What is a vote to a starving man? What does the world’s largest election mean to the world’s largest group of forsaken people? HNN finds out.
A VOTE IS often a product of mixed motives — the result of generations of unshakeable loyalty, or the last-minute epiphany of a frustrated finger hovering over multiple EVM buttons. A vote sometimes rewards jobs provided, children schooled, identities recognised. Other times, it punishes pleas unheard, bulbs unlit, bruised faiths. It is a bargaining chip that negotiates a better life for you.
But what if you were forgotten? Even in the shower of attention that elections bring, what if the convoy drove past your village for the nth time? What is a vote to you, if for the third time, a child in your family was dying of hunger, and you had no hospital to take her to, and no earnings to buy her food with? From places that governments have long ignored come shocking stories of the complete failure of government and unbelievable deprivation. Not a morsel to eat, not a drop safe to drink. What does the world’s biggest election mean to the largest group of forsaken people in that country? What is a vote to a starving man?
It takes a stinging swarm of mosquitoes to wake little Maya from her tired sleep. Immediately, she bursts into tears. She thrashes her bony legs; her ribs visible under her skin. There are angry rashes and bleeding sores all over her body. Exhausted from crying, Maya’s eyes shut again. The wailing is now soundless, the tears flow quietly.
Maya looks about one year old, but is actually three. “She doesn’t seem to grow,” says Rasali, her mother. “She hasn’t been able to walk or crawl and most of the time, just lies in an unconscious sleep.” Maya has Grade-4 malnutrition, the severest degree, which means that she has only a few months left to live. She is from Nichikhori village in Madhya Pradesh’s Sheopur district, where locals recognise villages not by name, but by the number of children that have starved to death there in the past few months. Nichikhori is known by the number 6. Not one of the children here who stare at us shyly from behind walls and trees looks well, let alone well-fed. Without exception, they are underweight and have distended abdomens, reed-thin limbs, bulging eyes. Almost all have had a sibling starve to death.
Every four minutes, a child is born dead in Madhya Pradesh. Of those that survive, over 14 per cent die before they turn six. In the seven months from July 2008 to January 2009, 676 children died here of malnourishment. That’s three a day. Empty kitchens, leafless trees and ration shops that are as barren as the landscape are visible proof that there is precious little to eat in northern MP. A chronic, pervasive hunger that lay hidden till a few years ago now screams for attention in newspaper headlines. It is not surprising that, in December 2008, the BJP’s Shivraj Singh Chauhan became Chief Minister against a poll promise of subsidised rice. With no actual food to be had, the mere hope of food is what people subsist on. Lok Sabha aspirants have realised that here, the promise of food security is a profitable one to make and a convenient one to break.
RN Rawat, a Congress MLA from Shivpuri is contesting the Morena Lok Sabha seat, with “eradicating starvation deaths” as his primary agenda. When asked why he did not raise the issue in the years he was an MLA, Rawat says, “I may be raising this just before elections, but someone has to do it sometime.” The MP administration denied reports of malnutrition until 2007, when a wave of hungerrelated deaths brought criticism from across the world. Today, Central and state governments recognise the problem, but underplay its scale. Nutrition and Rehabilitation Centres (NRCs) were started to treat malnourished children in remote villages, but they admit only severely malnourished children, who are already too sick to respond to treatment. The other hungry children are left to the Centre’s anganwadis, which are supposed to provide a daily meal to children under six. In Shivpuri district, however, women say these meals come only once a week.
“Why do these people depend on the government for everything?” asks Ganesh Singh, the BJP parliamentarian from Satna, who is contesting the seat again this year. “The government helps those who help themselves,” he declares.
In Singh’s constituency, long years of drought have forced many families to mortgage their land to moneylenders for food. Non-agricultural jobs are scarce and pay poorly. Entire villages bear insurmountable debts but still have no food. It is at this point that people look to the government. And when even children die of starvation, it is usually a sign of the most abysmal hunger.
Hari Singh, a labourer in Sheopur, lost his one-year-old son three weeks ago. “Sonu was always very weak,” says Singh. “When he was just over 14 months, he suddenly got boils all over his body and his skin started peeling. He became sookha (dry). He couldn’t even digest breast milk and then got diarrhoea. Towards the end, a rotting smell came from his body. That’s when I knew it was over.” The experience left Hari blaming himself. But what it reveals is an absolute breakdown of government welfare schemes.
IF THERE is food from anywhere, the child is sure to be fed. Universally, parents feed their child first,” says Sachin Jain, a member of the Right to Food campaign in Madhya Pradesh. “If children are starving, it means the entire community is on the brink.”
Starvation deaths are often downplayed by governments as transient aberrations, ones that might merit a cure but never prevention; aberrations that can be dealt with after they occur. The Mizoram government, for instance, has camouflaged chronic hunger among its other anti-famine measures. The state witnesses a unique phenomenon called mautam, literally, ‘bamboo death’. Every 48 years, a particular species of tropical bamboo flowers. A temporary surfeit of rich bamboo seeds leads to an explosion in the population of rats, which soon overrun paddy fields, causing a famine. The last famine was in 1959, and it took on political colour as it became the genesis for the militant Mizoram National Famine Front.
Since late 2004, Mizoram has been going through another devastating famine. There are clear manifestations of the onset of famine in eight districts. It seems bizarre that an entire people live perennially on the verge of starvation, but mautam remains a non-issue this election. CL Ruala, the Congress candidate says that the famine does not feature in the party manifesto because its repercussions are limited. C Rokhuma, founder of the Anti-Famine Campaign Organization, believes that Mizoram is a victim of politicised and badly tackled hunger. “The 2007 mautam was manipulated by politicians,” he says. “They let people starve and then brought rice for them from outside, so as to be seen as solving their problem.”
The snag in approaching hunger as a famine-like phenomenon is that the solution is often short-sighted. The Central government accumulates an emergency stock of food grains by buying directly from farmers, a cache meant for famine relief. It has been hoarding this for so long that it now has four times the required stock. As development economist Jean Dréze puts it, if these sacks of grain were lined up in a row, that array of futile, wasted food would stretch for more than a million kilometres, to the moon and back. Grotesquely, though India has the largest unused stocks of food in the world, it also has more people suffering from hunger than any other country.
ALOOK AT the states that have lost the most people to starvation — Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand, Rajasthan, Mizoram and Orissa — reveals a more silent and misunderstood killer: chronic hunger, the kind that is caused by an utter disability to buy any food. With no land to grow food on and no earnings to buy even subsidised food, families grow hungrier by the generation.
Kalahandi in Orissa has become an icon of Indian poverty. Visited repeatedly by Congress bigwigs and development journalists, the district still remains an unfortunate, living stereotype. A ricesurplus district, yet a district with one of the highest mortality rates (140 per thousand) in the country. The poorest state, yet one voting for 27 crorepati candidates, seven of them from the hungriest Kalahandi-Bolangir-Koraput region.
When the residents of Pengdusi village in Kalahandi are asked what they do for a living, one man bursts out laughing, “We’re boatmakers, fishermen or farmers. At least until we become patients.” In September 2007, 16 people died of diarrhoea here in just 15 days, most of them adults. No one was taken to the hospital because it is 45km away, and there was no bus, no ambulance, and no road. “If you fell sick in this village, you died,” says 30-year-old Madan Nayak, who lost his wife and, one day later, his one-month-old daughter. Diarrhoea is the most common symptom of hunger death — a body’s final rejection of any food or water, an inability to digest anything because of being unfed for too long. Even today, the Primary Health sub-Centre set up 5km from the village following media and NGO pressure, lies locked, with no doctor or health worker appointed. Two years after people died of neglect, no lessons have been learnt.
Yet, instead of despondence, there is still talk of political change. “We all campaigned for Pushpendra Singh of the BJD in the 2004 assembly elections, because we thought he would help us get our BPL cards,” says Haladar Majhi, “But after he won, when we went to remind him of his promise, he asked us who we were.” This year, the popular parliamentary candidate seems to be the Congress’ Bhakta Charan Das, the first politician to visit the village at its worst time in 2007. “He came on a motorcycle, with a doctor riding pillion,” says Haladar, “He ensured that the road is paved. He responds to us, at least for now.”
NEARBY, PREDOMINANTLY tribal Kashipur has been facing the wrath of failed crops. Everyone seems to be at work in lush paddy fields for most of the day, but in their homes, there is commonly just half a pot of dilute rice gruel for a family of five for three days. It is a simple difference between the haves and the have nots. In the last 50 years in Orissa, big farmers have been buying fertile land and cheap labour for throwaway prices. Adivasis work for foodgrains on lands they once owned. When there is no harvest in the rainy season between May and October, they find themselves jobless and too poor to buy even the Rs 2 rice from ration shops. Those with a few acres of land manage for a month or two before hunger strikes them too. Everyone seems to have an NREGA card, but instead of a guaranteed 100 days a year, people in Kashipur get an average of 20 days’ work. Most of that is unpaid.
The staple diet is mango kernels, which lie drying in front of every house. They will be ground and eaten, even though it was these very poisonous fungus- ridden kernels that caused rampant diarrhoea a year ago. “We know this isn’t very good for us,” admits Kaluna, who now raises four children belonging to her sister who died of starvation last year in Kashipur. “But there’s not enough farm produce,” she says. “We need something to quieten the growling stomach.”
The still-robust will to vote among the most neglected is striking. “In the absence of food, land, work, and good health, my vote is the only privilege I have left,” says the 67-year-old Dhiru Kaka, who lost his son, daughter-in-law and wife to starvation last year in Kashipur, Orissa. Playing with his voter ID card is his 2-year-old grandson, the only family he has left. When Dhiru Kaka made the trip to the polling booth on April 16, it was to cast his vote for the 17th time. “At least for a few months after the election, the winning politician will bring us food,” he says, hugging his grandson. “That is the best we can ever expect.”
Showing posts sorted by relevance for query Madhya Pradesh. Sort by date Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by relevance for query Madhya Pradesh. Sort by date Show all posts
Saturday, April 25, 2009
Tuesday, February 05, 2013
Dino Eggs Sell For Rs.500 In MP’s Fossil Belts
So rampant has the smuggling of the eggs -- dating back to the Cretaceous period 145 to 66 million years ago –become that a nervous Madhya Pradesh government has set afoot plans to introduce the Fossils Preservation Act that might come in handy to prevent the dubious trade. The draft of the law, says a senior forest official, has already been sent to the law department for whetting.
The only notified site of dinosaur nesting in MP is Padlya in Dhar district. It covers some 89 hectares and has been lying unprotected since it came into prominence in 2007, making it a fertile hunting ground for egg smugglers. Procuring them -- these are of immense value to paleontologists -- is easy as there are neither fences nor guards in the area.
Sources say that all it takes is some haggling and coaxing from smugglers who mostly come from Maharashtra, Gujarat and Rajasthan to target gullible tribals living in the area.
“There is no count of how many eggs have been removed,” says MP forest minister Sartaj Singh. “There really is need for a law as we don’t yet have legal provisions to check this roaring business. And the fact that the government is helpless in curbing these activities has only emboldened this nexus. But with the impending passage of the Act, we can prohibit possession and sale of fossils.”
The Act, as of now, envisages a transit pass for “movement of fossil”, which, the minister thinks, will be a deterrent to law-breakers. It also calls for the wildlife warden to monitor and supervise known sites of dinosaur eggs, all the while keeping the forest department in the loop.
Former deputy-DG of the Geological Survey of India, Dr Arun Sonakia, says Gujarat has done a far better job with conservation of dinosaur remains.
“We (Madhya Pradesh) do not have the resources and therefore there has hardly been any effort on the part of the state government to look after these precious bits of history,” he says, adding, “But it’s time we did. The cost of one such egg in the international market could go up to around Rs 1 crore, and these smugglers are making a killing.”
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
India Elections 2009: performances and opportunities
By Najeeb Khan
General elections are scheduled in April-May 2009 and these elections will decide the fate of political leaders, parties, government and the country. Results of assembly elections held recently have created the confusion instead of showing clear indications that who will be at the helm of affairs. Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan are two large states and results have demonstrated a fragmented verdict. Madhya Pradesh re-elected the ruling BJP Government whereas Rajasthan people voted for Congress (incumancy factor).
Although Congress succeded in forming government in Rajasthan but this party failed to clean sweap the state. In Madhya Pradesh, BJP maitained a big margin. Congress recaptured Delhi state ignoring any incumbancy effect. Likewise, BJP got re-elected in Chhattisgarh and congress failed to increase its influence in the state. Congress got majority in Mhizorum and succeeded in spreading its influence in north east.
Its true that issues are different for people in state and central elections but few issues affects both. We'll discuss these issues and their impacts on election prospects of different political parties:
1. Inflation: Price rise affects common men and it has been observed in past elections how the ruling parties lost the elections when they failed to control the escalating prices. Important factor in this regard is the efforts made by the ruling party to control it. State government generally blame price rise for the wrong economic policies of the Central Government. However, they can not escape from their responsibilities. State Govt. can atleast help to lower prices of few commodities by lowering the taxes.UPA government is trying hard to keep inflation under control and has been successful in its efforts by adopting different measures. Luck is also in its favour as the fuel prices in International market has dipped to $35 per barrel from $ 146. Fuel prices have their influence on prices of other commodities as transportation costs also increase with increasing fuel prices.
2. Fuel prices: Govt. has increased prices of petroleum and diesels several times in the past. However, it delays declaration of reduction in fuel prices to give advantage to oil companies of private and public sectors. Prices of crude oil have come down from $145 per barrel to $ 35 per barrel and govt. has once reduced prices of petroleum before declaration of state assembly election by Rs 5 per litre. It is assumed that Govt. is planning to reduce again these prices by Rs 5 on petrol. Rs 2.50 on diesel and Rs 25 on LPG cylinders to make housewives happy. It will be done before the parliament election. This shows that govt. is less concerned with people but more with the vote of the people. During NDA govt. regime, petroleum prices were immediately reduced depending on the prices in the international market. One can understand the difference of attitude between two government.
3. Terrorism: Indian people are bearing the burnt of this menace. Not only terrorism from outside but also from internal activists like naxalites. Neither UPA government nor state government supported by UPA are much concerned with Naxalite problem. They have left people to their own fate. No concrete step has been taken by UPA or its supported governments in the states.
4. Secularism: Most of the political parties that does not believe in good governance, always like to play this truimph card to sue the voters of a particular religion. However, these political parties and government have never made effort to improve the economical condition by making any real efforts to do so. Government has presumed that minorities will vote them if they just criticize the political parties who favors majority population.People are fed up of politicians who only raises issues related to minorities and issues that are not related to their social upliftment but only of minor importance like put a ban on a book that hurts feeling of a section or sending back Taslima Nasreen etc. etc.
5. Service sectors: The only commedable task that is a plus point of ruling party is to make Central Govt. employees happy by improving their service conditions and giving them a good pay hike. However, if one critically examine this aspect, gainers of this pay package are highly placed officials. Otherwise, these hikes just neutralizes the inflation and do nothing more. Teaching community is feeling unhappy as per reports. Government has failed to take any steps for improvement in education at any level.
One step taken by this government to make them happy need mention here and government needs appreciation for it. UPA government has made some reforms in income tax structure and government servants are happy with it.
8. Law and Order front: Performance of present UPA government has been dismal on law and order front. Even people don't feel safe in the capital as incidences of looting, murder, rapes are heard on daily basis.
9. Growth and Government expenditure: Government has been successful in improving growth rate though it will not be justified to give full credit to present government alone. Whatever growth increase is illustrated, this is result of not fully but partially to NDA government whose policy decisions have started paying dividends. Elimination of licences for several services has resulted in fast expansion of telecom services and reduces prices of different gadgets etc. Expension of internet is due to efforts of past government and continuation of the same policies by present government.
Based on the above analysis, it can be concluded that working of the present government has been just at par to past (NDA) government. Though this government committed blunder of withdrawal of tough law measures like POTA just to appease the minorities and that has backfired, this government has done commendable job to take country ahead on economic front. Performance of this government is as good as of the NDA government. Both the government have been on similar track and deserves their share of votes. This will ultimately facilitate way for a government that will need help of small regional parties for formation of next government.
Result: Neither Congress nor BJP would be able to get majority in next elections (May 2009) and chances are more for a hung parliament where politicians of criminal background will help one of the parties in formation of next government and will utilize power to attain their own goals.
However, awareness among people has grown at a very rapid pace and after few elections, opportunists in politics have to reconsider about their fate.
General elections are scheduled in April-May 2009 and these elections will decide the fate of political leaders, parties, government and the country. Results of assembly elections held recently have created the confusion instead of showing clear indications that who will be at the helm of affairs. Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan are two large states and results have demonstrated a fragmented verdict. Madhya Pradesh re-elected the ruling BJP Government whereas Rajasthan people voted for Congress (incumancy factor).
Although Congress succeded in forming government in Rajasthan but this party failed to clean sweap the state. In Madhya Pradesh, BJP maitained a big margin. Congress recaptured Delhi state ignoring any incumbancy effect. Likewise, BJP got re-elected in Chhattisgarh and congress failed to increase its influence in the state. Congress got majority in Mhizorum and succeeded in spreading its influence in north east.
Its true that issues are different for people in state and central elections but few issues affects both. We'll discuss these issues and their impacts on election prospects of different political parties:
1. Inflation: Price rise affects common men and it has been observed in past elections how the ruling parties lost the elections when they failed to control the escalating prices. Important factor in this regard is the efforts made by the ruling party to control it. State government generally blame price rise for the wrong economic policies of the Central Government. However, they can not escape from their responsibilities. State Govt. can atleast help to lower prices of few commodities by lowering the taxes.UPA government is trying hard to keep inflation under control and has been successful in its efforts by adopting different measures. Luck is also in its favour as the fuel prices in International market has dipped to $35 per barrel from $ 146. Fuel prices have their influence on prices of other commodities as transportation costs also increase with increasing fuel prices.
2. Fuel prices: Govt. has increased prices of petroleum and diesels several times in the past. However, it delays declaration of reduction in fuel prices to give advantage to oil companies of private and public sectors. Prices of crude oil have come down from $145 per barrel to $ 35 per barrel and govt. has once reduced prices of petroleum before declaration of state assembly election by Rs 5 per litre. It is assumed that Govt. is planning to reduce again these prices by Rs 5 on petrol. Rs 2.50 on diesel and Rs 25 on LPG cylinders to make housewives happy. It will be done before the parliament election. This shows that govt. is less concerned with people but more with the vote of the people. During NDA govt. regime, petroleum prices were immediately reduced depending on the prices in the international market. One can understand the difference of attitude between two government.
3. Terrorism: Indian people are bearing the burnt of this menace. Not only terrorism from outside but also from internal activists like naxalites. Neither UPA government nor state government supported by UPA are much concerned with Naxalite problem. They have left people to their own fate. No concrete step has been taken by UPA or its supported governments in the states.
4. Secularism: Most of the political parties that does not believe in good governance, always like to play this truimph card to sue the voters of a particular religion. However, these political parties and government have never made effort to improve the economical condition by making any real efforts to do so. Government has presumed that minorities will vote them if they just criticize the political parties who favors majority population.People are fed up of politicians who only raises issues related to minorities and issues that are not related to their social upliftment but only of minor importance like put a ban on a book that hurts feeling of a section or sending back Taslima Nasreen etc. etc.
5. Service sectors: The only commedable task that is a plus point of ruling party is to make Central Govt. employees happy by improving their service conditions and giving them a good pay hike. However, if one critically examine this aspect, gainers of this pay package are highly placed officials. Otherwise, these hikes just neutralizes the inflation and do nothing more. Teaching community is feeling unhappy as per reports. Government has failed to take any steps for improvement in education at any level.
One step taken by this government to make them happy need mention here and government needs appreciation for it. UPA government has made some reforms in income tax structure and government servants are happy with it.
8. Law and Order front: Performance of present UPA government has been dismal on law and order front. Even people don't feel safe in the capital as incidences of looting, murder, rapes are heard on daily basis.
9. Growth and Government expenditure: Government has been successful in improving growth rate though it will not be justified to give full credit to present government alone. Whatever growth increase is illustrated, this is result of not fully but partially to NDA government whose policy decisions have started paying dividends. Elimination of licences for several services has resulted in fast expansion of telecom services and reduces prices of different gadgets etc. Expension of internet is due to efforts of past government and continuation of the same policies by present government.
Based on the above analysis, it can be concluded that working of the present government has been just at par to past (NDA) government. Though this government committed blunder of withdrawal of tough law measures like POTA just to appease the minorities and that has backfired, this government has done commendable job to take country ahead on economic front. Performance of this government is as good as of the NDA government. Both the government have been on similar track and deserves their share of votes. This will ultimately facilitate way for a government that will need help of small regional parties for formation of next government.
Result: Neither Congress nor BJP would be able to get majority in next elections (May 2009) and chances are more for a hung parliament where politicians of criminal background will help one of the parties in formation of next government and will utilize power to attain their own goals.
However, awareness among people has grown at a very rapid pace and after few elections, opportunists in politics have to reconsider about their fate.
Saturday, September 28, 2013
Vasundhara Raje, The Return Of The 'Rajasthan Queen'?
The peculiar predicament of being Vasundhara Raje — who is all set to regain power in Rajasthan. The road to Sojat smells of fresh rain. But the dhaba on the roadside has stopped making the next batch of dal vadas. Everyone in this tiny, garbage-infested town in southern Rajasthan is waiting for Vasundhara Raje’s bus to arrive.
It doesn’t matter if they are supporters of the BJP or the Congress; a sighting is what they are after. And it comes packed with drama. A hatch opens up at the top and Raje rises phoenix-like on a pedestal, towering over the crowd like a modern-day queen; as she asks an ecstatic crowd: “What are your main concerns? Do you get enough drinking water?” The crowd claps and screams as she waves once again before the pedestal is lowered and she disappears from view.
Sunday, January 05, 2014
Saran Singh Deo: A King Takes His Place In The Opposition
PERSONALITY His “subjects” revere him as their king. But for the people of Chhattisgarh, he is also the leader of the Opposition in the state Assembly. He is Congress’ Tribhuvaneshwar Saran Singh Deo (61), the 118th Maharaja of the Raksel dynasty of Surguja, who is worth by his own admission a whopping `561.50 crore, making him one of the richest politicians in the country.
Apart from his immense wealth and royal lineage (he was anointed “king” in 2001), what sets Singh Deo apart from every other politician in the state is his soft and calm demeanour, courtesy and civility. According to senior Congress leaders, despite his quiet nature, Singh Deo will emerge a strong and effective voice of the Opposition in the Assembly.
Sunday, May 12, 2013
'FACEBOOK PANCHAYAT' FOR TRIBAL YOUTH IN MP
They had grievances, they had aspirations, but no voice. So a group of educated tribal youths from Madhya Pradesh decided to take matters of the community into their own hands, and made Facebook a platform to exchange views and find solutions.
Created nearly seven months ago, the 'National Indian Tribal Yuva Shakti' page on the social networking site has already attracted more than 5,000 members. And hundreds of them will come face-to-face for the first time next week to discuss various issues, including tribal land acquisition by big companies and loss of tribal access to land and other natural resources.
The group has decided to organise a Facebook Tribal Meet in Barwani district on May 16, which is likely to be attended by more than three hundred people from Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, West Bengal and Gujarat.
Friday, April 19, 2013
WILL UMA BHARTI'S RE-ENTRY GET BJP MORE VOTES IN MP?
BJP leaders in Madhya Pradesh feel Uma Bharti‘s re-entry in the party fold will help it in the state assembly elections slated around the year end.
However, Congress is of the view that ten years of BJP rule has set-in a strong anti-incumbency wave in the state which even the re-entry of Bharti would not be able to contain.
“The BJP is certainly going to benefit in the coming Assembly polls with the re-entry of Bharti in the party fold as she has her own dedicated vote in the state that resulted in the victory of her candidates in five seats in the 2008 Assembly polls,” BJP MLA and spokesman Vishwas Sarang said.
In 2008, the BJP minus Uma Bharti had won 143 seats and later it wrested five more seats from the Congress in the by-polls, taking its tally to a total of 148.
Tuesday, March 25, 2014
How RSS Heavily Invested On 'Elections 2014 And NaMo'?
Just in case you think Elections 2014 are all about Narendra Modi deciding his own destiny, here’s another thought: the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) is as much invested in his campaign as Modi’s own team in Gandhinagar and the BJP’s headquarters in Delhi. You may think of the RSS as those guys in khaki shorts doing morning exercises with lathis, but an article in a business weekly talks of an RSS "IT blitzkrieg" in the next general elections.
Among other things, the newspaper says the RSS has got hold of a huge database of 11.5 million Delhi voters, and has started accumulating volunteers to take on the NaMo campaign online and offline. Not only Delhi, but the Sangh plans to cascade its efforts to other states.
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
India Elections 2009: performances and opportunities
By Najeeb Khan
General elections are scheduled in April-May 2009 and these elections will decide the fate of political leaders, parties, government and the country. Results of assembly elections held recently have created the confusion instead of showing clear indications that who will be at the helm of affairs. Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan are two large states and results have demonstrated a fragmented verdict. Madhya Pradesh re-elected the ruling BJP Government whereas Rajasthan people voted for Congress (incumancy factor).
Although Congress succeded in forming government in Rajasthan but this party failed to clean sweap the state. In Madhya Pradesh, BJP maitained a big margin. Congress recaptured Delhi state ignoring any incumbancy effect. Likewise, BJP got re-elected in Chhattisgarh and congress failed to increase its influence in the state. Congress got majority in Mhizorum and succeeded in spreading its influence in north east.
Its true that issues are different for people in state and central elections but few issues affects both. We'll discuss these issues and their impacts on election prospects of different political parties:
1. Inflation: Price rise affects common men and it has been observed in past elections how the ruling parties lost the elections when they failed to control the escalating prices. Important factor in this regard is the efforts made by the ruling party to control it. State government generally blame price rise for the wrong economic policies of the Central Government. However, they can not escape from their responsibilities. State Govt. can atleast help to lower prices of few commodities by lowering the taxes.UPA government is trying hard to keep inflation under control and has been successful in its efforts by adopting different measures. Luck is also in its favour as the fuel prices in International market has dipped to $35 per barrel from $ 146. Fuel prices have their influence on prices of other commodities as transportation costs also increase with increasing fuel prices.
2. Fuel prices: Govt. has increased prices of petroleum and diesels several times in the past. However, it delays declaration of reduction in fuel prices to give advantage to oil companies of private and public sectors. Prices of crude oil have come down from $145 per barrel to $ 35 per barrel and govt. has once reduced prices of petroleum before declaration of state assembly election by Rs 5 per litre. It is assumed that Govt. is planning to reduce again these prices by Rs 5 on petrol. Rs 2.50 on diesel and Rs 25 on LPG cylinders to make housewives happy. It will be done before the parliament election. This shows that govt. is less concerned with people but more with the vote of the people. During NDA govt. regime, petroleum prices were immediately reduced depending on the prices in the international market. One can understand the difference of attitude between two government.
3. Terrorism: Indian people are bearing the burnt of this menace. Not only terrorism from outside but also from internal activists like naxalites. Neither UPA government nor state government supported by UPA are much concerned with Naxalite problem. They have left people to their own fate. No concrete step has been taken by UPA or its supported governments in the states.
4. Secularism: Most of the political parties that does not believe in good governance, always like to play this truimph card to sue the voters of a particular religion. However, these political parties and government have never made effort to improve the economical condition by making any real efforts to do so. Government has presumed that minorities will vote them if they just criticize the political parties who favors majority population.People are fed up of politicians who only raises issues related to minorities and issues that are not related to their social upliftment but only of minor importance like put a ban on a book that hurts feeling of a section or sending back Taslima Nasreen etc. etc.
5. Service sectors: The only commedable task that is a plus point of ruling party is to make Central Govt. employees happy by improving their service conditions and giving them a good pay hike. However, if one critically examine this aspect, gainers of this pay package are highly placed officials. Otherwise, these hikes just neutralizes the inflation and do nothing more. Teaching community is feeling unhappy as per reports. Government has failed to take any steps for improvement in education at any level.
One step taken by this government to make them happy need mention here and government needs appreciation for it. UPA government has made some reforms in income tax structure and government servants are happy with it.
8. Law and Order front: Performance of present UPA government has been dismal on law and order front. Even people don't feel safe in the capital as incidences of looting, murder, rapes are heard on daily basis.
9. Growth and Government expenditure: Government has been successful in improving growth rate though it will not be justified to give full credit to present government alone. Whatever growth increase is illustrated, this is result of not fully but partially to NDA government whose policy decisions have started paying dividends. Elimination of licences for several services has resulted in fast expansion of telecom services and reduces prices of different gadgets etc. Expension of internet is due to efforts of past government and continuation of the same policies by present government.
Based on the above analysis, it can be concluded that working of the present government has been just at par to past (NDA) government. Though this government committed blunder of withdrawal of tough law measures like POTA just to appease the minorities and that has backfired, this government has done commendable job to take country ahead on economic front. Performance of this government is as good as of the NDA government. Both the government have been on similar track and deserves their share of votes. This will ultimately facilitate way for a government that will need help of small regional parties for formation of next government.
Result: Neither Congress nor BJP would be able to get majority in next elections (May 2009) and chances are more for a hung parliament where politicians of criminal background will help one of the parties in formation of next government and will utilize power to attain their own goals.
However, awareness among people has grown at a very rapid pace and after few elections, opportunists in politics have to reconsider about their fate.
General elections are scheduled in April-May 2009 and these elections will decide the fate of political leaders, parties, government and the country. Results of assembly elections held recently have created the confusion instead of showing clear indications that who will be at the helm of affairs. Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan are two large states and results have demonstrated a fragmented verdict. Madhya Pradesh re-elected the ruling BJP Government whereas Rajasthan people voted for Congress (incumancy factor).
Although Congress succeded in forming government in Rajasthan but this party failed to clean sweap the state. In Madhya Pradesh, BJP maitained a big margin. Congress recaptured Delhi state ignoring any incumbancy effect. Likewise, BJP got re-elected in Chhattisgarh and congress failed to increase its influence in the state. Congress got majority in Mhizorum and succeeded in spreading its influence in north east.
Its true that issues are different for people in state and central elections but few issues affects both. We'll discuss these issues and their impacts on election prospects of different political parties:
1. Inflation: Price rise affects common men and it has been observed in past elections how the ruling parties lost the elections when they failed to control the escalating prices. Important factor in this regard is the efforts made by the ruling party to control it. State government generally blame price rise for the wrong economic policies of the Central Government. However, they can not escape from their responsibilities. State Govt. can atleast help to lower prices of few commodities by lowering the taxes.UPA government is trying hard to keep inflation under control and has been successful in its efforts by adopting different measures. Luck is also in its favour as the fuel prices in International market has dipped to $35 per barrel from $ 146. Fuel prices have their influence on prices of other commodities as transportation costs also increase with increasing fuel prices.
2. Fuel prices: Govt. has increased prices of petroleum and diesels several times in the past. However, it delays declaration of reduction in fuel prices to give advantage to oil companies of private and public sectors. Prices of crude oil have come down from $145 per barrel to $ 35 per barrel and govt. has once reduced prices of petroleum before declaration of state assembly election by Rs 5 per litre. It is assumed that Govt. is planning to reduce again these prices by Rs 5 on petrol. Rs 2.50 on diesel and Rs 25 on LPG cylinders to make housewives happy. It will be done before the parliament election. This shows that govt. is less concerned with people but more with the vote of the people. During NDA govt. regime, petroleum prices were immediately reduced depending on the prices in the international market. One can understand the difference of attitude between two government.
3. Terrorism: Indian people are bearing the burnt of this menace. Not only terrorism from outside but also from internal activists like naxalites. Neither UPA government nor state government supported by UPA are much concerned with Naxalite problem. They have left people to their own fate. No concrete step has been taken by UPA or its supported governments in the states.
4. Secularism: Most of the political parties that does not believe in good governance, always like to play this truimph card to sue the voters of a particular religion. However, these political parties and government have never made effort to improve the economical condition by making any real efforts to do so. Government has presumed that minorities will vote them if they just criticize the political parties who favors majority population.People are fed up of politicians who only raises issues related to minorities and issues that are not related to their social upliftment but only of minor importance like put a ban on a book that hurts feeling of a section or sending back Taslima Nasreen etc. etc.
5. Service sectors: The only commedable task that is a plus point of ruling party is to make Central Govt. employees happy by improving their service conditions and giving them a good pay hike. However, if one critically examine this aspect, gainers of this pay package are highly placed officials. Otherwise, these hikes just neutralizes the inflation and do nothing more. Teaching community is feeling unhappy as per reports. Government has failed to take any steps for improvement in education at any level.
One step taken by this government to make them happy need mention here and government needs appreciation for it. UPA government has made some reforms in income tax structure and government servants are happy with it.
8. Law and Order front: Performance of present UPA government has been dismal on law and order front. Even people don't feel safe in the capital as incidences of looting, murder, rapes are heard on daily basis.
9. Growth and Government expenditure: Government has been successful in improving growth rate though it will not be justified to give full credit to present government alone. Whatever growth increase is illustrated, this is result of not fully but partially to NDA government whose policy decisions have started paying dividends. Elimination of licences for several services has resulted in fast expansion of telecom services and reduces prices of different gadgets etc. Expension of internet is due to efforts of past government and continuation of the same policies by present government.
Based on the above analysis, it can be concluded that working of the present government has been just at par to past (NDA) government. Though this government committed blunder of withdrawal of tough law measures like POTA just to appease the minorities and that has backfired, this government has done commendable job to take country ahead on economic front. Performance of this government is as good as of the NDA government. Both the government have been on similar track and deserves their share of votes. This will ultimately facilitate way for a government that will need help of small regional parties for formation of next government.
Result: Neither Congress nor BJP would be able to get majority in next elections (May 2009) and chances are more for a hung parliament where politicians of criminal background will help one of the parties in formation of next government and will utilize power to attain their own goals.
However, awareness among people has grown at a very rapid pace and after few elections, opportunists in politics have to reconsider about their fate.
Friday, April 19, 2013
NEGLECTING INDIAN FORESTS - 3 : 'PROMISED MOON, PAID PITTANCE' - MADHYA PRADESH
Madhya Pradesh set out on a generous note. The state’s 1990 JFM resolution promised 20 per cent of the net profit from the felling of timber to forest protection committees in case of dense forest and 30 per cent of the net profit in the case of degraded forests. In 2001 in an unprecedented move, the government promised the committees the entire net profit from timber and bamboo in degraded forests. The new mechanism also laid down that half the money will be distributed among the members, while the rest will be used for forest and village resource development. Such an attractive proposition drew 16 million people into forest conservation and today 70 per cent of the state’s forest is covered under JFM.
Monday, March 18, 2013
India’s Moral Crisis: Travel Rape Advisories Are Now Real!
Western countries have already issued travel advisories to their women travelers clearly telling them they are not safe in India; that they are at risk of being raped.
What a great image make-over for a super-power aspirant and the Incredible India campaigners. It’s incredibly shameful that in the whole of South Asia, it’s only India that has been singled out for this rape travel advisory! That too in a country that gets more than USD 120 billion every year from tourists.
Bangladesh, Pakistan, Nepal and Sri Lanka don’t have the size and money to come anywhere close to India. On paper, they may be more lawless and crisis-ridden too, but the men in those countries do not pounce on women the way we do in India, and the rest of the world are more relaxed in advising their women while they travel there.
But guess what? 85 percent of South Asia is India and therefore, India’s taint besmirches the whole of the region. The rest of South Asia, for once, should be ashamed of India!
There are only very few countries in the world that carry such an ignominy. Even Papua New Guinea, which appears to be India’s cousin in its pastime of raping women, carries a less severe advisory.
This is what the UK tells its citizens of the rape-risks in India: “Women should use caution if travelling alone in India. Reported cases of sexual assault against women and young girls are increasing; recent sexual attacks against female visitors in tourist areas and cities show that foreign women are also at risk. British women have been the victims of sexual assault in Goa, Delhi, Bangalore and Rajasthan and women travellers often receive unwanted attention in the form of verbal and physical harassment by individuals or groups of men.”
And what does America tell its women travellers? “While India is generally safe for foreign visitors, according to the latest figures by Indian authorities, rape is the fastest growing crime in India. Among large cities, Delhi experienced the highest number of crimes against women. Although most victims have been local residents, recent sexual attacks against female visitors in tourist areas underline the fact that foreign women are at risk and should exercise vigilance.”
The advisory goes on to add that women can be “Eve-teased”, subjected to sexual harassment that can be frightening, and there could be “sexually suggestive lewd comments to catcalls to outright groping.”
“Women should observe stringent security precautions, including avoiding use of public transport after dark without the company of known and trustworthy companions, restricting evening entertainment to well-known venues, and avoiding isolated areas when alone at any time of day.”
Why the heck should any woman travel to India in such scary conditions? Just to be shut up in their hotel rooms or eat, pray and love? It’s better, perhaps, to go to the Central African Republic.
Last month, even Switzerland had advised its women to be careful in India, but perhaps the tourist in Madhya Pradesh fell for the romantic allure of India’s lawlessness and hopelessness, which some philosophise as mystic chaos. Almost exactly how we are adept in reconciling with our abject poverty as part of our spiritual being, some have even started philosophising on rapes.
The western countries have now realised that the risks of rape in India are real. Rape of women appears to be a national pastime. The Delhi gangrape had provoked an unprecedented citizens’ response in the national capital and the states, but that didn’t make any impact on the situation.
Delhi alone reported at least two rapes every day in the two months following the gangrape. There were equally horrendous incidents of rapes from different parts of the country, which are still continuing. Going by the number so far, perhaps we might surpass last year’s rape-tally of 24,000.
In the case of Madhya Pradesh, the Swiss national will be just a speck because it anyway accounts of 14 per cent of the country’s rapes.
Right now, we are in the middle of legislating a tough law to protect women against sexual violence. Will this law make any difference to the safety of women in India?
Mostly unlikely, because, as we argued earlier, the sexual violence against women has to be looked at in the context of the overall lawlessness and gender-inequality that prevails in India. No law will be able to address this. It will require a fundamental social transformation, wherein rule of law and equal rights to women is a reality.
But, this will be bad news for our politicians and hence is unlikely to happen.
The new law might scare some people, but as post-Delhi evidence shows, nothing is likely to change in terms of the risk of women to sexual violence and rapes because majority of our rapists or potential rapists won’t even know the gravity of their criminality and its consequences.
A Haus Khas student didn’t think twice before spiking an overseas girl’s drink and raping her last month even as the national media was abuzz with post-Delhi outrage. Neither was a resort manager in Bhopal deterred from raping a south Korean girl in the same month.
Even from a narrow perspective of making the new law work, the state and central governments should undertake an extraordinary nationwide campaign against this phenomenon just as it took on polio or AIDS. It should tell people from every possible outlet and street-corner that they will be in jail if they aggress women. The government needs to spend at least a couple of billion dollars for a few years at a stretch on this because it is an extraordinary epidemic that needs an extraordinary response.
Tuesday, May 07, 2013
'THE LION IS AN INDIAN, NOT A GUJARATI': JUDGE
By Nand Kishore (Guest Writer)
By stressing ‘intrinsic value’ and ‘best interest’ of species, the Supreme Court wants conservation to be pan-nation rather than State-bound.
In response to calls to shift some of India’s last Asiatic lions to neighbouring Madhya Pradesh, the Gujarat State Wildlife Board went to the extent of calling lions [exclusively] Gujarati ‘family members’. But, in a historic judgment lauded by the world conservation community, (Centre for Environmental Law WWF-1 v. Union of India and others, Supreme Court, 2013) the Supreme Court has ruled that Gujarat has to part with some lions, to be shifted to Madhya Pradesh’s Kuno-Palpur wildlife sanctuary, upholding the nation’s right to have a second habitat for lions.
Thursday, November 21, 2013
MP Assembly Polls: The Muslim Resurfaces In BJP Side
The BJP's lone Muslim face in the Madhya Pradesh elections makes it a point to stress his religious credentials while questioning those of his Congress rival, also a Muslim.
Arif Baig, 78, has practically been pulled out of retirement to contest Bhopal North, a difficult seat that has voted Congress for years. Baig, a former union minister with an erratic electoral record, one that shows several losses alongside victories, faces a formidable opponent in Arif Aqueel, 63, who is the state's only Muslim MLA and has won the seat five times.
Friday, June 21, 2013
Why 'Pat' Gujarat? What About Bihar, MP Growth Models?
How hypocritical can we get on the issue of growth! We have been mismeasuring the economic achievement of states and nations by using the wrong metric: Gross Domestic Product (GDP) – which is about grand averages and tells you precious little about the well-being of the average individual – and even while at it we won’t allow it to go untainted by personal prejudices.
Monday, May 27, 2013
CHHATTISGARH CONG STARES AT LEADERSHIP VACCUM
The killing of 27 Congressmen, including its senior leaders, in the Maoist attack has suddenly created a leadership vacuum in the party in Chhattisgarh. As the gravity of the situation sinks in the poll-bound state, the average Congressmen in the state as well as the central leadership are a worried lot. The party had taken long to create a new batch of leaders; things are back to the square one now. The party will have a pick a leader fast from the available ones.
Tuesday, February 11, 2014
Madhya Pradesh Congress Conceded Defeat Before Polls?
Defeatist attitude afflicts the Congress’ approach to Lok Sabha elections in Madhya Pradesh. The party’s formula for candidates’ selection has led to several interpretations and speculation. Of the 12 constituencies it won in 2009 only two responded with semblance of warmth during the November assembly elections.
Just 16 of the 95 assembly segments have returned Congress candidates. Chhindwara, Union minister Kamal Nath’s long-time preserve and Guna, the citadel of another Union minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, have returned three and four members to the assembly.
Monday, January 20, 2014
Analysis: The Congress Party Churning - 'Tied Up In Knots'
With Lok Sabha polls on the horizon, the Congress is under siege, fighting battles on many fronts. Ashhar Khan on how India’s oldest party is trying to put its house in order.
That the Congress is on a sticky wicket is well known by now. That the party is fighting an anti-incumbency wave — never before experienced — is as well known. And that every party lives through such trying times is also no surprise, at least not to a party itself. In that, the Congress is not going through anything that has never happened to it before. So, why is the party worried?
Thursday, December 11, 2014
Think & Act: First Agra, Next Aligarh: Get ready For Your City For Hinduvta 'Reconversion Drive'
Although the Bharatiya Janata Party does not officially endorse such campaigns, one of its firebrand MPs, Mahant Adityanath of Gorakhpur better known as Yogi Adityanath, has been actively involved in such campaigns for many years.
Thursday, October 31, 2013
'Big Gains Likely For BJP, NDA In Lok Sabha Polls; Big Drop For UPA, Congress' - Election 2013 In Madhya Pradesh, Delhi, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh & Mizoram
The wave in favour of the BJP in the coming Assembly Elections in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh is clear. The question is: what impact will this vote shift towards the BJP have on the General Elections next year?
To find out, the estimates made by INN Live and CSDS Pre-Poll survey in these three states and in Delhi - where a hung Assembly is likely - for the Assembly Elections were projected across the Parliamentary constituencies in these states. And the outcome shows that the BJP's star is very much in the ascendance.
Thursday, May 08, 2014
Battle Of Benares: How To Decode Modi’s Poll Strategy!
ELECTION ANALYSIS It’s not new for a political leader of national stature to contest from two seats. Especially, when the leader is projected as prime ministerial candidate, then contesting from two seats should be considered a very normal phenomena, and politically it’s a wise decision. But the question that caught everybody’s attention is that why Benares was picked as contesting seat for Narendra Modi, the prime ministerial candidate of the BJP. Many people in Benares think that after winning, Modi would choose to retain his Vadodara seat from Gujarat, his home land and he would hardly come back to the city of temples to serve its people.
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