EDITORIAL
Nothing
regal
If there is anything regal
about the shootout in the Summer Capital on Thursday it
is the name of its venue. The Regal Chowk is one of the
busiest crossings in Srinagar. It hums with activity most
of the time. It links the city's two main roads ---
Residence and Maulana Azad. Besides being a shopping
centre it has some of the known educational institutions,
hotels and restaurants around it. It is on the way to two
big colleges --- Sri Pratap (for boys) and the Government
College for Women. Young persons consider it fashionable
to stand at the Chowk for at least some time during
afternoons. This practice has survived in the face of
militancy. Old habits die hard. Sometimes these don't
change in spite of change in generations. This is not to
say that .....more
Make
it fast
It is to be welcomed that
Army chief Gen J.J. Singh has lost no time in emphasising
the need for a quick and thorough analysis of fratricidal
killings within the elite force with a view to finding a
solution. He has minced no words while stating that he is
concerned over "the rising number of such incidents
especially in counter-insurgency areas." Evidently
his personal intervention has been necessitated with the
occurrence of as many as seven such incidents in the last
30 days. He is keen to pursue a "proactive
approach" in this sensitive matter. From the
publicised reports it is obvious that the Army has set in
the motion the following steps: institutionalising
counselling in all training institutions, establishment
of rest and recuperative steps for troops to reduce
stress levels; . .....more
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The
Kanpur worm
Men, Matters & Memories
By M L Kotru
The Kanpur
worm finally appears to be turning. And what made the
somnolent worm turn is the fear of death. And death that
could be so very devastating, given the rotten state of
affairs in which Kanpur languishes. And the messenger of
death, as in the case of several other Indian cities has
come in the form of the tiny, winged menance; the aedes
mosquito. It was an unusual sight the other day to see
Kanpurians taking to the road in large numbers not in
support of striking workers or a bank lock-out but
against the .. ...more
Education
in modern civilisaton
By Isher Singh Jasrotia
The pertinent
and fundamental problems before our changing scenario of
the modern technology is the education and society, which
have been coinciding, changing with the change of . .......more
India,
EU bilateral trade
By Ajay Kaul
India's
economic engagement with Europe is in for a virtual
revolution and the catalyst in this direction is going to
be a trade pact the two sides have decided to ink. The
Trade and Investment Agreement, termed by analysts, as
the 'mother of Free Trade Area (FTA) pact's, aims at
effectively making commerce between India and the
25-nation European Union (EU) free over the next few . ......more
|
EDITORIAL
Nothing regal
If there is anything regal
about the shootout in the Summer Capital on Thursday it
is the name of its venue. The Regal Chowk is one of the
busiest crossings in Srinagar. It hums with activity most
of the time. It links the city's two main roads ---
Residence and Maulana Azad. Besides being a shopping
centre it has some of the known educational institutions,
hotels and restaurants around it. It is on the way to two
big colleges --- Sri Pratap (for boys) and the Government
College for Women. Young persons consider it fashionable
to stand at the Chowk for at least some time during
afternoons. This practice has survived in the face of
militancy. Old habits die hard. Sometimes these don't
change in spite of change in generations. This is not to
say that everything is cheerful about the place. For
old-timers there are a few reminders that much water has
flown down the nearby Jhelum after 1989. The cinema hall
from which the location derives its name is closed. The
theatre has become a victim of the extremists' designs to
snuff the life out of the Valley. An attempt was made to
resurrect it with the improvement in security
environment. However, it had to be shut again following
an explosion within hours of the revival. A section of
the militants has no feeling for such widely acceptable
sources of entertainment. It has given the impression as
if it does not care for films and liquor bars. Not very
far away from the Regal cinema hall the half-burnt
Palladium stands as a grotesque evidence of their
retrograde perceptions and actions. The latter is
situated right inside the Lal Chowk. In fact it may not
be an exaggeration to say that divided by less than a
kilometre Regal and Lal chowks are pictures in contrast.
The Lal Chowk is a historic political venue and has been
a witness to momentous events. The Regal Chowk, on the
other hand, is more an indicator of the city's social
life. It remains so even today. What is the Valley
without its song and laughter?
With this background in
view one should not find it surprising that there were
many people present at the Regal Chowk when the militants
had struck on Thursday. They fled in panic when the armed
mercenaries shot at two Border Security Force (BSF)
personnel from close. One of the uniformed men succumbed
to his injuries later. Hardly had they alighted from
their vehicle for shopping that they were fired upon.
This is not the first time that such a dastardly incident
has occurred in Srinagar. During the last one month there
have been at least three separate instances of the
terrorists taking out their anger and frustration on
local police men killing three of them in main
thoroughfares and outside the sacred Hazratbal shrine. By
no stretch of imagination can one find justification for
these acts of violence and bloodshed. Clearly the
militants are frantic having heavily lost their ground.
How else can one explain their audacious bids to go close
to their targets?
It will be too much to
expect defenceless citizens to gather courage in their
hands in the face of murderous assaults. Their first
reaction is bound to be of shock and then of fright
depending upon what they see with their eyes. Quite a few
of them have seen their kith and kin being liquidated in
their presence. Of late they have shown the requisite
strength to catch the assassins on the spot. Such shows
of bravado have been rare but heart-warming. These need
to be made a regular practice. We have to develop a
strong mind in this behalf. This in turn will equip us
with the vision to see the entire scenario in correct
perspective. Once that is done we will find that it is
easier to call the bluff of those spilling the blood of
innocents and stop them right in their tracks.
Make it fast
It is to be welcomed that
Army chief Gen J.J. Singh has lost no time in emphasising
the need for a quick and thorough analysis of fratricidal
killings within the elite force with a view to finding a
solution. He has minced no words while stating that he is
concerned over "the rising number of such incidents
especially in counter-insurgency areas." Evidently
his personal intervention has been necessitated with the
occurrence of as many as seven such incidents in the last
30 days. He is keen to pursue a "proactive
approach" in this sensitive matter. From the
publicised reports it is obvious that the Army has set in
the motion the following steps: institutionalising
counselling in all training institutions, establishment
of rest and recuperative steps for troops to reduce
stress levels; increasing use of counsellors and
psychologists in operational areas, providing prompt
medical attention to the men needing such assistance,
deep probe and study of each of these instances apart
from the mandatory court of inquiry and construction of
suitable accommodation where soldiers could stay with
their families. Yoga as a "stress-buster" is
being employed more and more as part of the morning
drills. On an emergency basis 50 counsellors are being
trained, 40 to be despatched to formations in Northern
Command, which encompasses Jammu and Kashmir, and 10 to
Eastern Command. It has been noted that the majority of
these episodes takes place in units engaged in
counter-insurgency areas. There has been no such
happening along the Line of Control (LoC) where the Army
is in direct confrontation with the opponent. This
scenario can be interpreted in different ways. Some
people can argue that the Army is being asked to play a
role in civilian areas for which it is not trained. They
forget, however, that what the country has on hand is not
a struggle waged by internal forces but a "proxy
war" foisted by a hostile neighbour. The Army alone
is competent to handle the situation created by the
massive inflow of arms and ammunition from the other side
of the LoC. That explains its presence in territories
other than borders. Para-military forces are no less
exposed to the danger of being hit by the terrorists. The
pressure if allowed to creep in can take toll of anybody
regardless of who is posted where.
Whatever it may be the
fratricidal killings have to stop. We have already said
in these columns that given its hierarchical order the
Army by itself is in a position to resolve its troubles.
Gen Singh's tone is reassuring that an answer is around
the corner.
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The
Kanpur worm
Men, Matters & Memories
By M L
Kotru
The Kanpur worm
finally appears to be turning.
And what made the somnolent worm
turn is the fear of death. And
death that could be so very
devastating, given the rotten
state of affairs in which Kanpur
languishes. And the messenger of
death, as in the case of several
other Indian cities has come in
the form of the tiny, winged
menance; the aedes mosquito. It
was an unusual sight the other
day to see Kanpurians taking to
the road in large numbers not in
support of striking workers or a
bank lock-out but against the
failure of authorities to rid the
fast growing city of its
mosquitoes. Having known Kanpur
for nearly six decades, as a
casual visitor that is, I must
confess my sense of wonder that
the bustling, densely populated
city, once an industrial hub has
finally chosen to bestir itself
to give a shake-up to the local
administration.
The mosquito that
has already taken toll of human
lives in places as far away as
Kerala and Delhi, Andhra and
Haryana is the one that bring you
the feared dengue fever. And to
give the dour Kanpurians their
due it must be admitted that it
has taken them nothing short of
the fear of death to protest
against a lerthargic city
administration, or is it the
Kanpur Municipal Corporation?
Since they protested in broad day
light when mosquitoes generally
give their wings a rest the
demonstrators burnt a thousand
placards bearing the images of
the dreaded mosquito.
How come I have
turned my thoughts to Kanpur and
the dire times it lives in.
Simple, I had just read a series
of articles on the ravaged
environment in Asia which as you
know could not have been complete
without a dishonourable mention
of the land of a billion, as our
cricket maniacs keep reminding us
these days. Not that the Chinese,
another land of a billion plus
does not finds mention in the
roll of dishonour even as the
writers have taken care in both
cases to mention the emergence of
glitzy malls, multiplexes and
ever rising skyscrapers.
As one who moved
late in life to Gurgaon the
glitzziest (as the blurb goes) of
north India's zaniest rising
townships I know how much filth
and stagnant water lies behind
most of the malls, plazas and
multiplexes. Forget filth and
stagnant water, the latter home
to mosquito breeding, not much
thought has been given even to
such basics as parking. They have
been building a superway right
outside where I live for the past
five years, its completion still
far from complete.
In his introductory
remarks on why the special
articles on the degradation of
Asian environment the Time
Magazine Editor explains the
"astonishing
achievements" of some of
these Asian giants but which,
according to him, have come at a
terrible cost to Asia's
environment. "Our reporters
ranged far and wide, from
forgotten Chinese cities running
out of water, Indonesia (fighting
the menance of trash); every
morning, the writer says, he
finds a new plastic bag, wrapper
or bottle on his driveway. And on
to India and Kanpur. A prominent
Time staff writer Aravind Adiga
notes that "population, once
a national worry has become
India's forgotten issue - but
take one look at the congested
avenues of Kanpur and try to
imagine how the city will look
with another million people
packed into it". "If
you want to grasp the enormity of
environmental challenges facing
India, visit Kanpur - shockingly
polluted, overcrowded, and with a
population that is still rapidly
expanding". Mr Adiga has
interviewed countless Kanpurians,
cutting across the social
barriers, from cobblers to
traffic constables to
academicians and social workers.
By standing all day in Kanpur's
traffic and inhaling the air - a
blend of dust, industrial
emissions and burned diesel - a
police traffic constable tells
him he puts himself at a grave
risk of contracting a range of
respiratory illnesses including
chronic, obstructive pulmonary
diseases..... "Doctors in
Kanpur say that the air of this
city sucks 10 years of a man's
life"....... and other
police constables only agree with
that.
To be honest, I
simply did not know how bad
things are in Kanpur, a city home
to three million people, once
christened by our former British
rulers as the Manchester of India
and who called in Cawnpore
because that was easier to mouth
for the Brits. Today's Kanpur is
a moribund industrial town, well
into its decline, its textile
industry having deserted it,
leaving it with just the
tanneries and the pollution these
bring in their train. To quote
from the Adiga article: "No
place offers a more vivid glimpse
of the future than the heart of
the city. Patrons of the Cafe
Coffee Day on Mall Road can watch
Hindi pop videos on a TV screen
as they drink coffee - or they
can simply look out the window at
the dust on the road, which is a
form of entertainment in itself.
But 10 a.m. the air pollution in
this areas can get dense enough
to create a continuous wave that
moves side to side along Mall
Road, rather like a sheet of rain
during a thunderstorm. If you go
outside, the pollution burns your
eyes and coats the back of your
teeth with a granular deposit
that must be spat out. In 2004,
India's Central Pollution Control
Board found the concentrations of
particulate matter in Kanpur's
air - the residue of dust and
diesel emissions - had reached
'critical' levels, and in 2006 a
World Bank report ranked it
(Kanpur) as the seventh - worst
city in the world for air
pollution.... Poor sanitation
makes matters worse; mounds of
dirt and dust - which
environmentalists blame on a lack
of tree cover - accumulate near
the roads, sneak into potholes
and are kicked up when the
traffic finally moves. For good
measure, small -scale
manufacturers of industrial
goods, such as batteries, operate
near (sometimes within) some of
the city's residential areas
thereby adding to the
pollution......
Against this
backdrop I must dooff my hat to
the tiny mosquitoes who brave all
this to prove to us, the
humankind, how frail we indeed
must be. That these carriers of
death thrive in our cities and
towns, mainly in secondary urban
centres it is not as if the
bigger cities like Delhi, Mumbai,
Chennai, Kolkatta and Bangalore
are havens of clean air and
healthy living. Far from it.
New Delhi, the
capital city, has reported the
largest number of cases of dengue
seizures in the country even as
other major cities continue to
report other forms of dengue and
other mosquito-borne diseases.
That much for Dr. Ramadoss's
(Union Health Minister) tall
claims even as the two diseases
continue to have a visa-less
passage from one major city to
the other.
Which reminds me of
the story a friend always recalls
when speaking of us Indians. As
he puts it the dianasours and
other denizens of the Jurassic
Park may have disappeared a
million of years ago but we
Indians are like civilisational
cockroaches. Nothing hurts us or
will. We continue to thrive, come
fire or plague. Mosquitoes come
and go but the Indian cockroach
is far ever. Like Kanpuri's
pollution.
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Education
in modern civilisaton
By
Isher Singh Jasrotia
The
pertinent and fundamental
problems before our
changing scenario of the
modern technology is the
education and society,
which have been
coinciding, changing with
the change of time.
Since
the time, the
civilization came into
existence; the
civilization started
emerging into changed
fashion due to
diversified source of
knowledge, advancement in
various fields of
technical knowhow and
wisdom of intellectuals
and expertise. All the
changing scenarios have
been caused by study of
Indian culture, ethos,
history, social-political
thoughts, controversy,
exchange of knowledge and
information and
vice-versa, the
educational institutions
being the foundation
stones of these essential
ingredients. The
education being backbone
of sustainable economic
growth deserves to be
accorded high priority.
There
has been substantial
renovation in the
education system by
making the education
innovative, job oriented,
sociable, cultural,
self-reliant enough to
the purposes and
objectives of modern
society but the desired
aims and purposes have
yet not been accomplished
so far as our democratic
norms are concerned.
Education
and society are two
subjects, which coincide
and corroborate together
for renovating and
changing the society and
bringing unto the
co-existence of the
modern civilization.
Constant efforts have
since been made by social
reformer like Swami
Vivekananda, Mahatma
Gandhi, Raja Ram Mohan
Roy, Swami Dayanand
Sarswati (social
philosopher), Dr
Radhakrishan and similar
other reformers who have
the vision of uplifting
the society and
eradication of poverty,
enlightened the public
aware of the importance
of education in the
perspective of our
civilization.
Similary
history of India and
State is witness for the
tremendous and remarkable
achievement made by our
rulers like Maharaja
Parap Singh and Maharaja
Hari Singh who have the
vision for the
improvement of education.
In the field of
education, the British
left an important impact-
lead was made in the
report of Hunter
Committee in the year
1882 wherein elementary
education was recommended
under the management of
Municipal and district
boards and secondary
education to private
enterprise which should
be encouraged by
grants-in-aid. Commission
also took care of
physical and vocational
education by way of all
co-curricular activities.
Consequently, British
Missioneries opened a
school at Srinagar.
Maharaja Partap Singh
gave due consideration to
bring the education on
par with modern line, the
study prescribed for the
schools were established
and to meet the need of
higher education, Arts
college was established
in 1905 and Prince of
Wales College (now GCM
Science College) in 1908.
Maharaja
Hari Singh adopted a
policy of modernization
and proved to be more
accommodative than his
uncle. Being conscious of
the cha ged political
scenario, he guaranteed
concessions to the people
and new education policy
of the British threw open
the gate of knowledge to
the youth and enabled
them to seek admission in
various Universities.
During his regime, he
also issued orders to
increase the number of
schools and technical
institutions were opened.
To improve the efficiency
in the Govt. he
constituted a committee
for this purpose.
Society
can be changed by social
equality, education and
justice, which are basis
of our democratic
principle and ultimately
socio-economic
development. Consistent
and perseverance
endeavour have since been
made by the educationists
and politicians by
devising many policies
and formulating
programmes in the
existing system of our
education but due to
diversification of our
different culture,
languages, traditions,
much is still awaited and
obligatory in our
education and society in
the existing scenario of
the modern science and
technology. It is
pertinent to mention that
it is not one sided task
and effort, be it
Government, authority,
educational institutions
or the parentage rather
it is the multifarious
endeavour of the society
as a whole, all the above
forming part of our
society in the
perspective of innovation
of education system to
make it more liberal,
valuable, genius,
magnanimous, spiritual,
cooperative and above all
a disciplined society
which could meet the
challenge of anti-social
elements, anti-terrorism,
eradication of
corruptions and poverty
which the society is
facing in the present
context.
Diversification
and privatization of
education
There
has been protracted
persistent need and
requirement for complete
civilization of the
society. Since the
civilization came into
existence many centuries
ago and from time to
time, steps have been
taken and various
commissions have been
constituted and reform
made for the
diversification of
education. The need has
now arisen and even the
bureaucrats have analyzed
and assessment made after
giving due thought and
consideration in the
context of present day
scenario of the education
system with the remarks
that the Government
schools have become
dumping institution and
defunct where teachers
are concerned only to get
salary and moreover for
the sake of earning, they
are devoted towards
private tuition. On the
other hand private
institutions that are
well aware of the
importance of the
education in this
competitive age, are
devoted fully towards the
standardization of their
institutions to compete
with the associated
institutions for getting
awards and scholarships
to their students despite
the facts that they are
facing numerous problems
in the standardization of
their institutions.
In
this respect in order to
create competition and
encourage these
institutions, there is
requirement to boost them
in terms of support and
financial aid. There is
inevitable necessity on
the part of the
Government to give more
attention towards the
education sector, as the
education has become the
basic and fundamental
factor to bring the
development in other
sectors also.
All
the qualities and
characteristics which are
inherent in the
management,
professionals, whether
doctors, lawyers,
scientists, philosophers
in terms of value,
genius, dedication,
sincerity, discipline,
our culture and
tradition, in fact
originate from the
education which one
receive in the
educational institutions.
In
view of the compulsions
and prevailing
circumstances especially
in the Jammu and Kashmir
State, it is dire need of
the hour that the
Government should
formulate strategy and
policy and give due
consideration towards
modernization of our
education in the context
of present scenario.
Support and aid to
private institutions that
are giving quality
education and especially
those providing better
infrastructure in terms
of games and sports,
extra co-curricular
activities and other
related activities
essential for the
over-all development of
characteristics and
traits of the children
and giving concession to
children of weaker
sections, whether they
are accommodating state
board syllabus of CBSE
syllabus, will be a
welcome measure. It is
the need of the hour.
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India, EU
bilateral trade
By Ajay
Kaul
India's economic
engagement with Europe is in for
a virtual revolution and the
catalyst in this direction is
going to be a trade pact the two
sides have decided to ink.
The Trade and
Investment Agreement, termed by
analysts, as the 'mother of Free
Trade Area (FTA) pact's, aims at
effectively making commerce
between India and the 25-nation
European Union (EU) free over the
next few years. Negotiations on
the pact are to be wrapped up in
two years.
The aim is to
achieve elimination of duties on
90 percent of tariff lines and
trade volume within seven years
of the entry into force of the
agreement between India and its
largest trading partner.
A vast range of
sectors will be opened to
tariff-free trade by the
comprehensive pact regarding
which the decision to launch
negotiations was taken during the
recent India-EU Summit in
Helsinki.
The Summit, attended
by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh,
decided to launch negotiations on
the agreement after accepting a
report of the High-Level Trade
Group (HLTG) of businessmen of
the two sides set up last year.
The agreement will cover trade in
goods, services, investment and
trade faciliation. It will also
look at India's concerns with
regard to tariffs, both
non-tariff and technical tariff,
besides looking at competitive
policy. The agreement will also
address the issue of dispute
settlement.
The decision to sign
the agreement marked overcoming
of the hesitation on part of
Europe to have a pact in the
present form. The EU had wanted
to changes in the agreement but
could not succeed. As regards the
benefits for India, the agreement
will open prospects for
agricultural exports to Europe,
besides that of textiles,
leather, gems and jewellery,
chemicals and steel.
The pact will also
provide for market access and
national treatment of Indian
companies in Europe, removing the
possibility of a situation like
the one witnessed recently after
Mittal Steel's bid to take over
Arcelor. Transparency in laws and
recognition of degrees will also
be incorporated in the agreement.
As EU is the largest
trading partner of India, the
agreement will create a large
basket for commerce. The two
sides strongly believe that while
expansion in trade and investment
is already significant, the
current levels are below
potential and hence the decision
go for an institutional framework
in the shape of the agreement.
The bilateral trade
in goods last year stood at 40
billion Euros, recording a
whopping 20 percent jump in a
single year. The trend is
expected to continue this year.
Earlier, there has been a steady
growth of 11 percent on average
between 2001 and 2005.
Trade was balanced
with a minor surplus to the EU, a
bloc which accounts for nearly
one fifth of India's total
external trade. Trade in
commercial services too has
increased at an average
impressive rate of 10 percent
annually, with a marginal surplus
to India which exported services
worth 3.8 billion Euros.
In the bilateral
services trade, the main products
exchanged in both directions were
transport services, travel
services and business services.
In addition, India
has shown high growth in
information technology, medical
services, tourism and some
financial services. EU is a
leader in professional services
such as accounting and legal
services, financial services,
postal and courier services and
telecommunication services.
India and EU also
are important investment
partners. The European bloc is
the largest source of foreign
direct investment (FDI) with the
amount standing at 1100 million
Euros in 2004. Under the proposed
agreement, the two sides will
provide for the elimination of
substantially all discrimination
between the parties.
The two sides aim to
provide a liberal, attractive and
investor friendly climate,
considering that it plays an
important role in economic
growth. They will also seek to
ensure that foreign capital
inflow is encouraged not only as
a source of financial capital but
also as a tool of knowledge and
technology transfer.
The HLTG noted
India's interest in including
provisions on investment
protection and promotion in the
proposed agreement. The EU has
expressed readiness to consider
this issue on the understanding
that any such provision would
have to be complementary to
bilateral investment treaties
between India and EU member
states.
The proposed
agreement will have a binding
State-to-State dispute settlement
mechanism. In accordance with the
overall objectives of increasing
trade and investment and
providing greater commercial and
legal certainty, bilateral
dispute settlement mechanisms are
designed to settle any trade
irritant or manage it so as to
avoid a spill over on the broader
relationship.
Consultations or
other cooperative means remain
the preferred means of resolution
but where this is not possible, a
dispute settlement mechanism can
help enforce the rules.
The HLTG noted the
degree of convergence between the
parties' approaches to this issue
in existing bilateral trade
agreements. The details of the
architecture of such a mechanism,
including appropriate
time-frames,
mediation/consultation, selection
of penelists and openness of
procedures, would be negotiated
by the two sides.
The HLTG examined
the possibility of improving
reciprocal market access and
concurred on the relevance of
international commitments on
procurement. The Group agreed
that a pragmatic approach should
be followed for addressing
government procurement through
better understanding for each
party's procurement practices,
examining measures to enhance
transparency, as well as examine
ways to possible improvements in
market access opportunities.
Recognising the importance of
technical cooperation, the HLTG
agreed that a chapter on these
topics should be included in the
trade agreement to increase
bilateral trade.
On technical
barriers to trade (TBT), the
Group decided that a forum be set
up for examining current barriers
to trade and for exchanging
information in general as well as
on statutory notification. The
HLTG agreed on the importance of
ensuring that technical
regulations not be more trade
restrictive than necessary, and
recommended a further exploration
on how mutual recognition could
be established for technical
regulations and conformity
assessment, including exploring
ways to establish suppliers'
declaration of conformity, to
increase bilateral trade. Now all
eyes are on the agreement. —
PTI FEATURE
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