Troubled Tribal: Sid Harth
Sid Harth
Does Bihar know how many tribals live in the State?
Shoumojit Banerjee
The Hindu Rural Bihar awaits the monsoons as tribals and farmers feel
the heat. Photo: Ranjeet Kumar
No head count has been done after 2001 Census and the State refuses to
acknowledge them, while the Nitish Kumar government is busy doling out
schemes for Dalit empowerment.
While the Nitish Kumar government is busy doling out schemes for the
empowerment of Maha Dalits, it seems to have completely slurred over
the problems plaguing Bihars tribal population. As a result, even
after the States bifurcation in 2000, policy makers remain clueless
about the extent of its tribal population. The State does not even
have a tribal commission. This, along with the Centres equivocal
overtures, has only compounded the misery of Bihars tribal
population.
Bihar has a tribal population of about 20 lakh, informs Pramod Kumar
Singh, State Convener, Hunger Free Bihar Campaign, but even now,
government officials seem to think that the tribals are a miniscule 1
per cent.
The problem, according to activists like Mr. Singh, is that Central
and State government mandarins have not taken into account the
addition of nearly 12 lakh tribals in the State after the 2001 census.
This number mainly comprises three tribes Gond, Santhal and Tharu.
While some of them live in scattered pockets, the majority is
concentrated in 14 districts of the State.
While the fault may lie at the Centres door for this omission, the
State governments apathy towards its tribal population is both
intriguing and incredible in this respect.
Mr. Singh says that after Bihars bifurcation into Jharkhand,
government officials and policy makers across the State have somehow
managed to impress upon themselves that there is no Adivasi population
in the State.
The Fifth Schedule
The Fifth Schedule covers Tribal areas in nine States Andhra Pradesh,
Jharkhand, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh,
Chattisgarh, Orissa and Rajasthan. Under this, villages and panchayats
having a tribal population of more than 50 per cent are notified as
Scheduled Areas.
While this is true for other States, why hasnt it yet been put to
effect in Bihars 14 districts where the population is most densely
concentrated, argues Mr. Singh.
This induced miscalculation has deprived the States tribals of almost
all of the Centres schemes.
Bureaucratic Apathy
Officials seemed utterly callous about enforcing the Forest Rights Act
in the State which was not implemented until February 4 this year,
then too after it had been bought to their notice by the State Tribal
Forum organised by activists of the Hunger Free Bihar campaign.
Lack of a database has ensured that their cries have gone unheeded.
Nobody knows how many of them have died of starvation or what are the
atrocities committed against them. There is no record of the impact of
Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) in tribal clusters,
informs Mr. Singh.
Land Rights
Landless tribals in the State are of two types, namely those who do
not have land for farming and ones who do not have land for housing/
shelter. While the government is obliged to grant a minimum of 4
decimal and a maximum of 12.5 decimal of Rayati (Privately owned) land
to the tribal families, it has not done so as it does not have a
record of landless tribals.
Mr. Singh says that as the tribal does not have the permission to sell
his own land, he does not know the actual price and hence is
mercilessly cheated by unscrupulous brokers.
The 11th Five-year plan is equally nebulous about the clauses
pertaining to the progress of Bihars tribals. For instance, it is just
not clear whether there would be a separate hostel for SC, ST OBC
children or whether they would all be accommodated together. Mr. Singh
says that while there are tribal hostels in other States, Bihar does
not have a single one. Besides, there are no secondary schools and
colleges for tribal boys and girls, either.
Poor medical facilities
While about 4 lakh tribal families in the country have been covered
under the Jan Shree insurance scheme, Bihars Asur, Kokha, Birhor and
other tribes have not been able to avail themselves of its benefit.
There is not a single mobile medical dispensary in any tribal cluster
across the state, says Mr. Singh.
Mr. Singh says that the State does not have a single Tribal
Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India (TRIFED)
building, which has severely impeded tribals development, due to which
they are routinely exploited.
CAG audit needed
Mr. Singh urges that the CAG should audit schemes for the Scheduled
Tribes in the State. He says that the Central and State governments
must involve NGOs to carry out these surveys.
The Bihar government doesnt even need a matching grant, the Centre is
ready to provide the funds, says Mr. Singh.
Mr. Singh says that a passing gesture in which Rs.125 crores were
sanctioned by the Nitish Kumar Government in January this year for the
benefit of the Tharu tribe has been diverted to the betterment of the
Tiger Sanctuary in that district instead.
Only after a demand for a tribal mega tribunal was made last Sunday in
the presence of State officials has the deplorable condition of the
tribals finally come to light.
It is up to the State now to reconsider its policy on tribals by
beginning with a headcount, and fast.
...and I am Sid Harth
Sid Harth
Indian Brahmins have been massacring Dalit-Sudras for 3500 years
Written by Abhijay Patel World Aug 16, 2009
History is usually written by the victors. The Dalits have not had a
voice for thousands of years. The Dalit discrimination has to be aired
by all peace loving people on the planet. Many Dalits believe that the
discrimination perpetuated against them for centureis is based on
thier ethnicity and the color of their skin. Dalit leaders have
proposed that their status in the Hindu caste system is based on their
Dravidian roots.
Dalits leaders are openly calling for the mass conversion of the 150
million Dalits to Islam which would offer them equality. The Hinduvata
reaction to the conversion of Dalits is ferocious and violent. The
poor penury stricken Dalits must remain in bondage for perpetuity!
This article lists the atrocities against the Dalits. Rape and murder
have been institutionalized. 3 to 6 million women have been raped for
being Dalit. 3 million Dalits have been killed for being Dalit. Indian
secularism has not touched the 150-250 million Dalits or the 150
million Muslims.
More than 60 per cent of Dalits are landless. Over 40 million of them
are bonded labourers. Dalits are the worst victims of labour coercion
“The 1991 Government survey of India states that on an average day,
two Dalits are killed, three Dalit women are raped, two Dalits’ houses
are burned and fifty Dalits are assaulted by people of a higher
caste.”
” High-caste Brahmins formed a private army, the Ranvir Sena, to stop
communists from encouraging Dalit field workers to demand higher wages
“
Amnesty International lists 300 million abused Indians & Kashmiris,
Naxalites.
“India is being ruled by castes, not laws”-Indian state machinery
supports License to kill Dalits. Amnesty Int 2008 report excoriates
Horrid “India”
Mass Murder of Dalits : Ethnic Cleansing in South Asia. An Account of
the 3500-Year Arya-Sudra Race War During the Last 10 Years
“Indra protected in battle the Aryan worshipper, he subdued the
lawless for Manu, he conquered the black skin.”[ Rig Veda I.130.8 ]
A history of massacres by Venkitesh Ramakrishnan Frontline Vol. 16,
( Feb. 27 – Mar. 12, 1999 ) No. 05 For immediate release May 1, 2007,
Posted on: May 2, 2007
This bigoted genocide contineus in 2008. Here are a few stories of the
actual genocide for the past 20 years
” The black skin, the hated of Indra, were swept out of heaven “[ Rig
Veda IX.73.5 ]
“… The religion based on caste system has annihilated millions of
Dalits over the centuries. About three million Dalit women have been
raped and around one million Dalits killed from the time of
Independence. This is 25 times more than number of soldiers killed
during the wars fought after independence. That is why Dalits do not
need Aryan culture or Hindu Dharma based on caste any more. …” [Dr.
Tulsiram]
MUCH blood has been spilt in Bihar in caste violence over the past
three decades. Between the first reported caste-based massacre, at
Rupaspur Chandwa in Purnea district in 1971, and the latest bloodbath,
at Narayanpur village in Jehanabad district on February 10, there were
59 recorded instances of mass murders, in which about 600 people were
killed. The majority of these were directed at Dalits and were carried
out by the private armies of the upper castes, such as the Ranvir
Sena, the Bhoomi Sena, the Brahmarshi Sena, the Sunlight Sena and the
Savarna Liberation Army. The Dalechak-Bagholia killings of 1987 and
the Bara carnage of 1992 were perpetrated by a naxalite group, the
Marxist Coordination Committee (MCC).
Killing of a woman, a Shudra or an atheist is not sinful. Woman is an
embodiment of the worst desires, hatred, deceit, jealousy and bad
character. Women should never be given freedom.” Bhagvad Gita (Manu
IX. 17 and V. 47, 147)”
Similarly another holy script of Hindu religious book preaches looking
down upon women by terming a woman equal to a dog, crow and shudra (a
low cast poor Hindu who has no rights in Hindu society).
“And whilst not coming into contact with Sudras and remains of food;
for this Gharma is he that shines yonder, and he is excellence, truth,
and light; but woman, the Sudra, the dog, and the black bird (the
crow), are untruth: he should not look at these, lest he should mingle
excellence and sin, light and darkness, truth and untruth.” –
Satapatha Brahmana 14:1:1:31.
According to Oliver Mendelsohn and Marika Vicziany, authors of The
Untouchables: Subordination, Poverty and the State in Modern India, a
comprehensive account of the phenomenon of untouchability, the caste-
based massacres are brutal manifestations of the “violent and
primordial casteism” that has overtaken Bihar. The authors point out
that although the naxalite movement is by and large dedicated to and
partly composed of Dalits, it is sometimes referred to as caste
politics in the guise of radical political activity.
According to government statistics, instances of atrocities against
Dalits rose dramatically after 1977, the period when the political
identity of the backward castes of the State found assertive
expression in the elevation of Karpoori Thakur, a leader from a
backward caste, as Chief Minister. Similarly, there has been an
upsurge in atrocities against Dalits between 1989 and 1999, the period
which coincided with the chief ministership of Laloo Prasad Yadav and,
lately, his wife Rabri Devi.
” Stormy gods who rush on like furious bulls and scatter the black
skin.”[ Rig Veda IX.73.5 ]
One explanation for this is that the upper castes, who had political,
social and administrative supremacy during much of Bihar’s recent
political history, were responding to the elevation of leaders from
backward castes to political power by stepping up attacks against
lower-caste populations. Another explanation is that the governments
of Karpoori Thakur and Laloo Prasad Yadav were lax in controlling the
upper-caste private armies.
Irrespective of the level of accuracy of analyses such as these, the
fact remains that the number of attacks against Dalits and other lower-
caste people has gone up every time a backward caste leader rose to
power. The period between 1990 and 1999 witnessed 35 instances of
caste-based massacres, the total number of victims being about 400.
More than 350 of those killed were from among the lower castes.[ ill.
- At Lakshmanpur-Bathe on December 1, 1997, when 63 persons were
killed in an attack by the Ranvir Sena. ]
” The thunderer bestowed on his white friends the fields, bestowed the
sun, bestowed the waters.”[ Rig Veda I.100.18 ]
The Ranvir Sena, which has been active since 1994, is one of the most
dreaded private armies in the history of the State. According to
informal estimates, the Ranvir Sena, which was formed by the partial
or complete merger of upper-caste private armies such as the Savarna
Liberation Army and the Sunlight Sena, has killed at least 200 Dalits
in the last five years. Ranvir Sena leaders boast that at least 125 of
these killings were carried out after July 1995, when the group was
banned by the Bihar Government. As the Communist Party of India
(Marxist-Leninist) Liberation has pointed out repeatedly, the ban
existed only on paper.
In addition to organised massacres of the residents of entire Dalit
villages, the private armies practise unlawful and dehumanising
programmes aimed at insulting members of the lower castes and
preventing their rise in society. The Savarna Liberation Army’s “mass
rape” campaign, conducted between March and July 1992 in Gaya and
Jehanabad districts, was one of the most heinous among these. More
than 200 Dalit women between the ages of six and 70 were raped by a
group of activists of the Savarna Liberation Army. Each of these
incidents was given publicity by the perpetrators of the crime.
“ The Aryans enforced the caste system on the Black population (the
original inhabitants of India), with a cold-blooded racist logic with
[w]hites on the top, mixed races in the middle and the mass of the
conquered Blacks at the bottom. Rajshekar, `Dalit: The Black
Untouchables of India’, p.44.
Ranvir Sena leaders claim that the operation was intended to avenge
the killing of 34 Bhumihar landlords at Bara by the Maoist
Coordination Centre (MCC). It was a “lesson” to the Dalits, that if
they tried to take on the landlords the women of their communities
would be humiliated. Ranvir Sena activists claim with a macabre sense
of glee that the operation was “very effective”. The stigma attached
to rape victims is such that the operation broke the morale of Dalits
of many villages.
Given the prevailing socio-political climate in Bihar, the Senas
operate with impunity, justifying their presence with the cycle of
retaliatory violence spawned by naxalite groups. Sociologists have
pointed out that resort to measures that merely address the violence
as a law-and-order problem will not be enough to smash these Senas.
Such steps, they say, have to be coupled with bold and far-reaching
measures such as land reforms, which address the fundamental problem
of economic exploitation and social discrimination of landless
agricultural labourers from among the Scheduled Castes by upper-caste
feudal landowners. “ Moin Ansari
bademiyansubhanallah
CWG 2010: Bamboo screens to hide Delhi slums
Azera Rahman First Published : 16 Aug 2009 05:03:05 PM IST
Last Updated : 16 Aug 2009 06:00:31 PM IST
What cannot be removed must be hidden, the city fathers believe. As
Delhi readies to host the Commonwealth Games next year, it is looking
to show its painted face to the world while hiding slums behind bamboo
screens.
Realising that uprooting slum clusters from all over the capital and
rehabilitating its inhabitants is not a pragmatic solution -
especially as the deadline for the 2010 Commonwealth Games is drawing
to a close - the Delhi government has decided to literally screen the
not-so-welcoming sights from the many visitors expected for the event.
Similar moves were made in Beijing during last year's Olympics when
screens were put up before not so pretty sections of the city which
the authorities did not want the millions of visitors to China to see.
Giant screens are also seen in several cities in Latin America to
block out ugly sights from visitors.
Delhi Chief Secretary Rakesh Mehta told IANS: "We have spoken to the
agriculture department of Mizoram to help us in planting bamboo trees
which can be used to screen the shanties and slums on the roadside of
all those routes through which the Commonwealth convoy is expected to
go."
"We want to present a good face of Delhi during the Games next year,
but it is not possible to remove all the slums. Therefore, we have
decided to use bamboo screens instead to simply conceal the sights,"
Mehta said.
The agriculture department of Mizoram has been especially asked for a
type of bamboo that can withstand Delhi's dry climate.
"In the northeast, the weather is humid, but for our purpose we need
at least five-foot-tall bamboos which can survive the dry weather. We
are also planning to take Assam's help in this regard since bamboo
grows there as well," Mehta told IANS in an interview.
"We are also consulting the National Bamboo Mission and the National
Mission of Bamboo Application in this regard," he added.
However, not all 'jhuggis' or slums will be 'screened'.
"Slum dwellers near the Commonwealth Games village have been
rehabilitated at Bawana. About 9,000 houses have been made for them
there," Mehta said.
The Commonwealth Games Oct 3-14 next year is expected to see a huge
turnout of players and tourists. Seventy-one member countries are
scheduled to participate in the Games that has 17 sports disciplines.
While numerous other preparations are under way to make the event a
success - giving all flyovers an aesthetic look, improving
connectivity and ensuring that there are enough rooms to accommodate
the players and tourists - the slums have continued to be a matter of
concern.
- IANS
Sid Harth
CMs to table report card at security meet
Vishwa Mohan, TNN 17 August 2009, 12:45am IST
NEW DELHI: Chief ministers may face awkward moments in the internal
security conference on Monday if they don’t come with action taken
reports
(ATRs) on suggestions they had agreed upon to strengthen security and
intelligence apparatus when they had last met here on January 6-7.
Their seven-month report cards will be compared with what the home
ministry has done during this period in front of Prime Minister
Manmohan Singh — a move which will not only set the tone for the
meeting but also infuse a sense of urgency among states who are being
given funds and manpower from the Centre. While the PM will chair the
conference, home minister P Chidambaram will have a separate session
with seven state chief ministers on Naxalite issues.
Besides discussing a range of issues to further strengthen security
and intelligence infrastructure across the country, the home ministry
will ask the states about their record on utilisation of funds given
to them under Modernization of Police Scheme. Non-functional coastal
police stations and non-utilisation of interceptor boats will also
come up for review.
Sources said states this time had been specifically asked to come with
ATRs as it would help the Centre to analyse the effectiveness of the
schemes — mega city policing, border management, coastal security and
strengthening of intelligence mechanism — taken up in a big way in the
war against terror post 26/11. The meeting will be attended by CMs,
police chiefs and senior officials, home secretary G K Pillai, NSA M K
Narayanan and directors general of all paramilitary forces.
Sid Harth
Chief Ministers to discuss coastal security, naxal issue
Vinay Kumar
NEW DELHI: The meeting of Chief Ministers on Internal Security, to be
presided over by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh here on Monday, will
address four core issues — follow up on decisions taken during the
January 6 meeting, coastal security and border management,
modernisation of police forces and naxal management.
A priority item on the agenda of the daylong meeting of the Chief
Ministers will be a proposal for the creation of a State Industrial
Security Force, on the pattern of the Central Industrial Security
Force (CISF), a paramilitary force which guards vital installations
and provides security at all airports.
Review of follow-up action will involve progress on creation of Quick
Response Teams and Special Intervention Units at the police station
level, strengthening of State special branches and creation of
separate intelligence cadre.
The meeting will also review the progress on setting up special cells
in State police wings, comprising intelligence, investigation,
operation and prosecution on the lines of the Anti-Terrorism Squad,
for tackling the menace of fake currency notes.
The meeting will also review filling up vacancies in the State police
force, creation of additional posts to ensure adequate manpower in
rural police states and establishment of new police stations, sources
in the government told The Hindu on Thursday.
Guidelines
The Centre is also said to be keen on State governments strictly
following the elaborate guidelines on the security of places of
worship, historical monuments, iconic installations, malls,
multiplexes, hotels and other places with heavy footfalls. The
guidelines have been circulated to the State governments and the
Centre is likely to stress laying down timelines for implementing the
same and preparation of model laws.
Another key area of core policing is the implementation of the scheme
of community policing and statutory provisions in State Police Acts to
facilitate it, the sources said.
The meeting will review the anti-naxal strategy by State police forces
and conduct joint inter-State operations.
Seven Chief Ministers of naxalite-affected States will have a separate
meeting with the Prime Minister, and Home Minister P. Chidambaram
later in the day.
The conference will also review the information collection system and
its proper sharing.
Sid Harth
New strategies to flush out Maoists
Special Correspondent
KOLKATA: New strategies are being adopted to take forward the joint
security operation to flush out Maoists and activists of the Maoist-
backed Police Santrash Birodhi Janashadharaner Committee (PSBJC) from
Lalgarh and its adjoining areas in West Bengal’s Paschim Medinipur
district.
They were discussed at a meeting in Midnapore on Thursday between
State’s Home Secretary Ardhendu Sen and senior officials representing
various security forces engaged in the operation that began on June
18.
Sid Harth
New strategies to flush out extremists from Lalgarh
Special Correspondent
KOLKATA: New strategies are being adopted to take forward the joint
security operation to flush out Maoists and activists of the Maoist-
backed Police Santrash Birodhi Janashadharaner Committee (PSBJC) from
Lalgarh and its adjoining areas in West Bengal’s Paschim Medinipur
district.
They were discussed at a meeting in Midnapore on Thursday between
State’s Home Secretary Ardhendu Sen and senior officials representing
the various security forces engaged in the joint operation that began
on June 18.
“With each day there is need to change tactics as the operation
progresses [and depending on the ground reality],” Mr. Sen later said.
“The operation is continuing day and night,” he added.
The State government had recently conceded that the successes achieved
so far were largely limited to the first phase of the operation and
that there was need for a re-think in strategy.
The meeting was held two days after Chief Minister Buddhadeb
Bhattacharjee said in Midnapore that there will be a change in
strategy to ensure that the second phase of the security operation
yields the desired results.
“The problems being confronted in the course of the joint operation
and ways to tackle them were discussed,” Mr. Sen said. He stressed the
need for greater interaction between those supervising the operation
and the locals. So far, 67 persons were arrested, 26 of them believed
to be hardcore activists.
bademiyansubhanallah
Post attacks, CISF asked to ensure security of mines in Naxal areas
Posted: Monday , Aug 17, 2009 at 0238 hrs
New Delhi:
Shaken by the increasing number of attacks by Naxalites on the
explosive stockyards of mining companies, the government has asked the
Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) to suggest methods to enhance
overall security at the mines. The government has also decided to ask
district magistrates of extremist-affected areas to inspect the mines
at regular intervals.
The decisions follows a recent high-level meeting convened by union
home secretary G K Pillai with the ministries of coal, steel, mines,
besides the chief controller of explosives (CCE) and the department of
industrial policy and promotion (DIPP). The meeting was held in the
backdrop of attacks by Naxalites on the mines of National Aluminum
Company Limited (NALCO) and the National Mineral Development
Corporation (NMDC).
The major attraction that mining sites hold for Naxalites is their
stores of high-value explosives. Mineral rich states like Jharkhand,
Orissa and Chhattisgarh are prone to naxalite attacks. Around eight
CISF personnel are believed to haven been killed after more than 200
Naxalites stormed NALCO’s Panchpatmali mine — Asia’s biggest bauxite
mine — at Damonjodi in Koraput district, Orissa, in mid-April. Since
the attack, the navratna company has reportedly stopped storing large
stocks of explosives fearing they could fall prey to a fresh naxal
attack.
Responding to the demand of mines ministry officials that norms on
shifting of barracks of security personnel be relaxed, its officials
were told to send a detailed proposal to the DIPP and CCE. The home
ministry has said that the proposal would be examined keeping
international practices in view. The proposal would take forwarf the
ministry’s view on relaxing explosive rules for construction/ shifting
of magazines and distancing barracks/ bunkers from explosives. The
home ministry has also asked the CISF to furnish its views on
determinig secure locations for the magazines besides deployment of
its personnel. The paramilitary force has been asked to send a
detailed note to the mines, coal and steel ministries on the norms to
be adopted for deployment of security personnel at these mines.
The ministry has also favoured that the CCE issue suitable
instructions to district magistrates to undertake regular inspections
of the mines as enshrined in the explosives rules as well as holding
coordination meetings with mine owners, police, CISF and CCE
representatives.
bademiyansubhanallah
Training for CISF cadets
Vellore, Aug 16 : Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) personnel
have been given training to handle modern high technique weapons in a
view to safeguard nation's security, Chelladurai, DIG (CISF) Thakkonam
said.
After participating in the Independence Day celebrations yesterday,
he said "in view of the alarming national security in our country, the
cadets are given special training in handling the latest hi-tech
weapons".
As many as 900 persons in CISF training school at Nagarikuppam near
here had undergone training, he added. - Agencies
Aug 16, 2009
Sid Harth
Migrant SC, STs, OBCs not entitled to reservation benefits: SC
PTI 17 August 2009, 07:08pm IST
NEW DELHI: SCs, STs and OBCs cannot claim the benefits of reservation
if they migrate from one state to another if the caste/tribe to which
they belong are not recognized as a reserved community in the adopted
state, the Supreme Court has ruled.
Further, a migrant SC or ST also cannot claim a reserved status in OBC
quota in another state, the apex court said.
"Persons belonging to a particular caste or tribe may suffer
disadvantages in one state but may not suffer the same disadvantages
in the other. Our Constitutional scheme, therefore, seeks to identify
the social and economic backwardness of people having regard to the
state or union territory as a unit.
"The same principle applies to even minorities as has been laid down
by an eleven-judge bench of this court in T M A Pai Foundation and
others case," a bench of Justices S B Sinha and Cyriac Joseph
observed.
The apex court made the remarks while dismissing the by certain
migrant SC, STs candidates challenging the refusal of the Delhi
administration to grant them benefits of reservation in government
jobs.
Sid Harth
51% of businesses owned by SC/ST/OBCs
Rema Nagarajan, TNN 8 September 2008, 02:15am IST
NEW DELHI: Political empowerment is finally translating into economic
muscle for the country's most disadvantaged sections.
Over half of all business establishments in the country — 51% to be
precise — are today owned by the socially disadvantaged sections,
mostly OBCs, with a slim contribution coming from SCs and STs.
This is the good news coming from an analysis of social ownership
patterns of business establishments as presented by the latest
Economic Census for 2005. But before you start cheering this
empowerment story, here's a caveat.
A closer look at the data shows that the majority of businesses owned
by OBCs/SCs/STs are establishments without any hired workers — that
is, these are pa-and-ma ops, run by members of the household. They are
possibly mainly efforts at self-employment.
The data shows that while people from these sections owned 45% of
business establishments at the time of the last Economic Census in
1998, their share has registered a 6 percentage point increase since
then. OBCs account for the largest chunk of this growth.
The OBC share in ownership of businesses has increased in all major
states, barring Tamil Nadu, where they already owned a high 74% of all
businesses, and Punjab, where a small decline in OBC ownership has
been offset by a rise in SC-owned businesses.
In states like UP, the increase in OBC ownership has been significant,
going up from 38% in the last census to nearly half of all businesses
in the state by 2005. In Gujarat, the proportion of OBC-owned
establishments has gone up by 13 percentage points to comprise almost
a third of the state's businesses.
However, the status of the weakest among the reserved categories, the
scheduled tribes (STs), seems to have remained virtually unchanged.
There has been a steady increase in ST-owned establishments in north-
eastern states but that has been offset by a decline in many other
states including Orissa, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/opinions/3456486.cms#top0
51% of businesses owned by SC/ST/OBCs
sankar,Mumbai,says:Dear Mr. Editor, Such an article without any base,
appears to be misguiding among the people of India. It might be true
in cases of OBC but for SC/ST, its really still panic to see their
pathetic conditions in our country. May be you might be thinking,
owning paan shop, shoe shop etc. you might be counting or street
business.By writing such article, you are telling the entire world
that SC/ST's economic condition has improved. In reality, they remain
still poor. All policies for their welfare by any govt so far remain
on paper, pls. check the implementation part and check how many their
welfare policies are functioning and their success so far? I am sorry,
you may not agree with this, but people like you should show the real
picture of their conditions to the entire world.
[8 Sep, 2008 1134hrs IST]
Sri,USA,says:I am from so called upper castes but I don't agree or
support this analysis as I see the common man, on roads, in India is
still poor struggling to make two meals a day. I don't see any change
in the social status of the SC and ST has changed much except for some
families. Only they are reaping the benefits the Govt is providing
again and again for generations. It is amazing to see leaders from the
same communities who talk so much for the welfare of these people
coming to power and doing nothing for their own people. Still every
election we hear from these leaders about the age old discrimination
they met at the hands of people from forward castes. They just take
care of personal interests. Examples are Lallo, Mulayam, Ram Vilas and
many more. I see the people from upper castes are also in the same
category economically or socially. Anyways, nowadays it is only money
that talks and that alone determines your social status.
[8 Sep, 2008 1134hrs IST]
P.S.Narayanan,Bhubaneswar,says:You will laugh if the volume of
business by OBC, SC & ST in rupee value is expressed.
[8 Sep, 2008 0939hrs IST]
Rajan,India,says:Excellent!. 74% in Terrible Nadu. Now SC/CT and OBC
are to be declared upper caste and others should be given reservation
[8 Sep, 2008 0933hrs IST]
Truth,India,says:Go to any Road of any city ... then just do ground
study ... you will get 95-98 % of wealth is owned by High Class
Hindu .... Just with Your Creative writing you can make a smoke about
development . But If you want change in ground situation . Show us
True Picture not creative writing.Sorry for being harsh but I am not
able to believe in your Article when I can see still some low class
hindu are not allowed to even visit temples in many Rural Area .
[8 Sep, 2008 0911hrs IST]
Hemanath,Bangalore,says:Even if these so call SC/ST/OBC own 100% of
business establishments in the country, they will still yawn for quota
and reservations. Our politicians will give into them and sell the
country to these people. Jai Hind.
[8 Sep, 2008 0903hrs IST]
Indian,Mumbai,says:Sourojit, u have hit the nail on the head!!! I hope
Arjun Singh & company are reading this. A day will come when 100% of
the seats will be reserved for these people.
[8 Sep, 2008 0901hrs IST]
Sunil,Singapore,says:What a waste, and useless survey is this? If you
count Ambani's Companies and a Road side "Tea-stall" as the same
category as "Business" , Count Ambani as 'one' headcount as business
owner, then I must salute to the intellect of those who carried out
this survey. Also, what is the main 'extract' of this survey? The OBC/
SC/ST should be still given reservations or should reconsider, based
on this survey?
[8 Sep, 2008 0838hrs IST]
Manoj Meena,Mumbai,says:I'm totally agree with PRASHANT(USA). Please
specify 1. How do you define a business establishments. ( Tea
stall ..?? or Tata Nano project ..? :D ) 2. Turnover ? (50-100
thousand or 50-100 millions annually) 3. How much turnover do these
51% contribute(5% or 75 %) 4.why you have included ST(ask
yourself..?). according to your data for ST employment index is 1
compared to 20 of GEN. even then you have included ST. Your statements
and data are contradictory in case of ST category. 5. Your article
seems a hated one rather than informative(U must be from GEN! :D,
Laughing)
[8 Sep, 2008 0837hrs IST]
John,Canada,says:This shows why the quotas are not needed.
[8 Sep, 2008 0824hrs IST]
Mohammad Imran,Ringwood, NJ,says:51% of businesses owned by SC/ST/
OBCs. Sounds wonderful till one analyzes the news. Is 51% the
percentage of people who own businesses? Is 51% the amount of income
produced by the businesses? I say 51% is the number of so called
business owners. A chamaar is a business owner. He deals in skins. A
mochi is another business owner who makes and repairs shoes. These
people have existed from the past millennium. What is so exceptional
about it. It will be news when they own 51% of the businesses in
monetary terms.
[8 Sep, 2008 0742hrs IST]
h.krishna,mumbai,says:dear editor, we still appear to be stuck to the
caste based statistics. however, the survey does not inform us of what
scale was used to arrive at the figure of 51%! what constitutes obc's-
baniyas & leva patils, fundamentally rich communities? what is the
share of sc/st communities? utopia, we still wait for you when we all
shall be equals!
[8 Sep, 2008 0739hrs IST]
JOMAN,NEW PANVEL,says:The total number of establishments owned by the
under privileged class of people may be correct...road side tea
stalls, village hair cutting saloons, etc..But whether the total asset
value taken together of all such establishments would be equal to a
single residential palace (out of many) of our top business tycoons?
Is it not a shortcoming of the statistical interpretation?
[8 Sep, 2008 0734hrs IST]
AMS,San Francisco,says:Mr Prashant may kindly note that the remaining
49% businesses also come from the same set from which the 51% in
question come. Neither has been defined. Why this nitpicking- why not
rejoice that the OBC's are not "Backward" in terms of earning a
livelihood.
[8 Sep, 2008 0734hrs IST]
Prashant,NC, USA,says:1. How do we define a business establishments.
Is the road side pan shop one ? 2. What is the range of business
establishments covered for comparison. Are we including the road side
pan shop at one end and Reliance retail/Food world at other end ? 3.
Turnover in % is more important for gauging the impact rather than
just number of shops. How much turnover do these 51% contribute, 10%
or 75% ?? Unless these are clearly specified the article does not have
much impact.
[8 Sep, 2008 0405hrs IST]
P.M.G.Pillai,Mannar Allpauzha Kerala ,says:Dear E EDitor, The
classification of SC/ST/OBC etc as backward is irrational and based on
purely wild assumptions.The government before classifying a segment of
the population as the above must critically examine few genuine
factors (1) What is their population strength in that region?(2)How
many commercial establishements they own?(3)How many production units
do they own(4) How many people are employed by these group(5) Since
how yers this establishement is running (6) What is the capital
employed out of that how much is his/herown and what is the quantum is
the bank borrowing (70 Since how many years it is successfully running
(9)How much sales tax and centralExcise duty anually being aid by
these units (1) Lastly the education of their children and employment.
With out verifying these factors it is illogical to classify as back
ward.Just because a person is borne in a SC/ST/OBC family he/she must
not be deemed back ward.The living condition and their economic
position must be the criteria to term them as scstobc etc Dated 08th
sEptmebr 2008 tIme 0357 HRs ist AM
[8 Sep, 2008 0358hrs IST]
sourojit bhowmick,USA,says:and they still need quota !!!!!!!!????
[8 Sep, 2008 0350hrs IST]
Monawwar Alam,Saudi Arabia, Dammam,says:Central and States govts have
totally ignored muslims in govt jobs and business also. Really it is
the dishonest role of the governments with the country.
[8 Sep, 2008 0313hrs IST]
...and I am Sid Harth
OBC job share plunges to 5% in 13 yrs of quota
Dhananjay Mahapatra, TNN 15 October 2007, 01:31am IST
NEW DELHI: In 1990, other backward classes claimed 12.55% of
government jobs. But 13 years after the government created a 27% quota
in their favour
in 1994, the OBC share in jobs has, in fact, plunged — to an alarming
5.21%.
The figure emerged from the documents submitted by the Centre to the
Supreme Court during arguments on anti-quota PILs challenging the
validity of the Central Educational Institutions (Reservation in
Admissions) Act, 2006.
To buttress its case for 27% for OBCs in colleges and universities,
the Centre argued that educational empowerment was needed to ensure
that OBCs could avail more employment opportunities and increase their
presence from a mere 5.2%.
The argument looked fine till the figures were compared with those
projected by the Mandal Commission in its report to the government in
1990. According to the report, OBCs in government employment
constituted 12.55% of the total employees at that point of time.
Sid Harth
India Inc explores quota options
TNN 16 November 2006, 01:37am IST
NEW DELHI: In a bid to keep at bay the threat of imposition of job
quotas for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in the private
sector, India Inc
on Wednesday said it would start rolling out affirmative action
initiatives over the next few weeks.
While not making it evident what its next moves would be, government
made it clear that it was open to legislate if companies did not
fulfil their commitments on affirmative action. Besides, it wants to
know how the steps proposed would result in affirmative action —
whether the bar was being brought down for SCs and STs in jobs or how
many more people would become employable due to the training programme
that the chambers intend to start.
"The legal option is always open if companies do not fulfil their
commitments. The government will look at all options to ensure a
balance between the industry's concerns and the need for social
justice," commerce & industry minister Kamal Nath said minutes after
industry chambers presented their case before a high-level official
panel.
The possibility of quotas is fraught with political and legal risks,
but the current over-heated reservation debate ranging from education
to jobs may well have seen Indian business not wanting to take risks
and it was quick to offer skill enhancement initiatives.
Industry chambers said that they were willing to accept a mutually-
agreed code of conduct which would bind members to provide employment
opportunities to members of the SC and ST communities and also take
steps to raise their employability. Companies which do not comply with
the code can be penalised. The penalty will be left to the chambers.
"But we have not decided either way," said industry secretary Ajay
Dua, who heads the panel.
Industry captains said they were willing to take steps like training
SCs and STs to be eligible for jobs, besides giving scholarships and
hiring them. They have also submitted a time-bound programme which
they intend to take up.
"Industry has made it very clear that it is against reservation or
quotas. Legislation will be counter-productive since our energy will
be diverted in totally different areas," said J J Irani, chairman of
CII Affirmative Action Council, after the two-hour meeting.
Industry chambers said that the government should watch the progress
for some time before deciding on the next course of action. The
chambers want to meet PM Manmohan Singh after six months to apprise
him of the results in a bid to convince the government that quotas are
not the only way to go about the task of providing employment and job
opportunities for SCs & STs.
Ficci, for instance, has suggested that it will step up work on
vocational training and upgradation of ITIs to raise employment of SCs
and STs. It has also suggested setting up bridge schools, where those
who have missed out on a few years of education can be brought up to a
certain level.
Sid Harth
Maya promises 30% reservation in private sector
TNN 24 December 2007, 01:01am IST
BANGALORE: Reiterating her support to provide quota for SC/ST and
other backward communities in the private sector, UP chief minister
Mayawati made
a beginning by earmarking 30% of private sector jobs in the state. "We
plan to extend it to the whole country if we come to power," she told
BSP’s Communal Harmony Convention at Palace Grounds in Bangalore on
Sunday.
Under this system, Scheduled Castes will get 10% reservation, OBCs and
backward minorities 10% and poor among upper castes 10%. "We’ll
introduce this system in Karnataka if we are voted to power," she
added.
Mayawati also said Dalits who convert to Christianity should not be
deprived of reservation benefits. "I have written several letters to
the Centre, but it has failed to act," Mayawati added.
The UP government’s website notes that Mayawati launched the
‘Voluntary reservation arrangement in private sector in Uttar Pradesh’
on August 10, 2007. Under the scheme, any industrial project that
seeks land or state assistance should make a voluntary commitment to
provide reservations. The applicants get jobs on a contract basis.
bademiyansubhanallah
Health services in KBK bear the brunt of Naxalite attack
17 Aug 2009, 2039 hrs IST, Nageshwar Patnaik, ET Bureau
The growing influence of Naxalites in the tribal dominated districts
in Orissa over the last few years has taken a severe toll on health
services.
Health services – both in public and private sectors in South Orissa
and other affected pockets - have borne the brunt of Naxalite attacks,
and increasingly so since 2000, defying the CPI (Maoist)’s ideology
that seeks to target the state for not sharing the fruits of
development with the “have-nots.”
Although the Maoists have not attacked any health establishments so
far, frequent roads blockades, ambushes on police parties and threats
to government officials in the affected districts have left delivery
of health services in a lurch.
Of the 965 doctor posts lying vacant, nearly 75% belong to the
undivided KBK districts (Koraput-Bolangir-Kalahandi). Besides, 102
pharmacist and more than one thousand para-medical posts are lying
vacant in those areas.
The eight undivided districts of Kalahandi, Bolangir and Koraput are
universally known as the most backward regions in India. After the
reorganizations of districts in Orissa in the early 1990s, these three
districts were divided into eight districts, - Kalahandi, Nuapada,
Bolangir, Sonepur, Malkangiri, Koraput, Gajapati, and Nabarangpur. Of
the 80 revenue blocks, there is only one block which is developed,
three blocks developing, 28 backward and 49 blocks are most backward.
Legislators cutting across party lines and officials admit that most
of the doctors and para-medics produced by the state-run medical
colleges are shying away from serving in the tribal dominated KBK
region because of security concern even as the state government has
offered them attractive pay packages and incentives.
In the remote Malkangiri district, which is nearly 650 km from here,
some Primary Health Centres (PHCs) and Community Health Centres (CHCs)
– as local MLAs said in the recently concluded budget session of the
Assembly – are run by staff nurses with the help of peons and
sweepers.
Kashipur, Narayanpatna, Bandhugaon and Laxmipur blocks in Rayagada
district; Kalimela, Balimela and Chitrakonda areas in Malkangiri
district present a sorry picture; - nearly 80 PHCs in the two
districts have no doctors. The situation in Kalahandi and Bolangir
districts is no better. People walk miles carrying their sick
relatives in bamboo baskets to get them treated at district
headquarters due bad road network and absence of doctors at nearby
hospitals.
The Union Government’s flagship health programme – National Rural
Health Mission (NRHM), which has greatly contributed to improvement of
health services in coastal pockets, remain a virtual non-starter in
Naxal-affected pockets due to frequent unrests.
State health minister Prasanna Acharya, while making a candid
admission in the House that delivery of health services still remained
unorganized, said that the his department was making efforts to
provide minimum healthcare facilities to the people in KBK areas at
their doorstep through NRHM programme and mobile health units.
The Naxalite strikes on security targets in KBK districts have
progressively grown in recent years. Among these, communication towers
were the most targeted this year. Till now there have been six attacks
between January 1 and July 30. Railways came second with four
extremist strikes so far this year on its infrastructure and
properties in Sundergarh and Keonjhar.
Mines, which are abound in the Naxal-infested areas of Keonjhar,
Sundergarh, Dhenkanal and Jajpur, have also been attacked over the
years, though no attack has been reported yet in 2009. The last two
years saw several incidents of Naxal violence targeted at crusher
units and mineral traders in Jajpur and Keonjhar districts.
Railways are a favoured target, given its vast network and
infrastructure and the practical difficulties involved in protecting
the same. Railway properties have seen nearly a dozen attacks since
2000.
Sources in the state home department said that this is mainly on
account of the vulnerability of the towers due to their location in
remote areas, making their protection difficult.
Essar Groups properties in Malkangiri have been consistently targeted
over the last three years. Essar Pipelines have been hit by the
Maoists twice in Chhattisgarh and four times in Orissa in the first
half of 2009, as against three and one attacks in Chhattisgarh in 2008
and 2007, respectively.
http://www.mynews.in/fullstory.aspx?storyid=23775
What CMs seek from Dr Singh
(Agencies) Contact Reporter E-MAIL This Story PRINT This Story
Publication Date 17/8/2009 9:02:40 PM(IST)
The Centre on Monday observed that the gravity of the threat of
terrorism was undiminished and that the nation could not afford to
lower its guard. Chief Ministers of various states have come up with
their separate wish-lists. Here is a look at what they are asking
for.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati claimed that the Centre was
contemplating direct deployment of its forces in states facing long-
term law and order problems and termed it as a '''matter of concern'.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati
"It seems the Centre is considering a right to directly deploy
security forces in states. Similarly, the Centre is considering direct
intervention in states which face long-term problem of law and order,"
she said. Mayawati said the Constitution gave vast rights to the
Centre in relation to state governments. "But if the Centre gets the
right to deploy security forces directly,
it will be able to interfere in state matters without responsibility,"
she said.
Mayawati said, "The Centre should consider a special package for Naxal-
hit areas for their all round development". She also demanded more
seats for UP police personnel in central training agencies to deal
with situations like terror attacks. "Specialised training for
commandos, bomb squads and intelligencepersonnel are not available in
states and we have to depend on the central government," she added.
On the drought-like situation in the state, she said the request for a
Rs 7.789-crore package forwarded to the Agriculture Ministry should be
approved at the earliest. Maywati also said the Centre has remained
undecided on the Rs 3.866-crore package for the development of
Bundelkhand region and demanded an early decision.
Yeddyurappa wants a Commando Training Centre
Karnataka sought Centre's assistance for establishing a full-fledged
Commando Training Centre in the state as also meeting the expenditure
on police personnel involved in coastal security and anti-terrorist
cells.
Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa said his government was contemplating
establishing a Commando Training Centre to cater to the training needs
of coastal security police, anti-naxal force, anti-terrorist cell and
Quick Reaction Teams.
He said the Centre must consider bearing or at least sharing the
burden of expenditure on police personnel for coastal security and
anti-terrorist cells and the Modernisation of Police Force scheme
needs should continue at least for five more years.
Thanking the Centre for agreeing to deploy Rapid Action Force whenever
they are sought, the chief minister said it would be of great help if
one Company of RAF was stationed in Bangalore itself.
He said his government had already requested for three Indian Reserve
Battalions to the state, one ITBP battalion at Belgaum, 18 coastal
check-posts and 33 outposts on the Karnataka coast, two helicopters
and increase in the IPS cadre strength by 30 officers.
Naveen Patnaik wants NSG training for police
Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik asked the Centre to provide at
least 10 trainers of the elite National Security Guard to train the
state police personnel in tackling left wing extremists.
"The police has to undergo specialised commando training to tackle
urban terrorism. I would request the Union Home Minister to make
available at least 100 personnel, including 10 trainers of the NSG to
our state," he said.
Statistics show that in the first half of 2009, there has been a 47
per cent increase in the number of naxal-related incidents in the
country as a whole and 57 per cent in the number of deaths of security
personnel.
Patnaik also said the announcement of 15 per cent incentive to the
personnel of all ranks in special branch and 30 per cent incentive to
those working in the special intelligence for dealing with naxal
intelligence has resulted positive response among police personnel in
the Biju Janata Dal-ruled state.
"Since January 2009, we have added more than 5,000 new recruits to the
Police force. Besides more than 2700 vacancies have been filled up by
way of promotions. We are now targeting to recruit another 10,000 more
by the end of this year, he said.
Reddy seeks funds to boost infrastructure in the interiors
Claiming that Andhra Pradesh has been successful in reducing Maoist
aggression, Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy sought Centre's help
in creating proper infrastructure in interior areas for developmental
work in places that were earlier affected.
Identifying Left-wing extremism and LeT-related terrorism as major
threats to security, he said the Government has "very effectively"
handled both the issues.
"The strategy of Andhra Pradesh has been successful in reducing Maoist
aggression in spite of the fact that they are quite active across the
state's borders," Reddy said.
On LeT-related terrorism, he said a lot of capacity building is
required as investigators of terrorist crimes must have knowledge of
trafficking in arms and ammunition, drug trafficking, fake currency
and hawala operations.
"Hence, these officers require training from IB and also from the
Serious Organised Crime Agency of the UK or Homeland Security Agency
of the US," Reddy said, adding operational intelligence from IB and
state intelligence departments have to be shared on real time basis.
Noting that the 'best weapon to overcome militancy is to win the
hearts of people by development', he listed initiatives of his
government in areas earlier infested with naxal menace and also steps
taken to deal with terrorism.
He also said six Marine Police stations have been set up in the first
phase of the Coastal Security Scheme and lamented that the
infrastructure is "meagre". He said the personnel were yet to be
equipped with speedboats and other gadgets.
Dhumal seeks enhanced funds for police modernisation
Himachal Pradesh sought enhanced funds from the Centre for police
modernisation and strengthening its intelligence wing to tackle rising
crime.
"Himachal Pradesh had been historically a very peaceful state...there
has never been any issue of communal disharmony and internal security.
However, this is fast changing. Crimes and security related issues are
no longer confined to the borders of the state," said Chief Minister
Prem Kumar Dhumal, while making case for more funds from the Centre.
He said the allocation under police modernization scheme must be
enhanced from Rs 10 crore to Rs 46 crore to meet the gap. "We have
submitted the proposal of Rs 30 crore to strengthen the intelligence/
CID wing," he added.
Expressing difficulty in maintaining IR Battalions, which were
sanctioned last year, Dhumal asked the Centre to meet at least 50 per
cent cost of establishment for next four years.
"Being a special category state, cost of infrastructure may be shared
on 90:10 basis between Centre and the state, and if it is not possible
it should be on the lines of police modernisation scheme for "B"
category states that is on 75:25 basis," he said.
Dhumal also demanded reimbursement of full expenditure incurred on the
security provided to the Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama and his
setup at Dharamshala.
Provide I-Cards in border districts, says Uttarakhand CM
Uttarakhand Chief Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank suggested that the
Centre should start the National Identity Card scheme in the border
districts to check increase in illegal immigration and set up a
Mountain Security Force.
"The scheme of National Identity Card should be started in the
districts located on the international borders and should gradually be
implemented in the whole country. The time has come to implement this
scheme on a priority basis," he said.
Pokhriyal also demanded formation of a Mountain Security Force, on the
lines of Coast Guards, in his state, which shares international
borders with China and Nepal. "In view of the challenges posed by
Naxals and terrorists the Centre is requested to take prompt action in
this regard," he said.
He claimed that several projects for the BJP-ruled state like
construction of roads, bridges and hydel projects were pending
clearance from the Environment and Forest Ministry. Pokhriyal also
asked the government to provide adequate funds for the Mahakumbh to be
held at Haridwar in 2010.
Chauhan rues inadequate funds from centre for internal security
Chief Minister of Bharatiya Janata Party-ruled Madhya Pradesh, Shivraj
Singh Chouhan, accused the Centre of not providing "adequate support"
to the state government in strengthening the security mechanism.
"The state government had recommended a proposal of Rs 120 crore with
an assurance that the state share of the scheme shall be made
available. However, an allocation of only Rs 50 crore has been made.
It is unfortunate that adequate funds have still not been made
available to our state," he said.
Chouhan said, "While the state has made efforts to strengthen the
mechanism of maintaining internal security within the available
resources, we have not received adequate support from the Central
government on the requests made by us from time to time."
Terming the present legal provision for the maintenance of internal
security as 'inadequate', the Chief Minister also sought early
approval to Madhya Pradesh Control of Terrorism, Unlawful Activities
and Organised Crime Bill passed by the state assembly.
Kerala seeks quick action on terror-related cyber crimes
With terror-related cyber crimes having international links, Kerala
asked the Centre to develop protocols with countries having a large
Indian population for quick exchange of information.
It also suggested that states should develop special wings to keep a
tab on their residents indulging in suspicious activities in other
states as well as those coming from outside.
Addressing the Conference on Internal Security on behalf of Kerala
Chief Minister V S Achutanandan, Home Minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan
said increasing anti-national elements were using digital technology
and most of the terror-related cyber crimes have an international
link.
"But complications arising from international law prevent both
effective, immediate responses as well as the tracing of original
source. An act, which is a crime here, may not be a crime abroad. It
is very much necessary that, at least in terror-related crimes,
protocols are developed in international community and with countries
having large Indian population about immediate exchange of information
on such crimes at the request of state police forces," he said.
Nitish seeks security audit along Indo-Nepal border
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar said there is an urgent need for a
security audit along the state's border with Nepal to check
infiltration, smuggling of narcotics and fake currency.
"We have a long 726 km porous border with Nepal. You are very well
aware of the political turmoil and recent activities in that country.
These give rise to serious and genuine concerns," he said.
"We have problems of illegal infiltration, smuggling of narcotics,
fake currency, human trafficking, criminal and other activities. There
is urgent need for a security audit along our borders with Nepal," he
said.
Kumar said there is a strong case for increasing the number of border
outposts for strengthening and fortification of border outposts for
quick building of border roads, integrated check posts at the border
and for joint survey of international boundary by teams from both
countries.
He also said that in the name of security "we should not loose sight
of human rights and civil rights."
Stressing that there should be maintenance of regular flow of All
India Service Officers from the states to the Centre and vice-versa
especially of the IPS officers, he said otherwise there would be
lopsided concentration on one side.
Maharashtra CM seeks funds to fight terror, Naxalism
Facing a threat from both urban and Naxal terrorism, Maharashtra
demanded over Rs 500 crore from the Centre for projects to strengthen
and upgrade its capabilities to fight the menace.
"Maharashtra is under threat from urban terrorism on the west and Left
wing terrorism on the East," Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan
said.
Listing his various demands, Chavan sought Rs 100 crore for upgrading
and setting up training institutions such as anti-Naxal training
academy Alpha Hawks at Nagpur and Urban terrorism Institute at Pune.
Demanding choppers for carrying out aerial surveillance, he said,
"Given the length of the coastline, two helicopters having day and
night flying capability may be provided to us for conducting aerial
patrolling".
Seeking approval of Rs two crores for strengthening and equipping the
Maharashtra Intelligence Academy at Pune and another Rs 23 crore for
strengthening the State Intelligence set-up, Chavan demanded committed
funding by the Centre for a five-year project to improve the Police
Population ration in Maharashtra and grants for maintenance and
replacement for equipment purchased under Modernisation of Police
Forces programme for 10 more years.
On the security of 1,845 vital installations in the state, Chavan said
that Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Tarapur and oil installations were
perennially on terror radar and security audits have been conducted
following which Mumbai Police was discussing plans to upgrade the
security of private establishments also.
Referring to steps taken by the state government to prevent 26/11-like
attacks, the Maharashtra chief minister said that an elite anti-terror
force named 'Force One' has been raised along with the creation of
Quick Response Teams and Anti terrorist Squad has been strengthened to
be able to "effectively respond to any critical situation".
© 2008 mynews.in
bademiyansubhanallah
Himachal seeks central assistance to strengthen police infrastructure
Aug 17th, 2009 | By NVO Bureau | Category: Himachal, News
New Delhi: Himachal Pradesh Government today requested the Centre to
provide liberal financial assistance for strengthening the
infrastructure of Police organization in the State. Speaking on the
Chief Ministers Conference in internal security in Vigyan Bhawan, New
Delhi today, State Forest Minister J.P. Nadda, who attended the
meeting on behalf of Chief Minister, requested the Centre to sanction
Rs. 30-crore for strengthening intelligence network in the State.
He also requested the Centre to provide full amount to the State
Government on account of expenditure incurred on security related
activities in the State and told that State was spending Rs. 12-crore
annually on security related expenditure but Centre was only providing
Rs. 2.80-crore under this scheme to the State Government. He requested
for one time enhancement of Rs. 46- crore central assistance for
modernisation of police forces in the State and told that at present
the Central Government was providing Rs. 10-crore annual allocations
for modernisation of the police forces.
Forest Minister thanked the Union Government for sanctioning 3 IRB
battalions for the State during last one year and requested the Centre
to share the expenditure cost on 90 :10 basis. He told that at present
Union Government was providing 50% cost of infrastructure during one
year within prescribed ceiling and requested the Centre to bear 50%
cost for next four years also as recurring cost of maintaining these
battalions was substantial high during first five years. He told that
State was contemplating raising of a new Industrial Security Force on
the pattern of Central Industrial Security Force and requested the
Central Government to provide liberal financial assistance to the
State for raising the new force. He told that State has porous
interstate border stretching over 1100 kms with J&K, Punjab, Haryana,
Uttar Pradesh and Uttrakhand besides 200 kms international border with
China. He informed that State Government was putting its best efforts
to check cross border infiltrations of terrorists for past two decades
and had been quite successful in this direction.
He told that Quick Response Teams and Special Interventions Units had
been set up at district and range levels and told that Special Action
Group had been created in CID wing to tackle any terrorists activity.
He told that one team each of Special Action Group had been stationed
at Shimla and Dharamshala and added that Special Cells comprising of
intelligence and operations on the pattern of Anti Terrorism Squad had
been positioned in the CID wing of the Police. He told that in order
to check economic offences and corruption, a separate Vigilance and
Anti Corruption Bureau headed by Director General of Police had been
set up in the State. He told that 15 new Police Stations had been
created in the State during last two years and added that women police
personnel had been posted in each Police Station and special care has
been taken to provide mobility and communication to the police force.
He told that State had prepared a security plan for all the important
places of worship, historical monuments and iconic installations and
added that necessary security had been provided to all important
installations in the State.
bademiyansubhanallah
Naxal ops ahead, Govt begins to pull out paramilitary forces from J&K
Posted: Monday , Aug 10, 2009 at 0902 hrs
New Delhi:
Following successful completion of the Amarnath Yatra in Jammu and
Kashmir, the government has started the process of withdrawing a few
thousand paramilitary personnel from the state, to be deployed in
Naxalism-hit areas where a major offensive is being planned towards
the end of the year.
Sources said four CRPF battalions will be pulled out of J&K over the
next few days, and sent for six weeks’ training before being deployed
in Chhattisgarh. A few battalions are also being pulled out of North-
eastern states like Tripura for redeployment in Maoist areas.
J&K is being compensated by an India Reserve battalion of the Haryana
Police, which has already reached the state. A re-distribution of
force deployment — including both the armed forces and paramilitary
forces — will be carried out to cover for any remaining deficiencies
so that ongoing operations in the state are not adversely affected,
sources said.
Other paramilitary organisations like the BSF and ITBP have also been
asked to contribute a few battalions for the planned operation against
the Naxals. It is learnt that four battalions of the BSF and two
battalions of ITBP have been identified and told to prepare
themselves. Nagaland Police is expected to contribute two battalions
for the operations.
Sources said the initial assessment was that 25 additional battalions
drawn from various organisations would be needed — but with most
paramilitary organisations over-worked, not more than 15 battalions
could be arranged.
The operation has been put off by a month to take into account
assembly elections in Maharashtra and Haryana in October. A decision
on holding elections in Jharkhand at the same time is likely to be
taken soon. The operation is likely to begin after the polls — some
time in November. However, selective strikes in Maharashtra and border
areas of Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand are expected before that, sources
said.
Comments
6 Comments |
How to persuade the Naxals
By: Deepak Ghosh | Tuesday , 11 Aug '09 16:50:03 PM
In India this is biggest problem of the gap between the rich and the
poor. for example U.P Govt is spending crores on putting up statues of
mayawati. Huge money is drained.Our political leaders at the grass
root level must go to the tribals and solve their problems. Naxalism
is born out of poor peaseants.If our society take care of them the
problem of Naxals will vanish. Nobody wants to loose their life.
Everybody want to live a decent life. So what,can,t our political
bosses who drinks bottled waters and live in air conditioned with
security,provide these very poor people of this county their basis
needs. Work only for the poor and forget the castism, then only this
country will progress and prosper.
Aug.15th approaching
By: Indian | Monday , 10 Aug '09 12:16:51 PM
Madam clinton's visit tro India is successfull since US have finally
won pressurisng our week PM.Aug.15th is approaching
Naxalism is not only political but social and economic problem
By: Raghav | Monday , 10 Aug '09 12:11:24 PM
As a long term solution to the problem I dont think use of force can
play a very major role. However such focussed operations can be useful
for getting the naxalites to talk. Naxalites are able to persuade
tribals to join them because of worsening condition of tribals and the
increasing gap between the rich and the poor. Their numbers have now
reached levels where launching a full scale military operation against
them can lead to prolonged tension in the area. However it has become
a need of the hour as an immediate response to their activities.
However government should focus more on upliftment of tribals by
trying to understand their way of life and ensuring that the huge
funds disbursed from the central budget for these states actually
reach the poor. Naxalites will automatically loose ground if they
loose their support base.
Shortage !
By: chanakya | Monday , 10 Aug '09 11:59:55 AM
While there is no dearth for political leaders and their props in this
country, I think there is real shortage of security personnel. Instead
of pulling out forces from one end to other, Govt must increase the
numbers and meet various threats emerging. The sweet talk of human
rights and democracy may not always ensure full security for the
Nation.
Troop withdrawal from J
By: Rajesh Vyas | Monday , 10 Aug '09 11:08:46 AM Reply | Forward
Let us hope that this is not the way of the union Government to
succumb to the pressures of the Seaparatists as well as the National
Conference to reduce troops in Kashmir. Doing so will mean giving a
free hand to the Terrorists and the violent separatists. Under no
circumsatances should we lower our guard in Kashmir. No mateer where
the pressure comes from--Mehbooba Mufti, Mufti Mohammed Syed OR OMAR
AND FAROOQ ABDULLAH. Let be very wary of the Ksahmiri
Politicians!!!!!!
Its not too late.
By: Ishani Chakravorty | Monday , 10 Aug '09 10:37:36 AM
I think our adminitration should closely follow what is happenning in
Nigeria and the presidential pardon for guerrilas of the Movement for
Emancipation of the Niger Delta and see if something akin can be
evolved for the Red menace in India. A strong government is a boon for
a country (America for instance) whereas weak governments are breeding
grounds for NGOs (like in most African countries) India is in the
middle path right now atleast with reference to the Naxal problem. A
multi pronged strategy is the only answer getting experts of Peace
Studies, Ngos and the paramilitary forces to act in cohesion.After all
rehabilitating the completely marginalised,insurgents and criminals
into civil society though not impossible is a very daunting task for
the administration and it should be carried out with patience and
precision.
Sid Harth
No inputs to suggest Naxalite-ISI links: Govt
TNN 16 December 2008, 09:46pm IST
|
NEW DELHI: In the dock for its inability to control Naxal violence,
which has spread its tentacles to 13 states, the government sought to
lay responsibility on state governments for their lack of will in
addressing the problem. The Centre also denied that it had information
related to the links between Pakistan's ISI and Naxal movement.
"There are no inputs to suggest that the Naxals have established links
with the ISI," Sriprakash Jaiswal, minister of state for home, said in
Lok Sabha on Tuesday.
Parliamentarians expressed concern over the lack of cohesive action on
the part of the Centre. Congress MP Naveen Jindal said 13 states were
affected, 200 security personnel were killed and nearly 1,500
incidents took place every year, and the Centre needed to reconsider a
way to tackle the problem.
CPM's Mohammed Saleem pointed out that 80% incidents had taken place
in the states of Orissa, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Bihar and West
Bengal.
Replying to the queries, Jaiswal said the Centre was taking steps to
check the Naxal menace, which had emerged as a threat to national
security.
The government will raise 10 Commando Battalions for Resolute Action
(COBRA) in the CRPF as a specialised anti-Naxal force, Jaiswal said.
In a written reply to another question, Jaiswal said the government
was further strengthening and streamlining the mechanisms for
intelligence gathering and sharing with a view to make them more
effective and result-oriented.
Steps were also being taken for modernisation and upgrading of state
police forces and their intelligence branches and providing modern
weaponry, equipment and training to them, he added.
As many as 217 security personnel and 441 civilians were killed in
Naxal violence and action against them till November 30. Over 1,435
incidents of Naxal violence were reported this year till November 30,
Jaiswal said, adding that 1,536 Naxalites were arrested in the same
period.
Sid Harth
Raman sees pro-naxal bias, wants Centre to respond
Aarti Dhar
NEW DELHI: Accusing a “section of media” of “eulogising naxalism,”
Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh on Monday asked the Centre to
“evolve a multi-pronged media strategy to counter such propaganda at
the national and international level.
Without going into specifics, Dr. Singh said in his speech to the
Chief Ministers’ conference on internal security that “some people
from Delhi and abroad come to Raipur and stage protests against our
anti-naxal operations.” He said the local media in Chhattisgarh have
been “far more sensitive to this issue and have done objective
reporting” but others “eulogise naxalism without knowing [the] true
character and nature of [the] naxal movement.”
Though he stopped short of suggesting a media gag, the Chhattisgarh
Chief Minister implicitly linked the reporting by a “section of the
media” to his claim that “naxals have been successful in their
propaganda in Delhi and in international cities” and urged the Centre
to come up with a strategy to counter this “while upholding the
cherished fundamental right of freedom of expression.”
“[The banned Maoist insurgents] have not got much success at the State
level because the people and media of these areas are well aware about
the true nature of this movement,” he said.
Following the filing of a PIL, the Raman Singh government was
criticised by the Supreme Court and National Human Rights Commission
for the Salwa Judum counter-insurgency campaign in which civilians
have been provided weapons and tens of thousands displaced.
The Chief Minister said the Mumbai attacks were witnessed by the
entire nation through the media but “when tribals fall prey to naxal
violence and are massacred, it never generates that degree of sympathy
across the nation.”
Dr. Singh said naxalism was now bereft of any ideological moorings and
was purely a conglomeration of criminal elements who had neither faith
in democracy nor in the Constitution. They want to capture remote
forest areas by violent means so as to exploit them to the fullest.
“Naxalism has now become synonymous with terrorism,” he said while
seeking to categorise naxal menace as a national disaster so that the
affected persons could get relief from the National Disaster Relief
Fund.
Welcoming Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s initiative to issue special
identity cards to every citizen of the country, the Chhattisgarh Chief
Minister said it was surprising that despite having no international
boundary, infiltration from Bangladesh into many cities of the State
was becoming a major concern.
“I think the expeditious implementation of special identity card
scheme would go a long way in checking infiltration from Bangladesh
and other countries,” he added.
Sid Harth
Naxal letter helps PC drive home point
18 Aug 2009, 0141 hrs IST, Vishwa Mohan, TNN
NEW DELHI: A Naxalite document, retrieved by security forces from an
ultra’s laptop in Jharkhand last month, came in handy for home
minister P
Chidambaram on Monday to drive home the point that the Maoists’
threats had become deadly.
Giving an insight into how Naxalites try to motivate their cadre, the
14-page document not only carries the ultras’ counter-plan to take on
security forces but also appeals to its sympathisers to utlise “the
worst-ever economic crisis” to build up their cadre. Interestingly, it
drew its inspiration not only from Maoists in Nepal and China but also
from Hamas in Gaza, Hizbollah in Lebanon and Taliban in Afghanistan
and Pakistan’s Swat Valley and FATA.
Citing the document at the conference of chief ministers on internal
security, Chidambaram said, “Anyone reading that document will have no
illusion about the nature and gravity of the threat.” The document
titled ‘Post-Election Situation — Our Tasks’ was brought out by the
CPI (Maoist) politburo on June 12.
It had sent the document (with its Hindi, Telugu and Bengali
translations) to all central committee members of the Red ultras.
Security agencies got the document when they arrested some ultras in
Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Orissa in July.
Sensing the urgency of stepping up its armed struggle, CPI (Maoist) in
its document expressed the need to recruit new members, train cadre,
build new leadership, enthuse them with daring counter-offensives
carried out by the ultras, mobilise them into militant mass struggles
and also to “take up wide propaganda exposing state terror” with the
help of their sympathisers and civil society.
The politiburo also put detailed analysis of the parliamentary
election results in the document, saying how the result shows the
common people rejected all political parties and the so-called
“economic reforms” of the Centre as well as states like West Bengal.
Taking a dig at West Bengal, it said, “One cannot differentiate
Buddhadeb’s government in the state with a Congress or a BJP
government in any other state in the matter of neo-liberal reforms.
An official said, “The document is certainly an eye-opener. It gives
an insight into how the ultras have been motivating their cadres
against the state forces. There is now a need on the part of the
government as well to launch counter-propaganda against the naxalites
who are killing innocent civilians across the country.”
Sid Harth
Fight Naxals as a unit: CM
;Statesman News Service
BHUBANESWAR, 17 AUG: Chief minister Mr Naveen Patnaik stressed on
effective training and strengthening of Intelligence network to combat
the growing Left-wing extremism. A joint effort by the Centre and
states is needed to root out this menace, he said.
Addressing the conference of chief ministers on internal security at
New Delhi today, Mr Patnaik expressed concerned about the resurgence
of Left-wing Extremism in different parts of the state and underlined
the need to have trained police personnel to effectively face the
challenge.
He stressed on the need for resources for training and capacity
building of the police force and requested the Centre to assist Orissa
on a matching contribution basis under the police modernisation scheme
or any other new scheme.
The financial allocation under the police modernization scheme for
Orissa should be increased from the present level of Rs 42 crore to Rs
80 crore.
"The state government has already taken an in-principle decision to
set up a State Industrial Security Force on the lines of the CISF,"
said Mr Patnaik adding that the draft legislation is now under the
consideration of the government and is expected to be introduced in
the Winter Session of the Assembly later this year.
"The proposed force will be set up in a cost-sharing basis with the
participation of user agencies," he said.
While highlighting the state government’s efforts on building a
coastal security system with the operationalisation of all the five
coastal police stations sanctioned for the state, Mr Patnaik pleaded
for sanction of five more coastal police stations.
He also requested training of these police personnel by both coast
guard and Indian Navy as such facilities are not available with the
state government.
The chief minister also urged to augment funding for construction of
the police station buildings and barracks for accommodation of the
staff.
The chief minister suggested the Centre should consider providing some
additional assistance for infrastructure development under the
modernisation scheme. This is particularly required in the case of
police stations located in the Naxal-infested districts, he
maintained.
Referring to the steps taken by his government to fill up vacancies in
the force, he claimed that the state has recruited more than 5,000
policemen. About 2,700 vacancies have also been filled up by way of
promotion since the last chief ministers’ conference in January this
year and it is now planned to recruit another 10,000 personnel by the
end of this year, he said.
As part of initiative to bring tribal youth in the backward Naxal
affected districts to the mainstream, he informed that the state has
started a programme of recruiting the tribal youths as special police
officers (SPO) and after three years, they will be absorbed as regular
police constables. More than 2,000 persons have already been recruited
as trainee constables under the SPO scheme so far.
He informed that a crack commando force is also being set up to fight
the Left Wing Extremism.
bademiyansubhanallah
Singh warns country, pushes Pak
Rap on Assam, Manipur, Nagaland
- Chief ministers bond in capital
OUR SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT
New Delhi, Aug. 17: Assam, Manipur and Nagaland today drew flak from
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh who said the situation in these states
remained “problematic and worrisome”.
“Assam and Manipur account for a disproportionately large number of
violent incidents reported from the Nor-theast, with the latter’s
share being as high as 30 per cent,” Singh said while inaugurating the
chief ministers’ conference on internal security here.
Assam chief minister Tarun Gogoi’s government faced criticism from all
quarters. It was clear that the Centre was unhappy about the situation
exacerbated by outfits like the Dima Halam Daogah (Jewel) in North
Cachar Hills district as it posed hurdles to development in
neighbouring Manipur and Mizoram as well.
The criticism was levelled not only at control of insurgent groups but
also questioned the utilisation of hundreds of crores of rupees
granted to these states.
“In Assam, the Centre had sanctioned Rs 750 crore for development of
the Bodo areas. But the utilisation of these funds remains
unsatisfactory,” the Prime Minister said.
Singh asked Manipur chief minister Okram Ibobi Singh to put in place
appropriate mechanisms. In a lacklustre speech, Ibobi Singh kept
asking the Centre for help and sought a ban on pre-paid mobile phones
in the state to tackle militancy. His speech apparently did not cut
ice with the Prime Minister’s Office.
The Prime Minister also expressed concern over the resettlement and
rehabilitation of people affected by violence in the Bodo areas and in
North Cachar Hills of Assam.
After a rap from the Prime Minister, Gogoi’s speech did not reflect
his demeanour. “I am happy to state that because of the relentless
counter-insurgency operations by the security forces under the Unified
Command structure, violent activities of militant outfits have been
controlled to a large extent in the state in 2009 except in NC Hills,”
he said.
Immediately afterwards, however, Gogoi conceded that the pro-Ranjan
Daimary faction of the National Democratic Front of Boroland (NDFB)
had stepped up violent activities on the North Bank of the
Brahmaputra.
Home minister P. Chidambaram iterated that the Centre would talk to
any group only if it abjured violence, laid down arms and offered to
surrender. Like the Prime Minister, he, too, made no bones about his
disappointment on the performance of these states.
The home minister said he regretted to say that he could not report
much progress in the Northeastern states. He even made an oblique
reference to some state governments’ soft approach towards militants.
“At times, we find that some state governments have allowed themselves
to bend before insurgent groups, making the fight against insurgency
that much more difficult,” he said.
Recently, Nagaland chief minister Neiphiu Rio’s statement on
“emotional integration with Nagas in Myanmar” had raised eyebrows in
Delhi. While the statement seemed a tacit approval of the NSCN (I-M)’s
demand for integration of Naga areas, today Rio blamed the NSCN (I-M)
of hobnobbing with Harkat-ul Jehad-al Islami (Huji), a fundamentalist
group of Bangladesh.
Chidambaram will now hold discussions with the state governments and
chalk out state-specific strategies to deal with insurgent groups “in
the three most affected states”.
bademiyansubhanallah
PM tells NE states to develop proactive police, boost development
Updated on Monday, August 17, 2009, 16:02 IST Tags:Indian PM,
Northeast, Development, Police
New Delhi: Asking north-eastern states to develop a proactive police
force rather than relying on Central security forces, Prime Minister
Manmohan Singh Monday said the situation in Assam, Manipur and
Nagaland remains "problematic and worrisome".
"There is need in the Northeast for more emphasis on pro-active state
police forces rather than exclusive reliance on Central paramilitary
forces and Army. The resources for policing need to be enhanced
substantially," Singh said.
He said Assam and Manipur account for "disproportionately" large
number of violent incidents reported from the area with the latter's
share being as high as 30 per cent.
"Manipur has increased the number of sanctioned posts at the police
station level but a large number of them remain unfilled," the Prime
Minister said addressing the Chief Ministers' Conference on internal
security here.
Noting that Manipur is plagued by a large number of militant outfits,
he said, appropriate mechanisms were needed for increased
participation of people in developmental work.
Singh said all the states in the Northeast would do well to ensure
transparency in the recruitment of police and ensure representation of
all groups and communities in the force.
He asked the north eastern states to pay attention to implementation
of infrastructure projects.
Singh said Rs 750 crore have been sanctioned to Assam for development
of Bodo areas but utilisation of these funds was unsatisfactory and
was concerned over delay in resettlement and rehabilitation of those
hit by Bodo violence.
Bureau Report
bademiyansubhanallah
Assam, Manipur, Nagaland worrisome: PM
August 17th, 2009 - 2:21 pm ICT by IBNS -
New Delhi, Aug 17 (IBNS) Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Monday said
security remains a problem in North-eastern states-Assam, Manipur and
Nagaland.
“In the North East there is an overall improvement but the situation
in some states particularly in Assam, Manipur and Nagaland remains
problematic and worrisome. Assam and Manipur account for a
disproportionately large number of violent incidents reported from the
North East, with the latter’s share being as high as 30%,” said Singh
while inaugurating the Chief Ministers’ Conference on Internal
Security here.
Singh said despite allotting funds for development in Assam, the
amount is not ulitised properly.
“In Assam, the Centre had sanctioned an amount of Rs. 750 crore for
development of Bodo areas. But the utilization of these funds remains
unsatisfactory. The resettlement and rehabilitation of those affected
by the violence in the Bodo areas and North Cachar Hills is a matter
of concern.”
Saying that Manipur is plagued by a large number of militant outfits,
Singh said the government of Manipur needs to put in place appropriate
mechanisms for increased participation of people in developmental
projects.
“I would request the Chief Ministers of all the North Eastern States
to pay particular attention to the implementation of infrastructure
projects. There is also a need in the North East for more emphasis on
pro-active State police forces rather than exclusive reliance on the
Central Para Military Forces and Army. The resources for policing need
to be enhanced substantially.
“Manipur has increased the number of sanctioned posts at the police
station level but a large number of them remain unfilled. All the
States in the North East would do well to ensure the representation of
all groups and communities in their police forces and carry out
recruitment to these forces in a transparent manner,” Singh said.
bademiyansubhanallah
Centre to tackle naxalism with development, police action
Special Correspondent
“We will encourage States to talk to naxalites if they abandon armed
struggle”
Chidambaram calls for providing stable tenure to police officers
Recruit police personnel for 1.5 lakh vacancies, States told
NEW DELHI: Recalling Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s word of caution
that Left wing extremism posed the “single biggest internal security
challenge,” Home Minister P. Chidambaram on Monday said the Centre’s
two-pronged policy was clear — development and police action.
“However, the naxalites are anti-development and have targeted the
very instruments of development — school buildings, roads, telephone
towers. They know that development will wean the masses away,
especially the poor tribals, from the grip of naxalites. Hence, these
deliberate attacks on development activities,” he said.
Addressing the Chief Ministers’ Conference on Internal Security, he
said the government’s response would focus on police action to wrest
control of the territory dominated by naxalites, restoration of civil
administration and undertaking development activities.
“We will encourage the State governments to talk to the naxalites —
both individuals and local units — on condition that they give up
their misconceived ‘armed liberation struggle.’ Let our message to the
naxalites be this: we will talk; we will act; we will restore order;
and we will undertake developmental activities,” Mr. Chidambaram
said.
On the situation in the north-east, he said some State governments in
the region allowed themselves to bend before insurgent groups, making
the fight against insurgency much more difficult.
The States as well as the Centre shared an onerous responsibility to
ensure people’s welfare.
“You [Chief Ministers] have the constitutional power and
responsibility in respect of matters relating to ‘public order’ and
‘police.’ However, increasingly, jurists and the general public have
emphasised the constitutional duty of the Central government to
protect every State against internal disturbance,” he said.
Underlining the need for the Centre and State governments to work
together in a spirit of partnership, he said the conference could
demonstrate a resolve to overcome the challenges to internal security.
This was the second meeting of Chief Ministers on internal security
this year; the first one was held on January 6. Mr. Chidambaram
reminded the Chief Ministers that the entire nation was in a state of
shock, grief and anger in the aftermath of the 26/11 Mumbai terror
attacks.
“Role of police crucial”
Later, at a press conference, the Minister said he drew the Chief
Ministers’ attention to the central role of the police in meeting the
challenges to internal security and urged them to set up Police
Establishment Board and provide a stable and certain tenure to police
officers.
“How can an officer provide leadership if his or her tenure is
precarious and uncertain? The Police Establishment Board will, in no
way, diminish the authority of the Chief Minister or the Home
Minister. On the contrary, it will greatly help them in conveying the
message of fairness and non-discrimination.” The Chief Ministers could
always intervene in exceptional situations.
Mr. Chidambaram urged the State governments to recruit and begin
training police personnel at least to the extent of 1.5 lakh vacancies
before March 31, 2010. He also argued in favour of raising the
strength of police stations to at least 40 personnel.
He said the conference also discussed megacity policing and desert
policing and measures to improve police in these areas. More than any
other branch of government, it was the police that paid the highest
price in terms of human lives that were lost. “In the seven-and-half
months of 2009, as many as 303 men and women belonging to the police
and paramilitary forces have laid down their lives.”
Modernisation
The conference was unanimous in the demand that modernisation of the
police forces should continue for another five to 10 years and more
funds should be allocated to it.
There were groups across the border that plotted against India but it
did not mean that there was danger of an imminent terror attack. “We
must not lower our guard and we shall not lower our guard,” he
reiterated.
On the demand raised by Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi that the
Centre should clear the proposed Gujarat Control of Organised Crime
(GUJCOC) Bill, he said the provisions in it were contrary to the last
expression of mind of Parliament. “I cannot, therefore, recommend it
for Presidential assent,” he added.
bademiyansubhanallah
State told to beef up internal security
Express News Service First Published : 18 Aug 2009 12:19:00 AM ISTLast
Updated :
KOCHI: With the Centre deciding to launch an all-time high offensive
against the Leftwing extremists in the country by October, the Home
Department in Kerala has been asked to strengthen internal security to
prevent possible infiltration of extremists fleeing from Naxal-
infested states, mainly Andhra Pradesh.
Though Kerala does not figure in the Naxal watchlist, the Ministry of
Home Affairs wants it to maintain high alert on Naxal penetration
considering intelligence reports on the suspected movement of
prominent extremist leaders in the state.
Official sources said the State Home Department had been directed to
tighten surveillance as there will be a definite fleeing of Naxals to
the State before the launch of a counter-offensive.
“The extremists will not be in a position to defend an offensive of
the magnitude which the Centre will be launching in October. A large
force of trained personnel from the CRPF, the BSF, and the Indo-
Tibetan Border Police has been mobilised for the operation,” the
official said.
Home Minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, who attended the internal
security meeting convened by the Prime Minister, on his return from
Delhi is likely to call a meeting of top police officials in the state
to review the steps taken for improving both technical and human
intelligence to track the activities of extremists and antinationals
in the state.
A senior police official said the Home Minister was likely to discuss
the community policing scheme in the state as it had not delivered the
desired result. “Through the scheme, the police envisaged a close
coordination with the public targeting intelligence-gathering. But the
scheme has performed poorly in this regard,” the official added.
Sid Harth
Conference of Chief Ministers of Naxal-affected States held
16:19 IST
A meeting of Chief Ministers of some Naxal-affected States was held
here yesterday. It was chaired by the Union Home Minister, Shri
P.Chidambaram.
In his remarks at the meeting, the Union Home Minister said that
Naxalism poses a serious threat not only to national security, but
also to development in the affected areas as Naxalites have been
targeting vital infrastructure including roads, bridges, railways,
school buildings and communications and power networks. He said that
the menace has to be tackled resolutely and without losing any time.
Shri Chidambaram called upon the States to strengthen rural policing
by filling up vacancies and fortifying police stations.
Pointing out the importance of intelligence collection at the local
level, he urged the States to strengthen their intelligence set-up. He
expressed concern over under-utilization of the amounts made available
to some States under the Scheme for Security Related Expenditure,
Special Infrastructure Scheme, and Scheme for Modernization of State
Police Forces. The Union Home Minister called upon the States to frame
an attractive surrender and rehabilitation policy, put in place an
effective machinery for grievance redressal and take steps to stop the
flow of funds and supply of arms and ammunition to Naxals.
Taking part in the deliberations, the Chief Ministers gave an account
of the steps taken by them for fighting the Naxal menace. They sought
increased central assistance for training their forces in counter-
insurgency operations and for constructing roads of critical
importance. There was a consensus at the meeting on the strategy that
needs to be adopted for fighting Naxalism.
Sid Harth
Orissa cops face Naxals with battered battle gear
Jajati Karan / CNN-IBN
Published on Tue, Aug 18, 2009 at 07:52, Updated on Tue, Aug 18, 2009
at 08:43 in India section
UNEQUAL BATTLE: Orissa Police Special Operations jawans have fighting
Naxals in the jungles of Koraput.
Koraput (Orissa): Internal security has been arguably India's biggest
concern with Union Home Minister P Chidambaram and Prime Minister
Manmohan Singh discussing the plan to tackle Naxalism on Monday with
chief ministers of the states.
But for security forces the battle against Naxalites is proving to be
an uphill task.
In Orissa's Koraput district, the police personnel are fighting an
unequal battle against the Naxals. Even as the Naxal insurgency takes
on serious proportions, what is stalling the fight against them is the
dilemma on how to combat them.
Orissa Police Special Operations jawans have been on an anti-Naxal
combing operation in the jungles of Koraput, which is the epicentre of
the red menace in Orissa.
The jawans are facing Naxals without any bullet-proof vests, just
black bandanas to cover the head, battered rucksacks, AK-47 rifles and
acrylic sheet to sleep on.
The battle-gear of the state's crack anti-Naxal force does not even
have uniforms and shoes for all the jawans eve though police officers
admit that they are up against a very cunning enemy.
"Don't touch a banner, don't touch a bag. Never move towards a poster.
They are all booby traps," warns Koraput SP Deepak Kumar.
The jungles of Koraput have miles of uneven tracts and there is little
idea where the enemy is hiding.
There is no guarantee if the bullet fired during a gunbattle will find
the target and the prospect of getting killed is very real.
"We are shocked if our colleagues are killed," says commando Sunil
Dutt Singh.
At the Kakriguma Police Station about 22 kilometres from Koraput, the
station in-charge does not even have the uniform. The police station
has just a couple of rusted and battered jeeps, two tables, a rusting
battery to keep the wireless charged.
The policemen don't even keep weapons as they fear the Naxals will
snatch them.
Senior police officials admit that low morale is leading to
indiscipline.
"I admit associations act as a pressure group. Sometimes we have to
succumb to pressures while taking important decisions," says Kumar.
About 70 kilometres into Koraput is Narayanpatna where 100 metres from
the village market Naxals have put up a red flag to warn that the area
is controlled by them.
Tribals say developments programmes haven't reached them. They allege
there is corruption and inefficiency, which have become fertile soil
for the Naxals to harvest support.
The land tussle between tribals and non-tribals is making the
situation all the more complicated
Orissa's South-West Range DIG Sanjeeb Panda says that for a jawan
there is little difference between a poor tribal and a Naxalite.
"Once a Naxal removes his uniform and gun, he becomes a poor tribal.
Then the human rights issue becomes a challenge for us," says Panda
The abysmal state of facilities for the jawans, their low morale, the
complex local terrain and extreme backwardness are making the battle
against Naxalites an unequal one.
In the ongoing battle 133 jawans have been killed by Naxals in just
three districts of Orissa, against just 31 Naxals killed in
operations.
bademiyansubhanallah
Naxal-affected states agree to joint operations
STAFF WRITER 19:24 HRS IST
New Delhi, Aug 18 (PTI) In a major war against Maoist violence, seven
Naxal-affected states will soon launch a joint offensive along with
the centre.
A consensus to this effect emerged at a meeting of Chief Ministers of
Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Orissa, Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh, Jharkhand
Governor and a West Bengal representative, Home Ministry sources said
today.
These states have given their consent for a joint operation to be
launched soon, they said.
However, the date for launching the operation has not been finalised
and no decision has been taken whether to take Army assistance to
flush out the Naxals from deep jungles.
The scale of operation, coordination among the forces, training and
other details will be worked out by the security experts on the
ground, they said.
bademiyansubhanallah
The Naxal battle for fringe areas
The Naxal movement is designed for expansion. The Red Corridor will
not restrict itself only to a few States in Central India but will
eventually spread till the Nepal border and beyond into Uttarakhand
and other parts of Northern India.
CJ: swati Tue, Aug 18, 2009 12:11:14 IST
Views: 15 Comments: 0Rate: 0.0 / 0 votes naxalism in india
Naxal leader given week-long death anniversary THE SOUTHERN areas of
Orissa, southern and Central Chhattisgarh, Southern and Central
Jharkhand, Southern Bihar, Eastern Andhra Pradesh and Eastern
Maharashtra are the places that are at the centre of the Naxal
movement. These areas or at least some sections of these areas, are
more or less under the complete grip of Naxals, and no worthwhile
government initiative to develop or focus on these areas is
practically possible, owing to the ground situation and inertia of the
Indian State. Any overt government initiative to wean the populace
away from the Naxals in these areas could turn out be counter-
productive and impractical in the current context. Considerable effort
and time are required for this endeavour, and this kind of sustained
momentum has rarely been exhibited by the Indian state in its over 60-
year history.
The Naxal movement is designed for expansion. The Red Corridor will
not restrict itself only to these few States in central India but will
eventually spread till the Nepal border and beyond into Uttarakhand
and other under-developed parts of Northern India. Areas on the fringe
of the Naxal-affected areas are places which Naxals transit through,
conduct arms transfers, rest, and carry out propaganda for gaining
fresh recruits. These areas are most susceptible to expansion by the
Naxal movement since below par development are ideal grounds for the
Naxal movement to thrive.
In addition to this, there is an ethnic affinity in the fringe areas
and also constant movement of Naxal cadres. Poor deployment of
government forces and interlocked State borders for example in areas
South and East of Varanasi, where five State borders meet make co-
ordination and action by police or government agencies difficult. A
similar situation of susceptible fringe areas exists at Seoni and
Balaghat in MP, where the Naxal-affected areas of Chhattisgarh and
Maharashtra are very close by. Another area often missed out is
Eastern Uttarakhand which borders Nepal and which is also susceptible
to influences from across the porous border. This area is also under-
developed, and has limited security deployments. People of the area
have an ethnic affinity with Nepal and illiteracy and a host of other
factors make this fertile ground for the Naxal movement.
The race for winning these areas is already on with the Naxals making
rapid strides. What are the government or government-sponsored
organisations doing about this. Is it adequate? Are developmental
initiatives in these areas sufficient? Is the battle for the psyche of
the populace already being lost to the Naxals or is there a counter
being launched by the government? These fringe areas are the new
battlegrounds where the government and Naxals would eventually face-
off and clash in order to exercise control and influence over the
local population. Who is ahead in this race? Who will eventually win
depends on who acts faster and more proactively now.
The government tools are better security, administration and
development schemes. The tools in the hands of Naxals is an ideology
tailor-made for the oppressed masses, fear of the gun, and a messiah/
Robin Hood image. Which opium will work on the masses in the fringe
areas only time will give an answer to. Till then, as observers, we
have to wait in anticipation, for this answer will give the future of
the Naxal movement in India.
bademiyansubhanallah
'Proposal for ATS in Jharkhand underway'
STAFF WRITER 18:15 HRS IST
Ranchi, Aug 18 (PTI) Jharkhand government is working on an
"exhaustive" plan to set up its own Anti-Terrorist Squad under the
Criminal Investigation Department.
"We are planning to create separate ATS units under the state Criminal
Investigation Department for which the CID is preparing an exhaustive
proposal. We require support from the government of India on this
count," Jharkhand Governor K Sankaranarayanan said at the chief
ministers' conference on internal security held yesterday in Delhi.
Quick response teams have already been created in major urban centres
in the name of 'Jharkhand Jaguar' force with each team having bomb
detection and disposal squad.
"We, however, realised that the 'Jharkhand Jaguar' force has been
created with the principal aim of tackling naxalism (and) cannot be
apportioned to non-naxal duties for long," he said.
Sid Harth
Raman opposes pitching army against Naxals
19 Aug 2009, 0059 hrs IST, Bharti Jain, ET Bureau
NEW DELHI: The centre may have kept open the option of engaging the
Army, most probably Rashtriya Rifles, in counter-Naxal operations at
some point of time, but Chhattisgarh on Tuesday strongly opposed a
military solution saying it would only further alienate the people
against the State.
Speaking to ET a day after the chief ministers’ meeting on internal
security here, Chhattisgarh chief minister Raman Singh insisted that
the state police and civilian forces like CRPF and BSF were not only
well-equipped to deal with the Maoist extremists but also better
oriented to dealing with human aspect of the Naxalite problem.
Involving the Army, he suggested, would obviously mean a tougher and
surgical approach to eliminating the “enemy” Naxalites with military
precision, which could only add to the discontent and breed further
rebellion within the people’s militia.
“In any case, the state police and civilian forces of the Union such
as CRPF and BSF are enough to tackle the extremists...all we need is
the support of modern and precise technology to identify our targets
and map the approach routes,” Mr Singh pointed out.
According to Mr Singh, the Centre, by proposing to launch a major anti-
Maoist offensive across states, had only heeded a long-pending request
of his government for an integrated action plan to deal with a
national problem like Left-wing extremism.
Setting aside the piecemeal approach that required the affected states
to tackle the Naxalites on their respective soil, the Centre has now
decided to take the lead in a major counter-offensive in the inter-
state junctions running through Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra, Andhra
Pradesh and Orissa.
During the consultations with the seven Naxal-affected states on the
upcoming post-monsoon operation to flush out Maoists, the Centre not
only managed to get all the states on board but also was assured by
them of a requisite police component for the offensive.
There was consensus on an action plan of MHA for joint inter-state
operations, with additional director general or IG-level officer of
CPMF designated as task force commander. A single CPMF would be given
charge of operations in a given area to avoid any duplication of
authority or jurisdiction hassles.
Mr Singh appreciated the proposed technology-driven operations,
employing tools like GPS and GIS for mapping the Naxalite-infested
terrain, saying it could help achieve in a few months what could not
be achieved in the last 35 years.
“The plan is to carry out operations in an area to liberate it from
Maoists, hold the area and then bring in administration and
development...this is the correct approach,” the chief minister
insisted. The finer details of the operation are to be discussed when
Union home minister P Chidambaram visits the Naxal-hit states in
September.
“The real operational planning is to be done individually between Mr
Chidambaram and the respective state governments,” a senior
Chhattisgarh government official here said, adding the state police
was keen to deploy all of its six counter-Naxal battalions for the
pending offensive.
At the same time, Raman Singh raised the slow progress of road
construction project by the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) in the
Naxal-infested areas of Chhattisgarh while demanding that the deadline
be extended to enable completion of the remaining 60 km.
“The BRO is engaged in Chhattisgarh until 2010, but we have requested
the Centre to ensure that the agency does not quit from the state
until they have laid the entire 144-km stretch,” Mr Singh said, also
putting in a word of praise for the excellent quality of roads laid by
BRO.
Sid Harth
Centre appears to be serious about curbing Maoist menace
Chhattisgarh CM Raman Singh favoured setting up a special force to
construct and maintain infrastructure in areas where Naxalites are
active
Liz Mathew
New Delhi: A delayed and deficient monsoon has forced Chhattisgarh to
reduce land under rice cultivation by 1 million ha. While the
reduction may not affect the state’s food schemes and supplies, it may
be forced to cut its contribution to the Central pool, Chhattisgarh
chief minister Raman Singh said on Tuesday. That could, in turn,
affect foodgrain procurement for the government-subsidized public
distribution system.
In a brief interview, Singh, who was in New Delhi to attend a chief
ministers’ conference on internal security, also favoured setting up a
special force to construct and maintain infrastructure in areas where
Maoist rebels, known as Naxalites, are active. Singh, a senior
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader whose state is one of the worst
hit by Maoist violence, said that for the first time the Centre
appears to be serious about curbing the menace. Edited excerpts:
Raising concern: Raman Singh says the agreement with the Association
of Southeast Asian Nations will not only affect the agriculture sector
in India but also small-scale manufacturers. Maitreyee Handique /
Mint
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has warned that the country was staring
at an impending drought. How far will the deficient rainfall affect
Chhattisgarh, a rice producing state?
In Chhattisgarh, 10 districts and more than 30 tehsils (sub-districts)
have got 50% less rainfall this year and the water level (of)
reservoirs is just 25% of total capacity. Due to the delayed monsoon,
we have not been able to sow paddy in 10 lakh hectares.
The state’s domestic supply and our food programme will not be
affected by the reduction in rice production. We need just 12 lakh
tonnes (of) rice. However, we are one of the major contributors to the
Central pool of rice. We provide rice to six or seven states.
(Chhattisgarh provides each below poverty line, or BPL, family 35 kg
of rice a month at Rs2 a kg; the poorest of the poor pay Re1 a kg.)
Does it mean that the drought will not affect the state’s economy?
We have been doing fairly well even while other parts of the country
and the world faced (a) financial crisis. We generate power, produce
steel and cement, and the state has been doing pretty well in
agriculture, too.
Do you think the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS)
would help states fight the adverse impact of drought? (NREGS provides
for 100 days of employment a year to at least one member of every
rural family.)
It is a good scheme. The check dams, percolation dams and other small
constructions will help to reduce its (drought’s) impact.
But I think we can increase the number of working days from 100 to 180
or so. When there is no crop, we can engage the people in more such
works.
But a major chunk of your budget goes for fighting Naxalites.
Yes, in 2000, the budget for the police department was Rs248 crore and
this financial year it is Rs916 crore. The number of police personnel
has also been doubled from 22,592 (in 2000) to 46,425. Yet, if the
monsoon is picking up in the next few days, our economy will improve.
You have raised a demand to categorize Naxal violence as a national
disaster. What was the Union government’s response?
We said it is a man-made calamity and the state has been giving
support/relief for 300 villages. We will reiterate our demand at our
one-to-one meeting with the Prime Minister as well as with the home
minister. I am sure they will understand.
Concerns were also expressed over the incomplete infrastructure
projects in the state, especially the areas worst affected by Naxalite
violence.
The BRO (Border Roads Organisation) could complete the construction of
just 72km of the total 140km of the National Highway 16 in eight
years. But the BRO is expected to complete it by 2010. What I suggest
is that the Centre should develop a new dedicated force, like the
engineering corps in the Army, to construct roads, bridges and
culverts in the sensitive areas. There should also be additional
support for the BRO and the PWD (public works department).
Are you satisfied with the Union government’s initiatives in combating
Naxalite violence?
Yes, I am. For the first time in the last five-and-a-half years (since
the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) came to power at
the Centre), I am satisfied. I feel that they are serious about it
now.
The UPA government has entered a free trade agreement with the
Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean). Some states have
expressed concerns about the impact of the pact on the domestic
farmers. What is your view on it?
The agreement with Asean will not only affect the agriculture sector,
but also the small-scale manufacturers of this country. How can you
open your market to other countries without bringing in uniformity in
the manufacturing sector? ...We will have to fight against it.
Sid Harth
10 Bns of BSF, CRPF sent to Naxal-hit areas
Wasim Khalid
Srinagar, Aug 18: At least 10 battalions of paramilitary CRPF and BSF
have been shifted out from the State to tackle Naxal violence in
different Indian states.
“Three battalions would be shifted out from Jammu region while two
would be taken out from Kashmir,” CRPF spokesman Prabhakar Tripathi
told Rising Kashmir.
Stating that the de-induction process started since August 17, he
said, “We were waiting for the completion of Amarnath Yatra. Now that
the yatra has ended peacefully, the CRPF battalions deployed for
security of the pilgrimage would be shifted out and deployed in the
Naxal hit areas”.
He said the void created by the de-induction would be compensated by
the personnel deployed in the nearby battalions located at a certain
place.
The CRPF spokesman said due to the soft decline in militancy in the
State, it has been decided to move out five battalions to fight Naxal
violence. “The de-induction was carried out after receiving nod from
Home Ministry,” he said.
About 77 CRPF battalions are deployed in Jammu and Kashmir. Earlier,
on the instructions of home ministry, 16 battalions of para military
forces were moved out in phased manner from the State and deployed in
Naxal affected area.
DIG BSF Kashmir Frontiers, S K Singh told Rising Kashmir that five
battalions of the border guards deployed on Amarnath route have been
de-inducted. “These battalions would be sent to border areas like
Rajasthan and Punjab. The battalions relieved at these two places
would be deployed in Naxal hit region of Chattisgarh”.
Another BSF official, pleading anonymity said of the five battalions,
three would be moved out from Kupwara while two others would be pulled
back from Bandipore.
“There is immense pressure on Union home ministry to tackle the
naxalite violence spread over more than eight states. The problem is
increasing with each passing day,” he said, adding, “The situation in
Naxal-hit areas have become more serious than Kashmir”.
The clamor is growing in Indian camp to deploy its forces in naxal
infested states like West Bengal, Bihar and Andhra Pradesh to new
guerilla zones in other states like Orissa, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh,
Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh to tackle the unexpected
rising insurgency.
The paramilitary officials said earlier centre has carved out a ‘Cobra
force’ to start an anti-naxalite movement. “It was grossly
insufficient. The force comprised 10 bns of CRPF. They were specially
trained and equipped. Now they are raising more ten battalions of
cobra force to fight the Naxalites,” a paramilitary official said.
bademiyansubhanallah
Govt to beat Naxals at their game
Vishwa Mohan, TNN 19 August 2009, 03:10am IST
NEW DELHI: Realizing that a ‘gun for a gun’ is not enough to counter
Maoists, Centre will soon launch an intense media campaign — hard-
hitting posters, short films, advertisements and radio jingles — to
take on the Red ultras’ propaganda war which the latter have been
using not only to mobilize their cadre and sympathisers but also to
warn tribals who support state forces.
Taking a leaf out of Maoists’ war book, the Union home ministry has
already set in motion the official machinery to prepare a multi-
pronged media strategy with the support of locals in all naxal-
affected states.
The information tool to counter the propaganda — which has so far not
been used by the government — will be in addition to the score of
other measures which the Centre may take to counter the ultras in the
wake of Monday’s conference of chief ministers on internal security
and naxalism. Besides the joint armed operation using Special Force of
nearly 25,000 paramilitary personnel, the measures include considering
central procurement of weapons on behalf of states, setting up of
Regional Intelligence Centres, a new surrender-cum-rehabilitation
policy, strengthening of rural policing and fortifying police
stations.
Referring to the propaganda war, a senior official said: “We will with
the help of posters, advertisements, radio jingles and short films
inform people in clear terms as to what the Maoists are up to. We can
tell them the role of states’ in development and restoring peace using
their language.”
The short films — which will be shown in local cinema halls — and
radio jingles will emphasize the importance of ongoing development
works which have so far been thwarted by the ultras. “It is important
to win the confidence of people not only through works on the ground
but also by telling them the pros and cons of their sympathetic
approach towards the ultras and the violence against innocent
civilians, including women and children, in unequivocal terms,” said
the official.
Though the home ministry planned its strategy to counter the Maoists’
propaganda much in advance, Chhattisgarh CM Raman Singh set the tone
for it while speaking at Monday’s conference.
bademiyansubhanallah
Caste validation process prolonged
TNN 19 August 2009, 04:02am IST
PUNE: The divisional social welfare office has put off till further
notice' the hearing process for caste validation matters, in view of
the ongoing swine flu situation. The hearings were scheduled for
August 15, 16 and 19 before the Pune divisional caste validation
committee.
The committee was to hear objections raised on the settlement of as
many as 3,500 caste validation pleas that were filed by students for
academic year 2008-09. However, in view of the week-long shut down of
academic institutions in the city, the committee decided to put off
the hearing process. It has called upon students as well as other
applicants not to make a rush at the social welfare office.
Caste certificates are crucial for reserved category students, who
seek admission to professional and higher learning courses or apply
for jobs in government, semi-government and public organisations.
Similarly, the certificates are crucial for those contesting
elections.
The certificate is of no use unless it is validated by the social
welfare office, which follows a due verification process to check
people from making false caste claims and derive job, admission or
other benefits available to the reserved category candidates.
This year, the divisional committee had received 20,000 caste
validation pleas. The norms make it mandatory for the committee to
settle each plea within a period of six months.
According to the social welfare office, a fairly large number of these
pleas, where the establishment of caste veracity for quickly possible,
have been settled and conveyed to the applicants. However, there were
several other pleas where the committee need to examine in details the
claims made by the applicants and this will take more than the six-
month deadline set for the settlement. A large number of these
applicants have been making a rush at the social welfare committee
office.
The office has cited the Bombay high court judgement in writ petition
1350 of 2006, which restrains an academic institution from denying or
cancelling admission of a student whose application for caste
validation is pending consideration before the validation committee.
Despite the court ruling, several academic institutions have continued
to hassle students for caste validation certificates, stated a release
issued by the social welfare office.
A state government resolution (GR) of July 31, 2008, has specified the
courses for which caste validation certificates are mandatory. Still,
several applicants are approaching the welfare office, seeking
validation for courses where the same is not required.
Sid Harth
A long wait for Independence
Jajupur is a village in Sandila tehsil of Hardoi District of Uttar
Pradesh [ Images ]. 107 Dalit landless families were allotted land
pattas in 1976 by the gram sabha but till today the dalits have not
been able to cultivate their fields. The reason is that a politically
influential feudal family of the neighbouring village Majhgaon doesn't
give up its control on these lands which it exercises directly or
indirectly. Ramchandra Singh's brother Sri Ram Singh has been the
Block Pramukh of Bharawan. They have a third brother Ramendra Singh.
Cousin Nagendra Singh's, who is an advocate too, wife is the Gram
Pradhan of Jajupur even though they live in Majhgaon.
As soon as these land plots were allotted to the dalits the landlords
planted trees on these pieces of lands so that they could lay a claim
on them. They always give the excuse of these trees to assert their
control over these lands. For some dalit families their ancestors
might have taken some loan from the ancestors of landlords. The unpaid
loans, fictitious or real, become an excuse for the landlords to
continue holding on to their land.
Whenever a complaint is registered with the authorities, the revenue
department officials begin the measurement of land plots afresh. The
land is marked and handed over to the Dalits every time. But either
they are unable to sow or if they display the courage to sow they
cannot harvest. The control of land goes back to the landlords. Under
political pressure the revenue department officials lack the will to
recommend registration of case under the ZALR Act (Zamindari Abolition
and Land Reform Act) against the encroachers or the police lacks the
will to prevent landlords from encroaching after the lands have been
handed over to the Dalits following a due process.
Recently a Dalit youth Rajesh cut two neem trees standing on his land
to take care of the expenses required to treat his ailing 3-year-old
son. A case was registered against four Dalits including Rajesh for
illegal felling of green trees. Ramchandra Singh, Ramendra Singh and
Sukhdeo Singh took away the driver and the helper on the tractor
trolley which had come to take away the cut trees. Both these were
also Dalits. They were beaten at the house of Ramchandra Singh and
then handed over to police. Policeman in-charge of investigation in
the case M P Singh created ruckus in the house of Rajesh when he
couldn't find him to arrest. He broke a cot and portion of the
thatched roof. When it was enquired from the SDM whether felling trees
was such a serious crime that the police would exercise undue pressure
on the family of the accused the SDM responded that the police doesn't
register a case sometimes even on his complaint when whole orchards
are cut. Rajesh got relief only after he got bail from the court. But
in the meanwhile his child had expired because of neglect.
A complaint was filed against Ramchandra Singh, Ramendra Singh and
Sukhdeo Singh demanding registration of FIR under the Prevention of
Atrocities against SC/ST Act and the ZALR Act. However, the landlord
family is so powerful that it got action against its members stalled.
It is amazing how the politically influential family escapes
retribution even after violating serious laws and prompt and decisive
action is taken by police against the Dalits for felling trees on
their own land. And all this is when there is supposed to be a Dalit
sympathetic government in power in UP and the DGP has issued clear cut
instructions that FIR has to be registered against any encroacher on a
land belonging to Dalit allotted by the gram sabha.
About a couple of years back the revenue department had slapped a fine
of more than Rs. 14 lakhs on Ramchandra Singh, Chandra Prakash Singh,
Nageshwar Singh and others for encroaching upon land allotted to
Dalits. Two people paid the fine but 11 others were able to obtain a
stay order from the court.
Having lost all hope from the system the Dalits have now decided that
they'll let the landlords cut all the trees which they claim were
planted by them, even though technically the trees belong to the
Dalits as it is gram sabha land and anybody else cannot lay a claim on
it, and in return the landlords would allow them to till the land. The
Dalits don't care that they are losing the trees so long as they
finally get to become the owners of the land. The powerful landlords,
interestingly want a guarantee from the Dalits as well as the
administration that no case will be registered against them for
felling green trees, which is actually illegal.
All revenue department officials feel this is a good compromise
practical solution. The Dalits also feel that this is probably the
best deal they'll get because chances of them getting the land with
the trees are remote given the prevailing circumstances. They are
desperate to see after 35 long years the day when they can call the
land which belongs to them their own. But this is a travesty of
justice. This is a victory of brute muscle and money power and failure
of Indian Constitution as well as the law and order machinery. The
police-administration have surrendered to the feudal elements and
interests of Dalits are not safe even in a Dalit sympathetic
government. The country may be independent for the past 62 years but
these Dalit families of Jajupur would not yet testify that they have
had a chance to enjoy the fruits of freedom.
Dr Sandeep Pandey is a Ramon Magsaysay Award winner and heads the
National Alliance of People's Movements
Dr Sandeep Pandey
Sid Harth
Liberation for Bharat
Tarun Vijay Friday August 14, 2009
In 1947 an India of the elite, rich and English-speaking got freedom
and started enjoying the fruits of a truncated independence achieved
at the cost of an unprecedented massacre. Farmers, tribals, the
scheduled castes and poor Indians of all denominations remained
outside the zone of a progress so passionately touted by our Prime
Ministers and leaders.
The result of that progress is this: 2009 has been declared drought-
hit, the disabled have to demand through demonstrations a place in the
Right to Education Act, rivers are drying, farmland is fast shrinking
giving space to malls and multiplexes, small and marginal farmers are
either committing suicide or sending their children to other more
beneficial and stable vocations. Primary education in villages has yet
to get proper attention and in most hill areas potable water is still
brought home from a distance source which can be, in some cases, two
to three kilometres away. In politics, a caste-conscious regime rules
— scheduled castes and tribes are treated as showpieces or their
leadership gets too corrupt and self-obsessed forgetting the cause of
the social segment they represent. At the ground level, our
interaction with tribals and scheduled castes remains formal,
untouchability hasn't gone out of our minds.
It's Bharat that needs freedom from the Indian colonialists who
decide, sign files, devastate huge chunks of land for big dams and
power projects and do not care a hoot about the rehabilitation of the
evacuees. It's India that doesn't hesitate to start projects killing
the Ganga up in the hills making it trickle where it used to roar like
a lion enchanting the entire region.
It's Bharat that travels sleeper class in unreserved coaches and sees
every day new schemes for the affluent elite, yet keeps on working,
happier with an NREGS and giving votes in the biggest numbers thus
protecting the honour of our democracy. Bharat tills the farms, sees
the water level going down every year, weaves the mats for schools,
works a coolie to the nation and yet always gets the slap, the hurt
and the punch of all that's decided by those who never had a feel for
the underprivileged except when they seek votes.
Bharat is the voter, India the ruler.
Three days before August 15, I was in Chamaseri, a village five
kilometres from Mussoourie, which we call the "queen of the hills"
because that is what the British called it. It has a number of
internationally famous schools which charge per student as high as Rs
7 lakh a year. There is no dearth of power supply and drinking water
which is clean and safe. Roads reach the doorsteps of the residents
and students are comfortably placed enjoying studies and the cool
weather. Chamaseri, has a population of about 1,000 people. A gram
sabha is functioning which means it has at least 250 houses. It's just
behind the Woodstock School, famous for having educated some of our
elite political leaders' siblings. But it's not connected with
Mussoourie through any road. We had to walk eight kilometres each way,
through a rough hilly terrain full of big stones and muddy craters to
reach a friend who lived on the other side of the village. We saw a
couple of naked electric poles and wondered why they were so
powerless? A villager sarcastically said that a year back they had
erected the poles to get votes. Now votes have been cast so they
forgot to put wires in them. Yes, this village in the backyards of
Woodstock doesn't have electric supply. Children walk to Mussoourie to
study in Ramabai School, run by the local government as there is no
school in the village. It means walking eight to nine kilometres each
way, almost two hours, as the school is situated at another end of
Mussoourie. Children, little kids wih a bagload of books on their
backs leave home at six in the morning to reach school by eight, spend
the day there and return home by six in the evening. Many times they
have to carry extra load on their heads bringing kitchen needs from
the city. On a holiday or often on their return from school, they are
sent to forest to collect firewood for cooking and grass for cows. A
little girl, not more than eight, was bringing a load of green grass
on her head, I tried to weigh it by lifting it. Believe me it was too
heavy, must have been about 25kg. And she was bringing it from two
kilometres from her home that took a tough hilly terrain. It's a daily
routine for her. And of course the village doesn't have any landline
telephone connections.
(Daughter of Garhwal: Burdened at this tender age yet smiles abound)
I asked some silly questions like what if there is an emergency. (They
take patients on a charpoy to Mussoourie, where the nearest government
hospital is located). How do you communicate with relatives living in
distant areas? (Through post cards). What do you watch on TV channels
in the evening? (They don't have any TV as there is no power supply).
Have you been given proper care instructions about Swine flu? (What is
that, sardi jukam?) What books do you read and is there a library?
(They work in lantern and chimney lights, hence can only concentrate
on school textbooks). Hospital? (There is one building coming up for
it. Doctors will arrive only after the building is done).
(She will traverse the path on her left to reach the green area where
her home is, with this load for the cows.)
That's Bharat, Sir
Forget about politicos. What about those who turned Mussoourie into a
money spinning station to them and enjoyed a life of a sahib? Why
didn't they think they had a social responsibility towards those who
provide the chai, servants, chaprasi and vegetables and grains? Have
the British left, really?
(This girl, a Class VII student, brings home a sackful of goods from
Mussoourie with her school bag hung on the shoulders. Every day she
walks 8km way to study and brings household goods too.)
That's visible in most of the rural areas that makes the real Bharat.
From Nandigram to Sylhet and Udalguri to Phulbani. India acts through
khaki. Killings, arrests and no hearing and accountability. The
Manipur episode is not an isolated one. If something of this kind
happens to the Indian brown sahibs they would threaten to secede. Why
should I have my love for a state that doesn't have any relation with
me except collecting votes and tax and giving bullets and backwardness
in return? I can love Bharat as my nation but the state power's
ruthless rudeness needs to be punished. But how? Through guns? Or use
people's power?
Gun never succeeds, it never has
The only solution lies in collecting strength on the basis of positive
resolution of people's consolidation. It alone wins ultimately. Gandhi
did it and succeeded. Hedgewar did it and showed it works. So can us.
(The poles are there but the wires are missing.)
Here are some tips to begin
Instead of blaming the government for every ill, start a public-
interest group, adopt an area to spread literacy, and teach hygiene
and etiquettes, organize small help centres like "how to use RTI" and
get information about MPs and MLAs funds distribution.
(On the road to Chamaseri, a girl takes fuel wood home for evening
cooking.)
Land acquisition is a big racket and it's killing farmers and a social
life. Try to collect data about how much land has been converted for
non-agricultural use and write letters to editor in local newspapers
creating awareness and appealing to people to petition courts to stop
urbanization of farmlands.
Plan a holiday in the northeast. It's the most panoramic part of our
nation but too neglected and ignored. We must be as naturally going to
the northeast as we go to Haridwar or Shimla. It's a great experience
in fun and national integration.
Send the best child in the family to join the forces. It's a shame
that forces are lacking good human material and they have to advertise
to attract youngsters to join their ranks. There can be nothing more
satisfying than serving in any wing of our security set-up. Start
distributing beautifully designed stickers for the vehicles of those
whose children have joined forces, saying "proud parents of a
soldier"'. It helps create a patriotic atmosphere.
Try spending a weekend in a village close by. Learn and teach your
children about the importance of village life, its autonomous
structure, meet people and share a meal. Maybe you will find a child
who needs your help or an old man who would like you to write his
application to the district magistrate or you may use your connections
to expedite a project for the common good. Nothing will be more
satisfying than this, believe me.
Remember Ramakrishna Paramhansa said: "Jeever Seva, Shiver Seva" (to
serve humans is to serve gods). I don't think we need more temples and
mosques and churches, whatever we have is enough to make God hear our
petitions and prayers. If humans are living a miserable life, what use
is it spending millions on such structures? Ensure that the temple in
your vicinity or any place of worship is kept clean and puja is
conducted correctly; that will be more useful than erecting a new
structure. Our places of worship should cater to the needs of the
society. If they teach how to face swine flu in such times, and why we
shouldn't panic, that will be more in tune with serving the gods. The
temple must start teaching physical exercises to keep the body fit and
inspire devotees to make religious groups for river cleaning and
stopping the use of plastics while on a pilgrimage. After all, rivers
are dirtied and plastic bags thrown in our holy places by devotees
only. Why can't we start a reformist action at such places?
That's liberating Bharat.
Sid Harth
Can development be compatible with Naxalism?
Naxal areas are one of least developed areas in the country and the
lack of government and private initiative over the years have made the
populace ideal fodder for exploitation by the Naxal movement.
CJ: swati Wed, Aug 19, 2009 11:52:55 IST
naxalism in india : The Naxal battle for fringe areas NAXAL AREAS
are one of least developed areas in the country and the lack of
government and private initiative over the years have made the
populace ideal fodder for exploitation by the Naxal movement. The
current situation forbids or nearly closes government development
ventures in these areas due to serious security concerns. Private
ventures including those of NGOs cannot progress optimally due to the
same reason. So what is the way out? How can development be initiated
in these areas without the Naxals interfering? Large-scale deployment
of army/forces and development projects could be the answer, but this
may not be the policy of decision makers at the moment. Could it be
that the tribal masses want development but the Naxalites do not. Is
there a mismatch? Could it be exploited? Can the Naxals, given their
Robin Hood image, be so averse to development? Is it a fact? Can it be
changed?
Among the tribals, society leaders are key communicators for issues in
these areas. Are they anti-development or are they so in the grip of
Naxal that they also support underdevelopment in these areas? In some
instances the Naxals have indeed helped out in development drives in
areas controlled by them. What if Naxals were given government
resources/private resources/funds for development activity that would
be credited to them? Yes, it would further enhance their Robin Hood
image among the tribals and bring a few more willing followers to
their fold. But what would be the return for the government? Would it
not be that sustained economic ventures enhance the quality of life of
the tribals? Would it not expose the tribals to a new life and more
assets? Would economic improvement eventually bring about a change in
perception?
Are not the Naxals eventually looking for political power? Can their
power be sustained for ever only on the basis of fear with no
development accredited to them? Is having ex-Naxalities in power, such
a bad idea? What was Laldenga before he became the CM of Mizoram? Does
being in political power within the framework of democracy enhance or
corrode the Naxal movement? Is it true that the Naxals on assuming
political power will wipe out all existent instruments of State? Or
can it be different in the context of the Indian state? Are not Left-
wing States surviving and running in some cases? Answers to all these
questions are debatable. However one issue that stands out is that
development in Naxal areas will change a lot of existing dynamics. How
do you get development to reach thse areas through conventional or
unconventional means. The idea is to promote development, since that
is what any society, even a tribal one would eventually desire. Once
development reaches and expands its reach, circumstances will force
the powers to create and maintain the progress.
Philosophies and ideologies often get diluted on the way. What if the
Naxals appoint key personnel for executing development in areas
controlled by them and funds are channelised via a suitable media?
Yes, there would be pilferage for their cause, but some money would
perforce have to go in for executing developmental schemes and since
the Naxals would be stakeholders in the schemes such as those for the
provision of safe hygienic drinking water, construction of water
storage areas, and the distribution of medicines for livestock, these
schemes are unlikely to be vehemently opposed by the Naxals, since
they alleviate the misery of the masses. If the Naxals are credited
with running the schemes, it goes with their ‘Robin Hood/Messiah'
image among the masses. Once these schemes go through on a trial basis
in some districts, more ambitious ones of hospitals, veterinary
centres and schools could be planned. Naxal supporters and people who
approve of them could run these institutions.
The idea is to involve the tribals, Naxal supporters and others in the
process through awarding contracts for the execution of schemes. The
existent contractor lobby once broken could ensure the involvement of
tribals. It could develop into a win-win situation for Naxals, the
government and the tribals. The Naxals get credit and funds, while the
government gets to execute developmental schemes in Naxal areas it
cannot execute itself and the tribals benefit at the ground level.
Implementation may or may not be possible and only time will decide
the success or failure of such a venture which is indeed risk prone.
But given the current situation, do we have many options as far as
promoting development in Naxal areas is concerned? Maybe an effort in
this direction needs to be deliberated upon by concerned authorities/
powers at the helm of affairs. It is not the only option to promote
development and not necessarily the best one, and may or may not be a
workable one on the ground, but it can be examined, starting off with
minor projects in some areas.
bademiyansubhanallah
Orissa HC allows forest rights to tribals
Friday, August 14, 2009
Cuttack: The State Government's bid to stop Maoists from wooing
tribals got a boost when the High Court on Wednesday allowed it to
distribute forest rights and forestlands to the traditional dwellers
of forests. Subject to certain conditions, the High Court vacated an
interim stay imposed by it about a year ago on implementation of the
Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of
Forest Rights) Act, 2006. "With the vacation of the stay, the State
Government can now go ahead with its proposal to distribute record of
rights (Pattas) to the forest dwellers which would go a long way in
tackling the Naxal menace in the State," said Advocate General Ashok
Mohanty.
bademiyansubhanallah
Dalit Christian condemned U S Commission report on India over Orissa's
Kandmal issue
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Report by Orissadiary correspondent; New Delhi: Dalit Christian
organization poor Christian liberation movement (PCLM) condemn "United
States Commission on International religious freedom (USCIRF)" who has
kept India regarding minorities communities especially Indian
Christians who are kept in the watch list. National President Mr. R.
L. Francis says that Indian church leaders are misleading western
countries regarding India. Indian Christians are safe in India except
few incidents. PCLM says that church leaders should study the report
of Justic S.C.Mahapatra's regarding Kandmal, Orissa.
Fr. Willam Premdass Chaudhary, catholic priest of Delhi catholic
Archdiocess, condemn violence at kandhmal, Orissa's incident in which
many people lost their lives, houses were burnt, churches and
institutions were destroyed. Church leaders should go to the root
cause that why the incident took place in the kandmal. Church leaders
received funds from India and abroad should reach the people. Churches
first and for most must solve the out standing problem of Dalit
Christians who are suffering since many centuries especially in south
India. Castiesm in Christianity is a serious problem and it is a
crime. Churches are not bother to solve the problem of castiesm which
is existing since 2000 years, from the begging of Christianity came to
India. Why churches are silent about it?
...and Iam Sid Harth
bademiyansubhanallah
Orissa CM demands central help to fight Maoists menace
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Report by Suchismita Sahoo; Bhubaneswar: Orissa Chief minister Mr
Naveen Patnaik urges centre to enhance Security Related Expenditure
(SRE) scheme to tackle Left wing extremists, better training
facilities for police force, building the Vijayawada-Ranchi road etc
at the meeting of chief ministers on Left Wing Extrism at New Delhi
today.
Mr. Patnaik also on Tuesday reiterated the State's demand for a
dedicated Army or Air Force helicopter for deployment in the Maoists
affected districts to give a boost to the fighting capabilities of the
State Police Force.
He also requested the Union Defence Minister to start a Special
Recruitment Drive for tribal youth in Maoists areas into the Armed
Forces and make suitable modifications in the minimum required
physical standards.
Patnaik also stated that the Vijayawada-Ranchi Road which runs through
the Maoists affected districts of Orissa needed to be taken up with
central funding on priority basis. He also underlined the necessity to
lay concrete roads to the tribal villages of Malkangiri and Koraput
districts under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) which
would not only provide access to security forces to the affected
pockets, but also be of immense use for providing health cover,
essential commodities and for marketing of produce. He underlined the
need for relaxation of norms of PMGSY to cover villages having
population of 100 and above since the affected areas were sparsely
populated.
He also requested the Centre to sanction the entire projected
requirement of Rs 64 crore out of the Security Related Expenditure
(SRE) Scheme for anti-extremist build up.
The Chief Minister informed that two Anti-Extremist Tactics Training
Centres have been set up in the State besides a Training Resource
Centre of Special Operations Group which was being developed as
permanent Training Resource Centre for counter terrorism, jungle
warfare and anti-extremist operations. In order to develop it as a
full-fledged training institution, he requested for Rs 20 crore as
Central assistance.
bademiyansubhanallah
Orissa CM Naveen Patnaik seeks central forces to guard sanctuaries,
national parks
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Report by Orissadiary correspondent; New Delhi: Chief minister Mr
Naveen Patnaik has demanded deployment of central paramilitary forces
in the sanctuaries and national parks. Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik
made the demands while addressing the national conference of State
Ministers of environment and forests in New Delhi, chaired by Prime
Minister Dr Manmohan Singh.
Mr Patnaik demanded central paramilitary forces for Similipal,
Badrama, Khalasuni, Lakhary, Sunabeda, Kotgarh, and other sanctuaries
and national parks.
The states should be allowed to retain collections for compensatory
afforestation instead of depositing it with the ad hoc Compensatory
Afforestation Management and Planning Authority (Campa) account, he
said. He sought special allocation for reconstruction and
strengthening of infrastructure in Sunabeda, Debrigarh and Lakhary
valley sanctuaries in addition to Similipal Tiger Reserve.
Mr Patnaik sought special dispensation and higher devolution of
financial resources to forest rich states. He also suggested setting
up of two institutes~ National Institute of Mangrove research and
National Institute of Wetlands and Coastal Ecosystem, in the state.
bademiyansubhanallah
Wednesday, August 19, 2009 9:54:50 AM (IST)
Mangalore: Naxals Barge into House: Threaten Police Inspector's
Family
Daijiworld Media Network - Mangalore (SP)
Mangalore, Aug 19: A gang of 13 naxals entered the house of Narasimha
Murty, father of Dakshina Kannada district crime intelligence bureau
inspector Venkatesh Prasanna, located at Kigga near Sringeri in
Chikmagalur district on the night of Monday August 17, threatened the
family members.
In addition to Narasimha Murty, his wife, son Ravindra, daughter-in-
law and two grandchildren live at Kigga. The gang that visited the
family at around 9 pm remained there for about two and half hours,
during which period, they raised several topics and warned the family
of dire consequences, before leaving.
Reportedly, the naxals knocked at the back door of Murty's home. When
Ravindra questioned about their identity through the window, they
revealed their identity, upon which Murthy asked them to enter the
home from the front door. After the front door was opened, seven women
and six men entered the house. Three of the gang members had .303 guns
with them, while three others had AK-47 guns. The other gang members
wielded SLR guns. They cut off telephone connection, searched the
entire house, snatched away the mobile phones and removed their
batteries.
The naxals are said to have told the family that they suspected the
family of having played had a role in the killing of a naxal activist
named Diwakar, and vowed to avenge this killing. They asked Ravindra
to stop undertaking contract work and to distribute their lands to
tenants, extend help for getting the naxal supporters released
whenever they are arrested, and to support the naxals instead of the
BJP. The other issues they raised, are said to be the power connection
the family had provided to the barbed fencing of the farm and
releasing of water to the fields of Harijan farmers. Even though they
said, they would take away a double barrel gun found in the house,
after some heated exchange of words, they relented and kept the gun
back. They left at 11.30 pm, after asking for coffee. Before leaving,
the gang members are said to have given some pamphlets to the family
and warned them not to give any information on this incident, to the
policemen.
The family members saw that a few people were standing guard outside,
when the 13 entered the house. The family members could identify only
Hosagadde Prabha and Ravindra, out of the 13 naxals.
...and Sid Harth
bademiyansubhanallah
Cops, Naxals and Common Masses Won't Dare to Reveal their Identity
The South West Bastar in Chhattisgarh has became the home of naxals.
After the Salva-Judum, the cops of various battalions of different
forces from different parts of the country came here to coup with the
naxals problem, to exhibit their vigilant action and to establish
their superiority over outlaws, but seemed handicapped and far behind
among the strong naxal network, and their secret network. Now, the
conditions in interior of Dantewada and Bijapur areas has worsen to
such an extent that the cops are forced to adopt all possible measures
to hide their own identity, in order to save their own lives. They are
all bound to lead the life of ‘Bahrupias’.
Terrorized with naxal highhandedness, even keep their hair-cut as per
police norms, or using red-shoes is proving harming for cops. Even
those civilians who use to adopt police style hair cuts or dress-ups
have forgotten the said fashion. More or less the naxals too are
undergoing similar problem of hiding their identities while in public,
like traveling in buses or marketing in any public place. Similarly,
the police vehicles, which has even remained the symbol of craze for
cops, is proving killing devices.
It is easy to identify a cop even if he is not in uniform, the hair
cuts, the shoes, the dress-ups, the heavy voices, and vigorous looks
and dashing personality, but now these specialties have became
devastating and damaging from cops. Even they are avoiding the use of
police vans, vehicles, more over, the police has changed the identity
registered number of vehicles and has framed false civilian numbers.
The naxal searching in passenger buses, abduction of persons
suspecting to be a cop or informers and later recognizing dead bodies
of abductees at road side has became a routing since last 3-4 years in
Bijapur area. If any outside unknowingly enters in Sensitive areas
with such hair cuts, dress-ups or shoes, his safe return is a miracle.
The shop keepers in interior areas have stopped keeping red-shoes for
sale. If one or two cops are going to leave together homes or
returning back to duty after leave, he does not dares to move lonely,
but a group of cops seems always with them for their safe guards.
The naxals are also undergoing almost similar circumstances, of-course
their is no mark on foreheads that the said person is either naxal or
naxal supporter, but it is true, when they see the security personnel
around, they commit something wrong under fear of being captured, and
this wrong activity confirms their identity, and facilitate the
opponent police to catch to culprits.
In brief the cops, citizen or even naxals are bound to lead a life of
‘Bahrupia’ to save its own life. None can utilize the right of liberty
there and bound to hide his identity.
bademiyansubhanallah
War Against Naxals; Safeguards of local Tribals and Strong
Intelligence is Prime Need
The Chhattisgarh state government busy in preparation to fight against
the naxals, has not yet finalized its mode of operation. In addition
to CRPF the deployment of other forces is being confirmed. But, the
forces coming from other part of the country is feeling strongly that
it could not act in appropriate manner here, due to lack of proper
information network, in adverse to putting the naxals under the task,
these forces themselves are facing gross losses. The anti-naxal
operations are being affected due to failure of intelligence.
According to a senior police officer, after the recent naxal violent
instances, the government is in mood to offensive against outlaws,
leaving aside its defensive line of actions. But, it has not chalked
out yet the line of action to be adopted in war against the naxals. In
recent meeting of Chief Ministers of naxal affected states at Delhi,
the issue has been considered a serious matter.
In south Bastar it is again a matter of concern that, during such sort
of wide-ranging operation the local tribals will be victimized in
larger number in comparison to the naxal. The intellectuals are of
opinion that initially the naxals must be identified prior to this
operation, only after completion of this job the actual operation
should take place, to avoid any civilian casualty.
In south Bastar 90% of population is tribal, there was the fear for
lives among those tribals who have had remained under naxal
influences. There is two markable reasons, firstly the government
agencies could not reach to these interior naxal sensitive localities,
and secondly the naxals are playing dominating key roles in regular
routine functions of the people, village or area.
The expertise in Gourilla war, the naxals never stay for longer period
in any particular area or place, this is why the local rural masses is
an important part of naxal field cadre.
The CPI is of opinion that the matter must be resolved on democratic
way, i.e. By bilateral talks, for IB, the naxals and state both are
supposed to initiate, in order to avoid any losses to the tribals
living in internal remote localities.
At present 8 battalions of CRPF are there in south Bastar, and now the
preparations are on to call BSF also. It is believed that BSF will be
here, well equipped with armory, apparatus and intelligence network of
its own. Because, it is essential that the forces come from outside
should get acquainted properly with the geographical and naxal line of
action, to confirm success in operation.
bademiyansubhanallah
Naxals Running Training Camps of Students; 70-80 Students are in naxal
custody
The police has got the concrete informations that the student boys and
girls have been forcefully brought-away by the naxals to naxal
training camps being run in Bastar and are given the training of
firing, explosive planting and executing the terror-some crimes,
stated P. Sunder Raj, S. P. Bastar district. Such 70-80 students of
Mardum area are being trained by the naxals. The police is shortly
going to get these innocent tribal youths released from the grips of
naxals, he added.
S. P. Further stated that the naxals have utilized late Manglu earlier
2-3 times in naxal violent actions, of course under pressure, on 5th
August night also the naxals attempting to escort away Manglu, Nohru
and Maniram for certain naxal activity, when the Manglu denied to
support the naxals, the outlaws shot him dead. The naxals however
managed to bring away rest of two boys, who later anyhow managed to
escape away from naxal camp; and approached Mardum police station.
There they narrated the detailed facts of 5th August incident.
Further, in the press conference of S. P. Bastar stated, when Manglu
denied to join naxal training camp, the naxals shot him dead, Nohru
and Maniram witnessing the cruel moment do not dared to resist and
went to naxal camp with naxals that night.
Under a well planned conspiracy such events are being visualized in
order to destroy the image of police.
Special teams will be constituted to get these 70-80 students released
from naxal confinement, specific line of action is also being
finalized to save the urban areas from naxal attacks.
In adverse to police, the naxals have stated that the police has
killed the student Manglu at village Tonder under Mardoom police
station, and there is no naxal involvement in this case. East Bastar
divisional committee secretary of Naxals, Sukhdev stating above thing
in a press release demanded to penal action against police personnel
found guilty of killing of Manglu.
bademiyansubhanallah
Cases of Arsening and Looting by CRPF cops in Naxal Infected Areas of
Bastar
The killings of force and Salva Judum workers by naxals is
continuously happening in the remote-south Bastar. Innocent tribals
are being killed and arsening in villages are taking place naming the
villagers as naxal supporters. The tribals are not coming forward with
the complaints of such incidents, being obstructed by the forces. The
teams of intellectuals visiting such locations to get acquainted with
facts behind such instances too are being victimised of force’s
tortures. This fact has been disclosed by the professor of Delhi
University. Nandini Sundara, Prof. J. P. Rao of Usmania University and
professor of Irma Ajay Dandekar after returning back from interiors
after facing forces tortures even after the fact that they visited
said places only after getting collectors permission. In their press
conference they stated that they had planned to have visit of village
Bechhapad after getting the reports of arsenings there. For collecting
the facts. They started for said village alongwith a local NGO Kopa
Kunjam on 8th July got permissions only after having talks of D. G.
Chhattisgarh, CRPF personnel and Collector Bijapur, there in the
village they found that forces have gone to the said village on 28th
June 2009, and there the force has set to fire 40 houses. There the
instances of killing of two persons and lootings was also done by
force.
The villagers described to this team that Rama Aytu was ploughing in
his field at the moment, when the force entered into the village, when
under force’s fear he tried to run away he was killed by cops there.
Other villagers terrorised with force started escaping towards forest.
The cops covered one Oyam Sukli (17), her father lakko and uncle
Sannu, after beating both of them with guns. But, they dragged Sukli
to Ajareb Nallah. On third day her dead body was recovered at other
bank of the said Nallah, the cops had also committed arsenings in 5
houses of village Kondapal and looted 4 houses. The villagers informed
about arsening of 7 houses and lootings also at the village Gahnar.
The members of this visiting team had left their jeep at Cherli, on
return the Valuable items kept in jeep was found stolen. Later it was
heard that Judum leaders and SHO have came there on Cherli village.
The SHO denying to register their FIR intended to witheld the members
of this team for entire night. Anyhow, at 11:30 PM only they were
released after a series of requests to various officials.
Under such the alarming high handedness of force, cops it is not the
easy job to seek justice for the villagers who are being victimised of
tortures of Salva Judum and force together.
After filing petition in supreme court, the apex high court has
ordered for rehabilitation of displaced tribals and compensation for
such persons. But, this direction of supreme court is being
contempted, and the villagers are being tortured with greater quantum.
bademiyansubhanallah
India's Tribal district wrost effected by Naxal Violence
Share: by akhand11 | August 19, 2009 at 10:46 pm
By Akhand in Bhubaneswar, India
Peaceful eastern Indian state odisha is now hit by naxal violence.
Odisha’s Koraput district is very much affected by the terror
activities. Communist Party of India (Maoist) with the support of the
local tribal intensified its movement for land rights in Narayan Patna
area. In the banner of Chasi mulia Adivasi Sangha, (Association of
tribal farmers and laborers) the tribal raises their voice against
Indian Government. They are continuing their attack on non-tribal and
forced them to get out from the tribal land.
Also the CMAS members capture the agricultural land of non-tribal and
started to cultivate these lands. The whole Narayan Patna area is in
the capture of Naxals outfit and CMAS. But Odisha state Government is
not so serious about the issue. Administration is a total failure to
tackle the naxal violence, says sivananda ray, the vice-president of
chief opposition party in the state.
There are central reserve police Force (CRPF), Special Officer Group,
Odisha Armed police Force, Odisha special striking Force and cobra
Force to tackle terror outfits. Police department special branch and
special intelligence wing are also working to provide movements of the
naxal cadres. State Government provides special package and allowances
to the police officials working in the naxal hit areas to boost their
moral.
But Government has failed to tackle armed naxal in this remote
district. Police station and police out-post are merely witness of
this violence. More than three hundred families have already left
their village. CMAS has been supported by naxal outfit to intensify
its moments for so called land rights.
The Maoist organization has tried to get local support by motivating
the people about their problems and concern. And also some local
people support this movement as Governments welfare plan and program
could not execute properly due to corruption by the bureaucracy and
local leaders.
Narayan Patana became the capital of the naxals. They are planning to
spread the movement to the other districts. According to a reliable
source, CPI (M) has started co-ordination among the three special
zonal committee of hardcore Maoists. These comities are Andra-Odisha-
Bihar special zonal committee (AOBSZC), Jhrkhand-Bihar-Odisha Special
Zonal committee (JBOSZC) and third one is Odisha- West-Bengal-
Jharkhand Special Zonal Committee (OWJSZC).
First committee is responsible for all Maoist activities in south
Odisha districts like malkanagiri, Koraput, Gajapati, Nabarangpur,
Raygada and Ganjam. The committee has set-up two divisions or bureau
to handle Maoist attack. These are Malkanagiri division, which is also
known as Northern Bureau and Banshadhara Division or Southern Bureau.
Second committee works in the districts of Sundergarh and sambalpur.
And third committee is spreading its activities in the jurisdiction of
Mayurbhanj and keonjhar. Ghumusar division is a special Bureau under
this committee. Beside that in Koraput and Kandhamal districts
Dandakaranya Special committee is very active. Many sub groups known
as ‘Dalam’ is working under the supervision of this committee.
Subgroups like Kalimela Dalam, Popular Dalam, Motu Dalam, Jhanjabati
Dalam, Uday Dalam are engaged in Maoist activities including violence
and membership drive.
On the other hand state Government is seems to be not serious on the
naxal issues. The chief Minister of the Odisha state, who is also in
charge of internal security department said that “We are trying to
fight with terror. Combing operation is on. And I hope we will win”.
But the ground reality says quite different. Narayan Patana is
becoming the capital of the red corridor movements.
bademiyansubhanallah
Use Welfare to Combat Naxalism: Rahul Gandhi
August 20, 2009 Visionmp.com news service
On a two day visit to Chhattisgarh, AICC general secretary and Amethi
MP Rahul Gandhi Thursday described development as a powerful weapon in
the battle against Naxalism.
“If we want to eliminate Naxalism, it is necessary that the benefits
of welfare schemes reach even to the last needy person,” exhorted
Gandhi while addressing college students in Jagdalpur.
Citing a climb-down in the Naxal menace in Andhra Pradesh, the young
parliamentarian claimed that the menace mushroomed in development
vacuums, and said that ensuring welfare of the poor as the best way to
combat it.
Sid Harth
Maoist violence hits Latehar projects
20 Aug 2009, 2120 hrs IST, Navtan Kumar, ET Bureau
RANCHI: Increased extremist activity has affected industrial projects
in and around Latehar, which has huge reserves of bauxite and coal.
Latehar, a stronghold of the banned CPI-Maoist in Jharkhand, has seen
major violence this year. This has hit bauxite, coal mining and power
projects. The latest in the series was the abduction of 10 Hindalco
staff by extremists early this week. They were rescued on Wednesday.
Though there were no casualties, the incident has come as a rude shock
to the company, which has a plant in Muri.
According to an official of a company setting up a project in Latehar,
ransom calls from Maoists have become order of the day. "The biggest
problem is there are many breakaway groups now. Everyday, we receive,
on an average, 10 calls from Maoists for levy (extortion money).
Though the administration has deployed Special Auxillary Force (SAF)
to provide security at the project site, our staff living in nearby
localities feel scared to venture out during odd hours," he said.
A senior Central Coalfields Ltd (CCL) official said mining has been a
major casualty because of the violence. "Maoists give a bandh call
very often, which hampers production in our coal blocks of North
Karanpura, Piparwar and Rajhara. Transporters refuse to work during
bandhs," he added.
The increased extremist activity has also affected the pace of work of
Corporate Power Ltd (CPL), the flagship of the Abhijeet Group, which
is setting up a power plant at Chandwa. Extremists had gunned down
four of its security guards in April. CPL had made good progress and
was hoping to start its first phase of production of 540 mw power by
June 2010.
According to a company official, the pace of work has slowed down
after the incident. "There is an obvious sense of fear among our
employees," the official added.
The company is also setting up a 1215-mw thermal power plant, with an
estimated investment of Rs 6,000 crore. The company has already
started building its network for transmission of power from Bana
(Balumath) to Namkum (Ranchi).
Essar Power is another company, whose projects have been affected due
to extremist violence. The company is setting up a 2000 mw coal-based
power plant at Chandwa in Latehar. The company requires 2,200 acres of
land for the project, for which an MoU was signed with the state
government two years ago. The company has so far bought 700 acres
through direct purchase.
bademiyansubhanallah
We support Islamic terrorism’
Snigdhendu Bhattacharya, Hindustan Times
June 09, 2009
First Published: 23:54 IST(9/6/2009)
Last Updated: 23:56 IST(9/6/2009)
He is West Bengal’s most wanted man and one of India’s most dreaded
outlaws. Koteswar Rao, better known to his cadres as Kishanji, is the
deputy leader of the Communist Party of India (Maoist), the
underground party of Naxalites.
After much effort, he agreed to meet HT’s Snigdhendu Bhattacharya deep
in the jungles of West Bengal’s West Midnapore district.
Short, shabbily dressed, late-50-ish and surprisingly mild and polite,
Kishanji spoke animatedly for three hours in highly accented Bengali
about his revolutionary dreams, Islamic terror and the state of his
“movement”. Excerpts:
What’s the future of the so-called Indian revolution you are
spearheading?
We have a considerable mass base in eight or nine states. Moreover,
the capitalist economy is going through a crisis all over the world,
and sooner or later, India will suffer the same fate as the West. So,
the conditions are quite ripe for a revolution.
You had earlier supported Islamic militancy. Do you still do so after
the Mumbai attacks?
We do not support the way they attacked the Victoria station
(Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, or CST), where most of the victims were
Muslims. At the same time, we feel that the Islamic upsurge should not
be opposed as it is basically anti-US and anti-imperialist in nature.
We, therefore, want it to grow.
Please tell us about the attack on West Bengal Chief Minister
Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee (in November 2008).
I personally ordered the attack on the chief minister. We had to lay
one kilometer of cables through the fields. However, during
inspection, we found that mice had chewed it up at several places. So,
we had to repair it.
How is your party faring in states like Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand,
Orissa, West Bengal and Maharastra?
Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and Orissa will be the new storm centres in
Indian politics. We have our strongest base in Chhattisgarh –
particularly in Old Bastar, which stretches across five districts—and
it’s totally in our control now. Our militia in the state is more than
one-lakh strong.
We have the wherewithal to put up teams of 400-500 fighters, encircle
hundreds of police and para-military troops, and wipe out them. We
have also taken up development projects. Then, we are gaining strength
in the other states you mentioned.
But you have almost no presence in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana and
many other major states. How then can you achieve your ambition of
wresting power in Delhi?
We will have to concentrate on building our base in these states. In
UP, especially, we need to concentrate on the Muslim population and
the trade union sector. Punjab has very positive conditions (for a
Maoist revolution) and also a history of Left movements. So, I’m
hopeful of expanding our base there.
Your party suffered a major setback in Andhra Pradesh. What are you
doing about it?
It’s true that we faced a major setback in Andhra Pradesh (when the
police drove the Naxalites out of their former strongholds across the
state). But we will definitely recover because most of our leadership
is alive and safe in our Dandakaranya camps. Our mass base, built up
over 30 years, is still intact. But in a war, there will always be ups
and downs.
bademiyansubhanallah
Lalgarh-type operations to be replicated
TNN 21 August 2009, 03:24am IST
NEW DELHI: Calling Lalgarh a "laboratory of (anti-naxal) operation",
the Centre -- which along with state police has jointly been taking on
Maoists there -- on Thursday said a similar strategy of area
domination through intense action (both police and developmental)
would be replicated soon in neighbouring areas and also in
Chhattisgarh and other states to flush out Red ultras.
Saying the situation there "is still not normal", Union home secretary
G K Pillai said the operation against Maoists who had dominated the
area due to "eight months of zero administration" would continue and
CRPF and BSF would be there "as long as it is required" to restore
complete peace.
Lalgarh has been on the boil since November last year when a landmine
exploded on the route of the convoy of West Bengal CM Buddhadeb
Bhattacharjee, Ram Vilas Paswan and Jitin Prasada. Alleging police
atrocities after the blast, the naxalites along with the People's
Committee against Police Atrocity (PCAPA) launched an agitation and
made the area a virtual "free zone" by torching police camps and
offices of the ruling CPM and driving out the local civil
administration.
The central forces launched the operation on June 19 when the state
finally asked for assistance. Security forces have so far killed 10
Maoists and arrested 69, including three injured naxals, in the area.
Pillai said: "Lalgarh is the laboratory for us and this will be
reflected in what we are going to do in other naxal-infested areas
like Chhattsigarh. The operation in Lalgarh was by and large
successful, but is not complete as we want to arrest all top Maoist
leaders."
The Centre has adopted a different strategy to deal with the
situation. As part of the operation, the security forces have been
dominating the area and letting the civil administration to
immediately start development works amid security so that the people
can get basic services like health. Works are also being carried out
through NREGS, providing regular wages to tribals living there. "In
July alone, Rs 65 lakh has been paid as wages under NREGS," Pillai
said.
Describing the ultras as "fascists" for killing innocent people,
including women, Pillai said the Maoists had been killing civilians
labelling them as "police informers".
Asked whether there was nay pressure from Trinamool chief Mamata
Banerjee to end the operations, Pillai said: "There is no pressure
whatsoever."
Replying to a question whether some posters carrying a photograph of
Bannerjee with Maoist leader Chatradhar Mahto showed any connection
between the two, he said he believed this an old photograph --
suggesting that it might have been taken when Mahto must be simply a
civil rights activist.
CRPF chief A S Gill, who was also present during the briefing, said:
"Mahto is now a wanted person. We have to arrest him. We will arrest
him along with others who are hiding in nearby forest areas."
Pillai said the security agencies have been taking utmost care during
their action to avoid "collateral civil casualties". He said action
was also being taken against naxal sympathisers and overground frontal
organisations of CPI-Maoists.
bademiyansubhanallah
Thursday, August 20, 2009
No Naxal threat to poll campaigns
By J.R.PRASAD
Hyderabad, March 3: During the Assembly polls of 2004, politicians did
not dare to step out of their houses to campaign in some villages of
Kamalapur in Karimnagar district for fear of Maoist attacks.
Residents of the area were also afraid that Maoists would launch an
attack on polling day to disrupt elections. The whole campaign was
punctuated by tension and fear of violence.
This is no longer the case. Politicians now come out freely to
campaign and party workers can raise slogans without fear of flying
bullets.
The upcoming elections will be a new experience for voters of
Kamalapur and other erstwhile “Maoist-affected” constituencies. For
the first time, they are going to vote freely.
“Now we don’t have any threat from the Maoists,” said the Telangana
Rastra Samiti MLA from Kamalapur, Mr E. Rajender. “Our enemy is the
government, which is implementing anti-people policies.”
Violent incidents were common not only in Karimnagar, but also
Nizamabad, Warangal, Adilabad and Palnadu region in Guntur district in
the polls of yesteryear.
Leaders did not dare to enter Maoist stronghold villages fearing for
their life.
The Maoists used to exhort people to boycott elections. Shootings,
kidnappings, extortions, threatening calls, attacks on the government
offices and encounters were the hallmark of elections.
With the shooting down and surrender of many Maoist leaders in the
last few years, police has gained upper hand in these regions. And
after two decades, there are expectations of a vibrant campaign in
areas of the Nallamala forests in Guntur and Prakasam districts.
“Maoist activities are on the wane now,” said the former home
minister, and Praja Rajyam leader, Mr T. Devender Goud.
“They are resorting to attacks only when rulers do not address the
problems of the poor.”
Mr Mantha Benzimen, a former Maoist who recently joined the Praja
Rajyam, even asked the party chief, Chiranjeevi, to contest from
Palnadu area in Guntur district. This could have been unimaginable
four years ago.
The recent surrender of Sambasivudu, a top leader of the Communist
Party of India (Maoist), is a classic example of the decreasing
influence and morale of the Left-wing extremists in the state.
Maoists had suffered several body blows during the rule of Mr N.
Chandrababu Naidu.
However, the peace process initiated by his successor, Dr Y.S.
Rajasekhar Reddy, from May 2004 to January 2005, significantly
weakened the position of the Maoists. Soon after the peace talks
failed, the police, with the help of intelligence inputs, resumed
combing operations in an aggressive manner.
The real downfall of Maoists began in 2005 in Nallamala forests with
the leaders coming out of the Guttikonda bilam. Earlier, the police
was unaware of the hideouts of the Maoists. But, after this incident,
the police succeeded in tracing the hideouts and hunting down the
Maoists.
Many top Maoist leaders were felled in encounters including Janashakti
state committee member, Riaz, and the Maoist east division committee
member, Dharmula Mallikarjun, in 2005.
The Nizamabad district committee secretary, Ramesh, was killed as well
as another senior leader, Damera Vijaykumar Swamy alias Yadanna, and
three of his associates.
Similarly, in Mahbubnagar, district committee and action team member,
Gajji Srisailam, and his wife, Pushpakka, were killed at Achampet in
2005.
Senior leader Madhav and seven others were killed in an encounter in
Prakasam district in 2006.
These were severe blows from which the Maoists were unable to recover.
“There was a 30 per cent decline in the Maoist activities during the
year 2008,” said Mr K. Arvind Rao, additional director-general of
police (intelligence). Though the decline of the Maoists began during
the rule of Mr Naidu, it was Dr Reddy who really decimated them by
adopting a two-pronged strategy.
On September 19, 2005, Mr Reddy announced his strategy of implementing
developmental programmes in Maoist-affected districts to wean away
potential recruits.
For this, he set up a remote and interior areas development
department. Under the department, various schemes were undertaken in
15 districts including Srikakulam, Vizianagaram, Visakhapatnam, East
Godavari, Guntur, Prakasam, Nellore, Anantapur, Kurnool, Mahbubnagar,
Warangal, Nizamabad, Adilabad, Karimnagar and Khammam.
“Maoist activities declined as my government had initiated various
programmes for the development of remote and interior areas,” said the
Chief Minister.
Alongside, the police developed the strategy of targeting only
hardcore Maoist leaders and not sympathisers as before. Such measures
further dried up the recruiting resources of Maoists.
Take care, cops warn politicos
By Our Correspondent
Hyderabad, March 3: Despite the perceivable decline of the Maoists’
influence in the state, police still warn politicians to be careful.
“Since Maoists received severe body blows in the past two years, they
may resort to attack politicians during campaigning only to prove that
they still exist,” said Mr C.V. Sajjanar, superintendent of police of
Warangal.
With the police gaining upper hand, Maoists have shifted their
operations to north Andhra districts and adjoining Orissa. According
to intelligence reports, Maoist dalams from Mahabubnagar and the
Telangana Districts have migrated to the Andhra-Orissa Border region.
They have found hiding places here because of the hilly terrain due to
weaker policing. Because of this, police has asked political leaders
of North Andhra region not to remain careless on the safety front.
They also warn them not to visit sensitive areas without adequate
security.
Posted by JR PRASAD at 7:34 AM
Sid Harth
Bihar wants inclusion of 4 more districts in naxal-hit areas
Posted: Friday , Aug 21, 2009 at 1255 hrs
Patna:
In a significant move, Bihar's NDA government has sought inclusion of
four more naxalite-hit districts under the security related
expenditure (SRE).
Apart from 15 out of the 38 revenue districts covered under the scheme
at present, similar treatment is required for four more revenue
districts affected by the maoists, IG (Operations) S K Bhardwaj said
on Friday.
The state government's initiative comes in the wake of union
ministry's special attention to containing the growing naxal
activities in some states in the country.
Under the SRE scheme, the expenditure incurred on security is
reimbursed by the Centre. Notably, naxalites have made their presence
felt in 31 districts of the state.
The state government had proposed inclusion of four more districts --
Lakhisarai, Munger, Buxar and Sheikhpura – in the SRE scheme. The
Centre has however, decided to cover Munger only, Bhardwaj said.
''We have submitted a fresh proposal to this effect,'' official
sources said, ading Saharsa should also be included in the list of
districts covered under the SRE.
Bhardwaj, also in-charge of anti-naxal cell in the state police
headquarters, said that two of the three proposed India Reserve (IR)
battalions have been made operational and the process of land
acquisition for the third IR battalion at Valmikinagar in West
Champaran district (close to Indo-Nepal border) was underway.
Official sources said the recruitment of police personnel for the two
IR battalions -- one at the Bihar Military Police-4 (Dumraon) and
another at the BMP-12 (Saharsa)—was almost complete and the newly
recruited constables were undergoing rigorous training.
The IG said the Centre might provide four counter insurgency
battalions for resolute action at Kaimur-Rohtas, Jamui-Nawada and Gaya-
Aurangabad.
The state was also planning to set up four counter insurgency and anti-
terrorism schools at BMP-2 (Dehri-on-Sone), BMP-3 (Bodh Gaya), BMP-4
(Dumraon) and BMP-15 (Valmikinagar).
The Centre has released Rs 1.6 Crore for the purpose and tenders for
construction of buildings for the proposed training centres are likely
to be advertised in september, ADG
(Headquarters) Neelmani said.
He informed that the detailed project report for the proposed training
schools had already been submitted to the government for its
approval.
The police headquarters is also contemplating to bring about certain
changes in the surrender policy of the state government for
naxalites.
The surrender policy of the Jharkhand government was more lucrative,
sources said.
Sid Harth
Maha to have tribal battalion to tackle Naxalism, says Patil
STAFF WRITER 14:37 HRS IST
Nagpur, Aug 21 (PTI) Maharashtra will soon raise an exclusive tribal
battalion to deal with the menace of Naxalism in tribal dominated
areas in eastern Vidarbha, Maharashtra Home Minister Jayant Patil said
here today.
The proposed battalion will be deployed in the Naxal- infested areas
of Gadchiroli, Bhamragarh and Gondia districts since the tribals are
more familiar with the topography, weather conditions, language and
culture of the area.
Therefore, they would be able to deal with Naxals in a better way,
Patil said here today.
Patil earlier laid a foundation for the Rs 35 crore anti-Naxalities
commando training centre 'Alpha Hawks', on the lines of Andhra
Pradesh's 'Grayhounds' at Suraburdi, about 20 kms on the Nagpur-
Amravati road near here.
It would require about 20 months to complete, Patil said adding it
would provide training to 300 policemen.
Sid Harth
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Naxal issue buried in campaign
Hyderabad
March 21: For the first time in four decades, naxalism is not an issue
in the general elections in Andhra Pradesh.
Naxalism had dominated every election in the state since the Naxalbari
movement had emerged in the late 1960s. With the near wipe out of the
Maoist movement in the state, political parties have decided not to
raise the issue in their political speeches.
Naxalism peaked in the last general elections in 2004 and every
political party spoke about the need to address it. They even went to
the extent of levelling allegations against one another that the other
side had a “tacit understanding” with the outlawed group.
The Telugu Desam (TD) had then accused the Congress, which was in the
Opposition, of enjoying the support of the Naxalites. The Telangana
Rashtra Samiti was also accused of enjoying “inside” support from
them. The Naxalites also used to give “poll boycott” call forcing
politicians to enter into secret pacts with them. There has been no
such boycott call from the Maoists in the state.
Only the Maoists wing in Chhattisgarh, where the Naxalites are strong,
has urged the electorate not to participate in voting. The Praja
Rajyam (PR) and the TRS have resurrected the Maoist talk in their
manifestos.
Except for a mention in the manifesto, the party leadership has not
spoken about other political parties having any understanding with the
Naxalites. “The PR recognises Naxalism as a socio-economic problem. We
will enter into talks with them if the party is elected to power in
the state,” said the party vice-president, Mr C. Anjaneya Reddy.
According to intelligence reports, Maoist cadre from the state have
shifted their base to neighbouring Orissa and Chhattisgarh following a
strong anti-Naxal drive in Andhra Pradesh.
The Maoists suffered heavy losses in thick Nallamala forests. The AP
naxal leaders have taken positions in Orissa and Maharashtra.
This move has given a breather to the leaders and candidates to
contest for the polls without fear in the interior areas, that was
once dominated by the Maoists.
Posted by JR PRASAD at 10:10 PM
Sid Harth
Centre feels Bihar is a role model for other states
Ajit Kumar - August 20, 2009
HYDERABAD — From a state that had become synonymous with ‘poor’
governance, Bihar has now emerged as a role model for other states
through a specially-crafted programme, the Central government feels.
The Centre has asked nine Naxal-affected states to adopt Bihar’s novel
initiative ‘Aapki Sarkar Aapke Dwaar’ programme for providing
essential services to people in gram panchayats.
The Union Panchayati Raj Ministry in a recent circular pointed out
that weak governance structures and weakness of the local
administration are both cause and effect of Left-wing extremism.
Every panchayat should be on the lines of ‘Aapki Sarkar Aapke Dwaar’
programme of Bihar, it said and asked the affected states to improve
quality of governance and service delivery by delegating sufficient
administrative and financial powers to panchayat raj institutions.
“This is needed urgently in at least the 33 most extremist-affected
districts,” the Ministry said in its circular to chief secretaries of
the Naxal-hit states.
It further said that the innovative use of Backward Regions Growth
Fund (BRGF) grants to address specific local problems, updating and
computerising land records including forest land and common property
resources and adopting an integrated strategy for tackling development
and security challenges can also help check the menace.
Last year, UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi had also called upon Congress
ruled states to adopt the model of an RTI call centre run by the NDA
government in Bihar to make information more accessible to the poor
and illiterate.
Minister of State for Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions,
Prithviraj Chavan had said that the Centre was drawing from the Bihar
model the concept of filing of RTI applications over the telephone.
- AGENCIES
Sid Harth
Havoc And The Dogs Of War
Nothing but death is presaged in the tribal lands of Chhattisgarh, as
the State launches a brutal civil war
HIMANSHU KUMAR
Gandhian Activist
Vicious cycle Police atrocities will push the tribal people to Naxals
Photo: AFP
VRECHHAPAL IS a village of 140 tribal families in the forests of south
Chhattisgarh. Near this village, the state government has given
“prospecting licenses” to the Tatas and the Essar Group to mine iron
ore. In the last four years, the local police and the Salwa Judum, the
police-backed tribal militia, have destroyed this village several
times, but the villagers have returned each time to rebuild their
lives.
On June 28 this year, policemen and Judum goons attacked the village
again, shooting dead a man, raping a woman, and burning down 40
houses. Ten days later, when three human rights activists – Delhi
School of Economics professor Nandini Sundar, Osmania University
professor JP Rao, and Institute of Rural Management professor Ajay
Dandekar – visited the village with my co-activist Kopa Kunjam, the
Judum attacked their jeep and nearly set it on fire. We at the Vanvasi
Chetna Ashram (VCA) wrote to the police condemning the attack on the
village. We also notified them that we would be reaching rice to
Vrechhapal as the police had burnt down its agricultural produce.
This angered the police. On August 9, hordes of policemen attacked and
occupied the village. The terrified residents ran to the hills to
hide. The police shot and killed a villager and later rounded up five
innocent tribal people, including a woman, from other villages. When
the police left Vrechhapal two days later, they shot and killed all in
cold blood. Dantewada Superintendent of Police (SP) Amaresh Mishra
later claimed his men had killed six Naxals in a fierce encounter. But
newspaper photographs showed the dead “Naxals” with their hands tied
behind. The police said two bodies, including the woman’s, were washed
away. But villagers found the two bodies with deep injuries, with the
woman’s neck tied to a big stone.
Meanwhile, we struggle still to bring justice to six women raped by
Judum policemen and now camping at our Ashram in Dantewada city. They
first wrote to the SP asking that FIRs be filed against their rapists.
The SP failed to respond. Then they approached Chief Judicial
Magistrate Sanjay Kumar Soni at Dantewada. But he ordered them to go
to Konta, 140 km south of Dantewada, a township that is a brute Judum
stronghold. Soni asked them to go plead before a Judicial Magistrate,
whose job it is to register the case but who doesn’t have the legal
authority to try the rape cases.
Braving the Judum terror, these women went to Konta and filed written
complaints before this Magistrate, Amrit Kerkatta. But he decided
their written testimony wasn’t enough and ordered they give oral
testimonies. Then he took another day to hear the testimonies of their
witnesses such as their parents. Then he fixed a date to hear their
lawyers. But he did not attend court on that day, nor on the next. So
these women filed a petition before Dantewada District Judge, Sharad
Gupta, urging him to hear the case. He has rejected their application,
we don’t yet know why. These women are running from one court to
another to get a case registered, although the law says a woman’s
complaint of rape is enough to register a case. The truth is that the
government has decided to drive the tribal people out of their lands
and steal their natural resources, and the state agencies – politics,
bureaucracy and judiciary – are conniving in the atrocities.
The launch of the Salwa Judum in 2005 wrought a massive upheaval in
Dantewada as the police and the Judum began killing hundreds and rape
thousands, and burn down villages. Terrified villagers picked up their
traditional arms, the bow and the arrow, in self-defence. This is
exactly what the Indian Government wanted. It now calls them Maoists!
And it plans to decimate them by way of genocide.
This carefully planned conspiracy is a historical process. Many of
today’s economic superpowers – from the US to Australia – are founded
on genocides of indigenous peoples. The Indian Government now aims to
kill the indigenous people in Chhattisgarh because they are sitting
atop vast reserves of some of India’s best quality iron ore that is 70
percent pure, as also atop 90 percent of India’s tin deposits, besides
plentiful rubies and mica.
The police rounded up five innocent tribals and killed them in cold
blood, claiming they were Naxals The saddest part is that it is a
democratic set-up that is planning to kill the tribal people, and
India’s vast middle class backs the State. I don’t know how India will
ever redeem itself from this sin. And once we get into the habit of
killing the weaker among us, then the cycle will never end. Tomorrow
we will kill the Dalits, then the minorities, and then the people of
the villages. This would be social Darwinism.
THE VCA decided to counter the government’s evil plan. We began
bringing people back to the villages the Judum burnt down. This work
meets with a Supreme Court order that makes it mandatory for the state
government to rehabilitate all the tribal people the Judum violence
displaced. The apex court has also ordered the government to
investigate allegations of Judum violence, prosecute the offenders,
and pay compensation to the victims. The Chhattisgarh Home Secretary
gave an undertaking to the court its orders would be met. Of course,
not one case has been filed or compensation given, because it is the
police that are the culprits.
On the other hand, the government has stopped all civic services to
the tribal areas. By doing this, they are forcing the villagers
towards the Naxals. Whereas prior to the start of the Judum the Naxals
here numbered only about 5,000, their mass base may now count up to
one lakh. If the security agencies indeed launch a massive attack as
the Centre is planning, then they are unlikely to find many Naxals but
would certainly end up killing thousands of innocent tribal people.
And this is bound to send millions more towards the Naxals.
Even if the government occupies the tribal lands, the Naxals will
launch guerilla attacks and kill many jawans. In this way, the classic
capitalistic battles will see innocent and poor young men die on both
sides – one, working for the State only for a living, and the other,
the tribal, defending his land.
The Government wants to kill tribal people as they are sitting atop
rich deposits of iron ore, tin and mica
Of course, the State can’t afford to have the VCA unravel its plans.
So district and police authorities began harassing our volunteers,
disrupting our work, stopping our supply vehicles. On July 30, the
police arrested one of our volunteers and charged him with being a
Naxal planner. I phoned and asked the SP, why have you arrested him?
He said: Don’t question us. Days earlier, police swooped down on Kopa
Kunjam’s house, and beat him and his mother severely, threatening to
kill him if he didn’t dissociate himself from me. For the security
establishment in Chhattisgarh, I must be done away with.
But my choice is already made. Mahatma Gandhi said that young people
should go live among the tribal people and die among them. I am a non-
tribal and I came to this land 17 years ago. I have since lived among
the tribal people. I will surely die here, just as the tribal people
will die here. Until I die, or until I am imprisoned, I will keep
resisting the State’s brutal war against its own defenceless tribal
people.
WRITER’S EMAIL
vcadan...@gmail.com
From Tehelka Magazine, Vol 6, Issue 34, Dated August 29, 2009
bademiyansubhanallah
Palash Speaks
« Women's bill a conspiracy
MAHASHWETA Diversion from EXTREME Left to EXTREME RIGHT as Mamata
Banerjee rewards intellectuals in West Bengal by palashbiswas @
2009-08-21 – 19:08:36
MAHASHWETA Diversion from EXTREME Left to EXTREME RIGHT as Mamata
Banerjee rewards intellectuals in West Bengal
Troubled Galaxy Destroyed Dreams, Chapter 339
Palash Biswas
Pl Visit:
http://bangaindigenous.blogspot.com/
http://nandigramunited-banga.blogspot.com/
Mamta Banerjee to interact with Ficci, Assocham, CII representatives
20 Aug 2009, 2124 hrs IST, Rakhi Mazumdar, ET Bureau
KOLKATA: Union railways minister Mamata Banerjee is slated to interact
with leading captains of India Inc, representing three of the
country's apex
chambers of commerce in an interactive session in the city on Friday.
The meeting, which has been organised by the Railways, is being billed
as the first-ever meeting of minds between national representatives of
the top three business chambers –namely Ficci, Assocham and CII – with
local industry bodies also likely to participate in strength.
Incidentally, it comes less than a year after Ms Banerjee led a
campaign against forcible acquisition of farmland for industry which
led to the Tata group withdrawing its small car project 'Nano' from
Singur.
In the meeting the minister is scheduled to present her vision of the
Railways, an exercise that is likely to involve a fleshing out of the
proposals she had presented as part of the Rail Budget on July 3,
2009.
Ms Banerjee had suggested a spate of new projects through public-
private partnerships (PPPs) to improve Railway infrastructure and
services. This includes projects to manufacture suburban EMU coaches,
high capacity freight bogies and multi-functional complexes where
Railways look at leasing out land for a proposed new factory.
The minister has already set up an expert committee headed by Ficci's
secretary general, Mr Amit Mitra to prepare a business plan on
innovative new ways to foster PPP in the Railways.
"The Railways have invited all the three apex national chambers for a
meeting," Mr Mitra told ET on the sidelines of an event organized to
mark the 54th Railway Week celebrations.
A top source close to the developments told ET: "The minister would
spell out the template of growth she had outlined during the Rail
Budget to leading business leaders and industry heads and, in turn,
take their questions on the subject and interact with them. The
objective is to bring about a synergy so that Industry can take part
in Railways growth plans and modernization effectively."
"It is being organized essentially in a bid to engage with industry,
create a platform for ideation and invite new ideas in making some of
the proposals work," the source added.
Earlier, speaking at the function, Ms Banerjee told assembled Railway
employees : We have a land bank of 1.12 lakh acres. We are in the
process of preparing a business plan to utilize it and have set up an
expert committee under Amit Mitra who will suggest ways for us to earn
more money through commercial utilization of our land and air space.
The meeting was attended by Railway Board members and general managers
of all zonal Railways and other organizations under the railway
ministry.
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/PoliticsNation/Mamta-Banerjee-to-interact-with-Ficci-Assocham-CII-representatives/articleshow/4916183.cms
Ignoring Railway Minister and Trinamool Congress boss Mamata
Banerjee's strong objections, the Union home ministry will continue
its anti-Maoist operations! Calling Lalgarh a "laboratory of (anti-
naxal) operation", the Centre -- which along with state police has
jointly been taking on Maoists
there -- on Thursday said a similar strategy of area domination
through intense action (both police and developmental) would be
replicated soon in neighbouring areas and also in Chhattisgarh and
other states to flush out Red ultras.
Meanwhile, Another 200 meters got washed away into the river Phoolhar
in Bhaluka Bazaar in Malda.
Chief Secretary Ashok Chakrabarty visited Malda to hold a meeting with
the district offiers in the circuit house to discuss the situation.
Saying the situation there "is still not normal", Union home secretary
G K Pillai said the operation against Maoists who had dominated the
area due to "eight months of zero administration" would continue and
CRPF and BSF would be there "as long as it is required" to restore
complete peace.
DMK-Cong sweep TN by-polls, Mamata wins in West Bengal
Karunanidhi led DMK-Congress won all the five assembly seats in the by-
elections, but in neighbouring Karnataka, Congress is all set for a
drubbing as most of the seats are likely to go to BJP and JD-S.
Refugee leader DR Jagadish Halder visted us at HOME. He was concerned
to read the KISHANJI interview published in ANADA BAJAR PATRIKA and
wondered how Maoist Strategy based in Forests may succeed against
OMNIPOWER OMNIPRESENT Statepower!
Dr Halder is ideologically annexed to RSS HINDUTVA and is concerned
only with MINORITY Persecution in Bangladesh and Hindu bengali
Refugees in India. Though he claims to be sympathiser of NAXAL MAOIST
Movement and INSURRECTIONS! Extrem Left and Extreme RIGHT makes a
queer CHEMISTRY! He represents well the Bengali Brahaminical ZIONIST
Mindset abundant even in SC OBC and Minority communities in BENGAL
ICONISED by its CIVIL SOCIETY and INTELLIGENTSIA. They are PROUD to be
HINDU, BRAHMIN and BENGALI as well as Progressive, LEFTIST, preferably
even MAOIST with RSS originated HINDUTVA at the same time. The Muslims
are a little bit different as they tend to be OPPOSED to US
Imperialism and ZIONISM as well.
Dr Haldar is also a great supporter of Ms Mamata Bannerjee!
I know MATUA EXPERT DR NANDO DULAL MOhanti who researched on the Matua
Religion as PARA FOLKLORE Discipline. He used to run a NGO in Matua
GRAM and constructed a Parralel infrstructure there inviting direct
ENCOUNTER with MATUADHAM Thakurnagar run by the DESCENDENTS of
Harichand Thakur and GURUCHAND Thakur led by the WIDOW of late MP and
Minister PR Thakur! He has been ousted from his base and lives in
DUMDUM. Until last parliamentary Elections, he had converted himself
from a MARXIST Intellectual to a STAUNCH supporter and Activist for
TRINAMUL CONGRESS. He succeeded to get his sister ELECTED in
PANCHAYAT. But he was seriously in fray for the TMC Loksabha Ticket
from BANGAON. But he was not considered at all. The Dalit Matua
Intellectual is in quest of a new FORUM to get FOCUS once again.
This is the SC and OBC and AMBEDKARITE Psyche and BEHAVIOUR in Bengal.
They love to be CO Opted in the Brahaminical Hegemony and tend to
delink from IDENTITY and Roots. When denied, they turn REBEL. But the
REVOLT may dilute any time if ACCOMODATED!
Dr Haldar aspires a VIDHANSABHA seat from anywhere! The SC ST OBC
retired Professionals and OFFICERS often seek REHABILitation in
POLITICAL Parties, Parliament, Assembly and Committees! The GLORIFIED
ICONISED Civil SOCIETY as well as INTELLIGENTSIA prove themselves NO
DIFFERENT!
I asked DR HALDER how KISHANJI roam and loiter around and in LALGARH
so freely despite the SIXTEEN BLOCK Lalgarh area has been LIBERATED so
long and Indian MILITARY Power present! Just Consider!
I know MAHASHWETA DI since 1980 very personally. I have been in the
Editorial Board of BHASHABNDHAN. Mahashweta Di has written an
Editorial article in dainik HINDUSTAN, countrywide circulated HINDI
daily, on my Social Activism highlighting my Novel AMERICA Se SAVDHAN.
Be AWARE OF AMERICA! She is the most EFFICIENT Author to write on Anti
Imperialist ABORIGINAL Insurrections! In fact, we, generation after
generation, learnt our lessons of commitment, liabilities, resistance
from her Pro Activism Non Parliamentary since SEVENTIES, since the
THUNDERING Spring! Now the THUNDERING SPRINGS turn into Autumn
Festival of MASS ANNIHILITION and HEGEMONY PUJA GIFT! What a PITY!
I NEVER loved any person more than my late Father! Just because,he
involved me in his social activism, social commitment, liabilities,
expectations, aspirations and dreams while I was just an INFANT. The
Uneducated but more LITERATE than any Urban Highly educated Activist
or Politicians, Dalit Bengali Refugee leader who had interacted with
EVERY Prime Minister Since Nehru to Bajpayee and most of the Chief
Ministers during his life span, NEVER treated me as his son
only,rather he treate me as his best friend, advicer and eveneducated
enlightened Helping hand with whom he could share his worries, fears,
pleasure and sorrow! He always called me, PALASH Babu! I never saw a
SOCIAL ACTIVIST as committed as the LIFE SACRIFICING Ambedkarite Dream
as my Father was! But I am predestined to see all SACRIFICES to turn
in Vedic RITUALS in Rsult. MY Father and my People remained the
ETERNAL Slaves as they were for thousands and thousands years and as
they would REMAIN! The MASSES are so BIOLOGICAL ELEMENTS only fed by
BASIC INSTINCTS! SO IMPULSIVE to PERISH as the HILSHA of PADMA
predestined for the MARKET MORGUES!
I weep not for any LOST LOVE!
I woe NOT for any Failure!
I repent NOT for any STANCE!
I NEVER Retreat as my Ancient Ancestors the ASURAS, DEMONS, RAKSHASHA,
DAITYAS NEVER DID RETREAT!
I Worry NOT for the AFTER EFFECTS of my ACTIVISM!
I NEVER tried to get SETTLED!
I NEVER did SAVE or INVEST!
I always folowed CHARVAK SIDDHANTAS!
I NEVER changed my CHOICES, FRIENDS and FOES as well!
I NEVER REVISITED my DECISIONS!
I NEVER sold MYSELF nor I tried to PURCHASE anyone!
Yes, I hated DEFEAT! RETREAT!ESCAPISM! CAREER! ASSETS!SHARES! POWER!
BUT I weep for my late Father whose efforts went wrong way!
I also woe for my CHHOTO KAKA who taught me basics of Literacy and
Literature, Science andTechnology and LIVED a DISASTROUS life as most
of our people use to live just because of their INSTINCTS and
IMPULSES!
I HATE Manusmriti!
I hate INJUSTICE!
I hate Ineuality!
I hate CASTE and Class!
I hate HOLY SCRIPTS and FORCASTS!
I hate APATHEID!
I hate IMPULSES!
I hate INSTINCTIVE Behaviour and DECISIONS!
I HATE ILLITERACY!
I Hate DARKNESS!
I hate ZIONISM!
I hate FASCISM!
I hate IMPERIALISM!
I repent for MY FATHER`s, ANCESTOR`s FOLLIES with FORTUNE!
I NEVER did RESPECT anyone more than MAHASHWETA DI!
AND friends, my heart BLEEDS to see her DIVERSION from EXTREME LEFT to
EXTREAM RIGHT!
Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee Thursday evening gave away awards to
eminent writers and artists of the city, including those who supported
her in the anti-land acquisition movements in Singur and Nandigram in
West Bengal.
Altogether 12 personalities - including eminent writer and social
activist Mahasweta Devi, poet Joy Goswami, veteran Bengali actor
Supriya Devi, painter Suvaprasanna, dancer Amala Shankar, singer
Nirmala Mishra, theatre personality Bivas Chakraborty - were honoured
on behalf of the Indian Railways during the occasion.
Though there were 15 personalities in the list, three of them -
filmmaker Rituparno Ghosh, classical vocalist Ajoy Chakraborty and
Rabindra Sangeet exponent Suchitra Mitra - did not turn up to receive
the honour.
My heart aches when I see the most respected lady from Bnegal is
tagged with UPA Partner MS Mamata Banerjee considering the ROLE of
Gandhi Nehru Dynasty to COLONISE India under USA and ISRAEL! DIDI
leads us in Resistance against the MARXIST GESTAPO Genocide Culture
but at the same time while she calls for a change in Bengal, she just
forgets the Government of India INCs and its MASS DESTRUCTION
Campaign!
I felt very DEJECTED tiday while I had to witness DIDI to be HONOURED
by the RAILWAY Minister of India. We oppose GENOCIDE in Bengal, but we
support GENOCIDE Countrywide, all over the GEOPOLITICS. The ICONS of
CIVIL Society as well as INTELLIGENTSIA are quite justified to stand
united against Marxist capitalist fascist ways of RULING Left Front in
Bengal!
MY DILEMMA is how we do support DR Manmohan Singh and his ECONOMIC
Reforms, AMERICANISATION of India against which all of us had been
fighting for so long!
Our DOMESTIC help, SHOBHA, a widow comes from TAHERPUR, near
KRISHNANAGAR. During Lalu`s railway Regime, she used to get RAILWAY
Monthly for RS Thirty only against her BPL card! She and her lot,lacs
of them, who come to Metro Kolkata and SUB URBAN destinations from
remote areas to earn daily wage and bread have been DEPRIVED since
DIDI declared IZZAT plan on RS Twenty Five. NO such monthly is issued
from any Rly Booking window and the old plan remains closed for ever.
I know many more of this lot, with whom I have interaction daily. They
supported and VOTED for Mamata. But mamata has no time to lend her
ears to hear their grievances!
Daily Commuters in SUB URBAN Railway do face STIFF Hyke in MONTHLY
Charge. The commuers who used to get the opted DESTINATION Monthly
Tickets for either Howrah or Sealdah or Princepghat, they have to pay
for the added distance which was never included earlier as office
goers alwys uses the single distance. For example, if any commuter
reaches Sealdah he would not travel to BBD Bagh via Dumdum for which
no train is available.But under Mamata regime, the commuter has to pay
for both the distance! If any passenger from Bandel reaches Kolkata
via Sealdah, he would not return to Bandel to travel Kolkat from the
start to get entry from Howrah!
Maoist leader Kishanji in his latest interview from Lalgarh has
rightly CRITICISED Mamata being the part of the GOI decision making to
brand the TRIBAL Polulation Maoist. He has also alleged that NANDIGRAM
is now CAPTURED by TMC and the TMC Gestapo is doing the same thing as
the marxists used to do. This interview has been published in ANAND
BAZAR Patrica today and has to continue! Kishanji also alleged that
the Marxist Hegemony and the TMC CONG combine led by Ms Mamata
Bannerjee are just two sides of a single COIN!
I hope, Mahashweta DI perhaps seen the interview! I had been known her
for long and I wonder how she supports the COLONIAL GANDHI NEHRU
DYNASTY Rule, Nuclear Arms race, MILitary Option with Zero Tolerance,
DIVESTMENT and DEPORTATION, Cororate GOVERNANCE, Public Private Joint
Ventures led by PRIVATE management, CONTACT farming, REALTY BOOST,
BAILOUT, JOB LOSS, and MASS SLAUGHTER!
Top Maoist leader Koteswar Rao alias Kishanji has thrown the gauntlet
at the government following Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Home
Minister P. Chidambaram's promise to weed out the "Maoist menace" in
the country.
Kishanji, speaking from an undisclosed location in Lalgarh on Tuesday
night, said the Peoples Liberation Guerrilla Army of the rebels would
reply to the police "onslaught on the people bullet for bullet". The
Maoist politburo member in charge of West Bengal, Jharkhand and Orissa
alleged that the governments, both at the Centre and in the states,
were whipping up anti-Naxalite propaganda to distract attention from
their own failure to eradicate poverty and under-development.
"No government, either at the Centre or in the states, ever attempted
to eradicate poverty. Now, when the people are becoming restless, the
governments are trying to suppress the people's movement by letting
lose the police" Kishanji said.
The Maoist leader, who is also in charge of the party's central
military commission, reacted to the government's attempts to label the
rebels as terrorists.
"Our only interest is to serve the people, stay among them and
liberate them from the clutches of oppression. No government in the
world has ever won a war against the people. We will reply the
government's planned onslaught bullet for bullet," he said.
Indicating a change in the Maoist strategy in West Bengal, Kishanji
said they would no longer keep silent on the Trinamool Congress and
Left Front allies such as the RSP, Forward Bloc and CPI and
concentrate their attack only against the CPM. "In West Bengal, all
the Left Front partners have ganged up with the CPM to annihilate the
peoples' struggle in Lalgarh. At the Centre, Trinamool Congress has
ganged up with the Congress to crack down on us. Why hasn't Mamata
(Banerjee) resigned from the Cabinet if she is sincere about her
opposition to deployment of paramilitary forces in Lalgarh?" Kishanji
asked.
The top rebel leader's presence in Lalgarh, despite 50 companies of
security personnel hunting for the man, coincided with the Maoists
stepping up their armed activities and the Peoples' Committee Against
Police Atrocities clamping an indefinite strike in the three districts
of West Midnapore, Bankura and Purulia demanding immediate withdrawal
of the central forces.
Courtesy: Mail Today
Meanwhile,
The CRPF personnel, who are currently living in school and government
buildings, will move into “alternate accommodations” within a
fortnight, CRPF DG A.S. Gill said on Thursday. The Centre’s
announcement comes amid reports of Maoists staging a comeback in
Lalgarh.
While counter-offensive operations are already on in neighbouring
Jharkhand and Purulia and Bankura in West Bengal, the CRPF is gearing
to move into new areas soon where Naxals are still roaming freely.
“The state police has come back. We can’t put a date but the CRPF will
stay there as long as necessary,” Mr Gill said.
Home secretary G.K. Pillai said, “Neither from the CPI(M) or the
Trinamul Congress is there any pressure on the CRPF to withdraw.”
Asked whether Trinamul Congress chief and railway minister Mamata
Banerjee was putting pressure to end the operations, Mr Pillai said:
“There is no pressure whatsoever.”
“Now that we are by and large consolidated, we will try to spread to
more areas to ensure that killings by CPI (Maoist) completely cease.
And we hope to achieve that,” Mr Gill said. He said that the Centre is
all set to replicate the Lalgarh operation in states like
Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and Orissa. “Lalgarh is the laboratory for us
and this will be reflected in what we are going to do in other Naxal-
infested areas like Chhattisgarh. The operation in Lalgarh was by and
large successful, but not complete as we want to arrest all top
Maoists leaders,” he said.
The state government is soon going to issue notification for
conferring the PCIR (Petroleum, Chemicals and Petrchemicals Investment
Region) status on the Haldia-Nayachar area.
This was decided at a high-level meeting at the Writers’ Buildings on
Thursday chaired by Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee and
attended by Minister for Commerce and Industries Nirupam Sen and
Finance Minister Asim Dasgupta.
Bhattacharjee has not been attending office for the last three days
because of illness.
“Several issues came up during the meeting, including transfer of land
from the commerce and industries department to Prafulla Chandra
Chemical Complex, which will be the parent company for setting up the
chemical hub at Nayachar. The issues of publishing notification under
the Town and Country Planning Act, signing of the MoU with the Central
government and others were also discussed at the meeting,” a senior
government official said.
On the other hand Indian Express reports:
Promising an investor-friendly environment, the Bihar government is
all set to woo private players from West Bengal for investment in its
food-processing sector.
At a programme organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry in
Kolkata on Friday, the principal secretary of industries department,
Government of Bihar, A K Sinha said Bengal has tremendous potential
for churning out private investors.
With Bihar’s new food-processing policy, the Nitish Kumar government
intends to open its door to the inbound state investment.
“The investment scenario in Bihar has changed in the past few years.
In Bihar, we have come up with a liberal food processing policy that
is beneficial for investors. We want private players in Bengal to
invest in our state,” said Sinha.
According to Sinha, benefits like 100 per cent exemption for set up,
80 per cent VAT reimbursement, 40 per cent capital subsidy and other
government incentives are bound to attract investors from Bengal.
Mind you, Mamata is no longer a RESISTANCE leader which she used to be
during Nandigram and Singur Insurrections! She is the HUMAN Face of
The GANG of KILLERS, IMMORAL IMPOSTERS, SUPERSLAVES consistiong of
Government of India!
“The Indian Railways is privileged to honour these personalities who
have made a mark in various fields of art, culture, music and
literature. We have issued each of them a lifetime free first-class
railway pass so that they, along with one companion, can travel by
train to any destination they choose,” Banerjee said at the 54th
Annual Railways National Award Function here.
Among those feted, Mahasweta Devi, Suvaprasanna, Bivas Chakraborty,
Joy Goswami, painter Jogen Chowdhury and singer Pratul Mukhopadhyay
had played active roles during the anti-land acquisition movement
spearheaded by main opposition Trinamool Congress party and its chief
Banerjee in the past couple of years.
Times of India reports:
Railway minister Mamata Banerjee said on Thursday she plans to
introduce a performance-based promotion scheme for railway employees.
Some
of them may even get ‘double-promotions’ for exceptional performance.
If she goes ahead with her plans, the railways could become the only
government department where performers will get an opportunity to
shine in their careers.
Till now, nearly all promotions in government departments are time-
bound. Though confidential reports of officers are scrutinized,
promotion is not normally withheld unless there are charges of gross
misconduct against a person. Officers now believe that the scheme will
encourage railwaymen across the board to perform better.
"The railways cannot survive without its human face. Even a gangman
can prevent a major accident. The 268 medals and certificates awarded
today are insufficient. Even the family members of railwaymen need to
be awarded. I am planning a scheme through which, railwaymen who
perform their duties well, may even get double promotions, as we used
to get during our school days. This will be across the board. Even
gangmen and safaiwallahs will be rewarded for their good work. The
railways will reward and protect good officers and employees. We shall
also take care of those who reveal the misdeeds of others," Mamata
said at the 54th Railway Week National Awards function in Kolkata.
The railway minister said she has no plans to privatize the railways
or any of its departments. However, business plans will be made to
earn money so that employees and officers lead more secured lives.
She, however, made it clear that employees who do not perform will not
be spared. "We are one big family and will strive forward to make the
railways the best in the world."
Lalgarh replay outside cordon
- Tribals and rebels dig up roads beyond forces’ area of control
OUR CORRESPONDENT
Midnapore, Aug. 20: Tribals and Maoists have dug up roads or placed
chopped trees on them at several points just outside the security
forces’ circle of domination in West Midnapore in what seems like a
repeat of resistance tactics now synonymous with Lalgarh.
Last night, villagers owing allegiance to the People’s Committee
Against Police Atrocities, accompanied by the rebels, dug up two roads
— one running from Jhargram to Chandra, the other from Lalgarh town to
Dherua. (See graphic)
Between Jhargram and Baita, a village about 24km from Lalgarh town,
the villagers placed trees on the road.
The stretch between Baita and Dherua, close to the Dharampur police
camp, was dug up in three places.
The road between Dherua and Chandra showed freshly dug ditches in four
places, while the road from Lalgarh town to Dherua, with Dharampur in
between, was cut at least in three places.
All this was done, according to police, to keep the forces away when
the rebels and the tribals later attacked the homes of seven local CPM
leaders and also vandalised a party office in Malbandhi.
Had the the security forces in the three camps at Dharampur, Chandra
and Jhargram town tried to rescue the CPM families in Baita, they
would have found all the roads blocked.
“This is the same tactic the Maoists employed in Lalgarh before the
joint forces moved in. Whenever police tried to enter any trouble
spot, the Maoist instructed villagers to dig up roads,” a police
officer said.
The houses of CPM local committee member Bankim Singha and chief of
the Baita gram panchayat Suman Singha were attacked, though both had
announced that they had quit the party a month ago following Maoist
threats. Neither leader was at home.
“The villagers along with the Maoists surrounded our house around
midnight. They ransacked it and broke the furniture with axes and
rods. They took the broken pieces of furniture outside and set them on
fire. They also looted my jewellery and money,” said Manju, Bankim’s
wife.
Around the same time another group of about 200 villagers, again with
Maoists accompanying them, ransacked the CPM local committee office in
Malbandhi — standing deserted for a month now — and set the furniture
and papers on fire.
“In every house, the Maoists set the furniture on fire after
ransacking the house and looting money and jewellery,” said a police
officer.
A police officer said one of the reasons for the attack could be the
detention of eight villagers for questioning yesterday.
“Last evening, security forces picked up eight villagers from
Gohomidanga for questioning. But they were released when we realised
that we had picked up the wrong people,” said Manoj Verma, West
Midnapore SP.
Security pat
The Centre wants the Lalgarh security operation to be a model for
other states.
“This is a laboratory for the kind of operations we will do in
Chhattisgarh (and elsewhere),” Union home secretary Gopal Krishna
Pillai said, specifically speaking on Lalgarh.
Pillai termed the operations in Lalgarh largely successful,
considering that the area was under Maoist control till June.
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1090821/jsp/bengal/story_11389626.jsp
Maoists step up attacks in Lalgarh, ramgarh, Joint forces to stay
; Statesman News Service
NEW DELHI/MIDNAPORE, 20 AUG: Central paramilitary forces will continue
to stay in Lalgarh area to assist the state security forces till the
situation improves in the region, the Union home secretary, Mr GK
Pillai, said here today.
There would be no change in the CRPF deployment in the region in the
near future and the force would continue operations along with the
state security forces to flush out and eliminate naxalites. Police
have also seized a large number of SLRs (self-loading rifles) and .303
rifles, which were looted from the state police forces, as also a
large number of country-made weapons, said the CRPF director-general,
Mr AS Gill, who was also present at the briefing.
Mr Pillai said the situation is improving in Lalgarh, adding that the
Central government has increased welfare activities in the area to
help local residents. Recently, the government has revised the list of
BPL families increasing it from 11,837 to 18,915, an increase of over
7000 families. It would enable more people to avail of social welfare
schemes. Employment opportunities in the region have also improved due
to more enrolment under NREGS, Mr Pillai said. In the past 84 days
more than Rs 65 lakh has been distributed under NREGS, he added. The
government has also given various incentives to farmers, including
2,000 mini farmers’ kits, distribution of 600 goats and installation
of over 300 more water resources, the home secretary said. Meanwhile,
the Police Santras Birodhi Public Committee's (PSBPC) rampage in
league with Maoists continues at Junglemahal in West Midnapore. After
razing the CPI-M office at Dherua in Midnapore Kotwali police station
area to the ground the PSBPC dug up roads at several places blocking
the movement of joint forces and ransacked the Marxist party office in
adjoining Malbandi today and the houses of eight CPI-M activists in
the area. All the residents, along with other villagers, have fled.
Locals are tightlipped. The PSBPC leaders threatened that they won't
allow Marxist comrades to live in peace until their eight supporters,
abducted from Gohomidanga in neighbouring Lalgarh by CPI-M cadres
yesterday, are released. They threatened to torch the cadres' houses
and other belongings.
The joint forces have failed to show any spectacular achievement in
their second phase of operation which began last week, except for
nabbing a handful of Maoist cadres, as announced by home secretary Mr
Ardhendu Sen at a Press conference in Midnapore town on 13 August. He
said the forces would frequently change their strategy to befool the
Maoists so that they don't get any breathing space.
Maoist cadres fired at the police outpost in Ramgarh early today.
Police retaliated and the gun battle lasted an hour. A few hundred
PSBPC activists reportedly assembled near a police camp at Kasdasole
in Goaltore to launch an attack. The joint forces have been kept ready
to meet any eventuality.
The indefinite bandh called by the PSBPC from Tuesday at Junglemahal
of Midnapore, Bankura and Purulia will be relaxed for two hours from 4
p.m. to 6 p.m. from tomorrow.
In another development, CPI-M Politburo member Mr Sitaram Yechury
accused Central ministers belonging to Trinamul Congress of abetting
Maoists in West Bengal. Referring to the Prime Minister's Independence
Day speech, Mr Yechury said Dr Singh had expressed “great concern” at
the growing Maoist violence and stated that the Centre would redouble
its efforts to deal with the menace. But he must explain how he
continues to tolerate members of his own Cabinet aiding and abetting
Maoist violence in Lalgarh and other parts of West Bengal, he said.
http://www.thestatesman.net/page.news.php?clid=1&theme=&usrsess=1&id=265395
German firms ready to invest in Bengal
A delegation of representatives of 25 German companies will visit
Kolkata in April to explore investment opportunities in the state.
According to the Indo-German Chamber of Commerce (IGCC), the
delegation will meet Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee during its
two-day stay in the city.
The delegation will be led by Philipp Roesler, German Minister for
Economics, Employment and Transport. Besides Kolkata, the delegation
will visit Pune, Mumbai, and Chennai.
Companies dealing with solid waste management, water management,
environment, air-pollution, minerals, engineering and electronics will
be part of the delegation.
“Besides exploring business opportunities and investment in the state,
the companies will also seek a strategic business partner. The
companies may procure certain raw materials from the state at a
cheaper price than Germany,” said B G Roy, director, eastern region,
Integrated Gasification Combined Cycle.
Dasgupta warns against investing in foreign banks
State Finance Minister Asim Dasgupta on Wednesday advised people not
to deposit money in foreign banks or foreign insurance companies
considering the crash in the share market.
Dasgupta was of the view that the private banks which have tie-ups
with foreign banks were also not safe for investment purposes.
On the prevailing situation of the share market, Dasgupta said foreign
banks were responsible for the setback in the market. People should
deposit money in nationalised banks and insurance companies, advised
Dasgupta.
Dasgupta also felt that the steps taken by the Union finance ministry
as well as the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) were not sufficient to
revive the economy. The ministry should have slashed the interest
rates of nationalised banks on loans given to industries, trading and
agriculture sectors, he added.
The minister also claimed that the price rise would not have taken
place if the interest rates were slashed by the Union finance
ministry.
Metro Cash & Carry gets licence to do business, cannot touch retail
With Nano having set back West Bengal’s industrialisation by a few
paces, Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee got some reprieve on
Friday when his so-far stubborn colleagues in the Forward Bloc issued
a fresh trade licence to German wholesale major Metro Cash & Carry to
continue business in the state.
The state’s Agriculture Marketing Board, controlled by the Forward
Bloc, handed out the trade licence within deadline — October 10 —
though government offices were closed because of Durga Puja. The
licence will be valid till March 2009.
The permit came after the state government signed a memorandum of
understanding (MoU) with the German firm, which says the company can
sell commodities to only those who have a trade licence. The MoU also
specifies Metro can do business on agro-products with those who have
an Agriculture Produce Marketing Committee (APMC) licence like it. The
company cannot enter into direct or indirect retail business or opt
for contract farming, the memorandum states.
I am the last person to privatise Railways : Mamata
Ruling out 'mischievous propaganda' about railway privatisation,
Railway minister Mamata Banerjee today said the interest of employees
will be protected while expanding the commercial interests of the
Railways.
"Some people are mischievously saying that the Railways are going to
be privatised. I want to assure the employees that I am the last
person to privatise the Railways," she told the 54th Annual Railways
National Awards function.
Pointing out that 1.12 lakh acre of railway land had been identified
for commercial utilisation, she said two expert committees under the
chairmanship of FICCI Secretary General Amit Mitra and National
Knowledge Commission Chairman Sam Pitroda had been formed to provide
'innovative ideas'.
"I want to assure that the employees' interests will be protected when
we implement these innovative ideas in the commercial interests of the
Railways," she said.
Cultural treat give railwaymen a reason to cheer
TNN 21 August 2009, 03:13am IST
KOLKATA: It was an awards function with a difference, thanks to
railway minister Mamata Banerjee. She ensured that the 54th Railway
Week National
Awards ceremony, held in Kolkata on Thursday, had few dull moments.
At one point, it turned into more of a "jam session" with Kabir Suman
egging on veteran singer Nirmala Mishra into rendering an all-time
favourite. Even Mamata joined Suman for Purono sei diner kotha, much
to the delight of the hundreds of railwaymen attending the event
Probably for the first time in Indian Railway's history, 15 eminent
personalities from the fields of art, music, literature, theatre,
dance and films were honoured at an official railway programme of this
magnitude. Among those seated on the dais with Mamata, the two
ministers of state for railways and senior Railway Board officials
were writer Mahasweta Devi, thespian Bivas Chakrabarty, poet Joy
Goswami, actress Supriya Devi, singer and composer Pratul
Mukhopadhyay, painters Suvaprasanna and Jogen Chowdhury, singers
Sumitra Sen, Nirmala Mishra, Anup Ghosal and Subir Sen and danseuse
Amala Shankar.
Apart from mementos, Mamata handed over lifetime railway passes to
them. The passes will allow them free upper class travel across the
country with an associate. The recipients were clearly bowled over by
the gesture.
Mahasweta Devi went ahead and asked for a thousand mosquito nets and a
same number of tarpaulin sheets for Aila victims. Mamata said she
would arrange for them soon.
While Pratul Mukhopadhyay and Anup Ghosal were coaxed into singing a
few stanzas each, a beaming Nirmala Mishra said she agreed to attend
the ceremony not for any politics but because of her love for Mamata.
Joy Goswami said this was the for the first time that he was sharing
the dais with greats such as Subir Sen and Sumitra Sen. Mamata said
she would similarly honour eminent personalities from other states.
Many of the intellectuals present on Thursday may have refused to
share the dais with Mamata even a few years ago because of political
differences. But all that has changed now. For Mamata, this is nothing
less than a great victory as anything to do with intellectuals in the
state was traditionally associated with the Marxists.
Scholarships were also awarded to children of railway personnel. While
five children were awarded the Prime Minister's scholarship, 26 girl
children of Group D employees were given scholarships by the railways.
The girls will get Rs 1,200 a month for their education. Mamata said
she would do more for the families of railway employees.
CM chairs Nayachar meet
TNN 21 August 2009, 02:54am IST
KOLKATA: Even as private partners of the joint venture company APC Roy
Chemical Complex (APCRCC), floated to take up infrastructure
development at
the proposed chemical hub project at Nayachar, have engaged
consultants to look for options other than the Jurong model, the state
government seems focussed on implementing the project. Chief minister
Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee chaired a high-level meeting on Thursday to
issue the notification for the PCPIR area covering Haldia and Nayachar
as soon as possible.
All aspects of keeping the project well on track were also discussed
and reviewed by the CM. The draft of the MoU between the Centre and
the state government necessary for the project, which would be signed
once the Centre clears it, was also discussed.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/4916935.cms
1.MAHASHWETA Diversion from EXTREME Left to EXTREME RIGHT as Mamata
Banerjee rewards intellectuals in West Bengal
by palashbiswas on Friday, 21. August, 2009
2.Women's bill a conspiracy
by palashbiswas on Thursday, 20. August, 2009
3.Women’s Reservation Bill
by palashbiswas on Thursday, 20. August, 2009
4.Current Status of Women in India
by palashbiswas on Thursday, 20. August, 2009
5.Proposal for 50% quota to women in panchayats deferred
by palashbiswas on Thursday, 20. August, 2009
6.Social empowerment more imp than Women's Bill.Proposal for 50% quota
to women in panchayats deferred
by palashbiswas on Thursday, 20. August, 2009
7.Jinnah - India, Partition, Independence!
by palashbiswas on Wednesday, 19. August, 2009
8.Partition Time REVISITED! Jinnah - India, Partition, Independence!
by palashbiswas on Wednesday, 19. August, 2009
9.Govt to sell stakes in 6-7 more firms: Fin secy.Bolt sets record to
win 100m gold.Monsoon, valuations threaten Sensex rally.Pak summons
Indian envoy, protests against Manmohan Singh's remarks.Terror camps
in Pak a threat to India: Antony
by palashbiswas on Tuesday, 18. August, 2009
10.Govt to sell stakes in 6-7 more firms: Fin secy.Bolt sets record to
win 100m gold.Monsoon, valuations threaten Sensex rally.Pak summons
Indian envoy, protests against Manmohan Singh's remarks.Terror camps
in Pak a threat to India: Antony
by palashbiswas on Tuesday, 18. August, 2009
bademiyansubhanallah
2 Naxals hurt in police encounter in Oklugudda
Western Range IGP Gopal Hosur inspects items seized during the Naxal
operation at Yadadalli Venkigudda near Sringeri on FridayExpress News
Service First Published : 22 Aug 2009 04:55:30 AM ISTLast Updated : 22
Aug 2009 09:25:51 AM IST
SRINGERI: At least two Naxalites are suspected to have been grievously
injured in an hour-long encounter with the police in the dense forests
of Oklugudda near Nemmaru in Sringeri taluk, Chikmagalur district on
Friday afternoon. However, no casualties have been reported.
After the hour-long encounter that started at 1 pm, the police have
recovered army grenades, electronic detonators, radio, walkie- talkie,
large quantity of ammunitions, condoms, medicines, letters addressed
to different media groups, household utensils among other things.
Talking to the reporters in Sringeri late in the evening Inspector
General of Police Gopal Hosur admitted that the police had presumed
that the naxals had become silent after the recently-concluded Lok
Sabha elections.
However, the recovered material point out towards an active naxal
outfit in the region.
Following a definite clue, the police surrounded the area where the
naxals were camping in Oklugudda at around 1 pm.
A woman sentry, who was on guard, fired in the air to alert others
about the presence of the police.
This alarmed the other members of the group, all of who then opened
fire.
The police retaliated and after an hour-long fire exchange, the naxals
fled the scene, leaving behind their stockpile of arms.
The exchange of fire was so fierce that most of the household utensils
bore bullet holes. Blood stains were seen on the postal envelops
recovered from the spot.
Combing operation is going on in the area.
The Police suspect that it was a group of 13 Naxalites that was coming
in Oklugudda forests.
The police team was led by the Koppa Deputy Superintendent of Police
Abdul Ahad and Sringeri Inspector Sadananda.
Gopal Hosur announced rewards for all the personnel who had
participated in the encounter.
He also announced a cash reward of Rs 50,000 to the informant who had
tipped the police about the naxals.
Hosur said that there was no shortage of funds, and informants would
be awarded in the future.
Apart from Gopal Hosur, Chikmagalur Superintendent of Police Nagaraj,
and Additional Superintendent of Police Mtturayappa were also camping
in Sringeri to oversee the combing operation against the Naxalites in
the area.
bademiyansubhanallah
Re: [chhattisgarh-net] Underdevelopment and the Naxal Movement
Assuming a simple arithmetic mean of the five extortion rates given by
Kujur one gets the figure of Rs 27000 as accrual per extortion for the
Naxals. Dividing the reported total amount extorted annually of Rs
1500 crores by this average earning per extortion one gets the number
of extortions per year as 555,556.
Assuming that there are at the most about 200 dalams of the Naxalites
(even this is an exaggerated figure) across the country this means
that each dalam must be carrying out at least 2778 extortions a year.
This in turn means that each dalam must be carrying out 8 extortions
per day. If that is so then the Naxals wouldnt even have time to eat
and pass their stools let alone carry out devastating attacks on the
security forces.
I think the Indian ruling classes and their apologists can do much
better than resort to such clumsy lying in their battle against the
Maoists.
As the other story on Amlashol posted by Dipankar shows very little is
actually being spent by the state for the development of tribal areas
and passing off this kind of blatant lying as political analysis is
nothing but skullduggery of the worst kind that needs to be severely
reprimanded. The Indian state in fact extorts much much more in the
form of excise and other retrogressive indirect taxes from the poor
while giving precious little back to them.
Rahul Banerjee
--- On Tue, 11/8/09, Rajat Kumar Kujur <rajatkujur@...> wrote:
From: Rajat Kumar Kujur <rajatkujur@...>
Subject: [chhattisgarh-net] Underdevelopment and the Naxal Movement
To: chhattis...@yahoogroups.com
Date: Tuesday, 11 August, 2009, 11:54 PM
Underdevelopment and the Naxal Movement
Dr. Rajat Kumar Kujur
Lecturer in Pol. Sc, G.M. College, Orissa
Although regularly discussed in informal forums, it is only recently
that Home Minister P Chidambaram confirmed that a substantial portion
of the developmental fund lands were in the hands of extremists. In
the context of Naxalism this revelation is of immense importance since
Naxalism revolves around the issues of
deprivation and development. It has been well established from Naxal
literature and documents seized by central security agencies that the
income generated from 'levies' in the seven most Naxal-infested states
of Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh, Orissa, Bihar, West Bengal
and Maharashtra, amounts to nearly Rs 1,500 crore per annum.
With the central government accepting the evils of underdevelopment in
the Naxal infested regions, there is no dearth of money being pumped
in for specific developmental projects. About Rs 13,000 crores has
already been spent under the National Rural Employment Guarantee
Scheme between 2006-08. Recently the Government of India has approved
a special development package with a budget of
Rs 20,000 crore for the 33 Naxal-affected districts, along with 22
districts around Naxal infested areas. Most of the funds sanctioned
for the Naxalite area are for infrastructure development, involving
much construction work. The idea of Naxals acquiring government money
meant for development, may seem far fetched but is in fact a true
representation of the current reality. The CPI (Maoist)
collects a minimum of ten to fifteen per cent of the sanctioned amount
from contractors. Interestingly, it is not just the Naxals who
approach contractors for money but in some cases even the contractors
approach the Naxals with money. They approach the Naxals
to blow up the roads built by them because inferior material had been
used in their construction. Once the roads are blown up, quality
inspections do not take place.
The Naxals have strategically targeted every source of wealth
generation such as government-contract ed construction works,
auctions, coal and mineral mining, and brick kiln business. The CPI
(Maoist) leadership has circulated among its cadres, an extortion rate
card fixing the amounts to be extorted from various groups of people.
According to the card, Rs 8,000 will be extorted annually from
quarries employing manual crushers, Rs 15,000 from brick-kiln owners,
Rs 17,000 from quarries with mechanized crushers, Rs 25,000 from
petrol pump owners and Rs 70,000 from coal sidings. It has also been
revealed by some local gangsters from Orissa and Jharkhand that Naxals
are using local criminals to extort money from mine owners and
contractors.
Like participants in social movements, the Naxals have been seen as
activists working outside the political system, fighting for a
collective cause, however anyone sympathizing Naxalism need to
understand that it is the Naxals who have now become a major hindrance
in the development of many areas. Naxals are no champions of
development. Instead, they have a vested interest in keeping
poverty alive since it enables them to expand their territory. Naxal
statistics spanning the last three years show that the cadres of CPI
(Maoist) have attacked 316 economic targets which gave employment to
thousands of local tribals.� At the same these attacks have also
hated progress on various economic installations and infrastructure
projects. Economic targets in the first six months of this year
include the communication networks, railways infrastructures, NMDC
mines, Gramin Sadak Nirman Yojana works, Essar pipelines in
Chhattisgarh and Orissa, and solar plates in Bihar.
The Naxal theoretical premises might look development oriented, but
its practice of violence and terror is in no way contributing to the
growth of the people for whom it� allegedly� stands. Over the
years the Naxal movement has become conspiratorial and violent,
relying on terror struck by its guerrilla squads, rather than peasant
mobilization. On the other hand, until recently the
government did not take any steps to devise a development formula for
the areas where underdevelopment feeds the movement. Even if there
were some poverty alleviations schemes the benefits of it were only
limited to bureaucratic corruption. Now the challenge is to save the
tailor made poverty alleviation schemes from the corruption of
Naxalism so that the benefits of these programmes reach the people.
One has to admit that without economic development, no
strong-arm tactics would succeed against the Naxals. There are real
dilemmas for the government because if it reduces developmental funds
the Maoist will benefit by reemphasizing their rhetoric of
development. At the same time, if it continues to pour in funds, the
Maoist's acquire a large share of these through extortion. This is
where the government needs to understand that Naxaliam is a challenge
where at the policy level one security and developmental issues cannot
be separated. The government will have to come up with an approach
that addresses both security and development. In other words while
formulating and implementing policies on Naxalism the
government must not respond to the philosophy of Maoism, rather, all
government initiatives must look in to the practical degeneration of
the Naxal movement in India.
(This article of mine is recently published with the New Delhi based
think tank Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies, New Delhi.
http://www.ipcs.org/article_ details.php? articleNo= 2937�)
bademiyansubhanallah
Centre-ruled Jharkhand faces Naxal wrath
TNN 25 August 2009, 02:23am IST
NEW DELHI: The Maoists seem to have begun their 48-hour bandh on
Monday with a `message': choosing Jharkhand for attacks. The reason --
it is the only one among five states facing the bandh which is
directly ruled by Centre by virtue of being under governor's rule and
therefore has no problem in coordinated action against the Red
ultras.
Though other states - Bihar, Orissa, Chhattisgarh and West Bengal -
too faced some heat, two attacks in Jharkhand appeared to be part of a
well thought out Maoist plan.
Officials in the security agencies believed that since the
paramilitary forces, mainly CRPF, have stepped up their offensive
against the ultras in Jharkhand and gained some success, the Maoists
chose the state to attack in order to boost the sagging morale of
their cadres by sending a message that their People's Liberation of
Guerilla Army was capable of taking on the central forces.
The Maoists on Monday blew up a railway track in Latehar, about an
hour after the Rajdhani Express crossed the stretch, and bombed a
mobile tower in neighbouring Palamu district during the bandh called
by them against the arrest of their two top leaders. They were
successful in disrupting train services on the Barwadih-Barkakana
route despite heavy presence of security forces in the naxal-affected
districts.
Meanwhile, the home ministry has asked all naxal-affected states to
tighten security and intensify vigil against possible strikes by the
ultras on important installations. The alert was sounded within hours
of the Maoists' attacks in Jharkhand.
There were intelligence inputs to suggest that the Maoists might try
to target some important installations like railway property, telecom,
roads and power stations, said a home ministry official, adding that
these inputs had been shared with the state governments.
Sid Harth
Monday, August 24, 2009
A strange situation
In the 70s the Naxal movement started in Naxlbari in West Bengal.
Situated in dense forests the movement soon gathered force as an
extreme leftist movement and was one of the defining occurences of the
decade. In today’s India Naxals inhabit the forest area that stretches
across the states of Jharkhand, Orissa, West Bengal and Chattisgarh.
The forests are their hideouts their base. Jharkhand is full of such
dense shrub growth. At some places the cover is dense enough for one
to travel right through to Chattisgarh without ever coming in contact
with civilisation.
After days of unrest, accidents laziness and being lost, I’ve hit the
road. the second day of my journeyis currently underway, and I’m
driving back from Sahibganj to Dumka, known as the second capital of
Jharkhand. It’s also the hometown/constituency of one of the state’s
most well known leaders. Shibu Soren. It’s night time and the road is
a single laned road, surrounded on both sides by thick forest. No
animals yet. The silence in the car is unbelievably tense, Rakesh
Uncle probably more than I am. Kishore Kumar hums in the background.
“Iss sab area mein itna aaram se raat ko chal sakte hain naa?”
“Abhi tum yeh jyada mat socho toh. Aaram se chalte raho.”
“Arey! Dekhiye naa, jiss se bhi puche hai, have not expressed concern
over law and order. Sab ka complain road condition ka hai.”
“Haan! Idhar Naxal involvement nahi hai. Isliye loot nahi hota hai.”
“But yehi sabse under developed area hai Jharkhand ka. Atleast abhi
tak hum jo dekhe hain. I would have assumed that Naxal involvement
here would be maximum.”
“Haan. That is logical. Par ab un log koi ideology wala Naxal thodi na
hai. Aisa koi bolta nahin hoga but it is true.”
At dinner, yesterday I start off this conversation with my father. He
explains differently. He assumes that the situation is such because
the forest cover there is not continuous and dense, something I refuse
to believe. It is nearer to Naxalbari than the other Naxal affected
areas. The reason for this absence is cause for research. Answers will
be provided soon.
Posted by icarusfalls at 7:52 PM
Sid Harth
Halt Lalgarh operation, demand rights groups
They termed the operation as a ploy to isolate the tribals and pave
the way for corporates to take control of the mineral-rich resources
Sadiq Naqvi Delhi Hardnews
"Everybody sees us as a market and not as a people," Arundhati Roy,
author, said. She was speaking at a convention against the State's
offensive at Lalgarh and adjoining areas held at Gandhi Peace
Foundation on Thursday.
It was organised by the Lalgarh Movement Solidarity Committee, a group
of various organisations and student groups
"Earlier, after the November landmine attack directed at West Bengal
Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee when he was returning after
inaugurating a Jindal steel plant at Salboni, State tyranny has gained
massive proportions. Police and CPM harmads allegedly created havoc in
tribal area of Lalgarh in West Midnapore on the pretext of catching
Maoists, who they believed have mingled with the tribals," said Amit
Bhattacharyya of the Committee for Release of Political Prisoners.
Later, finding no other way of ending this oppression, the tribals of
Lalgarh launched a resistance and formed the People's Committee
against Police Atrocities (PCPA) headed by Chhatradhar Mahato. Police
was not allowed to enter the area and local CPM leaders were hounded
and their palatial houses razed to the ground. Seeing the disturbed
situation of the area, a joint action was launched by the Centre and
the state to flush out the Maoists and bring back the area under the
control of the state government. Nearly 5,000 troops were deployed to
challenge the guerrillas who were reportedly supporting the locals in
their resistance.
The intellectuals expressed their worries about security forces taking
control of jungles and destroying the unique culture and distinct
identities of the different tribes inhabiting them. They termed it as
a project to isolate the tribals and pave way for corporates to take
control of the mineral-rich resources of the country.
"This is nothing new in the Brahmanical thought process. Tribals have
never been allowed to be a part of the development process and have
been considered uncivilised and unworthy of being a part of the modern
society. Barriers of the language and culture have never allowed them
any space," said Madan Kashyap, poet. He went on to add, "The CPM is
not aloof of this thought process. Student leaders have taken control
of the party leaving no space for the grassroots leaders working among
the peasants. Consequently, the party has distanced itself from issues
of the tribals and rural population."
Drawing attention towards the proposed post-monsoon offensive against
the Maoists, Sumit Chakraborty, editor of Mainstream, termed Lalgarh
Operation as an experiment to test waters as to how the Indian middle
class takes it. "The government wants to check out how the middle
class reacts to this onslaught." he said. He attacked the State's
policies for being responsible for the spread of radical ideologies.
Maoism is thriving in areas reeling under extreme poverty. Moreover,
SEZs and other neo-industrial policies have led the population to part
from their lands and houses leading to massive displacement of people.
Most of the time, paltry compensation is paid in lieu of the land.
Retired professor KR Choudhary of the Visthapan Virodhi Jan Vikas
Andolan termed the struggle of Lalgarh as one of the finest examples
of resistance guided by revolutionary forces. "The tribal population
has been subjected to untold miseries. They are the first victims of
industrialisation and they will continue to fight for their rights."
he said. "Singur, Nandigram and now Lalgarh - they show that the
struggle of the people is a success," he elaborated.
Raj Kishore of the Revolutionary Democratic Front termed the struggle
as a fight between the people's and the State's model of development.
While accepting the presence of Maoists in the region, Bhattacharya
said, "Maoists were engaged in development activities like building
roads and health centres for the locals. He said that nothing would
have happened if the administration would have conceded the just
demands of the locals."
Hardnews learnt that PCPA had put forward unique demands like the then
superintendent of police of West Midnapore must apologise holding his
ears and also policemen who assaulted women must be made to crawl on
the ground with their noses rubbing the soil. Later, some more demands
of development of the native Santhali language and protection of
natural resources were added to the list. But, none of the demands
were accepted by the authorities.
Bhattacharya accused Anuj Pandey, local CPM leader, of financing goons
who killed members of the PCPA. He said something very sinister is
going on in the Lalgarh area because nobody is allowed to enter the
area. Even eminent social activists like Medha Patkar and Gopal Menon
were detained by the police.
All the organisations demanded immediate halt of the Lalgarh
operation, compensation to the affected people, commencement of
dialogue with the locals and repeal of the draconian Unlawful
Activities Prevention Act (amended), 2008.
Meanwhile, launching an attack on the neo-liberal market dynamics and
the hysteria surrounding India as the new superpower Arundhati Roy
said, "India has become a talking point in the capitalist societies.
The big question for them is will India be able to save the ailing
world economy in these tough times."
She questioned the source of funds for the election campaigns of the
major political parties. "More than 90 per cent of the independent
candidates lost the elections and 10 times more money than the US
presidential elections was pumped in the Indian elections. She called
for diverse forms of resistance to counter the oppression and said
mining and related activities are responsible for most of the
genocides in the world.
Sid Harth
Job creation in Naxal-hit areas will save youths: Reddy
PTI 29 August 2009, 08:21pm IST
HYDERABAD: Andhra Pradesh chief minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy on
Saturday said that creation of jobs in Naxal-hit areas will help keep
youths away from extremism.
He directed the officials concerned to conduct a survey in Naxal-
infested areas in the state about providing employment to youths so
that they are not attracted towards Naxalism.
The direction comes in a high level meeting convened by the Chief
Minister to review law and order situation in the state.
Additional efforts should be put in a focused manner in the remote
areas to provide job-oriented training to unemployed youths and
sensitise them against getting attracted to extremism, he said.
Reddy was briefed about the recent review meeting on internal security
held in New Delhi and the state's preparedness in tackling any
emergency situation.
bademiyansubhanallah
Naxal arrested in UP
Tags: Naxal , Sonbhadra Buzz up!vote now
Published by: Noor Khan
Published: Mon, 31 Aug 2009 at 21:41 IST
Sonbhadra: A naxalite carrying cash reward of Rs 5,000 was today
arrested in Darya forest under Raipur police circle here, police said.
Fagu Kharwar was arrested on a tip off in an encounter with police,
they said adding that a carbine and a number of cartriges were
recovered from his possession.
Other associates of Kharwar, however, managed to flee from the spot
during exchange of fire, they added.
Kharwar was wanted in a number of criminal cases in Uttar Pradesh and
Bihar.
bademiyansubhanallah
BJP accused Chidambaram over Naxal issue
Published by: Noor Khan
Published: Wed, 15 Jul 2009 at 17:10 IST
F Prev Next LNew Delhi: BJP today accused Home Minister P Chidambaram
of "not understanding the depth of Naxal problem" after he indicated
in the Rajya Sabha that the Centre was not in favour of Salwa Judum, a
movement against Maoists, to counter the menace.
"Home Minister today said that there was no review of the Naxal issue.
He (Chidambaram) does not understand the depth of the problem," senior
BJP leader M Venkaiah Naidu told reporters outside Parliament.
Naidu said a meeting of all states was called during NDA rule and the
issue was taken up seriously then, ruing that the Home Minister
"ridiculed it" today.
"The present government does not understand the depth and seriousness
of the problem. Naxals have spread in 135 districts of the country.
It's no more a state-specific problem and there should be a national
level coordinated approach to tackle it," Naidu said.
Disapproving of Chidambaram's stand on Salwa Judum, Naidu said, "The
movement Salwa Judum was led by the leader of the Opposition in the
Chattisgarh Assembly Mahendra Karma who is from Congress. Salwa Judum
people are fighting the Naxal problem ideologically."
Earlier today, Chidambaram said in the Rajya Sabha, "We are not in
favour of non-state players taking on extremists.
We are for the states for dealing with Left-wing extremists," when D
Raja (CPI) asked him about the Salwa Judum movement in Chattisgarh to
deal with Naxalites.
Sid Harth
BPL credit cards for tribal people
Kapil Dave / DNA
Tuesday, September 1, 2009 9:09 IST
Gandhinagar: Now, Gujarat's population living below the poverty line
may soon enjoy benefits of credit cards if the state government's
pilot project which is to be launched soon, proves to be a success.
Highly placed sources in the state government told DNA that the state
government is planning to launch a multi purpose below poverty line
(BPL) credit card as part of its pilot project very soon.
The state tribal development department has planned this ambitious
project and is likely to soon issue tenders for it. The aim of the
project is to start a new system in which the tribal people can get
small credits and get the actual benefit of the various schemes meant
for them. Earlier they missed out on benefiting from the various
welfare schemes introduced by the state government because of the
present system, which lacks monitoring system and also promotes
corruption, sources close to the development said.
Under the new pilot project, around 80,000 people from four tribal
talukas will be targeted. With these new cards, beneficiaries will get
a credit of Rs2,000 besides benefits of various state and central
government schemes and benefits of tribal welfare department's housing
schemes too. It is presumed that this scheme will fasten the
disbursement of the benefits with minimum human interface and thus
curb corruption. It will also help in minimising the duplication of
efforts. This new card system will help the state and central
government to directly monitor the implementation and effectiveness of
the schemes, the source said.
Sources further said that the major challenge, however, in this pilot
project is the training up of the tribal people on how to use these
cards. We will set up kiosks where guidance will be provided to the
people on how to use the card. One kiosk will be set up for 3,000
people. The cost of the pilot project will be decided once the
government awards the tender. If the government gets good response for
this project it will be extended to other tribal areas too, sources
added.
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Sid Harth
Centre draws roadmap to fecilitate surrender of naxalites:
Chidambaram
Sep 1
The government has admitted that there were a number of violent
incidents by Left Wing Extremists during the last month.
Briefing media the Home Minister Mr. P. Chidambaram, however,
expressed the confidence that a number of naxalites will be persuaded
to surrender and opt for rehabilitation.
He said that the government has already issued revised guidelines and
a package for surrender and rehabilitation of naxalites earlier last
month to encourage them to lay down their arms.
Reiterating the governments two pronged policy to deal with the naxal
problem, he said that the centre has asked the states to talk to
naxalite groups who give up their misconceived armed liberation
struggle.
He also said that seven temporary Counter Insurgency and Anti-
Terrorism Schools will be set up during the current fiscal. Two each
will be set up in Assam and Bihar and one each in Chhattisgarh,
Jharkhand and Orissa.
Sid Harth
Centre asks states to expedite land distribution among tribals
Sep 1
The Centre has asked states to expedite land distribution among
tribals. Tribal Affairs ministry in a letter to the states has asked
to take prompt action to meet the deadline. Many states have not met
the deadline of distributing land deeds among tribals and other forest
dwellers by the end of 2009. Only a few states have initiated steps
under the Scheduled Tribes and Traditional Forest Dwellers Act,
2007.
Sid Harth
Panel to help end manual scavenging
Special Correspondent
— File photo
The Madras High Court in November 2008 had banned the entry of human
beings into manholes, except in specific conditions.
CHENNAI: The Madras High Court has formed a 13-member special
committee to come up with suggestions that would enable the
authorities to eradicate manual scavenging.
The committee would also examine various aspects relating to the
sewerage system in metropolitan cities and other parts of the State to
remove defects in the system.
Passing further orders on a contempt petition seeking to take note of
“wilful disobedience” by the authorities of a court order asking them
to take steps to eradicate manual scavenging, a Division Bench
comprising Justices F.M. Ibrahim Kalifulla and B. Rajendran said the
panel should submit its report with suggestions and recommendations to
improve the system and maintain the overall environment. This should,
preferably, be done within two months.
Following a writ petition filed by A. Narayanan of Virugambakkam, the
High Court in November 2008 banned the entry of human beings into
manholes and septic tanks in the State, except in specific
circumstances. The court had asked the authorities to take measures to
ensure that all forms of manual scavenging were eradicated.
In his contempt petition citing Niranjan Mardi, Secretary, Municipal
Administration and Water Supply Department; and Shiv Das Meena,
Chairman and Managing Director, Chennai Metropolitan Water Supply and
Sewerage Board (CMWSSB) as respondents, Mr. Narayanan said they had
not taken the court’s directions with the seriousness it deserved. The
petitioner prayed the court to take note of the “wilful disobedience”
by the authorities of the court order.
The Bench said the committee, headed by the CMWSSB Chairman, would
deliberate on issues including ways to regulate or avoid throwing of
solid waste into the sewage system, monitor action taken to divert
illegal sewage connections given in stormwater drains, and
construction of diaphragm chambers in hotels, marriage halls, cattle
yards and similar facilities. It would identify equipment or devices
to clean septic tanks and sewer systems in times of blockage and study
the maintenance of Chennai’s sewerage and suggest improvement
measures.
The contempt petition along with the main writ petition should be
listed as soon as the report is submitted by the panel, the Bench
said.
Sid Harth
ULFA militant killed in encounter
RANGIYA (ASSAM): An ULFA militant was killed in an encounter with
security forces and a large quantity of explosives recovered in
Assam’s Kamrup (Rural) district on Tuesday, the police said.
The militant was holed up, with four accomplices, at Baragaon village
when Army and police personnel, acting on a tip-off, raided the area.
The militants fired on the forces, and in the retaliatory firing one
militant was killed while the others managed to escape, the police
said.
A large amount of explosives, including an improvised explosive
device, was recovered. — PTI
Sid Harth
DOOARS TERAI: 700 Naxals court arrest, demand forces withdrawal
Posted by barunroy on September 1, 2009
FROM NAXAL WATCH
Siliguri: Nearly 700 activists of the Naxalite faction CPI-ML
(Liberation) courted arrest here on Monday demanding immediate
withdrawal of forces from Lalgarh.
Charu Mazumder, Darjeeling district secretary of the faction, led the
activists in courting arrest as they scuffled through three security
rings in the Siliguri court compound.
All the arrested were later released on personal bonds, Inspector-in-
charge Prabhat Chakraborty told reporters.
Alleging that the presence of joint forces was creating trouble for
locals in Lalgarh, Charu’s father and founder of Naxalite movement
Abhijit Majumder told news agencies that people are “struggling for
existence following an unprecedented price hike of essential
commodities”.
Besides demanding withdrawal of joint forces from Lalgarh, the group
also demanded that the state government should supply essentials like
food grains at subsidised rates to poor families.
Sid Harth
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
Maoists eye temple fund
Anuradha Dutt
Pashupatinath is a treasure trove
After suffering a reverse via the Nepal Government’s decision to
reinstate Indian priests at Pashupatinath temple in Kathmandu some
months ago, the Maoists are again trying to gain control of the
shrine. Opponents of the tradition of Bhatts, who perform rites at the
shrine and are recruited from south India, recently rushed into the
premises and locked up the office of the managing committee, Pashupati
Area Development Trust. The aggression was reported to be triggered by
the move to appoint two priests from Karnataka. Last month, the trust
formed a three-member committee, including the chief priest, for the
purpose. The shortfall in staff officiating at the temple was
affecting ritual performances.
This situation surfaced after the Supreme Court stayed the appointment
of two Nepalese priests in January this year. Though the court
directed that the old practice of appointing Indians should continue,
the case awaits a final resolution.
The Maoists’ attempt to gain control over Pashupatinath temple,
Nepal’s most-renowned pilgrimage and a world heritage site, is viewed
cynically by locals as less of an assertion of national identity and
more as a bid to get access to the temple’s huge corpus of funds. For,
the Shiv shrine, whose origins are lost in the mists of antiquity, is
among the most sacred for Hindus around the world. It ranks in
importance with ancient Shiv shrines in India.
The huge rush of pilgrims to Pashupatinath throughout the year and in
all seasons ensures handsome offerings. The surmise that the tussle
over control of the shrine management is driven by motives other than
ideology may be correct. There are precedents for such a struggle.
To cite a pertinent example at home, long before the dispute over the
Ram Janmabhoomi in Ayodhya became politicised, the town had witnessed
bitter feuds between claimants to the site, viewed by devout Hindus as
the birthplace of Ram. Alongside Muslims who pressed their claims were
the Nirmohi Akhara and Digambar Akhara. Ayodhya has a history of
disputes between various religious factions over property and wealth.
Bairagis, a Vaishnav sect that popularised Tulsidas’s Ramcharitmanas
through dramatic renderings, and Shaivs fought for control of shrines
as these meant rich pickings. The former believed that the legendary
King Vikramaditya of Ujjain had made a splendid temple at Ram’s
birthplace, and they had ownership rights to the site. Struggles over
control of shrines often ended in killings of mahants and their
ashrams or shrines being taken over by adversaries.
In more recent times, Maithili Sharan of Janaki Ghat and Bajrangdas of
Hanumangarhi were said to have met this fate. And, the chief mahant of
Mumuksh Bhavan at Vibhishan Kund was apparently killed by a disciple,
impatient to grab his ashram. Such instances abound in pilgrimages,
where piety and sin co-exist. Rather than a political feud, many
people living in Kathmandu valley choose to view the ongoing tussle at
Pashupatinath as a struggle between two factions for access to temple
property and funds.
Traditionally, priests at Pashupatinath temple have been recruited
from South India since the time of King Yaksha Malla, who reigned in
the 15th century. Another account holds that Adi Shankaracharya, the
8th century AD monk who restored the primacy of theism over agnostic
faiths, initiated the custom of South Indian priests officiating at
Himalayan Hindu shrines such as Badrinath, Kedarnath and
Pashupatinath. It reflected his vision of unity. A third view holds
that Indian priests were brought to ensure uninterrupted worship at
the fabled shrine. This is because custom enjoined the Nepalese people
to undertake a year-long mourning, even suspending religious service,
when the monarch died. Indian priests could be expected to perform
ritual worship while the whole of Nepal lamented the king’s demise.
The forced attempt to break with tradition has been criticised both in
Nepal and India. Those backing Nepali priests argue that they are as
skilled as their Indian counterparts in performing rites. But, the
matter being subjudice, they need to bide their time till a final
verdict on the matter is given by the court. Abolishing the monarchy
and trying to undo religious convention are not the same. For, despite
its conversion into a secular state, the country clearly harbours a
Hindu soul, rooted in millennia of uninterrupted worship at Himalayan
shrines that have withstood the march of centuries, as much as
ideological assaults.
Maoist haste to take over Pashupatinath only raises questions about
the motive for such a course of action. Since it cannot be political,
the reason is not far to seek.
chhotemianinshallah
Maoist rebellion: India's big security worry
Tue Jun 9, 2009 3:26pm IST
By Bappa Majumdar
NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Maoist rebels in India are rapidly expanding
their insurgency and could move from remote rural areas to cities, a
top security official said on Tuesday.
The rebels are estimated to have 22,000 fighters, and have spread to
more than 180 of the country's 630 districts from just 56 in 2001,
government and independent data says.
"They have a very comprehensive plan to spread their tentacles into
other parts of the country, including urban areas," M.L. Kumawat,
special secretary (Internal Security) told Reuters in an interview.
"We now need highly specialised forces to deal with the sophisticated
weapons they have. Our police forces will be capable, I cannot say
they are capable to deal with them now."
Equipped with automatic weapons, shoulder rocket launchers, mines and
explosives, the Maoists want to cripple economic activity. Last year
they carried out at least 1,000 attacks, but most of these were in
remote jungles and villages.
The Maoists, who say they are fighting for the rights of the poor and
landless, control some of India's mineral-rich areas and operate in
large swathes of the eastern, central and southern countryside.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has described the Maoist rebellion as
one of the gravest security threats to India.
The Maoists have killed police and politicians, and targeted
government buildings and railway tracks in an insurgency that has
killed thousands since the 1960s.
But some recent attacks have been carried out closer to cities, and
one such attack in Nayagarh, just 87 km (54 miles) from the state
capital of mineral-rich Orissa, showed that they were moving closer.
Similar attacks have taken place in towns in West Bengal state.
Kumawat said interrogation of Maoist leaders, recently arrested from
cities like Bangalore and the state of Haryana, revealed their urban
plans.
"Right now they may not be violent in these areas, but their presence
cannot be ruled out ... the Naxal (Maoists) problem is not confined to
one or two states anymore."
They are also in touch with other militant groups operating in Kashmir
and the northeast, Kumawat said. "They are supporting other extremist
groups in Jammu and Kashmir, and have linkages with northeastern
militant groups."
Kumawat, who is also the chief of the Border Security Force (BSF),
India's main frontier guarding agency, said $1.7 billion would be
spent over the next five years to increase deployments along Pakistan
and Bangladesh borders and modernise the force.
"After all there are training camps of many militant groups across the
border and we have to strengthen our force."
© Thomson Reuters 2009 All rights reserved
chhotemianinshallah
COLUMN - Poll violence buries Chhapra rape incident
Mon Apr 20, 2009 8:53pm IST
(C. Uday Bhaskar is a New Delhi-based strategic analyst. The views
expressed in the column are his own.)
By C. Uday Bhaskar
The first phase of polling for the 2009 Indian elections concluded on
April 16 and clearly there was more violence than I had anticipated.
Almost 20 people were killed in what is euphemistically referred to as
Left-wing extremism (LWE) and related Maoist violence and this was
largely among those states that have a high incidence of such
contestation.
One may infer that those motivated by such ideology believe that the
bullet is more effective than the ballot but luckily they are still in
a minority.
However, their ideological determination is not to be taken lightly
and the many historical inequities heaped on the local tribal and
their impoverished brethren needs to be redressed with sincerity by
the government of the day.
On more than one occasion, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has warned
the country that the LWE/Maoist/Naxal combine poses the gravest
challenge to India's internal security -- and the current elections
are a continuation of the democratic experiment to wean such groups
away from the gun.
Much of the LWE violence and terrorism that has engulfed large tracts
of central and eastern India has its genesis in the manner that the
many provisions in the Indian Constitution and the laws that flow from
there have been flouted by successive governments over the last 50
years.
The tribal and the socially most backward communities have been
progressively exploited by numerous vested interests in independent
India and their faith in the justness of the democratic system and the
law that is to be enforced in an impartial manner is at an all-time
low.
But the tribal is not alone in such collective victimization. Tracking
the elections and similar developments, a little noticed incident of
pre-meditated, gender-related violence caught my eye and in many ways
this symbolizes the glaring omissions and inadequacies in the Indian
democratic process.
On April 17, a day after the first phase of polling, it was reported
that a 17-year-old girl travelling with her father was dragged out of
a train at Chhapra junction in Bihar in full public view and then gang-
raped by four young men in a nearby medical shop. It has been added
that one of the four has since been arrested.
Regrettably this sordid and deplorable incident is not 'news' -- for
such violence against girls and women has become routine in India and
the law is neither applied effectively nor swiftly.
It is unlikely that this audacious act of sexual terrorism will be
dealt with in an effective and speedy manner for more than one reason.
The incident happened in Bihar which is notorious for its
lawlessness.
I presume there is a caste and class hierarchy involved and one can
imagine with anguish the plight of the poor father and his assaulted
daughter who will now remain 'tainted' all her life. And most
importantly -- this is election time -- and no local government
official or political representative will act objectively and
impartially.
I fervently hope that I am proved wrong and that the local police and
judiciary in Chhapra will act in the manner that a normative
interpretation of Indian democracy mandates but my expectations are
low.
And what is cause for even greater sadness is that no political party
either dwelt on the specific incident or the abominable generic
malaise -- of glaring gender inequity. Female foeticide, dowry deaths,
sexual abuse, domestic violence…the list of violations is long.
Despite the glowing values enshrined in the Indian Constitution about
'equality' -- women in India are less equal than their male peers.
Period.
A quick survey of the gender related promises in the manifestos of the
major political parties reveals little that is new. It is mostly
anodyne and predictable posturing for the current election.
In a discussion last week, about the elections at Delhi’s most
cerebral centre, I raised the Chhapra issue in the context of India's
internal security. The response is illustrative about how such social
transgressions have now become almost routine and elicit little or no
outrage.
"Bhai saab, aise balaatkar to roz hota hai…chunav jaise, yeh bhi satte
ka khel hai." This translates loosely as "brother, such rapes happen
daily…like the elections this is also a power-play."
Whether macro violence like the anti-Sikh pogroms of 1984 and the
Godhra-Gujarat mass killing of Muslims in 2002, or micro incidents of
which Chhapra 2009 is the mere tip of the murky iceberg, Indian
democracy is either unable or unwilling to deliver speedy justice to
its more vulnerable elements.
While the Sikh and Muslim pogroms have become Congress versus BJP
electoral issues thanks to the now famous ‘shoe-gate’ incident, the
routine violence against women is yet to figure on the Indian
electoral radar.
This is doubly ironic when major parties have women leaders like Sonia
Gandhi, Mayawati, Jayalalithaa and Mamata Banerjee amongst others as
their high-profile leaders.
But then the Indian election is about ironies and hope across a
billion-plus citizens. The Chhapra rape should not be allowed to
become the proverbial elephant in the drawing room.
Watch this space.
bademiyansubhanallah
Andhra CM's helicopter missing since 9.25 am
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Rajasekhara Reddy's helicopter went
off radar for several hours and the whereabouts of the CM remained
unknown. No contact has been made with the helicopter since last six
hours.
CJ: Shershah Wed, Sep 02, 2009 16:12:52 IST
bademiyansubhanallah
Views: 456 Comments: 0Rate : 1.0 / 1 votes
Andhra Pardesh News : AP: YSR, the first CM to complete a 5-year term
SECURITY ESTABLISHMENT in Andhra Pradesh went into a tizzy this
afternoon after Chief Minister YS Rajasekhara Reddy's helicopter went
off radar for several hours and the whereabouts of the CM remained
unknown.
Andhra Pradesh government has appealed to the people to look out for
Reddy's helicopter and help government officials in locating the CM.
No contact has been made with the helicopter since last six hours.
Top government officials also said that it is likely that the
helicopter landed in forest or uninhabited areas due to the adverse
weather conditions prevailing in the state.
Officials said that Chief Minister left Hyderabad for Tirupati on a
helicopter at 8.30 am along with his secretary and chief security
officer. The chopper lost radio contact at around 9.25 am, when it
entered the thickly forested Nallamalla hill range as it was raining
heavily.
The area is also infested with Naxalites and officials fear that chief
minister's life could be endangered in the Naxal affected area.
Meanwhile, it is also being speculated that officials have knowledge
about the landing of the CM aircraft in a remote hilly area. The
information is being kept under wraps to ensure that Reddy does not
fall into the lap of Naxal terrorists.
bademiyansubhanallah
Posted: Wed, Sep 2 2009. 6:38 PM IST
Economy and Politics
Govt to send 5000 CRPF personnel to trace YSRThe troops will carry out
a massive combing operation in the dense forests of naxal-infested
Kurnool districtPTI
New Delhi: The Centre has decided to send about 5,000 CRPF personnel
for a combing operation in naxal-affected dense forests to trace
Andhra Pradesh chief minister Y. S. Rajashekhara Reddy whose
helicopter went missing an hour after it took off carrying him from
Hyderabad today.
Home Ministry officials said five battalions (about 5,000 men) of the
Central Paramilitary Force will be pressed into search operation on
the route over which Andhra chief minister was to fly.
The troops will carry out a massive combing operation in the dense
forests of naxal-infested Kurnool district.
The CRPF personnel will be called from neighbouring Chhattisgarh and
Orissa, the officials said adding the first batch of these men is
expected to reach soon.
Chief minister’s principal secretary S. Subramanyam and chief security
officer A. S. C. Wesley and two pilots were also on board the twin-
engined government helicopter that lost contact at 9.35am when it was
headed for Chitoor district, over 600 kilometres from Hyderabad.
chhotemianinshallah
NSA rules out Naxal strike on YSR's chopper
PTI 2 September 2009, 09:27pm IST
NEW DELHI: National Security Advisor M K Narayanan on Wednesday
appeared to completely rule out the possibility of Naxals bringing
down the helicopter of Andhra Pradesh chief minister Y S R Reddy that
went missing in the state, saying the ultras did not have such a
capability. ( Watch Video )
He said it was quite possible that a technical snag or a pilot error
could have led to the chopper going missing.
"Naxal strike seems extremely improbable. I would almost entirely rule
it out. I do not think the Naxalites have the capability to bring down
the helicopter," Narayanan said here.
Narayanan said the government was determined to continue the search
for the helicopter or its wreckage and the Chief Minister, his
secretary and personal security officer.
"The search will continue till we get hold of the helicopter or its
wreckage and the persons on board the helicopter. We will search
tonight and tomorrow morning. I don't think there is any question of
calling off the search," he told a TV channel.
Pointing out that the country has been very worried over the safety of
the chief minister, he said the Centre, apart from the state, had done
the utmost to find the helicopter by pressing into service IAF
helicopers and aircraft with radars for ground mapping the region.
"The situation does not seem to be good. We have done helicopter
search in several areas such as the Northeast where communication has
been far less adequate," Narayanan said.
He said the government also planned to have satellite images of the
region obtained from ISRO once Indian satellites come over the region
tomorrow.
"We are keeping our fingers crossed that there would be miraculous
escape (of the Reddy and his personnel) in this case," he added.
chhotemianinshallah
Missing chopper was not airworthy: Sources
IANS 2 September 2009, 08:55pm IST
NEW DELHI: The Bell 430 helicopter that went missing on Wednesday with
Andhra Pradesh chief minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy on board was not
airworthy and was pulled out of the chief minister's use last year
after the state purchased a new Italian chopper, civil aviation
sources said. ( Watch Video )
The Andhra Pradesh Resident Commissioner here, Rajat Bhargava, was
unable to explain why the chief minister chose to fly by an old
chopper when he had a new one, Agusta AW 139, bought for Rs.58
crores.
The sources in the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), the
aviation regulator, said that Bell 430 was not airworthy and its
certificate of airworthiness had not been renewed for the last two
years.
The new Italian chopper was put into service from November last year,
the sources said.
Soon afterward, the Bell 430 was handed over to the Andhra Pradesh
Aviation Corp for commercial operations. According to one official,
the police in Andhra Pradesh were now using the chopper.
The Bell 430 was then taken out of service for the chief minister due
to its limited seating capacity and lack of night-landing capability.
This is not the first incident of this kind involving Bell choppers in
Andhra Pradesh.
In March 2002, a Bell 206 B-3 Jetranger helicopter, owned by Deccan
Aviation Pvt Ltd, crashed in Andhra Pradesh killing then Lok Sabha
speaker G.M.C. Balayogi.
After hitting a coconut tree and high-tension power lines, it crashed
in a fishpond at Kovvadalanka while flying from Bhimavaram to
Hyderabad.
In another incident, a Bell 430 chopper crashed in Khammam district of
Andhra Pradesh killing four people, according to the DGCA website.
Bell 430 is a four-blade twin-engine high-speed corporate and
executive helicopter capable of speeding up to 257 km an hour. It can
carry five passengers besides two pilots.
chhotemianinshallah
Helicopter search for YSR called off: Chidambaram
PTI 2 September 2009, 07:50pm IST
NEW DELHI: The search operations by helicopters for locating Andhra
Pradesh CM Y S Rajasekhara Reddy has been called off because of light
and weather conditions and will resume tomorrow morning, home minister
P Chidambaram said here on Wednesday. ( Watch Video )
"There is no good news yet. We are keeping our fingers crossed. Our
prayers are with Rajasekhara Reddy and his family," he told reporters
more than nine hours after the helicopter lost the contact with the
ATC at 9:35 AM.
The search has been stopped for the time being because of weather and
light conditions. Tomorrow in the first light of the day, helicopters
will continue the search, he said.
However, Chidambaram said the search on foot by forest and revenue
officials was on around the point where they think the helicopter was
last seen. Police and CRPF personnel were also moving on foot. They
would reach there in an hour or so.
"I have advised the state government to continue the search even
during the night with whatever light is available. Perhaps they would
be able to do the search on for couple of hours," he said.
The union home ministry has rushed 5,000 CRPF personnel to the area
from nearby Chattisgarh and Orissa to conduct search in the area.
chhotemianinshallah
Sonia Gandhi to visit Hyderabad on Thursday morning
From ANI
New Delhi, Sep.2 : Congress President and United Progressive Alliance
Chairperson Sonia Gandhi will visit Hyderabad on Thursday.
Sonia called up Reddy's wife on Wednesday evening and is believed to
have expressed concern with the family over the missing incident of
Reddy.
A high-level search operation is on to trace out the missing CM.
Army's 300 special Commandos (especially trained in jungle warfare),
5,000 Central Reserve Police Force personnel and State's anti-Naxal
Force personnel have been engaged into the seach operation.
Reddy has gone missing since 9.35 a.m. of Wednesday morning.
Copyright Asian News International/DailyIndia.com
chhotemianinshallah
Air search operation called off due to bad weather: K.Rosiah
From ANI
Hyderabad, Sept. 2: State Finance Minister K.Rosiah on Wednesday said
that the air operation had been called off due to inclement weather
and less visibility.
"The air-search operations would begin by 6.00 to 6.30 on Thursday
morning," said State Finance Minister K.Rosiah.
"The team from ISRO's low-flying aircraft has been landed in
Hyderabad. They have taken about 40 images of Nallamali area. They
have been analysed at the National Remote Sensing laboratory in
Hyderabad. The results are expected by 11.30 tonight," said State
Government Secretary Ramakant Reddy at the conference.
Meanwhile, in New Delhi, Congress party's core committee will hold a
meeting do discuss developments related to Andhra CM's missing
incident.
Sid Harth
Sukhois with night vision join search
Vishwa Mohan & Himanshi Dhawan, TNN 3 September 2009, 01:14am IST
NEW DELHI: As Andhra Pradesh chief minister Y S Rajasekhar Reddy's
missing chopper remained untraceable despite day-long aerial search
operations,
the government is resting its hope on IAF Sukhois with night vision
capability which can detect the heat of the craft.
The Sukhois can pick up the heat trails of the chopper if it has come
down in the forests of Nallamalla. There are 20 ground teams
comprising personnel from various agencies including anti-naxal
commandos searching for the chopper in what has now been identified as
a 1,000 sq km area. This remains a daunting task and the rescue
operations will depend on aerial and satellite surveys apart from help
rendered by local tribals near Almakur where the helicopter was last
seen.
Home ministry officials coordinating the search hope any wreckage
could be located by Thursday afternoon as operations intensify with
more helicopters and low-flying aircraft.
The area -- where the search operation is going on -- has been pin-
pointed with the help of tribals who last saw the chopper over Almakur
and the nearest mobile coordinates. The chopper, taking the north-
south flying path from Kurnool to Chitoor, is understood to have taken
an eastward diversion, possibly due to bad weather.
Officials said the pilot might have tried to negotiate clouds and
turnedtowards Almakur and nearby Iskala and Phaula Bhudua villages
where it was last spotted by tribals.
Andhra Pradesh government -- which first pressed private choppers for
search operations after losing contact with the CM's helicopter --
contacted the defence ministry around 12.30 pm. The defence ministry
choppers could not take off from Hyderabad before 1.30 pm and had to
return in an hour due to bad weather. Later, Dornier aircraft and low
flying planes with remote sensing capability were used.
Though the Nalamalla forest area has naxal presence, security and
intelligence officials discount any sabotage or action even after a
crash. They feel bad weather or some technical fault could be the
reason for a mishap.
Even national security advisor M K Narayanan, while talking to a
television channel, admitted that the government was not taking any
chance keeping in mind the naxal presence. Anti-naxal commandoes could
also be used given their training for negotiating forest areas.
The NSA, however, ruled out the possibility of naxals bringing down
the CM's chopper. He said, "Naxal strike seems extremely improbable. I
would almost entirely rule it out. I do not think the naxalites have
the capability to bring down the helicopter."
ISRO satellites are also being used, though they will not cover the
area till Thursday morning. US ambassador to India Timothy J Roemer
spoke to home minister P Chidambaram and offered all help. The nature
of assistance or requests was not specified but could include
technical assistance like satellite surveillance.
Chidambaram, who rushed to Delhi from Chandigarh after getting a
message of missing chopper around 11 am, said in the evening, "There
is no good news yet. We are keeping our fingers crossed. Our prayers
are with Rajasekhara Reddy's family."
The home minister, who is talking to all local SPs and other senior
officials, said the search had been stopped for the time being because
of weather and light conditions. "Tomorrow, in the first light of the
day, helicopters will continue the search," he added.
However, the home minister said the search on foot by forest and
revenue officials was on around the point where they think the Bell
helicopter was last seen. Police and CRPF personnel were also moving
on foot.
The home ministry has rushed five companies of CRPF -- about 600
personnel -- to the area.
chhotemianinshallah
Home Ministry acted late
Manan Kumar
First Published : 03 Sep 2009 03:30:00 AM IST
Last Updated : 03 Sep 2009 06:35:50 AM IST
NEW DELHI: Intriguing it might seem, the Union Home Ministry remained
in the dark for close to four hours about the missing chopper of
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhar Reddy.
While the last radio contact with CM’s Bell 430 helicopter was
recorded at 9.12 am, the Home Ministry and the Intelligence Bureau
Chief came to know about the missing chopper as late as 1 pm. ‘‘Had
the inordinate delay not happened, we might have been in a better
position for quicker response in terms of launching search
operations,’ said a source.
As soon as information reached, the Home Ministry turned into a war
room establishing hectic contacts with different agencies and the PMO.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was also briefed about the situation by
NSA MK Narayanan.
A distant but lurking fear doing the rounds in the Home Ministry was
what if the CM survived but landed in Naxal hands. Though the dense
Nallamala forest is no more regarded as Naxal infested, the tribal
population there are supposed to have sizeable number of Naxal
sympathisers.
Picking up coordinates on the basis of last established radio contact,
the National Remote Sensing Agency of Department of Space pressed a
low flying aircraft into search operations.
Equipped with remote sensors to pick up weak signals through deep
penetration, the aircraft would be searching 200 sq km area of the
Nallamala forest touching the borders of Guntur, Kurnool and
Mahabubnagar districts. Five choppers pressed into search operations
are reported to have turned back without yielding any results.
Hoping that searches would yield a positive result, Home Minister P
Chidambaram said 600 CRPF personnel have been pressed to comb the
possible location in Nallamala forest.
‘‘We will have to stop search operations because of the darkness. But
they will resume again at dawn,’’ said Chidambaram.
Two commando units of Army, having 30 men each, have also been pressed
into search operations besides IAF’s Sukhoi aircraft for faster
reconnaissance of the dense forest.
chhotemianinshallah
NRSA’s low-flying aircraft to carry on search
Express News Service
First Published : 03 Sep 2009 03:37:00 AM IST
HYDERABAD: The search operation by helicopters for the missing chopper
of Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhar Reddy in Nallamala area was
abandoned when dusk had finally settled, reducing visibility to zero.
The State Government requisitioned the services of the National Remote
Sensing Agency’s (NRSA) low-flying aircraft, which could fly at an
altitude of 5 km and move in an area of 250 sq km even in inclement
weather, to continue the search.
This apart, the government also sought the help of the US’ Defence
Department for real-time satellite imagery of the area to zero in on
the location of the missing chopper. This is besides pressing into
service Army, local police and APSP personnel to search the area on
foot at night.
As soon as the Air Traffic Control at the Begumpet Airport lost
contact with the Chief Minister’s chopper at 9.35 am, an hour after
it took off for Chittoor, a massive search operation had been
launched. Throughout the day, the airspace of Nallamala forests
reverberated with the sound of the low-flying helicopters.
The search could not be carried out effectively till afternoon as
heavy rain was lashing the district under the influence of a trough
of low pressure over the Bay of Bengal. Only at about 3 pm was there
some respite from rain which helped the helicopters continue with the
operation.
Soon after the Chief Minister’s chopper went off the radar, the State
Government had called for the services of three defence helicopters
from Bangalore and two from Hakimpet airforce base. Two State-owned
choppers and a private helicopter of the Krishnapatnam Port Company
too hovered over Nallamala region for quite some time but returned to
its base due to inclement weather.
chhotemianinshallah
Pilot may have erred
Vikram Sharma
First Published : 03 Sep 2009 03:31:00 AM IST
HYDERABAD: Did the pilot carrying Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhar Reddy
commit Controlled Flight Into Terrain (CFIT) ? Aviation experts feel
the pilot may have committed CFIT - wherein he inadvertently flew
into low-hanging clouds covering the terrain, mountain or even water
resulting in a collision.
Aviation and police sources told ‘Express’ that during rainy and
winter seasons, Nallamala forest belt has clouds at very low
altitudes. ‘‘Even highly experienced pilots commit CFIT with the most
airworthy choppers. CFITs occur due to reduced visibility and the
pilot flies into the cloud and ends up hitting the terrain or mountain
or sometimes, even water,’’ they explained.
They said CFIT, known as ‘rock filled clouds’ in aviation parlance,
often occurs when the pilot tries to make an emergency landing.
‘‘It can even be associated with equipment malfunction,’’ the
experts said. They were surprised that despite bad weather
conditions, the Chief Minister and his crew chose to fly.
‘‘They may have considered that incidents of mechanical failures in
choppers are very less. But since the helicopter was an old one and
perhaps not air-worthy, mechanical failure could be a possibility,’’
they said. ‘‘In some similar cases of CFIT earlier, which took place
in other countries, the analysis was that the pilot was unaware of the
danger until it was too late. Going by the terrain in Nallamala, CFIT
appears a possibility as the weather condition was not good,’’ they
said.
chhotemianinshallah
Nallamala, happy hunting ground for Naxals
K Madhu Sudhakar
First Published : 03 Sep 2009 04:39:00 AM IST
KURNOOL: It is next to impossible if one were to come out of this
dense forest, spread across 4,500 square km, all alone, more so if he
is a non-local. The Nallamala spread across five districts — Kurnool,
Prakasam, Mahaboobnagar, Guntur and Nalgonda — is one forest that can
even confuse well-trained personnel of the anti-Naxal force Greyhounds
who have been combing the area for years.
The helicopter in which Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy was
travelling is believed to have lost its way in this forest. In
Kurnool, the forest is divided into six ranges — Pebberuvu, Bairutli,
Nagaluti, Rudra Koduru, Velugodu and Atmakuru. Barring the Atmakuru
range, all the five others are covered with thick green cover. Kurnool
district alone accounts for 3,229 square kilometres area of the
forest. Forest officials say Pebberu, Bairutli, Nagaluti and Rudra
Koduru are home to tigers and bears.
Forty hamlets of ‘chenchu’ tribals live in the Nallamala forest in
the district. It is not only the wild animals that have made the
Nallamala their happy hunting ground, the six ranges in the district
were once the hotbed of Maoists.
Nallamala has a long history of Naxal activity and 10 village elders
were killed by the Maoists in 2005 at Nippula Vaagu in the forest
area. These killings were in retaliation to the massacre of 12 Dalits
by the village leaders more than 10 years ago. No politician, however,
has been assassinated under the Congress rule. After Reddy’s
helicopter went missing, District Collector Mukesh Kumar Meena and SP
Ch Srikanth launched search operations.
Sid Harth
Andhra was warned of naxal hit
By: J Dey Date: 2009-09-03 Place: Mumbai
Secret document on VVIP security states Maoists had enough military
intelligence to bring down 'Enemy' aircraft
In the first-ever incident in post-Independence history, a chief
minister went missing, when Andhra CM YSR Reddy's chopper disappeared
near Nallamalla forest in the state at 9.35 am yesterday.
While National Security Advisor M K Narayanan ruled out the
possibility of a Naxal attack and blamed a technical snag or a pilot
error that could have led to the chopper going missing, after an hour
after it took off, a disturbing top-secret report available
exclusively with MiD DAY indicates otherwise.
Less than two months ago, the four-page report on VVIP security was
dashed off to state intelligence agencies across the country.
Dispatched by one of the central intelligence agencies, which cannot
be named for security reasons, but includes the Research and Analysis
Wing, the Intelligence Bureau, military intelligence and the newly
formed National Intelligence Agency, the document warns of the
necessity to take precautions during aerial visits of VVIPs and VIPs
over Naxal territory to prevent possible attacks on helicopters or
aircraft.
Guerilla warfare
The report (a copy is available with MiD DAY) was sent out on July 8
and indicates that intelligence agencies had recovered a book,
Guerilla Air Defense: Anti-aircraft weapons and techniques for
guerilla forces, published by Palladin Press, USA, from CPI (Maoist)
cadres recently.
The book describes techniques of 'passive air defense' such as
'camouflaging and silencing radios' and 'active air defense' such as
engaging 'enemy' aircraft or helicopters'.
More alarmingly, the report says the book talks about how to: 'Engage
enemy helicopters with small weapons when they are hovering or moving
slowly.
Target the hub of the rotor blade of a chopper so that the bullets
drop into the engine after hitting the chopper and incapacitate it'.
The book also provides a DOI on converting a Light Machine Gun into an
effective anti-aircraft weapon.
Tellingly, the report specifically mentions Andhra Pradesh and attacks
on the 'Greyhounds' of the AP police. Incidentally, the Greyhounds
were sent to the Nallamalla area around 5 pm in a search and combat
operation.
While it cannot be confirmed whether the state intelligence sources in
Andhra Pradesh received the report and therefore took it seriously, in
Maharashtra, DCP Davendra Rajyavardhan from the Special Branch 1 of
the Mumbai police said any information in connection with VIP security
was always shared.
"Intelligence inputs are always taken very seriously and are never
ignored, but then, a lot depends on local unit commanders."
State intelligence agencies include the home ministry, the local
police beginning with the DGP, the SP (if it's a rural case) and the
district collector among others.
Sid Harth
Reddy planned to visit villages to check drought relief
Thu-Sep 03, 2009
Hyderabad / Press Trust of India
"I plan surprise visits to villages to check on implementation of
relief measures for drought".
Those were the last words of Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S
Rajasekhara Reddy in an interaction with the media on Wednesday before
he boarded the helicopter which crashed in the Nallamala Hills, 70 kms
from Kurnool, more than an hour after take off from the old Begumpet
Airport in Hyderabad.
Reddy, 60, said he planned surprise visits to the drought-hit villages
and did not want give any notice until the last moment.
"I want to check the delivering mechanism in villages. I want to check
all the problems like drought and unemployment and check if all
policies have been implemented", he said.
Reddy, who has been crisscrossing the state clocking over 100 flying
hours in the last four months, said he planned to go to 2-3 villages
every month and check the progress of implementation of the policies.
Maintaining a hectic schedule, Reddy has tried to ensure that he is
present to kick off small or big welfare projects in the state and
made it a point to later personally check on its progress.
Sid Harth
Andhra CM, four other persons killed in chopper crash
Thu-Sep 03, 2009
Kurnool / Press Trust of India
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy and four other
persons were killed in the helicopter that crashed in the Nallamala
Hills in bad weather yesterday losing radio contact an hour after take
off from Hyderabad.
The bodies of 60-year-old Reddy, who led his Congress party to a
spectacular second consecutive victory in the Lok Sabha and Assembly
polls, and his Special Secretary P Subramanyam, Chief Security Officer
A S C Wesley, pilot Group Captain S K Bhatia and co-pilot M S Reddy
were found on Rudrakonda Hill, 40 nautical miles east of Kurnool,
besides the mangled remains of the helicopter.
There was no official confirmation of the deaths, but highly placed
Congress sources in Delhi said that the bodies have been found.
An official statement is expected shortly.
A scheduled meeting of the Union Cabinet was cancelled following the
tragedy.
The news of the tragedy filtered out after a meeting of the Congress
core group at the Prime Minister's house but fears grew since last
night when search operations to locate the chopper were unsuccessful.
Exactly 24 hours after it went missing losing radio contact at 0930
hrs, Air Force helicopters from Bangalore today located the wreckage
of the chopper on the Rudrakonda Hill, 70 kms from east of Kurnool.
Powerful leader
The helicopter took off at 0835 hrs from the old Begumpet Airport in
Hyderabad yesterday.
Air Commodore Sagar Bharti of the Bangalore air command announced the
location of the chopper but gave no indication of the fate of
passengers.
He said two helicopters were making attempts to land in the area.
However, Union Home Secretary G K Pillai gave indications that the 11-
year-old Bell 430 helicopter could have crashed. The Air Force rescue
team were attempting to land para commandos through ropes to access
the area.
Congress President Sonia Gandhi, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, senior
ministers Pranab Mukherjee, A K Antony, P Chidambaram and senior
Congress leader Ahmed Patel met in the core group to discuss the
situation in the wake of the death of the powerful Congress leader in
Andhra Pradesh.
Sid Harth
Andhra CM YSR Reddy's helicopter traced
Wed-Sep 02, 2009
Kurnool / Press Trust of India
Twenty-four hours after it went missing, the helicopter carrying
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy was today located
on Rudrakonda hill, 40 nautical miles east of Kurnool.
"As of now we have located the helicopter. It is on top of a hill at a
distance 40 nautical miles (70 kms) east of Kurnool. Our helicopters
are there. We are trying to locate whether there are any survivors,"
Air Commodore Sagar Bharti of the Bangalore air command told reporters
here in the morning.
"We are not sure if it has crashed or not. We are sure we have located
the helicopter," he said. The signal code of the helicopter is
15471479.
Two helicopters were hovering over the area where the helicopter has
been located and was looking for a spot to land.
Union Home Secretary G K Pillai told PTI in Delhi that it seems the
helicopter has crash landed but there is no confirmation.
He said the Air Force was attempting to drop para commandos to the
spot through ropes to look for survivors.
The 11-year-old Bell 430 helicopter carrying besides Reddy, his
special secretary Subramaniam, Chief Secretary A S C Wesley, pilot
Group Captain S K Bhatia and co-pilot M S Reddy lost radio contact one
hour after it took off the from the old Begumpet Airport in Hyderabad
at 0835 hrs yesterday.
Army has also sent out a team of 70-80 para commandos to the area to
find any possible survivors.
The commandos brought from Bangalore are equipped with highly
sophisticated weapons and modern gadgets to carry out search
operations.
The helicopter was on its way to Chittoor in the southern part of the
state where Reddy was to participate in a peoples' contact programme.
Air Commodore Bharti said since it was a hill and forest area it was
difficult for the helicopters to land there.
A low-flying aircraft of ISRO had last evening scoured the area and
took 41 imagery photos of the area. Four choppers were also pressed
into service for search operations in the Nallamalai forest in Kurnool
district yesterday.
Sid Harth
LeT wants to shake hands with Naxals
By: Ketan Ranga Date: 2009-09-03 Place: Mumbai
Pakistan-sponsored terror outfit has offered sophisticated weapons in
return for logistical support from militant leftist group
Terror outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) has sought logistical support from
the militant Naxals, and promised them sophisticated arms in return.
The attempts by the militant organisations to forge such an alliance
came to light following the arrest of LeT militant Yusuf alias Salim
on August 25.
Yusuf had a Jammu and Kashmir identity card on him along with a
Pakistani passport when he was arrested.
State Minister Arif Naseem Khan
The police also confiscated four detonators, two timers and two kg of
RDX like chemical from him.
Arif Naseem Khan, Minister of State (Home), confirmed that such a deal
was being negotiated.
"The LeT has approached the Naxals, who have not helped them as yet.
Had the help been extended, the terrorists would not have let so many
days pass without any incident."
Home ministry sources revealed that the Naxal's knowledge of the
India's rural hinterland.
Their network would help the LeT upgrade their operational
capabilities in the country, and make it easier for them to plant
sleeper cells. "Yusuf had plans to meet some Naxal commanders," said
the source.
Naxals have a strong presence in forested areas of Gadchiroli and
Nanded in Maharashtra and major parts of Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh,
Jharkhand and Orissa.
Home ministry officials fear that LeT could inflict serious damage if
the Naxals decided to help them.
bademiyansubhanallah
Thursday, September 3, 2009
SC clears decks for 50% quota to SC/ST's, OBC's in UP
The Supreme Court today cleared the decks for implementation of the
Uttar Pradesh government order dated July 22 providing 50% reservation
to SC/STs and OBCs in admission to vocational and technical courses in
the state.
A bench headed by Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan vacated the stay
granted by the Allahabad High Court last week against the decision of
the Mayawati government to provide 50% reservation in admission to
educational institutions including private, unaided professional
colleges.
The apex court also made it clear that the state government can
implement its order of providing quota for SC/STs and OBCs.
The Court also issued notices to the respondents who had filed a PIL
in the High Court against the decision of the state government.
According to the petitioner State and UP Technical University, the
decision of the government was in conformity with the decision of the
Supreme Court dated July 17, 2009 through which the validity of 50%
reservation had been upheld.
The UP government informed that 11,383 OBC candidates and 786 SC
candidates, besides over 200 ST candidates, had already been given
admission and 70% of the counseling has already been completed.
The government had also pleaded that the entire admission process for
the academic session 2009-10 shall be derailed if the High Court order
is not stayed.
UNI
bademiyansubhanallah
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Killing of Y.S. Reddy : Is it a handiwork of Brahmanical-Terrorism?
By Mahfooz Alam, Patna
Killing of Y.S. Reddy! The only minority CM of India, who could be one
of the strongest candidates for the post of PM of union of Indian.
Whether it is just an accident? Or something else? killing of Rajesh
Pilot and Madhav Rao Scindia, the two most important commander of
Sonia Gandhi, in road accident and air crash , respectively. Killing
of (Minority-Muslim) deputy chief of army in air crash (in same way),
when he was on way to Bhutan. Occurrence of Godhra just before the
election of Gujarat and again so-called & fomented terrorist attack on
temple of Eskhayadham, after extension of date of election. Killing of
Muslims in so-called police encounters at the time of demand for the
removal of Narendra Modi from his post. Attack on Indian parliament
just a day before the counting on the bill of POTA at the time when
ruling party had not majority in Raj Sabha. Killing of Hemant Karkare
at the time when he was on verge of exposing a political party and its
top leaders and similarly attack on hotel Taj or extension of seizure
of Mumbai, on instance of terrorist attack, to eclipse the death of
former PM and messiah of Mandal V.P Singh. And so on, terrorist attack
in many parts of India and abroad just after formation of any
government. Whether these all are just an incident? Or the handiwork
of brahmanical-terrorism and/or the (mansikta) mentality of aam-saam-
daam (i.e. manu-smriti).
Posted by IDMV
Labels: Brahmanical-Terrorism, Y.S. Reddy
1 comments:
Ashish, September 3, 2009 5:26 PM
Mahfooz
People like you are worms and cancer in our country. So you are saying
some Brahmin "major terrorists" are sitting somewher nd concoting
these? Oh, are they operating in pakistan also creating problems in
SWAt, karachi bombing all over.. Get a life, man-- U r creating
problems for India.
bademiyansubhanallah
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Atrocities on Muslims in Ambala: Report of Mushawarat’s fact-finding
team
New Delhi: This is a report of the fact-finding delegation of the All
India Muslim Majlis-e-Mushawarat (AIMMM) which visited Ambala and
Yamuna Nagar districts of Haryana on 28 August 2009 regarding
atrocities inflicted by non-Muslim villagers on Muslim families of
Kalalati Village of Ambala District for the last one month or so.
News flashed in both print and electronic media since 20th instant
said that local Hindus have thwarted the construction of a mosque in
Kalalati village, which led to communal tension in the said village.
The severity of the problem made the AIMMM send a fact-finding
delegation to meet the affected people for their moral support as well
as to ascertain the facts.
The delegation led by Mr Abdul Rashid Agwan, convener of AIMMM’s Delhi
state unit and comprised of Mr Irfan Ahmad Khan, State Incharge
(Haryana) of Jamaat-e-Islami Hind; Mr Mahtab Alam coordinator of the
Association for Protection of Civil Rights (APCR); and Mr Nadim Ahmad
of The Milli Gazette. The team left New Delhi early morning for the
affected area reaching Jagadhari around 11AM, where it met Maulana
Shakil Ahmad Nadwi, teacher of Madrasa Ma’had Rashidul Islamia and
local correspondent of Rashriya Sahara Urdu daily, who effectively
raised the issue in the national Urdu daily. Members of the group
offered Jum’a prayers at the historic town of Budhiya, where it
discussed in the afternoon various aspects of the episode with Peer
Ahmad Hasan, a prominent personality of the area who has played a key
role in pacifying the communal tension stoked by a handful of
miscreants. Some Muslim activists of Jagadhari area also discussed the
situation with the team. In the evening, the delegation met some
members of the affected families at Jagadhari and Kudawa where they
have taken temporary shelter due to fear of further assaults in their
village. The team also met late at night the injured victims admitted
at MM Hospital, Mullana. By 11 PM, the team started its journey back
to Delhi. A visit to Kalalati village itself was not found advisable
at this juncture on the advice of the people of the area where the
police posse is said to be preventing the entry of any outsider into
the village. However, the team members talked over mobile phones to
two persons staying inside the village and ascertained the present
conditions of safety and morale.
The team found out that Thakurpura-Kalalati is a small village located
in Saha Block of Ambala District on the National Highway 73A, about
4-5 kilometres from the main road, falling in the area of Mullana
Police Station. It has a population of over 400 families with a vast
majority of Hindus, who hail mainly from Thakur, Gujjar, Kalal and
Dalit castes. There are 11 Muslim families in the village. The total
Muslim population of the village consists of 118 persons who belong to
two extended families. Muslim families are living in the village for
more than one hundred years and do not own land but have their own
houses built long ago. Even the turmoil of Partition did not affect
their lives due to the exemplary communal harmony among various
communities of the area. These Muslim families depend for livelihood
primarily on trading of cloths and other items and participate in
agriculture on contract basis. Before the present episode, relations
between Hindus and Muslims were always cordial and Muslims of the
locality did not even shun donating for construction of temples in the
village. There is a small piece of land used for Qabristan but so far
the village had no mosque and congregational prayers were offered in a
house.
The corollary of events that came to the notice of the visiting team
was as follows: Muslims of Kalalati purchased around 2000 sq yards of
land almost a year ago for the purpose of constructing a mosque. It
was purchased against Rs. 350000 from one Krishan Lal who was verbally
informed regarding the purpose of the purchase of the land but the
fact was not mentioned in the land purchase deed. The transfer was in
the name of Sabir Khan who bore a major part of the amount. In the
third week of July, Muslims of the village resolved to start
construction on the site. Amir of Jagadhari Tablighi Jamat visited the
locality at the villagers’ invitation and defined the Qibla direction
and led those present on the occasion in a prayer for an early
completion of the mosque. After 2-3 days, when Muslims intended to lay
the foundation-stone and start construction, a number of neighbouring
Hindus assembled at the site and expressed their annoyance at the
construction of a mosque in their village. Phulchand, Chetan, Raju,
etc led this group. This created a tension in the locality and nearby
villages and local Muslims approached elderly Hindus of the village,
Sarpanch Ramsharan, local administration and Muslim dignitaries of the
area for their intervention. Meanwhile, some activists of communal
Hindu organisations also started visiting the village and meddling in
the issue.
A group of Muslims, led by Peer Ahmad Hasan, commonly called as
“Budhiya ke Peer”, visited the village on 13 August and settled the
dispute by reaching a comprome that Muslims would undertake the
desired construction only after the consent of the majority of local
Hindus. Although Hindus demanded a written assurance to that effect
but it was not conceded at that time. This settlement pacified the
tension to a great extent. Seemingly, some Hindu activists did not
appreciate this and started spreading a rumour that the construction
of the mosque would lead to killing of cows in the area, even saying
that a cow-head would be buried in the foundation of the mosque. A
meeting of Hindu representatives of some 18 to 47 villages of the
area, led by local Bajrang Dal and Shiv Sena elements, assembled at
the Government Primary School, Thakurpura-Kalalati, on 13 August. It
resolved that no mosque will be allowed in the village and issued an
ultimatum to the local Muslims to forthwith stop namaz, shave off
their beards and stop wearing caps and if they are not willing to
abide by these rules they must vacate the village by 18th of August or
face dire consequences. Muslims’ social boycott was also declared
forthwith. Local Police was present at the school on that occasion but
did nothing to stop the proceedings.
This ultimatum created havoc in the area and Muslims and secular
leaders started pressurizing the district administration and Police to
intervene. On the instance of the local administration, the ultimatum
was extended by two days. A few constables were deputed for the safety
of the Muslim families of the village. Media also started taking note
of the tense situation. Adamant to execute their ultimatum, around 250
Hindu activists entered the village from neighbouring as well as
distant localities on 18th August. This terrified the small band of
Muslims of the village. On the 22nd afternoon, at around 4 PM, an
unprovoked and callous attack on Muslim families with swords, axes and
lathis took place. The plank of the attack was an unsubstantiated
episode said to have taken place in another village situated at around
4-5 kilometres from Kalalati, in which “Muslim boys” were accused to
have beaten a 19-year-old Hindu youth called Omveer. This was the time
when most of the elderly persons of these Muslim families were out of
the village. However, those found at home were severally beaten up and
wounded. Rulda Khan, the eldest Muslim of the village, faced near-
fatal injury on his head and one arm by sword. He is presently said to
be in coma at the Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences,
Chandigarh. Babu Khan, Shaukat Khan and Krishan Khan were also
brutally wounded along with Kanti Bibi, a lady, and were admitted at
the MM Hospital of Mullana for treatment. Muslim women were insulted
and scolded by the hooligans. A lot of damage was inflicted upon
properties and belongings of the unfortunate people. All this happened
in the presence of police constables who did not intervene.
The damage to property and loss of household items has been estimated
to be that of Rs 525,000. The family-wise details of loss are as
follows:
S. No. Name Damage
1 Rulda Khan Wind-shield, tyres and other parts of his Armada jeep,
two scooters, cycle, etc.
2 Roshan Khan No major damage
3 Ajmer Ali Wind-shield and tyres of his Armada jeep, doors (Rs
65000), seven ceiling fans, four pedestal fans, two water tanks, two
Tulu pump motors, two “Kutti” machines, and other household items
4 Babu Khan Fridge, cooler, two diesel engines, doors (Rs 60000), two
Kutti machines, Almirah, TV, double bed and other household items
5 Haji Sabir Khan Window panes and doors (Rs 100,000+), pedestal fans,
tin shade, water tank and other household items
6 Nanhe Khan Motor cycle, Utensils, water pipe & tape
7 Resham Khan Two fridges, two coolers, double-bed, bughee, washing
machine, kutti machine, diesel engine, water pipes and tapes and other
household items
8 Zeer Ali Water tanks and other household items
9 Basit Ali Two sewing machines and other household items
10 Babu Khan (second) Doors and other household items
The event was thoroughly covered in local media and Muslims in various
parts of the country came to know about this heinous crime against
innocent people through reports in the Urdu press. Statements of
Muslim leaders of various shades started appearing in newspapers,
which perhaps have attracted attention of the state administration and
that of the chief minister of Haryana and various measures were
subsequently taken up. First of all, an FIR was lodged against 23
named and several anonymous miscreants, about 12 persons have been
arrested and outsiders have been prevented from entering the village,
injured were admitted to hospitals, additional police force was
deployed in the village, some damaged household items were replaced
and food was provided to a few Muslim men and women who remained in
the village in spite of the nightmarish event, although most Muslims
have left the village for safer places, fearing further assaults.
Following are seven issues that must be addressed to immediately,
1. Safety
Local Muslims do not feel safe in the village anymore. Their complaint
is that they were assaulted in the presence of the police, so there is
no guarantee that such mishap would not take place in future. They are
thinking to migrate to some other safe place. This might lead them to
bear heavy losses of property as their houses will be left behind or
sold for pittance. Moreover, this might become a cause of chain
reaction in other villages of the region where Muslims are living in
small numbers among overwhelming Hindu majority. Miscreants are still
chasing younger members of the affected Muslim families for harming
them. They have tried to terrorise even the injured people at MM
Hospital at Mullana in the night of 23rd August.
2. Relief
Although affected families are managing their routine expenses for the
time being, the communal tension and social boycott for almost a month
has totally stopped their trading and agricultural work. This would
lead to unprecedented hardships for these unfortunate families. So
some cash relief would certainly become crucial in the next few weeks.
3. Compensation
The total loss of property and household items has been estimated to
be in the range of Rs 525,000. Although the administration has
replaced some of the damaged items by new ones such as water tanks,
fridges, coolers, etc but this measure is inadequate as compared to
the actual damage. Therefore, the process of registering the overall
damage and official compensation at par with victims of communal riots
elsewhere in the country should be assured.
4. Legal Measures
Police has filed an FIR with 23 named and several anonymous miscreants
and some of them have been subsequently arrested. However, the leading
accused such as Chetan, Jagmal, Ajit, etc are still at large. It is
heard that the local administration will take due action only after
the forthcoming state elections which are scheduled for 18th October.
The question is: if something untoward happens again, who will be
responsible? The extremist Hindu leaders are pressurising the
administration to release the arrested offenders. They organised a
demonstration on 26th August for this purpose. It is the
responsibility of the administration to thwart such undue pressures.
The most unfortunate part of the entire episode is that the meeting in
which an ultimatum was issued to Muslims for vacating the village was
held in the premises of a government primary school and even a holiday
of the school was declared on the day. Action should be taken by the
government against the head of the school and other staff members who
not only closed it for the day but allowed communal elements to hold
their meeting with full fanfare with tent, public address system,
inflammatory speeches, threatening slogans and the like. The concerned
SHO should also be taken to task who could not apprehend the explosive
situation and failed to send sufficient deployment at the critical
time.
5. Social Boycott
The ongoing social boycott of Muslims will affect the life and economy
of the Muslim families who belong to the village for over a century.
Some social activists of the area should take up the task of changing
the situation as early as possible.
6. Communal Harmony
The episode has badly affected communal harmony of the area, which
remained intact even through the troubled times of Partition. Constant
efforts are required rebuild communal harmony and normalise the
situation. Religious personalities and groups from both the
communities should become proactive for altering the social damage.
7. Construction of the Mosque
The last but not the least is the issue of the construction of a
mosque in Kalalati village. Diehard efforts are needed for making
conditions conducive for the desired and rightful construction of a
place worship for Muslims. Failing which, it is apprehended that
construction of mosques anywhere in villages of the region will become
difficult in future.
Abdul Rashid Agwan
Irfan Ahmad Khan
Mahtab Alam
Nadim Ahmad
2 September 2009
Posted by IDMV
1 comments:
Shudra, September 3, 2009 1:51 PM
Do we live in a secular state or a theological one?
Muslim brothers and sisters! Please identify the correct enemy: It is
Hindu / the Aryans of foreign origin! OBC/SC/ST elements innocently
entraped in the slavery; follow the Bhudevtas( coward Brahmins)!
Let all Mulniwasi (original inhabitants of India e.g. OBC+SC+ST+Muslims
+Christian+Sikh+Buddhists) join hands together to form the forces that
would crush the communal serpent created by Brahminsm
bademiyansubhanallah
Sunday, May 3, 2009
Join Hands for Dalit Muslims Movement
Dear IDMV Members,
I would like to request you all to work on and help me out with the
following matters:
1. We are trying to make a complete directory of contacts of those
associated with Dalit /OBC Muslims issues for which we are looking for
certain contact details as listed below, of Dalit/OBC Muslims writers,
NGOs, Social workers working on Dalit cause specially Dalit Muslims :
i) Complete Mailing Address
ii) Telephone / mobile numbers
iii) Fax No.
iv) E-mail ids/ website Address
2) It will be appreciated if you can take effort in providing us with
the details about several Books, Magazine and other Literature dealing
with Dalit Muslims problems and the contact details of such writers
and publications.
The idea is to have a collective source of all sorts of information
that pertains to Dalit and poverty struck people with more emphasis on
Dalit and Backward section of Muslim society so that the same
resources can be circulated among us to share views, ideas, news and
other information on a constructive day to day basis.
3) We created this blog www.dalitmuslims.com to stand as a voice
against the atrocities of Upper caste and negligence of government
towards the forgotten and secluded part of Muslim society.
Let us profusely and openhandedly contribute to this blog on all the
cruelty and extremity carried on Dalit Muslims and the violation of
Human rights and fundamental rights and discrimination meted out to
poor and Dalit/OBC Muslims.
4) With all respect to everyone’s experience and intelligence, we
would like to have your suggestions to evolve a common agenda
(manifesto) for forming common policy and strategies for a much needed
all round upliftment of Dalit Muslims.
5) Let us join our hands to work and strive for unity among all Dalits
irrespective of their religion for a better and a more visible result.
Let us ensure that Dalit/Poverty stricken people of either caste,
religion etc. are not exploited/ used and abused by the upper caste
especially ruling caste people.
6) Political empowerment for Dalit Muslims/OBC Muslims is need of the
hour. And for that to happen we have to ensure their representation in
various Commission, Govt. Organization, and Various Muslim
Organization.
Secular parties should be approached to give tickets to them so that
their voices can be heard on a stronger note in the corridor of power.
Emphasis should be given on due representation of Dalit Muslim in all
respect and in all walk of life.
7) We have to together work hard and strive persistently for getting
reservation for Dalit Muslim/ OBC Muslim separately. The Centre as
well as State Govt. should be forced to amend constitution and pass
legislation.
A clear and strong stand should be followed on the Reservation issue.
Neither we should be confused and misguided nor should others be made
to believe the false argument of Unity among Muslim against
reservation for Dalits. It should be clear that the foundation of
Unity does not exist at all when a major chunk of people suffer from
socio-economic, educational and political backwardness. These issues
are sensitive and should not be compromised on.
8) Reservation shall not be a long struggle, as it was till now
provided all Dalit Muslim/OBC Muslim writers come on common platform
accompanied by other Dalit (Hindu/ Buddhist/Christians) writers as all
Dalits sail in the same boat of suffering and discrimination. So far
the efforts and service of Dalit writers/ OBC writers have been very
appreciative but we need to increase the pace.
9) There is an urgent need to form a Body forum to make sure that
Dalit muslims/ OBC Muslims’ rights are not violated or ignored either
by Society (upper caste) or by Governmental machinery. Dalit Muslim
should have a Forum/platform to ventilate their grievance very loudly
and effectively.
10) Since we are working for a noble cause which shall continue for
ages together to attain completeness, let us also work for communal
harmony, terrorism & left-wing extremism and all sort of violence as
it’s our nation and us in the end to be affected by these entire
disturbances.
11) We have to work hard to force all state Governments and Central
Governments for formulating policies concerning Reservation to all
Dalits, extended to all Dalits irrespective of their religious
obligation. Hence, Dalit Muslim and Dalit Christian are included in
the list too.
12) Reminding the State on a consistent basis on all the basic and
fundamental rights denied to unfortunate Dalits like:
(1) Education
(2) Health
(3) Employment
(4) Right to live a dignified life.
All the faulty and favored policy for ruling/ upper caste should be
disclosed in order to secure Dalis rights. Dalits have been
marginalized by systematic discrimination and elimination. A great
conspiracy has been done against all Dalit to deny justice to them.
13)We have to ensure happenings of programmes and policy on part of
the Central as well as State Govt. for social and economic
developments of Dalit Muslim / OBC Muslims. Which include their
(1) Education
(2) Health
(3) Livelihood
(4) Poverty alleviation
(5) Housing and other basic amenities by honestly implementing Govt.
policy/ Plan meant for Dalit.
14) We have to really work hard for getting due representation of
Dalit Muslim/ OBC Muslim in Police, Para-military force and Armed
force and above all administration.
This will be a great help to nation, as this will strengthen our
social fabric and as well as will act as an exercise towards building
confidence among minorities.
15) We have to strive hard for forcing political parties to make
comprehensive plan for implementation of recommendations of Sachar
Committee and Shri Rangnath Mishra Commission report without any
further delay. As we all know nothing concrete has been done so far by
Govt. as far as these two committees reports are concerned.
16) We have to develop certain devices and mechanism to act as Watch-
Dog on recruitment for jobs in all sort of organizations and
subsequently end discrimination in this matter. Private Companies /
Enterprises should be approached to provide due share to backward
classes. An eye should also be kept on disbursement of various
economic schemes to reach Dalit Muslim which is lacking so far.
17) Certain special plans should be chalked out to end educational
backwardness of the Dalit Muslim/ OBC Muslim in particular and
minority community in general.
18) There is a need to initiate a drive against all negative ‘ism’.
Nepotism is one of the menaces to be fought especially in politics &
Govt. job. They have to be fought for the benefit of all. We should
device ways and means for this; your valuable suggestions in this
regard will be very helpful.
19) We can take up corruption at large, as it is so rampant and
pervasive in our society. Opinion is to be mobilized to take black
money and money in foreign banks.
20) At present, in this socio-economic & political scenario, we have
to inspire and motivate Dalit Muslim to believe that the panacea is
hard work and good education. We have to forget and give up crying on
our unending limitations like poverty and illiteracy rather we have to
grab every possible opportunity or create them, if needed in order to
survive in this struggle for a better life. At all cost, we must have
access to good education, health and Rozghar. These all might be
difficult to achieve given the high price of living and cunning
manipulation of the system to favour upper / ruling caste but the
faith should always go on.
Last, but not the least, we are grateful to all those who are
campaigning for the cause of Dalits and poverty ridden people and
especially Dalit Muslims. We appreciate all such individual efforts
and look forward to unite them in a single strong collective force.
We are even grateful to Mr. Yoginder Sikand, Mr. V.T. Rajshekhar
(Chief Editor) D.V. Banglore, Mr. Khalid Anis Ansari, Mr. Ashok Yadav,
Mr. Irshadul Haque, Prof. Imtiaz Ahmad, Mr. Tanvir Salim, Mr. Kasheef
(Editor – TwoCircles.net), Prof. Ram Puniani, Mr. Arun Khote, Mr.
Masood Ahmed Falahi, Mr. Altaf Ahmed, Adv. Irfan Engg., Dr. A.A.
Enggineer and many-many other who have already contributed generously
to this blog and we are very sure this missionary zeal to fight
injustice will continue in future, may be with a more strong and fast
pace.
Thanks & Best Regards,
Mohammad Shahanshah Ansari
Indian Dalit Muslims Voice
Jeddah, Saudi
E-mail: shahanshah.java.@gmail.com
http://www.dalitmuslims.com
Posted by Mohammad Shahanshah Ansari
3 comments:
Sahil Alam, Delhi, July 16, 2009 7:47 PM
This kind of initiative is the need of hour. I have the contact
details of some of Dalit writers and leaders. I will send you soon on
your email id.
R.Alamsha Karnan, August 6, 2009 9:53 AM
Breaking the Pariah Syndrome of Indian Muslims:
"Hope in reality is the worst of evils because it prolongs the
torture".
Dr.BR Ambedkar and Periyar have sacrificed their entire life in their
struggle against social discrimination. Today Muslims are being pushed
into this hell hole called "untouchables". Well, Indian Muslims must
find way to break out of this Pariah syndrome. Let every Muslim think
like Ambedkar and Periyar.
We need 1000 Muslim Periyars and Ambedkars to survive in our own
land.
Jai Hind.
Ko.Shafee Ahmed, September 3, 2009 10:14 AM
Muslim women when they are in the veil or Burqua,they are mostly
despised if they are seemingly poor.
It so happened to me, while I had to travel to Bangalore from Chennai
by Brindavan Express,along with my burqua clad wife,though I had a
valid reserved ticket,the seats were occupied by open ticket
travelers. When I politely claimed the seats, my request was turned
down and was dragged to an altercation. By the time Ticket collector
arrived, the train was entering Katpadi Junction. If this is the case
with a widely traveled man,what would be the condition of lone woman
with Islamic identity. Still the stigma of Upper and Lower caste
feeling exist even after 62 years of Independence.
bademiyansubhanallah
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
A Paradigm Shift
By Seharworddin Khan
Jai Mulniwasi
Recently I met a visionary, a real fighter who is fighting for
freedom! His support base is growing exponentially! They are poised to
free our society from dark evils of casteism! He is none other than
our friend Shahanshah Ansari ( www.dalitmuslims.com )!
Prior to that meet, in the past few times I came across write ups or
talks that Brahminical Social Order (castes-sub castes- one could be
socially high or Low due to ones birth) exists among Indian Muslims!
Each time I rubbished it off labeling it a conspiracy to divide Indian
Muslims! How wrong I was!
We met over Aftaar which was supposed to be an affair of half an hour
but the discussion lasted few hours! The changes that discussion
brought on; was colossal! I never expected followers of Islam; which
earned a name for egalitarianism and attracted conversions all over
the globe and turned in to more than one and half billion strong
today; had copied the hated BSO(Brahminical Social Order) so
devilishly in North India!! Brave Mulniwasi who embraced Islam in
defiance of exploitive BSO are still in the same caste and still
suffering from so called Brahmins (Shaikh-Syed etc) among Muslims!
It is a mater of shame!
What is more surprising- the intellectuals who support this hated
system had written books in support and had quoted "Hadeeth"!
The worse is: Muftis who rush to issue Fatwas on nonsensical subjects
never bothered to say a word on this Satanic practice!!
Here I would prefer to quote our beloved Prophet's (PBUH) own words
from his "Last Sermon":
“All mankind is from Adam and Eve, an Arab has no superiority over a
non-Arab nor a non-Arab has any superiority over an Arab; also a white
has no superiority over black nor a black has any superiority over
white except by piety and good action. Learn that every Muslim is a
brother to every Muslim and that the Muslims constitute one
brotherhood. "
Sooner these micro minority Brahmins (Shaikh-Syed) among Muslim learn
to respect every Muslim as brother; better for them!
Govt can play a very uplifting role here.Today the SC/ST/OBC has grown
far better compared what was there status in 1947! This is due to
reservation! Why the same formulae not been applied to Dalit Muslims
in secular social democratic republic of India!
Do give it a serious thought!
Seharworddin Khan
Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
Posted by Mohammad Shahanshah Ansari
Labels: Casteism Among Muslims, Dalit Muslims, Descrimination,
Seharworddin Khan
3 comments:
Ashish, September 2, 2009 4:11 AM
In MUslim, there is nothing called a Dalit muslim..all r equal
Mohammad Shahanshah Ansari, September 2, 2009 1:06 PM
Not only this:
The Holy Qur'an itself says in Surah Al-Hujrat:
“O mankind! We have created you from a male and a female, and made you
into nations and tribes, that you may know one another. Verily, the
most honourable of you with Allah is the (believer) who has Al-Taqwa.
Verily, Allah is All-Knowing, All-Aware.” Surah Al-Hujrat, Verse: 13
The Qur’an also says:
“The believers are nothing else than brothers (in Islamic religion).”
Surah Al-Hujrat, Vrese: 10
Apart from these clear and immortal verses, our beloved Prophet has
set numerous of examples emphasizing the egalitarian nature of Islam,
free from such big social evils as casteism. Ironically, some of the
“privileged” and “higher caste born” Muslims seems to care little
about this beautiful teaching of Islam and Prophet and still practice
casteism by discriminating their own brothers and sisters.
Sahil Alam, Delhi, September 2, 2009 9:11 PM
To know who are Dalits Muslims and how does the term 'Dalit Muslims'
got evolved you can read casteism among Muslims. It has the collection
of many articles on Dalit Muslims which will clear many misconceptions
about unity among Muslims.
http://www.dalitmuslims.com/2009/05/casteims-among-muslims.html
chhotemianinshallah
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Prof Sabharwal - To Sir With Love
By Dr. Shah Alam Khan, 27 July, 2009
In Mahabharata we had Eklavya, the low caste prince of Nishadha offer
his right thumb to Dronacharya, his apocryphal guru. This was in 10th
Century BC. On August 26, 2006, a mob of (so called) students lynched
Prof. Sabharwal in Madhav College in the holy city of Ujjain. The
Indian guru-chela tradition has come a long way indeed. The Brahmanand
Purana goes on to say, Guru brahma, guru vishnu, guru devo maheshwara,
in essence it means that Guru is an incarnation of god. How ironical
it is that the members of a party which came to power on pretext of
saving Ram, the god, was hand in glove with the killing of a guru on
that fateful day in August 2006.
As if the killing of Prof. Sabharwal was not enough, there was more
pain to follow. All the six Akhil Bhartiya Vidhyarthi Parishad (ABVP)
members accused in his murder were set free by a Nagpur court. The
mockery of Indian traditions and justice was on full public display.
Well, if we believe the Nagpur court, no one actually killed Prof.
Sabharwal. Its only incidental that he happened to die inside the
premises of the Madhav College at the time of college elections. It is
also adventitious that at the time of his death he was trying to see
through the process without any bias to the party in power.
Campus killings are not new in India. Denial of justice is even more
common. What is rare is the increasing audacity of killers owing
allegiance to a specific political party or organization. The license
to kill is freely available; you only need to be a part of an
execrable nexus. A foot soldier of a party which can defend you and
your evil actions. India is surely and steadily moving in the right
direction. The road to anarchy. We are being sucked into a path of
ideological vacuum, into a black hole of barbarism shielded by a
distort and inclined judicial process.
Every time we have a killing we look towards the judiciary with
conjecture and hope and each time we whince in despair. Babu Bajrangi,
Sajjan Kumar, Vikas Yadav, Mohd. Shahabuddin, Manu Sharma; the endless
list of tombstones in India’s judicial graveyard. We are not even
allowed to mourn the death of this process of justice as it amounts to
contempt. The law guards its dead and the dying with paramount
strictness and acerbity.
In all honesty it would be inappropriate to burden the judiciary with
all the corpses of India’s morality. The court is the end process of
the game of coercion. The fuel to run this machinery of murder comes
from a defunct and feckless political class, the proud guardians of
our democracy. Beasts who cannot look beyond the arithmetic of votes
and seats. The arithmetic of death does not matter. The universality
of this political class is beyond doubt. Left, right and centre, they
are everywhere, omnipresent and all powerful. Any attempt of
resistance to this process of decay is dealt with cold blooded
savagery.
Prof. Sabharwal would have been alive had he realized this simple
fact. To be alive and happy in India you have to look the other way.
Look the other way if a woman is being stripped in broad daylight.
Ignore if a child of twelve is being lynched by a crowd for a petty
theft. Show disdain to a girl being burnt alive by eve teasers. What
if few hundred adivasis die each day defending what they think is
theirs. Apathy and insouciance are the mantras of survival in today’s
India. Fortunately there are many like Prof Sabharwal who think and
act otherwise. They resist the cold, iron grip of this nexus of
murderers and guardians. They wriggle and show signs of life. They
breathe and actuate action. They are uncomfortable for the system and
its mandarins. They have to obey or they have to be eliminated to keep
the system going. To keep the plunder alive. The hippodrome of
political hegemony should have its characters intact; to let the show
go on. The circus of death and barbarism.
It’s time that we, the people of India, rise from our ashes and resist
what we think and know is incorrect. To register our protest and show
our abject rejection of corrupt authority. We need to resuscitate our
system with the much needed esprit of hope and change. We have to move
and show signs of life or it won’t be long that the licentious serpent
of political class and murderous thugs will swallow us. To Prof.
Sabharwal I can only say, sir, we regret loosing you at the altar of
political power and a gimpy judiciary but your death has not gone un-
mourned. The lamenting from your death will be loud enough to breech
the walls of those who sit comfortably making plans for a future
murder. We apologize we couldn’t give you respect as a teacher. I
assure we will give dignity to the purpose of your death. We couldn’t
guarantee your safety. We pledge to eliminate those who rot the
system. We regret we couldn’t give you justice. We promise to
vindicate your stand.
Dr. Shah Alam Khan
Associate Professor
Department of Orthopaedics
All India Institute of Medical Sciences
Ansari Nagar, New Delhi-29
INDIA
Courtesy:
Countercurrents.org
Posted by Mohammad Shahanshah Ansari
3 comments:
Anonymous, August 30, 2009 6:13 PM
Life in India has become so cheap. Even pet dogs in developed and
civilised world are taken care off in a better manner.
Murder is not when one human beings kills the others. Murder is also
when deseases are allowed to spread, malnutrition kills children,
malaria spreads as the munical corporation is least bothered.
The fact is that we indians has become so thick skinned that to us
these do not matter. We have got used to living with filth all around
us.
The detoriation in our quality of living and our attitude to life is
making us one of the most hated nationalities in the globe.
Ashish, September 2, 2009 8:51 PM
I do not know which country Mr Anonymous is talking about. I amy not
have traveled as mucha s Mr Anonymous; but i ahve found only very high
respect for Indians wherever i went (US, UK, France, brazil,
Argentina, CAnada). IS mr anonymous confusing India with PAkistan?
Sahil Alam, Delhi, September 2, 2009 9:01 PM
I guess Mr. Anonymous is talking about Gujrat Genocide where more than
3000 innocent lives (Muslims) were butchered as this genocide was
state sponsored.