An Urdu Sher

"Bane hai asal-e-hawas muddai bhi, munsif bhi,Kisse valeel karein, kisse munsifi chahein"
(When selfish people are both petitioners and judges,
Whom should I make my lawyer,
From whom should I seek justice?)

This beautiful sher of Faiz Ahmed Faiz caught my attention recently.Faiz Ahmed Faiz was a renowned Urdu poet of twentieth century.The sher is a satirical attack on the bastions of power and privilege in a judiciary.
Similarly,I am reminded of an excerpt from Shilapatikarram,a Tamil epic written about 2000 years ago."If people who are in a position of power and responsibility go against righteousness, righteousness itself will be turned into a destroyer."The eminent missile man of India,Dr.A.P.J. Abdul Kalam has mentioned these beautiful lines in his book "Governance and Growth".

India too needs upright and honest persons at the powerful positions.This includes politicians,bureaucrats,academicians,business-professionals and so forth.Power comes with responsibility.If prominent people remain honest in their professions,it will set a good precedent in ensuring good governance.Hence,people at the lower rung too would be motivated to value probity in private and public life.

My views on AIB

Recently, much hue and cry was raised on the All India bakchod(AIB)-an ‘insult comedy’ show which went viral on the internet. A section of the star celebrities came out in support of the show citing the need to express one’s opinion freely. On the other hand, there were sharp criticisms against the show, including voices from within the film fraternity. So the moot point is: Where is the red line drawn?

There is no denying that as the civilization progresses from barbarism to intellectualism, freedom of expression and tolerance become the driving force in the transitional phase. Satire and humour becomes a potent tool of journalism with entertainment an embedded component in it. However, the underlying principle of satirical attack on others should be to bring about a positive change in the individual in particular ,and society in general. The AIB show was a ‘insult comedy’ without a sense of purpose focusing on trivial issues like sexual orientation and below-the-belt remarks.

In India, the film actors and the cricketers are treated as demi-gods. That said, the youngsters look up to the celebrities as their ‘style-icon’ and in many cases, as role models. Therefore, when these celebrities resort to vulgarity and obscenity as a medium of unconditional satire, it amounts to betrayal of the public trust reposed on them. Satire should be premised on not just liberty, but fraternity and equality.

Therefore, a culture that includes the freedom to offend others also needs to understand others. The challenge therefore is to strike a fine balance between freedom of expression and respecting the collective sensibilities. There is an old adage that mentions “Your liberty ends, where my nose begins”.Therefore,freedom of expression is not an absolute right. Creativity comes with responsibility. Satire should take on the bastions of privilege and arrogance, not on soft targets based on skin colour, sexual orientation or mocking religious heads in derogatory manner.

Decoding the AAP rise

The spectacular win registered by Aam Aadmi Party(AAP),even outdoing the modest exit poll predictions, is surely, in my view, a victory of democracy. The overwhelming support for the party reminds me of a notable French thinker, Rousseau, who had put forth the secular ‘social contract theory’ during the French revolution of 1789.Rousseau said that the ultimate power or sovereignty lies with the people and all the state authorities are mere servants of the people.

I would rate the AAP victory as incredibly revolutionary for various reasons. First, the entry of AAP in the arena of politics has redefined politics. That said, for the last few decades, the conventional politics in India was regarded as a monopoly of the rich, powerful and the elite assuming the political power on behalf of the citizens. Now, the AAP win clearly states that even a person with humble origins in terms of wealth and charisma can contest elections and emerge victorious. It is all about a lot of hard work and reaching out to the public with benevolent intentions.

Second, as the voting patterns revealed,the AAP gained considerable support from the youth.Therefore,the youth taking active interest in politics is a welcome development for our democracy.Today,the social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter are flooded with comments pertaining to politics from the younger generations. The youth have become an active agent of change voicing support for those parties and candidates practising clean politics and delivering results.There is a possibility of a new politics today.

Third,the people have become increasingly conscious of the issues that affect them.The citizens crave for a politics that is participatory,citizen-centric and development oriented.Good governance has become a key factor in modern politics.The people in Delhi have voted against corruption and a VIP-culture that was prevalent in the previous regimes.

Thus, it appears that the Indian democracy is deepening as well as maturing in terms of electoral preferences.I want to emphasise that a pursuit of power is different from the passion for politics.One is an act of self-aggrandisement, the second a creative search for the public good.The AAP victory is therefore a significant development in the history of Indian politics.

Famous Quotes 4

Patriotism,to me,is about wiping the tears from every eye,about providing individuals the level playing field,where he or she can excel to the best of his or her capabilities and develop critical faculty.-Mahatma Gandhi

The world together has got together as a body.If we can have a United Nations Organisation,can't we have a United Religions Organisation?-Dr.S.Radhakrishnan

Constant development is the law of life,and a man who always tries to maintain his dogmas in order to appear consistent drives himself to false position.-Mahatma Gandhi

The free thinking of one age is the common sense of the next.-Mathew Arnold

One person with a belief is equal to a force of ninety-nine who have only interests-John Staurt Mill

Tolerance gives us spiritual insight which is as far from fanaticism as the North pole from the South pole.-Mahatma Gandhi

Science without religion is lame,religion without science is blind-Albert Einstein

Belief in one God is the cornerstone of all religions.But I do not foresee a time when there would be only one religion on earth in practice.In theory,since there is only one God,there is one religion.-Mahatma Gandhi

Courage is resistance to fear,mastery of fear,not absence of fear-Mark Twain

One of the tests of leadership is the ability to recognise a problem before it becomes an emergency-Arnold Glasgow

The highest possible stage in moral culture is when we recognise that we ought to control our thoughts-Charles Darwin

If we could have electricity in every village home,I should not mind villagers plying their implements and tools with the help of electricity.But then the village communities or the state would own power houses,just as they have their grazing pastures.-Mahatma Gandhi

Originality does not consist in saying what no one has ever said before,but in saying exactly what you think yourself-J.Stephen

The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago.The second best time is now.-A chinese proverb.

We cannot go back to the past and create a brand new start.But we can always start now and create a brand new end.

In a relationship,flow like a current in a water.In a principle,stand like a rock.

The plight of North-Easterners in India

The instances of discrimination, humiliation or harassment against the people from North-east region are increasingly making headlines in mainstream media.The racial discrimination is rampant in the National Capital Region(NCR) but also in other cities like Bangalore and Chennai.Racism is generally perceived as a social malaise that is prevalent in western societies.But,the increasing racial attacks against people from North-east in metro cities or against a south-Indian in northern heartland drives home the fact that India faces the scourge of racism in her own land.This is entirely against the vision of Mahatma Gandhi,who was stringently vocal against racial prejudices of all sorts across the world.

The statistics rather reveal a saddening picture. A survey has indicated that over 2 lakhs of people from North-East region migrated to Delhi during 2005-2013.Out of them about 86 percent have faced some sort of racial discrimination in metropolitan cities across the country. Two-thirds of women have confronted discrimination or harassment in the national capital.

What are the causes of racial attacks against the people from North-East India? The people from the region come to the metropolitan cities in search of employment opportunities. They are employed primarily in lower-paid establishments, where the employers do seek candidates having proficiency in English.This creates a sense of insecurity among the local unemployed youths who then resort to discriminating their counterparts on the basis of racial outlook.

Moreover,the people from the North-east reside in affordable lower-middle class areas in metro-cities.The conservative people, house-owners and shopkeepers look down upon them with suspicion tagging them as ‘bad people. The difference in language and dressing sense make the local people believe that they are barbaric and belong to stone-age.

There is a need to check such instances of racism in our country. In view of the rising incidents against the North-Easterners, the government had appointed a committee under the chairmanship of MP Bezbaruah to look into the issue in detail. The committee has recommended amending Indian Penal Code(IPC) to make ‘racial discrimination’ an offence. Moreover it has suggested setting up of special police units and fast-track courts so as to dispose off the cases expeditiously.

However, legal measures are necessary but not a sufficient condition for tackling such instances of racial bigotry. Change,for good,has to come from the deeper roots of human psychie. That said,people should start recognising differences and become tolerant.Recognition of differences  is vital to keep India unified and intact,especially in a nation where diversity is its fundamental civilizational nature.A good way to start would be to upgrade the educational curriculum in state-level schools and NCERTs.A detailed study about ‘North-East ethoes’ in Ncert text-books is necessary which will readily imbibe tolerance towards diversity in school-going children. Nelson Mandela had aptly expressed “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.”

Education according to Gandhi

There is no denying that education plays a central role in the inclusive development of an individual.Gandhi too dreamed of a nation where education became a cherished goal for every individual.His views on education were relevant on primarily two accounts.

First,he was critical of the manner in which English education was imparted to the Indians and the people’s perspective on English language.In his speech in Orissa in 1921,Gandhi said ‘Raja Ram Mohan Roy and Bal Gangadhar Tilak would have been far greater men,had they desisted from thinking and transmitting their thoughts chiefly in English.’Later clarifying on his opinion,he published in Young India,that English language had robed the Indians of their freedom by replacing the vernacular medium of instruction.Education is transmitted through generations,and vernacular education will make education penetrative in a multi-layered and economically deprived nation like India,where millions of people live in perpetual poverty. However,he was not against English language as such,but considered it as an unmitigated evil in the manner it had weakened the vernacular and local languages.

Second,Gandhi liked to say that education should not only produce learned minds,but also create enlightened souls.In his views,education without moral and physical development is an evil,which can erode the society like a malicious worm.Gandhi didn’t want India to become a nation of strong minds and weak bodies or vice versa.He invoked the Nai Talim,a spiritual principle which states that knowledge and work are not separate.Therefore he insisted on pedagogical methods which focused on imparting knowledge of handicrafts to children.He was of the considered opinion that there should be no gap between mental labour and manual work.His works on Chakra and persuading people to wear Khadi revolves around the very concept of promoting education as an integrated tool for the development of an individual.

Thus,Gandhi considered school as an extension of home,where ideas could be transmitted freely from a Guru to a Shishya and also through mutual learning.Education should train mind,body and soul and it should seek the development of spiritualism in human beings.’Learning by doing’ was the mantra of his holistic views on education.

Indo-US nuclear deal

I write this blog,with reference to the questions raised by my dear friend Mr.Praveen Pratap Singh on nuclear energy.I have reproduced his facebook post here(i hope u do not have any copyright issues with me).

I Would like to know your views and opinions on India-US nuclear deal

1. How likely it is fruitful for India?

2. Who will be benefited more, India or US?

3. Didn't we have any other route to sort out our electricity problems?

4.How much electricity India generates from existing nuclear power plants?

5. Is it a right step or just a politics?

My doubts

America has itself not installed any Nuclear reactor since 1986 ...then why in India,it is signing a pact?

France has passed a law to reduce production and use of nuclear energy to a minimum by 2050

There is a global reduction in production and use of Nuclear energy, then why India has got a push for it..?

We should not forget Bhopal Gas Tragedy (1984) and Japan Nuclear Accident(2011).... How much these american companies can be trusted?

Though Insurance laws seem to pay for loss after accident but what will be the criteria... have not we learnt anything from above accidents ...is not it an invitation to disaster or do we have any safe path for use of it... I don't think we have?? that is the reason why European countries in fact US too has reduced the use ....And that's why I am a bit worried that when world is rejecting this concept? why are we accepting it?...Also it's not economically viable, neither it's an immediate short term solution .... then why a push for it?? Is it really a big deal ??

My comments:

Q.How likely it is fruitful for India?

A.First,the nuclear power will add to the existing energy mix(though in small proportion) from non-fossil fuel based energy.The added concern today is climate change which is largely contributed by the green house gases.Nuclear energy is a clean energy,and from this viewpoint,it is a symbolic gesture for our commitment towards adopting clean sources of energy.Second,the Indo-US nuclear deal will likely waive ourselves from constraints in getting nuclear fuel despite being a non-signatory to Non-Proliferation Treaty.This will streamline our 3-stage nuclear energy programme.Consequently,we could make use of the enormous thorium reserves abundantly available in India.

Q. Who will be benefited more, India or US?

A.I think,both the countries,India and US would be benefitted equally.For US,it is a business proposition.India,on the other hand,would benefit from the points mentioned above.India would likely benefit in the longer run.

Q. Didn't we have any other route to sort out our electricity problems?

A.India is primarily dependent on coal-based power plants for electricity generation.And at least for the next few decades,the situation is not going to change either.In the meantime,we can adopt clean coal technology and improve our energy efficiency.India,being a sub-tropical country,is well endowed with uninterrupted sun rays.So,there is wide scope for solar energy.But the problem with renewable energy sources is that it is still at the nascent stage.Other sources of electricity are hydro power,renewable energy and the newly discovered shale-gas energy.

Q..How much electricity India generates from existing nuclear power plants?

A.Out of total installed capacity of 230000 MW of electricity generation,the share of nuclear energy is 4800 MW.That is,nuclear energy contributes about 2% of total energy basket.If we are to succeed with the 3-stage nuclear programme,our ambition of generating 63000 MW of nuclear energy by 2032 would likely be met.

Q. Is it a right step or just a politics?

A.I do not think there is competitive politics involved in the deal.It is because the Congress led UPA government threw its weight behind the nuclear deal,taking calculated political risks,thanks to the enthusiasm of Dr.Manmohan Singh.Today,the party in power at the centre is determined to removing the bureaucratic obstacles impeding the agreement.If the liability concerns are addressed(after all,we do not want another version of Bhopal Gas Tragedy) without compromising on the national security.I think it is a right step.

Note:it is to be remembered that nuclear energy is not the panacea for addressing our growing energy needs.As of now,India is expected to pool an insurance limit of 1500 crores,contributed partly by the General Insurance Company(GIC) and the rest of it by the government through 'soft loans'.This would cushion the supplier against any tort claims and would put the onus of liability on the operator(in this case,NPCIL).The minimum liability on the supplier is also in keeping with the principles of Vienna convention.However,the cost of nuclear power would likely escalate as a result,thus burdening the end-consumer.The real challenge for the government,therefore, is to ensure affordable electricity for all.