ROUND THE STATES

New Delhi, 4 October 2006

Naga Outfit’s Demands

ANOTHER ROUND OF TALKS WITH NSCN

By Insaf

Peace negotiations between the Union Government and the major rebel Naga outfit, the NSCN (IM) and the nine-year-old ceasefire are to be reviewed later this month at Amsterdam. The three-member Group of Ministers (GoM) which Prime Minister Manmohan Singh constituted in 2004, headed by Oscar Fernandes, is taking another close look at the 30-point wish-list of the Naga insurgents. This includes two most controversial and difficult-to-concede demands. One, Greater Nagland or Nagalim that would include unification of Naga-inhabited areas in adjoining Manipur, Assam and Arunachal Pradesh. Two, a separate Constitution for Nagaland, as in the case of Jammu & Kashmir that would limit the Centre’s role to similar key areas of administration. 

At their last meeting at Bangkok, the GoM had agreed to examine the constitutional aspects of the demand and its implication for the region. This gesture, together with determined efforts since 1997 on the part of the Centre to negotiate peace with the NSCN(IM) and to keep the process going has emboldened the insurgent group to keep  pressing for its demands that cannot prime facie be met. The process has continued for nine years obviously because both the Union Government and the people want the guns to remain silent.  This also suits the NSCN (IM) leadership because the prolonged ceasefire has “taken its toll” on its cadres and it would not be easy to coax them back to the conflict again.  The Government needs to take note of this and firmly handle the talks without giving the outfit any false hopes.

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Erring States To Lose Central Aid

The States will not be allowed to take the Union Ministry of Panchayati Raj for a ride. The Ministry has firmly told all the States: Constitute District Planning Committees (DPCs) or lose Central assistance from the Backward Regions Grant Fund (BRGF), started recently. The Ministry has informed the States that transfer of funds to the backward districts is based on district development plans drawn by the Panchayats and the DPCs and approved by the State Governments. Of the 27 States eligible to receive the Central funds under the BRGF scheme, as many as eleven States are yet to constitute the DPCs.  In other words, as many as 130 districts in Uttaranchal, Haryana, Punjab, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Tripura and Jharkhand will lose out on Central funds if they fail to constitute DPCs. The worst losers will be 36 districts in Bihar, 34 in UP, 13 in Andhra and 12 in Maharashtra.

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Mumbai Police Exposes Pak Terror Design

Mumbai Police deserves three cheers for nailing those responsible for the serial train blasts on July 11 last, killing 188 persons and injuring more than 700.  Importantly, the cops have exposed the Pakistan Government’s lie and proved with evidence that the terrorist attack was the handiwork of eleven Pakistani militant groups, including Lashkar-e-Toyyaba and Jaish-e-Mohammad.  The operation had the stamp of Pakistan’s Inter-Service Intelligence (ISI).  Those who masterminded the blasts were assisted by at least seven local supporters, including SIMI, the Students Islamic Movement of India. The terror ambit extended from Pakistan to Bihar.  Some SIMI activists were trained at a camp in Bahawalpur in Pakistan. These investigations lead to the conclusion that President Musharraf cannot be trusted.

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Six Farmers’ Suicides In 24 Hours In Vidarbha

Farmers’ distress due to indebtedness continues unabated, particularly in four States of Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and Karnataka, notwithstanding the Centre’s generous relief packages one after another.  Last week the Union Cabinet cleared a massive Rs.16,978-crore rehabilitation package for 31 badly affected districts in the four States.  The worst-hit is Maharashtra’s  Vidarbha region, first to be visited by the Prime Minister and offered an aid of Rs.3,874 crore for the region’s six districts in July.  The package was inadequate.  The farmers’ miseries did not end. Things went to such a pass that six cotton farmers committed suicides in a spell of 24 hours last week. The toll in September alone went up to 116 even as Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh claimed improvement at the Congress CMs meet in Nainital the other day.

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Kerala Demands More

Kerala’s Chief Minister, V.S. Achuthanandan told to the Centre that its Rs.765-crore aid package for the State’s three worse-affected districts of Kasargod, Wayanad and Palakka is wholly inadequate. The State Government had sought a relief package of Rs.3,412 crore for its districts badly hit by prolonged drought. Additionally, the State had also sought from the Centre a subsidy of Rs.1,293 crore as relief for maintenance of Thareenmukkam soft water barrier and outer barrier of Kaltanad.  In these two districts alone, nearly 25,000 labourers have been rendered jobless following lockout in as many as 25 plantations.  Achuthanandan has planned to invite all the MPs from the State, irrespective of their party affiliation, to pressurize the Centre to get for the State the required financial assistance.

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Congress-RLD Talks Fail

The Congress is stepping up its efforts to regain power in U.P., a task seemingly difficult at present what with the ruling Samajwadi Party, BSP and BJP way ahead in the race for power through the Assembly poll in March next year.  In fact, things are still not working out too well for it. The talks between the AICC General Secretary incharge of UP, Ashok Gehlot, and the RLD Chief, Ajit Singh for an electoral alliance have almost failed. The Congress has refused to concede the RLD’s main demands: Union Cabinet berth for the leader and a junior Ministership for his confidant, a lion’s share of the Assembly seats in Western UP and a commitment on the RLD’s plea for carving Harit Pradesh out of Western UP.  The wish-list is considered wholly disproportionate to the RLD’s strength in the State. The Congress High Command has thus asked the PCC leadership to begin the process of selecting the party candidates for all the 403 Assembly seats.  

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Poll Activity Begins In Gujarat

In Gujarat too, the Congress has started preparing well in advance for the Assembly elections, scheduled for September-October next year. The High Command has constituted the Pradesh Congress Committee, bringing senior leaders to take charges of different regions.  Bharat Solanki, son of the veteran leader and former Chief Minister Madhavsinh Solanki, has been retained as the PCC Chief to spearhead the party’s campaign.  His team has been given 12 Vice-Presidents, and as many General Secretaries, along with ten divisional incharges. The team is expected to work unitedly to challenge the ruling BJP, which is presently in disarray with Chief Minister Narendra Modi’s bete noire and former Chief Minister Keshubhai Patel trying hard to capture the organization. He has already offered himself for the State BJP’s Presidentship.

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Viral Infection Havoc

Two viral infections this year are causing havoc in several States: Chikungunya and Dengue.  Both diseases are transmitted to humans through the bite of mosquitoes infected with the virus.  Chikungunya has already taken more than 50 lives in Kerala alone since the outbreak of the disease early this year. Around 3,000 fresh cases have so far been reported from district hospitals across the State. Dengue is fast spreading mostly in northern States of Delhi, Haryana, Punjab, J&K, UP and Rajasthan. The disease has taken a toll of 33 in these States so far. In the Union Capital alone, more than 500 cases have been reported by the local authorities. However, according to the doctors attending these cases in Delhi, the figure is much higher. ---INFA

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