Round The States
New Delhi, 15 December 2011
Potato Woes
FARMERS HIT BY GLUT
By Insaf
Punjab and Haryana farmers are
at a loss. They simply don’t know what to do with the glut of potato harvest,
which has triggered a major slump in its prices. Burn the crop, swamp it on the
road or offer it free, are the options being contemplated. One has already been
chosen by the Punjab farmers. On Thursday
last, they dumped their potatoes crop on the road in Jalandhar district and
other parts of the State. The farmers had earlier met under the banner of
Bhartiya Kisan Union (BKU) to work out a strategy which would help get them
relief. More so, as the two State governments appear to be turning a blind eye
to their woes, making matters worse. The farmers are particularly angry over
the fact that while they are being forced to sell potatoes for Rs 1.50 per kg,
the same is being bought in the market for Rs 15 to Rs 12 per! Thus, while the aam admi has got some relief and the
middlemen and traders making a buck, the poor farmers are unable to meet even
the input costs. In addition, there are very few buyers from other States and
the Centre they claim has no policy to export the crop in the event of a bumper
harvest. Who will bail them out and how fast, is what is weighing on their
mind.
* * * *
Delhi’s Moratorium
The nation’s capital, Delhi will have to live
with its illegal commercial outlets and unauthorised structures, for at least
another three years! It has no choice, thanks to the National Capital Territory
of Delhi Laws (Special Provisions) Second Bill, which was passed by Parliament
on Wednesday last. Accordingly, no punitive action will be taken in terms of
sealing or demolition of such structures, until such time Delhi’s Master Plan- 2021 is revised. The
three-year moratorium, according to Urban Development Minister Kamal Nath is
primarily to prepare “a clear, realistic, user-friendly” Master Plan. It will
specifically look at the future, instead of trying to correct mistakes of the
past. What this really means is that the present Plan has been unrealistic. It
has sadly not been able to cope with the growth momentum of the Capital, which
has witnessed mushrooming of slums, unauthorised colonies and commercial
outlets in residential areas. The Bill thus proposes to set up a Delhi Urban
Regulatory and Appellate Authority which will recommend the changes in the
master Plan. The end result will be keenly watched not just by Delhiites but
other big cities too
* * * *
Illegal Mining In MP
Madhya Pradesh appears to
be following in the footsteps of Karnataka. Alleging widespread illegal mining
in the BJP-ruled State, the opposition Congress shall
approach the Centre for a CBI probe. It has accused the Shivraj Singh Chouhan
Government of bringing nearly one-third of the entire geographical area of the
State under mining plan with exploration permits issued to 93 companies! Of the
total 3,08,000 sq km geographical area, 95,000 Sq kms is under forest cover and
the Congress claims the said permits cover an area of 1,09,208 sq kms. While
making a note of the Opposition’s belligerent mood, Chouhan is giving more
credence to the charges in the backdrop of the illegal mining issue playing
havoc with the ruling BJP in Karnataka. Therefore, he has ordered the State
officials to undertake an intensive month-long campaign to identify and curb
these illegal mining activities. Impose maximum fine in such cases, is his
order. Will this suffice?
* * * *
West Bengal Tragedies
Nothing seems to be going
right for West Bengal and its Chief Minister
Mamata Banerjee. Its administration needs to be tightened. Days after the fire
at AMRI Hospital in Kolkata claimed over 90
lives and month after over 20 infants died in Malda district hospital, tragedy
struck the State again. Over 100 people have died since Wednesday last after
consuming spurious liquor in South 24 Parganas district and another 50 are
battling for their lives. Most of the casualties reported were poor labourers,
rickshaw-pullers and hawkers. Worse, it is alleged the local police was aware
of the illicit business but took no action. While ordering an inquiry and
promising stern action against those manufacturing and selling illegal country
liquor, Mamata also announced a compensation of Rs two lakh each to the
families of the deceased. Earlier, the State government had announced Rs 3 lakh
compensation for the next of kin of those died in the AMRI fire. However,
Mamata should realise that compensation for lost lives is no solace and more
importantly no answer to good governance.
* * * *
Gujarat In Bad Taste
Gujarat Chief Minister
Narendra Modi has stumped many an adversary. Was he turning a new leaf? On
Wednesday last, he described hoardings put up by his own BJP unit ridiculing
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress President Sonia Gandhi, as
“inappropriate and unfortunate”. His reason on Facebook read: “In democracy, we must avoid such acts and respect
each other.” As a result the hoardings were promptly removed from major
junctions in the city, which shall play host to Modi’s Sadbhavna rally on
Sunday. A sample: Rahul Gandhi was shown telling Sonia “Mummy, Walmart fellow
is my friend’s uncle. Please allow him to invest in India.” Sonia is shown replying: “I
am instructing Manmohan uncle to allow FDI in retail, let small people of India be ruined
by it…” While Modi can claim some damage control and use the incident to his
benefit the big question is who ordered and approved these hoardings. Will any
action be taken?
* * * *
Prayer In Andhra
Temple
The fall of the rupee viz
the US dollar has evoked a unique response in Andhra Pradesh. About 45 km away
from the Capital, Hyderabad,
the Chilkur Balaji temple, known popularly as the visa temple, launched a
special prayer on Wednesday last to help the dollar crunch ease. It is learnt
that a large number of people who look forward to going abroad throng this
temple to seek the Lord’s intervention in getting their visa. But with the
dollar rising against the rupee, it has cast a shadow on their overseas
journey. The daylong prayer to Narasimha, the Lion God, explained the head
priest was not only to help the dollar crunch ease but also for speedy recovery
of money from defaulters. Well, only god knows whether the prayer was
successful. ---INFA
(Copyright, India News and Feature Alliance)
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