Autumn of the satraps

Tathagata bhattcharya seeks to find if the tail can still wag the dog

Any exercise to determine the reason for the declining power of regional forces in shaping national equations of power will fall flat if one fails to factor in the fundamental point that identity politics has largely been rejected by the Indian electorate. While once-powerful forces like the Samajwadi Party (SP) in UP, the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) in Bihar and the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) in Andhra have been the hardest hit, even a large national party like the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) continues to reel under this effect. Possibly, Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) is the only force that has defied this trend. But having said that, the facts that the Congress is swiftly gaining its foothold in Uttar Pradesh and that Mayawati is looking beyond the Dalit votebank are significant pointers as well. Regional parties are becoming limited in their sphere of influence. It is definitely not reaching Delhi as much as it used to.

The Indian democracy, in spite of existing pitfalls, is maturing. The electorate today is more unlikely to be swayed by calls to their identity based on religion, caste, community and language etc than 15 years back. An incumbent government’s performance, its ability to deliver development, security, healthcare and generate employment are more likely to determine its electoral fortunes.

The CPI(M)-led Left Front government’s abject failure in delivering the goodies mentioned above is paving the way for Mamata Banerjee’s expected triumph in the 2011 Assembly elections. The same phenomenon saw the 15-year-old reign of RJD end in Bihar. And till now, the Nitish Kumar-led JD(U) government has performed. Notwithstanding the small base, the state government has to be credited for a growth rate of over 11 per cent and return of law and order. The Akali Dal, in spite of mainly representing Sikh aspirations, has become more inclusive and today represents Punjabis in general. And Punjab being an agrarian state, their pro-farmer attitude has helped them rise above identity politics.

However, without going into further innuendos, TSI takes a look at some of these forces and also a few who have managed to buck the trend.

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2009

An IIPM and Professor Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist) Initiative

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Blast after blast

It is feared that the spiralling street violence in Karachi is being engineered by the city's land sharks

The New Year in Pakistan was marred by suicide bombing in Lakki Marwat, a small town in troubled South Waziristan. It was reported that at least 96 people died when a vehicle laden with 550 pounds (250 kilograms) of explosives rammed into a crowded volleyball match. It was one of the deadliest suicide attacks in Pakistan’s recent history.

The volleyball match was being held between the teams of two villages that were opposed to Talibanisation. A meeting of anti-Taliban elders was also being held when the suicide attack took place. In fact, even the nearby hospital was not able to provide medical care due to the shortage of doctors and medicines that resulted in more deaths and spurred violence in the town.

Earlier, the Ashura procession of the minority Shia community was hit by a bomb in Karachi. It killed at least 46 mourners and led to arson that reminded of December 27, 2007, when Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) leader Benazir Bhutto was killed, sparking widespread riots in Karachi and other cities of Sindh. The attack in Lakki Marwat and bomb blast at Ashura process on Moharram 10 were a result of Pakistan's army operation in South Waziristan. In retaliation, the Taliban bombed several cities resulting in death of more than 500 people since October. However, construction work of torched markets in Karachi was resumed by the Muthahida Qaumi Movement-led city district government. Even a compensation of about Rs 3 billion was announced for traders who had suffered huge loss due to the attack.

Who could be responsible for this carnage in Karachi? The land mafia that is interested in the prime land of the historical MA Jinnah Road has been held responsible for it. However, some analysts believe that the intelligence agencies role could not be ruled out that wants to destabilise the fragile democratic government of Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani.

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2009

An IIPM and Professor Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist) Initiative

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Reeking Royalty

Kings and queens still have their feet washed by villagers of the world’s largest democracy. But that’s the way it is in Bolangir, writes Ajit Nayak

Bolangir is caught in a time warp. Here the king still plays king in the world’s largest democracy. The ballot is preceded by visits by members of an erstwhile royal family that, in the eyes of its villagers, is still their saviour, their mai baap. On this morning, the villagers have waited for many hours, assembled in the village courtyard to receive a member of the royals. As the lady steps out of the car, her feet are washed by a poor, stooping, underfed woman, and she is worshipped as if she were a goddess. It’s election time when a mere thumb impression could change their future and have them unshackled from a present and its unsavoury primitive ways of the past. Yet that’s not to be: with state boundaries failing to remove the age-old lines that kingdoms had drawn, the story, election after election, has remained the same. The Bolangir royal family continues to hold sway on their hearts, minds and political destiny.

Where royalty reigns, statistics speak of appalling poverty and persecution: Bolangir has been identified as the poorest district in the country; aside of that, the area is infamous for its human trafficking. Here, it’s power politics at its worst, here in Bolangir, winning, be it at the assembly elections or in the battle for the Lok Sabha seat, means being a royal or having the support of the royals. Development is at its lowest index. In fact, it is close to non-existent. And yet it is not just within the district that the royals of Bolangir rule, having found a place in the politics of the state as well, a place that the family seems to have carved out for itself ever since Rajendra Narayan Singhdeo signed the treaty of accession in 1948 to make Bolangir part of the Indian union.

Having signed the treaty at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel’s behest, Singhdeo had launched the Ganatantra Parishad that was meant to play a vital role in the new democratic setup. His party later merged with the Swatantra Party to form the first coalition government in Orissa in 1967, when Singhdeo became the state's chief minister, a position he held till 1971. He, though, was a popular leader, one who is still remembered with respect. Historian Ram Kumar Agarwal explains Singhdeo’s successful transition from the throne to that of the chief ministerial chair at the secretariat: “He had this will to do something for the people and formed a council of five ministers to look into health, education and other areas. He set up a printing press in Bolangir that regularly brought out a literature magazine and a newspaper. He was a real representative of the people.”

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2009

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Soccer world cup

There is something about football that makes it the most loved game in the world. Its lovers insist that although Olympics are the most sacrosanct sporting event, even it can not match the passion that is put in FIFA World Cup. Therefore, it was a breakthrough of the sort in 2002, FIFA World Cup came to Asia and was jointly hosted by South Korea and Japan. Brazil won the tournament for a record fifth time, beating Germany 2–0 in the final. But who cared about the result. The event helped provide the much needed catalyst to the game in Asia. Since then, several Asian players have cut into prestigious European Leagues and have helped broadened the fan-following.

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2009

An IIPM and Professor Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist) Initiative

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Massacre in Nepal

Nepal’s palace carnage in 2001 — when Crown Prince Dipendra supposedly shot 10 of his own kin, including his father, King Birendra Shah, prior to shooting himself — has for the most part receded into background in this strife-torn land. It was a crime of fervour. The official inquiry into the case has now been closed, pinning the blame solely on Dipendra. But most Nepalis did not accept the succession of Birendra’s brother, Gyanendra, to the throne and frowned upon his son too. Nepal has grappled with political upheavals since.

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2009

An IIPM and Professor Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist) Initiative

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Global warming meets!

Just for argument’s sake, take a test – try and identify your nation’s minister for mines, or the minister for textiles, or perhaps the one handling chemicals and fertilizers, or maybe culture, or better, rural development. Now try the same for the minister handling environment in your country. Get the spin?

Let’s face it, there is a huge lobby of intellectual and political experts denying man-made effects of global warming – but so does one particular Iranian the existence of the Holocaust. That said, reviewing even questionable findings, it does seem sensible to call for action on a war footing to save the most vulnerable and poorest communities on earth from annihilation. But the urgency with which the case for a follow-up to the Kyoto protocol was put forward by world governments in the summit at Bali has been substituted by hegemonic didactic of developed nations about equal responsibility of developing countries like India, China and Brazil to reduce carbon emissions as they are the fastest growing emitters. But developing nations are learning to return this sledgehammer serve of the developed world.

The fall out has been clamourous, complex and at times cynically hilarious. President Obama vows to reduce US emissions by 83% by 2050. It means 2050 US emissions will be at 1910 level when the US population was 92 million. However, with 420 million Americans in 2050, it simply means that US per capita emissions in 2050 would be the same as in 1875. South America’s histrionics mired in anti US propaganda continue especially with massive oil and gas discoveries in recent times which Latin American nations plan to sell to the entire world in coming decades.

China, the biggest emitter of Green House Gases (GHGs) recently declared that it has set a binding goal to reduce emissions per unit of GDP by 40-45% below 2005 levels by 2050. At the same time, China is adding nearly two coal fired plants per week and its coal power industry is expanding at the rate of 50% for the last few years. India, suddenly realizing that its old position of equal yet differentiated responsibilities was being tossed around as a deal breakers’ whim, suddenly took big ‘brother’ China’s direction and declared to reduce its per capita emissions too – voluntarily, brother, voluntarily. Amazingly, amongst the trio (of US, India and China), China continues to have the worst energy intensity with amount of GHG emitted per $1m of GDP at 1152 metric tonnes (MT). The figures for US and India stand at 441 MT and 655 MT respectively.

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2009

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Will 21st December 2012 be a defining date in time?

While this isn’t true that the world is ending, it is an extremely significant time where the world as we know may change beyond recognition. The end of one Age marks the beginning of a new Age. We are in that transition now; the old is being destroyed and replaced with the new. The Katun prophecy in the Mayan holy book, the Chilam Balam, describes the old leaving through upheavals in social structures and environmental stress. Socially, the Katun predicts economic collapse, loss of faith in governments, starvation, riots and loss of faith in religion.

Environmentally, it predicts pestilence, plague, and an increase in the intensity of volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, and hurricanes.

Not all, however, is cataclysmic. There is light in the predictions of the new world to come. The Maya believed the centre of the Milky Way is the home of Hunab’ ku, or the creator. It’s said the alignment of the solar system with the Hunab’ku will bring an influx of spiritual energy to the planet. The new Age will be the “Golden Age,” a time of shifting paradigms where science and religion both become more focused on advancing human consciousness. It’s a time when people have better access to innate human spiritual ability and are awaken to self-realisation. It is claimed that there will be transparency in governments and institutions and the advent of leaders we can trust.

Not all the researchers agree that the Mayan Long Count calendar ends in 2012, a date that was determined by archaeologists deciphering glyphs on stele and monuments. Some researchers, like Carl Johan Calleman, believe the actual end of the Long Count will happen in October of 2011. The only people who really know are the Mayan day keepers who are still alive today. Today’s Mayan elders are soon to reveal five additional calendars that may shed light on the change underway.

The Mayan prophecies are fascinating, but should we believe them? One reason you might want to is the accuracy of the Maya’s astronomical data. Their calculations of alignments, cycles, and celestial events rival today’s computer calculations. As the Hubble Space Telescope is sending more pictures of galaxies back to earth, NASA is only now able to confirm astronomical observations of the ancient Maya. If they could see this far out into space and this far into the future, couldn’t they be correct in their predictions?

However, the main reason people are taking the 2012 predictions seriously is because they are proving extremely accurate. Today’s headlines reveal a world in chaos as the world economy collapses, social structures are stressed and in some places people are fighting for food. Climate change may provide the mechanism for intensifying storms, tsunamis and earthquakes as well as pestilence and plagues.

The message of the Mayan calendar may well be to let go of all that is not working in our current paradigm and to create the world we want to live in; one based on truth, justice and peace between all the people.

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2009

An IIPM and Professor Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist) Initiative

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Owen roncon

Husband of Priya Dutt

Owen Roncon could be safely called “Mr” Dutt. He is omnipresent while Priya Dutt, a Member of Parliament from Mumbai, is on the move. Owen is seen every time Priya, or Sanjay Dutt for that matter, is in the news. Congress workers aren’t even fully aware of who he really is. “Some whispered I was Italian, related in some way to Sonia Gandhi,” Owen laughs. "Many cannot even my pronounce my Portuguese name."

His initiation came with the late Sunil Dutt’s youth outreach programme. He coordinated the scripting and distribution of pamphlets across college campuses. He refused to accept any credit, but in a few months Dutt became Union minister for sports.

Recently, Priya was accused of using her father’s name to further her campaign. “She’s obligated to file her nomination according to the electoral rolls – Priya Sunil Dutt. What else should she call herself?’’ asks Owen.

When he’s not lavishing attention on his baby, the music enthusiast is busy preparing for a series of international performances in the city.

Owen still remembers the first two sentences Sanjay spoke to him – “Don’t marry my sister” and “I will get you one, yaar”. Today, the close friends share an unspoken pact on their professional lives. “Sanju made me promise that I would never do a Bollywood event, and I’ve kept that vow,” says Owen. But he may just handle the earthquake relief concert that Dutt plans to be a part of.

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2009

An IIPM and Professor Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist) Initiative

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