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National security is of utmost importance

2011-12-05T10:31:00.000+05:30

IIPM Excom Prof Rajita Chaudhuri

Anurag Thakur is the national president of BJP’s youth wing Bhartiya Janta Yuva Morcha. Lately in the news in connection with the Tiranga Yatra, Thakur believes the Kashmir issue is not religious but constitutional and that some political parties are fuelling separatist tendencies in the Valley for their own benefits

How successful was the Tiranga Yatra in achieving its goal?
The yatra was aimed at arousing the spirit of nationalism among the youth and inspire them towards nation building. We went to different states to tell make the youth aware of the Jammu and Kashmir issue and who is responsible for creating it in the first place. We have been successful in getting our message across.

When unemployment is the bigger problem for the youth of the country why not a yatra for that instead of the Tiranga yatra?
Unemployment is a big issue but national security scores over it. Why is it that in J&K the flag of a foreign country can be unfurled but not the tricolor? It is the right of every citizen to hoist the national flag, but citizens are being denied this right.

BJP President Nitin Gadkari repeatedly emphasises that BJP’s politics is development-centric. How is Tiranga yatra associated with development?
It is. The Indian government spends 10 per cent of its revenues on J&K. What can be spent on the development of other states is spent as subsidy on J&K. Do you know the state gets 90 per cent subsidy. An electricity bill of Rs 1,500 in any other state will come to only Rs 150 in the Valley. Crores of rupees are being spent in the Valley to fight terrorism. This money belongs to the common man and is being spent only because of Article 370 of the Constitution.

Till now, only senior leaders have been raising J&K issue. Now, it’s you...
We did not get to handle this issue overnight. Last year in October we ran a campaign by the name of “India First”, during which I held 39 public meetings in 20 states. During these meetings the Kashmir question kept cropping up. People wondered as to why was it remained unresolved even after 64 years.

The Congress is accusing the BJP of turning it into a religious issue.
The issue is not religious, it is constitutional and political.

Did the RSS instruct you to take up this issue?
The RSS does not interfere in any decisions of the BJP. It was Yuva Morcha’s decision to take out the yatra and hoist the flag at the Lal Chowk.

The Congress and the NC have accused the BJP of disturbing communal harmony and promoting a political agenda in the garb of nationalism.
If those who hoist the national flag are communal, then the whole country is communal. If there ever was a communal party, it is the Congress. It is dividing the country on the basis of religion and caste. Congress leaders dine at the homes of terrorists in utter disrespect to the martyrs. This is the communal face of the Congress.

How has the yatra benefited the party politically in terms of its vote bank?
Every issue should not be viewed through a political prism. This was not a political yatra. Vote bank politics was not its aim. Being a political party, if we don’t raise such issues then who will?

How much support did the yatra receive from the Muslims?
As I have said earlier, the J&K issue is not religious. We got huge Muslim support. In all my meetings, Muslim youth were present in large numbers. I would like to illustrate with a few examples how emotionally involved they are with the issue. The Muslim tailor in Lucknow who stitched the flag did not charge us for it. In Bihar’s Hazaribagh, we had tea at a small stall. It belonged to a Muslim who refused to charge us, saying it was his small contribution to a national cause. It is not the Muslims but the separatists who are opposing us while the Congress is giving it a political tinge.

You mean the yatra became a target of political vindictiveness?
It is distressing that the central and state governments buckled under pressure from the separatists. Instead of putting all their might into stopping us, they should have unfurled the flag at the Lal Chowk with us and sent out the message that all political parties are opposed to the separatist forces.

It is being said that the yatra was a vehicle for self projection of Anurag Thakur.
It saddens me when people try to give a totally different colour to the yatra. I ask why does a Congress leader not hoist the tricolor at Lal Chowk? It is said that the Lal Chowk can be ‘green’ but not ‘saffron’.

From the son of a chief minister to an MP, how has Anurag Thakur evolved?
Very few people know that I am Prem Kumar Dhumil’s son. I don’t want to be known through my father. That is why I do not use his surname. Earlier I was a cricketer and wanted to play for the country. Now that I am in politics I want to do something for the country.

Which is a more difficult game to play: cricket or politics?
(Laughs) Both cricket and politics are games of responsibility. I believe that politics should be done with a spirit of sportsmanship. Politics should be a contest of ideologies not of personal issues. The political game should be played for the benefit of the country.

You rode on Narendra Modi’s lucky rath. How lucky did it prove for you?
This is Narendra Modiji’s affection towards me. He said, ‘I have two raths, you can take one of them.’ It was his love for the party and the youth that he gave us the rath. The Yuva Morcha is thankful to him.

It is said that you are well liked by party stalwarts like Narendra Modi and Arun Jaitley. How much benefit do you derive out of it politically?
Every party worker receives the affection of senior party leaders. Being in the Parliament, I know more people and vice versa and this proves beneficial for me.

Let’s talk of Rahul Gandhi. Youth are being attracted to the Congress because of him….
(Interrupts) The youth’s inclination has been clearly demonstrated in the Bihar elections. Even Gujarat, Himachal, Rajasthan and Jharkhand’s local elections give a pointer towards that. In Delhi, Uttarakhand and Gujarat, the NSUI has been sidelined by the ABVP in student body polls. Wherever Rahul Gandhi goes for campaigning, the party’s position worsens.

How much importance does your party give to youngsters?
The greatest number of young pradhans, sarpanchs, mayors, MLAs and MPs are from the BJP. Within the governments and the party organisation, the average age of our members is lesser than that of other party members. The NDA cabinet under Atalji could boast of the youngest ministers till then.

Factionalism is rife in the party. Senior leaders are fighting for posts and power. Don’t you feel there is no ideal leader to attract the youth to the party?
All this is media speculation. At our Ekta yatra leaders of the Opposition from both the Houses came together on the same platform. Many big leaders joined the yatra. As for an ideal, Advaniji is a source of inspiration not only for party workers but for the entire youth of the country. In the next generation of leaders we have Jaitley, Sushma Swaraj and Nitin Gadkari.

This is your second term as MP. You have seen from close quarters how Lal Krishna Advani works in the Parliament and how Nitin Gadkari manages the organisation. What are the differences between the two?
Both are unique in their ways. They cannot be compared. Advaniji has served the party for six decades and helped it reach this position, whereas Gadkari has risen from the ranks of a party worker to become its president, which is no ordinary achievement.

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The three-time national award winner speaks to spriha srivastava about breaking away from old patterns with his new film Dil Toh Baccha Hai Ji

2011-12-02T10:28:00.000+05:30

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Reinventing Madhur Bhandarkar

When did you begin to aspire to be in the film industry? Was the desire of being a filmmaker always in your heart?
I have had a passion for cinema since I was a kid. I used to be very fascinated when I used to go and see the shooting of various movies. Even when I was a delivery boy at a video cassette library, I used to be thrilled to be surrounded with all those videos of great cinema, and to also deliver to some of the hot-shots of the industry. Then, when I finally got a chance to work as an assistant director with Ram Gopal Varma, I knew that this is my calling, and I have been dreaming of a journey that was always meant for me. I have not just been a crazy viewer of cinema, but I have also been an avid reader when it comes to cinema. I have learnt filmmaking from the great makers like Guru Dutt saab. My classroom was always cinema halls and shooting locations, and my syllabus was the cinema that I watched with great passion.

You have always made films that represent a slice of real life. What made you decide to try your hands at comedy? Did you fear the risk associated with attempting a new genre?
Humour has always been a part of my life. Those who know me well know that I have a good sense of humour, without being very modest here. For a filmmaker, there are so many genres in cinema to explore. I know people expect serious, realistic and hard-hitting films from me because that’s what I have been making for more than a decade now. But I have always had a flair for comedy. I have wanted to make a comedy for quite some time now, but somehow things never fell in place, and I too wasn’t in the right frame of mind to make one. Post Chandni Bar, my whole life changed and a series of realistic cinema followed. Now, I think, is the right time to reinvent myself.

You have worked with very fine actresses. Please share some memorable moments spent with them.
Yes, I have been lucky when it comes to that. I have had the privilege of working with some very fine actresses of Hindi film industry. Tabu, Konkona (Sen), Priyanka (Chopra), Bipasha (Basu) and Kangana (Ranaut). If I was to start narrating memorable moments with them, then you might end up writing a book here, and I can’t just narrate a few because that won’t do justice to this talented bunch.

Ajay is considered to be a serious intense actor. Why did you choose him for Dil Toh Baccha Hai Ji?
Though Ajay is considered a serious actor, he has done enough comic movies to know the trick behind comedy. I too am considered a serious filmmaker, but I have made a comedy as well. Being an artist is all about breaking and changing the clichés. I know that Ajay is a fine actor, and he is capable of reinventing himself with every movie he does. His comic timing is perfect. Yes, the type of movies that he has done in the past have type-casted him as a serious actor, but he is making an effort to change that and I appreciate his efforts. I chose him because he was perfect for the role of Naren. He did full justice to the role.

Jail is one movie which won critical acclaim but not commercial success. What do you think went wrong?
I really don’t understand what went wrong when it comes to Jail. The film is very close to my heart. It was a very difficult film to make. I got a lot of critical acclaim for it, but somehow it didn’t work commercially. I am as bewildered as you are! But then this is not an excuse I am giving you for the movie. Some movies work and some movies don’t.

Your dream project?
Every project for me is a dream till it releases, and then I go on my next one! I am human and I dream a lot. Two things that you learnt from your struggle and you would

like to share with upcoming filmmakers?
Never lose hope and always believe in yourself. The passion that has got you to come into the industry to be a filmmaker should always remain in your heart, no matter how many failures you have. But also learn from your critics and your failures. It will always help you in the long run. And please don’t ape anyone. Have your own identity!

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Dil Toh Baccha Hai Ji: Love Me Do

2011-11-30T10:25:00.000+05:30

IIPM Mumbai Campus

Well begun and half done
Expectations are usually high when a National Award winner releases his new film, and they soar even higher when its title is taken from a beautiful composition by Gulzar.

Madhur Bhandarkar’s romcom Dil Toh Baccha Hai Ji starts off on an interesting note, with a divorcee (Ajay Devgn), a womaniser (Emraan Hashmi) and a virgin (Omi Vaidya) sharing the same roof. The three protagonists meet the ladies of their dreams, and each tries his best to woo them over. So, while Ajay’s character Naren tries to look young and dapper to appeal to his 17-years-junior love interest played by Shazahn Padamsee, Omi’s character Milind falls for a radio jockey (Shraddha Das) who merely ‘uses him’, and Emraan’s character Abhay, who is involved with a Miss India turned socialite (Tisca Chopra) for her money, tries to clean up his act when he falls head-over-heels for an NRI social worker (Shruti Haasan).

Emraan is at home in his lover-boy role, though Ajay is not at his best, while Omi, with his accent intact, is amusing still. Barring the lead characters, the others ham through their dialogues, with the exception of Tisca, who delivers a laudable performance. Some of the jokes though refuse to crackle, and the film does seem a bit ‘oversexed’ at times.

The man who has won awards and acclaim for his hard-hitting reality-based cinema has this time tried to work his Midas touch on a new genre. But though his latest offering doesn’t carry his usual masterful signature, it does carry promise. Madhur Bhandarkar and the romantic comedy – that’s yet another unlikely pair, but one with a definite and fascinating future – after all, Dil Toh Baccha Hai Ji!

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Higher FDI for stronger defence

2011-11-27T10:21:00.000+05:30

IIPM Mumbai Campus

An increase in the FDI cap in India's defence sector will not only bring revenue and state-of-the-art technology, it will also pave way for India's self-sufficiency in defence production.

For a country such as ours which spends billions of dollars every year to import nearly 70 per cent of its total military equipment, the Indian government seems stuck with the country’s defence establishment still reluctant to lift the 26 per cent cap on Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the “sensitive” sector of defence production. Despite India being one of the biggest users of conventional defence equipment and the cumulative defence budget growing at the rate of over 13 per cent annually since 2006-07, we continue to depend on imports for all our major requirements with domestic production limited to low technology items and based on purchased
technology.

In a discussion paper floated last year seeking stakeholders’ views, the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP), under the Ministry of Commerce, had favoured 100 per cent FDI in defence in order to attract foreign technology. It further called for an urgent need to enhance the deterrent and the operational capabilities of the armed forces. The paper stated that almost 50 per cent of India’s defence equipment was suffering from obsolescence while merely 15 per cent could be called state-of-the-art.

The government, however, now seems to be keen on allowing greater participation of the private sector and expert players in the defence sector to invite higher technology in the sector. With strong backing from both the Finance and Home Ministries, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry is learnt to be preparing to move a Cabinet note on increasing the cap on FDI in the defence sector to 49 per cent.

The case for a firm government stand on increasing the FDI cap is backed by the fact that it is of vital importance to the defence sector which is highly capital intensive where technology requires frequent upgrading. FDI is not just a subject of getting funds, but also facilitates access to the latest technologies and provides for a long term commitment between the foreign and local enterprise. It creates a sort of a cycle where the foreign investment upgrades local technology which, in turn, attracts more FDI with higher technology.

“Defence sector needs huge investments and anyone doing so will not be looking for 26 per cent of stake,” observes senior Defence analyst Maroof Raza. “If we really want path breaking technologies to come to India, we will have to raise the stake of Foreign Direct Investments up to 74 percent,” he adds.

Despite the presence of such alluring factors, Minister for Defence A. K. Antony has registered his stern disagreement with the said proposal on the ground that the Indian defence sector was not mature enough to absorb higher FDI. The reluctance of the defence establishment, sources say, is also based on the rather conventional belief that defence is a sensitive sector and that opening doors to foreign players could lead to security concerns.

The defence sector in India, which was initially subject to 100 per cent monopoly of the public sector, saw the government open doors to private participation and allow 26 per cent FDI following a policy change over the last decade. However, the policy move did not really help matters as it failed to amuse both the domestic private sector and the Foreign Direct Investors. Over-dependence on the public sector has been cited as one of the major reasons for this failure. Also, the complete lack of enthusiasm by investors, both Indian and offshore, failed the basic aim of allowing FDI in the defence sector, which was to pool capital and foster technology partnerships to manufacture defence equipment for the armed forces and also register its presence in the export market on a significant scale.

On a global front, India’s defence exports have ranged between 1.5 and 2.4 per cent of the total production. It is disappointing to note that ever since the introduction of FDI in defence in 2001, the grand total of investments in defence through the FDI route have been a meagre $15 million. As per the Budget Estimates (BE) for the year 2010-11, the defence sector has been allocated Rs 1,47,344 crore, an increase of 3.98 per cent over the BE of 2009-10. The expected defence spending over the next five years is $50bn.

Another case for strong legislation in favour of the proposed hike is also based on the fear that our vast dependence on imports can be stifled in times of crisis, leaving India defenceless. Considering that India needs to import even basic stuff, FDI can be kept out of areas which are really sensitive. In fact, the DIPP discussion paper had allayed concerns that India-based fully foreign-owned companies may not be in the county’s security interests, arguing that the concerns remained even in case of direct imports and hence could not be cited for opposing higher FDI.

Maroof, on the other hand, believes that there is no question of security being compromised. “Whether it is the 126 Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft or the Artillery Guns, we are procuring them from outside,” he says, adding, “Once the companies set up their base in India it will benefit the country.”

With India emerging as a major economic destination for several sectors, the efficient management of funds allocated in the defence budget will be of vital importance keeping in view its targets of reducing dependence on imports. What India needs today is a dedicated and technology specific policy which is flexible enough to attract frontier technology within the broad regulatory policy framework. It is vital that in the case of cutting edge technology, FDI limit be increased to 51 per cent to instil a sense of confidence in the foreign entrepreneur that he would continue to own the enterprise by holding majority stake.

An FDI cap of 49 per cent may prove totally unfruitful and could also pose as a major hurdle towards attracting high-end investments. Supporters of higher FDI say foreign investors will set up units in India that should lead to cheaper prices of defence equipment, secure supplies and steady jobs for Indians.

For India to sustain its steady economic growth and support it with a robust defence base, we need to offer opportunities which are more striking and attractive than other Foreign Direct Investors (FDI) competitors. In order to have a strong defence industry base in India, it is vital to recognise the peculiarities of the defence sector with investor facilities in line with prevailing international standards backed by proper policy support which override the dissuasive incongruities present in the sensitive sector of defence production.

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'This land is ours'

2011-11-24T10:20:00.000+05:30

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Chandrasekhar Bhattacharjee travels to Haripur, west bengal where a proposed nuclear power plant sparked off protests. It inspired the people of singur and nandigram. The project has not been shelved and people are keeping a vigil.

Sushanta Bhunia of Haripur may be aged but his spirit is unwavering as he narrates the tale of the people of Haripur, a conglomeration of 19 odd villages in Contai of East Midnapore, resisting the Centre and the state government's attempts to set up a nuclear power plant. “Dr S. K. Jain, chairman and managing director of the Nuclear Power Corporation of India (NPCI), had come to inspect the area but had to retreat as early as on November 17, 2006. He returned the next day under heavy police protection. Around 18 police vans carried armed policemen but we matched them with thousands of villagers. Then, Jain tried to sneak in riding pillion on a motorbike. We recognised him and stopped him. Since then, no government official has dared to visit Haripur in connection with setting up of a nuclear power plant.”

In fact, Haripur showed the path to Nandigram. Three months before roads of Nandigram were dug up, Haripur erected a barricade at Junput Bazar, the main entry point to the area. Villagers converged behind the barricades to prevent ‘anyone unwanted’. Even the police and the district administration were not allowed. The message was loud and clear: “This land belongs to us, not to the government”. Supporters of the ruling Left Front’s partner West Bengal Socialist Party (WBSP) united together with Trinamool Congress, Congress and Paschmbanga Khet Majur Samity and Matsyajibi Unnayan Samity (unit of National Fishworkers’ Forum). Although Jain, chairman of the site selection panel for N-Plant, could not even enter Haripur, forget inspecting the proposed site, he nonetheless informed chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee on November 19, 2006, that ''Haripur has a good potential for setting up a Nuclear Plant''.

Bhunia, over 70 years old, says, “The plant’s core area would eat up 15 villages in a 1.6 km radius. More than 20,000 people would be deprived of their land and income. Apart from that, 75,000 recorded fishermen, whose only source of income is fishing and related activities, will be forced out of their livelihood.” The proposed N-Plant has annoyed even school children like Anu Samanta. “There are three high schools and 14 primary schools and about eight child education centres in this area. Where will we go? Is it that the government does not want us to be educated,” are her words.

A 25-km-long sea dyke was built during British period to protect this area from sea waves and hurricanes. A few prominent sea beach resorts like Digha, Shankarpur and Mandarmani exist in the vicinity. Shankarpur is also an important fishing harbour. Most of the three million people living in the entire region are dependent on the sea for their livelihood which will be affected if a nuclear project came up. The Haripur area is also rich in agriculture Rishikesh Giri, another resident, says, “Haripur produces rice twice a year, including that of the Dhudheswar (a high quality fine rice) variety. Apart from that, we produce wheat, mustard, tomato, eggplant, sesame, green chilli and various kinds of vegetables. We don’t need artificial irrigation. We have our ponds which store rain water and serves our fields throughout the year. Of course, the ponds give us sweetwater fish too.” The per acre yield of rice here is 2,400 kg, much higher than the national average. The hay serves as animal fodder, firewood and roofing material. Giri, whose landholding is modest, has three sons and a daughter who is married. One son is a farmer, another one is an employee of Reliance Industries while the remaining one is a Vaishnavite sanyasi.

Local state Assembly legislator Dibyendu Adhikari admits, “Haripur and the adjoining area is the main source of vegetable supply for the Contai sub-division.” Haripur is dotted with betel vines, coconut trees and banana trees. One cannot count the number of betel vines here. “It may be 7,000 or more. We supply betel leaves to the whole of India,” Ananta Bera, a farmer proudly claims.

Sukumar Bhunia, block Panchayat chief and head of the Committee against Nuclear Reactor to save rights to Land and Livelihood, recalls the legacy of struggle here, “People of Midnapore marched to Haripur at the call of Mahatma Gandhi during Salt Satyagraha.” Even today, about 1,000 villagers live of salt processing.

Prabhuram Dalal is the chief of the fishermen's body here. According to him, there are 42 jetties in the first circle of 1.6 km. Each boat employs around 18 people. The Haripur jetty alone has 95 hand-pulled and 50 mechanised boats. More than 2,750 fishing huts dot the coastal line of Haripur and the adjoining 19 villages. Prabhuram is candid: “If the nuclear power plant is built, about 1.5 crore fishermen, from Kakdwip in West Bengal to Paradip in Orissa, will be directly affected.”

Energy scientist Professor Sujoy Basu, ex-chief of School of Energy Studies, Jadavpur University, corroborates Prabhuram’s anxiety. Scientists of the Saha Institute of Nuclear Physics in Kolkata are anxious too. Basu says: “It seems we have not taken any lesson from past disasters. Haripur is at the confluence of a river. During high tide, sea water rushes up the rivers and even reaches Farakka in Maldah. If the plant is built, sea water will carry nuclear waste up to that distance. Now, can you imagine the situation?”

The nuclear plant, if it comes up, will displace more than a million people. According to the blueprint, a 1.6-km-radius area forms the core area where none are allowed to settle. Then, there will be an ‘inner ring’ of 3 km radius as a buffer zone. This is specially meant for forestation. The ‘outer ring’ will be of a five km radius, where only 5 to 10 per cent of the present population would be allowed to settle. If the line is drawn, the distance intrudes into Contai (Kanthi) town and the populated areas of Henria, Egra and Nandigram blocks come into this ring.

But what gives Haripur the courage to defy the Indian State? They have even demonstrated outside the Russian Consulate in Kolkata. Sushanta Bhunia says, “The Russian authorities listened to us and then said, ‘We came here as your government has asked us. You please talk to your government'.” He continues, “Medinipur is the land of revolutionaries. We have sacrificed our lives but have never lowered our head in front of oppressors. We are their sons and daughters. We will not leave our land may what come.”

Nandigram let out the same warning in 2007. Subhendu Adhikari, MP from East Midnapore and leader of the Nandigram movement, admits: “Haripur taught me how to fight for the cause of the people. It helped me to stand beside the people of Nandigram. So, Haripur is the mother of the struggles in Singur and Nandigram.” Hrisikesh Giri goes on: “During the Freedom movement, Gandhi and the revolutionaries taught us one thing. There will be no let up in our movement till the proposed
bill is scrapped. Till then, we do not want any development work. We don’t want relief and ration. Land is our mother. If our land is lost, we will die.The government has to understand that this land is ours.”

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Freedom lies behind a door, closed shut It can only be knocked down with a bleeding fist- Egyptian Poet Ahmad Shawqi (1869-1932)

2011-11-21T10:18:00.000+05:30

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Bitter reality check for US, Israel
After seeing US and Israel dithering over the mass uprising in Egypt, one can't help but recall the days leading to the Iranian Revolution. The cables sent by the American and other western Embassies in Tehran to their respective capitals in those days make a humorous read. Phrases like “Epitome of stability”, “Island of Stability”, “Rock solid support”, etc kept the intelligence bosses napping as Ayatollah Khomeini pulled the rug beneath the despot.

Similarly, the comments coming from intelligence bosses at Washington and Tel Aviv prior to the Egyptian uprising were peppered with similar phrases. Noted Israeli analyst Gideon Levy recounts how Israeli intelligence officers, along with their alleged best brain on Egypt, Benjamin Ben-Eliezer, were briefing the country's top bosses that “Egypt was still in our hand” and how "everything is under control". They were under the impression that Cairo was not Tunis and that Mubarak was too strong to be unseated. To give credibility to his report, Ben-Eliezer also maintained that he was in regular touch with his Egyptian counterparts and they were assured that everything was under control.

The stark similarity clearly indicates how less Israeli and western agencies have learnt about the way people act and react.

“We have become tangential in the region. I'll say that US policy in the Middle East is not on purpose evil. The targets are novel. But the problem is, like an old man, the US' complete reference system is dispiritedly obsolete and no longer holds any meaning,” said Robert Grenier, a CIA veteran in the region with over three decades of experience, to TSI.

On the other hand, when Mubarak appointed intelligence chief Omar Suleiman as his deputy, he was essentially playing his last ace in the kitty. Suleiman suits well to both Israelis and Americans. Any kindergarten student can tell that Suleiman, for all practical purposes, had no hold on the Egyptian streets. So why was he chosen? Well, highly placed sources close to this correspondent believe that he was zeroed in on because nobody in Egypt — not even Mubarak himself — knows the men in olive green fatigues better than him. Suleiman, as it turns out, has spent his career keeping officers in line, and on their toe. And if sources are to be believed, the guy knows the profile and history of every single officer in the Egyptian Army by heart and can predict their loyalty or the lack of it by mere sniffing. Naturally, he is going to be Washington's Man Friday in Cairo. And the first job he is expected to do is to make the security apparatus, which has evaporated since last Friday evening, fall in line.

In fact, the most interesting role in this entire episode has been played by the Egyptian Army and even the police. Hosni Mubarak was a man in uniform till he decided to enjoy further largesses. However, even after taking on the mantle of a dictator, he always made sure that his officers got duly rewarded in cash and kind. However, as is the way of the world, there exists no gratitude in politics.

Another veteran CIA man of the region Robert Baer tells TSI, “The forces, as well as the police, has realised that this a mass protest where people from all classes and religions are participating. It is not like the past when they were asked to run through a rag-tag group of agitators or fundamentalists. They thus realised that it will be insane and harmful to their health if they are perceived to be siding with a regime that itself does not know whether it will see the next sunrise or not.”

Somewhere in between, Western capitals are desperately praying that the uprising will choose Mohamed ElBaradei, former head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, as its leader. In fact, they are doing more than merely praying. One needs to just monitor the shifting (and often conflicting) positions and tone taken by CNN and BBC in the past week to understand this larger game. The only problem is that ElBaradei holds far less sway over the Egyptian population than the Western powers have over him.

Theoretically, it is possible that in any interim government dominated by the men in olive green, ElBaradei will act as a straw man. Generals know that he does not have a support base worth a dime and such men are risk free. But his role will finish then and there. Because after the interim government is set up, the elections will come and as much as you might like him, ElBaradei is bound to cut a sorry figure there.

“The likely winner of truly free polls would be the Muslim Brotherhood. They are not as radical as the Islamists. But the first thing they have promised to do if they win power is to hold a referendum on Egypt's diplomatic relations with Israel. And most Egyptians would vote to cancel it,” says Gwynne Dyer, an Arab world watcher based in London whose focus is the modus operandi of the Brotherhood.

Under the circumstances, there is also a space for the rise of the secular Left in the region, the death of which brought radical Islam to the forefront. One can be sure that Leftist voices in the region would be gearing up to act as a balancing force. After all, Mao himself said, “There is great chaos under heaven – the situation is excellent.”

As for the Americans and Israelis, they must understand that it is not enough to have a smattering of embassies in line and intelligence bosses in the pocket to be accepted in West Asia. It is also essential that one invests in goodwill.

In the context, I can not resist the temptation to use the social media joke started by the celebrated Arab-American writer and a friend of mine, Ismail Khalidi. He tweeted, #US and #Israel change relationship status with #Egypt to “It's complicated” on Facebook. #Lebanon, #Syria & #Palestine 'Like' this.

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Kavalam Sasikumar reports on a cross-river link that has finally put an isolated Kerala village on the map

2011-11-18T10:13:00.001+05:30

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Bridge ends century-long wait
Can the opening of a new bridge draw a crowd of 50,000 people? The inauguration of the Mayannur bridge at Ottappalam of Palakkad district in Kerala just did. The chief minister, the state Assembly speaker and political leaders of all hues wondered as to why people turned up in such large numbers when attendance at political rallies has steadily declined in the politically sensitive state. Old people reached the venue to watch the programme, women came with their babies in tow. It was special, a day they have waited decades for.

The bridge on Bharathappuzha river, the longest in Kerala, bridges not only the two banks but connects the people living on the two sides. On one side of the river lies Ottappalam, a developed township. On the other, in Thrissur district, lies the village of Mayannur. The people of Mayannur struggled to reach Ottappalam for treatment, education, commerce, employment and other activities. They had to spend money and time by travelling more than 32 km by road to reach Ottappalam or had to swim across the river. During the monsoon, the river overflowed its banks and it was not even easy for the boats. Most would swim across the river. Students and working people were forced to carry an extra dress along with their lunch boxes. Those, who did not, spent their day in wet clothes. During the summers, they struggled to walk on the red hot sand bed. Now that the bridge is there, Ottappalam is a 15-minute walk.

The struggle for this bridge is a saga in itself. It dates back to the days of the rule of the provincial prince of Kochi and the Britishers. One side of the river was under the rule of Raja of Kochi and the other part, Malabar, was under the British rule. The Raja of Kochi planned to build a wooden bridge here but later abandoned the project. Then, during the freedom movement, Mahatma Gandhi visited Ottappalam which boosted the freedom movement in the state. Gandhi too had raised the demand for a bridge here. There is a Gandhi Ashram in the village Mayannur in memory of his visit.

But the recorded initiative for a bridge here starts in 1920s and it took shape in 1957 just after the formation of the state of Kerala and the first democratically elected state government. That year, the first official meeting to discuss the idea of a bridge took place. The then foreign affairs secretary, K.P.S. Menon, who was leading a retired life in his native Ottappalam at that time, was the first chairman of the committee set up for construction of a causeway across the river. But nothing happened. People, supported by political parties and social organisations, made a human chain to press home their demand. After long procrastination, in 1996-1997, the state budget allocated Rs 20 lakh for the construction of a causeway. But again, it was delayed which came as a blessing in disguise. The plan for a causeway was revisited and the state government approved the plan for a bridge. The foundation stone was laid on November 18, 1999. Work started in 2000. But the pace was abysmal and work was interrupted when Indian Railways refused to give permission for a long time. And so people continued to swim across the river. Continued struggle and strikes drew the attention of authorities. Anyhow, 11 long years after construction had begun, the 1253-metre bridge was finally ready for use.

The positive outcome was the collective effort of all political parties who, for once, rose above partisan politics. The CPI(M) MLA took initiative, the state BJP leader who was minister for state for railways at the Centre during the NDA tenure helped to get the sanction, the present Congress-led Union government and ministers from the state pitched in too. And the inauguration ceremony showed that different political parties could share the dias for a good cause.

The present state government of chief minister V.S Achuthanandan has constructed 20 bridges within the last 56 months. But the Mayannur bridge inauguration was really a grand affair. There were eight cultural processions from various points on both sides of the river. Thousands of people, cultural programmes, bands and caparisoned elephants marked the opening. Students, teachers, government officials mingled with each other. School children expressed their feelings in the form of a one-km-long canvas painting. It took four hours for the Kerala State Transport vehicle to mark the first official journey over the bridge. One of the tableaux in the rally echoed the overall mood. It represented the story of sethubandhanam in Ramayana.

The bridge will not lead to economic development of the region but it will have social implications too. Though Ottappalam and Mayannur are nearby, because of the lack of a connection, people objected to get into marital relations with people from the other bank. Mayannur will become a township soon, Ottappalam will get a boost in terms of trade and travel. The Ottappalam railway station will get a facelift and new development activities are already in the pipeline.

With tears running down her wrinkled skin, Matha, who is over 105 years old, tells TSI, “Now I am ready to say goodbye to my life. It was my dream to see a bridge across the river. I still remember those days as a young girl when I would cross the river full of water while carrying a load of firewood and provisions on my head.”

Chief minister V.S. Achuthanandan stressed on the need of saving our rivers. The Bharathappuzha is a prime example of how illegal sand mining can kill a river. Today there are only small puddles of water here and there in place of the once mighty river. In fact they look like the tearful eyes of a dying river.

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The Sopori scion strings a success story

2011-11-15T11:10:00.000+05:30

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The recipient of ‘j&k state award’ this republic day, 31-year-old santoor maestro and music composer, abhay rustum sopori, became the youngest person ever to receive this honour. the heir of the 200-year-old sopori legacy speaks to anu gulmohar about his life’s mission of reviving the cultural glory of his state

Congratulations on winning the J&K State Award 2011. How does it feel to be the youngest ever recipient of this award?
Normally such awards are given at quite an elderly age. It’s nice that people in the government have acknowledged the kind of work I’ve been doing. I’m thankful to them. At the same time, I feel that the duties and responsibilities that I took on, to revive the culture of the state, have increased. The state is literally honouring you with some more expectations!

Tell us about the annual SaMaPa Aalap Festival.
We started in 2006. Till about 2005, the cultural scenario was very glum, to the extent that if 50-60 people were present at a concert here in Jammu, it would be deemed a super-hit concert! Being a musician, one knows that if you go to play at a music festival and the audience expected is 50, it’s really horrible. Though, by the grace of God, when I performed, I think it was the first time there were about 300 people in the concert. Within two years I was playing to an audience of 2,500 people. In 2010, the overall audience at the 15-days festival was more than 25,000. Over the years, a cultural forum has been created; SaMaPa Aalap Festival is part of a cultural revolution in J&K.

If you had not been the son of Pandit Bhajan Sopori, do you believe you would have still been a musician?
I don’t think so. It’s the biggest thing that could have happened to me – to have been born as his son. Whatever I’m doing is not just my thoughts, but the thoughts of all my ancestors. It’s something in my blood since the last 10 generations. And the sanskar and thoughts, which I’ve inherited, compelled me to think about others even in my early years of establishment. If I was not born in this family, I would just have been an ordinary person.

I have two nephews – one is three years old and the other is about 10 months old. Whenever we play, even the younger one comes and listens. Their training has already begun! In a typical guru-shishya family, it’s very difficult to say when the training actually starts. It starts even before one is born; it’s in your genes.

You have also learnt western classical music and are a visiting faculty at the University of Massachusetts. How does their method compare with the more traditional guru-shishya mode of teaching in a gharana? Which, personally, do you feel is better?
In our classical method you have to sit with your guru, but when it comes to western, the formulation is all done. Western style is very good to understand the composition. It’s a very scientific way of looking at music. Our music is more innovation based.

Can we expect you to compose music for Bollywood films too?
I hope so! I would say it’s in the pipeline. One of the best things that can happen to a composer is when he can compose music for films. Till now my focus was on the J&K state, now I feel we have reached a level, after five years, where a lot of things are happening, so I can look into other things. I’m not taking up too many initiatives on my part, but hopefully something might happen.

Do you think because of the exclusivity of the gharanas, plenty of talented people miss the opportunity to be taught by the best?
To blame the gurus for not reaching out to the masses is not always right. Undoubtedly, that has happened. Many of our great musicians have not proved to be very good teachers. But if you see my family – my grandfather has thousands of disciples. He’s hailed as the Father of Music in the state. There have been several cases where gurus have concentrated more on their children rather than other disciples. Also, you can’t expect revolutions to happen while you sit in palaces. You need to work on the ground, whether it is the Aalap Festival or working with the people here. The last 20 years have been very disturbing here in J&K. The graph has really gone down on the kind of students we get.

From your very young point of view, how do you see your music & the Sufi spirit of Kashmir helping it come out of its current state of confusion and conflict?
Well, it already has. Despite the events in J&K after 1989, there are people who say that they are Indians. What makes them say this? It’s their culture, which makes that happen. Does any part of the world become a part of the Indian territory by simply raising a flag? Putting the blame on the Indian government is not right; at the same time I think that the focus on culture has to be there. I’ve seen people leaving behind negative elements and coming together and forward, thanks to music. It has happened and it will continue to happen by the grace of God. In a few years, we’ll definitely see the culture of this region scale new heights.

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Faced with bureaucratic ineptitude, Manipur has been in the grip of a severe power crisis for many years.

2011-11-12T12:02:00.003+05:30

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But recent moves have raised hopes of better days for the state

Manipur's 'powerless' electricity department is at the receiving end of a renewed burst of judicial and civil society activism aimed at bringing light back into the lives of people of the north-eastern state. But the power crisis that the state has been facing for several years is far from nearing its end.

Acting on a PIL filed by three persons against erratic power supply in Manipur, the Imphal bench of Guwahati High Court recently issued a notice to the commissioner (power), government of Manipur, and the chief engineer of the state electricity department seeking an explanation for the continuing failure to ensure uninterrupted power supply to consumers who pay their bills regularly.

The court notice, issued by a division bench comprising Justice BK Sharma and Asok Potsangbam, is returnable within four weeks.

The petitioners had contended that bonafide consumers in the state get only about three to four hours of electricity in a day while people in neighbouring states like Nagaland, Assam and Mizoram had round-the-clock power supply.

The PIL pointed out that against the peak hour requirement of 170/180 MW, the state purchases only about 90 MW from power stations like NEEPCO and NHPC. Of this, nearly 80 per cent is lost every month on account of unbridled power theft and constant tripping.

The PIL also stated that the Manipur electricity department spends Rs 11.5 crore every month to purchase power. However, it manages to collect only Rs 1.5 crore from consumers due to systemic failure and widespread corruption.

Although Manipur has immense hydro power potential and can generate up to 2000 MW if it gets its act together, the state's power distribution authorities are unable to meet the domestic requirement of its 1,74,127 consumers.

The Manipur electricity department utilises only about 5 per cent of the potential available in the state. If power theft, which is a cognisable and non-bailable offence under the Electricity Act of 2003, were brought down to 40 per cent, not only would Manipur be able to meet its domestic demand but it would also have surplus power to sell to other states. It would be a win-win situation for Manipur, but as things stand at present the emergence of that happy scenario can only be a distant dream.

The state purchased 438 MW from NEEPCO and NHPC (central undertaking) in 2005-06. The gap between demand and supply has remained constant in spite of the so-called attempts of its nearly 4000-strong staff to enforce compliance with rules and regulations. In 2003-04, the gap was the highest with 48 per cent followed by 39 per cent in 2005-06.

The level of power consumption in Manipur is fairly low. The per capita power consumption is only 146 KWH. The all-India average is 354 KWH. The figure is much higher for Daman and Diu (2335 KWH), Goa (724 KWH), Pondicherry (867 KWH) and Delhi (577 KWH).

The state electricity department has over the years failed to take appropriate action against power pilferers and electricity bill defaulters. It has instead been subsidising the defaulters and penalising regular payees by subjecting both to equal access and equal darkness. This, the petition asserted, clearly implies an absence of an effective regulatory mechanism and absolute lack of governance.

Arguing that failure to provide reliable and uninterrupted electric supply to citizens is a violation of Article 21 of the Constitution of India, the PIL prayed that the authorities be directed to meet the demand of all bonafide consumers of Manipur within a specific period of time. It also sought an appropriate judicial direction for providing electric power for at least eight hours a day to people of the state during the interim.

The day after the PIL was filed, the electricity department, for the first time in its history, launched a massive drive against power theft and non-payment of electricity bills. Under the Electricity Act, 2003 (amended in 2007), a number of citizens have already been booked for power theft and outstanding bills.

As a penal measure, many supply lines have been disconnected. The state electricity department collected large sums in the first few days of the drive. The department has also decided to fix power metres for all consumers to ensure commensurate billing although the initiative has come a bit too late.

Corruption within the electricity department is a major cause of Manipur’s power crisis. In many cases, power is pilfered with the connivance of electricity department officials. There have been instances where employees of the state electricity department have written off dues by fudging electricity consumption records. No-objection certificates are easy to come by if a consumer is willing to grease the palm of officials concerned.

In many houses both in the valley and the hill district, meter boxes have not been installed. So the power tariff is calculated on a completely ad hoc basis, leaving room for manipulation and official corruption. The general public is fully aware that it is not only the common people who default in paying their power bills but also several government departments (Rs 22 crore). What action will be taken against such departments is the natural question that exercises the minds of common citizens. But no answers are available.

At the time of writing this report, the power tariff collection drive was still continuing in the state, mostly in the valley areas. Altogether 20 power pilferers, including two women, were arrested. The anti-power theft drive was spearheaded by N. Sarat, chief engineer of the state electricity department.

Sarat, however, insisted that the drive against unauthorised connections was launched as per an announcement made earlier and had nothing to do with the court's directive. The chief engineer explained that the Electricity Act could not be affectively implemented all these years due to the delay in appointment of judicial officers – judges as wells as assistant public prosecutors. “The necessary appointments have now been made and hence the crackdown,” he said.

While the drive is in full swing in the valley, the hill district of the state by and large remains outside its purview. The entire hill district has electricity today, but residents do not have land in their own names. The Manipur Land Revenue and Land Reforms Act 1960 has not yet been implemented in these hill villages. So it is difficult for the electricity department to raise bills and collect electricity tariff from the villagers in these areas. “This will drive a further wedge between the people of the valley and residents of the hill district,” says Sukham Nanda, a consumer.

Under the provisions of the Electricity Act, a special court has been set up to try cases of power theft and tariff default. But many questions remain unanswered. Will the government departments, too, be brought to book for power tariff arrears?

Those in the know argue that the way forward for the electricity department is to introduce new technologies like underground cables and air pocket sealed cables in order to stop illegal tapping. Introduction of a prepaid billing system for electricity consumers has also been suggested. “All these measures would help end the power crisis in Manipur," a lecturer of environmental science at Maharaj Bodhchandra College, Imphal told TSI.

During the hearing of the PIL, Justice Potsangbam had observed that Nagaland gets uninterrupted power supply although it does not produce any electricity of its own. On the other hand, Manipur, which is a state that generates its own electricity, is unable provide uninterrupted power to its people. Behind that irony is a story of years of ineptitude.

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Getting to the root cause of crime

2011-10-11T11:00:00.001+05:30

IIPM, GURGAON

To keep people from criminal activities, Assam Police has come up with a community project with a difference. Hemmanta Phukan and Dulal Misra take a look at Project Prahari

In our country, between the act of committing a crime and the pronouncement of a sentence by the court, there is no provision to identify the reason behind the act. A look into such factors would indicate that some of these causes are so deep-rooted and guided by social prejudices like the practice of black magic, sorcery, superstitions, etc., that law-enforcing agencies are helpless in curbing the incidence of such crimes.

In the inhospitable and socially isolated terrain of the northeast, marked by communal and ethnic conflicts, mistrust and hostility towards law-enforcing agencies, the apathetic attitude of development agencies, a weak resource base, low level of skills and literacy, a community policing project called Project Prahari is trying to bridge some of the social and administrative lacunae that propel people towards criminal acts.
The turning point which set the law enforcement agencies thinking was the brutal killing of five innocent villagers for allegedly practising witchcraft in the beginning of 2000 in Thaigarguri village of Kokrajhar district. The society has witnessed several such killings of innocent people, especially in the tribal dominated areas of Kokrajhar, Goalpara, Darrang, Sonitpur, Golaghat, Karbi Anglong and Jornat districts, for allegedly practicing witchcraft. The victims are mainly economically backward, illiterate or widows who are targeted by the kabiraj or ojas, the local healer of diseases. When a villager suffers from an ailment, he prefers to go to the kabiraj instead of a hospital. To enhance his influence, the kabiraj enacts a nasty drama targeting an unfortunate villager or a family for bringing upon the disease. The kabiraj generally points to the economically or socially weakest family or villager. He also convinces the family and relatives of the sick person that if the family or villager termed as the witchcraft practitioner(s) could be chased away or killed, the patient would be cured.

It was to counter these critical situations that the Assam Police decided to delve into the root cause of criminal activities and bridge the gap between the administrative machinery and the villagers through Project Prahari. One of the major factors identified by the police behind such criminal activities was the underdeveloped condition of remote villages. In fact, most villages were not even connected by roads. The law enforcement agencies thus drew up a plan of community participation in development activities.

The brainchild of the Deputy Inspector General of police of the Western range of Assam, Kuladhar Saikia, since its inception in 2001,Project Prahari has been trying to hit at the root cause of social maladies so that law enforcement agencies can play a major role in preventing recurrence of such incidents. Though the project was first launched in violence-hit Kokrajhar district, its activities spread to other parts after DGP, Assam Police, declared the project as a state level police initiative. Starting from Thaigarguri of Kokrajhar district, the project now covers as many as 50 villages spread all over Assam. A village is selected under the Project if it is in an area which is either criminal or terrorist prone, communally sensitive or socially under privileged, backward and isolated.

Among its success stories is a motorable wooden bridge over river Kachua between Betbari and Charapara in Bongaigaon district built through community participation. This is the only link for village children to reach their schools. This has also provided a link for daily business activities between the villagers as well as police forays into inaccessible area where extremists were active earlier. A long abandoned Longa canal at Serfanguri was re-dug and repaired by residents of five villages. After the repair of the 4.87 km long canal, about 500 families of Kolabari, Pub-kolabari and Serfanguri villages benefit from irrigation facilities for their cultivable land.
By conducting community development activities through the Community Management Groups under Project Prahari, the Assam Police has succeeded in reducing the gap between the administrative machinery and the villagers. Simultaneously, emphasis has been laid on constant interaction between the local police and the villagers to create awareness against social prejudices like practice of black magic and sorcery.

The project's success has been appreciated all over the world. The Centre presented it to the United Nations in 2005. The Hyderabad-based SVP National Police Academy has documented the project in its ‘Compendium on Good Practices in Community Policing’ for emulation by other states. It has emerged as a significant community policing initiative that has strengthened people's involvement in deciding their security needs and also reoriented the principles of policing.

The man behind Project Prahari
Kuladhar Saikia, IGP (Border), Assam Police

What made you initiate Project Prahari?
When I was in Pennsylvania under a fellowship programme in 2000-2001, I got a chance to study the community development models of various nations. As part of the programme, I submitted a project to the World Bank. The project was appreciated and it inspired me to use the idea in my country.

How did you start Project Prahari?
After coming back to Assam, I took charge as the DIG of the Western Range of Assam. At that time, five innocent villagers were brutally killed for their alleged involvement in witchcraft in Thaigarguri village of Kokrajhar district. I found that the main cause of this incident was social and economic backwardness of the people. So, I took the initiative to mobilise the villagers by constituting Community Management Groups to create awareness against superstitions and involve them in development works. I consulted with the then DGP of Assam and he inspired me and asked me to go ahead. Thus Project Prahari was launched.

Did you face any bottlenecks?
Yes, I faced several problems as the village was in an insurgency-prone area. The outlawed organisations prevented villagers from associating with the project. But the police department took it as a challenge and changed the mindsets of the people and was able to win the confidence of the villagers. You may call this the first success story of Project Prahari.

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Feeding the hungry millions

2011-10-08T10:57:00.001+05:30

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Tathagata Bhattacharya visits the Vrindaban kitchen of Akshaya Patra Foundation and experiences the workflow that characterises the world's largest free school children feeding programme run by a non-profit organisation

As Narasimha Das, a Lord Krishna devotee, sets out on his daily chore of overseeing operations in a free kitchen in Vrindaban, darkness is the only visible thing. His footsteps pierce the eerie silence of the nippy October night. At 3 am, the kitchen, run by the Akshaya Patra Foundation, a part of the ISKCON movement, is already abuzz with activity. Situated next to the main temple of the complex, the three-floor kitchen is spread over 2200 square feet on each floor. As the strong smell of freshly made roti feels my lungs, I enter the fully automated complex with its complexes of intertwined silos and heavy machinery. It looks like the perfect set for a sci-fi thriller.

On the ground floor, men, covered from head to toe, silently work on mountains of wheat flour and dough. Their task is gargantuan. They have just around five hours to make rotis for 1,69,379 hungry school kids. They lug huge mounds of dough onto a conveyor belt where it is flattened into a thin sheet. The flattened material then moves through a succession of conveyor belts and is cut into big rounds and roasted on both sides. The 30-feet-long machine churns out 40,000 rotis an hour. A qualified design engineer, Das was part of the team that customised a biscuit-making machine into producing 10,000 rotis an hour in 2004. Later in 2009, they upgraded the design on the model of a tortilla-making machine.

Meanwhile, two flights up, the curry cooking army is all steamed up with five industry-sized cauldrons bubbling with rice and dal with fresh vegetables. Kitchen supervisors keep a close watch, armed with nutrition charts and cooking thermometers. Each batch of dals cook for around 20 minutes after which they are sent down through channels at the back of the cauldrons landing straight into sterilised containers in the packing room on the floor below. To ensure hygiene, human handling of food is kept to the minimum. When the rice is cooked, a gear mechanism on the side of the cauldron tilts the rice onto a trolley which is then wheeled onto the mouth of the funnel, through which it lands into sterilised containers. They are then loaded onto the insulated delivery vans waiting outside. These vans will take the food to hungry children studying in over 1516 schools in and around Vrindaban.

In spite of the Indian middle-class's obsession with the country emerging as the next superpower, as if software, Bollywood and Brahmos will see to it, and a jingoistic media's chest thumping, it is a fact that 42 per cent of the world’s underweight children under the age of five live in this country. A recent global hunger index, released this year by the International Food Policy Research Institute, India ranks 67 out of the 84 countries in the fray. India launched the mid day meal scheme as early as in 1960s to address the issues of illiteracy and child malnutrition. The largest school lunch programme in the world is integral to addressing key millennium development goals. In keeping with its importance, the funds for the scheme increased from Rs 3010 crore to 4813 crore in 2006-2007. And Akshaya Patra, a Bangalore-based non-profit organisation, is its largest non-governmental partner with 17 kitchens across 8 states feeding more than 1.26 million children everyday. By 2020, the programme, the largest school lunch programme run by a non-profit organisation, aims to feed 5 million children. Das, head of the Vrindaban operations, tells me the kitchen makes 250,000 rotis, 4 tons of rice, 2 tons of dal and about 6 tons of vegetables everyday. Akshaya Patra’s menu is designed keeping in mind the needs of growing children and local food habits. It consists of rice or rotis and daal or kadhi with vegetables. Desserts come once a week.

Akshaya Patra, subject of a Harvard study in 2007, began feeding 1,500 school children in Bangalore in 2000, a year before the Supreme Court made it mandatory for the government to provide cooked meals to children in all government and government-assisted primary schools.

Soon, pleas started pouring in from teachers of other government schools. “When the letters formed a pile, we opened them to find requests to feed 1,00,000 children. It was an eye-opener as to what a meal, which we take for granted, meant to these children.” Chanchalapati Das, vice-chairman of the foundation says. The first Akshaya Patra kitchen was set up in Bangalore to feed 30,000 children.

An Akshaya Patra delivery van reaches the Gopalgarh Primary School, around 2.5 km from the central kitchen at around 11 am. The children in the classes are busy running through arithmetic tables as the huge containers alight. The organisation started its operations in Vrindaban in 2006 from this school. Laxmi Binodini, the Bengali-speaking head mistress, says that attendance has increased manifold after the meals were served in her school. An Akshaya Patra survey shows that since its kitchen started functioning in Vrindaban in 2006, the number of underweight children dropped from 38 per cent to 26. Binodini’s school had 120 children in 2006. Now she has more than 200. The number of girls has doubled. “Parents now have an incentive to send their girls to school. Previously they would be taken off to do household chores,” she says. The lunch bell rings, the children queue out.

Back in the kitchen, work is never over. The workers are busy, preparing for the next day. Akshaya Patra has received accolades from all around the world and request to intervene in other needy parts of the world. But the organisation is firmly focussed on India. “We have enough hungry children to feed here,” Dasa says.

The world's largest free school kids meal programme has been described by Barack Obama as a “powerful demonstration of what’s possible when people work together.” It is an example of the success of the public-private partnership model, with 65 per cent of its funds provided by the Centre.

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Narmada is not just the name of a river. It is passion and emotion personified.

2011-10-02T11:56:00.001+05:30

Management Guru Arindam Chaudhuri Dean Business School IIPM

Pronounce the word anywhere and you will hear emotional stories. Being a state with the fewest number of water resources, the Narmada should have been Gujarat’s lifeline

Within 340 days of being declared a separate state, on April 5, 1961, Gujarat's first chief minister Jivraj Mehta had called then PM Jawaharlal Nehru to lay the foundation of the state's lifeline. It was in 1946 that Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel was first struck by the idea of building a large dam across the Narmada. The project was aptly named after him. It also reflected Nehru’s policy of giving importance to large development work. It is worth remembering what Nehru had said while laying the foundation of the world’s largest drinking water project. He had said, “This dam has been built with the unrelenting toil of man for the benefit of mankind and therefore is worthy of worship. May you call it a temple or a gurdwara or a mosque, it inspires our admiration and reverence.”

Despite being the foremost state in the country in terms of development work, Gujarat has been cursed by irregular rains and drought. Gujarat, being a leader in industries and business, has only 28 per cent agricultural land where planned irrigation facilities are available; at many other places, irrigation is provided by wells. The latter is not reliable as most of the shallow wells are rain-fed. Moreover, the coastal regions of Saurashtra and Kutch have turned the underground water salty. From 1960 till now, Gujarat has faced a famine every 3 to 4 years. It also faces water riots every summer even though it ranks high on all other development parameters. Compared to other states, Gujarat stands at number 10 in irrigation.

Why has Gujarat not become self-reliant in irrigation after Nehru's initiative to bring an end to the state's woes by constructing the gigantic project on the Narmada? One reason could be that there has not been a sincere effort by past governments to ensure that each and every household in Gujarat gets the benefit of the river water. Given that Gujarat is now celebrating its golden 50 years of development, and given that Narendra Modi has steadfastly focused on making Gujarat a better state, this could well be the appropriate time for the Modi government to have an enstrengthened focus on effectively utilising Narmada's waters in a planned and structured manner to reduce the water scarcity across the state. An immediate step could also be to include a bold focus on the Narmada in the current Swarnim Gujarat celebrations – though this would seem purely lip service, it would serve a bigger objective of telling various bureaucratic departments about the government's clear intent.

In 1979, after the final word by the Narmada Water Disputes Tribunal (NWDT) on the Narmada dam oustees, it was believed that Narmada's water would reach each and every household in Gujarat. To its credit, Gujarat has rehabilitated most of the Adivasi oustees in its area according to the guidelines of the Supreme Court – unlike what has happened in Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh. Yet, a final date for the project completion still seems afar.

“In 1979, then agriculture minister Keshubhai Patel had declared that the Narmada project would be completed in 12 years, but 30 years have gone by,” says Shamjibhai Antana, member of the Gujarat Ecology Commission and veteran water expert. Antana says he looks forward to a day when the project would be completed.

People like Gautam Thakar, secretary of the Gujarat unit of People's Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL), also share Antana’s views. To assess the present situation of the Narmada project and its future, PUCL got together with other non-political associations and organised a Peoples’ Inquiry Committee that prepared a huge report titled 'Narmada Project: Unfulfilled Dreams – The Implementation of the Project Report By the Public Association'. According to the report, under the Narmada project, during 1961-2010, Rs 29,000 crore has been used; yet, only 29 per cent success has been achieved with respect to towns and cities getting water; close to 50 per cent success has been achieved with respect to villages; 8,215 villages and 135 towns and cities were to benefit; but still, 37 cities and towns and 3,962 villages have not received any water. When it comes to getting drinking water (as opposed to just normal use water), the committee points out that only 11 per cent success has been achieved in villages. On an average, only 3 per cent of the project objectives are met every year.

Again, under the project, 66,000-km long canal-ways were supposed to be built to distribute water to each and every household and agricultural field. Even if one goes by the estimates given out in 1987, it was said that while only 29 per cent of the work had been completed (till then), the full project would take another 31 years. Thankfully, those figures have been revised for the better.

Interestingly, it has also been regrettably noticed that the canals which were to irrigate farmlands have in some cases actually destroyed them. Till now, a total of 308 big and small breaches have happened. Another issue is about the fact that even those cities that receive the Narmada water many a time do not receive the same at the proper pressure.

There are societies in Ahmedabad where members have paid thousands of rupees to the municipal corporation but are still waiting for Narmada water. Farmers of Surendranagar district have paid Rs 1000 each to the government but they do not get Narmada water.
What is the situation in 2010? The Modi government had proactively first declared that the project would be competed in 2010. Due to various delays, the deadline has been extended to 2014. Currently, the government is apparently allotting Rs 2500 crore for the final phase of the project. One suspects that that figure might not be enough to speed up the completion of the project.

In summary, the fact is that the Narmada river can be the basis for resolving almost all water issues within Gujarat. One hopes the government now works double time to this effect.

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Sportsmen from Haryana are a breed apart as is evident from the string of successes that they have had in the international area.

2011-10-02T10:53:00.001+05:30

"Thorns to Competition" amongst the top 10 best sellers of the week.

Syed Khurram Raza delves deeper into the phenomenon

Sportspersons from Haryana are burly, brusque and brassy. The character of Komal Chautala, portrayed by Chitrashi Rawat in the Shahrukh Khan starrer Chak De India, would give a fair idea about Haryanvi sense of humour to those who have not come across this breed. At the same time Komal's on-field performance that helps India win the final match in the movie, is as close to reality as her curt manner.

Sportsmen from Haryana have always excelled in sports. In recent years, however, their representation in athletics has increased, fuelled by the success of sportsmen such as Vijender Singh, Akhil Kumar, Jitender and Yogeshwar Dutt, who have all been inducted into the state police force after their excellent showing at international events.

During the recent Commonwealth Games in the Capital sportsmen from Haryana could often be heard repeating the slogan “doodh dahi ka khana hai, apna desh Haryana hai” with a certain degree of pride. Their medal tally betrayed their mental and physical strength as they won 30 medals between them. Rich diet does play an important role in sports, but this is not the only reason behind Haryana producing champion after champion. There are other factors too which ensure that sportsmen from a state with a national population share of just over two per cent constitutes about 16 per cent of the total number at the Beijing Olympics.

Retired Sports Authority of India (SAI) football coach and project officer of the Panchayti Krida and Khel Abhiyan (PYKKA) Rohit Parashar says, “Socio-economic conditions play a very important role. It is difficult for any sportsperson to excel if he or she does not have a sound economic background because commitment and passion alone can't take you very far.” He adds, “As Haryana is quite well off, youngsters can afford to chose sports as a career.”

Analysing the phenomenon, Arjuna Award winner and two-time Asian Games boxing gold medallist Rajkumar Sangwan says, “This has not happened in a day. Earlier agriculture was not very good in Haryana and a large number of youths would go to the Army. There these youth would generally participate in every sport where height and physical fitness counted and brought laurels to the Army and the country. Captain Hawa Singh, Balbir Singh Ballu, Bhim Singh and Captain Udai Chand excelled. After the retirement, they started coaching youngsters in their areas and created a new generation of sportsmen.”

Till the1970s it was Punjab that shone in sports. But terrorism and then a trend among the youth to migrate to the West dealt a severe blow to the sports scenario in Punjab. Their absence made Haryana sportsmen more conspicuous. Geographical factors also play a role. “Haryanvis are tall and strongly built. Besides, we use less fertilisers in farming, so our food is free from toxins,” explains Sangwan.

The general inclination among the masses towards sports also helps. “Family and community encouragement play an important role in promotion of sports in Haryana. When my elder brother Sukhbir won an international kabaddi match against Pakistan the village gifted him 21 kg of pure ghee,” says Sonepat native Jitender Joon, officer on special duty to Delhi Assembly Speaker Yoganand Shastri.

Bheem Stadium in Bhiwani does not have basic facilities such as a track for the athletes or a hockey or football turf, but that does not douse players' enthusiasm. Virtually in every sport, boys and girls participate in large numbers.

Coaches are seen taking extraordinary pains to train their wards. Wrestling coach Zile Singh Bagri was busy giving tips to Commonwealth Games gold medalist Anita and potential medalist for the 2012 Olympics, Kavita. He says, “Earlier there used to be very few players but now the overnight success stories of all these medalists have attracted the youth to sports. Now even the parents find a career in sports more promising for their children than them being doctors or engineers.” Anita, whose grandfather was a wrestler in the Army, gives credit to her mother, “It was my mother who encouraged me to take up sports and there was no opposition in the family.” Kavita's mother, too, supported her all the way.

SAI hostel in-charge and wrestling coach Brish Bhan says, “Providing jobs to sportspersons has played an important role in the promotion of sports in the state. More and more young people are taking to sports. About 14 players have been recruited as DSPs in Haryana”. Brish Bhan feels that if training facilities of international standards are provided, more medals would be a certainty. District sports officer at Bheem Stadium, Caju Ram Goyat, says, “The government has played a key role in nurturing sporting talent. It has launched a talent hunt under which competitions would be organised in schools. The schools have been instructed to take this very seriously.” According to Goyat, seven lakh students have already registered online and a lot more are expected to register.

Medalists are not only getting good jobs but also handsome cash rewards. A medal turns around a player's fortunes overnight. Boxing champion Vijender’s big house in the small village of Kaluwas is proof enough. Jimmy, a Germen Shepherd dog, greets visitors at the gate. Vijender’s two nieces, Nikita and Kavita, sit on the lap of their grandparents and listen to the stories of their sportsman uncle. “Vijender was inspired by his boxer grandfather who was in the army,” reveals his father.

Be it the martial traits of the people of Haryana, community encouragement, the lure of jobs and money, inherent passion or government policies, the fact is that today Haryana is teeming with sportspersons, and many of them are already world-beaters. And many more are in the making.

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A Mumbai that belongs to everyone or a Mumbai that belongs to none?

2011-09-29T10:52:00.001+05:30

Those who value the city's time-honoured inclusive character can only pray it doesn’t fall prey to the vultures of parochialism

Krishna Kumar Sahu, who cooks for a living, arrived in Mumbai three years ago. The Jaunpur native is already quite weary. He pours his heart out. His words lack the sparkle of his freshly rustled up curry.

“I've always sensed an undercurrent of tension here,” he says. “I am an outsider and am never allowed to forget that. So I don't mix with the locals.” Krishna’s eyes turn moist when you ask him if he feels safe here. He admits that his mother back in UP is worried stiff. “She calls me up every day to enquire about my well-being,” he says.

The story of Sarita Yadav, a housemaid, is pretty much the same. She was brought to the city when it was still Bombay. As a child she shared her mother’s workload. Her lot hasn’t improved while the city has changed beyond recognition. Sarita is a domestic help in an upscale Juhu apartment.

Every day, she takes a B.E.S.T bus to work. She usually chooses to stand even when there are empty seats in the vehicle. Why? “I've had a few bitter experiences in the past. I’ve heard my community being cursed in the local language when I’ve occupied a seat. Why spoil my mornings? I prefer to stand and get off at my stop.”

Krishna and Sarita live on the edge of the city of dreams. Since the 2008 wave of attacks on North Indians, it is difficult to draw these people out of their shells. They do not want to hurt the sentiments of the locals. They have seen what happens when these feelings are exploited by political forces.

The north Indian influx hasn’t slowed down. This state is after all a melting pot. According to the People of India Project Report, Maharashtra has 202 Hindu communities, which constitute over 70 per cent of the state's overall population. Seven distinct Muslim communities account for nearly 8 per cent of the state’s population, while Christians and Protestants add up to 3 per cent.

Though nearly 70 per cent of Maharashtra's population speak the state’s native language, Marathi, the Hindi and Urdu-speaking segments constitute nearly 20 per cent. The remaining 10 per cent of the population speak a range of other languages – Gujarati, Kannada, Tamil, Telugu and Tulu, among others.

Mumbai is a metropolis that no single community can lay exclusive claim to. But sections of the Marathi manoos have other ideas. Says Girish Zarekar, an IT officer from Pune: “This is our land, and nobody should be allowed to step in here if they take away our job opportunities. We have a great history and it's our right to protect and preserve this historic land.”

But not every Marathi-speaking resident shares that sentiment. Cabbie Shailesh Surve says, “I don't feel threatened. I was born in Nasik. I realise that the greater the influx, the better for us." He doesn't feel all migrants are gripped by alienation. “When an outsider first lands here, Mumbai tends to inspire a sense of disorientation,” he says. “But once you surmount that feeling, things ease out for most migrants,” he adds.

Ramesh Singh, part of the Mumabi workforce, migrated from Patna in 2007. “Things may have deteriorated but I don't let fear get the better of me. If you go along with the city's pace and aren't unduly belligerent, you will not even realise that there is a divide.”

Gujarati-speaking Suresh Solanki, who has grown up in Maharashtra, says, “This state has nurtured us. We are proud of it. You can stop new entrants, but you can't boot out people who've lived here ages.”

Solanki does not understand what the fuss is all about. “We've all contributed to making Mumbai what it is. It belongs to us as much as to any other Maharashtrian,” he says. But will groups that thrive on identity politics allow an inclusive Mumbai to retain its essentially cosmopolitan character?

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In the war to save Goa from the avarice of builders and profit-seeking entrepreneurs, the force seems to be on the side of the good guys.

2011-09-26T11:47:00.001+05:30

Management Guru Arindam Chaudhuri Dean Business School IIPM

Peaceful resistance, the latter’s only weapon, is making steady inroads

Peaceful is an adjective that is often used to describe laid-back Goa. So an uprising isn’t an act that is quite in keeping with the serene spirit of the tiny coastal state. But what if the uprising happens to be peaceful? Well, then it would be different. It indeed is.

This isn’t about armed Maoists of the Red Corridor, agitating villagers of Niyamgiri Hills or angry farmers up in arms against land acquisition in the boondocks of Uttar Pradesh. In the tourist hotspot of Goa, anger is frequently parlayed into song and even a litany of woes has a lilt all its own.

So, in this sun-kissed, sea-lashed coastal state where life is primed to float into susegad mode at every opportunity, a successful civil society mutiny against the attack of land sharks and their political backers has demonstrated that an all-out war can be waged without resorting to physical violence.

As cineastes attending the 41st International Film Festival of India in Panaji’s Old GMC Heritage Precincts savoured a sampling of world cinema and swigged draught beer – it was, of course, rather difficult to tell what held the greater appeal – a tectonic shift was taking place in Goa. And Dr Oscar Rebello, who was until recently the face of the Goa Bachao Abhiyan (GBA), had reason to rejoice. So did the residents of the villages of Lautolim, Verna, Sancoale and Kerim.

On November 26, the Bombay high court in Goa upheld the state government’s decision to scrap its SEZ policy and quashed the allotment of land to several SEZ promoters by the Goa Industrial Development Corporation (GIDC). This ruling signalled the death-knell of the contentious Regional Plan 2011, which had triggered the Goa Bachao Abhiyan in 2006-2007 with Dr Rebello as its convenor.

GBA received instantaneous support from a cross-section of Goans determined to save their state from being turned into a concrete jungle by greedy builders. “The campaign was propelled by the people. It was purely non-political. We did not want the movement to be hijacked,” says Dr Rebello.

Earlier in November, Goa chief minister Digamber Kamat had, in letter and spirit, also accepted the draft Regional Plan 2021, drawn up by a task force spearheaded by architect Charles Correa, town planning expert Edgar Ribeiro and Dr Rebello. On November 24, a ban on all construction in Eco Zone-I and strict regulation of development in Eco Zone-II, as enunciated by the task force, took effect all across the state, beginning with formal notifications for Pernem and Canacona.
Goa’s most popular musician and singer, Remo Fernandes, lent the power of his voice to the agitation when, at a massive public rally in Panaji’s Azad Maidan in 2006, he strummed his guitar and spewed fire: ‘Hey minister, I see your desire/I see that your loins are on fire/Please don’t violate your mother/Please don’t violate my mother’. The following year, Fernandes turned down a state government award in protest against the Regional Plan 2011 and requested the state to donate the prize money to GBA.

In the end, this was a completely bloodless insurrection. The will of the people triumphed. On his blog, an elated Dr Rebello wrote: “The week that lapsed must be a golden week for Goa. The SEZs were given a decent burial... and the Regional Plan 2021 finally left its womb (unaborted and undeformed) to chart out a brave new path for this innocent little lamb standing for slaughter by the Arabian Sea.”
But no movement in India can be without its share of controversy. Konkani filmmaker Rajendra Talak, whose newest film, O Maria, addresses the question of land ownership, says: “The movement is going in one direction... My case is that development of the state should not stop. But yes, we need sustainable growth.”

Talak emphasises the need for better transportation facilities. “Merely fighting the builders’ mafia won’t do. We must aim for all-round development of the state’s economy,” adds the director whose previous film, Aleesha, dealt with the theme of mining and its long-term impact on Goa.

Accepting that there is bound to be some carping about the road map that RP 2021 has laid out for Goa, Dr Rebello, who quit as the convenor of GBA last year, asserts that “a balance between environmental concerns and economic exigencies is essential for any plan to succeed in the long run”.

Sitting in his clinic in the heart of Panaji Municipal Market, Dr Rebello says: “The Regional Plan 2021 could serve as a model for the rest of the country.” And what a model it would be! It bears testimony to the fact that peaceful resistance can do the trick against corrupt politicians and greedy builders.

Emotions ran high when the Regional Plan 2011 was notified in 2006. The plan went against the wishes of Goans and sought to open prime forest land, ecologically sensitive mangroves and coastal regulation zones to unbridled urbanisation. The people raised their voices and sang angrily in protest. Not a shot was fired, not a stone pelted and not a life lost. Within a year, the government was forced to put its land allotment policies on hold and set up a task force to make recommendations acceptable to the people of the state.

All this happened under the provisions of the 73rd and 74th Amendments of the Indian Constitution, which make it mandatory for any plan of long-term public import to be circulated among the people for their endorsement before being adopted and implemented.

In RP 2021, the wishes of the people have been incorporated. “Every square inch of the Goan landmass, down to the last detail, has been mapped. Every hill, valley, forest, water body, paddy field, orchard, road and mine has been put on the map to prevent manipulation. Any violation can now be detected and severely punished,” says Dr Rebello.

The new plan envisages the creation of alternate economic thrust areas connected by road and rail links. As Dr Rebello puts it, “People need jobs to survive. They can’t surely sustain themselves on love, fresh air and moribund economic theories...”
Congress MP from Goa, Shantaram Naik, has since met Union commerce minister Anand Sharma and sought denotification of the three SEZs against which the Bombay high court has ruled – one each in Verna (24 lakh sq meters), Sancoale (2 lakh sq meters) and Kerim (12 lakh sq meters).

Addressing a rally, Remo Fernandes had once said with characteristic eloquence: “Everyone comes to Goa. They fall in love with Goa. They want to buy Goa.” But Goa isn’t for sale anymore.

So is the battle to save Goa finally over? Yes. But the war isn’t. Just a year shy of the 50th anniversary of its liberation from the Portuguese, Goa is seeking freedom from those who, given half a chance, would happily sell the state. It is easy to see why politicians are such a hated lot here.

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India 2001-2010 resurrection Bihar: Freedom from fear

2011-09-22T17:45:00.002+05:30

"Thorns to Competition" amongst the top 10 best sellers of the week.

Central Bihar, once a theatre of bitter caste conflict, has given way to an oasis of peace as the forces that fought for supremacy have been tamed by changing social equations

As the month of November reaches its last leg, autumn is on the wane. In an expanse of spent fields, the only consistent voice is that of jackals. A perfect setting for a rural murder mystery. And me and my photographer friend don't want to play the victim. We want to leave Jahanabad district as soon as possible.

Somewhere down the road, half a dozen-odd flashlights blind our driver and our car comes to a screeching halt. In the dark, we clearly see a few shadows advancing towards us. Is this the end? I ask myself. The mind runs fast. Depending upon which sena (private army) it is, I'll have to preempt and concoct my surname. As the figures draw near, I contemplate. Should I say I am a Sharma or Yadav. Sitting merely ten inches from me, my photographer must be going through the same dilemma, I assume. Any sensible man would. “Where are you coming from?” asks the apparent leader, apparent because of his tone and demeanor. “From Senari,” my voice somehow escapes my throat. A sudden melee ensues. Amid a babel of several central and north Bihar dialects, I finally notice the Gypsy that reads Bihar Police, and relax.
We are asked to get down. Our car is thoroughly searched. Our photographer, clearly insulted by the action of what he insists a “lowly officer”, grumbles. “You are passing from Kurtha and coming from Senari; we need to search,” assures Sub-Inspector Sanjeev Bhushan. Then, almost as an afterthought, he adds, “You people are roaming freely with such costly equipment and have not been mugged or chopped off yet in these region. I think you need to give credit to us.” We leave with my friend nursing his little ego.

Sanjeev epitomises the administrative reforms in the state. He is the reason why Bihar and 'change' are not mutually exclusive words. He is guaranteeing the security of our equipment at a place were merely a decade ago, no one would have guaranteed our life. The place where we were standing had seen uncountable bloodbaths. When the human being turns into a number, guarantees cease to exist.
Let's make a detour. Wind the time machine. This is March 18, 1999, and we are standing in the same Senari village whose mere mention had elicited a thorough search of our vehicle just minutes ago. It is seven in the evening. After completion of a year in office, Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee has just concluded his address to the nation. People were discussing the natty-gritty of the speech as a group of men wearing police uniform barge in. They are apparently looking for some of the recruits of 'Ranvir Sena', a private army that claims to protect the interests of the upper caste Bhumihar community. The men in uniform ask villagers to gather at the primary school building just outside the settlement. They are also told that the SP himself has come to take the identification parade.

Unaware of the impending danger, people of all castes gather at the building. Suddenly scores of Naxals emerge from the adjoining fields and encircle the villagers. They ask everyone except Bhumihars to leave. They are tied up by their hands and feet as the 'rippers' swing into action. Suresh Sharma, 26, first sees one of his uncles and a cousin being ripped at the throat and later the abdomen. Suresh sees a burst of blood and faints. He regains consciousness briefly when a sharp weapon touches his throat and a warm stream of his own blood drenches his face. He passes out again.
A good 75 hour later when he regain consciousness at Gaya Medical College, two of his uncles, five cousins, two nephews and 34 other villagers have already been cremated. Suresh recalls, “I was unable to decide whether to celebrate my life or mourn the deaths of family members. A few days later, when I could move, every villager I saw had his head shaven. Everyone had lost a relative.”

After ripping his throat, the Naxals ripped open Suresh's abdomen as well and left him for dead. He was somehow saved. The macabre dance of death played out for two hours. But a lot of people managed to survive.

A few kilometers away is Mianpur. This village witnessed another massacre. This time by Bhumihars on June 16, 2000. In the indiscriminate firing, 35 bodies of Dalits and backwards fell, many of them women and children. Senari and Mianpur were but numbers in the scores of massacres that became routine in central Bihar.

It all started in the 1980s. A mix of private armies and Naxal outfits came into being. Sunlight Sena, Lorik Sena, Ranvir Sena, PWG and MCC became custodians of their respective caste groups. The caste wars were a fight for dominance in the region. It was a free for all. It was difficult to tell who was pitted against whom.

For example, in Patna district, backward classes like Yadavs and Kurmis were taking on Paswans, Musahars and other Dalits (in 1977, at Belchi, the OBC private army killed 14 Dalits). In adjoining Jahanabad, Yadavs were fighting with Bhumihars (in 1980, at Parasbigha, Bhumihar goons killed 14 Yadavs whereas the Yadavs retaliated with killings in Dohia). In fact, in Jahanabad and adjoining Aurangabad, the fight had upper castes, OBCs and Dalits gunning for each other (in 1987, at Dalel Chak Baghaura, OBC goons killed 52 Rajputs whereas at Nonhi Nagwan in 1989, Yadavs slayed 18 Kurmis and Dalits). Even in Bhojpur, the heartland of the Ranvir Sena, the pattern was the same. Every caste was at the receiving end and every caste had perpetrators.

The rationale behind the massacres were both social and economic. To understand this, one needs to understand the social hierarchy of a typical Bihar village. The three tier set-up had Bhumihars, Rajputs and Brahmins on top. The middle-rung castes, or the backwards, primarily consisted of artisans such as Luhars (ironsmiths), Kumhars (potters), Nais (barbers), badhais (carpenters) and others. At the lowest rung were agrarian labourer castes such as Musahars, Dusadhs, Tatmas and sometimes Jatavs.

Agriculture was a binding factor among these three strata. But the advent of machinery and new techniques led to less dependency on labour intensive activities. This led to massive migration among the second and third categories. While the dependency of upper castes on artisans and labourers decreased, the inflow of money from cities made these two categories a bit more financially independent. Now these castes were no more completely dependent on agriculture and allied activities. But the group that bore the brunt were Yadavs, Kurmis and Koeris. These intermediary castes were agrarian in nature but were not landowners as such. They did share-cropping and thus depended both on the upper castes and the labourers.

The system was in place and the labourer castes maintained the hierarchy. While Brahmins were venerated, Bhumihars and Rajputs continued to dominate because of money and muscle power. But even this arrangement was fast approaching its expiry date. Needless to say, upper castes indulged in unspeakable atrocities and harassment. But their economic status was diminishing because of overall fall in income from agriculture and allied activities. Whereas backward castes had grown financially sound. The gap had diminished. Tensions boiled over.

“The people who suffered the most from caste violence were agrarian labourers. They were not in a position to counter the dominance of the upper castes, or the backward castes, and never attempted to disturb the arrangement. However, they were targetted by both. Backward castes and Naxals used agrarian labourers, mostly Dusadhs and Musahars, as shields in their fight against the upper castes,” explains Prof Ramakant Thakur, a keen watcher of caste violence and dynamism in Bihar.
But things have changed. No major massacre has occurred since the Mianpur incident of 2000. But what has changed?

The fight was between upper castes and backwards. The latter used Dalits to attack the former by disturbing the social arrangement and exploiting the Dalit anger against the upper castes. However, the emboldened and financially independent backward castes started dominating and harassing Dalits. This did not go down well with Dalits and they started leaving the rank and file. It sapped the blood and iron out of the movement. On the other hand, private armies were mostly individual-centric and thus lost their bearings when their respective leaders were either arrested or gunned down.

“The major factor with Dalits was their aspiration to climb the social hierarchy, and that was achieved with economic independence. It took the steam out of the movement. And, ironically, migration was a moderating factor as youngsters started leaving state in droves,” concludes Thakur. Yadavs got new opportunity in contracts and other businesses thanks to the Lalu-Rabri regime and lost their motivation too. However, the biggest boost to the process was that fewer politicians were willing to side with one group or another. All's well that ends well.

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Cocktail of 20 chemicals in a glass of milk

2011-07-09T14:19:00.001+05:30

How safe is the glass of milk you drink daily? If a new study is to be believed, it may contain a cocktail of up to 20 chemicals used in various painkillers and antibiotics . Using a highly sensitive test, a team of Spanish and Moroccan scientists found traces of a host of chemicals in samples of cow, goat and human breast milk.

Though the doses were far too small to have an effect on anyone drinking them, the researchers said their findings highlighted how man-made chemicals are now found throughout the food chain, the Daily Mail reported. The highest quantities of medicines were found in cow milk, and the researchers believe some of the drugs and growth promoters were given to the cattle, or got into milk through cattle feed or contamination on the farm.

The team analyzed 20 samples of cow milk bought in Spain and Morocco, along with samples of goat and breast milk. Their breakdown , which is published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, revealed that cow milk contained traces of anti-inflammatory drugs niflumic acid, mefenamic acid and ketoprofen - commonly used as painkillers in animals and people. It also contained the hormone 17-beta-estradiol , a form of the sex hormone oestrogen. The hormone was detected at three millionths of a gram in every kilogramme of milk, while the highest dose of niflumic acid was less than one millionth of a gram per kilogram of milk.

The scientists, however, said their technique could be used to check safety of other types of food.

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Actor Jacqueline Fernandez forayed into Indian television

2011-06-07T11:08:00.000+05:30

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You last saw her as the adorable alien in 'Jaane Kahan Se Aayi Hai'. Actor Jacqueline Fernandez recently forayed into Indian television as a judge for wild-card entries for "Signature MTV Making the Cut 2". The Sri Lankan beauty queen, who has mesmerised people across countries, took some time out to speak with Anu Gulmohar about movies, television and more.

You’ve been quite a globetrotter – Sri Lanka, Bahrain, Australia and now India. Which place do you really feel at home?

Every place that I move to, I always make it feel like home, and I always make friends. I think that because I’ve moved around so much, I’ve been able to make every place cosy and just like home. The closest to my heart is, of course, Sri Lanka where I have all my family and cousins, but other places like Bahrain, Australia, India also have very special place in my heart.

You’ve done modelling, hosted television shows and acted in films. Which has been the most challenging of all?

Definitely movies have been the most challenging. It’s the most time consuming for one, you’re also most focussed during the shoots. I think to some extent, acting does come naturally to me because I do feel quite confident in front of the camera. But on the other hand there is a lot of work, a lot of thought that goes into it. You have to know your camera angle, your lighting. Your focus and attention is really important when it comes to acting and that’s something that needs to be worked on.

You judged wild card entries on “Signature MTV Making the Cut 2” recently. Tell us more about it. Well, in the wild card entries anyone could fill a form and participate, and two male models, two female models and two designers were picked from all the entries. It’s a fun round because usually people just apply randomly and join, so you get quite interesting people. And there have been some very good finds as well. I’ve had quite a few favourites among the participants. They’ve got a lot of potential.

Will we see you becoming a more regular celebrity on Indian television in the coming months or will it be just this one show for MTV?
I don’t know. I really enjoyed my time with MTV and "Making the Cut", and I do love television, it’s something I started off with (in Sri Lanka). Maybe I will get back to it and will do a bit more stuff on TV as well.

You will be doing a Tamil film “Mankatha”. How well do you speak Tamil? Will we see you doing more regional cinema in the future?

My father speaks Tamil, it’s a little similar to Sinhalese. It’s a little difficult to speak about “Mankatha” because the producers haven’t officially announced the project. Yes, absolutely, I will be doing more of regional cinema. Cinema is cinema, whether it is international, Hindi or Tamil. I’m pretty much open to all of them.

You’re involved with empowering underprivileged people. Tell us about the work you have been doing.
I’m a brand ambassador for Habitat for Humanity and they basically work on rehabilitating people, who need homes. It is based on a certain concept that homes are not just given but you got to work for it. So, a lot of volunteers pitch in and help people build their own homes.

In all honesty, if you weren’t a beauty pageant winner, would you still have been concerned with social issues?
Well, I’m not still competing for a crown!

Which is the best advice you’ve been given in your life?
To always remain true to yourself. I gave myself this advice!

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The Kerala high court has called the bluff of aided and government schools in the state,

2011-06-03T10:42:00.000+05:30

which have, for decades, been fleecing the exchequer by 'inflating' their student strength and hiring teachers for a price

The management and teachers of aided schools in Kerala were in for a shock on October 15. A division bench of the Kerala High Court directed the state police to enumerate the number of students in these schools and submit it to the government before the yearend. Justice C N Ramachandran Nair and Justice K Surendra Mohan passed the directive on an appeal by the Parent Teacher Association, SNV Upper Primary School, Thalikulam, Thrissur district.

The bone of contention was the staffing pattern fixed by the Director of Public Instructions’ super cell for 2008-09 in accordance with the strength of the students present in the school. During two surprise inspections, the investigation team had found that the list of 180 students studying in this school was bogus. The management approached the high court and the court ordered a police investigation. This investigation found that only 72 students of the 180 were genuine. The rest were either studying in other schools or could not be traced. The directive was based on this report.

The managements of the aided schools were caught napping. They ran helter-skelter rummaging the pages of judicial reviews and scanning the log books of state educational rules in an attempt to stymie the ramifications of this ‘judicial overreach’. There are allegations that government schools also play such tricks for maintaining the pupil strength.

To understand the domino effect of these orders that will undoubtedly upset the apple carts of the school managements that were having the cake and eating it too over the decades, one has to flip back the pages of history. It all happened in the early decades of Independence – there was a mass agitation, with teeming students at its vanguard, demanding in an unequivocal voice a uniform fee structure, whether in private or in government sector.

Eventually the crafty managements agreed provided the government pay teachers. The state government, overflowing with ideas and ideals of socialism, swallowed the bait hook, line and sinker.

From then on, the school and college managements in Kerala have had a field day. The teachers, lecturers and even the administrative staff would be appointed by the managements and the government would generously pay their salaries and even their pensions. The appointments were supposedly based purely on merit. But Mammon guided the choices. The more the merrier. The rate for a primary school teacher's post is around Rs 8 lakh!

The government treasury leaked profusely and the private managements got fatter and fatter. The family planning mission paid rich dividends as the population growth nosedived. Added to this was the new demand among parents for excellence in education and this was not something that the aided and government schools could provide. They could be provided with excellent salaries, but excellent education was not their forte.

And as the more discerning parents made a beeline for CBSE and ICSE schools, the classrooms of the aided and government schools became more and more empty. Children became the most sought after commodity. One student less would mean a fall in number of divisions. A fall in number of divisions would mean a fall in number of the teaching staff. The writing on the wall could not be ignored. Imminent shutdown stared the schools in their faces. It was obvious the division fall would affect a school's income.

And so the beginning of every academic year was a season of unabashed hunting. On the day of reckoning, the day the official from the education department rides in like a conquering general, cartloads of children, hunted and cornered from the neighbourhoods, would be lifted to fill the classrooms. That this is being done every year, in every corner of the state is an open secret. Every politician worth his salt, every administrator, and every idealist who swears by his ideals knows it. But nobody wants to touch it. For nobody wants to get their fingers burnt.

The division bench of the Kerala High Court has done exactly that. They have touched a raw nerve. It pains. It bleeds. Paid pundits and vocal mercenaries are screaming at their shrillest. They have to, for it is a question of their very existence. As Santhosh Nair, a school teacher from mid-Travancore, said succinctly, “It is a question of social justice. The managements will definitely move the Supreme Court if need be.”

To be fair to the inquisitors, who demonised the directive, Kerala policemen are no Bobbys from London. Steeped in corruption, nepotism and brutality, the state police today is a symbol of terror. Nexus with criminals, mafia dons, torture and custodial deaths are its hallmarks. And to top it all is their abject subservience to their political masters.

Kerala Educational Rules do not allow the police to enter a school. The state, through a legislation, made it clear that without the request of an institution head no police official can enter a campus.

The state home minister said that it is not possible for the police to do the job. He said the government will consult the education ministry and find a way and will consider the possibility of approaching higher courts if needed.

But this police image is conveniently used to demolish the raison d’etre of the judicial pronouncement. Education minister M.A. Baby was very circumspect when he said the state government accepts the judicial directive. He said the government was aware of the shortcomings in the Kerala Educational Rules which were being exploited by the managements.

The state government, along with the central government, is planning to introduce identity cards based on biometric parameters for children between the ages of one and 18. This, he hoped, would end the menace of duplicating students.

The High Court has done what the government would not dare to. The days of duplicating students and bogus attendance sheets are now numbered. It is no use crying foul against private unaided schools that are brimming with students. The managements and teachers should put their heads together and come out with credible alternatives to bring the students back to their folds.

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The Congress party is still searching for inroads in Gujarat as Narendra Modi consolidates his position with victories

2011-05-30T11:29:00.003+05:30

IIPM Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri on Internet Hooliganism

Modi delivers a right hook

On October 12, the Gujarat Congress was dealt a severe blow by the BJP with chief minister Narendra Modi's party sweeping elections to six municipal corporations.

After the civic poll results were announced, a pall of gloom descended on the GPCC headquarters in Ahmedabad. The party office wore a deserted look for two days.

Modi has been in the saddle since 2001. Nearly a decade on, he seems to have all but decimated the 130-year-old national party in Gujarat.

Unlike in the civic polls of 2005, the Congress did not even reach the halfway mark this time around. BJP wrested all the six municipal boards with a thumping majority. The ruling BJP maintained its winning streak in the panchayat and other civic polls held on October 23. Elections were held for 24 district panchayats, 208 taluka panchayats and 53 municipalities. Out of the 24 district panchayats, the BJP won a clear majority in 21 while the Congress got a majority only in Gandhinagar and Tapi districts.

Out of the 208 taluka panchayats, BJP won 123 and Congress 30. BJP won 42 of the 53 nagar palikas against Congress' meagre tally of 4. In the three taluka panchayats, the verdict was fractured.

It was clear that 'Modi magic' still works in Gujarat despite the many controversies that surround him, not the least of which involves his lieutenant and former state home minister Amit Shah.

Congress attributed Modi's victory to an alleged manipulation of the electronic voting machines. The party claimed that the elections had been rigged and the EVMs had been tampered with.

At a press conference held in Ahmedabad, former chief minister and Congress leader Shaktisinh Vaghela alleged, “The former officer on special duty in the chief minister’s office was responsible for manipulation. The EVMs were controlled by the CM's office.”

Vaghela wondered how on polling day, the vote percentage that stood at 25 per cent at 4 pm jumped to 44 per cent in the last hour. Interestingly, when a section of BJP leaders talked about EVM rigging in the 2009 Lok Sabha polls, the Congress leadership had described the allegation as an insult to democracy.

In a role reversal of sorts, BJP has now lashed out at Congress for its criticism of the EVMs in context of the Gujarat civic polls. BJP spokesperson Nirmala Sitharaman said, “After being totally wiped out in the civic body elections as well as panchayat polls in Gujarat, Congress is now trying to put the blame on EVMs. They should instead introspect on why the people did not vote for them.”

The writing is indeed on the wall for Gujarat Congress. After the exit of late chief minister Chimanbhai Patel, the state Congress doesn’t have a leader with mass appeal. Various factions in the party are only interested in serving their own narrow interests.

This factionalism was seen in the ticket distribution before the polls. Various local Congress establishments were attacked by the party's own volunteers. Many official candidates found the pitch queered by rebellion within the ranks.

In contrast, Modi had begun preparations two years ahead of the municipal and panchayat elections. While the chief minister went about cementing his hold over the people, Congress played the blame game and accused Modi of “misusing” central aid and projects to increase his own popularity among the electorate.

Modi, on the other hand, tried to win over the common man by initiating many popular schemes like Gunotsav, Garib Kalyan Mela, Kanya Kenavani Mela, Ranotsav, Patang Mahotsav, Vanche Gujarat and Vibrant Navratri. Critics say that he is wasting public money on these shows but results have demonstrated the efficacy of his strategy.
Recently, the UPA government declared Gujarat as No.1 in implementing the 20-point programme. Whether it is the central plan or the state’s own projects, Modi has succeeded in implementing them all. His PR department is so strong that it never fails to publicise any achievement of Modi's.

After winning the civic polls, Modi asked partymen to start preparations for the next Assembly elections scheduled in 2012. The Congress leadership in the state is still unsure of the road ahead. Modi’s development plank has proved effective in neutralising issues like the Gujarat riots and Sohrabuddin Shaikh fake encounter case.

BJP and RSS accept that Gujarat is their laboratory and the first Hindutva experiment was carried out in this prosperous state. Up to the 2007 Assembly elections, Hindutva was an important poll issue but after that they realised that if the BJP wants complete majority then it should woo the minorities too. Modi proved this truism in these elections.

It was for the first time after the 1998 attacks on Christians in Dangs that Modi allotted tickets to Christians in the heartland of Shabari Kumbh. Muslims were also given BJP tickets. Christians accepted Modi’s call and all five BJP Christian candidates from Dangs were elected.

After two days of halla bol, Congress is silent now. Will the party reinvent itself to upstage Modi?

GPCC president Siddharth Patel, who resigned after the debacle, told the media that the EVMs were purchased by the Gujarat government five years back from a firm in Hyderabad and that these machines were outdated. “These days when one can manipulate another person’s mobile phone using bluetooth, how can EVMs be tamper-proof?” asked Vaghela, demanding that the Gujarat government should order a thorough and independent inquiry into the entire question of acquiring and employing the electronic voting machines in the recent elections.

After the thumping victory in the Gujarat civics polls, the BJP has done a complete volte-face on the EVMs issue after having consistently campaigned against the use of these voting machines since the last Lok Sabha elections. But, quite clearly, Modi's victory in the municipal and panchayat elections this time around is above board. It is the undeniable charisma of the man, not any covert manipulation of the machine in question, that has triumphed for the saffron camp in Gujarat.

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How a young Indian leader was sculpted

2011-05-26T11:22:00.001+05:30

IIPM Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri on Internet Hooliganism

Sudarsan Pattnaik, winner of several sand sculpture championships, speaks to Anu Gulmohar about his solitary struggles and how his passion for art translated on the only freely available canvas...

Once upon a time there was a little boy who used to live very close to the Golden Sea Beach at Puri, Orissa. His family struggled to make both ends meet and when he was about ten years old he had no choice but to quit school and begin working at his neighbour’s home. At the break of dawn, the boy would go to the beach and do what he enjoyed the most – making sand sculptures – and would then head for work. Slowly, he got better and better at his craft, and people at the beach started noticing. They encouraged him and told him how good his sculptures were. In time he went on to draw attention of the media and eventually word got around of his art. He was invited to participate in an international sand sculpting championship. Now 33 years old, I met Sudarsan Pattnaik on October 25, 2010, the day he was to be honoured for being a Young Indian Leader by Network 18 and presented with a trophy made by Swarovski Elements. The glittering crystals of the shades of our national flag – saffron, white and green – on the trophy symbolised how he was truly our country’s pride.

Besides representing India in over 40 championships and winning several of them, Sudarsan was also the Winner of the World Championship of Sand Sculpting in 2008. “Sand sculpture was an art which did not require any investment. The sand at the beach was the natural canvas,” said Sudarsan. The journey from being just another pebble on the beach to the star of the evening hasn’t been an easy one for him. Even after being noticed and invited for a championship in America, troubles were far from over for him. “I tried to go there but it was very difficult for me because of my monetary constraints. At that time the cost of the tickets was about Rs 40,000. I tried to collect money from several people, whatever little they could contribute – Rs 100, Rs 20 or Rs 10. I managed to collect the sum I needed but when I went to the US Consulate, they refused to give me a Visa as I didn’t have a house or any bank balance. The first time I was able to travel to another country was to UK where we held a demonstration in London’s World Travel Market.” And Sudarsan never looked back since. Last month, he was in the US and bagged three prestigious awards at the North American Championship. This year he also won the People’s Choice Award at the International Sand Sculpture Festival in Berlin and at the CNE 1st International Sand Sculpting Competition held in Canada. He also received a Gold Medal at the Moscow World Sand Sculpture Championship. “I have won the maximum people’s choice awards in the world,” claims a proud Sudarsan.

What makes this naturally talented sand sculptor’s work stand out are the subjects that he picks. “As an artist I thought that either we can just participate in championships or we can use our art to convey important messages. I decided that we should do something more with this art, for the society. So I started creating issue-based sand sculptures. For example, after the tsunami, I had created a sculpture urging the world to help the tsunami victims. This also helped our art form reach out to many more people. Even at championships I pick up topical issues. When I won the World Championship my subject was Climate Change; in the championship I participated last month in the US, my topic was the recent Oil Spill.”

Having made India proud at international championships so many times, one would expect Sudarsan Pattnaik’s name to be on everybody’s lips, but sadly that is not the case as yet. He does receive congratulatory messages from the President and has been felicitated in person in 2005 by the then President APJ Abdul Kalam and in 2008 by the then Minister of Culture and Tourism Ambika Soni, but no other support has come his way. “In our country an artist does not receive enough support. If this was not sand art but sand sport, we might have received some more support! When my international colleagues win championships, they receive sponsorships but in my country I haven’t had such luck as yet,” he laments.

Fifteen years ago, he started the Sudarsan Sand Art Institute. Today, he has students from all over the world, though monetary constraints haven’t allowed him to set up proper infrastructure as yet. “I hope that this art of sand sculpture becomes more popular and more sand artists come around. I wish to create a sand sculpture park along the lines of Rock Garden in Chandigarh, where students could learn the art and tourists could view the sculptures. It would be the world’s first sand art park. This is a desire that I have, but so far I haven’t been able to even get the land that this project would require. But one needs to keep trying,” he says calmly. And as he keeps trying to make his sand castles in the air a reality, ever so often he gets a pat on the back when the world honours him with titles such as ‘Young Indian Leader’. Come high tide or low, let’s hope Sudarsan Pattnaik is able to sculpt his future according to his designs.

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The largest organised Christian group in the country, the catholic church has to choose between the Vatican and India

2011-05-23T12:11:00.003+05:30

its future depends on the choice it makes today

The atmosphere is heavy, the mood solemn, the occasion pious. You can hear the humming strains of the 'Om' chant. A priest, wearing a rudraksha with a chandan tilak on his forehead is in a state of meditation. A coconut is placed before an idol. A diya illuminates the sacred gathering. The place of worship is a church, the idol is that of Virgin Mary and the priest a reverend. The point is not to be surprised but to take note of Indianisation of the Church.

The Church is trying to reinvent itself and it is trying to come close to local customs and culture. 'Om' is no longer a patent of Hindu spiritualism. Christian priests have embraced it with an open heart. You will find various churches in different parts of country who don't ask the bride and the groom to kiss each other at their wedding. Instead, the bride wears a mangalsutra around her neck and the church itself looks more like a Hindu temple.

John Dayal, secretary general, All India Christian Council, explains the phenomenon to TSI: “When Christian missionaries came to India (precisely during St. Thomas' arrival in the country in the 4th century A.D.), the Christianity they propagated was more in tune with the Christian faith in Turkey and Ethiopia. Their Christ and Mary were conceptually different from those of Europe. The European brand of Christianity arrived in India with the Portuguese explorer Vasco De Gama. Another important issue is thatr of 'inculturation'. The Indian people fall into several castes and sub-castes. Regional variations are also present. In order to spread the faith, it was necessary to accept this reality of India. This perhaps explains why Christmas is celebrated in Jorhat is an entirely different manner than in Goa or Tamil Nadu,” he comments.

Catholic Christian ashrams and priests who adopted Hindu customs and rituals have become so popular in Narsinghpur district of Madhya Pradesh that about a decade back, local Hindu organisations publicly felicitated the Christian priests. In the last two decades, many such Catholic Churches have been established. Patrick D'Souza, a bishop in one such church in Varanasi, says: “We want to show that we are not different. And rather, we are very much a part of the vibrant local traditions of Varanasi.”

However, early attempts at bringing in Hindu and Indian customs and traditions into the Church were random in nature. However, this process got organised after the Second Vatican Council meeting in 1965. What was a haphazard experiment has now become a deliberate strategy. John Dayal says, “This Vatican Council liberated the Church from the tyranny of Italian culture.” In South India, there are many churches which are built according to the Gopuram architectural style. Priests there wear angvastram and not robes.

Problems started surfacing when a certain section of the Catholic clergy went so far as to resorting to Hindu literature, astrology and palmistry. Jesus was portrayed as a Brahmin with the sacred thread which raised conservative Christian eyebrows. Dalit Christians tried to portray many Hindu characters from the Shastras and the Puranas as Biblical characters. This infuriated purists in the religion.

This growing influence of Hinduism has a section of Christians worried. In Nagaland, Mizoram and Meghalaya where the Baptist Church is dominant, people are not in favour of this growing Hinduisation of Christianity. Protestants are particularly vocal against this trend. “To a certain extent, Indianisation is acceptable as long as it is not at odds with the fundamentals of Christianity. But if Jesus wears the Brahmin's sacred thread, I will oppose it,” says John Dayal.

Dalit Christian leader R.L. Francis terms this process as a gimmick to fool people. He tells TSI, “The Church should be desi from the soul and it should not be confined to mere symbolism. Instead, it should go for structural changes in its administration. The Church should not be dependent on the Vatican for election of bishops. They should be elected by the community people.”

A former member of the National Minority Commission, James Massi, is against Brahminisation of the Church in the name of Indianisation. Dalit Christians fear that if the Church tilts towards Brahminism, they will have to look for other options. It is not that the Church is unaware of these critical issues. Babu Joseph, spokesperson of the Catholic Bishop Conference of India, tells TSI, “I agree with these observations. However, if the Church has to grow in North India, these things cannot be avoided.”

The process of inculturation is not completely new. The credit should go to Robert De Nobili three centuries ago. Upon his arrival in India, he soon realised that it would be very difficult to convert Indians into Christians as the Hindu society was divided and subdivided into various castes. He started living like a Brahmin and studied the Vedas to interpret Christianity in an Indian way. He convinced 1 lakh Hindus to convert. He even portrayed the Bible as the Fifth Veda. However, after his death and the subsequent advent of the Portuguese, these experiments were abandoned by the Catholic Church. “This is when the Roman and Gothic-style churches came into existence. These styles were totally alien to local people. This hampered the spread of Christianity in the country. So suddenly, the De Nobili way has become fashionable, more than 300 years after they were introduced.

The Catholic clergy, now, at least accept that inculturation has a profound meaning while evangelisation has a wider meaning. “Now, they have realised that insistence on the European-style of Christianity will only create aversion in the minds of common people. People also did not like the blatant criticism of Hinduism by the missionaries,” explains John Dayal.

However, those who converted into Christianity in the hope of salvation and to escape the oppressive Hindu caste system have become suspicious of the designs of the Church. R. L Francis terms this as a situation of utter confusion. The general Hindu reaction to inculturation has been quite restrained in accordance with the Hindu philosophy of 'Sarvadharmasambhava'. However, right-wing leaders such as Acharya Giriraj Kishore have expressed concern that this will create more confusion in the minds of the illiterate and poor people.

The Catholic Church in the country is at a strange crossroads where it has to choose between the Vatican and India. Its future depends much on the choice it makes today.

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What Would Bapu (Mahatma Gandhi) Have Done

2011-04-30T10:13:00.000+05:30

IIPM Marches Ahead in B-School Rankings...

Tushar Gandhi imagines what the Mahatma's reaction would have been to the conflicts that continue to sear the country

India today has become a bubbling cauldron of conflicts– economic, communal, caste based and gender specific. What would Bapu have done if he was living in India today? For the last fortnight India has been on the edge, the Babri Masjid judgment is awaited and dreaded. What would Bapu have done about the Babri Masjid issue?

Economic disparity in our country has become institutionalised. Our economic progress is no longer calculated on the basis of how many Indians eat two square meals a day, it is based on the speculative and manipulated Bombay Stock Exchange’s Sensex. This story repeats itself in the interior states where a fancy term– ‘Red Corridor’– is coined to explain away the growth and expansion of the anarchist influence of the Marxist-Maoist brigades. What would Bapu have done in the Red Corridor?

In Kashmir which has endured cyclic and frequent flare ups, the unholy mess has become a big opportunity for profiteering for all forces involved. Honestly, no one cares for a resolution. The poor Kashmiri suffers but no one is bothered about their suffering. When, however misguided they may be, Kashmiri youth vent their frustration and anger by pelting stones, the Indian paramilitary and military forces open fire on them and always fire to kill. How are they then to believe that they are Indians? What would Bapu have done if he was living in Kashmir? Bapu believed in non-violence but he believed more in truth. In all the conflicts enumerated above, one has to first discover the truth– not the truth espoused by the adversaries, but the absolute, everlasting and dispassionate truth! Only then will non-violence become effective.

Yes I am certain that if Bapu was faced with the conflicts of this world or the conflicts afflicting his beloved motherland he would have dealt with them with the twin weapons of truth and non-violence. His would have been a lasting solution, not a remedy good enough only till the next bout of conflict erupted and consumed humanity.

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Of War and Peace: Mandela Master of all he surveyed

2011-04-26T10:55:00.002+05:30

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Professor Tom Lodge discusses Mandela's role in leading South Africa to democracy and in helping to build an inclusive nation

The Mandela government succeeded in reforming public finance, widening the scope of welfare programmes, and encouraging economic revival. The key to South Africa’s democratic transition was Mandela’s ability to convince the white South Africans that he and his followers acknowledged them as fellow citizens. He was helped by the ANC’s long history of "multi-racial" alliances and its inclusion of whites in its own ranks. Even with this background, he had to work hard to build trust across old historical divisions. He had to win over his own side too, for white South Africans needed to be induced into democracy through the promise of coalition government and legal protections for their property– compromises that were very unpopular amongst ANC rank and file. Here Mandela’s consensual style of leadership was indispensable. During a lengthy period of negotiations the ANC itself underwent important transformations as previous hardliners under Mandela’s influence became pragmatists. Mandela’s own personal stature was also critical in winning external support for the ANC so that after 1994 the new government enjoyed widespread international admiration. Most important of all, in governing South Africa, Mandela projected warmth and compassion, reducing his former adversaries, as one commentary noted, to a state of "charismatic bewilderment".

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Whoever said man is an animal wasn't too far off the mark

2011-04-22T10:42:00.002+05:30

As if eating them, and using them as beasts of burden wasn't enough, animals have also to put up with the sexual debauchery of some. Spriha Srivastava, on what constitutes bestiality'

Not too long ago, a farm near Enumclaw in Washington was frequented by many, looking to take their pick of animals. Except, the animals were not chosen with an intention to domesticate or keep as pets; they were picked to be used as sex objects! The farm was an animal brothel where people would pay to have sex with non-human species, until 2005 when a man lost his life on being sodomized by a horse. The death of a human led the State of Washington to make bestiality illegal. One is, however, left to wonder what zoophilia, or sex with animals, does to the animal in question.

Depiction of sexual intercourse with animals can be seen in the sculptures of Khajuraho temples and also find mention in certain ancient scriptures as well, which, some say, are proofs of zoophilia being common practice in those days. Does that make it acceptable? Let it be known that zoophilia is an offence (considered unnatural sex punishable under section 377 of IPC) because it has the same implications as that of sexual assault on fellow humans.

The 26th National Conference of Sexology, recently held in Chennai, tackled the issue of bestiality which is rare in India, though sporadic cases aren't uncommon. Almost a year back, a Mumbai-based taxi driver was charged under section 377 and was slapped with Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act for having sexual intercourse with a female stray dog. The Conference brought forth other similar incidents including young boys in rural south India having sex with buffaloes, men seeking sex of stallions, and women tutoring dogs for intercourse. Dr Narayan Reddy, Consultant ' Sexual Medicine, and Chairperson of Council of Sex Education and Parenthood International, elaborated on this issue. 'Research is still being done which makes it difficult to mention the exact cause for bestiality, but a person's upbringing and the environment around him is the cause of such practices. People who lived in farms surrounded by animals found sex with animals a way for sexual release.' He mentioned a case that was brought to him where a man could not have sex with his wife because he'd spent his life with animals in the village and only sexual intercourse with animals stimulated him. He'd tried intercourse with buffaloes and that alone gave him pleasure. 'The atmosphere that one lives in plays a major role in shaping such an orientation and can eventually end up becoming serious medical cases, like that of this man,' mentioned Dr Reddy. Bestiality, being rare, hasn't allowed much experiment with its treatment either. Dr Reddy explained that interspecies sex can't lead to reproduction. It's only sexual satisfaction that one's looking for in such cases. 'It's a psychological disorder and the person, firstly, has to be willing to undergo the treatment. Then, he has to be put on medicines and psychotherapy, and it often takes years to be treated. Such cases are similar to that of paedophilia. Paedophiles are sexually attracted to children and zoophiles are sexually attracted to animals,' he said.

Indeed, zoophilia can be found to be as condemnable as sex with minors, or say, violating a mentally challenged person. For in all these cases, the subject is least in a position to protest and/or demand justice. 'When animals are forced to behave how they would not naturally, it is done through physical force causing the animal immense pain, bewilderment and distress,' says Poorva Joshipura, Chief Functionary, PETA India. 'Animal abusers are cowards who take their frustration out on the most defenceless beings available to them. Because animals cannot tell anyone what happened, they become victims of heinous acts of abuse. People who engage in bestiality or any form of cruelty to animals need immediate psychiatric counselling or jail,' she reiterated. Besides the aforementioned psychological problems and issues of animal abuse, sex with animals also has health hazards attached to it. A person is likely to develop infections even on casual contact with animals, but zoonoses (infections transmitted from animals to humans) like Malta fever, leptospirosis or Weil's disease, toxocariasis and Q fever are readily contracted on contact with semen, vaginal fluids, blood, saliva, faeces or urine of animals.

For the sake of argument, one could point out that dogs at times display overzealous antics like clambering on to our legs, or can be seen 'doing it' to the pillow, but is that a sign of consent for the act? No, just like a minor's 'consent' is invalid. Besides, being sexually attracted to another specie is the highest form of heinous hedonism that there was. What would you say of a person who gratifies his sexual needs by imposing his dominance over an animal, just because it's an easy and available option? Such a person is capable of inflicting the same cruelty on, perhaps, people weaker than him. Dr Narayan Reddy agrees that people with such a psychological orientation have higher likelihood of turning into rapists and killers.

Sex in human society is, theoretically at least, the culmination of physical and emotional closeness (yes, gay sex too), apart from being intended as a tool for procreation. Bestiality debases it, and makes it, well, animal'

The article is sourced from The Sunday Indian.

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Plainspeak - Times they are a-changin'

2011-04-19T14:36:00.003+05:30

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Society is changing fast and so are sex norms, the effects will be telling and drastic

Satya Mitra Dubey
Senior sociologist and socio-political analyst

The relationship between a man and a woman is the foundation of the family and the society. Sex and love are the major binding factors behind human relationships. In different historical, social and cultural contexts, the human genius has tried to evolve codes and institutions to regulate sexual behaviour. Among the codes, the important methods are customs, traditions, mores, religious prescriptions and law. Among the institutions, the most significant are marriage, family, community and state.

In the light of academic discussion, according to classical Marxism, sex regulations through family and marriage are related to property relationship. In Freud's psychoanalysis, libido is the potent driving force behind human actions and creativity. The idea of sin associated with sex is the outcome of the growing ideological impact of organised religions. Most tribal communities across the world do not have a sense of guilt towards sex unless they have come in contact with the big religions. In traditional Indian society, there was equal emphasis on Dharma, Artha, Kama and Mokshha. The Indian sage, Vatsayan, wrote Kamasutra. In several Hindu temples, vivid sex scenes are depicted with reverence. But a clear distinction between healthy and unhealthy sex has to be kept in mind.

Sociologists, while considering issues about sex, do not only consider the biological aspect. In sociological perspective, there are four aspects of sex: biological sex related to love making, getting sexual gratification, pregnancy, birth, procreation; gender division related to the male and the female; gender ideals related to dress, make-up, behavioural patterns for the male and the female; and finally, sex roles such as raising children, cooking and housekeeping for women and working, earning and supporting the family for male in a male-dominated society.

There has been a tremendous change in all the four areas of sex relationship over the last two centuries. The process of industrialisation, urbanisation, large-scale migration, education, liberal political ideology and medical research, brought about a change in perceptions of sex and relationship in the western society. At that stage, the hold of traditions and religion was still strong. So, sexual freedom was still looked down upon, it was considered as permissiveness in spite of the fact that the ratio of women in factories and in the job market was gradually increasing. Political radicalism, growing education among women, large scale death of male soldiers, destructions of material and normative roots during the two World Wars, growing influence of films in the first part of the 20th century transformed the nature of men-women relationships all over the world. But its maximum impact was felt in the western world. The rural, peasant and agricultural societies of Asia continued to cling to customs and religious beliefs where talks about sex were a taboo. The second part of the 20th century brought about radical transformation in the nature and perception of sexual relationships. The feminist movement, emancipation of women, concept of sexual freedom, change in job market, large scale urbanisation, declining hold of customs and religion, open availability of different types of contraceptives, sex toys, market forces and globalisation have accelerated the process of sexual freedom. Sexual freedom is visible in the form of open sexuality, live-in relationships, one night stands, call girl rackets, increased pre-marital and post-marital permissiveness in sexual relationships, increasing rate of divorces and abortions. Even in the relatively conservative societies of Asia, particularly India and China, there are clear trends of relaxation of the sex norms. Several surveys indicate that 65 to 70 per cent teenagers in these two countries are found to be sexually active and have had experience of pre-marital sex. Live-in relationships are common in metros and now they are legally approved. The same is the case with homosexuality and lesbianism. There has been a manifold increase in cases of teenage pregnancies, abortions and divorce cases.

Society is changing fast and so are sex norms. They are affecting the structure and functioning of the society. Alarming cracks are visible in the institutions of marriage. As a result, a large number of educated, well-placed young men and women prefer to remain single. The romantic, idealistic concept of love is turning into mundane, unstable, mechanical sex relationship. The act of sex has become so open that it is leading to aversion and frigidity. Family bonds have weakened. Millions of poor rural migrants in the growing economies of India and China live a life of isolation from their wife, children and family in the slums of Delhi-Mumbai and Beijing-Shanghai. They are visiting red light areas and having promiscuous relations. This is leading to the spread of sexually transmitted diseases and AIDS. Social planners and sociologists need to pick their brains as to how to create a healthy society with a healthy approach towards sexuality.

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India will not be a superpower but it won't collapse either

2011-03-20T10:17:00.000+05:30

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Bangalore-based historian and writer Ramachandra Guha spoke to TSI's Satish Chapparike about the many challenges that India faces. Excerpts from the interview...

Do you really think Indians lack a sense of history?

One cannot and should not make generalisations about a whole nationality: Indians are like this, foreigners are like that. But we certainly need much more historical sense. History is part of modern society. Young Indians are curious about history. May be in the past they were not. But now they are. They want to know how this country was made, the major leaders and the controversies involving the figures who created India. It is a mistake to think that we are not interested in history. If we are not interested in history, why would a 900-page book like India after Gandhi be translated in Kannada? Also in the pipeline are translations of the book in Malayalam, Tamil and other languages. I think there is a growing interest in history in India.

What about the political abuse of history in India?

That is indeed a problem. History is susceptible to abuse or misuse by political parties. Scholars must be careful in this regard. As far as Indian scholars are concerned, I think they are doing a honest and serious job. But the political parties jump in. They either want to present a one-sided interpretation or if someone comes up with book which doesn't suit them, they ban it. That is a very unhealthy atmosphere. For example, Shiv Sena threatened the author of Shivaji (James W Lane) and the Congress threatened the Spanish author who wrote a book on Sonia Gandhi (Javier Moro). But on the whole, Indians are getting increasingly curious about history. They want to understand history in greater complexity and diversity.

Do you think we got Independence at the right moment?

The important thing is that we got it. Yes, things could have been different, but we were prepared for Independence. Of course, some mistakes were made. The loss of life during Partition was extremely tragic. Perhaps the political class should have been wiser, not all, some of them. For example, the Viceroy was advised to deploy more army detachments in Punjab region; he failed to do that. So there was more violence in Punjab. Gandhiji appealed to Jinnah for peace but he refused to sign the peace deal. Some mistakes were made, but I don't think we were not prepared for Independence.

Your take on socio-economic development of India in the last six decades'

I talked about it in my book. I wrote that in India 50 per cent democracy exists. That means we have achieved 50 per cent success. We have a free press, we hold regular elections and we have stayed united as a country. Now we are a growing economy too. On the other side, there are growing inequalities, decline of the political system, environmental degradation and a great urban-rural divide. As an experiment in nation-building, India is only a modest success. The important thing in history is to recognise the gray shades, and not just the black and white. The truth is India is full of contradiction. Some parts are doing well. Others are doing terribly. Democracy in India is robust. For example, we hold this complex election in which 400-500 million people vote. It is a phenomenal exercise. We do it better than most western countries. That is very impressive. But political and other institutions are decaying.

Do you want India to become a superpower?

Not me. Some people have a kind of inferiority complex. That stems from comparison with the West. Some of us think that to overcome it we must become as strong as the US or China. Some sections of the political, media and business elite in New Delhi and the young middle class in general want India to take on the world and become a superpower. But my thinking is different. I want India to be more at peace with itself.

What about the China-India race?

The good thing is that we have put the border war behind us. In the 1950s and 1960s, after that defeat in the war, we had a huge complex about China. We said they are unreliable and that they had betrayed us. Slowly we are evolving a healthy relationship with China. But there are a few unhealthy aspects in this relationship. For one, we have not put enough conditions for the export of raw material from India to China. Not just iron ore from Karnataka, but also bauxite from Orissa and central India. Unregulated mining has wreaked havoc. Forget the corruption; think about environmental and social problems, and all these for feeding the hunger of the Chinese economy. The Chinese are destroying our environment and protecting theirs. In this respect we are very short-sighted. These are the kinds of things we have to be very careful about, not the military side. We are not going to have a war with China.

What do you make of India's disturbed neighbourhood?

The developments in Pakistan and Afghanistan will have a long-term effect on us. We live in a very unstable neighbourhood. Nepal is also highly unstable: are the Maoists there really interested in the democratic process or do they want to go back to the jungle? We don't know. Sri Lanka is just coming out of civil war. Pakistan is on the brink. We have to be very alert.

The threat of red terror is worsening by the day'

I don't like the phrase 'red terror'. These are all catchy media phrases. Again, this is a serious, complex problem and its roots lie in deprivation of the tribal population whom the government has ignored for decades. But at the same time I don't approve of the violence at all. The Maoists of India would be well advised to enter the democratic process. They have to abandon armed struggle and fight elections. If they want to change the policies, they must do so through elections and by entering the government. At the moment violence is taking a heavy toll.

Keeping these things in mind, isn't it still relevant to ask: will India survive?

I posed that question in my book because everyone thought that India will break or it will come under military rule or there will be a civil war. I have to ask, why does India survive? Why this contradiction and puzzle called India, how did it survive? I think India will stumble along. We are not going to become a superpower but neither are we ever going to collapse.

What are the future projects that you are working on?

I have just edited an anthology of 150 years of Indian political writing by personalities ranging from Raja Rammohan Roy to Jayaprakash Narayan. The most interesting thinkers of India writing about gender, caste, nationalism, language, economic policy will be in this book. Some of them are, of course well-known people like Gandhi and Nehru, while there are also lesser known thinkers like Tarabai Shinde and Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay. The book will be out in October. I am also working on a new biography of Mahatma Gandhi. It will take six to seven years to complete.
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THE EXPENDABLES: Adrenaline overdrive

2011-03-16T10:13:00.000+05:30

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TSI Five-O: Good enough if you seek a break after a series of rom coms

If you think Rocky Balboa is back with a bang in yet another avatar, you're highly mistaken! 'The Expendables' greets us with a loaded star cast, unlimited explosions and action, a few twists, some humour, a bunch of clich's and a few surprises too but still manages to barely scrape past the finishing line. It's a flick for those who are hardcore Stallone fans and would watch anything that he stars in. The action is all there but the fun is sometimes subdued due to poor camera handling. The zoom in and out is so extensive that it seems as if one is covering the action scenes live with a handy-cam. 'The Expendables' is a hard-hitting action/thriller about a group of mercenaries hired to infiltrate a South American country and overthrow its ruthless dictator. Enough reason to have A-list action stars like Jason Statham and Jet Li along with Dolph Lundgren, Terry Crews, and Randy Couture run rampant. Statham, though, takes the cake while there a couple of surprise cameos as well. It's worth a watch for those who like paying to see their heroes get bloody.

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DINNER FOR SCHMUCKS: Game for another 'Bheja Fry'

2011-03-13T10:10:00.000+05:30

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TSI Five-O: A DVD of 'Bheja Fry' would be far more entertaining

Remember 'Bheja Fry'? If you do, then 'Dinner for Schmucks' is going to feel like one long d'j' vu, and an annoying one at that. But in all fairness, 'Bheja Fry' too was entirely lifted from the 1998 French film 'The Dinner Game' ('Le d'ner de cons '). This time Paul Rudd reprises the role, previously played by Rajat Kapoor, of the corporate guy who needs to bring a dolt to a dinner organised by his boss. Steve Carrell is the schmuck who makes mice dioramas and carries their photographs with him. The difference in this film is that Tim (Paul Rudd) is not a lying, cheating guy but a nice guy going for the dinner just for the promotion. So when Barry (Steve) enters his life and begins to wreck it, you actually feel sorry for the poor chap and the moral in the story takes a back seat this time around. The script is much sillier and the jokes make you cringe more often than guffaw. 'Dinner for Schmucks' is guaranteed to deep-fry your brains.

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The Sanjay Dutt dossier

2011-03-09T16:58:00.002+05:30

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Sanjay Dutt's three decades in the Hindi film industry have been as turbulent as they have been tumultuous. In a chat with Subhash K Jha, Sanju Baba gets candid on Amar Singh, wife Maanyata and his relationship with his sisters

Sanjay, how is life treating you?

It couldn't be better. I'm happy with my marriage, career and the handful of friends I can trust. I can count them on the tips of my fingers.

What do you think about your mentor Amar Singh turning into a movie actor?

He's pretty good at whatever he does. He's quite a movie buff.

Looking back, do you think that going into politics was a mistake?

I wasn't there for politics. I was there for Amar Singh. And I'll continue to be there in whatever capacity I am required. Helping people has always been my first priority. Even when I campaigned during elections for the Samajwadi Party, I was actually looking after Amar Singh, who was not very well. I was more concerned about him than the party, while he was slogging through his illness for the party. Now see, what the party has done for him. I'm glad he has dissassociated himself from the party.

You too have been through your share of betrayals?

That's what I told Amar Singh when his party had let him down. I told him it was God sent opportunity to know who his real friends are.

Your loyalty to Amar Singh remains unchanged?

He's more of a family than a politician for me. He has always been there for me during bad times. I respect him for that. I'll stand by him unconditionally. He's much misunderstood and even his political party misused him.

How often do you meet him now?

He doesn't come to Mumbai that often. But I visit him in Delhi and Lucknow.

Your dad Sunil Dutt was a fabulous politician. Do you think politics is your cup of tea?

As I said, I did it for my brother, Amar Singh. Otherwise, politics is not my thing. Even my father was not really a politician. He wanted to help and bring about a change. When he took up an agenda, he saw it to the end. He promoted hockey in such a big way. I think he was more (of) a social worker. Politics was just a platform to achieve his means. Maybe you're right. I joined politics for emotional reasons rather than practical reasons.

Your career suffered because of politics?

Not at all. My movies, 'All The Best' did well. It came after I joined hands with Amar Singh. Although 'Blue' went over-budget.

Why don't you do a full-on action film?

I think the action movies are going through a bad phase in this country. We've to reach the level of the action which is seen in 'Iron Man' and 'Avatar'. Sadly, our cinema doesn't have an international market. I wonder why? If Chinese and Korean cinema can have a global market, why can't we? I think we need to change the way we make our movies for the global audience.

You're venturing into film production now?

Yes, we got delayed because of the recession. I don't want to make a small-budget film. My first film has to be a lavish spectacle. I think my film with David Dhawan would be the first Sanjay Dutt Production. But first let the industry recover from the recession. In my 30-year career, I've never seen such bad times in the industry.

Are you happy?

Very happy. It has been a 30-year innings. Things have changed so much in the industry. I'm lucky to have survived.

On a personal level?

Oh, I am very happy. My wife Maanyata really takes good care of me.

And your relationship with your sisters?

Perfect. Every family has its ups and downs. Our differences came into the news because we're the Dutts. Every household has its fights. But we can never be apart. We're the same blood.

What about a baby?

Maanyata and I really want to have a child. Let's see.

Anything else that you really want?

All I want is my freedom. I just need that one line from the law, 'You're free'. Every day I pray to be free. Otherwise everything is fine, I've started working out. And I am back in shape. I don't drink at all.

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KNIGHT AND DAY: A cruise caper

2011-01-29T21:53:00.001+05:30

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TSI Five-O: A slick action comedy that juggles panache and fun

Just like salt and pepper, 'Knight and Day' packs a punch this summer for gals drooling over Tom Cruise and guys eager to see Cameron Diaz slip into a bright red bikini. Although a spoiler alert says that the duo looks seasoned (read 'Old'), they still do have a few good moments. Undoubtedly, these once-upon-a-time heartthrobs are good actors, but to pull off something so action packed with extreme stunts doesn't speak much about the perception that the director, James Mangold, has of his audience. Thankfully, the movie is breezy.

Roy Miller (Cruise) is a secret agent safeguarding a tiny battery, apparently with enormous potential. While being chased by all the investigation agencies and a notorious arms dealer, Roy runs into June (Diaz) at the airport and hopes she doesn't join him in the flight, as he expects 'wrong' company. As fate has it, June takes the flight with him and gets caught amidst utter confusion. How Roy protects the battery, Simon (the scientist who made the battery) and June is an interesting series of events. With a hint of comedy in the action sequences and a tinge of typical Tom Cruise stunts (especially when he's the man on the run), this action-comedy makes the mission fun and possible. Cruise and Diaz share some good banter, but nothing that really crackles or sizzles. Still, as a summer film, 'Knight and Day' has just about enough juice to give you a kick.

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Dancing into the twilight

2011-01-25T10:51:00.001+05:30

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Still adding generous amounts of flavour to the industry with every new film of his,Mithun Chakraborty reminisces about his sweet memories and sour moments of the past, and shares his dreams for tomorrow with TSI's Anu Gulmohar.

'Don't give up and your dreams will come true' is the message of 'Shukno Lanka', Mithun Chakraborty's latest film. As I entered the smoke-filled room and sat down beside the one-time one-man industry, I looked at his tired eyes that patiently looked at me waiting for the questions to fly. I wondered of the several dreams that those eyes have seen come true in his life. Here was someone who had been associated with the Naxalite movement in its nascent years and later at much risk to his own life had moved away from it and entered the Mumbai film industry. For several films he was merely a part of the crowd; with 'Do Anjaane' he finally got the opportunity to speak a dialogue, and with the very first lead role that he bagged in Mrinal Sen's 'Mrigaya', he also took away the National Award for Best Actor! Thus having risen from the ranks of a junior artist, Mithun found resonance in his character in 'Shukno Lanka', in which he plays Chinu Nandy, a struggling middle-aged junior artist who dreams of one day being able to add such flavour to films as dry red chillies do to a curry. 'If you've seen the movie, my struggle was worse than that,' said Mithun. 'I think it was much harsher, much more humiliating. 'Shukno Lanka' is a film about a dream. Everybody has a dream, whether he is a junior artist or a cart puller or the chairman of a corporate firm. Just don't divert from your dreams. Hold on to your dreams, and one day you will see the dreams coming true.' He said this with the conviction that could shame a motivational speaker, and I couldn't help but wonder if his belief in the theme of the film stemmed from his personal journey.

After he hit gold with a National Award for his very first major role, the superstar status was bestowed on him some years later with films like 'Disco Dancer' that won him lakhs of fans. Fans, who interestingly, were not limited to Indian borders. At the premiere of this film in Delhi, two ladies who I concluded to be from Russia, desperately tried to catch his attention. Alas, the paparazzi didn't allow them to meet their hero. How did he come to be loved so by people in Russia? 'Even I ask the same question!' exclaimed Mithun. 'I always thought my fans today would be about 40-45 years old, but now I see even 20-year-old girls are also my fans. I think their mothers would have passed on the legacy to their daughters saying, "If you have to love a man, he should be like this man!" It is not Russia only. If you take a tour to Japan, Africa, China and other parts of Asia, the fans are so maddening even there! Once I went to Tanzania, and people knew that I am coming, and so at the airport, I could only see heads, heads and heads! I cannot describe the scene to you in words. But in Russia, they worship me' that's the difference. People learn Hindi, they save money hoping that one day they will come to India and meet me. It's terrific, and I can't believe it myself!' Mithun began to tower over everyone else in Bollywood in the '80s and comparisons with Amitabh Bachchan became common. Mithun modestly doesn't think much of it. 'I was considered as the poor man's Amitabh Bachchan!' he laughs. 'People thought that I was as good as Amitabh Bachchan, and when they could not afford Amitabh Bachchan, they figured that their best bet was Mithun Chakraborty, who could make them as much money but with lesser stakes involved!' Parallel to his Bollywood films, he's continued to invest his time and effort in arthouse cinema and also Bengali films. 'I don't categorise between art and commercial films; a film is a film. The film that satisfies my heart is a film like 'Shukno Lanka', the film I do for a lot of money satisfies my needs. If I had only been doing meaningful cinema, then I would have been hungry and struggling till today,' says Mithun and I couldn't keep from not raising my eyebrows when he went on to say, 'When I see money, I don't hear the script.' Perhaps people who've seen so much and overcome so much, feel little need to mince words. It was at this point that more than his height, stature or star power, his blatant honesty bowled me over. In the last year or so most of us television viewers have been watching Mithun as the Grand Judge on the show 'Dance India Dance.' Just like the world got up and praised him for his incredible dance moves, he is now seen saluting the young talent. 'Hrithik is a terrific dancer, no doubt about it. Even Shahid dances very well. Though if I had entered films now, I would have beaten them!' laughed Mithun. 'I think my son Mimoh is a magical dancer.' Also an hotelier, Mithun owns the Monarch Group. Has he ever considered opening a dance school? 'Maybe I will tomorrow'but I would rather set-up a complete acting institute all over the country. Whatever I have received, I would like to pass it on ahead. But it would definitely mean business; I don't want to open a charitable institution. I have paid for it too, paid very heavily for it. Not with money though, but with everything else'' 'Shukno Lanka' touches the topic of immortality; I ask him if he would like to be immortal. 'Nobody is immortal, only your deeds are immortal. If your deeds are not immortal, nobody can be immortal. If the people love my deeds and actions, I will be immortal,' replied Mithun.

The man who made pelvic thrusts the de rigueur in Bollywood, the actor who has worked in films of all themes and budgets, and the man who is loved by people across generations ' we think going by his definition, Mithunda, as the world endearingly addresses him, will be immortal.

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MILENGE MILENGE: Destined for doom

2011-01-22T16:47:00.002+05:30

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TSI Five-O: Serendipity is the only way you'd wind up watching it!

An afternoon newspaper carried a story on how Shahid Kapoor decided to skip his film 'Milenge Milenge' to watch the latest Tom Cruise flick instead. Well, let's just say you cannot blame Shahid for not having the guts to face up the appalling piece of work that is his latest (dud) rom com. 'Milenge Milenge' is so old that Shahid and Kareena used to be an item when it was filming and 'size zero' had not entered the Kapoor lass's lexicon.

Apart from the stretched story ('Serendipity' is the Hollywood flick from where it liberally borrows, but making fate and coincidences look ridiculous has always been a Bollywood specialty), wooden acting and hum drum music, viewers will have a tough time connecting with a couple whose dynamics off-screen have changed so dramatically from the time the movie is set in. And so has the world. The recycled jokes and dated gags only make the script sag further rather than lifting it up. We have Kareena Kapoor as Priya, who finds out from a tarot card reader that she'll find the love of her life at a particular place on a particular day in the form of a person who's wearing a particular set of clothes. Immy (Shahid Kapoor) happens to be person and Priya is convinced they are meant to be together. What follows is a fairly weak and predictable script and whatever you make of the 'Shahid-Kareena back again' hype, the couple cannot save the film from realising its destiny of being a disaster.

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On the burning smell of molten rubber!

2011-01-17T09:25:00.001+05:30

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Indian tyre manufacturers have been facing a situation of squeezing margins and rising input costs for the past many months now. Moreover, the rising imports from the Chinese markets have added to the griefs of the domestic players.

With the market leader Maruti Suzuki crossing the one million unit sales mark in the fiscal, almost every other company operating in the automobile sphere was in a party mode. Moreover, the first two months of 2010 have been certainly much better than expected by the industry watchers. With the industry growing by over 25% in April and May 2010, the unit sales have also amazed many auto majors present in the country. However, amidst the exciting environment, the industry faces a huge challenge in the form of acute shortage of components, resulting in a notional loss for the autocos.

The tyre industry in particular has been caught on the wrong foot as it is already operating under severe pressure. Notably, the price of natural rubber has grown by leaps and bounds in the past couple of months. The domestic tyre manufacturers have already announced a hike of around 2-4% for the past couple of months in the aftermarket sales bowing to the rising input costs. With the rising threats for the domestic manufacturers in the form of cheap imports from China, TSI attempts a sneak peek into the future for the Rs.300 billion Indian tyre industry.

The price of natural rubber has almost doubled to Rs.170/kg from Rs.90/kg over the past 12 months. And being a commodity that contributes to over 40% in the manufacturing process, it is certainly taking a toll on the tyre manufacturers. Moreover, coupled with other commodities i.e. the crude-based products like nylon, carbon black and certain other chemicals that are used in the manufacturing process, the costs have risen in the range of 20-25% over the last one year. 'As the input cost is rising and is not in our control, we are forced to raise our prices,' says A. S. Mehta, Marketing Director, JK Tyres. In fact, as the pressure from the end of OEMs is very high, the tyre manufacturers have now decided to make it up from selling high in the aftermarket. 'Keeping in mind the high level of competition in the Indian passenger car market, tyre manufacturers are left with no other option than to raise their prices in the aftermarket,' said Abdul Majeed, Leader ' Automotive Practice, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) India.

Considering the fact that close to 70-75% of the total volume of the tyre manufacturers come from the replacement market, while close to 10-12% is contributed from the OEMs and the remaining by exports, aftermarket certainly offers high margins and as well as high volumes to the tyre manufacturers. 'As the aftermarket offers better margins to the manufacturers, it is currently the focus area of the Indian companies,' said Shashank Srivastava, CGM ' Marketing, Maruti Suzuki. In fact, several auto majors are running with a huge backlog of orders on their books due to the shortage of components. Rajesh Jejurikar, Chief Executive at M&M's automotive division, says, 'The shortage of key parts has resulted in production losses in April and May.' He also pointed out the fact that the company could have sold a couple of thousand more vehicles and it is an opportunity loss for the industry. However, even the replacement market has its own challenges as the rising imports from the Chinese market are denting the profitability of the Indian companies.

Excluding the exports segment, experts peg the domestic market to be close to Rs.270 billion, while the size of the domestic truck tyre industry is expected to be close to Rs.189 billion. Notably, close to 60-70% of the Chinese truck tyres goes into the replacement market and is surely standing as a cause of concern for the domestic industry. As the Chinese tyres are selling at price points that are 20-30% lesser than those offered by the Indian manufacturers, it is posing a big threat to domestic players. 'We are in a scenario where the import duty on natural rubber stands at 20% and even the duty on the import of tyres as a finished product stands at 10%, thus making it difficult for the domestic players to offer products at a competitive price as compared to the Chinese imported tyres,' adds Mehta. The Automotive Tyres Manufacturers Association (ATMA) has recently demanded a reduction of import duty on natural rubber to 7.5% from the commerce ministry, but keeping in mind the effect that it will have on domestic rubber industry, experts believe that the challenges will stay intact at least for the coming months.

However, considering the situation the Indian market is in currently, it is likely that majority of the tyre manufacturers would like to bank on the large replacement market rather than targeting OEMs for consistent volumes. According to the automotive mission plan, car and SUV annual sales are expected to surge to 3.6 million to 4 million units by the end of FY 2016 and many industry officials even consider the hurdles as a short-term challenge for the industry. 'The future of Indian automobile industry is undoubtedly very bright and factors like shortage and pressure on margins may seem as a big cause of worry but is a short-term challenge for the industry,' says Sandeep Singh, Deputy MD, Toyota Kirloskar Motors. In fact, the replacement market is also expected to be the playfield in the future as far as the tyre industry is concerned. Clearly, the bigger the automobile market will get in terms of unit sales, the more potential it will generate for the replacement market. 'Though, it is difficult to predict the movement of the natural rubber prices, it is expected that the price will soon start cooling down,' said Majeed.

However, there is a need to lower the import duty on natural rubber as it will help making the tyre manufacturers stand at par with the Chinese manufacturers. But for now, the consumer should be ready for many more hikes in the short-run as the pressure on margins is becoming a big challenge for keeping the companies afloat.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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The ULFA pulled off some bank robberies

2011-01-14T09:34:00.001+05:30

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As some people on either side of the fence try to bring ULFA to the negotiation table, the militant outfit gives the state's 'money plant' a slam-bang shake to collect more leaves

The banned militant outfit, the United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA), has been facing a serious financial crisis. To overcome the money crunch, the outlawed organisation has intensified its extortion drive and has started serving demand notes to businessmen and government employees.

The ULFA pulled off some bank robberies during its initial stages. Now it is widely reported to be extorting ransom and protection money from businessmen, bureaucrats and politicians in order to fill its coffers. In 1997, the Assam chief minister had accused Tata Tea of paying the medical bills of ULFA cultural secretary Pranati Deka in Mumbai.

Early this month, the general manager of the Luit tea estate in Tinsukia district of Upper Assam received a demand note from the organisation. The manager ignored it. After a few days, some militants landed at the tea estate and attacked the general manager and burnt down vehicles. They left the garden after issuing a stern warning. A few days ago, security forces nabbed three ULFA activists who were allegedly running an extortion network from the Geetanagar area of Guwahati. During interrogation they revealed that they used to serve demand notices to people on behalf of the organisation. Kuldip Barman, president of Assam Yuva Parishad, was arrested by the police on July 2 from the city's Chandmari area for his alleged involvement in the extortion racket. Manik Baishya, an engineer with the state agriculture department, received an extortion letter signed by senior ULFA leader Hira Sarania demanding Rs 25 lakh from him. Though Baishya informed the police, he was also in touch with the ULFA for an adjustment. The extortionists finally agreed to accept Rs 5 lakh from Baishya. But he was later killed by his driver, Ganesh Bharali.

Jiten Dutta, leader of ULFA's 28th battalion that had come to the ceasefire talks in June 2008, says 'The cadres who are in militant camps are starpped for cash. The discussion process is very slow. The cadres are facing a paucity of essential commodities like food and cloth. So they are compelled to turn to extortion.'

'Members of ULFA used to live on donations collected from common people. They cannot run any legal business as they are involved in anti-government activities. They are bound to take donations from the people. When we were in the camp, we also used to collect money. Now our cadres are engaged in farming, fishing, poultry firming ,etc. We also get sufficient funds from the government to run designated camps,' says Dutta.

Public resentment against ULFA's activities is on the rise. Abhijit Sharma, chairman of Assam Public Works, says, 'Extortion, kidnap and murder are the main sources of income for ULFA. Paresh Baruah can do anything on the directions of the ISI.' Sharma says that they welcome the peace process but they are against the free movement of jailed ULFA leaders. 'Punish the guilty or remove the IPC from Assam. The jailed ULFA leaders had been involved in many heinous crimes. They should be punished for their misdeeds,' he adds. A senior police officer claims that the extortion demands of ULFA are decreasing by the day. Only seven cases of extortion have been recorded in the last nine months. Four of them are genuine extortion-related cases while three are fake. The Director General of Assam Police, Shankar Baruah, says 'We will become more active against ULFA and take strong steps against the banned outfit.'

Police officers name Ratul Baruah and Mantu Dihingia as being the ULFA extortionists who sneak in from Myanmar. They mainly handle Upper Assam. Lower Assam is looked after by Plavan Hazarika and Akash Thappa. ULFA is reported to be running several camps in Bangladesh, where members are trained and sheltered from Indian security forces. Until recently, they also had camps in Bhutan, which were destroyed by the Royal Bhutan Army aided by the Special Frontier Force in December 2003. There has been a crackdown on ULFA recently in Bangladesh as well, which has made the matters worse for the banned outfit.

ULFA has been fighting for an independent homeland since 1979. It had been lying low for the past two years with no major incidents of violence. Barring its commander in chief Paresh Barua, its entire top leadership is in jail. The imprisoned leaders include chairman Aravinda Rajkhowa, deputy commander in chief Raju Baruah, foreign secretary Sasha Choudhury, finance secretary Chitraban Hazarika, political adviser Bhimkanta Buragohain and cultural secretary Pranati Phukan.

Talks with the government have not been fruitful so far. ULFA is adamant on including sovereignty of Assam on the agenda of the talks though it has dropped its other preconditions of holding the talks in another country and under the supervision of the UN. The Indian government was not ready to negotiate on the issue of sovereignty. Still some progress was made when ULFA formed a 'People's Consultative Group' in September 2005 to prepare the ground for negotiations between the government and ULFA.

According to reports, peace talks were first held in December 2005 at the residence of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. There were three rounds of talks with the 11-member People's Consultative Group (PCG) headed by Assamese writer Indira Goswami. It led to a truce in August 2006. However, it ended in September of the same year.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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Both the PM and the Congress chief have now decided to crack the whip

2011-01-11T12:08:00.001+05:30

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With various ministries and agencies at odds with each other, many of UPA-2's flagship development schemes have run into rough weather

An inchoate sense of disquiet hangs over Raisina Hills, where both North and South Blocks are located. The Manmohan Singh government, which romped home last year for a second term in office amid great expectations, is falling shy of its intended targets. The ministries are working at cross-purposes and many of UPA-2's flagship schemes are hanging fire in the face of inter-ministerial dissonance.

Not that the Congress chief Sonia Gandhi and the PM aren't aware of the widening gap between promise and performance. In a recent meeting of the monitoring committee set up to analyse the progress of the government's flagship programmes, Dr Singh asked the urban development ministry to furnish data regarding the availability of power in rural areas. The ministry told the monitoring committee that the requested data was available with the power ministry. The rural development ministry also pleaded ignorance about the status of the PM's road construction scheme. It was pretty clear that different ministries were not working in harmony. A peeved Dr Singh intervened and asked the monitoring committee and the Planning Commission to work as intermediaries for inter-ministerial affairs.

Things have come to such a pass that one Congress general secretary, who incidentally also takes care of development projects in Rae Bareli and Amethi, formally complained to Mrs Gandhi that ministries were working as independent units and consequently many development projects were floundering.

Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee had to mediate to quell the differences between minister of state for coal Sriprakash Jaiswal and environment minister Jairam Ramesh on the issue of the allotment of coal mines. Similarly, Mr Ramesh's comment on India's China policy did not go down well with Home Minister P Chidambaram. The latter was so upset that he threatened to resign. He was pacified only when Mr Ramesh apologised.

For those within and outside the Congress's support base, the performance of the government has been disappointing particularly because when UPA-2 came to power, it did not have the Left snapping at its heels and slowing down things. Lalu Prasad Yadav and Ram Vilas Paswan, too, had been left by the wayside, bolstering the government's chances of pushing through its inclusive social and political agenda.

Enthused by the elbow room that opened up, UPA-2 announced several flagship schemes. Both Dr Singh and Mrs Gandhi instructed every ministry to release a monthly report card. But only Mr Chidambaram took the directive seriously. The home ministry releases a monthly report card that contains details about discussions with chief ministers and expenses on the modernisation of the police force.

But for BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad, that isn't enough. He says the home ministry must also mention details like how many police and CRPF personnel are killed in Naxal violence every month. It should, he adds, also explain why the situation in Dantewada is deteriorating steadily. Mr Prasad insists that the present government's problems stem from its arrogance, which pushes it into taking wrong decisions. CPI leader Gurudas Dasgupta echoes a similar view. He asserts that the government takes decisions unilaterally, and that is the reason why its flagship programmes have run into trouble. Mr Dasgupta says the monitoring committee itself is unhappy with the progress of programmes like NREGA, mid-day meal, Bharat Nirman and Rajiv Gandhi Drinking Water Plan, among others. Prasad's point that UPA-2 does not have a Common Minimum Programme is also valid. The government has set clear targets for the completion of flagship schemes, but these plans have been facing roadblocks at several levels. For example, last week, in the meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, the agendas of seven ministries were kept in abeyance because they had complaints about the lack of funds for existing schemes.

The finance ministry arranges funds for the schemes administered by the Planning Commission. The finance ministry, on its part, insists that the government must go in for Public-Private Partnership (PPP). However, private firms are wary of bureaucratic red tape and are therefore reluctant to get into any arrangement with the government. Consequently, ministries have no option but to look towards the national exchequer for funding. Road transport minister Kamal Nath, for instance, has made it clear that it would unrealistic to expect his ministry to build 20 km of roads daily if funds are unavailable.

Communication minister A Raja too has fired his own salvo. He said that funds were made available to his ministry under the budgetary allocation in the non-planned category to facilitate the 3G programme. It was decided that the money recovered from the 3G bid would be used for the expansion of the service. The bid process is over but the finance ministry is tight-lipped over the money.

The finance minister told Raja the Communication ministry had enough funds to sustain MTNL and BSNL. He also insisted that Raja must keep his ministry out of the spell of private companies and take steps to stop migration of customers from BSNL and MTNL to private operators.

Raja faced a royal snub when the PMO decided to keep him away from the 3G spectrum bid and facilitated the entire process through a monitoring committee of the PMO itself. Consequently, the government was able to raise almost thrice the sum that was earlier envisaged by Raja.

The railway ministry, which has its own funds, is unable to explain why there is no development on the western corridor project. Apparently, railway minister Mamata Banerjee doesn't want to be too aggressive over land acquisition. Similarly, as far as the Jawaharlal Nehru Urban Renewal Mission is concerned, CAG is pretty clear that while the Centre has released funds, municipal corporations are hamstrung as the state government's share is yet to materialise.

But CPM leader Sitaram Yechury insists that the ministry has thus far only managed to draw the map of the areas from where the slums had to be replaced by pucca houses. He added that urban development minister S. Jaipal Reddy is singularly responsible for this. Reddy, on his part, insists that the target set for the scheme is perfectly achievable and the ministry is happy with the progress. He also insisted that results would be visible in a few months.

Health minister Ghulam Nabi Azad dismisses every allegation against his ministry, most of which were levelled by JD(U) leader Sharad Yadav. Azad says that the guidelines for the National Rural Health Scheme have been set and made public, and that the Opposition should avoid making baseless allegations. He also adds that the fear factor in terms of MCI has been taken care of. He says he wants health services in other states to be as good as those in Delhi so that there is less pressure on AIIMS. He said the promise to open six more AIIMS campuses would be fulfilled in the present tenure itself.

In another incident, last month in a meeting in Kolkata, Pranab Mukhejee said that India needs another Green Revolution. What he meant was that if attempts are made, there would be no scarcity of food in the country. And that surplus grain would mean that inflation can be brought under check. But the question is: why did he need to say these words? In fact, people say that Mukherjee speaks his mind only when he is in Kolkata. So, the comment might as well be a barb aimed at agriculture minister Sharad Pawar. In an earlier Cabinet meeting on economic issues, Pawar was absent. It was later learnt that he was busy with the Internationa Cricket Council elections. Several issues related to storage, distribution and changing patterns of agriculture were discussed in the meeting. Some Cabinet minister also wanted to know what had happened to the recommendations of the National Farmers Commission set up by UPA-1 under the chairmanship of Dr MS Swaminathan. The Commission had suggested several steps to tackle the agrarian crisis but there has been no follow-up. A seasoned agriculture ministry bureaucrat said the commission was disbanded merely three weeks after it presented its report after three extensions. This was the reason behind Mukherjee's barbs in Kolkata. The finance minister wanted to convey the message that while the government was interested in another Green Revolution, Pawar thought that the matter was too trivial to consider. He also wanted Pawar to clarify why he was giving undue priority to cricket over his ministry.

In this entire episode, there are people who believe that the inept handling of inflation has offset UPA-2's many achievements. On the other hand, the unrest in Kashmir and the string of Maoist attacks on security forces in Chhattisgarh give an impression that Dr Singh's is losing his hold on the government. Also, people have started questioning his economic policies. The government's exchequer is empty. The IT revolution has run its course. As the problems multiply on various crucial fronts, the government seems to be fast running out of ideas. Not too many people seem to believe that Manmohan Singh can pull a rabbit out of the hat and decisively stem the decline .

Some Congressmen have even started indicating that the time has come for Dr Singh to quietly pass the baton to Rahul Gandhi as the Nehru-Gandhi scion has gained enough experience and popularity and is now ready to formally lead the nation. But, if party insiders are to be believed, Sonia Gandhi is still averse to catapulting Rahul into the hot seat.

Back to the drawing boards

2010-12-27T14:18:00.001+05:30

IIPM Prof Arindam Chaudhuri on Our Parliament and Parliamentarians' Work

DTH players were on a dream flight in India so far, but the delay in rollout of Phase II of CAS has dampened expectations. vareen gadhoke ray & surbhi chawla discuss the upcoming trends and how DTH players can make them count

When Direct-to-Home (DTH) first came along, it brought the promise of streamlining the highly fragmented pay-TV market in the country, which had hitherto been the stranglehold of local cable operators (LCOs). All that the players really had to do was conquer, which they continue to do, through mud-slinging, comparative advertising and even some cheap ground level tactics. DTH was a very welcome platform for broadcasters and media houses, which were fighting these LCOs on the grounds that they were not declaring their total subscriber base. The launch of the first phase of Conditional Access System (CAS) brought more transparency, thereby aiding higher yield in subscription revenues. But the launch of the second phase of DTH, which was to make CAS mandatory in more areas of the country, has been delayed quite unexpectedly. This has stymied their dream run, and slowed down their onward march quite considerably. In such a scenario, what does the future portend for these players in India?

DIRECT TO HELL OR HEAVEN

The future of pay-TV in India is being driven by media owners and distributors, which are expanding market share with an eye on profits, rather than at the expense of profits. The major concern for this sector was that at a very nascent stage, seven major players (Dish TV, Tata Sky, BIG TV, Airtel Digital, Sun Direct, DD Direct and the newly launched Videocon d2h) along with organised CAS operators (like Hathaway and Sify) were slugging it out to get the maximum share of this growing pie. As a result, the first phase of growth saw the basic DTH box being offered at a subsidy, and at times, even virtually free of cost to catch hold of the early adopters and get them to experience this new wave of technology. The plus point of this can be seen from the fact that the Indian pay-TV sector generated sales to the tune of $6.5 billion for financial year ending March 2010 [Media Partners Asia (MPA)].

However, thanks to the continously intensifying tussle among the players, the sector is facing the same fate as the telecom operators. DTH players too are unable to garner as much in ARPUs. The tempering of their enthusiasm due to delay in Phase 2 rollout make it worse.

Yet, all is not lost. As per projections by MPA, the industry is expected to touch $12.1 billion by 2014 and $18.5 billion by 2020. In terms of volume, broadcasters and LCOs are most likely to lead in the long-term, while LCOs and cable multi-system operators (MSOs) will lead in terms of margins. Vivek Couto, Executive Director, Media Partners Asia, avers, 'Cable MSOs will probably face the most challenging future. Nonetheless, most national MSOs will be able to forge stronger last-mile links with the consumer for the long-term, with positive implications for future funding as well as large-scale deployment of digital pay-TV and broadband.' Furthermore, Indian pay-TV subscribers are expected to grow from 105 million in 2009 to 149 million by 2014 and 173 million by 2020.

THE TECHNOLOGY GIMMICK

On the question of who will make money, differentiation in services and products would help in 'unlevelling' the playing field. The next wave of growth for DTH would undoubtedly be paved by superior technology and advanced features, not to mention high quality content. Even in the developed countries, technological advancement is helping drive the next phase of growth. 'As a matter of fact, in UK, almost 60 per cent of all DTH boxes are DVR boxes and the expectation from the Indian market is huge,' shares Alan Dishington, GM, NDS India. The silver lining for the operators is that the digital video recorders (DVR) or the HDTV boxes that are being offered are not massively subsidised. 'The launch of Reliance Big TV HD DVR is part of Reliance Big TV's relentless pursuit of quality and profitable growth by blending the best in technology, content experience, reach and service,' says Sanjay Behl, CEO, Reliance Big TV.

But this can also become a me-too game in some time.

Content exclusivity will be another important game changer. Sanjiv Kainth, country manager, India and South Asia, IRDETO, agrees, 'There has to be a certain amount of exclusivity of content allowed to fuel competition and differentiate product offerings of the various operators... else it will be difficult for the ARPUs to increase.' Understandably, content providers are quite upbeat about the new opportunities that have opened up in this sector. A case in point is the upcoming FIFA World Cup and how Tata Sky, Sun Direct and Dish TV have already announced tie-ups and promotional packs to cash in on the greatest football jamboree. States Jawahar Goel, MD, Dish TV, 'We've strategically timed the launch of our HDTV box to coincide with FIFA. Later, we also plan to get Commonwealth Games on the HD platform.'

A DIGITAL QUAGMIRE

Being a low ARPU and cost sensitive market, the addition of new subscribers is very important for the growth and sustainability of the DTH business in India. However, the subscriber churn is of high concern to all operators. DTH operators are focussing on innovative offerings for better retention and ARPUs. Adds Salil Kapoor, COO, Dish TV, 'In the last two years, we've been working very hard to deliver quality service. '

The pay-TV market is not something, which will remain static in the long run. The growth will be fuelled not only by the new subscribers but also by the existing ones who migrate to a higher level of services. India is a huge market and the volumes will be there for some time to come. While the Phase II delay does affect their plans, DTH players will have to win their battles on technology and content.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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Terror regroups

2010-12-11T17:06:00.001+05:30

Prof Rajita Chaudhuri follow some off-beat trends like organizing make up sessions

The army might have uprooted many militant groups operating from Pakistani soil, but it has not deterred terror outfits from regrouping and striking back, writes Shahid Husain

The attack on Lahore's Jinnah Hospital on May 31 by the militants in an attempt to free their wounded fellow Moaz alias Amir Moavia, who was being treated there, amply demonstrates that malignant aggression has penetrated deep in Pakistan society. Moavia was injured during a recent attack on two worship places of the Ahmadis. The Ahmadis are considered religious outcasts of sorts by almost all the Muslim religious factions, though the Pakistan Constitution asserts they are equal citizens.

One of the Pakistan's top defence analysts, Dr. Hasan Askari Rizvi, explains the phenomenon and thinking behind the attacks in a conversation with TSI, 'The attack on Ahmadis puts forth two things: First, it was a soft target that the militants used to assert their ability to challenge the Pakistan state and the provincial government; secondly, it also relates to the extremely negative sentiments the orthodox Muslims have about the Ahmadis,' He adds, 'The militants must have thought that the people would sympathise with their action, which was actually the case.'

A large number of fundamentalist groups have cropped up in the impoverished Pakistan since 2001. Links between many of these new and existing groups have strengthened, say experts, giving rise to fresh concerns for stability. Successful army operations against the militants in Swat and South Waziristan under the leadership of General Ashfaq Pervaiz Kayani have forced militants to re-group themselves and co-ordinate with each other in more ways than one' be it in terms of logistics or collection of funds. Leadership elements of al-Qaeda and the Afghan Taliban, along with other terrorist groups, have made Pakistan's tribal areas their home and now work closely with a wide variety of Pakistani militant groups. They find many sympathisers amongst the educated middle and upper middle class.

Hassan Abbas, a fellow at the Asia Society, writes that Punjabi Taliban network is a loose conglomeration of members of banned militant groups of Punjabi origin that have developed strong connections with the Pakistani Taliban, Afghan Taliban, and other militant groups based in FATA and the North-West Frontier Province (NWFP). The Punjabi Taliban provide logistical support for attacks on cities in Punjab province and include individuals or factions of groups such as Jaish-e-Mohammed, Sipah-i-Sahaba Pakistan, and Lashkar-i-Jhangvi and their various splinter groups, along with small cells unaffiliated with any large group. The Punjabi Taliban are distinct from the traditional Pashtun Taliban, experts say. They are usually more educated and more technologically savvy.

Since there is also greater coordination between all these groups, say experts, lines have blurred regarding which category a militant group fits in. For instance, the Pakistani Taliban, which were committed to fighting against the Pakistani state, are now increasingly joining insurgents fighting U.S. and international troops across the border in Afghanistan. U.S. Central Command Chief General David H. Petraeus, in a CFR interview, says the groups have long shared a symbiotic relationship. 'They support each other, they coordinate with each other, sometimes they compete with each other, `and` sometimes they even fight each other.' The pressure exerted by the US government on the Pakistan army and government is making things worse, pushing Pakistan to a journey towards the unknown. The ruling classes in Pakistan are happy that they are being provided massive 'aid' to fight the militants, despite the fact that the country is being run on the loans extended by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank. Peter Symonds, a frequent contributor to Global Research, wrote an article that was published on May 16, 2010 titled: 'America's War on Pakistan: US Warns Pakistan of Severe Consequences'. It reads: 'The Obama administration has seized on the failed car bombing in New York's Times Square on May 1 to insist that the Pakistani military step up its war on Islamic militants and extend its operations into North Waziristan. The US demand is being backed by thinly disguised warnings of economic reprisals and military interventions'.

In a CBS interview recently, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said: 'We've made it very clear that if, heaven forbid, an attack like this that we can trace back to Pakistan was to have been successful, there would be very severe consequences.' Under interrogation, Shahzad has allegedly admitted training in Taliban camps in North Waziristan, although the amateurish character of the bombing attempt indicates otherwise. A Tehrik-e-Taliban spokesperson has denied any involvement. Is the alleged terrorist an agent provocateur providing an alibi to proponents of 'Long War' to intrude into Pakistan after Iraq and Afghanistan?

An American analyst wrote recently that the US leadership itself creates a monster, then inflates it and then fights it. How true is it for Osama bin Laden?

Clinton is also insisting that Pakistan and India shun their differences. Nobody differs from such pious assertions. But how come Clinton, or for that matter any other US leader, suddenly becomes a peace nick? The motive seems to be simple: Pakistan armed forces should concentrate on 'war on terror' rather than look with scepticism towards India with which it had fought four unproductive wars during the last 62 years.

General Kayani is reluctant to open another front in North Waziristan. 'It seems Pakistan would undertake an operation in the North Waziristan, but at the time of its choosing. The Pakistan military wants to consolidate its position in Orakzai, Khyber and Bajaur before launching an attack in North Waziristan. It may take a couple of weeks, if not months,' Rizvi believes.

'Pakistan's economy is on the verge of collapse, with gross domestic product falling from more than 8 per cent growth in 2005 to under 3 per cent last year. More than $3.5 billion in US economic and military assistance is in the pipeline, and a nearly $8 billion International Monetary Fund agreement and a $3.5 billion World Bank financing package are pending,' writes Symonds.

Faced with a severe energy crisis, hundreds of thousands of loom workers in Pakistan are likely to be laid off. Inflation has crippled not only the working classes but even the middle classes. One find thousands of low-income employees having food at free food centres run by eminent social activist Abdus Sattar Edhi because they can't buy food with their meagre salaries.

The ruling elite look the other way. The economic and political turmoil can push the people of Pakistan towards anarchy since forces that could resist malignancy either do not exist or are too weak and fragile.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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Who is behind twin Misdeeds

2010-11-24T16:32:00.001+05:30

IIPM BBA MBA Institute: Student Notice Board

Two incidents at the fag end of campaigning cast their shadow over the civic polls— Gorkha League president Madan Tamang's murder in broad daylight and the disastrous accident of the Gyaneshwari Express at Sardiha near Jhargram, which claimed 150 lives and seriously injured another 150 passengers. Madan Tamang was killed on May 22 while the train accident happened at the wee hours of May 28, couple of hours before campaigning was to end. While none of these incidents directly bear any relation to the polls, one can hardly deny its effect.

While the state police’s CID is busy probing both the cases, strong demands are there for CBI probe which the state government is totally against. The attitude of the ruling party and circumstantial evidences are raising several questions. Some people, including Union minister Shisir Adhikari, are pointing fingers at the ruling CPI(M).

Madan Tamang was supposed to hold a rally at Darjeeling on May 22 which was being opposed by Bimal Gurung and his Gorkha Janmukti Morcha. The police, which had earlier denied him permission for the same, not only gave permission but also took him to the spot under full police protection in an unscheduled trip a day before the rally. As Tamang’s visit was unscheduled, his partymen were also not there. All of a sudden, hundreds of Gorkhas, armed with daggers and swords, rushed towards him and left him lying in a pool of blood with several stab injuries. One-and-a half dozen police, who were there to protect him, just vanished during the killing and came back as soon as the killers disappeared. Tamang’s bodyguard tried to prevent and fired a round from his service revolver and he was also injured by the attackers.

Despite every section demanding a CBI probe, including the GJM Chief Bimal Gurung and wife of the slain leader, the state decided on a CID investigation. Now, why did the police personnel not fire a single shot or lob teargas to prevent the attackers? Why Tamang was not whisked away while attackers were rushing in? How did the attackers get Tamang’s unscheduled visit info when even his partymen were not aware? Why did the police name the GJM president and secretary in the FIR when they were not present in the Hills on that day? Interestingly, the state CPI(M) secretary had cautioned the state of ‘major bloodshed before civic polls’. That happened in the form of the train incident. Soon after the incident, the surviving driver of the goods train, Nirbhay Kumar, had seen four persons with torches. “They were speaking in Bengali. They said, 'Not much has happened' and met another three persons nearby and then left,” he said. State minister Sushanta Ghosh, infamous for the Chhoto Angaria massacre, reached the spot by early morning along with his partymen. Soon, the Maoist linkage theory spread. The railway minister also spoke of a blast under the railway tracks which turned unfounded. About 17 inch of a railway track was cut away which caused the derailment. As the area falls under the Joint Action Force's operations, was it convenient to blame the Maoists? The CPI(M) also linked the People's Committee against Police Atrocities (PCPA) to the act.

But, the Maoist modus operandi appears to negate their linkage. They use firearms or explosives, none of which has been used here. It is also a fact that Maoists have always admitted to their actions and killings. In this case, spokesman of the Maoists Akash not only strongly denied their involvement over the phone but blamed the CPI(M) for this. Akash even said, “We admit to even mistaken killings like the bus incident in Dantewada. We are against attacking public vehicles.” People in the local villages are afraid of speaking to journalists as they say, “Armed CPM goons lurk in every corner of our village.”

Thirteen out of 15 villages surrounding the accident spot within a three-km radius are fully dominated by CPI(M). By dominated one means the presence of more than a dozen camps of armed CPM cadres, usually referred to as 'harmad'. These villages are Manikpara, Bojudih, Daldali, Ghagrashol, Putushol, Bahragora, Joipur, Amdiha, Burishol, Dudhkundi, Sardiha, Bhangabandh, Rajbandh, Jhatibandh. Confirming total absence of Maoists in those villages for more than 6 months, one villager said, “No Maoist has the courage to enter these villages till the heavily armed cadres are here.” Sources say more than 150 sophisticated automatic firearms, including AK-56s, are with CPM cadres.

A PCPA spokesperson said the same. In fact, the PCPA has demanded a CBI probe while the Maoists want a probe by a committee consisting of eminent personalities from different walks of life as they do not trust the Union government too. Villagers of Khemashuli, Guptamoni, Sardiha have different clues to share. They said after the incident, the miscreants reached Manikpara in a small car. According to them, a secret meeting was held at CPM leader Arjun Mahato’s house at Putushol village a night earlier. Reportedly, Anuj Pandey of Lalgarh, whose palatial house was demolished by people in presence of Maoist leader Bikas on June 15 2009, was present at the meeting. Pandey is a close associate of Sushanta Ghosh, whose younger brother is reportedly involved in Chhoto Angaria and Nandigram-Khejuri killings. A top leader from Kolkata has reportedly contacted them at around 3 am that night. The incident happened nearly 22 hours after that meeting.

Questions are also being raised as to why the chief minister rushed to the spot even cancelling his scheduled Meet the Press. After all, he did not visit Shilda where dozens of EFR Jawans were killed by the Maoists or Stephen Court at Park Street where a raging fire fire gutted the building killing over 35 people. Now, one Bapi Mahato’s name has surfaced in a English daily who has reportedly admitted to his role in the train incident and has claimed himself as a PCPA supporter. Interestingly, Bapi himself denied he said anything like this. Two more names also doing the round are Umakanta Mahato and Dhanapati Mahto. Interestingly, all these three youths were earlier booked by the Joint Action Force and Police under UAPA. They were organising protest against sponge iron factories and were not Maoist supporters. The police failed to produce chargesheet against them in the court and they were released. Now, they are being targeted afresh.

So, the questions raised by several quarters, including eminent intellectuals like Sunanda Sanyal, Subhaprasanna, Shaonli Mitra, Bratya Basu and others, have some prima facie credentials. A CID probe will not look into these questions as the state administration will not be interested in it.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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SHREK FOREVER AFTER Utterly ogrely…!

2010-11-15T17:49:00.001+05:30

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Goes ‘Ogre-board’ with punchless jokes in a retelling of Shrek 1

The ogre fun is here again with an interesting twist but Shrek as a franchise ran out of steam by “Shrek The Third” and is pretty much running on empty now.

The latest tale begins with an irate Shrek (Mike Myers), trying hard to shuttle between his daily chores and managing his kids, with absolutely no time for himself. He misses his long lost luxuries of lone time and of having the liberty to take a mud bath as and when desired. A dejected Shrek, desperate to live his bachelor life again, soon gets tricked into signing a contract with the evil Rumpelstiltskin (Walt Dohrn), who with his magical powers, offers him a deal to live his bachelor life for a day. Once Shrek bites the bait, he finds himself to be a part an era where no one knows him - his wife Princess Fiona (Cameron Diaz) doesn’t recognise him, his friends the Donkey (Eddie Murphy) and Puss (Antonio Banderas) have no idea about his existence and worse still Rumpelstiltskin is the king of Far Far Away.

How Shrek fights all evils (especially the flying witches) and wins the ‘Kiss of True Love’ in order to turn back time is an interesting watch only if one overlooks the frivolous entry of the Pied-Piper. The 3-D gimmick does not add anything to the adventure and the film is not exactly a bundle of joy if you were expecting a world of entertainment, but nevertheless it is a decent watch. It’s “Shrek 1” redux in a sense; only with fewer funnier moments.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
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MUKESH KUMAR SINHA, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, MPVHA

2010-09-21T15:46:00.002+05:30

MUKESH KUMAR SINHA, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, MPVHA

What do you do to make yourself visible?
We tell about all our programmes and initiatives on our website, which is updated very often. We also keep the officials, representatives and media updated on what we are working on and how we are doing it. Presentations during seminars and conferences are also used as a tool to tell the world about us and our objectives.

Do you think it is important to advertise for raising funds?
No, advertisements are not needed to raise funds, but they surely are helpful in spreading information. The best way, which has worked for us, is to keep the key people informed about all our plans and also make them see in person whatever work is being done.

Do celebrity endorsements help in this?
Yes, they do in the beginning. But with time it is the work that speaks and not some person.

There are cases where in the name of starting an NGO people have generated funds and have misused it. Doesn’t it affect the credibility of the sector as a whole?
Cases like these do pose a threat to the credibility. And to be able to remain on the right side, it is important that the stakeholders are aware of all the work that is being done. So, we keep a documented form of all our financials and also keep and maintain proper records of all our programmes. We also set our priorities and work accordingly. Keeping friendly relationship with media is also very helpful.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

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Advice for the life

2010-08-10T12:29:00.000+05:30

MAYUR TOSHNIWAL
PRESIDENT - RETAIL OPERATIONS (VALUE FORMATS), FUTURE GROUP
“My best one is from Kishore Biyani who said that unless you take risk, you can never gain. So you will have to take risk but take it in a very planned way. I implemented this advice by taking a decision in 15 minutes to leave my existing job and joined Future Group.”

KELAINE ROETHLISBERGER
MANAGER, ULYSSE NARDIN
“My mother used to always say ‘remember that everyone you meet is hungry for a kind word’ and having stuck to this principle has helped me both in professional and personal life...”

SIR RICHARD STAGG
BRITISH HIGH COMMISSIONER
“My ex-boss advised me more than 20 years ago that there are no limits to what one can achieve as long as one does not go overboard. We should know where to draw the line. So basically everyone decides their own achievements.”

JUDY JARVIS
COUNTRY MANAGER, BRITISH AIRWAYS
“My aunt told me in my childhood to treat every individual with personalised importance and this lesson I have tried to implement in my daily life. I don’t know whether I have been successful in implementing this advice but the advice has helped me a lot in maintaining professional relationships.”

ROHIT BAL
DESIGNER
“The best advice I got is from a very close friend of mine who says you should always cry (with tears)when you are sad. It’s a big stress reliever for me.”

SUNIL LULLA
MD, TIMES GLOBAL BROADCASTING
“It’s difficult to precisely point out the best advice but I remember my mother’s simple advice and that was to work hard and work harder; success comes only when you ‘work hard’ and only when you ‘work harder’ can you outdo your peers. When I haven’t followed that I have suffered. The biggest benefit of following this advice is that even after 48 years, I can still converse as an equal with both peers and competitors.”

MARCELO VILLAGRAN
MD & CEO, BATA INDIA
“If you are particular about time, it not only helps you to do a lot of things but creates a very strong impression about your personality – this has been by ex-boss’s advise to me,”

Pradeep Dhoot Director,
Videocon Industries ltd.
“My father advised me that positive motivation should be long lasting and negative motivation should not last long. Also another advice I got was from Rahul Bajaj – he said that every aspect of business should be done on a concrete basis and no illegal thing should ever happen.”

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
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If you belong to the category of people who have no idea what is the meaning of convenience food,

2010-06-28T15:08:00.000+05:30

Angshuman Paul takes you on the most exhaustive, yet critically inquisitive treatise of why global food giants – hunting for indian food company acquisitions – now think that this sector will be the biggest contributor to the retail sector growth in India

This was really what caught our eyes! Last year, the Delhi based Fun Foods completed its 25 years of being in the business. The way the promoters celebrated this event was pretty unexpected. This ‘convenience food’ company (‘convenience food’ refers to ‘ready to cook’ and ‘ready to eat’ product categories), which to its credit has all quick service restaurants as its institutional clients, was sold off to a German company, the $12 billion giant Dr. Oetker. The question over here is, why did promoter Rajiv Bahl sell off a brilliantly performing business? Especially when Rajiv and his son, 29 year old Viraj Bahl, were clearly very passionate about creating a convenience food brand of national repute. It didn’t take us long to find the answer – Rs.111 crores! That’s the amount the Bahls got for the sale.

But the fact is that if not Dr.Oetker, the Bahls would have got a similar offer from some other global giant, as India is seeing a huge influx of foreign players entering the convenience food industry in a clear attempt to either set up JVs or simply to acquire companies lock, stock and barrel. And that forms the crucial crux of our cover story, which on one hand provides a most concise update on recent foreign entrants in the sector, and on the other provides a critical analysis of whether this industry can sustain the growth expected by the players in the future! To put all doubts at rest at the start itself, it is a fact that the Rs.3.6 trillion Indian food and beverage industry is decisively surging ahead, with sectoral analysts extrapolating figures for the coming five years for the convenience food sector. A KPMG ‘Food Report’ forecasts that rising incomes will increase domestic consumption of ready-to-eat (RTE) and ready-to-cook (RTC) food over the next five years in India. There’s more! Indian RTE and RTC brands are now increasingly finding prime shelf-space in the retail chains of US and Europe. For example, the Bentonville giant Walmart, after rolling out its first store with Bharti in India in May 2009, is now working on a pilot project with the Gujarat Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation, the promoter of the Amul brand, to market ethnic processed food products overseas. In the same league, Satnam Overseas, one of India’s major food exporters, is investing $4.4 million for setting up a rice mill near London to boost sales of its Kohinoor brand of food.

‘Food’, clearly, has become the appetizer driving India’s retail revolution. According to Retailers Association of India (RAI), food and beverage sectors’ share in overall retail in India is now at a staggering 65%; and majority of this 65% share comes under the ambit of processed foods and vegetables. Further, according to consulting firm McKinsey & Co., the retail food sector in India is likely to grow from $70 billion now to $150 billion by 2025 (a forecast many analysts say is very conservative) with 60% of this market belonging to the convenience food category. Even McKinsey stresses that the Indian FMCG segment’s gen-next growth will be driven by the food segment only – findings that are literally forcing FMCG players like Cavin Kare and more to make their entry into the packaged food business.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
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BIG OCEANS ARE RULED BY BIG FISHES

2010-06-14T13:58:00.000+05:30

Independent agencies have always remained but it is the multinats that have the scale to train talent and reorient clients for tomorrow

For the last couple of years independent agencies have been in the news. More than half of these have been started by creative people who left bigger agencies to start operations. Suddenly everybody is wondering what this development means from a the long-term perspective. In my opinion, the course of independents gets decided by the vision of the bigger agencies. They are the ones with a window to where the world of communications is headed.

In their early days of going global, many multinationals in many markets made the mistake of parachuting large numbers of ex-pats to duplicate their creative magic at the other end of the world. This left a huge gap for the rise of independent agencies that understood local cultures and made intuitive connections with local consumers. Wiser with their experiences elsewhere, in India, multinationals have nurtured local talent over decades. The result is that the creative work from multinationals has not only grown, but also has a distinct Indian flavour. Indian arms of Leo Burnett and O&M have been Agency of the Year across global networks. So even as more small fish swim by, the big fish in India have evolved.

As far as independent agencies go, they will continue to crop up and win some businesses. Many of these wins will be based on the illustrious past life of their creative founders while working for multinational agencies; and specifically on personal client relationships. But independents that want to grow beyond a clutch of accounts and achieve scale will have to go in for tie-ups. As client base grows, an agency needs the best creative pool working with it. Multinationals stand a better chance of attracting and retaining fresh talent with better pay scales, opportunities and training. At the end of the day, it’s a big ocean out there. And big oceans are ruled by big fishes.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
TSI exposes b school ranking scamsters Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Premchand Palety of C fore. - For Complete Sting Operation Video Click Here

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NOW MEGABUCK ENDORSEMENTS FOR NEWBIES TOO!

2010-05-27T15:16:00.000+05:30

Exclusive In chat with Society Magazine - Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri

A Ranbir-Deepika jodi coming to launch his product and then gracing the dinner that follows could catapult him to Page 3 status and is likely to do wonders for the employee-morale present at the event”.

Ad-Guru Alyque Padamse too is convinced that it defines categorically the “thirst that both the Advertiser and general public have for celebhood with ad frat desperate to cash in on it”. However, he warns, that care should be taken to prioritise … otherwise Deepika outscoring the product endorsed in recall value, could be tragic news for the Advertiser! Leo Burnett’s Sainath brings his own spin to the debate. He believes ultimately it is about “effective clutter-busting. New-age India looks for and at new-age stars. There are two kinds of stars. The timeless variety – SRK, Big B, Sachin, Akshay – and the new kids. If the consumer is growing older, he will look for older icons; if he is getting younger, star-kids zoom centre-stage. In a young, resurgent India, this is completely appropriate. A sign of the times.” Anita Nayyar, CEO, Havas Media wraps up this debate with her insightful, knowledgeable and authoritative take. She reckons it has largely to do with the shortage of credible celebs available for endorsement. “SRK and the Big B have been done to death (Remember BINANI CEMENT & LINC PENS? Jeeezus!) – and there is a genuine dearth of sexy, young stars in an environment bursting at the seams with youth-driven products for a gigantic youth market. So I guess, for a quick-hit, grab the latest flavour of the day and go with the flow. The stars too know that this is a cool way to make quick mega-bucks, so strike when the iron is hot. Kal kisne dekha…!”

At the end of the day, certain path-breaking facts emerge. One (unlike earlier times), a star doesn’t have to slog for years and reach a status to gain credibility and pulling-power in the Ad-market. One big hit does it! Two, the publicity machinery has taken on critical dimensions, so media-driven hype (of any sort) for Bolly-stars is big stuff. Finally, Bollywood has discovered the importance of brand-building and with smart packaging go all out to create an image, aura and climate that sells … the result? Its rainin’ moolahs for the Bachhalog, guys!!

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
TSI exposes b school ranking scamsters Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Premchand Palety of C fore. - For Complete Sting Operation Video Click Here

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ALPHA MALE OR MARATHI MANOOS?

2010-05-07T17:00:00.001+05:30

Raj Thackeray, President, MNS

Be it his arrest last year after vocal attacks on North Indians at Shivaji Park, or his exoneration in the Kini murder case, Raj Thackeray is a name known and feared by many. While some call him the ‘bad boy of Indian politics’, a section of Marathi locals sing his praises for protecting their interests. The only thing Raj has been still unable to explain is that if you drive all ‘outsiders’ away, what will happen to Business and Bollywod, Mumbai’s twin success towers. Nevertheless, the self-proclaimed messiah for Marathi Manoos has been able to successfully propel the regional debate onto the national consciousness and in the process has honed his brand awareness. Remember the TV images from Mumbai in October last when 1,900 employees of Jet Airways were sacked? No peaceful democratic methods for Raj. This alpha male threatened to disallow any Jet flight to take off till ‘all’ fired employees were reinstated! That’s Raj Thackeray – the branded ‘bad boy’ of Indian politics!

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.

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Commission curse…

2010-04-09T13:09:00.000+05:30

IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy

This certainly comes as a breather for ticketing agents across the country. Foreign aviation players plying in the Indian market hitherto operated on a zero-commission model, over which a lot of brouhaha was created by agents. However, the latest ruling by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation states that foreign airlines will have to pay commission to the ticketing agents. The decision of the aviation regulator to do away with zero-commission model will benefit around 2,400 agents in the country as international carriers like British Airways, Air France, Lufthansa, et al, will now have to pay 3% commission to ticketing agents. But will it impact the financial standing of these foreign airlines during the current turmoil? “Demand continues to improve, but profitability remains distant. Fares have stabilised, but at profitless levels,” explains Giovanni Bisignani, Director General & CEO, IATA. The new rule implemented will hurt the overall yields and further decline the revenues of international airlines. Out of the total 72 international airlines operating in India; 16 do not pay commission to travel agents. Since close to 85% bookings are done through agents, the reduced revenue per ticket would definitely add to the mounting problems of increasing cost pressures. It gets worse when one looks at the revised loss projection of $9 billion for the current fiscal made by IATA for the global aviation sector. The ruling maybe a blessing for ticketing agents, but is a curse for the airlines.

Ratan Lal Bhagat

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.

The Sunday Indian:- B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!
For Exclusive Footage by Sunday Indian Click Here

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BBC WORLD SERVICE TRUST - MADISON MEDIA PLUS

2010-03-25T13:21:00.001+05:30

Exclusive In chat with Society Magazine - Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri

OBJECTIVE: To increase the use of condoms in India and encourage people to say the word ‘condom’ openly.

MEDIA STRATEGY: ‘Say-CONDOM-aloud’ opportunities were created where the consumer had to say the word ‘condom’ aloud and initiate a discussion about condoms. Buzz was created around the word by replacing the word Kabbadi with condom in the popular local sport. Consumer fancy for ringtones was targeted by leveraging the word ‘condom’ as a ringtone.

EFFECTIVENESS: As per NACO, condom sales through government channels grew by 85 million units during the campaign period.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.

The Sunday Indian:- B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!
For Exclusive Footage by Sunday Indian Click Here

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In Bed with Hitler Stalin!

2010-03-04T12:17:00.000+05:30

IIPM 3-year full-time Integrated (MBA BBA) Programme

4Ps B&M: AIDS charities worldover are protesting that it would be HIV positive patients, not the disease itself, which will be associated with war criminals via this campaign. Do you agree?
Silz: The bottom line is that we started a new discussion about AIDS. And that’s what we wanted to do. We did the campaign for an AIDS charity called Regenbogen e.V, which has many AIDS patients as members. They decided to run this campaign and didn’t feel stigmatised. We’ve got a lot of e-mails from AIDS patients who get the campaign right and encourage us to go on to start a new discussion about AIDS.

4Ps B&M: Are positive responses also coming?
Silz: Absolutely! We get every day, thousands of congratulations from parents, youth and HIV positive people. They like the campaign. Here are some statements... “Finally someone who really deals with the theme.” HIV positive persons wrote, “If these ads were published years ago, we would have probably not been infected.” Teachers are calling us because the video is on every mobile phone on the schoolyard in Germany. So teachers order our posters to start first lessons in talking about AIDS. They get more attention from the kids. And this young crowd is precisely our target group.

4Ps B&M: Do you think that this should be replicated across countries for AIDS awareness?
Silz: Of course! In almost every country you will find a bad guy who killed a lot of innocent people. I don’t know if you had one in India. To me, it sure sounds like a peaceful country...

4Ps B&M: Are you hoping to win a few big awards for this campaign?
Silz: We work for clients. Not for the awards.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.

“We will change your outlook” - The Sunday Indian on B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED! A must read...
For Exclusive Footage by Sunday Indian Click Here

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Dainik Bhaskar tunes into the right channel

2010-02-22T14:55:00.000+05:30

IIPM 3-year full-time Integrated (MBA BBA) Programme

When most of the players in the Indian media industry are finding it hard to stay afloat (thanks to a sharp decline in ad spending by Indian advertisers), there’s some good news flowing in for Dainik Bhaskar Group. Its radio station My FM has just achieved the break even, well before the estimated time. Moreover, while the company’s net revenue during the quarter was up by 46% (y-o-y), its operating profit was up by 99% for the quarter. So, what has made it taste such success, when other radio brands like Big FM, with largest network, have failed to break even? “A mix of its excellent listener understanding and strategic marketing which allowed us to tap into new listeners as well as a new genre of radio advertisers,” reasons Harish M. Bhatia, COO, 94.3 My FM. No doubt, as pointed out by Harish, extensive market research has really helped the radio station. The radio channel conducted three major Radio Surveys in the various markets where it has presence and based on the insights, packaged its offering to the local consumer. The surveys revealed that even in cities within the same state, people have different taste and flavour for music. Thus, a customisation of the product varying from city to city basis has helped MY FM to be a leader in 15 out of the 17 markets it operates in, despite the presence of older and national radio channels in these markets. Moreover, as a part of a deliberate business strategy MY FM operates only in tier 2 & tier 3 cities. In fact, these are the markets where Dainik Bhaskar, the newspaper, has a strong hold. Also a strategic effort to convince non-radio advertisers about the benefits of the medium and getting them on board has helped it churn smile for its stakeholders.

Pallavi Srivastava

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.

“We will change your outlook” - The Sunday Indian on B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED! A must read...
For Exclusive Footage by Sunday Indian Click Here

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HONEY, I MADE IT ONCE AGAIN!

2010-02-16T17:56:00.000+05:30

IIPM 3-year full-time Integrated (MBA BBA) Programme

The mission to become an internationally renowned brand began four years back for Airtel. Today, it reigns high as the number one brand in India, for the second year in a row! Undoubtedly, it has become one of the most formidable brands of India Inc.Airtel has succeeded in establishing a strong ‘connect’ with a billion Indians, as Pratik Mazumder, who has been a brand custodian of Airtel till 2008 and now runs his own brand consultancy out of Bangalore, avers, “The Airtel success story is just like a Bollywood film, with the home-grown company being able to make a mark for itself in the second largest telecom market in the world, and thus becoming the fourth-largest telecom service provider in the world. It’s a company that is loved by its customers, admired by its partners and benchmarked for its best practices by its peers. It’s a company that has transformed the lives of a billion across the country.”

Airtel was one of the first companies to be offered wireless license in the country (in the year 1995) and that event marked the beginning of a new era in Indian telecom history. When Airtel entered the scene, wireless technology was considered to be a utility meant only for a select few. But with competiton increasing and with timely government intervention, prices were slashed to rock bottom levels. Mobile telephony suddenly became a necessity. Since then, Airtel has evolved into a ‘life changing’ brand, changing with the times and even today continues to be greatly associated with the lives of the its customers. “Airtel has always banked upon the strategy of portraying real human emotions that touch one’s heart and hence people can relate well to this brand, ”shares Sagar Mahableshwarkar of Rediffusion Y&R (the agency that handles Airtel’s creative account).

Over the last year too, Airtel as a brand has kindled many emotions through its communication strategy. Even its latest ‘Special five’ campaign (that is currently on air) stands proof to the same. This campaign is about Anna and her special five friends and explains well how one can talk to his/her chosen person at subsidised rates. The thematic idea behind this commercial was to communicate how to make your special ones even more special and bring them closer, by establishing a constant communication channel. Apart from this, the company has also roped-in multiple brand ambassadors and popularise its value added services (VAS).

However, as a market leader, the company did not just rely on its markeing communications strategy win the crown of the ‘most valuable brand in the country’. It also offered many innovative offerings to the end customers. The most talked about service was the launch of its DTH venture – Airtel Digital. The launch campaign featured as many 10 celebrities and was able to draw instant attention. This particular ad went on air on October 8, 2008 and according to a study done by research firm IMRB on October 9, 2008, Airtel Digital TV had extremely established an strong awareness and ad reach numbers in just a day! The key findings indicated that the spontaneous awareness for this ad was 37% and total awareness was 58%. Google trends show Airtel Digital TV to be the 3rd hottest or most searched keyword a day after the TVC was aired, while it had over 10,800 views on YouTube! “Airtel digital TV expects to gain 20% market share amongst new additions to the category in the first year alone, and expects to increase it in the subsequent years,” opines N. Arjun, Executive Director – Bharti Telemedia Ltd.

And the strong communication mantra continues for Airtel Digital TV. Only this time, it talks about its picture clarity through a television commercial featuring Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor. The company has plans to come out with many such communication campaigns in the future as well. Last year, Airtel also launched its IPTV, and positioned itself as being not just a telecommunications giant but a media and entertainment brand as well, making it the first Indian company to offer triple play services. Apart from this, the company also launched its communications around its 16MBPS broadband offering with the tagline ‘Impatience is the new word’ that helped connect the company with its young dynamic customers.

Strong marketing communication and value driven innovation - reasons enough for Airtel to win the coveted crown of India’s Most Valuable Company for the second time in a row...

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.

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For Exclusive Footage by Sunday Indian Click Here

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It’s not an easy road ahead

2010-01-20T16:33:00.000+05:30

Two years back when s.Oliver, the German apparel brand, had made its foray into India, unlike any other European brand it didn’t tie up with any established apparel retailer, but had entered into a joint venture with Orient Craft Ltd., a relatively new player which was not retailing any other global rival brands. Cut today, bucked up with logistic expertise of Orient Craft and the core attention received from this Indian apparel manufacturer, s.Oliver has reached break-even for both its stores within a time span of just 18 months. In fact, the company is now planning to mint Rs.300 crore from India in another three years time. But then, how exactly is it planning to achieve this astonishing target? “We would be enhancing our portfolio. Moreover, our stores would now emerge as a one-stop shop for fashion and lifestyle products,” avers Gaurav Sehgal, COO, s.Oliver Fashion India Pvt. Ltd. Further, the company even plans to invest Rs.3 million in brand building and is also mulling over the idea to open seven more stores by 2012. However, the million dollar question is, with such high prices (not surely for the masses) will s.Oliver succeed to beckon the consumer? Specially when its competitor, United Colors of Benetton with a comparatively economical pricing, is stealing the show.

“We are operating in the mass luxury segment, wherein we are offering a better quality product to consumers. We don’t outsource our products, all are imported from the head-office,” reasons Sehgal. Agreed that to cash in on the mass luxury segment prices won’t matter, but then the group plans to roll out s.Oliver stores in tier II cities also and the current pricing strategy might not help them there.

Angshuman Paul

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
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It’s my land, dude

2010-01-15T12:41:00.000+05:30

Call it an old God-made snag or man-made trouble, acquiring land has always been a nightmare for Indian businessmen. With 2.4% of the total surface area (most of which is used for agriculture), Indian businesses have always been given a pitted treatment when it comes to the use of land for setting up factories or starting new projects. And the biggest bearer of this trouble is the infrastructure sector, which with all its verticals, finds it tough to comply with the land acquisition laws of India. Leveraging Public Private Partnerships, the road sector of the country has come up with some world class roads. The Build-Operate-Transfer concept has been very attractive for the private sector with many new companies wanting to enter the segment. The biggest hurdle companies face is that of land acquisition. Says G. V. Sanjay Reddy, Vice Chairman, GVK Power & Infrastructure Ltd, “When it comes to land acquisition, we face tough time from the government’s side. The policies are also not very supportive.” The same is the trouble with financiers of big projects as the criteria for investing in infrastructural projects by big investors is to find out whether the land issues have been settled or not. A lot of confusion persists in this area as India does not have a proper law when it comes to acquiring land for industrial purposes. The Land Acquisition Act of 1894 says that only government is allowed to acquire land for public purposes. The private sector has to buy 70% of the land and government help in getting holdouts will only be given in the 30% of the remaining portion. The solution perhaps lies in setting a standard law across India, apart from amending the age old Land Acquisition Act, which has been proposed for quite sometime now, but due to political pressure it doesn’t seem to be happening soon.

Niharika Patra

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
1 lakh copies sold in less than 10 days of Arindam Chaudhuri’s “Discover The Diamond In you”
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