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Round The States
New Delhi, 14 August 2008
No End To Amarnath
Imbroglio
Peace
Continues to Delude Kashmir
By Insaf
The security guns may have fallen silent, albeit
temporarily, and the curfew lifted in the Valley yet peace continued to play
hide and seek in the strife-torn State of Jammu & Kashmir. Violence had
already claimed over 22 lives and left over 100 injured as protests in the
Valley over the Amarnath land transfer controversy entered its 56th day.
For the first time in over a decade, curfew was imposed in the entire Valley. Yet
thousands of people defied its imposition, took to the streets and raised pro-azadi slogans in support of the
clarion call given by the pro-Pakistan parties led by the Hurriyat’s hardliner
Syed Ali Geelani to march to the LoC and sell goods of the Kashmiri traders.
Geelani was actively supported by Mehbooba Mufti’s PDP who alleged that the
Amarnath Sangharsh Samiti had enforced an economic blockade in Jammu
and barred transporters ferrying goods from Punjab and elsewhere to proceed to
the Valley on the national highway linking Jammu to the Valley.
Tragically, the all-Party committee which visited Jammu has failed to douse the communal flames both in
Hindu Jammu and Muslim
Valley. Worse, the
ongoing strife has ripped apart the fragile façade of the various Indo-Pak
confidence building measures initiated by New Delhi
and Islamabad
over the years. Wherein the symbol of the peace process, the bus service from Srinagar to Muzaffarabad
in PoK has been suspended. Not only that. The communal conflagration in the
State has given the Pakistani Government a perfect opportunity to meddle in India’s
internal affairs again. Islamabad has now
threatened to take the Kashmir issue to the UN again, notwithstanding India’s harsh
rebuttal not to interfere in the country’s internal matter. All eyes are on New
Delhi to act and act fast to restore normalcy in the State and find a via media
to end the impasse over the Amarnath land which today have become a mere symbol
of the larger Kashmir issue.
* * * *
Rail Link To Ladakh
Connectivity is the new buzzword sweeping across Ladakh in
J&K. Its main town Leh is all set to get a 400-km long railway line from
Bilaspur in Himachal Pradesh via the Rohtang
Pass at a cost of roughly
Rs 5,000 crores. The Prime Minister’s Office has already given the project its
‘in principle’ approval and instructed the Union Railway Ministry to carry out
a feasibility survey. Not only that. The Centre has asked the Himachal Government
to build about 650 kms of rail lines in the State which are of major strategic
and economic significance. Clearly, this is intended as India’s answer to China’s
rail line to Tibet.
Also pertinent, New Delhi is already working on its
ambitious rail link to the Kashmir
Valley.
* * * *
Farmers’ Take On
Mayawati
UP Chief Minister Mayawati and controversy go hand-in-hand.
The uproar over the BSP supremo’s disproportionate asset case has still to die
down that 800 farmers from Mayawati’s parental village, Badalpur, are up in
arms against the compensation offered by the State Government for acquiring
nearly 400 hectares of their land to develop a recreation centre. The farmers allege
that they are being offered a pittance of Rs.711 per sq. mtr, whereas the market
rate is Rs.4,500-5,000 per sq. mtr. Predictably, Mayawati’s arch rival, Samajwadi’s
Mulayam Singh and his ‘enemy-turned-new-friend’ Sonia Gandhi’s Congress have
joined hands with the farmers to put the Chief Minister on the mat. All eyes
are on Mayawati’s next move.
* * * *
Dissidence In BJP’s
Uttarakhand
The Opposition BJP which till recently prided itself as the ‘Party
with a difference’ has been afflicted by the dissident disease. Wherein it’s
Government in Uttarakhand is in the throes of dissidence. Over 24 out of the
Party’s 36 MLAs in a 70-member State Assembly have demanded Chief Minister
Khanduri’s replacement. Led by former Chief Minister Koshyari they vented their
anger of being ‘mistreated’ by the CM’s secretary before Party President
Rajnath Singh and Leader of Opposition Advani. True, the BJP’s central leaders
have for the time being doused the dissident fire by ruling out a change in
leadership. It has also warned Khanduri to rein in the bureaucrats. Needless to
say, with the Party’s popularity graph beginning to dip in the State and elections
to the Lok Sabha months away, the Party can ill-afford a rebellion at this
crucial juncture. Will Khanduri’s ‘army’ discipline win over the rebels?
* * * *
Meghalaya To Block Illegal
Bangladeshis
The Meghalaya Government has hit upon a novel idea to
curtail the influx of Bangladeshis in the State. It is all set to issue work
permits for migrant labourers as part of the Meghalaya Progressive Alliance
(MPA) Government’s Common Minimum Programme (CMP). The Cabinet Committee on
Influx has mooted that the Inter-State Workmen Regulation Act, 1979, be
tightened and made more effective. The Government plans to issue permits for
179 days, which would be up for renewal so that migrant labourers do not claim
the right of permanent residency. As per the existing laws, any Indian citizen
who resides at place for over six months may apply for permanent residency.
This measure may well ensure that Meghalaya does not go the Assam and
Tripura way, where Bangladeshi nationals have changed the demography of these
two States
* * * *
Talibanisation of Bangalore’s Nightlife
After three years ‘Talibanisation’ has hit Karnataka’s
Capital Bengaluru again leaving India’s
IT city bleeding. Trust the State BJP Government to dig up an 2005 law which tightens
the screws on nightlife. All restaurants with live bands and dancing including
32 discotheques have been banned under the Licensing and Controlling of Places
of Public Entertainment (Bangalore
City) Order, 2005’ and
the Karnataka Excise Act of 1965. Leading to outrage by musicians, artists,
disc jockeys and Bengaluru’s partying public. Famous theatre personality Girish
Karnad couldn’t have put it better: “Instead of going after criminals the police
are going after musicians.” No matter that these protests are falling on deaf
ears. Forgotten in this din is the Supreme Court order of 2005, permitting live
bands and dancing in restaurants and hotels on the condition that the
establishments didn’t encourage prostitution or indecent shows.
* * * *
What’s Better—Cow
or Buffalo
Milk?
This is a fight between faith and fact. A face off on the
‘milky way’ over whether cow’s milk, with its medicinal properties is better
than the buffalo milk, with a higher fat content. While the Madhya Pradesh
Commission for the Poor among the General Category hoots for the Acharya
Vidyasagar Gau Samvardhan Yojana, under which 10,000 potential beneficiaries
would not only get two cows each, free of cost, but the State Government would
also provide the cow’s chara and even
market the milk. On the other hand, the State’s Dairy Federation plums for
‘fatty’ buffalo’s milk which earns more money. It is a moot point whether cow’s
milk will be declared the elixir of life or be overtaken by ‘energetic and
smart’ buffalo milk? Either way, it matters little as the State Government gets
ready to ‘milk’ voters in the forthcoming elections! ---INFA
(Copyright,
India News and Feature Alliance)
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