DELHI'S UNDER- BELLY

In a gruesome repeat of the 2005 dhaula kuan rape case, another girl was raped in a moving three wheeler by four-five men. Significantly, the important common thing in both the cases is not the secluded location of a big flyover near dhaula kuan, but the origin of both the victims from the north east region of India. Why is this happening again? Although, Delhi is termed as a rape capital by many people but, in Delhi also the girls who come from northeastern states are being specifically targeted more often.

http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/uncategorized/no-arrests-so-far-in-bpo-employee-gangrape-case_100465038.html

Emile Durkheim the famous sociologist from France had said’’ crime is a social fact and social facts are ways of feeling, thinking and acting commonly spread among the people, external to individual and exercising a constraint upon him”.

Targeting of northeastern Indian girls has become a fact now.  The main reason of this trend is the perception of the common Delhi males that these girls are open minded, and hence easily available. They being slightly different in their looks give them an outsider’s tag which makes them more tempting and relatively easier to target. The overall aggressive culture of the city, coupled with the coexistence of two worlds, entirely different and opposite to each other, make the capital a horrible place to live for women.

On the one hand, Delhi is emerging as a 21^st century’s modern cosmopolitan city with all the glitz and glamour of a western capital and the work force with its modern outlook to match . On the other hand, the old world’s parochial and chauvinistic male dominated north Indian feudal mentality is also very much present here. When the old world sees the brightness of the new world, it tries to suppress it, through dominance and force. Rape is just a manifestation of the desperation of that loosing old world.

Quality liberal education with right moral lessons from parents will go a long way in the making of a child into a good and responsible citizen.

TENTACLES OF CORRUPTION - REACHED MEDIA

Media is one of the four pillars of a democracy. By being a link between the government and public, it not only works as a watchdog, but mirrors the demands and perceptions of the society as well. However, Indian media these days in a mad rush to increase its TRPs is increasingly forgetting its responsibility and commitment towards impartiality and truth.

In a recent development, it has been found out that the editor of  a prominent News channel was not only acting as a mediator between the government and corporate lobbyists, but also trying to negotiate for a ministerial berth for an M.P(member of parliament) who later turned out to be the ringleader of the biggest scam of independent India.Barkha dutt, the editor in chief of NDTV was caught on tape negotiating with a corporate lobbyist Nira Radia about getting A.Raja a ministerial berth.

When the journalists who are suppose to be the guardians of the people’s interests and ethics themselves indulge in corrupt practices, the future of a developing country looks rather bleak. But still we can't blame the medium and kill the messenger. As this is the medium i.e media itself which brought this anomaly infront of us.

http://go4quiz.com/vincent/2010/india/nira-radia-tapes/

KARL MARX IN INDIA

India has always been a country of multiple realities. Different geographical conditions created different cultures, languages and ways of living. With independence, we started to celebrate these differences and felt proud to be the owner of a culture which is so diverse.

With time and learning we have somehow bridged the divide of geographical distances through the idea of a unifying notion called India; but, a deeper and steeper economic divide is still staring in front of us. This inequality of income is fast making India a country of extremes. On the one hand we have one of the richest people of the world living a sheltered and privileged life; on the other a huge chunk of population i.e. 38% still lives in abject poverty comparable to the sub-Saharan African countries. The funny thing about this is the fact that in a city like Mumbai one can actually see both sets of people living side by side. Antillia, the residential building of Reliance Chief Mukesh Ambani built at a cost of over $1billion has a monthly electricity bill of 70lakh, not too far from it is the world’s second biggest slum where at an area of 175 hectares over 1miilion people live in pathetic conditions.   

When the swings of the stock market, where hardly 4 percent of the Indian population is listed make the government more concerned than the suicide of 4,453 farmers from a particular region, then surely the priorities of the government are misplaced. After the liberalization of Indian economy in early 1990, the government policies have systematically supported the private capital to play the dominant role in the economy. Although, this has bore fruits and a considerable portion of population has been able to extricate itself from the tentacles of poverty, a large proportion of population is still poor. About one third of the total poor people of the world live here. Why?

The reasons lie in the policies which the government has taken post liberalization. Journalist and the Rural Affairs editor for The Hindu, P Sainath describes in his reports on the rural economy in India,

“ the level of inequality has risen to extraordinary levels, when at the same time hunger in India has reached its highest level in decades. He als points out that rural economiy across the country has collapsed, or on the verge of being collapsed due to the neo-liberal policies of the government of India since the 1990’s. The human cost of the liberalisation has been very high. The huge wave of farm suicides in Indian rural population from 1997 to 2007 totalled close to 200,000, according to official statistics’’.

‘’Although, India has always been an economically unequal country, after 1990 the level of inequality has grown significantly’’, Arup chanda West bengal bureau chief News-X.

 According to Gini coefficient, which measures the income inequality in a country, the level of inequality in India has grown significantly after 1990. With a Gini coefficient of 32.5 in 1990-to 38 in 2000, India is one of the most economically unequal countries in the world. Although, the Economy has grown steadily over the last two decades, its growth has been uneven.

According to Payal Malik , assistant professor of Macro Economics, PGDAV college, DU. ‘’Between 1999 and 2008, the annualized growth rates for Gujarat (8.8%), Haryana (8.7%), or Delhi (7.4%) were much higher than for Bihar (5.1%), Uttar Pradesh (4.4%), or Madhya Pradesh (3.5%). Poverty rates in rural Orissa (43%) and rural Bihar (41%) are among the world's most extreme. ‘’

This poverty seems more acute considering the fact that the relative poverty has increased. If everyone is poor, poverty seems to be a natural way of living, but all of a sudden if a select few get rich, the rest will always question and raise voices.

This is a situation which is developing in certain parts of India. The red corridor or the 220 Naxal infested districts of India are an example where due to the apathy of government functionaries and their collusion with the rapacious industrialists to loot out the natural resources, people have started doling out justice through their own hands. Not only are they angry with the policies of the government, but, they are angry with the whole system and ideology itself, which the government follows.

Although Capitalism has done wonders to the western world but in Indian context where the social and economic division of society is so deep, it is slightly immature to assume that the private capital with an 8-9% growth rate will solve the ills of our country. Capitalism relies too much on the cyclical nature of demand and supply of the market and restricts the role of government. Market has a tendency to compare and exclude. For the sake of making a just and equitable society, the tilt of the government has to be towards the society in general, the tendency to give preferential treatment to a particular sector or region could create anomalies which would be very difficult to resolve.  

INDIA WAS SATISFIED

President Obama’s recent visit to India is being seen as another milestone in the long journey of friendship between the two countries. Although, U S and India being the two largest democracies of the world should have been natural partners in the global arena very long ago, but, because of different models of governance and geographical distance they took very long to come close.

It’s only in the 2000, during President Bill Clinton’s visit to India that the two countries came close to each other. This relationship was further strengthened by President George Bush’s memorable visit in 2006, when he signed the Civil Nuclear Agreement Treaty with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Although, not as significant as the previous two, but this visit of Obama has been seen as a reaffirmation of the faith, which the U S imposes on its latest friend.

Obama’s backing of India’s bid for the permanent membership at the U.N’s Security Council and terming Kashmir as an internal matter of India, are some of the positives which have been received positively by the Indian political class
http://www.modernghana.com/news/226274/1/mps-hail-obama-visit.html

 Apart from these significant announcements, the symbolic visit of Mumbai’s Taj Mahal hotel and meeting with the families of those who lost their lives in the 26/11 terrorist attack have struck a right chord with the common man also. The visit of Mumbai has also been significant for the simple reason that the U S wants to have a stronger trade and economic ties with India, Mumbai being the financial capital, it was no surprise that President Obama touched down here first before flying over to the capital.

http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/obama-visit-ends-a-win-win-for-both-sides-65164

GODDESS OF BIG CONTROVERSIES--ARUNDHATY ROY

Arundhaty roy is a booker prize winning author, and a known social activist with a tilt towards the left. Knowing her penchant of taking cudgels against a government, which she thinks to be alligned towards the bourgeoisie, I was not surprised by her recent comments on kashmir's independence.


When I was in Kashmir.. what broke my heart on the street of Srinagar was when people say "Nanga Bhukha Hindustan, Jaan se Pyara Pakistan" and I said no because "Nanga Bhukha Hindustan" is with you, and if you are fighting for a just society the you must align yourself with powers and here are people who have fought their lives opposing Indian state....You have to look beyond stone pelting and how the state is using people. ...You have to know your enemy and you have to be able to respond by aligning tactically, intelligently, locally or internationally


Although, I was definitely surprised by the amount of coverage that the Indian press gave to her remarks and the reaction of the main opposition party. BJP, the main opposition party is basically demanding to frame her under anti sedition charges, which i think is totally uncalled for and not quiet possible.
BJP leader Arun Jaitley had said that '
'the country was stunned that a group of separatists had got together to hold a seminar to promote sedition under the nose of the government. He said that in a democracy, the right to secede cannot be accepted in the garb of right to free speech.''


What she said in her remarks has been said by many separatists and  kashmiri people before. But, it doesn't mean that all of a sudden they become more right, just because a noted author has joined their bandwagon of azadi(freedom )for kashmir. It is the most complex and equally dangerous political problem of the world. Unless and untill there is a substantive change in the stance of the three nuclear powers locked in this region, not much can be hoped from these rallyies and slogan shoutings. However, human rights violition is a grave concern and every person on this planet should raise his or her voice against it. Apart from tortures, harrasement and physical punishments by the security forces ,pelting stones towards them is also a violation of the fundamental right of expression.

A FIGHT WITHIN--TENTACLES OF CORRUPTION EVERYWHERE

                              

India is known to be the next superpower in the making. But, somehow, it hasn't yet been able to achieve its true potential. Apart from other socio economic factors, corruption is the single biggest reason for the underachievement of the largest democracy in the world.


Like a Hydra headed monster, the tentacles of corruption have reached almost every sphere of society. From a peon to the minister, every bolt in the government machinery seems to be tinged with corruption.  Of late, we have been witnessing the poison of corruption spreading to the hitherto clean and disciplined armed forces as well. Starting from the irregularity in the supply and quality of coffins for the martyers of kargil war, to the selling of high altitude equipments and ration in the open market, some members of the higher ranks of the 1.13 million strong Indian army seem to be competiting with their civilians counterparts in bureaucracy, in terms of swelling their bank accounts. This trend of revealation of corruption cases involving defence officials have taken a whole new height when certain officials were found to be involved in major real estate scams involving several crores.


http://www.zeenews.com/news665183.html

This new trend is potentially dangerous for the health of our country, for the simple reason that defence personnel are known to be the role models for the general people . Moreover, if senior officers are found to be indulged in corrupt practices , the ground soldiers who are fighting for their motherland in the border areas will surely feel cheated and demoralised.


http://facttruth.wordpress.com/2010/05/12/officers%E2%80%99-corruption-shattered-indian-army-confidence/

LETS LEARN MANDARIN

In the latest list of the world's most powerful person, Hu Zintao the President of the Republic of China has pipped U.S President Barack Obama as the most powerful person on the planet. This is the latest in a series of events, where the world is seeing significant events making China as an able alternate to America, economically as well as politically.


http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics/nation/Hu-Jintao-pips-Obama-to-become-most-powerful-person-Forbes/articleshow/6869841.cms


After becoming the second biggest economy of the world, China is also the biggest country for auto sales.
Although, the fall of Obama from his top position is more of a personal fall than that of America as a nation , as he is still the undisputed leader of the world's most powerful army, and it doesn't make the U.S second to China in terms of importance and preeminence. However, these are the signs of the time to come. Perhaps, we are already living in that transitory period where the global dominance of America is about to come to an end. Will the world move from a unipolar to a bipolar or multipolar world is a question which will be answered in the near future. In the meanwhile, apart from English looks like we have to learn the Mandarin also.