South Asia Citizens Wire | August 24-25, 2008 | Dispatch No. 2556 -
Year 10 running
[1] Bangladesh: Amended RPO flouts constitution, spirit of democracy
(Edit, New Age)
[2] Pakistan: Independence - Still searching for an identity (Aasim
Sajjad Akhtar)
[3] Crackdown in India administered Kashmir:
- The empire strikes back - Coercive tactics are no substitute for a
matured response (Kashmir Times)
- Give peace a chance: appeal concerned citizens and intellectuals
- An Appeal to Restore Peace and Harmony
- Independence Day for Kashmir (Swaminathan S Anklesaria Aiyar)
[4] India - Freedom of Expression:
- SAHMAT exhibition on Hussain attacked! (Join the protest on 25
August 2008)
- Abortive bid to damage Husain's paintings at 'parallel' expo
- Biggest art fair, minus Husain
[5] India: Kerala and alternative energy resources (V.R. Krishna Iyer)
______
[1]
New Age
24 August 2008
Editorial
AMENDED RPO FLOUTS CONSTITUTION, SPIRIT OF DEMOCRACY
The newly-imposed eligibility criteria under the amended
Representation of the People Order 1972, both for registration of
political parties with the Election Commission and for candidates to
be able to contest parliamentary elections, could not have been more
inconsistent with our constitution or contradictory to democratic
ideals and values. As such, instead of helping to create a level
electoral playing field, the conditions, we believe, will further
complicate the political and electoral processes and act as further
obstacles to the peaceful holding of participatory and credible
elections to the ninth parliament.
First, some of the eligibility criteria for political parties
being able to register with the commission – which includes being
able to show a certain level of support in previous elections or
having active units in a minimum number of districts – are not only
absurd but are in contravention of Article 152 (1) of our country’s
constitution which does not require a party to have any minimum level
of popularity or infrastructure in order for the state to recognise
its legitimacy. Also, it is incongruous that candidates can contest
independently without having to show a certain amount of support in
previous elections or any minimum infrastructure but cannot do so as
part of a political party unless the party satisfies the criteria.
Second, under the amended RPO, a person will have to be enlisted
in the electoral roll to be able to contest elections even though the
country’s constitution does not make a person’s right to contest a
parliamentary seat conditional upon his or her being registered as a
voter. The only eligibility requirements, according to Article 66 of
the constitution, are that a person is a citizen of Bangladesh and
has attained the age of 25.
In addition, there are certain conditions under Article 66 which
disqualify a person from being able to run, for instance, if the
person is of unsound mind or is a citizen of a foreign state, but non-
registration as a voter is not included in the list of disqualifying
factors either. Hence, the Election Commission has acted in further
contravention of the constitution in including this additional and
arbitrary condition.
Third, as a result of the Election Commission’s delay in amending
the RPO – this was supposed to have been done much earlier and the
parties were supposed to have from April to June of this year to
register according to the commission’s own roadmap – even the major
political parties will have great difficulty in satisfying some of
the eligibility conditions for registration in the short time that is
now available before elections. These conditions will necessitate the
amending of party constitutions as well as the formation of elected
committees from the centre to the union council level. Moreover,
forcing the political parties to rush through internal reforms and to
hold national council meetings under the state of emergency is not
only unreasonable but contradicts the very spirit of democracy.
However, the commission must not even think about delaying elections
in order to allow the parties to satisfy its conditions. The Election
Commission has no right to punish the political parties or hold the
entire political process hostage for its own failures.
Hence, we hope that common sense will prevail at the Election
Commission and that it will withdraw the unconstitutional, arbitrary
and restrictive conditions which are contradictory to a participatory
electoral process and a pluralistic democratic system. Instead of
further complicating the political process, the commission should
devote all its energy towards the holding of participatory and
credible parliamentary elections at the earliest.
______
[2]
The News
24 August 2008
INDEPENDENCE - STILL SEARCHING FOR AN IDENTITY
by Aasim Sajjad Akhtar
With yet another August 14 behind us, it is worth pausing briefly to
take stock of exactly what was being ‘celebrated’ last Thursday. The
need for introspection is even more acute, given the political tumult
that continues to grip this nation-state of ours. Here I am referring
not only to the ongoing tug-of-war between the elected government and
the vestiges of military dictatorship, but also to the multitude of
conflicts that suggest the existence of a deep crisis of identity.
It is important to recall that, in the modern era, Pakistan occupies
a truly unique place in the comity of nations. It is, alongside
Israel, the only nation-state in the world to have constituted its
national identity along religious lines. Despite what our official
history says, and the profound commitment that many of us maintain to
a monolithic ‘Islamic culture’ in the subcontinent, it is time to
accept that the state that was carved out of the two wings of British
India was a product of numerous conjunctural factors, rather than a
divinely ordained inevitability.
It would be beyond the scope of this article to discuss the
circumstances of the country’s creation; what matters is that when
the state did come into being there was no blueprint — ideological or
otherwise — to chart the meaning or the shape of Pakistan. There were
contending perspectives, all informed by established political
interests, and those that won did so not because they represented the
people but because they had the means to impose their preferred
ideology on the rest of us.
In short, ‘Pakistaniat’ came to be associated with Islam and the Urdu
language, as well as militant anti-India sentiment. More importantly,
from an early stage, the state exhibited almost no tolerance for
competing or dissenting perspectives. In fact, even before the
inception of the state, centrifugal tendencies were very pronounced
on account of the lack of consensus (on politics, culture, economics
and just about everything else) between the different ethnic
communities that would come to constitute Pakistan. The only thing
that bound disparate histories and aspirations together was a shared
religious identity. And 61 years later, it is imperative to
acknowledge that this one similarity has not been able to gloss over
all our differences.
Take, for example, the ongoing low-intensity war in Balochistan!
While the state has a bad habit of attributing each and every
internal conflict to the ‘external hand’, and is doing the same vis-a-
vis the conflict in Balochistan, a closer look at the history of how
Islamabad has dealt with the Baloch people will make it clear that
the ‘external hand’ perspective is simply naive. Instead, there is a
need to acknowledge the severe disaffection that now grips
Balochistan on account of the refusal of the state to redress 61
years of exclusion and oppression.
While we seem to have completely eliminated it from our collective
psyche, the most glaring illustration of the inability of religion to
create a shared national identity was the secession of the eastern
wing in 1971. True to form, the establishment continues to claim that
the ‘break up’ of the country was an Indian conspiracy, but serious
students of Pakistan’s history know that the rot started as early as
1948, when Jinnah refused to accede to the demands of Bengali
students to accord Bangla the status of national language alongside
Urdu. Tragically, the attitude of the rulers in post-1971 Pakistan
was little different from that before the secession; and rather than
accepting the shortcomings of a monolithic and unitary religious
nationalism, the state proceeded to assert it ever more vigorously.
The Sindhis, Seraikis and Pakhtuns too have been railing against the
exclusionary practices of the military-bureaucratic oligarchy that
continues to run this country. But very little has changed, the
result of which is a growing divide between Punjab and the rest of
the country. This divide has been bridged somewhat during the
Musharraf dictatorship as Punjab’s working people have become more
sensitive to the oppressive practices of the oligarchy, but much more
needs to be done.
For their part, ethno-nationalists that depict Punjab as a monolith
and hold every single Punjabi responsible for the failure of the
federation make matters worse. It is true that working class Punjabis
have been co-opted into not only accepting but celebrating the
exclusionary notion of ‘Pakistaniat’, but it is foolish to overlook
the substantive class and other differences that are pervasive
throughout Punjab. Besides, can the social contract in Pakistan be
meaningfully reconstituted without the collaboration of oppressed
nationalities and the working people of Punjab?
Arguably, the first step in this direction must be taken by those
committed to independent and critical thought, by dispassionately
analysing the crisis of identity that Pakistan faces. In the first
instance, it is necessary to recover history, because without a firm
grasp on the past, there can be no understanding of the present or a
fashioning of the future. If on the one hand there is an urgent need
to overhaul what children are ‘taught’ in schools, just as urgent is
the need for substance in our political and intellectual discourses,
both popular and academic.
Arguably, what is needed the most in the current conjuncture is an
open and self-critical debate on Pakistan’s relations with its
neighbours. After revelations about the ISI’s continuing links with
jihadi groups, many a political analyst has adopted a defensive tone
and insisted that neighbouring states take responsibility for fixing
the situation, rather than acknowledging the state’s own follies.
In the first instance, it is important to bear in mind that
principled observers have been warning about the ISI’s shady
activities since long and the rot should have been addressed by those
serious about the Pakistani people’s welfare long before Washington
raised the issue (which is why many are reacting defensively).
Second, the knee-jerk response of the majority of scholars reflects
their continued commitment to an obsolete strategic vision, which is
guided not by what Pakistan is (or should be) but what Pakistan is
not (anti-India).
In any case, things have unravelled so quickly that Islamabad’s age-
old obsession with India has had to give way to the fallouts of the
so-called ‘war on terror’. However, even if there was no imperialist
war to contend with on our western border and anti-India ‘realism’
reigned freely, those still committed to the myopic project of
‘Pakistaniat’ would need to recognise that those on the periphery of
this state (the working poor and oppressed nationalities) have never
been participants in this project, and that identities that are
forged on such an exclusive basis hardly constitute a recipe for
national integration.
There are many good things that go on in this country called
Pakistan, but most of these good things are submerged in the
contradictions that continue to plague it. On August 14, it would
have been nice to see a bit more introspection in the Punjabi
heartland, at least among those who consider themselves makers of
public opinion. If we want the ‘Independence Day’ to be celebrated in
the peripheries like it is in the centre, we must sit down together
and establish a new identity shared by all.
______
[3] Crackdown on the eve of Rally in India Administered Kashmir
(i)
Kashmir Times
August 25, 2008
Editorial
THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK
Coercive tactics are no substitute for a matured response
Whimsical oscillation between inaction and over-reaction has been a
constant characteristic of the government's reaction to
'inconvenient' political developments in Jammu and Kashmir.
Imposition of curfew across the Kashmir Valley on Sunday, accompanied
by reported detention of some prominent separatist leaders, is a case
in the point. Massive deployment of security forces including army
and BSF as also unduly harsh enforcement of the curfew restrictions
is just the opposite of what was being witnessed till now. Security
forces had almost been withdrawn beyond sight and curfew violations,
whenever in force in the recent weeks, did not bring forth any
reaction. If, as was being presumed in certain quarters, the display
of the establishment's 'soft face' was the initial policy then its
abruptly reversal defies explanation. There is a valid argument that
if the curfew had been imposed and enforced in the initial phase of
the massive protest demonstrations in the manner in which it was
being belatedly done loss of precious lives could have been prevented
apart, of course, from letting the situation spiral out of the
administration's hands. This flip flop in the administrative response
is exactly in line with the capricious handling of the Amarnath land
issue which provided the trigger for explosive situation in the
Valley and later in Jammu region. The insensitive manner in which the
then coalition government bungled the issue till it took the
government's own life revealed gross ineptitude at every level.
Transition from the so-called popular rule to the governor's rule has
apparently made no difference to the intrinsic stupidity of the
establishment running the affairs of this sensitive state. It is no
secret that the 'wise men' sitting there in New Delhi have made their
bit of contribution in messing up things here.
The situation in Kashmir has assumed explosive dimensions with mass
upsurge sweeping across the Valley. One may have to keep one's
fingers crossed over the eventual outcome of the belated crackdown on
popular demonstrations at its peak. The stunning turnout of
demonstrators at the recent mass rallies held in different parts of
the valley provides a measure of the depth and intensity of the
sentiment propelling the movement. It looks to be an outburst of
cumulative anger and frustration more than any hope of redemption
which makes it that much more difficult to tackle. Suppressing it
with force is fraught with still more serious consequences. Even
while acknowledging the political compulsions of the New Delhi
establishment in rest of the country, it is obvious beyond doubt that
these 'preventive' measures would need to be followed up with genuine
political response. Otherwise, peace would be impossible to restore
and maintain in the Valley. Similar situations in the past have been
disastrously mishandled so many times that there is very little hope
of better sense prevailing this time around.
New Delhi's inexplicable failure to honour its own commitments like
implementing the recommendations of the working groups set up by the
Prime Minister's Round Table Conference is one of the main reasons
fuelling the anger and frustration in Kashmir. The pathetic state of
human rights, piled up cases of forced disappearance and mockery of
the rule of law in the face of the draconian measures like the AFSPA
are some of the issues crying for early resolution. Much of the
resentment can be traced to these humanitarian issues. Nothing short
of a genuine response and appropriate follow up action on the
promises already made is going to bail out the government at this
stage. Patience of the victims has a limit. Coercive tactics is no
answer to these problems. That is the lesson of the history.
o o o
(ii)
Kashmir Times
GIVE PEACE A CHANCE: INDIAN INTELLECTUALS
KT NEWS SERVICE
NEW DELHI, Aug 24: Eminent personalities, intellectuals and NGO
activists of the country have appealed to the Indian government to
restrain itself from the use of force against the people of Kashmir.
In a joint appeal here today, they have urged the government to lift
the curfew and instead give peace a chance.
“We have news from Kashmir that curfew has been clamped in all the
districts of Kashmir valley as a prelude to cracking down with force
on what is today undisputedly a non-violent movement ,” the statement
said, adding that to open fire on unarmed civilians would send “a
very grave and damaging message.”
It would be particularly disturbing given that militants have
announced their decision to silence their guns, the appeal added.
“We appeal to the Indian government to restrain itself from the use
of force against the people of Kashmir. We urge the government to
lift the curfew and give peace a chance,” the joint statement said.
Signatories to the appeal included Mahashweta Devi, Aruna Roy, Anand
Chakravarti, Arundhati Roy, Gautam Navlakha, Medha Patkar, Nikhil
Dey, Prashant Bhushan, Sanjay Kak and Uma Chakravarti.
o o o
(iii)
August 14, 2008
AN APPEAL TO RESTORE PEACE AND HARMONY
Memories are Short - We have gone through such mayhem before without
any impact other than more pain and suffering!
Eminent citizens of the country have appealed for restoration of
harmony in Jammu and Kashmir. The following is their statement:—
“We are deeply pained by the tragic turn of events in Jammu and
Kashmir that has led to the killings of several citizens in the
Kashmir Valley and Jammu division. The authorities must intervene
effectively to ensure there is no recurrence and also address
substantive issues.
“We view with grave concern the threat that is now perceptible to
secular traditions of both Kashmir and Jammu divisions. The deepening
alienation of people from each other and from the government requires
immediate address. This is the moment for civil society and concerned
citizens from all walks of life to assert itself and restore the
social harmony, which has hitherto characterised the state.
“We appeal to residents of both Jammu and Kashmir to work together
towards reconciliation and areas of common good which are many and
which all well-wishers of J&K crave. We appeal to the authorities to
give every support to the many in Jammu and Kashmir who are striving
for reconciliation and a more hopeful future. And we ask the Indian
public to realize the gravity of what is happening in J & K and
support all those working for a wise way forward.”
— Rajmohan Gandhi, Syeda Hameed, B.G. Deshmukh, Sushobha Barve,
Salman Haidar, Tara Bhattacharya Gandhi, Kapil Kak, B.G. Verghese,
Wajahat Habibullah, M.K. Raina, Kuldip Nayyar, Shanker Ghose, Amit
Singh Chadha, Suresh Vazirani, Teesta Setalvad, Shabana Azami, Javed
Akhtar, Javed Anand, Rahul Bose, Anil Dharkar, Arvind Krishnaswamy,
Sajid Rashid
o o o
(iv)
The Times of India
17 August 2008
INDEPENDENCE DAY FOR KASHMIR
by Swaminathan S Anklesaria Aiyar
On August 15, India celebrated independence from the British Raj. But
Kashmiris staged a bandh demanding independence from India. A day
symbolising the end of colonialism in India became a day symbolising
Indian colonialism in the Valley.
As a liberal, i dislike ruling people against their will. True,
nation-building is a difficult and complex exercise, and initial
resistance can give way to the integration of regional aspirations
into a larger national identity — the end of Tamil secessionism was a
classical example of this.
I was once hopeful of Kashmir's integration, but after six decades of
effort, Kashmiri alienation looks greater than ever. India seeks to
integrate with Kashmir, not rule it colonially. Yet, the parallels
between British rule in India and Indian rule in Kashmir have become
too close for my comfort.
Many Indians say that Kashmir legally became an integral part of
India when the maharaja of the state signed the instrument of
accession. Alas, such legalisms become irrelevant when ground
realities change. Indian kings and princes, including the Mughals,
acceded to the British Raj. The documents they signed became
irrelevant when Indians launched an independence movement.
The British insisted for a long time that India was an integral part
of their Empire, the jewel in its crown, and would never be given up.
Imperialist Blimps remained in denial for decades. I fear we are in
similar denial on Kashmir.
The politically correct story of the maharaja's accession ignores a
devastating parallel event. Just as Kashmir had a Hindu maharaja
ruling over a Muslim majority, Junagadh had a Muslim nawab ruling
over a Hindu majority. The Hindu maharaja acceded to India, and the
Muslim nawab to Pakistan.
But while India claimed that the Kashmiri accession to India was
sacred, it did not accept Junagadh's accession to Pakistan. India
sent troops into Junagadh, just as Pakistan sent troops into Kashmir.
The difference was that Pakistan lacked the military means to
intervene in Junagadh, while India was able to send troops into
Srinagar. The Junagadh nawab fled to Pakistan, whereas the Kashmir
maharaja sat tight. India's double standard on Junagadh and Kashmir
was breathtaking.
Do you think the people of Junagadh would have integrated with
Pakistan after six decades of genuine Pakistani effort? No? Then can
you really be confident that Kashmiris will stop demanding azaadi and
integrate with India?
The British came to India uninvited. By contrast, Sheikh Abdullah,
the most popular politician in Kashmir, supported accession to India
subject to ratification by a plebiscite. But his heart lay in
independence for Kashmir, and he soon began manoeuvering towards that
end. He was jailed by Nehru, who then declared Kashmir's accession
was final and no longer required ratification by a plebiscite. The
fact that Kashmir had a Muslim majority was held to be irrelevant,
since India was a secular country empowering citizens through democracy.
Alas, democracy in Kashmir has been a farce for most of six decades.
The rot began with Sheikh Abdullah in 1951: he rejected the
nomination papers of almost all opponents, and so won 73 of the 75
seats unopposed! Nehru was complicit in this sabotage of democracy.
Subsequent state elections were also rigged in favour of leaders
nominated by New Delhi. Only in 1977 was the first fair election
held, and was won by the Sheikh. But he died after a few years, and
rigging returned in the 1988 election. That sparked the separatist
uprising which continues to gather strength today.
Many Indians point to long episodes of peace in the Valley and say
the separatists are just a noisy minority. But the Raj also had long
quiet periods between Gandhian agitations, which involved just a few
lakhs of India's 500 million people. One lakh people joined the Quit
India movement of 1942, but 25 lakh others joined the British Indian
army to fight for the Empire's glory.
Blimps cited this as evidence that most Indians simply wanted jobs
and a decent life. The Raj built the biggest railway and canal
networks in the world. It said most Indians were satisfied with
economic development, and that independence was demanded by a noisy
minority. This is uncomfortably similar to the official Indian
response to the Kashmiri demand for azaadi.
Let me not exaggerate. Indian rule in Kashmir is not classical
colonialism. India has pumped vast sums into Kashmir, not extracted
revenue as the Raj did. Kashmir was among the poorest states during
the Raj, but now has the lowest poverty rate in India. It enjoys wide
civil rights that the Raj never gave. Some elections — 1977, 1983 and
2002 — were perfectly fair.
India has sought integration with Kashmir, not colonial rule. But
Kashmiris nevertheless demand azaadi. And ruling over those who
resent it so strongly for so long is quasi-colonialism, regardless of
our intentions.
We promised Kashmiris a plebiscite six decades ago. Let us hold one
now, and give them three choices: independence, union with Pakistan,
and union with India. Almost certainly the Valley will opt for
independence. Jammu will opt to stay with India, and probably Ladakh
too. Let Kashmiris decide the outcome, not the politicians and armies
of India and Pakistan.
o o o
(v) other related material:
Curfew, arrests ahead of Indian Kashmir rally
http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5hCgCQGaYkX03QCqrdL69c0FcRYUQ
13 journalists injured in CRPF action
http://www.hindu.com/2008/08/25/stories/2008082555641200.htm
Back to force to get grip on Valley
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1080825/jsp/nation/story_9739531.jsp
______
[4]
http://communalism.blogspot.com/2008/08/sahmat-exhibition-on-mf-
hussain.html
SAHMAT
8, Vithalbhai Patel House, Rafi Marg
New Delhi-110001
Telephone-23711276/ 23351424
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
24.8..2008
SAHMAT exhibition attacked!
Protest meeting at 11 am on 25th August, at SAHMAT!
SAHMAT had organized an exhibition of reproductions of eminent artist
M.F. Husain's works on 22nd, 23rd and 24th August 2008, to coincide
with the India Art Summit at Pragati Maidan, Delhi which had advised
galleries not to show his work at their art fair. The exhibition,
held in a shamiana outside the SAHMAT office, was vandalised by 8 to
10 miscreants on Sunday, 24th August, at 3.30 pm. The channel ETV,
whose crew was present, has recorded the entire episode. The vandals
ran away after destroying the framed photographs and prints, a
television set, a DVD player and furniture. Artist Arpana Caur and
Anil Chandra, SAHMAT member, were witnesses to the episode.
SAHMAT had informed the police in advance, on 20th August, about the
exhibition to be held.
In protest against the vandalism and attack on SAHMAT, the exhibition
is being extended, in 'as-is' condition, for a day – till 25th
August. None of the material from the vandalised exhibition is being
handed over to the police till the 25th. There will also be a meeting
to protest this cowardly attack and against the attempt to impose a
narrow, majoritarian view of our culture, at the venue of the
exhibition, on Monday, 25th August, at 11 am
Parthiv Shah, M.K.Raina, Madangopal Singh, Anil Chandra, Vivan
Sundaram, Romi Khosla, Kalpana Sahni, Indu Chandrasekhar, Veer
Munshi, Madhu Prasad, Inder Salim, K Bikram Singh, Geeta Kapur, Ram
Rahman, Shankar Chandra, Rajen Prasad, Arpana Caur, Rajinder Arora,
Rajni Arora, Vijay S Jodha, Sohail Hashmi and others
o o o
The Hindu - August 24, 2008 : 1840 Hrs
Abortive bid to damage Husain's paintings at 'parallel' expo
New Delhi (PTI): A group of activists on Sunday made an abortive bid
to damage the paintings of M F Husain at a 'symbolic protest
exhibition' of the painter's work here.
The activists shouting slogans and holding placards which read
'Bharat Mata Ki Jai' and 'Jai Shri Ram' came to the lawns of the
Constitution Club, the venue of the exhibition, and tried to damage
the paintings, Rajan, one of the organisers, told PTI.
The 'symobolic protest exhibition' was organised by Sahmat to protest
the non-inclusion of paintings of M F Husain at the India Art Summit
in the national capital, which concluded today.
Arpana Caur, a painter who was present at the time of the attack,
said, "These men came near the paintings and tried to damage them.
They were carrying placards with Jai Shri Ram written on them."
Police reached the spot soon after the incident, but the miscreants
managed to escape.
Describing the attack as a "cowardly act", Rajan said, "the DCP of
the area had been informed well in advance about a possible
disruption but no security was provided making us an easy target."
Meanwhile, the organisers have extended the exhibition by a day.
o o o
The Telegraph
August 24, 2008
Biggest art fair, minus Husain
OUR CORRESPONDENT
A visitor at the Sahmat exhibition. Picture by Prem Singh
New Delhi, Aug. 23: India’s biggest-ever art trade fair is showcasing
400 artists, but the man who brought money into Indian art is missing.
M.F. Husain is banned from the three-day India Art Summit at Pragati
Maidan despite a culture ministry statement expressing support for
him on Thursday.
Organiser Hanmer and Partner, a PR firm, has asked the 35 Indian and
foreign gallery owners to keep out the controversial painter on
grounds of security, angering many in the Delhi art world.
The company says it cannot let the galleries put up works by Husain,
forced into self-imposed exile since angering Hindutva groups with
his paintings of Bharatmata and nude goddesses.
“For the first time such high-valued art pieces are (being)
displayed…. We were required to seek permission to ensure that
nothing went wrong,” said Neha Kripal, associate director of the summit.
“Security is our responsibility. Hence, the decision of not
showcasing Husain’s works. It is not a hidden fact — everybody knows
there is some sense of uncertainty attached to Husain in our country.”
But artists today criticised the culture ministry of Ambika Soni —
who inaugurated the fair yesterday — for not standing up for Husain’s
freedom of expression.
The ministry, which has provided Pragati Maidan for the fair, had
said on Thursday that while it “has not been consulted regarding the
artists whose works are to be displayed”, it would be happy if
Husain’s paintings were displayed.
To photographer Ram Rahman, this is little more than a dodge. “The
ministry should do something more than issue statements. It’s a shame
that a summit of such a large scale doesn’t have Husain’s paintings,”
said Rahman, founder member of Safdar Hashmi Memorial Trust (Sahmat),
which is running a parallel exhibition solely of reproductions of
Husain’s paintings.
“He is the one who has commercialised Indian art and that’s why we
artists can demand a certain amount of money for our work. He is
responsible for creating the world-market boom for Indian art. If the
fundamentalists are a problem, the venue should have adequate
security,” he added.
Peter Nagy, a gallery owner, has expressed his displeasure by putting
up a photograph of Husain. “Some viewers were angry but I have stuck
to what I believe,” he said.
Gallery owners are particularly disappointed that the ban covers all
of Husain’s works. “I wanted to display three Husain paintings from
the 1960s but wasn’t allowed. None of those paintings was
controversial,” said Ashish Anand of Delhi Art Gallery.
_______
[5]
The Hindu
August 25, 2008
KERALA AND ALTERNATIVE ENERGY RESOURCES
by V.R. Krishna Iyer
It is strange to learn that Kerala has no plan to generate power
through alternative means.
Swaraj is full-fledged national liberation, a leap forward that is
geared to holistic democratic development. None shall be denied such
an opportunity to flower and share in the country’s progress. This is
a condition precedent to the real fulfilment of the needs and
comforts, and ensuring the quality of life, of the entire citizenry,
particularly those from the weaker sections. All the resources that
can promote energy generation have to be kindled because development
demands electricity or other forms of energy. This is thus the focus
of India on the march.
Large-scale advances and improved production will be possible equally
in village and city if more electricity is available. Advanced
industrialisation cannot be achieved without a robust agrarian base.
Indeed, agriculture, industry and technology cannot be divisively
developed and none of them can be accelerated without abundant
electrification and popular cooperation in extenso, using their
creative faculties. Electrification plus people’s participation is
socially sensitive, economically locomotive democracy in its
egalitarian glory.
In this context, it is imperative to realise the acute scarcity of
extant energy supplies in India at large and in Kerala, and the
wisdom of prudent management of energy. First, we must declare an
“Energy Emergency.” Kerala now depends on hydel resources as the sole
means to produce power for itself. When the monsoon fails, water
storage becomes scarce and power shortage drives the State to load-
shedding and similar hardships. So we need electricity austerity.
At the same time, plural means of power generation in a pollution-
free manner is like asking for the moon since wastage of energy is
bound to grow, too.
Energy ‘swaraj’, or self-reliance, is now a necessity. Without power,
everything from water supply to cooking and medical radiology will
cease. Fans, television sets, air-conditioners, telephones, computers
and similar facilities needed to make life bearable will become
impossible to use. Even aircraft and trains need power in plenty. The
media need power: without power, there can be no culture. The right
to life guaranteed by the Constitution will stand negated by the
state if power supply stops. And people, the vast poor and the middle
class, who cannot own their own generators, will suffer beyond
endurance.
It is strange to learn that Kerala (along with a few other backward
companions) has no plan to generate power through alternative means.
These alternatives range from solar and tidal power to wind farms,
biogas and other newly researched and discovered sources. The sun can
be a saviour. We idly worship this star but largely ignore solar
power, which is clean. Solar energy can abundantly replace hydro,
coal, nuclear and other sources of electricity to heat water, cook
food and for other purposes, if duly stored. The technology of
storing it is a feasible one. At the Tirupati temple, food for
thousands of people is cooked daily using solar energy. Other temples
have begun to do this, too.
Every five-star hotel and large meeting and eating centre or club
where feasts are served frequently should be compelled by law to use
solar energy. So, too, large apartment complexes and big individual
houses. Biogas that uses garbage is a similar utility. Wealth from
waste can be a profitable reality provided the government, from the
local level to the central level, overcomes energy illiteracy. This
will save dependence on hydel supply.
In a city like Kochi which is full of garbage, for example, biogas
produced from garbage can be made obligatory everywhere. Wind farms
can be set up in several places. Gold shops and luxury bazaars have
air-conditioning, glossy illumination and other avoidable electricity
extravagances. Why is the Kerala government, with the
Thiruvananthapuram-based Agency for Non-Conventional Energy and Rural
Technology (ANERT), an autonomous body of the government under the
Department of Power, not utilising solar energy or setting up wind
mills and farms?
Nuclear power, with its inherent hazards, is a meaningless menace and
a mad craze, dangerous and expensive. It takes years to set up one
plant. Why make the country’s national freedom dependent on big power
pressure and suffer “dependencia” humiliation? U.S. nuclear barons
and President Bush have purchased our artless, innocent Prime
Minister’s conscience as an irrevocable commitment.
Nuclear waste is a grave menace and there is an inevitable residue
from every reactor — for which even the U.S. has no answer. No
patriot, Left, Right or Centre, can conscionably sponsor a nuclear
reactor. Indeed, we have enough thorium and unmined uranium. Why beg
America as mendicants?
India has perennial, renewable energy from the sun available to it.
Shashi Tharoor lucidly said recently, while dealing with solar
sources: Let us make haste while the sun shines. His humanist wisdom
deserves reading.
In all the brouhaha about the Indo-U.S. nuclear deal, not enough
attention has been paid to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s recent
announcement of a credible energy plan for India that goes way beyond
the nuclear. By far the most welcome component of his six-point plan
to increase the country’s reliance on sustainable sources of energy
was the declaration that the development of India’s capacity to tap
the power of the sun would be central to the strategy.
In this strategy the sun occupies centrestage, the Prime Minister
memorably said, “as it should, being literally the original source of
all energy.” He added: “We will pool all our scientific, technical
and managerial talents, with financial sources, to develop solar
energy as a source of abundant energy to power our economy and to
transform the lives of our people.” And it was no hyperbole when he
said: “Our success in this endeavour will change the face of India.”
Why has this same fine Prime Minister jettisoned this great truth and
staked his government’s standing on the nuclear deal with the U.S.?
“It is worse than a crime; it is a blunder.”
We have to reduce our dependence on non-renewable sources, and solar
power is an obvious answer. We must cut down on carbon dioxide
emissions. Greenhouse gases are global terrors. Let us rely on wind
farms and other natural sources which will cut down transmission
losses and cost the least in the long run. The Law Reforms Commission
of Kerala, in proposing a legislative bill, has attempted to
articulate the logic of plural renewable processes of infinite power
generation as being realistic, pragmatic, native and innocent.
The Kerala government, the Kerala State Electricity Board, and ANERT,
seem to be somewhat inactive when it comes to alternative energy
generation. The local self-government institutions as well as MPs and
MLAs, are being insensitive to the imminent electricity bankruptcy.
It is significant that, notwithstanding the seeming indifference of
the State administration to new energy sources, there are several
creative proposals that have been put before the government in this
regard. A number of private Indian companies are ready to start solar
farms, it has been reported.
Ignorance is guilt where public authority fails in its obvious duty
even when knowledge is within easy reach. Energy pluralism and
popular activism in cooperative functionalism, are a sine qua non of
developmental democracy. Load-shedding represents a lame alibi when
nature’s power sources remain in slumber without a wake-up call from
state power.
_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/
Buzz for secularism, on the dangers of fundamentalism(s), on
matters of peace and democratisation in South
Asia. SACW is an independent & non-profit
citizens wire service run since 1998 by South
Asia Citizens Web: www.sacw.net/
SACW archive is available at: http://sacw.net/pipermail/sacw_insaf.net/
DISCLAIMER: Opinions expressed in materials carried in the posts do not
necessarily reflect the views of SACW compilers.
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