Round The States

New Delhi, 3 November 2011

Anna Vs Centre

STATES TAKE THE LEAD

By Insaf

Anna Hazare is pleased as punch. State leaders are slowly but positively responding to the anti-corruption movement. For starters, the B C Khanduri Government in Uttarakhand has cloned Team Anna’s Jan Lokpal Bill, rather than the one drafted by the Centre. On Tuesday last, the Assembly passed the Lokayukta Bill, making the State the first in the country to bring the Chief Minister under its ambit. Additionally, the punishment for any act of corruption by Ministers, MLAs, bureaucracy and the lower judiciary has been made stringent, ranging from 10 years imprisonment to life! While Khanduri is reveling in the kudos coming his way, Anna is hopeful that three other non-Congress ruled States—Bihar, Orissa and Punjab shall get inspiration and refurbish their Lokayukta institutions.

Till then, the State leaders are sending strong messages against corruption. Following in the footsteps of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, Orissa’s Naveen Patnaik has converted the house of a “corrupt” retired IAS officer in Bhubaneswar into a homeopathy dispensary. Properties of two other bureaucrats have been confiscated. Two months ago, Nitish had converted a three-storey house of a corrupt IAS official into a school. Chief Minister of West Bengal Mamata Banerjee has in the meantime, announced her “raj dharma’ of zero tolerance towards corruption. Instructions have been given to the State Intelligence Bureau to gather information on her Party leaders “involved” in corruption. This apart, she has warned Partymen against indulging in the business of promoting and raising syndicates. While these Chief Ministers are chipping in to cleanse the rot in the system, the State Governors too have been asked to get active. Addressing the Governors Conference in New Delhi, President Pratibha Patil urged them to adopt a multi-pronged strategy to combat and prevent corruption, in view of the rising public demand. How they deliver, is worth a watch.

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Kerala Govt In Jeopardy

The Kerala Congress Government is at the tip of precipice. Whereby the death of the Food Minister, T.M. Jacob in the Oomen Chandy United  Democratic Front Ministry has reduced it to a wafer thin majority of 140 MLA House. The UDF has now 71 MLAs, the LDF 68 and one seat is vacant. A minor desertion or absenteeism will affect the stability of the Congress-led Government. A worried Congress leadership has already alerted its allies about the tricky situation and the MLAs have been asked to remain in the capital Thiruvananthapuram when the Assembly session is on. Also, Congress legislators have been warned to avoid controversies with the allies thereby putting the Government in trouble. It is crucial that the party wins the bye-election six months on to make up the numbers. Clearly, tough days lie ahead of Chandy.

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Arunachal Gets New CM

The old order gave way to the new in frontier strategic Arunachal Pradesh with the swearing-in of Naban Tuki replacing Jarbom Gamlin as the Chief Minister. Tuki, 47 was handpicked by Congress President Sonia Gandhi as the MLAs had left the decision to her.  For the first time, the State boasts of a ‘different’ Chief Minister on two counts: one, Tuki is a first generation convert, a Christian Chief Minister of a State where conversion was a major issue till a decade ago. Two, he is the first from the Nyishi community, the most populous tribe in the multi-ethnic State. Fingers are crossed that he will be able restore the worsening law and order situation through a process of confidence building process. It remains to be seen if this Congressman will be able to control the severe infighting in the State Congress.

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Rajasthan Tribal Hunger

The Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot’s brush with bad news continues. Post the Bharatpur communal outbreak, followed by Water Resources Minister Mahipal Maderna’s resignation over the mysterious disappearance of a mid-wife and nurse, now comes the shocking news of chronic malnutrition and hunger deaths among the 90000 Saharia tribals. Worse, the Rs.72 crores meant for the tribe’s upliftment has been diverted to the bureaucracy to be used for the welfare of Government employees. This was disclosed by the State’s Tribal Affairs Minister. A study done last year, found that nearly 43 per cent of the children in the age group of 1-5 years were malnourished with little hope of survival. Clearly, the State has some explaining to do.

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TN’s Fresh Duel

Tamil Nadui’s AIADMK-DMK duel seems never-ending. On Wednesday last, Chief Minister Jayalalitha shot down another pet project of former CM and arch rival Karunanidhi. The Rs 250 crore Anna centenary library in Chennai, which was touted as being the largest in Asia, will now be converted into a super-speciality paediatric hospital. Amma, however, does not want to upset the kids and has assured them that the library would be housed in a new integrated intellectual park to come up at an alternate site, notwithstanding that it would add additional burden on the State exchequer. Coming on the heels of the purtha thailvi converting her bête noire’s Rs 500 crore pet project of a new secretariat complex into a multi-specialty hospital for children two months ago, one wonders what will be her next target?  

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States Fail Miserably

Urban India portrays a shocking state of affairs in basic services for its people.  A recent survey reveals that 50 per cent of the 1,405 cities across 12 States have no piped water supply and 70 per cent of the households have no access to toilet or a sewage system! While the country’s population has increased from a growth rate of 27 per cent in 2001 to 31 per cent in 2011, the urban local bodies (ULB) have failed miserably to keep pace. A sample: Only two cities of 249 in Maharashtra have uninterrupted water supply, while in Andhra Pradesh over 70 per cent households in 124 ULBs do not have access to water and in Madhya Pradesh the average water supply is a mere 40 per cent. Likewise, the sewerage system stinks, wherein a majority of the cities in Maharashtra don’t have underground drainage system, only 10 local bodies have sewerage treatment plants, 50 per cent of 52 cities in Karnataka have no access to a sewerage system and 70 households in Andhra don’t have any such system. Clearly the survey is a wake up call for the Urban Development Ministry. ---INFA

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