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U.P. In Election Mode:CEC TO FINALISE DATES SOON, by Insaf, 20 December 2006 Print E-mail

Round The States

New Delhi, 20 December 2006

U.P. In Election Mode

CEC TO FINALISE DATES SOON

By Insaf

Uttar Pradesh is now fully in election mode. Now that Chief Election Commissioner N. Gopalaswamy has planned an extensive visit to most of the 403 Assembly constituencies of the State to finalise dates and other arrangements for the polls, all the major political parties in the fray are gearing up for the big fight. The CEC has to decide whether or not to go for the Bihar-type poll: staggered over two to three weeks to ensure a free and fair poll.  Meanwhile, Chief Minister Mulayam Singh, who also holds the Finance portfolio is going all out to retain power. In a surprise political move, he has shown that his Samajwadi Party is safe from defections, contrary to the claim of his rivals.  He got the Assembly to pass a  vote-on-account for the first four months of the next financial year (2007-08). He then got Speaker Mata Prasad Pandey to agree that the passage be treated as a vote of confidence in his Government. 

Mulayam Singh has, however, suffered a setback too.  The CPM, which had aligned with him, has now announced its decision to distance itself from his Samajwadi Party. This has led the CPI to explore the possibility of an enduring Left alliance for the Assembly polls--- and, possibly, an electoral tie-up with the Congress.  The BJP, on its part, is trying hard to regain power in the State. The party Chief and former U.P. Chief Minister Rajnath Singh has announced that “we are sick of alliances” and will fight on its own this time. He has also named the former CM, Kalyan Singh, an OBC, as the party’s Chief Ministerial candidate.  The BJP Central leadership is also going all out to corner the so-called secular parties for their appeasement of the Muslims, especially the Prime Minister’s call for conceding to them “first claim” on national resources for development.

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Congress-Akali Battle Of Words

In Punjab too, election fever is fast rising. With just about eight to ten weeks left for the Assembly poll, the main rivals in the fray for power, the ruling Congress and Shiromani Akali Dal-Badal (SAD-B) have sharpened their knives with accusations and counter-accusations. Former Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal has predicted that his SAD will bounce back to power with absolute majority.  He has charged Chief Minister Amarinder Singh of running the Government on his whims and fancies with “tanashahi” and “rajwarashahi”.  He has wooed Sikhs, stating that “we celebrate Sikh festivals for religious reasons, while the Congress does it for political gains.” Amarinder Singh has promptly hit back, stating “We celebrate festivals of all communities…these are people’s festivals and not of the Akalis alone. He has also claimed that over the last five years there has been all-round development and that “my Vikas Yatras drew people even from the Akali bastions.”

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Caste War In Orissa

The entry of Dalit devotees in a 300-year old Jagannath temple in Kendrapada district of Orissa, following the High Court order lifting the ban, is threatening to snowball into a caste war.  It is true that under pressure from the district administration, the priests have allowed the entry, but tension continues to prevail in the area. Initially, when about 200 dalits entered the temple, almost all the priests went into hiding and announced that devotees should not enter the temple until it was purified.  Later, some of them performed a purification ritual and nearly 1400 families of upper caste residents in the area resorted to “satyagrahs”. Meanwhile, the Ambedkar Lohia Vichar Manch, an organization spearheading the Dalit movement in Orissa, has written to the State Police Chief that it feared for the safety of the Dalit families. The District Collector described Kedrapada as “very tense” and added that violence might erupt any time as the upper castes had refused the Dalits’ entry into the temple.

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Crisis Over Tata Project at Singur

The stalemate in the Trinamool Congress agitation against the land acquisition at Singur in West Bengal for the Tata car project continues at the time of the writing, the 17th day of Mamata Banerjee’s fast unto death. Both the Chief Minister and Trinamool supremo are sticking to their respective positions. Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee insists that the Tata Motors will set up their unit at Singur and nowhere else, while Mamata is adamant that she will sacrifice her life to save the farmers from what she believes as the “CPM terror” and dissuade the farmers from giving out their land for industrialization. The CM has, however. requested Mamata to end her fast and join talks with the Government, which has already announced consideration of increased compensation to the farmers. He has also conceded the demand for a CBI enquiry into the gruesome killing of an 18-year-old girl agitating against the acquisition of the farm land.

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Congress Rift Before BMC Poll

The upcoming elections for the Bombay Municipal Corporation (BMC), the richest civic body in the country, have created a major political rift within the State Congress and between the ruling Congress-NCP alliance over the distribution of nominations. City MPs and MLAs are upset with the Mumbai Regional Congress Committee (MRCC) Chief for his style of functioning. They have communicated to the Central leadership that the continuing spat between the local leaders on various issues may lead to some senior leaders withdrawing from electioneering. Some of them are also unhappy by the growing clout in the MPCC of former Shiv Sena leader Narayana Rane, who joined the Congress recently.  Rane is now trying to have more of his supporters in the Congress list for the election.  Besides the intra-party problems, sharp differences have also cropped up between the Congress and the NCP. The latter has accused the Congress of its big-brother attitude in selecting its nominees.

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Shiela Dikshit’s Eight Years As CM

Delhi’s Chief Minister, Shiela Dikshit successfully completed eight years in office on Thursday last week, described by her as the “birth day of the Government”.  Her biggest achievement during the eight years has been that she has managed to keep under control her opponents within the State Congress.  In fact, during the last three years of her second term most of her critics in the party became her supporters. Her Government has done a lot in the field of education, health care, flyover construction, tax collection, roads and related infrastructure. But she candidly states: “We still need to deliver more to the people of the city”.  Her biggest challenge now for the next two years of the present tenure is the preparation for Commonwealth Games in 2010.  In this context, she has demanded once more the integration of the DDA with the Delhi Government to expedite development plans.

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Raje’s Three Years In Rajasthan

The other of the two woman Chief Ministers in the country, Vasundara Raje of Rajasthan, completed three years in office last week.  Her major achievement all these years has been her good friendly relations with the Centre, despite being the BJP Chief Minister, not only during the BJP-led NDA Government, but also with the present Congress-led UPA Government in getting support for Rajasthan’s development programmes. The State has made tremendous progress in the field of infrastructure development, especially power production, in which Rajasthan had been lagging behind.  In fact, the State Government is now fast marching ahead towards self-sufficiency in the power sector.  It has promised to provide electricity and road connectivity to all the villages of the State within the next two years.  Raje is now determined to make the agriculture sector prosperous.

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Renaming Assam As “Asom”

The process of changing names or spellings of States and major cities of the country is picking up once more.  Soon after Parliament voted for naming Uttaranchal as Uttarakhand, the Assam Assembly passed a resolution to spell out the State as “Asom” on the plea that it is pronounced as such by the Assamese. The resolution has been sent to the Centre for approval.  Likewise, after Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Thiruvananthapuram and Bangalaru, the BJP Government of Madhya Pradesh is also mulling over renaming Bhopal as “Bhojpal”. The Jabalpur Municipal Corporation too has passed a resolution to rename Indore as “Indur”, the name of a sage in the Ramayan. The resolution has been sent to the State Government. ---INFA

 

 (Copyright, India News and Feature Alliance)

Politics in NDC Meet:WOOING MUSLIMS FOR ASSEMBLY POLLS, by Insaf,13 December 2006 Print E-mail

ROUND THE STATES               

New Delhi, 13 December 2006

Politics in NDC Meet

WOOING MUSLIMS FOR ASSEMBLY POLLS

By Insaf

The crucial upcoming Assembly elections in UP, Punjab, Uttaranchal and Manipur even injected politics into the sedate National Development Council meeting in New Delhi over the week-end. Intended mainly to finalise the Eleventh Plan (2007-12), the Prime Minister and the Chief Ministers introduced in their speeches the flavour of vote-bank politics on party lines rather than economic issues of national interest. Speaking about the success of his economic reforms and rising growth rate, the PM and Chairman of the Planning Commission, stressed the need for the CMs and policy planners not only to devise “innovative plans” for the SCs, STs, OBCs but more so for minorities, particularly the Muslims who should have “first claim on resources.” The BJP CMs, led by Narendra Modi of Gujarat, reacted sharply to the new dimension to Muslim appeasement, which caused an uproar in Parliament.

The long-standing controversy over the Centre-State financial relations has also been raised once more. While the Prime Minister highlighted the critical issue at the NDC meet, stating that in view of the stretched resources of the Centre for its development efforts the burden should be shared by the States, the Chief Ministers highlighted their own fiscal problems. Karnataka’s CM H D Kumaraswamy, for example, demanded Central aid of 50 per cent on infrastructure, cut in interest rate on all farm loans and revision of cost-sharing in literacy programmes. The CMs of special category States demanded that external aid should be passed on to them in the ratio of 90:10. The PM has accepted this. In fact, most Chief Ministers have suggested the lowering of interest on outstanding State loans on National Small Savings Funds. They quoted the NDC sub-committee’s observation on deteriorating State finances and the need to reduce the interest rates on outstanding State loans.

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Bypoll Verdict Highlights

The outcome of the recent byelections for two Lok Sabha and 11 Assembly Seats across the country has provided food for thought to all the major political parties. Overall, the Congress had the satisfaction of winning five Assembly seats and wresting from the TDP Bobbili Lok Sabha constituency in Andhra Pradesh. But the party suffered a serious setback when it lost crucial Karimganj Lok Sabha seat. The Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) chief and former Union Minister Chandrashekhar Rao proved the pollsters wrong when he recorded a landslide victory, defeating the nearest Congress rival T Jeevan Reddy, by a whopping 2,01,502 votes. Rao’s victory has given a shot in the arm to the movement for a separate Telangana State, the issue on which the party had withdrawn its two Ministers (Rao and Narendra) from the Union Government and its support to the UPA at the Centre and to the ruling Congress in the State.

Former Prime Minister and Janata Dal (S) Chief, H C Deve Gowda was a prominent loser in the sense that his party’s nominee Shivadasappa lost to the OBC leader Siddaramaiah in a high-voltage bypoll from Chanmeedeshwari Assembly constituency in Mysore district. For Siddaramaiah, once a closed friend of Deve Gowda and now his bete noire, the victory is a revenge against the former PM and his clan in Karnataka. This defeat not only spells a setback to the Kumaraswami-BJP coalition Government in Karnataka but also provides a fillip to the JD (S) dissidents who have been demanding Deve Gowda’s expulsion from the party.  The poll outcome was disappointing for the BJP-Shiv Sena combine, which lost to the Congress both the Daryapur and Chimur Assembly seats in Maharashtra. The BJP candidate’s defeat at the hands of the Congress in the tribal-dominated Dungarpur constituency is also a warning signal to the ruling party in Rajasthan.

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UP Politics in Rashtrapati Bhawan

Pre-poll activity in Uttar Pradesh moved to Rashtrapati Bhawan last week. While the delegations of the main Opposition parties, the BJP and the BSP, led by L K Advani and Mayawati respectively, met the President and demanded Central rule in the State prior to the Assembly election next year, the ruling Samajwadi Party group of MPs demanded recall of the Governor, T A Rajeshwar. The Opposition parties stressed the need for President’s rule to save the State from “mafia rule”. Mayawati was most vocal and alleged a collapse of law and order machinery in the State. She said exactly what Sonia Gandhi had stated earlier that free and fair polls were not possible under the present dispensation. Reacting sharply, to the move, a group of SP sought the Governor’s recall on the plea that he was “conspiring” against the State Government.

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SC Scraps Foreigners Order for Assam

The Supreme Court verdict striking down the Union Government’s controversial Foreigners (Tribunals for Assam) Order has been widely welcomed in the State and elsewhere. The Order was denounced by many as an attempt to somehow overrule the apex Court’s historic judgment which had scrapped the Illegal Migrants (Determination by Tribunals) Act in February last year, describing it as illegal and unconstitutional. The Government order on the Foreigners Act too had put the burden of proof in the case of Assam to the complainant as in the case of the IMDT, which the Court had been repealed on the same ground. However, illegal migrants would still continue to be a threat, until the State Government takes speedy steps to constitute adequate number of Tribunals to deport illegal migrants under the Foreigners Act, 1946. Much eventually depends upon the Centre’s willingness to issue multi-purpose identity cards to all the nationals, beginning with the sensitive border areas.  

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Sonia’s Direction to Punjab Leaders

The Congress President, Sonia Gandhi, is striving hard to get senior Punjab leaders to bury the hatchet and work unitedly for the Assembly elections early next year, if they want the party to retain power in the State. Sonia Gandhi has felt constrained to warn feuding Congressmen in the State following reports that differences between Chief Minister Amarinder Singh and Jagmeet Singh Brar were continuing despite earlier advices from the AICC. Meanwhile, the ruling Congress’ main opposition SAD (B)-BJP combine has declared its agenda for the poll. It has promised subsidized flour and pulses, filling of vacancies in Government within six months of coming to power and insurance scheme for the farmers. The party Chief Parkash Singh Badal made this announcement at an impressive rally in Moga.

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Naxals Attack Train In Jharkhand

The Naxalites, now re-grouped as CPI (Maoists) have adopted a new method of attacking trains and looting. This was in evidence in the Jharkhand sector, (bordering West Bengal) of the South-Eastern Railways. They stopped the Khargpur passenger train for about two hours, looted two rifles and cash from the Railway Police Force (RPF) personnel escorting the train, snatched walkie-talkie sets from the guard and driver of the train and then fled. The train was stopped by five or six armed Maoists who were already in the train which they reportedly boarded at Tatanagar. The passengers noticed their presence but did not dare to inform the rail authorities. They told the Station Master only after the incident that the Maoists first forcibly snatched the rifles of the RPF personnel and looted some cash in their possession.

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What’s In A Name?

Uttaranchal, the new hill State carved out of UP, will now be re-named Uttarakhand. The Bill for the change in its name has been passed by both the Houses of Parliament. The UPA Government has defended the change on the ground that the move would fulfil the aspirations of the people of the State, especially the State Congress, which had successfully and, at times violently agitated for the creation of the hill State, initially named by them as Uttarakhand. When the State was finally created by the Vajpayee-led NDA Government, it was named Uttaranchal. During discussions of the Bill in Parliament, the BJP, SP and Left parties put up a united Front and argued that the timing of the alteration of the name was a political gimmick to court the electorate even though, as Ravi Shankar Prasad of the BJP pointed out, it would cost the State Government at least Rs 400 to 500 crore. --INFA

(Copyright, India News and Feature Alliance)

 

New Terror Law Controversy:STATES DEBATE IB CHIEF’s PROPOSAL, by Insaf, 29 November 2006 Print E-mail

Round The States

New Delhi, 29 November 2006

New Terror Law Controversy

STATES DEBATE IB CHIEF’s PROPOSAL

By Insaf

Various State Governments and their security agencies are eagerly debating the controversy sparked off by Intelligence Bureau Chief ESL Narasimhan at the Conference of Directors General of Police in New Delhi last week.  Narasimhan had pitched for a special law to tackle the growing terrorism in the country on the ground that the existing legal framework was not adequate to deal with the new-age terrorists. The IB Chief had made the demand in the presence of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh at the Conference. The PM did not react to the suggestion at that time but responded three days later at a seminar on “Law, Terrorism and Development.” There was no need for a new law, he said, and added that the authorities should take recourse to “stringent measures” under existing laws to tackle the scourge and, among other things, “cut off” the illegal flow of money to terrorists through money laundering and organized crime.

The State Police Chiefs and several retired DGPs and security experts Insaf has spoken to on the issue are fully with the IB Chief’s observation on the threat posed to the country by new-age and other forms of terrorism.  Narasimhan had observed that “having large financial and material resources at their disposal, terrorist groups are able to use modern communication system and state-of-the-art technology to pursue their agenda”… Most security agencies and the Police chiefs in the States have now begun to increasingly feel that they do not have adequate wherewithal to tackle the terrorists who have become more sophisticated, better networked and highly motivated in carrying out their diabolical designs. Of greater concern is the threat to internal security, their linkage with organized crime, drug trafficking, gun-running and money laundering, as reflected in the debates in the Rajya Sabha and the Lok Sabha.

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ULFA Steps Up Violence

The United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) is spreading its tentacles by the day. Taking advantage of the ceasefire between August-September last, the organization regrouped its forces, recruited Bangladeshi migrants, got a large number of its cadres trained in Pak-occupied Kashmir (PoK) and managed to equip itself with modern weaponry. It struck four bomb blasts in Assam since the November 5 twin blasts that killed 14 persons. The latest on November 22 was in the high-security zone of Guwahati, killing three persons and injuring more than a dozen. Alarmingly, the group is focusing its attacks on the Hindi-speaking people from Bihar, UP and Rajasthan settled in Assam. They have now extended their activities to northern Bengal with the assistance of local insurgent groups. Their first target was a blast in the Haldibari passenger train, first of its kind in West Bengal.

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Impact Of SC Order Against Mayawati

The Supreme Court’s ruling that the prosecution of the BSP Chief and former UP Chief Minister, Mayawati in the Rs.175-crore Taj Heritage Corridor scam be reopened has affected the ongoing process of social and political realignments prior to the crucial Assembly elections in the State. The immediate impact is expected to be felt in the relationship which the Congress has been slowly building with Mayawati’s BSP.  Both parties are vehemently opposed to Mulayam Singh’s Samajwadi Party (SP) and his governance. But the move is unlikely to succeed now.  The BJP too has rejected any post-poll tie-up with the BSP in the event of a hung Assembly. Mayawati’s efforts to woo upper caste votes may also not materialize since the CBI will be framing fresh charges against her. 

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AICC Directive To Punjab Leaders

With the Assembly elections in Punjab barely three months away, the Central leadership of the ruling Congress has directed the State PCC to ensure unity, so vital for retaining power. The AICC General Secretary Janardhan Dwivedi has rapped former Lok Sabha member Jagmeet Singh Brar, a known critic of Chief Minister Amarinder Singh, for openly speaking against the State leadership.  Brar has been specifically told to refrain from going public with his criticism and to work closely with other State leaders for the upcoming poll.  The Chief Minister has also been asked to stamp out factionalism in the State unit. Following a similar AICC advice to the Punjab leaders few months ago, there was a brief lull in the wrangling. But Brar is at it again publicly against his bete noire.

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Militancy Takes New Turn In J&K

Militancy in Jammu and Kashmir is hopefully taking a new turn. For the first time since it reared its ugly head more than a decade ago, as many as 20 militants from different outfits have surrendered and laid down arms in front of the GOC of an Army Division.  Most of them had crossed over to PoK for arms training between 1993 and 2002.  The Centre and the State Government are watching the encouraging trend with interest, against the backdrop of continuing violence in the State.  The militants are, however, continuing their attacks on security forces and Government buildings. On Tuesday, Dr. Shameena Badroo, wife of former Hizbul Chief and an Army major were critically injured in two gun battles in Chanpora and Bijbehara respectively.  Three days earlier, a gun fight took place in Neldora village in south Kashmir in which four Army personnel and one militant were killed.

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Bonanza For Godhra Victims

The UPA Government at the Centre has finalized a relief package for the 2002 Gujarat riot victims.  It will be a one-time compensation on the lines of the relief the Centre awarded to the 1984 Sikh riot victims.  What is more, the compensation will not only cover the casualties but also those who are staying in semi-permanent camps.  The package provides that the next of kin of a deceased would get Rs.7 lakh, minus the compensation paid so far. The move will come as a relief for several Muslim families which have received hardly any assistance from the Gujarat Government, despite suffering loss of their property and that of near and dear ones. The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has identified 5,307 displaced families which have not been settled so far.

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AIDS Virus Spreads To 20 States

The dreaded HIV/AIDS virus has created an alarming situation. It has now spread to as many as 163 districts in 20 States. The highest number of districts is in Andhra Pradesh (21 of the 25 districts), Karnataka (24 of 27), Maharashtra (30 of 36). The new “entrants” in the list of AIDS-affected districts are New Delhi, eight districts in Bihar, five in UP, five in Madhya Pradesh, three in Punjab including Chandigarh, two in Rajasthan and one in Haryana.  Other States affected by the virus are Sikkim, Tripura, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Meghalaya, J&K, Jharkhand and Andaman Nicobar Island. In view of the speed with which the virus is spreading in the country, the National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO) has programmed that each of the 611 districts affected by the disease will have a link worker for implementing the control programme at the district level.

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Pulling Out Hand Rickshaws From Kolkata

Kolkata will soon be missing what is loosely described as the city’s “heritage” road transport, the hand-pulled rickshaw. Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee wants to see them off the roads as early as possible.  He has got the present winter session of the State Assembly extended by four days to get a Bill passed for withdrawal of these rickshaws from Kolkata.  The session, scheduled to adjourn on November 30, has been extended to December 4. The Government had actually introduced the Bill during the Monsoon session in July last.  But it could not be passed following resistance from the Opposition.  The Congress had initially opposed it.  But it will now support the move as the Chief Minister has assured a rehabilitation package for all the licensed rickshaw pullers.---INFA

 (Copyright, India News and Feature Alliance)

 

 

Desperate Moves In U.P.:MULAYAM MAY PREPONE ASSEMBLY POLL, by Insaf,23 November 2006 Print E-mail

Round The States

New Delhi, 23 November 2006

Desperate Moves In U.P.

MULAYAM MAY PREPONE ASSEMBLY POLL

By Insaf

All political eyes are now on Uttar Pradesh and its Chief Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav. Even though the term of the present State Assembly ends only in May next, new desperate moves are on for the crucial poll. In an attempt to cut his losses, Mulayam Singh is said to be actively considering dissolution of the Assembly for an early poll, possibly in February. The move is prompted by several factors. More than anything else, his Government is increasingly under attack by his main rivals, the BSP, BJP and the Congress, following the ruling Samajwadi Party’s dismal  performance in the recent civic polls. The CM also feels unnerved by the Congress President, Sonia Gandhi’s recent statement that free and fair elections are not  possible in U.P. under Mulayam Singh’s Government.

Adding to Mulayam Singh’s concern is Governor T.V. Rajeshwar’s report to the Centre on poll violence and rigging by the Government machinery in the recent local body elections.  This has created in the minds of the Samajwadi Party leaders an apprehension that the UPA Government at the Centre is perhaps preparing to clamp President’s rule on the State.  However, a section in the ruling party rubbishes such a possibility and wants the Assembly to complete its full term.  This would give Mulayam Singh enough time to draw lessons from the civic poll and consolidate his Muslim and Christian support.  He has already decided to move a resolution in the Assembly calling on New Delhi to bring the dalit Muslims and Christians under the ambit of reservations. The CM has felt encouraged to do so by the Sachar Committee report on the plight of Muslims.

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Bonanza To Punjab Farmer

The Congress Government in Punjab, led by Amarinder Singh, has blessed the State’s farmers with a bonanza in the run-up to the Assembly polls. A new land acquisition policy that provides big relief to them has been finalized.  It gives more rights to the farmers and bars official acquisition of land on “whimsical” grounds.  Rehabilitation of farmers whose land is acquired by the Government for any “public purpose” has been made mandatory. Importantly, compensation for the land has to be at the market price.  Guidelines have also been laid down on what constitutes “public purpose”. No forcible acquisition of land will be allowed to urban development agencies or improvement trusts. All requests for acquisition of land for developmental projects will have to be made at the State level through the State Land Acquisition Board.  Any intention to acquire land will have to be announced through a notification spelling out the public purpose.

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W. Bengal Congress Remains Divided

The West Bengal Congress continues to suffer acutely from what has facilitated the Left Front to remain in power in the State for 27 long years: divided leadership and weakened cadres. The party is divided once more over the selection of the PCC President. While Information and Broadcasting Minister P.R. Dasmunsi has thrown in his hat for the coveted position, in addition to his assignment at the Centre, as many as ten MLAs and 12 district chiefs of the party have visited Delhi and tried to convince Sonia Gandhi of the need to have a “full time” Pradesh Chief. They told her candidly that “unless you have a chief totally committed to State politics, the Congress has no hope in West Bengal.”  They have pitched for former PCC Chief Somen Mitra who, they claimed, had a record of good electoral performance during his earlier tenure between 1992 and 1998.

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Transforming N-E Into Exports Gateway

A move is on to transform the north-eastern region of the country into an exports gateway to the world. Union Minister for Development of North-East Region (DONER), Mani Shankar Aiyer announced this at a two-day meet of the North-Eastern Council (NEC) in New Delhi last week. He disclosed a slew of proposals on the anvil in this regard. These include the development of international access corridors to Bhutan, Myanmar and Bangladesh, access to the proposed Asian Highway and strengthening and expansion of Land Customs Stations that function as authorized trade routes.  Proposals have also been made on high priority basis for improving air connectivity within the region, as also with other South Asian countries.   Commodities with high export potential from the region will be identified and policies reoriented to make the north-east region truly an exports gateway.

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Crime Control In Nitish’s Bihar

Derided as the Columbia of the East not so long ago because of kidnapping crimes, Bihar is now turning “a new leaf.”  Chief Minister Nitish Kumar made this claim on Friday, November 24 as he completed one year in office.  He has attributed this improvement in the State’s law and order situation within one year to proactive judiciary, initiatives taken by the State police and non-interference by the political leadership.  Criminals used to be easily let off the hook for various reasons. But, as the CM has stressed, that is not the case any more. He has claimed that speedy convictions have become the order of the day and there have been cases in the recent past when criminals have been convicted within two or three days. It is officially stated that in less than one year 4,730 criminals were convicted.

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Azad’s Formula To Raise Funds

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad has found a formula to raise money for the State exchequer: sell the illegally occupied Government land to the people at a concession. It is estimated that about 2.5 lakh acres of Government land is under illegal occupation for decades.  At the current market price this land costs about Rs.25,000 crore---an amount more than the annual budget of the State for the past ten years.  The State Cabinet decided last week that those who would buy the land and pay its cost within three months will be entitled to 30 per cent discount. Those who pay within six months will get 15 per cent off and those who do it in one year will get 10 per cent concession.  Azad hopes to sell the entire illegally occupied land within one year and help his J&K Government pocket a major windfall.

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Himachal Ground Water Act

Himachal Pradesh is the first State in the country to legislate the use and regulation of ground water.  The State Government, led by Virbhadra Singh, has passed the Ground Water Act and rules have been framed for its implementation from early next year.  Under the rules, the State Government will set up a Ground Water Authority (GWA) to monitor and control the use of depleting ground water. It will also notify critical areas where no withdrawals will be permitted or restrictions will be imposed on existing users. Also, all contractors and drilling agencies engaged in the job will have to get registered with the GWA which will give or cancel permission to draw ground water. The falling water table in Hamirpur, Kangra, Bilaspur and Shimla districts is causing increasing concern to the State Government.

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Raje Walks The Ramp

Vasundhara Raje, Rajasthan’s vivacious Chief Minister, has earned another first. Incredibly enough, she walked the ramp at a fashion show in Jaipur the other day to showcase the international fashion designer Bibi Russel’s khadi collections.  Her mission? Popularise khadi in the State and stop the slow but sure decline in khadi production in the State over the last few years.  Rajasthan produced khadi worth Rs. 40 crore through one lakh weavers in 1996-97. But during 2005-06, khadi production slumped to about Rs.20 crore and the number of weavers associated with the cottage industry came down to about 60,000. Simultaneously,. she has got the Khadi and Gramodyog Board to draw up a plan to improve the quality of the fabric and boost its sales.---INFA

 (Copyright, India News and Feature Alliance)

Political Scenario In U.P.:CIVIC POLL REFORMS NEEDED, by Insaf,15 November 2006 Print E-mail

Round The States

New Delhi, 15 November 2006

Political Scenario In U.P.

CIVIC POLL REFORMS NEEDED

By Insaf

The recent civic polls in U.P. have attracted greater political attention than such exercises normally do at the national level.  Held as these were in the run-up to the crucial Assembly elections early next year, the results and voting trends were significant for all political parties and so also accusation of widespread rigging.  These left the Samajwadi Party Government of Mulayam Singh vulnerable to an opposition clamour for a Bihar-type multi-phased Assembly election to avoid a repeat of violence and rigging.  Even the Governor, T.V. Rajeshwar, sent a report to the Union Home Ministry, castigating the role of the Government for the poll violence and the way the election schedules were worked out.  The report even led the opposition parties to demand that the Assembly poll be held under Central rule.  Union Minister of State for Home Jaiswal publicly hinted at such a possibility.

These developments clearly call for the need for reforms in the conduct of local body elections in the States, especially when there is increasing movement towards decentralization of governance. The elections for the local bodies are presently conducted by the State Governments which have its own Election Commissioners and officers at the local level. Now that the local elections are being fought on party basis and much importance attaches to them for wielding power at the grassroots, they too need to be conducted by the Election Commission to ensure a free and fair poll and avoid a repeat of what came to pass recently in U.P.  Importantly, successive Chief Election Commissioners have advocated strengthening the Election Commission both at the Centre and in the States and providing it the wherewithal to conduct free and fair polls at all levels. However, these suggestions have not yet received the attention they deserve in the interest of a truly representative democracy.

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States Oppose Police Reforms

Most States have expressed difficulty in complying with the Supreme Court order on Police reforms before December 31.  The apex Court had in its judgment on September 22 last directed the Centre and the State Governments to implement police reforms based on recommendations of several panels, especially the National Police Commission. The Court had suggested the Constitution of a National Security Commission at the Centre and a similar body in the States, a mechanism to weed out political interference in the appointment of DGPs and heads of para-military organizations, a fixed tenure for the DGPs and senior officers, separation of investigations from the police wing involved in the maintenance of law and order and setting up of Police Establishment Boards and Police Complaints Authorities.

At a meeting convened by the Union Home Secretary in New Delhi on Tuesday, the Chief Secretaries and DGPs from the States agreed with the Centre to push for the police reforms as directed by the Supreme Court. But most of them put forward their problems in meeting the Court’s deadline of 31 December for various reasons. Generally, the officers from the States told the Centre that the reforms could not be undertaken because of shortage of personnel in their police forces and the wide-ranging duties they were required to perform on the law and order front.  The real reason for their opposition to reforms, however, stems from the politicians.  They do not want to let go their influence, indeed de facto control, over the police force especially at the local level.

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Amarinder’s Vikas Yatra In Punjab

It is back-to-the-people time for the Punjab politicians in the run-up to the Assembly polls about three months away now. Leading the Congress campaign, Chief Minister Amarinder Singh undertook a three-day “Vikas Yatra” (some call it “Road Shows)” across the State over the week-end along with his official paraphernalia.  He managed to reach out to a large number of people, even in the Akali bastion of Malwa region.  He mingled with the people, heard their grievances against his administration and in some cases dictated orders for on-the-spot settlement of their demands, including sanction of power connections to the farmers. Of great interest was the manner in which the erstwhile Maharaja mingled with the people, ate his lunch sitting atop a sand dune, conversing with bare-bodied farmers and administering polio drops to the children on Sunday last.  The idea was not only to propagate the “strides” Punjab has made under his Government but translate the feel good factor into votes.

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Karunakaran’s DIC Merges With NCP

Veteran 88-year-old leader from Kerala, K. Karunakaran is back to active national politics. After an unceremonious exit from the Congress and desertion by the CPM, his one-year-old tearaway outfit, Democratic Indira Congress (DIC) has now finally merged with the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) of Sharad Pawar. The merger terms are that he will be involved in the NCP’s politics at the national level, will back the ruling Left Front in Kerala and be an ally of the UPA at the Centre.  In other words, both the Congress and the CPM will have to live with him. Initially, the CPM, which leads the Left Front Government in Kerala, had opposed the DIC’s merger with the NCP, presently an ally of the ruling Front. Karunakaran has described the merger as a “reunion of parties having the Congress culture and tradition”.

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Terror Continues Unabated In Kashmir

Terrorism by Pakistan-backed militant outfits continues unabated in Kashmir. Barely three days prior to the Foreign Secretary-level talks between India and Pakistan, it struck the Valley on Friday last. A grenade attack on a religious congregation in South Kashmir’s Pulwama district killed at least five people and left about 40 badly injured.  The attack has set a new trend. The militants hire a local youth for a one time action at a price. In this case it was just Rs.1,000 for throwing on the congregation the grenade handed over to him. According to the Pulwama DIG, the attack was aimed at creating panic among the followers of Barailvi school of thought.  Some terror outfits are opposed to this school which encourages shrine worship and teaches secularism. On the same day, another grenade was thrown at a CRPF picket at Hanuman Mandir in Srinagar. Eight people were injured in this attack.

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Goa’s Higher Education Plan

Tiny Goa may soon become an international education centre, if a plan just drawn up by the State Government is faithfully implemented.  The public sector Education Development Corporation for promoting higher education in the State is developing an educational estate at Verna in south Goa. It is in the process of acquiring land for the proposed estate.  The plan is to develop the entire infrastructure, including common facilities at the estate and then to attract reputed national and international higher educational institutions to set up their branches. The Corporation is presently finalizing the entire proposal of infrastructure development to seek Government funds in the coming State budget for 2007-08. The project already has the blessing of Chief Minister Pratapsinh Rane.

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Commonwealth Boon for Haryana

Delhi’s Commonwealth Games-2010 have now become the buzzword in neighbouring Haryana too. The State Government is cashing in on the hospitality boom. It has identified a major chunk of land around the Union Capital Region (NCR) for building budget and star hotels.  It is estimated that a total of abut 400 acres of land may be put on the block. The hotel project is proposed to be handed over to the public-private partnerships.  Seeing the boom in the hospitality business, the State Government has already started auctioning hotel plots in Gurgaon. It has also offered to the Games organizers help for building Games infrastructure in Delhi.  In fact, this plan may ultimately end up with the creation of a “tourism economic zone” close to the Union capital.---INFA

 (Copyright, India News and Feature Alliance)

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