ISSUES AND CONCERNS

Friends One more independence day has come and gone into the history. 15th Aug was a holiday, as usual, as the Sun set in the western horizon, it was yet another day like the remaining 364 days. Did the day make any difference to the 1200+million Indians? was a question stared at us. We, like our systemic confusion, were groping for answers. After 65 years, while as a nation, we have progressed, both socially and economically, to an extent, the unfinished agenda is nowhere near complete. We have had only political freedom on 15th Aug 1947, what about freedom from hunger, freedom from child labour, freedom from malnutrition, freedom from sickness, freedom from homelessness, freedom of sanitary privacy, freedom from half nakedness, freedom of equal opportunities, freedom from discrimination and persecution on ethnic, religious and linguistic differences? List of deprivation is long and majority of Indians, of all hues, are struggling to cope with vicissitudes, we call the life. Of co...

KARNATAKA: It was almost the repeat of ‘Amnesia’ pub attack in Mangalore few years ago. For a sensation hungry media, waiting to pounce on the BJP government in Karnataka it was almost divine intervention. For days  together all local news papers have been covering with thousands of words to tell the sensation hungry readers and viewers that it was a bit of a national catastrophe, a bit of media bonanza. Yes, the 'Morning Mist' Home Stay, the epicenter of the 'earth shattering' news, a mini party hot-spot, was attacked by allegedly a Hindu outfit. A group of youth were birthday partying, reportedly with beer and music in this private house owned by some NRIs, but rented only for parties-probably on 24 hours basis, which means if anybody wants to spend night after the party, its covered. It is true that the allowance for extended night stay does give room to all kinds of interpretations. In this case, it is alleged that the house was rented for 2 days week end. So, ...

INDIA @ 65- OF ANNA, OF RAMDEV &  OF UNEDUCATED GRADUATES It was in 2006, sometime in August, former Supreme Court Justice V R Krishna Iyer wrote in the print media “In India, a socialist, secular, democratic republic is over a billion strong, and is perhaps the world’s first in its ancient heritage, second in primitive poverty, third in contemporary crimes, twelfth in total wealth. In the context of institutions and the developmental dynamics desiderated by modern technology, India can be a Kohinoor diamond and can be rich in resources if creatively catalysed. Yet is a frustrated fraction of mankind because of environmental, colonial, corrupt and stultifying contradictions. Our creative statesmen can transform the country if they wished to do. Feudalism, Capitalism and Marxism co-exist in a Bharath, which is plunged in widespread socialist injustice. Perestroika and glasnost, and a do or die struggle for systemic transformation, are the militant urgency of the hour.” Ho...

GANG LEADER FOR A DAY The Stay-Together Gang Dorothy had never been an elected tenant leader, but she was a self-appointed godmother to countless families. She helped squatters find shelter, fed tenants who couldn’t afford to eat, and provided day care for many children, some related by blood and others not. Spurred on now by the demolition, she began to act as a sort of relocation counselor for several families who were determined to live near one another in a new neighborhood. They thought that sticking together was their best, and maybe only, chance for survival. These families became informally known as “the Stay-Together Gang,” and their undisputed ringleader was Dorothy. I caught up with her one day in her living room as she was looking over a list of the families she most wanted to help. “Let’s see,” she said, “I got Cherry, three kids. Candy, two kids, Marna, a son and a daughter. Princess, three kids. Carrie, two young girls. And there’s probably a few more. “All the...

Don Bosco dorm head held for abusing 10-year-old boy Behrampore: The police arrested the dormitory superintendent of Manigram Don Bosco School in Murshidaba (Central West Bengal) on charges of sexually abusing a Class 5 hosteller of the institution.  James Soren, the hostel head and a bachelor, allegedly committed the abuse during the night in his (Soren’s) room and had been on the run ever since a complaint was lodged against him. “He was returning on some personal work. Acting on a tipoff my officers nabbed him,” said Murshidabad superintendent of police Humayun Kabir.  A senior officer of the district police told: “Soren took shelter in Krishnanagar (a town in adjoining Nadia district) after committing the crime. But the Don Bosco authorities compelled him to surrender before the police (when he returned).” Soren had summoned the student to his room after dinner. There he reportedly tried to strip the boy and touch his private parts.  Kabir said: “We have ...

Adani compelled to supply power at Rs 2.35/unit Electrifying cost  The Appellate Tribunal for Electricity (APTEL), Delhi, has directed Adani Power Ltd (APL) to continue electricity supply to Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam Ltd (GUVNL) at Rs 2.35 per unit. In February 2007 both parties had signed a power purchase agreement (PPA) wherein APL agreed to supply 1000 MW of power to the GUVNL at Rs 2.35 per unit for 25 years without any price escalation. In January 2009, however, the APL informed the GUVNL, that it could not supply power at the price mentioned using imported coal and therefore wanted to terminate the PPA. The GUVNL filed a petition before the Gujarat Electricity Regulatory Commission (GERC). CERS filed an application to join this petition as ‘intervenor’ to protect the interest of electricity consumers of Gujarat. CERS mentioned that the PPA did not mandate the procurement of fuel from a particular supplier so APL was bound to supply 1000 MW at the price mentioned b...

  The New Power Centres of the Global Economy:   A Study on the BRIC countries with special reference to India                                                                                                                                                                                            * Prof. Dr. G.R Krishnamurthy                                                     ...