The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

PERSPECTIVE

On Record
No bias in allocation of funds: Rana
by S. Satyanarayanan

Union Minister of State for Rural Development Kashiram Rana

AN estimated 70 per cent of the population in India live in rural areas. If the country has to become a developed nation by 2020, there is a need to remove the urban-rural divide. The Vajpayee-led NDA government had promised to deal effectively with the rural needs. It had pumped in sizeable money in past few years through various schemes sponsored by the Union Ministry of Rural Development. How far did the efforts of the Central government to reach out to rural areas really help? Or did the Central-sponsored schemes become mere show pieces? Union Minister for Rural Development Kashiram Rana tried to answer these questions in an interview to The Tribune.

Excerpts:

Q: Several ambitious Central-sponsored schemes have been introduced for rural development. Is the Ministry satisfied with their implementation?

A: One can never be satisfied till there is 100 per cent implementation of all the schemes. But the Vajpayee-led government has been able to implement effectively various programmes aimed at catalysing sustainable and holistic development in rural areas with focus on most disadvantaged sections of society. However, the one most crucial factor which determines the level of implementation is cooperation from the state governments. The Centre prepares programmes, makes funds allocation and issues guidelines for various rural development projects, but the implementation ultimately depends on the attitude and efforts of the states. I am happy that we in the Rural Development Ministry have been able to motivate the states to implement many projects, the results of which have started becoming visible.

Q: When you took over as the Rural Development Minister, you had said that your priority will be rural road network and providing drinking water to villages. How far you have achieved success?

A: Yes. In the last six months, we have made a phenomenal progress in these two areas, thanks to the Prime Minister. Under the Prime Minister’s Rural Road Development Project, all villages having a population of 1,000 or more were to be connected with the main approach road by 2003. We have already managed to implement this in 18 states. But in other states despite our best efforts we are likely to off-shoot the target due to various reasons, including disputes among villagers, delay in acquisition of land or due to objection from the Forest Department. We are hopeful of removing these hindrances and achieve our target. As regards drinking water, we have introduced a village-friendly scheme called "Swajaldhara Scheme", wherein the Centre meets 90 per cent expense of the drinking water project and the remaining 10 per cent is to be footed by the Village Panchayat or Zilla Panchayat. There has been tremendous demand for this scheme and the implementation level has also grown manifold. Still 1.10 lakh villages do not have clean drinking water. In the difficult mountain terrain, we are trying to identify techniques which are cost-effective and could be speedily implemented.

Q: Why do the funds released by the Centre fail to reach to grassroot levels?

A: Unfortunately, the impression given by former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi that out of every One Rupee released by the Centre only 10 paise reaches the grassroots level, still remains in the minds of the people. We want to correct this impression through transparency, effective monitoring and implementation. The Centre’s effort in the implementation of rural development programmes at grassroots with the pivotal role of Panchayati Raj Institutions and Self-Help Groups, have started bearing fruits. But we still have to go a long way to ensure capacity building of panchayati raj institutions. This again depends on the states. Despite the passage of the 73rd Amendment Bill, for more devolution of powers to Panchayati Raj Bodies, many states have not implemented it; most have not transferred the financial powers needed to implement it.

Q: Don’t you think monitoring of Central schemes is your responsibility? What have you have done to check corruption, non-implementation or delay in implementation?

A: Monitoring is our responsibility. But since the schemes of Rural Development Ministry are implemented through the states concerned or panchayati raj bodies, we have set up a three-tier monitoring system with representation from the Centre, the state and panchayati raj bodies. This mechanism has helped us in checking corruption, non-implementation or delay or underutilisation of Central-sponsored schemes or funds. There is constant opposition to this from Congress- and Left-ruled states. But we are sticking to this system as we are ultimately accountable.

Q: In this election year, do you plan to give special packages to BJP-ruled states?

A: The funds to the states for rural development depends on the schemes and the population-poverty ratio of the state concerned. So each state is given its due as per its requirement. Special packages are given to the states on a case by case basis.

Q: But why do the states always complain about poor Central support?

A: As far as my Ministry is concerned, there is no dearth of funds. We have a budget of Rs 14,000 crore; we are planning to revise it to Rs 18,000 crore depending on the requirement. The states, which have been making a hue and cry about poor Central support are those who have failed to implement the Central schemes effectively. While some states are implementing effectively all the Central-sponsored schemes and are cornering additional funds by way of special packages, some blame the Centre for their failures. This year we had asked all states to list their rural development projects they wish to take up during 2003-04 as also 2004-05 so that the Centre could allocate funds in advance.

Q: What about the growing rural unemployment?

A: Thanks to the interest shown by the Prime Minister, my Ministry has been able to make good strides in this direction. Under the rural employment scheme, the Centre has allocated Rs 10,000 crore (Rs 5,000 crore in cash and grains worth Rs 5000 crore). Through this scheme, the Centre has been able to build about 15 lakh Self-Help Groups (SHGs) across rural India, in which 80 to 90 per cent beneficiaries are women. The SHGs have helped in generating 40 lakh jobs. The number of such groups are growing day by day.

Pakistan worried over India’s ties with Central Asia
by R.S. Bedi

PRIME Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee has been on the move cementing relations with various countries including Tajikistan, Syria and Turkey. His earlier visit to the US and the recent one to Russia are not without significance. Emphasis on developing bilateral ties, particularly with Afghanistan, Central Asian Republics and Israel reflects India’s immediate strategic concerns. His visit to Tajikistan followed Defence Minister George Fernandes’ visit to Tajikistan, Kyrgyztan and Uzbekistan. Foreign Minister Yashwant Sinha too was in Tashkent last month. Central Asia is once again on India’s diplomatic map.

Relations with Tajikistan are important in the context of developments in Afghanistan and countering Islamic extremism in Central Asia. Similarly, Russia like India has for long been a victim of Islamic extremism. India is trying to rectify it’s earlier neglect of this region. It’s geography and energy resources are vital to India’s security.

India has now set up a Joint Working Group (JWG) with Tajikistan for combating terrorism. The two have also decided to intensify defence cooperation. India is also reconstructing an air strip in Ayny. The two have also decided to build a highway linking them through Afghanistan and Chahabahar port in Iran, which will further have a sea link with the western coast of India.

India has also managed to establish a “benign presence” in Afghanistan. It has been moving ahead with developmental, welfare and training projects there. Of the $100 million pledged by India, over $60 million have already been made use of. The Indira Gandhi Institute for Child Health, artificial limbs centre at Kabul military hospitals, TV satellite up linking/down linking facilities are some of the important projects in hand. India is now considering to help build a 45-MW hydel power at Salma in western Afghanistan.

India’s growing influence in Afghanistan and Central Asian Republics is viewed in Pakistan with discomfort and suspicion. Afghanistan provides all important strategic depth to Pakistan which its lacks. The Taliban rule in Afghanistan was primarily to ensure this objective. But the US intervention resulting in the ouster of the Taliban came as a jolt to Pakistan. Relations between Islamabad and Karzai’s government in Kabul have since been deteriorating rapidly for which Pakistan has to blame herself.

Pakistan’s present policy is based on negating India’s efforts in furthering it’s relations with Afghanistan and the Central Asian Republics. It’s political anxiety is reflected in not allowing India to despatch 300-odd military vehicles to Kabul as a part of international programme to build Afghanistan’s National Army, despite Kabul and US requests to Pakistan for early clearance. India had to send these vehicles via Iran. Even last year, Pakistan disallowed supply of wheat consignment to Afghanistan which then had to be converted into biscuits and transported via Iran.

That’s how the political urgency of developing a road link between Iran and Afghanistan was felt. The alternate route plan was announced during the visit of Iranian President Mohmd Khatami to India. Pakistan’s continued intransigence and denial of overland access from India to Afghanistan and beyond to Central Asia forced India to develop this new link. The survey work has already been competed and is pending financial sanction. This will provide an alternate economic lifeline to this region. Iran is developing a new seaport at Chahabahar on the Makran coast. This port is much closer to India than the current port of Bandar Aabbas. From Chahabahar, the road will run parallel to the border with Pakistan and enter Afghanistan to connect the main trunk route that links major Afghan cities. It’s this stretch of road that India has agreed to build. This will reduce landlocked Afghanistan’s historic dependence on Pakistan for transit trade. This road will also provide trade relief to landlocked Central Asian Republics that are rich in oil, gas and natural resources but have been unable to exploit these fully due to difficulties in finding viable export route. This joint project has far reaching geopolitical and geo-economic implications.

Pakistan’s frustration at these developments can well be imagined. It has lost not only the political influence but it’s strategic advantage too. India gets the advantage. Typical of Pakistan, it has launched a vicious campaign to prevent India from developing more stable relations with Afghanistan and the Central Asian Republics.

These developments have cast a long shadow on Pakistan’s plans to boost it’s economy by enhancing landlocked Afghanistan and the Central Asia’s economic dependence on it, by providing them transit facilities via it’s fast developing port of Gawadar. The Chinese are building this port on the southwest coast of Pakistan, near the border with Iran. This port is strategically located at the mouth of Persian Gulf route. Pakistan plans to use it as the cargo hub linking it with Afghanistan and Central Asia on the one end and the states of west Asia on the other.

The Chinese, who have big stakes in this project, are funding it for Pakistan. It will ensure their access to the Arabian Sea via Karakoram highway north of Pakistan. Pakistan plans to build a 515-km-long road from Gawadar to Herat in eastern Afghanistan. But it’s success depends upon the type of relations between Islamabad and Kabul, which presently don’t auger well. The project is likely to remain in limbo for some time.

By following hostile policies, Pakistan stands to lose it’s political influence further and the bonhomie with it’s Muslim brethren in the region. Its military regime is unable to transcend beyond India-centric negative policies, it’s economic deprivation notwithstanding.

The writer, a retired Air Marshal, was Director-General, Defence Planning Staff, Ministry of Defence, Government of India

OPED

PROFILE
Mahesweta: A writer and social activist
by Harihar Swarup

A literary person need not necessarily be a social activist or a reformer. Mahasweta Devi is an exception, a rare combination of both; a writer and a crusader against oppression. She is known for her compassionate crusade through art and activism to claim for tribal people a just and honourable place. It was, therefore, apt for the French government to honour her with the second highest civilian award of France “officer desarts et des lettrea” (officer of arts and literature). When Alliance Francaise informed her that she was chosen for the top award, Mahaswetaji’s comment was typical of her style: “People will be offended if I say this, but I actually feel nothing. However, it is a great honour and I will accept it with happiness”. Of several of her works translated in French, “Hazar Chaurasir Maa” has become quite popular in French literary circles. The French title of the book is “La Mere Du 1084”. Based on her work, Hindi film “Hazar Chuarasi ki Maa” was a hit.

Running 77, this tireless crusader has been ailing and unable to travel outside Kolkata. She would have loved to receive the French award in Delhi but owing to her poor health the French Ambassador Dominique Girard flew to Kolkata to honour her. Girard paid glowing tribute to her commitment for a cause and said “what touches us about your writings is the way in which you tell the story of ordinary men and women in their struggle for life. Your views are unequivocal”.

Mahasweta Devi, born in Dhaka of undivided India, inherited literary traits from her parents. Her father Manish Ghatak was a poet and a novelist, and her mother Dhariti Devi was a writer and social worker. She turned out to be a combination of both. Her first schooling was in Dhaka but after Partition she moved to West Bengal. She joined Vishvabharati University in Santiniketan and completed BA (Hons) in English, and then obtained Master’s degreee in English Literature from Calcutta University.

Early years of marriage had been constant struggle for Mahasweta and those were the days of dire poverty as well. She divorced her husband, a cardholding member of the CPI in 1962. She took to serious writing initially to enable her some money. Her son, Nabarun Bhattacharya, is also a well known poet and fiction writer. She says she does not subscribe to any particular ideology but her leanings have been leftist since the age of 20. “I have sympathy with all truly leftist causes; freeing captives from the bondage of money lenders and ending poverty and exploitation”. She also defines leftism and according to her “anyone who tries to solve these problems is a true leftist. Whenever a left movement, whether in Wet Bengal, Kerala or anywhere else gets dissociated with the people, it goes down”.

Her literature too springs from a fight for the rights of the opressed and downtrodden people. The tribal revolt against the British at the turn of the last century formed the backbone of her book “Aranyer Adhikar” (rights of tribals living in jungles), which the Sahitya Akademi had singled out for their award. She says: “My social activism is the driving force of all my literary activities, be it literature which brought me into the good book of Jnanpith, my newspaper columns or the journal I edit. The lives of the bonded labour provided me with a character like Dopadi. Perhaps, their stories also impart a narrative immediacy to my language”. She was award Jnanpith award in 1996 and a year later decorated with the pestigious Magasaysay prize.

Having worked for tribes in West Bengal and elsewhere, Mahasweta’s knowledge is phenomenal. According to her studies, there were more than 200 tribes and communities, with the population numbering five to six crores. The nomadic ones could not vote because of police persecution and constant wandering about. The British had notified them in 1871 as criminals and passed the Criminal Tribes Act, though not all were tribes; some were simply castes. The Government of India denotified them in 1952 but in 1959 passed the Habitual Offenders Act. It was a repetition of the act of 1871, with minor changes. Therefore, they were oppressed by both, the police and society and the development schemes for the SC and ST were not applied to them. Her plea to the government is to bring all of them under a general category denotified communities.

REFLECTIONS
Will we see a change in our own lifetime?
by Kiran Bedi

I have been following the multi-crore stamp paper fraud case, also termed the Telgi scam, from the news reports on the Internet, thousands of miles away from home. For me as an Indian the whole happening raises a very alarming concern. Here is a crime of extraordinary dimensions which has directly starved the national treasury of thousands of crores in revenue earnings. It has alongside cheated the innocent millions, who bought the fraudulent papers, thinking them to be genuine. Many top police officers are in jail including the former Mumbai Police Commissioner. My grievance is that what more evidence do we need of the total vulnerability of our law enforcement machinery to the proverbial police-mafia-politician nexus? We are all obviously up for sale!

The credit of exposure of this national crime, as I understand, ironically, goes to a courageous in-house report, and subsequent investigations, made by police officers from the same flock, picked up by the media, and then fearlessly presented to the Bombay High Court, through the public interest petition. But for this, perhaps this national fraud would have gone on and on.

Such as, (as it happened in this case as I understand): The police taking the accused for holidays to seaside resorts at a price? Booking the wrong persons? Police officers driving imported cars without earning them? Dependent more on informers and less on internal intelligence. Politicians sworn to protect the country’s security and integrity putting it instead on sale? Elected members enjoying free hospitality in five-star hotels and the bills being picked up by persons of dubious credentials. Murders of key witnesses and main accused not being booked? No one looking at the disproportionate assets of the accused in custody blatantly displaying ill-gotten wealth. The accused getting the vendor’s licenses? Auctioning of stamp printing machines, or other similar sensitive equipment, without cannibalising it?

What about the onus on the landlord if premises are used for criminal activities? What is the police responsibility where such blatant crimes go on even before crimes are reported? Who ensures that the investigation is not dishonest and the main accused are not let off without even being charge-sheeted? That there is character verification before dubious persons become members and office-bearers of political parties. That reports submitted by inquiring officers are responded to by the seniors and supervisors in a time-bound manner for remaining accountable. That cases are not claimed to be worked out and charge-sheeted or closed without booking the real culprits i.e. the kingpins? Case registration in the police station is not used as a disguise in the eyes of the people but as an initiation for the process of justice.

If Indian democracy has to go beyond the casting and counting of votes then Indian citizenry will have to seek convincing answers to these thorny, entrenched, illegitimate and illegal systems which allow “Telgis” to survive and flourish. And the media will have to be persevering to spare space for such vitals of our national security. For public memory is short but the media need not be short on it too.

And thank God for these PILs…(Anna Hazare and his team) and the honourable justices…Let no one forget that follow-ups are essential to complete the surgeries. Or else we will all be affected in one form or the other by this cancer.

Will we see a change in our own lifetime?...

DIVERSITIES — DELHI LETTER
Surjit Apa now focusses on Sikhs
by Humra Quraishi

CONTINUING with the strain of my last week's column, almost along the lines “look who all are landing here”, let me rattle some more names. There’s writer Surjit Kaur who’d earlier done the book on Sikhs living in America and Canada. This time she has stationed herself in New Delhi to write a book on the Sikhs living in the country and has come armed with a rather impressive citation — International Channel Networks 2003 Vision in America (VIA) — for let’s not overlook the fact that she is the most sought after therapist-cum-psychiatrist for the immigrant population in Fairfax county and she is called ‘Surjit Apa’ by the Asian population.

Another person who was here on a brief visit was the former Director of the Ford Foundation, Gowher Rizvi, who is now teaching governance at the Harvard. He was here to deliver lectures on the same topic. In fact, as I had mentioned earlier December seems to be the descending time and you’d see all those who’d temporarily departed.

Going by reports, several eminent scholars from across the globe are expected to participate in the four-day conference (Dec 18-21) on “Religions in the Indic Civilisation” to encourage rigorous studies of the diverse religious traditions of India including the various offshoots and smaller sects. Another set of parliamentarians from Pakistan have just about crossed the Wagah border. Sherry Rahman, MP, who'd been here on the previous visit, makes no bones about this and that. She is twice divorced and then thrice blessed — married again and again.

Arpana Kaur’s expo on Nanak

Saw so many faces at the opening of Arpana Kaur’s exhibition titled “Nanak”. Prominent were those of former Prime Minister V.P. Singh, former President R. Venkatraman, former Union Culture Secretary M.S. Varadarajan. The crux was Guru Nanak’s message of compassion and love and to move beyond rigid parameters.

Arpana Kaur and her mother Ajit Caur speak from their heart and live life on their own terms.

During an earlier interview, Ajit blasted the “cowboy” culture unleashed on us by the Americans and spoke very strongly at the policy of double standards which have become a norm of the day and seemed worried about the after effects of the changing world scenario. What I liked was her response to my query — do verbal and written protests of writers make a difference to the rulers who contain the actual might and she’d said, “Yes, writers’ words and writings do make a difference...their’s is the only sane voice around amidst the chaos and confusion so it does make a dent somewhere…”

Pro-Saddam, many

If you were thinking or made to think (because of that heavy unleash of propaganda) along the lines that just about everybody hates the ousted Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, then just about halt here. During the much-heated debate sessions held this week at Hindu College here, students came up with pro-Saddam sentiments and views. Since it was a debate, they had their very definite reasons lined out and spoke of the changing world order which will affect not just the fate of the likes of Saddam but many more will be rendered hapless in this side of the world.

Goel’s vintage point

Union Minister for Sports and Youth Affairs Vijay Goel may not cut Christmas cake on December 25 but would flag off vintage cars across the lanes and by-lanes of Old Delhi. I am a bit surprised because the lanes in Old Delhi provide just about enough passage for a human being to find way unless of course official bandobast is made to bulldoze...

Goel had come out with a book on Old Delhi — “Delhi: Emperor’s City” (Roli). Well written and well produced book except for the fact that it bore little resemblance to Old Delhi I’m familiar with. I felt like a Rip van Winkle whilst reading the book. But then, it is writer’s freedom...

Kashmir Diary
Watching events in Iraq through the prism of Kashmir
by David Devadas

WATCHING events in Iraq through the prism of Kashmir can be instructive. Notwithstanding other differences between the two situations, they are both guerrilla wars in which a regular army is pitted against a hidden set of opponents. An explosion that was visible from the window of the room in Baghdad from which a global television network correspondent was reporting live last week set me thinking. Saddam Hussein’s capture had been announced just a few hours before and, although US forces were on heightened alert, the resistance fighters were able to cause that explosion in the very area where the nerve centres of the occupation forces are located. Over the years, the forces here have developed ways to prevent such attacks for the most part — without alienating the rest of the population. British forces in Iraq appear to have had a little success in this direction but the US forces are nowhere near achieving such control.

In fact, the increasing successes of the Iraqis' urban guerrilla attacks in recent weeks has shown once again that heavy duty armaments do not succeed in a guerrilla war. Indeed, they often worsen the situation in the long term. After all, the US met its Waterloo in Vietnam after using astounding firepower. The Sri Lankans do not appear to have learnt that lesson. The Israelis certainly have not. The Soviet Union collapsed because it did not learn even after spending years trying to control Afghanistan. And the US does not appear to be able to take a lesson from any of these guerrilla wars.

Perhaps the difference in the Indian forces’ choice of tactics in Kashmir and those adopted in all the other situations I have listed is that the forces here think of Kashmiris as compatriots gone astray rather than an alien people. Of course, the Sri Lankan forces should think of the Tamil insurgents as their compatriots but maybe the key difference is that there are no Tamils in the Sri Lankan Army whereas there are Kashmiri Muslims in the Indian armed forces.

The restraint the Indian Army has shown in choosing weapons in Kashmir should be an object lesson for tacticians in future guerrilla warfare. The Indian forces have not used tanks or aircraft to deal with Kashmiri insurgents. Such weapons have on the other hand been liberally used in Palestine and Sri Lanka. And of course they were the mainstay of the Soviet effort in Afghanistan and the US’ in Vietnam. Now, one hears of helicopter gun-ships in Iraq.

Of course, the US does not want to repeat the mistakes it made in Vietnam. It certainly seems serious about putting, as soon as it can, an Iraqi face on the forces holding Iraq. That may, however, have only limited utility since the Iraqi population is riven by deep-seated animosities. The US’ weakness lies in the absence of political consensus within the US and the flak their leaders face over the credibility of the reasons they had proffered for sending forces to Iraq. With such limited domestic commitment, they cannot even think of the sort of tactics Indian officers have employed.

For example, on October 8, 1990, Lt-Gen Mohammed Ahmed Zaki, who was then the Corps Commander in Srinagar, marched at the head of his troops through Nalle Mar, the widest road that winds through the old town of Srinagar. He was leading a flag march, meant simply to show that the writ of the state still ran there, but the senior-most commander in Kashmir risked his life to make that clear. Kashmir’s insurgency had exploded in the first quarter of that year and officers — military, police or civil — had generally not dared to enter the old town area over the previous seven or eight months.

I cannot imagine a three-star US general marching through Baghdad at the head of his troops. The US’ fear of body bags, complicated by the panic that next year’s US Presidential election has set off, appears to have condemned the occupation forces to repeat Vietnam in Iraq. They have not yet reached the point of using napalm or Agent Orange but then, of course, that happened several years into their 10-year involvement in Vietnam. If they are forced to repeat the pattern of those mistakes, the price the West will have to pay may be much higher than that during and after Vietnam. Al-Qaeda's guerrillas have already taken their battle to the US and whatever happens in Iraq could spur more such attacks.