Goa goes both ways
GOA’S was a curtain-raiser to the grand electoral battle set for September.

Paid holiday
THE Indian bureaucracy has a skin thicker than that of a rhinoceros but still the arrows that the Rajasthan Chief Minister, Mr Ashok Gehlot, has directed towards the babudom in his State should give it some pinpricks.

Tennis glory
CRICKET is the flavour of the month. However, for those who do not wisely limit their passion for sport to "eating cricket" only may have a genuine complaint about missing out on the live coverage of the French Open from Paris.

U.S. BASES IN S-E ASIA
Signs of growing nervousness
by Sunanda K. Datta-Ray
KASHMIR and Kosovo should not be allowed to distract attention from a serious development in a highly sensitive part of Asia.

Trade: India’s poor performance
by S. Sethuraman
THE sharp slowdown in world trade in 1998 did not affect India’s share in global exports.

Power play
by O.P. Bhagat
POWER is one word which is almost always in the headlines. And in summer it is more than before or after.

Selling ice to melt poverty
PUNE — It is two in the morning, and Sojirabai’s workday is about to begin. She climbs in behind the wheel of her heavy-duty truck and drives off into the night.

75 Years Ago

The achievement of Swarajists

ON Wednesday, a large meeting was held in Shivaji Mandir under the presidentship of Mr L.B. Bhopatkar, M.L.C and speeches were delivered by Mr Lohokare and Mr N.C. Kelkar, MLA.

Goa goes both ways

GOA’S was a curtain-raiser to the grand electoral battle set for September. And the small coastal state has sent out pleasant signals for the two national parties while being pitiless to independents and splinter groups. For the Congress it has been a satisfying verdict, a clear majority in a House where floor-crossing has been endemic in the past decade. Actually two Congress offshoots, the Goa Rajiv Congress and United Goan Democratic Front, have won two seats each. If the two are persuaded to wind up their separate existence and “come home”, the party strength will go up to 25 in a house of 40. That looks solid but does not spell unity. The state unit is burdened with too many leaders with a chief ministerial past and ambitions and four of them have already thrown their Gandhi topi in the ring. Unlike in the past, this time the party may not break up on the leadership issue, at least not immediately. The electorate has punished all free-lance MLAs and that should suppress the itch to strike out a solo course. The election success will be interpreted in two ways by the central leadership. A general secretary has already claimed that Goan voter has endorsed the CWC resolution on Mrs Sonia Gandhi as party leader and has given her three more seats to rejuvenate the organisation. And, two, she is a vote-getter and hence there is no need to go out of the way to cultivate alliances. This is the line of the arm-chair hawks and they feel vindicated. It is also a risky proposition and may come unstuck in all big states where the Congress lacks an organisational structure and local leaders with credibility. It is better for the party to stoop to conquer, particularly since the BJP too has done very well in Goa.

The BJP entered the Goa Assembly only five years ago and in alliance with the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP) it won four seats. This time going it alone, it has won 10 seats, entirely at the cost of the MGP, reducing the latter’s presence to just four, from 12 last time. The MGP, which ruled the state for 16 years from 1963 and produced the Bandodkar-Kakodkar dynasty, cannot re-enter the mainstream since its base has gone over to the saffron party. This is what happened to the Janata Dal in both Rajasthan and Gujarat, where the BJP vaulted from being a small third-placed party to become the ruling one by first tying up and then pushing the other beyond the margin. The MGP is now receiving the treatment as will the Shiv Sena in Maharashtra after the exit of Mr Bal Thackeray and the Biju Janata Dal in Orissa. The election result also shows that polarisation is getting consolidated in Goa along religious and language lines. The Marathi-speaking Hindu voters of north Goa have walked over to the BJP, deserting the MGP. The Konkani-speakers and the Catholic Christians in the south continue to sustain the Congress. It is this new development that has proved disastrous for independents. That is the third welcome trend.

Paid holiday

THE Indian bureaucracy has a skin thicker than that of a rhinoceros but still the arrows that the Rajasthan Chief Minister, Mr Ashok Gehlot, has directed towards the babudom in his State should give it some pinpricks. He has revealed that every sixth government employee in Rajasthan is getting salary without attending office. That means that there are as many as one lakh employees who are on what can only be called a paid holiday. In other words, about Rs 1,000 crore in government money is being given as salary every year without a spot of work being done. That is a shocking bit of statistics but the irony is that such shocks have been administered to the taxpayer so often and for so long that he seems to have become immune to them. The malady is surely not confined to the desert State. In fact, similar loot is going apace in almost every State. The government has come to be known as an employment agency which appoints a senior officer to a post which is as good as redundant — and then appoints two assistants to help him. That is why many of the officers spend more time in golf clubs than in their offices. Expose such rackets and the entire bureaucracy comes to the rescue of the erring colleague. In the absence of accountability, remaining idle has come to be treated as one of the perks of a “sarkari” job. So strong is the stranglehold of the employee lobby that bonus is duly paid even in the States where the administration is known for its inefficiency and corruption.

The attempts of the government to set things right have always been half-hearted at best. In fact, politicians have found willing tools in the shirkers. Various committees are formed to suggest ways to bring about a change. Their recommendations are accepted with great fanfare but nothing actually happens. Take the case of the Fifth Pay Commission. It had recommended a drastic reduction in the number of public holidays as well as abolition of several posts. These recommendations were ignored while others about pay increase were duly implemented. Instead of being reduced, the overstaffing rather increased. The fact of the matter is that the government servants comprise a very powerful pressure group and no party wants to rub them the wrong way. That is how any attempt to hold them accountable for their errors of commission and omission comes to be branded as “anti-employee policy”. Mr Gehlot has talked tough in a meeting of Collectors but one is not too sure how far he will be able to eliminate the leeches of the system. Many years ago, a young Rajiv Gandhi had castigated the system in which only a negligible fraction of every rupee sanctioned by the government reached the actual beneficiary while the rest was siphoned off by the intermediaries. It was hoped that this realistic appraisal would help in bringing about some improvement in the situation. But the miracle never took place. On the contrary, the former Prime Minister was himself caught in the tentacles of the corrupt coterie. Kautilya wrote ages ago that just as it is hard to say whether a fish in the sea is drinking water or not, it is difficult to hold a government servant responsible for his misdeeds. This adage is all the more true in today’s situation.

Tennis glory

CRICKET is the flavour of the month. Today every cricket-crazy Indian would be glued to the television set in the faint hope of seeing the Indian team perform the miracle of virtually rising from the dead in the crucial Super Six World Cup encounter with Pakistan. However, for those who do not wisely limit their passion for sport to "eating cricket" only may have a genuine complaint about missing out on the live coverage of the French Open from Paris because all the sports channels available in India had nothing but cricket to offer for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Nevertheless, away from the media glare and the television reach of Indian fans Mahesh Bhupathi and Leander Paes created Indian tennis history by lifting the doubles crown. The doubles final against Goran Ivanisevic of Croatia and Jeff Tarango of the USA, spread over two days because of interruptions caused by rain, saw the Indian pair scale the ultimate height of tennis glory. Of course, by entering the semi-final itself they became the first Indian pair to earn the coveted world number one ranking in the doubles event. But what is a ranking worth with someone else wearing the crown?

It is a pity that there were no Indian fans crying themselves hoarse as the pair set about improving the country's rating in the world of tennis. There were no painted faces and fans waving the Indian flag as Bhupathi and Paes entered a virtually empty stadium to finish off the rain-interrupted last set in 10 minutes. The doubles victory of the Indian pair in the French Open was doubly sweet because only a few months ago Paes and Bhupathi were on the verge of parting company due to the behind-the-scenes machination of the tribe of "sport villians" who years ago succeeded in creating a wedge between International Cricket Council President Jagmohan Dalmiya and Punjab Cricket Association President I. S. Bindra. The credit for helping the "boys" sort out their differences and misunderstandings by leaving them alone goes to the families of the two tennis stars. Of course, for the tennis buffs the amazing win by the ageless tennis star Steffi Graf over the teen-age sensation Martina Hingis in the women's singles was equally entertaining. In a manner of speaking for those whose interest in sport is not limited to cricket — more specifically the performance of the Indian team — the French Open was indeed a wash-out thanks to the lack of reach of Doordarshan Sports and interest of other sports channel in any event other than the World Cup until June 20 when the final between the two top teams would be played at Lord's.

U.S. BASES IN S-E ASIA
Signs of growing nervousness
by Sunanda K. Datta-Ray

KASHMIR and Kosovo should not be allowed to distract attention from a serious development in a highly sensitive part of Asia: harassed by Chinese encroachments in the disputed Spratly Islands — shades of Aksai Chin — the Philippines have decided after a long and anguished debate to go back on history and allow the US troops to resume large-scale military exercises. Whether this gamble by President Joseph Estrada to buy security will succeed is, however, in question for despite the present downturn in Sino-US relations, the partnership is far more lucrative for both sides and matters more to the Americans than the fate of a marginalised country like the Philippines.

Military exercises were suspended in 1996 by Mr Fidel Ramos but the real break was in 1992 when President Corazon Aquino, the democratic President who toppled the long-time Marcos dictatorship, closed down the last of the American bases. If that was a gesture of Asian nationalism the Philippines senate’s vote for the visiting forces agreement is an expression of Southeast Asia’s growing nervousness about a nuclear-armed hegemonistic China that has traditionally refused to treat any other country as its equal. Middle Kingdom thinking divided the world into tributaries and barbarians; China calls Southeast Asia Nanyang or the southern seas, and sees it as a backyard extension of the celestial empire.

Originally, the US bases that dotted the region were outposts of the Western alliance’s own masterplan to contain communism spreading out from the Soviet Union, China and Vietnam, and symbolised resistance to the famous domino theory. But the bases became unnecessary after China switched sides, the Soviet Union disintegrated, and Vietnam was converted to market economics and joined the capital-driven club of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. Since then Singapore has been loudest in demanding an American military presence, seeing the USA as the safest guarantor of its own and the region’s security. Singaporean politicians are too astute ever to identify the source of danger, but apart from Singapore’s own uneasy relations with its much bigger neighbours, there are oblique references to a possible return of the Collective Co-prosperity Sphere that imperial Japan set up during World War II. Reading between the lines, it is also not difficult to see that even Chinese-majority Singa-pore fears a China of which Napoleon is believed to have said: “There lies a sleeping giant. Let him sleep. For when he wakes, he will move the world.”

The Sinic giant began doing that quite some time ago, though only with vulnerable neighbours. We think of Chinese guile in surreptitiously slicing off Aksai Chin even while Zhou Enlai chanted Hindi-Chini Bhai-Bhai and dissected “panchsila” with Jawaharlal Nehru. China’s conduct in seizing the Paracel Islands, which Vietnam claimed, was just as duplicitous. What is of most concern to Mr Estrada is the determination with which the Chinese are slowly taking over the Spratly Islands which are also claimed in whole or part by Brunei, Vietnam, Malaysia, Taiwan and Indonesia, making seven claimants in all. Paying not the slightest heed to Mr Estrada’s calls for joint development of the supposedly oil-rich archipelago which commands the sea lanes through the South China Sea, and for multilateral talks (which ASEAN also wants), Beijing maintains that the “Nansha Islands” have always been Chinese. While consolidating its position on the ground through formidable complexes of advanced military structures that it calls fishermen’s facilities, the most that China will concede is bilateral talks in which it can bully and browbeat smaller countries like the Philippines into submission.

Before meeting Mao Zedong, Richard Nixon wrote in his diary that the Chinese wanted the Americans out of Asia. Poised to expand, they might feel hemmed in by the world’s only superpower which, with bases in Japan and South Korea, and establishments in the Indian and Pacific oceans, can mobilise 100,000 troops or more. If the theatre missile defence system materialises, it would add considerably to American power in the Far East. Sophisticated radars in Taiwan would add insult to injury for the Chinese who look on the nationalist-controlled island as a renegade province and fear that the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation’s strikes against Serbia might be a trial run for military support for Taiwan if it declares independence.

The accidental bombing of the Chinese embassy in Belgrade would not otherwise have provoked such massive and well-organised anti-American demonstrations in China. Relations with the USA touched a new low with the 700-page Cox Congressional report on extensive Chinese nuclear espionage by more than 3,000 Chinese “front companies” engaged in spying in the USA. The Chinese probably also feel aggrieved that in spite of all the concessions that their Prime Minister, Mr Zhu Rongji, announced during his American tour, President Bill Clinton still does not support Beijing’s membership of the World Trade Organisation.

But the fears of many Western Sinologists that this friction will alienate China and turn it into a hostile superpower at some future date are politically naive. So are the worries of Filipinos who think that welcoming back the Americans will provoke China to bellicosity. Both might happen, but not for the reasons advanced. Beijing is far too hard-headed to be moved by slights or sentiment. Single-minded in the pursuit of long-term goals, it will be as benevolent or malevolent as its national interest demands. Even Chinese-Singaporeans know that all the money they are pouring into China — the tiny island republic is the fifth largest foreign investor there — does not spare them unfair competition. While Singapore was spending massively to create the huge industrial township at Souzhou, the Chinese invoked its name to divert other foreign investors to another industrial park that they themselves were building nearby.

China will remain as friendly to the USA as its self-interest demands. That means that in spite of alarms and excursions, relations will be determined ultimately by the high degree of commercial interaction (the trade balance in China’s favour stands at more than $50 billion), a huge American market and the US monopoly of the sophisticated dual-purpose technology that China seeks to reinforce its industrial and military muscle. American businessmen need China’s consumers and cheap exports as much as the Chinese need them. Between the two, they will see that a profitable business alliance is not scuttled, regardless of Filipino fears and the security for which Mr Estrada hankers.

Trade: India’s poor performance
by S. Sethuraman

THE sharp slowdown in world trade in 1998 did not affect India’s share in global exports, which in fact showed a marginal rise to 0.8 per cent from 0.6 per cent of the previous three years. This is notwithstanding a decline of 3 per cent in India’s exports in 1998 totalling $ 33.2 billion.

If the European Union’s sizeable intra-trade is excluded, India took the 20th place in exports and 18th in imports at $ 42.9 billion or 1 per cent of world imports.

Trade data from WTO show that India picked up in exports of commercial services which totalled $ 10.5 billion, a 22 per cent rise over 1997, taking the 27th place. However, like most countries (barring the USA and a few small developed nations) India’s imports of services were also higher at $ 13.7 billion, a 12 per cent increase over 1997.

India’s failure to improve its trade performance, apart from serious domestic deficiencies, has also to be viewed in the Asian context. The financial turmoils of 1997 in South-East Asia leading to economic contraction in much of Asia last year accounted largely for the fall in the volume growth of world merchandise exports to 3.5 per cent from the 10 per cent in 1997.

World output growth also slipped to between 2 and 2.3 per cent and the IMF forecast is for a similar rate of growth (2.3 per cent) in 1999, with the expectation of faster recovery to 3.4 per cent in 2000.

The USA continues to be the leading exporter and importer with shares of 12.7 and 17 per cent respectively (1998), but if intra-trade in the European Union is excluded, its share in world exports rises to 17 per cent though the combined share of 15 European Union countries is higher at 20.3 per cent. But the USA’s import share, with a booming economy goes up to 22.5 per cent as against the European Union’s 19.1 per cent.

The strongest import contraction in volume and value terms in Asia was the major factor in the global trade slowdown in 1998. Despite the hefty currency depreciation of crisis-hit Asian countries, the region’s exports fell by 6 per cent but imports were down by 17.5 per cent. Japan’s deep recession and only marginal growth in China’s exports were among contributory factors but six East Asian countries, among leading traders, depressed their imports by 25 per cent.

The import contraction (Japan’s 17 per cent and of other East Asian countries 25 per cent) held down export growth in Asia, including India. The reversal of capital flows in 1997-98 forced many East Asian economies to cut back sharply on their imports in 1998.

Global trade prospects in 1999 also depend upon commodity prices which recorded a sharp drop last year. Weaker crude oil prices contributed to containing growth in the value of merchandise trade last year.

By mid-1999, it appeared that while some calm and confidence had returned to financial markets, the downside risks have not disappeared. On the positive side, the USA remains on strong non-inflationary growth though lately, the Federal Reserve has voiced concern over emerging inflationary pressures, which may necessitate raising of interest rates. The after-effects of the Russian crisis remain subdued while the turmoil in Brazil is largely confined to Latin America. Nevertheless, these trouble spots may erupt again, it is feared.

Recovery in the crisis-hit Asian countries is also slower than expected while China’s growth is moderating. According to OECD, any extended slowdown in China could prompt a depreciation of its currency, the remnimbi with repercussions for exchange rates of other Asian economies. A downward adjustment of Chinese currency would also have impact on growth, and more significantly, on current account balance of industrial nations. In the first quarter of 1999, India recorded recovery in exports, reversing the decline of the nine months (April-December) of 1998-99. However, the April data (the first month of 1999-2000) are not encouraging. The firming up of oil prices would be to India’s disadvantage while fall in world commodity prices and reduced demand would not help the export effort. — IPA

Obfuscation as a strategy

By P. Raman

A COLUMNIST had recently suggested doing away with the system of issuing election manifestos by political parties. The reason advanced has been that the issues raised in manifestos were familiar and the ruling parties never bothered to implement the promises. There may be common points in manifestos. But they also reflect the identities of the respective parties. From 1980, every ruling party had each time come out with long lists of achievements to impress the voters. By abandoning the practice of written election promises, the voters will lose the only instrument with which they could make the rulers accountable to them.

The process of rapid deideologisation has already eroded the quality of the world’s largest democracy. This has taken place at a time when the Western analysts claim massive ‘democratic consolidation’ following the end of the cold war. However, even they recognise the simultaneous phenomenon of “the collapse and ruin, in the late 20th century, of secular, rationalist and universalist political movements, liberal as well as Marxist” in several countries. John Grey in Enlightenment’s Wake finds the replacement of such liberal movements by “ethnic, (ultra-)nationalist and fundamentalist forces” as a negative trend. In India, it has assumed a far more uglier form.

An immediate consequence of this has been the end of idealism in Indian politics. Idealism and commitment to ideology, which were still discernible among sections of politicians, have now given way to outright realpolitik. This has taken place at party as well as individual levels. Even those parties which have meticulously followed lofty norms in coalescing with other outfits, have now been forced to sup with what they had until recently considered ethical devils. Even the Left has overlooked the corruption of Laloo Prasad Yadav and Jayalalitha for the sake of fighting the BJP. Most others have abandoned such inhibitions long back.

Along with this, the very content of political thought and nature of debate will undergo a sea change. Political corruption, for instance, will cease to be an issue of debate in the ensuing elections. In the past one year and half, every party has winked at the corrupt politicians only to gain their support both at polling booths and the legislature. If the Congress is now finding virtues in Jayalalitha, Atal Behari Vajpayee had for 13 months openly tried to bail her out of her innumerable corruption cases. Similar is the case with engineering defection and seeking the help of those with criminal background to sustain governments. Thus D.P. Yadavs and Anand Mohans could hitch-hike with either side at will. When opportunism becomes a political password, ideological and programmatic debate becomes a casualty.

The decline of the struggle for an equitable social order and uprising against exploitation and erosion of the trade union movement have contributed to the deteriorating standards of democracy and politics. Those who had entered politics after long service in trade unions, social and humanitarian movements had brought with them dignity and political maturity. The contrast between the new go-getters in BJP and those traditional RSS recruits are so striking. When idealism fades out opportunism takes over. If clarity of ideas and their forthright presentation have been the forte of the political parties of all hues hitherto, in the emerging politics of expediency, double speak and obfuscation rein supreme.

In a coalition of disparate political parties and groups, cultivated ambiguity and obfuscation become a strategy to tackle conflicting games by the recalcitrant sections. Differences are bound to occur in alliances formed solely to fight a common rival or to share power. Under such situations, the only way is to postpone the controversial decisions or leave them undecided for an indefinite period. Watch the large number of pending legislations and undecided issues during the 13-month BJP rule. The party had made formation of four new states as a major poll plank in 1998. But they all were bogged down in controversies both within and outside the BJP. Akalis had opposed inclusion of Udham Singh Nagar district in Uttarakhand. The Delhi bill could not be finalised due to the uncompromising positions adopted by different BJP factions. Things might have been different in homogeneous coalitions such as those under the Left Front.

Obfuscation takes place at two levels — as a natural defence system to ward off controversies and to test-fire new strategies before their adoption or rejection. Differences do crop up in any multi-party arrangement. Under such situations, compromises on controversial issues become unavoidable. But they have to be settled honestly and with mutual understanding. Not as an opportunistic tactic. What is really reprehensible is to dishonestly keep the basic policies of a party in abeyance solely with the intention of sharing power. When the Left joined the UF with Chidambaram as finance minister, it was clear that there would be conflicts on economic issues. The two sides had tried to sort them out, recognise the differences and oppose each other as and when the differences cropped up. And the Left Front had carried out their threat on issues like insurance bill, labour laws and privatisation.

The BJP also faced a similar dilemma when it came to power with the support of parties with an essentially secular support base. The party then decided to simply drop its Hindutva agenda as a strategy just to keep alive the support of its secular allies. Hindutva has been the most cardinal issue on which the BJP and its holding company RSS are founded. To abandon it for the sake of power, even if as a temporary strategy, is sheer expediency. The honest course for the BJP should have been to declare that it still stood by the basic issues by pressing for their cause within the coalition even while allowing the majority view to prevail. This might have somewhat erased the stigma of having sacrificed its ideology for the lust of power.

For some time, obfuscation and ambiguity have become important tools for intricate political engineering and public opinion experiments. The whole experiment is based on dual policy or double speak. A section of the same party fires an idea to test the public response to it even while the party officially dissociates with it. If the idea catches the public imagination, the party would itself adopt it as its official policy. If it turns out to be a liability, it could be quietly dropped. During the recent ministerial crisis, a section of the BJP had launched a fierce campaign against President K.R. Narayanan for what was indirectly hinted as partisan action in asking the Vajpayee government to test its majority on the floor of the House and finally dissolving the Lok Sabha.

Since it had the backing of such influential leaders as the information minister, it received adequate media backing. When after sustained campaign it was found that it evoked little public response, the ruling party officially called a halt to it. Soon Vajpayee himself came out to ‘clarify’ the position. The same experiment was repeated on the issue of the powers of a caretaker government. Here, again, Pramod Mahajan played the role of ‘agent provocateur. It was argued that the term caretaker was only a media creation and the BJP government could function as a regular government even after it lost the legislative majority. Apparently, this has been to thwart a situation when R. Venkataraman had played a more activist role during the caretaker rule under him.

The trial run of the issue of Sonia Gandhi’s Italian birth took a sudden turn when the Sharad Pawar group sought to make it a big controversy. Before this, the BJP has been impatiently watching the fate of its trial balloon. Even such leaders as L.K. Advani had taken lead in this anti-foreign campaign. Vajpayee, as earlier, adopted an ambiguous position, apparently waiting for the public response to the campaign. In case it turns out to be politically counterproductive, the BJP will invariably drop the anti-Italian plank. On the issue of Bangladeshi bashing, the party had adopted a similar dual policy. At one stage, it was even made an election issue but had to be abandoned due to the threat of support withdrawal by Mamata Bannerji last year.

When the attacks on Christians began during the BJP rule, an influential section in the RSS clan thought it would soon become a massive Hindutva ‘self-respect’ movement and would give more political dividend to the BJP. Initially, response to the attacks from even the moderate Prime Minister has been muted. He acted tough only when it was realised that the attacks had international ramifications and some of the allies had begun taking an aggressive stand against the government’s inaction. True, the BJP has a record of similar empirical experimentation of political strategy. This had first started as parallel campaigns by various RSS outfits. As and when the movements gained wider support, the BJP had used it for electoral advantage. This was what had happened in the case of Ayodhya.

To adopt a clear, honest stand on political and ideological issues has become old fashioned. Instead, we are rapidly moving towards political engineering and fabrication of favourable political atmosphere on the eve of elections. For this, experts have begun borrowing the cold war techniques of manipulating public opinion. Those few who still advocate principled politics, including some traditional RSS stalwarts, are being derided as old ruts.

Even during the debates within parties, issues are not decided on the merits but how will it benefit the respective party and how palatable will it be to the voters. Politics in India too has become as Grey says “a kind of chess match where various ‘moves’ are tried out, some arguments to ‘defeat’ others, and the players frequently chase their minds about the positions they wish to defend in subsequent regimes”.

Power play
by O.P. Bhagat

POWER is one word which is almost always in the headlines. And in summer it is more than before or after.

As the hot days begin, papers write of power shortage. Then about power cuts or breakdowns. Another few days, and it is about a power crisis. There is a hue and cry, and even louder protests are staged or stage-managed.

To pacify the people, some neta or high-up tries to explain the situation. Actually, there is not much power shortage. But there is a lot of power theft along the way. He also points an accusing finger at the airconditioners.

Somehow the crisis is over. Fans whirl and coolers whirr as before. And all seems to be right with the world. But in your mind you fear that the crisis may recur any time.

Often the crisis revives the talk of tapping alternative sources of energy. You hear of power from garbage. Also of wind power and solar power.

Sometimes there are more cheering sidelights. A new power grid is inaugurated. One or two pending power projects are cleared.

The word power occurs in some other contexts or connotations as well. There may be a seminar on the power of the Press. Some groups talk of woman power or youth power, even kid power. There are pedal power enthusiasts too.

Then there is flower power — a youth cult of the 1960’s advocating peace and love and associated with drug-taking.

Some believe in the power of prayer, and some others in the power of evil. Not long ago a news report said that a man had lit a lamp with his mind power.

But many talk of money power. You may also meet individuals who have to say more about will power. Yet others are fond of word power. In certain cases you give or need power of attorney.

Horse power and candle power may seem old stuff. But they very much matter in our world of speed and statistics. In our country some also talk of bullock power. And of one of our great assets — manpower.

Like power, pollution is another word in common use these days. In an ad the two went together: power without pollution. A new gen set promised power without polluting the air.

By the way, a few years back an ad spoke of pea power. What it meant, the advertisers did not elaborate. But as it was, it sounded interesting.

Then in the news was Viagra, a power or potency pill for weak males.

The word power is inseparable from politics. A ruling party is voted out of power. Or there is a scramble for power. Or the game goes on and on. You also hear of power-hungry politicians. Or of a power caucus.

Or of the power behind the throne. Or of power brokers. Do you remember that at one time Pawar’s name became almost synonymous with power?

Sometimes you refer to the powers that be. Or you say, “More power to your elbow,” meaning approval of someone’ efforts and wishing him or her to intensify them.

Cases of abuse or misuse of power are reported from time to time. “Power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” These words of Lord Acton are then cited in edits and other articles.

From national to international politics. Now you read about world powers. Sometimes there are reports of a power vacuum or of imbalance of power or of power politics in a region. Or of the big powers’ positive role or superpower rivalry there.

If there is sea power or air power, there is also the power — nuclear power.

Selling ice to melt poverty
By Sharmila Joshi

PUNE — It is two in the morning, and Sojirabai’s workday is about to begin. She climbs in behind the wheel of her heavy-duty truck and drives off into the night.

At the ice factory, the slightly-built, determined-looking, sari-clad woman loads heavy blocks of ice onto the truck. At dawn she is off to deliver the huge melting blocks to her customers.

Sojirabai, whom everyone calls ‘the ice woman’, can be spotted driving around Pune by day or night. At times, you may see her unloading 150 kg ice blocks herself, or changing a flat tyre, or slipping under her stationary truck to inspect an oil leak.

“I’ve never had an accident in my 15 years of driving”, Sojirabai says, “and I’ve never felt any fear. When you start working to feed your family, where’s the question of fear or worry about what people might think?”

Sojirabai Satpute’s business includes two heavy and two light trucks delivery of up to 125 blocks of ice a day in peak season, and clients across Pune district ranging from milk dairies to fish-sellers, beer bars to ice-cream corners. She now conducts the operation with her husband and three male relatives. But for many years, Sojirabai worked mostly alone. Her’s is a story of immense will and hard work.

“When I got married, I didn’t even dream I would be driving trucks,” she says, sitting in her two-floor, four-room home where everything — the walls, doors, walls units — is colour co-ordinated in pista green and bright pink.

Against the bright colours and the many plaster of paris animals, bronze plates, frames of multi-hued gods and landscapes, Sojirabai’s brown nylon sari seems a flat contrast. But when she speaks, clearly and confidently, the sparks and colours in her personality are revealed, and her determination becomes apparent.

Sojirabai, now about 40, married Dhondiram Satpute when she was 17. She cannot remember her exact age because she never went to school and does not recall dates. The two moved to Vithalwadi, on the outskirts of Pune, where Dhondiram, educated up to class nine, found work as a labourer in an ice factory. Sojirabai took up a job plucking flowers in a field for Rs 2.50 a day.

Acting on his employer’s suggestion, Dhondiram soon branched out on his own, and began delivering six ice blocks on a bicycle. His wife pitched in. Demand increased and the couple sold Sojirabai’s bits of jewellery and bought a bullock cart to deliver more ice.

Gradually, one cart became two, then they bought a tempo. But while the business flourished, Dhondiram had to spend more time on the family’s village fields. Sojirabai took over the business. They hired a driver for the tempo.

But the driver often came late — which is fatal in the ice business since the blocks melt. Sojirabai took charge and learnt, from her husband, to drive the tempo herself. Soon, with a bank loan, she bought a truck worth $ 8300.

When she sought a truck driving licence, the inspector gave her the toughest test. But of the 11 applicants that day, the others all men, she was the only one to get a licence! “I never thought it would be difficult to drive a truck,” she says, “no male-female differences exist in truck-driving!”

The inspector is not the only sceptical man she has encountered. Seeing a woman behind the wheel of a truck attracts curious looks and comments. “Some people praise my efforts, some are critical,” she says, “even now, new cops stop me for my licence. Others are used to me. But nobody has ever said anything offensive directly to me. Our families didn’t object. If you need money, you have to work for it. In fact, my relatives appreciate the fact that I’m illiterate and can still do business.”

Sojirabai’s business acumen could teach something to management stalwarts. She still does not know how to read or write. All deals are verbal, all accounts are remembered in her head. She believes the customer must always be respected. If ice is not available at her usual suppliers, she drives to distant towns, spending a lot more on diesel, to get supplies.

Her reputation for reliability and fairness has played a vital role in her success. “I’ve learnt that if you talk and work straight, others deal fairly with you,” she says. “But if anyone is aggressive or dishonest, you must have the courage to straighten him out.”

Sojirabai’s workday, despite her husband and other relatives’ held now, still begins at 2 a.m. She returns from this first round of deliveries by noon, rests, and is off again by 4 p.m. for the day’s second round, which concludes at dinnertime.

More income has meant she no longer has to also do housework: the family has a cook and other domestic help. Sojirabai’s three sons are now 17, 15 and 13. But when they were children, a female relative helped look after them while Sojirabai delivered ice.

Thanks to relentless hard work, the Satpute family is now well-off. They own 25 acres in the village, the four trucks, plus a motor cycle and a jeep for their personal use. Just last year, Dhondiram says with pride, they built their two-floor house, replacing an old tin structure.

“I don’t feel as if anything is lacking in my life,” Sojirabai says. “Plus I have a good husband, who has no vices. What more could I ask for? I’m happy.”

She believes her achievements wouldn’t have been possible without Dhondiram’s encouragement. They are an amiable and close couple, who fight rarely and take decision jointly. “My husband didn’t place any limits on me, didn’t insist I stay within the four walls of our home, but taught me to run the business. Because he respected my abilities, I could do all this,” says Sojirabai. “It was my good fortune to have these opportunities. Most women are not as lucky.”

She adds, “It’s wrong to believe women are incapable. They can do everything as well as men, but they are held back. Women in turn must be ready to work really hard. By depending on their husbands, they can’t progress.”

Sojirabai has been written about in the local media, has featured on television and has received a few woman entrepreneur awards. But she says, ever pragmatic, “I didn’t work to become famous. I worked because I had to earn. If other read about me, I’m not going to earn more. I’m going to have to keep working hard.”

She now looks forward to her sons’ weddings. Two are studying in school, the eldest has dropped out to sell the ice. “They may not continue the business. Who knows,” she says, “but maybe my daughters-in-law will!” — Women’s Feature Service

75 YEARS AGO

The achievement of Swarajists

ON Wednesday, a large meeting was held in Shivaji Mandir under the presidentship of Mr L.B. Bhopatkar, M.L.C and speeches were delivered by Mr Lohokare and Mr N.C. Kelkar, MLA. Dr Lohokare narrated the history of the formation of the Nationalist Party and briefly described how the Finance Bill was thrown out.

Mr Kelkar rose to speak amidst cheers, and humorously but effectively dealt with the question, “What next?”

He maintained that the victory of the Nationalists and the Swarajists was equally shared by all members.

He opined that the greatest achievement in the Assembly and the Provincial Councils was the cooperation of the old time Council workers and the new Swarajists.

In that, he said, lay the high hopes of the future.

As to the no-changers, he observed the Swarajists had not gone to the Councils by their advice and they were not going to come out for them.

The Swarajists certainly had achieved what the no-changers had not achieved — in fact, none had achieved, in the Councils.

He quoted from Erskine and one French author to prove that the refusal of supplies to a defaulting Government was perfectly legitimate, and a time-honoured weapon.

He closed his speech with a deafening applause of satisfaction and approval from the audience.