Bukhari on the media circus that is a way of life among politicians of all shades in Kashmir
(Syed Rafiuddin Bukhari, 72, was born in Kreri in Baramulla District. He is the Editor-in-Chief of the Kashmir Media Group that publishes the English daily, Rising Kashmir, and soon-to-be launched Urdu daily, Bulund Kashmir. He had his early education in Sopore, Beerwah and then in Srinagar where from he got his post-graduate degree in English from the University of Jammu and Kashmir, and took up job as a teacher in higher education department. He taught English in various colleges in Kashmir took voluntary retirement in 1995 as Professor. Even though not a professional journalist by training, he has been extremely successful in the field, launching SANGARMAL, the first ever multi-coloured Kashmiri newspaper from Srinagar which is now in its fourth year. Later in 2008, he created the Kashmir Media Group. His interests are reading and writing and building value based institutions.)
Drawbacks of Hate Politics in Kashmir
Politics is art of looking for trouble, finding it, misdiagnosing it, and then misapplying the wrong remedies.
But in case of Kashmir politics is more than this. Decades of fight between the political parties in this troubled part has now clearly shown that here the politics is purely based on hate rather than the principles. It dates back to freedom struggle, which began in early last century. Politics in Jammu and Kashmir has been devoid of tolerance and mutual accommodation.
We need not to go deeper into the way the politics has shaped in the place where the political beliefs are more divergent than any other part of sub continent. Here the politics encompasses all the sentiments---pro-India, pro-Pakistan, pro-Independent, pro-Kashmir, pro-Ladakh, pro Jammu and above all pro religion.
But the discourse of this hate politics reached a crescendo in the ongoing session of Jammu and Kashmir Assembly when senior People’s Democratic Party (PDP) leader Muzaffar Hussain Baig dropped a “bombshell” in a bid to demolish Omar Abdullah, who has the distinction of being youngest Chief Minister in India. Baig’s salvo came to everybody’s surprise and while nagging through the blood stained Bomai, Baramulla, Kupwara and Shopian invoked the ghost of 2006 infamous sex scandal and the dumbness seen in the house for few seconds conveyed everything in that context.
In 2006 the mainstream politics had surely fallen from grace and linking that to Chief Minister Omar Abdullah at this juncture was nothing but the hate with which the politicians take on each other. Beig did mention that the document which he quoted was part of the proceedings of the High Court and that a Judge had ruled that investigations were left halfway as for as the list of suspects was concerned. But the timing of the “bombshell” is still not explained and its connection with the seven-month-old coalition government is yet to be established.
From the day one of assembly proceedings it looked that two main parties in state, NC which is heading ruling coalition and the PDP which is the leading opposition were well prepared to outwit each other. In that entire game the role of Speaker cannot be ignored. On the day one when PDP was thrown out with contempt without allowing them to even stand on their seats conveyed a message that coalition had made up its mind to shut their mouths. PDP president Mahbooba Mufti too crossed the limits by wrenching Speaker’s mike. May be her outburst on what she called “Speaker’s biased approach” was genuine but the path she chose was not right and that demolished the ethics in politics. On the second “fateful day” when Omar came under direct and scathing attack on his person, the sling match between Speaker and PDP members brought to the fore the shocking aspect of mainstream politics in the state. Speaker’s engagement with opposition members was laden with choicest invectives flashed through national TV networks as well. His failure to control the house when he had earned admiration as Deputy Speaker in the previous assembly is quite intriguing. While the veteran politician Abdul Ahad Vakil had set the high standards of conduct in the assembly, Tara Chand (now the Deputy Chief Minister) had gone beyond layman’s imagination while steering through even the toughest days of proceedings. Except for ouster of Shariefuddin Shariq for his “unparliamentarily” behavior, Tara Chand always managed the house that too with strongest opposition – 28 members from National Conference.
Apart from the hate on which politics is based in our state, the sense that the opposition was permanently being pushed to the wall by the government, perhaps provoked them to target the leader of the house and may be by their calculations wanted to settle down the issue forever. However the Governor, the Union Home ministry, Congress president Sonia Gandhi, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh rallied behind Omar to defeat Beig’s design. Beig is now under attack with privilege motion that is still pending. Also there were “six questions” framed by NC to “demolish his character” are making rounds. The opposition has every right to counter the opposition attack but the way questions have been framed bespeak the sagging standards of democratic battle in Kashmir’s fast paling mainstream politics.
The Chief Minister is surely back with the certificate from CBI and Governor but the future course of politics in Jammu and Kashmir will certainly not rest on these issues. Bickering and animosity between two main rivals in Kashmir valley will further deepen and hate may touch a new high. This will only result in loss to public as the parties will not allow each other to work and the sling matches witnessed in the assembly may continue. Unfortunately in this din the more important issue of human rights violations, withdrawal of Armed Forces Special Powers Act has taken a backseat so has the development, which will be now measured on the basis of this hate politics.
Government of India at this stage is not going to oblige the PDP by conceding the demand of judicial probe into the scandal, which for them has since been closed in 2007 and further sealed with the latest episode.
It is time for both the parties to leave such issues to get settled in the due course of law and lay foundation for new political accommodation in the state without attaching persons to politics and work towards development, which is the only immediate task the mainstream parties can fulfill in the troubled state. The assembly to which the MLA’s were elected is the forum for settling people’s day-to-day problems and the larger issues should be left to the larger platforms.
Abusing the assembly does not behoove the politicians, who are, of course, elected by the people, but are hated too exactly on the lines they hate each other. Common man has a plain prescription for the politicians: Accommodate each others’ viewpoint and don’t indulge in hate politics. Chief Minister Omar Abdullah was right in his first remark after he resumed as CM; “If we continue fighting with each other no body will vote for us after six years.”
Friday, July 31, 2009
Friday, July 24, 2009
A Paradise No More
Muzaffar uses an unusual backdrop to convey a deeply disturbing message of changes in Kashmir's social fabric that, left uncorrected, will leave an indelible scar on the society
(Mr. Muzaffar Khadim, 59, was born in Srinagar. He did his early schooling in Srinagar and after completing his pre-medical college studies, decided to go into business of selling Shawls and Embroidery all over the country. Mr. Khadim's excellent writing skills, as clearly evident in the following essay, are partly and genetically attributable to his late father, Mr. G. M. Khadim, who retired as the Principal of Islamia High School, Srinagar.)
… and finally I decided to kill myself
ARTICULATING PAIN
She was educated but simple. Her education and simplicity had no takers. She was an invalid note of currency, too outdated to be accepted in this `modern’ and `enlightened’ era. Finally she left all with a message that rends a human heart, narrates Muzaffar Khadim.
An ear piercing scream from my sister’s room in the dead of the night shook me off the sleep. In utmost agony, I ran to her room. Instantly, the other members of the family too rushed to see what had happened. The horrible scene that we encountered was unbelievable. My dearest sister was lying in a pool of blood with a knife deep embedded in her chest. “What happened? Who could have done that?” was the question every eye was putting forth. Feebly she lifted her left hand in which she was holding a folded paper. I removed that paper from her hand. As if she was waiting for it to happen, her soul instantly fled her body. All of us were buried under the shadow of grief. No one could understand what had happened. I opened the paper which she had so legibly written. I was afraid even to read that, but I had to; to know as to why she had taken this extreme step. She wrote:-
“ My Dear Brother,
“I knew that it would be you who would dare to read this. I realise what must be happening to my family members right now. For the last many days I have been meditating whether I should take such an extreme step or not. Finally I came to the conclusion that to protect my thousands of other sisters from the agony that I have faced, I must surrender my life. My blood is a humble token of protection to their honour and chastity.
“How can I tell you what a hell I have been going through, for the last couple of years? I am not unaware of the fact that the whole family, too, were very worried and anxious. But I was realising that without any fault of mine, it was me, who was the reason of your anxiety. Alas, I was born; had I not, you wouldn’t have to swallow this bitter drink of my departure in this manner.
“Ever since I entered into the fold of youth, all of you began to worry about me. You were dreaming that if I got married somewhere, you would be relieved from a great responsibility of your life. Myself, I too had some dreams, some fantasies. Unfortunately, we had a very untrue picture of our society in our minds. We presumed that nobility, proper education, religious upbringing and beauty of character were the criteria. But when we faced the “market” we realised that some other criteria was in vogue. It took us so long to understand that lineage, cast and creed had a great role to play. Our experience taught us that however well-educated the girl might be, if she is not an earning hand, she is invalid in the eyes of a boy’s family. Of late, we came to know that simplicity and modesty of a girl are no virtue. In fact they are an immense eclipse. You encounter these facts of life only when you practically enter into the field, otherwise everybody would boost that we are all bound by the criteria set by Islam and humanity.
“Some two years ago, a boy’s family came to see me. It was my first such encounter. They had almost given their consent after looking into my “bio-data”. Everybody in the family was rejoicing as if it was Eid. Apparently it seemed that we too had got a family of our liking. But all that was our wishful thinking. How on Earth did I know what kind of an interview that was to be? The lady who was heading that group, discreetly probed into every single hair on my head. On looking at my long hair, she had suspected them to be artificial. They left and disappeared for ever. We could never know the reason of their disapproval.
“After some time another family came. Three ladies and two men! It seemed that those ladies had directly descended on us from a Bridal Saloon. Elderly ladies in that kind of make-up were always a sour to my eyes. The eldest among them minutely conducted a post-mortem on the nails of my fingers and toes. When she realised that I had not “painted” them, she clearly said that such simplicity did not work in this “advanced” society. I was courageous enough to tell her that my simplicity was my precious ornament. She disliked my conservativeness and left without a word. I could never imagine that all their life, they had never known that unless water reaches every single nail, ablution can not be achieved. Then how come they dare to stay unclean?
“After that, almost every week, I was being paraded in front of stranger men and women. All that happened with me each such time was a tragic incident. One lady tried to impress us that she was well-educated. Her “kashmiri urdu” was hardly understandable. She asked me my qualification. I said that I had a Master’s in Physics. With a brightened face, she quickly asked, “Are you a teacher?” It was not easy to make her understand that I had done my M.Sc which had nothing to do with “mastery” (teaching). With a face that had lost all brightness, she could not stay without asking, “Don’t you have a job?” I said, “Our father tried to impart the best education to us but his conviction was that women were better meant to be indoors than being a piece of decoration in the market!” However, she was not impressed and left with the remark, “In these hard days, if a woman does not help her husband in making a living, how can a household run?”
“Do you know when exactly did I feel what it means for a girl to be orphaned? When that Doctor’s family visited us and approved of everything but “rejected” me when they came to know that my father had passed away, they said to the middleman that a son-in-law can not get proper “pampering” from a family where either or both the parents have expired. I was wondering how much of the Qura’an had touched them. What would they achieve from reading, “Therefore, treat not the orphan with harshness.” (Dhuha: 9) That day I really felt the pain of having lost the shadow of a beloved father.
“So far, my “marriage application” may have reached a score or more families but there was an utter rejection from every where. I tried to assess what was actually wrong with us? What were we lacking that we had no takers? Why had I become an invalid currency? Three factors came to my mind.
“Firstly, that we belong to a lower caste of the society. Our nobility, our education, our beauty; everything is invalid; because our elders neither were the custodians of any holy shrine, nor were they the clergy of any grand mosque. Bilal (RA) and Abu Bakar (RA) could get equal rights. Salman-i-Farsi (RA) of Persia could get an honourable companionship of the Holy Prophet (SAW). A blind bedwin Abdullah Ibni Ummi Maktoom was to receive more attention compared to the so-called nobles of the Quraish and a complete chapter of the Qura’an was revealed to the Holy Prophet (SAW) pertaining that particular incident. But all this was possible only when Islam was implemented in letter and spirit in every field of life. Now, those who preach this equality, themselves have become such “Mahmoods” where no “Ayaz” can get closer. We had read in the text books that cast-system was prevalent among the Hindus; but in our market, long ago, we have left them behind. It’s impossible for a carpenter’s daughter to become the daughter-in-law of a Syed family or that a “noble’s” daughter becomes the daughter-in-law of a potter’s family; unless it’s a romantic affair that compels two diverse families to pretend unity.
“Secondly, my simplicity was a great hurdle. In this behalf, I tried my level best to compromise to a certain extent. But it was impossible for me to wear a make-up or a dress that was denounced by our Holy Shariah. How on Earth do these people expect us to look like very advanced but behave like five centuries before? Our dress and make-up definitely has to have an impact on our behaviour.
“Thirdly, we did not own such heaps of wealth that could camouflage all our draw backs. We never learnt the art of amassing the wealth. Alas, the knowledge, nobility, simplicity and God-consciousness; that we made our invaluable assets unfortunately have only very few buyers in our society now.
“The final destiny of an untreatable disease is death. I am embracing that death today. The knife that you see embedded in my chest had my hand on it. I own the responsibility. But the instigation was from the society. Will it take its responsibility? I doubt! But in the Day of Judgement, each one of them will certainly be asked that for which sin this innocent girl was slaughtered. I am offering this sacrifice in the hope that no other girl will be kicked off in future only for a sin that’s not her’s.. That she was not born in an upper caste………”
I had yet to read the complete letter of my dearest sister. The cosy room was now full of mourners. In the mayhem some one’s elbow pierced into my ribs and I woke up! My younger brother was besides me, saying, “Bhayya, why are moaning and murmuring so strangely?” I was all soaked in sweat. I quickly went to my sister’s room. In the dim light of a night bulb, I found her prostrating before her Lord. After a long time, when she lifted her head, the prayer rug was garlanded by the glittering pearls that had flown in abundance from her eyes. Quietly I left very satisfied that if she was relegated to being an invalid currency in this society; she very truly was very beloved in the eyes of Allah!
(Mr. Muzaffar Khadim, 59, was born in Srinagar. He did his early schooling in Srinagar and after completing his pre-medical college studies, decided to go into business of selling Shawls and Embroidery all over the country. Mr. Khadim's excellent writing skills, as clearly evident in the following essay, are partly and genetically attributable to his late father, Mr. G. M. Khadim, who retired as the Principal of Islamia High School, Srinagar.)
… and finally I decided to kill myself
ARTICULATING PAIN
She was educated but simple. Her education and simplicity had no takers. She was an invalid note of currency, too outdated to be accepted in this `modern’ and `enlightened’ era. Finally she left all with a message that rends a human heart, narrates Muzaffar Khadim.
An ear piercing scream from my sister’s room in the dead of the night shook me off the sleep. In utmost agony, I ran to her room. Instantly, the other members of the family too rushed to see what had happened. The horrible scene that we encountered was unbelievable. My dearest sister was lying in a pool of blood with a knife deep embedded in her chest. “What happened? Who could have done that?” was the question every eye was putting forth. Feebly she lifted her left hand in which she was holding a folded paper. I removed that paper from her hand. As if she was waiting for it to happen, her soul instantly fled her body. All of us were buried under the shadow of grief. No one could understand what had happened. I opened the paper which she had so legibly written. I was afraid even to read that, but I had to; to know as to why she had taken this extreme step. She wrote:-
“ My Dear Brother,
“I knew that it would be you who would dare to read this. I realise what must be happening to my family members right now. For the last many days I have been meditating whether I should take such an extreme step or not. Finally I came to the conclusion that to protect my thousands of other sisters from the agony that I have faced, I must surrender my life. My blood is a humble token of protection to their honour and chastity.
“How can I tell you what a hell I have been going through, for the last couple of years? I am not unaware of the fact that the whole family, too, were very worried and anxious. But I was realising that without any fault of mine, it was me, who was the reason of your anxiety. Alas, I was born; had I not, you wouldn’t have to swallow this bitter drink of my departure in this manner.
“Ever since I entered into the fold of youth, all of you began to worry about me. You were dreaming that if I got married somewhere, you would be relieved from a great responsibility of your life. Myself, I too had some dreams, some fantasies. Unfortunately, we had a very untrue picture of our society in our minds. We presumed that nobility, proper education, religious upbringing and beauty of character were the criteria. But when we faced the “market” we realised that some other criteria was in vogue. It took us so long to understand that lineage, cast and creed had a great role to play. Our experience taught us that however well-educated the girl might be, if she is not an earning hand, she is invalid in the eyes of a boy’s family. Of late, we came to know that simplicity and modesty of a girl are no virtue. In fact they are an immense eclipse. You encounter these facts of life only when you practically enter into the field, otherwise everybody would boost that we are all bound by the criteria set by Islam and humanity.
“Some two years ago, a boy’s family came to see me. It was my first such encounter. They had almost given their consent after looking into my “bio-data”. Everybody in the family was rejoicing as if it was Eid. Apparently it seemed that we too had got a family of our liking. But all that was our wishful thinking. How on Earth did I know what kind of an interview that was to be? The lady who was heading that group, discreetly probed into every single hair on my head. On looking at my long hair, she had suspected them to be artificial. They left and disappeared for ever. We could never know the reason of their disapproval.
“After some time another family came. Three ladies and two men! It seemed that those ladies had directly descended on us from a Bridal Saloon. Elderly ladies in that kind of make-up were always a sour to my eyes. The eldest among them minutely conducted a post-mortem on the nails of my fingers and toes. When she realised that I had not “painted” them, she clearly said that such simplicity did not work in this “advanced” society. I was courageous enough to tell her that my simplicity was my precious ornament. She disliked my conservativeness and left without a word. I could never imagine that all their life, they had never known that unless water reaches every single nail, ablution can not be achieved. Then how come they dare to stay unclean?
“After that, almost every week, I was being paraded in front of stranger men and women. All that happened with me each such time was a tragic incident. One lady tried to impress us that she was well-educated. Her “kashmiri urdu” was hardly understandable. She asked me my qualification. I said that I had a Master’s in Physics. With a brightened face, she quickly asked, “Are you a teacher?” It was not easy to make her understand that I had done my M.Sc which had nothing to do with “mastery” (teaching). With a face that had lost all brightness, she could not stay without asking, “Don’t you have a job?” I said, “Our father tried to impart the best education to us but his conviction was that women were better meant to be indoors than being a piece of decoration in the market!” However, she was not impressed and left with the remark, “In these hard days, if a woman does not help her husband in making a living, how can a household run?”
“Do you know when exactly did I feel what it means for a girl to be orphaned? When that Doctor’s family visited us and approved of everything but “rejected” me when they came to know that my father had passed away, they said to the middleman that a son-in-law can not get proper “pampering” from a family where either or both the parents have expired. I was wondering how much of the Qura’an had touched them. What would they achieve from reading, “Therefore, treat not the orphan with harshness.” (Dhuha: 9) That day I really felt the pain of having lost the shadow of a beloved father.
“So far, my “marriage application” may have reached a score or more families but there was an utter rejection from every where. I tried to assess what was actually wrong with us? What were we lacking that we had no takers? Why had I become an invalid currency? Three factors came to my mind.
“Firstly, that we belong to a lower caste of the society. Our nobility, our education, our beauty; everything is invalid; because our elders neither were the custodians of any holy shrine, nor were they the clergy of any grand mosque. Bilal (RA) and Abu Bakar (RA) could get equal rights. Salman-i-Farsi (RA) of Persia could get an honourable companionship of the Holy Prophet (SAW). A blind bedwin Abdullah Ibni Ummi Maktoom was to receive more attention compared to the so-called nobles of the Quraish and a complete chapter of the Qura’an was revealed to the Holy Prophet (SAW) pertaining that particular incident. But all this was possible only when Islam was implemented in letter and spirit in every field of life. Now, those who preach this equality, themselves have become such “Mahmoods” where no “Ayaz” can get closer. We had read in the text books that cast-system was prevalent among the Hindus; but in our market, long ago, we have left them behind. It’s impossible for a carpenter’s daughter to become the daughter-in-law of a Syed family or that a “noble’s” daughter becomes the daughter-in-law of a potter’s family; unless it’s a romantic affair that compels two diverse families to pretend unity.
“Secondly, my simplicity was a great hurdle. In this behalf, I tried my level best to compromise to a certain extent. But it was impossible for me to wear a make-up or a dress that was denounced by our Holy Shariah. How on Earth do these people expect us to look like very advanced but behave like five centuries before? Our dress and make-up definitely has to have an impact on our behaviour.
“Thirdly, we did not own such heaps of wealth that could camouflage all our draw backs. We never learnt the art of amassing the wealth. Alas, the knowledge, nobility, simplicity and God-consciousness; that we made our invaluable assets unfortunately have only very few buyers in our society now.
“The final destiny of an untreatable disease is death. I am embracing that death today. The knife that you see embedded in my chest had my hand on it. I own the responsibility. But the instigation was from the society. Will it take its responsibility? I doubt! But in the Day of Judgement, each one of them will certainly be asked that for which sin this innocent girl was slaughtered. I am offering this sacrifice in the hope that no other girl will be kicked off in future only for a sin that’s not her’s.. That she was not born in an upper caste………”
I had yet to read the complete letter of my dearest sister. The cosy room was now full of mourners. In the mayhem some one’s elbow pierced into my ribs and I woke up! My younger brother was besides me, saying, “Bhayya, why are moaning and murmuring so strangely?” I was all soaked in sweat. I quickly went to my sister’s room. In the dim light of a night bulb, I found her prostrating before her Lord. After a long time, when she lifted her head, the prayer rug was garlanded by the glittering pearls that had flown in abundance from her eyes. Quietly I left very satisfied that if she was relegated to being an invalid currency in this society; she very truly was very beloved in the eyes of Allah!
Lacking Intellectuals, Kashmir's Civil Society Thrives on Hyperbole
Amin Sofi explains how irrelevant polemics in Kashmir sucks the oxygen out of any possibility to nuture intellectualism in the society
(Dr. Mohammed Amin Sofi, 55, was born in Handwara. He received his early education from the Higher Secondary School in Handwara, and his B.Sc. from the Government Degree College in Baramulla. He subsequently received a Master's degree in Mathematics from the Aligarh Muslim University, and a Ph.D. in Mathematics from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kanpur. Prof. Sofi teaches and conducts research in the Department of Mathematics at the University of Kashmir. In his leisure time, he enjoys reading books, listening to classical western music, Urdu ghazals and Bollywood music (pre-1980's), and reading newspapers and journals.)
Society Sans Sanity
During a recent seminar organized by GK Foundation to discuss the issue “Kashmir, The way Forward”, the eminent educationist Prof. Agha Ashraf during his key note address had hit the nail on the head when he remarked that everybody in Kashmir fancied himself as the ultimate intellectual who had arrived at the right conclusions regarding issues ranging from those confronting him in his day to day life to how the G8 countries should evolve a consensus on climate change and global warming.
One couldn’t agree more with him as this holier-than-thou attitude typical of these pseudo-intellectuals the Professor was referring to and which is reminiscent of the “pygmies amongst giants’ syndrome, necessarily entails a tendency among them to scoff at those who may not hold similar views. And this lends substance to Dr. Maroof Shah’s dirge in a recent article, ”Where are Intellectuals?” in which he expresses his bewilderment on the woeful absence of those from our midst who could be genuinely called intellectuals. The Doctor would do well to remember that such individuals do not exist in vacuum as there has to be at display a uniform pattern in the evolution of such individuals in different walks of life and in different spheres of human activity. During a period of history when Bach and Beethoven were ruling the roost in the world of music in Germany, there were the likes of Gauss and Riemann who had taken the world of mathematics by storm and Kant and Hegel coming up with earth shaking ideas in the world of philosophy. It so happens that the mutually opposing trends of excellence and mediocrity not only co-exist simultaneously, but what is remarkable indeed is that there is similarity of evolution of ideas and trends that happen to occur contemporaneously and in almost all spheres of human activity.
In other words, if there are those who have excelled themselves say in Arts or in Music, there will of necessity exist a matching pool of those who have made a mark in Medicine and in Mathematics, in Physics and in Philosophy.
In order to put the discourse on intellectuals into perspective, it should help to point out how to deal with certain misconceptions that are prevalent in our society. For instance, even if there are those who could be labeled as intellectuals, it is not fair to expect them to pronounce words of authority on an issue of which they may at best have only a smattering of understanding. Unlike the period of Renaissance when almost all intellectual endeavors were subsumed under the single umbrella of Natural Philosophy, the contemporary zeitgeist makes it literally impossible to claim more than a nodding acquaintance with that which doesn’t fall within the parameters of one’s bailiwick. It would certainly make a world of difference if one settled for a deep and in-depth understanding of a particular branch of knowledge rather than make forays into sundry areas of human thought in which one’s creative prowess and expertise are expected at best to be peripheral. As opposed to this brand of thinkers who are known to be overly keen to be visible to the rest of the world, a true intellectual revels in the world of anonymity and rarely has any audience to talk and communicate his thoughts to, barring to a handful of those of his ilk. He is at complete peace with himself while keeping his own company and this is as true of a modern day intellectual as it was of Archimedes, Euclid and Pythagoras who had lived about 2500 years ago!
With this background, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that in Kashmir, there hardly are those - other than a miniscule minority of privileged few - who could be counted upon as intellectuals, be it in religion, philosophy, history or literature even when we have reasons to boast of a long tradition of scholarship in these areas of human activity. Not to speak of an international figure in social sciences or in any other human endeavor, the fact is that identifying one who has excelled himself even at the national level is a pretty tall order. Let us, for Heaven’s sake, stop this comparison of our thinkers and ‘intellectuals’ with those in the rest of the world, considering that the ‘rest of the world’ is big, too big for this comparison. The region adjoining this erstwhile ‘hub’ of intellectual-philosophical activity is already huge enough for such comparisons. The failure to come up to matter at the international-national level surely has not only to do with the (lack of) infrastructure which, among other things, includes a healthy social structure for such an ethos to flourish, it also has its genesis in the patently flawed thinking that ‘it is of no consequence to pursue knowledge for knowledge sake’- a skewed worldview that has takers but only in this part of the world. We need to remind ourselves of that basic maxim underlying scholarship: “if we can know, then it is sinful not to know”! But it is easier said than done inasmuch as a mere lip service to such a fundamental requirement for scholarship cannot be expected to deliver the goods unless it is accepted as part of our ‘intellectual discourse’.
After all, intellectual activity of any kind in general and scientific activity in particular is rooted in culture. It was not for nothing that Bruno, the great Italian natural philosopher, offered to be burnt alive for the sake of an ‘abstract idea’ rather than capitulate to the dictats of the Church which had offered to grant him amnesty if he retracted his statement on his investigations into the nature of the planetary motion. This puts into perspective the grudge that “Islamic studies has a scope in the western world but not in Kashmir”, as was pointed out in a recent column that had appeared in the GK. This is so because the scholar in the western world is essentially motivated by the spirit of scientific temper that has shaped the Western thought over the past several millennia. The fear that this spirit of scientific temper is going to elude us for a long, very long time to come has a lot to do with our obsession with quoting the Quran on the innumerable occasions it contains exhortations demanding its followers to ‘fan out in different directions in search of knowledge’, while remaining oblivious to the need for understanding and implementing the spirit of these injunctions in our daily lives. In a similar vein, expecting our Ulema to lead us as (potential) successors of Shah-Walli-ullah and Gazzali is pure wishful thinking. During a recent Friday sermon, an Imam of a local mosque here in Srinagar was heard exhorting the followers of islam to desist from ‘excessively’ asking questions which, according to his brand of logic, ran counter to the spirit of Islam - whatever that might have meant to him.
Whereas it may be considered reasonable to advise on desisting from ‘hair-splitting’, especially in matters involving faith, extrapolating the same logic to issues beyond faith and “the mundane chores of our daily lives” as the Imam put it, carries with it the risk of accepting things as they are, without worrying about the why and how of things which is at the heart of scientific temper. The Cartesian dictum of the ‘ability to doubt the obvious’- the bedrock of scientific ethos is thus thrown to the wind as antithetical to the spirit of islam while remaining smug in the hope of claiming parity in the world of science, never mind the unwillingness to reflect on those Gospel words.
Beyond the local/national level, there are equally good reasons why even at the international level, there are isolated cases where what is at display is actually intellectual effeteness as opposed to intellectual vigor which should have been a natural consequence of professional competence. The irony is that professional competence, which entails ‘vertical’ growth of an individual, is generally at variance with true intellectual growth that thrives mainly through a ‘horizontal’ approach. One of the undesirable consequences of what actually amounts to this ‘blinkered’ worldview is that those who advocate it do so at the expense of a broader perspective of things which thus becomes the greatest casualty in such a scenario.
Alas, there are all the indications that this ‘grand vision’ of producing professionals with ‘tunnel vision’ shall continue to persist, what with the premium being placed on maximizing your ‘creative output’- never mind its quality and shelf life- which has come to be regarded as the mantra for one’s professional success. This kind of an approach towards what constitutes professional excellence is of a piece with what is currently prevalent in our universities and institutions and espoused by our brand of ‘academics’ that by far outnumber those who think and act otherwise. It is this latter group of academicians who rightly belong to the genre of ‘educators’ –intellectuals in our sense of the term. The bottom line is that intellectuals are not produced- they are thrown up by a system that has the right ingredients of an approach towards creation of intellectual capital. These include, among other things, an inclusive approach of the ‘salad-bowl’ kind of culture in which individual growth can be achieved. That in part should serve to explain why is it is that Bombay and Calcutta happen to figure perhaps as the most stimulating hubs of intellectual activity among all cities and towns in India in the same way as New York presents itself as the most happening cosmopolitan city in the world where one encounters all shades of thought and culture from almost all parts of the world in view of its aptly coined sobriquet as a ‘melting pot’ of various nationalities and ethnicities. It is in the midst of such a heterogeneous ambience marked by multiplicity of cultures, languages, ethnicities and faiths that the intellectual growth of an individual can be realized.
What then has been the role of these `beacons of light’, these ‘highest seats of learning’, these ‘temples of knowledge’ that we call universities in shaping our destiny by helping to create a pool of right thinking individuals and more importantly our intellectuals who could be counted upon to guide us in our moments of crises. The pity is that we haven’t done much. Though the failure to do so is symptomatic of the systemic rot that is both deep and ubiquitous, there still is a lot more that could be done with the existing system in place, the insurmountable difficulties notwithstanding. The irony is that what passes muster as academic activity is in essence an attempt to delude ourselves and others into believing that we are dead serious about what we are supposed to be doing and about our duties as academics, teachers, scholars and as trend-setters in our society. Yes, showcasing our ‘achievements’ to the outside world during the plethora of conferences and seminars being held in the university is part of the mandate bestowed on us by virtue of being the ‘prodigal sons’ of this society who enjoy the privilege of letting these ‘road shows’ occupy the centrestage to the neglect of its basic commitment which is not only to identify and nurture talent amongst our youth but, more importantly, to produce right thinking and responsible citizens - a euphemism for excellence and intellectual capital of a society.
A case in point is the inexplicable indifference to the idea of establishing a full-fledged Department of Philosophy in the university which is not only long overdue but that a further prevarication on this count shall definitely call into question our commitment to ensuring intellectual growth as a vital component of higher learning at the university level. The inexorable logic of excellence in higher education demands the co-existence of the modern with the traditional: thus, for instance, a fancy course on nano-technology has to go hand in hand with the establishment of a school of philosophy which is supposed to set new trends in philosophical thought and epistemology. I must admit that my efforts to initiate this proposal in my erstwhile capacity as Dean Academic Affairs at the university had come a cropper as there were not many takers of such ‘zany’ ideas for reasons that I am at a loss to figure out.
Be that as it may, it should help to say a few words on the flip side of this discourse on intellectuals. Much though the horizontal approach of an intellectual does not quite resonate with the vertical predisposition of a researcher, it is the so-called ‘pyramid-like’ approach that distinguishes an intellectual from the rest of the flock. It is as much vital for an intellectual of the sort described above as it is for the research scientist who can’t pretend to be thorough in his art unless he has inculcated in himself the spirit of quest based on this ‘pyramid model’. Let me quote Professor M.S.Raghunathan of the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, one of the most celebrated Indian mathematicians of our times, whose yardstick for true accomplishment in mathematics is the ability to master the works of a Fields Medalist (the equivalent of Nobel Laureate in Mathematics) which had earned him the Field’s Medal for that piece of work, rather than the knack for writing papers without care for content and quality. His constant lament is that in spite of having carved a reasonable niche for itself in the world of mathematics, India continues to be woefully inadequate in the number of mathematicians who would fit this description of a true scholar of mathematics- in other words, a truly intellectual mathematician. At this point, it should help to distinguish between intellectual activity that passes for research in the diverse fields of science and in humanities. Whereas there is an element of subjectivity insofar as research in history, humanities or social sciences is concerned, the hallmark of research in science especially in basic sciences is objectivity which is synonymous with global acceptability, both of the methodologies employed and the conclusions derived. This is so because, apart from a few exceptions, the bulk of research in areas like arts, social sciences or law is premised on principles which are invariably local in character- dictated in no small measure, by individual predilections and societal perceptions rather than by a set of irrevocable laws which are valid in all frames of reference and within which the growth and development of science has to be effected.
Finally and most importantly there is, besides the cerebral component involving intellectual activity, an equally important component that defines an intellectual which is how one’s actions are dictated as much by grey matter as by one’s conscience. Pursuing intellectual activity without allowing the human conscience playing any part in it is at best an exercise in barren ‘pseudo-intellectualism’. Perhaps amongst the glorious examples of that genre of intellectuals with conscience that come to mind is the redoubtable Arundhati Roy whose literary credentials are no doubt beyond censure but what stands apart in her case is the intellectual honesty that have been the hallmark of her work, both as a literary and as a social figure. It was this prick of conscience that had led her to decline to accept the Padam Shree award for reasons that had failed to evoke a similar response from a local Padam Shree award winner who is known to be among the ‘tallest’ Kashmiri intellectuals and who was seen to accept the award without compunction, even when the reasons for the former to decline the award were entirely impersonal which should instead have shaken the conscience of the Kashmiri scholar to decline the award in protest if only because these reasons, concerned as they were, with his own people and his own honor! Last but not the least, considering that it is not possible, much less reasonable, to prescribe how to put into place a system where individuals would be groomed as intellectuals with honesty, let it be noted that “charity always begins at home”. If all those who care were to mend their ways, did everything to put into place all that it takes to excel in their professions of choice and learnt to compete with the best in the business and their own selves, in the absence of those to look up to as role models- in other words, if there was a collective will to make a difference- it is not at all unreasonable to expect that our world -and our own Kashmir-would end up as a far better place to live than the inferno that it otherwise is!
(Dr. Mohammed Amin Sofi, 55, was born in Handwara. He received his early education from the Higher Secondary School in Handwara, and his B.Sc. from the Government Degree College in Baramulla. He subsequently received a Master's degree in Mathematics from the Aligarh Muslim University, and a Ph.D. in Mathematics from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kanpur. Prof. Sofi teaches and conducts research in the Department of Mathematics at the University of Kashmir. In his leisure time, he enjoys reading books, listening to classical western music, Urdu ghazals and Bollywood music (pre-1980's), and reading newspapers and journals.)
Society Sans Sanity
During a recent seminar organized by GK Foundation to discuss the issue “Kashmir, The way Forward”, the eminent educationist Prof. Agha Ashraf during his key note address had hit the nail on the head when he remarked that everybody in Kashmir fancied himself as the ultimate intellectual who had arrived at the right conclusions regarding issues ranging from those confronting him in his day to day life to how the G8 countries should evolve a consensus on climate change and global warming.
One couldn’t agree more with him as this holier-than-thou attitude typical of these pseudo-intellectuals the Professor was referring to and which is reminiscent of the “pygmies amongst giants’ syndrome, necessarily entails a tendency among them to scoff at those who may not hold similar views. And this lends substance to Dr. Maroof Shah’s dirge in a recent article, ”Where are Intellectuals?” in which he expresses his bewilderment on the woeful absence of those from our midst who could be genuinely called intellectuals. The Doctor would do well to remember that such individuals do not exist in vacuum as there has to be at display a uniform pattern in the evolution of such individuals in different walks of life and in different spheres of human activity. During a period of history when Bach and Beethoven were ruling the roost in the world of music in Germany, there were the likes of Gauss and Riemann who had taken the world of mathematics by storm and Kant and Hegel coming up with earth shaking ideas in the world of philosophy. It so happens that the mutually opposing trends of excellence and mediocrity not only co-exist simultaneously, but what is remarkable indeed is that there is similarity of evolution of ideas and trends that happen to occur contemporaneously and in almost all spheres of human activity.
In other words, if there are those who have excelled themselves say in Arts or in Music, there will of necessity exist a matching pool of those who have made a mark in Medicine and in Mathematics, in Physics and in Philosophy.
In order to put the discourse on intellectuals into perspective, it should help to point out how to deal with certain misconceptions that are prevalent in our society. For instance, even if there are those who could be labeled as intellectuals, it is not fair to expect them to pronounce words of authority on an issue of which they may at best have only a smattering of understanding. Unlike the period of Renaissance when almost all intellectual endeavors were subsumed under the single umbrella of Natural Philosophy, the contemporary zeitgeist makes it literally impossible to claim more than a nodding acquaintance with that which doesn’t fall within the parameters of one’s bailiwick. It would certainly make a world of difference if one settled for a deep and in-depth understanding of a particular branch of knowledge rather than make forays into sundry areas of human thought in which one’s creative prowess and expertise are expected at best to be peripheral. As opposed to this brand of thinkers who are known to be overly keen to be visible to the rest of the world, a true intellectual revels in the world of anonymity and rarely has any audience to talk and communicate his thoughts to, barring to a handful of those of his ilk. He is at complete peace with himself while keeping his own company and this is as true of a modern day intellectual as it was of Archimedes, Euclid and Pythagoras who had lived about 2500 years ago!
With this background, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that in Kashmir, there hardly are those - other than a miniscule minority of privileged few - who could be counted upon as intellectuals, be it in religion, philosophy, history or literature even when we have reasons to boast of a long tradition of scholarship in these areas of human activity. Not to speak of an international figure in social sciences or in any other human endeavor, the fact is that identifying one who has excelled himself even at the national level is a pretty tall order. Let us, for Heaven’s sake, stop this comparison of our thinkers and ‘intellectuals’ with those in the rest of the world, considering that the ‘rest of the world’ is big, too big for this comparison. The region adjoining this erstwhile ‘hub’ of intellectual-philosophical activity is already huge enough for such comparisons. The failure to come up to matter at the international-national level surely has not only to do with the (lack of) infrastructure which, among other things, includes a healthy social structure for such an ethos to flourish, it also has its genesis in the patently flawed thinking that ‘it is of no consequence to pursue knowledge for knowledge sake’- a skewed worldview that has takers but only in this part of the world. We need to remind ourselves of that basic maxim underlying scholarship: “if we can know, then it is sinful not to know”! But it is easier said than done inasmuch as a mere lip service to such a fundamental requirement for scholarship cannot be expected to deliver the goods unless it is accepted as part of our ‘intellectual discourse’.
After all, intellectual activity of any kind in general and scientific activity in particular is rooted in culture. It was not for nothing that Bruno, the great Italian natural philosopher, offered to be burnt alive for the sake of an ‘abstract idea’ rather than capitulate to the dictats of the Church which had offered to grant him amnesty if he retracted his statement on his investigations into the nature of the planetary motion. This puts into perspective the grudge that “Islamic studies has a scope in the western world but not in Kashmir”, as was pointed out in a recent column that had appeared in the GK. This is so because the scholar in the western world is essentially motivated by the spirit of scientific temper that has shaped the Western thought over the past several millennia. The fear that this spirit of scientific temper is going to elude us for a long, very long time to come has a lot to do with our obsession with quoting the Quran on the innumerable occasions it contains exhortations demanding its followers to ‘fan out in different directions in search of knowledge’, while remaining oblivious to the need for understanding and implementing the spirit of these injunctions in our daily lives. In a similar vein, expecting our Ulema to lead us as (potential) successors of Shah-Walli-ullah and Gazzali is pure wishful thinking. During a recent Friday sermon, an Imam of a local mosque here in Srinagar was heard exhorting the followers of islam to desist from ‘excessively’ asking questions which, according to his brand of logic, ran counter to the spirit of Islam - whatever that might have meant to him.
Whereas it may be considered reasonable to advise on desisting from ‘hair-splitting’, especially in matters involving faith, extrapolating the same logic to issues beyond faith and “the mundane chores of our daily lives” as the Imam put it, carries with it the risk of accepting things as they are, without worrying about the why and how of things which is at the heart of scientific temper. The Cartesian dictum of the ‘ability to doubt the obvious’- the bedrock of scientific ethos is thus thrown to the wind as antithetical to the spirit of islam while remaining smug in the hope of claiming parity in the world of science, never mind the unwillingness to reflect on those Gospel words.
Beyond the local/national level, there are equally good reasons why even at the international level, there are isolated cases where what is at display is actually intellectual effeteness as opposed to intellectual vigor which should have been a natural consequence of professional competence. The irony is that professional competence, which entails ‘vertical’ growth of an individual, is generally at variance with true intellectual growth that thrives mainly through a ‘horizontal’ approach. One of the undesirable consequences of what actually amounts to this ‘blinkered’ worldview is that those who advocate it do so at the expense of a broader perspective of things which thus becomes the greatest casualty in such a scenario.
Alas, there are all the indications that this ‘grand vision’ of producing professionals with ‘tunnel vision’ shall continue to persist, what with the premium being placed on maximizing your ‘creative output’- never mind its quality and shelf life- which has come to be regarded as the mantra for one’s professional success. This kind of an approach towards what constitutes professional excellence is of a piece with what is currently prevalent in our universities and institutions and espoused by our brand of ‘academics’ that by far outnumber those who think and act otherwise. It is this latter group of academicians who rightly belong to the genre of ‘educators’ –intellectuals in our sense of the term. The bottom line is that intellectuals are not produced- they are thrown up by a system that has the right ingredients of an approach towards creation of intellectual capital. These include, among other things, an inclusive approach of the ‘salad-bowl’ kind of culture in which individual growth can be achieved. That in part should serve to explain why is it is that Bombay and Calcutta happen to figure perhaps as the most stimulating hubs of intellectual activity among all cities and towns in India in the same way as New York presents itself as the most happening cosmopolitan city in the world where one encounters all shades of thought and culture from almost all parts of the world in view of its aptly coined sobriquet as a ‘melting pot’ of various nationalities and ethnicities. It is in the midst of such a heterogeneous ambience marked by multiplicity of cultures, languages, ethnicities and faiths that the intellectual growth of an individual can be realized.
What then has been the role of these `beacons of light’, these ‘highest seats of learning’, these ‘temples of knowledge’ that we call universities in shaping our destiny by helping to create a pool of right thinking individuals and more importantly our intellectuals who could be counted upon to guide us in our moments of crises. The pity is that we haven’t done much. Though the failure to do so is symptomatic of the systemic rot that is both deep and ubiquitous, there still is a lot more that could be done with the existing system in place, the insurmountable difficulties notwithstanding. The irony is that what passes muster as academic activity is in essence an attempt to delude ourselves and others into believing that we are dead serious about what we are supposed to be doing and about our duties as academics, teachers, scholars and as trend-setters in our society. Yes, showcasing our ‘achievements’ to the outside world during the plethora of conferences and seminars being held in the university is part of the mandate bestowed on us by virtue of being the ‘prodigal sons’ of this society who enjoy the privilege of letting these ‘road shows’ occupy the centrestage to the neglect of its basic commitment which is not only to identify and nurture talent amongst our youth but, more importantly, to produce right thinking and responsible citizens - a euphemism for excellence and intellectual capital of a society.
A case in point is the inexplicable indifference to the idea of establishing a full-fledged Department of Philosophy in the university which is not only long overdue but that a further prevarication on this count shall definitely call into question our commitment to ensuring intellectual growth as a vital component of higher learning at the university level. The inexorable logic of excellence in higher education demands the co-existence of the modern with the traditional: thus, for instance, a fancy course on nano-technology has to go hand in hand with the establishment of a school of philosophy which is supposed to set new trends in philosophical thought and epistemology. I must admit that my efforts to initiate this proposal in my erstwhile capacity as Dean Academic Affairs at the university had come a cropper as there were not many takers of such ‘zany’ ideas for reasons that I am at a loss to figure out.
Be that as it may, it should help to say a few words on the flip side of this discourse on intellectuals. Much though the horizontal approach of an intellectual does not quite resonate with the vertical predisposition of a researcher, it is the so-called ‘pyramid-like’ approach that distinguishes an intellectual from the rest of the flock. It is as much vital for an intellectual of the sort described above as it is for the research scientist who can’t pretend to be thorough in his art unless he has inculcated in himself the spirit of quest based on this ‘pyramid model’. Let me quote Professor M.S.Raghunathan of the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, one of the most celebrated Indian mathematicians of our times, whose yardstick for true accomplishment in mathematics is the ability to master the works of a Fields Medalist (the equivalent of Nobel Laureate in Mathematics) which had earned him the Field’s Medal for that piece of work, rather than the knack for writing papers without care for content and quality. His constant lament is that in spite of having carved a reasonable niche for itself in the world of mathematics, India continues to be woefully inadequate in the number of mathematicians who would fit this description of a true scholar of mathematics- in other words, a truly intellectual mathematician. At this point, it should help to distinguish between intellectual activity that passes for research in the diverse fields of science and in humanities. Whereas there is an element of subjectivity insofar as research in history, humanities or social sciences is concerned, the hallmark of research in science especially in basic sciences is objectivity which is synonymous with global acceptability, both of the methodologies employed and the conclusions derived. This is so because, apart from a few exceptions, the bulk of research in areas like arts, social sciences or law is premised on principles which are invariably local in character- dictated in no small measure, by individual predilections and societal perceptions rather than by a set of irrevocable laws which are valid in all frames of reference and within which the growth and development of science has to be effected.
Finally and most importantly there is, besides the cerebral component involving intellectual activity, an equally important component that defines an intellectual which is how one’s actions are dictated as much by grey matter as by one’s conscience. Pursuing intellectual activity without allowing the human conscience playing any part in it is at best an exercise in barren ‘pseudo-intellectualism’. Perhaps amongst the glorious examples of that genre of intellectuals with conscience that come to mind is the redoubtable Arundhati Roy whose literary credentials are no doubt beyond censure but what stands apart in her case is the intellectual honesty that have been the hallmark of her work, both as a literary and as a social figure. It was this prick of conscience that had led her to decline to accept the Padam Shree award for reasons that had failed to evoke a similar response from a local Padam Shree award winner who is known to be among the ‘tallest’ Kashmiri intellectuals and who was seen to accept the award without compunction, even when the reasons for the former to decline the award were entirely impersonal which should instead have shaken the conscience of the Kashmiri scholar to decline the award in protest if only because these reasons, concerned as they were, with his own people and his own honor! Last but not the least, considering that it is not possible, much less reasonable, to prescribe how to put into place a system where individuals would be groomed as intellectuals with honesty, let it be noted that “charity always begins at home”. If all those who care were to mend their ways, did everything to put into place all that it takes to excel in their professions of choice and learnt to compete with the best in the business and their own selves, in the absence of those to look up to as role models- in other words, if there was a collective will to make a difference- it is not at all unreasonable to expect that our world -and our own Kashmir-would end up as a far better place to live than the inferno that it otherwise is!
Empty Words, Empty Slogans
Nadeem contemplates on the fall of leadership from grace, but many others would argue that happened decades back
(Mr. Nadeem Jahangir Bhat, 27, was born in Rakhi-Lajurah village in Pulwama district. He received his early education in a local private school and graduated from the Government Degree College in Pulwama. He completed his post graduate degree in the English Language and Literature from the University of Kashmir. Mr. Bhat is currently Research Scholar in the Department of English, University of Kashmir, pursuing his M.Phil degree on writings of Salman Rushdie and Post-Colonial Historiography. He also works at the Government Degree College in Pulwama as a Teaching Assistant. In his leisure time, he enjoys reading and writing poetry. He also occasionally writes for the Rising Kashmir newspaper.)
Being optimistic about every act is self deception
It is good to be optimistic. However, to be too optimistic about everything one does is an abnormality. Unfortunately, we Kashmiris, suffer from this abnormality which leads to anOptimism Fever. This abnormality is quite evident and clearly reflected in our deeds. Be it marching for 'Azadi' or casting votes, we are always too much optimistic about everything we do. In the August of last year, incited by Amarnath land row, our optimism reached its zenith.
The economic blockade invoked the imagination of Azadi and the sentiment for Azadi attained new heights. We cried for Azadi and it seemed a couple of Chalos away from us. We marched towards every 'called for' destination as a tour de force to tell India "Hum kya chahtay- Aazadi". We marched towards Muzafarabad, Pampore, UN office and Eidgah shouting slogans, crossing blockades and barbed wires, pelting stones and even braving bullets. We thronged these destinations in lacks and our optimism made us dance on the tunes of "Ragda Ragda Bharat Ragda" sending chills down Indian spines. We got ourselves killed but where optimistic that Azadi cannot elude us anymore and the Chalos will reap us the laurel of victory. Thanks to our optimism, however, the story does not end here. Everybody knows what happened afterwards. When it was time to vote we voted with a lot of faith and optimism to see a government 'elected' which could meet our demands of 'development'. Again, our optimism made us say "Azadi apni jagah, bijli, pani aur sadak be to chahiay". This is the extent of our optimism.
That was a page from the book of memories. Now it is more than hundred days since our government, the guarantors of our development, took over and all the development is evident. The Bomai youth, Javaid and Gulzar, got their share of development at the hands of the so called "security forces" and so did the Khaigam carpenter. A crippled beggar had his own share at the very alter of the guarantor himself. Public Safety Act continues to haunt the separatists as well as the stone palters (although in the other province of the state they were given refreshments and were paid for it). The sixth pay commission recommendations will take time but not the pay hike of some chosen few for continues doing great job for the government. Good instances of 'development'. Applause to our government. People were killed and inquiries ordered; the obvious made painfully obscure; reports submitted and 'justice' was done. Killer troops were dislocated from Bomai and re-located at Agricultural university campus, which means, another Bomai-like episode is in the making, as some other day another Javaid and Gulzar will have their share of 'development'. The albatross round your neck next time.
Nevertheless, we celebrated it and not just that but a stark reality, which stares us in the face, is that we continue to do so without realizing what we are doing. Now it is time for another election and our optimistic masses have once again started pinning hopes on their new supposed guarantors of development. Let us hope history repeats itself less cruelly this time.
That was about people, common people, who even do not take recourse to good common sense before deciding or doing anything. However, what happened to our leaders? If people suffer from optimism fever what is wrong with the leaders. Why do they get carried away by the force of situation? The indecision, exhibited by Hurriyat (M) reflects the state of the mind of our leaders. We were yet to recover from the high turnout shock of the 'highly optimistic' masses that the leaders shocked us further.
First, the Lone shock to contest elections and then Hurriyat M's turning soft towards elections in the beginning. Well, some can cry loudly that it is 'a change of strategy and not of ideology', but the truth is that it is a change of heart, a heart that no longer feels the giant agony of those who have sacrificed their dear ones for the sacred cause. It is a change of faith, from God's servitude to demon worship. Sniffing a little power and pelf, these sham leaders have cast away a faith so cherished and a cause so dear, for which thousands have laid their lives down. First-rate opportunism on display. Contesting elections in ordinary circumstances is not bad but here it is a sin for reposing faith and allegiance in Indian constitution; it would be betraying the blood of thousands of martyrs. India is a suppressor state and contesting for a seat in the Indian Parliament amounts to being a part of this source of suppression. Calling elections a 'non-issue' is again sheer hypocrisy. By saying so, they have put a question mark on their credibility, their goodwill and sincerity towards the sacred cause. In fact, they have lost their claim to be called pro-freedom. In French, they say "corruptio optimi pessima", that is, the corruption of the best becomes the worst. No doubt, these brazenfaced leaders will indulge in such political gymnastics impudently, but it might really be a perplexing situation for all those non-Kashmiris who have stood by us and advocated our cause so far. By such acts of our leadership, a wrong signal has been sent to the outside world. This is what happens 'when majesty stoops to folly'.
In my opinion, if common people fail they can be absolved, but not the leaders. Leaders are the representatives of a nation and the face of a movement. If they fail, they let the whole nation down and deface the whole movement. However, one thing, that we should never lose sight of, is that leaders are no 'sacred' things. They are leaders only when people follow them. They are for the cause and not above the cause. They are nothing in themselves but products of our need and if they outlive their use, they should be abandoned. Therefore, it is time these leaders introspect into themselves and let people also think fresh about them.
(Mr. Nadeem Jahangir Bhat, 27, was born in Rakhi-Lajurah village in Pulwama district. He received his early education in a local private school and graduated from the Government Degree College in Pulwama. He completed his post graduate degree in the English Language and Literature from the University of Kashmir. Mr. Bhat is currently Research Scholar in the Department of English, University of Kashmir, pursuing his M.Phil degree on writings of Salman Rushdie and Post-Colonial Historiography. He also works at the Government Degree College in Pulwama as a Teaching Assistant. In his leisure time, he enjoys reading and writing poetry. He also occasionally writes for the Rising Kashmir newspaper.)
Being optimistic about every act is self deception
It is good to be optimistic. However, to be too optimistic about everything one does is an abnormality. Unfortunately, we Kashmiris, suffer from this abnormality which leads to anOptimism Fever. This abnormality is quite evident and clearly reflected in our deeds. Be it marching for 'Azadi' or casting votes, we are always too much optimistic about everything we do. In the August of last year, incited by Amarnath land row, our optimism reached its zenith.
The economic blockade invoked the imagination of Azadi and the sentiment for Azadi attained new heights. We cried for Azadi and it seemed a couple of Chalos away from us. We marched towards every 'called for' destination as a tour de force to tell India "Hum kya chahtay- Aazadi". We marched towards Muzafarabad, Pampore, UN office and Eidgah shouting slogans, crossing blockades and barbed wires, pelting stones and even braving bullets. We thronged these destinations in lacks and our optimism made us dance on the tunes of "Ragda Ragda Bharat Ragda" sending chills down Indian spines. We got ourselves killed but where optimistic that Azadi cannot elude us anymore and the Chalos will reap us the laurel of victory. Thanks to our optimism, however, the story does not end here. Everybody knows what happened afterwards. When it was time to vote we voted with a lot of faith and optimism to see a government 'elected' which could meet our demands of 'development'. Again, our optimism made us say "Azadi apni jagah, bijli, pani aur sadak be to chahiay". This is the extent of our optimism.
That was a page from the book of memories. Now it is more than hundred days since our government, the guarantors of our development, took over and all the development is evident. The Bomai youth, Javaid and Gulzar, got their share of development at the hands of the so called "security forces" and so did the Khaigam carpenter. A crippled beggar had his own share at the very alter of the guarantor himself. Public Safety Act continues to haunt the separatists as well as the stone palters (although in the other province of the state they were given refreshments and were paid for it). The sixth pay commission recommendations will take time but not the pay hike of some chosen few for continues doing great job for the government. Good instances of 'development'. Applause to our government. People were killed and inquiries ordered; the obvious made painfully obscure; reports submitted and 'justice' was done. Killer troops were dislocated from Bomai and re-located at Agricultural university campus, which means, another Bomai-like episode is in the making, as some other day another Javaid and Gulzar will have their share of 'development'. The albatross round your neck next time.
Nevertheless, we celebrated it and not just that but a stark reality, which stares us in the face, is that we continue to do so without realizing what we are doing. Now it is time for another election and our optimistic masses have once again started pinning hopes on their new supposed guarantors of development. Let us hope history repeats itself less cruelly this time.
That was about people, common people, who even do not take recourse to good common sense before deciding or doing anything. However, what happened to our leaders? If people suffer from optimism fever what is wrong with the leaders. Why do they get carried away by the force of situation? The indecision, exhibited by Hurriyat (M) reflects the state of the mind of our leaders. We were yet to recover from the high turnout shock of the 'highly optimistic' masses that the leaders shocked us further.
First, the Lone shock to contest elections and then Hurriyat M's turning soft towards elections in the beginning. Well, some can cry loudly that it is 'a change of strategy and not of ideology', but the truth is that it is a change of heart, a heart that no longer feels the giant agony of those who have sacrificed their dear ones for the sacred cause. It is a change of faith, from God's servitude to demon worship. Sniffing a little power and pelf, these sham leaders have cast away a faith so cherished and a cause so dear, for which thousands have laid their lives down. First-rate opportunism on display. Contesting elections in ordinary circumstances is not bad but here it is a sin for reposing faith and allegiance in Indian constitution; it would be betraying the blood of thousands of martyrs. India is a suppressor state and contesting for a seat in the Indian Parliament amounts to being a part of this source of suppression. Calling elections a 'non-issue' is again sheer hypocrisy. By saying so, they have put a question mark on their credibility, their goodwill and sincerity towards the sacred cause. In fact, they have lost their claim to be called pro-freedom. In French, they say "corruptio optimi pessima", that is, the corruption of the best becomes the worst. No doubt, these brazenfaced leaders will indulge in such political gymnastics impudently, but it might really be a perplexing situation for all those non-Kashmiris who have stood by us and advocated our cause so far. By such acts of our leadership, a wrong signal has been sent to the outside world. This is what happens 'when majesty stoops to folly'.
In my opinion, if common people fail they can be absolved, but not the leaders. Leaders are the representatives of a nation and the face of a movement. If they fail, they let the whole nation down and deface the whole movement. However, one thing, that we should never lose sight of, is that leaders are no 'sacred' things. They are leaders only when people follow them. They are for the cause and not above the cause. They are nothing in themselves but products of our need and if they outlive their use, they should be abandoned. Therefore, it is time these leaders introspect into themselves and let people also think fresh about them.
Thursday, July 23, 2009
Bankruptcy of Leadership
Feroz looks at the "maximum leader" and finds some glaring shortcomings
(Mr. Feroz Ahmad Paray, 23, was born in Kalampora in Pulwama District. He completed his B.Sc. degree (pre-medical stream) from the Government College in Pulwama, and is currently pursuing post graduation in Business Economics from Wigan & Leigh College in Srinagar. His personal interests vary from writing poems and playing cricket to net surfing and shopping. His favorite author is Khalil Gibran.)
Our Leaders Lack Vision and Commitment
“I can’t say whether things will get better if we change; What can I say is they must change if they are to get better.” (G.C.Liechtenberg)
If we look at the lives of our Kashmiri leaders, we find one quality of aimlessness common in all. This unique quality has changed the whole scenario of our motherland. At the same time, if we look at lives of saints and gurus we find one quality that was critical to their success. The quality that set them apart was a commitment to their life’s goals. The secret to success is to stick to your goal through rain or shine. This is true whether we wish to attain a spiritual goal or a worldly achievement.
Everyone knows the situation in our motherland now is adverse. Kashmir has always been in news but the only difference is that earlier it was in news for its stunning beauty but now it is news for violence. Some invested parties are reaping the benefits through this crisis. Surely they are not peace lovers. They don’t care for their homeland, which sometimes was known as the paradise. It is true that every crisis brings in its wake a clutch of opportunities. Great minds think of new ideas while the mediocre get bogged down in discussing the crisis. Sure, eventually the meek may inherit the earth but it is unlikely that the mediocre will rule it.
Our leaders know that it is not possible to soar with eagles when one is obliged to work with turkeys. They lack the necessary elements. They lack the pure commitment. Whether Hurriyat M or G, no one likes to channelize their energy in order to get some fruitful results. The people of Kashmir are facing these difficulties. Is it because they lack the practical knowledge or because of their mental abilities? Surely, No. the only thing Kashmiris are stuck in is their old “chalta-hai” mentality. People of Kashmir have done wonders with this chalta hai attitude. Now what is required is we need to become one whose vision is equanimous. The whole of Kashmir seems angry and frustrated and the reason being best known to all of us. Continuous hartals and bandhs along with undeclared curfews has made the life like a hell to live in. some hartals are absolutely genuine (double rape and murder of pregnant Nelofar and innocent Aasiya of Shopian) while others are merely wastage of time and nothing else. According to Ali Shah Geelani, hartal is the best weapon of Kashmiris. Make these hartals so strong that the walls of the India get moved, Geelani added. Geelani Sahab, don’t you know India has already got frustrated with the situation in Kashmir.
Last week, I was traveling from Dehradun to Srinagar, when some gentlemen were discussing Kashmir and its so called leader Geelani. They were also discussing hartals and in the meantime said one of them, “It has now became mandatory to get the date from Geelani Sahib for the marriages rather than from the Kashmiri cook (waaza). Mr. Geelani, my friend’s marriage is on 29th July. I want to know what the date-sheet of that day is. Along with my friend, am very much confused, as my friend is an orphan but poor lady.
Mr. Geelani, you have done the wonder which no one can dare to do. My motherland is known for its hard laborers and a nation of saint-patience. Allama Iqbal has said, “This nation of Kashmir is fertile and the people living here are genius”. And from the centuries, my homeland has performed intelligently at every step and in every nook and corner of the world. In earlier days, when there were no schools, no colleges, people still prefer to go to Punjab to get their matric grade and some were enjoying the Kashmiri poetry here. Wahab Khar, Rasool Mir or Azad were born from the streets but you have brought the revolution. Our children are free from the tension of going to their schools. The other day, I went to my nephew’s bedroom. I wake him up by saying today is the school day. He replied, “Aaj ragda-ragda nahi hai. Aaj hartal nahi hai”. Such is the mentality of the new generation. Our elder generation is free from the burden of making their future.
Would Geelani Sahib have born during the Mughal period; the story would have been totally different. We would have adopted the strategy of bandhs/hartals; it would have forced them to fly away from Kashmir. Jalaludin Akbar’s fertile brain wouldn’t have worked before this wonderful strategy. Afghan governor Chirag Baig introduced his tyranny by cutting the nose of one of the Kashmiris. Would Geelani have been in that age, there would have been hartals and bandhs, the nose of Chirag Baig would have cut itself. Dogras wouldn’t have done the mistake of buying the Kashmir. After all, what would have been the fun of buying the hartali Kashmiris?
(Mr. Feroz Ahmad Paray, 23, was born in Kalampora in Pulwama District. He completed his B.Sc. degree (pre-medical stream) from the Government College in Pulwama, and is currently pursuing post graduation in Business Economics from Wigan & Leigh College in Srinagar. His personal interests vary from writing poems and playing cricket to net surfing and shopping. His favorite author is Khalil Gibran.)
Our Leaders Lack Vision and Commitment
“I can’t say whether things will get better if we change; What can I say is they must change if they are to get better.” (G.C.Liechtenberg)
If we look at the lives of our Kashmiri leaders, we find one quality of aimlessness common in all. This unique quality has changed the whole scenario of our motherland. At the same time, if we look at lives of saints and gurus we find one quality that was critical to their success. The quality that set them apart was a commitment to their life’s goals. The secret to success is to stick to your goal through rain or shine. This is true whether we wish to attain a spiritual goal or a worldly achievement.
Everyone knows the situation in our motherland now is adverse. Kashmir has always been in news but the only difference is that earlier it was in news for its stunning beauty but now it is news for violence. Some invested parties are reaping the benefits through this crisis. Surely they are not peace lovers. They don’t care for their homeland, which sometimes was known as the paradise. It is true that every crisis brings in its wake a clutch of opportunities. Great minds think of new ideas while the mediocre get bogged down in discussing the crisis. Sure, eventually the meek may inherit the earth but it is unlikely that the mediocre will rule it.
Our leaders know that it is not possible to soar with eagles when one is obliged to work with turkeys. They lack the necessary elements. They lack the pure commitment. Whether Hurriyat M or G, no one likes to channelize their energy in order to get some fruitful results. The people of Kashmir are facing these difficulties. Is it because they lack the practical knowledge or because of their mental abilities? Surely, No. the only thing Kashmiris are stuck in is their old “chalta-hai” mentality. People of Kashmir have done wonders with this chalta hai attitude. Now what is required is we need to become one whose vision is equanimous. The whole of Kashmir seems angry and frustrated and the reason being best known to all of us. Continuous hartals and bandhs along with undeclared curfews has made the life like a hell to live in. some hartals are absolutely genuine (double rape and murder of pregnant Nelofar and innocent Aasiya of Shopian) while others are merely wastage of time and nothing else. According to Ali Shah Geelani, hartal is the best weapon of Kashmiris. Make these hartals so strong that the walls of the India get moved, Geelani added. Geelani Sahab, don’t you know India has already got frustrated with the situation in Kashmir.
Last week, I was traveling from Dehradun to Srinagar, when some gentlemen were discussing Kashmir and its so called leader Geelani. They were also discussing hartals and in the meantime said one of them, “It has now became mandatory to get the date from Geelani Sahib for the marriages rather than from the Kashmiri cook (waaza). Mr. Geelani, my friend’s marriage is on 29th July. I want to know what the date-sheet of that day is. Along with my friend, am very much confused, as my friend is an orphan but poor lady.
Mr. Geelani, you have done the wonder which no one can dare to do. My motherland is known for its hard laborers and a nation of saint-patience. Allama Iqbal has said, “This nation of Kashmir is fertile and the people living here are genius”. And from the centuries, my homeland has performed intelligently at every step and in every nook and corner of the world. In earlier days, when there were no schools, no colleges, people still prefer to go to Punjab to get their matric grade and some were enjoying the Kashmiri poetry here. Wahab Khar, Rasool Mir or Azad were born from the streets but you have brought the revolution. Our children are free from the tension of going to their schools. The other day, I went to my nephew’s bedroom. I wake him up by saying today is the school day. He replied, “Aaj ragda-ragda nahi hai. Aaj hartal nahi hai”. Such is the mentality of the new generation. Our elder generation is free from the burden of making their future.
Would Geelani Sahib have born during the Mughal period; the story would have been totally different. We would have adopted the strategy of bandhs/hartals; it would have forced them to fly away from Kashmir. Jalaludin Akbar’s fertile brain wouldn’t have worked before this wonderful strategy. Afghan governor Chirag Baig introduced his tyranny by cutting the nose of one of the Kashmiris. Would Geelani have been in that age, there would have been hartals and bandhs, the nose of Chirag Baig would have cut itself. Dogras wouldn’t have done the mistake of buying the Kashmir. After all, what would have been the fun of buying the hartali Kashmiris?
Reconstructing a Shaken Psyche
Zafar pitches for people who suffered from vagaries of nature and then became victims all over again
(Mr. Zafar Iqbal, 32, was born in village Tarar, Rawalakot, in the Poonch district of Azad Jammu and Kashmir. He did his early schooling in a private school, matriculating through examinations conducted by the Mirpur Educational Board, and completed his higher secondary education from the Government Degree College in Rawalakot. He received his B.A. in Political Science from the University of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (Rawalakot campus), and his M.A. in Mass Communication from the Punjab University in Pakistan. He received international scholarships to attend the International Summer School at the University of Oslo in 2005 receiving a Graduate Diploma in Media Studies, and the Nottingham Trent University, U.K., in 2006-2008 receiving M.A. in Media & Globalization. Mr. Iqbal has been a journalist working in the print and TV media since 1999 and is very active in human rights, earthquake relief and rehabilitation especially involving women and children, and inter-faith harmony. He is the Founder and Executive Director of the Press for Peace (PFP) and the Founder-President of the Environmental Journalists Forum, both based in Muzaffarabad. Mr. Iqbal has been invited to numerous national and international seminars and workshops related to human development.)
Post traumatic earthquake Scenario of Kashmir
The shattered hopes of one and half million Kashmiris living in the earth-quake affected areas have again lifted by the heartening news of a recent agreement signed between China and Pakistan in order to reconstruct and rehabilitate three major cities of Pakistan controlled Kashmir. The billions dollars project termed “build back better” conceived from the Clinton Tsunami Slogan envisions the provision of modern life facilities in Muzaffarabad, Rawalakot and Bagh. The historically worst earthquake in region which claimed above 73,000 people devastated all infrastructures in three districts of Azad Kashmir. But, it is heart-rending to state the in spite of generous financial support from world community, the rehabilitation work in affected areas has not been started even after three and half years and it is still in limbo.
Previous and the government incumbent of Azad Jammu and Kashmir have been sugar-coating the innocent citizens that affected areas would be turned into Paris and Dubai soon. Conversely, the reality makes mockery of forged statements and groundless claims of rulers that overwhelmingly majority of victims are still living a miserable life due to incompletion of schools, roads, houses and other public buildings as well as at the hands of red-tapism. The stories of corruption and laxity of officials are prevalent; specifically of those departments directly responsible for carrying into effect the rehabilitation process are major target of public criticism and severe dress-down.
Though more than 80 per cent people in affected areas have received their compensation funds for the reconstruction of homes, but their houses have not been completed yet due to numerous factors particularly in economic sense like inappropriate planning in designs, increase in prices of construction material, non- availability of required skilled force, the delaying of payments of funds and red-tapism.
Today, a huge number of people are still lives in damaged or rickety buildings because of lack of alternative residences. Some areas have been demarcated to be under fault lines; therefore, the owners of such lands need substitute properties for their permanent settlements but the commitments and plans of construction of housing towns make their existence only in files.
Moreover, a huge number of schools and health centres are waiting for their buildings and shelters. Officials admit that only 274 schools out of 2706 educational institutions were built which means about two hundred seventy five thousand students mostly children out of total three hundred thousand are still studying without shelter. Likewise, majority from 176 damaged buildings of health institutes also necessitates construction of new buildings.
Various new institutions were established by governments in the name of reconstruction; however, the performance of these institutions is not up to the mark or seems to be invisible to general public. Citizens believe that such newly established departments and organizations have become El- Dorado in respect of ‘job employment bureaus’ for influential people who lack any transparent system of recruitment and monitoring of their progress. For instance, if two departments like State Disaster Management Authority (SDMA) and Civil Defence are juxtaposed together, then SDMA is crystal clear manifestation of wastage of public money because similar department - Civil Defence, already exists and needs complete revamping.
The most significant department in all rebuilding process is Earthquake Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Authority (ERRA) which is under criticisms since its inception due to lack of coordination, inefficiency, alleged corruption, nepotism and favoritism. The misappropriations and embezzlement of billions of rupees in the ERRA have also been observed by government’s own institution like the National Assembly of Pakistan which categorically mentioned that the ERRA has not put into harness all allocated funds transparently and it must be monitored and checked by public representatives and other watchdogs.
Subsequent to the earthquake some international donors like Department for International Development (DFID) had allocated massive funds for restructuring and strengthening of local government’s bodies; nonetheless, their performance is continuously on the downhill day by day, for instance, in Muzaffarabad which is the largest city of the region, all roads and streets look like a filth depot due to lack of any coordinated cleaning apparatus. The congestion of traffic has also escalating the air and noise pollution and posing various environmental hazards and diseases to the public.
Growing urbanization demands the implementation of latest systems of recycling, solid waste management and green living, but, majority of officials in the local councils do not hold necessary orientation and training to enforce international development and environmental standards where as people are also not aware of the fact that injudicious utilization of natural resources poses threats to their life and natural resources of the region as well. Under this scenario, it is binding upon the public and policy makers to learn about such latest interventions of sustainable livelihood.
It is the responsibility of government to mitigate people’s concern and legitimate reservations about the rehabilitation process through practical measures. The stalwarts in the government should realize that in today’s era of growing transnational communications and awareness created by media public can not be hoodwinked through fake claims and bogus announcements about development and progress. The government has already squandered enough time in claims now people need pragmatic actions, not slogans and must help the helpless.
(Mr. Zafar Iqbal, 32, was born in village Tarar, Rawalakot, in the Poonch district of Azad Jammu and Kashmir. He did his early schooling in a private school, matriculating through examinations conducted by the Mirpur Educational Board, and completed his higher secondary education from the Government Degree College in Rawalakot. He received his B.A. in Political Science from the University of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (Rawalakot campus), and his M.A. in Mass Communication from the Punjab University in Pakistan. He received international scholarships to attend the International Summer School at the University of Oslo in 2005 receiving a Graduate Diploma in Media Studies, and the Nottingham Trent University, U.K., in 2006-2008 receiving M.A. in Media & Globalization. Mr. Iqbal has been a journalist working in the print and TV media since 1999 and is very active in human rights, earthquake relief and rehabilitation especially involving women and children, and inter-faith harmony. He is the Founder and Executive Director of the Press for Peace (PFP) and the Founder-President of the Environmental Journalists Forum, both based in Muzaffarabad. Mr. Iqbal has been invited to numerous national and international seminars and workshops related to human development.)
Post traumatic earthquake Scenario of Kashmir
The shattered hopes of one and half million Kashmiris living in the earth-quake affected areas have again lifted by the heartening news of a recent agreement signed between China and Pakistan in order to reconstruct and rehabilitate three major cities of Pakistan controlled Kashmir. The billions dollars project termed “build back better” conceived from the Clinton Tsunami Slogan envisions the provision of modern life facilities in Muzaffarabad, Rawalakot and Bagh. The historically worst earthquake in region which claimed above 73,000 people devastated all infrastructures in three districts of Azad Kashmir. But, it is heart-rending to state the in spite of generous financial support from world community, the rehabilitation work in affected areas has not been started even after three and half years and it is still in limbo.
Previous and the government incumbent of Azad Jammu and Kashmir have been sugar-coating the innocent citizens that affected areas would be turned into Paris and Dubai soon. Conversely, the reality makes mockery of forged statements and groundless claims of rulers that overwhelmingly majority of victims are still living a miserable life due to incompletion of schools, roads, houses and other public buildings as well as at the hands of red-tapism. The stories of corruption and laxity of officials are prevalent; specifically of those departments directly responsible for carrying into effect the rehabilitation process are major target of public criticism and severe dress-down.
Though more than 80 per cent people in affected areas have received their compensation funds for the reconstruction of homes, but their houses have not been completed yet due to numerous factors particularly in economic sense like inappropriate planning in designs, increase in prices of construction material, non- availability of required skilled force, the delaying of payments of funds and red-tapism.
Today, a huge number of people are still lives in damaged or rickety buildings because of lack of alternative residences. Some areas have been demarcated to be under fault lines; therefore, the owners of such lands need substitute properties for their permanent settlements but the commitments and plans of construction of housing towns make their existence only in files.
Moreover, a huge number of schools and health centres are waiting for their buildings and shelters. Officials admit that only 274 schools out of 2706 educational institutions were built which means about two hundred seventy five thousand students mostly children out of total three hundred thousand are still studying without shelter. Likewise, majority from 176 damaged buildings of health institutes also necessitates construction of new buildings.
Various new institutions were established by governments in the name of reconstruction; however, the performance of these institutions is not up to the mark or seems to be invisible to general public. Citizens believe that such newly established departments and organizations have become El- Dorado in respect of ‘job employment bureaus’ for influential people who lack any transparent system of recruitment and monitoring of their progress. For instance, if two departments like State Disaster Management Authority (SDMA) and Civil Defence are juxtaposed together, then SDMA is crystal clear manifestation of wastage of public money because similar department - Civil Defence, already exists and needs complete revamping.
The most significant department in all rebuilding process is Earthquake Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Authority (ERRA) which is under criticisms since its inception due to lack of coordination, inefficiency, alleged corruption, nepotism and favoritism. The misappropriations and embezzlement of billions of rupees in the ERRA have also been observed by government’s own institution like the National Assembly of Pakistan which categorically mentioned that the ERRA has not put into harness all allocated funds transparently and it must be monitored and checked by public representatives and other watchdogs.
Subsequent to the earthquake some international donors like Department for International Development (DFID) had allocated massive funds for restructuring and strengthening of local government’s bodies; nonetheless, their performance is continuously on the downhill day by day, for instance, in Muzaffarabad which is the largest city of the region, all roads and streets look like a filth depot due to lack of any coordinated cleaning apparatus. The congestion of traffic has also escalating the air and noise pollution and posing various environmental hazards and diseases to the public.
Growing urbanization demands the implementation of latest systems of recycling, solid waste management and green living, but, majority of officials in the local councils do not hold necessary orientation and training to enforce international development and environmental standards where as people are also not aware of the fact that injudicious utilization of natural resources poses threats to their life and natural resources of the region as well. Under this scenario, it is binding upon the public and policy makers to learn about such latest interventions of sustainable livelihood.
It is the responsibility of government to mitigate people’s concern and legitimate reservations about the rehabilitation process through practical measures. The stalwarts in the government should realize that in today’s era of growing transnational communications and awareness created by media public can not be hoodwinked through fake claims and bogus announcements about development and progress. The government has already squandered enough time in claims now people need pragmatic actions, not slogans and must help the helpless.
The Unavoidable Truth
Dr. Dabla presents timely information that is usually lost in the din to blame all crime to non-local offenders for political expediency
From Crime-Free to Crime-Ridden
Dr. Bashir Ahmad Dabla
It is generally believed that the traditional Kashmiri society of 60 – 70 years back was completely a crime-free society. It follows that crimes were neither committed in an organized way nor were reported by people at large. The dominant majority of people lived a peaceful life in which they hardly witnessed or heard about any heinous crime been committed. In Kashmir there existed a non-violent social ethos in its extreme form and any kind of violent/criminal act was considered highly undesirable and condemnable.
Crime-ful Society
But, this situation has changed radically. As a result of this change, crimes have emerged as the prominent feature of the present-day Kashmiri society. Consequently, various trends of crime have developed and have engulfed entire social life in the Kashmir valley.
The following overview of daily reports about various crimes in Kashmir in the local print and electronic media reflects these trends clearly:
- The father was killed/murdered/stabbed by his son/nearest relative;
- A person was butchered/beheaded/blasted by the gun-holders;
- A woman/girl was raped and murdered by security forces/outsiders/local men;
- Hundreds of theft, cheating, burglaries, fraud, pick-pocketing, threat and robbery cases take place daily in the valley;
- About 750 cases of suicide involving both men and women of all age groups in rural as well as urban areas were reported in past three months;
- Police caught many gangs of drug suppliers and drug users/abusers in a local college/school. Many youngsters, both boys and girls, were using drugs regularly.
- A college-girl was followed, teased, hit and murdered by her institute male students in a posh colony in Srinagar;
- Nudity, moral degradation, ethical degeneration and violation of cultural values are spreading fast among the Kashmiri youth;
- The parents in general feel perturbed about the involvement of their children of teen-age groups in deviant and delinquent tendencies and activities;
- Violence against women has reached to its climax in the murders of Romana, a school girl, and Farzana, a married woman;
- Domestic violence against women, which reflects in their harassement, dowry demand, bride-burning, separation and wife-beating, has increased and intensified in Kashmir significantly; and
- The cyber crime has also started invading the valley of Kashmir
The above statements reported/quoted by local media do not stand for abstract theoretical propositions but essentially portray the actual situation of crime in present-day Kashmir. They also reflect a transition of the Kashmiri society from a crime-free society to crime-ful society. Again, this reveals a basic shift in the Kashmiri society from a crime-to a crime-prone situation which has got minimum degree of social legitimacy and institutional support.
Causes
Crimes have been explained as “those acts or failures to act that are considered to be so detrimental to the well being of a society, as judged by its prevailing standards, that action regarding them cannot be entrusted to private initiative or to haphazard methods but must be taken by an organized society in accordance with tested procedures.” Ideally speaking, the crime takes birth in a situation characterized with certain degree of anomie. It has five specific characteristics of harmful to society, intentional act, legally forbidden, having criminal intent and having prescribed penality. Emphasizing on the causation of the crime, an eminent sociologist, Robert K. Merton, says that “poverty does not cause crime but when poverty is linked with a cultural emphasis on monetary services as a dominant goal and a poor individual cannot compete, because of his poverty, for the cultural values, then criminal behavior is the normal outcome.”
Sociologically, the emergence of crime in Kashmir can be explained in terms of factors which explain such a development in other human societies. The environment of inequality, completion and conflict is created through the processes of modernization, urbanization, industrialization, material development and so on. In this particular social dynamics, the sociological-pathological factors of social disorder, disorganization, lesser socialization, least family-school social control could not be avoided and were considered as co-relates of this grand transformation.
Again, the features of deviance and delinquency, especially among early youngsters, could also not be avoided. The added factors to the emergence of criminal trends were media exposure and Information Technology [IT] revolution. In actuality, these processes proved the accelerating factors. This entire situation led to the emergence of crime as a social trend which attracted the younger elements in society and was solely aimed at to get maximum material gains. This has happened in other societies irrespective of their differences in region, religion, culture and ideology. This has also happened in the Kashmiri society where crime is nowadays viewed as a social phenomenon.
But, the different feature of the emergence of crime in Kashmir is its relationship with the armed conflict between militants and security forces from 1989. In fact, this conflict and its implications proved accelerative and intensificatory factor for crime. It follows that conflict increased and intensified the criminal trends and provided much-needed social-institutional support and organized form to the existing crime. Though the introduction of gun was not socially legitimized, it provided the minimum motivation for its personal and partisan ends. The contribution of the gun to the crime also dehumanized the entire social ethos, particularly agencies and organizations of crime control.
The political factor made the situation more complex. Some parties, especially media at the global level, characterized Kashmir as a ‘global spot of crime and terrorism’. All these factors led to a cumulative effect of’ criminalization’ of the Kashmiri society according to which every sector and section of this society has developed a criminal trait at individual as well as collective level. In this background, all in-family and out-family activities have developed violent character and every individual lives under the threat to his life, dignity, property and status.
It was reported that thousands of men and women [old, young and children] were murdered during the conflict period of last 19 years. Though murder in itself is considered an inhuman act in a civilized society, these murders were carried out in most dehumanized forms. While somebody’s throat was slit or head separated, others were butchered in to pieces or blasted alive. All these extreme form of brutalized acts were in addition to the war crimes committed by the security forces. There is no authentic statistics available about the number of persons murdered in Kashmir during last two decades. According to an unofficial but very conservative estimate, more than 70,000 people [who composed of militants, army-security forces and common people] were killed intentionally in the war-like conflict situation. Most of these killings represent extreme type of murders by all parties involved in the conflict.
The second major type of crime committed in Kashmir was molestation and rape of women, especially of younger ages. The fact stands with sufficient evidence that this crime was started in Kashmir by the Indian security forces. The famous incident of mass rape in village Kunan Poshpora in the valley in 1990 is still remembered as the first of its horrible experience. Subsequently, the outsiders [undesirable] were involved in this crime in different areas of the valley, urban as well as rural. Finally, the local too committed this crime at many places and at different times. The criminal trend of molestation, rape and murder of women by inside or outside elements has been established in the valley.
In this case also, correct and authentic statistical details are nit available. In the decade of 1980s, the National Crime Records Bureau, New Delhi gave the following information about number of rape cases in J&K state:
[i] 1985 207 cases
[ii] 1986 187 cases
[iii] 1987 171 cases
[iv] 1988 211 cases
[v] 1989 176 cases
If this trend of increasing rape cases continued afterwards, as is expected logically, the number of such cases must have gone up to thousands. There is no official data on the occurrence of rape in Kashmir after 1989 when militancy started here. It has been observed that hundreds of rape and mass-rape cases have taken place in the valley. But, these cases have neither been reported nor documented properly.
(Rising Kashmir)
From Crime-Free to Crime-Ridden
Dr. Bashir Ahmad Dabla
It is generally believed that the traditional Kashmiri society of 60 – 70 years back was completely a crime-free society. It follows that crimes were neither committed in an organized way nor were reported by people at large. The dominant majority of people lived a peaceful life in which they hardly witnessed or heard about any heinous crime been committed. In Kashmir there existed a non-violent social ethos in its extreme form and any kind of violent/criminal act was considered highly undesirable and condemnable.
Crime-ful Society
But, this situation has changed radically. As a result of this change, crimes have emerged as the prominent feature of the present-day Kashmiri society. Consequently, various trends of crime have developed and have engulfed entire social life in the Kashmir valley.
The following overview of daily reports about various crimes in Kashmir in the local print and electronic media reflects these trends clearly:
- The father was killed/murdered/stabbed by his son/nearest relative;
- A person was butchered/beheaded/blasted by the gun-holders;
- A woman/girl was raped and murdered by security forces/outsiders/local men;
- Hundreds of theft, cheating, burglaries, fraud, pick-pocketing, threat and robbery cases take place daily in the valley;
- About 750 cases of suicide involving both men and women of all age groups in rural as well as urban areas were reported in past three months;
- Police caught many gangs of drug suppliers and drug users/abusers in a local college/school. Many youngsters, both boys and girls, were using drugs regularly.
- A college-girl was followed, teased, hit and murdered by her institute male students in a posh colony in Srinagar;
- Nudity, moral degradation, ethical degeneration and violation of cultural values are spreading fast among the Kashmiri youth;
- The parents in general feel perturbed about the involvement of their children of teen-age groups in deviant and delinquent tendencies and activities;
- Violence against women has reached to its climax in the murders of Romana, a school girl, and Farzana, a married woman;
- Domestic violence against women, which reflects in their harassement, dowry demand, bride-burning, separation and wife-beating, has increased and intensified in Kashmir significantly; and
- The cyber crime has also started invading the valley of Kashmir
The above statements reported/quoted by local media do not stand for abstract theoretical propositions but essentially portray the actual situation of crime in present-day Kashmir. They also reflect a transition of the Kashmiri society from a crime-free society to crime-ful society. Again, this reveals a basic shift in the Kashmiri society from a crime-to a crime-prone situation which has got minimum degree of social legitimacy and institutional support.
Causes
Crimes have been explained as “those acts or failures to act that are considered to be so detrimental to the well being of a society, as judged by its prevailing standards, that action regarding them cannot be entrusted to private initiative or to haphazard methods but must be taken by an organized society in accordance with tested procedures.” Ideally speaking, the crime takes birth in a situation characterized with certain degree of anomie. It has five specific characteristics of harmful to society, intentional act, legally forbidden, having criminal intent and having prescribed penality. Emphasizing on the causation of the crime, an eminent sociologist, Robert K. Merton, says that “poverty does not cause crime but when poverty is linked with a cultural emphasis on monetary services as a dominant goal and a poor individual cannot compete, because of his poverty, for the cultural values, then criminal behavior is the normal outcome.”
Sociologically, the emergence of crime in Kashmir can be explained in terms of factors which explain such a development in other human societies. The environment of inequality, completion and conflict is created through the processes of modernization, urbanization, industrialization, material development and so on. In this particular social dynamics, the sociological-pathological factors of social disorder, disorganization, lesser socialization, least family-school social control could not be avoided and were considered as co-relates of this grand transformation.
Again, the features of deviance and delinquency, especially among early youngsters, could also not be avoided. The added factors to the emergence of criminal trends were media exposure and Information Technology [IT] revolution. In actuality, these processes proved the accelerating factors. This entire situation led to the emergence of crime as a social trend which attracted the younger elements in society and was solely aimed at to get maximum material gains. This has happened in other societies irrespective of their differences in region, religion, culture and ideology. This has also happened in the Kashmiri society where crime is nowadays viewed as a social phenomenon.
But, the different feature of the emergence of crime in Kashmir is its relationship with the armed conflict between militants and security forces from 1989. In fact, this conflict and its implications proved accelerative and intensificatory factor for crime. It follows that conflict increased and intensified the criminal trends and provided much-needed social-institutional support and organized form to the existing crime. Though the introduction of gun was not socially legitimized, it provided the minimum motivation for its personal and partisan ends. The contribution of the gun to the crime also dehumanized the entire social ethos, particularly agencies and organizations of crime control.
The political factor made the situation more complex. Some parties, especially media at the global level, characterized Kashmir as a ‘global spot of crime and terrorism’. All these factors led to a cumulative effect of’ criminalization’ of the Kashmiri society according to which every sector and section of this society has developed a criminal trait at individual as well as collective level. In this background, all in-family and out-family activities have developed violent character and every individual lives under the threat to his life, dignity, property and status.
It was reported that thousands of men and women [old, young and children] were murdered during the conflict period of last 19 years. Though murder in itself is considered an inhuman act in a civilized society, these murders were carried out in most dehumanized forms. While somebody’s throat was slit or head separated, others were butchered in to pieces or blasted alive. All these extreme form of brutalized acts were in addition to the war crimes committed by the security forces. There is no authentic statistics available about the number of persons murdered in Kashmir during last two decades. According to an unofficial but very conservative estimate, more than 70,000 people [who composed of militants, army-security forces and common people] were killed intentionally in the war-like conflict situation. Most of these killings represent extreme type of murders by all parties involved in the conflict.
The second major type of crime committed in Kashmir was molestation and rape of women, especially of younger ages. The fact stands with sufficient evidence that this crime was started in Kashmir by the Indian security forces. The famous incident of mass rape in village Kunan Poshpora in the valley in 1990 is still remembered as the first of its horrible experience. Subsequently, the outsiders [undesirable] were involved in this crime in different areas of the valley, urban as well as rural. Finally, the local too committed this crime at many places and at different times. The criminal trend of molestation, rape and murder of women by inside or outside elements has been established in the valley.
In this case also, correct and authentic statistical details are nit available. In the decade of 1980s, the National Crime Records Bureau, New Delhi gave the following information about number of rape cases in J&K state:
[i] 1985 207 cases
[ii] 1986 187 cases
[iii] 1987 171 cases
[iv] 1988 211 cases
[v] 1989 176 cases
If this trend of increasing rape cases continued afterwards, as is expected logically, the number of such cases must have gone up to thousands. There is no official data on the occurrence of rape in Kashmir after 1989 when militancy started here. It has been observed that hundreds of rape and mass-rape cases have taken place in the valley. But, these cases have neither been reported nor documented properly.
(Rising Kashmir)
Surviving a Paradigm Shift
Kashmir's libraries have to offer more than new magazines and old books to pull in interested readers
Declining reading culture affects attendance at libraries in Kashmir
Farzana Syed (Kashmir Images)
Srinagar: The public libraries in the Valley are witnessing a continuous decline in the number of visitors although there has been some increase in hr number of libraries.
Experts believe that the decline in the number of the library visitors is due to the decline in the reading culture and availability of other alternatives like internet to the people.
The library officials at various libraries say they don’t receive even an average number of the visitors which they directly attribute to the declining reading habits among the people.
The chief librarian of the Allama Iqbal Library at University of Kashmir, Riyaz Rufai says, “With easy access to the computers and the internet people prefer surfing the net which they could do anywhere” – at home, office or even sitting in a garden. “This is perhaps less cumbersome and that’s why it’s preferred over visiting the libraries”.
Rufai also feels that the library systems all need to be quite advanced and updated as per the requirements of the people. “The libraries should upgrade and update themselves as per the needs of the readers so that the readers find them reasonably exploitable. The library staff also should be qualified enough to cater to the readers’ needs reasonably well.”
As per the varsity library officials, the Allama Iqbal Library is the only library that gets somewhat handsome chunk of readers. However, they too point out that students visit libraries mostly when the exams are around or underway.
Talking to ‘Kashmir Images’ many of the university students and scholars said that other than the university’s central library, they don’t even know about the existence of other public libraries.
“I visit only Allama Iqbal Library because it has got many facilities available for the students and it is updated as well,” said a student.
Out of the 77 libraries present in the Valley, only the Central Library and the SPS Library of the Department of Libraries have got the internet facility, while all other public libraries throughout the Valley ate without the facility.
Declining reading culture affects attendance at libraries in Kashmir
Farzana Syed (Kashmir Images)
Srinagar: The public libraries in the Valley are witnessing a continuous decline in the number of visitors although there has been some increase in hr number of libraries.
Experts believe that the decline in the number of the library visitors is due to the decline in the reading culture and availability of other alternatives like internet to the people.
The library officials at various libraries say they don’t receive even an average number of the visitors which they directly attribute to the declining reading habits among the people.
The chief librarian of the Allama Iqbal Library at University of Kashmir, Riyaz Rufai says, “With easy access to the computers and the internet people prefer surfing the net which they could do anywhere” – at home, office or even sitting in a garden. “This is perhaps less cumbersome and that’s why it’s preferred over visiting the libraries”.
Rufai also feels that the library systems all need to be quite advanced and updated as per the requirements of the people. “The libraries should upgrade and update themselves as per the needs of the readers so that the readers find them reasonably exploitable. The library staff also should be qualified enough to cater to the readers’ needs reasonably well.”
As per the varsity library officials, the Allama Iqbal Library is the only library that gets somewhat handsome chunk of readers. However, they too point out that students visit libraries mostly when the exams are around or underway.
Talking to ‘Kashmir Images’ many of the university students and scholars said that other than the university’s central library, they don’t even know about the existence of other public libraries.
“I visit only Allama Iqbal Library because it has got many facilities available for the students and it is updated as well,” said a student.
Out of the 77 libraries present in the Valley, only the Central Library and the SPS Library of the Department of Libraries have got the internet facility, while all other public libraries throughout the Valley ate without the facility.
Higher Education is Good, but are late Marriages Bad?
Study indicates that Kashmir is following a global social phenomenon, but Kashmiri public sees politics in every societal change
Higher education cause of late marriages: KU study
Abid Bashir (Rising Kashmir)
Srinagar: A new study of Kashmir University Monday revealed that attainment of higher education has contributed to the emergence of late marriage in Kashmir.
The study conducted by the Department of Sociology under Prof Bashir Ahmad Dabla, who was the chief investigator of the study on the trend of late marriages in Valley, reveals: “Turmoil, acute poverty, increasing unemployment, practice of dowry, attainment of modern education are the main reasons for the emergence of late marriages.”
The report says that brides in Kashmir are aging as the suitable matches are hardly available. The average marriageable age of the female has shot up from 21 to 28 years. As far as the males, the age of marriage has gone up to 32 years from 24 years in normal times, reveals the study.
“The average age of marriage of the females has shot up from 20.7 to 27.83 years. As far as the males, the age of marriage has risen to 31.53 years from 23.63 years in normal times,” the study reported
“Majority of 88 per cent of respondents maintained that the strife in Kashmir has contributed to the emergence of late marriages,” the study reveals.
Around 14.13 percent people felt that Kashmiri youth were either killed or disturbed during the conflict which resulted in late marriage, the study says. “14.13 respondents said that conflict situation created imbalance in sex ratio resulting in less availability of suitable boys for girls,” says Dabla.
The survey also concluded that around 11.26 people felt conflict created a situation of general unemployment and poverty.
Alarmed by the phenomenon, the Muslim clergy has now stepped in to avoid the social denegation of Kashmir. “Our ulema, academics, media and members of civil society have to raise their voices to save society from destruction. The menace of extravagance is leading to problems like late marriages and self-immolation of girls,” said Mufti Nazir Ahmad Qasimi, the vice-rector of Darul-Uloom Rahimiya, Bandipora.
Even the clerics have established marriage bureaus to ensure simple marriages to avoid the ‘social catastrophe’. Humsafar Marriage Counseling Center established by Islamic Dawaa Center has conducted 300 marriages without any pomp and show. Such is its fame that more and more people are now approaching the center for having their wards married in simple way.
“We have got offers from different cities for setting up the branches for the center. We have solemnized 300 marriages and many more are in pipeline. I think the caste system is proving a major factor for the late marriages,” said Director HMCC Fayaz Ahmad Zaroor.
Higher education cause of late marriages: KU study
Abid Bashir (Rising Kashmir)
Srinagar: A new study of Kashmir University Monday revealed that attainment of higher education has contributed to the emergence of late marriage in Kashmir.
The study conducted by the Department of Sociology under Prof Bashir Ahmad Dabla, who was the chief investigator of the study on the trend of late marriages in Valley, reveals: “Turmoil, acute poverty, increasing unemployment, practice of dowry, attainment of modern education are the main reasons for the emergence of late marriages.”
The report says that brides in Kashmir are aging as the suitable matches are hardly available. The average marriageable age of the female has shot up from 21 to 28 years. As far as the males, the age of marriage has gone up to 32 years from 24 years in normal times, reveals the study.
“The average age of marriage of the females has shot up from 20.7 to 27.83 years. As far as the males, the age of marriage has risen to 31.53 years from 23.63 years in normal times,” the study reported
“Majority of 88 per cent of respondents maintained that the strife in Kashmir has contributed to the emergence of late marriages,” the study reveals.
Around 14.13 percent people felt that Kashmiri youth were either killed or disturbed during the conflict which resulted in late marriage, the study says. “14.13 respondents said that conflict situation created imbalance in sex ratio resulting in less availability of suitable boys for girls,” says Dabla.
The survey also concluded that around 11.26 people felt conflict created a situation of general unemployment and poverty.
Alarmed by the phenomenon, the Muslim clergy has now stepped in to avoid the social denegation of Kashmir. “Our ulema, academics, media and members of civil society have to raise their voices to save society from destruction. The menace of extravagance is leading to problems like late marriages and self-immolation of girls,” said Mufti Nazir Ahmad Qasimi, the vice-rector of Darul-Uloom Rahimiya, Bandipora.
Even the clerics have established marriage bureaus to ensure simple marriages to avoid the ‘social catastrophe’. Humsafar Marriage Counseling Center established by Islamic Dawaa Center has conducted 300 marriages without any pomp and show. Such is its fame that more and more people are now approaching the center for having their wards married in simple way.
“We have got offers from different cities for setting up the branches for the center. We have solemnized 300 marriages and many more are in pipeline. I think the caste system is proving a major factor for the late marriages,” said Director HMCC Fayaz Ahmad Zaroor.
Interesting Numbers Related to Water Supply in Srinagar
Note that capacity of a water processing facility is expressed in units millions of gallons per day (MGD). A pump having a capacity of 1 MGD is capable of moving 1 million gallons of water during 24 hours (one day)
Srinagar requires 62 MGD water against availability of 48.16 MGD
Srinagar: Taking serious note of slow pace of execution of distribution system of Doodganga and Rangil Phase-II, Water Treatment Plants (WTP) by Economic Reconstruction Agency (ERA), Minister of State for U&D, PHE and Tourism, Nasir Aslam Wani has fixed a deadline for ERA to complete the delivery system of Doodganga and Rangil Phase-II WTP up to August 19 and October 2, 2009 respectively.
The Minister gave these instructions to ERA authority during his extensive tour to Rangil Phase-II and Doodganga Water Treatment Plants today.
Aslam said that 10 MGD of Rangil phase-II and 2.25 MGD of Doodganga WTP are ready for commission, but due to the delay in the completion of distribution system the same could not be inaugurated. He directed the ERA authorities to speed up the execution work on war footing and stressed upon the concerned to complete the execution of work on due date or be ready to face consequences.
He stressed upon ERA authorities for timely completion of all under execution projects in general and Doodganga and Rangil phase-II in particular so that the people of Srinagar city could be benefited by these mega projects at the earliest.
He instructed Chief Engineer, Public Health Engineering, Irrigation and Flood Control (PHE), to operate tanker water supply services round the clock to those areas which are facing shortage of potable drinking water.
The Chief Engineer informed the Minister that the present requirement of the city is 62 MGD against availability of 48.16 MGD.
"The remaining deficit would be covered soon after the commissioning of Rangil phase-II and 2.25 Doodganga Water Treatment Plants," he said. "To cater to the present demands of Greater Srinagar, the major works under taken for execution include revamping of age old WTPs, improvements in the delivery of Nishat and Doodganga assistance by ERA and execution of 10 MGD Water Treatment Plants each at Tangar and Sukhmag under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM)."
He said the major works to be taken to cater to the future demands of Greater Srinagar included construction of tunnel branch from main tunnel for new Ganderbal power project as a joint venture with Power Development Corporation (PDC) , raw water conductor from proposal tunnel from Rangil to Nishat, revamping of existing distribution system, upgradation of the source of Doodganga system, additional 2 MGD WTP in water supply zone 3rd, 6MGD WTP at Tangar zone 5th and 3.5 MGD WTP at Sukhnar zone. Beside, 10 MGD WTP at Harvan, 20 MGD WTP at Rangil and 10 MGD WTP at Alusten, he said.
(Kashmir Times)
Srinagar requires 62 MGD water against availability of 48.16 MGD
Srinagar: Taking serious note of slow pace of execution of distribution system of Doodganga and Rangil Phase-II, Water Treatment Plants (WTP) by Economic Reconstruction Agency (ERA), Minister of State for U&D, PHE and Tourism, Nasir Aslam Wani has fixed a deadline for ERA to complete the delivery system of Doodganga and Rangil Phase-II WTP up to August 19 and October 2, 2009 respectively.
The Minister gave these instructions to ERA authority during his extensive tour to Rangil Phase-II and Doodganga Water Treatment Plants today.
Aslam said that 10 MGD of Rangil phase-II and 2.25 MGD of Doodganga WTP are ready for commission, but due to the delay in the completion of distribution system the same could not be inaugurated. He directed the ERA authorities to speed up the execution work on war footing and stressed upon the concerned to complete the execution of work on due date or be ready to face consequences.
He stressed upon ERA authorities for timely completion of all under execution projects in general and Doodganga and Rangil phase-II in particular so that the people of Srinagar city could be benefited by these mega projects at the earliest.
He instructed Chief Engineer, Public Health Engineering, Irrigation and Flood Control (PHE), to operate tanker water supply services round the clock to those areas which are facing shortage of potable drinking water.
The Chief Engineer informed the Minister that the present requirement of the city is 62 MGD against availability of 48.16 MGD.
"The remaining deficit would be covered soon after the commissioning of Rangil phase-II and 2.25 Doodganga Water Treatment Plants," he said. "To cater to the present demands of Greater Srinagar, the major works under taken for execution include revamping of age old WTPs, improvements in the delivery of Nishat and Doodganga assistance by ERA and execution of 10 MGD Water Treatment Plants each at Tangar and Sukhmag under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM)."
He said the major works to be taken to cater to the future demands of Greater Srinagar included construction of tunnel branch from main tunnel for new Ganderbal power project as a joint venture with Power Development Corporation (PDC) , raw water conductor from proposal tunnel from Rangil to Nishat, revamping of existing distribution system, upgradation of the source of Doodganga system, additional 2 MGD WTP in water supply zone 3rd, 6MGD WTP at Tangar zone 5th and 3.5 MGD WTP at Sukhnar zone. Beside, 10 MGD WTP at Harvan, 20 MGD WTP at Rangil and 10 MGD WTP at Alusten, he said.
(Kashmir Times)
Kashmir Produces a World Class Mountaineer
The mantle falls on Nasim Akhtar
Kashmiri to lead Everest expedition
Srinagar: Nesim Akhtar, an experienced mountaineer from Kashmir would lead an expedition in 2011 from Northeast to Mount Everest, the world’s highest peak.
Akhtar, who is also a member of the Governing Council of the Indian Mountaineering Federation for the past 10 years would lead the Everest expedition, sources said. Noted mountaineer Colonel Neeraj Rana and senior journalist and experienced mountaineer Pranay Bordoloi will be the deputy leaders.
Kashmir for its mountain peaks like Zabarwan, Harmuk, Kolai and Tratakuti is known as mountaineers’ paradise.
As part of the first pre-Everest expedition, a 30-member team will attempt to scale Kolahai peak in Kashmir after undergoing a training session at the Indian Army-run Jawahar Institute of Mountaineering in Pahalgam.
The final team of 15 members for the main expedition to scale Everest would be chosen from among these participants at the three pre-Everest summits of which two would be undertaken this year and the third in 2010.
The first of the three pre-Everest expeditions will be undertaken by the North East Adventure Foundation ahead of the first Everest expedition from the Northeast in 2011.
Of the 25 participants for the three pre-Everest expeditions, 13 are from Assam and 12 are from other northeastern states.
The team includes 14 young women from the region.
Kashmiri to lead Everest expedition
Srinagar: Nesim Akhtar, an experienced mountaineer from Kashmir would lead an expedition in 2011 from Northeast to Mount Everest, the world’s highest peak.
Akhtar, who is also a member of the Governing Council of the Indian Mountaineering Federation for the past 10 years would lead the Everest expedition, sources said. Noted mountaineer Colonel Neeraj Rana and senior journalist and experienced mountaineer Pranay Bordoloi will be the deputy leaders.
Kashmir for its mountain peaks like Zabarwan, Harmuk, Kolai and Tratakuti is known as mountaineers’ paradise.
As part of the first pre-Everest expedition, a 30-member team will attempt to scale Kolahai peak in Kashmir after undergoing a training session at the Indian Army-run Jawahar Institute of Mountaineering in Pahalgam.
The final team of 15 members for the main expedition to scale Everest would be chosen from among these participants at the three pre-Everest summits of which two would be undertaken this year and the third in 2010.
The first of the three pre-Everest expeditions will be undertaken by the North East Adventure Foundation ahead of the first Everest expedition from the Northeast in 2011.
Of the 25 participants for the three pre-Everest expeditions, 13 are from Assam and 12 are from other northeastern states.
The team includes 14 young women from the region.
Either as Vyeth or Hydaspes, Jhelum is Eternal
An editorial in the Greater Kashmir ponders about the future of a great river that sustains a shallow minded society
National Shame
Jhelum is not just a water body that needs attention of environmentalists. It is the repository of our history and ethos, emotions and imaginations, gossips and folktales; the popular culture of Kashmir is written over the drops of water that make Jhelum. Not only our nostalgia, but the harsh realities of life are all floating on the surface of this river. It is a part of our civilization as is Nile to Egypt and Indus to Sub-Continent.
Our apathy towards river Jhelum reflects the absence of consciousness at collective level. It is not like a slogan for any NGO, but a bitter truth that stares us all in the face. It speaks of the kind of people we have become. It is a grim reminder that unless we stand up for the things that are real, ambitious political goals, on both sides of the political divide, are far from doing any good to us. If the bounties of nature bestowed to us stand mercilessly spoiled at our hands, do we deserve respect and authority in the land; we don’t. Never. The photograph of river Jhelum that appeared on the front page of this newspaper on 22 July was enough to tell us in the face that as a people we have committed a grave crime against our own self. The repelling scene of the filth amassed around the pillars of a bridge on Jhelum hit like a deadly arrow in the bosom. And it is not the deliberate selection of the spot to earn attention. Take any patch of this long river body, the level of pollution is the same. Wherever the river passes through a populous area it is ‘gifted’ with polythene bags filled with domestic refuse, sewage, and all kinds of pollutants that we produce in the daily course of life. In our estimation we try to keep our compounds clean but we forget that our lifeline is getting choked.
The benign way to describe this attitude is to call such a people as uncivilized. There is no need to get angry over being called as uncivilized. It is not the cynicism of judgment but the expression of pain that is inflicted on seeing Jhelum as the dumping basin of the waste that Kashmiris produce. Before nature announces its final verdict and Jhelum becomes a thing of past the conscious amongst us must stand up to recompense the injustice inflicted on the river of Kashmir.
People irrespective of the divisions of politics, economy and ideology must join hands to save Jhelum. It is quite unfortunate that whenever we talk of environmental degradation only Dal lake becomes the centre of attraction. Jhelum rarely occupies the centre stage. The river in the backyard is crying for help and our indifference towards this dying water body has disastrous consequences. The government of the day has a huge role to play as the resources to clean up Jhelum can only be mustered by them. People, without politicizing the matter, can impress upon the government that thus far no further. The scheme of beautification of this river taken up by the previous government some years back must continue, with aggressive inputs, to give a sight soothing to eyes and not painfully repelling. For this purpose two things need to be ensured; one the term beautification needs to be replaced by revival, as it goes beyond the shallow and misleading politics. Second, the work on different patches of the river must involve the population of the respective areas.
Unless people get involved the desired level of results is not going to be achieved. From being some government scheme to prettify some selected portions of the embankments, government should think of converting it into a huge task of reviving a river that belongs to a people. This needs to be done before it is just water under the bridge.
National Shame
Jhelum is not just a water body that needs attention of environmentalists. It is the repository of our history and ethos, emotions and imaginations, gossips and folktales; the popular culture of Kashmir is written over the drops of water that make Jhelum. Not only our nostalgia, but the harsh realities of life are all floating on the surface of this river. It is a part of our civilization as is Nile to Egypt and Indus to Sub-Continent.
Our apathy towards river Jhelum reflects the absence of consciousness at collective level. It is not like a slogan for any NGO, but a bitter truth that stares us all in the face. It speaks of the kind of people we have become. It is a grim reminder that unless we stand up for the things that are real, ambitious political goals, on both sides of the political divide, are far from doing any good to us. If the bounties of nature bestowed to us stand mercilessly spoiled at our hands, do we deserve respect and authority in the land; we don’t. Never. The photograph of river Jhelum that appeared on the front page of this newspaper on 22 July was enough to tell us in the face that as a people we have committed a grave crime against our own self. The repelling scene of the filth amassed around the pillars of a bridge on Jhelum hit like a deadly arrow in the bosom. And it is not the deliberate selection of the spot to earn attention. Take any patch of this long river body, the level of pollution is the same. Wherever the river passes through a populous area it is ‘gifted’ with polythene bags filled with domestic refuse, sewage, and all kinds of pollutants that we produce in the daily course of life. In our estimation we try to keep our compounds clean but we forget that our lifeline is getting choked.
The benign way to describe this attitude is to call such a people as uncivilized. There is no need to get angry over being called as uncivilized. It is not the cynicism of judgment but the expression of pain that is inflicted on seeing Jhelum as the dumping basin of the waste that Kashmiris produce. Before nature announces its final verdict and Jhelum becomes a thing of past the conscious amongst us must stand up to recompense the injustice inflicted on the river of Kashmir.
People irrespective of the divisions of politics, economy and ideology must join hands to save Jhelum. It is quite unfortunate that whenever we talk of environmental degradation only Dal lake becomes the centre of attraction. Jhelum rarely occupies the centre stage. The river in the backyard is crying for help and our indifference towards this dying water body has disastrous consequences. The government of the day has a huge role to play as the resources to clean up Jhelum can only be mustered by them. People, without politicizing the matter, can impress upon the government that thus far no further. The scheme of beautification of this river taken up by the previous government some years back must continue, with aggressive inputs, to give a sight soothing to eyes and not painfully repelling. For this purpose two things need to be ensured; one the term beautification needs to be replaced by revival, as it goes beyond the shallow and misleading politics. Second, the work on different patches of the river must involve the population of the respective areas.
Unless people get involved the desired level of results is not going to be achieved. From being some government scheme to prettify some selected portions of the embankments, government should think of converting it into a huge task of reviving a river that belongs to a people. This needs to be done before it is just water under the bridge.
Friday, July 17, 2009
The Dal Conservation Authority
Mohsin believes that restoring Dal to its pristine beauty should be a priority for the government, and suggests creation of the Dal Conservation Authority
(Mohsin Wani, 24, was born in Srinagar, received early schooling in Srinagar and graduated in computer sciences. Mohsin completed a MBA degree in Information Technology, and is currently preparing for state and central level civil/administrative service examinations. Winner of numerous awards in debating, essay competitions and quiz programs in school and colleges, Mohsin spends leisure time listening to soft music, reading books and watching cricket.)
DYING DAL: Can we save this asset?
Almighty Allah has gifted human beings with supreme intelligence and innumerable qualities that steered him through the change of nature and equipped him with conditions sustainable for his survival and wellbeing. From centuries man has used his intelligence, skill, and wisdom to unfold the complex mysteries of nature and science alike. From unveiling the path of planets to modern day medical discoveries, from tapping solar energy to present day nuclear energy and from measuring the depth of oceans to maneuvering different space missions, man has scuffle with time to fill its appetite. While I was going through the ECO-Plus (Special supplement of GK on environment) sometime back, it sends a chill down the spine to read the shocking revelations made by different contributing authors.
It seems that we have left no stone unturned to make use of all the divine qualities gifted to us by God in polluting our water bodies, lakes and rivers all alike and especially the “Dal-lake” has been the brutal victim of our mischief. A non-local resident be it national or foreign may not have heard of Dargah-sharief or Shankaracharya, but he will be well introduced with the name Dal-lake. So, it’s not just a lake but is the brightest jewel in the crown of our civilizational and cultural-heritage and is our identity. Apart from socio-cultural and economic importance it binds its different stakeholders with an emotional bond that made them to be concerned about its ailing health which has turned into a disease and is on the verge of taking the shape of a social epidemic.
I was amazed to learn as one of the contributing authors has written that the government has put the Dal-lake project on priority list since 1970, but no tangible signs of improvement. The ‘bailout’ may be a new buzz word in the public domain due to the recent economic recession, but the Dal-lake has been ‘bailout’ many a times since 1970’s and no recovery yet. As another author narrates that an alternate Dal would have been created had the money spent on it been properly utilized. Though the people have plundered its chastity from time to time in various forms, the successive regimes have also been equally responsible for bolstering their political ego’s through it and thus adding to its misery, otherwise the journey from 25 sq. kms to 14 sq. kms would have been an overnight one.
Currently the problem of Dal-lake is a complex one and the myriad dimensions of which have already been highlighted by various authors in the Eco-plus. From manual dwelling to raising toxic levels, from backwater channels to STP’s and from re-aligning the shikara’s to rehabilitation of Dal-community, everything has been portrayed on the big canvas but the larger picture still seems to be blur. Although, one thing that is visible from the entire document is that the government lacks a comprehensive action plan on it. Lack of coordination between different agencies working on it is evident and the efforts are a complete mismatch with the gigantic problems those have engulfed the entire Dal-lake and beyond now.
Restoring the Dal-lake back to its original beauty is a mammoth task and the government needs to bring all its stakeholders and civil society on a common platform. The government needs to rededicate itself with a professional approach and has to be at the forefront in the whole paramount exercise. Their seems to be an urgent need to create a separate “Dal Conservation Authority” (DCA) and should be given the status of a department in the j&K government. Its work should be under the direct supervision and control of Chief Minister. The DCA will work as a central command centre and should have various sections under its deptt. Viz ;(Finance, Housing, IT, R&D, etc) so that all the authorities could be brought under one roof and blame-game could be avoided. The DCA should not be over burdened with babus and should have adequate representation from scientists, civil society and voluntary organizations. Also, the time has come to create a separate “Dal protection force”, It’s men should be trained as life guard on one hand and on the other they will constantly monitor the health and hygiene of dal. They will also check the elements constantly polluting the lake, especially from dalgate to Nehru park belt and its vicinity, which is the most contaminated area.
The missing link in the entire exercise on the part of the government has been about ‘awareness’. The awareness about ailing health of Dal should be a regular one and cannot be time bound. Print and electronic media should be extensively used and sufficient literature should be distributed at appropriate places. Last, but not least June-5 every year should be observed as “Dal preservation day”, so as to recall our stand and commitment for bringing Dal-lake back to its pristine glory. With these words, I would like to say it’s high time for all of us to awake before time will freeze this rare treasure of ours on the extinction-list.
(Mohsin Wani, 24, was born in Srinagar, received early schooling in Srinagar and graduated in computer sciences. Mohsin completed a MBA degree in Information Technology, and is currently preparing for state and central level civil/administrative service examinations. Winner of numerous awards in debating, essay competitions and quiz programs in school and colleges, Mohsin spends leisure time listening to soft music, reading books and watching cricket.)
DYING DAL: Can we save this asset?
Almighty Allah has gifted human beings with supreme intelligence and innumerable qualities that steered him through the change of nature and equipped him with conditions sustainable for his survival and wellbeing. From centuries man has used his intelligence, skill, and wisdom to unfold the complex mysteries of nature and science alike. From unveiling the path of planets to modern day medical discoveries, from tapping solar energy to present day nuclear energy and from measuring the depth of oceans to maneuvering different space missions, man has scuffle with time to fill its appetite. While I was going through the ECO-Plus (Special supplement of GK on environment) sometime back, it sends a chill down the spine to read the shocking revelations made by different contributing authors.
It seems that we have left no stone unturned to make use of all the divine qualities gifted to us by God in polluting our water bodies, lakes and rivers all alike and especially the “Dal-lake” has been the brutal victim of our mischief. A non-local resident be it national or foreign may not have heard of Dargah-sharief or Shankaracharya, but he will be well introduced with the name Dal-lake. So, it’s not just a lake but is the brightest jewel in the crown of our civilizational and cultural-heritage and is our identity. Apart from socio-cultural and economic importance it binds its different stakeholders with an emotional bond that made them to be concerned about its ailing health which has turned into a disease and is on the verge of taking the shape of a social epidemic.
I was amazed to learn as one of the contributing authors has written that the government has put the Dal-lake project on priority list since 1970, but no tangible signs of improvement. The ‘bailout’ may be a new buzz word in the public domain due to the recent economic recession, but the Dal-lake has been ‘bailout’ many a times since 1970’s and no recovery yet. As another author narrates that an alternate Dal would have been created had the money spent on it been properly utilized. Though the people have plundered its chastity from time to time in various forms, the successive regimes have also been equally responsible for bolstering their political ego’s through it and thus adding to its misery, otherwise the journey from 25 sq. kms to 14 sq. kms would have been an overnight one.
Currently the problem of Dal-lake is a complex one and the myriad dimensions of which have already been highlighted by various authors in the Eco-plus. From manual dwelling to raising toxic levels, from backwater channels to STP’s and from re-aligning the shikara’s to rehabilitation of Dal-community, everything has been portrayed on the big canvas but the larger picture still seems to be blur. Although, one thing that is visible from the entire document is that the government lacks a comprehensive action plan on it. Lack of coordination between different agencies working on it is evident and the efforts are a complete mismatch with the gigantic problems those have engulfed the entire Dal-lake and beyond now.
Restoring the Dal-lake back to its original beauty is a mammoth task and the government needs to bring all its stakeholders and civil society on a common platform. The government needs to rededicate itself with a professional approach and has to be at the forefront in the whole paramount exercise. Their seems to be an urgent need to create a separate “Dal Conservation Authority” (DCA) and should be given the status of a department in the j&K government. Its work should be under the direct supervision and control of Chief Minister. The DCA will work as a central command centre and should have various sections under its deptt. Viz ;(Finance, Housing, IT, R&D, etc) so that all the authorities could be brought under one roof and blame-game could be avoided. The DCA should not be over burdened with babus and should have adequate representation from scientists, civil society and voluntary organizations. Also, the time has come to create a separate “Dal protection force”, It’s men should be trained as life guard on one hand and on the other they will constantly monitor the health and hygiene of dal. They will also check the elements constantly polluting the lake, especially from dalgate to Nehru park belt and its vicinity, which is the most contaminated area.
The missing link in the entire exercise on the part of the government has been about ‘awareness’. The awareness about ailing health of Dal should be a regular one and cannot be time bound. Print and electronic media should be extensively used and sufficient literature should be distributed at appropriate places. Last, but not least June-5 every year should be observed as “Dal preservation day”, so as to recall our stand and commitment for bringing Dal-lake back to its pristine glory. With these words, I would like to say it’s high time for all of us to awake before time will freeze this rare treasure of ours on the extinction-list.
Reconstructing Kashmir Destroyed by the "Big One"
Zafar feels that shattered hopes of one and half million Kashmiris living in the earth-quake affected areas have again been lifted by the heartening news that China will reconstruct and rehabilitate three major cities of Pakistan controlled Kashmir
(Mr. Zafar Iqbal, 32, was born in village Tarar, Rawalakot, in the Poonch district of Azad Jammu and Kashmir. He did his early schooling in a private school, matriculating through examinations conducted by the Mirpur Educational Board, and completed his higher secondary education from the Government Degree College in Rawalakot. He received his B.A. in Political Science from the University of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (Rawalakot campus), and his M.A. in Mass Communication from the Punjab University in Pakistan. He received international scholarships to attend the International Summer School at the University of Oslo in 2005 receiving a Graduate Diploma in Media Studies, and the Nottingham Trent University, U.K., in 2006-2008 receiving M.A. in Media & Globalization. Mr. Iqbal has been a journalist working in the print and TV media since 1999 and is very active in human rights, earthquake relief and rehabilitation especially involving women and children, and inter-faith harmony. He is the Founder and Executive Director of the Press for Peace (PFP) and the Founder-President of the Environmental Journalists Forum, both based in Muzaffarabad. Mr. Iqbal has been invited to numerous national and international seminars and workshops related to human development.)
Post earthquake scenario in Kashmir
The shattered hopes of one and half million Kashmiris living in the earth-quake affected area’s have again been lifted by the heartening news of a recent agreement signed between China and Pakistan.
The agreement aims to reconstruct and rehabilitate three major cities of Pakistan controlled Kashmir. The billions dollars project termed “build back better” conceived from the Clinton Tsunami Slogan envisions the provision of modern life facilities in Muzaffarabad, Rawalakot and Bagh. The historically worst earthquake in region which claimed above 73,000 people devastated all infrastructures in three districts of Azad Kashmir. But, it is heart-rending to state the in spite of generous financial support from world community, the rehabilitation work in affected areas has not been started even after three and half years and it is still in limbo.
Previous and the government incumbent of Azad Jammu and Kashmir have been sugar-coating the innocent citizens that affected areas would be turned into Paris and Dubai soon. Conversely, the reality makes mockery of forged statements and groundless claims of rulers that overwhelmingly majority of victims are still living a miserable life due to incompletion of schools, roads, houses and other public buildings as well as at the hands of red-tapism. The stories of corruption and laxity of officials are prevalent; specifically of those departments directly responsible for carrying into effect the rehabilitation process are major target of public criticism and severe dress-down.
Though more than 80 per cent people in affected areas have received their compensation funds for the reconstruction of homes, but their houses have not been completed yet due to numerous factors particularly in economic sense like inappropriate planning in designs, increase in prices of construction material, non- availability of required skilled force, the delaying of payments of funds and red-tapism. Today, a huge number of people are still living in damaged or rickety buildings because of lack of alternative residences. Some areas have been demarcated to be under fault lines; therefore, the owners of such lands need substitute properties for their permanent settlements but the commitments and plans of construction of housing towns make their existence only in files.
Moreover, a huge number of schools and health centres are waiting for their buildings and shelters. Officials admit that only 274 schools out of 2706 educational institutions were built which means about two hundred seventy five thousand students mostly children out of total three hundred thousand are still studying without shelter. Likewise, majority from 176 damaged buildings of health institutes also necessitates construction of new buildings.
Various new institutions were established by governments in the name of reconstruction; however, the performance of these institutions is not up to the mark or seems to be invisible to general public. Citizens believe that such newly established departments and organizations have become El- Dorado in respect of ‘job employment bureaus’ for influential people who lack any transparent system of recruitment and monitoring of their progress. For instance, if two departments like State Disaster Management Authority (SDMA) and Civil Defence are juxtaposed together, then SDMA is crystal clear manifestation of wastage of public money because similar department - Civil Defence, already exists and needs complete revamping.
The most significant department in all rebuilding process is Earthquake Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Authority (ERRA) which is under criticisms since its inception due to lack of coordination, inefficiency, alleged corruption, nepotism and favoritism. The misappropriations and embezzlement of billions of rupees in the ERRA have also been observed by government’s own institution like the National Assembly of Pakistan which categorically mentioned that the ERRA has not put into harness all allocated funds transparently and it must be monitored and checked by public representatives and other watchdogs.
Subsequent to the earthquake some international donors like Department for International Development (DFID) had allocated massive funds for restructuring and strengthening of local government’s bodies; nonetheless, their performance is continuously on the downhill day by day, for instance, in Muzaffarabad which is the largest city of the region, all roads and streets look like a filth depot due to lack of any coordinated cleaning apparatus. The congestion of traffic has also escalating the air and noise pollution and posing various environmental hazards and diseases to the public.
Growing urbanization demands the implementation of latest systems of recycling, solid waste management and green living, but, majority of officials in the local councils do not hold necessary orientation and training to enforce international development and environmental standards where as people are also not aware of the fact that injudicious utilization of natural resources poses threats to their life and natural resources of the region as well. Under this scenario, it is binding upon the public and policy makers to learn about such latest interventions of sustainable livelihood.
It is the responsibility of government to mitigate people’s concern and legitimate reservations about the rehabilitation process through practical measures. The stalwarts in the government should realize that in today’s era of growing transnational communications and awareness created by media public can not be hoodwinked through fake claims and bogus announcements about development and progress. The government has already squandered enough time in claims now people need pragmatic actions, not slogans and must help the helpless.
(Mr. Zafar Iqbal, 32, was born in village Tarar, Rawalakot, in the Poonch district of Azad Jammu and Kashmir. He did his early schooling in a private school, matriculating through examinations conducted by the Mirpur Educational Board, and completed his higher secondary education from the Government Degree College in Rawalakot. He received his B.A. in Political Science from the University of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (Rawalakot campus), and his M.A. in Mass Communication from the Punjab University in Pakistan. He received international scholarships to attend the International Summer School at the University of Oslo in 2005 receiving a Graduate Diploma in Media Studies, and the Nottingham Trent University, U.K., in 2006-2008 receiving M.A. in Media & Globalization. Mr. Iqbal has been a journalist working in the print and TV media since 1999 and is very active in human rights, earthquake relief and rehabilitation especially involving women and children, and inter-faith harmony. He is the Founder and Executive Director of the Press for Peace (PFP) and the Founder-President of the Environmental Journalists Forum, both based in Muzaffarabad. Mr. Iqbal has been invited to numerous national and international seminars and workshops related to human development.)
Post earthquake scenario in Kashmir
The shattered hopes of one and half million Kashmiris living in the earth-quake affected area’s have again been lifted by the heartening news of a recent agreement signed between China and Pakistan.
The agreement aims to reconstruct and rehabilitate three major cities of Pakistan controlled Kashmir. The billions dollars project termed “build back better” conceived from the Clinton Tsunami Slogan envisions the provision of modern life facilities in Muzaffarabad, Rawalakot and Bagh. The historically worst earthquake in region which claimed above 73,000 people devastated all infrastructures in three districts of Azad Kashmir. But, it is heart-rending to state the in spite of generous financial support from world community, the rehabilitation work in affected areas has not been started even after three and half years and it is still in limbo.
Previous and the government incumbent of Azad Jammu and Kashmir have been sugar-coating the innocent citizens that affected areas would be turned into Paris and Dubai soon. Conversely, the reality makes mockery of forged statements and groundless claims of rulers that overwhelmingly majority of victims are still living a miserable life due to incompletion of schools, roads, houses and other public buildings as well as at the hands of red-tapism. The stories of corruption and laxity of officials are prevalent; specifically of those departments directly responsible for carrying into effect the rehabilitation process are major target of public criticism and severe dress-down.
Though more than 80 per cent people in affected areas have received their compensation funds for the reconstruction of homes, but their houses have not been completed yet due to numerous factors particularly in economic sense like inappropriate planning in designs, increase in prices of construction material, non- availability of required skilled force, the delaying of payments of funds and red-tapism. Today, a huge number of people are still living in damaged or rickety buildings because of lack of alternative residences. Some areas have been demarcated to be under fault lines; therefore, the owners of such lands need substitute properties for their permanent settlements but the commitments and plans of construction of housing towns make their existence only in files.
Moreover, a huge number of schools and health centres are waiting for their buildings and shelters. Officials admit that only 274 schools out of 2706 educational institutions were built which means about two hundred seventy five thousand students mostly children out of total three hundred thousand are still studying without shelter. Likewise, majority from 176 damaged buildings of health institutes also necessitates construction of new buildings.
Various new institutions were established by governments in the name of reconstruction; however, the performance of these institutions is not up to the mark or seems to be invisible to general public. Citizens believe that such newly established departments and organizations have become El- Dorado in respect of ‘job employment bureaus’ for influential people who lack any transparent system of recruitment and monitoring of their progress. For instance, if two departments like State Disaster Management Authority (SDMA) and Civil Defence are juxtaposed together, then SDMA is crystal clear manifestation of wastage of public money because similar department - Civil Defence, already exists and needs complete revamping.
The most significant department in all rebuilding process is Earthquake Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Authority (ERRA) which is under criticisms since its inception due to lack of coordination, inefficiency, alleged corruption, nepotism and favoritism. The misappropriations and embezzlement of billions of rupees in the ERRA have also been observed by government’s own institution like the National Assembly of Pakistan which categorically mentioned that the ERRA has not put into harness all allocated funds transparently and it must be monitored and checked by public representatives and other watchdogs.
Subsequent to the earthquake some international donors like Department for International Development (DFID) had allocated massive funds for restructuring and strengthening of local government’s bodies; nonetheless, their performance is continuously on the downhill day by day, for instance, in Muzaffarabad which is the largest city of the region, all roads and streets look like a filth depot due to lack of any coordinated cleaning apparatus. The congestion of traffic has also escalating the air and noise pollution and posing various environmental hazards and diseases to the public.
Growing urbanization demands the implementation of latest systems of recycling, solid waste management and green living, but, majority of officials in the local councils do not hold necessary orientation and training to enforce international development and environmental standards where as people are also not aware of the fact that injudicious utilization of natural resources poses threats to their life and natural resources of the region as well. Under this scenario, it is binding upon the public and policy makers to learn about such latest interventions of sustainable livelihood.
It is the responsibility of government to mitigate people’s concern and legitimate reservations about the rehabilitation process through practical measures. The stalwarts in the government should realize that in today’s era of growing transnational communications and awareness created by media public can not be hoodwinked through fake claims and bogus announcements about development and progress. The government has already squandered enough time in claims now people need pragmatic actions, not slogans and must help the helpless.
Changing the Paradigm is a Hartal Infected Culture
A commentary in the Rising Kashmir reflects on Kashmiri mass hysteria to shoot first and ask questions later
Asrar story triggers rethink on social response to crime
‘We should think before we protest’
Srinagar: By Police standards Asrar Mushtaq’s murder was a plain case of crime and so was that of Amina Masoodi’s, a college girl from Kupwara. Kidnapping of a minor from Baramulla, too, was no different. But all these crimes triggered massive anti-government protests in North and Central Kashmir during which the first finger of suspicion was directed toward army or other government forces. At least four persons died with scores injured so far in the mob fury these incidents had triggered. Police have already nailed Asrar’s killers and kidnappers of the Baramulla girl with investigations into the college girl’s murder in Kupwara going on.
Why did masses take to streets with the banner of revolt against state administration and asked for Azadi rather than justice and crime control? Kashmiris have different answers to this question but the majority view pegs on the urge that people here should resist the temptation of turning any ordinary crime into a full blown Azadi campaign. “We should think before we start protests. Then there are killings and injuries. We get excited and chant slogans but when everything boils down to causalities we start repenting. Azadi is a sacred slogan, I think we should keep its sanctity and should not mix it with our responses to social evils or crimes,” says Imtiyaz Ahmad Ganai, a high school teacher from Baramulla.
Many citizens in Srinagar and Baramullah regret the hasty reactions to the crime incidents from separatist groups including Hurriyat factions. Wajeeh Siraj, a poet and freelance electrician from Pulwama, says, “Increase in crime rate is not a good sign for which the society ought to raise voice. But when separatist groups plunge into every other happening it kills the cause of justice and people are left with no option but to uphold big slogans of Azadi and start praising these leaders. I think the civil society should intervene and make the separatist groups understand that responding to social issues and matters related to public affairs should be left for civil society intervention. It is surprising that the separatists who have a bigger cause are trying to use every space for their political activity. People support their calls; they share the slogan these leaders chant. Leaders too have responsibility to show right path to the people.”
Aside from this popular aversion to mixing social response to crime and general sentiment for political rights, most of Kashmir watchers believe the credibility of government institutions has chronically been poor. “This credibility deficit has created a huge psychological problem. People don’t trust government institutions. This fact was acknowledged by chief minister himself when he responded to Shopian incident. I think people alone are not to blame for such reactions. Government too will have to share part of responsibility and go for corrections within the system,” says a top pro-India politician who did not want to be quoted by name.
Asrar story triggers rethink on social response to crime
‘We should think before we protest’
Srinagar: By Police standards Asrar Mushtaq’s murder was a plain case of crime and so was that of Amina Masoodi’s, a college girl from Kupwara. Kidnapping of a minor from Baramulla, too, was no different. But all these crimes triggered massive anti-government protests in North and Central Kashmir during which the first finger of suspicion was directed toward army or other government forces. At least four persons died with scores injured so far in the mob fury these incidents had triggered. Police have already nailed Asrar’s killers and kidnappers of the Baramulla girl with investigations into the college girl’s murder in Kupwara going on.
Why did masses take to streets with the banner of revolt against state administration and asked for Azadi rather than justice and crime control? Kashmiris have different answers to this question but the majority view pegs on the urge that people here should resist the temptation of turning any ordinary crime into a full blown Azadi campaign. “We should think before we start protests. Then there are killings and injuries. We get excited and chant slogans but when everything boils down to causalities we start repenting. Azadi is a sacred slogan, I think we should keep its sanctity and should not mix it with our responses to social evils or crimes,” says Imtiyaz Ahmad Ganai, a high school teacher from Baramulla.
Many citizens in Srinagar and Baramullah regret the hasty reactions to the crime incidents from separatist groups including Hurriyat factions. Wajeeh Siraj, a poet and freelance electrician from Pulwama, says, “Increase in crime rate is not a good sign for which the society ought to raise voice. But when separatist groups plunge into every other happening it kills the cause of justice and people are left with no option but to uphold big slogans of Azadi and start praising these leaders. I think the civil society should intervene and make the separatist groups understand that responding to social issues and matters related to public affairs should be left for civil society intervention. It is surprising that the separatists who have a bigger cause are trying to use every space for their political activity. People support their calls; they share the slogan these leaders chant. Leaders too have responsibility to show right path to the people.”
Aside from this popular aversion to mixing social response to crime and general sentiment for political rights, most of Kashmir watchers believe the credibility of government institutions has chronically been poor. “This credibility deficit has created a huge psychological problem. People don’t trust government institutions. This fact was acknowledged by chief minister himself when he responded to Shopian incident. I think people alone are not to blame for such reactions. Government too will have to share part of responsibility and go for corrections within the system,” says a top pro-India politician who did not want to be quoted by name.
Can a Solution Work if the Problem is Partially Defined?
To Ashraf the glass is half full. To many, the glass is half empty and what is not addressed in his approach is the shadow of terrorism that has loomed large over Kashmir for two decades, and a subtle but steady erosion of minority rights creating fertile ground for religious chauvinism
(Dr. Mirza Ashraf Beg, 69, was born in Sarnal, Anantnag. He did his primary schooling at the Primary Hanfia School in Anantnag and completed his F. Sc. from the Government Degree College in Anantnag. He completed his medical degree (MBBS) from the Government Medical College Srinagar, University of Kashmir, in 1967, and a Postgraduate Diploma in Clinical Pathology from the Government Medical College Jammu, University of Jammu, in 1981. He served as the Medical Director of the Civil Hospital, Pahalgam, until 1983 and subsequently held senior administrative positions in the health service system of Saudi Arabia, including participation in a joint program with the Johns Hopkins University and the University of South Florida for a United Nations project related to environmental and ecological impact of the 1991 Gulf War. He is an Executive Member of the Jammu and Kashmir Red Cross (nominated by the Governor of Jammu and Kashmir), Member of General Medical Council, Jammu and Kashmir, Medical Council of India, Saudi Medical Council, and General Medical Council, London. He is proficient in Kashmiri, Urdu, Hindi, English, Arabic.)
Kashmir: Solution is possible?
The resolution of a chronic problem like Kashmir needs sincerity, open-mindedness and strong will by all the stakeholders, comments Dr Mirza Ashraf Beg.
It is interesting that today we are discussing Kashmir--the Way Forward an issue that was thought many a times a closed chapter. Better late than never let us accept the fact that Kashmir dispute, besides being a hindrance in the development of the State, has been a cause for the martyrdom of more than hundred thousand innocents and now is threatening the world peace with a nuclear catastrophe. That is why world powers have become conscious of this flash point in the subcontinent.
Kashmir an International Problem:
I will not like to take the Kashmir issue to the Yusuf Shah Chak era or to 1953 to prove that it is an international issue. That will be to beat about the bush. All of us are aware that the present tragedies of Jammu and Kashmir date back to 1947 when India and Pakistan became two separate countries. Both these new born sovereign states approached the United Nations to claim their childish rights on the state. These two nascent nations, it was felt at the international level, if allowed to be wary against each other, would definitely lead to various inconveniences, not only for these two countries, but also for the entire comity of nations. Peace overtures were initiated overtly or covertly at various levels. Both the countries agreed to settle the issue by an impartial plebiscite under the supervision of the United Nations and a number of resolutions were passed in favour of a plebiscite in Jammu and Kashmir. Kashmir issue is still on U.N. agenda and neither India nor Pakistan has withdrawn it from that forum. All these facts besides an additional development that both India and Pakistan were confronting each other with nuclear arsenal lend support to my argument that unsolved Kashmir is an international problem and needs immediate attention.
Role of Kashmiri Diaspora:
In the recent years of turmoil we have seen Kashmiris that have settled all over the world were a part and parcel of the on-going movement. No other political movement in the world has been as visible on the streets of New York, London, Toronto and other cities all over the world. All this was possible through the tireless efforts of half a million restless Kashmiris living in these countries. Besides that, two million Kashmiris are living as refugees in India and Pakistan (Kashmiri Pandits and Muslims). United Nations has promised the right of self-determination to the whole lot of people of Jammu and Kashmir wherever they are irrespective of their caste, creed and color. So the role of the Kashmiri Diaspora and the political organizations they have constituted anywhere in the world is essential and must be welcome.
Third country mediation:
In the present dialogue process it is apparent that countries like U.S and U.K are mediating by way of facilitating the process of dialogue. This practice of third country meditation has already been taken recourse to at the end of 1965 war when the erstwhile USSR facilitated the meeting of the then two heads of states resulting in Tashkent agreement. Every country has its political, economical and other national interests; with the result at times it becomes rather difficult to remain fair. Despite all this, the merits of third country mediation cannot be categorically understated.
SAARC Route To Resolutions:
While the world has become a global village it has for convenience sake simultaneously divided into several groups. Today we see Canada and U.S between them and Gulf countries amongst each other have soft borders for trade and other activities. European countries have gone a step further. Besides having soft borders they have evolved a common currency too. ‘Euro’, works in all these countries. Once the same doctrine is applied in SAARC countries and borders become irrelevant with Jammu & Kashmir as a constituent of SAARC it will definitely become a win-win situation for both India and Pakistan.
Human Rights Issues:
To find a negotiable solution to the Kashmir problem it is of paramount importance to safeguard the human rights of the civilian population, ‘the non-combatants of the ongoing armed rebellion.’ Unless and until there is an end to custodial killings, rapes and indiscriminate and unwarranted firings in public places, peace will be a distant dream. I mean a peaceful settlement of Kashmir problem too is equally distant. The onus of safeguarding the human rights obviously lies on seven hundred thousand Indian armed forces operating in Jammu and Kashmir as these are supposed to be under a proper and answerable command and control. Prime Minister Mahmohan Singh is on record to have argued for zero tolerance. Unfortunately the ground situation is different, with the result it becomes difficult for a common observer to find a liaison between the armed forces operating in Kashmir and Prime Minister. More than six thousand Kashmiris are languishing in different Indian jails and concentration camps where the conditions are worst than that in Abu Gharib and Guatemalan bay. Some of these prisoners are women and senior citizens in deplorable health conditions. Thousands are missing and there are no whereabouts. Someone has to answer these questions as a step towards peace and peaceful negotiations.
Aspects and forms of sovereignty:
Jammu and Kashmir is located in the heart of south – central Asia and shares its borders with Afghanistan, China, India and Pakistan. A small strip of Wakhan separates it from Soviet Union. The total area of the state is 85,000 square miles and thus is larger than 75 independent countries in the world. Nearly two third of its territory is at present under the control of India. The remaining area is mainly under supervision of Pakistan called Azad Kashmir and some area lies with China too. The population of the state is 14 million, including 2 million living as refugees in Pakistan and India .Half a million Kashmiri pundits in India and one and a half million in Pakistan. Besides that half a million are scattered all over the world. It is thus bigger than 100 sovereign countries of the world. Jammu and Kashmir is a disputed territory within the meaning of intentional law. United Nations has passed scores of resolutions in favour of a plebiscite in the state. Having said that the state with its vast resources in terms of forests agriculture and tourism as such is capable to sustain itself as a sovereign state like any other responsible member of the world community with friendly relations with both India and Pakistan. We have seen how successfully permit system has worked as a document of travel on Muzzafarabad – Srinagar road. The same doctrine of soft borders can easily be applied on other routes presently closed for human traffic and business activities between India, Pakistan and Jammu Kashmir.
Kashmir specific CBM’s:
Kashmir problem is in fact a trilateral issue. The people of Jammu and Kashmir, the government of India and government of Pakistan are parties to the issue. Hence the confidence building measures have to be between the people of Jammu and Kashmir and the governments of India and Pakistan. Simultaneously there have to be CMB’s between India and Pakistan. A few of these Kashmir centric CBM’s can be identified as these;
Abolition of draconian laws:
All the laws such as AFPSA and Preventative Detention Act that give unbridled and pungent powers to the security forces need to be withdrawn forthwith. That way security forces will be saved from the human temptations of misuse of absolute power. At the same time will give the victimised Kashmiri nation a sense of security.
Rehabilitation of Kashmiri Pundits:
Where the exodus of Kashmiri Pundits after the 1989 turmoil was painful it was equally unfortunate that pseudo intellectuals in the government facilitated them to dispose off their properties. These prosperities ought to have been left in the custody of already existing department of evacuee properties as was done with the properties of those who migrated to Azad Kashmir and Pakistan in 1947 from the state of Jammu and Kashmir. These migrants need to be welcomed back and rehabilitated properly and on priority. Kashmiri society has always been a mixed culture believing and practising secularism in letter and spirit. Muslims and non-Muslims have always lived side by side in this abode of Reshis and Munis. To make the housing colonies built for them habitable , graceful and secure these accommodations should be shared by both the communities and let the two communities live in close harmony with each other like they were living before the recent turmoil. Otherwise I am afraid these housing colonies will turn in to holiday homes and shall be a liability for the government.
Release of political prisoners:
Government of India should release all the political prisoners arrested under various draconian laws.
Disappeared people:
According to a rough estimate more than six thousand people are missing since 1989 as a result of the ongoing armed rebellion in the state. Governments of India and Pakistan shall devise ways and means to trace them or find their last authentic whereabouts. For this purpose they may utilize the services of impartial international organizations such as Red Cross etc.
Human rights Violations:
Human rights violations must stop forth with. Indian forces operating in the state of Jammu and Kashmir should respect Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s sentiments of ‘zero tolerance.’ The ground situation should collaborate with the verbal statements despite the fact that armed forces in Kashmir work under stress that is evident from the increasing number of suicides and killings of their fellow companions.
Withdrawal of the forces:
To begin with the number of armed forces operating in Jammu and Kashmir should come down to the level where it was in 1989 when the present armed rebellion started in the state. That will avoid the unnecessary friction between the civilians and the men in the uniform. Gradually the forces must go to their respectable places in barracks.
Dialogue between the political parties:
The present turmoil in the state has given the Kashmir problem some unique dimensions. People having the opinion that Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part of India share the opinion that Kashmir needs a negotiated settlement with those who were banking on UN resolutions as a means of the solution.
Hence a dialogue between the so- called main stream political activists and those who rightly believe in the disputed nature of the state will be of a great help for peace and peaceful solution of the Kashmir problem. None of us can afford to have personal rivalries and egos at the cost of a suffering nation. We also need to work out a consensus on the negotiable solution and then the two groups can discuss the two thoughts of opinion. This exercise could narrow down the area of terms of reference at the time of arriving at the final solution of the problem.
Let me point out that solutions and settlements of chronic problems like the one we are talking about, need open- mindedness, freedom from bias, humiliation and sincere desire and then a firm will with catholic and democratic approach. Unless the two countries together with the victimized Kashmiris have a commitment to the principals of justice and co existence in the backdrop of the concept of globalization the problem cannot be solved. Having realised that all the methods of force and coercion have proved abortive, peaceful negotiations seem to be the only way forward. In the entire history of sixty years of this dispute, there has never come such an opportune time when all sections of society in India, Pakistan and Jammu and Kashmir are fervently willing to solve the issue. If this chance is wasted and opportunity is allowed to slip away the present generation of politicians, intellectuals and so on shall be the criminals against human society for which the future generations should never forgive us.
(Dr. Mirza Ashraf Beg, 69, was born in Sarnal, Anantnag. He did his primary schooling at the Primary Hanfia School in Anantnag and completed his F. Sc. from the Government Degree College in Anantnag. He completed his medical degree (MBBS) from the Government Medical College Srinagar, University of Kashmir, in 1967, and a Postgraduate Diploma in Clinical Pathology from the Government Medical College Jammu, University of Jammu, in 1981. He served as the Medical Director of the Civil Hospital, Pahalgam, until 1983 and subsequently held senior administrative positions in the health service system of Saudi Arabia, including participation in a joint program with the Johns Hopkins University and the University of South Florida for a United Nations project related to environmental and ecological impact of the 1991 Gulf War. He is an Executive Member of the Jammu and Kashmir Red Cross (nominated by the Governor of Jammu and Kashmir), Member of General Medical Council, Jammu and Kashmir, Medical Council of India, Saudi Medical Council, and General Medical Council, London. He is proficient in Kashmiri, Urdu, Hindi, English, Arabic.)
Kashmir: Solution is possible?
The resolution of a chronic problem like Kashmir needs sincerity, open-mindedness and strong will by all the stakeholders, comments Dr Mirza Ashraf Beg.
It is interesting that today we are discussing Kashmir--the Way Forward an issue that was thought many a times a closed chapter. Better late than never let us accept the fact that Kashmir dispute, besides being a hindrance in the development of the State, has been a cause for the martyrdom of more than hundred thousand innocents and now is threatening the world peace with a nuclear catastrophe. That is why world powers have become conscious of this flash point in the subcontinent.
Kashmir an International Problem:
I will not like to take the Kashmir issue to the Yusuf Shah Chak era or to 1953 to prove that it is an international issue. That will be to beat about the bush. All of us are aware that the present tragedies of Jammu and Kashmir date back to 1947 when India and Pakistan became two separate countries. Both these new born sovereign states approached the United Nations to claim their childish rights on the state. These two nascent nations, it was felt at the international level, if allowed to be wary against each other, would definitely lead to various inconveniences, not only for these two countries, but also for the entire comity of nations. Peace overtures were initiated overtly or covertly at various levels. Both the countries agreed to settle the issue by an impartial plebiscite under the supervision of the United Nations and a number of resolutions were passed in favour of a plebiscite in Jammu and Kashmir. Kashmir issue is still on U.N. agenda and neither India nor Pakistan has withdrawn it from that forum. All these facts besides an additional development that both India and Pakistan were confronting each other with nuclear arsenal lend support to my argument that unsolved Kashmir is an international problem and needs immediate attention.
Role of Kashmiri Diaspora:
In the recent years of turmoil we have seen Kashmiris that have settled all over the world were a part and parcel of the on-going movement. No other political movement in the world has been as visible on the streets of New York, London, Toronto and other cities all over the world. All this was possible through the tireless efforts of half a million restless Kashmiris living in these countries. Besides that, two million Kashmiris are living as refugees in India and Pakistan (Kashmiri Pandits and Muslims). United Nations has promised the right of self-determination to the whole lot of people of Jammu and Kashmir wherever they are irrespective of their caste, creed and color. So the role of the Kashmiri Diaspora and the political organizations they have constituted anywhere in the world is essential and must be welcome.
Third country mediation:
In the present dialogue process it is apparent that countries like U.S and U.K are mediating by way of facilitating the process of dialogue. This practice of third country meditation has already been taken recourse to at the end of 1965 war when the erstwhile USSR facilitated the meeting of the then two heads of states resulting in Tashkent agreement. Every country has its political, economical and other national interests; with the result at times it becomes rather difficult to remain fair. Despite all this, the merits of third country mediation cannot be categorically understated.
SAARC Route To Resolutions:
While the world has become a global village it has for convenience sake simultaneously divided into several groups. Today we see Canada and U.S between them and Gulf countries amongst each other have soft borders for trade and other activities. European countries have gone a step further. Besides having soft borders they have evolved a common currency too. ‘Euro’, works in all these countries. Once the same doctrine is applied in SAARC countries and borders become irrelevant with Jammu & Kashmir as a constituent of SAARC it will definitely become a win-win situation for both India and Pakistan.
Human Rights Issues:
To find a negotiable solution to the Kashmir problem it is of paramount importance to safeguard the human rights of the civilian population, ‘the non-combatants of the ongoing armed rebellion.’ Unless and until there is an end to custodial killings, rapes and indiscriminate and unwarranted firings in public places, peace will be a distant dream. I mean a peaceful settlement of Kashmir problem too is equally distant. The onus of safeguarding the human rights obviously lies on seven hundred thousand Indian armed forces operating in Jammu and Kashmir as these are supposed to be under a proper and answerable command and control. Prime Minister Mahmohan Singh is on record to have argued for zero tolerance. Unfortunately the ground situation is different, with the result it becomes difficult for a common observer to find a liaison between the armed forces operating in Kashmir and Prime Minister. More than six thousand Kashmiris are languishing in different Indian jails and concentration camps where the conditions are worst than that in Abu Gharib and Guatemalan bay. Some of these prisoners are women and senior citizens in deplorable health conditions. Thousands are missing and there are no whereabouts. Someone has to answer these questions as a step towards peace and peaceful negotiations.
Aspects and forms of sovereignty:
Jammu and Kashmir is located in the heart of south – central Asia and shares its borders with Afghanistan, China, India and Pakistan. A small strip of Wakhan separates it from Soviet Union. The total area of the state is 85,000 square miles and thus is larger than 75 independent countries in the world. Nearly two third of its territory is at present under the control of India. The remaining area is mainly under supervision of Pakistan called Azad Kashmir and some area lies with China too. The population of the state is 14 million, including 2 million living as refugees in Pakistan and India .Half a million Kashmiri pundits in India and one and a half million in Pakistan. Besides that half a million are scattered all over the world. It is thus bigger than 100 sovereign countries of the world. Jammu and Kashmir is a disputed territory within the meaning of intentional law. United Nations has passed scores of resolutions in favour of a plebiscite in the state. Having said that the state with its vast resources in terms of forests agriculture and tourism as such is capable to sustain itself as a sovereign state like any other responsible member of the world community with friendly relations with both India and Pakistan. We have seen how successfully permit system has worked as a document of travel on Muzzafarabad – Srinagar road. The same doctrine of soft borders can easily be applied on other routes presently closed for human traffic and business activities between India, Pakistan and Jammu Kashmir.
Kashmir specific CBM’s:
Kashmir problem is in fact a trilateral issue. The people of Jammu and Kashmir, the government of India and government of Pakistan are parties to the issue. Hence the confidence building measures have to be between the people of Jammu and Kashmir and the governments of India and Pakistan. Simultaneously there have to be CMB’s between India and Pakistan. A few of these Kashmir centric CBM’s can be identified as these;
Abolition of draconian laws:
All the laws such as AFPSA and Preventative Detention Act that give unbridled and pungent powers to the security forces need to be withdrawn forthwith. That way security forces will be saved from the human temptations of misuse of absolute power. At the same time will give the victimised Kashmiri nation a sense of security.
Rehabilitation of Kashmiri Pundits:
Where the exodus of Kashmiri Pundits after the 1989 turmoil was painful it was equally unfortunate that pseudo intellectuals in the government facilitated them to dispose off their properties. These prosperities ought to have been left in the custody of already existing department of evacuee properties as was done with the properties of those who migrated to Azad Kashmir and Pakistan in 1947 from the state of Jammu and Kashmir. These migrants need to be welcomed back and rehabilitated properly and on priority. Kashmiri society has always been a mixed culture believing and practising secularism in letter and spirit. Muslims and non-Muslims have always lived side by side in this abode of Reshis and Munis. To make the housing colonies built for them habitable , graceful and secure these accommodations should be shared by both the communities and let the two communities live in close harmony with each other like they were living before the recent turmoil. Otherwise I am afraid these housing colonies will turn in to holiday homes and shall be a liability for the government.
Release of political prisoners:
Government of India should release all the political prisoners arrested under various draconian laws.
Disappeared people:
According to a rough estimate more than six thousand people are missing since 1989 as a result of the ongoing armed rebellion in the state. Governments of India and Pakistan shall devise ways and means to trace them or find their last authentic whereabouts. For this purpose they may utilize the services of impartial international organizations such as Red Cross etc.
Human rights Violations:
Human rights violations must stop forth with. Indian forces operating in the state of Jammu and Kashmir should respect Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s sentiments of ‘zero tolerance.’ The ground situation should collaborate with the verbal statements despite the fact that armed forces in Kashmir work under stress that is evident from the increasing number of suicides and killings of their fellow companions.
Withdrawal of the forces:
To begin with the number of armed forces operating in Jammu and Kashmir should come down to the level where it was in 1989 when the present armed rebellion started in the state. That will avoid the unnecessary friction between the civilians and the men in the uniform. Gradually the forces must go to their respectable places in barracks.
Dialogue between the political parties:
The present turmoil in the state has given the Kashmir problem some unique dimensions. People having the opinion that Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part of India share the opinion that Kashmir needs a negotiated settlement with those who were banking on UN resolutions as a means of the solution.
Hence a dialogue between the so- called main stream political activists and those who rightly believe in the disputed nature of the state will be of a great help for peace and peaceful solution of the Kashmir problem. None of us can afford to have personal rivalries and egos at the cost of a suffering nation. We also need to work out a consensus on the negotiable solution and then the two groups can discuss the two thoughts of opinion. This exercise could narrow down the area of terms of reference at the time of arriving at the final solution of the problem.
Let me point out that solutions and settlements of chronic problems like the one we are talking about, need open- mindedness, freedom from bias, humiliation and sincere desire and then a firm will with catholic and democratic approach. Unless the two countries together with the victimized Kashmiris have a commitment to the principals of justice and co existence in the backdrop of the concept of globalization the problem cannot be solved. Having realised that all the methods of force and coercion have proved abortive, peaceful negotiations seem to be the only way forward. In the entire history of sixty years of this dispute, there has never come such an opportune time when all sections of society in India, Pakistan and Jammu and Kashmir are fervently willing to solve the issue. If this chance is wasted and opportunity is allowed to slip away the present generation of politicians, intellectuals and so on shall be the criminals against human society for which the future generations should never forgive us.
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