Tasks before Azad

By H C Katoch

Prevailing uncertainty set-tles and Azad sits on the throne of the Chief Minister of Jammu & Kashmir State. His assumption of office is hailed in the State, particularly jubilation and excitement in Jammu is overwhelming as Jammuites see in him the representation of this region since the dawn of democratic process in the State. Good luck to Jammu. People have high hopes for redressal of their long pending regional aspirations that are supposed to be addressed with his positioning on the highest pedestal of power in the State.

Azad has proven track record of his administrative acumen, political sagacity and above all friendly approach even with a common man irrespective of his religious faith, caste and creed. He has stupendous tasks ahead that attract attention, partly kept promises which need fulfilment and many issues of concern that cover State's political stability, social awakening for brotherhood, demoralising ethnic cleansing, religious intolerance propagation and economic development shattered despite rev up investments in the turmoil ridden State. Although the State is passing through the process of recovery, yet it puts the Chief Minister on acid test to demonstrate his capabilities to surmount the challenges. He can emerge undisputed leader in the State, if he brings the state from distorted track to rails as he had always been in the Capital since his political career started. The broad tasks ahead for immediate action can be broadly enumerated in the following paras :-

Decisions awaiting implementation

Amongt three important cabinet decisions, State accountability commission is made operational, but it lacks ''Sahastrabahu'' arms as the task is gigantic and the tools are too small to manage. However the beginning is done and the experiment may provide some solution to future task. The other two decisions of establishing i) Planning Board & ii)State Finance Commission have yet to see the light of the day. Like wise other policy decisions affecting State economy are before the new CM for which the public is watching eagerly. Delay in the establishment of these institutions is depriving the local self-Governments from strengthening in their resource base and also the attempts for making the economy vibrant.

Regional demands

Thurst area for regional aspirations refers to the commitment to implement i) Wazir Commission & ii) Delimitation Commission, PDP avoided and stretched the period for implementation to prolong till it falls in the lap of Congress as no previous regime of valley based CM's ever considered removing this discrimination. This commitment stands honoured by the erstwhile Dy CM and other senior cabinet colleagues of Congress who have promised to take care soon. The Congress CM action will be welcome by all in this regard that dispense with this discrimination.

One of the irritants is the lack of devolution of financial resources based on certain well-defined principles to the satisfaction of different regions. Diversions of funds, choosing of norms or projecting demands with discrimination etc are some of the issues that need study and specific examination. Sikri Commission formula for resource distribution even though provides lesser share for Jammu region as compared to the Godbole formula, has not been implemented. None has raised this issue so far in absence of its knowledge and always harped on two well-known issues of the above mentioned two Commissions.

Sharing of administrative power in proportion to the population, area and other related indicators is another crucial issue that keeps other regions in disadvantageous situation. Jammu is discriminated that is always echoed in assembly, streets, offices and in every nook and corner of this region that is spread from Lakhanpur to Banihal on one side and to Poonch on one corner and Padder on the other corner. Voices of discontent and struggle to achieve parity are continuing, hatred continues to brew and the negative forces take the advantage of this scenario. A rigorous exercise for maintaining this balance is required to satisfy the regional demands, nay even the district aspirations. Once done the problem will subside once for all and it will be no more issue for future generations.

In the context of regional demands, the contentious issue germane to recruitment process is extremely sensitive and it has always led the sufferers to knock the doors of the judiciary to voice their concern even to the apex court of the country. Here also the institutions are to be separated for each region like the Heads of departments are made functional for each region.

The regional demands once met instead of allowed to surface every time for fulfilment through repeated efforts and agitations from one issue to another shall subside the anger and path of peace and prosperity shall usher.

Development scenario

Development process demands holistic approach to weave the inputs and use the tools to produce finished product. The existing potential, natural and financial resources coupled with human resource when act in unison instead of finding a path through isolated approaches alone would lead to sustainable growth in all sectors of the economy. This approach of establishing linkages with connected and interlinked developmental entities of various broader giants of state economic development rests on contributing factors, which need conceptualisation. All economic pursuits aggregating to form the gross State domestic product through multi pronged endeavours of both Government and private enterprises end up in distorted end results in absence of well-defined principles. Thus the task is to acquire the services of professionals and their association for unravelling these tangled skeins.

Economic behaviour

Power, roads and irrigation are the major components of infrastructure required for economic development. People, the human resource, are the masters who uses this infrastructure, acts on natural resources and exploit to optimum level for sustainable economic growth. Our investments in power generation have been of greater magnitude, but the outcome has not met our requirements so far. Irrigation is stagnant and road network is inadequate. Human resource is not developed for bigger challenges. Local industry remains in infancy. Investments by outsiders fluctuate and not firm for future as the incentives when stopped the entrepreneurs leave the state as per the past experience in many cases. Agriculture and agro based activities too are not promising despite Government intervention through planned investments. Imports of food grains continue. The size of holdings is dwindling due to population increase that needs land for housing and subdivision of families. Information technology is unused despite investments its utility is minimised due to rudderless or no policy that lacks vision. Indeed every sector needs renaissance with pragmatic approach. Education is an exception that is revolutionised through stepped up goal oriented institutional framework, offered respectable position to the teaching community and above all streamlined the faulty or so called anomalies, which disturbed the minds of the teaching community for the past many decades. However, it now needs monitoring of the end results so that there is no complacency. This is a serious task for which the CM has to take notice, as this sector is a base for nation building.

The State domestic product and per capita income are some of the indicators telling us our position of strength, while import and export of products from the State further reveal the structure of the economy and human resource development and its behaviour with economic institutions. The study of these in detail throws light on the plight of our State economy that always demands from the centre special status for funding pattern despite over half a century investments from Central Govt financial institutions within and outside the country.

All these tasks place lot of demand on the Chief Minister to visualise the need for tackling these issues through innovative and visionary endeavours. For this, he has to develop a system and a team to devote their energies for securing desired end results. It will be a unique exercise that has never been attempted.

****

Our problem and education

By M L Kotwal

Today we are passing through so many problems in imparting education to our children. The problem lies not in our brains but in the way we use them in the consciousness which directs our lives. We have become stranger to nature, to other human beings and to our own inner self.

There is competition in every field of life. All fragmented segments of humans are today in dire opposition battling one another for jobs, money markets, land, raw materials, status, fame, prestige and power.

To educate our tiny tots we have to keep in view all the above mentioned problems faced by us and now I shall enunciate more other problems.

In cities there is water and air pollution. Not only this but there is sound pollution problems disturbing our brains to walk ahead to compete with day today problems to make overselves successful in evolutionary development of our life to produce men of moral character, men of high caliber who may be able to solve the world's problems. What is needed at this time is not only to get better in formation but higher vision and universal out look, because to save the earth there must be a revolution of consciousness and this revolution must begin in the kinder garden schools.

The ancient education system in our Bharat was quite different from our modern education system. Their abode was very far from the polluted and congested villages and towns and cities i.e. far from the dirty smell of rotten materials thrown inside and outside the lanes of towns and cities.

Our problems in educating the children in our villages are quite different, thought to be invalid and amounting to nothing quite null and numb, than the education given in big cities. So everybody is running towards cities and towns to get admission of their children in those schools which some of them are also situated in slums, in narrow streets having no ground and well -ventilated rooms.

No doubt there are some poverty - stricken areas, backward areas in the villages of our country, having no well-developed transportion and communication facilities, as such the movement of development and progress is quite sluggish or inactive.

And as a result the life of our villager has become nomadic like, running in search of maintenance of life, roaming from one place to another, from village to towns and big cities for earning salary to fill up their hungry abdomens of his family members not less than eight or ten.

Let us count many other problems which are being faced by the poor people living in far off places situated in hilly areas. The children of these villages have to walk a long route on foot due to lack of transportation facilities in these hilly areas. Their tiresome long journey takes ample time to reach their schools in time and also do not get enough time far their study.

Due to increase of population the number of the students is also increasing day by day and as such it has become too much difficult to find houses to accommodate the huge number of students in villages and therefore it becomes difficult to maintain discipline and impart education peacefully.

Due to unemployment problem the well educated young persons of cities run to the private schools in village ready to get even minimum salary. But well educated persons of the villages are not sometime ready to accept this service because they possess agriculture land of their own to earn their livelihood by cultivating their land with all - out efforts.

The above mentioned problems can be amended and solved by providing ample semi-annual financial help and well equipped cadre to manage and arrange everything needed for all-round development of the children living in backward and poverty-stricken villages. The State Govt should think over such problems faced by the villagers.

So for as the aim of education is concerned, it is alround development of the child-physical mental and spiritual and side by side universal out look such as equality, love and service for human society. The child's development in education depends not only course of study of high level and celebration of parents days and other correlated functions but it also requires pure and harmonious environment of the school and its surrounding atmosphere.

But it is a regretful matter that today we do not find such an atmosphere and environment inside and outside the house which may be conducive for child's physical, mental and spiritual development and improve his moral character and become competent for service of humanity with subjective approach and objective adjustment and also he should be capable to earn five minimum necessities of life food, cloth, house, education and medicine.

But what do we see and observe in our day to day life that the child of today has many problems to tackle with. We see that especially the child has become engaged in so many recreative problems but before him by the parents such as the child residing in his village has to help his parents in their domestic affairs such as farming and cattle breeding responsibilities. Not only this every where in villages and cities the sons and daughters in majority have been provided with television and tape records to listen immoral songs and also many other programmes which are less moral and more immoral.

As a matter of fact he is constantly engaged in all such games, matches and so many other means of recreations. Then how he can save time for this academic education and further develop his life career, promote his mortality and nice temperament and thus enhance his moral vision of universal out look, such that he may become a good citizen to render selfless service to humanity.

Keeping in view the above said complicated problems which hamper the building of integrated personality of a child an institution of the kind and quality must be opened with rethought scheme & planning in order to remove and eradicate the above said barrier in the way of imparting good education.

.

***