Round The States
New Delhi, 21 October 2010
Nitish-Lalu-Cong
Bout
OLD PROMISES, NEW
CASTE EQUATIONS
By Insaf
All eyes are riveted on the Bihar State Assembly elections. The
ballot boxes have been sealed after the first phase of polling. But the political
slug fest continues in poll-bound Bihar. The
first to up the ante against NDA’s Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, was Congress
General Secretary Rahul Gandhi. In his whirlwind electioneering in the State,
he questioned Nitish’s secular credentials by stating that it was all a farce
given that his Party was a key ally of BJP’s Hindutva mascot Narendra Modi. Dittoed
mother Sonia. The Prime Minister, who followed next, accused Nitish for failing
to give an impetus to development in the State despite large Central fund
doles. A livid Chief Minister not only accused Manmohan Singh of adopting ‘hit
and run’ tactics but also for commenting factual errors. Said he, “the ‘economic’
PM should not react as a politician.” Adding that the Central Funds were not
the personal jaagir of the Congress
but the tax payers’ hard earned money. Watch this space. The Bihar
poll tamasha of gaali-galoch, jhoot-sach continues.
This is not all. There is hardly any raucous drum beating
for or against any party as the electorate holds its cards close to its chest. Specially,
against the backdrop that all parties are afflicted by large-scale dissidence.
Also, the poll manifestoes are replete with the usual ghisa-pita promises. The JD(U)-led NDA alliance talks of the
initiatives it took to develop the State during the last five years. The
RJD-LJP combine, led by Lalu and Paswan, is seeking to demolish Nitish’s development
plank, while the Congress’ tries to stage a climb-back under Rahul Gandhi. The
Congress’ USP: a young and incorruptible future leadership. As of now, the
emerging poll picture is, consolidation of the Other Backward Classes, a
settled Muslim constituency, the rise of the extremely backward castes and the
march of women following reservations in panchayats.
* * * *
New Naxal Plan In
AP
Naxalism is all set to rear its terror head again in Andhra
Pradesh. Namely against the Polavaram dam and Telengana. This strategy of the
Maoists was disclosed in diaries, letters and literature recovered from two
camps in Khammam district which the security forces stumbled on during
anti-Maoists operation. What is worrying the security forces is that a
high-level meeting of north Telangana Special Zonal Committee of CPI (Maoist)
leaders in August last proclaimed there intention to ‘re-establish’ their
existence and dominate in Warrangal, Khamam and Karimnagar, alongwith igniting
anti-dam sentiments. The Maoists plan to regain lost ground in Khamam district
is to create a seamless corridor between Dantewada in Chhattisgarh and
Malkangiri in Orissa. Needless to say, the State Government and its grey hounds
would need to be vigilant and nimble footed.
* * * *
Haryana’s Communal
Harmony
Remember Haryana’s infamous Mirchpur district, which became
synonymous with communal killings in April last. Wherein 18 Dalit houses were
torched by 130 Jats resulting in Congress General Secretary Rahul Gandhi making
a surprise visit, leading to the setting up of the justice Iqbal Singh
Commission. What makes Mirchpur stand out today is that nine months later the
two communities have begun a patch-up bid to improve ties. Both communities set
up a 21-member Shanti Samanvay Samiti (Peace Committee) and decided to remain
united and not speak against each other as it would vitiate cordial relations
between them. Coming as it does prior to the one-man Commission’s visit to the
district, it holds out portends of reconciliation and acceptance. Perhaps,
Mirchpur will earn accolades for communal harmony between Jats and Dalits.
* * * *
Punjab Is Upset
Punjab is upset that the US President intends giving the
golden city Amritsar a miss on his forthcoming visit to India early next month.
First, the stumbling block was that the US President would not use head scarf
on his visit to the Golden Temple. According to centuries old Sikh traditions
it is mandatory to cover the head with any cloth. To overcome this contentious
issue and not hurt Sikh traditions the Shrimani Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee
has now appealed to Obama that he might cover his head with a cap or hat. Anything,
but a military helmet. The Sikhs community’s apex body has also sent an SOS to
influential Sikh NRIs in the US for appealing to Obama to keep his date with
Amritsar. It remains to be seen whether Obama will partake the famous Sikh
hospitality!
* * * *
Orissa Awaits
Clearance
After the controversy over the Navi Mumbai Airport, the
Union Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh is giving sleepless nights to Orissa.
The South Korean steel major POSCO proposed $12 billion iron and steel project in
the State is the latest bone of contention. A new expert panel set up by the
Environment Ministry has alleged violations of environmental laws and suggested
scrapping all environmental clearances given to the 12 million tonne steel
plant. Coming on the heels of the Ministry’s canceling the aluminum
conglomerate Vedanta’s Bauxite mining plant in the Niyamgiri mountains has
raised the hackles of the State Government. Even as a livid Chief Minister
Naveen Patnaik refused to comment on the issue reports aver that he is likely
to take up the issue with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Given that the project
was the raison d’ atre of Orissa’s industrialization.
* * * *
Kerala’s Brews New Scheme
Tea estates in God’s own country Kerala can give a run for
their money to Central and State Governments’ much tom-tommed mid-day meal
schemes. In a record of sorts the various State Government run tea plantations
have registered a record production simply by introducing free afternoon meals
for their workers. If tea production in 2009 was 10 kgs, the production has
touched 14 kgs post free meals. Not just this but the meal-at-noon incentive has led to many women turning up for work.
A significant fall-out of this scheme was that the medical bills of the workers
had drastically decreased as it motivated the workers to put their best foot
forward. Importantly, to meet the expense of the free meals, the State has
turned to innovative tourism. Wherein
vacant bungalows have been turned into guest houses to promote tea tourism.
Clearly, the success of the brew has enthralled Kerala’s workers! ---INFA
(Copyright, India News and Feature
Alliance)
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