Daily Excelsior... Editorial

EDITORIAL

Past, present and future heritage of Jammu

By Balraj Puri

World Heritage week was celebrated this year in Jammu with unprecedented enthusiasm by more than one institution, including the University and the Amar Mahal Museum. If this new found awareness about the region's heritage is to be consolidated .......more

Running away from
Iraq with failed agenda

By O.P Modi

What President Bush thought was a cake walk plan in Iraq for his second term in the White House is turning out to be a nightmare for the Republican Party in the run-up to the presidential elections in November next year. Very soon, but expectedly not latter than July 2004, most of the American forces .......more

Abandon impractical
bill Bharat

By Jhunjhunwala

Ninety three percent of the workers in our country earn their living in the unorganized sectors such as agriculture, pulling rickshaws or street vendors. The Government has presented a Bill to provide protection to these workers. There is provision for health cover, insurance and pension. The money will come from three sources—the workers, employers and government. The employers will have ........more

EDITORIAL

Need for better policing

Since the question involved is that of safety and security of the people of our summer capital, it needs to be satisfactorily addressed. How is that the gun-totting terrorists are able to cross the entire length and breadth of Jammu city with impunity? The 20-hour long encounter in Mahamaya forests, spread over two days, compels us to think over it again. That the two terrorists had managed to sneak into the Jammu region is perhaps not surprising. Such occurrences may continue for some more time. The proximity of the region to the International Border (IB) and Line of Control (LoC) exposes it to such risks. Hopefully, this would end once and for all when the cease-fire between India and Pakistan is ‘strictly and religiously’ enforced. Right now we should feel satisfied that the observance of cease-fire is on the expected lines. What is galling, however, is that the terror duo, after entering the region, had managed to travel, virtually at gunpoint, through the main thoroughfares of the city, including the crowded Tawi Bridge. Their journey had remained uninterrupted for nearly three hours despite repeated alerts sounded by affected citizens and the police itself from more than one place. It is unbelievable that they had managed to travel from Pauni chak, on one end, to Sidhra bypass, on the other, unchallenged. Both of them were eliminated finally before they could cause any havoc is a matter of satisfaction. But, it needs to be remembered that if they had met the end they deserved, it was not because of the police. The Army jawans had to be pressed into the operation to put them in their place. The incident is a reminder of what had happened in the Akhnoor sector in October. On that occasion, the terrorists had struck at Shalimar Express near Hiranagar. They had crossed the Jammu city before heading for Akhnoor where they had met their nemesis. In the present instance, it needs to be noted that the terrorists had made specific queries about the Railway Station and the Government Medical College, which it is quite reasonable to presume, gave an inkling of their evil motives. It is just a coincidence that Mr K.B. Pillai, one of the senior most IAS officers in the State, had a providential escape. For this, more than anybody else, his driver has to be praised for showing rare presence of mind. Such a prized target would have, indeed, served the terrorists’ aim.

Both the serious incidents bring us to the wider issue of injecting more professionalism into our police set-up. It does not do any credit to the law-enforcing authorities that the large numbers of police barriers on the busy roads have actually proved ineffective. Since they have not quite lived up to their purpose of keeping tabs on mischief-mongers, they are often perceived as a source of harassment to thousands of passengers and pilgrims on their way to and from the Railway Station and bus stands. It should be clearly understood almost every citizen of the city and the country has seen the perils of terrorism during the last two decades and is always willing to cooperate with the security forces. He does not at all mind if he himself or his baggage is subjected to scrutiny. All that he expects that he should be treated with decency and dignity. This puts an added responsibility on the police to conduct itself in accordance with the expectations of the people. It has to be efficient and it has to be seen doing its job with a human face as the most visible arm of the State. Is it because of over-dependence on the Army and para-military forces that the State police has lost its urge to rise to the occasion? Such a conclusion may not be fair to those brave jawans and officers who have sacrificed their lives in the discharge of their duties. At the same time, this is some thing that the higher authorities must ponder over. At one time, the police in the State had developed two faces. It was active and vibrant on this side of the Pir Panjal while its entire machinery had just caved in across the mighty mountain. Gradually, it was virtually rebuilt from the debris. Of late, it has been striving to redeem itself. All that is to be done now is to gear it further to meet the challenges of the present situation. For better professionalism, they should be occasionally exposed to training in top institutions in the country and elsewhere. More inter-action with the Army and para-military forces would also help in this direction. They should be alert enough to respond to each other’s messages, something that has been found lacking this time. Their image should be so strong that the terrorists shiver at the very thought of crossing the barriers manned by them.

Pardesi babus

Like ‘Aya Rams, Gaya Rams’ elsewhere in the country, we seem to have our own version of them in Pardesi babus. We tend to borrow this expression not from a famous Hindi movie of the same name. We are inspired, instead, by our own Mr Ghulam Qadir Pardesi following his decision to return to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). He has resigned from the National Conference. His ‘homecoming’ to the political outfit of Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed has led to celebrations. What will the Congress do should Mr Pardesi opt to go back to its fold? Would the party describe is as the return of the native? Mr Pardesi had begun his political career by joining the Congress. There may be an explanation for his movement out of this party. As a friend, he might have decided to prove that he is one who is always available in the hour of need. That is why he must have accompanied the founder of the PDP, who himself is a former Congressman, when he had launched his regional venture. However, there may be difficulty for him in explaining why he had crossed over to the NC, on the entirely opposite side of the political spectrum. Then, Mr Pardesi should be given the benefit of doubt. Since he has spent a greater part of his career in bureaucracy than in public life, he should be considered a comparatively newcomer to the political game. By the same logic, he is back in the PDP.

Far more experienced leaders than Mr Pardesi have performed even greater feats. For instance, in 1953 when the ‘loyalists’ had just deserted Sheikh Abdullah, of all leaders, to back the dispensation that had replaced him. Again, in 1984, we had seen an entirely new brand of politicians playing the old game and neatly pulling the rug from under Dr Abdullah’s feet. In both the instances, it was the lust for power that had come into play. In fairness to Mr Pardesi, in his case no such dirty trick is involved. It is not our intention either to find fault with him. There are many much more prominent personalities that still keep shifting from one party to the other. Like the floating gardens in the Dal lake. Nobody would find fault with him or her. Why blame poor Mr Pardesi? He is free to choose the party of his liking. If the others can do it, why can’t he? Is he not entitled to make his own political calculations? In fact, we should be grateful to the people like him. But for them, our politics will be dull and deprived of its vitality — and even movement.

Past, present and future heritage of Jammu

By Balraj Puri

World Heritage week was celebrated this year in Jammu with unprecedented enthusiasm by more than one institution, including the University and the Amar Mahal Museum.

If this new found awareness about the region's heritage is to be consolidated and constructively channelised, its basic concept needs to be debated and clarified.

The notion that heritage is concerned merely with preservation of old monuments is a part of our colonial heritage. The colonial rulers had no interest in the people of the country and their multi-dimensional life. Hence they concentrated on material monuments of the country. They could not appreciate that India was the oldest living civilization of the world as in their own country the part was dead in every sense of the word, particularly after Reformation and Industrial Revolution.

In India past is a living reality-socially, culturally and to a large extent even economically. The inevitable changes in the Indian heritage are a part of an evolutionary process where past merges into the present and the present into the future. In countries like India, community is an integrated part of the heritage.

Taking cognizance of the regional realities, the UNESCO launched a programme of ''Integrated Community Development and Cultural Heritage Preservation in Asia and Pacific through Local Effort'', or LEAP as it has come to be called. The purpose of heritage conservation, according to it, is ''not to encourage people to return to some nostalgic past, but to use heritage as the divining rod for determining the direction the community wishes to take in its future development''. In short heritage is to be conceived as a part of the future of a community.

Over the last three decades, observes Gamini Wijesuriya, former Director conservation, Sri Lanka, ''materialistic approaches to heritage have begun to change drastically.'' Change of concept, according to him, favour an anthroological approach to heritage.

Again, distinction that is often drawn between tangible and intangible heritage i.e. materialistic and cultural respectively, is rather thin. What is the value of a materialistic heritage removed from the community and its culture? Would a reconstructed Ghalib Haveli, after removing its surrounding households in Bilimaran in Delhi be fit to be called a heritage ?

Similarly the much hyped proposal to declare Mubarak Mandi in Jammu as a heritage site would lose its historic value and present importance if it is cut off from the surrounding Mohallas which are as old as the palaces are. In fact Padma's famous poem ''Raje Di Mandian'' lends the site its real socio-cultural significance. We ought to know who were its builders, where are their descendants, who was the architect and who conceived the design. It is not enough to know under whose rule and under whose orders these palaces were built. A heritage to be worthwhile must be related to its context, socio-cultural as also contemporary context.

The value of a heritage should not be merely judged by its antiquity, massiveness of the building and its architectural design but also by what it symbolizes. Charar-e-Sharief was a very sacred place for Kashmiris which was destroyed in 1995 during the militancy and anti-militancy operations. It was a magnificent monument of Kashmiri architecture. But it had acquired a place in the heart of every Kashmiri on account of the fact that it entombed the body of Nund Rishi, one of the greatest Kashmiri ever born. That made the monument so precious

There are many great men and women whose personalities have not been symbolized in a tangible form. The great Dogra guerilla hero Mian Deedo may have been immortalized in the Dogri folk songs which have perhaps yet not been recorded. No visible symbol existed till his statue was installed with the non-Government effort. His weapons of war, his dresses, the place of his birth and sites of his operations are precious heritage of the Duggar. Will his grateful community, if not the Government, care to preserve and build appropriate monuments for this heritage ?

Likewise, the first Kisan Martyr Bawa Jitto had an eternal message not only for the Dogra community but also for exploited masses every where, deserves an appropriate heritage monument. In fact the route through which he travelled along with his daughter after migrating from Aghar near Katra to Jhiri should be declared a heritage route. Each spot is sanctified not only by the footsteps of the Kisan martyr but has legends and history to tell. At the top of a small hillock an route, for instance, a lame women is said to offer drinking water to Vaishnodevi yatries, who used to follow that route in those days. Her fame as a classical singer had spread far and wide. Once a great singer from Lahore was slapped by her for his incorrect rendering of a musical item. He apologized and sought her guidance. Who was she, what was her name, what songs she used to sing? What is her and other known and unknown musicians' contribution to the Pahari school of music? Aren't K L Sehgal, Malika Pukhraj and Allah Rakha a part of our heritage? Donot they deserve to be commemorated and if possible in material form.

While artists of immortal Pahari school of painting like Nain Sukh and Mankoo are well known in the world of art, how many people of Jammu know the precious heritage they have left ? Do we know any thing about their personal life, sources of inspiration and incentives and disincentives they received in their work ? Has any effort been made to trace the authorship of anonymous master pieces of art? That such a heritage has a relevance for the future would be a evident from the fact that it inspired a young artist Sohan to revive Pahari school of painting.

I could go on and on about unsung heroes of other parts of Jammu also- Poonch, Rajouri, Doda, Kishtwar and Bhaderwah, Gool and Chenani-whose heritage in the material form is yet to be built. It is the agenda of the present generation who is becoming conscious of its heritage, to build future heritage of the region, according to aspirations of the people.

Heritage is not confined to heroes and leaders. In its wider concept it includes communities of the people, their culture and their roots. Who were, for instance, earliest inhabitants of Jammu, were they pre-Aryan as some of the Harrapan relics signify? When and wherefrom other communities arrive in Jammu? What Greek influence, if any, was left by Alexandar's invasion in nearby Punjab? What parts of the region came under Buddist influence? what is the relation of the present local communities with the tribes mentioned in Ramayan, Mahabharat, Nilmat Puran and by Panini and Kalhan? A number of such unexploded questions and unauthenticated answers await rigorous research. If heritage is part of the discipline of Anthropology, as Wijesuriya, quoted above, asserts, these questions should receive priority in the future work on heritage of Jammu by the research scholars.

Finally it is worthwhile to remember the warning of the sociologist Savyasachi against the fact that ''conservation of heritage can easily degenerate into revivalism and support of dogma, providing legitimacy to several inhuman social and cultural practices.'' The current urge for identity and self-awareness has led Jammu to the threshold of a new phase of renaissance. It is the responsibility of the intellectual, cultural and political leadership to guard against its relapse into revivalism.

Running away from Iraq with failed agenda

By O.P Modi

The killing of nearly 420 American soldiers by the Iraqi guerrillas since the war began as also the downing of five helicopters by the Iraqi resistance in which 40 Americans died (including 17 US soldiers who died in two Black Hawk helicopters’ mid air collision recently) has finally led to the decision by the Bush Administration to quit Iraq as early as possible. Ironically, as recently as 26th August President Bush addressing Annual Convention of American Legion at St. Louis vowed, "The US would not back down there (Iraq) or anywhere it confronts the Islamic extremism".

Another factor that has contributed towards the Bush administrations’ decision to abandon Iraq is the anti-occupation demonstration around the White House on 26th October by an estimated 100,000 protestors who had come all the way from more than 145 US cities. On the same day thousands gathered in San Francisco to protest against the occupation of Iraq. The demonstrators were chanting "End the occupation, bring our children back home". With growing number of American soldiers getting killed and almost 6500 wounded returning to their homes President Bush’s popularity has fallen from 80 percent to 56 percent since the terrorist attack on the World Trade Centre and the Pentagon.

Yet another reason that has pressurised the Bush administration to leave Iraq in the lurch is the massive amount of funds that are needed to maintain its occupation forces in that country. It has been estimated that just to keep Iraq occupied America would need more than $ 87 billion annually. With very little interest that the US Congress has shown in sanctioning the massive funds Bush has no other alternative but to abandon the besieged and ruined Iraq.

There being no end to the Iraqi resistance in sight the only option left with US is to end the occupation of that country. It was clear from the very beginning of the war that one day Bush will have to order lifting of the occupation without achieving the objectives he had set before himself for waging the war. However, the whole saga is a massive tragedy; not only for the near and dear ones of the dead in this meaningless war but also for the future of Iraq itself- as a united sovereign country.

President Bush, who had pledged to usher in Iraq a democratic set up after defeating Saddam Hussein that would, according to him, have acted as a model for whole of Middle East, will leave Iraq in the hands of a hand picked Provisional National Assembly. The Assembly is supposed to govern the country till such time as the elections are held. The country’s constitution will also be framed by the Assembly. It is just a face saving device designed to act as a damage control at home in view of the next year’s presidential elections.

The war against Iraq was waged by the USA to get hold of the Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) supposedly stocked by Saddam Hussein. No WMDs have been found on the Iraqi soil. Having failed to find even a single WMD President Bush accused Hussein of having a WMD programme of which again there was no evidence traceable. Another agenda was to "liberate the oppressed Iraqis" who were expected to welcome the Americans as "liberators" with open arms. Nothing of the sort happened; instead a strong resistance against the occupation has emerged on the scene that has forced Bush administration to call it a day in Iraq.

Other dreams of the Bush coterie too have been shattered. One of which was to get control of Iraq’s rich oil fields. Yet another aim following the "victory" over Iraq was to grant huge lucrative contracts to the American companies for rebuilding Iraq after it had been destroyed by the American bombing. Paradoxically Iraq was supposed to provide the funds generated from its oil fields for its rebuilding!

Will the people of Iraq accept the fiat of the so called Provisional Assembly? How the Assembly is going to control the various mutually hostile sections of the population- the Kurds, the Shiites and the Sunnis particularly when its members will not be the elected representatives of the people. Still worst the members of the Provisional Assembly would be looked upon by the Iraqis as American stooges and traitors?

There is little doubt that soon US is going to leave the Iraqis to their fate. Despite tall claims by the American administration of having restored much of the civic amenities such as electricity, drinking water etc. the Iraqis continue to suffer the lack of even these basic needs. In spite of the best efforts of President Bush no country, except Britain and some others, has come to the rescue of Iraqi people. No country, except the US coalition partners, has deployed its troops. Even Japan went back on its promise of sending forces to Iraq for non military activities there. Though some countries promised financial assistance to rebuild Iraq none has actually contributed the funds to the US kitty for the purpose.

It is none of the Iraqi people’s fault that first, for over ten years, they suffered the despotic rule of Saddam Hussein and then economic sanctions were slapped on them by the United States followed by an aggression that was based on "doctored" and false intelligence reports of CIA and other secret agencies including those of Britain.

With the departure of Americans from Iraq, which is now almost certain, it becomes incumbent upon the international community to take upon itself the task of restoring complete peace and of rebuilding the country under overall control of the United Nations Organisation. To finance the entire reconstruction of that country the United States must agree to provide 95% of the cost from its exchequer. This is the minimum that country should do to atone for the colossal damage it has done to the Iraqi people.

Abandon impractical bill Bharat

By Jhunjhunwala

A nearly similar law had been made for the welfare of construction workers in 1996. Most states have not started welfare schemes as required under this law even after seven years. According to a report by S Kumarswamy, a similar scheme is in operation in Tamil Nadu since 1994. Yet, only 16,000 out of registered 450,000 construction workers have been benefited. An amount of Rs 57 crores has been collected from cess on construction but only six crores has been distributed to the workers.

It will be even more difficult to operate such a scheme for the unorganized sectors. It is possible to collect a cess for the benefit of the construction workers because the contractors have to obtain various approvals for construction. These approvals can be withheld in absence of payment of the cess. The unorganized employers have to take no such approvals. Thus to locate, register and collect Rs 100 per month from crores of farmers and other employers would be nearly impossible. Farmers employ workers for a few days or weeks. Many street vendors are self-employed. Rickshaw pullers take a rickshaw from one contractor this week and from another next week. Small hotels and dhabas are located in faraway places. Collection of moneys from these employers is going to be nearly impossible.

Moreover, it is seen that labour laws are implemented only when the Trade Unions point the irregularities to the labour inspectors. Labour inspectors are generally content to make yearly visits to the establishments to collect their annual bribe. They are forced to take cognizance of laws when a Trade Union complains. Labour laws are useless in absence of such pressure. It is relatively easy to organize the factory workers into Trade Unions because they are spontaneously assembled in one place during the course of their work. Street corner meetings can be held after work hours. They also have one single employer as the opposite party. But the unorganized workers have no Trade Unions to apply pressure on the labour inspectors. In absence of such pressure the law will be more violated than followed.

Another weakness of the Bill is that the responsibility of registering such large number of employers and workers has been given to the existing labour department which is unable to even attend to the problems of the organized workers. Often two inspectors have to oversee the implementation of more than twenty laws such as those relating to Minimum Wages, Industrial Disputes, Gratuity, Equal Remuneration, etc. in one district which may have about 250 establishments. The inspector cannot even spend one day per establishment. Now they will be given the additional responsibility of registering and collecting money from about 50,000 small employers! The existing labour departments simply do not have the infrastructure for undertaking such a massive task. It is almost certain that the present Bill will not provide relief to the workers. It will only open another window for the labour inspectors to collect bribes from the small businessmen.

This policy may be suitable for those cultures where the individual has no social network of support. The family, occupational associations, village, community or religious orders are generally weak in the Western countries. The individual stands alone in the society. Even husband and wife cannot depend upon each other for providing security throughout the life. In such countries it is necessary for the state to take the responsibility of welfare of the individual. The family or religious order does not come to one’s help if he falls sick. The only way to provide for old age, sickness and unemployment is for the state to make schemes for the purpose. An individual can deposit Rs 100 per month with the government any buy an insurance against these calamities.

In our country the same Rs 100 is invested in the growth of brother, son or nephew. One provides shelter to his nephew to find job in Mumbai. His brother looks after him if he falls sick.

There are, therefore, two ways in which an individual can buy insurance against the calamities—from the government or from the community. The latter option is both more efficient and effective. One will not have to lose five days’ wages to get a relief and lower taxes will lead to the generation of more employment.

The Government should abandon such impractical schemes that are beneficial mainly for the bureaucracy. The role of the Government is to make such economic policies that enable the small businessmen to compete with Pepsi Cola, Hindustan Lever and Britannia. The increased incomes would enable them to buy insurance from the community against calamities. But the Government likes to first disable the small businesses by exposing them to competition from Hindustan Lever, then makes schemes to alleviate the poverty it has so created. This vicious circle of creation and alleviation of poverty must stop.

Pakistan seeks propaganda value with its robust response

By Atul Cowshish

The Pakistan response to the set of 12 confidence buildings measures suggested by India on October 22 is neither 'robust' nor 'positive', as was promised by the acerbic spokesman of the Pakistani foreign ministry. But when it comes to Pakistan, to except the usual diplomatic niceties or grace in communicating with India would be foolhardy.

Islamabad is a practical example of an apocryphal story about an Indian farmer who would bear all the beatings from his adversary and swallow basketful of onions after loosing the wager but will not give up his pursuits that looked doomed from the outset.

In that land of the 'pure' everything begins and ends with Kashmir. Pakistani has accepted only a few of the Indian proposals without any pre-conditions: resumption of sporting ties (cricket in particular) and allowing senior citizens to cross the Wagah border on foot.

Resuming sporting ties-cricket to be more specific-has always been the Pakistani priority because over the years it has perfected the art of converting the cricket field into the venue for an Indo-Pak dual. No visiting Indian team can ever hope to play in Pakistan without a large section of the patriotic spectators constantly shouting abuses at India. The volume increases if the Pakistani team faces defeat. Pakistani players are obsessed with the desire to defeat India because it gives them some vicarious pleasure of getting the better of heathens. The Government of the day bestows riches on them for defeating India. Pakistan has also agreed with India to ease the problems faced by fishermen of the two countries. But its response to the rest of the measures is tied to conditions that Islamabad knows well will not be acceptable to India. Obviously, Pakistan thinks this would help it achieve what it wants most: going to international fora with more anti-Indian ammunition.

Indeed, some of the counter proposals from Pakistan are designed to provoke India. In response to the Indian offer of free treatment for 20 Pakistani children in India, Pakistan has offered free hospital treatment for 'victims' of Indian security forces operations in Kashmir.

It is ridiculous for Pakistan to seek intervention by international human rights bodies in selecting the Kashmiri 'victims' for treatment in Pakistan. Does Pakistan accept all the reports of these global busybodies who have been as critical of Pakistan as they have been of India? Besides, will the human rights bodies agree, as the Pakistani suggestion would imply, that they have an important political agenda to serve behind their critical reports on India?

Before asking the human rights organisation to pitch their tents in the war zone in India created by it, Pakistan should also agree to use the services of these bodies to identify the bodies of all the Pakistani 'freedom fighters', known in the rest of the world as terrorists, who are regularly sent to India to seek the path to 'heaven'--by spreading death and mayhem and then getting killed by Indian security forces.

Pakistan will accept the Indian proposal to start a bus service between Srinagar and Muzaffarabad in Pakistani occupied Kashmir provided the passengers travel on UN documents and UN personnel man the checkpoints on either side of the line of control. Before making that absured proposal has Pakistan made sure that the UN in willing to enter the muddy waters of Kashmir further by taking policing and customs duties?

Pakistan is hazy on the Indian proposals on boosting travel links that include resumption in air service and re-opening of the long-forgotten Sind-Rajasthan land route and the Mumbai-Karachi ferry service. It will not do anything to take up these measures unless India gives a guarantee that it will not refuse in future and under any circumstances permission to Pakistani aircraft to overfly Indian territory.

The Pakistani delusion is now reaching the stage when it thinks it can not only tell India how to 'resolve' the Kashmir tangle but also how India should shape its civil aviation and transport policies! But if Pakistan shows eagerness to resume train service it is because with the masses of travelling genuine passengers it can regularly smuggle in its army of spies and saboteurs, not to speak of its 'freedom fighters' under different garbs.

Among the decision taken by a furious India just after the Pakistani terrorists' attack on Parliament in December 2001, the one that hurt Islambad most was perhaps the drastic reduction in its 110-member mission in Delhi. It is common knowledge in India that the large the size of the Pakistani mission in India, the more the number of ISI operatives who position themselves officially on Indian soil to guide and monitor their nefarious activities.

It is Pakistani humbug to say that a large staff is required in India to clear the flood of visa applications. A large sized Pakistani staff in India never helped reduce the wait for visas. In any case, even at the best of times, the Pakistanis are quire prone to turn down visa requests from Indians.

It is obvious that the week that Islamabad took to mull over the Indian initiatives was spent only in devising a reply that will be strong on propaganda value but low in substance. An outright rejection of the Indian peace proposals would have been impossible for Islamabad for fear of infuriating Uncle Sam, the all-pervasive benefactor and patron of Pakistan, and indeed much of the international community. The Pakistani response was announced by no less a person that the Pakistani Foreign Secretary, Riaz Khokhar, who had duly won his spurs by vilifying India-in India itself as the infamous High Commissioner of his country.

Setting aside the provocation build into the 'robust' Pakistani response, it would look very clear that Islamabad simply could not find ways to match Indian gestures which are clearly aimed at improving people-to-people contacts. That is because the Pakistani establishment-the military, the bureaucracy, the mullahs and politicians who kow-tow to the military-overwhelmingly opposes any encouragement to large-scale people-to-people contacts between the two countries.

No matter what the Pakistanis say, the fact remains that the so-called 'core' issue of Kashmir can never be solved unless relations between the people of the two countries are marked by mutual trust and friendship. Any real Indo-Pak thaw can begin only at the people-to-people level-and not at summit meetings, as the Pakistanis are fond of declaring. The establishment in Islamabad draws its power-and privileges--from constantly keeping an imaginary Indian bogey alive and has never done anything more than pay lip service to the cause of peace in the sub-continent.

The Pakistani establishment has lit an eternal hate-India flame, which discourages any popular expression in that country of views that seek to genuinely improve bilateral relations.

But having said all that the fact remains that India will be equally unwise to adopt the Pakistani style of course diplomacy. As stated in the beginning, Pakistan cannot be expected to respond with any reasonableness or decency to India moves because of its fragile sense of national pride and definition of its nationhood. So even if Pakistan is willing to implement only a handful of Indian proposals it should be viewed as some gain.

The bottom line is that in the given State of India-Pak relations nothing can be expected to kick-start the real peace process. It has to be a very slow and tortuous process that requires a lot of patience. India should be willing to show that kid of indulgence even if Pakistan continues to live up to its boorish diplomatic behaviour-until one day Uncle Sam turns the heat on it.

(Syndicate Features)

Pleasing a man is a full time job

By Uma Ramachandran

Before I got married a girl I hardly knew invited me to a singles dinner party in Mumbai. I arrived looking wiped out after a 10-hour stint in the office. This I thought was a normal entrance to a weekday supper invitation but it was soon apparent that my fellow singles were in a different league.

The other women including one celebrity single now married were ridiculously gorgeous. What was shocking though, was how keen they were to be with our unappetising dates.

Halfway through dinner, one man informed me that the girl on his right an exquisite creature called Tanya wasn’t wearing knickers. This same girl whose barely harnessed bosoms were propped on the table like a plat du jour then recited a speech of thanks while standing on the table. Back in her seat, she sheepishly announced that she was off to meet her man. "Ooh that’s why you’re looking so pretty!" chorused the others in saccharine tones while the bachelors gazed on longingly.

Now look, I may be out of touch, but where I come from no one would admit that they had made a special effort for their men. No one would be seen dead in a baby-doll – not even one by Valentino.

Above all, no one would stand on a table in a baby-doll wearing no knickers. I don’t say this is necessarily right. But that is the way it has always been among the vast majority of professional, (mainly) university-educated women of my circle and generation.

Our somewhat po-faced way of dealing with the opposite sex seems, however, to be coming under fire. Today, there is a new generation of women–and I don’t mean tarts–who are prepared to channel a sizeable chunk of their energies into finding out what men like and delivering it. Not for the joy of a tumble in the monogrammed sheets, but in the hope of waking up in the master bedroom permanently.

A whole tribe of twenty to thirty somethings has emerged, who can happily wear a push-up bra without irony or the smallest trace of guilt. My generation–the over 35s–thinks that sexy undies, unless worn for a joke, are a bit of a copout. We want to be loved for our minds, you see. The modern seductress – who combines old-fashioned savvy with a new book of contemporary courtship tricks–has no such qualms. For her, man pleasing is a career option. As Madhuri, the entrancing fiancée of a business tycoon explains: "Pleasing my man is a full-time project." The concept of the temptress – an ambitious woman whose first aim is to delight – is an old one. What is amazing is not that these seductresses should still be around but that the idea should actually be gaining currency.

The pendulum has swung, virtually overnight, from a climate of earnest and sometimes tedious mutual respect to one of good old-fashioned role-playing. It could be that a new generation of young women, drip-fed a constant diet of sad singleton stories, are wary of staying ploddingly true to the sisterhood and ending up on the shelf.

Or it could be a fashion thing. The prevailing mood in women’s fashion for the past few seasons has been utterly feminine.

Maybe some women who have seen "The feminists shot themselves in the foot big time," explains one modern temptress. "I believe that a woman should be a woman and a man should be a man. My philosophy is: ‘I’ll look pretty; you open the door and pay for the tickets.

Fair enough. Although this kind of thing sticks in my throat, one can at least see that it makes life a bit more fun. What’s more, there is a sort of engaging, honesty, an upfronteness, a pathos and pragmatism about these modern seductresses that you can’t help but find endearing.

They all possess one enviable talent: the ability to ensure that men find them riveting. And they’re not ashamed to accommodate male fantasies. "You can decide not to play games, to have a purely cerebral rapport," explains Madhuri on her mobile phone.

But after saying, "Right let’s have sex now’ a few times, it gets boring." If the woman continually recreates herself, its more fun. Madhuri is a scene setter. She knows how to create an atmosphere, a vibe. "My home is full of candles and velvet pillows. I love to lie in front of the fire, so I have tray tables that I can move about." Would tray tables-lightweight, folding and utterly functional (they can be quickly shifted to make way for spontaneous sex) –work on your man? You bet.

"Men are quite simple in a way, like cars," says Tanya, who married the very eligible Giriraj last year. "They like something that looks good." Forget anything you’ve read recently about natural beauty. Looking good – in modern seductress speak means groomed. These girls are waxed, blow-dried and bronzed. No effort at self-maintenance is considered too extreme. They are fiends for regular all-over body decide exfoliation. It makes them feel silky and smooth next to their older man.

"In men’s minds, women are goddesses," says Madhuri, "so women must be goddesses for them."

These girls remember; have to compete across several continents. "By English standards I make a lot of effort, says Tanya. "Not by American standards. The kind of Mumbai socialites Aditi went out with was incredibly well polished.

Lingerie is also key. Modern seductresses do not get caught out wearing underwear that doesn’t match. "Nice lacy knickers and a push-up bra are absolutely standard attire," reveals Sonia, 32, who work in the fashion industry. "Men live sexy underwear, especially if you surprise them with a lacy whisper of nothing by La Perla – or at the least a bit of Victoria’s Secrets – under a T-shirts and jeans."

Then there’s the rest of the wardrobe. The true temptress knows how to navigate the thin line between glamour and tartiness and to resist fashion innovations – unless they are totally boy-friendly.

"Men love mules," says one modern seductress. "They are just so easy to slip off." As is anything black and slinky from Gucci, flirty from Valentino or – for the modern seductress whose target male has more fashion savvy – a pair of original Calvin Klein jeans teamed with Richard Tyler sandals.

The slightly fluffier, less foot sure crew opts for tactile cashmere ("makes men want to stroke you") and uncompromisingly feminine dresses ("men l-o-v-e dresses") "This season I’m wearing girlie, frilly, lovely little dresses covered with flower patterns," says Rashmi

The unpalatable thing about the modern seductress is the way that she conforms to old-fashioned female stereotypes. The Dumb Blonde is with us still.

"Men want pretty girls who don’t say too much," says a modern seductress friend. Anjali blithely admits: "There is no man who doesn’t like vulnerability. Men like to feel stronger. If you act terribly feminine, they all melt."

Jasmin, an (now married) interior decorator who has the teensiest little girl voice in the business, says: "The secret is to be difficult, petulant, sulky, pouty and enigmatic. Make them think they are chasing you."

Is this the technique she employed on her husband? "Well, he loved the schoolgirl voice. And the fact, that I was confident, but vulnerable. When I twigged to this, I hammed it up; I also use a lot of eye contact. It’s the easiest way to charm a man. And let them do most of the talking. Then you discover what turns them on." Oh and don’t forget to look riveted while you’re about it.

The other types of body language – the crossed leg, the smirks and giggles, the perching on the edge of the chair (makes your bare thighs look thinner) is so standard as to be almost formulaic. But, too much sexual flaunting (whispering come-ons and sallying forth without pants) it seen as a risky ploy, likely to net only short-term results.

"If a girl is too va-vavoom when a guy meets her," says one seductress, he’ll think ‘oh but she chased me’ and that will be the excuse for him to get out. What they never seem to realise is that the coy little thing is 50 times more manipulative than the in-your-face one." So no feminist guilt then? "Look we girls have to get off at the stop and get on a new train: get ourselves a new set of tools," says Madhuri

"We’re battering and hurtling the men in our lives. Some men need to feel manly. They appreciate a woman who can make them feel like a man." INAV