To New Beginnings!

Dear All,

Thanks for remaining subscribed to my hardly updated blog.

 I was under the impression that my stint with blogging, like many other short lived interests, was over. That was one of the reasons of my unaccounted hibernation in the blogosphere, along with other constraints like my hectic schedule.  However, I am pleasantly surprised to see that people still go through this virtually archaic space that I have created. I have recently had three new subscriptions which add to my sense of bafflement, but also of guilt for being so irregular and inactive.

So, here is the crux of the matter: I am planning to shift my blog to another domain called ‘wordpress.com’ which would hopefully rectify a few technical glitches that my current blog has. Being only a semi-literate in I T, hope is all I can do in this regard. But, I do plan to be more regular and responsible from now onwards as far as updating is concerned. Fulfilling resolutions have never been my strong point but I sincerely hope it works at least this time around.

The new blog’s address is this: http://lipinram.wordpress.com/.   Hope you would remain interested.

Dear friends, 

Due to the issue of word limit, i'm forced to post this article in  6 parts, each part a separate post. If you can take the pain of reading it from bottom to top, you would be able to read it as one article, which's how i wanted it to appear. Hope you would bear with the inconvenience!

(continuation of Tales from Dantewada..page 6)

The Maoists have time and again proclaimed their reluctance to compromise with the “bourgeois democracy” of the Indian state. But when one takes a closer look, what’s happening in Dantewada doesn’t look like a struggle to capture the state at all.  Instead, what’s revealed is the sad plight of a people forced to take up arms when their last resource, the land, is being forcefully looted by a corporate-state nexus.  In their struggle for existence they’ve none to turn to, except the Maoists. So naturally, they become Maoists.  But it’s not the Maoists who have forced the adivasis to take up arms; it’s the vicious and unyielding exploitation inbuilt in the system that’s responsible.

The conflict that’s snowballing in to a full scale war in the Indian heartland is a cause of concern for every citizen in this country. With the murder of Azad (maiost spokesperson) in a fake encounter, the prospects for dialogue between the gov. and the Maoists have become bleaker. The Indrāvati river in Dankaranya is turning dead red.


“History had taught him
how dictators are  born
from the blood of the poor
time and again.


but at this moment
he’s with the these black people
singing the songs of liberation
under these tamarind trees”
                                          (There, Sachidanandan)

Today the Indian democracy is at crossroads, confronting the historic ‘ on whose side are you’ question. It doesn’t look like as if it can escape answering it, not this time.
Will it be able to stand at the side of these “black people singing the songs of liberation”? Shouldn’t it be?

(continuation of Tales from Dantewada..page 4)
There’s no dearth of statistics. More than two and half crores  of people have  been displaced as a result of mining activities in the first four and half decades of Indian independence. Not even 25% of these people have been rehabilitated. Out of this population more than half are Adivasis (‘Rich Lands, Poor People’- report by CSE, 2008).  The blatant loot by private players empowered by National Mineral Development Policy of 1993 is largely responsible for this sorry state of affairs. More than 164 lakh hectares of forest has been cleared for this purpose till now. Official statistics say that there are more than 15,000 illegal mines in the country. All the gallant declarations made by the Indian gov. in various international forums for climate change regarding its commitment towards forest conservation and environmental protection has been reduced to just another joke.

Arundhati Roy, in her brilliant essay titled “Walking with the comrades”, raises yet another aspect of the problem.  The Gond tribes of Orissa have been worshipping the ‘Niyamgiri’ hills as their gods for centuries by now. MNCs like Essar, Tata and Vedanta have  signed various MoUs with the state government to mine these hills which happens to be a  rich source of bauxite, iron ore and other natural resources, obligating the gov. to provide basic infrastructure like roads and conducive atmosphere for the same. Now, the question is, “would the gov.  have acted in the same way if it was faced with a situation involving, say temples or mosques instead of these hills?” Isn’t Right to Religion applicable when it comes to adivasis?  The 5th schedule of Indian constitution dealing with Administration and Control of Tribal Areas assigns the governor to report directly to the President regarding the administration of tribal areas. But all these safe guards provided by the constitution vanish in to thin air at the prospect of multimillion dollar agreements between the MNCs and the government.

This reflects the inevitable internal contradiction faced by all ‘democratic’ governments that follows the neo-liberal paradigm of development. This happens when the very conception of development becomes extremely one sided and the majority of people gets evacuated from its premises. The neo liberal slogan of development above politics effectively reduces the scope and depth of political activity in the society. Politics devoid of a dialogue about the nature of development is undoubtedly impoverished and ineffectual. Above all it makes Democracy a meaningless and wasteful exercise. Something that’s visible only in the polished streets of Delhi and not in the villages of Dantewada.

                                  Tales from Dantewada: India's      Great Internal War


The question ‘whose side are you on’ is an often repeated one in history. Marx, Gandhi and even Hitler arrived on the world stage as answers to this particular question. Revolutions, freedom struggles and revolts have all been different manifestations of the quest to answer it. They all happened as responses by the people to their realities in different contexts in history.But what happens when the very concept of a single reality is shattered? The 21^st century is characterised by multiple voices, true, but it’s also characterised by multiple realities. This short introduction is meant to draw your attention to the changing nature of the Indian state since its ‘conversion’ to neo-liberalism, especially after the 80s. Also, to impress upon the contemporary complexities of the seemingly simple ‘on whose side are u’ question.

It was in 2005 April that Dr. Manmohan Singh described Maoism as the ‘gravest internal threat’ of India. It can be seen that the then Maoist movement, when compared to the present scenario, hadn’t really qualified itself for such a remark. But today what we see is a movement spreading over 60,000 sq.k.m of forest land, with lakhs of supporters, in thousands of villages. It has become a movement that has established itself as the strongest rebel force challenging the writ of the Indian state.

Some History

The 1967 Naxalbari movement in Bengal under the leadership of Charu Majumdar, Kanu Sanyal and Jungle Santhal (later came to be known as Naxalism) is the first organised Maoist movement in India. This movement characterised by the adage ‘the thunder of spring’ rose to prominence in the 70’s and was suppressed by the 80’s. The Charumajumdar essays and speeches inspired by Chairman Mao gives a general idea regarding the nature of this movement. Majumdar’s violent and unpopular ‘annihilation theory’, lack of influence in the urban areas etc were some of the reasons for the failure of the Naxalbari movement. The Naxal uprising in AP during the 80’s can also be viewed in this context. Like Naxalbari, it was also suppressed ruthlessly and effectively by the state. The gov. intervention using special forces such as the ‘Grey Hounds’  in AP is regarded as a model for anti naxal campaigns even today.

 

Today, India is witnessing the strongest Naxal resurgence ever in its history. The media, irrespective of its corporate and alternate avatars, has been continuously voicing its concern over the issue. The Indian state has launched ‘Operation Green Hunt’, a massive military campaign against the Maoists. In one of their most brutal attacks, the maoists massacred 75 CRPF personnel in an ambush in Dantevada recently. Special Police Officers and civilians have also been targeted. Maoists have also had to face severe setbacks. Talks about the armed forces being brought in to action are in the air.

What is it that enables the Maoist movement to re-emerge from their ashes time and again even after being repeatedly and brutally suppressed by the state? What makes a country that claims to be the largest democracy, declares war against its own people? What exactly is the alternative put forward by the Maoists? What should be the stand of the civil society of this country in this highly volatile and threateningly huge issue? These are some of the issues to which answers are sought through this article.
                                                                                      ( continued in the next post..on page 2..pls scroll up!)

                              At H C U
Hey friends,

It's been a while.
And here is the reason- got admission at the H C U (Hyderabad Central University) for M A programme ( Pol.Science).
Had to do some running around to get my papers in order. Hence the gap.Still there's a considerably long list of documents  Iam yet to submit here at the university : the T C, Marklist, Provisional....

Well, I have to confess, its worth the effort. This is a humongous, gigantic and mind blowing one - this campus. Its supposed to be not less than 2300 acres, one of the largest in Asia itself. The chief mode of transport is none other than our good old bicycle!! Its really a pleasant sight to see them dominating the road once again, believe me.I have also bought one (the vintage model, with steel bars and all!). Life without a bicycle is almost impossible here. Its 3.5 km from my hostel to the dept.

And the greenery is heartening, to say the least. Actually its not greenery, its wilderness! I have already seen mongooses, monkeys and a peacock.Walking from the hostel to the main campus in the morning is a refreshing experience.

The only disappointment so far has been missing Arundhati Roy's lecture.She was here on 12th, invited by the Uni. to deliver a lecture on Globalisation. I could join only on 14th, a real pity.

Hindi serves the purpose of a link language here. From the University staff to the auto rickshaw driver,  natives communicate in Hindi with outsiders.

Food is adjustable,though I spend much more time in the toilet these days!

So that's it about H C U for the time being. I do plan to develop this in to a column of sorts if time permits, so that I can share 'the H C U Life' with you.

N.B: If Mr.Rubin happens to get the feed of this post by any chance, pls do respond!!

SHASHI THAROOR: The Story Till Now

  There was much jubilation among the youth and the upper middle class section of the city of Trivandrum when Mr.Shashi Tharoor was elected as MP from the constituency in the last gen.elections.Much was expected when he was made the Minister of State for Ext.Affairs.Nobody had doubts regarding his worthiness of the post. This eminent diplomat, writer and orator par excellence had captured the imagination of the people.But,after all the euphoria, it baffles one to think about the kind of mess that he has managed to land himself in, neck deep that too. Now since the smoke has subsided after his resignation, let’s do a recap.

  Right from the time of his ascension to power, he has been in the news for all the wrong reasons. The 'Cattleclass, holycows’ remarks, comments on the visa regulations, the 'Interlocutor' episode (asking Saudi Arabia to be the interlocutor between India and Pakistan)...........it’s a long list. Apart from his five star accommodation at the time of UPA's austerity drive, all were triggered by the Twitter comments of this hi-tech diplomat turned politician (no wonder the media called it 'Twittergate' when Lalit Modi opened a can of worms in his twitter which finally shot Mr.Tharoor down).

  So, the question is, who’s to be blamed? The media for making a mountain out of a mole hill? The dirty game called Indian Politics? The ultra sensitive and ignorant Indian public that lacks the knowledge to digest English idioms and phrases, as some bloggers point out?Or,could it be.....I mean, is there any chance that it could be....er.... Mr.Tharoor's fault itself!? Why is it that, of all the issues, he stumbled upon the IPL, the Indian Paisa Loot (P.Sainath's coinage)?

  To be frank, Mr.Tharoor has not been able to come up with a point by point rebuttal of the allegations heaped upon him by the opposition and the media. Instead he chose the denial mode. Even in his speech in the parliament, instead of giving specific answers to specific questions, he banked on his oratory skills to bail himself out.Worse, he even played the Kerala card by stating that what he did was in the interest of the state. Was this the new brand of politics that he offered to herald?. Quoting poetry from Vallathol in the parliament exhorting the pride of Kerala was just not enough.There were questions that need to be answered.

  Well, you know what they are.The 'Sweat Profit' issue, his phone call to Lalit Modi asking him to stop enquiring about the whereabouts of Kochi IPL team owners……..The devil is in the details, you see! If his hands are as pure as he claims, why not come out and rubbish these allegations? Why spoil a chance to prove his integrity and mettle?

  If he was genuinely moved by the crying needs of the ‘God’s Own Country’, what prevented him from putting in a word at the centre for the preservation of the Public Distribution System (PDS) of Kerala? After all, a minister of State would have some powers, wouldn’t he? Or, is it because Rice lacks glamour when compared to Cricket?  Why not speed up the Kochi Metro Rail Project? Why IPL? It seems that the man got his priorities wrong big time. And it proved fatal for him.

  Nothing can take away the hope that he generated in the initial stages of his campaign as minister. Sure, we need politicians who are transparent and who can keep their channels of communication with the public open. May be, we even need politicians who tweet religiously!

  After 60 years of independence, we still are a conservative country. There’s bound to be some resistance when someone steps out of the trodden path. But what disappoints me the most is the fact that Mr.Tharoor fell not by being new or true, but by being typical. He didn’t resign on his own, but was forced to go. He didn’t defend himself by facts, but by rhetoric. New brand of politics, anyone? Till IPL it was Tharoor, the new politician Vs conservative Indian Polity. But after IPL, dear folks, it’s the same old story.

  Well, I still don’t believe it’s the end of road for him. There’s always scope for amends. If he’s willing to give some thought to what and where went wrong and re-prioritise his agenda, there’s still hope for a come back. The promise of change can still be fulfilled. Take those steps one by one, Mr.Tharoor, for they’re slippery. But that’s what Indian Politics has always been.

 All the best.