacting to treatment. Drugs
once efective are no longer so, says
Dr. Nina Madnani, consultant derma-
tologist, P.D. Hinduja Hospital,
Mumbai.
Take for instance, the case of a mid-
dle-aged businessman in south Mum-
bai. His face began itching in February
which he first self-treated with creams
and lotions. However, a white grainy
patch surfaced on his right cheek
which a dermatologist diagnosed as a
fungal infection. However, the stron-
gest antifungal creams gave him only
short-lived relief and the infection
continues to resurface.
Unlike in the case of antibiotic re-
sistance, resistance to these topical
creams is not showing up in laborato-
ries. Resistance is a microbiological
term based on lab data, but these are
recalcitrant infections they are not
resistant but are relapsing, says Dr.
Kabir Sardana, professor of dermatolo-
gy at the Post Graduate Institute of
Medical Education and Research, Ram
Manohar Lohia Hospital, New Delhi.
He explains that widespread use of ste-
roids by people, and hakims and
quacks prescribing these creams arbi-
trarily has led to a reduced immune re-
WEEKEND
BEING
ACROSS THE PAGE: A stark finding was that those who had problems with English were likely to have problems in
comprehending other languages too. PHOTO: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
questionnaire to test for dyslexia. too. Moreover it was necessary to
Then, with associates from organi-
sations such as the Centre of Beha-
vioural and Cognitive Sciences, Al-
lahabad, Maharashtra Dyslexia dren are enrolled in school, barely
Association, Mumbai, All India In-
stitute of Speech and Hearing, My-
suru, and the Shanta Vaidya Me-
morial Foundation, Pune, set about
interviewing and testing 4,800
children across the country to as-
sess whether their diagnostic kit
was useful in ferreting out dyslexia
in Kannada, Marathi, Hindi and
English. A stark finding was that
those who had problems with En-
glish were likely to have problems
in comprehending other languages
A COCKTAIL: Irrational combinations
are being combined with steroids
which is only aggravating the
problem. PHOTO: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
sponse. He cites the example of Itraco-
nazole 200 mg and 400 mg, doses
which do not have the approval of the
Drug Controller General of India
(DCGI); but pharma industries often
cite approvals from State Food and
Drug Administration units. This drug
has almost 40 drug interactions but is
used with gay abandon, he says.
Surging sales
Dr. Sardana goes on to note that
there are no restrictions as yet on the
long-term and high doses of antifun-
gals that are being prescribed. His con-
cern is reflected in sales volumes: in
2013, India consumed Rs.1,400 crore
worth of topical steroid creams, a seg-
ment which recorded an annual
growth of 16 per cent, according to a
paper published in the Indian Journal
of Dermatology, Venereology and Lep-
rology in 2014. These figures do not
factor in over-the-counter sales of
these topical creams.
The paper states that the sale of top-
ical steroids accounts for 82 per cent of
THE HINDU SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2016
NOIDA/DELHI
The big lesson is that
children shouldnt be
forced to begin reading
and writing until
comfortable in a language
exercise, says the test was a neces-
sary tool to developing a culture-
fair diagnostic test for dyslexia in
India and for promoting awareness
that children everywhere rich,
poor, Marathi or tri-lingual were
equally susceptible to the condi-
tion. We need tests within our cul-
tural context, she adds.
This isnt the first time tests to
detect dyslexia have been devel-
oped in India. The National Insti-
tute for the Mentally Handicapped,
Hyderabad, has previously devel-
oped a test for diagnosing learning
disabilities among Kannada-
speaking children. Government of-
ficials say they were keen on DALI
because it could potentially be cus-
individual sounds that make up tomised for several more languag-
test a child in their dominant lan- words and manipulate them, rea- es. We would like it for other lan-
guages to test for the disability. son with nonsense words (essen- guages too, says H.B. Singh, a
Though 96 per cent of Indian chil- tially, pronounce made-up words), senior oicial in the Department of
comprehending paragraphs, and Science and Technology which
10 per cent communicate only in mathematical reasoning. The big funded the project, and we could
English. lesson from the test, says Ms. potentially have new testing for-
Singh, is that children shouldnt be mats, like online questionnaires, to
DALI decoded forced to begin reading and writing popularise this.
The test, Dyslexia Assessment until they are extremely comfort- A wide-ranging test would also
for Languages of India (DALI), able in one language. Theres help spot dyslexics early and make
consists of a Junior Screening Tool much research to show that chil- intervention more efective. A 1st
for students in Classes I and II and dren can rapidly pick up a second or 2nd grade child with dyslexia
a longer Middle Screening Tool for language if they are fluent in one, can be taught to remedy their prob-
those aged 8-10. It consists of test- she says. lems and adapt to regular curricu-
ing the childs facility for naming Psychologist and special-needs lum far easier than a child in the
pictures, the ability to identify (children) educator Geet Oberoi, 9th grade, according to Ms. Oberoi.
words that rhyme, distinguish the who was involved with the DALI jacob.koshy@thehindu.co.in
OPINION
Leveraging primary care
N oncommunicable
diseases (NCD) such
as diabetes, respiratory
diseases, cancer and heart
diseases are taking a
severe toll on public
health across the WHO
South-East Asia Region.
Approximately 8.5 million
lives, many of them PHOTO: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
premature, are lost each
year due to NCDs, making means putting the
them the regions leading primary health approach
cause of death and a key front and centre of
source of public health national NCD action
expenditure. plans, as well as drafting
With the burden of and implementing a range
noncommunicable of supporting protocols,
diseases (NCD) expected from clear policies
to rise in coming years, outlining the spectrum of
due largely to rapid primary-level NCD
development and services to well-defined
associated lifestyle diagnostic and treatment
changes in the WHO guidelines.
South-East Asia Region, Second, health-care
countries have taken steps workers at the primary
to arrest the problem: level must be given the
multisectoral plans are knowledge and skills to
being developed; health provide NCD and
promotion campaigns are associated risk factor care.
being carried out; Third, the availability of
exposure to NCD risk generic essential
Poonam
medicines and basic
technologies for NCD
management must be
guaranteed at the primary
Khetrapal
Singh level. To do so,
procurement policies
must be reviewed and
the topical dermatology market, add- essential medicine lists
ing that the top-selling combinations factors such as alcohol
and tobacco are being updated. Every person
in these topical creams are not backed
by scientific rationale or logic.
It is for this reason that the associ-
curtailed. NCD
monitoring has also been
sufering from diabetes,
for example, must be able
enhanced. But as to access a blood glucose
ation of dermatologists has appealed meter at his or her local
countries strive to make a
to the DCGI to making a prescription one-third reduction in health-care provider, just
mandatory for even this set of drugs. premature deaths caused as all persons sufering
Dermatologists are also seeking re- by NCDs by 2030, there is from a respiratory disease
moval of irrational combinations in an important tool that should be able to access
topical creams. remains underutilised: the the technologies and
Irrational combinations antifun- primary health-care medicines that ensure
gal and antibacterial are being com- system. they can breathe easy.
Finally, health
bined with steroids which are flar-
ing up the problem. Prolonged steroid Ensures equity authorities must put in
place funding
use is leading to side efects and dis- By bringing NCD care
torting clinical diagnosis. The solution to the primary health-care mechanisms to facilitate
primary-level NCD care.
is regulation of these combinations, level, health authorities
While shifting NCD care
says Dr. Shyamanta Barua, honorary have the opportunity to
ensure appropriate to the primary level will
secretary general, Indian Association reduce health system
of Dermatologists, Venereologists & services are provided to
the right people, at the expenditures overall, not
Leprologists (IADVL) and faculty in to mention out-of-pocket
the department of dermatology, Assam right place and at the right
time. costs borne by patients,
Medical College, Dibrugarh. In addi- While policies aimed at making this possible
tion to prescription sales, there is also
a refilling of drugs without a prescrip-
providing high-tech care
at central hospitals can
nonetheless requires
efective budget
tion, Dr. Barua says, highlighting why have results, their impact allocations and robust
its important to regulate the sales. will always be limited and planning. At the same
almost always be reactive. time, increased taxation of
Clothing and infections Primary health facilities health-damaging
The IADVL is also creating aware- are not only better commodities such as
ness among dermatologists to exercise equipped to provide the tobacco, alcohol and
restraint as they most often prescribe holistic, patient-centred unhealthy foods and
these combinations. focus that preventing and beverages should be
Dermatologists also say that cloth- managing an NCD considered, both as a
requires, but they can also means to diminish
ing can aggravate fungal infections.
demand for these
While genetic disposition is often the enhance equity and access
to NCD care an aim products as well as to
reason for many skin infections, they increase revenue for NCD
note seeing more resilient infections in central to the Sustainable
Development Goals. prevention and control.
people who wear tight-fitting clothing, Importantly, the shift to
particularly jeans/denim, that leads to There are several steps
that health authorities can a primary health approach
a prolonged infection. Dr. Madnani take to bring NCD care to NCD care must occur
says that not only are these infections directly to the people and alongside eforts to
not responding to treatment but they to roll back their tragic achieve universal health
are also getting aggravated with people and costly burden. coverage.
making a virtue of living in their jeans, First, national health Dr. Poonam Khetrapal Singh is the
which, unlike in the West, is not suita- Regional Director, World Health
and development policies Organization South-East Asia
ble for the humid Indian weather must be recalibrated. This Region.
conditions.
roli.srivastava@thehindu.co.in
ND-ND
 1ias.com | 11
NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2016

WEEKEND
READING
JOURNEYS SHELF

HELP
Creating a contemporary canon G

Of days lost
The writer must turn publisher as Bhutans long road to de-sacralisation yields a nascent literary landscape DEEPA GANESH

ABDUS SALAM
Sometime around 1616 AD,
Ngawang Namgyel, or Zhab-
drung Rinpoche as he came to
be later known, felt increas-
ingly edged out by the political
intrigue around his temporal
and spiritual authority at the
Ralung monastery in Tibet
and decided to head south.
Striking anchor in western
Bhutan, he founded the Chagri
Dorjeden Monastery at the
northern end of the Thimphu
valley, some 15-odd kilometres
from the capital of today. Over
the course of the next 35 years
of his life, and 54 more years of
what is possibly the longest-
kept secret about someones
demise, Zhabdrung Rinpoche
became the great unifier of
Bhutan, giving the country its
modern-day contours. For the
next two and a half centuries,
the so-called ecclesiocratic
period (1651-1907), clans
waxed and waned until the
House of Wangchuck reuni-
fied the kingdom.
From unification to reunifi-
cation, Vajrayana Buddhism
became both a leitmotif of
power and an article of faith
welding the populace. The im-
pact of this continuum has
been singular. It engendered a
stability that allowed Bhutan
to remain cloistered for the
better part of the twentieth
century and adopt metrics
such as gross national happi-
ness, eschew the global hun-
ger for unbridled develop-
ment in favour of holistic
growth, and even embark on a
guided transition to democra-
cy. This rich inheritance, how-
ever, also had a downside to it.
It left Bhutan with a cornuco-
pia of oral traditions but pre-
cious little by way of what
would qualify as literary work.
Text was sacralised; it became
something to be revered.
Buddhism was the proper sub-
ject of traditional scholarship;
literature beyond the pale.
As the Land of Druk slowly
opened itself to the world
from the latter half of the last
century, the modern project of
reclaiming text from religion
began. This process, of the
secularisation of text in Bhu-
tan, has had to take the long
road of spiritual exegesis,
country compendiums, aca-
demic treatises, touristy
guides, folk tale collections,
As Bhutan slowly opened itself to the world from
the latter half of the last century, the modern
project of reclaiming text from religion began
ILLUSTRATION: SATWIK GADE
and the odd travellers impres-
sions to finally yield a nascent
literary landscape.
It takes a trailblazer
Caught in the everyday re-
ality of household life, 15-
year-old Tsomo is suddenly
called upon to travel when her
mother dies. She makes her
first journey to a faraway vil-
lage to light the ritual butter
lamps in her mother's memo-
ry. Beginning here, her travels
take her to distant places,
across Bhutan and into India.
As she faces the world, a
woman alone, Tsomo em-
barks on what becomes a life
journey, in which she begins to
find herself and to grow as a
person and a woman.
For all its steeped-in-the-
milieu flavour, the plot line of
The Circle of Karma is admitt-
edly spartan. What it masks,
though, is the extraordinary.
The 2005 book, published by
Zubaan/Penguin, is Bhutans
first novel by a woman author.
Kunzang Choden did her hard
yards for 11 years Folktales
of Bhutan in 1994, followed by
the 22-story Bhutanese Tales
of the Yeti and Dawa: The Sto-
ry of a Stray Dog in Bhutan, a
novella before the break-
through book. And yet a dec-
ade down the line, Choden
might be the grande dame of
writing but the ground be-
neath her feat hasnt shifted
much. A book she proposed
on architectural mapping
found no takers, prompting
her to set up her own publish-
ing house, Riyang Books, in
2012. It aforded her the luxury
of publishing a poetry collec-
tion of hers, Folded in a paper
coat, this February. People
are beginning to value the cul-
ture of reading, she says.
It takes a little impatience
Chodens trailblazing act
has spawned newer word war-
riors, including Pema Auden,
who became Bhutans young-
est author at 12 with Coming
Home in 2008 and, even as she
studies mathematics in the
U.S., released her second
book, Lomba, this June. More
in the Choden mould, howev-
er, is Chador Wangmo, who
started Miza Books in 2012,
again to publish her thicken-
ing personal output. Named
after her daughter, Miza also
stands for the fire tin, a hearth
around which children in the
villages gather to hear elders
narrate folk tales that go
Dangphu dingphu (Once up-
on a time) A schoolteacher
for years, Wangmos writing
impulse was fuelled by the
growing realisation that not
only was Bhutan never a read-
ing society but the introduc-
tion of television in 1999 on
the 25th anniversary of then
king Jigme Singye Wang-
chucks coronation threatened
to eface even folk and oral tra-
ditions. She trained in writing
folk tales and stories for chil-
dren under the government-
funded Bhutan Childrens
Book Initiative project. The
impatient writer now has 11
books under her belt, branch-
ing of from childrens fare to
pen her first novel, La Ama, in
2015, and the just-released
Kyetse, a window into the
eastern Bhutanese culture of
Trashigang and Samdrup
Jongkhar. Someone had to do
it, she says.
Monu Tamangs problems
were much more elementary
it was about getting started.
Diary entries he wrote for his
then girlfriend while a final-
year physiotherapy under-
graduate student in Raichur,
Karnataka, formed the kernel
of a book draft he finally fin-
ished in 2014. By February
next year, the editing was done
and the book print-ready, but
it went into cold storage for
lack of a publisher. As the col-
lege romance gathered dust,
Tamang decided to take to so-
cial media and crowdsource
money. He approached active
Facebook users in Bhutan with
a stakeholder proposition: in-
vest money in the book and
sell copies at 50 per cent prof-
it. Thirty people signed up
with varying amounts. Chron-
icle of a Love Foretold (with
apologies to Marquez), pub-
lished by DSB Books and
printed at the Kuensel press,
released on December 19, 2015.
Writers have to do every-
thing here, he says.
It takes a village
Tamangs lament only illus-
trates the challenge of pushing
the frontiers in a country with
a population of just over
7,50,000 and a literacy rate of
under 60 per cent. As writer,
editor and publisher of her re-
cent books, Wangmo has had
to travel to Delhi and closer
to home Siliguri in Bengal
to get the binding and emboss-
ing finesse Thimphu printing
presses lack. Theres also the
question of numbers. Siksha
Bhattarai, whose father B.P.
Bhattarai opened DSB Books,
Thimphus first bookstore,
says the countrywide market
is still partial towards guide
books and childrens books,
and built around bulk school
purchases at the annual book
fairs at Mongar in the east and
Punakha, the former capital, in
the west. Chodens Dawa
needed the states helping
hand (the story is now part of
the oicial school curriculum)
to get the volumes. Audens
second book has launched
with an initial print order of
500. Tamangs reader-as-
stakeholder outreach notched
up 2,000 copies in sales.
Wangmos La Ama, a semi-au-
tobiographical exploration of
the mother-daughter relation-
ship, sold 3,000 copies a be-
stseller of bestsellers in the
Thimphu setting. Bhutan
read like never before, she
gushes.
As this years Mountain
Echoes the seventh edition
of what has become Thim-
phus annual date with litera-
ture and the arts also com-
memorated 400 years of the
arrival of the founder of mod-
ern Bhutan, the overwhelming
sense is that a tabula rasa is be-
ing filled bit by bit, where dis-
semination is the starting
point of mounting the fledg-
ling literary culture on a surer
footing. For the first time, the
number of Bhutanese writers
outnumbered Indians 31 to
26. Footfalls rose from 4,500 in
2014 to 7,500 last year and are
estimated to have touched
9,000 this year. Eight hundred
students were in attendance,
some travelling over 500 kilo-
metres to listen to authors
local and global and their
stories.
As sessions unfolded at the
Royal University of Bhutan au-
ditorium, the lit fest epicentre,
a student wrapped in the na-
tional dress, gho, emerged
from a panel discussion on
teenage love and went down
the steps to the adjoining ma-
keshift bookstall. He scanned
the racks as people moved in a
file from stall entry to exit, and
furtively bought a copy of
Meenakshi Madhavan Reddys
Split before being spirited
away by friends. Perhaps he is
another Monu Tamang by
night, penning his own Chron-
icle of a Love Foretold for his
beloved. Perhaps hell ask for
Marquez upfront at the pay-
ment counter next year.
abdus.salam@thehindu.co.in
Undisguised is perhaps the right
word to describe Balawant Shankar
Joshis A Life to Remember
(Xlibris). The vivid detailing of the
memoir strikes you can memory
be so sharp and lucid even at the
age of 90? He takes you around the
globe from humble Jamakhandi
to idyllic Dharwad where he spent
his childhood and early years, to
London, Hong Kong, Alaska,
Portugal and other places.
What led Joshi a scientist
researching on plants and natural
products for the pharmaceutical
industries of India, Switzerland and
the U.S., with nearly 200
publications to his credit to write
the story of his life? He observes, it
is the record of a way of life that has
been obliterated; it can, at best,
exist only as memory. To revisit it is
to live it again. Joshi writes: The
present day life is so crowded and
busy that there is hardly any time to
sit and read about the past. This
memoir is the life of an ordinary
man coming from poor
circumstances in India with great
expectations from parents having
limited means.
Joshi speaks highly of his father
Shambha Joshi, a
gigantic literary
figure in Kannada, a
linguist, and a
modest
schoolteacher. But
he also pays equal
tribute to his
mother, who was
the first woman to
start a Bhagini
Samaj in Dharwad. Like Shambha,
she was also a Gandhian. She could
ride the cycle, and unlike most
women of her time, walked in
public alongside her husband with
confidence. Apart from recounting
hardships that the family faced,
Joshi recalls his fathers friendships
with the leading figure of the
Karnataka unification movement,
Alur Venkata Rao; poets D.R.
Bendre and Betageri Krishna
Sharma; singer Gangubai Hangal;
and several others. Joshis world is
not the world his father, who was
rooted in his land and its calling,
inhabited: he goes to Cambridge,
works in the worlds best
institutions, and travels extensively.
Yet, his love for humanity and
simplicity keep him intimately
connected to Shambhas world.
The memoir is full of stories: big
and small, momentous and
ordinary. One of them is mythology
in the Kannada literary world. His
mother Parvatibai slips into coma
and doesnt regain consciousness
even after 15 days. Fearing his wifes
death, Shambha gives up food and
water. On September 28, 1991,
Shambha passes away. The next
morning, Parvatibai passes away
too. They both leave this world
without hearing of each others
death. Joshis memoir is a metaphor
for a way of life that weve lost.
deepa.ganesh@thehindu.co.in

THE BOOK
WORD COUNT
IN MY HAND
Before the Age of Distraction
Pico Iyer Evenings on a Himalayan trek are filled with reading and maintaining a journal
Ive always admired JAIDEEP UNUDURTI marmots. Glaciers hunt hills, a are walking through its cadav-
Kazuo Ishiguro for his 1,00,000-year-long chase that er. Ladakh is the autopsy table
ability to introduce the I write these lines in the com- always ends the same way, for a dead world.
reader to a new world fort of my study, but it all with the hill eaten.
in every novel. I just seems insubstantial. I am here. These primordial vistas of But ghosts?
finished his The Buried But Im also in a valley where dead lithologies are the per- The yellow carpets of wheat
Giant, which was
the moon is a coin of bone, fect setting for what Im read- near Markha village dispel
haunting. I also finished
Elizabeth Gilberts The where ziggurats of stone reach ing now, The Horror in the this mood. I have Oliver On-
Signature of All Things, for the sky, in a land dreamt up Museum, a collection of short ions Dead of the Night with
which has a woman by a mad god. stories by H.P. Lovecraft. me. The collection of late Vic-
scientist as the * HPL was an American writ- torian-era ghost stories seems
protagonist and is very Im about to embark on a Hi- er of the 1930s. To him, exist- out of place on a brilliantly
modern in its scope. malayan trek. We are to set of ence itself was the greatest blue day, the light reverberat-
The two books offered very from Leh, trek for eight days monster, and a landscape ing between the purple peaks.
different flavours while the through the Markha Valley could be more menacing than That night, however, reminds
first is deep, the second is culminating in an ascent to the a pack of werewolves. The ve- me perhaps that Onion is not
high-spirited! Kormang Pass at about 17,000 ry scale of the universe and so extraneous. By custom we
Pico Iyer, best known for his travel feet. We are to start early in the our utter insignificance there- all congregate in the dining
writing, last wrote The Art of morning, and reach camp by in was the ultimate terror. tent after supper. We try to
Stillness: Adventures in Going
Nowhere. afternoon. Night falls quickly He was deeply influenced spook ourselves by coming up
and we will be spending many by the paintings of Nicholas with paranormal scenarios.
hours cooped up in our tents. IN ANOTHER PLANET: Markha valley is a solemn, funerary landscape. Approaching the top of the Roerich, the Russian master The girl from Luxembourg
No cell phones, no electricity Kongmaru La, the last pass on the Markha Valley. PHOTO: SUJOY DOS who travelled extensively wins the house with her ima-
even. This conjures up a per- through Tibet before settling gining of what happens when
Graeme Simsion fect image of a life with books,
of how it was before the Age of
tries, this city has to be con-
stantly dragged on rail tracks.
ha Valley. Chortens and lhatos
mark every step. Thanks to
In Leh, on the
night before the
down near Manali. He would
say that surely Roerich is one
we leave the tent late at night
to answer natures call as they
Distraction. I envisage eve- For they are on a hyperboloid that famous scene in Tintin in of those rare fantastic souls say. Ghost stories are primal
I picked up Kunzang
Chodens The Circle of
nings filled with reading and planet, if they stay at one place Tibet featuring Captain Had- trek a sudden panic who have glimpsed the grotes- currency of humans. They
maintaining my journal. Now for too long, the gravitational dock, I know that you always had assailed me. que, terrible secrets outside make us go back to that time
Karma ahead of my all that remains is selecting stresses will shred them apart. walk to the left when crossing space and beyond time, and when we peered out of the
Bhutan trip and loved it the reading material carefully. The inhabitants are in search them. Mani walls are every- What if I run out who have retained some abili- campfire into the encircling
for its insights into
Bhutanese society. I of the optimum, a place where, with their invocations of books? ty to hint at the marvels they darkness, and the darkness
Preparations where the earth is stable. They to Avaloketisvara carved into have seen. peered back.
usually read when Im
not in the process of The night before leaving for are trapped in a cycle of monu- stone, a jigsaw puzzle left to And indeed I can espy the As we head to the lonely
writing. My third book Leh, I wander around a mall mental drudgery, to reach this Him to solve. It is a solemn, fu- disss Cryptozoic!, They pro- connection between the inte- plateau of Nimaling, I rum-
is ready, so Im looking bookstore in Gurgaon. Invert- mythical point. A few days lat- nerary landscape. liferated on the margins of rior and exterior landscapes, a mage deeper in the rucksack.
to go back to the ed World by Christopher er, making our way to Ganda All around us are the time, embodying all the amaz- geography of words mapped In the distance the perma-
bookshelf even as I Priest, a highly inventive sci- La Im reminded of this. Get wounds of the collision be- ing forms the world was to out. HPLs epic Mountains of nently mist-ravaged peak of
attend promotional ence-fiction writer, immedi- up, break camp, walk, set up tween the Indian and the Eur- carry; the earth was having a Madness whose titular peaks Kangyatse grows more promi-
tours. ately catches my eye. Priest is camp again. Certainly we are asian plate, which pushed up nightmare of stone about the are stark, nightmare spir- nent each day. In Leh, on the
Up next is Haruki Murakamis probably best known for writ- walking through a science-fic- the Himalayas more than 60 progeny that would swarm esthe pylons of a frightful night before the trek, a sudden
Sputnik Sweetheart. I know its a ing the novel which formed tional landscape. Ladakh is an- million years ago. Ophiolites over it as if they were the sin- gateway into forbidden panic had assailed me. As my
little late in the day, but didnt the basis of Christopher No- other planet. We could be ex- show the banded layers of the ister fore-shadowings of what spheres of dream and which German friends would call it, a
some famous American author lans The Prestige. plorers descended onto its hidden earth. Terms vaguely was to come as well as the af- gave appalling reminders of torchungspanik, a gate-clos-
say he hadnt read To Kill a Inverted World has a fasci- surface. swim up from long-gone geol- ter-images of what was long the utter remoteness, sepa- ing panic. What if I run out of
Mockingbird? nating conceit, an entire city ogy classes crustal flyschs, past. Serrated mountains tear rateness, desolation and aeon- books? What if Im stranded
Graeme Simsion is the author of which is perpetually on the Thanks, Captain Haddock basalts, cherts. the horizon. It is a landscape of long death of this untrodden on lonely mountainside with
The Rosie Project and The Rosie
Effect. move. Situated in an alien As the trek continues, we The strange rock forma- ancient violence. The Chanko and unfathomed astral world. nothing to read?
world with twisting geome- pass deeper through the Mark- tions remind me of Brian Al- hunts the Argali. Eagles hunt The planet has died. And we Jaideep Unudurti is a freelance writer.

ND-ND
10 | 1ias.com EDITORIAL THE HINDU MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 5, 2016
NOIDA/DELHI

Merely a logistics pact?

With the signing of LEMOA marking a deepening India-U.S. relationship, New Delhi needs to reflect
whether this is the opportune moment for the country to reset its compass
mary objective, though like Banquos MOA and BECA. If India were to do so and
M O N D AY , S E P T E M B E R 5 , 2 0 1 6 ghost, China hovered in the background. No if credence were to be given to what Mr. Car-
M.K. NARAYANAN pressure was exerted on India to become ter said on a visit to India previously, viz.,
part of a wider alliance against the new re- that there was a strategic confluence be-

From dissent On August 29 this year, Union Defence Min-

gional hegemon.
However, it is worth recalling that during
the entire period of negotiations on the nu-
tween India and the U.S. today, and renewal
of the U.S.-India Defence Partnership was
leading to increased strategic cooperation

to disapproval ister Manohar Parrikar and U.S. Defence

Secretary Ashton Carter signed a Logistics
Exchange Memorandum of Agreement (LE-
clear deal, apart from Mr. Bush and his Na-
tional Security Adviser, two other ardent
supporters of the deal were U.S. Vice-Presi-
it could convey an impression that India had
gone from becoming a major defence part-
ner to a significant non-NATO ally.

H
istory shows that principled dissent often
leads to reform. Justice J. Chelameswar has
acted on his famous dissent. After dis-
agreeing with the majority on a Constitution Bench
that struck down the law enacted to establish a Na-
tional Judicial Appointments Commission, the
judge, who is part of the five-member Supreme
Court collegium, has opted to keep out of its pro-
ceedings. In a letter to the Chief Justice, he is under-
stood to have raised the issue of lack of transparen-
cy in the collegiums functioning. His position is
consistent with his dissenting judgment, in which
he had spoken elaborately on the ills of the system.
He had articulated his view that the executive can-
not be shut out of judicial appointments, and that
according primacy to the judiciary in the matter of
appointments is not the only way to preserve its in-
dependence. Of course, Mr. Chelameswars latest
missive is fraught with serious consequences. It has
brought the focus again on the manner in which the
judiciary functions on its administrative side. It
may further delay the finalisation of the collegiums
view on the Memorandum of Procedure (MoP) for
appointment and transfer of judges. With over 480
vacancies in the high courts and three in the Su-
preme Court, diferences within the collegium may
delay appointments, leading to significant alter-
ations in the tenure and promotion prospects of
judges and Chief Justices. Mr. Chelameswars boy-
cott is undoubtedly based on principle; however, it
raises the question whether he is not bound to be
part of the collegium system as long as it is in force.
Irrespective of the serious reservations about the
verdict in the NJAC case, the collegium system is
here to stay. A fresh and transparent procedure for
appointments was to be worked out by the execu-
tive. The Centre has sent its draft MoP, but it ap-
pears the collegium is reluctant to approve some of
the clauses. The fact that the exact nature of the dif-
ferences between them is not known only strength-
ens Mr. Chelameswars point about opacity. The re-
vision process should not be kept under wraps.
Public interest, especially the principle of judicial
independence, will be better served if the proce-
dure under preparation is thrown open to a debate.
The judiciary showed the way forward by asking
the Centre to prepare a revised memorandum. It
should also end the impasse by taking an early call
on firming up the procedure. In the light of a clear
admission by the majority of judges in the NJAC
case of the need for infusion of transparency, it will
be welcome if Mr. Chelameswars position streng-
thens the support for reforming it.
MOA), an agreement that the U.S. has assid-
uously pursued since 2002 and which India
had, till now, resolutely refused to endorse.
Both Mr. Carter and Mr. Parrikar have conse-
quently gone to great lengths to explain that
LEMOA does not amount to a military pact.
Their explanation could appear disingenu-
ous to many. It may also not find too many
takers.
The agreement does not mention the set-
ting up of permanent bases in either coun-
try. According to the signatories, LEMOA
only facilitates establishing mutual basing
facilities. This would be on a case-by-case
basis, intended to help speed up humanitar-
ian relief operations as also emergency evac-
uation from conflict-prone regions. In cer-
tain circumstances, it could also help
smoothen operational logistics between the
navies of the two countries.
A Chinese shadow
However, strategic experts, especially
those in the West, are of the view that the LE-
MOA is a critical link in the U.S.s plans for a
larger pivot towards Asia. Also, that it is in-
tended to meet the threat from an increas-
ingly assertive China. Erasing such impres-
sions will not be easy.
India-U.S. relations have been on an up-
swing since the turn of the century. U.S.
President Bill Clinton made the initial move
to break the logjam in India-U.S. ties dating
back to the Cold War period. It was Prime
Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, who during a
visit to the U.S., made bold to hint that it was
time to move beyond the hesitations of his-
tory; hopes which Prime Minister Manmo-
han Singh (2004-2014) and Prime Minister
Narendra Modi (since 2014) have fulfilled in
more than ample measure. There has been
no looking back since and U.S. Presidents
George Bush and Barack Obama have vied
with each other to strengthen U.S.-India re-
CARTOONSCAPE
The United States is a true
practitioner of the art of
realpolitik. Changes in policy are
constantly effected to suit its
global requirements
lations. With Indias economic profile and
growth rates steadily going up, India has be-
come a particularly attractive target for the
U.S. and the West.
Realistically speaking, the strategic build-
up between the two countries commenced
during the first term of Mr. Bush, when the
Next Steps in Strategic Partnership heralded
a sea change in U.S.-India relations. In his
second term, Mr. Bush was able to establish a
special relationship with Dr. Singh. Energy
and strategic issues greatly benefitted from
the relationship. It is inconceivable that the
iconic India-U.S. civil nuclear deal could
have been concluded under any other set of
circumstances, and without the personal ini-
tiative and warmth present in the Bush-Man-
mohan Singh relationship.
The relationship derived its strength from
a mutual desire to strengthen cooperation
between the worlds two largest democra-
cies. Containment of China was not the pri-
dent Dick Cheney and the Pentagons Bob
Gates. The State Department and the De-
partment of Energy, on the other hand, tend-
ed to be equivocal in their approach to the
deal. Ascribing hidden motives to the Penta-
gons tilt in favour of India and despite Pa-
kistans strident opposition would howev-
er be tendentious.
It was in 2005 that India and the U.S.
signed their first Defence Cooperation
Agreement. This agreement was renewed
and expanded in 2010 and 2015, leading to a
loosening of strict controls that existed re-
garding the transfer of excluded categories
of technologies. Around 2007-2008, the U.S.
made initial moves to get India to sign three
foundational agreements viz., the Logistics
Support Agreement (LSA); the Communica-
tions Interoperability and Security Memo-
randum of Agreement (CISMOA); and the
Basic Exchange and Cooperation Agree-
ment (BECA) for Geo-spatial Cooperation.
While India welcomed the idea of relaxation
of technology norms, it resisted signing the
foundational agreements on the ground that
it undermined Indias strategic autonomy.
Dynamics of U.S. policy
June 2016 proved to be a defining month in
India-U.S. relations. The joint statement is-
sued on the occasion of Mr. Modis visit to
the U.S. talked of the two countries provid-
ing global leadership on issues of shared in-
terest, along with the announcement that
the U.S. recognised India as a major defence
partner. In his address to the U.S. Congress,
the Prime Minister proceeded to observe
that India had moved beyond the hesita-
tions of history. The two largest democra-
cies in the world thus appeared finally to be
on the same page.
With LEMOA in place, it is almost certain
that pressures would intensify to sign the
other two foundational agreements CIS-
India-U.S. relations are hardly a zero-sum
game. Overcoming the hesitations of histo-
ry is one thing; not ignoring the lessons of
history is equally, if not more, important.
The U.S. is a true practitioner of the art of
realpolitik. Changes in policy are constant-
ly efected to suit its global requirements. In
Europe, for example, today the U.S. seems to
be preparing to jettison its long-standing
special relationship with the U.K. In West
Asia, as U.S.-Iran relations improve, Saudi
Arabia is now the new villain on the block.
The U.S. had always been suspicious of In-
dias relations with Russia, that go back to
the period of non-alignment. And today, as
U.S.-Russia relations are at their nadir since
the fall of the Berlin Wall, the U.S. can be ex-
pected to try and further weaken India-Rus-
sia relations that are lately facing some
strain. Furthermore, given Pakistans loca-
tion, it would be a mistake to believe that the
U.S. would completely detach itself from
Pakistan.
Fast-paced alignments
The geopolitical situation across the re-
gion is more confused today than it was only
a few years back. Geopolitical alignments
are changing at a bewildering pace. As India
moves closer to the U.S., Russia is seen to be
coming closer to China. At one level, Russia
is strengthening its links with China eco-
nomically and strategically, and coordinat-
ing more closely with the latter on the issue
of the South China Sea. At another level,
Russia is engaging with China to oppose U.S.
attempts to install its Missile Defence Sys-
tem in Asia.
Russia is simultaneously seeking to rein-
force its long-standing strategic ties with
Southeast Asian countries such as Vietnam.
Russia and the Association of Southeast
Asian Nations (ASEAN) appear to have
come closer. At the Russia-ASEAN Summit
earlier this year, there was even talk of a
strategic partnership for mutual benefit. In
Eurasia, Russia is currently carving out a
zone of influence for itself. India does not
figure in any of these plans.
When the strategic balance across the en-
tire Asian region is undergoing a seismic
shift, India cannot be seen to be playing a los-
ing hand. The main players, today, are the
U.S., Russia and China. The current efort of
countries such as China and Russia is to re-
strict, if not exclude, U.S. influence from the
region, labelling it as a non-Asian power. On
issues such as the South China Sea, even
many of the countries directly involved, spe-
cially the Philippines, are willing to make

Promise versus their peace with China. The U.S.s role in the
region is thus becoming restricted, leaving it
with few alternatives.
performance In global afairs, timing is of great signifi-
cance. Hence, Indias leaders need to reflect

I
t is far from easy to live up to ones promise and
potential. The Aam Aadmi Party was founded
on a belief in the possibility of changing the sys-
tem, working outside of it. But over the last couple
of years, the party and its maverick leader Arvind
Kejriwal have shown themselves unable to deliver
on their promise or rise to their potential. From the
selection of candidates to the process of decision-
making in the party, the AAP is now seen running
counter to its own stated philosophy of transparen-
cy and accountability in public life. In Punjab, the
party appears to have lost the political plot with Mr.
Kejriwal unwilling to allow an independent region-
al leadership to emerge. Sucha Singh Chhotepur,
who was sacked as the State convenor over allega-
tions of bribery, has demonstrated that he is no
pushover by winning the support of a huge section
of the AAP. Navjot Singh Sidhu, the cricketer-turn-
ed-politician who quit the BJP recently, chose to
float an alternative platform, Awaaz-e-Punjab, rath-
er than join with the AAP. Delhi was only a stepping
stone for Mr. Kejriwal, who wants to project him-
self as an alternative to Prime Minister Narendra
Modi. From his choice of Lok Sabha seat in the 2014
election he chose to take on Mr. Modi in Varanasi
to his frequent Twitter barbs aimed at the Prime
Minister, it is clear that he fancies himself as a na-
tional level leader. Delhi was no more than a launch
pad for his political career; Punjab, the only State
where the AAP performed well in the Lok Sabha
election, is the next logical step. Whether it is Mr.
Chhotepur or Mr. Sidhu, it is clear no one will be al-
lowed to share the leadership space with Mr. Kejri-
wal in the AAPs Punjab unit.
But Punjab is not the only cause of problems in
the party. In recent months, some of its ministers
and MLAs have been caught on the wrong side of
the law. The party did defend some of them, alleg-
ing, and perhaps not entirely falsely, that the Centre
was using the Delhi Police to target the party and its
prominent members. Indeed, this became another
issue in the AAPs battle to bring law and order in
the national capital region under the State govern-
ments purview. In the latest controversy involving
its Women and Child Welfare Minister Sandeep
Kumar, the AAP took the high moral ground, and
sacked him soon after a video recording of him with
a woman in a sexual act was released by a media
house. Mr. Kumar was removed from the party as
well, as it became clear he had known of the pres-
ence of the camera. Evidently, there was more to
lose than gain from defending Mr. Kumar, who al-
leged he was targeted as he was a Dalit. Mr. Kejriwal
seems to have set his sights high, but Punjab will
judge him by what he did in Delhi as well. The AAP
needs to recover its purpose as a catalyst for politi-
cal and social change if it is to grow beyond Delhi.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Letters emailed to letters@thehindu.co.in must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.
Journey to sainthood
It cannot be denied that the poorest
of the poor experienced hope
because of Mother Teresas healing
touch and compassion (A journey
to sainthood, Sept.3). It was
absolute faith which drove her to
take up formidable challenges. The
frail nun was selfless beyond
description and the celebration of
her life and her entry into sainthood
are perfectly in order.
C.G. Kuriakose,
Kothamangalam, Kerala
I recall receiving a phonecall, back in
1977, from her oice, the
Missionaries of Charity in Kolkata,
requesting an immediate
appointment for the Mother. She
arrived, accompanied by a nun, and
requested the release of a station
wagon donated by a foreign tourist
and in the custody of customs
authorities. Under the law, a tourist
availing of such a duty-free import
was required to take the car out of
the country within a time frame.
This requirement was not complied
with. Mother Teresa showed me a
copy of the Ministry of Finance
order which granted customs duty
exemption and I had to tell her that
under the law, it was the Ministry of
Commerce that had to grant her the
permission.
With child-like simplicity, she
pleaded for its release in order to
fulfil a promise made to her
children to take them on a picnic
in the new car, and for which she was
prepared to sign any kind of
undertaking. Well before the day she
was to take her children on a
joyride dawned, the station wagon
was parked in the premises of her
charity. I was rewarded with a very
warm Thank you over the phone,
followed by postcard bearing her
trademark signature.
S.K. Choudhury,
Bengaluru
Despite the blind glorification of
Mother Teresa, her followers and
her organisation have a lot to answer
to. Besides the allegations of opaque
financial transactions, one cannot
ignore her extreme views on
abortion. There were also
allegations of conversion behind the
service to the poor and the
downtrodden. Unless these
allegations are investigated, the
journey to sainthood has no
meaning.
V.S. Thakur,
Rajgarh, Himachal Pradesh
Her critics will immediately focus
on her missionary zeal towards
conversion. However, no one can
question her dedication towards the
downtrodden, the sick and those
shunned by society. One hopes that
her elevation as a saint will help her
missionaries of charity continue to
carry out its selfless service. Her
journey will always remain
amazing.
Rahul J. Gautam,
Bengaluru
Talks with the Hurriyat
The impassioned plea of Opposition
MPs to the government to involve
the Hurriyat Conference in the
all-party talks on Kashmir might be
well-intentioned but it leaves one
apprehensive if one considers the
past stance of the Hurriyat (Talk to
Hurriyat now: MPs, Sept. 4). Its
inclination to favour Pakistan cannot
be ruled out. Attempts so far to make
the Hurriyat see reason have never
been fruitful.
C.V. Aravind,
Bengaluru
Moves cast in stone will never help
solve the festering Kashmir
problem. For this, all right-thinking
people must come up with solutions.
With development, economic
growth, peace and prosperity,
Kashmir can tap its full potential as a
tourist destination of unrivalled
beauty, which will also be an ideal
source of revenue. In addition to
this, setting up good colleges and
technical institutes will help
mainstream the youth of Kashmir. A
visionary like the Prime Minister
should now set up a separate oice
for Kashmir to monitor
development.
Veena Shenoy,
Thane, Maharashtra
Kerrys NGO concerns
Ever since the Bharatiya Janata
Party-led NDA government came to
power, it has been focussing on the
role of NGOs in India (No
compassion for NGO in India
leaves Kerry worried, Sept.4). This
might have happened after some of
them violated Indian laws during
funds mobilisation while others,
though not anti-national, may have
been strident in opposing
government policies. Sometimes
such victimisation has amounted to
a witch-hunt and harassment in the
name of enforcing laws and rules.
The fact that U.S. Secretary of State
John Kerry has flagged the issue
should make the Centre sit up and
whether this is the opportune moment for
the country to reset its compass and move
away from its long-term insistence on strate-
gic autonomy. It is also hardly the time to be
seen to be the ally of One Power, that too one
whose power seems to be waning. It might
diminish Indias image in the region and
beyond.
M.K. Narayanan is a former National Security Adviser and
former Governor of West Bengal.
take note. While the government can spread in the environment and
may have a point about regulations transmitted to children and the
having to be followed, it must also elderly as well as
learn to be tolerant towards immunocompromised patients who
criticism, comments and are at increased risk of contracting
suggestions made by NGOs on opportunistic diseases. Perhaps
several issues which include religion pulmonologists can keep an eye out
and the environment. By and large, for fungal diseases as well.
NGOs working in several fields have E. Mathew,
acted like watchdogs.
Thrissur
D.B.N. Murthy,
Bengaluru Emissions and the monsoon
The International Maritime
Pigeon alert Organization (IMO) has been
The pigeon occupies a prime place enforcing a set of regulations,
in urban India. Across India, pigeon collectively known as the Marpol
feeding is quite popular. On my way Conventions, to control marine
to oice at Shantipath every day, I pollution of the sea and air
used to find vast quantities of maize (Emissions from ships can impact
strewn all over the road and the monsoon activity over Bay of
dividers with flocks of pigeons Bengal, Aug.10). The main exhaust
having a feast. The NGT should ban air pollutants are nitrogen oxides,
the feeding of birds (Sunday sulphur oxides, carbon oxides and
Special The pigeon paradox: unburnt hydrocarbon particulates
Feeding them could be bad for your which result from the burning of fuel
lungs, Sept.4). In Toronto, Canada, used for propulsion. The fuel most
for example, there are signboards commonly used is residual fuel
asking people not to feed birds. blends which have a high sulphur
T. Sampath Kumar, content. To reduce the emission of
sulphur oxides, the IMO has
New Delhi
restricted the percentage of sulphur
Instances of human pulmonary used globally to 3.5 per cent m/m. In
conditions that have been associated the developed world, it must be as
with pigeon proximity have been low as 0.1 per cent while in China, it
known to occur from early times in is still lower. There are also rules on
Kerala. In fact erstwhile aristocratic improved engine designs to emit less
families fancied pigeon keeping as a nitrogen oxides. The IMO has
tradition and a hobby and were designated certain areas of the sea as
known to pass away after emission control areas and
contracting mysterious diseases. special areas where pollution
Rather than it being a case of regulations are even more stringent.
Hypersensitive Pneumonitis, it Perhaps India, which is a signatory
could be more a case of contracting to Marpol, must designate the Bay of
the zoonotic fungal disease, Bengal as an emission control area.
cryptococosis. Several types of fungi M. Unnikrishnan,
are present in pigeon droppings that Chennai

ND-ND
The Hindu
Holiday Today
10 | 1ias.com EDITORIAL THE HINDU WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 7, 2016
NOIDA/DELHI

Obamas last sally for a safer world

The U.S. President is trying to upend his mixed nuclear record before he ends his term. A no-first-use policy
pronouncement by the U.S. could just be what it takes to leave a lasting nuclear legacy
Congress where it would have faced Repub- U.S. policy that countenances a first-use of
W E D N E S D AY , S E P T E M B E R 7 , 2 0 1 6 lican opposition. nuclear weapons (though under extreme
RAKESH SOOD
One of Mr. Obamas boldest decisions was circumstances) in response to even a con-
to visit Hiroshima earlier this year, becom- ventional attack, to a no-first-use (NFU) of

Return of the This year, the 71st session of the UN General

ing the first serving U.S. President to do so,
71 years after the city was destroyed by the
first nuclear bomb. Bypassing the debate
nuclear weapons, implying nuclear retalia-
tion only in response to a nuclear attack. Of
the nine countries known to possess nuclear

Cauvery crisis Assembly will formally open in New York

on September 13 and over a fortnight, presi-
dents, prime ministers and foreign minis-
about whether his speech would be seen as
an apology, he called upon countries that
possess nuclear weapons to have the cour-
weapons, only China and India maintain an
NFU, though in 2003, India qualified its
NFU by expanding its right of nuclear retal-

W
ith the Southwest monsoon falling short
this season, the story of any other mon-
soon-deficient year is being repeated:
Tamil Nadu rushing to the Supreme Court citing
the crisis faced by its farmers, the court ordering re-
lease of some water, and protests erupting in Kar-
nataka. The reason for this endless cycle of sporad-
ic litigation and ad hoc adjudication is that the two
States continue to avoid any mutual engagement to
share the shortfall during distress years. And there
is no permanent, independent mechanism to en-
sure this. The Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal,
which gave its award in 2007, has asked the parties
to share the deficiency on a pro rata basis. However,
a major problem in implementing this aspect is the
absence of a Cauvery Management Board and a
Regulatory Authority, which the Tribunal had
wanted created to oversee implementation. In-
stead, after notifying the final award in 2013, the
Union government set up a Supervisory Commit-
tee comprising officials from the Union govern-
ment and the Central Water Commission and rep-
resentatives of both States. The court has now
asked Tamil Nadu to approach the committee,
which will decide on further releases.
The Supreme Courts direction, when imple-
mented, will ensure about 13 thousand million cu-
bic (tmc) feet of water to Tamil Nadu over 10 days.
This will not be adequate to save the entire samba
crop, Tamil Nadu leaders argue, while their Karna-
taka counterparts contend that this itself is a huge
burden, given the States own storage deficit. It is
understandable that the political leadership of any
State would not want to be seen as betraying the in-
terests of its farmers. Yet, the desire to protect ones
own interests should not shut out empathy for ones
neighbour. Ideally, any distress-sharing formula
should come from a technical body. It would have
helped if the Centre, which dilly-dallied for six
years before notifying the final award under a judi-
cial direction, had set up the Cauvery Management
Board and Regulatory Authority. In the longer
term, experts will have to devise a sustainable agri-
cultural solution for the Cauvery basin, as the river
does not seem to have the potential to meet the
farming requirements of both sides. In a world of
depleting water resources, fewer crop seasons and
lower acreages, a resort to less water-intensive
crops and better water management hold the key.
Non-political initiatives, such as the Cauvery Fam-
ily, a body formed a few years ago covering farmers
of both States, could help disperse the clouds of
hostility that gather over the border whenever the
Cauvery crisis erupts. Politics and passion should
not be allowed to hold sway.
ters will take the podium. There is wide-
spread speculation that this being U.S.
President Barack Obamas last plenary, he is
considering an address that could have sig-
nificant implications for U.S. nuclear policy
and for the global nuclear disarmament
agenda which has now remained frozen for
decades.
Since Ben Rhodes, U.S. Deputy National
Security Adviser for Strategic Communica-
tions, announced on June 6, I can promise
you today that President Obama is contin-
uing to review a number of ways he can ad-
vance the Prague agenda over the course of
the next seven months. Put simply, our work
is not finished on these issues, the White
House has maintained a studied silence on
the subject despite the debate under way in
the arms control community and among
U.S. allies, especially those that enjoy the se-
curity of its nuclear umbrella.
Mr. Obamas speech in April 2009 at the
Hradcany Square in Prague electrified the
world when he announced that as the only
nuclear power to have used a nuclear weap-
on, the United States has a moral responsib-
ility to act and pledged Americas commit-
ment to seek the peace and security of a
world without nuclear weapons. He prom-
ised that to put an end to Cold War think-
ing, we (U.S.) will reduce the role of nuclear
weapons in our national security strategy
and urge others to do the same. The citation
for his Nobel Peace Prize later in 2009
praised his vision of and work for a world
without nuclear weapons.
Obamas nuclear record
Seven years later, President Obamas nu-
clear record is a mixed one. The Nuclear
Posture Review (NPR) issued the following
year (the U.S. undertakes an NPR roughly
once a decade) referred to the objectives of
reducing the role of U.S. nuclear weapons
in national security strategy while maintain-
ing strategic deterrence and stability at re-
duced nuclear force levels. The Nuclear
Weapons Employment Strategy that fol-
lowed in 2013 stated that the U.S. would only
CARTOONSCAPE
Only China and India maintain
a no-first-use policy... A U.S. lead
for less dependence on nuclear
weapons will create a push for
other weapon states to follow
consider the use of nuclear of nuclear weap-
ons in extreme circumstances to defend
the vital interests of the United States or its
allies and partners. The Defence Depart-
ment was directed to strengthen non-nu-
clear capabilities and reduce the role of nu-
clear weapons in deterring non-nuclear
attacks.
Negotiations with Russia led to the New
START Treaty coming into force in Febru-
ary 2011 which limits U.S. and Russian nucle-
ar arsenals to 700 deployed ICBMs (inter-
continental ballistic missiles), SLBMs
(submarine-launched ballistic missiles) and
heavy bombers and 1,550 deployed nuclear
warheads. Follow-on negotiations stalled
thereafter and the New START will lapse in
2021, unless extended by a five-year period.
Mr. Obama also launched the cycle of Nu-
clear Security Summits in 2010 to highlight
the threats posed by terrorists seeking nu-
clear materials. This concluded earlier this
year with the Washington summit. The nu-
clear deal with Iran has been praised gener-
ally though it has faced criticism from the
U.S.s regional allies, Israel and Saudi Ara-
bia. Described as an executive agreement,
it has not been submitted for approval to the
age to escape the logic of fear and pursue a
world without them.
Running into resistance
Yet these achievements fall far short of
the promises of the Prague speech. The
CTBT (Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban
Treaty) ratification, which Mr. Obama had
promised to push through vigorously, con-
tinues to languish. The Nuclear Security
Summits created the buzz normally associ-
ated with summitry but remained content
with shared best practices and voluntarily
announced measures.
Meaningful negotiations on nuclear is-
sues remain deadlocked. But most impor-
tant, notwithstanding the careful wording in
the 2010 NPR and 2013 Employment Strate-
gy, there has been no significant shift in U.S.
nuclear weapons policy. Further, to push
through the ratification of the New START
treaty, Mr. Obama also authorised a $1-tril-
lion budget over the next three decades for
maintaining and improving the U.S. nuclear
arsenal under the Stockpile Stewardship
Program.
Realising his failure with the CTBT ratifi-
cation, Mr. Obama is planning to submit a
resolution on this issue to the UN Security
Council, 20 years after the CTBT was
opened for signature. The U.S., under Presi-
dent Bill Clinton, had pushed the CTBT ne-
gotiations but in 1999, the treaty was reject-
ed by the Senate on account of concerns
about its impact on the U.S. nuclear arsenal.
Given the current mood in the Senate, it is
unlikely to budge.
Even though a resolution by the UN Secu-
rity Council calling on states to uphold the
CTBT would be non-binding, such a move
has already been criticised by Senate For-
eign Relations Committee Chairman Bob
Corker as an affront to the Congress and
the American people. And it is unlikely to
persuade China, Iran or Israel to ratify, or for
that matter, India, Pakistan and North Korea
to sign up!
The idea arousing the maximum interest
is therefore a shift away from the current
iation to cover not just nuclear but also a
chemical or biological weapon attack. All
others maintain a first-use policy. In recent
years, there have been suggestions that Chi-
nas growing concerns about U.S. conven-
tional superiority might push it to review its
NFU policy.
Considering that the U.S. accounts for
more than 45 per cent of the worlds nuclear
arsenal, enjoys overwhelming superiority in
conventional capabilities and a significant
technological advantage in cyber and space
capabilities, less dependence on nuclear
weapons is not going to diminish its securi-
ty. Further, a U.S. lead in this regard will cre-
ate a push for other nuclear weapon states to
follow, generating momentum for a global
nuclear restraint regime.
There are two groups of naysayers argu-
ing against a shift. The first is the realist-
sceptic who maintains that declarations are
mere words and will not be trusted by po-
tential adversaries. In doing so, they over-
look the fact that first-use policies are inher-
ently destabilising because of high alert
postures and tactical deployments, tempt-
ing the adversary into a pre-emptive strike.
The second group of naysayers consists of
U.S. allies and partners. North Atlantic
Treaty Organisation allies such as the U.K.
and France are unenthusiastic because it
would generate questions in their own so-
cieties about the wisdom of their first-use
policies. Others like Japan and South Korea
feel that an NFU implies a weakening of U.S.
commitment to their security. It is instruc-
tive to recall that a similar debate had raged
in Europe during the 1970s and 1980s. Ques-
tioning U.S. commitment to use nuclear
weapons from its homeland against a Soviet
advance into west Europe thereby risking
retaliation, European allies demanded for-
ward-basing, leading to the deployment of
intermediate-range Pershing and Cruise
missiles in west Europe. A decade later, the
same argument was turned on its head to
claim that forward-basing diminished U.S.
commitment and the Europeans became
strong supporters of the INF (Intermediate-
Range Nuclear Forces) Treaty (1987) which
eliminated intermediate-range nuclear
weapons from Europe!
A moral revolution
The nuclear taboo has held since 1945 and
no country wants to see it violated. Since it
is not possible to wish away the existing nu-
clear arsenals, the only way forward is grea-
ter nuclear restraint, which is what the NFU
does. In a vibrant democracy like the U.S., a
public articulation of an NFU will provide a
changed backdrop to its nuclear strategy,

The
posture, deployment and employment guid-
ance. Further, it can permit the U.S. to ques-
tion the need for tactical nuclear weapons

Grumbling 20 or even vulnerable ICBMs that are main-

tained on high alert.
Moreover, other nuclear weapon states
will find it impossible not to respond. Vol-

A
noble mission of far-sighted global cooper-
ation to avoid a looming economic crisis
brought together a doughty group of na-
tions, representing 85 per cent of the worlds GDP
and two-thirds of its population, under the banner
of the G20. However, after the dark days of the 2008
crisis inspired then-freshly-elected U.S. President
Barack Obama to take over the reins of financial
regulatory reform, the annual gathering of the
group has, it would appear, degenerated into a pub-
licity opportunity for divergent national concerns.
As Hangzhou played host to the G20 meeting, there
were reports that the Chinese government had
emptied the city of its original inhabitants for the
duration of the summit an act that seemed sym-
bolic of the final communiqu of the G20 itself,
pretty on the outside but lacking in substance.
Among the major issues that found mention in the
summit was the question of excess steel capacity in
China resulting in a flood of cheap imports into In-
dia, the U.K. and other economies. Despite reports
of resistance from China to any mention of steel
policy coordination in the 7,000-word communi-
qu, the document had a call for increased infor-
mation sharing and cooperation through the for-
mation of a Global Forum on steel excess capacity.
Climate change was the other major agenda
point. Notwithstanding Mr. Obamas disappearing
dream of securing full global support for the Paris
Agreement before his second term ends, a symbol-
ic show of solidarity towards this goal in the form of
the U.S. and China ratifying the Agreement last
week failed to produce any dramatic commitments
in Hangzhou. Contrarily in India, media reports
struck a note of relief that Prime Minister Narendra
Modis negotiators had fobbed off any attempts to
insist that the deal be done before a December 2016
deadline. Numerous low-key objectives shared by
multiple G20 members, such as strengthening en-
forcement against international tax avoidance and
advancing cooperation on Base Erosion and Profit
Shifting, certainly got a shot in the arm from this
G20 gathering. Yet, there is no comparison to the
patchy and vague nature of progress in these small-
er goals to the collaboratively evolved financial reg-
ulation architecture that emerged from the ashes of
the 2008 meltdown and put the brakes on excessive
risk-taking by banks. This only begs the question:
has the G20 lost its way, outlived its usefulness?
Would it be more institutionally efficient to revert
to other regional groupings that have overlapping
conversations on these very subjects? It may well
be time to re-examine the G20s purpose and, if
necessary, recast its vision and mission entirely.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Letters emailed to letters@thehindu.co.in must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.
More than just logistics?
The historic agreement between
India and the U.S., in the form of
LEMOA, will no doubt have
implications for the balance of
power in Asia (Merely a logistics
pact? Sept.5). The U.S. is a slippery
customer and will always want to
have the upper hand. In Indias
neighbourhood, warmer ties among
China-Pakistan-Russia should make
New Delhi wake up. It should not
distance itself from long-term ally
Russia. With the South China Sea
becoming a hotspot, India has to
play its cards wisely.
Raunak Agarwal,
Kanpur
A good relationship with the U.S. has
always been an essential ingredient
of Narendra Modis foreign policy
outlook, but does he realise that this
needs to be tempered with prudence
as Washington is an avid
practitioner of the art of realpolitik?
For instance, when U.S. Secretary of
State John F. Kerry was in India, he
did warn Pakistan about the need to
eliminate terror hubs but deftly
balanced it by saying that Pakistan
itself has been a victim of terrorism!
LEMOA may be in place, but there
are doubts whether the U.S. will be
ready to supply high-end military
hardware unless India signs the
foundational agreements. It is worth
recalling Winston Churchills quote:
You can always trust the
Americans. In the end they will
always do the right thing, after they arriving at a decision to recognise
have eliminated all the possibilities. her work? I wonder how many of us
Kangayam R. Narasimhan, in such circumstances would even
care to touch a leprosy patient or
Chennai
care for a deeply wounded, dying
person. Her policy against abortion
Path to sainthood was not her own but in tune with her
Pope Franciss denouncement of adherence to the philosophy of the
modern-day indifference to hunger, Catholic Church. Finally, if Saint
exploitation and other sufferings is a Mother Teresas original objective
commentary on the deterioration of was to convert people, then half of
values across the world (Pope hails Calcuttas population would have
volunteers on eve of canonisation, turned Christian.
Sept.4). The day of Mother Teresas A. Clement,
canonisation should be celebrated as Chennai
one to ensure the betterment of the
lives of the poor and the sick. The allegations against Mother
M.V. Nagavender Rao, Teresa cannot be ignored. Her
Hyderabad moves to promote conversion come
first. Her shelters were also said to
I dont believe that Saint Teresa have a shortage of medical care,
served people only with the hardly any stock of necessary
intention of converting them. It nutrition, as well as the scarcity of
was a part of her personality to help analgesics for those in pain. She
people. Religions are only different seemed keen to glorify illness
ways of reaching god and Saint instead of treating it. One also
Teresa gave the downtrodden and needs to investigate the so-called
the sick great hope. miracles. The funding of such
Canin Peter, missionaries needs to be probed.
Ernakulam Jai Prakash Gupta,
Ambala Cantt., Haryana
The arguments against her
suitability to attain sainthood are not Though there is no need to be
commensurate with the noble work needlessly enamoured by the
that she did. Her ardent critics must bestowal of sainthood on the
ponder over how she was awarded Mother, she did show the world
the Peace Nobel, the Magsaysay what it is like to die in dignity.
Award and the Bharat Ratna. Mahatma Gandhi taught Indians the
Wouldnt the three awarding bodies value of non-violence but one
have taken cognisance of the struggles to find the Mother Teresa
allegations against her before in him. However, she is said to have
untary declarations, followed by a collective
NFU, would become a realisable objective.
In 1945, the U.S. shaped the first nuclear age
with Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Today, Presi-
dent Obama has the opportunity to shape
the 21st century second nuclear age by
launching the moral revolution that he
promised in Hiroshima. It could become his
defining legacy.
Rakesh Sood, the Prime Ministers Special Envoy for
Disarmament and Non-Proliferation till May 2014, is
currently a Distinguished Fellow at the Observer Research
Foundation, Delhi.
had many autocratic traits which party in question, the Aam Aadmi
included scrutinising the letters Party, has not been able to utilise this
nuns wrote and received and making golden opportunity. Chief Minister
them work long hours. Accepting Arvind Kejriwal has always held the
money from tyrants was also high moral ground right from the
something that did not conform to beginning but appears to be losing
the Christian spirit. the plot. There is no harm in his
K.P. Prabhakaran Nair, pitching himself as a national figure
Kozhikode but he has a long way to go. For this
he has to establish his credibility
outside Delhi. He may have been
Economic divergence forgiven for having resigned in a
The result of better development very short time during his first term,
parameters in South Indian States but he cannot continue to take
and Maharashtra is largely a result of voters for granted.
the shift in population
Bal Govind,
demographics and the emphasis on Noida
policies and leadership in delivering
social justice (The gap between
rich and poor States, Sept.5). Lower A liability
fertility rates in the South have We had yet another hartal being
resulted in better financial benefits observed in Kerala recently during
and less social disparities. In which life came to a halt. I wonder
contrast, large States such as whether its organisers have ever
Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Rajasthan, considered the loss, hardship and
Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and negative impact it has caused to the
Bihar have higher rates of citizens of Kerala. It is this culture of
population growth along with strikes which has discouraged
growing social disparities. Though industrialists from investing in the
the South contributes a greater State. Kerala is a State with a large
proportion of revenue to the Central percentage of the well educated and
pool it will have fewer claims on where parents from even the lowest
funds allocation. strata of society avail of loans to give
H.N. Ramakrishna, their children an education. The
Bengaluru State should have been the most
sought place in India in terms of job
creation as it is the most literate, but
AAPs slide hartals are what make people
It is not often that a political party hesitant to invest here.
wins almost all the seats in an K. George Jacob,
Assembly (Editorial, Sept. 5). The Kochi

ND-ND
10 | 1ias.com EDITORIAL THE HINDU THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2016
NOIDA/DELHI

The equality of entry

The Haji Ali Dargah case verdict was arrived at by hewing closely to the Constitution, to law, and to the task
of defending individual rights. It is admirable for resisting the temptation of interpretive adventurism
has previously ruled on the legality of reli- 2012, womens entry had, in fact, been al-
T H U R S D AY , S E P T E M B E R 8 , 2 0 1 6 gious excommunication, the exclusion of lowed. The trust was unable to show what
GAUTAM BHATIA Dalits from temples, and the hereditary had changed so suddenly in 2012, even
caste-based succession of temple priests. To though it did attempt to argue that it had been

Triple When B.R. Ambedkar was asked why he was

mediate the competing claims of individuals,
communities and the state, very early on in
its history, the Supreme Court invented
interpreting the requirements of the Sharia
wrongly for all these years.
Likewise, the courts rejection of the trusts

whammy so passionate about the issue of temple entry

for Dalits, he replied: The issue is not entry,
but equality. It did not matter to Ambedkar
something that it called the essential reli-
gious practices test. Under this test, ostens-
ibly religious practices could gain con-
Article 26 claims was sober and measured.
Surveying the history of the Dargah Trust, it
found that it had been set up in pre-Inde-

T
he egregious practice that many Muslim
men employ to divorce their wives in-
stantaneously and without their consent,
merely by uttering the word talaq thrice,
was rendered legally invalid by the Shamim Ara vs
State of UP judgment of 2002 and subsequent or-
ders from various High Courts. But this has not
stopped the practice; many Muslim women are un-
aware of the judgments or have had to accept such
pronouncements owing to pressure from conser-
vative sections. Many women have undergone se-
vere trauma after being thrown out of their homes.
Shayara Bano, one such victim of this arbitrary cus-
tom not to speak of years of domestic violence
has filed a public interest litigation in the Supreme
Court seeking a ban on the practice. The conservat-
ive All India Muslim Personal Law Board that seeks
to wield influence on questions of Muslim personal
law has, predictably, found it an occasion to air its
regressive views on the issue. In a counter-affidavit,
the Board has defended the practice in terms that
are shocking even by its own standards. It claims
that the custom is a way out to avoid long-running
court proceedings and that, in the absence of triple
talaq, a husband may resort to murdering or burn-
ing alive his wife because of the time-consuming
legal proceedings that might otherwise be in-
volved. It further claims that Indian society is pa-
triarchal, and that personal laws of all com-
munities are aligned with the patriarchal notion. It
defends the right to grant divorce to the husband
alone, because men have greater power of de-
cision making and uses a dubious line of argument
on gender ratio to justify the practice of polygamy.
The AIMPLB, a body with no legal status, has
long argued that divorce under Islamic law is un-
desirable and that triple talaq is a sin; however, it
maintains it is a valid and effective form of laying a
marriage asunder. In truth, there is no sanction for
the triple talaq in the Koran, which has laid down
elaborate injunctions on divorce, in stark contrast
to the immediate and irrevocable nature of the
triple talaq. This practice has been either explicitly
derecognised in Muslim-majority countries such
as Indonesia, Iran and Tunisia or implicitly in coun-
tries such as Pakistan, which provides for a mandat-
ory arbitration procedure after the pronouncement
of talaq. The Supreme Court must not be swayed by
the arguments put forth by the AIMPLB, which has
held that personal laws cannot be challenged.
Considering the clear and elaborately laid-down
norms on marriage in the Koran that grant equal
rights to the husband and wife to pursue divorce
proceedings and the right to equality guaranteed in
the Indian Constitution, it is high time that the Su-
preme Court ruled this practice as illegal.
that he, himself, was indifferent towards reli-
gion, or that temple entry was hardly the
solution to Dalit oppression. What did mat-
ter to him, however, was that one of the most
powerful tools by which an unequal society
expressed and reinforced its hierarchies
through the denial of equal access to reli-
gious and sacred spaces had to be
smashed.
More than 80 years later, August 26, 2016,
the Bombay High Court agreed with
Ambedkar when it held that the exclusion of
women from the inner sanctum of the Haji
Ali Dargah by the Dargah Trust violated not
only their fundamental right to religious
freedom but also their right to equality and
non-discrimination under the Indian
Constitution. And in holding that women
were entitled to police protection, if needed,
to exercise their right to equal access, the
court placed the state firmly on the spot for
effectively guaranteeing and enforcing the
constitutional rights of individuals, even
against their own communities.
An issue framed in legal terms
The Bombay High Courts judgment, au-
thored by Justice Revati Mohite Dere, is not
the last that weve heard of this matter. The
Dargah Trust will certainly appeal (the High
Court stayed the operation of its judgment
for six weeks to allow it to do just that), and
the battle will move to the Supreme Court.
There, it will join the other contentious issue
of religious access, which is already before
the apex court: the right of women to enter
the Sabarimala shrine in Kerala. But
whatever happens in the Supreme Court,
Justice Deres judgment is a landmark ruling.
This is not only because of its unambigu-
ously progressive outcome, coming down
firmly on the side of equal access for women
but also because of its dexterous handling of
CARTOONSCAPE
ILLUSTRATION: SURENDRA
The Bombay High Courts
reasoning mirrored the temple-
entry movements in colonial
India.... Ambedkars arguments
find resonance in the judgment
the fraught and tense stand-off between the
claims of individual rights and gender equal-
ity on the one hand and tradition and reli-
gious values on the other.
Indeed, the issue was framed before the
Bombay High Court in precisely these terms.
The Bharatiya Muslim Mahila Andolan, the
womens organisation that initiated the pub-
lic interest litigation against the Dargah
Trust, invoked the protection of Articles 14
and 15 (rights to equality and non-discrimin-
ation), and 25(1) (right to religious freedom)
of the Constitution. The trust responded by
invoking Article 25(1) itself, arguing that Is-
lam mandated the exclusion of women from
the inner sanctum. It also (though faintly) in-
voked Article 26(b), that granted religious
denominations the right to manage their own
affairs in matters of religion.
Court intervention in religion
This clash and the use of the courts to
resolve it is not new. The Supreme Court
stitutional sanction only if in the view of
the Court they were essential or integ-
ral to the religion in question. In the begin-
ning, the court emphasised that essential re-
ligious practices would have to be
determined by taking an internal point of
view, and looking to the tenets and the doc-
trines of the religion itself. In later years,
however, the court began to take an increas-
ingly interventionist stance, using the essen-
tial religious practices test to make wide-ran-
ging often untethered claims about
religions, and even trying to mould religions
into more rationalistic and homogenous
monoliths, while marginalising dissident tra-
ditions. The high watermark of this approach
came in 2004, when the court held that the
public performance of the Tandava dance
was no essential part of the religion of the
Ananda Marga sect, even though it had been
specifically set down as such in their holy
book.
A question of civil rights
Faced with more than five decades of con-
sistent Supreme Court jurisprudence, the
Bombay High Court had no feasible choice
other than deploying the (unsatisfactory) es-
sential religious practices test to determine
the validity of the Dargah Trusts arguments.
The manner in which it did so, however, was
careful and circumspect. The court refrained
from making grand, rhetorical claims about
Islam and gender equality (even though it
was invited to do so) and, instead, limited it-
self to considering the material placed before
it by the Dargah Trust. On a perusal of these
passages from the Koran and the Hadith, the
court found that none of this material sup-
ported the trusts claim that Islam mandated
the exclusion of women from the inner sanc-
tum of shrines. The trusts claims were
thrown further into doubt because right until
pendence days by a government-imposed
scheme. That scheme did not even authorise
the trust to adjudicate religious claims. Fur-
thermore, the trust was a public charitable
trust. Consequently, the Dargah was akin to a
public space, and access to it could not be
denied on discriminatory grounds. Interest-
ingly, the courts reasoning mirrored the ear-
liest temple-entry movements in colonial In-
dia. While agitating for the rights of Dalits to
enter Hindu temples, Ambedkar repeatedly
argued that temples were public spaces, akin
to roads, schools, or water tanks. In a society
where religion and the public sphere have al-
ways been so intertwined, Ambedkars fun-
damental insight was that religious exclusion
had a public character, and that it was not just
an issue of sacral traditions but one of civil
rights and material and symbolic equality. In
a society that has long treated women as
second-class citizens, and emphasised and
concretised that inequality through control
over religious spaces, Ambedkars argu-
ments find clear resonance in the judgment
of the Bombay High Court.
Putting onus on the state
Once the court had found that the Dargah
Trust could not invoke constitutional protec-
tion for its exclusion of women from the in-
ner sanctum, the logical conclusion fol-
lowed: since exclusion clearly violated the
womens right to religious freedom, as well
as their right to equality, it was unjustified.
However, there was one more thing that the
court had to do. Since the Constitution pri-
marily guarantees fundamental rights to
individuals against the state, it had to explain
how the Mahila Andolan could succeed
where the rights-infringing actor was a pri-
vate, non-state body (the Dargah Trust).
Justice Dere answered this question by
holding that the state was constitutionally
bound to respect fundamental rights, not
merely by refraining from infringing them,
but also by actively intervening in order to
protect them when they were threatened by
others. Consequently, it was for the state to
ensure whether by providing adequate
protection or otherwise that women who
wanted to exercise their fundamental right to
equal access at the Haji Ali Dargah could do
so.
In the exercise of their constitutional func-
tions, there are times when it becomes
necessary and inevitable for courts to
consider and decide deeply divisive and po-
larising questions about gender relations, the
family, religion, and society. In such situ-
ations, it is tempting for judges to think that
they are in a position to solve age-old, intract-
able social problems, and to sally forth on ad-
venturous tracks where both their compet-
ence and their legitimacy are called into

Sri Lanka question. This is a temptation that the Indian

judiciary has not always been able to resist.

conquers malaria
The Bombay High Court verdict in the Haji
Ali case, however, is an example of a judg-
ment that adroitly negotiates these difficult
issues by hewing closely to the Constitution,

S
ri Lanka has become malaria-free. On
September 5, the World Health Organisa-
tion officially recognised this huge public
health achievement. The WHO certifies a
country so when the chain of local transmission is
interrupted for at least three consecutive years; the
last reported case was in October 2012. With no
local transmission reported, Sri Lankas priority
since October 2012 has been to prevent its return
from outside, particularly from malaria-endemic
countries such as India. There were 95, 49 and 36
cases reported in 2013, 2014 and 2015 respectively,
all contracted outside Sri Lanka. In a commendable
initiative, Sri Lanka adopted a two-pronged strate-
gy of targeting both vector and parasite, undertak-
ing active detection of cases and residual parasite
carriers by screening populations irrespective of
whether malaria symptoms were present. Early de-
tection and treatment of asymptomatic parasite
carriers, who serve as reservoirs of infection,
played a crucial role in interrupting the chain.
While this was achieved by means of house visits
and by starting mobile clinics in high-transmission
areas, real-time monitoring through effective sur-
veillance systems, community awareness and mo-
bilisation also played their role. The public sector
and the private sector were oriented to the com-
mon goal of eliminating malaria by enhancing case
notification and achieving 100 per cent detection
and confirmation through tests. Sri Lanka expan-
ded the coverage of long-lasting insecticide-treated
bed nets to protect high-risk populations, and used
multiple methods to reduce mosquito numbers.
Sri Lanka was close to eliminating malaria in
1963, when it reported just 17 cases. But a premature
lowering of the guard and growing resistance to
DDT led to rising incidence in the 1980s. The pre-
cise reasons for the failure of the eradication pro-
gramme were not clear. Some of the major chal-
lenges the country had to face before it interrupted
local transmission were the Plasmodium fal-
ciparum parasite becoming resistant to the
chloroquine drug, behavioural changes in the vec-
tor, asymptomatic carriers and vector reintroduc-
tion. But the tide turned from 2000 when a steady
reduction in the number of cases was recorded. Sri
Lanka joins the ranks of 34 countries that have been
certified malaria-free since the 1960s. The Mal-
dives was certified so in 2015; Argentina and
Kyrgyzstan may soon be. Eradication of the disease
in India remains a challenge, but it could learn
some lessons from Sri Lanka even if the scale and
complexity of the task is significantly different.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Letters emailed to letters@thehindu.co.in must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.
The Cauvery crisis
While the assertion of a regional
identity is important, the national
identity is supreme. The Supreme
Courts order to Karnataka to
release Cauvery water to Tamil
Nadu is a positive manifestation of
this principle. The ongoing protest
against the courts ruling seems a
step that goes against upholding
national consciousness (Editorial,
Sept.7). Both State governments
should now formulate and
implement efficient water
conservation and harvesting
policies as Maharashtra did in the
form of the Jalyukt Shivar Abhiyaan.
Mohasin Mulla,
Pune
No sane and prudent mind denies
that the political leadership in any
State would not like to be portrayed
as betraying the just cause of its
farmers. But empathy cannot be lost
sight of when neighbouring States
are in distress. The basic elements
on earth are natures gifts.
Bellur S. Dattatri,
Bengaluru
Serious conflicts over the sharing of
river water appearing intermittently
are a reminder that India is still a
nation-in-making. People in the
upstream State must understand
that a downstream States share of
water is not a gift but a matter of
right. The remedy lies in respecting
the 2007 award which was delivered
after years of deliberation and was
generally hailed as being fair.
Surendra Singh Achara,
New Delhi
There is absolutely no need for any
tribunal or making appeals to the
Supreme Court if the issue is seen
from a humanitarian angle. No
country or State in this world can
claim ownership over natural
resources which we should learn to
use and share in a proper manner. I
would only blame politicians for
sowing the seeds of confusion. They
have perfected the art of divide and
rule to stay in power. The troubles
over sharing the Cauvery should
hasten steps to nationalise all rivers.
T. Anand Raj,
Chennai
There is a need for a river
commission on the lines of the
Election Commission to monitor
and control river water distribution
and which is run by subject experts
and engineers. It must be free of
government control and should be
vested with all powers to decide
water usage, dam construction and
all other matters connected with
constructive, effective and sensible
use of river water in India.
Politicians hardly have any
knowledge about irrigation,
effective water usage and matters
relating to rivers. Such a
commission will not only result in
effective usage of water but also
avoid unnecessary animosity and
agitation which is being cleverly
exploited by selfish politicians.
V.S. Ganeshan,
Bengaluru
Cracking the whip
The report, To restore normality,
govt. to get tough with separatists
(Sept. 6), shows that the separatist
leaders of Kashmir never deserved
the privileges and facilities
extended to them in the first place.
Given their mentality towards the
country, they should be penalised.
Though the move to curb their
foreign travel and scrutinise their
bank accounts comes late in the day,
the step to act against them must be
welcomed.
One has to remember that the same
leaders evinced no interest in being
supportive towards the all-party
delegation. I hope all political
parties are on the same page as far
as dealing with the separatist
leaders is concerned.
Praveen Patavardhan,
Bengaluru
The humiliation was inevitable.
How could we have expected the
separatist leaders to be cordial in
the first place? There should have
been a plan put in place with space
for the different stakeholders. The
delegation should have adopted a
down-to-top approach, first meeting
sarpanchs, local associations,
traders and the family members of
those killed and injured. The
separatist leaders have lost a lot of
ground and are looking for every
opportunity to be in the spotlight
again. Despite this, talks should be
held with them as they have a
certain level of influence. There
should have been steps taken as well
to phase out the use of pellet guns.
Munish Sharma,
Jammu
It is unfortunate that the all-party
delegation had to conclude its visit
to the Valley with no breakthrough.
It only reflects the ground reality.
The BJP was obviously not serious
about resolving the issue in the first
place. Though there is a trust deficit
to law, and to the judicial task of defending
individual rights. For that, the Bombay High
Court must be praised, and its judgment
upheld.
Gautam Bhatia is a Delhi-based lawyer.
on both sides, there must be
movement on subjects such as
facilitating the release of arrested
youth, compensation to the victims
of pellet gun firing and reviving
economic and social development.
This can be followed by further
dialogue to discuss the core political
issues.
S.K. Khosla,
Chandigarh
The deputation of a parliamentary
delegation to the riot-torn Valley
has proved to be a failed mission.
Separatist leaders refusing to meet
parliamentarians cannot be taken
lightly. It seems that we have
reached the end of the political
tether and there is no hope of
convincing separatists about the
need to pursue peace. These leaders
need not be under the illusion that
they are beyond the rule of law and
the Constitution. The government
must now go ahead with measures
to support development and job-
generation.
S.V. Venkatakrishnan,
Bengaluru
The only path to peace is by
resuming dialogue with all
stakeholders in Kashmir
irrespective of their political
affiliations. To repair the damage
caused, there has to be conciliation
and offer of more aid.
C.V. Venugopalan,
Palakkad.
Ladakh and Jammu are peaceful.
The strife-ridden area is a fraction
of the whole area. Clearly the
separatist movement has no basis.
One hopes that in due course, these
elements will realise the futility of
agitations and violence which come
at the cost of economic prosperity.
M. Bhimashankar,
Hyderabad
After being humiliated by separatist
elements, how long are we to
remain silent? Even after this act of
provocation, resorting to tame steps
will fetch no results. Apart from
raising the Balochistan issue, India
should also adopt the same strategy
as Pakistans sending teams to
meet world leaders and telling them
about the misdeeds of separatist
elements.
D. Sethuraman,
Chennai
The need for NEET
This refers to the article, Bringing
in NEET is an attack on our federal
structure and pluralistic ethos
(Some editions, Aug.31). No one can
dispute the well-expressed views on
the need to establish a healthy
Centre-State relationship but the
writer appears to be one-sided in
her views. A professional degree
such as medicine is unique and
where merit has to prevail. Those
who are against NEET on the claims
of social justice should be aware of
the ugly scene where medical seats
are sold for a premium. Political and
non-political figures who champion
the cause of social justice by
resisting NEET are often seen to be
sharing in the spoils. The murky
picture came to light only because
of the historic verdict of the
Supreme Court. The
commercialisation of education has
to end. Merit must prevail.
M. Vathapureeswaran,
Erode

ND-ND
10 | 1ias.com EDITORIAL THE HINDU FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2016
NOIDA/DELHI

Retaining MGNREGAs core

F R I D AY , S E P T E M B E R 9 , 2 0 1 6
Making A.P.
Held to account by the Supreme Court, the Central government is using opaque methods to change the key
provisions of the employment guarantee scheme and make it targeted instead of universal
thrown social justice to the winds. It con- formal or informal cap on the funds. It is here
sidered delayed wage payments a con- that the WhatsApp messages from the Cen-
BRINDA KARAT stitutional breach. tre should be taken as an indicator of the gov-
The government was forced to release ernment strategy to dilute the provisions of
funds in June, bringing huge relief to the MGNREGA.
There is a pithy saying in Hindi that the ele-
workers whose dues were cleared. In addi-
tion, because of the monitoring by the Su-
A message on the ENCORE platform says
that to resort to logic that it is a demand

special phant has two sets of teeth, one for show and
the other to eat. This seems an apt descrip-
tion of the approach of the Narendra Modi
preme Court, the Central government has
had to release funds to the States for projects
under the law.
driven programme and whatever is asked for
will be given, does not cut much ice now.
Cut ice with whom? The Supreme Court

H
ow special can special be? That Andhra
Pradesh, post-bifurcation, needed a
helping hand from the Centre was never
in question. But the modalities of the
special status the State wanted, needed to be
worked out. Could it be declared a Special Cat-
egory State, or was the right way to grant it a special
financial package that did not require meeting the
mandated requirements for Special Category
status? A.P. does not qualify as a Special Category
State; it has neither geographical disadvantages
such as hilly terrain nor historical disadvantages
such as socio-economic and infrastructural back-
wardness and unviable finances. Eventually, when
the Centre announced a special package, the em-
phasis was on assisting the State on the basis of the
road map laid down in the Andhra Pradesh Reorga-
nisation Act, an oral commitment made in 2014 by
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, the report of the
14th Finance Commission and the recom-
mendations of the Niti Aayog. The package, valid
for five years till 2020, might not have everything
that Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu had
asked for, but meets most of the reasonable expect-
ations of a State struggling to recover from bifurca-
tion and dealing with the imminent loss of the cap-
ital city, Hyderabad. The Polavaram irrigation
project was declared a national project; a railway
zone was to be formed in the State and the Central
Board of Direct Taxes was to issue two noti-
fications on tax concessions. Special Category
status could only have been a crutch; the package
might be the stimulus that it needs after bifurca-
tion. Under the circumstances, this is a good deal.
However, the political battle over the Special
Category status is not going to get over soon. Op-
position parties, led by the Congress and the YSR
Congress, have targeted Mr. Naidu for failing to
convince the Centre. That his Telugu Desam Party
is in alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party will in-
vite charges of a sell-out of A.P.s interests. Union
Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu of the BJP, perhaps an-
ticipating this reaction, indicated that the Centres
support would be a continuous process. The TDP
government must look ahead, and use the special
package to boost growth and create conditions for
employment generation. While concentrating re-
sources on building the capital at Amaravati, Mr.
Naidu must not lose sight of the immediate de-
velopment goal: the livelihood concerns of ordi-
nary people. That could be his political legacy: a
Chief Minister who saw the State through a difficult
phase and laid the foundation for a robust economy.
Taking the Paris
process forward
government towards the implementation of
the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Em-
ployment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA). For
public consumption the Finance Minister
announces in his Budget that he has alloc-
ated the highest amount of funds for the im-
plementation of the law, but in reality, States
are being starved of funds. At the end of the
financial year 2015-2016, an unprecedented
Rs.12,000 crore was owed to the States, of
which Rs.7,983 crore was owed to workers,
the delays in wage payment stretching up to
six months in some cases. Most shockingly
Rs.2,723 crore was owed to workers in
drought-hit States, the most vulnerable and
desperate for livelihood.
An informalised approach
Now fresh evidence is available that the
Central government is adopting opaque
methods to dilute the law. There is a clear di-
chotomy in what the government is telling
the Supreme Court in an ongoing petition on
the implementation of MGNREGA and what
it is telling the States. A platform on Whats-
App called ENCORE (or Enabling Commu-
nication on Rural Empowerment) run by the
Joint Secretary of the Rural Development
Ministry has been formed with around 300
officers from States, charged with the re-
sponsibility of MGNREGA. Even though
this is run by an individual officer, it is clearly
official policy that is being reflected and
therefore must be considered authorised
communication by the Ministry. This is an
instant method of communication which
may be useful to send important information
maybe of an urgent nature to the States.
The problem arises on two counts. It is a
procedure which bypasses the more trans-
parent one of issuing official instructions
through Ministry orders which are on rec-
ord, on file, making the issuing authority ac-
countable. Second, such communications
are not accessible to the public though their
content might have a direct impact on peo-
ple. Third, they can easily be deleted by the
administrator of the group. The Right to In-
formation has proved to be a very effective
instrument to glean information from gov-
ernments on the functioning of MGNREGA.
But there are no set procedures that Whats-
CARTOONSCAPE
ILLUSTRATION: SURENDRA
MGNREGA is not a charitable
enterprise. It is extremely hard
work... In spite of all its
weaknesses, the law is still a
lifeline for crores of rural families
App messages from a Central government
official to the State government can be ac-
cessed under the Right to Information Act.
So whereas the WhatsApp messages have
the stamp of authority emanating from a
senior official in the Rural Development
Ministry in charge of the implementation of
MGNREGA, the aspect of accountability
and transparency gets eliminated.
Court cracks the whip
This development needs to be seen in the
context of the Supreme Court judgment in
May this year on a petition moved by the
Swaraj Abhiyan on a series of issues related
to agrarian distress and in this particular
case on the implementation of the Mahatma
Gandhi National Rural Employment
Guarantee Act, 2005. The judgment read:
The Government of India is directed to re-
lease to the State Governments adequate
funds under the scheme in a timely manner
so that the workforce is paid its wages well in
time. It is regrettable that the pending wage
bill for 2015-2016 was cleared during the pen-
dency of the petition. The Government of
India must shape up in this regard. The
court further indicted the Central govern-
ment on the count of late wage payments
with the scathing comment that it had
As a result, around 85 per cent of the funds
budgeted for the year have already been re-
leased in the first five months. This reflects
also the high demand for work. In the back-
ground of the devastating drought and wide-
spread agrarian distress, MGNREGA is lit-
erally a lifeline for millions who have no
other means of survival because of the lack
of work in the countryside. The number of
person-days generated in the first four
months of the year is 89 crore person-days,
the highest since 2012-2013.
But while this is a positive development, it
also means that just around 15 per cent funds
are available for the remaining seven
months. Already, according to information
available on the website of the Ministry, nine
States have a negative balance, meaning
thereby that they do not have the funds ei-
ther to pay wages or to plan and implement
projects based on the demand. The lean
season for agricultural work that sees a spike
in the demand for work under MGNREGA is
usually between January to April. What is
going to happen then? Will the funds be
made available by the Central government?
The funds squeeze
The concern is because the Central gov-
ernment has been wilfully cutting down on
the funds available to MGNREGA. Looked at
as a percentage of GDP, the budgetary alloca-
tions have come down from 0.36 in 2012-2013
to 0.26 in 2016-2017. The government has
tried several methods to cut down on the de-
mand and the requirements of the States.
The projected annual demand of the State
and the equivalent amount of funds required
known as the labour budget is finally
decided by the Central government. The
first downscaling happens here. On an aver-
age the Centre has cut the States require-
ment by about 30 per cent. This has serious
repercussions on workers. The situation got
so bad that the Chief Minister of the best per-
forming State, Tripura, had to sit on an un-
precedented hunger strike in Delhi in 2014 to
demand adequate funds. In the present situ-
ation, with the Supreme Court monitoring
the issue, the Central government cannot be
quite so blatant.
It has assured the court that there is no
which had accepted the assurance at face
value? Another WhatsApp message reads,
Wage employment, with one point agenda
of registering demand and responding to it is
no longer the core concern. And further,
we ought to desist from campaigns for en-
listing demand and indulging in the mad
race of more and more person day
generation.
Hollowing out the core?
The Supreme Court itself had quoted from
the MGNREGA to point out the core,
namely An Act to provide for the enhance-
ment of livelihood security of the rural
households by providing at least 100 days of
guaranteed wage employment in every fin-
ancial year to every household whose adult
members volunteer to do manual work
Yet through WhatsApp the same officer,
winning praise from the court for being
well versed on the subject, contradicts the
provisions of the act itself.
As far as the creation of person-days is
concerned the court had directed both the
State Government and the Government of
India to make all efforts to encourage
needy persons to come forward and take ad-
vantage of the scheme. A success rate below
50 per cent is nothing to be proud of. But
here the Ministry is referring to it as a mad
race to create workdays.
A most unique feature of the MGNREGA
is its universal character. It is not a targeted
programme as many of the other social sec-
tor schemes are. The rationale is that only
those who cannot find better alternatives of
employment will opt to work in MGNREGA.
It is not a charitable enterprise. It is ex-
tremely hard work under very difficult work
conditions. The work which is piece rated is
linked to such high productivity norms that
it is almost impossible for a worker to earn
the full minimum wage. Anyone who has
even a remote idea of a MGNREGA worksite
knows that, more so in a period of drought
where income from agriculture has literally
dried up, even farmers survive by their work
in MGNREGA.
End this doublespeak
Under Mr. Modi, the government has tried
to change the nature of the law from being
universal to targeted by first promoting the
idea that work should be made available only
in the most backward districts identified
jointly by the Central and State govern-
ments. This was strongly opposed by many
State governments as an encroachment on
the law. Now the Ministry through the What-
sApp group is pushing for enrolling only the
poorer sections. The message informs that it
is the Central government that is going to
identify such families; this is to assist you in
gap assessment .. a targeted approach.
There are many other such examples of
how the Ministry is saying something to the
Supreme Court and directing officers in the

T
he ratification of the Paris Agreement on
climate change by the United States and
China, which together account for 38 per
cent of global greenhouse gas emissions,
provides much-needed momentum for the global
compact to be in force beyond 2020. As UN
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has emphasised,
26 countries have already acceded to the accord; to
reach the target of 55 per cent emissions, 29 more
must come on board. For the U.S., this is a landmark
departure from its long-held position of not accept-
ing a binding treaty like the Kyoto Protocol, where
emerging economies heavily reliant on fossil fuels
have no firm commitments. The Paris Agreement
addressed this issue by stipulating voluntary but
verifiable emissions reduction goals for all parties,
within the principle of common but differentiated
responsibilities that underpin the UN Framework
Convention on Climate Change. Contrary to the
belief that a requirement to cut GHGs will make
economies less competitive, a major section of
global industry and business has reaffirmed the po-
tential for trillions of dollars in green investments
flowing from the ratification of the Paris Agree-
ment by the U.S. and China. This is a clear pointer
for India, which is estimated to have the third
highest individual country emissions as of 2014.
There are distinct low-carbon pathways that In-
dia has outlined in its national plan submitted to the
UNFCCC. Among these, the scaling up of renew-
able energy and non-fossil fuel sources to 40 per
cent of installed power production capacity by
2030 is predicated on technology transfer and the
availability of Green Climate Fund resources. Not
much progress has been made in this area, and
Minister of State for Environment Anil Madhav
Dave confirmed recently that no contribution had
been received from the Fund. Helping India lock in
the right technologies in its growth trajectory is im-
portant for a global reduction in greenhouse gases.
It is important for the U.S. to help accelerate this
process in the area of power generation, following
up on the assurances given by Secretary of State
John Kerry during his recent visit on clean energy
finance, technology, solar catalytic funding and
help for power grid upgradation. New Delhi can, in
parallel, do much more on domestic policy to
achieve green and low energy intensive growth
such as taxing fossil fuels, managing emissions
from waste better and making low-carbon build-
ings mandatory. India joined other G20 countries at
Hangzhou to commit itself to addressing climate
change through domestic policy measures. For that
to happen, the Centre must initiate a serious dis-
cussion with the States on the national imperatives.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Letters emailed to letters@thehindu.co.in must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.
Religion vs womens rights
The Editorial, Triple whammy, and
the article, The equality of entry
(both Sept. 8), are two different
pieces of exceptional journalism
which highlight the same issue
precedence of right to religion. Even
though the tussle over this is not
new in India, its ramifications have
greater impact here than elsewhere
in the world. In a world where
religious fundamentalism is a
serious issue and religious bigotry a
part of daily life, protection of life
and individual liberty is a
contentious matter. Whether it is the
recent PIL against triple talaq or the
protest against the Haji Ali dargah
verdict, the notions of an orthodox,
feudal mindset need to be dealt with
firmly. These notions not only
impede the growth of the country
but also vitiate communal harmony.
There has to be a social reform
movement which needs the support
of the judiciary, the executive and
the intelligentsia.
Naveen Rattu,
Chandigarh
Religion is a process of educating
ourselves in the ways of
understanding so that our life
becomes extraordinarily rich. All
religions should be open to
propagating womens rights. As
Khalil Gibran said: I love you when
you bow in your mosque, kneel in
your temple, pray in your church.
For you and I are sons of one
religion, and it is the spirit.
Kopalle Murali Krishnamurthy,
Secunderabad
In religious matters, it is better that
the judiciary does not read the
Constitution steadfastly as the
framers of our Constitution may not
have taken into consideration the
importance of strict observance of
certain religious practices. Most of
these age-old sacred practices
cannot be brushed aside. One may
succeed legally in enabling women
to gain entry to places of worship
but this could upset believers. The
Bombay judgment could upset
deeply conservative communities.
V. Lakshmanan,
Tirupur, Tamil Nadu
Discourtesy to envoy
After Pakistans move to depute 22
diplomats to various countries to
highlight the goings-on in Kashmir
hardly gained traction, it is
unfortunate that Islamabad is still
trying every trick in the book to try
and embarrass India (Pakistan told
to let diplomats work without
hindrance, Sept.8). It will not solution to such recurring disputes
succeed given its own poor record of
human rights. The latest incident,
where a speech on India-Pakistan
trade ties was cancelled at the final
hour, goes to show the level to which
Pakistan is prepared to stoop. There
has hardly been an event where
India has acted in a similar manner.
In fact we seem to have gone out of
our way to accommodate Pakistans
concerns.
K.R. Srinivasan,
Secunderabad
Cauvery water release
The annual phase of acrimony
between Tamil Nadu and Karnataka
over the release of Cauvery water
must end (Karnataka begins
Cauvery water release to Tamil
Nadu, Sept. 8). The need of the hour
is for a face-to-face meeting between
the Chief Ministers to defuse the
crisis. The initial reluctance shown
by the Karnataka government to
comply with the Supreme Court
verdict is a grim pointer to the
potential of such issues to snowball
into a crisis if sectarian and
parochial sentiments are not kept
under check. Competitive jingoism
by fringe elements to extract
political mileage needs to be
crushed. The lasting and permanent
State government to do the opposite. This is
all part of the skewered policies of the pro-
corporate Modi government. Bailouts for the
rich, for whom unlimited subsidies in the
form of unrepaid bank loans of over Rs.8 lakh
crore or tax concessions of over Rs.5 lakh
crore in a single year are easily handed out.
But when it comes to the rights of the work-
ing people to national resources, and to the
implementation of a law unanimously
adopted by Parliament, there are no funds
available.
Workers do not want an ENCORE of the
anti-MGNREGA policies they have been
subjected to by this government. In spite of
all its weaknesses, this law is still a lifeline
for crores of rural families.
Brinda Karat is a member of the CPI(M) Polit Bureau and a
former Rajya Sabha MP.
why he should be made to pay
lies in the interlinking of rivers and through his nose.
nationalisation of dams. A.V. Narayanan,
B. Suresh Kumar, Tiruchi
Coimbatore
Conquering malaria
Surge pricing
Concerted moves across the world,
Those who travel by premium trains some of them backed by leading
such as Rajdhani, Shatabdi and private foundations, are what have
Duranto services are either middle led to a nearly 50 per cent decrease
class and above and I am sure they in the incidence in malaria and
do not mind paying for more (From mortality over the last decade
tomorrow, surge pricing on key (Editorial, Sept. 8). According to
trains, Sept.8). This is a section of WHO estimates World Malaria
society that is willing to spend Report 2015 the global incidence
money lavishly. As a result, it is time in 2015 was 220 million (on average)
public sector organisations such as and mortality 4,38,000 (average),
the Railways revised their business with Africa accounting for 90 per
model rather than continue to cent of cases. India is in the malaria
function as benevolent entities. control phase and contributes to the
Kshirasagara Balaji Rao, export of malaria cases (Lancet
Hyderabad 2016). Apart from the lack of a potent
vaccine, the biggest challenge lies in
Surge pricing on select trains is an overcoming resistance to the
indirect attempt by the Railways to artemisinin-based combination
bring all mail/express trains under therapy, the most potent drug
the surge pricing category. This is available. Resistance to this started
unacceptable as second class sleeper along the Thailand-Cambodia
is included in these select trains border, has spread to Myanmar and
under the surge pricing category. can affect India at any time. India has
The most affected group will be both P. falciparum and P. vivax
senior citizens because whatever malaria, with each presenting a
concessions they enjoy now will be different set of challenges.
negated. Duronto trains are for the G. Padmanaban,
aam aadmi and there is no reason Bengaluru

ND-ND
10 | 1ias.com EDITORIAL THE HINDU SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 2016
NOIDA/DELHI

Dark clouds over the PDS

The imposition of Aadhaar-based biometric authentication in the Public Distribution System threatens to
disrupt recent progress with PDS reforms. It also deprives millions of people of essential food entitlements
in the country. However, recent progress is tion). Even if it happens unofficially, this dual
S AT U R D AY , S E P T E M B E R 1 0 , 2 0 1 6 in danger of being undone soon due to the system, where PDS grain goes partly through
JEAN DRZE Central governments counter-productive the PoS system and partly through the fall-
push for Aadhaar-based biometric authen- back register system, is the worst. The

Effective, Indias Public Distribution System (PDS) has

tication in the PDS. This involves installing
Point of Sale (PoS) machines at PDS shops,
and verifying the identity of cardholders by
reason is that only PDS dealers know
whether and when the register system is per-
missible, and they have no incentive to share

but not equitable improved steadily during the last 10 years.

The system used to be most ineffective and
corruption-ridden, with leakages of around
matching their fingerprints against the
Aadhaar database over the Internet.
This system requires multiple fragile tech-
that information with the cardholders. Quite
likely, the new system is reviving PDS cor-
ruption in Jharkhand, reversing a healthy

T
he dynamic fare pricing announced for
the Rajdhani, Shatabdi and Duronto
trains on an experimental basis has
been justified by the Ministry of Railways
as a means to shore up lagging passenger revenues.
The Ministry says the cost per passenger kilometre
today is around 73 paise, while the Railways recov-
ers only 37 paise. The flexible fare system means
only the first 10 per cent of seats and berths will
come at the base fare, with 10 per cent increases for
every batch of 10 per cent sold. The increase will be
capped at 1.5 times the base fare. The 77 pairs of the
three classes of trains account for 13 to 14 per cent of
the Railways passenger revenues. On the face of it,
the need to increase passenger fares is understand-
able. Without a robust component of fare-based
revenue from passenger trains it will be difficult for
the Railways to spend on infrastructure and amen-
ities and focus on features such as safety all of
which are imperatives. The question is whether the
flexible fare system is the ideal way to do so.
First, these fare increases in the premium trains
for some classes could result in airfares being lower
at certain times and routes. This could wean away
some train travellers. Second, the increase in the
prices under the scheme begins much too early,
when a bare 10 per cent of the seats are sold. As a
result, it puts far too much pressure on passengers
to book early. It would have made more sense for
the Railways to expand the scope of Tatkal booking,
which is currently limited to one day before travel.
A Tatkal scheme with flexible and cascading pri-
cing coupled with an increase in the number of tick-
ets and an extension of the time frame would penal-
ise those who buy their tickets late rather than most
passengers on a train. Third, unlike taxi, bus or air
services, train services in this country are a mo-
nopoly. The Rajdhanis and the Shatabdis are
premium trains, which are favoured by the rel-
atively better off. The real worry is that the expe-
riment may be extended to include other long-dis-
tance trains in the future. A relatively poorer
person who makes a late decision to travel should
not be priced out by such a system by a monopo-
listic provider that aims to provide a public service.
Yes, the Railways must find a way to increas e reve-
nue from passenger traffic if it is to convert itself
into a healthy and self-sufficent organisation. The
issue is what the best or the most painless way
to do this is.
Reining in the
adventurist North
50 per cent at the national level, going up to
80 or 90 per cent in some States. Around
2007, Chhattisgarh took the lead in
reforming the PDS making it more inclus-
ive, methodical and transparent. Within a
few years, the system was overhauled. Today,
most rural households in Chhattisgarh have
a ration card, and are able to secure their en-
titlements (typically 7 kg of rice per person
per month) on time every month.
The Chhattisgarh model
Later on, it turned out that the Chhattis-
garh model (so to speak) was replicable.
Odisha was among the first States to emulate
Chhattisgarhs experience, with similar res-
ults. Many other States also initiated Chhat-
tisgarh-style PDS reforms: broad coverage,
clear entitlements, de-privatisation of PDS
shops, separation of transport agencies from
distribution agencies, computerisation,
fixed distribution schedules, tight monitor-
ing, active grievance redressal, and more.
In the last few years, I have been involved
in several surveys of the PDS initiated by in-
dependent researchers with student volun-
teers. In 2011, we studied the PDS in nine
States: Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh,
Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Odisha, Ra-
jasthan, Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh. We
found that the system was working reason-
ably well for below poverty line (BPL)
households: on average, they were receiving
84 per cent of their foodgrain entitlements
from the PDS. A similar picture emerged
from a follow-up survey in 2013. However,
high leakages continued in the above pover-
ty line (APL) quota, which tended to be
used by the Central government at that time
as a dumping ground for excess food stocks.
The National Food Security Act (NFSA),
enacted three years ago, was and still is
a chance to complete the process of PDS re-
form and ensure a modicum of food security
for everyone. Under the NFSA, the APL cat-
egory is abolished and eligible households
come under two well-defined categories:
CARTOONSCAPE
The dual system, where PDS grain
goes partly through the Aadhaar-
based Point of Sale system and
partly through the fallback
register system, is the worst
priority households, entitled to 5 kg of food-
grains per person per month at nominal
prices, and Antyodaya households (the
poorest), entitled to 35 kg per household per
month. The PDS is to cover at least 75 per
cent of rural households at the national level,
rising to 80-90 per cent in the poorest States.
Impending setback
In June this year, we went back to six of In-
dias poorest States (Bihar, Chhattisgarh,
Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha and
West Bengal) for an update. We found that
four out of six had a fairly good PDS, with
most NFSA cardholders receiving the bulk
of their entitlements every month and rel-
atively low exclusion errors. The last two,
Jharkhand and especially Bihar, still have a
long way to go. Even there, however, the situ-
ation is much better than it was a few years
ago. In Jharkhand, for instance, the transpar-
ency of the system has vastly improved, and
the official NFSA website is among the best
nologies to work at the same time: the PoS
machine, the biometrics, the Internet con-
nection, remote servers, and often other ele-
ments such as the local mobile network. Fur-
ther, it requires at least some household
members to have an Aadhaar number, cor-
rectly seeded in the PDS database.
This is a wholly inappropriate technology
for rural India, especially in the poorest
States. Even in State capitals, network fail-
ures and other glitches routinely disable this
sort of technology. In villages with poor con-
nectivity, it is a recipe for chaos. Note that In-
ternet dependence is inherent to Aadhaar
since there is no question of downloading
the biometrics.
Recent developments in Rajasthan illus-
trate the dangers of forcing biometric au-
thentication on the PDS. During the last few
months, the Government of Rajasthan has
tried hard to enforce the system. The use of
PoS machines is compulsory and every PDS
shop has one. Yet, according to official data
compiled by Nikhil Dey, only 61 per cent of
Rajasthans foodgrain allocation found its
way through the PoS system in July 2016,
with a similar figure (63 per cent) for August.
The rest is either siphoned off or delivered
using the old register system which of
the two is hard to say since utter confusion
prevails about the permissibility of using
registers as a fallback option.
Further evidence comes from Ranchi dis-
trict in Jharkhand where the PoS system is
also mandatory. In July 2016, NFSA card-
holders in Ranchi district received less than
half of their foodgrain entitlements through
that system, according to the model website
mentioned earlier. The situation was much
the same in August.
As in Rajasthan, it is not clear whether
those for whom the PoS system does not
work in Ranchi are getting any grain through
the old register system. Officially, that is
not allowed, according to local PDS dealers
and officials (indeed, some dealers have
been suspended for using this fallback op-
trend towards lower leakages in recent
years.
A short visit to a PDS shop just outside
Ranchi quickly brings out the multiple vul-
nerabilities of the new system. Within
minutes we met many people who had been
deprived of their food rations for months be-
cause they had no Aadhaar number; or be-
cause their Aadhaar number had not been
correctly seeded; or because their biomet-
rics did not work, or simply because the PoS
machine returned various error messages.
Even those for whom the system works
face huge inconvenience. Often they have to
make repeated trips to the PDS shop, or send
different members in turn, until the machine
cooperates. Sometimes schoolchildren are
asked to skip classes and try their luck at the
PDS shop. This unreliable system causes a
colossal waste of time for everyone.
By the way, all this is one year after I was
told by the Food Departments upbeat con-
sultants that the PoS system is functional
throughout Ranchi district.
The Aadhaar juggernaut
In spite of ample warnings, the Central
government continues to push for compuls-
ory Aadhaar-based biometric authentica-
tion in the PDS. Incidentally, this is a vio-
lation of Supreme Court orders. The court
did allow the use of Aadhaar in the PDS, but
not making it compulsory for PDS users. Nor
can the government invoke the Aadhaar Act
to justify this move: the relevant sections of
the Act are yet to be notified.
PoS machines seem to be expected to en-
sure a corruption-free PDS. This expecta-
tion, however, builds on a misunderstanding
of PDS leakages. The main vulnerability
today, at least in the States I am familiar with,
is not identity fraud (e.g. bogus cards), but
quantity fraud: PDS dealers often give peo-
ple less than what they are entitled to, and
pocket the rest. PoS machines are ineffective
in preventing quantity fraud. They may help
in reducing identity fraud, such as it is, but
that does not justify depriving people of
their food entitlements when the technology
fails.
As with many other applications of
Aadhaar, this one is proceeding like a jugger-
naut, without paying serious attention to the
collateral damage. Instead, the Central gov-
ernment peddles bogus figures of Aadhaar-
enabled financial savings (often relayed by
unsuspecting columnists or economists) to
justify further imposition of the technology.
It is only when concerned journalists, ac-
tivists or researchers make enquiries from
the victims that we learn about the adverse
effects of Aadhaar on the PDS.

N
orth Koreas fifth nuclear test may have
had an explosive yield of no more than
ten kilotons, somewhat less than the
bomb dropped on Hiroshima, but its re-
verberations have set alarm bells ringing around
the region, even across the Pacific. This under-
ground test of a nuclear warhead could herald a
new era of heightened brinkmanship in the Korean
Peninsula. Concern stems from the claim by the
North Korean government that with this det-
onation the regime has succeeded in miniaturising
nuclear weapons to the point of attaching them to
ballistic missiles. These fears are justified given the
long trajectory of the Norths nuclear weapons
drive. It first conducted a nuclear test in 2006, fol-
lowed by three more, in 2009, 2013 and in January
this year. Each time the magnitude of the tremor as-
sociated with the test, an indicator of the energy
yield, has increased, from around 4.3 in 2006 to 5.3
in 2016. In parallel, the regime is believed to have
developed increasingly sophisticated delivery sys-
tems, ballistic missiles with a growing range.
Earlier this week, Pyongyang test-fired three bal-
listic missiles, which landed within a few hundred
kilometres off Japans coast. U.S. officials believe it
may have conducted at least 22 launches this year.
Condemnation of this test by the UN did little to
dampen the defiance of the Norths Supreme
Leader, Kim Jong-un. Sanctions slapped on it in
March have failed to have any effect, as they have
since they were periodically imposed since 1992.
With multiple reports emerging over the years of
hardships faced by the North Korean population,
including famine, poverty and rampant human
rights violations, the latest explosive test may be an
opportune moment to pause and re-examine the
value of the sanctions aimed at isolating the Norths
regime internationally. No globally coordinated
strategies will succeed as long as Beijing plays
spoiler as it has done historically. Notwithstand-
ing the praise from U.S. President Barack Obama
for Beijings improved adherence to recent sanc-
tions policies, reports from the border region with
the North hint at continued trade with China. Fur-
ther, this weeks test will exacerbate peninsular ten-
sions over a plan to deploy THAAD, a U.S. missile
defence system, in South Korea. Both Beijing and
Moscow have protested against that proposal, even
though the White House appears firm on its intent
to protect its treaty ally. Even if Washington and
Beijing managed to somehow set aside strategic
mistrust and collaboratively squeeze Pyongyangs
weapons development agenda, the country is al-
ready believed to have a standing stock of 15 to 20
nuclear weapons, which are effectively beyond the
pale of sanctions. A more sustainable approach
may be to breathe life into the Six-Party Talks, and
invest diplomatic currency in bringing Pyongyang
back to the negotiating table. History suggests that
failure to do so will only lead to one outcome.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Letters emailed to letters@thehindu.co.in must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.
Diluting MGNREGA
Brinda Karats views on the Centre
vis--vis MGNREGA cannot be
disputed (Retaining MGNREGAs
core, Sept. 9). But many State
governments are equally responsible
for the problems. Even under the
UPA, it became a bit of a political
issue when some Opposition-ruled
States did not implement the
minimum 100-day programme
properly. The reality is that the
scheme is being misused, and there
is neither accountability nor
transparency. No government has
bothered to look into the plight of
unorganised labourers nor has it
realised that underemployment is
more dangerous than
unemployment. MGREGA is more
or less bracketed under the category
of unorganised labour, which is
perhaps why we do not hear of
complaints of there not being 100
days labour. Those under
MGNREGA are also expected to
part with some money to the
middlemen/brokers who engage
them.
K.V. Venugopal,
Chennai
The BJP governments lukewarm
approach to MGNREGA ignores the
reality of extreme poverty and rural
distress. It also smacks of vendetta
politics. The scheme has played a
key role in improving the livelihood
of people from the marginalised
sections. The reported move to
restrict the schemes operation to
the countrys poorest districts is
grossly unwarranted and will push
the poorer sections to the precipice.
J. Anantha Padmanabhan,
Tiruchi
The writer appears to be airing her
personal dissatisfaction with the
government. How can one cite
exchanges on a WhatsApp group as
evidence? The policies of the
government should be judged on the
basis of how they translate on the
ground and not by what is said on
social media.
Parneet Sarao,
New Delhi
Triple talaq
Any sensible person would agree
that the practice of triple talaq needs
to be abolished because of the way it
results in the abuse of women
(Editorial, Sept. 8). It is unfortunate
that the real issue here of gender
injustice is sought to be smudged
by giving it a communal colour. As
expected, there are some persons
who have labelled the women who
petitioned the Supreme Court
against triple talaq as biased. When
criminal laws such as the Prevention
of Domestic Violence Act and the
Prevention of Sexual Harassment at
the Workplace Act are uniform to all
Indians irrespective of their religion,
how can personal laws be different?
Padmini Raghavendra,
Secunderabad
Muslims in India are governed by
the Muslim Personal Law (Shariat)
Application Act, 1937. After
Independence, relevant laws have
been introduced or amended aimed
at improving the lot of women from
Hindu and minority communities.
However, the 1937 Act has remained
static. The ease with which men can
get divorce is unfair. Adherence to
archaic tenets of religion has been
one of the major causes of poverty
and slow progress of Muslims in
India.
Y.G. Chouksey,
Pune
The Supreme Court has every right
to intervene if any discriminatory
and regressive doctrine is prevalent
and comes in the way of denying
communities access to equal
opportunities. No organisation can
claim its hegemony over the religion
of a society. Women should confront
the so-called leaders of the
community and challenge them in a
befitting manner.
not empowered. The only way
Ashfaq Amir Khan,
Lucknow
Triple talaq is an obnoxious and
medieval practice to grant illegal
rights to a husband and has
absolutely no sanction in the Koran.
The Muslim community must come
forward and criticise the practice as
it has no place in modern society.
Abbas Hasan Naqvi,
Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh
The arguments advanced by the
AIMPLB confirm the regressive and
patriarchal mindset of this body
claiming to represent all Muslims.
The most untenable and
The Central government and its advisers
pride themselves on their commitment to
evidence-based policy, but this is a case
where evidence is being systematically ig-
nored to press on with technological solu-
tions based on blind faith (handsomely nur-
tured by commercial interests). The drive to
impose biometric authentication on the PDS
must stop immediately to avoid further dam-
age. There are better ways of plugging last-
mile leakages, including the use of simpler
technologies not dependent on the Internet.
Imposing a technology that does not work
on people who depend on it for their survival
is a grave injustice.
Jean Drze is Visiting Professor at the Department of
Economics, Ranchi University.
indefensible is the stand of how men State of data collection
need the instrument of triple talaq to
get rid of their wives in the easiest The discrepancies present in NCRB
way possible without legal problems data (NCRB data: handle with
and with no such remedies for care, Sept. 9) are proof of our
women. Surely the highest court pathetic state of data handling and
should take a gender-neutral and data analysis which ultimately
humane view of this treacherous results in poor policymaking. The
practice and other personal laws questions raised by the writer about
affecting the unjust slant towards the authenticity of this NCRB data,
women, irrespective of what any and which prima facie point towards
scriptural interpretation says. the whole data collection process by
Kasim Sait, the NCRB to be fake, must be
Chennai answered by a responsible authority.
Kiran Babasaheb Ransing,
This is an opportune moment where
New Delhi
the law can be reformed once and
for all. This is because of the
patriarchal mindset of those in the Regional trade
Muslim Personal Law Board apart A major impediment that comes in
from many in the community being the way of SAARC trade is economic
less knowledgeable about their own competitiveness among member
religion. Gender studies show that countries (Coming closer together
the sole reason for the backwardness for trade, Sept. 9). Since their
of Muslims is that the women are manufacturing specialisations tend
to overlap, member countries are
forward is to abandon regressive forced to compete in the
laws and practices and invest in international market rather than
womens education and health. cooperate. For example, India,
Rahman Sheikh, Bangladesh and Pakistan are all
Durg, Chhattisgarh textile exporters and jostle for
market space. If closer cooperation
Any religious law which speaks of is to be forged among them, then
the suppression of women through supply and manufacturing chains
any means must be reformed. In this must be made to sweep through the
context we need to have a liberal whole region, aligning the
interpretation of not only the Koran comparative advantage of each
but also all religious scriptures. member to the benefit of the other in
Article 44 is one step that will enable final production. SAARC, as an
the dignity of women with respect to integrated unit, must then compete
marriage. in the international market.
Divyesh A. Borse, Suyash Saxena,
Pune New Delhi

ND-ND
10 |
DR HUMERUS
Keshav
AROUND THE WORLD
Product research
and buying
Doing extensive
research before
making an online
purchase may be
futile. An article in
PHOTO: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
the journal,
Marketing Science, finds that even though
consumers may spend days looking for the right
product, what they purchase tends to be remarkably
close to items they searched and found in their very
first search. The researchers derive this from the
browsing and purchase history of over two million
consumers. They used a sample of more than 1,000
digital camera purchases with full browsing
histories over a three-month period. They also found
that while about 25 per cent of consumers search
and purchase in just one online session, the average
purchase takes much longer around 15 days and
over six sessions.
Feelings about
a face
In a creepy
experiment, a
research team
PHOTO: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
reports in PLoS
Biology that they
were able to change
how people felt about strangers faces by having
them do random tasks via a specialised software
called DecNef. Volunteers in the experiment were
trained to develop a mild but significant
preference or dislike for faces that they had
previously regarded neutrally. When the volunteers
were quizzed later, a significant proportion of them
in spite of knowing that a software had
influenced their perception said that their new,
implanted feelings about the faces were solidified.
Drug combo and
leukaemia fight
A study in mice
combining two
inhibitor drugs for
treatment of Chronic
myeloid leukaemia PHOTO: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
(CML) can not only
stop the disease completely but also significantly
lower treatment cost. CML is a cancer of the white
blood cells accounting for 20 per cent of adult
leukaemia. Researchers combined the BCR-ABL
tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) with another inhibitor
drug known as venetoclax and observed
encouraging response and cure rates for both the
chronic phase of the disease and its fatal end-stage
phase called blast crisis. BCR-ABL inhibitors are the
current standard-of-care treatment allowing most
patients to remain in remission, but they do not
entirely eradicate the cancer cells. Science
Translational Medicine.
Ginger compound
to the rescue
Capsaicin, the
compound that
gives chilli peppers
their kick, has been
previously
PHOTO: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
associated with
cancer. Now, researchers show in studies with mice
that the pungent compound in ginger, 6-gingerol,
could counteract capsaicins potentially harmful
effects. In combination with the capsaicin, 6-
gingerol could lower the risk of cancer, they say. The
study appears in ACS Journal of Agricultural and
Food Chemistry. Researchers fed mice prone to lung
cancer either capsaicin or 6-gingerol alone, or a
combination of both. During the study period, all of
the mice that received only capsaicin developed
lung carcinomas while only half of the mice fed
6-gingerol did. Surprisingly, an even lower
percentage only 20 per cent of the mice given
both compounds developed cancer.
DEMYSTIFYING SCIENCE
What are magnetars?
This week, astronomers picked up strange X-ray
bursts using NASAs Swift telescope. These
strange bursts were very similar to that of a
magnetar an extremely dense type of neutron
star that can produce magnetic fields trillions of
times stronger than our suns. The magnetar,
called 1E 1613 at the centre of RCW 103, and
the remains of a supernova explosion located
about 9,000 light years from Earth rotates
once every 24,000 seconds (6.67 hours).
Neutron stars are formed when stars more
massive than our sun explode as supernovae.
Just a regular neutron star has a magnetic field
of a trillion gauss. Magnetars are 1,000 times
more powerful than that, with a magnetic field
of a quadrillion gauss. The earths core has a
magnetic field of 25 gauss. Magnetars can cause
starquakes, or earthquakes on stars. Because of
its properties, the magnetar releases a blast of
radiation that can be seen clear across the Milky
Way. The most powerful starquake ever
recorded came from a magnetar called SGR
1806-20, located about 50,000 light years away.
In a tenth of a second, one of these starquakes
released more energy than the sun gives off in
1,00,000 years.
1ias.com
HYGIENE
Watch what you put on your hands
Triclosan-based antibacterial products such as handwash and hand sanitisers are no more effective than soaps
CINTHYA ANAND
I
ts in your soap, handwash,
talcum powder and even in the
wall paint. In a world obsessed
with cleanliness, antimicrobial
agents like triclosan have been
touted as the panacea for a disease-
free world. But their use remains
controversial: experts say indis-
criminate usage of antimicrobial
agents like triclosan over the years
has led to bacteria developing re-
sistance to them, leading to the
need for stronger chemicals. Are
we setting ourselves up for a world
of superbugs by putting them in
anything and everything?
No miracle guard, this
Last week, the U.S. Food and
Drug Administration announced
that effective September 2017, it
would prohibit the sale of non-med-
ical soap containing triclosan or 18
other ingredients marketed as anti-
microbials, as it did not find these
products to be any more effective
than ordinary soaps.
Opinion is divided among ex-
perts: while some feel the move was
long called for, physicians weigh in
that such antibacterial products
continue to be useful in certain
situations.
Triclosan was initially used for
hospital environments, but its use
spread as a miracle guard against
infection. Triclosan is being used
Straight to the heart
PILL-SIZED: In April 2016, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved usage of the pacemaker for patients with
bradycardia, a term for a heart rate of less than 60 beats per minute (BPM) in adults. The miniaturised heart
device, known as the Micra Transcatheter Pacing System, was implanted at Jackson South Community Hospital,
U.S. No more than an inch long, the gadget, unlike traditional pacemakers, is implanted inside the heart. Picture
shows the worlds smallest pacemaker being displayed at a media event. It is similar to the one that was
implanted into a 78-year-old patient. PHOTO: AFP
INTERVIEW
Generics are a lifeline
MSF secretary general Jerome Oberreit on the increasing threat to affordable health care
Mdecins Sans Frontires (MSF) or
Doctors without Borders, the interna-
tional humanitarian medical aid or-
ganisation that is active in 69 coun-
tries, serves populations affected by
epidemics, armed conflicts, natural
calamities and manmade disasters.
MSF has relied heavily on generic
drugs, much of which has been
sourced from India, to deliver health
care to some of the most deprived
peoples on the planet. Addressing
healthcare exclusion has been a ma-
jor part of its work, and this has often
meant locking horns with big
pharmaceutical companies. MSF was
in the news recently for its decision
not to take any more funds from the
European Union and member coun-
tries in protest against their tough
refugee policies. Jerome Oberreit,
secretary general of MSF, tells A.
Rangarajan why the organisation is
the doughty fighter it is. Excerpts:
MSF has been a part of the Drugs for
Neglected Diseases Initiative (DNDi).
How does it counter the ills of the
current paradigm?
The DNDi was actually started in
2003 with the 1999 Nobel Peace Prize
money providing the seed funding. In
10 years we have developed six new
therapies. Based on DNDis estimates
we reckon that the cost to develop a
new chemical entity to be 100-150
million. Current studies place the cost
for a similar exercise by the industry at
anywhere between $802 million and
$2.6 billion!
Tell us about the role that generic
drugs play in your work globally.
We have limited resources and gen-
eric drugs play a vital part in our pro-
grammes. These generics that we
source from India constitute nearly
two-thirds of the drugs we use for HIV,
TB and malaria. Take the case of AIDS;
it is on account of generic drugs that
the annual cost of the AIDS Cocktail
combination treatment has been
brought down from about $10,000 in
2000 to about $100 today. This has
WEEKEND
BEING
WASHED OFF: By using antimicrobial agents indiscriminately you are removing useful bacteria which help to ward
off infection. PHOTO: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
: pletely. Senior physician Kumar at
in toothpaste, handwash, talcum
powder, etc. because companies
thought it was a panacea for all,
without understanding that with in-
discriminate usage, bacteria can de-
veloped a resistance to the chem-
ical, says Dipshikha Chakravortty, soaps and handwashes are not re-
associate professor, Department of
Microbiology and Cell Biology, In-
dian Institute of Science,
Bengaluru.
Asha Benkappa, director of In- she says, adding, Regular soap is
Jerome Oberreit PHOTO: SPECIAL
ARRANGEMENT
Cash-rich companies have
not taken up R&D in
antibiotic development as
they must be affordable and
used sparingly.
made it possible for another 16 million
people to have access to treatment.
The role generics play in affordable
healthcare hardly needs emphasis. In
many cases they are a lifeline.
MSF has expressed concern over the
ongoing RCEP (Regional
Comprehensive Economic Partnership)
talks. Are you apprehensive that
agreements such as these could
impact generic drugs production in
India?
India has always maintained the
right balance between awarding pat-
ents to drugs and its commitment to
public health. We are particularly con-
cerned about two provisions that are
being discussed in the RCEP talks, data
exclusivity and patent term exten-
sions.
Data exclusivity is a backdoor route
to awarding monopoly status to drugs.
And patent term extension will extend
THE HINDU SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 11, 2016
NOIDA/DELHI
Experts say indiscriminate
usage of antimicrobial
agents over the years has
led to bacteria developing
resistance to them
cific to gram-positive bacteria, get
dislodged when the bacteria are
killed by antibacterial agents. They
remain on the surface of your hands
and can get into your gut, causing
other inflammatory complications.
Scrubbing with soap and water is a
hundred times better. Using alco-
hol for disinfection was better as
bacteria could not develop re-
sistance to alcohol. A 2013 study
published in Clinical Infectious Dis-
eases also showed that antibacterial
components were no more effective
than ordinary soaps at preventing
infectious diseases.
However, it would be unwise to
disown antibacterial agents com-
dira Gandhi Institute of Child gentle on our skin and helps main- K.C. General Hospital, Bengaluru,
Health, Bengaluru, says these tain commensols. says antimicrobial agents are re-
products are a gimmick as the quired in infection-prone situ-
Soap is good enough
body has its own self-cleaning bac- ations. Antimicrobials are rec-
teria, commensals, which keep the Dr. Chakravortty also feels scrub- ommended for sanitation workers,
skin clean. Antimicrobial agents in bing with soap and water is better farmers working in the fields, or in
than using hand sanitisers, as in the the presence of someone with an in-
quired. By using antimicrobial latter case, the dead bacteria remain fection, he says. However, he adds,
agents indiscriminately you are re- on the skin: Certain molecules, such products should be used in the
moving useful commensal bacteria known as lipopolysaccharides, right quantity, as overuse does not
which help to ward off infection, which are specific to gram-negative increase effectiveness.
bacteria, and lipoteichoic acid, spe- cinthya.anand@thehindu.co.in
OPINION
Stocktaking in
the dengue war
impregnating indoor
curtains with insecticides
such as Pyrethroid has
proved efficacious.
A comprehensive
NIRMAL BRATATI strategy is deemed
KUMAR MUKHO necessary due to absence
GANGULY PADHYAY of a specific antiviral
A
decade ago, when at therapy. A safe, efficacious
the Indian Council of and cost-effective dengue
Medical Research vaccine remains a high
(ICMR), we published a public health priority.
paper, Dengue in Kerala: The vaccine by Sanofi
A Critical Review, which Pasteur has been licensed
highlighted the status of after Phase III trials and
dengue fever in the light approved by some
of factors that have forced national regulatory
a sylvatic mosquito like authorities. It has been
Aedes albopictus to seek a introduced in Philippines
new breeding habitat near and a few other endemic
habitation and facilitate countries. The results are
transmission of dengue expected soon and keenly
virus in a virtually non- awaited. This candidate
immune population. Cut vaccine has also been
to 2016, where an article recommended by SAGE, a
(The Hindu, May 19) WHO body which looks at
forewarns of the various vaccines for
infectious diseases. The
hyperendemic form that
vaccine against dengue at
dengue may take in the
the moment can be used
State this year.
The prophecy has come only for those between 9
true. This year, Kerala has 45 years of age.
recorded 4,060 dengue Similarly, the NIH
cases, the highest in India. vaccine made in Brazil by
With a situation at hand in Butantan has been
an advanced State like successfully tested in
Kerala, it may as well be Brazil. Parallel evaluation
said that vector control in is under way in Brazil and
isolation is not enough to Mexico. Two Indian
the monopoly hold of a curb the growing companies, the Serum
pharmaceutical company on a drug be- incidence of dengue.
yond the current 20 years. Both these Kerala is not battling
provisions go beyond the mandates of dengue alone, making it
international law. essential for us to look at
an integrated and
You have been campaigning against comprehensive
the U.S.-led Trans-Pacific Partnership prevention and control
(TPP) as well. What are your concerns strategy inclusive of an
there? effective vaccine.
In recent decades,
TPP introduces far-reaching mo- dengue is being reported
in explosive proportions
nopoly protection for pharmaceutical
globally, bringing with it a PHOTO: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
companies that would unnecessarily substantial
strengthen, lengthen and broaden pat- socioeconomic impact on Institute of India and
ents. This will push drug prices up. We individuals and society. Panacea Biotech, are also
have also pointed out the flaws in the The truth is that no drugs developing this vaccine.
current biomedical innovation are available to treat The Takeda vaccine has
paradigm that seeks to reward R&D dengue. Mortality from undergone trials in
through monopolies and high drug dengue still prevails in Singapore and currently
prices. Cash-rich pharmaceutical com- developing countries. in the Phase III
panies have not taken up R&D in anti- India has reported an evaluation.
biotic development because they must annual average of 20,474 WHO and Dengue
be affordable and should be used spar- dengue cases (2006-12). Vaccine Initiative (DVI),
However, it surged to an international
ingly.
40,571 with 137 deaths in consortium supported by
MSF has been a part of the Drugs for 2014. Last year, there were the Bill and Melinda Gates
100,000 cases and 220 Foundation, have been
Neglected Diseases Initiative (DNDi). working in collaboration
How does it counter the ills of the deaths. Today, urban hubs
like New Delhi, Kolkata with vaccine
current paradigm? manufacturers and
and Bengaluru are
struggling to fight the national regulatory bodies
The DNDi was actually started in endemic form. India is to accelerate dengue
2003 with the 1999 Nobel Peace Prize bearing an estimated total vaccine development. The
money providing the seed funding. In annual economic cost of position paper on dengue
10 years we have developed six new US$1.11 billion due to vaccine by the World
therapies. Based on DNDis estimates dengue, which includes Health Organisation
we reckon that the cost to develop a direct medical costs of (WHO) released on July
new chemical entity to be 100-150 mil- US$548 million. 29, 2016 comes as a
lion euros. Current studies place the significant step to
cost for a similar exercise by the in- Vector control expedite the availability of
dustry at anywhere between $802 mil- In dengue prevention, a dengue vaccine in
lion and $2.6 billion! The vector control takes endemic countries like
pharmaceutical industry has been af- centre stage. However, India.
flicted by excessive financialisation. community-level In fact, WHO has
implementation of small recommended that
interventions to prevent countries should consider
Has MSF started assuming a larger introduction of the
political profile? water accumulation in
coolers, manhole lids, dengue vaccine in
geographic settings where
MSF was founded by both doctors tyres and water tanks
along with general epidemiological data
and journalists. Much of our work hap- cleanliness particularly in indicate a high burden of
pens in places farthest from the pres- the urban areas are far disease.
ence of the media. We are impartial from optimal. It is also N.K. Ganguly is the former
and neutral when it comes to conflicts. observed that dengue Director General, ICMR. Dr.
But we speak out publicly on what we Mukhopadhyay is Senior Program
mosquitoes are found Officer for Policy Centre for
see. Taking a position on these vital is- inside homes; hence Biomedical Research.
sues does not make us political.
ND-ND
10 | 1ias.com EDITORIAL THE HINDU MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2016
NOIDA/DELHI

Labours loves lost

The proposed labour reforms seek to weaken worker protection at a time when the Indian economy is not
creating enough jobs, and the right kind of jobs
sectors. This is the reason India has not been small and escape various labour regulations.
M O N D AY , S E P T E M B E R 1 2 , 2 0 1 6 able to replicate the Chinese success in la- Most importantly, contract labour tends to
T.T. RAM MOHAN bour-intensive manufacturing. be cheaper in general; at Marutis Manesar
This argument may have well been over- plant, contract workers earned less than half

An oice On September 2, 10 trade unions in India or-

taken by events in the global economy. Many
other low-cost economies have already po-
sitioned themselves in these sectors. Auto-
the wages of permanent workers.
Contract labour is a serious assault on
workers rights. The Supreme Court has

of loss ganised what was said to be one of the largest

labour strikes in history. An estimated 120
million workers took part. The unions were
mation in the West means that the window
of opportunity in these sectors is fast clos-
ing. The idea that reforming labour laws will
made strong observations on companies re-
sort to contract labour in order to avoid stat-
utory obligations. The Economic Survey

A
fter the categorical verdict of the Delhi
High Court last month that the Capital is
a Union Territory, it was quite clear that
any decision made by Chief Minister
Arvind Kejriwal without the Lieutenant
Governors approval will be rendered illegal. Coun-
sel for the Delhi government had to concede the
point in court, leading to the appointment of 21
Delhi legislators as parliamentary secretaries being
set aside. The appointments, made in March 2015,
sufered from multiple legal infirmities. Apart from
the lack of the LGs concurrence, it raised the ques-
tion of whether it was an oice of profit under the
government, something legislators are barred from
holding. The penalty stipulated in the Constitution
for a legislator holding an oice of profit is disquali-
fication. The Election Commission has reserved its
verdict on the question whether these 21 MLAs
have incurred such disqualification, and it is pos-
sible for the Aam Aadmi Party now to ask the mat-
ter to be closed, citing the courts setting aside of
the appointments. At the same time, it cannot be
denied that the EC could still choose to decide
whether these MLAs had indeed held an oice of
profit for nearly a year-and-a-half. They had been
rendered further vulnerable after the President
withheld assent to a Delhi Bill to protect them from
incurring disqualification once again because it
was introduced without the LGs approval.
Mr. Kejriwal could have avoided this setback had
he not given executive oversight responsibilities to
so many of his partys legislators. In practice, parlia-
mentary secretaries are junior ministers. In this
case, their appointment could also have been chal-
lenged on the ground that after their inclusion, the
strength of the Council of Ministers had exceeded
the constitutional limit of 10 per cent on the
strength of the Delhi Assembly. In the case of other
States, the limit is 15 per cent. In some States, parlia-
mentary secretaries have been able to stave of dis-
qualification by getting the post saved from dis-
qualification by legislation. However, no one has
been able to get around the numerical cap on the
size of the Ministry under Article 164(1A) of the
Constitution. All told, Mr. Kejriwal got himself into
a legal quagmire by seeking to take on the LG in the
belief he had the same leeway as other CMs did. He
will continue to maintain that the post of parlia-
mentary secretary, inasmuch as it entails no salary
or perquisites, is not an oice of profit. Yet, it can-
not be denied that the issue has caused him loss
of face, of credibility and some of the moral righ-
teousness that propelled him to power.
ISRO makes India
protesting against the governments unwill-
ingness to grant a 12-point charter of de-
mands they had put forward. A year ago, uni-
ons had signalled their discontent by having
a similar nation-wide strike.
This year, one of the principal demands of
the unions was an increase in the daily
minimum wage for unskilled workers from
Rs.246 to Rs.692. They rejected an increase
in the wage to Rs.350 ofered by the govern-
ment. Some of their other major concerns
were: proposed changes in labour laws;
growing casualisation of labour; privatisa-
tion; and greater opening up to foreign direct
investment (FDI).
Future tense, present imperfect
Labour is restive today. It is apprehensive
about what the future bodes for itself. But its
not as if labour militancy has gone up in re-
cent years. On the contrary, man-days lost
due to industrial disputes (lockouts and
strikes) came down from 23.7 million in 2001
to 13 million in 2012 before rising to 19 mil-
lion in 2013. These figures are considerably
lower than those in the 1970s and 1980s.
However, there is little doubt that orga-
nised labour in India, as in the rest of the
world, sees itself as a loser in the changes un-
leashed by liberalisation and globalisation. It
fears that if the government goes ahead with
some of its proposed reforms, its losses
will begin to mount.
Indian businesspeople as well as many
economists have long clamoured for greater
CARTOONSCAPE
In a situation where domestic
firms have weakened by
inadequate growth, foreign direct
investment is seen as displacing
jobs in domestic firms
flexibility in labour laws, a euphemism for
freedom to hire and fire. The Industrial Rela-
tions Code Bill, 2016, which is said to favour
such flexibility, is due to be tabled in Parlia-
ment in the near future. It is bound to evoke a
strong reaction from unions as well as Op-
position parties.
Several economists say that rigid labour
laws are the reason India has not generated
enough jobs in the formal sector only
about 10 per cent of jobs are in the organised
sector and the remaining 90 per cent in the
unorganised sector. As large firms do not
have the confidence that they can shed
workers in adverse conditions, they do not
wish to enter labour-intensive, low-skilled
trigger a huge expansion in low-skilled man-
ufacturing is thus highly suspect in todays
changed situation.
The experience so far
Moreover, the academic literature on the
subject is not unambiguously in favour of
easing labour laws as a means for hiring
more labour. Dismissal laws in France are
more stringent than in India, but that did not
come in the way of Frances prospering for
over a century. China itself has made its la-
bour laws more stringent so that they are
comparable to those in India (except in spe-
cial economic zones).
Indeed, some of the literature suggests
that giving workers greater protection helps
increase productivity by giving workers
more incentives to invest in firm-specific
skills. Along with collective bargaining,
worker protection leads to more egalitarian
outcomes in society. There is also evidence
that the bias against workers in Indian in-
dustry may have more to do with tax incent-
ives for capital than with restrictive labour
laws.
A second issue that agitates unions is the
growing trend towards casualisation of la-
bour. This was one of the reasons for labour
unrest at Marutis plant at Manesar in Hary-
ana last year.
Companies find it expedient to employ la-
bour on contract. They can then leave the job
of managing regulations and inspectors to
the contract labour firms. They can also stay
(2015-16) believes that contract labour is
merely a corporate response to regulatory
cholesterol. However, reducing worker pro-
tection in the organised sector may not be
the answer many firms would still prefer
the contract option simply because its
cheaper. Rather, we must extend worker pro-
tection and benefits to contract labour as
well.
Privatisation and FDI are other areas of
concern for organised labour. It is not that
we have seen major initiatives to sell of
PSUs. But there are clear attempts to further
shrink the role of the public sector. Public
sector banks (PSB), for instance, have been
starved of capital and many banks are today
without chairmen and managing directors.
Moves have also been initiated to merge
PSBs. Unions see these moves as impacting
jobs in the formal sector adversely.
In principle, FDI should mean more in-
vestment and more job creation. However, in
a situation where domestic firms have
weakened by inadequate growth, FDI is seen
as displacing jobs in domestic firms.
Its the jobs
The proposed labour reforms seek to
weaken worker protection at a time when
the Indian economy is not creating enough
jobs and the right kind of jobs. The rate of
growth of employment slumped from 2.8 per
cent in 2000-05 to 0. 5 per cent in 2011-12. In
the same period, the labour force grew at 2.9
per cent and 0.4 per cent, respectively. In the
organised sector, the share of informal em-
ployment rose from 48 per cent in 2004-05 to
54.6 per cent in 2011-12.
Job creation in the private sector is de-
pressed by the low rate of investment. In-
vestment itself is constrained by numerous
factors: high levels of debt, high interest
rates, a deceleration in corporate loans
growth in PSBs, etc. In these conditions, a fo-
cus on weakening dismissal laws in the orga-
nised sector as the key to job creation is mis-
placed.
The International Monetary Funds
World Economic Outlook (April 2016) lends
support to this view. It cites studies that have
shown that weakening dismissal conditions
under adverse economic conditions tends to
reduce employment. The IMF argues that if
such changes to labour laws are to be carried
out, there must be ofsetting fiscal expansion
that helps raise demand for labour. India is in
no position to meet this condition as we are
still in the process of fiscal consolidation.
There is a time for undertaking certain
structural reforms and there is a time for not
doing so. Focussing on changes to labour
laws at the present time, far from fostering
job creation, is likely to be

proud again counterproductive and can only result in

greater labour unrest.

T
he Indian Space Research Organisation
(ISRO) crossed an important milestone
with the successful launch of weather
satellite INSAT-3DR using a Geosyn-
chronous Satellite Launch Vehicle equipped with
the indigenous cryogenic upper stage. The success-
ful launch marks a departure from the long history
of failures with the GSLV; except for the first, every
launch of the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle
(PSLV), the workhorse of ISRO, has been a success.
That September 8 launch marks the third consecut-
ive success; the fact that it is the first operational
flight by the GSLV carrying the indigenous cryo-
genic upper stage is confirmation that India now
belongs to the elite club of countries that have
mastered the cryogenic technology. Maintaining
structural and thermal integrity of the engine at
very high temperatures during combustion just a
few centimetres away from 250 C, a temperature
at which materials behave very diferently, is a huge
challenge. Likewise, igniting a cryogenic fuel and
sustaining the combustion for a prolonged period is
a daunting task. The Thursday launch had fully util-
ised the maximum payload carrying capacity of the
GSLV-Mk II by carrying the heaviest satellite (2,211
kg) ever from Indian soil. This became possible on-
ly because the cryogenic upper stage was used. Un-
like solid and liquid propellants, the specific im-
pulse or thrust provided by a cryogenic rocket
stage is much higher and is therefore more eicient
to carry heavier payloads.
Unlike in the case of the PSLV where industry
participation is around 80 per cent, it is only about
half in the case of the GSLV. ISRO is a research and
development organisation and not a production or-
ganisation, but the lack of greater industry par-
ticipation has resulted in it being unable to launch
more satellites in a year using the GSLV. However,
eforts are under way to change this and ISRO has
set a target of two GSLV launches in a year by 2018-
2019. Even as the GSLV-Mk II has completed its first
operational flight, ISRO is busy preparing for a
ground qualification test of a more powerful GSLV-
Mk III launch vehicle in about two months. The
first experimental flight using the GSLV-Mk III is
scheduled to take place by the end of this year and
will use a new cryogenic engine. With an ability to
provide double the thrust compared with the cur-
rent cryogenic technology, the vehicle would be
able to carry payloads up to four tonnes. This
would mean that the GSLV-Mk III, when fully oper-
ational after three-four launches, will make ISRO
truly independent by not having to rely on facilities
abroad for launching heavier payloads. Besides in-
dependence, the country would stand to gain tre-
mendously through cheaper launches.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Letters emailed to letters@thehindu.co.in must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.
India elated
The two young athletes, Thangavelu
Mariyappan and Varun Singh Bhati,
deserve rich praise for scripting
history by clinching gold and bronze
medals at the ongoing Paralympic
Games at Rio de Janeiro (Twin
delight as Indians strike gold, bronze
at Paralympics, Sept.11). The medal
winners need more assistance and
encouragement from the authorities
concerned.
Prem K. Menon,
Mumbai
It is unfortunate that economic
diiculties come in the way of
nurturing ones talent, as the
example of Mariyappan shows. One
hopes that the district
administrations in each State go
about identifying talent. As one of
the medal winners has said, had they
got support early enough, they could
have gone higher in their feats.
N. Mahadevan,
Chennai
It is R. Rajendran, Mariyappans
physical education teacher at school,
who deserves praise for spotting the
athletes talent early enough and
asking him to switch over to
athletics and high jump from
volleyball. To me, this is what is
called providential grace.
S. Ramakrishnasayee,
Ranipet, Tamil Nadu
No words of appreciation will be
enough to describe the enormous
and unstinted fighting spirit the two
special athletes displayed. Now that
they have proved that they can win
medals, the Central and State
governments should provide them
unstinted support as well as to
sports institutions and coaches to
seek out and nurture hidden talent.
J.S.V.S.K.N. Prasad,
Mangaluru
In the Paralympics, the focus of the
event is on ability, and not disability.
The event is a great transformational
tool to change attitudes towards
people with disabilities and shows
that they too are an integral part of
society. But why was media coverage
of the event minimal?
Devendra Singh Budania,
Jhunjhunu, Rajasthan
The Aadhaar impact
The Public Distribution System has
always been known to be ineicient
and mired in corruption (Dark
clouds over the PDS, Sept.10). Now
that loopholes have been identified
such as inadequacy of
commodities, lack of supervision of
PDS centres, paying bribes to obtain
cards, etc it must be restructured.
A 2005 survey report by
Transparency International revealed
PDS corruption to the extent of
Rs.356 crore a year.
Ritesh Raj,
Patna
Jean Drze has clearly shown that
praise of e-technology can be
premature. Aadhaar-based
biometric authentication will not
only repel most of the deserving
beneficiaries but also create hurdles
in the quick distribution of
foodgrain. Skilled and e-savvy
workers are required. A chain is as
strong as its weakest link.
H.S. Dimple,
Jagraon, Punjab
The PDS is a major contributor to
the widening gap between the rich
and the poor an irony for an
agro-based economy. Now, with the
introduction of technology, it is sad
that it has only added to the agony of
poor households. It is also a fact that
Internet connectivity speeds are an
issue in India. A more feasible
system is what is needed.
Raunak Agarwal,
Kanpur
It is obvious that using technology is
not a one-stop solution to the
numerous problems India faces. The
government should have introduced
biometric authentication in a phased
manner and conducted an
eiciency survey to understand
problems at the ground level. The
right use of technology will help us
to achieve our goals but the
unscientific and forceful manner in
which such technology is introduced
will only afect the eicacy of the
PDS.
Gopichand Paturi,
Hyderabad
Large parts of rural India are still
digitally unconnected; therefore,
denying rations to those who do not
have an Aadhaar card is both unjust
and illegal. Without creating proper
awareness and training, imposing a
cumbersome identification
procedure on the rural population
can prove counterproductive. Going
back to the use of ration cards is a
viable alternative.
Gaurav Singhal,
Rewari, Haryana
Nepotism in the Navy
Extending unlawful favours to near
and dear ones is not something new
even in the highest echelons of our
polity. But the extension of such
favours to ignore trained oicers in
the defence forces comes as a rude
shock (Nepotism nuked our
careers, Sept.11). What is surprising
is the shameless and audacious act
of the naval oicer concerned who
elevated his son-in-law by bypassing
the expertise and training of other
oicers in a very specialised field.
Not being able to use the skills and
expert training of the 11 oicers is a
loss to our national security, which
no nation can aford. It is surprising
that the men kept quiet all along.
V. Lakshmanan,
Tirupur, Tamil Nadu
Surge pricing
The pricing of any product or
T.T. Ram Mohan is a professor at IIM Ahmedabad. E-mail:
ttr@iima.ac.in
service should have a basic relation
to the cost involved in providing it
(Editorial Efective, but not
equitable, Sept.10).
Surge pricing is about exploiting
human exigencies and
vulnerabilities and is therefore
unethical. One shudders to think of
the consequences if surge pricing
finds its way to sectors like health
care. Instead of resorting to
gimmicks such as surge pricing, the
Indian Railways should realistically
and comprehensively revise the fare
structure across the board to
augment resources. Moreover,
scarce resources should not be
thrown away on show pieces like
bullet trains. The priority should be
in improving basic passenger
amenities and safety.
Manohar Alembath,
Kannur, Kerala
Water sharing row
The report, A dam and its
discontents (Tamil Nadu editions,
Sept.11), on the proposed Siruvani
project by Kerala government, and
which has created outrage in Tamil
Nadu, was timely. However, I felt
that quite a few of the aspects
discussed did not have a connection
with the issue. The report would
have been complete had the views of
the Kerala government and residents
on the Kerala side of the Siruvani
river been sought. Keralas argument
for constructing a check dam in the
Attapadi region is that there are no
major or medium retaining
structures in the command area of
the project. Most of the irrigation
facilities are privately owned lift
irrigation systems, which are
confined to small patches. Further,
farmers, mainly tribals, rely mainly
on rain-fed agriculture.
N.S. Venkataraman,
Chennai
There has always been acrimony
between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu
over the sharing of Cauvery water.
Even after the Supreme Court has
ordered the release of water to Tamil
Nadu, regional outfits in Karnataka
are bent on creating trouble.
Farmers in the delta region of Tamil
Nadu have always been dependent
on the Cauvery and the denial of
their just demands is bound to
impact their livelihood. Constant
disruptions in a State come at an
economic cost as well. There have
been similar problems between
Kerala and Tamil Nadu with regard
to the Mullaperiyar and Siruvani
projects. With the issue of water
sharing remaining a constant
irritant, the Centre cannot just sit
back and watch the issue fester.
There has to be a permanent and
practical formula for the sharing the
water between riparian States.
Resorting to judicial relief is only a
temporary and palliative measure.
A. Michael Dhanaraj,
Coimbatore
Conquering malaria
Sri Lankas malaria-free status is
remarkable considering the political
instability and the Eelam wars that it
went through (Editorial Sri Lanka
conquers malaria, Sept. 8). Its
success in public-private sector
coordination will suggest solutions
in Afghanistan and Pakistan. While
India is inching closer to becoming
malaria-free, it would be best if it
studies the Sri Lankan model. Indias
challenge is unique because of the
scalability factor.
Perhaps SAARC could go in a unique
direction by focussing on improving
health care. Indias success in
eradicating polio, Bangladeshs in
gender inclusion and Bhutans focus
on happiness as a part of
development are where we could
start. By focussing on health, social
and gender issues, SAARC could
become the first-of-its-kind regional
body to focus on issues other than
those of a political/economic nature.
Akshay Viswanathan,
Thiruvananthapuram

ND-ND
10 | 1ias.com EDITORIAL THE HINDU TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 13, 2016
NOIDA/DELHI

There is a peoples alternative

T U E S D AY , S E P T E M B E R 1 3 , 2 0 1 6
State of the
Kerala has a two-pronged strategy to get on the path of progress: long-term projects for comprehensive
development, and succour for the poor and disadvantaged
down earlier. The government has taken over Schemes have been devised in association
the Palakkad unit of Instrumentation Limited with the Indian Medical Association to re-
PINARAYI VIJAYAN which the Central government had recently duce infant deaths and maternity deaths as
decided to shut down, thus saving it from well.
closure. Likewise, the Kochi unit of Hindus-
In May 2016, the Left Democratic Front rode
tan Organic Chemicals will also be protected
by the State government. Efforts are also un-
Clean through green
A comprehensive project is being imple-

Congress campaign on a wave powered by the hopes and aspira-

tions of the people of Kerala to form a new
government in the State. Their hopes eman-
der way to set up pharma and petrochemical
parks in the State. Thousands of people will
be newly employed through such measures.
mented to clear and remove waste from all
waterbodies in Kerala. Land cleaned up
through this project will be used for vegeta-

C
ongress vice-president Rahul Gandhis
kisan yatra continues to roll through
Uttar Pradesh. In advance of the As-
sembly elections due early in 2017, Mr.
Gandhi is on a Deoria-to-Delhi trek, and in its early
days he has managed to keep the spotlight on his
presence in various ways. His khaat sabhas
created a flutter as some rural folk, invited to sit
around informally, took off with the stringed cots.
The subsequent wisecracks by political opponents
about Congress workers struggling to stop the
flight of the khaats were, wisely, dovetailed into the
message of acute rural distress that the party is
seeking to amplify. A poor farmer making off with a
freebie as basic as a charpoy was being called a
thief, said Mr. Gandhi, taking aim at the BJP govern-
ment at the Centre, while flamboyant businessmen
who dupe banks were being politely referred to as
defaulters. So far, Mr. Gandhi has taken pot shots at
all his opponents: he said the elephant (the election
symbol of the Bahujan Samaj Party) has eaten away
everything, the cycle (symbol of the ruling Sama-
jwadi government) is punctured, and Prime
Minister Narendra Modi takes selfies with the pow-
erful, not with ordinary farmers. If this gives the ap-
pearance of indiscriminate attacks on all foes, the
strategy may in fact be rather more carefully cali-
brated. The Congress must know it has no chance
of succeeding in its avowed aim of winning the
election alone but to count as a political force in
U.P. and at the national level, the party needs to be
seen to be backing itself, and being the primary
spokesperson of the electorates aspirations.
That these roadshows are not about U.P. alone is
obvious from the absence from the frame of the
Congresss chief ministerial candidate, Sheila
Dikshit. Whether the roadshows will meet with the
level of success that Sonia Gandhis 2004 campaign
through U.P. or Mr. Gandhis own 2009 mobilisa-
tion did is still uncertain. Each of those journeys
through U.P. gave the Congress the ability to throw
its voice farther on the national stage. Those were,
however, Lok Sabha campaigns, in which the Con-
gress has tended to fare better than in State elec-
tions. For instance, it got 21 (out of 80) Lok Sabha
seats in 2009, but three years later managed just 28
(out of 404) Assembly seats. Since then, in the sin-
gular summer of 2014 the BJPs campaign left the
Congress and the two regional giants witless. So
the Congress campaign is being waged as much
against the incumbent government in Lucknow as
that in New Delhi. Mr. Gandhis media managers
have succeeded in moderating the surround sound
of the yatra with no sectional vote base anymore,
the Congress now has the opportunity to unveil a
cohesive, inclusive manifesto.
They are
ated from the abject disdain they expe-
rienced under the previous United Demo-
cratic Front regime towards their interests as
well as that of the States environment. Agony
brewed by the Central governments policies
that struck at the very root of the sovereignty
of the nation and all sections of our society
was also reflected in the Lefts victory.
At a time when the global finance capital is
at its worst crisis and protests against it are
rife throughout the world, we realise that a
solid commitment to the peoples interests
alone can make a government relevant to
those it governs. It is precisely why we have
developed a two-pronged strategy that will
guide us throughout the next five years. On
the one hand, we will vigorously champion
long-term projects to achieve comprehens-
ive development of the State and on the other,
we will relentlessly proceed with short-term
relief measures to provide succour for our
disadvantaged sections in their distress.
Towards comprehensive development
We are seized of the absolute necessity to
attract investment, to provide infrastructure
and to develop industry so as to achieve a
comprehensive development of the State.
Even though our finances are limited, we are
particular to not let that become a hindrance
in achieving our objectives. If we wait to at-
tain adequate finances before proceeding
with developmental activities, Kerala might
get left behind in all spheres. That is precisely
why the government has reconstituted the
Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund
Board (KIIFB) for infrastructure de-
velopment and capital investment. An ordin-
ance was passed to attract investments out-
side the budget, of up to Rs.50,000 crore in
the next five years for land acquisition, to
construct big roads, bridges, industrial parks
and to develop IT and tourism. The govern-
ment will provide guarantee for investments
made through KIIFB, which is a first in India.
Infrastructure is the backbone of indus-
trial development and a quick and conveni-
ent transportation system is an absolute ne-
cessity for a modern society. We are on an
overdrive to complete our infrastructural
CARTOONSCAPE
ILLUSTRATION: KESHAV
Industrial development to
us is not merely the
establishment of new industries
but also the protection of our
public sector units.
projects, particularly Kannur Airport, Kochi
Metro, Light Metro at Thiruvananthapuram
and Kozhikode and Kochi Water Metro. Kan-
nur Airport is set to become the biggest air-
port of India once it is operational in April
2017. As Kerala has a long coastline and
numerous inland waterbodies like rivers and
lakes, the construction of Kochi Water Metro
has been initiated as part of the development
of the water transport sector which is waste-
free and less accident-prone. Light Metro is
our effort to reduce traffic congestion and
pollution in our cities. Efforts are on to devel-
op our National Highways maintaining inter-
national standards as well. The renovation of
our States district roads as well as rural roads
along with the smart road project will also be
implemented without delay.
Industrial development to us is not merely
the establishment of new industries, but it is
also the protection of our public sector units.
While the Central public sector units are fa-
cing threats of closure owing to negligence
and faulty economic outlook of successive
Central governments, the State is proposing
to breathe new life into such units in Kerala.
The State government has already proceeded
with the renovation so as to enable the re-
opening of Fertilizers and Chemicals Travan-
core Limiteds urea plant which was shut
We recognise that a well-educated young
generation is our States wealth. A scheme to ciency in agriculture. This will be a peoples
foster around 1,500 start-ups is an attempt to
encourage entrepreneurship among the
youth and Rs.150 crore has been set aside for
it. It has been decided to add one crore square
feet to our existing IT parks. Efforts are also
being made to attract successful IT firms to
establish themselves in Kerala.
Social security and social justice
All welfare pensions have been increased
to Rs.1,000 per month and have been dis-
bursed to benefactors, including arrears;
Rs.3,100 crore is being issued at the increased
rate with effect from June 2016, through five
types of pensions to 37 lakh pensioners at
their doorsteps before Onam. Measures have
been taken to raise the minimum wages of
13,000 khadi workers as well as to establish a
Khadi Village. The Mahatma Gandhi Na-
tional Rural Employment Guarantee
Scheme, which plays a crucial role in ensur-
ing social security in Kerala, is being revived
to ensure working days equivalent to
Rs.1,000 crore through it.
Subsequent to the declaration of a three-
month moratorium on all loans taken by en-
dosulfan survivors, a comprehensive loan
waiver scheme is being implemented to
provide solace to around 10,000 families. The
government is bearing an additional ex-
penditure of Rs.40 crore for this scheme in
which loans of up to Rs.5 lakh will be waived
off. To alleviate the agrarian crisis in Way-
anad, a moratorium has been declared on the
loans of the farmers there, providing relief to
them; Rs.50 crore is being allocated to allevi-
ate the distress of debt-ridden workers in the
fishing industry as well.
We are committed to ensuring compre-
hensive social security for the impoverished
and distressed workers in the traditional sec-
tor. Cashew factories shut down by the previ-
ous government were reopened on Chingam
1 of the Malayalam calendar. Similarly, stay-
ing true to our promise, we have established a
separate department for women. Budgetary
allocation has been made to construct public
toilets, especially for the use of women.
ble cultivation, so as to achieve self-suffi-
participatory programme on the lines of
literacy mission, democratic decentralisa-
tion and peoples planning. Power generation
from solar energy and wind energy will also
be a part of this project.
Our commitment to the environment is
evident in our commitment to ensure the
strict implementation of the Kerala Conser-
vation of Paddy Land and Wetland Act of
2008. Paddy cultivation is also being pro-
moted in barren lands suitable for farming.
Aiming to make Kerala 100 per cent open def-
ecation-free by the 60th anniversary of Ker-
ala Piravi (November 1, the day the State was
created) is also a pointer to our commitment
to the environment.
There are four types of homeless people in
Kerala. Those with land, but no homes.
Those with unusable homes that have di-
lapidated over time. Those who have no land
and are living on encroached land. Those
who have no land but cannot move out of
their current living places owing to their
nature of work, like those in the fishing in-
dustry, estate workers, tribals, etc. We are un-
dertaking a massive housing campaign, LIFE
(livelihood, inclusion, financial empower-
ment), to build houses for 2 lakh families
without land or housing in the next five
years. Six lakh people will benefit from this
path-breaking initiative. As our State faces an
acute shortage of land, housing complexes
will be built, requiring only 1,140 acres. Social
security schemes will be initiated in the
housing complexes, as well as skill training
for adults among the beneficiaries. Emphasis
will be on financial empowerment and
providing means of livelihood.
Progressive and secular society
Our government has not minced words in
exposing those outfits that can cause dishar-
mony in our society. We will continue our
staunch opposition to such destructive
forces and ensure that the progressive, secu-
lar nature of our society is nourished and
cherished.
A government becomes relevant only
when it is able to make a positive con-
tribution in the day-to-day lives of its cit-
izens. Our proposed Administrative Reforms
Commission will enable us to ensure that
both government and bureaucracy makes a
positive contribution to the people it gov-
erns. Similarly, a government becomes de-
pendable only when people realise that they
will not falter on any promise made. Con-
structing a house for the mother of Jisha, who
was murdered in Perumbavoor, and making
it available a day before the promised date;
the decision to increase the rate of welfare
pensions; reopening of cashew factories; dis-
bursing the pensions of more than 37 lakh
people at their homes within 100 days; and
the fact that we were able to start the compre-

the world hensive loan waiver scheme as planned, all

reflect our care for and commitment to the
weaker sections of our society. Our determ-

T
he findings of the Unicef report, Up-
rooted: The Growing Crisis for Refugee
and Migrant Children, could not be grim-
mer. Over 50 per cent of the 50 million
children who have migrated or been forcibly dis-
placed across borders are said to have fled violence.
About one in three children who live outside their
country of birth is a refugee. The much smaller ra-
tio of displacement for adults less than one in 20
according to the UN High Commissioner for
Refugees reveals the starkness of the situation.
The UNHCR says that in the decade ending 2015,
the number of child refugees almost doubled. Last
year, Syria and Afghanistan alone accounted for
nearly half the worlds child refugees, highlighting
the brutal impact of the war on a segment of society
that had little to do with the conflict directly or oth-
erwise and is the most vulnerable. The last decade
saw two landmark rulings on the conscription of
child soldiers. The first was the 2007 judgment of
the UN-backed tribunal for Sierra Leone against
three men from a rebel armed group. The other was
the conviction of Congolese warlord Thomas Lub-
anga by the International Criminal Court in 2012.
Against this backdrop, the dramatic rise in school
enrolment under a global universal primary educa-
tion drive, or the halving of infant mortality rates
under the Millennium Development Goals, seem
like postcards from another universe. The shocking
reality of trafficking in boys and girls, conscription
by armed groups in conflict zones and exploitation
in the sex trade has overshadowed these advances,
portending both immediate and long-term danger
to whole generations. Paradoxically, the recom-
mendations of the Unicef report are so compre-
hensive that short of swift and sweeping changes in
global policy and practice, they are unlikely to yield
tangible results. A case in point is the suggestion
that governments should address the root causes of
conflict, violence and extreme poverty, and instead
divert scarce resources to fulfil more fundamental
necessities of life. The spirit underlying this idea is
as compelling as the complexities of realpolitik that
impede its translation into action. This is evident in
respect of the challenge of combating international
terrorism by a delineation of its political ante-
cedents. Conversely, the idea to dispense with the
detention of children seeking refugee status and to
do away with reporting requirements, potentially
benefiting 11 million, is a more pragmatic proposal.
Prima facie, there is merit in this approach, as gov-
ernments may be expected to take a more sym-
pathetic view on humanitarian imperatives.
CM
YK
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Letters emailed to letters@thehindu.co.in must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.
Worker protection
The article, Labours loves lost
(Sept.12), raises a basic question:
whether the era of capitalisation can
enable social security. Can Indian
democracy allow the market to
grow without establishing an
egalitarian society? The answer is
no. The writer has not addressed
the basic apprehensions of labour
unions seeking quality of life and
social security.
A novel business model can be
thought of where private sector
social security providers can be
involved. The net they provide can
be based on equal monetary
contributions from the government
and the owner. The corpus created
will enable the social and financial
security of the employee and
enhance employer-employee
relations.
Abhinav Sharma,
Ludhiana, Punjab
Worker protection has become a
myth in ideology and practice due to
massive corruption, nepotism and
favouritism taking a heavy toll on
the available labour force. Policies
of the government, such as
MGNREGA, which are aimed at the
welfare of unskilled workers are
faltering because of inadequate
monitoring by the government.
N. Visveswaran,
Chennai
Office of profit
The controversy over the office of
profit issue will continue to drag on
as long as the Supreme Court does
not make clear which offices fall
under the office of profit criteria.
If its about parliamentary
secretaries this time, it could be
another post or office the next. In
Ashok Kumar Bhattacharya vs
Ajoy Biswas, the top court had
ruled that to determine what
constitutes office of profit, each
case must be judged in light of the
relevant provisions and sections.
But this case-wise approach has
several ambiguities. Perhaps the
answer lies in following the England
model whenever a new office is
created, the law lays down whether
it is an office of profit or not.
Karan Dange,
New Delhi
ISROs success
ISRO has not looked back ever since
the launch and success of the Mars
Orbiter Mission, showing to the
world the potential India has in
space exploration, research and
navigation. Other success stories
such as the PSLV-C28 mission,
setting up of the IRNSS and testing
of a scramjet engine are testimony
to this.
What needs to be done now is to go
to the grass-root level and
encourage students to think of a
career in space research.
Southeast Asia. Ms. Suu Kyis U.S
Vedant Mishra,
Unnao, Uttar Pradesh
Following the atomic tests, ISRO
was blacklisted by the U.S., and
sensitive technologies such as
cryogenic engine science were
denied to it. It was the consistent
hard work of our scientific
community that enabled us to
overcome this barrier. India has now
become a world leader in cost-
effective space launches and
technologies. With the milestone of
launching a heavier payload, we no
longer have to depend on the
European Ariane launchers. ISRO
has proved, yet again, that
technology has never been the
repository of a few.
Gaurav Singhal,
Rewari, Haryana
Policy under Suu Kyi
India has always been an ardent
supporter of the values Aung San
Suu Kyi stands for (On Suu Kyis
itinerary, Sept.12). The time is now
ripe for greater economic, political
and social cooperation with
Myanmar. Moving forward on the
India-Myanmar-Thailand highway
project as well as the Kaladan multi-
modal project can make India and
Myanmar strong trading partners.
These initiatives will also help to
ination to fulfil every promise we have made
so far will be reflected in all our forthcoming
programmes as well.
While all the naysayers in the world will
unite to tell us that there is no alternative, in
this small State of Kerala, we, because of our
sheer commitment to the people who have
bestowed us with this responsibility of gov-
ernance, are leaving no stone unturned to
achieve a peoples alternative; an alternative
that caters to the hopes and aspirations of all
sections of our society.
Pinarayi Vijayan is the Chief Minister of Kerala.
strengthen India-ASEAN relations Myanmar one that the new
and increase connectivity with popular government is unlikely to
acknowledge. In the past, Ms. Suu
trip can be a game changer for Kyi has spoken about this but has
Myanmar as Washington is eager to now fallen silent, and strangely, over
collaborate with the Southeast inhuman acts committed against the
Asian nation to counter China. Rohingyas. One wonders whether
Myanmar can play a pivotal role in she endorses the view of the
deciding the geopolitics of the nationalists in Myanmar or is just
region. trying to please the majorities who
Vanshika Vijh, have helped her party win.
Ludhiana, Punjab Khushi Singh Rathore,
Jaipur
After decades of despotic and
isolationist military rule, the
restoration of democracy in A fail-safe step
Myanmar is a good sign for India to The Maharashtra governments
further strengthen amicable move to no longer declare a Class X
relations with the country. candidate to have failed is an
Myanmar is a key gateway to Indias illusion and will never address the
Act East policy and can provide basic questions (Maharashtra govt.
huge trade opportunities between makes exams fail safe, Sept.12).
east Asian countries and northeast There is no doubt that this will help
India. to reduce the drop-out rate
Apart from ushering in especially among those who hail
development, increasing from economically backward
connectivity and enabling the sections. But to introduce an angle
economic integration of the of parental pressure is
Northeast, it will also provide unwarranted. The government
economic opportunities for India in should have worked towards the
terms of technology, medical and enhancing the quality of education
defence transactions. among the less privileged sections
Gagan Pratap Singh, creating more opportunities for
Noida, Uttar Pradesh children rather than making
compromises with academic
Behind the celebration of Ms. Suu standards at a crucial stage and
Kyis participation in the democratic creating unemployable graduates.
process lies the dark reality of the Akshay Sarjerao Kamble,
plight of the Muslim minorities of Mumbai
ND-ND
 1ias.com NOIDA/DELHI

10 | EDITORIAL THE HINDU WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 14, 2016

A first step to wholesome reform

The Supreme Court directive on quick uploading of first information reports will promote transparency
and curb arbitrariness in police work
order visualises a circumstance in which the
W E D N E S D AY , S E P T E M B E R 1 4 , 2 0 1 6 authorities could sometimes decide against
uploading on grounds of security. The court
however laid down that such decisions could
tion, the order should be welcome to every
honest, apolitical citizen as one that carries
few uncertainties and gives no room for any-
one in authority to intimidate the police into

Sharing R.K. RAGHAVAN D. SIVANANDHAN

not be taken unilaterally by a single police of-
ficial. First, such decisions cannot be taken at
a level lower that a deputy superintendent of
gross impropriety. In a country that still has a
substantial population which is unlettered
and is befuddled by the complexities of our

without caring Last week the Supreme Court of India made

it mandatory for the police to upload within
48 hours a First Information Report (FIR)
police. Second, such a decision is appealable
by an aggrieved party to a committee to be
set up by a district superintendent of police
legal system, this new arrangement should
come as at least a partial antidote to the mis-
deeds of a law enforcement machinery that

E
motions often trump reason. The Cauvery
water dispute is turning out to be less
about water and irrigation and more about
linguistic chauvinism and regional iden-
tity. Nothing else can explain the mindless violence
in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu over the Supreme
Court order asking the former to release water to
the latter, keeping in view the distress situation in
both States in a season of deficit rainfall. Many of
the acts of violence have been perpetuated in the
two States by chauvinistic, fringe organisationsthat
have little to do with the farming community or its
interests. It is clear that there is insufficient water in
Karnatakas reservoirs to meet the full irrigation
needs of both States. The point of the Supreme
Court order was to make the States share their dis-
tress and not to magicallyfulfil the needs of farmers
on both sides. But political parties and some media
houses, especially regional language television
channels, have sought to portray the issue as one
that pits the people of one State against that of the
other. Indeed, the two major national parties, the
Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party, have taken
different stands in the two States on this issue. No
party or State government appears to believe it can
afford to be seen as taking even so much as a con-
ciliatory step toward defusing the crisis. On some
previous occasions when Karnataka released water
in a distress year the State government did so
quietly so as to not give chauvinistic elements any
opportunity to inflame passions.
Cauvery is an inter-State dispute, but this is no
reason to turn the issue into a raging controversy
that draws the peoples of the two States into con-
frontation. That Tamil-speaking people settled in
Karnataka for generations are made to feel insec-
ure, and business establishments run by entrepren-
eurs tracing their familial ties to Karnataka are tar-
geted in Tamil Nadu are indications of how the
water dispute goes beyond the interests of the peo-
ple and becomes mixed up with the emotive issue
of linguistic identity. Ideally, as stipulated by the
Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal, the technicalit-
ies of water-sharing should be left to the Cauvery
Management Board, which is to monitor the water
flows with the help of the Cauvery Regulation
Committee and the respective State authorities. If
Cauvery is not to be made a plaything in the hands
of chauvinists, the governments of the two States as
well as at the Centre need to send out a strong sig-
nal to the marauding mobsters that violence, in
whatever name, will be put down strongly by the
security forces. As laid down by the CWDT, the is-
sue of water-sharing should be left in the hands of
technical experts, and not politicians who are host-
age to the emotions of a parochial fringe.
drawn up by it suo motu or on a complaint.
Aimed principally at protecting the accused
who may come to know that he figures in an
FIR, but has no idea of the allegations which
formed its basis, this order is also a shot in the
arm for activists who want to protect citizens
from State harassment on flimsy grounds. In
this momentous order, Youth Bar Asso-
ciation of India v Union of India and others,
Justices Dipak Misra and C. Nagappan laid
down several guidelines which could help to
promote transparency and curb arbitrariness
in police work.
The apex court direction, incidentally, also
benefits victims of crime who have no means
of getting to know whether their complaint
had been brought on record or not. This is
welcome because of the Indian polices dubi-
ous record of suppressing crime. Viewed in
this perspective, the courts prescription
makes it difficult for station house officers to
ignore crime, a common practice adopted
with a view to helping an offender or to dress
police statistics up so that they conceal even
a slight rise in crime.
A logical next step
Right through its history, the Supreme
Court of India has distinguished itself by
coming out with directions which seek to
buttress the fundamental rights of citizens
guaranteed by the Constitution. We need to
recall how the court has been tirelessly active
in ensuring that police arrests of individuals
are kept to the minimum, and when taken in
custody, the accused/suspects are accorded
civilised treatment, including access to legal
assistance. The decision prescribing expedi-
tious uploading of FIRs on to the Internet is
therefore in sync with the courts consistent
stand that human rights are sacrosanct and
cannot be trampled upon out of malice or at
the instigation of the political executive (read
CARTOONSCAPE
ILLUSTRATION: SURENDRA
We would have been happier
had the Supreme Courts order
also addressed certain
fundamental issues afflicting
police administration
ministers). We consider this latest fiat as ap-
propriate against continued reports from
across the country of police misconduct for
their own benefit or to satisfy the ruling
party.
In writing its order, the court
demonstrated an intense application of mind
in respect of two issues: the need to protect
national security, as well as the privacy of a
citizen; and the technical feasibility of imple-
menting its directive that FIRs should be up-
loaded within 48 hours of their registration.
According to the order, there will be exemp-
tion from the directive when the alleged of-
fence is sensitive, such as sexual violence or
one in which there is an angle of national se-
curity, insurgency or terrorism. We endorse
this exception, because we are living in times
when both privacy and terror issues matter
greatly.
The uploading of FIRs will also not be me-
chanical and as a simple rule of thumb. The
or a commissioner of police.
The court also provided for the possible
objections of a technical nature that could be
raised by vested interests both policemen
and the political network who did not
want FIRs to be publicised through the Inter-
net.
Issue of logistics
One principal negative response to the or-
der points to existing modest police re-
sources, especially in the rural areas, that
could hinder easy implementation of the
court directive. Many police stations, espe-
cially those in remote areas, may have a com-
puter, but may not necessarily be connected
to the Web. Taking cognisance of this logist-
ical problem, the court permits the latitude of
extending the deadline for uploading FIRs
from 24 to 48 hours, or even to 72 hours, un-
der special circumstances arising from the
remote location of a police station. Such re-
laxation of the time limit for uploading would
be related only to connectivity difficulties,
and nothing else.
We suggest that where there is a connectiv-
ity issue, the solution would be to hand
deliver expeditiously a hard copy of the FIR
to the district police headquarters where
connectivity may not be a problem
through a special messenger. An alternative
would be for the State Crime Branch CID at
police headquarters to act as the repository
or nodal agency to undertake the task of up-
loading of FIRs. Most States are small and
transmission of FIRs even to the CID by spe-
cial police messengers is practical. We estim-
ate that each State may, at the maximum, have
about 100 FIRs each day to upload to the Net.
In our view, the Supreme Court order is
therefore eminently practical.
If you ignore these minor logistical diffi-
culties in the way of its quick implementa-
lapses into corruption and high-handedness
at the drop of a hat, especially in rural India.
A telling cynicism
Talking to officers across regions, we how-
ever found a measure of cynicism on the
practicalities of implementing the apex
courts order. We are not surprised at this, be-
cause every time courts have sought to curb
police arbitrariness by clamping restrictions
on the day-to-day routine, there has been
furtive resentment. This is why we strongly
believe that we should not permit any
sabotage of the latest court order. We should
work towards building public opinion which
would demand implementation of the direct-
ive both in letter and in spirit. For genuine ad-
herence to what the court has laid down here,
and in several other instances, we need the
stakeholders the executive, policemen and
the lay public to not flinch from their basic
duty of wholeheartedly welcoming what the
court has said and spreading the message as
widely as possible. Without this happening,
we do not see any prospect of the directive
being followed strictly.
We have not forgotten about what
happened to the blueprint for police reform
that the Supreme Court drew up in Septem-
ber 2006 on the PIL filed by former Uttar Pra-
desh Director General of Police Prakash
Singh. Our hearts ache while recalling the
tendentious dilution of all that the court pre-
scribed on that occasion in the hope that we
would succeed in establishing an au-
tonomous and professional police force.
We would have been happier had the Su-
preme Courts latest order on FIRs incident-
ally by way of obiter dictum addressed
certain fundamental issues afflicting police
administration. The first is one of police re-
sources at the grass-root level being grossly
inadequate. It is not uncommon for many po-
lice stations in the country to each have an ef-
fective complement of what is less than 10
staff at any point of time. This is ridiculously
small. The scene is particularly deplorable in
rural stations. This is explained by the fact of
many States having a huge number of vacan-
cies, a state of affairs that can be solved
mainly through systematic annual
recruitment. It is scandalous that many
States are woefully negligent in this respect.
A judicial direction that makes annual
recruitment mandatory would go a long way
in alleviating this ill.
A more painful fact is the extent of graft
that prevails at police stations in many re-
gions of the country. There are very few po-
lice stations where a citizen can get his com-
plaint registered without greasing the palm
of the station house officer. This goes un-
checked because of the graft at supervisory

The ceasefire levels. Choice of officers to head districts po-

lice forces is often on the basis of their politi-

in Syria
cal leaning and pliability, rather than on their
professional competence. As long as this
situation remains unchanged, prescriptions
such as transparency in FIR-related matters

T
he agreement reached between Russia
and the United States in Geneva on a
ceasefire in Syria is perhaps the best op-
portunity for a solution to the five-and-a-
half-year old civil war. Under it, Russia will prevent
the regime of President Bashar al-Assad from
bombing rebel-held areas, while the U.S. will join
hands with Russia in the fight against jihadist
groups, including the Islamic State. The broad
framework of the deal is the Putin Plan, made pub-
lic a year ago while announcing Russias interven-
tion in Syria. Vladimir Putin wanted Syrian state-
hood to be restored and the major powers to come
together in the fight against the jihadists. When
Russia made the proposal at the UN General As-
sembly, not many had expected that Moscow and
Washington would come together on Syria. The
U.S.s initial response to the Russian intervention
was sceptical, with reservations about Russia at-
tacking non-IS rebel groups. There were fears
about the conflict escalating into a full-blown war.
Instead, the Putin Plan seems to have worked, albeit
with a heavy human cost. The intervention has
bolstered the Syrian regime, changing the balance
of the conflict. Mr. Assads regime was on the verge
of collapse a year ago; it is now stable at least in its
strongholds. The rebels influence has shrunk,
though they appear to be unbeatable in many of the
small towns they control. This stalemate and the
fear of more bloodshed may have prompted both
the U.S. and Russia to play down their differences.
This time, the prospects for peace are brighter
given the investment the two military powers have
made. Both the rebels and the regime have wel-
comed the deal. There are positive changes at the
regional level as well. Turkey, a staunch supporter
of the rebels, had recently said Mr. Assad could play
a transitional role in Syria. Two big challenges re-
main. First, can Russia halt Mr. Assads fighter jets?
Though Moscow wields strong influence over
Damascus, it has in the past expressed uneasiness
over the stubbornness of the regime. The regime is
now making gains in the battlefield. Even if Mr. As-
sad agrees to suspend the bombing, it is not clear if
he will be prepared to make any meaningful com-
promises in the peace talks. Second, the rebels
fighting the regime are not a unified force. Russia
wants Fateh al-Sham, a former affiliate of al-Qaeda,
to be singled out and attacked. The U.S. has agreed
to this suggestion in principle, but its practicality is
uncertain. However, the odds should not overshad-
ow the significance of the agreement. If the cease-
fire is clearly established, that itself would be quite
an achievement given the horrors of the war.
CM
YK
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Letters emailed to letters@thehindu.co.in must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.
Cauvery protests
The dispute between Karnataka and
Tamil Nadu over sharing of Cauvery
water points to this: it is not about a
shortage of water or the
development of water sources but
about the management of the water
in a sustainable manner. The
festering issue can be solved if there
is an emphasis on improved
technologies for water conveyance,
delivery and allocation. In the end,
the two States have to live with each
other and must forget the bitterness
(Karnataka erupts over SC order
on Cauvery, Sept. 13).
A.J. Rangarajan,
Chennai
The mindless torching of buses and
the inciting of youngsters to resort
to stone throwing and arson are
indicative of a planned and
orchestrated affair (TN goes on
high alert, SETC stops plying to
Karnataka, Arson, violence shut
down Bengaluru-Mysuru highway
and U.S. issues advisory, all Sept.
13). The violence was allowed to
escalate to a level before the police
were allowed to act, which is a clear
indication of political backing and
instigation. The ruling Congress
party and the Opposition have to
share the blame. All it would have
taken was for political leaders to
jointly appeal for peace but it
never happened.
Sunil Iyengar,
Bengaluru
With the southwest monsoon
turning erratic each passing year,
especially in the Malnad belt which
is the prime catchment area for the
Cauvery, planners need to have a
vision for water management. How
long can we keep blaming climate
change and dwindling forest cover?
Leaders across the political
spectrum from Karnataka and Tamil
Nadu need to meet and get inputs
from an impartial technical
committee and even foreign experts.
Israel has mastered the art of
prudent water management. Why
not seek its help?
H.N. Ramakrishna,
Bengaluru
September 12 is a black day in the
history of Karnataka. We have read
about anarchy in books, but we
witnessed one in practice. It was a
field day for lumpen elements to
indulge in arson. It is shocking that
political leaders have described the
Supreme Courts order as
unfortunate. The violence had
very little to do with the water
dispute. The failure on the part of
the police department was
exceptional and phenomenal. The
fact that even the U.S. issued an
advisory shows that Bengalurus
image has been tarnished.
K.R. Jayaprakash Rao,
Mysuru
. 125ft. The straightjacketed equation
Fringe elements should vent their
anger against their respective
governments and State political
parties for their continuous failure
in finding a more dynamic solution.
The issue also highlights the
inability of the governments
concerned to maintain harmony or
take stern action against vandalism.
Since the hydrological cycle and
precipitation are becoming difficult
to forecast, the Centre and
vulnerable States must invest in
global technologies that might help
in averting a water crisis.
Gowtham G.,
Mettupalayam, Tamil Nadu
The Ministry of Agriculture must
announce a 100 per cent crop
insurance scheme to all farmers of
Karnataka and Tamil Nadu in case
they are unable to raise a successful
crop because of a lack of Cauvery
water. India is prosperous enough to
make this assurance. There must
also be a scheme to make foodgrains
available.
K.S. Venkateswaran,
Chennai
It is high time the Central and State
governments enact laws to rein in
the media which had a field day
beaming provocative visuals and
advancing their own provocative
ideas and opinions. It is a pity that
the freedom of speech is
misunderstood and misused in
order to boost vested interests.
V.S. Ganeshan,
Bengaluru
The Cauvery Water Tribunal should
evolve a suitable mechanism for the water resource management in the
sharing of water based on different
levels at the Krishnaragasagar dam
at buffer water level, 50 feet, 100 Development Bank.
ft, 120 ft and and the full height of
and the formula of sharing water at
full-flow (based on which 192 tmc is
awarded to Tamil Nadu annually) is
not working.
A.V. Narayanan,
Tiruchi
The intensity of the violence in
Karnataka especially stems from
fears of a water crisis in summer.
These are not misplaced.
Environmental factors are to blame.
The two States need to think of
large-scale water management, and,
if necessary, build new and larger
reservoirs across the State just for
drinking water.
Thomson Rappai,
Ollur, Kerala
may end up being purely cosmetic.
R.K. Raghavan is a former CBI Director. D. Sivanandhan is a
former Commissioner of Police, Mumbai and a former DGP
Maharashtra.
Political parties of both States have
chosen to ignore best water-saving
management practices. In the
Cauvery command areas,
unauthorised irrigation for high
water consumptive crop like paddy
has got out of hand. Command area
development authorities, the Indian
Council of Agricultural Research
supported institutions and
agricultural universities have also
failed to educate farmers
downstream to use research outputs
relating to best water management
practices. Various experimental
stations and projects sites have
demonstrated the success of the
system of rice intensification
method without the use of
pesticides. It can lead to water
savings of up to 60 per cent. Both
States have competent water
management experts. The Centre
should think in terms of supporting
a national project on integrated
B. Prabha,
Cauvery basin with support from an
institution such as the Asian
N.R. Jagannath,
Bengaluru
Pinarayis vision
The article, There is a peoples
alternative, by Kerala Chief
Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, read
more like a Governors address in
the State Assembly highlighting the
achievements and ambitions of the
elected government. Kerala has not
had a stable government for a long
time with people voting for the UDF
or LDF alternately. Successive
governments have done nothing to
gain investor confidence and
promote the economy of the State.
Hartals and political murders have
become a way of life in Kerala.
While the social security and social
justice schemes are laudable, Mr.
Vijayan needs to strive hard to
achieve comprehensive
development.
C.R. Ananthanarayanan,
Bengaluru
It is clear that the Chief Minister is
confident even as he has observed
that though our finances are
limited, we are particular to not let
that become a hindrance in
achieving our objectives. It can be
seen in the disbursement of all
pensions in the stipulated time, as
proclaimed in the LDF manifesto.
His assurances on water transport
development are bound to hit
hurdles. His silence on action taken
against corrupt Ministers and
officials is disturbing as the electoral
verdict was primarily against
corruption and the misdeeds of the
UDF. This was missing from the
article.
Varkala, Kerala
Fading NAM?
For all his faults, Prime Minister
Jawaharlal Nehrus policy of non-
alignment prevented India from
being caught in the web of the Cold
War. NAM helped many countries
to gain a voice at international fora.
It may have suffered a setback but it
is by no means irrelevant (The
Margarita mirror, Sept.13). It can
still play an important role on
international fora to meet goals in
health care, sustainable
development, curbing global
warming and terrorism. India was
one of the main pillars on which
NAM stood and the Prime
Ministers absence will send out the
wrong signals.
Akshay Viswanathan,
Thiruvananthapuram
ND-ND
10 | 1ias.com EDITORIAL THE HINDU THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2016
NOIDA/DELHI

T H U R S D AY , S E P T E M B E R 1 5 , 2 0 1 6
Running in
Letting Nepal be
It should be in Indias interest to leave Nepal free to sort out its own challenges. New Delhi should consider
the need for economic growth in U.P. and Bihar when it sits down to strategise on Nepal
the intelligence operatives, the Bharatiya provinces to make them more plains-ori-
Janata Party/Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, ented and stretching east-west from end-to-
KANAK MANI DIXIT assorted godmen, and so on. end. Whereas this is purportedly at the be-
Indias Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) hest of Madhesbaadi politicians, it is not at
will hopefully deepen its own study of all clear that this will benefit Nepals Mad-
It is time for New Delhi to decide to what ex-
Nepal. An understanding of the geography,
demography, economy, the democratic urge
hesi people of plains origin and whether the
demographic make-up of the Terai-Madhes

the family tent it is in the interest of India to deepen its

intervention in the political affairs of Nepal.
There is much to do bilaterally on the envi-
of the citizenry, as well as the history of the
oldest and non-colonised nation-state of
South Asia makes Nepal (comparatively) a
plains will
reconfiguration.
allow the proposed

Since the Indian interlocutors are so

A
khilesh Yadavs tussle with his uncles
has been a consistent feature of his
tenure as Chief Minister of Uttar Pra-
desh. But the rapid developments of this
week could mark the deepest fissure in the ruling
Samajwadi Party. In the span of a few hours on
Tuesday, tensions that have simmered ever since
Mr. Yadav came to power in early 2012 rose to a cre-
scendo. Mr. Yadav shifted out the State Chief
Secretary, Deepak Singhal, who had been in the
post for only two months, a man seen to be close to
Shivpal Singh Yadav, brother of his father and SP
chief, Mulayam Singh Yadav. In no time, the Chief
Minister was replaced by Mr. Shivpal Yadav as the
partys U.P. unit president. Thereafter, Mr. Akhilesh
Yadav stripped his uncle of most of the portfolios
he held in the Cabinet. There the matter now rests,
with party confabulations with Mr. Mulayam Singh
shifting to Delhi, and the young scion issuing state-
ments asserting his writ as Chief Minister of U.P.
How this realigns the SPs lines of authority, and
eventually shapes its campaign for the Assembly
elections, depends on what gives in the family feud.
The Chief Minister and his uncles have made
moves and counter-offensives on a crowded chess-
board these past years, with Mr. Mulayam Singh
keeping the ultimate command in his own hands.
The Opposition, for its part, never loses the oppor-
tunity to highlight how the Chief Minister is under-
mined by his uncles, those related by blood and
those who exercise authority by virtue of their long
stint in the party the allegation is that in effect
the State has four-and-a-half chief ministers. The
result of this tussle is that at every point of discord,
it is made evident that the Chief Minister does not
hold enough sway over the party organisation in
turn, Mr. Akhilesh Yadav loses no opportunity to
emphasise that his calling card in politics is clean,
aspirational governance that is focussed on de-
velopment and law and order. In the run-up to the
State elections, he is seeking to foreground this im-
age, and pushing back on the discord with his
uncles. A day before the Chief Secretarys sacking,
he dismissed two Ministers caught in corruption
charges, evidently without securing his fathers
nod. Earlier, he forced the revocation of a Shivpal-
engineered merger of the Quami Ekta Dal into the
SP, on account of its criminal antecedents. Mr.
Akhilesh Yadav could, in fact, pull this discord to
the partys electoral advantage. He does not carry
the burden of incumbency issues, primarily the
politics of patronage and rent-seeking. But for this
to happen he may have to force his father to show
his hand more unambiguously and recover some
control of the SPs State unit.
ronmental, cultural, economic fronts, and
the dangers of keeping Nepal constantly in-
secure and on the boil open up the possibil-
ity of societal instability leaching to adjacent
Indian States.
One doubts whether New Delhi think
tanks have considered the economic impact
political stability in Nepal would have on the
dispossessed northern regions of Bihar and
Uttar Pradesh. The open border creates such
an interconnected sociocultural web that a
stable and prosperous Nepal will be a
catalyst for this region. The weakness of
Nepal Studies in Indian academia is
astounding, and can only be the result of
overwhelming preoccupation with geopoli-
tics, with little interest in the welfare of In-
dias own peripheral populations.
The attention of South Block seems fo-
cused entirely on correcting Nepals new
Constitution through amendments, mainly
relating to the configuration of federal units.
Given the lack of active interest amongst In-
dian politicians, academia and civil society,
the field has been left open for diplomats and
intelligence operatives to determine the
course of action, the latter having enjoyed in-
creasing leeway in Kathmandu over the past
decade.
The level of interference claimed by the
writer is confirmed by authors and analysts
celebrated in New Delhi circles, but there
has been no pullback perhaps because of an
unspoken acknowledgement of Indias
right to intervene in the neighbourhood.
Micro-meddling
Few independent observers in Kath-
mandu (or New Delhi, for that matter) would
doubt that Indian interlocutors had a hand in
the cobbling together of the present coali-
tion government of the Maoists and Nepali
Congress, headed by the Maoist Pushpa
Kamal Dahal Prachanda. The government
of K.P. Oli had aroused displeasure in New
Delhi corridors for standing up to the
economic blockade and signing trade and
transit agreements with Beijing (themselves
made possible by the economic blockade).
Despite all this, the visit of Prime Minister
CARTOONSCAPE
ILLUSTRATION: SURENDRA
Prime Minister Dahal must be
perceived as a representative of
Nepals polity rather than a leader
in trouble with vulnerabilities to
be exploited
Dahal to India is important to get the rela-
tionship back on track after the train wreck
of the past year. His Cabinet is also well-
placed to hold out an olive branch to the irate
Madhesbaadi politicians, whose par-
ticipation is needed for a stable polity.
New Delhi must now internalise the les-
sons from its unfettered show of displeasure
regarding Nepals adoption of the
Constitution of 2015, by a Constituent As-
sembly elected through democratic, repre-
sentative elections. Meanwhile, the larger
Indian polity must pay heed to the fallout of
micro-meddling on Nepal.
There was a time when Nepals polity was
supported at the highest level in India be-
cause of the respect and clout of top-rung
political leaders who had fought for Indian
independence alongside Jawaharlal Nehru,
Rajendra Prasad et al. The last of these
statesmen was G.P. Koirala, after whose
passing in 2010 Nepals governance came un-
der the influence of little men willing to kow-
tow even to junior personnel at the Indian
Embassy in Kathmandu, or any passer-by
who claimed to speak for India.
Kathmandus politicos are the primary
culprits for this erosion of the bilateral rela-
tionship, and their inability to stand up to
pressure has been well-exposed. There is
also not a little confusion in Kathmandu as to
who speaks for India besides South Block
different kind of country within South Asia.
For now, MEA-Indias focus seems exclus-
ively geo-strategic, to do with controlling
Nepal and its natural resources and counten-
ancing China across the Himalayan range.
This exclusive preoccupation must be re-
viewed because of the transformed ground
realities where much has changed in terms
of aspirations and access to information on
all sides.
Geophysical sensitivity
The transforming economy, terrain and
geopolitics of the central Himalaya demand
an evolved doctrine of engagement with
Nepal, even for Indias own self-interest. A
new world is beckoning, far different from
when Indias doctrine on the Himalayan rim-
land was encoded in the early 1960s.
Environmental stresses have increased
right along the Himalayan chain over the
past half century, and human intervention is
drastic, as seen in the violence done to the
Teestas flow in Sikkim or the madness in the
construction of hill roads in Nepal. The en-
tire Himalaya and the plains of the Ganga
make up one ecosystem, requiring geophys-
ical even more than geopolitical sensitivity.
Certainly, it will not do for South Block to
act like an imperial directorate on Nepal,
foisting a uniform and unchanging vision of
Himalayan security. It is past time for New
Delhis commentariat to get over the per-
functory tags of who is pro-Indian and pro-
Chinese, a simplistic formulation which
hurts only oneself vis--vis the need for nu-
ance in international relations.
At a time when the railway has arrived on
the Tibetan plateau, there is no need to deny
Nepals need to ease its landlocked-ness by
extending highway connectivity northwards
especially when the Indian economy itself
stands to benefit.
Terai-Madhes fixation
But as Mr. Dahal arrives, the main focus of
the Indian authorities is disappointingly nar-
rowed down to amendments to the new
Constitution, mainly having to do with alter-
ing the demarcation of the announced seven
openly pushing the amendment agenda, al-
most as if to teach Kathmandu a lesson, let
them consider that the final formula must
perforce benefit the Terai-Madhes plains,
where there is both density of population
and concentration of poverty. The Madhesi
people, citizens suffering historical discrim-
ination at the hands of the Kathmandu state,
should not be penalised by geopolitics and
the all-too-evident weaknesses of the Nepali
national leadership.
Tourism-without-borders
There are myriad other pressing issues be-
yond constitutional amendment where the
Nepal-India relationship is presently
wedged. Vitally, there is the need to plan
cross-border linkages and projects related to
natural resources whether and what kind
of dams and reservoirs are to be built; evalu-
ating embankments along the main rivers for
the silt they trap; the environmental dangers
to both sides from excavation of the Chure
(Shivalik) hills to feed Indias need for rocks
and boulders; or the meaning of receding
glaciers (mainly the result of the South Asian
brown cloud) for the entire downstream
region.
Nepal and India need to discuss regulating
the open bilateral border without comprom-
ising its status as the most naturally evolved
frontier of the region. Kathmandu needs to
consider social security of the uncounted
but more than three million Nepali citizens
working in India, while New Delhi must ad-
dress the vulnerabilities of Indian citizens of
Nepali origin, as well as Indians working
north of the border. How will the introduc-
tion of biometric ID cards in India impact
the status of Nepali citizens working legally
under the umbrella of the 1950 Treaty of
Peace and Friendship, and can Nepals own
upcoming national ID card help in the man-
aging the movement of citizenry?
From public health to shared economic
growth, promoting tourism-without-bor-
ders to developing mutual academic depth,
Nepal and India must work as one. But the
future cannot be built by controlling Nepal
through planned build-up of a pliant politi-
cal class in Kathmandu.
There has to be a rebuilding of empathy
and trust between the two governments,
which must start by rolling back the hyper-
activism of the bureaucracy and rebuilding
of relationships between the politicians of
two sides. Despite his problematic past,
Prime Minister Dahal must be perceived as a
representative of Nepals polity rather than a
leader in trouble with vulnerabilities to be
exploited.
Nepal is hardly a paragon nation-state, and

Sapping Indias historical prejudices and inequities have

percolated down to the present. But one
daresay that Nepal should be allowed to

vitality make and learn from its own errors rather

than evolve as a client state that will forever
be a canker on the side of India. Nepal must

T
he death of several people in Delhi linked
to an outbreak of dengue, chikungunya
and malaria has once again exposed the
inadequacy of national public health pro-
grammes that aim to eliminate vector-borne dis-
eases. There was a sharp increase in the incidence
of chikungunya in the country in 2015 over the pre-
vious year, although official data do not attribute
any deaths to the infection. Dengue cases have also
steadily risen, from 75,808 in 2013 to 99,913 last year,
with the death toll rising from 193 to 220 during this
period. The footprint for malaria has grown, with
over 1.1 million cases last year, although the number
of people dying from the infection has shown a re-
cent decline, going by official statistics. It must, of
course, be borne in mind that there is some evid-
ence of under-reporting of malaria, leading to the
criticism that the full impact of the disease is not
captured by government data. Delhis residents are,
of course, not alone in suffering from the failures of
long-running vector control programmes, although
they are justified in feeling disgusted at the politic-
isation of the problem. The irony is that India, with
its focus on rapid economic growth and prosperity,
is nowhere near victory in the battle against prod-
uctivity-sapping infections spread by mosquitoes
and other insects, while a nimble neighbour like Sri
Lanka could declare itself malaria-free.
There are several aspects to the Sri Lankan expe-
rience that could help evaluate the efforts of Indias
States in their battle to control disease-spreading
vectors. Better results were achieved by the island
nation through integration of different approaches.
This includes focussing on mosquito control in ir-
rigation and agriculture, introducing new classes of
insecticides for residual spraying within houses,
and scaling up distribution of insecticide-treated
bed nets even in areas caught up in conflict. Mobile
centres for access to diagnostics and treatment also
helped halt disease transmission. For India to
achieve its goal of eliminating malaria by 2030, and
curb other vector-borne diseases, there has to be
sustained effort and political will. The dengue map
for 2015 shows that Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, West
Bengal and Gujarat were the worst-affected. On
chikungunya, Karnataka needs special help, as it
has a disproportionately higher incidence com-
pared to other States. Evidently, it will take active
surveillance and close collaboration with local gov-
ernments to eliminate the hotspots. Mobilising the
community to participate in sanitation campaigns
holds the key, although families that live in de-
prived neighbourhoods will need generous
municipal assistance, improved civic facilities and
access to free health care.
CM
YK
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Letters emailed to letters@thehindu.co.in must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.
Trimming pendency
Law Commission of India Chairman
and former Supreme Court judge
Justice Balbir Singh Chauhan is right
in saying that the judicial workload
has increased because of greater
awareness among the public and the
role of the RTI (Approved strength
of judges enough to end backlog:
Law panel head, Sept.14). Even the
Prime Minister has acknowledged
the relevance of technology and
transparency in tackling corruption.
Apart from having working judges,
rather than physical bench strength,
government services must be
gradually made online.
Gudipati Anirudh,
Secunderabad
We certainly dont need strength in
numbers. Instead, we need to
upgrade existing systems and revisit
archaic laws. Why do courts enjoy
vacations like academic institutions
when we are groaning under the
weight of a backlog of cases?
Adjournments should be restricted
to the bare minimum as there are
numerous instances where justice
has been awarded posthumously.
Special and family courts should act
fast. There is also an urgent need to
stop burdening the Supreme Court
with routine appeals. We need more
counsellors/arbitrators to dissuade
people from resorting to litigation
and try and arrive at a compromise.
Prem K. Menon,
Mumbai
In S.P. Gupta vs Union of India,
1981, the Supreme Court declared
that the Constitution is a charter of a
social revolution. If ever a social
revolution is to occur, the judiciary
has to be at its vanguard.
Considering that there are on
average 2,500 cases allotted to a
single judge per year, the argument
that judges are not working is
misplaced.
The real problem lies in tackling the
backlog of cases. The approved
strength will not be sufficient in
taking care of this load.
Jagmal Singh Achara,
Mandawa, Rajasthan
Calm after crackdown
Given the scale of the violence and
arson in Karnataka, the needle of
suspicion points to the involvement
of politicians in the State
(Bengaluru quiet after crackdown,
Sept.14).
However, it is also to be fairly
conceded that the imbalance in the
sharing of Cauvery water, which is
detrimental to the interests of
Karnataka, is at the root of the
conflict. Both Tamil Nadu and
Karnataka need to be pragmatic and
work out a practical and equitable
formula instead of sticking to an
archaic accord which does not factor
in climate change.
S. Srinivasan,
Chennai
I belong to Kodagu, or Coorg, the
source of the Cauvery. To us the
river is a mother, a life-giver and a
protector. I pose this question to
those who are aggressively
propagating the slogan Cauvery
Nammadu: Where were you when
locals in Kodagu protested against
the large-scale felling of trees in the
region in 2013? The Hindu, Work
on power line begins in Kodagu
amid peoples concerns, Nov.12,
2013).
Some might say that this is the price
one pays for development. But the
irreparable damage caused to green
cover and disturbance to wildlife
has, not surprisingly, led to news of
drought in Kodagu.
It is shocking that in just two years,
an area that in its history had never
heard of a drought, is now staring at
a harsh year ahead. Acute water
shortage in this catchment area is
only going to get worse because of
the systematic stripping of the
Western Ghats. Burning buses and
indulging in arson are never going to
solve the real issue. The media
should highlight these issues in such
a way that the so-called owners of
the Cauvery know that you reap
what you sow.
Renuka Devayya,
Bengaluru
In the name of the Cauvery, the
violence unleashed in Karnataka
should make us bow our heads in
shame. The festering issue around
an intermittent river such as the
Cauvery shows that the Centre
move on, starting with local government
elections in the spring (they have not
happened for 18 years), which will also indic-
ate the start of the Constitutions actual
implementation.
It should be in Indias interest to leave
Nepal free to sort out its own challenges. It
would also help if New Delhi would consider
the need for economic growth in Uttar Pra-
desh and Bihar when it sits down to
strategise on Nepal.
Kanak Mani Dixit, a writer and journalist based in
Kathmandu, is founding editor of the magazine Himal
Southasian.
should think in terms of the go unchecked, leading to
nationalisation of major rivers and undesirable and dangerous
dams. With climate change affecting ramifications. This is particularly
the monsoon, the government needs true after its failure to avoid a face-
to think ahead and push States to off between Punjab and Haryana
have separate projects for drinking over the construction of the Sutlej-
and agricultural purposes. Yamuna link canal.
Maheshkumar T., The Cauvery Tribunals 2007 award
Mulanur, Tamil Nadu should be revisited to recalibrate the
share of each riparian State based on
In its 1931 judgment on the Delaware a rainfall-linked formula.
river dispute between the State of Shreyans Jain,
New Jersey and the State of New New Delhi
York, the Supreme Court of the
United States observed: [A] river is
more than an amenity, it is a Depiction of Onam
treasure. It offers a necessity of life The national party, the BJP, appears
that must be rationed among those to be at it again (Shah triggers row
who have power over it. This was on Onam eve with Vamana tweet,
precisely the essence of the Supreme Sept.14). Kerala is one State where
Court of Indias direction to the people of all communities and
Karnataka government to release religious beliefs live in complete
15,000 cusecs of water per day to harmony.
Tamil Nadu till September 20. Onam is a secular festival with even
However, the arson and rioting that churches in the State celebrating it
followed has brought to light the with fervour and gaiety. It is a known
short-sightedness of policymakers in fact that in spite of a sizeable
bringing the adjudication and presence of the RSS in Kerala, the
arbitration efforts to fruition. BJP has been unable to convert this
Instead, it has reiterated the need for into votes. The country has
a permanent and dynamic riparian witnessed unruly incidents and
dispute resolution mechanism in the disturbances caused by the
country (Editorial Sharing machinations of blinkered leaders.
without caring, Sept.14). While the One hopes that responsible citizens
Union government should be stand up against such mischievous
applauded for making efforts to sort attempts to destabilise a peaceful
out the problem between principal State especially as Kerala has always
players through the institutional been a role model of communal
mechanism of the Cauvery River harmony and peaceful coexistence.
Authority, it cannot escape the Varghese George,
accusation of allowing the dispute to Secunderabad
ND-ND
10 | 1ias.com EDITORIAL THE HINDU FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 2016
NOIDA/DELHI

A party in a hurry
If it fails to learn from the Punjab and Delhi experience, the Aam Aadmi Party will tend to increasingly
resemble other parties it is prone to attack and abuse
resolve conflict between political interests power.
F R I D AY , S E P T E M B E R 1 6 , 2 0 1 6 represented in the Congress ensured that no Certainly corruption is a critical issue that
NEERA CHANDHOKE one interest gained or lost too much. Be- stalks high economics and politics as well as
cause the AAP has not established such pro- everyday life in India. The issue, however,

The message from Political scientists write with some regret of

cedures, we witness the ignominious spec-
tacle of leaders exiting the party in a huff and
blasting the dictatorial tendencies of Mr.
hardly forms the stuff of which an inspired
and visionary party manifesto is authored
and drafted. Destruction of corruption

Shahabuddin how a political movement that had tapped

If there is one person who embodies the contradic-
tions in the alliance between the Janata Dal
(United) and the Rashtriya Janata Dal, it is the
criminal-turned-politician Mohammad Shahabud-
din. A former Member of Parliament of the RJD
who is now out on bail after spending 11 years in jail,
he symbolised everything that was wrong with the
Lalu Prasad raj in Bihar. Indeed, when Nitish Ku-
mar first took over as Chief Minister in 2005, he
seemed intent on making an example of the gang-
ster who defied law-enforcing authorities and en-
sured his writ ran in his constituency Siwan. With
Shahabuddin roaming free in Bihar on being gran-
ted bail by the Patna High Court, Mr. Kumar will
necessarily have to ignore his veiled threats and
snide remarks. When Mr. Kumar got the govern-
ment to pursue the cases against the gangster, he
was fighting the RJD; now, however, he is in alliance
with that party. Although the government is likely
to oppose the bail order in the Supreme Court,
there is little doubt that the political situation in Bi-
har has changed since the time Shahabuddin went
to jail. Improving the law and order situation
freeing Bihar from jungle raj was one of Mr. Ku-
mars campaign planks in 2005, when in the com-
pany of the Bharatiya Janata Party, he ousted the
RJD from power. Now, as the head of a JD(U)-RJD
government, he must speak a different language. So
far, in Bihar, with his clean, no-nonsense image he
has bested Mr. Prasad in two elections and a Naren-
dra Modi-led BJP in a third. To not take on
Shahabuddin for fear of offending his alliance part-
ner is therefore not an option for Mr. Kumar.
If the Nitish Kumar government were to
continue to put pressure on Shahabuddin by pursu-
ing the cases against him to their logical end, it
would be to shake the JD(U)-RJD alliance from its
comfort zone. Shahabuddin seems acutely con-
scious that he needs to drive a wedge between the
RJD and the JD(U) for the sake of his own political
survival. His remark that Mr. Kumar was a Chief
Minister of circumstances and that the RJD would
come to power on its own in the next election is a
reflection of this. Shahabuddin found endorsement
for this view from another prominent RJD leader,
Raghuvansh Prasad, and it was left to Lalu Prasad to
strike a semblance of a balance. Clearly, the short-
term interests of the RJD are tied up with the in-
terests of Mr. Kumar, but equally, the long-term in-
terests of the party depend on Mr. Prasad striking
an independent line. No one could have driven
home this truth the way Shahabuddin did.
the consciousness of lakhs of Indians
through sustained and patient mobilisation,
dissemination of ideology, and shared un-
derstanding of what is wrong with our soci-
ety and what can be done about it atrophied
and folded up when it began to rule. The em-
pirical referent is, of course, the Indian Na-
tional Congress. In the 1970s, the once char-
ismatic and sage leadership of the Congress
reduced itself into a bunch of courtiers pay-
ing ritualised homage to the leader. In the
second decade of the 21st century, India wit-
nessed a contrary phenomenon. A civil soci-
ety movement against corruption mutated
into a political party, and in two consecutive
years formed a government in Delhi. The
victory of the party showed a mirror to es-
tablished political parties that increasingly
rely on the supposed charisma of one man
or woman to win elections.
Meteoric rise and meltdown
The Aam Aadmi Partys (AAP) strategies
of connecting with citizens, particularly in
the slums of Delhi, put into practice the wis-
dom of democratic theory: that the task of a
party is to arouse political awareness by
means other than the dishonourable politics
of identity, evoke critical evaluations of
power and its misuse, and enable the articu-
lation of everyday needs and aspirations.
This sagacity was confirmed the moment
the AAP won power in the 2013 and 2014 As-
sembly elections.
Even within the limited power that Delhi,
not quite a Union Territory but not wholly a
State, has been granted, the hope was that
the AAP, backed by a massive majority,
would perform. The party, however, failed to
shrug off the techniques that had brought it
fame in its civil society avatar, the politics of
accusation, naming and shaming, and
blame, and become a party that concen-
trates on democratic governance. Arvind
Kejriwals government has not been allowed
CARTOONSCAPE
To provide solutions to perennial
problems, the AAP has to learn to
combine the politics of political
mobilisation with political vision
and inner-party organisation
to perform, Ministers have been harassed by
the police, the Lieutenant Governor has per-
formed a role normally reserved for a Vice-
roy, and the Opposition, reduced to a
pathetic rump in the 2014 elections, has
sponsored a number of sting operations and
complaints against Ministers.
But all is not well in the quintessential
anti-establishment party. For one, the AAP
has failed to prioritise a clearly enunciated
and well-thought-out belief system that all
members can subscribe to, and that distin-
guishes the party from others. Two, it has
developed a leadership cult, and such cults
hardly tolerate dissent. Three, this has oc-
curred because the party has failed to estab-
lish mechanisms for reconciling difference
of opinion among members.
The AAP should learn from history, for
example from the Congress system in the
1950s and early 1960s. Intricate networks to
Kejriwal.
Delhi rerun in Punjab?
The same political spectacle is now being
re-enacted in Punjab in the run-up to the
2017 State elections. Earlier this year, the
AAP effectively challenged the monopoly
on political power exercised by the Shiro-
mani Akali Dal-Bharatiya Janata Party
(SAD-BJP) alliance on the one hand, and the
Congress on the other. Mr. Kejriwal ap-
peared on to the political horizons of Punjab
as a swashbuckling Roman gladiator, and
metaphorically girded his loins to cure the
twin malaise of misgovernance and dep-
rivation in the State. Reeling under two
terms of the SAD-BJP alliance, the people of
Punjab breathed, or so initial surveys held, a
sigh of relief. At last someone who does not
carry the historical burdens of Punjab on his
shoulders has come to rescue people from
non-performing Punjabi politicians.
Hundreds of volunteers flocked to the
party and enabled the leaders to establish
contact with the debt-ridden peasantry, and
hold dialogues with vulnerable sections to
identify the components of the Punjab
crisis: serious agrarian distress that has led
to farmer suicides, the drug menace, the
ominous influence of the liquor and the
sand mafias, the lack of access to health and
education, acute unemployment, and above
all, the completely amoral corruption of
those who have ruled and continue to rule
Punjab.
The contact programme of the AAP
should have made it aware of the scale of the
calamities that have hit Punjab since the
1980s. But it is precisely here that the party
falters and shows neither initiative nor ima-
gination. Unveiling the AAPs Farmers and
Farm Labourers Manifesto on September 11
at Baghapurana village near Moga, Mr.
Kejriwal upped his allegations against
Ministers belonging to SAD and Congress
leaders and promised them jail if voted into
through administrative means should be an
essential precondition for democracy. In In-
dia, the ignoble phenomenon has become a
surrogate for democracy; an alibi for author-
itarian proclivities. In the process, politics
has been reduced to management. And a po-
litically imaginative and innovative vision of
how complex problems can be resolved has
been diminished to populism.
Populist politics
It is precisely in these spheres that the
AAP has been unable to transcend its ori-
gins as an anti-corruption movement. Mr.
Kejriwal heaps abuse on politicians deemed
to be corrupt and threatens them with im-
prisonment. What are his solutions to the
other problems of the State? Re-enacting the
well-worn script of political agendas in Pun-
jab, he promised the status of a holy city to
Amritsar and Anandpur Sahib, easing of
debts, waiver of bank loans to poor farmers,
labourers, Scheduled Castes and Backward
Castes, a halt on action by banks against de-
faulters till the end of 2018, compensation
for crop loss, raising of minimum support
prices, free electricity, and money grants to
farmers on the occasion of the birth/mar-
riage of their daughters.
As far as populist politics goes, the pro-
gramme rivals the agenda of the two
Dravidian parties in Tamil Nadu. But unlike
Punjab, Tamil Nadu ranks high on all indic-
ators of social development: it was one of
the earliest States to universalise the Public
Distribution System, and has brought down
poverty over the years. Tamil Nadu spends
the highest proportion of the State domestic
product, about 10.2 per cent, on literacy. The
lesson is that doles are no substitute for so-
cial policy and debt is not a cause of the
crisis; it is merely an indicator of the mag-
nitude of the problem. The AAP seems to
have misread the situation in Punjab.
Above all, the party is imploding under
the weight of too many ticket-seekers. It has
taken care to hunt for and recruit candidates
of integrity. But the number of people
deserting the party outweighs hopeful can-
didates. Ironically, Punjab, for long a two-
party State, today witnesses a proliferation
of minor parties formed by deserters from
the AAP bandwagon. There is danger that
the latest political kid on the block will find
itself unable to resolve the same problems it
accuses other parties of being incapable of
solving. If it fails to learn from the Punjab
and the Delhi experience, the AAP will tend
to increasingly resemble other parties it is
prone to attack and abuse.
Michael Oakeshott, the conservative Eng-
lish political philosopher, spoke of the
politics of the politically inexperienced. A
new ruling class takes decades to learn how
to rule. But the crisis that has overcome

Apples tax Punjab is too pressing to wait for a

resolution. There was hope that the AAP
would step in and provide some lasting solu-

troubles tions to perennial problems. For this the

party has to learn to combine the politics of
political mobilisation with political vision

T
he hefty 13 billion euros in back taxes the
European Commission imposed on
Apple should have drawn Europe and the
U.S. closer in their common quest to
crack down on corporate tax avoidance. But the un-
precedented penalty to hit the American tech giant
has triggered angry outbursts at home and could
well put paid to hopes for transatlantic coopera-
tion, especially on the trade and investment part-
nership agreement, in the immediate future. The
latest ruling by the European Union competition
commissioner may not be the last against U.S. mul-
tinationals in what is increasingly being viewed as
harmful to tax diplomacy. As with the Starbucks de-
cision in 2015 and the ongoing probe into McDon-
alds, both concerning two different countries, the
Commission alleges that Irelands ultra-low, single-
digit tax arrangements with Apple were in vio-
lation of EU state aid rules. Notably, the Commis-
sion has not taken issue with Dublins 12.5 per cent
rate of corporate taxation. Curiously, the possibility
of clawing back billions of euros, estimated to be
worth the countrys health-care budget for a year, is
not an attractive prospect for Dublin, home to hun-
dreds of multinationals thriving on its decades-old
foreign direct investment policies that include low
corporate taxation. Instead, Ireland, which risks
losing jobs, has resolved to appeal the decision
along with Apple, whose Irish subsidiaries account
for 90 per cent of the companys overall profits.
On the other hand, there is no confusion on the
other side of the Atlantic on what the move by Brus-
sels implies. U.S. politicians are piqued that a big
chunk of the money that firms such as Apple
may eventually have to pay European governments
could instead have filled domestic coffers, but
for a domestic stumbling block. This is the regu-
latory loophole that companies exploit to defer, in-
definitely, levies on profits from their overseas sub-
sidiaries until they are repatriated. As matters
stand, the 35 per cent tax rate in the U.S., compared
to Irelands 12.5 per cent, is an incentive for Amer-
ican firms to retain the advantage of the deferral
clause. Meanwhile, a 2014 regulation to curb so-
called corporate inversion, a manoeuvre whereby
American firms relocate their headquarters to be-
nign countries to trim domestic tax bills, is said to
have had limited effect in the absence of legislation.
Global efforts backed by more than 80 countries to
combat cross-border tax avoidance, known as Base
Erosion and Profit Shifting, are still at an early
stage. EU action targeting individual corporations
could well be seen, at this juncture, as an irritant in
that larger endeavour.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Letters emailed to letters@thehindu.co.in must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.
A gold lining
This refers to the articles,
Devendras javelin strikes gold at
Rio and Competing for an equal
world (Sept. 15). Sports lovers
across the country were quite
miserable after the Rio Summer
Olympics where Indias largest-ever
contingent of 118 returned with just
two medals. But the Paralympic
athletes from India have proved to
be a silver lining. The fact that they
have already clinched two gold
medals, a silver and a bronze is a
fantastic achievement. Athletes like
Mariyappan Thangavelu and
Devendra Jhajharia might not be
household names yet, but the glory
they have brought to the nation is
admirable.
Differently abled athletes and
able-bodied athletes all have to go
through the same grind and achieve
results only after undergoing the
rigours of training, but it is the
former on whom such tough
training schedules would take a
heavy toll. It is time that we
dissolved all distinctions between
the two categories and ensured that
both are given equal opportunities
to excel.
C.V. Aravind,
Bengaluru
It is a great achievement that four of
the 1500m runners in the
Paralymics were faster than Rio
Olympic gold medallist Matthew
Centrowitz. This feat has blurred
the distinction between
Paralympics and the Summer
Olympics. It is even more
remarkable that the person who
stood first, Abdellatif Baka, is
visually impaired. His achievement
along with the achievements of the
Indian athletes stand testimony to
the power of the human will and
body. With proper talent spotting
and guidance, we can produce more
such people.
Saishankar Swaminathan,
Chennai
Paralympic athletes might be
challenged physically but not in
spirit. The 19-member contingent
from India has already brought
quite a few laurels and this
highlights the fact that they dont let
what they dont have hinder their
success; in fact, they try to get
better with what they have.
Harshita Padala,
Hyderabad
Dynastic politics
Promoting family members in
politics seems to be Indias curse
(As brother & son continue
sparring, Mulayam steps in, Sept.
15). This tendency towards dynastic
politics allows many of the
inefficient and undesirable to rule.
The result is that there is no
accountability. The simmering
discontent between the son and
brother of Mulayam Singh Yadav is
bound to destabilise the politics of
the largest State as there is a
possibility of the cohorts and
loyalists aligning with their
respective leaders within the party.
This may ultimately lead to cleaving
the States politics, and everything
apart from good and reliable
governance will be guaranteed.
V. Lakshmanan,
Tirupur
Water-sharing dispute
The Cauvery issue, which should be
solved scientifically, has turned into
an emotional one (Stray violence
on Cauvery issue mars peace in
T.N., Sept. 15). Both Karnataka and
Tamil Nadu need to optimise their
water conservation. Tamil Nadu
must build more dams and
reservoirs as its storage capacity is
less, and also make better use of sea
water.
A Cauvery Management Board
should be formed as soon as
possible so that there is a constant
check on the allocation of water.
The two States also need a technical
committee to measure the
availability of water and decide the
allocation to each State accordingly.
Effective functioning of the Board
and the committee may help avoid
the recurring clashes.
Prasanth Sahoo,
Visakhapatnam
The Cauvery dispute has caused a
loss of around Rs.25,000 crore to
Karnataka. Bengalurus reputation
has taken a beating. It is an irony
that most of the people who
resorted to arson and stone-
throwing are not the ones impacted
by the water crisis. These people
are part of a violent fringe; they are
parochial. One wonders where the
actual farmers are both from the
Mandya and Thanjavur delta
regions and what they feel. Who
knows what we can achieve if the
political parties take a back seat and
allow the farmers from both sides to
enter into negotiations with
guidance from experts? Perhaps
they can find a solution more
effectively.
Also, the concept of a bandh was
earlier exercised as a peaceful
weapon in a democracy. In our
country, it is seen as a reason to
indulge in destruction of public
property and as another
opportunity to get a holiday. For
and robust inner-party organisation. It can-
not be in a hurry.
Neera Chandhoke is a former Professor of Political
Science, Delhi University.
anything and everything, a bandh
comes in handy; no one bothers to
check if these bandhs even solve the
problem. Nowhere in the world
does a ruling government join a
bandh as has become a part of the
culture of our country.
Saishankar Swaminathan,
Chennai
Deaths due to disease
The death toll in Delhi and
elsewhere in India due to dengue,
chikungunya and malaria indicates
that very little has been done by the
National Vector Borne Disease
Control Programme (Sapping
Indias vitality, Sept. 15).
The blame game being played out
over this shows the inability of the
Delhi government and the Delhi
municipal corporation in
controlling these diseases.
Sri Lanka just made headlines for
eradicating malaria. India should
take lessons from its neighbour.
Gregory Fernandes,
Mumbai
Ensuring cleanliness inside homes
and surrounding areas (parks,
streets, mohallas, markets, and so
on) should be the priority of every
individual. We never seem
concerned about garbage piling up
in vacant plots and spaces. There
should also be a complete ban on
plastics. Water must not be allowed
to stagnate anywhere. Only
collective efforts can help India
achieve its goal of eliminating
malaria by 2030.
The government should make
optimum use of the Swachh Bharat
Cess to improve civic amenities. We
also need to resolve the issue of
Delhi statehood because civic
bodies are more interested in
playing the blame game than
executing their duties and
responsibilities.
Baninder Rahi,
New Delhi
Nepal-India ties
The article Letting Nepal be
(Sept. 15) appears to be downright
critical of Indias policy in Nepal.
No doubt, India should look beyond
Nepals Constitution crisis and
explore other avenues for bettering
relations. But the writer overlooks
the fact that Indias intervention in
Nepal is only well-intentioned and
driven by the genuine need for
stability in the country. Without
such intervention, the Madhesi
protest will continue to linger. Its
fallouts will be seen in Uttar
Pradesh and Bihar. India has
undoubtedly only played a positive
role in Nepals development.
Against this background, we cant
simply say that India is being a
bully.
Pallav Kumar,
New Delhi
Indias intervention in Nepal has led
to bitterness. No leader of a country,
however small the country is,
would like the idea of being led by a
bigger and mightier neighbour in
matters concerning its internal
politics. Indias intervention will
only aggravate the already existing
tension between the two countries.
History has shown that
intervention of this kind has always
backfired: that the U.S.s
interventions in West Asia have
been largely responsible for the
growth of the Islamic State cannot
be questioned.
N. Visveswaran,
Chennai

CM ND-ND
YK
10 | 1ias.com EDITORIAL THE HINDU SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 2016
NOIDA/DELHI

Summit over substance

Forthcoming summits will reflect Indias status as a key player both regionally and internationally. But unless
we move from an event-oriented to a process-driven diplomacy, this will only be a transient gain
having a formulation along these lines in the to follow through. The event itself then be-
S AT U R D AY , S E P T E M B E R 1 7 , 2 0 1 6 BRICS declaration, post the award, would comes the focus and not the process. It is no
SHYAM SARAN be of even greater value to China, which will surprise then that outcomes from such sum-
undoubtedly press for it with Russian sup- mitry are sparse.
port. Indian negotiators will probably resist. BRICS has one practical outcome to its
A break-up Barely six weeks after participating in the
Already after the Moscow meeting there
had been criticism that India was speaking
credit, and that is the New Development
Bank, and an Indian, K.V. Kamath, is its

foretold G-20 summit at Hangzhou, China, and the

East Asia and ASEAN-India summits at Vi-
entiane, Laos, Prime Minister Narendra
with two voices, one when in the company
of Americans and the other when meeting
with the Chinese and Russians. Further-
president. The Bank has been operation-
alised and India has reportedly received
loans totalling about $300 million. But this

S
ometimes the symptom, and not its under-
lying cause, seems like the real problem. If
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Me-
hbooba Mufti has anything to worry about,
it is not the resignation of her party MP, Tariq
Hameed Karra, but the issues he raised while an-
nouncing his decision to quit the Peoples Demo-
cratic Party and the Lok Sabha. Despite his call to
like-minded people to join him, Mr. Karra is un-
likely to get critical support within the party to
threaten Ms. Muftis standing in the PDP. However,
while drawing attention to the unrest in the Kash-
mir Valley, and the civilian killings, he has also
pointed to the irreconcilable differences between
the PDP and its alliance partner, the Bharatiya
Janata Party. Mr. Karra might have been politically
opportunistic in the timing of his resignation, but
there is no way the PDP can get away from having to
define, to its political constituency, the nature of its
relationship with the BJP. Ideologically, the PDP
has more in common with the National Conference
than with the BJP. But, after a fractured mandate in
the 2014 Assembly election, it chose to ally with the
BJP rather than explore the possibility of an al-
liance with the NC and the Congress. The NC was a
rival, with the support bases of the two parties over-
lapping in many areas of the Valley. The BJP, how-
ever, had its base in Jammu and did not compete
with the PDP. Short-term political calculations in-
evitably led to a PDP-BJP alliance.
To be sure, Ms. Mufti had grappled with the con-
tradictions in the relationship with the BJP before
she was sworn in as Chief Minister following the
death of Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, her father. But
the BJP, just as conscious as the PDP of the need to
protect its own vote bank, did not give an inch while
renegotiating the terms of engagement. Not sur-
prisingly, she failed to wrest any major concessions
from the BJP. Whatever the nature of Mr. Karras
political ambitions, he has framed the dilemma for
Ms. Mufti. Clearly, she cannot go into an election in
alliance with the BJP. Both the PDP and the NC, at
different points, have allied with the Congress. But
the BJP, with its Hindutva plank, is a non-starter as
an electoral ally for any party seeking to represent
the Muslims of Kashmir. The coalition government
of the PDP and the BJP is likely to fall before the As-
sembly election, but it is in the interest of both
parties to remain together in power for the longest
period possible. The break-up seems like an event
foretold; what is uncertain is the nature of the trig-
ger and the timing.
Modi will himself play host to the annual
BRICS summit in Goa on October 15-16,
2016. This will bring together the heads of
state of Brazil, Russia, India, China and
South Africa, and the summit theme put for-
ward by India is Building Responsive, In-
clusive and Collective Solutions, which is a
clever play on the letters constituting the
membership of the grouping. India has also
exercised its privilege as host to arrange a
regional outreach.
At the Fortaleza summit in 2014, Brazil
had invited several heads of state/govern-
ment from Latin America, while at Ufa last
year Russia had invited the leaders of the
Eurasian Economic Union and the Shanghai
Cooperation Organisation. One would have
expected India to have invited SAARC lead-
ers to the outreach but it has chosen to host
the leaders of the seven-member BIMSTEC
(Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral
Technical and Economic Cooperation) in-
stead. BIMSTEC is a potential Bay of Bengal
Economic Community comprising Bhutan,
Bangladesh, India, Nepal and Sri Lanka from
South Asia and Myanmar and Thailand
from ASEAN. The motivation is obvious, to
avoid having to invite Pakistan. BIMSTEC
will also hold its fourth summit in Goa.
Nepal was to have hosted it in 2015 but was
unable to do so mainly on account of the
earthquake and the subsequent political tur-
moil. Not much should be expected from the
BIMSTEC summit. It has been as somnolent
as SAARC has been since its inception.
The China-Russia dynamic
There will be greater focus on the BRICS
summit mainly because of the stature of
those who will be attending, including
President Vladimir Putin of Russia and
President Xi Jinping of China. Both have a
shared image of being tough leaders, of hav-
ing defied the U.S. and the West, and now
edging closer to a closer security partner-
ship, if not an alliance. The largest ever Sino-
Russian joint naval exercises are being held
in the South China Sea off the coast of
Guangdong province. And Russia is the only
CARTOONSCAPE
ILLUSTRATION: DEEPAK HARICHANDAN
has taken over after a politically polarising
At the BRICS meet, it will mostly
be a triangular game among Mr.
Modi, Mr. Putin and Mr. Xi. The
latter two seem to be leaning
closer to each other
country to have explicitly supported Chi-
nas stand on the South China Sea dispute, of
rejecting the international tribunal award
and proposing bilateral dialogue with
claimant countries, though it has not en-
dorsed its territorial claims.
There will be a Chinese effort to include
in the summit declaration a formulation
similar to what had been agreed upon in the
India-Russia-China trilateral Foreign
Ministers meeting in Moscow in April this
year and which appeared to support Chinas
stand: Russia, India and China are commit-
ted to maintaining a legal order for the seas
and oceans based on the principles of inter-
national law, as reflected in the UN Conven-
tion on the Law of Sea (UNCLOS). All re-
lated disputes should be addressed through
negotiations and agreements between the
parties concerned. In this regard the
Ministers called for full respect of all provi-
sions of UNCLOS, as well as the Declaration
on the Conduct of Parties in the South China
Sea (DOC) and the Guidelines for the imple-
mentation of the DOC.
This was before the tribunal award. Now
more, given Chinese opposition to Indias
membership of the Nuclear Suppliers
Group (NSG) and its blocking at the UN of
naming the Pakistani Jaish-e-Mohammed
chief Masood Azhar as a terrorist, it is likely
that India may dig in on this point. We shall
wait and see.
A triangular game
The other two leaders, Brazils Michel
Temer and South Africas Jacob Zuma, are
unlikely to come up with any notable initiat-
ives. Their countries are suffering from both
political and economic turmoil. Mr. Temer
impeachment of the former Brazilian
president, Dilma Rousseff. Mr. Zuma is fa-
cing serious charges of corruption, and
there has been unprecedented infighting in
his ruling African National Congress. So it
will be mostly a triangular game among Mr.
Modi, Mr. Putin and Mr. Xi, and the latter
two seem to be leaning closer to each other.
This will be a challenge for the Indian host.
For Mr. Modi, a strong and categorical
statement on counter-terrorism will be a
must even though neither China and now
nor Russia will countenance the naming of
Pakistan or even an oblique reference to it.
Brazil and South Africa do not have much
play in this game. So expect a strong formu-
lation but more general in scope.
BRICS has begun to suffer the affliction
characteristic of several other multi-coun-
try groupings, and that is the exponential ex-
pansion in its committees, working groups
and forums resulting in a extraordinarily
crowded calendar of meetings. There are
now over a hundred such bodies covering a
multiplicity of subjects ranging from trade,
investment and finance, to health, education
and security. India itself has been hosting
several tens of these meetings during the
year in its capacity as incoming chair, but it
is questionable whether such hyper activity
leads to substantive outcomes. The impres-
sion one has is of being stretched too thin
across a steadily expanding space with nei-
ther the human nor the financial resources
institution is overshadowed by the much
better funded Asian Infrastructure Invest-
ment Bank (AIIB) initiated and led by the
Chinese. The Contingent Reserve Arrange-
ment (CRA), another important BRICS ini-
tiative, remains on paper. There is a propos-
al for the setting up of a BRICS Credit Rating
Agency to challenge the monopoly of the
West, and this might be of value if adopted.
On the trade side any hint of a BRICS free
trade agreement comes up against the fears
both India and Russia have of being
swamped by Chinese imports. It will not
have traction even though none of the five
countries are part of any of the emerging
mega trade blocs like the Trans-Pacific Part-
nership (TPP) and the Transatlantic Trade
and Investment Partnership (TTIP). At a
time when both TPP and TTIP are stalled,
even a hint of a mega trade bloc of the key
emerging economies would be a major de-
velopment. It could even bring the World
Trade Organisation back in play!
The BIMSTEC summit could be an im-
portant occasion for reviving what, on the
face of it, appears to be a grouping with im-
mense potential. Its attraction is that China
is not there to crowd India out, and it fits in
very well with the logic of Indias Act East
policy. The parallel Mekong-Ganga Cooper-
ation (MGC), which is a platform for Indias
exclusive engagement with the countries of
Indo-China (Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and
Vietnam) and Myanmar, could also be a ma-
jor component of the Act East strategy. But
neither BIMSTEC nor the MGC have lived
up to their potential, and Indias engage-
ment with them has been mostly episodic
and ad hoc. There are sets of activities under
both but they do not add up to a well-
thought-out and long-term strategy of integ-
rating India more closely with its eastern
neighbourhood. The perception remains
that India continues to be at the margins of
this increasingly contested geopolitical
space, unable to play a significant role in
shaping its emerging economic and security
architecture.
Trailing on connectivity
There is little doubt that connectivity will
have to be the key theme at the BIMSTEC
summit but here, too, is an Indian dilemma.
The connectivity platform also opens the
door to China selling its ambitious One Belt,
One Road initiative among the members of
this grouping. Indias own resources are
limited, but more than that its record of
delivery on commitments continues to be
abysmal. There are occasions when one
finds the same projects reappearing as

Towards a fresh initiatives in serial joint statements

over recent years. Our capacities and insti-
tutions continue to lag behind our

national health policy ambitions.

There is no doubt that the forthcoming
summits will be major events and will re-

T
he Supreme Courts order directing the
Centre to ask States to end the oppressive
practice of sterilising women in large
camps is a timely reminder that the coun-
try must urgently adopt a rights-based health
policy. Many course correction measures have
been ordered by the court in the Devika Biswas
public interest case, and if they are implemented
vigorously, they can greatly improve womens wel-
fare. Civil society can effectively monitor ster-
ilisation activity, if, as the court has directed, the list
of approved doctors at the State and regional levels
and members of quality assurance committees, and
details of compensation claims are publicised on
the Internet. At the same time, compensation for
losses, including deaths, should be raised substan-
tially. The larger question is that of the fairness of
promoting permanent contraception, often for
young women, who are unable to exercise their re-
productive rights due to social and economic
factors. Last year, the Population Division of the
UN took note of the extraordinary levels of ster-
ilisations resorted to in India 65 per cent of all
contraceptive methods and pointed to a poten-
tial mismatch between what is being offered and
what women would like, which is to delay or space
out births. Unthinking resort to tubectomies for
population control also ignores the evidence from
some developed States in India that womens em-
powerment through education and employment
brings down fertility, without sacrificing choice.
Ensuring the safety of women who undergo a
tubectomy is of immediate concern, and the Centre
should give rule-based authority to the Supreme
Courts directions. A significant number of women
have died due to the procedure during the past
three years. Every death due to family planning sur-
gery is one too many, and the State concerned must
be called to account. In the case of Madhya Pradesh,
Maharashtra, Rajasthan and Kerala, which did not
take the question of mismanagement in ster-
ilisation camps raised in the petition seriously, the
court has acted decisively and called for monitor-
ing and issue of appropriate orders by the respec-
tive High Courts. Such action is wholly welcome,
because it reinforces the idea of the right to health
being inseparable from the right to life. This is the
message that the Centre must take from the judg-
ment, as it works on a national policy for health.
Empowerment of women through full opportunity
in education and employment, and access to all
contraception options, should be central to na-
tional policies. Offering financial incentives and
subjecting women to permanent contraceptives is
unacceptable.
CM
YK
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Letters emailed to letters@thehindu.co.in must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.
Antibiotic resistance
The findings of the Lancet study are
shocking (Superbugs kill babies
as antibiotic resistance rises, Sept.
16). That nearly 26 per cent of
babies with sepsis died despite
timely medical intervention, and
because of unresponsiveness to
treatment, is worrisome. If in 80 per
cent of infections caused by
Acinetobacter, and in more than 50
per cent of Klebsiella infections, the
first line of treatment fails, it clearly
indicates the rampant misuse of
antibiotics. There is an
indiscriminate use of antibiotics
and analgesic drugs in India.
Unaffordable and inaccessible
qualitative health-care services,
easy availability of drugs over the
counter without any prescription,
and inadequate dosage
recommendations by unqualified
medical practitioners are the main
reasons for the superbug menace.
It would be a major public health
disaster if the rampant use of drugs
were left unchecked.
D.V.G. Sankararao,
Vizianagaram, Andhra Pradesh
Alexander Fleming warned of the
dangers of antibiotic resistance in
1945 in his Nobel Prize acceptance
speech. Klebsiella, a common
bacterium, can cause a wide range
of conditions as the report on
superbugs highlights. It fits into a
wider group of bacteria with an apt
acronym ESKAPE owing to their
ability to avoid the effects of the
antibiotics used against them. The
acronym stands for the names of the
bacterial group members. These
infections are increasingly being
acquired in hospitals.
Antibiotic resistance can be
mitigated to some extent with good
hand hygiene, taking antibiotics
prescribed by a doctor, and
completing the full course if one
has to take them. Medical experts
believe this will help reduce the
problem of resistance. Another area
of key concern is to discourage
dispensing antibiotics off the
counter. These may be baby steps,
but they will have an impact and
may even avert a future where
treatable diseases become fatal.
H.N. Ramakrishna,
Bengaluru
A few days ago, the U.S. banned 19
chemicals used in antibacterial
soap. This is a bold move
considering the U.S. has one the
highest regulated antibiotic and
therapeutic markets in the world. In
India, the word antibiotic has
become synonymous with
cleanliness. In reality, however,
antibiotics are a double-edged
sword that can alter our bodies and
environment indefinitely. It is high
time our government heeded these
regulations and promptly banned
consumer antibiotics and regulated
medicines from the ground up to
avoid an epidemic disaster.
Ramaseshu Botu,
Visakhapatnam
notorious politician. Yielding to
An acid test for Nitish
There is no doubt that the granting
of bail to Mohammad Shahabuddin
will test the strength of the RJD-JD
(U) alliance (The message from
Shahabuddin, Sept. 16). Though
Nitish Kumar is the Chief Minister
of Bihar, it is the RJD which holds
more seats in the Assembly, and we
know the kind of relationship that
Lalu Prasad and Mr. Kumar have
shared in the past. Yes, Mr. Prasad
has said that the coalition is intact
and that Mr. Kumar is the leader,
but he is known to be a shrewd
politician. There is no doubt that
Mr. Kumar will be feeling
uncomfortable with Shahabuddins
release. His party may not challenge
the release considering the
compulsions of coalition politics,
but this episode will have a huge
bearing on the future political
events of the State.
Also, from a broader perspective,
we must think about whether
criminals should be allowed to
enter politics in the first place.
Bal Govind,
Noida
This is a great opportunity for Mr.
Kumar to display his political
courage by facing Shahabuddin
head-on. No doubt, there will be
flect Indias status as a key player in the re-
gion and as a globally significant player. But
that will only be a transient gain unless we
begin to pay attention to the much less
glamorous and more nuts-and-bolts effort
to use events as key markers in a well-con-
ceived and systematic process of expanding
our strategic space, leveraging our strengths
and remedying our vulnerabilities. It is time
to move from an event-oriented to a proc-
ess-driven approach.
Shyam Saran is a former Foreign Secretary. He is currently
Chairman, RIS, and Senior Fellow, Centre for Policy
Research.
tremendous pressure from the RJD Aadmi Party has frittered away a lot
chief and his party to adopt a soft of public goodwill that catapulted it
and lenient attitude towards this to power.
The AAPs failure to settle down in
such tactics of his majority coalition power (it is still behaving like an
partner in the name of political opposition party) largely stems
expediency would mean re- from a deadly mix of incompetence,
emergence of the jungle raj in inexperience, and arrogance. After
Bihar and would surely prove its electoral victory in Delhi, it
suicidal for Mr. Kumar. His image of started behaving like a national
an honest politician with good party and cast its leader in the
governing skills has been built over mould of a messiah who has arrived
the decades. It is difficult for any to deliver India from corruption.
Indian politician to earn this Previous governments worked
reputation, especially if he or she within the constraints imposed by
has been in power for a long time. Delhis peculiar hybrid status that
If mid-term polls become inevitable make it neither a full-fledged Union
because of his tough stand against territory nor a State.
Shahabuddin, Mr. Kumar and his Unable to give up the street
party will certainly emerge fighters mindset despite being in
victorious for taking a tough stand power, the partys leaders showed
against a gangster. This would also no respect for constitutional limits
enable him to become a successful to Delhis statehood, and niceties of
prime ministerial candidate later, a political conduct as is evident from
wish that he has harboured for long. their abrasive confrontations with
M.V. Nagavender Rao, the Lieutenant Governor.
Hyderabad The partys image has plummeted
in Punjab as its record in Delhi is
nothing inspiring. Its resort to
The AAPs headache populism in Punjab has only
Nothing tests the competence and betrayed its moral bankruptcy.
vision of politicians than the Bereft of any alternative political
exercise of power (A party in a vision except empty grandiloquent
hurry, Sept. 16). With its alibi for rhetoric, the AAP is looking like a
the unsatisfactory performance of sole proprietorship political party
the Delhi government that has neither the organisational
interference by the Lieutenant reach and base nor the leadership
Governor and non-cooperation material needed to rule any State.
from the Central government V. N. Mukundarajan,
looking increasingly stale, the Aam Thiruvananthapuram
ND-ND
10 | 1ias.com
DR HUMERUS
Keshav
AROUND THE WORLD
Look for this
care provider
People who are
seeking treatment
for alcohol
dependence and
whose goal is to
quit drinking
PHOTO: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
entirely are more likely to achieve this goal if they
are treated by a care provider who advocates total
abstinence. Those who wish to learn to drink in
moderation are not as successful, even when they
are treated by a care provider who works with
controlled consumption. Previous studies have
shown that the crucial factor in treatment success
is that patients and care providers have the same
view, and that the choice of treatment method plays
a subordinate role. But how great an influence
choice of method has on the final treatment
outcome has not been studied previously.
Science Daily
Check for
the swagger
How aggressive a
person is can be
identified by the
way they walk, finds
a new study by the
PHOTO: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
University of
Portsmouth in the United Kingdom. This research
could be useful in crime prevention to recognise
people with an aggressive walk before an
aggression-linked crime is committed. The research,
published in the Journal of Nonverbal Behavior,
aimed to use gait analysis techniques to
demonstrate the relationship between gait and
personality and focussed on the relationship
between extraversion, agreeableness, openness,
conscientiousness and neuroticism and gait.
Together, the five traits can help map the way
people think, feel and behave. Findings determined
that exaggerated movement of both the upper and
lower body indicated aggression. While there was a
moderate correlation between walking speed and
aggression for males, no correlation was observed
in females, or the sample as a whole. Medical
News Today
Interactive books
and learning
Features in non-
fiction childrens
books such as lift-
the-flap may hinder
toddlers from PHOTO: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
learning new words,
according to scientists at the Royal Holloway,
University of London. Books with such features are
popular with parents who hope the interactive
features will aid learning and enjoyment of reading.
However, if parents wanted their children to learn
factual information about the world from books,
regular books were better than those with flaps.
This was mainly due to children interpreting books
with pop-outs as toys, the scientists surmised from
a study on 31 toddlers aged 25 months, who were
split into two groups. Science Daily
Click, share,
be happy
Regularly snapping
selfies with your
smartphone and
sharing photos with
PHOTO: REUTERS
your friends can
help make you a
happier person, according to researchers. In a first-
of-its-kind study, the authors found that students
can combat the blues with some simple, deliberate
actions on their mobile devices. The results of the
study, out of University of California, Irvine, were
published recently in the Psychology of Well-Being.
The scientists conducted a four-week study
involving 41 college students. Researchers collected
nearly 2,900 mood measurements during the study
and found that subjects in all three groups
experienced increased positive moods. Some
participants in the selfie group reported becoming
more confident and comfortable with their smiling
photos over time. The students taking photos of
objects that made them happy became more
reflective and appreciative. Science Daily
DEMYSTIFYING SCIENCE
What is Global Fishing Watch?
It is a free technology which allows users to spy
on global fishing practices in a bid to curb illegal
fishing and rebuild fish stocks that are in danger
of being wiped out. The application uses satellite
technology, which is combined with radar
aboard boats and allows people to zoom in on
areas of interest around the world and trace the
paths of 35,000 commercial fishing vessels. The
technology, launched over the weekend by
Hollywood actor Leonardo DiCaprio, allows
users to crowdsource data. In order to make it
free, the project partners negotiated a deal with
the satellite company, Orbcomm, to use its
three-day-old data, which is described as near
real-time, along with historical records.
The project has cost $13.7 million over the past
three years to build, with $8 million of those
funds contributed by the Leonardo DiCaprio
Foundation in January this year.
CM
YK
HIV/AIDS CUTBACKS
Forced out by a funds squeeze
Fifteen outreach workers lose their jobs after funding cuts at the National AIDS Control Organisation. HIV-positive
patients themselves, theyre now left running from pillar to post
MARIA AKRAM
I
t isnt the fever and chikun-
gunya symptoms that perturb
Ompal Singh so much. Resting
in his one-room flat in a non-
descript colony in Mandoli, north-
east Delhi, the 50-year-old agonises
more about his persistent cough
and weight loss. He has lost seven
kilograms in just two months and
his immunity levels are dropping
alarming given his condition.
Meanwhile, his wife, Anita Ku-
mari (48), has become addicted to
painkillers. She cannot straighten
her back or stretch her arms. She
knows it is the big lump on her back
causing all the pain and doctors
have advised her surgery. But the
doctors keep referring her to other
hospitals, she says.
Both Mr. Singh and Ms. Kumari
tested HIV positive in 2006 after
she contracted the virus during a
premature delivery-linked blood
transfusion but it is now that they
have started feeling its pinch. Espe-
cially with their jobs snatched away.
Our diet is not the same and even
treatment is suffering, rues Mr.
Singh.
Disclosure and discrimination
In 2008, when the National AIDS
Control Organisation (NACO)
launched the Prevention of Parent-
to-Child Transmission Programme
(PPCT), the husband-wife duo en-
listed with an NGO as outreach
workers for the HIV awareness ini-
tiative along with 13 others. Their
DIABETES AND DIET
The low-carb debate
There are no large and rigorous studies showing that low carbohydrate diets offer an advantage
GINA KOLATA
A few years ago, Dr. Richard Kahn,
the now-retired chief scientific
and medical officer of the American
Diabetes Association, was charged
with organising a committee to pre-
scribe a diet plan for people with dia-
betes. He began by looking at the evid-
ence for different diets, asking which,
if any, best controlled diabetes.
When you look at the literature,
whoa is it weak. It is so weak, he said
in a recent interview.
Studies tended to be short term, di-
ets unsustainable, differences among
them clinically insignificant. The only
thing that really seemed to help people
with diabetes was weight loss and
for weight loss, there is no magic diet.
But people want diet advice, Dr.
Kahn reasoned, and the association re-
ally should say something about diets.
So it, like the National Institutes of
Health, went with the Department of
Agricultures food pyramid.
Why? Its a diet for all America, he
said. It has lots of fruits and
vegetables and a reasonable amount of
fat.
That advice, though, recently came
under attack in a New York Times com-
mentary written by Dr. Sarah Hallberg,
an osteopath at a weight loss clinic in
Indiana, and Dr. Osama Hamdy, the
medical director of the obesity weight
loss programme at the Joslin Diabetes
Center at Harvard Medical School.
Carb restriction
There is a diet that helps with dia-
betes, the two doctors said: one that re-
stricts or, according to Dr. Hallberg,
severely restricts carbohydrates.
If the goal is to get patients off their
medications, including insulin, and
resolve rather than just control their
diabetes, significant carb restriction is
by far the best nutrition plan, she said
in an e-mail. This would include elim-
ination of grains, potatoes and sugars
and all processed foods. There is a sig-
nificant and ever growing body of lit-
WEEKEND THE HINDU SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2016
NOIDA/DELHI
BEING
With their HIV status
known, they are struggling
to get alternative
employment. They have
also had to move house
restarted the scheme in June.
When Punjab can, why cant Delhi
and Himachal Pradesh, asks Anjali
Singh, showing a dossier of letters
written to Ministers, officials and
protest clippings.
Budget cuts started in 2013 un-
der the UPA (United Progressive
Alliance) regime; the NDA (Na-
tional Democratic Alliance) gov-
ernment may end it completely in
their term. Whatever was achieved
in all these years is being undone,
says Ganesh Acharya of Mumbai
AIDS Forum.
On August 16, these workers met
HEAR THEM OUT: The workers have tried it all to have their voices heard from writing letters to the Health Delhi Commission for Women
Ministry to protesting at Jantar Mantar. PHOTO: STR/AFP/GETTY IMAGES chief Swati Maliwal for help. The
commission subsequently wrote to
job was to help HIV-positive preg- all 15 workers are themselves HIV- neighbours boycotting us, eight of the Delhi State AIDS Control Soci-
nant women with their medication positive and on antiretroviral us are now living in the same local- ety (DSACS) and was informed that
and monitor newborn babies. We therapy. In order to effectively carry ity to help each other, says Rajesh the latter had no NACO funding to
have seen discrimination in hospit- out their roles as outreach workers, Kumari, another outreach worker, support these persons. This forced
als against HIV-positive women these individuals were asked to dis- who has been working as a maid for me to write to Health Minister J.P
from such close quarters. Doctors close their condition to the the past three months. Nadda about the issue, says Ms.
would refuse to carry out C-section, community and their families at the Maliwal. Mr. Nadda replied stating
In the lurch
nurses hurl abuses even while the risk of social marginalisation. With that he will personally look into the
woman is crying in pain, says Ms. people around them knowing about The outreach workers have tried matter.
Kumari. Our role was to help such their HIV status, these workers are it all to have their voices heard He should do something, or else
women. now not only struggling to get al- from writing letters to the Health give us permission to kill
However, in December last year, ternative employment but have had Ministry to protesting at Jantar ourselves, says Kanhaiya Kumar,
the scheme was abruptly ended cit- to move house. Earlier, we were Mantar. The PPCT scheme was hal- one of the affected. Its fingers
ing lack of funds, rendering the ou- staying in different colonies in east ted in Delhi, Himachal Pradesh and crossed for the group of 15, for now.
treach workers jobless. This, when Delhi. But with no money and Punjab at the same time but Punjab maria.akram@thehindu.co.in
PERSPECTIVE
An uneasy buzz
T hat which bends
up is what the
word Chikungunya
means in Kimakonde, an
African language. Its
quite an apt word
considering the effect
this infection has on
those affected by it!
Chikungunya is a fever
spread by a virus that is
transmitted by the female
mosquito. The virus PHOTO: AFP
cannot spread from one
human to another but can detect both the viruses,
spread only by this is not practical in a
mosquitoes which get hospital setting with a
infected while biting an huge patient load and the
infected individual, lack of trained personnel.
thereafter transmitting One may argue that
the virus by biting an dengue is more
uninfected individual. dangerous than
Once a mosquito bites, chikungunya due to the
the virus spreads through complications of dengue
the epidermal cells of the as opposed to the non-
skin and reaches the fatal condition of
inside of the body chikungunya. But one
through the blood must remember that
stream. The virus patient management is
primarily targets muscle, quite different for both
joint and skin fibroblasts these infections and has
where the maximum several implications on
damage occurs. This is disease prevention.
Sujatha
The vector plays an
extremely important role
in the spread of the
chikungunya virus. When
Sunil
chikungunya struck in
2005, the reason it was
perhaps it is a good idea to reduce the such a huge pandemic
amount of insulin it needs by eating was because the virus
the reason why patients
very low carbohydrate diets, Dr. Hall
said.
Some longer-term studies, though,
experience intense joint
pain and swelling along
had mutated its outside
coat protein by a single
with rashes and acute amino acid that allowed it
failed to show that low-carbohydrate fever. Apart from the to replicate faster in
diets benefited glucose control. tissues, a persons another species of Aedes.
Even if diets are effective in the short immunity-mediated This allowed the vector
term, he said, the difficulty is adhering response is another to transmit the virus
to the diet over the long term. important factor that more effectively. In the
In the short term, the low-carbo- dictates the severity of 2010 outbreak, virus
PHOTO: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT hydrate diet sometimes does better on the disease. This explains strains sampled from
glycaemic control, he said. But as why immune- different parts of the
erature that supports this method. time progresses, the difference mostly compromised individuals country were found to
She is in private practice at Indiana disappears. What counts is which diet such as very young contain mutations on
University Health Arnett Hospital and helps most with long-term weight children and elderly precisely three sites on
is medical director of a start-up de- loss. persons are more their genomes.
severely affected. While Sequencing the genome
veloping nutrition-based medical
Issue of overall health chikungunya results in of the virus associated
interventions. with the current outbreak
But there are no large and rigorous Another issue with low-carbo- extreme morbidity and a
prolonged phase of in North India may reveal
studies showing that low-carbo- hydrate diets, researchers said, is the new information. Has the
physical disability, it is
hydrate diets offer an advantage, and, question of what will happen to overall not a fatal disease. virus mutated again to
in fact, there is not even a consensus on health if diabetics actually follow the become more virulent?
the definition of a low-carbohydrate diet for years or decades. (Heart at- Patient management
diet it can vary from doctor to tacks are the major killer of people A primary concern Control the key
doctor. with diabetes.) Insulin levels may be with respect to Whatever be the nature
There have been debates for lit- better, but, said Dr. Rudolph Leibel, co- chikungunya treatment is of the virus, the only
erally the whole history of diabetes director of Columbia Universitys Na- effective diagnosis. At effective method to
about which kind of diet is best, said omi Berrie Diabetes Center, effects of present there are no control this hugely
debilitating infection is
Dr. C. Ronald Kahn, chief academic of-
ficer at Joslin, and no relation to
a low-carbohydrate diet on lipopro-
teins and vascular biology could offset
virus-specific detection
methods and we have to intense vector control
Richard Kahn. But, he said, the an- such a benefit. In other words, it is resort to employing and public health
swer isnt so straightforward. not clear if a lower insulin level would antibody-specific testing awareness programmes.
In support of a diet like Dr. Hall- translate into fewer heart attacks. which delays diagnosis We face multiple issues
by a great extent. A study with respect to
bergs, there is one recent short-term But multiple studies have found that
conducted by our group chikungunya disease
study, by Dr. Kevin Hall of the National when it comes to weight loss the on- control in our country. A
Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and ly proven way to help with blood sugar and our collaborators at
Nair Hospital in Mumbai lack of sensitive virus-
Kidney Diseases and his colleagues, control over the long term there is specific diagnostic tools,
showed that almost 10
involving 17 overweight and obese no difference among diets that restrict per cent of dengue an absence of drugs/
men, none of whom had diabetes. They calories, fat or carbohydrates. vaccine, poor vector
patients were co-infected
stayed in a clinical centre where they Experts like Dr. David Nathan, dir- with the chikungunya control measures and
ate carefully controlled diets. The re- ector of the Diabetes Center and Clin- virus but they were not public awareness
searchers asked what would happen if ical Research Center at Massachusetts even treated for the contribute tremendously
calories were kept constant but the General Hospital and a professor of disease. This is a big blow in escalating the problem.
carbohydrate composition of a diet medicine at Harvard Medical School, to patient management It is no surprise then that
varied from high to very low. The an- advise dieting for people with dia- and disease management. India is considered as the
swer was that insulin secretion betes. But, he said, when we advise While we were able to hub for chikungunya
dropped 50 per cent with the very low people to be on diets, the major goal is detect these co-infections spread across the globe.
carbohydrate diet, meaning that much to lose weight. because we employed Sujatha Sunil is Group Leader,
reverse transcription- Vector Borne Diseases Group,
less insulin was required to maintain What matters the most for con- International Centre for Genetic
normal blood glucose levels. trolling diabetes, Dr. Nathan said, is polymerase chain Engineering and Biotechnology,
Since diabetes results when the how much weight you lose. New reaction (RT-PCR) to New Delhi.
body cant produce enough insulin, York Times News Service
ND-ND
10 | 1ias.com EDITORIAL THE HINDU MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 19, 2016
NOIDA/DELHI

A blow for the right to knowledge

M O N D AY , S E P T E M B E R 1 9 , 2 0 1 6
Political malady
The Delhi High Court has restored to copyright jurisprudence a clear mandate for the future one which
recognises that the end goal of technology is the improvement of our lives
of the phrase in the course of, concludes intellectual) and no law can be interpreted
that instruction includes the entire ambit of so as to result in any regression of the evolve-
LAWRENCE LIANG pedagogy from the creation of syllabus to ment of the human being for the better (par-
teaching and provision of reading materials. agraph 87).
It then locates the question of education
In its much awaited judgment in the Delhi
within a changing technological environ-
ment, and argues that when an action, if on-
Global implications
The judgment has immense consequences

and legal remedy University photocopying case (The Chan-

cellor Masters and Scholars of the Uni-
versity of Oxford v. Rameshwari Photocopy
erously done, is not an offence, it cannot be-
come an offence when, owing to
advancement in technology doing thereof
beyond India and is a bold articulation of the
principles of equitable access to knowledge
and one that deserves to be emulated

T
hose looking for loopholes are always one
step ahead of those seeking to plug them.
For decades, since the aaya ram, gaya
ram days of Indian politics, Parliament
and courts have been coming down on mass defec-
tion and frequent change of party loyalties. But no
piece of legislation is a deterrent when politicians,
for what are usually self-serving reasons, decide to
switch parties. After the Supreme Court restored
the Congress government in Arunachal Pradesh in
July, most of the partys MLAs returned under the
leadership of a new Chief Minister, Pema Khandu.
But, in a couple of months, they have again deserted
the Congress to join the Peoples Party of Ar-
unachal, a constituent of the North-East Democrat-
ic Alliance, a front led by the Bharatiya Janata Party.
The reason adduced for the switchover is laugh-
able: to have better relations with the BJP-led gov-
ernment at the Centre. In effect what the MLAs
have done is get over the legal hurdles to defection.
Once the Supreme Court restored the Congress
government of Nabam Tuki, those who had deser-
ted the party returned on condition that Mr.
Khandu, and not Mr. Tuki, be the Chief Minister.
This must have seemed the easiest way to stay in
power for those who had allied with the earlier gov-
ernment of Congress rebels led by Kalikho Pul.
Now, in a replay of the mass defection, the Congress
rebels have taken care to play by the book. There is
no unseating of the government, no withdrawal of
support by the ruling partys MLAs. Instead, the
change is neat and clean, from a Congress govern-
ment to a pro-BJP PPA government. The Governor
had no role; and a legal challenge to the realign-
ment is made that much more difficult.
Several legislative efforts have been made to curb
defections. The 52nd Constitution Amendment
provided for disqualification of defectors other
than in the case of a split in the party, involving a
group of not less than one-third of its members. A
later amendment disallowed splits, and provided
only for merger in cases where at least two-thirds of
the members of one party merged with another
party. This too did not prove to be a deterrent, as
has been evident in Arunachal Pradesh. True, de-
fections engineered through unscrupulous means
undermine democratic institutions and subvert the
peoples mandate. But, so far, the cure for this mala-
dy in the form of legislation does not seem to have
had any effect. When defection is made more diffi-
cult, the means adopted become even more invent-
ive. Ideally, the matter of dealing with defection
should be left in the hands of the voters. Legal rem-
edies to what is essentially a political issue will
never work.
Services), the Delhi High Court has dis-
missed the copyright infringement petition
initiated in August 2012 by three publishers
(Oxford, Cambridge and Taylor & Francis)
against a photocopy shop located in the
premises of Delhi University. This case,
which was being closely tracked by students,
teachers and the publishing industry alike,
was seen as one with immense significance
for questions of access to knowledge. While
initially involving only the publishers, the
photocopier and the university, the case also
saw intervention petitions being filed by a
student group (Association of Students for
Equitable Access to Knowledge) as well as by
teachers and academics (Society for Promot-
ing Educational Access and Knowledge).
While the publishers made the argument that
the creation of course packs and the photo-
copying of academic material for the same
amounted to an infringement of the exclusive
copyright of the authors and publishers, the
defendants argued that the reproduction of
materials for educational purposes fell
within the exceptions to copyright under
Section 52(1)(i) of the Copyright Act.
Not a moral right
In his considered and sharply reasoned
judgment, Justice Rajiv Sahai Endlaw exam-
ines the gamut of arguments made by both
sides and arrives at the conclusion that copy-
right is a statutory right and not a natural
right, and hence any right that is granted to
owners is also limited by exceptions carved
out by law. The nature of Section 52 of the
Copyright Act is such that any act falling
CARTOONSCAPE
Justice Endlaw rejects the populist
and unidimensional assumption
that copyright is about the
protection of the property rights
of owners
within its scope will not constitute infringe-
ment. Section 52(1)(i) allows for the repro-
duction of any work i) by a teacher or a pupil
in the course of instruction; or ii) as part of
the questions to be answered in an examina-
tion; or iii) in answers to such questions.
The crux of the dispute was about whether
course packs fall within this exception. The
petitioners tried to provide a narrow reading
of the section, claiming that at best what the
section allows for is the provision of
materials in the course of a lecture and spa-
tially restricted to a classroom. The court,
while rejecting this claim, argues that in-
struction cannot be narrowly understood
and, through a historically informed reading
has been simplified (paragraph 75). To make
this point, Justice Endlaw contrasts his own
experiences as a law student where photo-
copying was very limited and studying en-
tailed students copying by hand, scribe like,
pages after pages of books. Photocopiers
have just made the task simpler and faster,
but if the act of copying for a particular pur-
pose is itself not illegal, and the effect of the
action is the same, the difference in the mode
of action cannot make a difference so as to
make one an offence.
For progress
In a clear statement of the philosophical
basis of copyright law, Justice Endlaw rejects
the populist and unidimensional assumption
that copyright is about the protection of the
property rights of owners. He notes instead:
Copyright, specially in literary works, is
thus not an inevitable, divine, or natural right
that confers on authors the absolute owner-
ship of their creations. It is designed rather to
stimulate activity and progress in the arts for
the intellectual enrichment of the public.
Copyright is intended to increase and not to
impede the harvest of knowledge. It is inten-
ded to motivate the creative activity of au-
thors and inventors in order to benefit the
public.
If copyright was always about maintaining
a balance between competing ideas of pri-
vate and public interest, the Delhi High Court
has restored to copyright jurisprudence a
clear mandate for the future, one which is
cognisant that the end goal of technology is
the improvement of our lives (material and
globally. For a while now, the globalisation of
copyright norms through international law
(Berne Convention, TRIPS Agreement) has
been accompanied by the globalisation of
copyright standards that have primarily
emerged from the global north. Aggressively
pushed by the copyright lobby, such as Holly-
wood, the music industry and the publishing
cartels, copyright law had effectively been hi-
jacked by narrow commercial interests (al-
beit always speaking in the name of authors
and creators). Thus even when it came to dis-
cussing fair use and exceptions and limit-
ations, countries have found themselves con-
strained by judicial precedents from the U.S.
and elsewhere that have defined quantitative
restrictions on photocopying.
In a radical move, the Delhi High Court has
concluded that if Indian law makers have al-
lowed through statute for the reproduction of
a copyrighted work in the course of instruc-
tion, it has done so on the basis of purpose
(teaching) and with the conviction that this
does not unreasonably prejudice the le-
gitimate interest of the author. Further, this
flexibility is provided to it through interna-
tional law, and it is not the place of courts to
impose artificial restrictions by way of
quantitative limits. Justice Endlaw, while ar-
riving at this conclusion, is acutely aware of
the specific needs of countries like India
where libraries and universities have to cope
with the needs of thousands of students sim-
ultaneously, and it would be nave to expect
every student to buy copies of every book.
An interesting question to consider is
whether the judgment effectively makes a
clear distinction between fair dealing on the
one hand (which is subject to doctrinal tests
such as the Three-Step test), and in the copy-
right act in India governs personal use in-
cluding research versus a clear statutory ex-
ception for educational use. This aspect of
the judgment could almost be read as an in-
structional manual for countries who find
themselves straitjackets under international
copyright laws, and yet want to ensure the
greatest flexibility in the way that they design
a system that addresses their specific needs.
How will publishers respond?
While this judgment delivers a terrible
blow to the publishers, the crucial question
is, how will they respond? Through the entire
case the publishers have alienated the stu-
dent and academic community, and while it
is within their right to appeal the judgment, it
may be both politically prudent and ethically
right not to do so. Teacher, readers, students
and photocopiers are not the enemies of pub-
lishers; they are their greatest allies. In a time
when books and reading itself are under

Coherence in the threat from competing media forms, it may

be useful to remember that it is education
and greater access that makes readers, not

neighbourhood copyright.

O
ver the past week, India played host to
Afghanistans President Ashraf Ghani
and Nepals Prime Minister Pushpa
Kamal Dahal Prachanda, visits that
marked a repair of relationships with both coun-
tries. Mr. Prachandas meeting with Prime Minister
Narendra Modi was cordial, and though no large
announcements were made, the message thats
gone out is that both countries wish to put the bit-
terness of the past year and the economic blockade
behind them. New Delhi is acutely conscious of Mr.
Prachandas challenges: a potentially shaky tenure
in office given his coalitions narrow majority, the
difficulty in building a two-thirds consensus for the
constitutional amendments he has committed to,
as well as the massive task of reconstruction after
the April 2015 earthquake. As a result, it didnt force
him to commit on a timeline for amendments de-
manded by Madhesi and other groups that feel
marginalised by the new Constitution. The joint
statement referred to Mr. Modi welcoming the on-
going efforts of the Government of Nepal to take all
sections of the society on board for effective imple-
mentation of the Constitution, but it didnt men-
tion the word amendment. India instead focussed
on delivering on its own promises to Nepal, includ-
ing hydropower and highways infrastructure pro-
jects. This shows a maturing of New Delhis posi-
tion, since the phase of stern statements against the
Koirala and Oli governments on the Madhesi issue.
With Mr. Ghani, the outreach began a year ago,
after it became clear that Afghanistan had lost con-
fidence in Pakistans ability to bring the Taliban to
book or to the table for talks. Moreover, the U.S.,
Afghanistans biggest security provider, made a
shift in its old policy of cutting India out of the se-
curity equation, and actively encouraged New
Delhi to help provide military assistance to Kabul.
Even so, during Mr. Ghanis visit, India opted for a
less overt approach to Afghanistans wish list of
helicopters, tanks and ammunition assistance, with
the joint statement and agreements signed merely
mentioning their resolve to counter terrorism and
strengthen security and defence cooperation as en-
visaged in the India-Afghanistan Strategic Partner-
ship Agreement. Mention of Pakistans support to
terrorist groups was muted as well. However, Mr.
Ghani did give a scathing account of Pakistans ac-
tions at a speech at a Delhi think tank later. The
Afghan and Nepali visits had another common
thread, of landlocked countries in need of road and
railway trade routes. It is hoped that, going forward,
India will take a leadership role in maximising their
options, as it has done with Afghanistan through
the Chabahar port project in Iran.
CM
YK
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Letters emailed to letters@thehindu.co.in must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.
Chief Ministers remark
All must take strong exception to the
statement of Haryana Chief Minister
Manohar Lal Khattar on Saturday
who dubbed the controversy over
beef allegedly found in biryani and
the gang rape of two sisters in
Mewat, Haryana as a trivial issue
when, according to him, the focus
should be on Swarna Jayanti
celebrations and the achievements
of the Haryana government
(Sept.18). One wonders what
Haryana is celebrating in its 50th
year if the State has scant regard for
human rights and dignity of its
women. It is no different from a
Nero playing the fiddle while Rome
was burning.
Matthew Adukanil,
Sagayathottam, Tamil Nadu
Soumya case
Establishment of mens rea (culpable
state of mind) is a prerequisite for
awarding the death sentence (TN
man escapes noose in Soumya rape,
murder case, Sept.16). Moreover,
such a type of harsh punishment is
awarded only in the rarest of rare
cases. Lack of evidence vis--vis
intention of murder on the part of
the convict is what has led the
Supreme Court to pass such an
order. That being so, its order
commuting death sentence to life
sentence cannot be faulted. Above
all, an eye for an eye cannot be the
solution for all evils given the
growing demand across the world
for abolishing the death sentence.
However, one cannot ignore the
voices of a section who want the
offence of rape to be made more
serious and the quantum of
punishment enhanced.
S. Srinivasan,
Chennai
The Supreme Courts verdict leaves
one shell shocked. One can also add
the words unwelcome,
disappointing and unfortunate. problems of dynastic politics and the
When all sorts of crimes such as
threats, intimidation, sexual abuse at
the workplace and rape are carried
out every day, the top courts
findings leave one very upset. What
more evidence is required to prove
the murder charge? The young
woman lost her life only because of
the macabre nature of the crime
inflicted on her by the convict.
S. Nallasivan,
Tirunelveli
The country and its women folk will
find it very difficult to accept the
decision to to spare Govindachami
the death penalty. I see the decision
as a crack in an old rock; a divide
that sets the way for the proliferation
of antisocial acts now that even the
most hideous of crimes will not
invite the most stringent
punishment. The Indian judiciary
needs to restore the faith it once
enjoyed among its citizens. Women
must be entitled to a separate fast
and fair tribunal for injustices.
Meera A.R.,
Thrissur
Turmoil in the SP
A dynasty of politicians is not
unheard of in world politics. The
Kennedy-clan in the U.S. is one such
example. Yet as prominent members
in American politics, John, Robert
and Edward Kennedy did contribute
fairly to the betterment of the U.S.
But in India, there seems to be a
difference. The uncle-nephew spat
in the political hierarchy in the
ruling Samajwadi Party in Uttar
Pradesh has once again
demonstrated the fragility of
political dispensations that depend
largely on the numerical strength of
kith and kin. It goes without saying
that the simmering discontent
between family members in the
party will have a destabilising effect
on the politics of the State. It is well
known that India is beset with
Election Commission to amend the
incessant promotion of family
members in electoral politics by
various party leaders has been
creating a new corps of peoples
representatives in the country
whose incompetence and
inefficiency wouldnt have
otherwise allowed them the honour
of stepping into the haloed portals of
power.
Beginning with the first family of
Indian politics, we now have the
concept of conservation of power
being so ridiculously exploited by
present day politicians in order to
keep authoritarian control and the
perks that go with it well-secured
within the family.
Pachu Menon,
Comba, Goa
Drama in Arunachal
When the government in Arunachal
Pradesh was formed under Pema
Khandu, all believed that the
Congress had finally won the seesaw
political battle and recuperated from
the crisis within the party. Its clearly
a short-lived one. Despite the BJPs
assertions, the perception that the
Centre is unwilling to cooperate
with States in which it is not in
power has only been strengthened
(No hand in Arunachal U-turn,
claims BJP, Sept. 18). In a border
State like Arunachal Pradesh, there
must be a stable government.
Md. Mobbashir Farid,
Gaya, Bihar
The development in Arunachal
makes a mockery of the election
process and is the equivalent of
perpetrating a fraud on the people
who voted for the politicians in
question. It is shocking that they had
no qualms in shifting allegiance
overnight which probably reflects a
new trend in regional politics. The
crossing the floor formula should
not be made so easy and that too
twice. It becomes incumbent on the
Lawrence Liang is a professor of law at Ambedkar
University, Delhi, currently teaching at Yale University.
a proper distribution channel are
rules to incorporate a cooling off
period of two years in order to
prevent horse trading. The other
alternative is to countermand the
election and hold a repoll. Mr.
Khandus move justifying it on the
need for better ties with the Centre
is ludicrous.
A.V. Narayanan,
Tiruchi
The leadership of the Indian
National Congress party has to be
blamed for failing to rebuild its
standing among its rank and file.
Neither Sonia Gandhi nor Rahul
Gandhi have taken steps to protect
the partys base from crumbling
after a string of electoral defeats. A
lack of political vision and direction,
inefficacy in assessing situations,
and a failure to re-strategise and
restructure the party from the grass-
root have led to mass defections and
shifting of allegiances. How does the
party expect to regain voter trust
when it is unable to keep its flock
together?
N. Visveswaran,
Chennai
Tears over onions
Farmers often incur losses due to the
fluctuating prices of onions
(Ground Zero The bane of a generation does not know about the
bumper crop, Sept. 17). A
permanent solution lies in
determining the MSP of onions. A
policy should also be framed on the
import and export of the bulb,
keeping farmers interests in mind.
The government should also
develop a rapid market intervention
mechanism for onions.
Nikhil Chopra,
Jagraon, Punjab
There are similar examples of the
mismanagement of marketing for
different types of agricultural
produce. The lack of well-defined
marketing norms and the absence of
main reasons. Value addition,
processing, cold storage,
warehousing and quick
transportation can improve the
situation.
Suraj Ashokrao Shirsath Patil,
Rahuri, Maharashtra
No Hyderabad blues
The writer (No Hyderabad blues,
Sept.15) did not quantify the benefits
of the special package, announced
for Andhra Pradesh. Citing the
examples of Chhattisgarh and
Jharkhand, which were created on
the demand of local people, he
conveniently forgets that these two
States were truncated ones and did
not lose anything in the bargain.
Never in Indian history has a
residual State been left without the
capital city, which was built and
developed with funds from coastal
Andhra. It is a very special and
extraordinary case. Even after
bifurcation, the State has got only a
pittance.
Maradapu Srinivasa Rao,
Vizianagaram, Andhra Pradesh
MS revisited
One should not be surprised if in a
few years time the younger
legendary vocalist M.S.
Subbulakshmi. Fleeting coverage by
the media on the occasion of her
100th birth centenary celebrations,
her virtuoso performances being
buried in archives and absolutely no
efforts being made to channel her
recitals into the popular stream are
pointers. It will be fitting if both
audiovisual arms of the Centre, All
India Radio and Doordarshan
earmark a slot of at least half an hour
in a week to broadcast and telecast
her kutcheries and keep her memory
alive.
Seshagiri Row Karry,
Hyderabad
ND-ND
10 | 1ias.com EDITORIAL THE HINDU TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 2016
NOIDA/DELHI

Equality before uniformity

If a common code is impossible to argue for today, it is not because Muslim women are better off with their
existing personal laws, but because of the insecurity and precariousness of Muslim lives and livelihoods
the data come from a special sample survey marginalisation in social, economic and po-
T U E S D AY , S E P T E M B E R 2 0 , 2 0 1 6 conducted by the Census of India in 1960 of litical terms, making it almost certain that
one lakh women, which is explicitly acknow- Muslim women are on average worse off
ledged to be a non-representative sample today than they were just 10 years ago.
that is, it may be suggestive, but cannot stand The second lesson from the past decades
Responding MARY E. JOHN HASINA KHAN
for entities like India, Hindu women or
Muslim women. Two, the survey includes
is that we must learn from and support much
more broadly the struggles that have been

to Uri Two intertwined topics that have recently

reclaimed their place in news headlines are
the Uniform Civil Code (UCC), and Muslim
women who were married between 1940 and
1960 which means that 15 of these 20 years
were prior to the enactment in 1955 of the
waged since the 1980s by a wide variety of
Muslim womens organisations. A range of
organisations emerged between 1984 and

G
athering evidence regarding the four ter-
rorists who stormed the army base in
Uri, killing 18 soldiers, suggests they are
from Pakistan and had been sent across
the border explicitly for this attack. In fact, the en-
tire operation has the fingerprints of Pakistans mil-
itary establishment, showing yet again the coun-
trys persistent use of terrorism as state policy. The
four terrorists reportedly got to the camp early in
the morning, in all probability across the Line of
Control just 6 km away. The terrorists carried auto-
matic rifles, under-barrel grenade launchers and
other equipment, most of it with Pakistani mark-
ings, according to Director General of Military Op-
erations Lt. Gen. Ranbir Singh. Over the last three
decades or so, India has been at the receiving end of
Pakistani statecraft of terrorists unleashed to attain
state objectives; Uri is the latest provocation. India
has limited manoeuvrability as far as a military re-
sponse goes. Narendra Modis restrained, but firm,
response is an indication that India may not play
the reckless game many would like it to. Con-
demning the cowardly attack, he said those be-
hind it would not go unpunished the heavy-lift-
ing will in all probability be done diplomatically.
In responses in New Delhi, and on the ground in
Kashmir, one thing has emerged: that India still
does not have a comprehensive national policy to
deal with domestic militancy as well as cross-bor-
der terrorism. Given Indias inconsistent and in-
complete responses, the adversaries, both states
and terror organisations, are able to exploit, and of-
ten poke fun at, the lack of a robust national doc-
trine. The latest attack also captures the complex
reality of India-Pakistan ties and the Kashmir issue.
It calls for an alert security grid and sophisticated
policy responses; neither can be achieved by rheto-
ric and simplistic blame games. The Indian security
forces have been dealing with militancy and cross-
border infiltration since Kashmir went up in flames
in the late 1980s. The gradual decline in violence in
the Valley over the years was reversed starting 2014,
and since then strife in the Valley and infiltration
from the Pakistan side have both steadily climbed.
The Prime Minister should take the lead to bring
together leaders across the spectrum to work to-
wards finding peace, while drawing up a national
security doctrine that is free of biases and myopia.
India needs to let its adversaries know it is a power
capable of more than mere rhetoric while assur-
ing its own people that its options are rooted in con-
stitutional values. For both, a well-documented na-
tional security doctrine could be a first step.
The road
from Bratislava
womens rights, or rather wrongs. A Law
Ministry note prepared for the Law Commis-
sion declares that the three impediments to
legislating a UCC are separatism, conser-
vatism, and misconceived notions about per-
sonal laws. The note is unambiguously
clear as to which personal laws are getting in
the way those protected by their minority
status, that is, Muslim personal law. Howev-
er, Muslim personal law has also been in the
news independently of the UCC issue be-
cause of the PIL supporting Shayara Banos
demand for the repeal of unilateral divorce
(or triple talaq), and the responses this has
received.
Comparing Hindu and Muslim women
During the 1990s, the idea of a UCC was
extensively criticised by womens groups
who feared the unspoken intentions of the
Hindu Right in advocating it. An influential
strand of argument questioned public per-
ceptions and assumptions about personal
law, namely: Hindu personal law has been
successfully reformed; in sharp contrast,
Muslim law remains uncodified and im-
poses the worst vulnerabilities on Muslim
women; therefore, Hindu personal law
should be made the basis for a UCC. There
was much to be questioned in such assump-
tions. For instance, it was pointed out that,
historically, Muslim personal law was way
ahead of its Hindu counterpart since mar-
riage was understood to be a contract be-
tween individuals with built-in provision for
divorce, while Hindu law languished within
notions of sacrament, the absence of person-
hood for Hindu wives, the vagaries of the
Hindu Undivided Family, and so on. Much
CARTOONSCAPE
ILLUSTRATION: DEEPAK HARICHANDAN
It is imperative to nurture
alternative perspectives
diverse voices must enter public
discourse, whether or not the
state is ready to listen
was made of a Census study on marriage and
polygamy (which had been cited in the fam-
ous Towards Equality report of 1974 on the
status of Indian women) which showed that
the incidence of polygamy (usually bigamy)
was in fact greater among Hindus than
Muslims. Moreover, such wives had no
rights under the reformed Hindu law, unlike
the rights available to Muslim women under
polygamy.
Now that we are once again faced with the
spectre of a UCC being foisted on us, this
represents an opportunity to take stock from
where we are today. We believe that there are
three main lessons to be learnt from our re-
cent past. First, we must stop making dubi-
ous comparisons between Muslim and
Hindu women. Having studied the
comparative data on polygamy that continue
to be cited, we noticed the following. One,
Hindu Code Bill that outlawed polygamy.
And three, the overall incidence of polygamy
reported for Hindu and Muslim women is 5.7
per cent and 5.6 per cent, respectively. In
short, these data do not prove that there was
more bigamy among Hindu women than
Muslim women even in 1960, let alone in
more recent times. (We may note in passing
that the authors of the Towards Equality re-
port were particularly concerned about the
high incidence of polygamy among tribal
groups, where rates were increasing over
time and had reached 18 per cent during
1951-60.)
The steady slide of Muslim women
Nothing is gained today by simply assert-
ing that Hindu women are worse off than
their Muslim counterparts such careless
claims may come back to haunt us in future.
Yes, honour killings are sanctioned by khap
panchayats in the very Hindu State of Hary-
ana; but the khap campaign to amend the
Hindu Marriage Act to enforce gotra and
caste prohibitions has failed. Moreover,
there is growing evidence that women are
claiming their inheritance as daughters un-
der the Hindu Succession (Amendment)
Act, 2005, particularly in regions (such as
Haryana) where land prices have shot up,
and the support of in-laws is forthcoming.
While it is nobodys case that Hindu law has
been successfully reformed, decades of
Hindu majoritarianism may well have bene-
fited many upper-caste Hindu women, in-
cluding in courts of law. In contrast, the
status of Muslims as delineated in the Sachar
Committee report a decade ago is likely to
have declined further given their increased
2013, including Awaaz-e-Niswaan, Muslim
Womens Rights Network, Bharatiya Muslim
Mahila Andolan (BMMA), and the Bebaak
Collective, to name only a few. They speak in
many voices and have different viewpoints.
Undoubtedly some do argue that the only
available option today is to work for personal
law reform from within. But this is by no
means the only position. In any case, the dis-
tinction between what is internal and ex-
ternal to personal laws is not always clear.
For example, while unilateral triple talaq is
viewed as being contrary to true Islamic
principles by many theological schools, po-
lygamy is considered to be part of main-
stream Islam. Yet there are organisations
asking for the abolition of polygamy, thus
pushing the outer boundaries of personal
law reform. Moreover, Muslim womens or-
ganisations have also been demanding
economic and political rights. In sum, if a
common code is impossible to argue for
today, it is not because Muslim women are
better off with their existing personal laws,
but because of the extreme insecurity and
precariousness of Muslim lives and liveli-
hoods in contemporary India. This was
shared at a recent national convention orga-
nised by the Bebaak Collective, Muslim
Aurton ki Awaaz: Sadak se Sansad Tak, at-
tended by over 500 Muslim women and oth-
ers in New Delhi on February 27-28, 2016.
Resisting statist agendas anew
The third lesson is that feminists must re-
member and recover the creativity and en-
ergy of the 1990s. While being trapped in a
reactive relationship to the state with re-
spect to the UCC, feminists and womens or-
ganisations did much more in the 1990s than
simply resist majoritarian agendas. Despite
bitter and acrimonious debates, many cre-
ative alternative visions emerged of how
genuine equality could be brought into the
realm of family life and related institutions.
In the decades since, we have been exploring
rights in intimate relations, rights in
economic and political spheres more gener-
ally, and observing the innovative use of sec-
ular laws by minority groups, such as the Ju-
venile Justice (Care and Protection of
Children) Rules, 2007 for adoption of chil-
dren by Muslims and Christians. Today, we
must revive and re-energise these visions
and reassert our refusal to think within the
confines of statist agendas.
It is amply evident that the Law Ministrys
note on the UCC does not venture beyond
the old desire for uniformity, and barely
finds room for equality. This makes it all the
more imperative to nurture and promote al-
ternative perspectives diverse voices
must be empowered to enter public dis-
course, whether or not the state is ready to
listen. After all, the common goal is gender

U
nity and cohesion were conspicuously
absent at the Bratislava castle where the
EU 28 minus 1 met to discuss the post-
Brexit world. Nobody is harbouring any
illusions. German Chancellor Angela Merkel and
European Commission President Jean-Claude Jun-
cker admitted that the EU is in an existential crisis.
Brexit is only the latest symptom of the fear and dis-
content that have spread across the continent,
fuelled by the migrant crisis, Islamophobia, Eu-
rozone woes and terrorist attacks. Fridays meeting
was organised by Donald Tusk, President of the Eu-
ropean Council, that provides strategic direction to
the EU, in order to diagnose the situation and to
forge a united path forward. This is not going to be
an easy task given that the bloc is split into factions,
mainly around issues of economics and migration.
The Bratislava Declaration offers a road map for
the next six months, on migration, border security,
counter-terrorism, defence and economic and so-
cial development, providing political backing to
measures announced by Mr. Juncker in his State of
the Union address in Brussels. Europe is much like
a stack of Jenga blocks at present. Each move needs
precision and care in order to preserve the integrity
of an increasingly tenuous union. The declaration
identifies various areas for action. Some of these
are likely to find wide acceptance, such as funding
for strategic investments across the region, estab-
lishing a common capital market across the EU and
acquiring advanced traveller information to secure
borders. Other areas, such as migration, are more
contentious. Hungarians will participate in a na-
tional referendum in October to decide whether
they will accept the recommended share. The EU
must find a creative, humane and effective solution
to receive and resettle refugees. Another conten-
tious proposal is the European army. Mr. Juncker
had proposed that member-states move towards
pooling and centralising their defence and diplo-
matic resources. While there may be advantages
with regard to defence procurement and oper-
ational efficiency and capabilities, it is exactly this
kind of a more Europe response to a problem that
has left EU member-states and citizens disen-
chanted and fearful of what they see as Brusselss
overreach. Brussels will do well to heed the lessons
of Brexit. This can be done in at least two ways.
First, by focussing on the big picture and on areas
where it has a comparative advantage while letting
national governments take the lead in others.
Second, by encouraging members to engage more
rigorously with their citizens on EU issues ex-
plaining policies and their outcomes, collecting
feedback, and inviting ideas. These steps will go a
long way towards, to use Mr. Tusks phrase, not let-
ting this crisis go to waste.
CM
YK
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Letters emailed to letters@thehindu.co.in must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.
Terror strike in Uri
The predawn attack on an army
camp in Uri only reaffirms that
Pakistan is in the habit of triggering
fresh violence in the Kashmir Valley
(17 jawans killed in pre-dawn strike
in Uri, Sept.19). A country that has
never seen a full-fledged democracy
blooming ever since its
independence has always relied on
violence to achieve its objective. It is
high time that India exposes
Pakistans nefarious designs in
aiding, abetting and sending
terrorists to harm India so that any
attempt at initiating peace gets
derailed and Jammu and Kashmir is
kept on the boil always.
K.R. Srinivasan,
Secunderabad
Pakistan is a terrorist state and
should be identified and isolated. As
India has become a victim of
terrorism exported by Pakistan for
decades, the government must take
measures to impress upon all
nations Pakistans real identity as a
fount of terrorism.
J.P. Reddy,
Nalgonda, Telangana
Pakistan-sponsored terrorism has
emerged as a grave threat to peace
and stability in the region and the
development of South Asia. Like it
or not, the fidayeen attack at Uri has
hastened the prospect of a military
confrontation between India and
Pakistan. War clouds are now
hovering over the subcontinent as
the Indian security establishment
seems to be mulling over different
options to respond. We are a peace-
loving country, but it does not mean
that we can be taken for granted by
our hostile neighbour for whom
terror is a key instrument of its state
policy.
M. Jeyaram,
Sholavandan, Tamil Nadu
Pakistan will no doubt deny its
involvement in the attack. But it
cannot hide from the fact that
terrorists are operating from bases
in Pakistan. If it cannot eliminate
these bases, it should get help from
outside. The ultimate solution to the
problem of terrorism lies in India
reclaiming Pakistan- Occupied
Kashmir. There are some in India
who repeatedly advocate carrying
forward the dialogue process. But
dialogue with whom? The LeT and
the JeM? These organisations are
hardly enamoured of the Gandhian
philosophy of peace.
K.R. Jayaprakash Rao,
Mysuru
The attack is a cowardly attempt by
anti-national elements to perpetrate
and perpetuate terror on Indian
territory. It is unfortunate that even
after being admonished publicly and
warned of strict action against any
form of outrageous aggression and
violation of ceasefire agreement, the
leadership of Pakistan has not
mended its ways. However,
prudence demands that India should
not let its strategic interests in
engaging with Pakistan be
undermined by jingoistic
provocations from extremist forces.
A sustained dialogue process is
necessary for strong bilateral ties
and a robust confidence-building
mechanism to attain the objectives
of trade, sporting and cultural
interactions. Building trust through
sustained engagement and
concluding agreements on
economic cooperation can provide a
more favourable context to address
grievances on both sides. India
should look at exploiting tactical
options and protesting
diplomatically for riposte against
Pakistan to create strong
disincentives for its hostile actions.
Shreyans Jain,
Mumbai
Mere condemnation or criticism,
both national or international, will
not suffice. The question thus arises:
should we continue to be treated as a
sleeping giant and let the episode
cool down, or do we act firmly? How
long should we take it lying down?
We are a powerful and strong nation research a problem and search for
and must have faith and confidence
in ourselves. We do not need
international approval to take action
against Pakistan.
S.P. Sharma,
Mumbai
Blow for knowledge
Most institutes of repute have
academic course packs that
comprise books by foreign authors
and publications which help a
student develop their ideas and
outlook. Most students pore over
such books in a library for hours
taking down copious notes, but there
are limitations of time.
Most often, a student is unable to
afford such highly priced books.
Keeping in mind limited
infrastructure for reading facilities
in libraries in India, and in order to
expand the domain of knowledge, it
is essential to allow content to be
delivered to students. Books are
meant to enhance the knowledge of
pupils and such freedom is granted
indirectly through Section 52 of the
Copyright Act. One hopes that the
publishers concerned do not
challenge the Delhi High Court
verdict (A blow for the right to
knowledge, Sept.19).
Dimpy Bhatia,
New Delhi
The way forward is to acquire
sufficient numbers of publications as
student editions, probably at highly
subsidised prices, and making them
available to students. Using textbook
material as a teaching aid in the
course of instruction to students
justice, whether it is uniform or plural.
Mary E. John is Senior Fellow, Centre for Womens
Development Studies. Hasina Khan is a member of Forum
Against Oppression of Women, Mumbai and founder
member of Bebaak Collective. The views expressed are
personal.
definitely does not amount to get their findings patented, wouldnt
infringement of copyright. But the world have suffered? I would
photocopying amounts to also like to pose this question to
unauthorised reproduction and may those who talk about copyright and
not enjoy the exemptions granted are based in the West: dont you
under the Copyright Act. Further, it borrow traditional knowledge
does not encourage students to from indigenous populations and get
away with it? When you patent them,
additional material to develop their what about the rights of the
skills and originality. indigenous populations?
I feel the IPR of the publisher has to Naveen Rattu,
be protected as most reputed Chandigarh
publishers have the clause no part
of the publication may be Questions and issues
reproduced, stored in a retrieval
system, or transmitted, in any form While ideas fly thick and fast on the
or by any means, without prior self-inflicted death of Ramkumar,
permission in writing or expressly one point looms large (Swathi
permitted by law. Neither is there murder accused commits suicide,
permission under the Indian Sept.19). Only last week, in the
Reprographic Rights Organisation. Soumya case, the Supreme Court of
Newspapers, journals and India commuted concurrent death
periodicals can get their publication penalties to life imprisonment which
costs offset by way of advertisement fuelled an outburst of public
revenues, which does not happen in disapproval.
the case of publishing houses. This may revive the need to have the
death penalty to be awarded in
Pavitra Palagummi,
Hyderabad appropriate cases in the statute
book. The other areas of concern are
The judgment has boosted the the novel methods of committing
morale of the student community. suicide by prison inmates, the
This semester, we were told to refer lengthy time for a final verdict
to a publication by a foreign author. during which prisoners need to be
When I located the book in a large kept under constant vigil, and, more
chain store, the rupee equivalent of importantly, the revival of the debate
the books price in dollars came to about the desirability of abolishing
more than Rs.10,000. The photocopy the death sentence.
store in my college offered to do the
V. Lakshmanan,
whole book for Rs.500. I wish the Tirupur, Tamil Nadu
copyright system facilitates the
growth of knowledge.
Vedant Mishra, The suicide obviously raises many
Unnao, Uttar Pradesh questions about the safety of
prisoners and the government owes
The article highlights the growing us an explanation. The way the case
confrontation between the patent/ proceeded is odd and raises many
copyright regime and the not-so- questions. There appears to have
privileged ones. How many Indian been an attempt to save face. The
students can afford to buy books that episode only underlines the need to
cost over Rs.300? Had Roentgen (the introduce police reforms.
discoverer of X-rays) or Alexander S. Venugopalan,
Fleming (for penicillin) chosen to Chennai
ND-ND
 1ias.com NOIDA/DELHI

10 | EDITORIAL THE HINDU WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2016

The best among limited options

In an interconnected world where India is seen as a rising, responsible power, it is necessary to temper
the voices being heard about paying Pakistan back in its own coin
capture of one of the attackers. Yet and blockade on that country. Pakistan has every
W E D N E S D AY , S E P T E M B E R 2 1 , 2 0 1 6 despite the fact that many of the attack vic- reason to be certain that China would not go
M.K. NARAYANAN tims were foreigners deciding on a along with any such Indian initiative. Apart
coherent response that would adhere to in- from this, Pakistans importance vis--vis

Copyright and In the early dawn of September 18, Pakistani

ternational best practices had proved
difficult.
The Cabinet Committee on Security (at
Chinas One Belt, One Road initiative, and the
criticality of the China-Pakistan Economic
Corridor in Chinas overall geostrategic

copy-making irregulars belonging to the Jaish-e-Mo-

hammed (JeM) attacked an Army camp in the
Uri sector of Jammu and Kashmir, killing 18
the time headed by former Prime Minister
Manmohan Singh) had examined and con-
sidered several options. It was not pusillan-
plans make it highly unlikely that China
would take sides against Pakistan. Other
Asian nations, including members of ASEAN

T
he Delhi High Court verdict that photo-
copying portions of academic publi-
cations to make course packs for students
does not amount to copyright infringe-
ment has been interpreted by many as a victory for
the wider public interest of ensuring affordable ac-
cess to quality educational material.The only ques-
tion of law that arose in the suit filed byOxford Uni-
versity Press, Cambridge University Press and
Taylor & Francis was whether the making of course
packs by the Delhi University by authorising a pho-
tocopying store to make numerous copies of course
material drawn from different books amounts to
copyright infringement. The court says copyright
is not a natural or common law right in India, but is
subject to statute. It proceeds to hold that photo-
copying for academic purposes is not an infringe-
ment as Section 52(1)(i) of the Copyright Act per-
mits the making of copies of literary works by a
teacher or pupil in the course of instruction, a
phrase interpreted to cover whole academic ses-
sions, from the preparation of syllabus onwards.
Given that the law contains provisions barring
infringement of copyright and listing acts that do
not constitute infringement, there is no doubt that
the legislature wanted to balance copyright protec-
tion with the public interest in ensuring access. In-
terestingly, the judge sees the no infringement
clauses as being consistent with articles in the
Berne Convention and the Agreement on Trade-
Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights,
which provide for domestic legislation to permit
reproductions for specific purposes, as long as they
do not conflict with normal exploitation of the
works or unreasonably prejudice the rights-holder.
The publishers have argued, in vain, that uni-
versities should not allow unrestricted photocopy-
ing, but instead apply for licences through the Indi-
an Reprographic Rights Organisation, a registered
copyright society. The publishers may pursue this
aspect in their appeal, if there is one. The verdict
may justly raise the concern whether conferring
unrestricted reprographic rights on academic insti-
tutions will drive reputed publishers out of the field
of education. It is true that academic publications,
especially international ones, are expensive, put-
ting them beyond the reach of many students. But
the question is whether the balance between the
competing interests has been fully preserved in the
law. If reputed publishers feel that there is insuffi-
cient copyright protection and back out of educa-
tional publishing in the country, it will be equally
injurious to the public interest.
jawans and inflicting grievous casualties on
many more. The fidayeen were able to
breach the Line of Control as also the camps
security, employing a combination of incen-
diary grenades and close-quarter weapons to
inflict heavy casualties.
Questions are being raised as to how this
could happen when Jammu and Kashmir was
on maximum alert this being one of the
worst periods in the States history since the
1990s. This is, however, not the time for intro-
spection on security breaches and failures;
there are far more serious matters on hand.
Uri and the UN
The Uri attack had an eerie similarity to
the attack on the Pathankot Air Force base in
January this year, in which seven security
personnel were killed. Lessons from that in-
cident obviously have not filtered down.
What is significant is that the JeM was re-
sponsible for both attacks. The JeM even
more than the Lashkar-e-Taiba is the hand-
maiden of Pakistans Inter-Services Intelli-
gence (ISI). It obeys implicitly, and acts dir-
ectly on, the directions of the ISI. There is,
hence, a message in the latest attack, coming
as it does straight from the deepest recesses
of the Pakistani Deep State.
The timing is hardly fortuitous. The care-
fully planned attack with intelligence ob-
viously provided by the ISI was timed to
coincide with the debate in the UN General
Assembly (featuring both Pakistans Prime
Minister and Indias External Affairs
Minister), thus helping rivet world attention
to an otherwise hardy annual event.
Whatever be the nature of evidence pro-
duced by India, Pakistan will still remain in
denial.
The question is: quo vadis, India-Pakistan
relations? Tensions remain high on both
CARTOONSCAPE
Pakistans military is anxious to
engage in a conflict to gauge
how soon the world and its allies
like China would step in and
internationalise the dispute
sides. All of India feels that mere impotent
rage and euphuistic excesses are insufficient.
There is clamour for action, all the more be-
cause the present government had come into
office promising strong action against
Pakistan after accusing the United
Progressive Alliance government of pusillan-
imity vis--vis the neighbour. The shoe is
now on the other foot, and the wearer is since
learning where the shoe pinches.
Words, options and actions
Strong words had similarly accompanied
the attack on the Indian Parliament (2001)
and Operation Parakram (2001-02) in the
wake of the Kargil conflict. Policymakers at
that time had been compelled to step back
subsequently on account of the prevailing in-
ternational climate.
India faced a similar dilemma following
the multiple terror attacks in Mumbai city on
November 26, 2008, in which over 170 people
were killed. Pakistans perfidy was clearly
proven in this instance, following the live
imity, but mature judgment based on a cost-
effective analysis, that led to the withholding
of direct action in the form of an overt attack
on Pakistani targets. A mature nation like In-
dia could hardly afford to function like a
rogue state, viz. Pakistan.
Mature response the key
The need for caution is even more imperat-
ive today, as not only is the world more inter-
connected and events in any one region do
have a geopolitical impact, but the stakes for
India as one of the worlds leading economic
powers have become considerable. It is,
hence, necessary to temper the voices being
heard about paying Pakistan back in its own
coin, that strategic restraint is pass, and that
the government must exercise the military
option. Many former members of the armed
forces are seen indulging in rhetoric that
verges on jingoism. This could prove dan-
gerous at a time when emotions are running
high. Pakistans military is anxious to engage
in a conflict not so much to assess its own ca-
pabilities, but to gauge how soon the world
and its allies like China would step in and in-
ternationalise the conflict, including issues
such as Kashmir.
The foremost issue before India, at
present, would thus be whether to maintain
diplomatic relations with Pakistan at the ex-
isting level or not. It is important to rec-
ognise, however, that while we can choose
our friends, we cannot select our neighbours.
Once diplomatic relations are broken, heal-
ing the rift will become still more difficult.
The next issue for India would be whether
it is possible to impose a heavy economic
burden on Pakistan. The inherent weakness
in any such step is that few nations would be
willing to follow Indias lead and, treating
Pakistan as an outcast, impose an economic
(Association of Southeast Asian Nations),
may also be less than willing to take sides in a
conflict of this kind.
Utmost care again needs to be taken when
considering any military option. Pakistan
may be a basket case approximating to
North Korea, but like the latter it is a militar-
ised state which has nuclear teeth. In 2008,
India did not exercise the military option not
due to any fears of a possible nuclear conflict,
but because of the futility of resorting to any
such step as it was likely to be indeterminate.
The decision to eschew the military option
was based on mature consideration of all
facts available at that time. In retrospect, it
greatly added to Indias prestige, instead of
the country being equated with a rogue state
like Pakistan. India also won the perception
war, gaining international support and sym-
pathy, while Pakistan was consigned to the
position of an international outcast.
Sober reflection, not strikes
Sub-military options available to India to
put pressure on Pakistan are not too many. In
2008, after the Mumbai attacks, similar sug-
gestions had been made by some experts
from outside the government. These were
not considered viable, as merely hitting a few
terrorist training camps inside Pakistan-oc-
cupied Kashmir was hardly likely to hurt
Pakistan. At the time, India lacked the capa-
bility to carry out spectacular raids like the
one by the Israel Defense Forces at Entebbe
and German GSG 9 forces in Mogadishu in
the 1970s or the taking out of Osama bin
Laden in Abbottabad by the U.S. Navy SEALs
in 2011.
The reality is that Indias security agen-
cies, including the armed forces, still do not
have adequate capabilities of this kind not-
withstanding claims to the contrary. The
Army, the Navy and the Air Force do have
their Special Forces, but unlike the U.K.s
Special Air Service (SAS) and Special Boat
Service (SBS), the Green Berets and SEALs of
the U.S., Germanys GSG 9 and Russias Spet-
snaz, these are primarily intended for milit-
ary operations behind the lines during a
period of war. They are not capable of any in-
dependent operation. The Special Frontier
Force has some capability for very limited
operations and in specified circumstances.
The National Security Guard, though raised
as a counter-terrorist force, is not in the same
league as the GSG 9.
All this should induce sober reflection. In-
dia is, of course, in a position to engage in a
water war with Pakistan, to deprive Pakistan
of water from the Indus river. This would, of

500 and course, mean reneging on Indias interna-

tional obligations under the Indus Waters
Treaty.
counting Perhaps, Indias best option would be to
engage in cyber sabotage and cyberwarfare,

M
ilestones are curious things in cricket.
Round numbers such as fifty, the
century, ten-wicket hauls and career
runs in multiples of 1000 allow a
measure of achievement in a sport. They also offer
a moments pause to reflect. As India prepares for
its 500th Test a milestone 84 years in the making
it seems apposite to assess its legacy in the
games classical form. It is also germane to consider
the future, given the fear in some quarters that the
shorter versions will cannibalise Test cricket.
There was certainly nothing in the early years to
suggest India would become the economic super-
power it is today. Although the great Wally Ham-
mond said new-ball bowler Amar Singh came off
the pitch like the crack of doom in Indias first-ever
Test, against England at Lords in 1932, success
proved elusive. While there were moments of
individual brilliance Vijay Hazares twin hun-
dreds against Ray Lindwall and Keith Miller at Ad-
elaide in 1948, perhaps the most memorable of
them it wasnt until 1952 that India won a Test.
M.A.K. Pataudi first pursued the idea of a vibrant,
united team in the 1960s, and bequeathed it to Ajit
Wadekar. The coming together of E.A.S. Prasanna,
B.S. Chandrasekhar, Bishan Bedi, and S. Venkatar-
aghavan spinners the cricket world remains in
awe of and the arrival of the indomitable Sunil
Gavaskar not long after, formed the nucleus of the
side that beat West Indies and England away in 1971.
With the emergence of Kapil Dev a world-class,
all-round match-winner there was more for
other countries to be wary of. But it wasnt until
after the turn of the millennium that India became
consistently successful, home and away. The ri-
valry against Australia, birthed in 2001 at Eden Gar-
dens, was transformative. In Sachin Tendulkar,
Rahul Dravid, Anil Kumble, V.V.S. Laxman,
Virender Sehwag, Sourav Ganguly and Zaheer
Khan, India had a Golden Generation. M.S. Dhoni
was the first of a new era of players to break through
from smaller, less traditional cricket centres, and
for a period India was the worlds best team. That
crown slipped subsequently, but matters have sel-
dom appeared as encouraging as they do now. At
the helm are two men with an empathy for bowlers:
Virat Kohlis declaration last year that bowlers
were the bosses in Test cricket was momentous for
a culture obsessed with batsmen; and few know
more about bowling teams to victory than Kumble.
As West Indies and Australia, the only two nations
to have put out truly dominant teams, have shown,
a lot falls into place when the bowlers are looked
after. If the Board of Control for Cricket in India
continues being supportive and it must be com-
mended for laying out a 13-Test home season the
foundation for the next 500 will be suitably robust.
CM
YK
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Letters emailed to letters@thehindu.co.in must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.
Uri and a response
A national security doctrine is only
as good as the national will to
enforce it. Our response to every
terror attack emanating from
Pakistan has become predictably
routine there is a wave of public
anger demanding revenge against
Pakistan and the government
vowing a suitable retaliation
(Editorial Responding to Uri,
Sept.20). However, nothing happens
afterwards as the masterminds of
terror in Pakistan wait for the fury
and indignation to subside before
launching their next attack. The Uri
attack should be dealt with
differently. Since the terrorists are
trained by Pakistans military-
security establishment, they are
nothing but proxies for the Pakistani
Army. India has all the evidence of
the Pakistani militarys involvement,
and it has the right to hit back in a
manner and at a time of its choice.
India needs to change Pakistans
perception that there are no costs to
be paid for maintaining two armies
the regular army kept in the
barracks and another irregular army
of brainwashed youth sent to die in
India.
V.N. Mukundarajan,
Thiruvananthapuram
After the initial demand for the
whole jaw for a tooth, it is clear
that the Modi government does not
seem, as of now, inclined to resort to
any retributive military action.
While it is true that a military
offensive, whatever its scale, has its
own unpredictable cost, its absence,
despite repeated provocations from
Pakistan, does betray a sense of
helplessness. It raises questions
about our claim of being a strong
nation under a strong leader. How
long do we keep watching our
soldiers bleeding on our soil?
S.K. Choudhury,
Bengaluru
A common code
The debate on the uniform civil code
has once again gained ground with
the BJP coming to power. The intent
seems to be to target the autonomy
of Muslims because the debate
seems to recognise Muslim personal
laws as being the sole reason for the
inequalities Muslim women face.
But the reality is that women in
every religious or cultural group
face some sort of inequality. There is
a need to bring in Muslims under a
common code in a harmonious
manner. Every religious group
should also be encouraged to get
involved in this debate.
Karan Choudhary,
Pathankot, Punjab
Blow for knowledge
The argument of Lawrence Liang is
lopsided (A blow for the right to
knowledge, Sept.19). The copyright
law does not restrict anybody
teacher or student from taking
down notes from a book in any form
printed or digital. The issue is also
not about advances in technology.
There is no place for any complex
legalese or jurisprudence here.
When I write a book, I am spending
time and resources in trying to
present the subject in a manner that
an average student too can
understand it well. A publisher then
spends time and resources using
professional skills to improve its
readability and embellishes it in
several other ways. It is only after
these processes that a book is
published. Very few readers
understand this. When so much
effort has gone into it, the writer and
publisher, using the principles of
natural justice and a statutory
framework, deserve protection. That
protection is copyright
quintessentially. The intent of the
photocopy operator is to derive
simple commercial benefit while the
intent of the user is to get the
content practically free. The matter
has to be taken up for appeal.
N. Subrahmanyam,
Hyderabad
Lawrence Liang advises publishers
at the end of his ill-considered
eulogy of the Delhi High Court
judgment to remember that it is
education and greater access that
makes readers and not copyright.
Providing adequate educational
facilities to all, with public libraries
and book banks, and giving student
loans for the purchase of books seem
to be unimportant in his view, not to
mention the really terrible
disincentive this law will be to
writers and researchers in every
field, and to creativity in general.
They stand to lose their royalties
from the sales of their books. This is
anti-intellectualism disguised as
right to knowledge. We seem to be
well on the way to becoming a truly
mediocre society.
Vasantha Surya,
New Delhi
138 not out
There are very few newspapers in
the world which have such an
hiding behind the plausible deniability avail-
able in such attacks. Our capacity in this area
is considerable, and it should be possible to
engage in extensive cyber sabotage and cy-
berwarfare to bring Pakistan to its knees.
This may be worth examining, instead of
adopting tit for tat methods with a rogue
nation.
M.K. Narayanan is a former National Security Adviser and
former Governor of West Bengal.
unparalleled record such as The in the crest, the paper is definitely
Hindus, of continuously expanding growing from strength to strength.
their base of readers since inception T.S. Karthik,
and disseminating news with Chennai
extraordinary clarity and without
bias. The fact that the trusted and Its clear and firm views, crisp
reliable newspaper has completed editorials, and comprehensive
138 years is a proud moment for coverage of events that are governed
millions of its readers across the by the principles of integrity and
globe. One hopes that The Hindu credibility are praiseworthy. As an
will continue to march on. ardent reader for the past six
M. Jeyaram, decades, I am happy to note that it is
Sholavandan, Tamil Nadu now Indias second largest-
circulated English daily.
I have been reading The Hindu for A.J. Rangarajan,
more than three decades now. In Chennai
between I switched to other dailies
but returned as one cannot forget I have been a reader since boyhood
the unique bond one has with the 1957 and am happy that the
paper. I recollect a South Asian daily has crossed another milestone.
proverb: When eating fruit, It has a great past, a contemporary
remember who planted the tree. outlook, and a bright future. It is
K. Jayanthi, indeed a great companion right
Chennai through the day.
Maruthachalam Karunakaran,
A journey of 138 years is extremely Erode, Tamil Nadu
commendable and one has to thank
the founders who painstakingly As a septuagenarian bonded to The
propelled the newspaper to greater Hindu for over six decades, I am
heights, even making it a referral elated that the daily is 138 years. It
guide for youngsters to learn the has many firsts to its credit, worthy
alien language of English. However, of appreciation and emulation. I
it is painful to note that Corrections wish it success in all its endeavours.
and Clarifications occupies much Tharcius S. Fernando,
space every day. Chennai
Ramaswamy Mahadevan,
Chennai I have been a reader since 1974 as my
father told me to read only The
A favourite question asked in Hindu. It is because of The Hindu
quizzes during my college days used that I am able to understand, speak
to be: What was founded by 6 and write in English to an extent. I
people on 20 September 1878 with studied up to PUC (Tamil medium)
one rupee and twelve annas of and it was the daily that became my
borrowed money? We would English teacher. My day is complete
chorus: The Hindu. Like only after I have read the paper.
Airavatham, the divine elephant S. Ganapathy,
which stands for strength and seen Chennai
ND-ND
10 | 1ias.com EDITORIAL THE HINDU THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2016
NOIDA/DELHI

The economy on autopilot

T H U R S D AY , S E P T E M B E R 2 2 , 2 0 1 6
Managing the
The Modi government had inherited an economy with quite rapidly accelerating growth and steadily
declining inflation. It has barely managed to maintain this scenario
sector. Any significant change in the invest- Singapore model, which recognises the
ment scenario would depend upon the ac- value of high human capital in its leadership,
PULAPRE tions of this segment. something that India has not seen since the
BALAKRISHNAN time of Jawaharlal Nehru. Prime Minister
Sticking to fiscal consolidation Modi is right to have invited this global
As the Narendra Modi government inches
Right now private investment is very
likely being restrained by the weak balance
leader to participate in a brainstorming on
how to transform India, thus drawing much-

Cauvery dispute towards its halfway mark, its economic phi-

losophy stands revealed. This appears to
consist of aiming at some ideal institutional
sheet of firms. The flip side of this is the high
level of non-performing assets (NPAs) of the
public commercial banks. Forcing these
needed attention to the achievements of
Singapore. Though its cultural policies may
not be to everyones taste, the economic

J
udicial intervention often resolves questions
that the executive finds too sensitive to handle.
By directing the Centre to constitute a Cauvery
Management Board within four weeks, the Su-
preme Court has created space for the water-shar-
ing dispute to be handled in a scientific and re-
sponsible manner by a legally constituted technical
body. The board, assisted by a regulation commit-
tee, is the mechanism prescribed by the Tribunal in
its final order for implementing its award. It will be
a technical body consisting of irrigation engineers
and agronomists, and will have independent mem-
bers as well as representatives of the basin States. It
can formulate the manner in which water should be
shared in a season of distress. The courts interven-
tion also exposes the helplessness of governments
at the Centre in handling inter-State issues. It is part
of a long historical pattern. It was at the instance of
the Supreme Court that the Cauvery Water Dis-
putes Tribunal was formed more than a quarter
century ago; and again, it required court orders to
pave the way for an interim award to be passed in
1991, and for it to be notified in the Gazette of India
later. It took another order for the Tribunals final
award of 2007 to be notified in 2013, six years later.
The court has done a significant service in nudging
the Centre to provide a legal and technical frame-
work for the equitable distribution of water.
This is not the first attempt to create an institu-
tional mechanism. In 2013, the Centre notified the
formation of a Supervisory Committee consisting
of the Secretary, Union Water Resources Ministry,
as chairman, and the Chief Secretaries of the basin
States as members. That the latest decision of the
Supervisory Committee, which directed the re-
lease of 3,000 cusecs of water for 10 days to Tamil
Nadu, did not find favour with either State shows
the difficulties involved in managing inter-State
disputes even through an institutional mechanism.
The Supreme Court, too, has intervened to double
the quantum of water to be released. All this shows
that apart from permanent mechanisms, technical
panels and seasonal adjudication, a spirit of accom-
modation is required among the basin States. Also
needed is a clearer appreciation of the fact that the
entire water yield in the Cauvery basin is not
enough to provide for the requirements of both
States. It is time for Karnataka and Tamil Nadu to
take a hard look at their agricultural economies: the
area under cultivation, the number of crops per
year and the water-intensive nature of the crops.
Unless these are adjusted to suit the water availabil-
ity, such disputes will keep surfacing.
Putin tightens
his grip
architecture while leaving economic forces
to play out on their own. The criterion of
macroeconomic stability, defined mainly by
inflation kept within a range, completes the
picture. Underpinning such an approach is
the premise that the potential of the econo-
my, reflecting the chosen acts of private
agents, not only cannot be improved upon by
the government but its realisation could ac-
tually be stymied by intervention. This is a
well-known position in the canon of Anglo-
American economics tending towards the
view that market outcomes are the best. The
maxim minimum government is maximum
governance could legitimately claim to be
its progeny.
Life in the slow lane
How, it may be asked, has this philosophy
served the economy? We could start with
growth. Since May 2014, growth has acceler-
ated but at a much slower rate than that it al-
ready had commenced upon in 2013-14. India
today is the worlds fastest growing economy
but this we owe to the fact that China has
slowed more than India has. India has not ex-
actly surged to number one position. But
more importantly, the government has not
so far been able to achieve the substantial
quickening of the economy that Mr. Modi
had promised at election time. The govern-
ment has on occasion extolled its record in
maintaining macroeconomic stability. This
is indeed correct. Inflation has declined but
this only reflects a downward trend that had
started in 2013-14. The government would
also no doubt like to take credit for sticking
to the pre-announced fiscal consolidation
path. The fiscal deficit has steadily declined
since May 2014. The Finance Ministers pub-
lic statements suggest that he treats this as a
significant achievement of his government.
Actually, it typifies the search for the ideal
architecture without sufficient concern for
outcomes. The truth is that this government
had inherited an economy with quite rapidly
CARTOONSCAPE
ILLUSTRATION: KESHAV
Most capital formation is done
by the domestic private sector.
Any significant change in the
investment scenario would depend
upon the actions of this segment
accelerating growth and steadily declining
inflation. It has barely managed to maintain
this scenario. The promised resurgence has
not materialised.
It is with respect to investment that the
governments record is uninspiring. Far from
having been able to instil confidence among
private investors, the government has been
unable to stem a decline in capital formation
as a share of output in progress for at
least half a decade. On its part the govern-
ment takes recourse to the figures on foreign
direct investment (FDI) to signal the effect-
iveness of its policies. Data from the Depart-
ment of Industrial Policy and Promotion
show that in the year just passed, the econo-
my attracted increased FDI up to 29 per cent
in dollar terms. While this is impressive, and
to be welcomed, it is important to have a
sense of what it amounts to. In the year 2014-
15, FDI amounted to a mere 4 per cent of total
capital formation in India. So, while FDI is to
be encouraged, its ability to make a signific-
ant contribution to growth is limited. On the
other hand, over 75 per cent of capital forma-
tion is undertaken by the domestic private
banks to lend would be poor policy. But it is
not clear whether everything that can be
done to lower the lending rate is being done.
After all, consumer price index (CPI) infla-
tion, the Reserve Bank of Indias (RBI) pre-
ferred inflation index, is trending downward
and there is a case for lowering lending rates.
But the RBI has now been put into the strait-
jacket of inflation targeting and can no long-
er respond to considerations of output. This
leaves fiscal policy as the only instrument
with the government.
The government, however, is reluctant to
use it to increase aggregate demand for fear
of deviating from its fiscal consolidation
path. It is of course possible to step up public
investment by trimming subsidies. Here the
National Democratic Alliance governments
approach is cravenly political, and no differ-
ent from that of its predecessor, the United
Progressive Alliance. It is reluctant to be
seen as cutting subsidies even when it is
clear that a rupee-for-rupee swap in certain
subsidies for public capital formation is
likely to be beneficial for both growth and
welfare. The fertilizer subsidy presents the
most obvious instance. It has done little to
stem the rise in food prices while continuing
to take up precious fiscal space. There is a
strong case for reviewing its continuation, at
least in the present form. Well-designed em-
pirical research alone can settle the matter of
its desirability, and one hopes the govern-
ment will provide this in time for its third an-
nual Budget.
Looking for inspiration
An object of this governments admiration
has been revealed to us in the choice of
speaker for the first NITI Aayog Lecture on
Transforming India. It chose Tharman Shan-
mugaratnam, the Deputy Prime Minister of
Singapore who was earlier its Finance
Minister for close to a decade. A trained
economist with considerable international
exposure, Mr. Shanmugaratnam typifies the
transformation that this tiny state has so
quickly wrought is most impressive indeed.
There is an astounding presence there of
public capital in the form of infrastructure,
the most egregious of which is public hous-
ing which hosts over 80 per cent of the popu-
lation. Along with its approach to political
freedoms, Singapores record is closer to that
of socialist planning rather than free-market
capitalism. Its government has not hesitated
to intervene in the economy but its interven-
tions have been made with a finesse that has
yielded substantial returns. It is ironic that a
government that had so ceremoniously re-
placed the Planning Commission must sim-
ultaneously seek clues from the history of a
country transformed by economic planning.
There is one specific area in which our
own government may learn from the Singa-
pore experience. The government there had
instituted a provident fund to which all
workers and employees have had to
contribute. These contributions ensured a
rise in the saving rate which in turn was a
source of funding for public investment. In
the muddled discourse on fiscal policy in In-
dia today, the reigning argument appears to
be that a fixed private saving rate sets the
limit for the attainable fiscal deficit. This
overlooks the possibility of raising the pri-
vate saving rate, which is precisely what the
Singapore government had done early in its
history, enabling it to achieve a scale of pub-
lic capital formation that truly distinguishes
it from India. All indications are that the
present government of India is striving to
replicate Singapores institutional architec-
ture, as in laws governing business, rather
than the transformative role of public invest-
ment that turned a fishing village into a glob-
al destination for FDI. What other conclu-
sion can be drawn from the fact that in the
Budget for 2016-17 the increase in the alloca-
tion for capital expenditure amounted to a
mere 2.3 per cent, with inflation running at
around 4 per cent per annum?
Bleak agricultural landscape
A sector that is unlikely to be well served
by the philosophy than an economy left to its
own devices will achieve its potential is agri-
culture. Three of the past five years in India
have been years of poor agricultural per-
formance, reflected in persistent food price
inflation. We are very likely witnessing
creeping climate change with direct con-
sequences for production. The advisory
from most funds in the financial sector is
that the economic outlook this year will de-
pend upon the monsoon. It is surprising that
the imperative of drought-proofing an in-
creasingly vulnerable Indian agriculture
hardly figures in the public discourse on the
economy when it is of no less importance
than rolling out the Goods and Services Tax.
Nothing short of a transformation akin to the
Green Revolution can achieve this, and the

T
he outcome of Russias parliamentary
election was never in question. The
United Russia party of President Vladi-
mir Putin has dominated the political
landscape ever since it was founded in 2001. Even
so, the margin of the victory was unexpected. The
September 18 elections were held against the back-
drop of a protracted economic crisis, tensions be-
tween Russia and the West, and a war of attrition in
the countrys neighbourhood. Lower oil prices and
western sanctions have hit ordinary Russians hard.
Russias economy contracted by 3.7 per cent last
year and is expected to shrink further by 0.7 per
cent this year. Conventional wisdom suggests that
economic hardships trigger anti-incumbency sen-
timent. But in Mr. Putins Russia just the opposite
has happened. When the results were declared, his
party won more than three-quarters of the 450-
member Duma. The Communist Party and the
Liberal Democratic Party have retained some pres-
ence in the national Parliament, while the Yabloko
and the Parnas, the two liberal parties critical of the
Kremlin, failed to even enter the Duma. This could
partly be because of the lack of a united opposition
in Russia. The Communists and Liberal Democrats
are hardly opposition parties, and agree with the
Kremlin on most policy decisions. The anti-Krem-
lin parties have failed in, or been hindered from,
building a broad base among the electorate. Alexey
Navalny, the leader of the popular anti-government
protests of 2011, has been barred from contesting
elections. Boris Nemtsov, another popular opposi-
tion leader, was shot dead last year in Moscow. At
present, there is no opposition leader in a position
to challenge the personality cult of Mr. Putin.
In any case, memories of the anarchic pre-Putin
era may still be prompting Russians to stick by him.
Mr. Putin is largely credited with fixing the econo-
my and providing a stable political leadership to the
country. Under his watch, Russia has come out of
its self-imposed strategic retreat and started play-
ing an active global role. Russias annexation of
Crimea from Ukraine and a combative foreign
policy in Syria and elsewhere have proved popular
among his domestic constituents. But the Russian
economy continues to be heavily dependent on en-
ergy exports. If crude oil prices remain low for
long, economic pain will persist. Though the mus-
cular foreign policy is popular at home, Moscow
has had to pay a heavy price for it. Whatever Mr.
Putin had done in his first and second terms to re-
build ties with Europe, particularly with Germany,
lies in a shambles in the wake of the Ukraine crisis.
If Mr. Putin wants to rebuild Russia as a credible
global power, a persistent economic crisis and a
stormy neighbourhood are not going to help.
CM
YK
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Letters emailed to letters@thehindu.co.in must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.
After Uri, the options
The analytical article, The best
among limited options (Sept. 21),
was an eye-opener as far as assessing
our military capabilities are
concerned. However, the suggestion
of cyber sabotage and a cyberwar
will not be effective as Pakistan is
bound to seek the assistance of
China to counter such a move. This
is certainly a very ineffective way to
deal with a rogue nation like
Pakistan. We need to adopt a more
proactive stand.
G.M. Rama Rao,
Visakhapatnam
Direct action is certainly
inadvisable as India has everything
at stake economic superiority,
prosperity, honour and position
which will be lost in no time.
Pakistan has to be dealt with
diplomatically, strategically and
tactically.
Shiv Shankar Gupta,
New Delhi
We have been mature enough so far
not to resort to any sort of knee-jerk
reaction. There are a number of
options such as covert operations,
resorting to economic blockades,
and ending diplomatic relations.
Most feasible among these would be
resorting to diplomatic isolation
along with an upgradation of border
security infrastructure.
Vivek Rayal,
Dehradun
Crickets magic number
As one who grew up fascinated by
Indian cricket from 1948 onwards, I
find Indian crickets journey to be a
thrilling one (Editorial 500 and
counting, Sept.21). For a long time
since 1932 we were the underdogs
and individual performances
brightened the scenario from time to
time. We rarely functioned as a team.
The rivalry between players and
camps marred the growth of talent.
Today we have a well-knit team. As a
postscript, my fascination for cricket
made me read five national
newspapers every day about our
teams Test performance and I found
S.K. Gurunathans dispatches
(published in The Hindu) to be
lucid, analytical, engaging and very
informative. It was also an era of
powerful pen holders.
Y.G. Chouksey,
Pune
Blow for knowledge
It is premature to say that publishers
will back out of educational
publishing if there is no copyright
protection (Editorial Copyright
and copy-making, Sept.21). Imagine
if universities and the entire
academic community choose to
boycott expensive books or
prescribe cheap Indian textbooks
only for their courses. What will
happen to these publishers? When
there is no one to read your books,
what is the use of protection? The
crux of the problem is that foreign
textbooks are far too expensive for
Indian students by virtue of their
conversion rate. At the same time
there are many university libraries
which have multiple copies of
textbooks and provide textbooks to
students through book banks. No
photocopying is permitted. I think
the publishers associated with the
case have lost sight of their actual
mission and are doing business
purely for profit. Why cant foreign
publishers sell their books in India at
a lower cost so that there will be
greater sales and more volume?
Publishers must help students in
their academic pursuit.
M. Koteswara Rao,
Hyderabad
The Hindu@138
Many students attempting the civil
services examinations are said to
owe much of their success to being
ardent readers of The Hindu.
Therefore, one can well imagine its
impact. I hope that the daily is able
to encourage youngsters to continue
reading especially as they form
nearly 65 per cent of the population.
I have accompanied The Hindu on
its journey, silently and for half its
age, and look forward to seeing it
reach a circulation figure of 2
million shortly!
P.M. Gopalan,
Mumbai
As an avid reader for the past 60-odd
years, I share the honour of being a
part of The Hindu through thick and
thin. Despite having my own
reservations about the Emergency
(1975-1977), when the newspaper
willingly or otherwise toed the line
of establishment, I am still bound to
appreciate its resilience.
Kulasai Yaman,
Tuticorin
I have been an ardent reader for the
past 50 years, right from school.
Every page is presented in a unique
States would have to be on board. The
present government has had little to say on
the matter so far. By disbanding the Planning
Commission, the Centre has lost a long-
standing conduit to the States whose plan-
ning boards did have at least a titular connec-
tion to the former.
Pulapre Balakrishnan teaches economics at Ashoka
University, Sonipat, Haryana. The views expressed are
personal.
way. The Open Page in particular is stenography and secure a first class
interesting. The Friday supplement in post-graduation.
too is a delight for art and music N. Anuradha Srinivas,
aficionados. The newspaper should Coimbatore
continue to be a tool for students to
improve their language skills. Even in this age of digital news, it is
M. Subbiah, amazing that the paper has been able
Chennai to retain its strong print base. It is
one of the few to have a full-fledged
I came to Chennai on August 26, Readers Editor. Reading the
1989, and was lost. I didnt know editorials helped strengthen my
Tamil and was keen to have access to grasp of the English language in
a newspaper that covered the local school. My evenings in the U.S. are
and national news well. My boss incomplete unless I have read the
recommended The Hindu. I soon online edition.
gained confidence in my language Varad Seshadri,
skills. Whenever I travel back home Sunnyvale, California, U.S.
in Gujarat, I feel lost without the
paper as reading it has become a I remember the time when the paper
habit. published letters written by
Ramesh G. Patel, personalities such as
Chennai Subramania Bharati. Such was its
greatness. I hopes this continues.
I am 78, and thanks to my father, S.V. Venugopalan,
have been reading the daily for close Chennai
to 70 years. In our joint family of four
brothers, the paper has been an It is no exaggeration to say that my
integral part of the household. generation improved its grasp and
Reading it has been a habit for five hold over the English language after
generations. Whenever time reading the paper meticulously. In
permits, I read sections of the paper the 1960s, my father used to make
to my visually impaired friend over me read aloud and write down the
the phone. editorials for a period of eight
S. Kanakasabapathy, years. All through my career, this
Chennai helped me score over my colleagues
and competitors in the battle for
I have been a reader of the paper for survival in the executive jungle. In
the past three and a half decades. My the eyes of my father and his ilk,
primary education was in Tamil Wren and Martins English
medium. I started reading at 12. As I Grammar and Composition and
was keen to learn English, my father The Hindu complemented each
put me in an English medium school. other. If news was reported in The
I didnt find it difficult to take Hindu, the dictum was that it must
dictation of the editorial columns in be true and reliable.
shorthand every day, which made Bellur S. Dattatri,
me proficient in higher grade Bengaluru
ND-ND
10 | 1ias.com EDITORIAL THE HINDU FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 2016
NOIDA/DELHI

A pirouette on Pakistan
Through every attack from across the border the government has flipped and flopped. Until India builds a
coherence in its own strategy, it will continue to face such challenges from Pakistan
year, that redline was erased, and the gov- flipped and flopped, explaining itself uncon-
F R I D AY , S E P T E M B E R 2 3 , 2 0 1 6 ernment posed no objection to the High vincingly to even its well-wishers.
SUHASINI HAIDAR Commissioner meeting the Hurriyat a few There is enough evidence to show that
days before the Foreign Secretary-level talks Ms. Swarajs instincts were correct. Nothing

Getting Railways In February this year, shortly after the attack

in Delhi. What the government failed to no-
tice between those two dates in 2014 and
2016 was a hardening of the Pakistani milit-
upsets the elements of the Pakistani estab-
lishment that carry out terror attacks
against India more than a consistent dia-

on track in Pampore, Jammu and Kashmir, a diplomat

belonging to a friendly country delicately
asked an unusual question. His Foreign
arys position on the India policy. Another
missed sign was the clear targeting of NSA
Ajit Doval, Indias main interlocutor with
logue process, and in the past too, it is when
India and Pakistan have come closest to a
breakthrough that their attack is the hardest.

T
hat it took 69 years after Independence
for India to merge the Railway Budget
with the Union Budget is an indication of
how diicult it can be to junk colonial-era
traditions that may have outlived their utility. In
1924, when the first Railway Budget was presented,
the Railways entailed more funds than Indias ex-
penditure on all other aspects of administration
combined. So it made sense to present a separate
Budget. That equation changed long ago, and now
the Railways outlay is just 6 per cent of the total ex-
penditure proposed in the Union Budget for this
year. In fact, revenues from the domestic aviation
business are more than the Railways traic earn-
ings. Nearly Rs.2.5 lakh crore has been planned this
year as defence expenditure, but it found little men-
tion in the Finance Ministers Budget speech. Yet,
the ritual of the Rail Budget has continued even as
the economy opened up over the past 25 years. A
key reason that it lingered so long is Indias frac-
tured polity and the tendency of coalition partners
to demand Railways as a juicy portfolio with its
possibilities for populist posturing and patronage.
With the luxury of a majority in the Lok Sabha and a
Railway Minister like Suresh Prabhu who has re-
fused to use the Rail Budget as a launchpad for new
trains and railway lines, the NDA has thrown its
weight behind a plan that takes away the annual
temptation to make the Railways a vote-magnet.
Indias annual economic jamboree will now be
over in two days the tabling of the Economic Sur-
vey followed by the Union Budget instead of
three. Railway Ministers will no longer need to con-
jure up fancy and often regurgitated promises
about new, improved services for passengers
without charging them the operational costs of re-
aching their destination. The pressure to hold com-
muter fares has skewed the Railways freight rates,
year after year. Indeed, the change is already being
felt; tweaking of tarifs outside the Budget has be-
gun. Consider the changes in coal freight and the
introduction of flexible pricing on premium pas-
senger trains. However, the Centre needs to now
seriously consider setting up an independent tarif
regulator to depoliticise fares. New lines and trains
should be determined by economic viability rather
than the constituencies covered. Initiatives such as
demand-driven clone trains must be deployed to
boost earnings, and the Rs.37,000-crore tab on so-
cial obligations, including concessional ticketing,
must be borne by the exchequer. The Railways ac-
counts need to be cleaned up and made bankable.
Scrapping the Rail Budget is a good starting point
to fix the fading utility. Bringing it back safely on
track will take a lot more doing, and undoing.
The curious death
of Ramkumar
Ministry headquarters were asking if they
should send a message condemning the ter-
rorist attack in which three Army men, two
Central Reserve Police Force personnel and
a civilian had been killed in a siege which
bore resemblance to the Pathankot attack a
month before. The problem, he explained,
was that the Indian government itself was
making no statements on the incident, and
he wasnt sure if statements of support were
welcome or not. A few days after the Pam-
pore incident on February 20, the Ministry
of External Afairs had sought to play it
down, saying only that the matter was still
being investigated. Eventually, the Pam-
pore incident, despite the obvious strains of
evidence linking it to Pakistan-based groups
that oicials on the ground pointed to, was
buried. At the time, the Indian and Pakistani
National Security Advisers (NSAs) were
still talking to each other regularly, said
the government, and a Pakistani investiga-
tion team was coming to Pathankot airbase
to survey evidence.
It is only now, after the Uri tragedy of
September 18, that India has brought up the
number of attacks and attempted infiltra-
tions across the Line of Control (LoC) this
year. Seventeen such attempts have been
interdicted at or around the LoC, resulting
in the elimination of 31 terrorists and pre-
venting their intended acts of terrorism,
Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar told
Pakistan High Commissioner Abdul Basit
when he summoned him on Wednesday. In
fact, there have also been more than 20 at-
tacks on security force installations in
Jammu and Kashmir in the past two years,
including the Pampore attack; another 15
were foiled.
The incident with the diplomat only
serves as a small indicator of how confusing
the governments moves on Pakistan have
CARTOONSCAPE
Nothing upsets the elements of
the Pakistani establishment that
carry out terror attacks against
India more than a consistent
dialogue process
been, even to close watchers and friendly
governments. In fact, Indias moves on
Pakistan in the past few years have been a
series of such missteps, misperceptions and
a complete misunderstanding of the
Pakistani responses to them.
Missing the signs
To begin with, the on-again, of-again dia-
logue process that began with Prime
Minister Narendra Modis grand gesture of
inviting his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz
Sharif to his swearing-in ceremony is per-
plexing. When the government called of
talks between the Foreign Secretaries over
the Pakistan High Commissioners talks a
few months later with the Hurriyat leader-
ship, it played the move as the drawing of a
redline. But in a turnaround in March this
Pakistan, by the military establishments
propaganda wing, as the mastermind of ter-
ror attacks in Pakistan.
As a result, when Mr. Modi met Mr. Sharif
in Paris and suggested restarting talks be-
ginning with NSA Doval and the newly ap-
pointed Pakistani NSA Gen. Nasser Khan
Janjua, it was far from a match made in
heaven. For his part, Mr. Doval was viewed
with deep suspicion by Pakistan. Indian gov-
ernment oicials drew false comfort as they
viewed Gen. Janjua as a military man with
the ear of Pakistan Army chief Gen. Raheel
Sharif. But they should have asked more
closely about Gen. Janjuas nebulous role in
the Pakistani power structure, as he seemed
to only be deputed for relations with India:
when Prime Minister Sharif went to Saudi
Arabia, Gen. Sharif to Afghanistan, and
Foreign Afairs Adviser Sartaj Aziz to the
U.S., Gen. Janjua was nowhere in the picture.
Neither war-war nor jaw-jaw
Yet the government pressed on with the
initiative with Pakistan, and both External
Afairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Mr.
Modi have paid visits to Pakistan. They both
gave the same message: this time they would
not allow terrorism to derail talks between
the two countries. We want to ensure we
are not provoked by saboteurs who want to
stop the dialogue process, Ms. Swaraj told
Parliament about the governments new
plans with Pakistan. Yet provoked they
were, and the government took another
turn, calling of the Foreign Secretary-level
dialogue process shortly after the Pathankot
attack in January. NSA talks, however, per-
sisted and led to the curious precedent that
saw Pakistani intelligence operatives get ac-
cess to look at the very base India accused
their groups of attacking. Through every at-
tack from Pakistan, the government has
The last few years, however, have seen nei-
ther what Winston Churchill famously
called jaw-jaw (talks), nor has there been an
outright war-war, and its that situation of
disorder that empowers those destructive
elements the most.
Not setting the agenda
Equally confusing are the steps the gov-
ernment has taken on the international
stage. At the G20, ASEAN and East Asian
summits, and every possible international
forum, Prime Minister Modi has made state-
ments about Pakistans link to the violence
in Kashmir. Yet the government rejoiced
this week when UN Secretary General Ban
Ki-moon omitted any references to Kash-
mir, saying this reairms Indias traditional
position that it is a bilateral, not interna-
tional, issue. The damage is twofold: not on-
ly does this allow Pakistan to set the agenda
for India at international fora as Mr. Sharifs
speech calling Kashmir an intifada did, it
also gives rise to ambiguities on the status of
Kashmir that other countries draw upon.
Meeting Mr. Sharif this week, U.S.
Secretary of State John Kerry, for example,
expressed strong concern with recent vio-
lence in Kashmir particularly the Army
base attack, and then added the need for
all sides to reduce tensions, as if there was
some equivalent responsibility for both In-
dia and Pakistan. Similarly, France issued a
statement condemning the Uri attack, but
also called for a resolution of the Kashmir
dispute, drawing a link between the two that
India would like to avoid.
Finally, there is an inconsistency between
the governments rhetoric and the actions it
is prepared to take in the wake of an attack.
Initial indications after the Uri attack sug-
gest the government and the armed forces
are not in favour of a knee-jerk air strike or
cross-border raids at this point. It is
counterproductive to issue statements on
befitting punishment to Pakistan or ex-
changing a tooth for a full set of dentures if
the plan is to exhaust diplomatic options
first.
The truth is, the world understands India
is the victim, and Pakistan the perpetrator of
terror. While the government keeps produ-
cing evidence of each attack it traces to the
Jaish-e-Mohammed and the Lashkar-e-
Taiba, as it has done post-Uri as well, the ob-
vious evidence should be the original case
against them: that JeM leader Masood Azhar
was exchanged for hostages during the
IC-814 hijack in 1999, and Hafiz Saeed has
been identified by at least three people in-
volved in the 26/11 Mumbai attacks of 2008
as its mastermind, and is wanted not just by
India but the UN as well. If thats not enough
for Pakistan, nothing will ever be, and the
fact that both terrorists roam freely and run
flourishing empires within the country
should be enough to show Pakistans com-
plicity. But until India builds a coherence in
its own strategy, and unity in focus and pur-

T
he alleged suicide of murder suspect P.
Ramkumar in the high-security Puzhal
Central Prison in Chennai has given rise
to many questions and doubts. The claim
that Ramkumar, the alleged lone assailant who
stalked and killed young Swathi, took his own life
by biting a live wire pulled out from a switchboard
inside the prison is unusual. His lawyer alleges he
was murdered. Even without questioning the
suicide theory, it is clear that the prison adminis-
tration has much to answer for. Ramkumar had su-
icidal tendencies, going by the police claim that he
tried to slash his own throat when he was about to
be arrested. Prison authorities say he was indeed
under continuous watch by warders, and that he
had been given psychological counselling. More
ought to have been done to prevent the incident, as
the case had become unusually sensitive, with the
public debate assuming strong caste and com-
munal overtones. It is surprising that the closely
watched suspect had easy access, at a moment
when he was conveniently alone, to a switchboard
near the prison dispensary. It also so happened that
the CCTV cameras installed in the modern prison
did not cover that particular area where he chose to
end his life. If he did commit suicide, there has been
undoubted lapse in monitoring his movements.
Prison suicides set of questions about the condi-
tions of incarceration in our jails, often seen as
overcrowded and understafed. Suicide by electro-
cution is rare, as it is not diicult to deny prisoners
any form of access to live electrical cables. There is
truth in the theory that it is diicult to prevent a
person determined to commit suicide, even if some
correctional psychologists disagree. There ought
to be an initial evaluation of incoming prisoners to
identify those with a high risk of suicide. There-
after, periodic assessments of their state of mind
should be made. While continuous watch is ines-
capable, designing suicide-resistant cells and au-
diting jails to identify and remove possible anchor-
ing points for attempts to die by hanging are other
necessary measures. When Ramkumar was arres-
ted there was a sense of reassurance among the
public, even though a few demanded a CBI investig-
ation based on a few purported lacunae in the po-
lice version. The police were expected to put an
end to all speculation about whether he was the
real culprit by bringing him to trial. It is a pity this
did not happen. The Tamil Nadu government
should order a judicial probe in order to credibly al-
lay any impression, false though it may well be, that
the case was sought to be closed extra-judicially.
CM
YK
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Letters emailed to letters@thehindu.co.in must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.
The Uri aftermath
As expected, Pakistan Prime
Minister Nawaz Sharif devoted
most of his speech at the UN
General Assembly session to the
events in Kashmir (Sharif seeks
probe into Kashmir killings, Sept.
22). Foreign Minister Sushma
Swaraj, in her speech later, is likely
to make Indias stand clear, that
Kashmir is an internal matter and
no one should meddle in it. She may
also highlight the human rights
violations in Balochistan and
Pakistan occupied-Kashmir as well
as Pakistans role in terror attacks
against India. So far, India has been
busy on the diplomatic front,
building up pressure to declare
Pakistan as a terror-sponsor state.
Some may think that Indias
response has been mild so far, but
the country has done the right thing
in not resorting to direct military
action that could have serious
repercussions on the peoples of
both sides. It is important that we
improve our intelligence and
security along vulnerable areas
near the Line of Control and in
Jammu and Kashmir. It is lack of
intelligence and security that have
been highlighted as the main
reasons for terror strikes in both the
Pathankhot and Uri attacks.
D.B.N. Murthy,
Bengaluru
It is shocking that Mr. Sharif has
glorified the terrorist, Burhan Wani,
killed in a recent encounter in
Kashmir as a young leader.
Militants and militant states have
one language, and civilised society
has another language for
expression. A hero for the militants
is not a hero for normal civilised
people.
Vanka Venkata Ramdas,
Tanuku, Andhra Pradesh
Changing names
Whether Lutyens Delhis iconic
Race Course Road, where the Prime
Ministers residence is located, will
now be known as Lok Kalyan Marg
or by some other name makes no
diference to the common man
(PMs new address: 7 Lok Kalyan
Marg, Sept. 22). It seems as though
our politicians have no other
capability apart from renaming
historic roads. Former Jammu and
Kashmir Chief Minister Omar
Abdullah rightly said on Twitter:
Its so good to know that
everything is alright with the world
& we can focus on the stuf that
really matters renaming roads.
#7LKM. The Delhi government
seems unable to control the spread
of dengue and chikungunya in the
capital but seems to have all the
time on its hands to rename roads.
Even if roads have to be named, why
not make new roads and name
those? Why tinker with historical
names?
Bidyut Kumar Chatterjee,
Faridabad
Public welfare should reflect in
government policies, not in the
renaming of roads.
Politicians ignore the historical and
geographical importance of roads,
institutions, and government
programmes in their eagerness to
boost their party image. If a race
course exists, Race Course Road
gives the location; if not, at least the
name gives us some history about
that place. What is the point in
changing that?
P.R.V. Raja,
Pandalam, Kerala
BJP MP Meenakshi Lekhi wants
Race Course Road to be named
Ekatma Marg; Delhi Chief Minister H.N. Ramakrishna,
Arvind Kejriwal wants it to be
named after Guru Gobind Singh.
What diference does all this make
to the Prime Minister who is away
from 7, Race Course Road, most of
the time anyway?
P.G. Menon,
Chennai
Cauvery dispute
This refers to the article,
Karnataka decides not to release force the judiciary to resort to
water till Sept. 23 (Sept. 22.) That
the Karnataka Cabinet has decided
not to implement the SCs directive
sets a dangerous precedent.
Confrontation with the highest
judicial authority is not at all a
healthy trend in a democratic
country. The Karnataka
government should explore other
legal steps instead of disobeying the
apex courts order.
R. Sekar,
Visakhapatnam
Judicial intervention in the Cauvery
dispute has only aggravated the
issue of sharing water from a
dwindling reservoir. This is mainly
because of the failure of the
monsoons in the catchment area of
the Cauvery. Hopefully the setting
up of a Cauvery Management Board
will help us adopt a more scientific
approach to the issue. What is
important is the need to appreciate
that rainfall patterns are changing
pose, it will continue to face such challenges
from across the border, as well as comfort-
ing but empty words of solidarity from the
rest of the world.
suhasini.h@thehindu.co.in
and water supply in the Cauvery separate Railway Budget. The
basin is declining. As the editorial anxiety that the merger would pave
stated, there is an urgent need to way for privatisation of the Indian
both conserve water and change the Railways is baseless as the Cabinet
crop patterns based on availability is competent to implement it even if
and not on traditional or historical it is part of the General Budget.
precedents. B. Prabha,
Varkala, Kerala
Bengaluru
Advancing the presentation of the
The Karnataka governments direct Budget to allow Parliament to vote
challenge to the authority of the on tax and spending proposals
highest court may send wrong before the beginning of the new
signals to other areas of conflict. financial year on April 1 is a good
This obdurate tendency will idea. It will turn the focus back to
undoubtedly encourage unrest. The the Indian Railways crying need to
executive is bound to obey the boost its capital expenditure over
dictates of the judiciary. It cannot the next few years. I understand
aford to distance itself from the that the demand for merging the
judiciary. Such a possibility may Railway Budget with the General
Budget had come from the Railways
extreme steps to ensure Minister as a solution to addressing
implementation of its orders. This the railways revenue deficit and
will, in turn, lead to further capital expenditure needs. Having
acrimony. given away its budgeting powers,
If the Karnataka government feels the Railways will now have to show
that the Supreme Courts fiat need the resolve for implementing
not be obeyed, it runs the risk of reforms if it expects the Finance
exposing itself to graver situations. Ministry to loosen its purse strings.
There is the possibility of dismissal C. Seshagiri,
of the existing government and Mysuru
ordering Presidents rule.
The origin of the Railway Budget
V. Lakshmanan,
Tirupur can be traced to the Acworth
Committee, appointed in the early
1920s, to deal with railway finances
No more rail budget (Railway Budget, a vanishing
The Railway Budget becoming a trick, Sept. 22). It was only after
part of the General Budget is just careful study that a separate Rail
like transferring water contained in Budget was proposed.
a smaller vessel to a bigger one. Integrating the Railway Budget
There is nothing more to this with the General Budget in the
(Centre to do away with rail name of reforms is tantamount to
budget from next year, Sept. 22 ). ignoring the true course of
The only notable factor is that the historical facts.
Railway Ministry has lost its 92- N. Sadasivan Pillai,
year-old privilege of presenting a Kollam, Kerala
ND-ND
10 | - 1ias.com - EDITORIAL THE HINDU SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2016
NOIDA/DELHI

Pushback against civil liberties

The sense of impunity that drives discrimination against Dalits is at the heart of recent demands for the
dilution, or even repeal, of the Act for prevention of atrocities against SCs and STs
All citizens are not equally at risk of being
S AT U R D AY , S E P T E M B E R 2 4 , 2 0 1 6 subjected to the acts specified in the sub-
SATISH DESHPANDE sections of Section 3(1) of the PoAA, such as
being forced to drink or eat any inedible or
Jaw-jaw at the obnoxious substance (i); have excreta,
waste matter, carcasses or any other obnox-
are themselves members of society who em-
body the prevalent social prejudices, the
state is strongly influenced by society. But
because it is institutionally bound to obey
the Constitution, the state cannot always be
guided by the dominant social prejudices of

General Assembly It is the sense of impunity nurtured by caste

hierarchy that prepares the social ground
for the shockingly cruel and inhumane
ious substance dumped in their premises
or neighbourhood (ii); or being paraded
naked or with painted face or body (iii),
the day; rather, it must at least occasionally
rise above these prejudices to perform its
constitutional duty. In sum, the caste-state
crimes against Dalits called atrocities. It is and so on. If there exist specific groups of relationship is necessarily ambiguous be-

I
n what is possibly the sharpest castigation of
Pakistan on the world stage, India has asserted
its right of reply to Prime Minister Nawaz
Sharifs speech at the UN General Assembly
with some rather rough words. Calling Pakistan a
terrorist state that is now training militant prox-
ies with a toxic curriculum at its Ivy League of
terrorism, the First Secretary at Indias UN mis-
sion accused Mr. Sharif of having delivered a hypo-
critical sermon to the Assembly. India pointed out
that Pakistans nuclear proliferation record, which
is marked by deception and deceit, hardly gave it
the right to speak of Indias eligibility to enter the
Nuclear Suppliers Group, as Mr. Sharif had done.
Finally, India said his championing of Hizbul Mu-
jahideen commander Burhan Wanias a symbol of
the latest Kashmiri intifada was further proof of
Pakistan being a state sponsor of terrorism. Mr.
Sharifs speech at the UN was indeed full of gross
inaccuracies on the subject of Jammu and Kashmir,
including his reference to the promise of a plebi-
scite, which in UN annals can only be considered
after Pakistans troops vacate the territory it cur-
rently occupies. Mr. Sharifs contention that
Pakistan is the principal victim of terrorism sup-
ported, sponsored and financed from abroad was
clearly a stretch. While his sympathetic reference
to Wani was an affirmation of Pakistans support to
the Hizbul, it was compounded by his refusal to
speak of the 18 Indian soldiers killed in the Army
camp in Uri in an attack allegedly carried out by ter-
rorists from Pakistan. That the Prime Minister of
Pakistan should devote more than half his speech at
the UN to the Kashmir issue, which Pakistan has
long accepted must be resolved bilaterally, was dis-
appointing. However, in a signal of how little such
rhetoric matters, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-
moon made no reference to it in his speech.
There is, unfortunately, little evidence that In-
dias response, which elicited loud cheers back
home, was regarded any more by the UNGA than
Mr. Sharifs was. Despite the powerful language of
Indias retort which will no doubt be echoed in
the address External Affairs Minister Sushma Swa-
raj delivers next the world has little time for a
low-intensity conflict that has stretched on for al-
most 70 years. Indias diplomats have fought and
struggled for decades to keep Kashmir off the UNs
agenda, and the Centre does no good to its case by
bringing the subject back into focus by joining issue
with Pakistan in such a high-pitched manner. For
the moment, it would be advisable to keep its
powder dry and rhetoric sober as India investigates
the intelligence and procedural lapses in failing to
avert the Uri attack, and weigh its strategic options.
Raiders of
this impunity that the Scheduled Castes and
the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atro-
cities) Act (henceforth PoAA) criminalises.
And it is the desire to defend the same im-
punity that motivates recent demands for
the dilution or even repeal of the PoAA. To
examine the validity of these claims, we
must first understand the very different re-
lationships that caste has with the
Constitution, society, and state.
Caste and the Constitution
The Constitution is a portrait of the na-
tion as it would like to be rather than as it ac-
tually is. Therefore, it is obliged to regard as-
pirations as achievements, uncertain
journeys as assured arrivals. Beginning with
the Preamble, where it presumes that we,
the people are indeed a unified and homo-
genous collectivity, the Constitution pro-
ceeds to treat hoped-for outcomes as though
they were established facts. This is not a de-
fect the Constitution is required to reflect
the republic in the best possible light, and is
at its most majestic when doing so. Howev-
er, this also means that the Constitution is
unable to directly confront obstinate real-
ities like caste that flout its fundamental
tenets, because acknowledging caste
amounts to confessing that the republic is
more desire than reality.
So, when the Constitution is forced to deal
with caste, it does so with an averted face, al-
lowing it only an inferential, shadow-like
presence. But it also manages to be ob-
liquely eloquent about what it cannot face.
For example, caste makes its first entry in
Article 15 rather anonymously, as one
among many sources of discrimination. But
this is compensated by Sections 2(a) and
2(b) which prohibit discriminatory restric-
tion of access to (respectively) shops, pub-
lic restaurants, hotels and places of public
entertainment and wells, tanks, bathing
CARTOONSCAPE
tions promoted by caste. The atrocities that
The misuse argument is not
always meant to be taken
literally; it also acts as proxy for
the more general perception that
Dalits are no longer underdogs
ghats, roads and places of public resort.
Why is it necessary to explicitly prohibit
discrimination in access to both modern
and traditional facilities already declared to
be for the public? Or take Article 17, which
abruptly announces that Untouchability
is abolished and its practice in any form is
forbidden. What does this capitalised word
stand for and why must it be quarantined in
quotes? The answer, of course, is caste,
which is an absent presence in the
Constitution, addressed only as an excep-
tional or special circumstance.
Discrimination as dominance
The PoAA, 1989, and its older sibling, the
Protection of Civil Rights Act, 1955, are spe-
cial laws located at the strategic sites where
the Constitutions default setting of caste-
blind formal equality must be changed to
address the reality of substantive inequality.
citizens who have repeatedly suffered such
gross violations of the fundamental right to
dignity, then surely the republic owes them
the protection of special laws like the PoAA.
But why do such groups exist in the first
place? They exist because of the social rela-
gin to decipher what is happening. Both in
invite interventions such as the PoAA are
made possible by caste societys ability to
sustain specific types of relationships, or
mutually oriented attitudes and conditions.
On the one hand, Dalit castes are forcibly in-
vested with an enduring social vulnerability
vis--vis castes higher up in the hierarchy,
especially those dominant within a region.
On the other hand, dominant castes are al-
lowed to acquire, and to eventually take for
granted, a socially sanctioned sense of im-
punity with respect to Dalit castes. When
the dominant caste feels it has little prospect
of economic and social mobility, its self-es-
teem and identity become increasingly de-
pendent on the unequal relationships it
maintains with subordinated castes. In such
situations, the Dalit-dominant caste rela-
tionship turns into a zero-sum game where
any real or imagined improvement in the
lives of Dalits is seen as a reduction in the
social distance separating the two groups,
thereby implying a decline in the status of
the dominant castes.
The caste-state relationship
The state is simultaneously the child of
law and society as well as the mediating link
between the two. Because of its idealistic
orientation, the Constitution mother of
all laws is external to society and has a
largely exhortatory relationship to it. The
state depends on the Constitution for its le-
gitimacy, but the Constitution also depends
on the state for the actualisation of its ideals.
Since it is regulated by politics which in turn
is rooted in society, and since its personnel
cause the state is itself a differentiated and
plural (rather than homogenous or mono-
lithic) entity, capable of acting in a wide
variety of ways with respect to caste.
Returning now to the demands for re-
straining or removing the PoAA, we can be-
Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra, the two States
where it has been voiced, the demand is
coming from political parties representing
regionally dominant castes. Both States
have seen the emergence (or re-emergence)
of Dalit assertion following some upward
mobility. This has enraged the dominant
castes, leading them to argue that the PoAA
is being misused. The misuse argument is
so popular that it can be called a syndrome,
or a characteristic combination of opin-
ions, emotions or behaviour. It has been
used against every special scheme or law in-
tended to empower vulnerable groups, in-
cluding reservations, laws against dowry,
sexual harassment and rape, and even the
Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employ-
ment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA). In each
case, it is alleged that the genuinely de-
serving never benefit and that the vast ma-
jority of cases are fake.
Underdogs and predators
Since any law can be misused, it is not
the potential for misuse but its actual occur-
rence and frequency that matter, and this
needs to be established through credible
evidence. No such evidence-based claims
have been made as yet. On the contrary, re-
ports from activist groups show that it is
hard for ordinary Dalits to get cases reg-
istered, and extremely difficult to get them
placed under the PoAA. But to be fair, the
misuse argument is not always meant to be
taken literally; it also acts as proxy for the
more general perception that Dalits are no
longer underdogs and may be turning into
predators. This impression is confirmed
when we recall that the Pattali Makkal Kat-
chi leader, Dr. S. Ramadoss, reinforced his
demand for dilution of the PoAA with the al-
legation that Dalit boys were luring non-
Dalit girls by wearing jeans, T-shirts and
fancy sunglasses (The Hindu, December 3,
2012). In Maharashtra, recent calls for re-
viewing the PoAA issued by the Shiv Sena
and the Nationalist Congress Party have in-
tensified after the rape-murder of July 13 in
Kopardi (Ahmednagar district) in which the
victim is dominant caste and the accused
are Dalits.
While there is no reason to doubt that
Dalits, like any other caste group, could be-
come efficient oppressors if given the
chance, the obvious question is if they are in
fact getting the chance. Going by the nation-
wide evidence on the frequency of atrocities
on Dalits, the shoe still seems to be firmly on
the other foot. Ahmednagar district alone

hidden arks has witnessed three atrocities on Dalits in

the past three years (Sonai, Kharda and
Javkheda). Meanwhile, as the first an-

T
he return to India of three ancient sculp-
tures from the National Gallery of Aus-
tralia is another milestone in the long and
difficult campaign waged by several
countries to repossess their cultural treasures,
which have often been bought by museums from
idol smugglers. As the provenance of the artefacts
the 900-year old statues of Goddess Pratyangira
and Seated Buddha, and the third century Worship-
pers of Buddha became clear, the only ethical
course open to the Australian gallery was to restore
the sculptures, which it must be commended for
pursuing. Evidently, the two icons other than the
sandstone Seated Buddha were acquired from a
New York-based art dealer, Subhash Kapoor, for
about $840,000 on the strength of fake documenta-
tion: he is now facing prosecution in Tamil Nadu.
These are by no means isolated instances. In June,
the United States formally returned to India about
200 stolen cultural objects, which include 2,000-
year-old artefacts, part of a $100 million trove un-
earthed by an investigation of Kapoors art busi-
ness. What emerges from these long battles to re-
claim articles that constitute cultural heritage is the
insight that a dedicated national agency with State
government support would be better equipped to
fight the scourge of theft and illicit transfer. With
trained personnel, it could devote itself to the task
of documenting antiquities and ensuring that the
countrys ports are sealed against smuggling.
The National Gallery of Australias inquiry into
the status of its Asian art objects conducted by a re-
tired judge, Susan Crennan, has had the positive
outcome of identifying 22 articles that have ques-
tionable or doubtful credentials, 14 of which were
purchased from Kapoor. Many of the findings in the
Australian review underscore the importance of
creating a strong repository of information of all In-
dian antiquities, backed up by unimpeachable fo-
rensic records, so that they may be claimed without
difficulty at a future date. A lot of the illicit trade has
been carried out by smugglers who have laundered
the provenance of idols using fake documentation
designed to overcome the prohibition imposed by
the Antiquities and Art Treasures Act, 1972 on non-
governmental exports. Providentially, it is the
records of a research institution such as the French
Institute of Pondicherry that helped establish the
claim to the 11th-12th century Nataraja idol stolen
from Tamil Nadu in 2006. Documentation of an-
tiquities using public and private records should
become a national mission. These treasures could
then be put on display in national museums.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Letters emailed to letters@thehindu.co.in must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.
Water-sharing dispute
The Supreme Court and the High
Courts have pronounced several
judgments in the past that were not
within the purview of the judiciary
(To defer is to defy, Sept. 23). The
justification that has always been
given for this is that when
Parliament and legislature fail, the
onus lies with the judiciary to
intervene on behalf of the people.
This stand has been countered by
people who ask, what happens
when the judiciary fails?
The Cauvery dispute has partially
answered that question. The
Supreme Court has passed orders
that the Karnataka government
views as arbitrary because the State
feels that the court has not taken
into consideration the actual
quantum of water available in the
Cauvery on a given date. An
evaluation committee should have
assessed the question of availability
of water with the participation of
the two disputing States under the
direction of the court. Even now the
process for determining the
quantum of water available vis--vis
the requirements of the two States
can be kick-started. When rains fail,
distress is inevitable. Food can be
imported when we fall short of
production, but water cannot be
created as and when we require it.
G. Ramakrishna,
Bengaluru
The Karnataka Cabinets decision
to convene a special session of the
legislature to pass a resolution to
nullify the dictates of the apex court
is illogical and an affront to
democracy. It is regrettable that
critical decisions have finally been
left in the hands of immature
politicians.
V. Balasubramanian,
Coimbatore
On the one hand, we have an active
Karnataka government with Chief
Minister Siddaramaiah handling the
Cauvery issue in such a manner that
even the Opposition is ready to toe
his line. On the other we have a
passive Tamil Nadu government
that has done little to counter
Karnatakas moves.
It is surprising that the TN
government has neither cared to
convene any meeting of all the
political leaders nor organised a
special House session to tide over
the serious crisis. What happens to
Tamil Nadu now that Karnataka has
refused to release water?
Tharcius S. Fernando,
Chennai
Rainwater harvesting
This refers to the photo, When
streets become canals (Sept. 23).
Heavy rains have brought life to a
standstill in Guntur; some people
have died. The government must
think of ways to divert rainwater.
For instance, there are a number of
parks in Hyderabad; water can be
diverted into these parks. This will
prevent waterlogging on the streets
and roads. Also, the water will find
its way to the ground level instead
of draining away. The parks can be
closed till the water recedes. This
can be worked out in other cities
too. With floods becoming
common, governments must invest
in more rainwater-harvesting
techniques.
C.R. Annapurna,
Hyderabad
Two days of rain cannot cause such
havoc. Floods occur because of
clogging of drains, construction of
buildings in drainage areas,
breaching of tanks, and so on. This
means that we are causing the
floods, the rains are not. This
happens every year but no
government takes tangible action.
Unless we tackle corruption, we
cannot solve this problem either.
M.M. Kale,
Kakidana
What India should do
By calling Burhan Wani a young
leader and glorifying him, Pakistan
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has
walked into a trap and lent credence
to the call to brand Pakistan a
terrorist state (India claims
diplomatic win over Pakistan at
U.N., Sept. 23). Mr. Sharif was left
alone at the UN General Assembly
as no nation is prepared to support
his stand. Even Pakistans supporter
China has expressed only meek
generic statements. This is
evidence of the diplomatic offensive
that India has launched. But is this
sufficient to satisfy the wrath that
the Uri terror attack has produced?
As regards the preparedness on the
borders, it is necessary to
strengthen existing radar
surveillance, night-vision devices,
infrared and thermal cameras to
detect the movement of intruders.
niversary of the Dadri lynching approaches,
let us also spare a thought for vulnerable
groups who do not have, and will probably
never have, the constitutional protection of
special laws.
Satish Deshpande teaches sociology at Delhi University.
Stepping up security along the Line to die, shows how bloodthirsty we
of Control is the urgent need of the are. Only a full-scale investigation
hour to prevent more such attacks. can quieten these cries.
S.V. Venkatakrishnan, Sivamani Vasudevan,
Bengaluru Chennai
At this point, it is wise for India to Given that he tried to commit
not get involved in any sort of war suicide earlier, the allegation that
with Pakistan. War brings misery. Ramkumar was murdered in prison
Our country has a vision. We want lacks substance. Had he been
to eliminate poverty, corruption innocent, then why did he hide in
and illiteracy. India is doing the his native place when the police
right thing by isolating Pakistan and were looking for him? Why didnt
forcing the country to take action he present himself before the police
against terrorists without declaring once his image was flashed across
war. the media? What was he doing on
Nikhil Nandan, the road outside the station where
Delhi Swathi was murdered? Since the
CCTV clip is private, it cannot be a
doctored one.
Custodial death
S. Srinivasan,
This refers to the editorial, The Chennai
curious death of Ramkumar (Sept.
23). Ramkumar should have been
under vigilance 24/7 as the Swathi Nomination for Oscars
murder case is high profile and has I am happy that Visaaranai has
assumed caste overtones. Whether been chosen as Indias official entry
Ramkumar could have resorted to for Best Foreign Language film at
biting a live wire on his own the 2017 Oscars (Visaranai to take a
volition, however unsound his mind shot at Oscar nomination, Sept.
was said to be, is disputable. If the 23). I hope the film wins. But even if
needle of suspicion over the cause it does not, it doesnt matter as it
of his death points to abject will stir the conscience of law-
custodial failure, the State enforcers across the world and
administration cannot escape from particularly in India. The film
its responsibility as it is fully aware shows how the most disadvantaged
of the case sensitivities. Assuming people are treated ruthlessly by the
that the deceased was the real police based on mere suspicion of
culprit, he now gets all the crime. Hopefully the film will bring
sympathy and benefit of doubt due some change in our mindset. If it
to inept handling by the police, who succeeds in doing that, that will be a
have provided enough fodder to the reward more prestigious than the
rumour mills. The unhealthy voices Oscar itself.
that are being heard in some Manjunath D. Benkal,
quarters, that Ramkumar deserved Coimbatore

CM ND-ND
YK
10 | - 1ias.com -
DR HUMERUS
Keshav
AROUND THE WORLD
A nanoparticle
tattoo
A temporary tattoo
made of antioxidant
nanoparticles to
help control a
chronic disease
maybe on the anvil,
PHOTO: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
according to scientists at the Baylor College of
Medicine, U.S. Their study in the journal, Scientific
Reports, shows that nanoparticles modified with
polyethylene glycol can be made to behave like T
and B cells, the main kinds of cells in the immune
system, and employed to fight disease.
Administering the nanoparticles like a tattoo could
also ensure that these foreign bodies dont stay in
contact with the body longer than required. That
could be a plus for patients with autoimmune
diseases like multiple sclerosis. T and B lymphocyte
cells and macrophages are key components of the
immune system. But a drawback is that they
frequently destroy even healthy cells. Using soluble
nanoparticles could help T cells sift the harmful
from neutral cells. Science Daily
Smokings
legacy
Smoking leaves its
footprint on the
human genome in
the form of DNA
PHOTO: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
methylation, a
process by which
cells control gene activity, according to a study.
Even after someone stops smoking, the effects of
smoking remain in their DNA. The new findings in
the journal Circulation: Cardiovascular Genetics
suggest that DNA methylation could be an
important sign that reveals an individuals smoking
history, and could provide researchers with
potential targets for new therapies. Science Daily
A sixth sense
gene
With the help of two
young patients
having a unique
neurological
disorder, scientists PHOTO: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
have discovered
that a gene called PIEZO2 controls specific aspects
of human touch and proprioception, a sixth sense
describing awareness of ones body in space.
Mutations in the gene caused the two to have
movement and balance problems and the loss of
some forms of touch. Despite their difficulties, they
both appeared to cope with these challenges by
relying heavily on vision and other senses, according
to a study published in the New England Journal of
Medicine. The two patients in this study are
unrelated, one nine and the other 19 years old.
Science Daily
Womens cognition
explained
Research published
this week in the
journal Psycho
neuroendocrinology
PHOTO: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
shows that
depending on the
phase of their menstrual cycle, women use different
cognitive approaches to solve problems. Hormone
levels do not reduce or increase ability; they simply
change the way problems are approached. When
subjected to a controlled study that involved playing
a video game to test spatial navigation and taking
certain standardised memory tests, researchers
found that women who were ovulating performed
better in memory tasks, such as memorising lists of
words. Women in their pre-menstrual phase (mid/
late luteal) were better at solving the spatial
navigation trial. Science Daily
DEMYSTIFYING SCIENCE
What is the iKnife?
Cancer detection techniques, during surgery,
have become good enough to pinpoint a tumour
but neither images nor the human eye can
quickly tell apart healthy and unhealthy tissues.
Thats where the iKnife comes handy. Based on
electrosurgery a technology around since
1920s that employs electric current to heat up
the tissue that needs excision the iKnife can
detect precisely which tissue needs removing,
and which should stay.
The iKnife system consists of an electro-scalpel
that causes the tissue to vaporise as it is being
cut, leaving in its wake a trail of smoke that is
normally sucked away by extraction systems.
But by connecting the iKnife to a mass
spectrometer a device that detects the
chemical composition of objects and materials
and pumping the smoke toward it, the vapour
can be captured and analysed for its chemical
make-up. By matching the results to a reference
library, the surgeon can see which type of tissue
it is within 3 seconds and decide if it needs to be
removed. Being able to do so not only ensures
that the whole tumour is taken away but it also
reduces unnecessary tissue loss, leading to
better outcomes for patients.
CM
YK
AFFORDABLE SCIENCE
One-dollar labs for the citizen scientist
MacArthur Genius grant recipient Manu Prakashs body of work is geared towards empowering scientific research
with inexpensive devices
JACOB KOSHY
F
rugality, crafting inex-
pensive knock-ofs and
making do with little may
be the ethos of Indias
pharmaceutical industry,
its manufacturing sector and the
spirit with which our scientists con-
duct their research but an Indian-
origin bio-engineer at Stanford Uni-
versity has just won one of Amer-
icas grandest prizes the
MacArthur Genius grant worth
Rs.4 crore for designing a $1
microscope.
Towards do-it-yourself science
Manu Prakash from Rampur, Ut-
tar Pradesh and an engineer from
the Indian Institute of Technology,
Kanpur, has made a name for fash-
ioning ingenious devices that make
the essence of science observa-
tion and experiments accessible
to those who cant aford expensive
instruments.
His best-known is the Fold-
scope, a microscope that can be
fashioned out of paper that comes
pre-fixed like in a jigsaw puzzle set.
Most of these kits have been distrib-
uted free so far and the aim is to
have it cost less than a dollar. The
kits come with a glass slide that can
be slipped into the do-it-yourself
microscope and can be used to
check for microbes in a soil or water
sample, closely observe the anato-
my of a water lily or the striations of
an earthworm.
Another of his inventions, ac-
cording to a press statement from
the MacArthur Foundation, is a
sticker-like microfluid chip that can
be used to collect thousands of nan-
olitre-sized droplets of saliva from
mosquito bites in order to test for
pathogens. Dr. Prakash also re-
Transforming wound care
SMART DRESSING: Modern sensing technology along with wireless radio frequency communication technology is
poised to make significant advances in wound management, helping health-care professionals improve the
quality of life of patients with chronic wounds. Parameters such as moisture, pressure, temperature and pH inside
the dressings are indicative of the healing rate, infection, and wound healing phases. Picture shows an electronic
sensor and a wound dressing on a legform at Urgos research and development centre in Chenove near Dijon,
central eastern France. French group Urgo develops high-technology solutions in wound management. PHOTO: AFP
RESEARCH
Sepsis fight gets smarter, cheaper
Bengaluru team finds novel and economical way to prevent the condition
R. PRASAD
R esearchers at the Indian Institute
of Science (IISc), Bangalore have
demonstrated a cheap and eicacious
way of neutralising bacterial endotox-
ins in blood that cause sepsis. It in-
volves administering a protein into the
body of mice. The protein (bacter-
icidal/permeability-increasing protein
or BPI) was produced using a novel
process. The results were published in
the journal Scientific Reports (Septem-
ber 20).
Life-threatening
Sepsis, a life-threatening condi-
tion,is triggered by an infection that
very quickly spirals out of control and
is a major cause for concern among
high-risk patients. Sepsis develops
when the body mounts a very strong
assault on an infection. This results in a
cascading efect that causes inflamma-
tion in the entire body. It finally ends up
as multi-organ failure and death. There
is a high mortality rate of 30-50 per cent
associated with sepsis.
Though the BPI protein, which neut-
ralises the endotoxin that causes
sepsis, is produced in the body, sui-
cient quantities are not produced to
quench the endotoxins when sepsis
sets in. Therefore, it is necessary to in-
troduce suicient quantities of BPI
protein externally.
Currently, recombinant human BPI,
which is used for treating sepsis in-
duced by lipopolysaccharides (LPS),
has a few shortcomings the half-life
is short and it is prohibitively
expensive.
To address these shortcomings, a
team led by Prof. Dipshikha Chakra-
vortty, the corresponding author of the
WEEKEND
BEING
HELLO INDIA: India has been an early adopter of his devices. Picture shows a Foldscope workshop held in India, in
December 2015. PHOTO: DEPARTMENT OF BIOTECHNOLOGY, GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
cently demonstrated a novel diag-
nostic tool, a water computer, encourage an interest in field obser-
which involves building a computer vation and research. Already work-
out of tiny air bubbles travelling in a
microfluidic channel.
India has been an early adopter of
his devices. The Department of Bio-
technology (DBT) has signed a
Rs.1.5-crore agreement with the
Prakash Lab at Stanford University
to procure 10,000 Foldscopes that The charm of the device is that any-
could then be given to schools, col-
Manu Prakashs best-known creation
is the Foldscope, a microscope that
can be fashioned out of paper that comes
pre-fixed like in a jigsaw puzzle set
BREAKTHROUGH: Prof. Dipshikha Chakravortty (left) and Arjun Balakrishnan.
PHOTO: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
paper and from the Department of
Microbiology and Cell Biology, IISc
turned to gas nanovesicles produced
by Halobacteria. The nanovesicles are
inert in nature and so do not evoke any
immune response in humans. Nan-
ovesicles produced by bacteria are easy
to purify and so dramatically reduce
the production cost of recombinant
BPI.
The Bengaluru team along with Prof.
Shiladitya DasSarma from the Uni-
versity of Maryland, U.S., cloned
mouse BPI protein in the Halobac-
terium gene so that when the bacteria
produced nanovesicles, the BPI protein
was expressed on the surface of the
vesicles.
BPIs stability gets enhanced when
expressed on the surface of the nan-
ovesicles probably because it is
anchored to the nanovesicle mem-
brane, says Prof. Chakravortty. The
mouse BPI expressed on the surface of
nanovesicles showed antibacterial
activity.
To test the eicacy of BPI expressing
nanovesicles from preventing sepsis,
THE HINDU SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2016
NOIDA/DELHI
paper added. India accounts for
over 17 per cent of the worlds popu-
lation while spending less than 1 per
cent of the worlds total health ex-
penditure.
The healthcare expenditure
stands at 4.1 per cent of its GDP,
which is among the lowest in the
world, and dealing with challenges
like these requires afordable inter-
ventions, something that both pub-
lic and private healthcare experts
have repeatedly emphasised
through the years. If there were
more devices like Prakashs, thered
be uses for them that we cant yet
envisage, says Ms. Gupta, adding,
We are exploring options like a
manufacturing facility to scale up
these devices.
Dr. Prakashs approach to engin-
eering allows a wider range of pro-
fessionals to become so-called cit-
izen scientists and bring new facts
about nature and solutions to tech-
nical problems to the fore. The
Foldscope allows images of samples
to be relayed via an app to a central
site that stores information, about
leges, forest field oicers and help ings diferently the microbes on an intriguing microbe or a new
your food for instance, she says. earthworm or the beginnings of a
Earlier this year, Dr. Prakashs lab new plant infection from a place
shops with schools, students and came up with a new device that that may be otherwise inaccessible
colleges in Delhi, Guwahati and modifies a childs toy, whirligig, into to scientists.
Kaziranga (Assam) have enthused a device called a paperfuge that It certainly isnt a replacement
students and teachers, says Shailja he and his colleagues claimed in a for the lab microscope, says Vibha
Gupta, a DBT oicial who coor- June research paper could be Narang, coordinator of the Botany
dinates the Foldscope programme. used to isolate malaria parasites in Department, Atma Ram Sanatan
Ive used it, my daughter likes it. 15 minutes from whole human Dharma College, Delhi, but we saw
blood. The device can be used to a lot of enthusiasm among school
one can use it to see their surround- separate pure plasma in less than 90 students.
seconds. Her college was part of a work-
shop organised by the DBT and Dr.
Just what India needs Prakash to explain the Foldscope.
Expanding the materials used But for collecting samples during a
could mean new kinds of devices field trip or a quick survey, I think
that dont need electricity to devel- this is a very handy device, she
op point-of-care diagnostics, espe- adds.
cially in resource-poor settings, the jacob.koshy@thehindu.co.in
STUDY
Weighing in on
activity trackers
W earable activity
monitors can count
your steps and track your
movements, but they
dont, apparently, help you
lose weight. In fact, you
might lose more weight
without them.
The fascinating finding
comes from a study
published recently in the
Journal of the American
Medical Association that
found dieting adults who
wore activity monitors for
18 months lost PHOTO: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
significantly fewer
pounds over that time provide steady weight
than those who did not. loss and were urged to
start moving more, aiming
The results suggest that
activity monitors may not for at least 100 minutes of
moderate activity each
change our behaviour in
the way we expected and week. They kept daily
raise interesting questions food and exercise diaries
about the tangled and attended weekly
relationships between counselling sessions.
exercise, eating, our By the end of six
willpower and our months, everyone had lost
waistlines. weight. And then the
There have been actual experiment began.
The scientists now
tantalising hints in a few
divided their volunteers
in half. One group was
Gretchen told to start logging their
Reynolds daily exercise sessions
onto a study website.
The others were given a
monitor designed to be
studies recently that new worn on the upper arm
technologies such as
wearable activity
that would track their
physical activity and
monitors, which tell us provide feedback about
how much we are moving whether they were
and how many calories we achieving goals for step
have burned during the counts, calorie
day, might help some expenditure and so on.
people to drop pounds. We were pretty
Those studies, however, confident that the
had typically been small volunteers in the group
scale and short term, so it using the activity
was still unclear how monitors would exercise
much activity monitors
might aid in weight loss.
more, monitor their
calorie intake better and
So for the new study, lose more weight than the
the 50 mice were first injected with University of Pittsburgh people in the self-
nanovesicles and then challenged with scientists from the monitoring group, says
sepsis causing LPS and galactosamine. Physical Activity and John Jakicic, a
All the mice treated with BPI survived, Weight Management distinguished professor in
while only two mice in the control Research Center and their the department of health
group did not die, says Arjun Bal- colleagues gathered and physical activity at
akrishnan, the first author of the paper. almost 500 young, the University of
overweight men and Pittsburgh and the studys
However, when BPI expressing nan- women who wanted to lead author.
lose weight. The recruits After 18 months and
ovesicles were administered along
ranged in age from 18 to 35 two years after the
with or after sepsis causing LPS treat- since, presumably, these beginning of the study
ment the mice did not survive. This younger volunteers would all of the volunteers
suggests that BPI proteins should be be familiar with and returned to the lab to
administered before sepsis sets in so competent using repeat their
that it is present in the circulatory sys- technologies such as measurements from the
tem to clear the sepsis-causing endo- activity trackers and any start.
toxin, says Prof. Chakravortty. Cy- learning curve would be But in fact, the data
tokine storm will set in within minutes slight. from the monitors show
of septic shock. So nothing can be done The volunteers were that those wearing the
once sepsis sets in. weighed and their general technology generally
The therapeutic use of BPI pro- health and fitness exercised less than those
duced in Halobacterium to combat sep- assessed. in the other group.
tic shock may be promising from the Then, for the first six Dr. Jakicic and his
standpoint of both safety and eicacy, months of the study, the colleagues hope to
says Mr. Balakrishnan. The team is now volunteers followed a conduct follow-up
planning to undertake trials in larger straightforward, low- studies. New York
animals. calorie diet designed to Times News Service
prasad.ravindranath@thehindu.co.in
ND-ND
 - 1ias.com - | 11
NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2016

WEEKEND
READING
DEBATE SHELF

HELP
The problem with Lionel Shrivers speech
The writer, who says that fiction writers should be able to shape any character without being accused of cultural appropriation, is
G

What is really bad news

someone who tries on hats and shoes and doesnt see the hands that made the hats and shoes
NISHA SUSAN
A couple of weeks ago, Lionel
Shriver, best known for her
book We Need to Talk About
Kevin, decided to call a spade a
double-edged sword. That is,
she stood up to give the key-
note speech at the Brisbane
Writers Festival and defended
at length cultural appropri-
ation. The example of political
correctness taken to a cray-
cray extreme that she gave?
Some students at Bowdoin, an
American college, being rep-
rimanded for ethnic ster-
eotyping by their peers and
the administration for throw-
ing a tequila-themed party in
which miniature sombreros
were handed out. She com-
plained that, those who em-
brace a vast range of identit-
ies ethnicities,
nationalities, races, sexual and
gender categories, classes of
economic under-privilege and
disability are now encour-
aged to be possessive of their
experience and to regard
other peoples attempts to
participate in their lives and
traditions, either actively or
imaginatively, as a form of
theft. She herself had grown
up with parents who bought
her sombreros and was also
happy for anyone to borrow
her German-American heri-
tage and wear lederhosen.
After all, Shriver argued, it is
the writers job to step into
peoples shoes and wear other
peoples hats. Uf, so silly, was
the intended takeaway of her
speech.
The complexities of race
Like many other people, I
read Shrivers speech and
clutched my head in embar-
rassment on her behalf. It was
a lot like listening to some
pleasant male acquaintance
suddenly spouting of about
how women have made it so
diicult for men to speak now-
adays by constantly accusing
them of sexism. And then he
talks for the next 40 minutes
(continuously barking at who-
ever tries to end the embar-
rassment, let me finish).
Shriver wasted a tremend-
ous opportunity to talk of
what it is to be a hugely suc-
cessful writer of German-
American heritage at a time
As we sort out our own feelings about where we
are with caste, race, gender and disability, as we
educate ourselves, there are bound to be many
moments of acknowledging our own privilege
ILLUSTRATION: SATWIK GADE
when debates about race and
ethnicity have received a big
boost. Within two weeks of
the sombrero incident that
Shriver spoke of so scathingly,
Ta-Nehisi Coates, MacArthur
Genius award-winning au-
thor of The Beautiful Struggle
and Between the World and
Me, wrote simply and briefly
about cultural appropriation
in an essay about an interview
with the distributor of the new
biopic of Nina Simone. The
movie distributor, Robert
Johnson, patently disses Si-
mones descriptions of dark-
skinned African-Americans
having a more diicult time
than light-skinned African
Americans. Coates writes,
Johnson apparently believes
Simone was making all of this
up. You think Rosa Parks pain
was less than Ninas when she
had to endure not sitting on a
bus? he said. Beyond being
thick-witted, this is text-book
appropriation actively
profiting from an experience
while denying the experience
actually exists.
For someone actively trying of colour. Suki Kim, a writer
to understand the complexit- on this panel, wrote at length
ies of race in 2016, there are later about everything that
Coates and dozens of other happened at Brisbane includ-
subtle-minded, witty, and styl- ing her sense of being de-
ish writers to read. And ployed for reparations by the
someone who just wants to festival organisers because
make heh-heh, these people she was Korean-American. An
are making a mountain out of a irony more bitter since the
molehill remarks, they can go heft of Shrivers blunt instru-
in search of sombrero incid- ment was that everyone can
ents in small colleges. and should shed identities
Someone who is interested in such as Asian or person with
why the sombrero party ticked disability. What happened to
of the students, a writer inter- Kim later was illustrative for
ested in other peoples hats for writers interested in cultural
instance, would enquire what appropriation or race or life.
message it sent out to the col- Kim went to the private
lege population when two writers lounge where she was
members of their student gov- bored to death by two white
ernment went to a sombrero men who complained among
party, when the same college other things of how ones book
had already recently wit- on Afghanistan wouldnt have
nessed a Cracksgiving party got a bad review if someone
where students dressed up as hadnt made the mistake of as-
Native Americans and a party signing it to an unqualified
themed gangster where stu- Pakistani woman. (Kim
dents dressed up in black fash- doesnt mention names but I
ions. Students of colour in this did jasoosi and am gleefully
particular college have com- guessing it was Rafia Zakaria,
plained also how fed up they lawyer, political philosopher
are of having to spend all their and author of The Upstairs
time responding to racist be- Wife, who wrote a sceptical
haviour of various scales. review of Rod Nordlands The
This complaint was then Lovers in The New York
mirrored at the Brisbane Times.)
Writers Festival after Shrivers So Kim was bored, fed up,
speech where a panel was but responded with her own
formed swiftly of three writers experiences of racist hier-
archy as a writer in festivals,
still trying to Educate Whitey.
To her shock, Nordland then
wrote up things she said in this
private conversation for an
article in The New York
Times, subtly hinting that
Shriver was a victim in a world
full of unreasonable people
such as Kim. When Kim natur-
ally objected to being quoted
without her knowledge, The
New York Times Public Editor
reviewed it and concluded
that Nordland shouldnt have
done it. But in this piece, the
Public Editor says in passing
that Kim considers herself a
journalist as well. Here is
Kims bio: She is a con-
tributing editor to the New
Republic and an investigative
journalist and novelist. Her
New York Times bestselling
book of narrative nonfiction,
Without You, There Is No Us:
Undercover Among the Sons
of North Koreas Elite, is about
her time undercover in Py-
ongyang living with the future
leaders of North Korea. What
do you consider Kim?
Kim writes that the worst of
the Brisbane experience was
the sight of a white woman
who has had great literary suc-
cess playing the victim. It was
the arrogance with which she
declared that being Asian is
not an identity; sure, we dont
want to be stereotyped ac-
cording to race either, but who
is Lionel Shriver to tell us
that?
Privileged and the victim
Shriver is someone who
tries on hats and shoes and
doesnt see the hands that
made the hats and shoes, the
sun that shone on the heads
that wore the hats, the roads
that the shoes took. But mostly
Shriver is someone who didnt
stop to think that giving the
keynote speech as a be-
stselling white American
woman at a literary festival is
an opportunity to talk about a
million other things other
than, I am so pained that now-
adays I have to stop to think
occasionally before shooting
my mouth of.
Its not very diferent, like I
said earlier, from the young
and old men in India who are
feeling victimised, or lets be
honest, feeling prepared to be
victimised in the near future. I
dont want to count the num-
ber of conversations Ive had
recently with alarmed men
who feel that their public or
private behaviour with
women in the past may now be
misinterpreted or even be
considered sexual harass-
ment. How can I be natural
any more, they ask? Its okay if
you are not natural, is always
my reply. Your being natural is
what got us all here.
As we sort out our own feel-
ings about where we are with
caste and race and gender and
disability, as we educate
ourselves, there are bound to
be many moments of acknow-
ledging our own privilege as
well as some moments of feel-
ing like someone elses politi-
cal correctness is too extreme
and someone elses is not
enough and ours like the Baby
Bears is just right. If you are
sincerely on the job, you will
have moments of not feeling
right at all, discomfort, and an
unfamiliar sense of being in
the wrong. When you have
this feeling, lie down and dont
give a keynote speech.
Or take a cue from Amani
Al-Khatahtbeh, editor-in-
chief of MuslimGirl.com. In
June 2016 at a panel at the
White Houses United State of
Women Summit, Al-Khataht-
beh was asked, How do we
empower the people we call
the voiceless? She replied,
Pass the mike.
Nisha Susan is a writer and co-founder of the feminist
magazine The Ladies Finger.
ARCHANA NATHAN
When Yale University invited
Rwandan President Paul Kagame to
deliver the annual Coca-Cola World
Fund Lecture on September 20, it
predictably provoked protests on
the campus. Students said they did
not want a leader who was accused
of violating human rights and
stifling free speech in his home
country on their campus. The
university, also predictably, exalted
him on its Web page: Kagame has
received recognition for his
leadership in numerous areas,
including peace building and
reconciliation, development, good
governance, promotion of human
rights and womens empowerment,
and the advancement of education
and information and
communications technology...
The reason I say that both these
reactions are predictable is because
of the two Rwandas that Anjan
Sundaram writes about in his book
Bad News: Last Journalists in a
Dictatorship: One for its visitors
and another for its citizens.
Sundaram writes: [Its] a world in
which the streetlights seemed
wonderful signs of progress,
another in which they were
frightening.
Kagame, he tells us, would go to
any length to show the outside
world that Rwanda is a picture of
progress. And what better way to do
this than by choking freedom of
expression within the country?
Sundaram, a journalist who has
reported from Central Africa for
publications such as The New York
Times and the Associated Press,
writes about the Kagame regime
between 2009 and 2013 when he was
invited to become a tutor for a
journalism programme funded by
Britain and the European Union for
Rwandan journalists.
Bad News is the story of how
Sundaram lost his students one by
one. These students were print
journalists who wrote for leading
publications of the country, and
Sundaram watched in despair as
they fled the country in fear, or were
crippled, broken, or driven to
insanity because of a recurring cycle
of fear engineered by Kagames rule.
One of his students was imprisoned
for 17 years for writing that some
Rwandans were unhappy with the
countrys rulers just one telling
example of close scrutiny of the
media and what it could lead to in
Rwanda. Several newspapers have
been shut down in Rwanda under
Kagames regime.
Sundaram takes the reader swiftly
to the heart of Kigali. We discover
that no one, however scared, dares
to speak or act against the nation.
This is a Rwanda controlled by fear,
where people clench their teeth and
cry. It is a world where all news has
to be good news about Kagame.
Rwanda is where George Orwells
1984 is executed to perfection. Yet
Kagames Yale visit shows that all
the world is a stage for it.
archana.n@thehindu.co.in

THE BOOK
INTERVIEW
IN MY HAND
Amitava Kumar People are interested in what you found out
Im currently reading Journalist-writer Nick Davies explains the art of turning an investigative story into a book
Nothing Ever Dies by Viet
Thanh Nguyen. It is about
the way in which Vietnam Over the past four decades,
is remembered. We just British journalist and writer
learned last week that it is Nick Davies has earned a rep-
on the non-fiction longlist
for the National Book
utation for challenging the au-
thority of prevailing narrat-
Award. Im on my way to ives and setting new
Boulder, Colorado, for the standards in investigative
JLF at Boulder Literature journalism. From fighting for
Festival. Ill be on a panel
a black man wrongly con-
with Viet Nguyen. The last book I victed for rape-murder in the
read was his Pulitzer Prize- U.S., to playing a key role in
winning novel, The
Sympathizer.I havent yet read WikiLeaks, to taking on
The Year of the Runaways by Rupert Murdochs media em-
Sunjeev Sahota, a book praised pire in the U.K. with the story
by many people I like. I have it about phone hacking by jour-
sitting on my desk at home. nalists at News of the World,
Amitava Kumar is the author of Davies has one of the most
Lunch With a Bigot, A Matter of
Rats, and Nobody Does the Right
celebrated careers in
Thing, among other books. contemporary journalism. He
is also the author of be-
stselling books, including Flat
Earth News and Hack Attack:
Jairam Ramesh How the Truth Caught Up
with Rupert Murdoch, that
help explain the challenges for
At the moment I am the media today. Excerpts
reading Roger Paulins from an interview to Josy
biography of August
Wilhelm called The Life of Joseph:
August Wilhelm Schlegel,
Cosmopolitan of Art and How do you write a book
Poetry. Schlegel is the about the way you scooped a
founder of German major investigative story? You
Indology. must have done at least a
I last read Einstein and hundred stories into the
the Quantum: the Quest of telephone hacking by the
the Valiant Swabian by A. Murdoch newspapers in the
Douglas Stone. It is science U.K.? How did you then write a
writing for the layman at its best book?
and has a wonderful chapter on
Satyendra Nath Bose. It actually becomes dii-
Next Id like to reread the cult. When you are trying to
collected works of D. D. Kosambi, do that, you end up with two
the greatest polymath we have diferent narratives. One is the
produced in the 20th century. story of how I got the story. My
researcher and I interviewed
Jairam Ramesh is a Congress Rajya Sabha MP about 30 people who worked
and the author of To the Brink and Back:
Indias 1991 Story, among other books. for News of the World. If you
just stick with the narrative of
File photo of Nick Davies in Hyderabad. PHOTO: MOHAMMED YOUSUF
the story about how we got the
story, those 30 interviews are
split up over the whole book.
That is not enough. So you
then pull them together with
what is going on in News of the
World, the Scotland Yard,
what is going on in the govern-
ment, what is going on in Mur-
dochs company, etc. I wrote a
book about that [Hack At-
tack]. It has got a funny struc-
ture, because one chapter is us
trying to uncover the story, the
other chapter goes back in
time into what was happening.
You know George Clooney
is trying to direct a movie
based on the book. And he has
got a writer working on it, and
I know the writer will immedi-
ately run into the same prob-
lem. Is this the story about
Nick getting the story, or is it
about the story it is a
conflict.
Is it the first time that you
came across such a dilemma?
Actually people are more
interested in what you found
out than in how you found that
out. But in the case of the hack-
ing, it is bit like a Hobbit, the
little guy going after the big
dragon. The book publishers
also want that little story, of
the Hobbit going after the big
guy. You have to write that as
well, what is going on behind
the scene.
Is that something you
struggled with every time you
wrote a book? How much of
you should be in a book?
I think writing a book is dif-
ficult. I find it very hard work,
it takes many months.
How much does it actually
take you to write a book once
you have all the material in
place?
Two years. I dont nec-
essarily have all the material in
place when I start writing. But
to do the research and writing,
for all of the books I must have
taken about two years. I may
have done some other work
alongside. I find it very hard
work.
Do you have a certain time
when you write most? Many
writers speak of early
mornings as their favourite
time. How do you plan your
day, especially since you live
in a farm away from London?
I work best in the mornings,
when my mind is sharpest. I
may also work during the af-
Some pieces in
The New
Journalism inspired
me in trying to get
close to subjects and
write powerfully
ternoon, but it is never as
productive. Then I try not to
work in the evenings, because
there is a danger that you just
get tired and maybe even
bored, so then the quality of
the work will sufer. Writing a
book can be hard work, in-
volving a lot of intense think-
ing. Its important to stay men-
tally sharp, so you have to
sleep well, exercise well, eat
well and not work all the
time.
When you start writing your
book do you retrace your
entire work, as in do you go
back to interviewing the same
people who had spoken to you
for the original stories? Or do
you do additional reporting to
better stitch together the
Hobbit part of the
investigation, your story?
If I am writing a book on a
subject which I have already
written about in the paper,
then I would gather together
all of the material I have found
while working for the newspa-
per and then decide what ex-
tra material I would need to
produce the book. In some
case, that might involve going
back to people I had already
spoken to. And then usually, as
you make progress, you find
there are even more things
which you need, so the re-
search keeps expanding until
you reach a point where you
call a halt.
Which amongst your own
books is your favourite?
The very first book which I
wrote, called White Lies,
which is about a little town in
Texas where a black man is
sentenced to death for raping
and murdering a white girl. He
is innocent, and the crime was
in fact committed by two
white men. There are amazing
characters in it it has got a
beginning, a middle, and an
end. It is a powerful story.
And some of your favourite
books?
There is something I read
when I was starting out, which
was a collection of articles
that was published under the
heading The New Journalism,
edited by Tom Wolfe, who had
been a journalist and became a
novelist. There are some re-
ally, really interesting pieces
in there. It is about a particular
way of writing, using the tech-
niques that a novelist uses to
write a true story. So you are
using dialogue, and you are es-
tablishing characters, some-
times you are writing facts
through their eyes like a nov-
elist does. Some of the pieces
in The New Journalism in-
spired me in trying to get close
to subjects and write
powerfully.

CM ND-ND
YK
12 |
FROM PAGE ONE
Neglect may wipe out
finger print bureau
An expert described how
a couple of years ago a
murder was solved with on-
ly one fingerprint. When
miscreants broke into the
house of an elderly woman
who lived alone in Birb-
hum's Bolpur. nobody had
seen them enter the house.
The police could find no
evidence, there were no
suspects.
The Finger Print Bureau
was called in and they
found that the house had
been wiped almost clean of
any fingerprint traces. Ex-
cept a single fingerprint on
the door.
Additionally, it was
found that the victim had
lent a big sum of money to a
local businessman.
The fingerprint did not
match his, but the police
were able to find similar
samples at his residence,
which led to the case being
solved and the hired killers
were eventually arrested in
Delhi.
The West Bengals finger
print bureau, considered
one of the oldest in the
world, was set up in 1897 by
Rail tarif regulator
plan may face delays
The Railways estimated
losses in passenger seg-
ment mounted from
Rs.6,159 crore in 2004-05 to
over Rs.30,000 crore in
2015-16, primarily due to
sharp increase in input
costs and no
commensurate increase in
fares over the same period.
The authoritys pro-
posed mandate was setting
passenger and freight fares,
ensuring fair play for pri-
vate investments in railway
infrastructure and setting
eiciency and performance
standards. Policy-making,
operations and mainten-
ance, financial manage-
ment and compliance of
safety standards would not
Court warrant against
Ananda Krishnan
It is ordered that the
trial of the appearing ac-
cused, that is, Dayanidhi
Maran, Kalanidhi Maran,
Messrs Sun Direct TV Pvt.
Ltd. and and Messrs South
Asia Entertainment Hold-
ings Ltd. be segregated
from the trial of accused
Ralph Marshall, T. Ananda
Krishnan, Astro All Asia
Networks Plc. and Maxis
Communications Berhad,
Mr. Saini said. It is further
ordered that an open and
perpetual warrant of arrest
be issued against Ralph
Marshall and T. Ananda
Krishnan, as prayed by the
prosecution, he said.
Mr. Saini issued the war-
rants on an application by
the CBI. The CBI had
sought issuance of the war-
rants after four summons
against the two accused in
the past four years were re-
turned unserved. The CBI
had chargesheeted the
eight accused in August
2014. The court took cog-
nisance of it the same year
in October. The charge
sheet accused Dayanidhi
Modi talks tough
He castigated the leaders
of Pakistan for failing their
own citizens and instead of
addressing Prime Minister
Nawaz Sharif, the Prime
Minister sought to speak to
the Pakistani people, asking
to them to demand from
their leaders an explana-
tion on why when our two
countries, which got inde-
pendence almost at the
same time, have traversed
diferent paths, it has seen
us (India) export soft ware
and Pakistan export terror.
"Every time there is a ter-
ror attack, it appears that ei-
ther the terrorist has come
from Pakistan or like
Osama Bin Laden has
sought asylum there, he
said. In an acidic jab at Mr
Sharif, he said the latter's
speech "had been written at
the behest of his masters,
the terrorists, to serenade
Kashmir.
CM
- 1ias.com -
Edward Richard Henry,
who served as the In-
spector General of the
Bengal Province and later
went on to head the Metro-
politan Police in London.
Understafed
Though Bengal records
more crimes than U.P. and
Bihar, the Bureau,
crammed into mere 400 sq
feet in Bhawani Bhavan,
headquarters of State CID
with only eight staf, is
nearly moribund. A retired
former director of the Bur-
eau heads the unit as Oi-
cer on Special Duty (OSD),
assisted by a senior finger
print expert. Five sub in-
spectors and one inspector,
trained to do the work of
experts, complete the list.
The sanctioned strength?
According to experts it is 41
12 senior finger print ex-
perts, 28 junior finger print
experts, and one director.
A proposal has been sent
to the State government for
an Automated Fingerprint
Identification System
(AFIS), likely to cost a few
crore.
fall under the purview of
the regulator, as per the
proposal.
The regulators in other
sectors have to deal with
various industry players.
But the Indian Railways is a
public monopoly and a reg-
ulator for this sector re-
quires a diferent ap-
proach, the oicial argued.
The Railways concept
note on the rail regulator,
dated January 1, had argued
that even the Pension
Funds Regulatory and De-
velopment Authority or
PFRDA became functional
through an executive order
in 2003 but the PFRDA Act
was passed a decade later in
2013.
Maran of criminal conspir-
acy and making illegal pe-
cuniary gain for himself in
the deal.It alleged that the
former Minister had
entered into a criminal con-
spiracy with T. Ananda
Krishnan and coerced C.
Sivasankaran, owner of Air-
cel, to sell his shares to Mr.
Krishnan allegedly in lieu
of investments in Sun Dir-
ect TV Pvt. Ltd., promoted
by Kalanidhi Maran.
The probe agency ar-
gued before the court that
there was no option left for
the prosecution but to ap-
proach the INTERPOL for
issuance of a Red Corner
Notice against the accused,
and for this an open war-
rant of arrest against the
two accused from this
court was required. South
Asia Entertainment hold-
ings Limited, an accused in
the case, opposed the CBI
plea, submitting that the
prayer for warrants was not
justified as non-service of
summons could not be at-
tributed to the acts or omis-
sions of the accused.
I want the people of
Pakistan to ask their lead-
ers about the fact that
Pakistan Occupied Kash-
mir (PoK) is with you, why
haven't you been able to
handle it? What about
Pakhtunistan, you haven't
been able to handle it; there
are insurrections against
the government in Gilgit
Baltistan and Baluchistan,
you haven't been able to
handle it. Once, Bangladesh
was part of your country,
you couldn't handle it.
Please handle your own
home rather than look
across the border, he said.
Pat for security forces
He devoted a significant
portion of his speech on the
Indian security forces and
their record of fighting ter-
ror, assuring them that 1.25
billion Indians back our
men in uniform.
Rafale deal welcome but fleet small: Experts
They say until India can build its own aircraft, the increasing diversity in the aircraft types cannot be addressed
DINAKAR PERI
NEW DELHI: The conclusion of
the deal for 36 Rafale fighter
jets is a welcome step to aug-
ment the capabilities of the
Indian Air Force but the
number is too small for lo-
gistical and operational reas-
ons, say experts.
They also agreed that until
India can build its own air-
craft, the increasing diversity
in the fleet cannot be ad-
dressed, another cause of
concern for the IAF.
India and France signed
the Inter-Governmental
Agreement (IGA) on Friday,
ending negotiations for the
direct purchase which began
after Prime Minister Naren-
dra Modi announced the dir-
ect purchase in April 2015.
Just 2 squadrons in service
The deal, interestingly,
does not have an optional
clause, which means the IAF
will have just two squadrons
in service.
India needed a potent
deep penetration aircraft for
diverse roles and we decided
that 36 were enough, one
defence oicial observed on
the rationale.
Air Vice Marshal Amit An-
eja (retired) said the deal was
long overdue as time has a
premium but questioned
the rationale of only 36 air-
craft as it is not a sustainable
number for a viable force of
such a platform. There will
also be sub-utilisation of the
skills developed by the work-
force due to the limited num-
bers, he noted.
The Mirage deal was a
success story and that should
have served as a template,
Will seek asylum, says Uri attack hijacks U.P. poll discourse
another Baloch leader
KALLOL BHATTACHERJEE
NEW DELHI: A number of Ba-
loch activists and leaders
staying in Europe could ap-
proach India to seek asylum
if the host countries tried to
deport them to Pakistan,
leader of the Free Ba-
lochistan Movement,
Hyrbyair Marri has said.
Mr. Marri said he could
also seek asylum in India like
Baloch Republican Party
leader Brahumdagh Bugti, if
his present host, U.K., turned
hostile in future. I have been
staying in Britain for some
time but Britain is increas-
ingly coming under the in-
fluence of Pakistan, espe-
cially on the issue of
Balochistan. I will seek
asylum from India or the U.S.
or some other reasonable
country that is not under
Pakistani influence, if the
U.K. plans to hand me over to
Pakistan or creates dii-
culties before me, Mr. Marri
told an Urdu media outlet.
Mr. Marri is the second
major Baloch leader after Mr.
Bugti to declare his intention
to seek asylum in India. In
2015, Free Balochistan Move-
ment reached out to India to
seek support and appointed
a Baloch residing in Delhi as
its representative. Pakistan
has accused Mr. Marri and
Mr. Bugti of leading insur-
gency movements in Ba-
CJI lost his temper: Senior lawyer
LEGAL CORRESPONDENT
NEW DELHI: It is the duty of a
lawyer to tell the judge
where there is a failure of
justice and due process.
This is how senior advoc-
ate Rajeev Dhavan, known to
be both an eloquent and ef-
fectively abrasive lawyer in
the Supreme Court, ex-
plained the confrontation he
had with a Bench led by
Chief Justice of India T.S.
Thakur on Friday in a short
bail hearing for Sahara chief
Subrata Roy.
Mr. Dhavan, in a written
statement, said Chief Justice
Thakur made uncharitable
comments about his con-
duct as a lawyer.
Quotes a phrase
Scripting a rare incident of
a senior advocate confront-
ing the Chief Justice of India
for losing his temper, Mr.
Dhavan quoted an oft-re-
peated phrase that justice is
not a cloistered virtue and
must sufer the scrutiny of
NEWS
FACING FLAK: A file photo of a French Rafale fighter jet. India and France signed the Inter-
Governmental Agreement on Friday, sealing the deal for its direct purchase. PHOTO: AFP
the former Mirage pilot add-
ed. India has in batches pro-
cured three squadrons of Mi-
rage 2000 fighters from
France.
Cost of customisation
The deal for 36 aircraft is
valued at 7.87 bn or about
Rs. 1,630 crore per plane and
it included the spares,
weapons, maintenance and
performance guarantee for
five years.
Air Marshal M. Math-
eswaran, former Deputy
Chief of Integrated Defence
Staf, observed that the Ra-
fale was an exceptional air-
craft in a multirole capability
but conceded that it was a
relatively expensive aircraft.
The average cost of the ba-
Hyrbyair Marri
lochistan that they both re-
fute. Mr. Marri said India
should consider providing
educational opportunities
for Baloch activists as many
of them have been denied
education in Pakistan due to
their political leanings. We
are particularly concerned
about those Baloch brothers
who have been denied
asylum by various European
countries. We are trying so
that they receive asylum in
India or some other coun-
try, he said.
Not secessionism
Mr. Marri said seeking of
asylum does not amount to
Baloch secessionism as Ba-
lochistan has been a free land
even before Pakistan was
created in 1947. Mr. Marris
declaration comes days after
Mr. Bugti revealed his nego-
tiation with Indian diplo-
mats on seeking asylum in
India. Mr. Bugti and Mr.
Marri are representatives of
two of the biggest clans in
the Baloch society.
Rajeev Dhavan
ordinary persons.
People in high places
have enormous power and
the duty to use it wisely is
forbearance, Mr. Dhavan
said in his statement.
Mr. Roy had suddenly
found his liberty slipping on
the edge of a precipice when
his lawyer Mr. Dhavan ticked
of a Bench led by Chief
Justice Thakur by question-
ing its fairness.
sic aircraft is 91 million or
about Rs. 680 crore and the
36 jets include 28 single and
eight trainer variants.
Air Marshal Matheswaran
observed that India had a lot
of technological require-
ments that it wanted incor-
porated, which would push
up the cost as it involved
design change.
8 bn looks huge on the
face of it but the increase in
cost is because of two things,
significant weapons package
and the customisation, he for another cheaper option
told The Hindu on Saturday.
Of the 7.87 bn, about 1.7
bn alone has been earmarked
for India-specific modifica-
tions, he stated.
However, he observed that
the original Medium Multi-
SMITA GUPTA
ALLAHABAD: It is lunchtime at
the Allahabad High Court. In
one of the many lawyers
chambers, a group has con-
gregated. The conversation
is desultory till someone
mentions the situation on
the Pakistan border where 18
soldiers of the Indian army
were killed a week ago. The
decibel level immediately
rises and the lawyers are
split on what the govern-
ment should do: rush in and
smash Pakistan, or think
things through.
One particularly agitated
lawyer shouts above the din:
Just watch: Narendra Modi
will take very strong action
and then nothing can stop
the BJP from winning the
elections in Uttar Pradesh
next year.
Topic of debate
Indeed, as this reporter
travelled across central and
eastern U.P. last week, the
turmoil in the Kashmir val-
ley and the killing of the Indi-
an soldiers is a subject that is
being hotly debated, not just
in lawyers chambers, uni-
versities and middle class
drawing rooms in the cities,
but in remote villages, too.
In Khalilabad districts
Bhujari village, it is not quite
nine in the morning. The
public wants a fight to the
finish with Pakistan. Earlier,
people felt that the Congress
Rajeev Dhavan
explains the conflict
he had with a Bench
led by the CJI during
Sahara case hearing
Chief Justice Thakur, who
was on the previous day tak-
en ill, later said the Bench
merely wanted to adjourn
the hearing on bail for anoth-
er day, but Mr. Dhavans re-
marks were more than it
could bear.
As a result, an irate Bench
had ordered Mr. Roy and his
two directors, on parole
since May, to be taken back apology for Mr. Dhavans
into custody.
Orders unbecoming
The CJI was convinced
that Saharas parole should
be continued because Rs.
300 crore has been de-
posited. The CJI lost his tem-
per and passed an order or-
dering my client back to jail. I
remonstrated that he had
passed the order in a temper
Role Combat Aircraft (MM-
RCA) tender was cleared for
$ 10.5 bn for 126 aircraft and
stated that the French Air
Force acquired its first Ra-
fale at 55 million per
aircraft.
To look for cheaper option
Air Marshal Matheswaran
said the IAF had a need for
200 aircraft of this type but
the government had decided
that this was what we could
aford and now would look
to fill the remaining
numbers.
One retired oicer ob-
served that the deal seems to
have been guided more by
political prudence than op-
erational requirements.
LOUD SUPPORT: BJP activists cheering PM Narendra Modi
during Parivartan Rally in Allahabad in June. PHOTO: RAJEEV BHATT
government was weak, so
Hindus voted for the BJP. But
people are disappointed:
they are saying this is a
Hindu government and it is
doing nothing, says Tej
Prakash Tewari.
An avowed BJP supporter,
he stresses, In our district,
there are torch lit dem-
onstrations every day; peo-
ple are coming out onto the
streets demanding action.
One of the martyrs, Ganesh
Shankar Yadav, is from the
Medhawal assembly seg-
ment in our district.
Diplomatic measures and
tough speeches in the U.N.
wont help Pakistan reform,
he says, adding, Modiji
should show us that he really
has a 56 inch chest. If the U.S.
can enter into other coun-
tries territories and shoot
down terrorists, why cant
we? Otherwise, he is taking a
risk in these elections.
and this was not fair Or-
ders passed in a temper, es-
pecially when all conditions
are fulfilled, are both inap-
propriate and unbecoming,
Mr. Dhavan said.
Respect for the judiciary
He said it was respect for
the judiciary, the institution
which I have studied since
1970 and practised regularly
since 1992, that made him
act in the best traditions of
justice on Friday.
Later in the day, Chief
Justice Thakur told senior
advocate Kapil Sibal, who
had sought an unconditional
conduct, that a lawyer could
not browbeat judges.
We too have a threshold
to our tolerance. You cannot
go on browbeating judges.
We do not demand respect,
but some respect has to be
shown to the institution,
Chief Justice Thakur had
said in open court.
Mr. Roys parole has been
extended for a week.
THE HINDU SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2016
Congress seeks to
puncture holes
SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT
NEW DELHI: The Congress on
Saturday sought to puncture
holes into the Rafale deal the
government signed a day
earlier, seeking to know how
defence requirements would
be fulfilled by buying just 36
aircraft?
During the UPA, we had
planned to buy 126 aircraft to
strengthen the Indian Air
Force, which was an urgent
operational requirement
considering security situ-
ation in the country, Con-
gress leader and the former
Defence Minister A.K. Ant-
ony said, wondering why on-
ly 36 aircraft were being
bought. Is it enough to meet
operational requirement of
the IAF which has a sanc-
tioned strength of 42 squad-
rons and.... at present there
are just 32 squadrons?
Suggesting that more air-
craft were necessary for the
operational requirement of
the air force, he expressed
the fear that the squadron
available with the IAF by
2022 would be reduced to 25.
This happened a day after
India signed a 7.87-billion
(approx Rs. 59,000 cr.) deal
with France for purchase of
36 Rafale fighter jets.
Mr. Antony also deman-
ded that the government
make public details of the fi-
nal contract.
Congress leader and the
former Union Minister Man-
I catch that same note of
disappointment in
Varanasis Assi Ghat among
locals who gather there
every evening to watch the
Ganga flow by and discuss
politics. Yogendra Singh and
Saumitra Shastri, both pen-
sioners, are sitting with their
friends.
Supporters disappointed
When I ask about the
killing of the soldiers, there
is an uncomfortable silence
and Yogendra Singhs voice
drops: There was some slip-
page (he uses the English
word); yes, that was
definitely a failure on the
past of this government,
even though Modiji had ex-
tended a hand in friendship
to Pakistan. That was a
mistake.
Among the chaat stalls in
Varanasis Lanka, an anim-
ated conversation is under-
Pak. to approach Interpol
for extradition of Bugti
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has said it
will approach Interpol for
the extradition of Baloch
leader Brahamdagh Bugti,
who has sought political
asylum in India, a media re-
port said.
The Pakistan government
has decided to write to Inter-
pol for the extradition of Mr.
Bugti.
The Federal Investigation
Agency will send a formal
reference to Interpol within
the next few days for the ex-
tradition of Brahamdagh
Bugti, Interior Minister
Nisar Ali Khan was quoted as
saying by the Express
Tribune.
Pakistan on Friday warned
India that by granting asylum
to Mr. Bugti, it would be-
come an oicial sponsor of
terrorism.
Mr. Bugti, who has been
living in Switzerland, on
Tuesday approached the In-
dian Embassy in Geneva
seeking asylum in India and
exuded confidence of a pos-
NOIDA/DELHI
A. K. Antony
ish Tewari sought to know
details of the pricing of the
aircraft. Mr. Tewari asked
whether it was true that
when the UPA left, the non-
negotiated price of the Ra-
fale was in the range of
Rs.715-crore per aircraft and
what has been finally negoti-
ated for the 36 aircraft was
Rs. 1600-crore per aircraft,
which amounted to a 123 per
cent escalation?
Serious concerns
There are serious con-
cerns that have been raised
by the people who follow the
entire gamut of defence and
strategic afairs. So, isnt it in-
cumbent on the government
to clarify or putting ever-
ything out in the public do-
main? Mr. Tewari said.
Mr. Antony said the ab-
sence of any provision of
technology transfer in the
deal would escalate costs for
India. He rued that the idea
of Make in India in the
original plan had also gone
in the present deal.
way. Under Manmohan
Singh, Kashmir was largely
peaceful. The BJP has set fire
to Kashmir. It looks as
though we have lost the
State. The Congress would
have managed the situation
better, says one of them and
the others nod. It is an all
Hindu group.
At Azamgarhs Hotel
Garuda, its owner Bijendra
Singh says, People here are
saying, this is no longer the
time for tweets, but for tit for
tat. People want instant ac-
tion but, of course, a war re-
quires preparation. And now
there is the danger of a nucle-
ar war. We, too, could get de-
stroyed. But the sentiment
on the ground is very
strong.
Staunch BJP supporters of-
fer a range of explanations on
why it is not possible to act
without weeks, if not months
of preparation. Asked about
Prime Minister Narendra
Modi taunting his
predecessor in oice, Dr
Manmohan Singh, in the run-
up to the 2014 elections, say-
ing that if ever came to
power he would ensure that
for every two soldiers who
were killed, ten Pakistani sol-
diers would meet a similar
fate, they look embarrassed.
But BJP supporters and
critics alike all believe that
the governments action
could influence the partys
performance in next years
Assembly polls.
Brahamdagh Bugti
itive response from New
Delhi. His application seek-
ing political asylum was re-
ceived by the Home Ministry
in New Delhi which is exam-
ining it.
Mr. Bugti is the President
and founder of Baloch Re-
publican Party. He is the
grandson of Nawab Akbar
Khan Bugti, a Baloch nation-
alist leader killed by the
Pakistan army in 2006.
The Pakistan government
had blamed India for helping
Mr. Bugti flee Pakistan to
Geneva in 2010 through
Afghanistan. PTI
ND-ND
10 | - 1ias.com - EDITORIAL THE HINDU MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 26, 2016
NOIDA/DELHI

Solving the Pakistan puzzle

M O N D AY , S E P T E M B E R 2 6 , 2 0 1 6
Rafale takes flight
The confusion that characterises the aftermath of the Uri attack is a reminder that India needs more nuance
and guile in engaging stakeholders in Pakistans power structure
military response to Pakistan would show sophisticated border management practices.
that we are likely to be worse of after carry- Moreover, it is important to ask hard ques-
HAPPYMON JACOB ing out a military mission, of any intensity, tions on the security lapses which led to 18
against Pakistan, including on the terrorism soldiers being killed by terrorists. Clearly, in
front. The point here is not that the Indian the self-generated commotion surrounding
The terrorist attack on an Indian Army base
military cant fight and win a war of attrition
with Pakistan: it can, even under nuclear
teaching Pakistan a lesson, we forgot to ask
the government as to how and why this at-

at last in north Kashmirs Uri by Pakistan-based

terror groups has rekindled a long-standing
debate in the country on how to deal with its
conditions, albeit not without inviting
massive damage on the country. But the
policy-makers need to carefully consider if
tack took place in the first place. Kashmir
was on fire, Uri is a traditional infiltration
route and there was intelligence about a pos-

T
he signing of the Inter-Governmental
Agreement between India and France for
36 Rafale multirole fighter jets brings to
an end 17 months of hard bargaining, fol-
lowing Prime Minister Narendra Modis decision
to dump the Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft
(MMRCA) tender and the announcement during
his visit to Paris last year of direct purchases. The
first such major acquisition in almost two decades,
it comes as a breather for the Indian Air Force,
which has been facing depleting fighter strength.
As Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar pointed
out, given its technological superiority the Rafale
will augment the IAFs capability. The weapons
package, which includes the Meteor radar-guided
Beyond Visual Range air-to-air missile, considered
best-in-class with a range of over 150 km, and the
Scalp long-range air-to-ground missiles with a
range of 300 km, will help maintain the IAFs air su-
periority as they have no equivalents in the region.
Given the technological sophistication and the long
range, the Rafales are expected to play a lead role as
nuclear delivery platforms in Indias second-strike
capability, replacing the Mirage 2000 fighters.
The acquisition will cost the exchequer 7.87 bil-
lion, or about Rs.59,000 crore, which is a high price
compared to $10.5 billion approved for 126 fighter
jets under the original MMRCA deal in 2007. The
basic aircraft costs about 91 million, which is high
in comparison to other contemporary four-plus
generation aircraft. The Centre has claimed savings
of several million in the hard bargain, but the De-
fence Ministry would do well to share more in-
formation in Parliament. It is unclear why the gov-
ernment decided to buy just 36 fighters, which
creates logistical and operational complications
and pushes up the overall cost for reasons of
economies of scale. In fact, Indias is now one of the
most diverse air forces, with Western and Russian-
origin aircraft with Indian and other systems incor-
porated in them. The IAF has been attempting to
narrow the diversity to optimise utilisation and
bring down the cost of operations. The current tra-
jectory of procurement indicates that those plans
may be on hold. The government is scouting for an-
other fighter to be inducted in large numbers and
produced in India under the Make in India initiat-
ive. In the years to come, the indigenously built
Light Combat Aircraft Tejas and the Fifth Genera-
tion Fighter Aircraft from Russia will join the force,
adding to the diversity. While the Rafale deal is a
welcome step, it is high time India made procure-
ments based on a long-term integrated plan.
Falling behind
schedule
troublesome neighbour, Pakistan. At the
same time, it has called into serious question
the ruling Bharatiya Janata Partys incoher-
ent policy towards Pakistan, characterised
by a consistent lack of nuanced understand-
ing of the art of diplomacy, and the costs of
war.
A cursory analysis of the BJP-led govern-
ments Pakistan policy reveals an inherent
desire for quick returns from what is argu-
ably Indias most diicult bilateral challenge
which goes to indicate how historically un-
sound the thinking behind the BJPs Pakistan
policy has so far been. After the initial reach
out during Prime Minister Narendra Modis
swearing in, the year-long military stand-of
on the international border in Jammu stalled
progress between the two sides. The quiet
parleys between the two National Security
Advisers thereafter brought some semb-
lance of normalcy back into the relationship,
which was further cemented by Mr. Modis
surprise visit to Lahore in December, some-
thing that has apparently become a millstone
around his neck today.
Pakistans inability to keep promises
Surprisingly, the Pathankot terror attack in
January did not damage the relationship be-
yond repair as the political management of
its aftermath was exceptionally tactful. Then
came Uri. The key reason why the Uri attack
mauled the relationship so badly is because
it took place in the backdrop of the Kashmir
unrest which was proving to be awkward for
the Central government. Thanks to
Pakistans not-so-diplomatic support to
Kashmir, BJP spin doctors managed to clev-
erly use the Uri shocker to divert attention
from the persistent unrest in the Valley.
When the nation is busy preparing for a war
with Pakistan to pay back for the Uri mas-
sacre, how could anyone be bothered about
Kashmir!
While New Delhi does not have an
imaginative Pakistan policy, Islamabad is
clearly an unreliable neighbour. Islamabad
continues to be unwilling to rein in its anti-
India rhetoric, keep its promises on basic bi-
lateral courtesies, and stop the terror mas-
CARTOONSCAPE
Its worrying that New Delhis
language and tactics have already
started resembling those of
Pakistan, which is a result of not
keeping the big picture in mind
terminds from plotting and waging their
covert wars against India. In the wake of the
deplorable Uri attacks, Pakistan must an-
swer some hard questions. Why did it not al-
low the National Investigation Agency team
to visit Pakistan after India allowed Pakistani
investigators to visit Pathankot? Why did it
not bring Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) leader
Masood Azhar to book post-Pathankot? Giv-
en that the JeM is reportedly behind the Uri
attack, it indirectly implicates Pakistan for
letting Masood Azhar walk free after Path-
ankot. There is no evidence yet of the
Pakistani states direct complicity in the at-
tack. If such evidence indeed emerges,
Pakistan will need to answer many more
hard questions. Pakistan needs to show
some seriousness if it is keen on improving
the relationship it cant be a one-way
street.
Thinking beyond the military option
Despite the relentless clamour for a milit-
ary reprisal against Pakistan, the under-
stated, but well-thought-out, view within the
Indian strategic community, including re-
tired commanders of the Indian military, is
that coercion may not be a feasible option
vis--vis Pakistan, for a variety of reasons. A
step-by-step cost-benefit analysis of using a
they want to risk a potential nuclear ex-
change in response to a terror strike. Hence
the unacceptable costs of winning a war with
Pakistan should persuade us to look for other
strategies of dealing with it. War, after all,
as Clausewitz put it, is not an act of sense-
less passion.
If we rule out the coercive options using
simulated scenarios, how do we then deal
with a Pakistan that is seemingly uninter-
ested in winding down its terror machinery
against India? Doing nothing cant be a
policy either, although that has been the pre-
ferred option all this while.
First of all, New Delhi needs to view and
deal with Pakistan within its larger grand
strategic scheme. Quick-fix solutions and
like-responses will only get us into an ugly
dogfight with Pakistan which are not in con-
sonance with Indias global ambitions and
developmental goals. Its worrying that New
Delhis language and tactics have already
started resembling those of Pakistan, which
is a direct result of not keeping the big pic-
ture in mind. In the grand strategic scheme
of things, Pakistan is an irritant, not a strate-
gic threat: so treat it like it, and focus on the
real strategic threats.
The India can survive reality
Second, however unpopular it might
sound and however painful they are, the re-
ality is that we can, as a nation and state, sur-
vive these attacks. Successive governments
in New Delhi have intuitively recognised
this. If anything, every terrorist attack direc-
ted against India continues to weaken the
Pakistani state and nation: its sovereignty,
economy and character. Pakistans 28-year-
long Kashmir campaign has not only not
managed to wrest Kashmir from India, it is
today on the verge of self-destruction pri-
marily due to its misguided Kashmir policy.
Third, it is time we learnt to defend
ourselves better, with better equipment for
our forces, a better fence on the Line of Con-
trol and the International Border, more
army-Border Security Force deployment on
the vulnerable areas of the fence, and by
adopting more eicient and technologically
sible strike. Who then is responsible for the
shocking lapses that led to the death of our
soldiers? The government has not yet given a
comprehensive assessment of the attack.
The BJP leadership cannot be allowed to de-
flect these crucial questions concerning our
national security by issuing statements such
as we should not discredit the sacrifices of
our soldiers.
Dealing with Rawalpindi
Fourth, engaging a hydra-headed Pakistan
requires creative statecraft, and for this New
Delhi needs to think outside the traditional
modes of diplomacy. While riding high on
his birthday tte--tte with Mr. Sharif, Mr.
Modi and his advisers forgot to keep in mind
the most important actor that matters in
Pakistans policy towards India: the Pakistan
Army. It is important to note that Pakistans
Army is driven by strategic choices and
politico-economic rationale which the de-
cision-makers in New Delhi need to analyse
and understand, and then reach out to the
generals in Rawalpindi accordingly. Repeat-
ing that Army runs Pakistan, civilian govern-
ment has no power there is a lazy complaint;
looking for ways to work around its complex
rational calculus is smart statecraft. If New
Delhi wishes to choose the latter, it needs to
engage the enemy, the Pakistan Army, by
perhaps opening discreet negotiations with
it. When New Delhi engages Pakistan
Armys rational calculus through the Is-
lamabads political establishment, the mes-
sage seems to get lost in translation. Its time
to convey the message directly and address
Rawalpindis pay-of structure.
Finally, if Kashmir is what forms the raison
detre of Pakistans proxy war against India,
India can successfully deal with Pakistan
and its rationale by addressing Kashmir in
the first place. In so far as Kashmir is on the
boil, Pakistan, till it is persuaded to give up
its claim on it which is hard to happen
will inevitably try and take advantage of the
situation there. Hence, even if India is unable
to deal with Pakistans absolutist claims on
Kashmir, it can and should efectively deal
with Kashmir which will necessarily weaken
Pakistans Kashmir claims.
Going by that logic, blaming the Kashmir
unrest on Pakistan instead of pacifying the
rage in the Valley can only make things dii-
cult for our ability to deal with Pakistan. So
far, New Delhis policies have been a failure
on both fronts. Every time we link Pakistan
to Kashmir by blaming Islamabad for the
protests in the Valley, we are only helping
Pakistans Kashmir cause. The argument
here is not that Pakistan is not engaged in a
proxy war in Kashmir, but that the govern-
ments intellectual and political inability to
pacify Kashmir should not be excused using
the Pakistan bogey. It would be useful for the
BJP to take on board Chanakyas perceptive

C
urrent educational attainments remain
far from adequate for the enhancement
of personal well-being and social pro-
gress, according to a report of the Orga-
nisation for Economic Co-operation and De-
velopment. Immigrant populations are especially
disadvantaged, an area that deserves particular at-
tention given the recent scramble for shelter and
succour among millions of refugees. The findings
in the OECDs Education at a Glance 2016 report
make for sober reading all round, viewed against
data on the many rewards individuals and societies
are able to reap when endowed with higher quali-
fications. For instance, people with a masters de-
gree stand a close to 90 per cent wage advantage in
the 35 countries of the OECD. Correspondingly,
their governments receive over a lifetime about
100,000 in taxes and social contributions more
than they invest on a graduate. There has been a 4
percentage point increase in the rate of enrolment
in tertiary education in the decade ended 2014.
These are encouraging facts; the logical case there-
fore should be for greater public investment in this
sector. But across the spectrum the trend is clearly
in the opposite direction. While the report shows
an 8 per cent rise in real-term spending per child in
the five years up to 2013, it also notes a 14 per cent
increase in private expenditure in the region in the
same period. Private spending by students and
households is estimated at some 30 per cent in the
tertiary education sector alone. This has to be
viewed against the backdrop of the relentless regi-
me of economic austerity in the years following the
financial crisis, with serious implications for equity
and the knowledge economies of the future.
A broader issue mentioned in the report, which
covers besides OECD members, partner-countries
including India, is the likelihood that states may not
be able to realise the 2030 Sustainable De-
velopment Goal pertaining to the provision of qual-
ity education. This concern is echoed in the Un-
esco 2016 report. The need to achieve the targets
relating to SDG 4, to ensure inclusive and equitable
quality education, cannot be overstated, given that
it is the pivot on which the realisation of several
other fundamentally important developmental ob-
jectives remains. Indeed, almost the entire success
of the 2030 agenda rests squarely on the education
target. The objectives of reduction of poverty, alle-
viation of hunger, expansion of employment, em-
powerment of women and gender equality are all
influenced by the qualifications and skills that men
and women possess. And of course at another level,
without an educated and empowered populace, the
dream of an enlightened, more tolerant and peace-
ful world would forever remain elusive.
CM
YK
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Letters emailed to letters@thehindu.co.in must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.
The Kozhikode speech
Prime Minister Narendra Modis
strong condemnation of the Uri
attack and his tough talking to his
Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif
is all very well but the barrage of
attacks from across the border
make it imperative that India can
hardly aford to indulge in rhetoric
at this stage. A much stifer
response is warranted as terrorist
strikes have to be stopped at any
cost (Modi talks tough to Sharif,
reaches out to Pak. people,
Sept.25). Mr. Modis reaching out to
the people of Pakistan could meet
with no positive response as it is an
open secret that it is the army that
calls the shots in Pakistan. Our
patience is being exploited.
C.V. Aravind,
Bengaluru
Can we say that we have enough
support to isolate Pakistan as it is an
exporter of terrorism? How many
lives will it take to show up Pakistan
as a terrorist nation? Even our
so-called closest friend Russia is
now conducting joint military
operations with a terrorist nation. If
this has happened, it should set us
thinking about where we have failed
in changing perceptions. Is it a
result of our failure, diplomatically,
to expose Pakistan? The time has
also come to question the drift in
the India-Russia relationship.
C.H. Rajalingu,
Hyderabad
There is a big hiatus between words
and actions on the part of the
present dispensation at the Centre.
We have been hearing such
utterances and assurances ever
since Mr. Modi began campaigning
for the Lok Sabha election in 2014.
Whenever India is attacked, we
come up with a number of forceful
debates, attempts at initiating
dialogue, powerful speeches,
utterances and even assurances, but
do not act. Stern action will send
out a strong message to terrorists
and their powerful handlers that no
attack, big or small, will be
tolerated. Our soldiers cannot
continue to lose their lives this way.
Rui Pereira,
Salcete, Goa
It is clear that the Centres strategy
is to take on Pakistan diplomatically,
try and isolate it and get it labelled
as a terror sponsoring state.
However, to what extent such a
direct reference to Pakistans
internal problems would help in
controlling cross-border violations
remains to be seen. On the contrary,
Pakistan may intensify its eforts to
create more problems in J&K.
There is no substitute to having a
meaningful dialogue with Pakistan
on all outstanding issues.
D.B.N. Murthy,
Bengaluru
Repeated border incursions show
that Pakistan is a divided house and
that it is its army which foments this
slow, painful war against India. As a
result, terror outfits have carved out
their own spheres of influence in
Pakistan, and India is in no position
to eliminate them through overt or
covert operations. Nor would other
countries, including the U.S., take
sides in this low-level conflict
between India and Pakistan. Is there
any guarantee that terror attacks
will cease if India retaliates
strongly? The best option for India
is to beef up its counter-intelligence
operations and border defences so
that it could eliminate terrorists
ruthlessly and eiciently.
Kangayam R. Narasimhan,
Chennai
Rafale deal
Though the Rafale deal represents a
considerable climbdown from the
original requirement of 126, the fact
that it has been customised to suit
the IAFs requirements and can be
used for nuclear warhead delivery
makes up for it to some extent.
There might be an ofset clause, but
there is no mention of technology
transfer which strikes a blow
against Indias Make in India twins is in question. Even DNA
defence initiative. The biggest
fallout is that the deal could cast a
shadow over otherwise robust
India-Russia ties. The Russia-
Pakistan joint military exercise is a
reflection of New Delhis souring
relationship with Moscow.
Nalini Vijayaraghavan,
Thiruvananthapuram
advice in Arthasasthra: A ruler with loyal
people accomplishes his task even with a
little help because of their cooperation.
Mr. Modi in his speech at the ongoing BJP
conclave in Kozhikode de-emphasised the
military option as a response to the Uri at-
tack and instead called upon people of
Pakistan to come forward, fight a war on who
defeats unemployment, poverty, illiteracy
first. His invocation to the Pakistani people
to ask uncomfortable questions of their gov-
ernment on terror, and focus on de-
velopment is indeed a good beginning.
Happymon Jacob is an Associate Professor of Diplomacy
and Disarmament Studies at the Jawaharlal Nehru
University.
The recently concluded deal results It is a fact that no two fingerprints
in two contradictory sets of have ever been found to be alike.
emotions. The clause fly away Even in the era of growing
condition will give the IAF the computerisation, research into
required boost to efectively guard fingerprint science continues under
our border. On the other hand is the the banner of the International
emotion of an inferiority complex Fingerprint Research Group, to cite
associated with the tag largest one example. New methods and
importer of arms in the world and techniques are being evolved to
the thwarting of Hindustan enhance forensic science as crime
Aeronautics Limiteds prestige that methodology becomes more
came as a byproduct of the deal. If sophisticated. If the West Bengal
we are to aspire to sit at the global government is unable to run the
high table, we need to increase our bureau, it should appeal for
domestic competencies. The way international aid.
forward is to develop the defence
C.R. Ananthanarayanan,
industry on the lines of the space Bengaluru
industry, taking note of ISROs
achievements.
Kalahandi mirror
Surendra Singh Achara,
We claim to be the fastest growing
New Delhi
economy in the world in terms of
GDP, one of the highest FDI
It faces erasure receiving destinations of the world,
Though sidelined by emerging and home to entrepreneurs who are
forensic tools of identification, the among the worlds richest. We have
dependence on fingerprints still has also attempted a space mission to
relevance (Neglect may wipe out Mars successfully. However,
oldest finger print bureau, incidents such as the one reported
Sept.25). A textbook case is when from Kalahandi (Women
the culpability of monozygotic dismantle roof for mothers funeral
in Odisha, Sept.25) leave me
testing can go wrong and it is only confused, reminding me of Amartya
dactylography that comes to the Sens view of our Indian glory as
rescue. Forensic laboratories in an uncertain glory.
India are facing a severe crisis of What is the use of this glory if many
manpower and infrastructure. It is Indians such as Kanak Satpathy live
time we strengthen our science and die a life as less than a human
laboratories. being?
Dr. Manoj Kumar Gaddam, Abhilash Thimmaiah,
Karimnagar, Telangana New Delhi
ND-ND
NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 26, 2016

- 1ias.com - PERSPECTIVE | 11

FROM THE READERS EDITOR On the right to photocopy

Should news give way The DU photocopy judgment is a victory for access to education. But is it successful in balancing
for views? the competing interests of the academic community and the copyright holders?
I invite readers to actively take part in the consulta- if the material is prescribed in the
tion I am holding on what the ideal content mix for a course of instruction. Copyright hold-
newspaper should be in the present digital informa- ers invest considerably in creating
tion ecology which seems to be breaking news by the works. Can this be ignored while inter-
second. There was an in-house suggestion that I find S. SIVAKUMAR LISA P. LUKOSE preting Section 52(1)(i) as a license for
A.S. out readers expectations on how they would like the reproducing unlimitedly everything
PANNEERSELVAN newspaper to balance news with views, opinion, and prescribed in the suggested reading? If
analysis. The idea of a deadline is no longer asso- On September 16, the Delhi High Court the legislature had intended to give
ciated with putting the paper to bed; it is about publishing developments as dismissed the copyright infringement such a wide interpretation to the words
they unfold. petition filed by three international in the course of instruction, why does
In the age of instant news, it seems that a lot of information that one reads publishers against a photocopy shop it add, as part of the questions to be
in the newspaper in the morning has already been read, seen, or heard else- located in the Delhi University answered in an exam or in answers to
where. While conceding space for some news stories that require verifica- premises (The Chancellor, Masters and such question which should also be
tion and fact-checking, I was asked whether it is possible to do a clinical Scholars of the University of Oxford v. covered automatically? If the suggested
analysis of the daily copy, keeping in view the readers requirements, and Rameshwari Photocopy Services). The reading provides for the whole book,
find out what was redundant. If this is indeed possible, would it be bene- court ruled that making course packs does Section 52(1)(i) permit reproduc-
ficial to skew more towards views than news in the daily newspaper? This for suggested reading for students by tion of the whole book or only reason-
query comes from a position where news is almost omnipresent and hence photocopying portions of various pre- able excerpts? The judgment has con-
context is the new requirement. scribed reference books does not vi- veniently avoided any direct reference
olate the copyright of the publishers. to this aspect. The Court Commissioner
A daunting exercise had reported that 8 books were found
I recognise that this exercise is daunting in more than one sense. First, I Right to reproduction being photocopied cover to cover. Was
have my own idea about what constitutes a newspaper, an idea which is a Section 14 of the Copyright Act, 1957, the court successful in balancing the
product of being in the profession for more than three decades. Second, the grants a bundle of exclusive rights such competing interests of the academic
views of the readers we have received in the last four years are like pieces in as the right to reproduction on copy- community and the copyright holders?
a jigsaw puzzle, and I need time to collate them in a meaningful narrative to right owners for commercial exploita- When the university is entitled to free
understand the expectations on the content mix. tion of the work. Making photocopies photocopy of 3,000 pages every month
Third, I need to develop tools to handle this analy- What is the amounts to reproduction. Photocopies (Para 4), can the possibility of commer-
sis. Fourth, it has to be a judicious mix of both qual- made in violation of Section 14 thus con- cial interest be overruled? In that con-
itative and quantitative attributes for three specific ideal balance stitute infringement unless it is listed text, does it comply with Article 13 of
reasons: a newspaper is a public good; it should, at between news under Section 52 as an act not BREAKTHROUGH: The judgment will have a far-reaching impact in academic circles TRIPS? Is it justified to cover the pri-
any point of time, balance what the public is inter- constituting infringement. The judg- as well as on the copyright industry. File photo of the Rameshwari photocopy vate photocopy shop in the university
ested in with what is in their interest; and it should
and opinion in ment holds that if any provision of the shop in New Delhi. PHOTO: AFP premises within the expression in the
be sustainable in order to retain its independence. the digital era? Act permits any person other than the course of instruction? Doesnt the
Fifth, a person making any suggestion should re- owner to reproduce any work or sub- and do not unreasonably prejudice the When the university is entitled judgment provide blanket immunity to
alise the newspapers need to retain space both for innovation as well as for stantial part thereof, such reproduction legitimate interests of the right holder. the university to meet the demands of
elements that are tried and tested. Sixth, the exercise should inform about will not amount to infringement (Para Since the term fair dealing is not
to free photocopy of 3,000 all the students by purchasing a single
some innovations that have failed. Seventh, it should also draw from the ex- 27). defined in the Act, the judiciary de- pages every month, can the book?
periences of others in dealing with this challenge that confronts every The Copyright Act, to prevent stag- termines its scope on a case by case possibility of commercial Undoubtedly, the judgment, which is
media organisation. And eighth, I need to develop better listening skills to nation of the growth of creativity, seeks basis. a breakthrough in the Indian copyright
decipher the expectations of the readers. to maintain a balance between the com- interest be overruled? jurisprudence, is a major victory to ac-
I am acutely aware that some may term my own idea of journalism and peting interests of the copyright owners Fair dealing cess to education in a developing coun-
what constitutes a newspaper as an intransigent position. Intransigence is a on the one hand and the interests of the Section 52(1)(i) of the Copyright Act ing the entire academic session... im- try like India. It will certainly have a far-
strange word that means many things to many people depending on which public to have access to works on the treats as fair dealing the reproduction parting and receiving of instruction is reaching impact in academic circles as
side of the wall they are on: for those who disagree, it is a pejorative, and for other. Copyrights basic rationale is that of any work (i) by a teacher or a pupil in not limited to personal interface be- well as on the copyright industry. When
those who concur, it is a testimony to adhering to principles. I believe that a there should be promotion of creativity the course of instruction; or (ii) as part tween teacher and pupil but is a process access to education itself is a challenge,
responsible media mediates the public sphere in such a way that it remains through suicient protection; and at the of the questions to be answered in an commencing from the teacher readying none of the students can be expected to
the site for multiple negotiations and democratic engagement. same time it also caters for dissemina- exam; or (iii) in answers to such ques- herself/himself for imparting instruc- purchase expensive textbooks, espe-
In this context, I am seeking responses from the readers about what news tion of knowledge and access to copy- tion. Section 52(1)(j) uses terms such as tion, setting syllabus, prescribing text cially when syllabi prescribe certain
they get before they get their newspaper in the morning. May I request the right material through the doctrine of staf and students of an educational in- books, readings and ensuring, whether portions from various books. Uni-
readers to be specific in their observations and refrain from common- fair dealing. This doctrine, which is es- stitution whereas Section 52(1)(i) uses by interface in classroom/tutorials or versities are expected to cater to stu-
sensical comments? Italian scholar Antonio Gramsci has already efect- sential for research and academic pur- teacher or a pupil in the course of in- otherwise... Hence it would be fair dents reading requirement without
ively argued against common sense, which for him is not a single unique poses, is an exception to copyright struction. On analysing this diference, dealing if the students click photo- prejudicing copyright holders le-
conception, identical in time and space. He has elaborated how common holders exclusive rights. The Indian the judgment holds that there is no graphs of each page of portions of the gitimate economic interests. Are the In-
sense takes countless diferent forms. In this exercise, it would be mutually copyright law uses the term fair deal reason to interpret Section 52 (1)(i) as prescribed book. dian universities honestly utilising
beneficial if we stick to particulars and elaborate on details. (where listed purposes are statutorily providing for an individual teacher and funds earmarked for libraries for that
embedded) whereas the U.S.s copy- an individual pupil. The word instruc- Limitations purpose? The students demands can be
Spatial and temporal realities right law adopts fair use (which is tion is not defined in the Act. Accord- Copyright must increase and not im- met reasonably by permitting repro-
In the huge information overload that is generated by 24x7 digital plat- merely illustrative). As per Article 13 of ing to Justice Rajiv Sahai Endlaw, the pede the harvest of knowledge. When duction of reasonable excerpts.
forms, do readers feel that news is curated for their consumption, or do they the Trade-Related Aspects of Intellec- words in the course of instruction the judgment reads, Copyright is to
feel that it is a mere information pipe that functions like a faucet? As I men- tual Property Rights (TRIPS) agree- would include reproduction of any motivate the creative activity of authors S. Sivakumar is Professor at the Indian Law Institute,
New Delhi, and former member, Copyright Board.
tioned a few years ago, The Hindu weaves five diferent spatial realities for ment, these exceptions must confine to work while the process of imparting in- in order to benefit the public, what is Lisa P. Lukose is Associate Professor of Law, GGS
Indraprastha University, Delhi. They are the authors
every reader: international, regional, national, local, and hyperlocal. Tem- special cases which do not conflict struction by the teacher and receiving left for the copyright owners? The judg- of the book Broadcasting Reproduction Right in
porally, it covers both the past and the present and tries to provide hints with a normal exploitation of the work instruction by the pupil continues dur- ment places no limitation on photocopy India: Copyright and Neighbouring Rights Issues.
about the future, with a pre-occupation to make sense of the present. In this
interplay between space and time, The Hindu gains gravitas as long as it

Politicians were the heroes of 1991

helps people make choices. It loses its significance if it fails to address any
of the issues that concern them.
I would like the readers to share their opinions on which sections they
would like to be filled with more news and which sections they believe they
get the information much before the newspaper arrives at their doorstep.
Do they believe that they can make sense of opinion articles in the absence
of news in the newspaper? How comprehensive is the news in The Hindu
Sanjaya Baru on the legacy of Narasimha Rao, the what ifs of 1991, and the vacuum in the Congress
compared to other platforms?
In our continued eforts to listen to readers, we are hosting our next Open In the 25th year of economic reforms in one. On the political front, a point that is
House in November to mark the first anniversary of our Mumbai edition. India, former Prime Minister P.V. not adequately understood even now is
The Mumbai meet should provide an added opportunity to listen to readers Narasimha Raos legacy has come into that by calling for party elections in
in person on this rather contentious idea. I hope to complete this analysis the spotlight. Sanjaya Baru, who was 1992, he showed the way for a revival of
and share it with readers in the last couple of weeks of this year. former Prime Minister Manmohan the Congress that its only by democ-
Singhs media advisor and who had ratising itself, by allowing new leader-
readerseditor@thehindu.co.in tracked the reforms process closely as a ship to come up, that this can happen.
journalist, speaks to Nistula Hebbar The assassination of Indira Gandhi and
about his new book 1991: How P.V. then Rajiv Gandhi in a space of seven
Narasimha Rao Made History (Aleph years was catastrophic for the Con-
Book Company). gress. He filled a space and showed the
FROM THE ARCHIVES There have been several books on P.V.
way that it could be done.

Narasimha Rao. Is this book part of a Narasimha Rao and successive prime
campaign to rehabilitate him ministers till 2014 managed to achieve
historically? quite a bit despite their parties not
(dated September 26, 1966) having a Lok Sabha majority. Does a
In a sense, the rehabilitation of consensual style help in achieving goals
Call to rejuvenate rejuvenating it falls equally on Narasimha Rao has already started, giv- more than a secure majority may,
players, the spectators, the Press
cricket and the administrators. Let us at
en the fact that Jairam Ramesh, con- because the latter allows unilateralism?
sidered close to the current leadership
A call to rejuvenate cricket was least in India strive towards this of the Congress, brought out a book that Prime ministers with full majority
Sanjaya Baru in New Delhi. PHOTO: R.V. MOORTHY
made by the Maharaja of Baroda, goal. If we achieve it, others will has words of praise for Rao. This sug- have behaved diferently from each
the outgoing President of the gladly follow us, and we will have gests that within the Congress there are there was a glimmer of hope of a non- other. Jawaharlal Nehru was a leader
Board of Control for Cricket in done the greatest service to the some who feel that it is time to own up Rao showed the ability Gandhi leader for the Congress and inner who ruled by consensus while Indira
India, at the annual general game in modern times. Narasimha Rao. The reason for this is to use the Nehruvian party elections. Why did that fizzle out? Gandhi was considered more unilateral
meeting of the Board here The Maharaja, who was laying that Prime Minister Modi has shocked in her approach. The point I make in the
[Baroda] to-day [September 25]. down his oice after a three-year style to address his lack of
the Congress party by owning the lead- When you read M.L. Fotedars autobi- book is that Rao, in fact, revived the
The Maharaja said that in the last term, traced succintly the progress ers they had abandoned. He took own- numbers, which is why he ography and the sections about Indira Nehruvian style of consensus leader-
two decades a big change had the game had made in the country ership of Sardar Patel, of Subhas survived five years unlike Gandhis tenure at the helm of govern- ship that used to exist in the Congress
come over in the approach to during his term and laid particular Chandra Bose, so I think the Congress ment, it suggests that she recognised earlier. Rajiv Gandhi, who had more
cricket, which except when the stress on the role the Board had was mindful of the fact that the BJP
Morarji Desai, V.P. Singh, or that there were several potential prime than 400 MPs in Lok Sabha, couldnt do
West Indies were at it, did not played in promoting exchange might own up Narasimha Rao and even Deve Gowda ministerial candidates in the Congress. much with them. The several non-
seem to be played as a sport to be visits, on an international level, of Manmohan Singh. In some ways, Mr. Fotedar mentions Pranab Mukherjee, Nehru-Gandhi prime ministers from
enjoyed. The responsibility of school boy players. Modis foreign policy is a continuation Sharad Pawar, and Rao. The problem the Congress fold also couldnt quite
of Dr. Manmohan Singhs, and in some have been a more stable government today is in part due to the untimely grasp that. What Rao showed was the
ways it could be that Mr. Modi was re- than Chandra Shekhars and pushed the deaths of leaders like Madhavrao Scin- ability to use the Nehruvian style to ad-
possessing all the non Nehru-Gandhi reforms agenda if one goes by what dia and Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy, the de- dress his lack of numbers, which is why
CORRECTIONS AND CLARIFICATIONS leaders of the Congress. Vinay Sitapati
has written a biography, based on family
Jairam Ramesh has written. But there is
a question mark on that looking at his
cision by Sharad Pawar not to fight for
space in the party, the decline of provin-
he survived five years unlike former
Prime Ministers Morarji (Desai), V.P.
papers of Rao, and it is an excellent record as Prime Minister between 1984 cial strongmen like Digvijaya Singh, and Singh, Deve Gowda, etc. He succeeded
>> An error in the surname. The first and last paragraph of a report, Soumya book. My book is just about 1991. I have and 1989. The reason a Congress-led co- the inability of the younger lot of Con- because he carried the party with him.
case: Kerala files review petition in SC (September 24, 2016) mentioned the been observing economists rec- alition didnt happen in 1990 was be- gressmen to emerge as national leaders.
victims name as Soumya Viswanathan instead of just Soumya. ollecting 1991 as if they were the heroes cause it is entirely possible that Rajiv There is a huge vacuum in the party that Will the crisis in the Congress force it to
>> The second paragraph of a report, India, France ink 7.87 bn agreement of 1991. I thought it was necessary to re- Gandhi himself wasnt sure how the no one is in a position to fill, not even go back to a more consensual, what you
for 36 Rafales (Front Page, September 24, 2016), said that Prime Minister Nar- mind economists that it was not them Congress party would evolve in that Rahul Gandhi. The reason why Sonia term Nehruvian style of politics?
endra Modi announced the decision for direct purchase in April 2014. It but the politicians Rao and Chandra context. Dont forget, the 1991 elections Gandhi continues as party president is
should have been April 2015. Shekhar who were the heroes. This were a damning indictment of his lead- because there is no one today in the I had written a column recently
>>The Economic Survey is not prepared by the Reserve Bank of India as book is titled How P.V. Narasimha ership. Unlike Indira Gandhi, who lost party who can be projected as a poten- where I said that the only hope for the
mentioned in the Perspective page article, Railway Budget, a vanishing trick Made History but Chandra Shekhar, power in 1977 and came back with a ma- tial prime minister. Congress is for Sonia Gandhi to give a
(September 22, 2016). It is prepared by the Chief Economic Advisor under the had he been allowed, could well have jority in 1980, Rajiv Gandhi didnt gain call to all Congressmen to come back
Ministry of Finance. been the hero of this story. back a majority. Within the party, a feel- You have spoken of Raos legacy being and elect Mamata Banerjee as their
>>The interview with S. Abid Ali I was fortunate to be part of a famous ing could have gained ground, as was threefold: economic reforms, foreign president. Thanks to that column I was
win (Sport, September 22, 2016) had two errors. The substitute fielder in A very interesting bit that you have mentioned in that famous article sup- policy reset, and the possibility he invited to Ms. Banerjees swearing-in
the 1971 Oval Test was Kenia Jayantilal, not Kenny, as given in the report. Also, written about is on the what ifs of the posedly written by Rao in Mainstream, dangled in front of Congressmen that a ceremony which I couldnt attend. But
the name of the English batsman run out by Chandra in the same Test was John 1991 elections. What if Rajiv Gandhi had that he was not the future of the party, non-Nehru-Gandhi could run the party frankly she is the only Congressperson
Jameson, not Jamie Johnson. attempted to form a government in 1990 just as right now there is a feeling that and the government. Which among these (current or ex) who has a mass base.
and not been assassinated during the Rahul Gandhi is perhaps not the future is his most lasting legacy? Sharad Pawar has wasted his political
The Readers Editors oice can be contacted by 1991 elections? What would have been of the party. A coalition would have capital as has Digvijaya Singh in Mad-
Telephone: +91-44-28418297/28576300 (11 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday to Fri- the nature of a Congress government been a risky proposition and therefore The essence of the book is to say that hya Pradesh. Jaganmohan Reddy has
day); E-mail:readerseditor@thehindu.co.in headed by him? Rajiv Gandhi precipitated the elections each of these three contributions was failed to capture his fathers charisma,
All communication must carry the full postal address and and also the economic crisis. Thats my important. His economic policy and and in State after State we see there are
telephone number. Rajiv Gandhi could have certainly at- argument. foreign policy work have seen con- no provincial leaders who can step into
No personal visits. The Terms of Reference for the Readers Editor are on tempted to form a Congress-led coali- tinuity, whichever government has the leadership vacuum that Rahul
www.thehindu.com tion government in 1990. That could You also look at 1991 as the year when been in power, including the current Gandhi appears unable to fill.
CM ND-ND
YK
10 | - 1ias.com - EDITORIAL THE HINDU TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 27, 2016
NOIDA/DELHI

The case against simultaneous polls

If concurrent Lok Sabha and Assembly elections were to be a reality, it would go against the political
diversity essential for addressing the social diversity of India
with multiple elections, the Model Code of
T U E S D AY , S E P T E M B E R 2 7 , 2 0 1 6 Conduct is in force for much of the time,
which prevents the government from initiat-
ing new projects and ultimately slows down
ly seems impractical but also a step in the
direction of moving the country towards be-
coming a unitary state rather than a federal
one that the Constitution envisages. India

Joining the JAGDEEP S.

CHHOKAR
SANJAY
KUMAR
development work. While this is true, in or-
der to overcome this problem, it may be
more useful to make changes in the Model
has a federal structure and a multi-party de-
mocracy where elections are held for State
Assemblies and the Lok Sabha separately;

climate high table Though spoken about for quite a few years,
simultaneous elections for the Lok Sabha
Code of Conduct to allow the government to
initiate projects and programmes till a reas-
onable period (maybe till the notification of
the voters are better placed to express their
voting choices keeping in mind the two dif-
ferent governments which they would be

T
he Centres decision to ratify the Paris
Agreement on climate change on Octo-
ber 2 is a welcome affirmation of Indias
commitment to join the global
community in reducing greenhouse gas (GHG)
emissions. As an emerging nation with a large num-
ber of people living without access to electricity, In-
dias predicament of having to generate more en-
ergy for poverty eradication while simultaneously
curbing GHGs is universally acknowledged. But
there is no denying that the country has adopted an
approach that is predicated on a much-too-high use
of fossil fuel-based technologies. This needs to be
addressed as all nations look towards the next
phase, when the climate agreement comes into
force. There is near certainty that the decision
made in Paris will become operational before the
deadline for signatures set for April 2017: 61 coun-
try-parties responsible for 47.79 per cent of emis-
sions have ratified it so far. What remains is for
individual countries in Europe, and the European
Union, to review their commitments after Brexit,
and sign up to reach the target of 55 per cent of total
GHG emissions. Indias decision to join, overcom-
ing a reticence that was apparently linked to the
failure to enter the Nuclear Suppliers Group, is
commendable. It would, in any case, have come un-
der pressure to do so since the Paris process is sure
to move ahead with Europes entry.
With climate commitments becoming almost in-
evitable, a national consultative process on low car-
bon strategies cannot be delayed. In order to com-
ply with the Paris process, every aspect of energy
use would need precise measurement in the years
ahead, which several sectors of the economy are ill-
equipped to do at present. Upgrading the electri-
city grid to take in higher volumes of renewable
power is an urgent necessity if India is to realise the
national goal submitted to the UN Framework Con-
vention on Climate Change to install 100 gigawatts
of solar power capacity by 2022. A bold new policy
on urban design to curb emissions from buildings
and transport has to be written into all relevant leg-
islation. Such far-reaching steps can be taken only
with the active participation of State governments,
many of which remain on the periphery of the dis-
cussion. That needs to change, and a blueprint for
action has to be drawn up, if a convincing case is to
be made for assistance from the $100 billion a year
that the rich countries are to put together by 2020.
Fundamentally, national policy should mandate
even higher levels of taxes on fossil fuels and trans-
fer the benefits to eco-friendly options, be it solar
panels, efficient light bulbs, bicycles, green buses/
trains, and greening initiatives.
and State Assemblies seem to be fast on their
way to becoming a matter of national con-
cern. This proposal is not only being dis-
cussed in the television studio, but even the
Central government is seeking inputs from
ordinary citizens through a website about its
desirability and related questions.
The online public consultation will last till
mid-October, and it is likely that there will be
overwhelming support for this proposal be-
cause of the argument put forward in favour
of it: simultaneous elections will save a lot of
money and will help the government carry
forward the developmental project without
many hindrances. The real question, howev-
er, is not of desirability; it is one of feasibility.
Can simultaneous elections for both the
Central and State legislatures be implemen-
ted given the federal nature of Indian de-
mocracy guaranteed by the Constitution?
The question of cost
No one can deny that a huge amount of
money is spent in conducting elections in In-
dia, both by the candidates themselves and
political parties as well as the government
(the Election Commission of India). Though
there is a legal limit on how much money a
candidate can spend on his campaign from
his own sources, most spend as much as they
can in the belief that this would help them
reach out to a larger number of voters,
thereby increasing their chances of winning.
However, the argument in favour of simul-
taneous elections does not seem to be based
CARTOONSCAPE
The slogan one country, one
election overlooks the existence
of 29 States... The intention, it
seems, is to move the country
towards becoming a unitary state
on saving the money spent by political
parties and candidates, but by the Election
Commission. There is hardly any doubt that
the fewer the number of elections, the lesser
would be the expenses. But then, elections
are the lifeblood of democracy. If Lok Sabha
and Assembly elections happen to coincide,
it is a natural process. But if it is imposed on-
ly to reduce the number of elections and cut
costs, it is highly undesirable, because it
privileges monetary concerns over demo-
cratic principles.
Simultaneous elections resulting in better
governance is another argument that has
been put forward. The contention is that
elections) instead of the existing scenario
where the code comes into force the day the
elections are announced. One should not
also forget that there is a provision in the
Model Code of Conduct that the government
can consult the Election Commission about
policy decisions and if the decisions are not
likely to have any implications for the elect-
oral outcome, the Commission can permit
the government to take those decisions.
Also, in the normal course, the code
should apply only to the State where As-
sembly elections are to be held. There is no
logical reason why governance in the rest of
the country, and at the Centre, should come
to a standstill, unless the so-called policy de-
cisions are intended to be taken to influence
the electoral outcome in the State where
elections are to be held. In this case, it is not
the holding of the election that stops gov-
ernance, but the suspect intentions of those
who are supposed to govern.
Undermining the federal structure
The argument, or slogan, of one country,
one election is misleading. What this label
overlooks is that while India is undoubtedly
one country, the Constitution also recog-
nises the existence of 29 States which have a
constitutional status of their own in matters
of elections and government formation.
One country does have one election, and Sabha, while only in seven instances was the
that is for the Lok Sabha. The seeming inten-
tion to force all States, and sometimes it has
even been mentioned all panchayats, not on-
electing by exercising their franchise. This
distinction gets blurred somewhat when
voters are made to vote for electing two
types of government at the same time, at the
same polling booth, and on the same day.
There is a tendency among the voters to vote
for the same party both for electing the State
government as well as the Central govern-
ment. This is a rule rather than an exception,
not based on assumption but on evidence.
The empirical evidence
If we consider elections from the 1989 gen-
eral election onwards, there have been 31 in-
stances of holding simultaneous elections
for State Assemblies and the Lok Sabha in
different States: Andhra Pradesh (1989, 1999,
2004, 2009 and 2014), Odisha (2004, 2009
and 2014), Karnataka (1989, 1999 and 2004),
Sikkim (2009 and 2014), Tamil Nadu (1989,
1991 and 1996), Maharashtra (1999), Assam
(1991 and 1996), Haryana (1991 and 1996),
Kerala (1989, 1991 and 1996), Uttar Pradesh
(1989 and 1991), West Bengal (1991 and 1996),
Arunachal Pradesh (2009 and 2014) and Tel-
angana (2014).
When simultaneous elections for the As-
sembly and the Lok Sabha were held in these
States, in 24 elections the major political
parties polled almost a similar proportion of
votes both for the Assembly and the Lok
choice of voters somewhat different. It was
noticed thrice in Tamil Nadu (1989, 1991 and
1996) when the votes polled by the Congress
and the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra
Kazhagam were different for the Assembly
and Lok Sabha. The other similar examples
are from Arunachal Pradesh during the 2004
and 2014 elections (when the Bharatiya
Janata Party polled more votes for its Lok
Sabha candidates compared to those for its
Assembly candidates), in Haryana during
the 1996 elections and in Andhra Pradesh in
2014.
During the same period, when in many
States the Assembly and Lok Sabha elections
were held at different times, the electoral
outcome (votes polled by different parties)
of the two elections has been different.
While there are various ifs and buts before
this may be finally implemented includ-
ing the feasibility of constitutional amend-
ments of the kind which this may require,
State governments agreeing to the untimely
dissolution of the Assemblies, the question
of what happens if a government falls
without completing its term, and several
such issues if simultaneous elections
were to become a reality, it would go against
the political diversity which is essential for
addressing the social diversity of India.

Positive signals from Jagdeep S. Chhokar is a former Professor, Dean, and

Director In-charge of the Indian Institute of Management,
Ahmedabad. Sanjay Kumar is a Professor and currently

the GST Council

Director of the Centre for the Study of Developing
Societies, Delhi. The views expressed are personal.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

W
ithin a fortnight of President Pranab
Mukherjee signing off on the 122nd
Constitution Amendment Bill to in-
troduce the Goods and Services Tax
(GST) regime, work on the next steps has begun.
The GST Council, led by the Union Finance
Minister and with representatives from all States,
had its first meeting on September 22-23, flagging
off the process of determining the nitty-gritty of the
new indirect tax system and resolving differences
on crucial first-principle issues. Time is of the es-
sence, as just six months remain for the April 1, 2017
deadline that the Centre has set for ringing in the
GST. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has admitted
that the deadline is challenging, but going by the
outcomes of the first meeting of the Council, it is
clearly doable. Apart from agreeing on the rules
and timetable for its meetings, the Council reached
a consensus on the threshold turnover for a busi-
ness to be covered by the GST, Rs.20 lakh, which
ensures that the new tax will not be a compliance
burden for small retailers and traders. It has also
agreed on the draft compensation formula for
States revenue losses and accepted industrys
rationale to subsume myriad cess levies inthe GST.
An important signal at this juncture is the
Centres decision to let go of the Central Board of
Excise and Customss proposal to create dual con-
trol over the assessment of businesses with an an-
nual turnover of up to Rs.1.5 crore and give States
that power. Experts reckon that a large number of
assessees fall below this threshold. By conceding
ground on this contentious issue, the Finance
Minister has sent a welcome message of give-and-
take. This is important given the need to resolve
more tangled Centre-State tax issues on the Coun-
cils agenda quickly, if the model laws for Central,
State and integrated GST are to be ready for Parlia-
ments winter session. It is evident that all States
participated with an open mind, including West
Bengal and Tamil Nadu, irrespective of their ratific-
ation strategies for the Constitution amendments
in their respective Assemblies. All decisions were
arrived at by consensus. The Centre and the States
appear to be informed by the roll-out experience of
the Value-Added Tax regime, and the States want to
be on the same page through discussions and sup-
port one another rather than get divided along re-
gional or party lines. This bodes well for the GST,
where every decision has to be taken by the Council
based on a majority view: the States have two-
thirds voting power and the Centre has one-third. It
is to be hoped that this accommodative spirit of co-
operative federalism prevails.
CM
YK
Letters emailed to letters@thehindu.co.in must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.
Not vote banks
The Prime Ministers powerful pitch
to project the BJP as a pro-Dalit and
pro-poor party, dedicated to the idea
of social justice, and at the same time
attempting to reach out to Dalits and
Muslims, is quite encouraging
(Dont view Muslims as vote banks:
Modi, Sept.26). But this is a message
that should percolate to the lower
levels in the party. Who can forget
the way and manner in which Dalits
are being hounded in the name of
cow vigilantism? One cannot also
ignore the fact that Dalits are
considered as a vote bank by the BJP
just as other political parties do so
with the Muslim community. India is
being polarised on religious and
caste lines. Elections should be
fought on past performance and the
record of governance.
M.Y. Shariff,
Chennai
The Muslim community still
continues to be viewed as a vote
bank. The Prime Ministers appeal
will have more credibility if the BJP
acts in a manner that accepts and
treats Muslims equitably. This will
help it emerge as a robust national
party.
Vijaykumar Harpanahalli Kulkarni,
Moodbidri, Karnataka
The clarion call is amusing as Mr.
Modi still remains a silent spectator
to incidents that happen across the
length and breadth of this country
against Muslims and the other
minorities. His concern for the
minorities should be real and not on
paper alone.
J. Eden Alexander,
Thanjavur
Indus review strategy
Any decision on the Indus Waters
Treaty (IWT) should be arrived at
with great caution, responsibility
and wiser calculations lest it end up
as a diplomatic misadventure and in
global condemnation (PM to
review Indus Waters Treaty today,
Sept.26). It is an international treaty
arrived at the behest of the World
Bank and is not something to be
done away with unilaterally. Further,
turning off the tap as far as Pakistan
is concerned might actually provoke
China, its close ally, to follow suit.
The Indus has its origin in China and
we must be very cautious. Unlike
India and Pakistan, Beijing is not
party to any international water
agreement vis--vis the IWT.
Mohammed Tahsin,
Mysuru
Dealing with Pakistan
Pakistan has been consistent in its
bleeding India by a thousand cuts
approach, which successive Indian
governments apparently have no
answer for (Solving the Pakistan
puzzle, Sept. 26). The response to
unconventional warfare cannot be
military in nature. India must exploit
the countless vulnerabilities of the
Pakistani state in response to its
nefarious activities against us.
Amala S. Maheswari,
Kozhikode
Urban flood management
The report, Nine die as rain pounds
Telangana for the third day
(Sept.22), shows that most of our
cities are unable to withstand any
sort of natural phenomenon. In this
case, unplanned urbanisation is the
key cause. Various low-lying areas
which acted as flood absorbers are
fast vanishing while old drainage
and sewerage systems have not been
overhauled. Providing rainwater
harvesting systems and maintaining
tanks can help mitigate the problem.
However, displaying the political
will is of prime importance.
Prasanth Sahoo,
Visakhapatnam
Blow for knowledge
A close reading of Sections 14 and
52(1)(i) of the Copyright Act, 1957,
will show that neither the author nor
teacher and pupil enjoy absolute
right in their respective domains
(On the right to photocopy,
Sept.26). While the authors right, to
own and make profits from his or
her works tangibly or intangibly,
should be protected, the right of the
consumer (teacher, researcher and
pupil) to make photocopies of the
textbooks and reference works
should also be recognised.
Affordably priced books and
photocopying of a reasonable
volume of excerpts will go a long
way towards removing the conflict
of interests between author and
consumer. Both parties should not
lose sight of the fact that they are
complementary to each other in the
fast-proliferating knowledge
scenario.
Syed Sami Ullah,
Hanamkonda, Telangana
Vintage vignettes
The beautiful group photograph of
the Indian cricket squad that played
the first Test at Lords, from June 25
-28, 1932 just two years before I
was born and which appeared on
page one (From 1 to 500, in 84
years, Sept.22). was really exciting
to see. Similarly, the article, We
shook hands and returned to the
hotel (Sport Sept.23), on C.D.
Gopinath and the first-ever Test
victory against England at Chepauk
in 1952, speaks volumes about the
beautiful game played then and now.
I recollect standing with my friends
in front of Kasturi Buildings where a
huge scoreboard was in place when
the said match was played. I wonder
whether The Hindu has
photographs of the huge crowd
gathered at that event.
Srinivasan B.,
Chennai
The photograph brought back sweet
memories when my father, the late
Theodore Gabriel, had the
distinction of playing for the then
formidable Madras University Team
as a new ball bowler against Aligarh
Muslim University in 1930. This
team had Mohammed Nissar, who
later went on to play for India and
seen in the last row in the picture
and Mushtaq Ali, Indias opening
batsman. I recall my father telling
me about the fiery fast bowling that
Nissar unleashed on the Madras
University batsmen. My father, one
of the top fast bowlers from the
Malabar, went on to top the bowling
averages for the team on that tour of
Aligarh Muslim University, Delhi
University and Lahore University.
Sudhir M. Gabriel,
Edathala, Kerala
The picture was moving. As India
has now won the 500th Test, I feel
that we should acknowledge some of
the contributions made by the
coaches, managers and the technical
team for the past 84 years. We
normally praise the cricketers while
forgetting the Dronacharyas. Stars
like John Wright, Gary Kirsten, P.R.
Man Singh (manager of the Indian
team during the 1983 World Cup) to
name a few, have played a pivotal
role in the journey of the Indian
team. The BCCI should felicitate the
coaches and technical experts.
A. Anton Stevenraj,
Thanjavur
of Tamil Nadu has been hospitalised
The Hindu@138
A probable spin-off, or more like a
riposte to the British Raj, the
establishment of the English
language daily, The Hindu, now
celebrating 138 years of its existence,
is a remarkable achievement indeed.
As a South African, and having
visited Indian shores five times, I
have always been fascinated by the
plethora of English language
newspapers and periodicals in a
country once under British rule.
Were it not for the Internet, I would
not have followed the many stories
which are covered brilliantly by a
team of journalists who know how to
present their reports. Like a batsman
at the crease, very eager to reach 150,
lets look forward to the daily
crossing that milestone and beyond.
Abdul Razak Modak,
Johannesburg, South Africa
Science and sustenance
The report (Some editions, Lake
restoration enters curriculum,
Sept.25), of how a private institutes
idea has caused Anna University and
the B.S Abdur Rahman University,
both in Chennai, to integrate the
project in their curriculum, shows
that institutes and students can play
a vital role in driving change.
Perhaps the concept Ideas rule the
world can be introduced. One
plant, one student, based on the old
slogan one ghar, one ped (or one
house, one plant) is one such idea,
where every student is given a
sapling which he/she has to take care
of. Based on this, he/she is given no
dues. In the past, the curriculum
had a subject environmental
science, implemented as class-
based projects.
Hemappa K. Hullatti,
Hirekerur, Karnataka
Why not govt. health care?
One wishes our political leaders
good health. However, the instance
where a prominent political leader
in a private superspeciality hospital
in Chennai leaves one disheartened.
It is all the more surprising as the
leader opened a government multi-
superspeciality hospital in the city
quite recently. Had the leader been
admitted to a government hospital,
the administration would have got to
know first hand the standards of
care available. The public seems to
have got the message that good
treatment is available only in private
hospitals. Unless we make it
mandatory for MPs, MLAs, and
government officials to undergo
treatment in government hospitals,
their standards will never improve.
Rajagopal Nambakam,
Hyderabad
ND-ND
NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 27, 2016

- 1ias.com - PERSPECTIVE | 11

RIGHTS WATCH Towards a database nation

Preventing death in custody The lack of a public debate on the effectiveness or safeguards created for the Central Monitoring
Seven weeks after a 25-year-old inmate allegedly hanged
himself in the Puzhal Central Prison in Chennai, P. Ramku- System, NATGRID, and Aadhaar puts data at the sole discretion of the government
mar, the sole accused in the murder of Infosys techie Swathi,
also allegedly committed suicide in the same prison by organisations and is exempted from the
pulling and biting into a live electric wire. Right to Information Act.
RAJA The Puzhal prison complex was inaugurated in 2006 by CHINMAYI ARUN Congress MP Shashi Tharoor asked
BAGGA the then Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, M. Karunanidhi, with about potential parliamentary scrutiny
the promise of making it a model for reform. It has become of NATGRID in 2015, and the govern-
notorious, however, for being a den of drugs and a place where mobile ment responded saying it considers the
phones are frequently seized. Although criminalisation of speech is current oversight mechanism adequate.
The Puzhal prison isnt alone. distressing, other corrosive threats to In the meantime, the controversial
From 1995 to 2014, 999 suicides were reported inside Indian prisons. our democracy and liberty are surging Aadhaar project is functional without
Tamil Nadu alone has seen 141 of them. The State houses less than 4 per cent unnoticed and unchecked. There has any meaningful public debate or cost-
of the countrys prisoners, yet it accounts for 14 per cent of suicides inside been a sharp rise in state surveillance, benefit analysis. The identity number is
prisons. With such a poor track record, the State machinery should at least government collection of data and gov- being pushed aggressively by the gov-
deliberate possible solutions. ernment aggregation of big data ernment. For example, citizens are pres-
Is Tamil Nadu the bad apple or is the entire orchard rotten? Data show sources. It appears that we are thought- sured to enrol by making critical ser-
that in the last 20 years, three inmates on average have been found dead lessly mutating into what Jack Balkin vices contingent on Aadhaar numbers.
daily in Indian prisons. In 2014, there were five deaths every day, so 35 calls the National Surveillance State. Most people would enrol if told that
deaths in a typical week. Two of these deaths were suicides. In the same This is a governance form in which gov- their bank account, pension,
period, the death rate inside prisons rose by 42 per cent. Ninety per cent of ernments use surveillance, data collec- scholarship, driving licence or voter
these deaths were recorded as natural, but what constitutes natural in a tion, data mining and other such invas- identification card is in jeopardy.
custodial set-up is questionable. ive methods to prevent crime, terrorist It makes matters worse that people
attacks and to deliver welfare services. are lining up to add their children to this
Violation of rights No one seems to have noticed that the database. Given that no one can opt out
The numbers show that the prison department is ill-equipped to protect Central Monitoring System (CMS) is al- of the database once enrolled, this is a
the health and safety of inmates. Little public scrutiny in jails provides the ready scanning our communication in very serious human rights violation. It
possibility of violation of basic rights. It is only when violations result in real time in Delhi and Mumbai; or that does not offer adults a way to withdraw
deaths that questions are raised, and even then only cursorily. the National Intelligence Grid (NAT- consent and does not offer the next gen-
This perfunctory attention to prisons helps overlook the fact that deaths GRID), which links multiple govern- eration the opportunity to reverse their
are the consequence of the everyday reality of prison life. Inmates live in ment databases, aggregating all kinds of parents decisions.
despair of little or no contact with the outside world, are denied the basic information, will be operational next
desires to eat or wear clothes of their choice, to forge relationships. They year. No one has asked whether A dark future
wait for basic medical needs, their movements are restricted, and they are Aadhaar, with its access to our biomet- ILLUSTRATION: SATWIK GADE It appears that we are travelling fast
frustrated as they know nothing ric identification and its connection towards a complete transformation into
about their cases. As they are not While the liberty of a person with all kinds of databases from banking data. It has not helped that the Indian ju- We have no idea how secure a National Surveillance State. This jour-
taken to court often, they miss the in custody can be curtailed to health and scholarships, will be a part diciary was shortsighted in its approach ney may be irreversible. However, there
chance of meeting a judge, their of NATGRID. to phone tapping in the nineties. It re- these databases are and is a lot that we could have done, and that
lawyers, and families. There is according to procedures We have no idea how secure these sponded to large-scale, unfettered gov- what will happen if someone we can do, to mitigate the imbalance of
also lack of a mechanism to hear established by law, it cannot databases are and have given no ernment surveillance with weak safe- hacks them or misuses the power created in this state.
their complaints. thought to what will happen if someone guards that became obsolete very fast. We have had no public debate about
And this is just the tip of the ice-
be stretched to extinguish life hacks them or misuses the sensitive in- The problems with this have been sensitive information in them the effectiveness or safeguards created
berg. As an undercover operation in Uttar Pradeshs Kasna Jail showed re- formation contained in them. Although highlighted in a piece by Arun Jaitley, for NATGRID and Aadhaar. We have
cently, abuse takes place in prisons. Extortions, corruption, and torture are major data breaches have been reported the current Union Finance Minister, communications service provider, put our childrens personal information
common. from entities ranging from the U.K. gov- when the previous government was in eliminating the only third party that in these databases without any informa-
The only way to thwart what goes on in these institutions is to make them ernment to Adobe, Sony and Ashley power. He wrote every citizen in India ever had any idea of government ex- tion about the resilience of these data-
accountable. Prison monitors are mandated to regularly visit jails, listen to Madison, it has not yet occurred to us has a right to privacy. In his powerfully cesses in this context. bases in the face of sophisticated cyber-
prisoners grievances, identify areas of concern, and seek resolution. These that creating these databases means argued piece, Mr. Jaitley pointed out This creates two potential problems. criminals. We have not asked how easily
visitors include magistrates and judges, State human rights institutions, risking data breaches. that even access to citizens call data One, of course, is that the state will use they may be hacked, and what the con-
and non-official visitors drawn from society. records violates privacy since it reveals the system for surveillance excesses as sequences will be if our data are com-
However, an upcoming Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative study Government surveillance their relationships and potentially con- it has done in the past. The other is that promised or misused.
(CHRI), Looking into the haze a study on prison monitoring in India, It is the nature of politicians and gov- fidential transactions. whoever actually executes the ambigu- Even the United States lets its cit-
shows that not even 1 per cent of Indian jails are monitored. In Tamil Nadu, ernments to seek and consolidate This year, the CMS is actually being ous automated process through which izens know when public databases are
according to recent media reports, most prisons await appointment of non- power. Indian politicians and the Indian used to monitor our communication in the government accesses our commu- breached. Aadhaar and NATGRID
official visitors. As per National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) figures for government are no different. Our Na- Delhi and Mumbai, and its reach will be nication in real time may abuse this ac- might be hacked several times a year for
2014, just 500 inspections were made across the 136 jails in Tamil Nadu, per- tional Intelligence Agency, precursor of expanded gradually. This system has cess to private information for personal all we know; no one is obligated to tell
haps by the official visitors. This means that there were less than four in- the infamous Intelligence Bureau, is never been discussed meaningfully gain. us. The government wants to add our
spections per jail in an entire year. older than the British MI6. Prime with the public, and no efforts have travel and bank information to these
Minister Indira Gandhi is alleged to been made to explain what safeguards Government databases databases, and is pressuring all the
Surveillance have put President Giani Zail Singh un- prevent its misuse. In addition to the CMS, the govern- phone manufacturers to integrate with
The Supreme Court last year ordered the Centre and the States to install der surveillance, and reports indicate In response to questions in Parlia- ment has spent approximately Rs.150 them. This renders us powerless and
CCTV cameras in all the prisons in the country. CCTV cameras serve two that this extended to having his office ment, Law and Information Technology crore from 2009 onwards on the NAT- steps around our painstakingly crafted
purposes: they bring on record incidents that could otherwise be sup- bugged. Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad has clari- GRID, which is supposed to offer law civil liberties to hand control of our
pressed, and play a preventive role in violation of rights, as the fear of facing The imbalance of power created by fied that law enforcement agencies get enforcement agencies data access to 21 lives and information back to the state.
consequences for the same would increase under vigilance. the states attempts at treating citizens access to intercepted communication providers such as airlines, banks, the Se-
However, Ramkumars death remains a mystery despite the Puzhal like pawns is dangerously magnified by on a near-real-time basis through the curities and Exchange Board of India, Chinmayi Arun is Executive Director of the Centre
prison installing CCTV cameras. This is because the alleged suicide oc- advances in digital technology that al- CMS. He has also made it clear that such railways and telecommunications op- for Communication Governance at National Law
University, Delhi, and Faculty Associate of the
curred near a water pot in the dispensary block where no cameras were low for easy monitoring of commu- interception will take place secretly, erators by 2017. NATGRID is classified Berkman Klein Centre at Harvard University. Parul
placed. So, while the courts order was a step in the right direction, it fell nication and access to large amounts of without the involvement of the tele- among the intelligence and security Sharma helped with the research for this piece.
short by not formulating guidelines for implementation.
Suicide is a critical problem in prison complexes in the last 20 years,

The new face of tax notoriety

the suicide rate (suicides per lakh population) in prisons is recorded at 15.4.
A person is 1.5 times more likely to kill himself or herself inside jail than out-
side it. In Tamil Nadu prisons, the suicide rate is higher than 40.
Providing counselling to inmates is crucial for them to deal with the or-
deal they undergo in custody. But are prisons prepared for this? Tamil Nadu
prisons have only sanctioned 105 correctional staff. Less than half the It is alarming that countries are coming to the aid of defaulting MNCs, and both are in harmony
positions are filled. Out of the 13 psychologists sanctioned, only eight have
been hired. With around 16,000 prisoners, this translates to one against any possible regulatory measures by authorities
psychologist for every 2,000 inmates.
After Ramkumars death, the DG (Prisons) announced that a magisterial in any other EU member state. There-
inquiry will be ordered. But does that mean anything? The National Human fore, the Commission has questioned
Rights Commission (NHRC) has expressed concern in the past about post- KINSHUK JHA this entire special tax arrangement ex-
mortem reports appearing to be doctored due to influence. There is no in- tended by Ireland to Apple on grounds
formation in the public domain about the details of these reports, whether of illegal state aid and failure to reflect
the magistrate visited the death scene, what evidence was gathered, the economic reality. The Commission has
time taken for the inquiry, the outcome, and whether prison officials were Both historical and contemporary per- consequently ordered Ireland to re-
charged or found guilty. ceptions of tax have characterised it as a cover up to 13 billion from Apple Ire-
necessary extraction, a penalty. A likely land. On the one hand, this retro-
Saving lives fallout of this statutory burden is that spective action against Apple focusses
The prison department is mandated to report all cases of custodial death there is an innate urge to either mitigate on compensating Ireland for a loss of
to the NHRC within 24 hours of their occurrence. But the prison depart- the liability or even eliminate it. Tax revenue in at least the last decade. Then
ment data collated by the NCRB and the NHRC data dont match. Also, al- avoidance is when a lawful mitigation of again, it is also a clear message to all EU
most half of the unnatural deaths in prisons are reported as others by the tax burden takes place. Tax evasion is member states not to slacken their taxes
NCRB. It is important that these others be demystified. where a seepage in the boundaries set excessively and maintain diligence
While the liberty of a person inside custody can be curtailed according to by fiscal laws is discovered, and which when entering into special arrange-
procedures established by law, it cannot be stretched to extinguish life it- is then used to escape the tax net to a ments with MNCs. The wrath of the
self. The NHRC has repeatedly issued guidelines to prevent and respond to great extent or altogether. Here is the Commission is not sudden, and its vigil
custodial deaths. It is time for the State governments to start taking these genesis of tax notoriety, the artistry, stretches to hundreds of matters similar
guidelines seriously. If the state works to promote communication between where prima facie the tax mitigation ex- to Apple. One among several such in-
the inmate and his family and lawyer, increase conjugal visits, ensure ade- ercise appears legitimate, but in reality vestigations is the scrutiny of Luxem-
quate trained prison staff, and open up the prison to civil society, we might it maybe an abusive tax avoidance strat- bourgs special tax arrangements for
be able to save some lives. If not, we know who is responsible for the next egy which may lead to very low pay- Amazon and McDonalds.
suicide inside our jails. ment or no payment of taxes.
Challenging the Commission
Raja Bagga is Project Officer, Prison Reforms Programme, CHRI. Era of double non-taxation Interestingly, though the Commis-
Out of all the taxes, corporate taxes sions decisions would appear to undo
imposed on multinational corporations the wrong done to the EU member
(MNCs) are major sources of revenue states by the tax-avoiding MNCs, the
for most economies. But in the event of decisions are not seeing a meek accept-
FROM THE ARCHIVES these corporate tax payers shifting their
tax liabilities from a high tax jurisdic-
RECOUP: The European Commissions retrospective action against Apple focusses
on compensating Ireland for a loss of revenue in at least the last decade. A balloon
ance at the hands of the concerned
states and the defaulting corporations.
tion to a low- or no-tax jurisdiction, depicting Apple Inc. is tethered before a protest by demonstrators urging the Irish In fact, the Netherlands and Luxem-
massive revenue losses are imminent government to accept the ECs Apple tax ruling, in Dublin. PHOTO: REUTERS bourg are the first countries to chal-
for the fiscal jurisdiction where the lenge the Commission over its de-
(dated September 27, 1966) taxes should have been ideally paid. fuges, it is all the more critical to The European Commissions cisions last year that the tax
Once riddled with incidents of double identify and penalise such entities. decisions are not seeing a arrangements they extended to Star-
Warning against Japan fails to put taxation, the MNCs have now outsmar- Some jurisdictions have also taken the bucks and Fiat Chrysler, respectively,
danger of atomic war satellite into orbit ted the system and have moved into an initiative of revising or updating their meek acceptance at the hands were illegal. Even Apple and Ireland
era of double non-taxation. With a existing Double Taxation Avoidance of the concerned states and have decided to appeal against the
The President Dr. S. Japans bid to become the mlange of some creative accounting Agreements (DTAAs) to plug the exist- Commissions decision.
Radhakrishnan to-day fourth member of the exclusive techniques and existing loopholes in ing loopholes. Another important in-
the defaulting corporations This is an alarming emergence where
[September 25, New Delhi] made space club after the United States, different fiscal jurisdictions across the strument of tackling tax notoriety are altogether. The European Commission the concerned fiscal jurisdictions,
a forceful plea for an immediate Soviet Union and France received world, tax evasion has emerged as a the Tax Information Exchange Agree- has issued a ruling in relation to the tax despite being awarded judicious reliefs,
end to the conflict in Viet Nam a setback at least until December global woe in the last few decades. ments. These bilateral agreements act arrangements of Apple in Ireland, are simply trying to justify the special
and hoped that efforts of peace- when the four-stage Lambda-4S Various countermeasures have been as information bridges between differ- where it has its European headquarters. arrangements which allowed such tax
loving nations in this direction rocket fired from the Uchinoura deployed by states, either at an ent fiscal jurisdictions and they aid in A bulk of its global sales profits are dir- seepages in the first place. This trend
would succeed. Inaugurating a Space Centre in Southern Kyushu individual level or as members of differ- the establishment of tax transparency. ected there. In a nutshell, the subject also seems to add an entirely new
four-day international Round failed to put an artificial satellite ent economic groups. Lately, the north Despite some major limitations, various matter of this dispute was the selective chapter to tax notoriety, where the
Table on Jawaharlal Nehrus Role into orbit. Failure to ignite the and south have come together and there fiscal jurisdictions have already gone treatment, a sweet deal, granted by Ire- states are coming to the aid of the de-
in the Modern World, he stressed fourth stage of the Lambda rocket, is a conscious attempt to tackle the ahead with signing such agreements. land to Apple Ireland through two tax faulting MNCs and both are in harmony
the urgency of the situation by which after separation was itself reckless acts of base erosion and profit Further, novel techniques such as the rulings in 1991 and 2007. The Commis- against any possible regulatory mea-
pointing out that the world was to have become the artificial shifting (BEPS). The BEPS action plan Diverted Profits Tax, popularly known sion relied on the financial information sures by the concerned authorities.
not far away from a nuclear war. If satellite, was given as the reason is a step in that direction where the de- as the Google Tax, are providing more of Apple Ireland and found that though Clearly, the tax defaulters and tax ad-
there was a real nuclear war, there tor the failure. The Lambda rocket veloping and the developed have jointly salvo to the tax administrators in tack- the corporation recorded a 16 billion ministrators are in no mood of granting
was no salvation for humanity, he was launched at 11.58 a.m. (local) worked on strategies to curb the ex- ling aggressive tax planning. profit in 2011, the effective tax rate on respite to each other. The sensational
added. The Round Table has been to-day [Sept. 26] under a clear ploitation of gaps and mismatches in tax the same amount was just 0.05 per cent duel between prolific tax notoriety and
organised by the Government of blue sky and its last stage, 48 cms. rules, which can be used to artificially Apple tax ruling in the same period. It also found that the amplified tax vigilance continues.
India and the United Nations in length, was to have become the shift profits to low- or no-tax locations. Now, a colossal decision by the Eu- rate in effect declined to 0.005 per cent
Educational, Scientific and satellite and gone into orbit at a Since a majority of corporate entities in ropean Commission on August 30 has in 2014 even as profits grew. These cor- Kinshuk Jha is Assistant Professor and Assistant
Cultural Organisation. height of about 300 kilometres. such jurisdictions have little or no taken the fight against aggressive tax porate tax rates are significantly lower Director, Centre for Comparative and International
Taxation, Centre for International Trade and
economic activity and are mere subter- planning by corporations to a new turf than the corporate tax rates applicable Economic Laws, Jindal Global Law School
CM ND-ND
YK
 - 1ias.com - NOIDA/DELHI

10 | EDITORIAL THE HINDU WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 28, 2016

A story to two caste struggles

W E D N E S D AY , S E P T E M B E R 2 8 , 2 0 1 6
Troubled
The Dalit fighting for rights still upholds the universality of citizenship. The dominant castes insisting on
consolidating their privileges reduce democracy to the worst kind of parochial politics
utter the language of privilege, of consol- tion of atrocity into a law and order problem,
idation. Rights meet a mentality of consol- Marathas hope to get the Act repealed.
SHIV VISVANATHAN idation. One creates a politics of consensus, There is a strange reversal of victimology
protest and persuasion, the other engages in with upper castes almost amnesiac about
a game of threat, preferring democracy as a their own atrocities and vigilantism. They
Politics cannot be studied as a mere set of
zero-sum game. The Dalit fighting for rights
still upholds the universality of citizenship.
are demanding justice for a 14-year-old girl
who was raped and killed allegedly by three

waters facts as if they are little nuggets to be pol-

ished and examined on their own. Politics
needs frameworks which provide ways for
The dominant castes insisting on consol-
idating their privileges reduce democracy to
the worst kind of parochial politics, a bully-
Dalit youths. It is almost as if history is inver-
ted and the roster of atrocities against Dalits
forgotten.

B
y holding a meeting on the Indus Waters
Treaty and scheduling another later this
week on MFN (Most Favoured Nation)
status to Pakistan, Prime Minister Naren-
dra Modi has signalled his intent to examine all the
non-military options before the government for a
strong response to the Uri attack. Blood and Water
cannot flow together, he is reported to have said.
However, after the meeting, officials made it clear
that the IWT will hold, at least for the moment. In-
stead, the Centre drew up a list of measures to op-
timise use of the Indus waters, that India has so far
failed to do. The fact is that abrogating the IWT is a
non-starter as an option, and the holding of the
meeting at this juncture ill-considered. For one, it
confused the message in Mr. Modis Kozhikode
speech, appealing to Pakistani citizens better in-
stincts to wage a war on poverty. More important,
the 1960 treaty for the Indus and five tributaries
flowing from India to Pakistan was brokered by the
World Bank (then, the IBRD), and has held through
wars and conflicts along the Line of Control. Revok-
ing it would threaten regional stability and Indias
credibility globally. It remains unclear what India
intends to do with the western rivers in question
beyond the short-term plan to irrigate Jammu and
Kashmirs fields better. Dams required to hold the
course of the tributaries of the Indus to alter water
levels to Pakistan dramatically would take more
than a decade to build. Given the environmental
and geopolitical consequences of such actions,
they are unlikely to elicit any international funding.
It is clear that the Centre didnt think through its
next steps when it declared with a grand flourish,
amplified by frenzied television headlines, that the
Prime Minister would review the Treaty. But it
did limit the potential damage by bringing down
the heated rhetoric with a rational analysis on the
Treaty. It would be wise if India proceeds with a
sense of pragmatic caution in making further state-
ments on Pakistan for instance, revoking the
MFN status will hardly punish Pakistans economy
given the low levels of bilateral trade. Terrorist at-
tacks such as the one at Uri require a combination
of measured but firm responses, rather than weigh-
ing every option in full public view. India cannot
also ignore the fact that the Uri attack has exposed
the need to shore up its defences. As India has real-
ised time and again, its response to provocation
must carry the message that the country is depend-
able and not given to irrational, irresponsible ac-
tions that its neighbour is often prone to.
interpretation and understanding. One
senses the need for this when one watches
the sudden explosion of upper caste agita-
tions. An ethnography of these dem-
onstrations alone is not enough. One has to
see them as statements of values, of the man-
ner in which democracy is seen and as-
sessed. One can see three visions of de-
mocracy contesting and overlapping with
each other.
A politics of anxiety
The early socialist vision saw democracy
as a place where rights to quality were
worked out, where the marginal and minor-
ity groups used the democratic process to be
empowered as citizens. Such a vision is cap-
tured in the careers of B.R. Ambedkar and
Ram Manohar Lohia. The second kind of vis-
ion inaugurated after the Bharatiya Janata
Party came to power was a majoritarian vis-
ion, where electoralism was a consolidation
of numbers. The transition from democracy
as a value to a fact of demography becomes
obvious here. There is a third kind of contest
emerging where democracy, like the market,
becomes a competitive game, where right
loses to might and democracy becomes a
fragile Hobbesian word.
Here the battle is not for justice to the
downtrodden but a search for consolidation
and privilege. Quotas and reservation no
longer embody a search for justice, but an in-
terest group politics where the powerful
seek to accumulate more power. There is a
mirror inversion of concepts like justice, vic-
timhood, fairness as these same concepts are
used by higher castes in a new Alice in Won-
derland way, where they insist words mean
what they say.
There is a politics of anxiety played out by
CARTOONSCAPE
ILLUSTRATION: SURENDRA
A contempt for law and order,
the threat of violence and
the rise of violence have
marked all these dominant
caste battles
the upper class who see democracy not as a
framework of universal values but as a basis
for consolidating a parochial world. The
contrast is stark between a Dalit or tribal bat-
tling for rights and the demands of upper
castes such as Patels, Jats and Marathas. The
logic of the scripts and the nature of political
dramas is radically different. First, the Dalits
protests for rights have the character of an
appeal. They are seeking to go beyond dep-
rivation. The upper caste protests convey a
sense of threat, of aggression and violence.
For Dalits, democracy is a value; for upper
castes it appears relevant as long as it sus-
tains them instrumentally in power. If de-
mocracy does not work, it can be discarded
like an old piece of tissue or a rag.
The body languages of the two dramas are
different. One acts as a shareholder
threatening to sell his shares or dismiss the
directors if the firm fails to show profit. The
marginals speak the language of suffering,
deprivation and pain. The dominant castes
boy spectacle which makes democracy ap-
pear empty and ironic. One sees this drama
enacted with ruthless clarity in the recent
protest of Marathas.
Their political script is simple. On Sunday,
September 11, lakhs of Marathas poured out
into the streets of Pune, paralysing the city.
They had two demands. The first was a de-
mand to repeal the Scheduled Castes and the
Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities)
Act, and the second a demand for a greater
share in the reservation. The power of the
Maratha groups is seen not only in their hold
on the city but also in the indirect endorse-
ment of Sharad Pawar, the Maratha leader,
and Raj Thackeray, chief of the Maharashtra
Navnirman Sena. An endorsement of the
two leading godfathers of Maharashtra
speaks of the sheer power of the community.
And of atrocity
Central to the first of the demands is what
one calls the politics of atrocity. Critical to
this is a categorical act of denial of caste atro-
city. The scenario of violence is typical and
predictable. A Dalit youth is usually stoned
or lynched on grounds of suspicion. His al-
leged crime is an illicit relationship with an
upper class/caste girl. When investigated,
the allegations hide deeper conflicts over
grazing land. Such Gairan land often
cultivated by landless Dalits has now been
regularised by the Maharashtra government.
The upper castes feel the Atrocities Act is
often misused and want it repealed. Yet what
few talk about is a stranger legal battle where
upper castes in turn file counter-cases of
robbery and dacoity embroiling Dalits in the
entrails of law. What is clear in discussions
about these battles is that there is little re-
spect for the rule of law. By turning the ques-
A misleading silence
The second demand is that Marathas as a
caste community be brought under the res-
ervation category. It is almost bizarre to
watch a dominant community with roughly
33 per cent of the population and which
has electorally dominated State politics, vir-
tually controlled the powerful cooperative
movement now play helpless and vulner-
able, demanding reservation. As a wag put it,
they are demonstrating a politics of anxiety
about their various fiefdoms, signalling a fu-
ture decline in power. The electoral frame
which they dominated almost zero-sum
style is now fragmenting as Other Backward
Classes and Dalits enter the power game. It is
an attempt to buy insurance for the future re-
alising full well that the current quotas are a
bit inelastic and that the Supreme Court has
not looked kindly at their demands.
Currently the protests involve a series of
silent marches as a statement of their prob-
lems. But the silence is misleading. What one
senses behind it is the need to use violence to
reassert power. One senses that a dominant
caste community which feels threatened
acts as if it is far more vulnerable than the
communities it has exploited. There is a
double danger here. First, that the silence so
far is staged and temporary. Second, it is
clear that what is being signalled is the pos-
sibility of violence as dominant groups
which lorded over electoral democracy now
feel threatened. It is not rights one is worried
about but the very fabric of democracy. An
electoralism which tends to go beyond the
constitutional rules of the game negates
democracy.
Such an attitude is not peculiar to the
Maratha struggle. A contempt for law and
order, the threat of violence and the rise of
violence have marked all these dominant
caste battles. The horrendous violence in-
flicted by Jats on other communities and on
property was the hallmark of the recent
struggles for reservation in Haryana. The
second factor which has not been fully in-
vestigated or publicised is the full involve-
ment and connivance of the local police in
the agitation. It is almost as if law and order
and justice are the preserve of dominant
castes. Democracy as an aberration cannot
or should not alter the dominant structures
of power radically.
Between the appeals and protests of Dalits
and tribals and the arrogant demands for
continued dominance lies the new problem-
atic form of democracy in India. Democracy
as a way of life is threatened by electoral de-

Debating mocracy as a rule game. First, majoritarian-

ism threatens the pluralism of Indian de-
mocracy. Second, dominance of castes in the
America system threatens any hope for rights, for a
more equalitarian system. The challenge of

T
he first of three U.S. presidential debates
lived up to the hype as the world was
treated to the sight of an experienced pol-
itician, and first-ever woman nominee
for the White House, take on a brash and surpris-
ingly popular property tycoon. While most media
analysts seemed to hand victory in the debate to
Democrat and former Secretary of State Hillary
Clinton, numerous online polls, most of them
based on anonymous voting and non-scientific re-
sponse targeting, appeared to suggest that it was
her Republican rival Donald Trump who won. To
an extent, the terms of the debate, set by moderator
and NBC News anchor Lester Holt, ended up fa-
vouring Ms. Clinton. Mr. Holt tipped the scales to-
wards Ms. Clinton when he brought up Mr. Trumps
refusal to reveal his tax returns, the birther con-
troversy over Barack Obamas place of birth, Mr.
Trumps alleged support for the Iraq War, and his
comment on Ms. Clintons look. Yet, what fea-
tured significantly less was Ms. Clintons use of a
private email server, her responses to the contro-
versy over the 2012 Benghazi attack, and broader
criticism of the Clinton charitable foundation and
her proximity to Wall Street, issues that would have
put her on the back foot. As it turned out, she
emerged from the brawl with poise and a lawyer-
like command over the tempo of the debate as she
held out several baits for Mr. Trump, which he took.
Ms. Clinton forensically focussed on Mr.
Trumps weaknesses, including his preference for
tax cuts for big businesses over income support for
the middle class, his past business and personal
dealings that hinted at racist values, and the
destabilisation potential of his foreign policy
proposals on NATO, Iran, North Korea, China and
Mexico. The deeper question that the Clinton-
Trump clash continues to pose, however, is: How
has a candidate such as Mr. Trump come this far?
Why has his habit of offending politically signific-
ant minorities, including Mexicans, African-Amer-
icans, Muslims, the LGBT community, the differ-
ently abled and women, not dented his popularity?
In part, it comes down to sheer showmanship, and
Ms. Clinton, for all her measured responses and de-
tailed elucidation of policy prescriptions, falls far
behind Mr. Trump on that count. However, the
more worrisome force behind the rise and rise of
Mr. Trump is that his candidature hints at con-
tinuing nationwide disenchantment over political
dysfunction in Washington. That Americans may
be willing to risk it all and throw a metaphorical
grenade at the federal government to shake things
up after years of partisan bickering and policy log-
jams suggests that their leaders must work to heal a
bitterly polarised electorate and temper this dis-
taste for the federal governance architecture.
CM
YK
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Letters emailed to letters@thehindu.co.in must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.
Indus as bargaining chip
It would be foolish to interfere with
water supply arrangements under
the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT)
vis--vis Pakistan as it would only
end up hurting the poor in Pakistan
with whom we now profess
friendship (India suspends talks on
Indus water pact, Sept.27). It would
also be a move that would make our
other neighbours deeply suspicious
of India. None of us would like to
forget how long it took for us to
smoothen ties with Bangladesh over
the issue of the Farakka Barrage.
Tweaking the IWT could also push
China and Nepal to interfere with
the water systems in West Bengal
and the Northeast.
C. Subrahmanyam,
Visakhapatnam
Despite the extreme provocations by
Pakistan, India must rise above
being petty and be mature instead.
Be it Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, or
Pakistan and Jammu and Kashmir,
the need for water is the same
everywhere. India should not set an
inhumane example.
Vignesh K.,
Perambalur, Tamil Nadu
If India makes adverse moves, the
condition of the people of Pakistan,
who are already facing tough times
and having to deal with the ill-effects
of a battered economy, will only take
a turn for the worse. Using water use
as a weapon will only create more
anger and enmity against India and
give rise to more terror. What we
should do is to expand people-to-
people contacts between the two
countries. Both countries cannot
afford to fight a war.
Mudit Katiyar,
Lucknow
The Prime Minister must, with
immediate effect, revoke the IWT.
This is a treaty that rests on the
goodwill that exists between the
two neighbours but now a
commodity non-existent in these
times. Pakistan simply cannot have
its cake and eat it too. Once Pakistan
is able to convince India of its
earnest efforts to put on hold its pet
hobby of fostering anti-India
activities, the treaty, which is
considered to be the most successful
water-sharing endeavour in the
world today, can be honoured. As of
now, there is no point in being a
good neighbour to someone who
does not know even the spelling of
good neighbourliness.
Dr. George Jacob E.,
Kochi
The isolate Pakistan stance
It was all very well for External
Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj to
excoriate Pakistan at the UN
General Assembly (Isolate Pak,.
Sushma tells U.N., Sept.27). While
this would have played very well
with the domestic audience in India,
it would have at best induced fatigue
among the representatives of the
other countries in that august
assembly for the obvious reason that
India and Pakistan have been using
the forum regularly to hurl
accusations and counter-accusations
at each other. The fact is that the
world in general and the permanent
members of the Security Council
have stopped evincing any interest
either in Kashmir or the problems
between India and Pakistan. The
members of the Organisation of
Islamic Countries do occasionally
make some noises when prodded by
Pakistan. Against this background, it
would have been more appropriate
for Ms. Swaraj to have confined
herself to a brief mention of the
tension between India and Pakistan
including the issue of terrorism. She in it publicly and encouraging it is
could have devoted more time to
major issues that threaten the peace
and stability of the world. This
would have also fitted in well with
our strategy to play a bigger role in
world affairs.
M.P. Muralidharan,
Bengaluru
I do not endorse the view that
Pakistan should be isolated by the
world community as it would only
aggravate the situation. Let us take
the cue from how the Americans
dealt with Iran on the nuclear issue.
Since India is not in favour of third-
party intervention in Kashmir, the
Prime Minister should talk to his
Pakistani counterpart every week
and push for a peace agreement. By
talking, India is not going to be seen
to be weak. Pakistan is also a nuclear
state and one mad act by a Pakistani
general will cause great loss in India.
T. Anand Raj,
Chennai
While Indias message to isolate
Pakistan in the international arena
was forceful, it was perplexing to
watch Foreign Minister Sushma
Swaraj speaking in Hindi at a global
forum. Much of what the Minister
spoke was not understood even in
India, leave alone by the
international audience. The country
lost a golden opportunity to make
the world to sit up and take note.
The Minister should have used the
universal language of English to
drive home the countrys concern at
the growing terror threat from
across the border.
J. Anantha Padmanabhan,
Tiruchi
the future lies in how democracy reinvents
itself to handle these two contradictions.
Otherwise, India faces the final irony that
of democracy as a mechanism quietly cor-
roding the institutional values of democracy
as a value system.
Shiv Visvanathan is Director, Centre for the Study of
Knowledge Systems, O.P. Jindal Global University.
Having covert operations in a and its total catchment area (34,273
disturbed region of an enemy sq.km) is 40,785 million cubic
country is one thing, but interfering meters. For Tamil Nadu
calculated from the product of its
quite another. This will only rainfall (123 cm) and its area (43,867
encourage Pakistan to up the ante on sq.km) it is 53,960 MCM. While it
Kashmir including fomenting is not possible to have 100 per cent
terrorism. We have played into the run-off from rainfall, if it is assumed
hands of Pakistan. We should have that about 50 per cent rainfall
tried to win over the people of becomes run-off then the total
Kashmir, particularly the youth, surface water supply in Karnataka
which we have miserably failed to will be approximately 20,395 MCM,
do. By blaming Pakistan for the and 26,980 MCM in Tamil Nadu.
current trouble in Kashmir, the Tamil Nadu needs to increase its
Centre is taking the easy way out. water storage capacity.
Srinivas Kamat, P.R. Rakhecha,
Alto Santa Cruz, Goa Jodhpur
I am sure that there is a vast amount
A water estimate of data on every aspect of the
It is important to know how much Cauverys flow. I wonder why it
water from rainfall is received in the should be so difficult to have a
Cauvery catchment and what the computer model that can generate a
estimates are of surface water so that scientific solution to the satisfaction
the information is useful in solving of all aggrieved parties.
the water dispute between R. Sridhar,
Karnataka and Tamil Nadu (Put Bengaluru
Cauvery order on hold, Karnataka
tells SC, Sept.27). I write this in my
capacity as the former Deputy Aadhaar insistence
Director, Hydrometeorology, Indian Even when issues such as the right to
Institute of Tropical Meteorology, privacy and ensuring the security of
Pune. personal data of individuals remain
Rainfall in the catchment area is the unresolved, it is shocking that the
only source of water supply. government is forcing Aadhaar
Observations of rainfall from 182 implementation down the throats of
stations within the portion of the citizens under some pretext or other
Cauvery catchment in Karnataka (Supreme Court finds govt. defying
and 108 stations in Tamil Nadu its order on Aadhaar, Sept.26).
which have been available for nearly Making it mandatory for students
a century show that the applying for scholarships, requiring
renewable supply of water from senior citizens to be Aadhaar
rainfall in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu compliant in order to avail of rail
is about 119 cm and 123 cm journey concessions and coming
respectively in an average year. The across some PSUs insisting that
total volume of annual rainwater retiring staff have an Aadhaar card to
available in the Cauvery catchment settle their dues are ugly examples.
area in Karnataka calculated from K. Natarajan,
the product of its rainfall (119 cm) Madurai
ND-ND
NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 28, 2016

- 1ias.com - PERSPECTIVE | 11

WORLD VIEW
A case for accepting
How the Indus Treaty was signed
Notes from the unpublished diary of Indias Acting High Commissioner in Karachi, Pakistan,
the WTO ruling during the signing of the Indus Water Treaty in September 1960
The World Trade Organisations (WTO) Appellate Body has
declared certain domestic content requirements (DCRs) in western rivers, Indus, Jhelum and
Indias Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission (JNNSM) Chenab, would be allocated exclusively
illegal. Under JNNSM, whose goal is to make India a global K.V. PADMANABHAN to Pakistan except for certain limited
leader in solar energy, the government enters into long- uses by India in the upstream areas.
PRABHASH term electricity purchase contracts with eligible solar power During the transition period, Pakistan
RANJAN developers (SPDs), assuring them guaranteed prices for 25 would undertake a system of works, part
years. This government-procured electricity is then sold to Amongst the more prominent of the of which would replace from the west-
distribution companies who, in turn, sell it to consumers. However, only problems that bedevilled relations be- ern rivers such irrigation uses in
those SPDs who source certain types of solar cells and modules domes- tween India and Pakistan was the Indus Pakistan as had hitherto been met from
tically are eligible. The objective evidently is to favour domestic solar cells Waters dispute. This was a legacy of the the eastern rivers. While the system of
and modules over imported ones. It was this DCR measure that the U.S. Partition. The line dividing the two Pun- works was under construction, India
challenged in the WTO. There are three dimensions in this case that need a jabs cut right across the Indus canal sys- would continue to supply water from
closer look: the legal issues, environmental impact, and India-U.S. trade re- tems developed over a hundred years. the eastern rivers according to the
lations. Pakistan found that the headwaters of agreed programme. The Indus works
the main canals were on the Indian side programme was estimated to cost
Legal issues of the border. All the five tributaries of around $1,070 million, of which $870
Subject to limited exceptions, the WTO treaty prohibits countries from the Indus also originated in India and million was to be spent in Pakistan. It
discriminating against goods based on origin or destination. This core non- flowed through Indian territory in the was a colossal undertaking.
discrimination commitment is given effect through several legal provi- upper reaches. Even before Partition, Once the signing ceremony was over
sions, including the one that outlaws domestic laws that make it necessary Sindh and Punjab had witnessed everyone breathed a sigh of relief. What
for an enterprise to purchase or use products of domestic origin to obtain wrangles over the sharing of the waters had been an insurmountable problem
an advantage. According to the Appellate Body, Indias DCR measure in of these rivers. was out of the way. Could one proceed to
JNNSM violates this rule and The situation worsened after the hol- other items on the agenda? This was the
the general prohibition against ocaust of the Partition. There were hys- nagging question that troubled the ad-
discrimination between impor- Compliance will be in Indias terical cries in Pakistan for taking up LOW-KEY AFFAIR: PM Nehrus welcome at Karachi was formal and correct, but not visers on either side. Panditji had
ted and domestic products. interest because mandatory arms to defend their rights over the wa- enthusiastic. PM Nehru and Pakistani President Ayub Khan signing the Indus brought a team of advisers that included
India argued that its DCR ters. Fortunately, an arbiter came for- Waters Treaty in 1960. PHOTO: THE HINDU ARCHIVES Desai, the Commonwealth Secretary, an
measures should be excused be- domestic sourcing irrespective ward in the garb of the World Bank that able administrator, and a tough negoti-
cause they fall under three ex- of costs might make solar eventually succeeded in thrashing out a for further negotiations through routine Bilateral talks came to ator. Ayub Khan had great respect for his
ceptions. The first is under Art- power generation unfeasible settlement. The main credit should go to diplomatic channels. Subsequently, practically nothing because of abilities.
icle III.8 of the General Eugene Black, the World Bank Pakistan was to take the law into its own However, the discussions that fol-
Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) that renders the rule against dis- president. hands and send a raiding force into the Pakistans insistence that India lowed proved to be desultory and un-
crimination inapplicable to government procurement. The Appellate Body territory only to be halted by Indian make substantial concessions productive. It was clear that neither side
rejected this. Relying on the previous WTO jurisprudence in Canada, the Demarcating boundaries Army units. The dispute was then put to was prepared for any major conces-
Renewable Energy/Canada Feed-in Tariff Programme case, it held that While the negotiations about the international arbitration, as a result of with regard to Kashmir sions. We talked primarily of trade be-
for a measure to fall under Article III.8, the product procured should be in a sharing of the canal waters were going which India agreed to give up a part of tween the two countries and for cooper-
competitive relationship with the product being discriminated against. on, officials from both countries were the disputed area to Pakistan. between the two countries, and it was ation in economic spheres. A number of
Since the government procured electricity while the discrimination was grappling with the demarcation of Meanwhile, Ayub Khan had taken an- decided to have it signed with due pomp ideas were thrown out. Ayub Khan in a
against solar panels, this test of competitive relationship is not satisfied. boundaries that had defied solution all other bold step. This was the decision to and show. This provided an appropriate generous mood offered to divert the wa-
The second is under Article XX(j) of GATT that allows a country to those years. These disputes had arisen stop over at Palam airport in New Delhi opportunity for the Indian Prime Min- ters of the Indus River to the parched
adopt measures essential to the acquisition or distribution of products in over the interpretation of the award of [in September, 1959] during one of his ster to reciprocate Ayub Khans stop- areas of Rajasthan by erecting a barrage
general or local short supply. India argued that since the domestic Radcliffe. Two teams were sent out by periodic visits to Dacca, to meet the In- over at Palam and to demonstrate the in the lower reaches of the river; also to
production of solar modules is limited, these products are in short supply. India to tackle the thorny problem [in dian Prime Minister. He was no doubt friendly relations that were developing supply the Sui natural gas from Ba-
The Appellate Body disagreed and held that whether a product is in short 1959]. The discussions the Indians held prompted to do so by Rajeshwar Dayal, between the two countries. The historic lochistan to the Bombay area.
supply has to be determined by looking at supply from all sources, not just with their Pakistani counterparts were the Indian High Commissioner in visit of Pandit Nehru from September 19 The Indian side in its turn agreed to
domestic. On this basis, the Appellate Body said there is no shortage of sup- in a spirit of friendship and cordiality Pakistan who had received prior approv- to September 23, 1960, was to be his last consider sympathetically the proposal
ply of solar panels. hitherto unheard of in Pakistan. To a al from Delhi. The Pakistani President visit to Pakistan. enabling Pakistan to run a through-train
The third is under Article XX(d), which allows countries to adopt mea- large extent, this was due to the fact that deserves full credit for following it While the arrangements of the visit across India connecting Lahore and
sures necessary to secure compliance with laws or regulations that are not the leaders of the respective teams were through with good grace and aplomb. were under discussion, Rajeshwar Dayal Dacca. Even cooperation and co-ordina-
inconsistent with GATT. However, India failed to show a domestic law or old friends and college mates from pre- The Palam meeting, that lasted for had to leave Pakistan. The task of orga- tion in the military fields came under
an international legal norm with direct application in India, compliance Partition Lahore. The leader on the Indi- nearly two hours, went well. At the end, nising Panditjis visit fell on my discussion. India expressed concern
with which necessitated the DCR. an side was Sardar Swaran Singh; Gen- a brief statement was issued in which shoulders. Fortunately, I had very able about Chinese activities on the northern
eral Khalid Shaikh led the Pakistani the leaders emphasised the need to con- colleagues to help me. border of Kashmir and emphasised the
Environmental impact team. Once these two men established duct relations in a rational and planned Prime Minister Nehrus visit com- concern they felt about a possible threat
Two questions are pertinent here. First, does this ruling stifle Indias ef- their rapport, they left the details to manner. It was also agreed that out- menced on a rather low key. The wel- to Pakistan also from them.
forts to move towards clean energy? No, because the ruling is not against their principal advisors: on the Indian standing issues should be settled in ac- come at Karachi was formal and correct, Ayub Khan, without batting an eyelid,
JNNSM but only against use of DCR measures. So, the government can side M.J. Desai, and on the other side cordance with justice and fair play, in a but not enthusiastic. The decorations shook his head gravely and promised to
continue with JNNSM by allowing the SPDs the free choice to either im- Sikander Ali Baig. Once it was estab- spirit of friendliness and cooperation. along the route from the airport to the study the question with his military ad-
port solar cells and modules or buy from domestic industry. lished that the main purpose of the exer- Later, when speaking to the Press, Ayub presidential palace were minimal. By visors. Little did the Indian side suspect
Second, does this ruling reflect WTOs bias towards free trade over envi- cise was to achieve maximum agree- Khan stressed the need for re- contrast, a lot of the local populace had that Pakistan would be handing over to
ronment? No, because Article XX of GATT clearly recognises a countrys ment and that neither side was out to appraisals, for forgetting and forgiving, gathered along the streets to have a the Chinese sizeable chunks of the ter-
sovereign right to regulate not just for environmental objectives but also steal an unfair advantage, it was easier to and for a more realistic and rational ap- glimpse of Panditji. But they did not ritory in the northern part of Kashmir in
for health, public morals, and so on. However, the WTO treaty limits the work out a solution. It was found that proach to settling disputes that had tar- cheer him. It was evident that the milit- return for Chinas support of Pakistans
policy choices available to WTO members as to how to achieve these goals. neither India nor Pakistan had an over- nished relations between the two neigh- ary authorities had ordained it that way. claim for the annexation of Jammu and
The fundamental principle is that inequitable costs of pursuing these goals whelming case to be made on its stand bour states. For a few moments, the ice The same evening was the signing of Kashmir.
should not be unilaterally transferred to other WTO member countries. So, on a particular dispute. One side grace- seemed to be broken. Right-thinking the Indus Waters Treaty. This was done In fact, all our bilateral discussions
for example, if multiple options are available to achieve an environmental fully conceded the others claim were people on both sides appeared to heave with due decorum and solemnity. Nehru and grandiose schemes came to practic-
purpose, the least trade restrictive one that is reasonably available to the valid, and that was that. In this way the a sigh of relief. signed on behalf of India, Ayub Khan on ally nothing because of Pakistans insist-
state must be chosen. Similarly, to pursue environmental objectives, a two negotiating teams were able to behalf of Pakistan, and William Iliff, the ence that India should make substantial
country cannot adopt measures that result in arbitrary or unjustified dis- settle a number of irritants in this field Nehrus visit to Pakistan vice-president of the World Bank, on be- concessions with regard to Kashmir.
crimination or constitute disguised restriction on trade. and pave the way for a period of real Soon it was clear that bigger things half of the Bank. The treaty was based on Thereby ended another chapter in the
dtente between the two countries. were in the offing. The protracted nego- the principle that after a transitional unfulfilled agenda of cooperation be-
India-U.S. trade relations However, some [issues] proved to be tiations about the distribution of the period of 10 years, extendable to 13 at the tween India and Pakistan.
Today, India-U.S. trade stands at over $100 billion annually. Both coun- intractable. One of these was the dispute canal waters were drawing to a close. request of Pakistan, the three eastern
tries aspire to increase this to $500 billion by breaking down barriers to regarding the Rann of Kutch. As neither The agreement on the canal waters was rivers, Ravi, Beas and Sutlej, would be K.V. Padmanabhan was in the Indian Foreign Service.
movement of goods and services, as stated in the India-U.S. Joint State- side gave way, it was decided to leave it the biggest single achievement to date exclusively allocated to India, while the Born in 1911, he passed away in 1992.
ment of June 2016. However, the solar panel case paints the opposite picture
where new barriers are being erected. In fact, it is not just this dispute. Cur-

It is time for a uniform asylum law

rently, in four ongoing disputes at the WTO, the two countries accuse each
other of raising trade barriers.
The solar panel case is a sober reminder that India should not pursue
protectionist measures outlawed by the WTO under the garb of pursuing
clean energy goals. India should comply with this ruling. Else, under WTO
law, the U.S. will erect new trade barriers against India. Compliance will be
in Indias interest because mandatory domestic sourcing irrespective of
The debate surrounding Brahamdagh Bugtis request for asylum in India has largely focussed on
costs might make solar power generation unfeasible, thus impairing Indias the foreign policy implications. Numerous legal issues deserve consideration
own objective. India should not commit the mistake of replacing the illegal
DCR measures with WTO-prohibited subsidies to safeguard solar manu- larger Baloch refugee community in the
facturing, as the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy has indicated, be- future is yet to be addressed. Does India
cause these subsidies might trigger more WTO cases against India. In- intend to grant asylum to Mr. Bugti
terests of domestic solar companies need to be divorced from clean energy alone, or to other Baloch asylum-
goals. seekers as well, or on a case-by-case
ROSHNI VASUDHA
basis? Irrespective of the modality it
SHANKER REDDY
Prabhash Ranjan is an assistant professor of law at the South Asian University. Views are personal. chooses, the Indian state will have to in-
vest in setting up both a policy mecha-
India stands poised to make one of the nism as well as the physical infrastruc-
most critical decisions with respect to ture for management of this group.
its refugee policy, but without a
domestic asylum law and without hav- Legal rights
FROM THE ARCHIVES ing signed the UN Refugee Convention
of 1951. This has left India without a
Finally, if Mr. Bugti is granted asylum
in India, what will his legal rights be?
structured and institutionalised frame- Since Indian law does not even mention
work for addressing refugee inflows. At the term refugee, there are no clearly
the same time, however, the country is defined rights and duties for refugees.
(dated September 28, 1966)
known to have a broadly humanitarian In practice, there are multiple ap-
approach to asylum, and is bound by proaches towards the different refugee
India calls for International Understanding. both its own constitutional principles communities, so much so that there
Making this announcement to the and customary international law. As the isnt even a common form of document-
expansion of IDA Press, the Vice-President, Dr. Home Ministry examines Baloch leader ation that is issued to them. The out-
resources Zakir Hussain, said that this first Brahamdagh Bugtis asylum claim, the come of this is that they have widely dis-
Jawaharlal Nehru Award will be debate has so far largely centred on the parate access to basic rights. For
The Union Finance Minister, given to U Thant at a special foreign policy implications. There re- example, while Sri Lankans and
Mr. Sachindra Chaudhuri, to-day ceremony in New Delhi on main, however, numerous legal issues Tibetans have government-issued IDs,
[September 27, Washington] November 14, the birthday of the which demand serious consideration. the vast majority of Afghan and
suggested that the fast dwindling late Mr. Nehru. The President, Dr. Burmese refugees have only the docu-
resources of the International Radhakrishnan, will give the Unanswered questions mentation given to them by the UN,
Development Association be award of Rs. 1 lakh in cash and the First, the manner in which the cur- which is not widely recognised. There
replenished by another $1 billion. citation. U Thant will deliver an rent asylum claim has been made raises is still no clarity in this regard, and the
He said that contributions of this address on the occasion. The the question of whether a person can Baloch would be yet another group of
order (which would have to come decision to give the award to U apply for asylum in India from outside refugees for whom a separate policy
from the rich countries) had Thant was taken last evening NO CLARITY: Refugees in India have widely disparate access to basic rights. File
the country. International refugee law would have to be created.
become essential because more [September 27, New Delhi] by the photo of a Sri Lankan refugee arriving with her relative in Dhanushkodi, Tamil
only states that a person needs to be The most pragmatic way to address
and more developing countries, jury appointed by the Nadu, to seek asylum in India. PHOTO: S. JAMES
outside his/her own country to seek these legal issues would be for India to
confronted with debt burdens and Government of India for this asylum; it is silent on whether the per- adopt a uniform asylum law for all
a general stagnation in the flow of purpose. son needs to be physically present in the Does India intend to grant whether Mr. Bugti has committed or refugee communities. It would allow
aid and export earnings, were The decision of the territory of the country where s/he asylum to Mr. Bugti alone, or been involved in activities referred to as for the codification of Indias best prac-
increasingly coming to rely on Government of India to institute a hopes to receive asylum or whether s/ crimes against humanity, war crimes, tices with respect to asylum, which
this soft loan window of the Jawaharlal Nehru award to be he can make such an application from a
to other Baloch serious non-political crimes, and so on. would, at the very least, eliminate the
World Bank rather than on given for outstanding third country. This is a much debated is- asylum-seekers as well, or on A fundamental principle of interna- need to revisit its historical policies
regular bank loans which to-day contribution to the promotion of sue in international law and countries a case-by-case basis? tional refugee law is to not grant asylum each time it faces a new question of
carry an interest of six per cent. international understanding have adopted varying policies in this re- to such persons, as doing so would go refugee protection. A national asylum
Nehru Award for goodwill and friendship among gard. Having allowed Mr. Bugti to seek interview that his asylum application to against the humanitarian spirit of law would also reduce the need for par-
peoples of the world, was taken at asylum from Switzerland, it is unclear Switzerland was turned down on ac- refugee protection. The civilian charac- allel mechanisms, and put in place a
U Thant the instance of the Indian Council whether India has made an exception in count of his party being put on a terror ter of a refugee populace is paramount, structured system for asylum manage-
U Thant, Secretary-General of for Cultural Relations. Therefore, this case or is now open to asylum ap- watch list by Pakistan. While this could and active combatants are excluded ment in the future.
the United Nations, has been it is appropriate that the Council plications without physical presence be a politically motivated act by from the same. Therefore, Mr. Bugtis
chosen for the grant of the has been entrusted with the within its national borders. This ques- Pakistan, as per international refugee activities as a Baloch leader need to be Roshni Shanker and Vasudha Reddy run the Ara
Jawaharlal Nehru Award for administration of the award. tion needs to be settled. law, this does trigger the need for a thoroughly examined. Trust, a centre for refugee law and forced migration
Second, Mr. Bugti claimed in a recent prospective asylum country to examine Third, Indias approach towards the studies, based in New Delhi.
CM ND-ND
YK
10 | - 1ias.com - EDITORIAL THE HINDU THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 29, 2016
NOIDA/DELHI

To revive an old friendship

T H U R S D AY , S E P T E M B E R 2 9 , 2 0 1 6
The SAARC
The Russia-Pakistan joint exercises raise many questions. New Delhi has to rebuild ties on its strengths
and common concerns with Moscow
trum are building multiple alliances. There ism need to converge and bring about some
is scope for both linkages and dependency. positive outcome.
ANURADHA M. CHENOY So China, who we think the U.S. is trying to India has its own military exercises with
contain (and India could get a role in this), the U.S. and has signed logistics agreements
has got its yuan accepted as world currency which can eventually give the U.S. access to
The Russian Embassy announced that their
by the International Monetary Fund and the
New York branch of Bank of China has been
Indian naval bases. Is India willing to do the
same with Russia? Given the growing U.S.-

gambit first-ever joint military exercises with

Pakistan, that were initially to be held in the
sensitive Gilgit-Baltistan area this week,
designated as the clearing house for the
Chinese official currency, the renminbi.
China is leveraging its economy and rela-
Russia hostility, has India reassured Russia
that this access will not jeopardise Russian
interests? If not, it should do so.

I
ndias decision to pull out of the SAARC sum-
mit in Islamabad this November, with Afgh-
anistan, Bhutan and Bangladesh deciding to
follow suit, effectively draws the curtain on
what was increasingly becoming a farce. Since the
previous Nepal summit, Pakistan has blocked all
protocols to better link the region, while India has
pursued a SAARC minus Pakistan plan to push
through with agreements it is keen on. Meetings in
the run-up to Islamabad have been overshadowed
by ongoing India-Pakistan tensions for months
now. Basic courtesies were set aside by both coun-
tries after the Pathankot attack. Islamabad dropped
any plans to send a representative to India to form-
ally extend an invitation to the summit, as is the
custom. Home Minister Rajnath Singh was given a
mixed welcome by his Pakistani hosts during the
Home Ministers meeting in Islamabad in August,
prompting Finance Minister Arun Jaitley to cancel
his visit for the subsequent SAARC Finance
Ministers meeting. Afghanistan and Bangladesh
too had downgraded their participation in these
meetings because of their anger with Pakistan on
its continued support to terror groups in the re-
spective countries. Uri proved to be the final straw,
especially in view of Pakistans refusal to even issue
a statement condemning the attack, galvanising In-
dia to reach out to other SAARC member-countries
in an effort to diplomatically isolate Pakistan. But
Sri Lanka and the Maldives, and Nepal, the acting
SAARC Chair, have kept out of the boycott.
The Modi government cannot claim much more
than a pyrrhic victory for the SAARC process get-
ting derailed in this manner. With one-fifth of the
worlds population, South Asia is home to two-
fifths of the worlds poor. It has abysmally low intra-
regional trade. It was precisely to work around bi-
lateral tensions in the subcontinent, especially be-
tween its two biggest members, and to make space
for discussion on common issues such as trade, in-
frastructure, sustainable development and poverty
alleviation, that SAARC was set up. The founding
principle was that together South Asia had a better
chance of fighting its shared ills, an idea that held
the group together for decades in the face of inter-
mittent regional tensions. Of course, this is not the
first time that a SAARC summit has been post-
poned. But given the prevailing environment of
deep mistrust and tension, it is unlikely that the
summit will be rescheduled to take place in the
near future. This is something that will cause
serious damage to the multilateral process and
raise even more questions about the future and rel-
evance of SAARC.
would be shifted with due respect to Indian
sensitivities. Why is Indias time-tested stra-
tegic partner engaging with Pakistan at this
juncture? Is there a shift in Russian geo-
strategy and linkage with China that is im-
pacting Moscows relations with India? Have
Indias own foreign policy shifts and new re-
lations set off a reaction in Russia? The Rus-
sia-Pakistan joint exercises raise many
questions.
A Russia on the move
Under President Vladimir Putin, Russia
has shown assertiveness in international af-
fairs. It has taken a clear position on oppos-
ing Western intervention and militarist regi-
me-change policies in Iraq and Libya and
now in Syria. Russia has used counter-force
in the fight against the Islamic State in back-
ing Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. It re-
took the province of Crimea that it had gifted
Ukraine in 1954 due to (Soviet) historical
reasons. This invited unilateral sanctions on
Russia from the U.S. and the European
Union. Demonised by the West, Russia has
become a strategic partner of China and they
have significant convergence of interests.
India as an emerging power has developed
a strategic partnership with the U.S. There
are real and perceived shifts in Indian arma-
ment policies where Russia dominated for
years. India has opened up to the U.S.,
France, Israel, all of whom are gradually
edging out the Russians in some sectors.
Russia-India trade has not grown to great
heights despite the encouragement of both
states. Yet India has been supportive of Rus-
sian positions and has a careful and cali-
brated response to all Russian actions in
Chechnya, Syria, Ukraine and elsewhere, In-
dia has supported Russia.
CARTOONSCAPE
ILLUSTRATION: DEEPAK HARICHANDAN
The U.S. will always have a dual
approach to India and Pakistan,
because it needs both. Russia on
the other hand will not. But India
should not take this for granted
The Russians, on their part, have dutifully
backed the Indian position on Kashmir; they
share Indian concerns on terrorism; they
continue with deep collaborations, provid-
ing sensitive technologies, military equip-
ment, nuclear power engines and much
more to India. They have a partnership in en-
ergy. Yet a Russia dependent on arms and en-
ergy exports is constantly looking for new
markets and Pakistan is a potential one. The
planned exercises were an extension of this
search.
Moscows Chinese concerns
The reality is that the world situation is
one of multipolarity and consequent inter-
dependency, contradictions, compromises
and pressures. Countries across the spec-
tionships to build a hegemony (G-2) with the
U.S. where both can share international fin-
ancial domination.
Russia is well aware of this, and has its own
concerns about the Chinese dominating
Russian markets, exploiting Russian re-
sources, and not backing Russian security
concerns. China is enticing countries, in-
cluding Russia, with its One Belt, One Road
plan that will develop huge new linkages and
develop trade routes. Pakistan is a satellite
state for China. Russia has concerns about
Central Asia vis--vis China and Pakistan.
In these circumstances, India has to re-
build on its strengths and common concerns
with the Russians. They have to revitalise
their earlier agreement on sharing intelli-
gence for a joint strategy on terrorism. If In-
dia is concerned with state-sponsored ter-
rorism from Pakistan, Russia is concerned
with the backing that states are directly or in-
directly giving to terror groups in West Asia
and Central Asia. India will have to be more
forthright in condemning states that on the
pretext of regime change or local geopolitics
are allowing the growth of terror groups in
West Asia.
Balancing new and old allies
Russia and India have common positions
and concerns in Afghanistan. Last week the
Afghans, in a peace deal backed and wel-
comed by the U.S. and Pakistan, reha-
bilitated the mujahideen butcher of Kabul
and India hater Gulbuddin Hekmatyar. This
snubs the Indian and Russian policy of isol-
ating all terrorists and instead has accom-
modated and compromised with who they
wish to label good Taliban. This policy is an
extension of using terrorists for strategic
use. Indian and Russian anxieties on terror-
India needs to deepen its scientific and
technological relations with Russia since a
base for this already exists. Often agree-
ments are signed amidst bilateral rhetoric
and are not sufficiently followed up. The
Russia-India investments in the oil and gas
sector and exports to third countries need to
be energised. Joint manufacturing needs to
be planned. A continuous engagement and
follow-up plan need to be made.
India and Russia are engaged in several
multilateral efforts that are greatly favoured
by Russia such as the BRICS and the Shang-
hai Cooperation Organisation. The BRICS
meeting in a few weeks will give a great op-
portunity for the leaders of these countries
to further deepen their engagements. Russia
had proposed a Russia-India-China (RIC)
forum. India is hesitant about this because of
the unresolved issues with China. This has
not moved ahead like the BRICS has. Our ar-
gument should be, if China can have com-
promises and contradictions with the U.S.,
then why not with India? India can use some
creative means to build an RIC alliance.
India should use the interdependency and
pressure-compromise strategies to leverage
its interest to isolate Pakistan. A former U.S.
Secretary of State had called Pakistan an in-
ternational migraine, but then moved on to
use it as the U.S. front line in Afghanistan and
West Asia. No matter what India gives the
U.S., this equation will not change. The U.S.
will always have a dual approach to India and
Pakistan, because it needs both. Russia, on
the other hand, will not. But India has to act-
ively ensure that and not take this strategic
partnership for granted.
Leveraging multilateralism
India needs to move on in the interna-
tional system. In some ways it has, but in
other ways it is moving backwards. Its
foreign policy is only an extension of its
domestic politics. India has to fix its
domestic issues to further social cohesion
and make special efforts to build bridges be-
tween communities. Indias domestic
politics has to move towards inclusive de-
mocracy, non-militarism, rights and the rule
of law. This will give it an edge in the interna-
tional system. Any dilution would damage it
deeply. Indian foreign policy should focus on
its strengths of working with the global
South, opposing militarist interventions,
building norms and depending on multilat-
eralism. India cannot be in denial of its his-
tory even as it moves forward.
As far as Russia is concerned, it might ap-
pear that there is some strategic shift. But
Russia has been pushed into that position. In
reality, it knows that India is still its most re-

Rescuing the liable ally. It has no conflict of interest or

anxiety about India as it does about others.
India was instrumental in the construction
Syrian truce deal of a multipolar international system. This
system has benefitted India and Russia, not
to speak of others like China. To retain this,

O
ver the past five and a half years, every
international effort to bring violence in
Syria to an end has collapsed. The UN
has largely been a spectator since what
began as civil strife spiralled into a deadly war be-
tween the regime and a group of rebel groups sup-
ported by outside powers. In this time, half a mil-
lion people have been killed. The Geneva I and II
peace plans did not even take off. Russia and the
U.S. had earlier agreed to cease hostilities, but the
agreement did not hold. When Moscow and Wash-
ington, which support the regime and the rebels,re-
spectively, decided to go ahead with talks despite
the initial setback and finally came up with a proper
ceasefire agreement earlier this month, hopes were
high about bringing at least some temporary relief
to Syrians. But within a week of reaching the agree-
ment, the Syrian regime and the rebels are back
fighting each other, erasing the advances made
through months of negotiations. It is immaterial to
ask who has violated the terms of the agreement,
given the hostility and the contradictory accounts
of who did what. The Syrians blame the U.S. for vio-
lating the terms first with airstrikes, killing more
than 60 Syrian soldiers in Jebel Tharda on Septem-
ber 17, a few days into the deal. The U.S. says the
strike was a mistake. It, in turn, blames Russian jets
for attacking a UN aid convoy in Aleppo a few days
later, which Moscow denies. Amid the allegations
and counter-allegations, the war drags on, creating
more havoc, especially in Aleppo that has wit-
nessed heavy regime bombardment and where 2.5
lakh people are believed to be trapped.
There are two key impediments to achieving
truce. First, President Bashar al-Assad is now mak-
ing advances in the battlefield. Recapturing
Aleppo, once Syrias largest city, has always been
high on his agenda, and he may be less keen to com-
promise at a time when he is winning. But the prob-
lem is that while trying to recapture the city his
forces might commit another massacre, which the
world should not let happen. Being Mr. Assads
greatest supporter, Russia has a moral responsibil-
ity to end the siege of Aleppo. But Russia has its
own concerns. It wants the rebels to isolate the ji-
hadists among themselves, particularly Jabhat
Fateh al-Sham, and has been asking the West to tar-
get such groups. Though the U.S. has said it is fight-
ing all jihadist groups in Syria, it is now focussed
only on the Islamic State, which is in retreat. The
U.S. and Russia need to stay engaged in talks. The
word truce may appear to be a clich in todays
Syria, but an international ceasefire deal between
the U.S. and Russia still seems to be the best option
to turn around the Syrian situation.
CM
YK
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Letters emailed to letters@thehindu.co.in must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.
Step three, on SAARC
It is a welcome development that
India is determined this time around
to step up diplomatic pressure on
Pakistan in the wake of the Uri attack
by undertaking a slew of measures
that include boycotting the SAARC
meet in Islamabad (India steps up
pressure, to boycott SAARC meet in
Pak., Sept.28). While this move will
expose Pakistan in the eyes of the
international community as a rogue
nation sponsoring cross-border
terrorism, it will stand isolated
eventually. To reinforce its offensive,
India may also move the United
Nations to impose economic
sanctions against Pakistan.
P.K. Varadarajan,
Chennai
A boycott by India will not end
terrorism, but may threaten the very
existence of the organisation itself
which had the economic integration
of South Asia as one of its objectives.
Economic prosperity of the region
can be a good tool in weakening
terrorist activities. Instead of
boycotting the meet, India should
have sent a low-profile
representative instead. New Delhi
has struggled in the past to make
SAARC a successful forum, and
causing any harm to it is unwise.
India can use the SAARC platform to
reach out to peace-loving people in
the region, including in Pakistan.
K. Muhammed Ismayil,
Kozhikode
Some time from now, India is bound
to realise the folly of what it mulls to
upstage Pakistan. The decisions to
review the Indus Waters Treaty
(IWT) and the Most Favoured
Nation (MFN) status to Pakistan,
and now a boycott of the SAARC
summit, appear to be desperate
non-military measures. The
distinction drawn by the Prime
Minister between the people of
Pakistan and the rulers of Pakistan
gets blurred when denial of water
and a trade ban are used as weapons
of war by other means. The
dynamics of geopolitics cannot be
subsumed to the dynamics of
internal politics without
consequences difficult to cope with.
A solution to the vexed Kashmir
problem will go a long way towards
taking the sting out of militancy.
India and Pakistan are irreplaceable
neighbours and have to work out a
road map for peace and
collaboration.
G. David Milton,
Maruthancode, Tamil Nadu
Simultaneous elections
The article, The case against
simultaneous polls (Sept.27), omits
many issues in what would have
made for a wonderfully balanced
article. The writers do accept to an
extent that simultaneous polls
would reduce expenses, but it must
be remembered that election
expenses have a direct as well as
indirect component. There is large-
scale funding by business houses
which is not necessarily accounted
for. The point about how the model
code of conduct has limited effect on
governance is flawed. Many a time,
we find sound economic principles
taking a back seat and populist
schemes taking effect which slows
down growth. In fact the model code
should be curbing this.
Separate elections are essential as
Rahul Nair H.,
Thiruvananthapuram
When elections are held
simultaneously, it is reasonable to
expect a huge publicity campaign to
be launched by large parties with
deep pockets. It will be virtually
impossible for fledging regional
parties to make their presence and
does not bode well for our
democracy.
Hritvik R. Pandey,
New Delhi
We have had 16 general elections and
a casual glance at the results would
reveal that coalition governments
were formed at the Centre on more
than six occasions, with regional
parties playing a crucial role. Quite a
few States have been ruled by
regional parties, eclipsing the
national parties for decades. Even if
simultaneous elections are held,
there is no guarantee that elected
governments will complete their full
term rendering the idea of
simultaneous elections to the Lok
Sabha and Assemblies irrational and
unrealistic. Single party rule belongs
to a bygone era.
C.R. Ananthanarayanan,
Bengaluru
The writers are perhaps right in
their assertion that political
diversity is essential for addressing
the social diversity of India.
Simultaneous elections are not
feasible in India. People in general
have different perceptions as far as
both elections are concerned.
Assembly elections are more about
local issues, which a general election
cannot focus on to that extent.
K.V. Venugopal,
Chennai
permission can be taken from the EC
they will keep our politicians
accountable. If they are assured of
no elections at all for the next five
years, they are bound to become
India and Russia need to be active strategic
and economic allies. But both will have to
make an effort for this.
Anuradha M. Chenoy is a Professor at the Centre for
Russian and Central Asian Studies, School of International
Studies, JNU.
apathetic to the needs of the general EC as it does not have the expertise
public. It becomes all the more to evaluate every possible decision.
significant in India as we dont have If a similar voting pattern for Central
direct democratic devices like the and State governments is a concern,
Right to Recall. an option could be to have
Ashutosh, simultaneous State elections in the
Gaya, Bihar middle of the tenure of the Central
government which can reduce
The Election Commission should non-governance periods to two from
find other ways to reduce costs in the current dozen plus during every
conducting elections rather than five-year cycle.
harming federalism and
K. Kiran Chandra,
circumventing the Constitution. Hyderabad
Elections have never been a
hindrance to governance as the code
of conduct only ensures that a Clinton vs Trump
government does not misuse policy The poser, how has a candidate
announcements as inducements for such as Mr. Trump come this far?
voting. It is not a surprise that the (Editorial Debating America,
BJP-led Central government is Sept.28), is quite pertinent. Donald
pushing for this change in the hope Trumps strategy of blaming
that simultaneous elections will politicians and the Washington
boost its chances in States where it is elite/clique for failed U.S. policies
weak. This is the only political should have found resonance with a
explanation for the move. good number of voters. Though he
Yacoub Z. Kuruvilla, practically carries no political
New Delhi baggage of past failures, his trying to
shift the blame on to Hillary Clinton
Most people in India dont vote for for the failures of the last 30 years
parties by studying and analysing is far-fetched.
their manifestos. Most are guided C.G. Kuriakose,
by external influences, swayed by Kothamangalam, Kerala
false promises and freebies. If
simultaneous elections take place,
there are likely to be the twin Database nation
blunders of voting for two parties With the globalisation of terror, it is
and being ignorant about both. essential that there is some kind of
J. Sumuki, check. Online and offline
Vellore, Tamil Nadu radicalisation need to be checked.
Further, with a negligible percentage
There must be focus on reducing the of the population paying tax, tax
ability to distribute money and evaders need to be brought into the
liquor through curbs on the supply tax net. NATGRID, CMS and
side. The second premise is that Aadhaar are only means to tackle
these problems. We need to learn to
to implement decisions that will not trust the government (Towards a
have implications on the electoral database nation, Sept.27).
outcome. The point should be about Tej Kankaria,
where the line is to be drawn for the Chennai
ND-ND
NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 29, 2016

- 1ias.com - PERSPECTIVE | 11

PARIS AGREEMENT
Indias climate future at stake
No option but to talk
Despite the angry rhetoric, this seems to be a slow-paced war, which thus far is limited to both
The announcement by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in India and Pakistan playing to domestic audiences
Kozhikode that India will now ratify the Paris Agreement
on climate change as early as October 2 must surely occa-
sion widespread surprise in Indias polity. The haste is par-
ticularly strange considering that the European Union and AYESHA SIDDIQA
T. JAYARAMAN a number of other developed nations have not yet ratified
the agreement.
A sudden U-turn
Less than three weeks earlier, Arvind Panagariya, NITI Aayog vice-chair- This is certainly a new age of India-
man and the Prime Ministers sherpa at the G20 summit in China, had indic- Pakistan bilateral relations in which both
ated in a post-summit briefing on September 5 that India had resolutely op- sides are set to maximise costs of con-
posed any reference in the final communiqu to a definite timeline of flict for the other to attain their respec-
ratification of the agreement. The ostensible reason was that while India tive geopolitical goals. In order to ex-
planned to ratify the agreement at the earliest, it also needed time because press its anger, Delhi is shutting down
we were not ready yet in terms of domestic actions that are required for us means of dialogue with Islamabad, as
to ratify or at least commit to ratify within 2016. Foreign Secretary S. had happened in the past. So, it has
Jaishankar was even more explicit in his press briefing on June 7 at the re- pulled out of the South Asian Asso-
lease of the joint communiqu of U.S. President Barack Obama and Mr. ciation for Regional Cooperation
Modi in Washington. He emphasised, We have to look at a range of issues, (SAARC) summit along with other
some of them are regulatory, and some of them are possibly legal. The con- states influenced by Delhi or simply
cerned Ministries are examining that. angry with Pakistan. The idea is to isol-
Following such statements little has been done to inform Parliament, civil ate Islamabad and build its image as a
society or the people at large what these detailed considerations were that rogue state. From eliminating terrorist
the government considered so relevant. As long as ratification was awaited, leadership to a diplomatic victory are
one could have hoped that a process of consultation would be initiated. But goals that require time. There are no
the abrupt volte-face by the government clearly needs some serious explan- short-term gains to be made that could
ation. The suggestions made to an interna- immediately provide a fillip to Prime
tional audience that fulfilling Indias com- The haste is strange Minister Narendra Modis image as a
mitments based on its current Intended given that many strong leader, which is certainly one of TOUGH CLIMB BEGINS: Unlike the past, when India had the capacity to take Pakistan to war, it cannot do so any more. Picture
Nationally Determined Contributions (IN- the goals. shows an Indian Army patrol at the KG sector on the Line of Control. FILE PHOTO: AP
DCs) would require matching domestic leg- developed nations
islation or changes in regulatory have not yet ratified The international response Both states should return to border in Pakistan were involved in the of guard at the GHQ.
mechanisms clearly demand that the gov- While Bangladesh, Bhutan and Afgh- recent attack, it was to provide fillip to an While it is up to Mr. Modi to calculate
ernment at the Centre make clear domes-
the agreement anistan will join hands with New Delhi, the negotiation table. What indigenous struggle and indicate to local benefits from scrapping most favoured
tically the implications for development that these commitments would there are other extra-regional but more makes peace harder is Delhi Kashmiri fighters that there is help avail- nation (MFN) status or the Indus Waters
have. It is also worth bearing in mind that developmental needs and peoples important states that are watching the ignoring the strife in Kashmir able. India could talk about Balochistan, Treaty, such initiatives have little
aspirations are not the sole concern or prerogative of the Central govern- ongoing situation but are deterred from Gilgit-Baltistan or Pakistan's Kashmir prospects of short-term gains. Notwith-
ment a substantial part of it is also borne by State governments and local joining Indias condemnation of as business as usual but two out of the three territories do not standing the fact that opinion in Punjab
self-government authorities in urban and rural areas. At the very least this Pakistan because they are either not en- have a history of strong separatist move- had changed regarding India with
would appear to call for widespread consultations and taking on board all, tirely convinced of who was behind the tion with the then air chief, (late) Air ments. greater keenness to do trade, it did not
even if the constitutional prerogative for treaty-making rests with the attack in Uri or are generally wary of Chief Marshal Mushaf Ali Mir. While Despite the angry rhetoric, it seems to turn into a strong enough lobby to in-
Centre. what the diplomatic and military escala- talking about the difference between the be a slow-paced war, which, thus far, is fluence how the generals think. This
tion will lead to. This is certainly the im- 1999 Kargil conflict and the 2002 escala- limited to playing to a domestic audi- lobby needs to be developed. Granted
Need for an INDC relook pression we get from talking to foreign tion, he was of the view that while Kargil ence. While New Delhi has told its peo- New Delhi feels frustrated with lack of
There can be little doubt that India will have to eventually ratify the Paris diplomats in Islamabad, who are wary of was a case of the Pakistan army trying to ple how Pakistan is about to be elimin- action, the fact of the matter is that what
Agreement. But it is not bound to convert all of the INDCs that it has submit- the situation but ready to hear the argu- challenge Indias control of its territory, ated from the world map, Islamabad tells is being played in the Subcontinent is a
ted to the final Nationally Determined Contributions that would be written ment that the border across Kashmir is an issue on which the air force and navy its people how India has failed in doing game of chess, not tic-tac-toe. The
into the treaty. This in fact provides India considerable room following Paris difficult to penetrate. did not see eye-to-eye with the army, the much and the international community moves are plenty, complex and time con-
for a deeper look away from the pressures during the run-up to the 21st ses- In any case, the international 2002 deployment of armed forces across is listening carefully to its plea on behalf suming. At this stage, those from
sion of the Conference of the Parties (COP21). However, there is little or no community is reluctant to take measures the border was a different matter. In of the Kashmiri people and is ready to Pakistan doing business with India have
evidence that the government plans any such reconsideration. That such a against Pakistan, even if convinced that 2002, there was no friction amongst the condemn human rights atrocities in the access to indirect sources of trade
reconsideration is merited is clear from the emerging consensus among cli- there was some involvement in case of three services regarding the need to re- Kashmir Valley, which is most likely the through a third country.
mate scientists that the 1.5C aspirational target is well-nigh unachievable Mumbai or Pathankot, because the reac- pel any possible attack from New Delhi. purpose behind escalation of conflict As for water, while diverting a shared
while even 2C will be very difficult. Such goals can therefore only be tion from other states is based on their (that is, if terror groups from across the resource will not have an immediate im-
achieved by turning the pressure on countries like India, since it is we (and own calculations of their interests. For Terrorism and limited options border were involved in it). The intern- pact, Pakistan is likely to raise the issue
several other smaller developing countries) who have yet to build for the fu- instance, concerned about saving Britain Even the jihadi organisations under- alising of conflict on both sides of the at international fora. New Delhi may find
ture and erase our development deficits, and it is we who will need the flex- from terror attacks, the government and stand the logic of escalation. In fact, as border is worrisome because it tends to it difficult to sell manipulation of the
ibility of continued greenhouse gas to achieve these goals. Such a heavy bur- its agencies in London feel they benefit argued by Pakistans renowned physicist raise expectations and inadvertently in- treaty through the prism of isolating
den is not faced by developed countries and China while at the same time far more by engaging with the military and political activist, Dr. A.H. Nayyar, fluence decision-making at some later Pakistan internationally. But definitely
the latter has safeguarded emissions linked to its current energy and indus- and its intelligence agencies in Pakistan, the terror groups have become em- stage. these are costs that Islamabad would
trial infrastructure. There is time therefore for India to reconsider what part that have helped them capture terrorists boldened since India and Pakistan went have to think very carefully about. Even
of its INDCs to retain and whether to hedge Indias future by declaring a at home. It would take a lot to convince overt with their nuclear capabilities. Non-military strategy if it was not involved in Uri, it must think
long-term budget for Indias cumulative emissions (or any other measure the world of Pakistans involvement and They have demonstrated greater adven- India-Pakistan battles, both verbal or seriously about allowing certain terror
serving the same end). The latter would serve to safeguard against attempts for concrete steps to be taken against it. turism because they understand that using actual firepower, or prospects of groups to operate inside Pakistan with
to make India, as a result of accepting these temperature goals through rati- There is even greater fear of what the New Delhi has limited options. The se- peace, are protracted affairs. There are impunity.
fication, bear the brunt of the burden of achieving them. However, instead of war of words might lead to, an actual curity experts can boast about at least no quick short-term favourable out- Under the circumstances, both states
attending to this issue, the government has been keener to link the ratifica- conflict that raises the threat of a nuclear half of India surviving a nuclear war comes through immediate escalation as will benefit tremendously if they back
tion of the Paris Agreement to membership of the Nuclear Suppliers Group exchange. Unlike the past, when India while Pakistan has less of a chance to do many on social media expect. There is a off from the war rhetoric and return to
(NSG). After the Seoul meeting of the NSG, India had stated that it had had the capacity to take Pakistan to war, so however, losing half of its popula- lot of experimentation that will have to the negotiating table. What makes peace
hoped for membership of the NSG to take forward the process of ratifying it cannot do so any more. While limited tion is not a cost that any leader would be done to see what changes minds on harder is Delhi ignoring the indigenous
the agreement. The ham-handed attempt to leverage NSG membership us- escalation may be possible, the probabil- like to bear. the other side of the border. Certainly in strife in Kashmir as business as usual.
ing the ratification issue has not worked and the clarification by the United ity of a reaction is also ensured. In the re- The prospects of a conventional war the short term, the war rhetoric has al- There is a generation of people angry
States, after Mr. Modis announcement, that there is no such linkage sug- cent past, Pakistan seems to have inves- would always raise the spectre of a nu- lowed the military in Pakistan to further and frustrated, and the Modi govern-
gests that Washington had called Delhis bluff. Linking the ratification to the ted in tactical nuclear weapons in clear showdown which makes the inter- cement nationalism and market its new ment must think outside the box to de-
difficulties of NSG membership, arising as much from our strategic nuclear response to the threat of a possible national community worry. Perhaps one socio-political discourse. Despite velop relations with them. This is per-
obsessions as from our need for energy, points to a deplorable lack of per- limited-scale operation being launched of the calculations of a terror outfit is Nawaz Sharif following the script till the haps the only short- to medium-term
spective in judging the long-term priorities for the Indian people. from India. While analysts could draw that the fear of a nuclear holocaust will last letter, he is still touted as a culprit, approach it ought to adopt. Peace in
Indias climate policy has been constantly hobbled by this and other stra- conclusions regarding the Pakistan mil- draw world attention towards solving Mr. Modis poodle. Such an image is Kashmir will probably go a long way as
tegic concerns, whatever the dispensation in New Delhi. Successive govern- itarys rationality, causing it to withdraw the Kashmir issue. If the international meant to diminish the Prime Minister's compared to making appeals to the peo-
ments have all along declined to step forward with a proactive policy to pro- from Kargil, a similar reaction may not community will not attend to human capacity, if he is left with any, to effect- ple of Pakistan and calling them to a pov-
tect Indias critical long-term interests. The honeymoon of the Kyoto be expected in case of a military incur- rights violations in Kashmir, it will cer- ively control the foreign policy agenda erty reduction competition.
Protocol, with emission targets only for developed nations, and seen by sion or operation inside Pakistan. This is tainly stop and listen to rumblings of a and to reduce the civilian government's
Delhi as the model for a long-term agreement, was obviously too good to certainly what I learnt from a conversa- possible war. If indeed groups across the space to manoeuvre during the change Ayesha Siddiqa is an Islamabad-based columnist.
last. Subsequently Indias policy has always been too little, too late, and at
Paris, the Modi government only carried forward the accumulated legacy of
the past in climate policy, without a new and sustainable approach at the
critical juncture. One may even argue that at Paris the government was more
sinned against than sinning. But its careless and compromising handling of
the post-Paris scenario has taken away that indulgence, and handling that
An American djinn
has resulted in pushing India to the point of seriously foreclosing its options
within the emerging global climate policy regime.
Trump is a nightmare conjured up by those who seek to turn Americans against themselves
T. Jayaraman is a Professor at the School of Habitat Studies, Tata Institute of Social Sciences, ously, America does not have a mo-
Mumbai.
STEPHEN ALTER nopoly on xenophobia. It would be
short-sighted and nave for anyone to
think that Mr. Trump, as president, will
be a friend of India, or any other country
FROM THE ARCHIVES One of the advantages of being an Amer-
for that matter. He is a knee-jerk isola-
tionist and just as he continues to rant
ican citizen living abroad is that you can about American jobs being sent to Mex-
register to vote using an absentee ballot ico, he sees India as a nation to which the
(dated September 29, 1966) and send it in by e-mail. On Tuesday, I American economy has been out-
cast my vote in the U.S. general election sourced. His racist, misanthropic com-
Central expenditure Commercial for Democrats Hillary Clinton and Tim ments do not distinguish between black
to be reduced advertising over AIR Kaine. This is not a statement of patriotic and brown, or even off-white.
duty. In fact, my nationality has never American elections, as seen from
The Union Cabinet to-day The Prime Minister said to-day been a defining factor when it comes to abroad, are often described as an in-
[September 28, New Delhi] [September 29, New Delhi] that my own sense of identity. Yet, more than terminable and chaotic exercise in col-
decided to cut the Central the report of the Chanda ever before, I felt an obligation to take lective ignorance. Enormous wealth and
expenditure for the current Committee on Radio and part in the U.S. election, not because Im military might have given the U.S. a
financial year by Rs. 101 crores. Television was under an American but because I believe that claim to being leader of the so-called
This will include a cut by Rs. 24 consideration and assured that civic responsibilities extend beyond the Free World. But today, Americans are
crores in the revenue expenditure, the committees recommendation borders of any one country. afraid of the future. There is no doubt
Rs. 67 crores in the capital to allow commercial advertising that the only way the U.S. can maintain
expenditure and Rs. 10 crores on on these media within certain Hillary, the right choice its power and influence is through what
PUTTING A FINGER ON IT: Its not Trump the businessman who frightens me. Its
Railways capital expenditure. No limits would receive the Ms. Clinton will make a good Mr. Obama and Ms. Clinton refer to as
Trump the candidate.... PHOTO: AFP
major project will be affected, an Governments careful president of the U.S. and she will carry an interconnected world, that depends
official spokesman said. The consideration. Mrs. Gandhi was forward the struggles and ideals of the usual in a country that celebrates on international treaties and trade deals
Cabinet took these decisions after inaugurating the Third
I have felt an obligation to
Barack Obama administration in the ad- outspoken individualism and ad- rather than retreating into an imper-
considering the report of the Advertising Conference of the mirable tradition of liberal American versarial competition. But its not Trump take part in the U.S. election, meable and impervious shell as Mr.
Secretaries Committee which had Indian Society of Advertisers. She politics. She will be the first woman to the businessman who frightens me. Its because I believe that civic Trump suggests. Nevertheless, if we be-
suggested detailed measures to hoped that Indian advertising lead the U.S., which is as important as Trump the candidate because he is, in es- lieve the polls, half the American public
reduce expenditure. would grow on positive lines. Mr. Obama being the first African- sence, a creation of the enemies he wants
responsibilities go beyond the wants to elect a man who rejects com-
American president. There are those to destroy. borders of any one country mon sense, whether it comes to global is-
who may be cynical about these sym- sues like climate change or his fellow
bolic milestones of democracy but when Trump, the sum of all fears succeeded in letting the American genie demagogue, Russian President Vladimir
the majority of Americans make that Since 9/11 the American public have out of the bottle. Yet there is nothing Putin.
CORRECTIONS AND CLARIFICATIONS choice it is a significant moment in his- felt the threat of terrorism within their genial about him, nor is he inclined to A Trump victory would be a defeat for
>>The opening paragraph of One-third of total maternal deaths in 2015 tory, not just for the U.S. but for the borders. Al-Qaeda and now IS (or grant anyones wishes but his own. Mr. the U.S. but also for the world as a whole.
happened in India: report (Sept, 21, 2016) should be recast to read: The latest world at large. whatever shape-shifting acronym ap- Trump would be the perfect American He may be a caricature of the bloated,
Lancet series on maternal health reveals that nearly one quarter of babies At the same time, the phenomenon of plies) have become the frightening President from the perspective of terror- egotistical and ugly American, but there
worldwide are still delivered in the absence of a skilled birth attendant. Fur- Donald Trump, the Republican pres- avatars of American anxieties. The ists around the globe because he person- is no ironic punchline to this joke. In-
ther, one-third of the total maternal deaths in 2015 happened in two countries: idential candidate, has added a grot- threats, of course, are very real and there ifies and voices right-wing xenophobia stead, there is something inescapably
India and Nigeria 45,000 mothers (15 per cent) died during pregnancy or esque visage to the global pantheon of is no denying that radical Islamist mili- in a self-destructive rampage of bigoted dangerous about him because he and his
childbirth in India while Nigeria shouldered the maximum burden of 58,000 political demagogues. As a real estate ty- tias are at war with the West. But this is rhetoric. As others have noted, he makes supporters fail to understand that Mr.
(19 per cent) maternal deaths. Consequently, the headline should have read: coon, he is a man who has invented and not a conventional conflict. it much easier to attract disaffected Trump is an incarnation of all our fears
One-third of total maternal deaths in 2015 happened in India and Nigeria. reinvented himself, which is not unusual The fundamental strategy of terror- young recruits to the cause of the IS and and prejudices. He is an American night-
in American society. The bluster and ism is to create fear, anger and loathing its ilk. mare conjured up by those who seek to
The Readers Editors office can be contacted by braggadocio that he brings to his busi- it is anarchic and nihilistic, attacking Here in India, there are those who turn us against ourselves.
Telephone: +91-44-28418297/28576300 (11 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday to ness deals and his ability to market him- progressive ideals and institutions. With have celebrated the candidacy of Mr.
Friday); E-mail: readerseditor@thehindu.co.in self as a product of capitalism is not un- Trump the candidate, terrorists have Trump because he is anti-Muslim. Obvi- Stephen Alter is an American writer born in India.
CM ND-ND
YK
10 | - 1ias.com - EDITORIAL THE HINDU FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2016
NOIDA/DELHI

A silence thats deafening

The recent Maratha protest marches across Maharashtra, while a reflection of the farming crisis in the State,
are essentially an expression of marginalisation of the communitys lower and middle rungs
The only bond among this four-layered ervation category. That, too, has fuelled the
F R I D AY , S E P T E M B E R 3 0 , 2 0 1 6 class structure is of caste. Being Maratha demand for reservation among other larger
KUMAR KETKAR gives them a feeling of difference from the Maratha groupings. The disgruntled
other and an illusion of being important. Maratha youth, instead of wagging an accus-
The power elite have everything going for ing finger at the power elite of their own
Crossing the If any political leader or pundit were to have
said, even just four months ago, that lakhs
them. The rich farmers main worry is that
he is not getting cheap labour because of the
Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employ-
caste, began to see an enemy in the Dalit
community, the beneficiaries of the res-
ervation policy.
Line of Control and lakhs of Marathas were going to mobil-
ise and march across Maharashtra, week
ment Guarantee Scheme. His economic in-
terest pits him against his Maratha brethren
The brutal rape and murder of a Maratha
girl in July by a few Dalit youth in Kopardi

A
fter running through a variety of non-
military responses to the September 18
terrorist strike at an Army camp in Uri,
the Centre on Thursday announced that
Indian forces had carried out surgical strikes
across the Line of Control. With this, Indias next
steps, post-Uri, are in uncharted terrain, with New
Delhi abandoning the self-proclaimed policy of
strategic restraint adopted in the face of earlier
provocations by terrorists believed to be backed by
Pakistan. The operation, that began and concluded
in the early hours of Thursday, was claimed to be a
military success, with no injuries to the Indian
para-commandos who went across the LoC into
Pakistan-occupied Kashmir to attack several loca-
tions. The decision to strike in this manner was
evidently taken after specific intelligence that ter-
rorist groups were planning attacks in India. This
may not be the first time India has undertaken
quick cross-LoC operations, but it has never before
chosen to share information so publicly.
The terms surgical strike and pre-emptive Cauvery water crisis are far more
strike used by the Centre were intended to convey
that this was not an attack on Pakistans defence
forces, but a targeted action against terrorists
poised to wreak damage in India. Pakistan of course
has played down the Indian operation, character-
ising it as an act of habitual cross-border shelling. It
is welcome that New Delhi declared the strikes
complete shortly after the operation, with the
DGMO calling his Pakistani counterpart to convey
that India would not escalate the conflict beyond
this. This, along with the briefings held in New
Delhi for envoys of various countries, indicates that
the Centre wants to end hostilities with Pakistan
for the moment. This strengthens the view that the
operation was the result of pressure on the Modi
government to manufacture a strong response to
Uri. Over the past few daysthere has been a cascade
of moves to underline that such provocations can-
not be followed with business as usual. The govern-
ment reviewed the working of the Indus Waters
Treaty, declared it is flirting with the idea of review-
ing Pakistans Most Favoured Nation status, and
pulled out of the SAARC heads meet to be held in
Islamabad. Having made it known that India does
not want further escalation, even as people living
along the International Border and the LoC are
shifted to safer locations, the Centre will need to ar-
ticulate what it regards as the new normal and in-
deed, how it hopes, or plans, to dissuade Pakistan
from escalating the situation in turn.
after week, from Parbhani in Marathwada to
the so-called intellectual and knowledge
capital Pune, nobody would have believed
that prognosis. Nobody, not even the pow-
erful Maratha leadership, including the
strongman of Maharashtra, Sharad Pawar,
had seen the turbulence beneath the super-
ficial and deceptive calm in the community.
Now it is obvious that the frustration and
anger among the Marathas has been brew-
ing intensely.
Most people outside Maharashtra do not
understand the difference between the two
phonetically similar sounding terms,
Maratha and Marathi. Why, even the metro-
politan Mumbaikar cannot comprehend the
distinction. The broadcast media and panel
pontiffs too are confused by the sudden
tsunami-like Maratha marches, which they
cannot simply ignore because of their sheer
size and breadth. Indeed, the mobilisation is
so grippingly picturesque that television
cameramen and anchors cannot underplay
it by pretending that Kashmir and the
farmer, bagayati or cash crop farmer. They
important!
The class divide among Marathas
The Maratha caste can be broadly com-
pared with Jats in Rajasthan and Haryana or
Patidar-Patels in Gujarat, primarily farmers.
They are one-third of the States population
and Marathi is their mother tongue, though
not exclusive to them. Within the
community, there is a hierarchy observed
very diligently, particularly when it comes
to matrimony. However, irrespective of so-
cial hierarchy, they are all directly connec-
ted with agriculture, sons of soil, as it were.
But there is another hierarchy, that of class.
There are four class divisions.
The elite Marathas are directly related to
power or power centres ministers, chair-
men of commissions, various boards, direct-
ors in cooperative banks, board members of
sugar cooperatives, zilla parishad or gram
CARTOONSCAPE
had no opportunities for higher education,
nology sector, for instance. Unemployment,
ILLUSTRATION: SURENDRA
The disgruntled Maratha youth,
instead of wagging an accusing
finger at the power elite of their
own caste, began to see an enemy
in the Dalit community
panchayat chiefs, and so on. These Marathas
are seen to not distinguish between the pri-
vate and public.
The class just below them is the rich
Thus, multiple frustrations got accu-
are powerful because they command re-
spect on account of their wealth, which also
gives them status and authority in the vil-
lages. They are not in political power dir-
ectly, but they have political heft across
parties as they finance candidates.
Next in the hierarchy comes the small or
middle peasant, who survives on a season-
to-season basis, is dependent on the va-
garies of nature, is anxious about the mon-
soon, takes small loans to run the farm or for
wedding expenses, and commits suicide if
harassed by the bank or moneylender. The
middle peasant aspires to be a rich farmer,
and hence imitates the lifestyle of the well-
off farmer. When he fails to live up to his pro-
jected image, distraught, he hangs himself.
The lowest and the last layer is that of the
landless peasants and agricultural labourers
who depend on government employment
guarantee schemes and other benefits.
because of the class distinctions. The real
frustration is among the small/middle farm-
ers, the vast section of landless farmers and/
or agricultural labourers. A young person
among the lower classes of Marathas has
nessed any diatribe against the Dalit
no possibilities of migrating to the cities for
a better future, and certainly no avenues to
new kinds of jobs in the information tech-
declining agriculture, compounded by se-
vere drought and devastating floods, have
threatened his very survival.
For the past two years these suffering
classes waited with great expectation for
Achche Din. They had voted against the
Congress because their condition saw no
improvement during the years of Congress
rule. They thought Narendra Modi would
provide what the Congress-Nationalist
Congress Party (NCP) alliance did not.
Now, theres disillusionment.
Searching for an object of ire
but dominated education, bureaucracy,
mulated and mixed up. But who should be
held responsible? The Marathas are in
power from sugar cooperatives to Man-
tralaya, the administrative headquarters of
the State government. All parties, from the
Congress, NCP, to the Bharatiya Janata Party
and the Shiv Sena have large contingents of
Marathas. In assemblies and local self-gov-
ernments there is Maratha domination. And
yet the lower- and middle-rung Marathas
feel isolated, neglected, marginalised in the
job market and denied opportunities in
higher education.
The reservation policy gave Dalits an ad-
vantage vis--vis Marathas in getting admis-
sion in reputed colleges. Ironically, many of
the States private colleges and deemed uni-
versities are owned, run and managed by the
Maratha power elite! Moreover, the sub-
caste, or parallel caste, Kunbi, was included
in the Other Backward Classes (OBC) res-
village of Ahmednagar district provided
these marginalised Maratha youth an op-
portunity to direct their wrath against the
Backward Castes and OBCs. Though none
of the recent Maratha marches have wit-
community, the underlying message is that
the mobilisation is targeted against the Dal-
its. Since the NCP founded and led by Mr.
Pawar has the largest Maratha following,
many commentators believe that he and his
party are behind the movement. The
Maratha elites are happy to face this charge,
because they get credit for channelling the
discontent when they are at best only sup-
porting from behind the scenes what is es-
sentially a spontaneous expression of mass
(and class) frustration.
In the past it was the Brahmin (caste and
class) that was the enemy of the Marathas
(self-declared Bahujan). The Dalits and
OBCs too regarded Brahminism as the main
enemy. Demographically, this upper caste
had just about 4 per cent presence in society
media and other institutions of power. That
domination was sharply reduced following
reservation, and a section of the Marathas
too entered the corridors of power and in-
fluence. But still there were the vast armies
of lower- and middle-end Maratha youths
deprived of participation in the mainstream
economic, political and cultural affairs.
Around 200 Maratha families have kept the
reins of power in their hands, claim orga-
nisers of the protest movement.
Rage of the have-nots
As stated in the beginning, the marches
are a reflection of the massive crisis in the
agricultural economy of Maharashtra. That
is the reason the demand for the implement-
ation of reports of the M.S. Swaminathan-
led National Commission on Farmers be-
tween 2004 and 2006 has acquired import-
ance in this agitation. The farmer is denied
competitive prices for his produce, afford-
able prices for the input elements, relief and
support during drought, famines and floods,
and help from financial institutions when it
is the need of the hour.
This hapless and helpless small and
middle farmer is seeing around him the new
wealth, new opportunities, new jobs, new
lifestyles that he too aspires to. The urban
haves and rural haves have cornered the
new wealth, making him the new poor. The
new poverty is not poverty imposed on him
by nature or overall backwardness; it is en-
forced by the ruling class and the ruling gov-
ernment and the ruling establishment. He

Heed the knows who the enemy is: it is in his neigh-

bourhood and his community. That is why
all the marches are silent protest proc-

boundary essions, perhaps. The marches are discip-

lined, clean, huge and silent, with massive
participation from women of all age groups

T
he Lodha Committees status report,
highlighting how the Board of Control for
Cricket in India has failed to adopt the
recommended administrative reforms,
has left the games officials in a quandary. In a 79-
page report filed in the Supreme Court, Justice
R.M. Lodha has said the BCCIs current office-bear-
ers would have to relinquish their posts for the pro-
posed changes to be effected. Lending greater force
to the punch, Chief Justice of India T.S. Thakur said
the BCCI elite would have to fall in line, or else we
will make them fall in line. The provocation for
these firm strictures was the BCCIs Annual Gen-
eral Meeting in Mumbai on September 21, where a
slew of decisions were taken, ranging from the
nomination of Sharad Pawar as alternate director
for International Cricket Council meetings to the
appointment of new selection committees. The ac-
tions were seen as a failure to heed the Supreme
Court. When the Lodha Committee green-lighted
the BCCIs AGM, it was with the caveat of sticking
to appraising the year 2015-16, but the board dis-
carded the retrospective gaze and instead looked
ahead. The appointment of selection committees,
to cite one example, went against norms set by
Justice Lodha, who had recommended a three-
member panel. The board stuck to the status quo of
having five.
Wednesdays developments in court now put the
BCCI in a piquant situation. The BCCIs elbow
room has shrunk, and it is expected that the chas-
tised board will toe the line, though it has time till
October 6 to file a reply in the Supreme Court. This
sorry state of affairs couldnt have come at a more
inopportune moment. India has a home season
bounty 13 Tests, including the match that con-
cluded in Kanpur this week, and an imminent Ranji
Trophy schedule. Now there is the risk of disarray.
The sport is perhaps Indias best-governed, but the
administrators refuse accountability. The cricket
schedule (domestic and international) is well-
drawn, former cricketers get a generous pension,
young players find financial security in the Indian
Premier League, and there is much to cheer in Indi-
an cricket. But a refusal to embrace transparency
and the lack of respect for the ordinary fan have
been emblematic of a feudal mindset that guides
crickets officialdom. BCCI secretary Ajay Shirke
has been quoted as saying the board did what it felt
was best for the game; BCCI president Anurag
Thakur has often declared he is out to clear wrong
perceptions. Their intentions are, however, yet to
be matched by their actions. They need to take care
they do not precipitate what could be the most
serious crisis yet for Indian cricket.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Letters emailed to letters@thehindu.co.in must carry the full postal address and the full name or the name with initials.
Indias response to Uri
Indias decision to carry out
surgical strikes targeting terror
launch pads across the Line of
Control is bold and long overdue.
Terror platforms abutting the LoC
are evidently meant to carry out
attacks in India. The Indian
government is justified in taking
military action to eliminate them
lock, stock and barrel. This should
send the right message to the
Pakistan government as well as to
those who support terrorism. This
decision also shows how the
principal opposition parties are
wrong in saying about Prime
Minister Narendra Modi that he is a
man of words, not action.
K.R. Jayaprakash Rao,
Mysuru
Although there is no doubt that
Pakistan is leaving no stone
unturned to escalate hostilities
between the two countries,
boycotting SAARC is a knee-jerk
and inappropriate reaction to cross-
border terrorism (The SAARC
gambit, Sept. 29). SAARC is a
platform for engagement, for
discussing and debating issues
amicably. India being the largest
economy in SAARC has more
obligations to fulfil, especially as it
aspires for permanent UN Security
Council membership. It should not
set the wrong precedent of
abandoning the proceedings of an
association that is also meant for its
own interest. In fact, this is the time
to strengthen institutions like
SAARC and build pressure on
Pakistan to make the latter
accountable on the issue of
terrorism. Indias decision will
certainly give Pakistan one more
alibi to show to the world that India
is averse to any type of engagement
with it.
Gagan Pratap Singh,
Noida
India has boycotted the summit in
the light of the Uri attacks, but to
what extent such measures will
improve the security situation
remains to be seen. On the contrary,
a sustained dialogue with Pakistan
on every issue, including terrorism
and Kashmir, should be an ongoing
process to defuse the situation and
drive home the message that
Pakistan has to do much more to
curb cross-border terrorist
activities. We have everything to
gain by trying to normalise
relations with Pakistan. Quiet
diplomacy sometimes works
wonders rather than high-pitched
verbal attacks. We, as one of the
founding members of SAARC,
should strengthen it rather than
weaken it.
D.B.N. Murthy,
Bengaluru
The way Pakistan is conducting
itself, and Indias response to it,
makes a mockery of the objectives
of SAARC. Peace and progress of
the eight SAARC countries will take
a heavy beating. Although SAARC
nations comprise 9.12 per cent of
the world economy, they are yet to
show to the world that the forum is
a cohesive unit. That India, as a big
brother, could not pave a way to get
Pakistan to fall in line is most
unfortunate. With Indias surgical
strikes across the LoC, the future of
this summit is bleak.
Suddapalli Bhaskara Rao,
Muscat
The audacity of the Indian Army to
carry out surgical strikes across the
LoC is truly laudable. Mr. Modi had
said in Kozhikode that the sacrifice
of our jawans wont go in vain. This
has come true. As Mahatma Gandhi
said, terrorism and deception are
weapons not of the strong, but of
the weak.
Mukul Nigam,
New Delhi
Finally Prime Minister Modi has
walked the tough walk on Pakistan.
While the Indian Army has claimed
that significant casualties have been
inflicted on the terrorists, Pakistan
has said that only two of its soldiers
have died. India has sent out a clear
and an unequivocal message to
Pakistan that it will no longer
remain a mute spectator to cross-
border terrorism and will respond
to it with full force.
M. Jeyaram,
Sholavandan, Tamil Nadu
Judicial overreach
Why should the Supreme Court
point fingers only at the BCCI in
India and not at other sports
organisations in the country?
and girl students who are angry because
they feel the future is being snatched away
from them.
The silence of the lakhs of marchers is
deafening and the elite Maratha or Brah-
min or Dalit are feeling threatened. It is a
silent political bomb ticking and could ex-
plode anytime, devastating all that we think
is stable and settled.
Kumar Ketkar is a veteran journalist and Chief Editor of
Dainik Divya Marathi.
(Lodha wants BCCI brass
removed, Sept. 29). The court can The rise of Trump
initiate action against the BCCI and It appears that centrism will reign
its officials for their wrongdoing, triumphant over the radical right in
but should it decide the age and the U.S. elections. Of course, things
qualifications of members of sports may change between now and
bodies and their subcommittees? November, but Democratic
The Lodha Committee report candidate Hillary Clintons victory
should be forwarded to the seems plausible in the face of her
government. The government growing popularity. Donald Trump,
should propose comprehensive the Republican candidate, will
legislation, including international prove to be a disaster for reform
commitments of various sports politics in the U.S. In his campaign,
bodies at the international level, he has gone after African-
and place it before Parliament. The Americans, immigrants, Latinos,
court should not discriminate Asians, women, and Muslims.
against the BCCI alone. The sports Stephen Alter rightly says that
body is otherwise well-established, America does not have a monopoly
and has done a great deal of service on xenophobia (An American
for cricket. The court has so many djinn, Sept. 29). In Mr. Trump, the
pending cases; it is unnecessary for U.S. has its own Praveen Togadia.
it to spend so much time on the But I am hopeful that voices of
BCCI. sanity will prevail.
C.R.K. Reddy, Satish C. Aikant,
Hyderabad Mussoorie
A worrying trend is emerging, first Donald Trump personifies all our
with Karnataka disobeying the fears and prejudices. He has given a
courts orders to release Cauvery voice to the unsaid and unspoken
water to Tamil Nadu, and second, thoughts of the masses and has
with the BCCI ignoring the SC- gathered a set of followers in this
appointed Lodha Committees manner. There are many people
recommendations. The public will who have radical views but dont
lose faith in the judiciary if the express them fearing aggressive
court fails to assert itself in these retaliation. But Mr. Trump has
cases. The court will become successfully identified the
meaningful only when it initiates weaknesses of American citizens
contempt against Karnataka and the and is transforming all that is
BCCI to enable full delivery of politically incorrect to what is his
justice to Tamil Nadu and to Justice idea of morally correct thought for
Lodhas recommendations. his own political mileage.
N. Visveswaran, Nandini Ray,
Chennai New Delhi

CM ND-ND
YK
NOIDA/DELHI

THE HINDU FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, 2016

- 1ias.com - PERSPECTIVE | 11

AGRICULTURE
Seeds of discontent?
Making books accessible to all
Today, as the Marrakesh Treaty comes into force, Indias multi-stakeholder approach to
On September 5, the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest
and Climate Change (MoEFCC) released an Assessment of
providing texts for the blind/print-disabled offers an excellent model for other countries to follow
Food and Environmental Safety for genetically modified
(GM) mustard on its website, and gave the public a month to Through the ABC Book Service, which
respond with comments and concerns. This review report is free, organisations serving the print-
FRANCIS GURRY
ANIKET was put together by an expert sub-committee of the disabled can supplement their collec-
AGA ministrys Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee tions of accessible books from their
(GEAC). The public consultation is likely to be the pen- counterparts in other countries.
ultimate step before the government takes a final decision on what might The ABC Book Service can assist in
become Indias first GM food crop Bt cotton seeds, though also crushed Today is an important day for blind and preventing the same book from being
for edible oil, were not explicitly approved as food; Bt brinjal is unlikely to other print-disabled people across the produced in accessible formats by more
emerge out of the moratorium issued by former Environment Minister globe, as it marks the entry into force of than one library, thereby avoiding du-
Jairam Ramesh any time soon. an international treaty designed to help plication. It is hoped that Sugamya Pus-
GM mustard represents the culmination of over a decade of painstaking deliver specially adapted texts to those takalaya will soon become a member of
work by a team of Delhi University scientists led by the noted biotechnolo- affected by a range of disabilities that in- the ABC Book Service, thereby joining
gist, Deepak Pental. Mustard, a self-pollinating crop, is difficult to hybrid- terfere with the effective reading of an international library-to-library ser-
ise, that is, cross-pollinate. Pentals team has genetically modified an Indian printed matter. vice managed by WIPO in Geneva.
mustard, Varuna, and an East European mustard line in order to cross-pol- It is called the Marrakesh Treaty and Nineteen libraries for the blind from 16
linate them. They have sought permission to commercially release the res- today I am calling on other countries to countries are already participating in
ultant hybrid named DMH-11, and to use the two GM parental lines for de- follow Indias lead as the first nation this service, and I am happy to an-
veloping new hybrids. They claim that by virtue of being a hybrid (rather to join the so-called Books for Blind nounce today that over 1,00,000 loans
than a GM crop), DMH-11 yields about 30 per cent more than a reference treaty and then as a trailblazer in imple- have now been made to visually im-
mustard variety. Given Indias huge import bill for edible oil, they argue, menting the pact that will benefit not paired individuals around the world
this effort to boost mustard yields must be welcomed. Indeed, this may well only Indias visually impaired citizens through the participating organisations.
be a moment for us to appreciate government-led scientific efforts ex- but millions more around the world. ABC is continuing to establish pro-
cept that the case for GM mustard is not as straightforward as the govern- According to the World Health Orga- jects in India, including by training pub-
ment makes it seem. nisation, some 285 million people lishers, libraries and NGOs in the
worldwide live with visual impair- production of accessible books, as well
Biosafety and socio-economic impact ments. Meanwhile, the World Blind CIRCLE OF READERS: Joining the treaty is easy; ensuring that books become widely as providing funding to produce educa-
GM mustard is resistant to the herbicide glufosinate, and thus a Union estimates that children who are available to people who are blind or print-disabled takes patience and effort. tional materials in accessible formats.
herbicide-tolerant (HT) crop. A farmer growing DMH-11 can potentially blind have a less than 10 per cent chance Visually impaired students preparing for an examination in Kerala. PHOTO: S. RAMESH KURUP Without these materials, students ei-
get rid of weeds with a blanket spray of glufosinate (sold in India by Bayer of going to school a situation that ther cannot access their curriculum or
under the brand name Basta), which will kill all the plants except the mus- could be improved if schools had ready Visually impaired children have Campaign has provided a nationwide are dependent on books being read
tard crop. The technical expert access to texts adapted for use by visu- flagship campaign for universal access aloud to them.
a less than 10% chance of
committee appointed by the Su- The government is within its ally impaired children. for people with disabilities. And India In addition to implementing projects
preme Court in an ongoing public going to school. If schools had has begun implementation of the Mar- in India, ABC has also established train-
interest litigation (PIL) concerning rights to take a strategic India, leading the way rakesh Treaty through a multi-stake- ing and technical assistance projects in
access to texts adapted for use
GM crops had found HT crops decision to commercialise The Marrakesh Treaty represents a holder approach, which includes col- Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka, and it
completely unsuitable in the Indi- significant step towards making books by them, this could improve laboration among key players such as is estimated that 88,500 students with
GM mustard, but not at the
an context in its final, majority re- available to everyone, by easing the cre- government ministries, local champi- visual impairments in these four coun-
port. The principal reasons were cost of fidelity to the law ation and transfer across national into accessible formats either by librar- ons like the DAISY Forum of India, and tries will benefit from ABC projects in
that herbicides adversely impact the vast constituency of manual labour- boundaries of texts in accessible ies for the blind, organisations serving the private sector. This led to the launch the upcoming year. ABC plans to extend
ers, for whom weeding provides livelihood, and generate selective pressure formats such as Braille, audio, or large the print-disabled, or at the source by in August of Indias largest collection of its capacity-building programmes to
for the emergence of herbicide-resistant or super weeds. The aforemen- print. With access to information and publishers (including Departments of online accessible books called Sug- Africa and Latin America, helping en-
tioned MoEFCC review report on GM mustard makes light of these con- educational materials, blindness need Education) so that the texts can be amya Pustakalaya, which counts sure that these transformative uses of
cerns, and simply notes that farmers are not required to spray herbicide no longer be a barrier to learning, em- read using assistive technology on 2,00,000 volumes. technology can boost access to books
on GM mustard fields which is neither here nor there. ployment and full participation in computers, phones or electronic Braille for people who are blind or print-dis-
Second, there are concerns that the yield advantage of GM mustard has society. devices. Once produced, these access- Building an accessible book bank abled around the world.
been over-estimated by comparing it with dated mustard reference variet- So far, 22 countries have joined the ible books need to be distributed to the The World Intellectual Property Or- Today, as the Marrakesh Treaty takes
ies. Sharad E. Pawar, Fellow of the National Academy of Agricultural Sci- Marrakesh Treaty, but many more are people that need them, including to ganisation (WIPO), a United Nations effect in India and elsewhere, Indias
ences, has analysed the yield data of DMH-11 and shown that it has no yield needed: each new nation that joins populations that may live far from ma- organisation based in Geneva, ad- multi-stakeholder approach provides
advantage over varieties and hybrids released in recent years; a view also brings along not only a population in jor urban areas. ministers the Marrakesh Treaty and an excellent model for other countries
held by the governments own Directorate of Rapeseed-Mustard Research. need, but a wealth of printed matter that These are common challenges in leads an alliance of private and public to follow. WIPO looks forward to many
can more easily be made accessible in many countries and India has been a partners known as the Accessible more countries implementing the Mar-
Transparency and public participation other countries. leader, having in June 2014 become the Books Consortium (ABC), which was rakesh Treaty so that print-disabled
These and other concerns (such as over gene flow, impact on biod- Joining the treaty is the easy part, first country to ratify the Marrakesh established in June 2014 to support the people around the world can benefit
iversity) might have been addressed if the government had made public the however. Ensuring that books become Treaty. And it did not stop there. India goals of the treaty. from the new avenues to access now
details of its case for GM mustard and by making public, I mean making widely available to people who are blind has not delayed in readying itself to en- The ABC has established a cen- available to Indians.
its case freely and widely available, even to those who cannot access web- or print-disabled takes perseverance, sure the Marrakesh Treaty benefits its tralised electronic multilingual cat-
sites or read English. However, having uploaded the review report, the patience, and logistical effort. people. alogue of accessible books produced by Francis Gurry is Director General of the World
MoEFCC has made the primary data on agronomic and biosafety assess- First, the books need to be adapted For example, the Accessible India libraries for the blind around the world. Intellectual Property Organisation.
ment available only to those who can visit the GEAC secretariat in New
Delhi by prior appointment during working hours before October 5.

Saving the public university

Equally serious is the fact that withholding the full biosafety dossier vio-
lates the governments own commitments given to the Supreme Court on
April 8, 2008 in the hearing on the aforementioned PIL. Consequently, we
do not know, for example, if sociologists considered the impact of GM mus-
tard on agricultural labourers; or if ecologists, toxicologists and nutrition-
ists investigated the wider impact of potential glufosinate use on mustard Recent policy prescriptions threaten to push liberal arts education in public universities into
fields. In April and again in August, the Central Information Commission
ordered the MoEFCC to release complete information on GM mustard and oblivion while carving out space for the entry of foreign universities
other GM crops. The Commission also ordered the GEAC to disclose the
agenda and full, detailed minutes of its meetings, which the Ministry had are still a mirage, especially in times
stopped doing since 2012. The Ministry continues to disregard these when we look towards Digital India.
orders. Moreover, the market-oriented shifts
Thereby, the MoEFCC is reducing public participation to a farce. Deny- fail to capture larger and more prag-
ing citizens a voice in this matter is all the more serious considering that no matic questions of pedagogy. Uni-
labelling regime is in place in India. That is, if commercialised, citizens will APARNA PREETI versities like Jawaharlal Nehru Uni-
not have the choice of opting out of GM sarson da saag, for instance. VINCENT RAGHUNATH versity, University of Hyderabad and
Perhaps, developers of GM mustard and the government fear that releas- Tezpur University occupy the top spots
ing the biosafety dossier will lead them down the path of Bt brinjal, but this The Central government recently an- in the first-ever government ranking.
fear is misplaced. The government is within its rights to take a strategic de- nounced the setting up of the Higher Over years, these universities have
cision to commercialise GM mustard despite opposition, but this cannot Education Financing Agency (HEFA), adopted and practised certain
come at the cost of transparency and fidelity to the law. At the minimum, conceived as a special purpose vehicle pedagogic approaches to public educa-
the full biosafety dossier for GM mustard must be uploaded on the to accrue and disburse funds to certain tion, accentuating their relevance in re-
Ministrys website, the GEAC should disclose its full agenda notes and institutions of higher education in the cent times. How, then, do we as student
minutes for each of its meetings, and the window for public consultation country. This development is an upshot researchers respond to such changes?
should be extended beyond 30 days. of the Tenth Ministerial Conference of We approach the public university as a
As the distinguished biotechnologist, mustard-breeder, and former Dir- the World Trade Organisation (WTO) shared space for cooperative learning
ector-General of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research V. L. Chopra in Nairobi in December 2015 where de- and dialogic peer-group pedagogy,
wrote some years ago, greater transparency and wider public participation cisions on international trade in edu- through collaboration and co-learning.
may be the most effective way of allaying fears and building confidence in cational services were made. In the in- Public universities, then, have the larger
our regulatory institutions. terim period, some Indian public responsibility of guarding and nurtur-
universities had to endure attacks on ing such spaces. This would mean tran-
Aniket Aga is Assistant Professor at the School for Natural Resources and Environment, University their institutional autonomy and re- scending disciplinary boundaries and
of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Email: aaniket@umich.edu
search culture. traditional conceptions of teacher-
All these changes leave us, as liberal taught relationships. It would call for
arts researchers, with little option but to A CAPACIOUS CHARTER: Public universities are spaces that serve a larger mandate of working with technology innovators,
address the elephant in the room the inclusiveness. File photo of students in the JNU library. PHOTO: MEETA AHLAWAT and humanising their spaces towards
FROM THE ARCHIVES pushing of an already marginalised
liberal arts education in Indian public search, even when the private sector The inherent understanding that
further collaboration. It also demands
that the larger society, including those
universities into oblivion. The fact that provides unmatched opportunities for holding public office across semi-/insti-
we as student researchers have not been those with technical literacy. By carica- bringing in foreign universities tutional setups, take cognisance of our
made part of larger decision-making for turing the liberal arts as untenable, soci- in itself would drastically alter research.
(dated September 30, 1966) education that have an immediate im- ety at large is stymied from construct- and improve standards of
pact on our academic trajectories is a ively engaging with our theoretical and Sharing the global spotlight
India strong, Minister said China and Pakistan huge cause for concern. It fails to rec- empirical research work. Researching education in India is misplaced The inherent understanding that
wanted to weaken India but that ognise our position as active stakehold- for the public, then, is incumbent on so- bringing in foreign universities in itself
says P.M. could not happen. She declared ers of policy advances that seek to alter cietal recognition of the larger public to engage with the sheer diversity of would drastically alter and improve
Mrs. Indira Gandhi, Prime India was to-day strong enough to the texture of the higher education interest mandate our work entails. these experiences, that then allows us to standards of education in India is mis-
Minister, said here [Srinagar] reply to aggression from any space as we know it. The 2014 elections and the preceding bring deeper understanding, sensitivity placed. It does not take into account the
to-day [September 29] that India quarter. anti-corruption movement were and rigour to our own research. quality research that is already under-
had emerged stronger and more It was Indias policy and faith to Researching for the public pitched around a burgeoning youth Developments at the WTO-General way in many of our public universities.
united after attacks by China and live in peace with all countries, Public universities have long held the demography. The rhetoric was hinged Agreement on Trade in Services It only feeds in to the preference for
Pakistan and its strength was particularly its neighbours and for unique mandate of being imagined as on a futuristic imagination of an India (GATS) conference last year, the New foreign degrees, to the disadvantage of
increasing hour by hour. this purpose it had extended the egalitarian spaces tailored for demo- that would have a place for our aspira- Education Policy and the recent moot- those who have expressed enough com-
Addressing a largely attended hand of friendship to China and cratic engagement with the enterprise tions. Strategies like extensive deploy- ing of the HEFA indicate a preference mitment to and trust in the Indian pub-
public meeting, the Prime Pakistan. of education, in the Deweyian sense. ment of social media, setting up of start- for privatising the public university lic education system.
For us student researchers in the liberal up incubators, and expansion of certain through corporate social responsibility We would do well to draw lessons
arts, they open up a world of interac- kinds of technology imperatives are in- interventions, long-term loans and from current articulations and cyn-
tions that take us beyond narrow soci- dicative of this trend. However, these ef- structural adjustments in areas of tech- icism amongst the youth on costs of
CORRECTIONS AND CLARIFICATIONS etal preferences for a very instrumental,
technical education. Liberal arts educa-
forts have focussed rather wantonly on
a particular imagination of our ambi-
nical education and certain kinds of sci-
entific research, lack of quality indicat-
higher education and student debt in
the U.S. In a similar vein, other Eu-
tion, encompassing the broad areas of tions, without considering any other in- ors for foreign universities that can ropean experiences with public educa-
The last paragraph of the report, Union Cabinet approves ratification of cli- humanities, social, natural and pure sci- clinations and talents we may possess enter the Indian education market, tion offer interesting ideas that we
mate deal (Sept. 29, 2016), erroneously put Indias emissions at 5.8%. It should ences, equips individuals with skills to and aspire to pursue. We seek to make and no pronouncement on the social could examine, even as we appreciate
have been 4.1%. understand and engage with issues of inroads into this conflated imagination justice mandate of public universities. our own systemic challenges and
the world beyond mere black-and- of the youth with certain aspirations for The already marginalised liberal arts achievements. Building larger Global
white dichotomies. the entire country that the strategists face a double whammy in the form of South solidarities and advancing them
It is the policy of The Hindu to correct significant errors as soon as
For instance, our research on issues seem to repose their efforts in. In act- the recent approval of the third phase of at multilateral fora are ways to engage
possible.
such as everyday experiences of cor- ively hedging for their own interests, the Technical Education Quality Im- with education reform. A better ap-
Please specify the edition (place of publication), date and page. ruption, child soldiers in conflict areas, they have negated all attempts made provement Programme, by the Cabinet proach to sharing the global spotlight,
The Readers Editors office can be contacted by media freedoms in times of impunity, thus far in nurturing other divergent Committee on Economic Affairs. then, is to pay heed to the urgent need to
Telephone: +91-44-28418297/28576300 (11 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday to ideas around human sciences, clearly proficiencies. Public universities do not operate in a showcase research from Indian public
Friday); Fax: +91-44-28552963; traverse beyond university confines Public universities are spaces that time warp they are hierarchy-laden universities on a global level espe-
E-mail:readerseditor@thehindu.co.in and assume significance for the larger serve a larger mandate of inclusiveness and bureaucratic. Older issues and their cially from the liberal arts instead of
Mail: Readers Editor, The Hindu, Kasturi Buildings, public. This is in contrast to a techno- and social justice. They often are the newer articulations call for introspec- shying away from it. These efforts alone
859 & 860 Anna Salai, Chennai 600 002, India. cratic approach that perceives educa- only option available to those who have tion every so often. Accessing high- would leave us with a sustainable
All communication must carry the full postal address and tion as a trade commodity or service to travel a significant distance, literally quality journals is a very expensive af- higher education system.
telephone number. deliverable. It is in disagreement with and otherwise, in reaching the higher fair, financial support to attend interna-
No personal visits. this approach that some of the best of us echelons of education. Liberal arts re- tional conferences is haltingly limited, Aparna Vincent and Preeti Raghunath are doctoral
The Terms of Reference for the Readers Editor are on www.thehindu.com pursue public-oriented liberal arts re- search in public universities allows us and digital and remote library facilities students at the University of Hyderabad.

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