Naxal history1

Telangana Struggle: By July 1948, 2,500 villages in the south were organised into 'communes' as part of a peasant movement which came to be known as Telangana Struggle. Simultaneously the famous Andhra Thesis for the first time demanded that 'Indian revolution' follow the Chinese path of protracted people's war. In June 1948, a leftist ideological document 'Andhra Letter' laid down a revolutionary strategy based on Mao Tsetung's New Democracy.

1964
CPM splits from united CPI and decides to participate in elections, postponing armed struggle over revolutionary policies to a day when revolutionary situation prevailed in the country.

1965-66 
Communist leader Charu Majumdar wrote various articles based on Marx-Lenin-Mao thought during the period, which later came to be known as 'Historic Eight Documents' and formed the basis of naxalite movement.
· First civil liberties organisation was formed with Telugu poet Sri Sri as president following mass arrests of communists during Indo-China war.

1967 
CPM participates in polls and forms a coalition United Front government in West Bengal with Bangla Congress. This leads to schism in the party with younger cadres, including the "visionary" Charu Majumdar, accusing CPM of betraying the revolution.

Naxalbari Uprising (25th May): The rebel cadres led by Charu Majumdar launch a peasants' uprising at Naxalbari in Darjeeling district of West Bengal after a tribal youth, who had a judicial order to plough his land, was attacked by "goons" of local landlords on March 2. Tribals retaliated and started forcefully capturing back their lands. The CPI (M)-led United Front government cracked down on the uprising and in 72 days of the "rebellion" a police sub-inspector and nine tribals were killed. The Congress govt at the Centre supported the crackdown. The incident echoed throughout India and naxalism was born.

• The ideology of naxalism soon assumed larger dimension and entire state units of CPI (M) in Uttar Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir and some sections in Bihar and Andhra Pradesh joined the struggle.

Cpi

The Communist Party of India (CPI) (Bhāratīya Kamyunisṭ Pārṭī) is a communist party in India. In the Indian Communist movement, there are different views on exactly when the Communist Party of India was founded. But the date maintained as the foundation day by the CPI is 26 December 1925.[2] However, the Communist Party of India (Marxist), which separated from the CPI, has a different version that it was founded in 1920.

Communism during the colonial periodEdit

The Communist Party of India has officially stated that it was formed on 25 December 1925 at the first Party Conference in Kanpur. But as per the version of CPI(M), the Communist Party of India was founded in Tashkent, Turkestan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic on 17 October 1920, soon after the Second Congress of the Communist International. The founding members of the party were M.N. Roy, Evelyn Trent Roy (Roy's wife), Abani Mukherji, Rosa Fitingof (Abani's wife), Mohammad Ali

Pala chola

Throughout most of their shared history, ancient India and Indonesia enjoyed friendly and peaceful relations, therefore this Indian invasion is a unique event in Asian history. In 9th and 10th centuries, Srivijaya maintained close relations with the Pala Empire in Bengal, and an 860 Nalanda inscription records that Maharaja Balaputra of Srivijaya dedicated a monastery at the Nalanda university in Pala territory. The relation between Srivijaya and the Chola dynasty of southern India was friendly during the reign of Raja Raja Chola I. In 1006 CE a Srivijayan Maharaja from Sailendra dynasty — king Maravijayattungavarman — constructed the Chudamani Vihara in the port town of Nagapattinam.[14] However, during the reign of Rajendra Chola I the relations deteriorated as the Cholas attacked Srivijayan cities.[15]

The Cholas are known to have benefitted from both piracy and foreign trade. Sometimes Chola seafaring led to outright plunder and conquest as far as Southeast Asia.[16] While Srivijaya that controlled two major naval choke points; Malacca and Sunda Strait; at that time was a major trading empire that possess formidable naval forces. Malacca strait's northwest opening was controlled from Kedah on Peninsula side and from Pannai on the Sumatran side, while Malayu (Jambi) and Palembang controlled its southeast opening and also Sunda strait. They practiced naval trade monopoly that forced any trade vessels that passed through their waters to call on their ports or otherwise being plundered.

The reasons of this naval expedition are unclear with Nilakanta Sastri suggesting that the attack was probably caused by Srivijayan attempt to throw obstacles in the way of the Chola trade with the East (especially China), or more probably, a simple desire on the part of Rajendra to extend his digvijaya to the countries across the sea so well known to his subject at home, and therefore add luster to his crown.[17] Another theory suggests that the reasons of the invasion was probably motivated by geopolitics and diplomatic relations. King Suryavarman I of the Khmer Empire requested aid from Rajendra Chola I of the Chola dynasty against Tambralinga kingdom.[18] After learning of Suryavarman's alliance with Rajendra Chola, the Tambralinga kingdom requested aid from the Srivijaya king Sangrama Vijayatungavarman.[18][19] This eventually led to the Chola Empire coming into conflict with the Srivijaya Empire. This alliance was somewhat also has religious nuance, since both Chola and Khmer empire are Hindu Shivaist, while Tambralinga and Srivijaya are Mahayana Buddhist.

Fish pulakesin

Pulkesin II (610–642 CE) is the most celebrated ruler of the Chalukyas of Badami. His birth name was Ereya and he was born to Kirtivarman-I. Since, he was too young when his father died, his paternal uncle Mangaldesa was made the king. Some sources say that his uncle denied him his right to get the throne when he grown up and he rebelled against his uncle. Ereya organized an army near modern Kolar in Karnataka and defeated and killed Mangaldesa (Peddavadagur inscription). He defeated the Kadamabas of the Banavasi, Alupas of modern Southern Karnataka, Maurya of Konkan and after a naval war captured Island of Elephanta from the Mauryas of Konkan. He also defeated the Kosala, Kalinga etc. in the east. In down south, he defeated Mahendravarman-I. This was the time when Harsha was a major power in Northern India. Pulkesin II and Harsha engaged in a battle at the banks of the Narmada. This was a decisive battle in which Harsha lost a big part of his elephant army and had to retreat. This is mentioned in the Aihole Inscription. The same battle has been described by Huen Tsang too. The battle ended with a treaty in which Harsha was made to recognize river Narmada as his southern border. After this victory, Pulkesin II assumed the titles of Parmeshwara, Prithivivallabha, Satyashraya etc. and became the paramount power in modern Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat. He also assumed the title of Dakshinpatheshwara around the same time, on the lines of Harsha’s title Uttarpatheshwara. Pulkesin II was also the one of the first kings in South India to issue the Gold Coins. The enmity of Pulkesin II with Pallavas of Kanchi finally took his life in 642 AD, when one of the Pallava Kings (Narsimhamvaraman) plundered his capital and probably put him to death. For next 13 years Pallavas dominated in South India including the Vatapi.

Diplomatic Relations with King of Persia

The fame of Pulkesin II spread beyond the geographical limits of India and reached the ears of Khusrau II the King of Persia. Khusrau II in 36th year of his reign i.e. 625 AD received a complementary embassy from Pulkesin II. He reciprocated the embassy with a Persian embassy which was welcomed with due honors in India. One of the large Frescoes of Ajanta Paintings in Cave Number 1 vividly represents the ceremonial attending the presentation of their credentials by the Persian Courts. This is a great record of India-Persia relations in those times. Note: The most important literature of the Badami Chalukyas is the Aihole inscription of Pulakesi II written by his court poet Ravikirti in Sanskrit language and Kannada script.
http://www.gktoday.in/pulkesin-ii/

Imp

Ministry of UD wants States and Cities to go beyond taking small steps for rapid urban transformation 

Five major transformational reforms to be implemented  based on report of Group of Secretaries

Cities to grant approvals first and verify later; Credit Rating, Value Capture Financing, Land titling on agenda

Reform incentive fund to be increased from Rs.500 cr to Rs.3,000 cr per year over next 3 years

Reforms and 6 related new initiatives to be discussed with States/UTs tomorrow

            Ministry of Urban Development has evolved a new reform matrix to enable State and City Governments go beyond the present incrementalism of taking small steps towards implementing transformational reforms over the next three years, for a turn around in urban governance, planning and finance.

            The Ministry will discuss a set of five major reforms with States and Union Territories at a ‘National Workshop on Urban Development’ to be held here tomorrow. Minister of Urban Development Shri M.Venkaiah Naidu will chair the deliberations on the reforms and six other new initiatives that promote these reforms since huge private sector investment is envisaged under five of these initiatives..

            The concerned Group of Secretaries in their report on urban sector have recommended that “After a review of the schemes over the years,  the Group felt that instead of an incremental approach, the time has come for ushering in transformational reforms in Governance, Planning and Finance”.

            Major reforms recommended by the Group of Secretaries are;

1.Moving to a Trust and Verify Approach: Instead of the present practice of verifying first and approving later, it has been recommended that trust needs to be reposed in the citizens and approvals may be accorded first and to be verified later, inverting the model of verifying first and approving later which is resulting in huge delays. This ‘Trust and Verify’ approach has been recommended in respect of Permissions for building construction, Change of title in municipal records (mutation) and Birth and Death registration, involving the largest number of physical interactions between city governments and citizens.

2.Formulating Land Titling Laws: The Group quoting a study by McKinsey noted that over 90% of the land records in the country are unclear and land market distortions and unclear land titles are costing the country 1.30% of GDP per year and accordingly recommended enactment of Land Titling Laws and their implementation in a specific time frame.

3. Credit Rating of Urban Local Bodies

4. Value Capture Financing

Noting that the total revenues of the municipal sector accounts for only 0.75% of the country’s GDP as against 6% for South Africa, 5% for Brazil and 4.50% for Poland, the Group recommended Municipal Bonds further to Credit Rating of ULBs and Value Capture Finance tools for meeting the capital expenditure needs of cities.

5.Improving Professionalism of ULBs: Quoting investment bank Goldman Sachs report, the Group of Secretaries noted that a bureaucracy that is based on merit rather than seniority could add nearly a percentage point annually to the country’s per capita GDP growth. It also expressed concern over shortage of qualified technical staff and managerial supervisors in ULBs preventing innovation, the Group recommended induction of professionals in city governments by encouraging lateral induction and filling top positions in cities (Commissioners and Heads of Finance and Revenue) through open competition.

            In pursuance of these recommendations of the Group of Secretaries, the Ministry of Urban Development has come out with the following implementation framework in respect of the five major reforms:

Reform

2017-18

2018-19

2019-20

Trust and Verify method

-Bringing online the three services mentioned in 53 million plus population cities and capital cities

-Online provision for all 500 AMRUT cities

-Online provision for all statutory 4,041 cities

Credit Rating and Municipal Bonds

-All 500 AMRUT cities to complete Credit Rating

-Action to be taken for floating bonds

-Action to be taken for enhancing credit worthiness

-Bonds to be floated for all cities which have investment grade

 

-Second round of credit rating for all 500 cities

-Rating upgradation by atleast one level

Land Titling

-Enactment of laws for land titling

-Implementation and providing urban title certificates on demand

-To complete all survey and legacy data and make available title certificates for all properties

Value Capture Finance

-Formulation of VCF policy, tools and rules at State level

-Implementation in 53 million plus population cities

-Implementation in all 500 AMRUT cities including Smart Cities

Professionalisation of Municipal Cadre

-Establishing cadre with assessment of requirements, formulation of Recruitment Rules

-Filling up of posts

-Completion of filling up of posts

 

            To incentivize, implementation of these five transformational reforms, the Ministry of Urban Development has proposed to increase Reform Incentive Fund from Rs.500 cr during 2017-18 to over Rs.3,000 cr per year over the next three years of implementation period. Cities will be ranked based on performance under each reform category for providing reform incentive. Rs.400 cr was distributed during 2016-17 for those who pursued reforms indicated in AMRUT Guidelines.

            Ministry will also discuss with States and UTs new initiatives viz., Transit Oriented Development Policy, Metro Policy, Green Urban Mobility Scheme, Livability Index for Cities, Value Capture Policy and  Fecal Sludge Management Policy.

Indias corporate bond market

The bond market is where investors go to trade (buy and sell) debt securities, prominently bonds. The stock market is a place where investors go to trade (buy and sell) equity securities like common stocks and derivatives (options, futures etc). Stocks are traded on stock exchanges. In the United States, the prominent stock exchanges are: Nasdaq, Dow, S&P 500 and AMEX. These markets are regulated by the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC). 

The differences in the bond and stock market lie in the manner in which the different products are sold and the risk involved in dealing with both markets. One major difference between both markets is that the stock market has central places or exchanges (stock exchanges) where stocks are bought and sold. However, the bond market does not have a central trading place for bonds; rather bonds are sold mainly over-the-counter (OTC). The other difference between the stock and bond market is the risk involved in investing in both. Investing in bond market is usually less risky than investing in a stock market because the bond market is not as volatile as the stock market is.

Water comservation big tym

Apart from the massive displacement of people that such projects will bring about, says activist Himanshu Thakkar, they also threaten to obstruct the natural ecology of rivers.

Former Planning Commission member, Mihir Shah noted in a critique of India’s river-interlinking projects in the Economic and Political Weekly that in the Krishna river basin water storage in major and medium reservoirs has reached total water yield with virtually no water going into the sea in low rainfall years.

Since the Ganga basin’s topography is flat, building dams would not substantially add to river flows and these dams could threaten the forests of the Himalayas and impact the functioning of the monsoon system.

Climate change is another concern. In interlinking systems, it is assumed that the donor basin has surplus water that can be made available to the recipient basin.

“If in future, this basic assumption goes haywire for any system, wherein our perennial systems – mostly Himalayan – don’t retain the same character of being donor basins, then the whole concept goes for a toss. This will happen if the glaciers don’t sustain their glacier mass due to climate change,” explained A. Gossain, Professor at IIT Delhi who researches Indian water resources.

Professor Gossain however notes that alternatives such as curbing demand by efficient utilisation of existing water resources should be prioritised before making big-ticket investments in river interlinking.

Questions of storage needn’t always be seen in the light of big dams, adds Shashi Shekhar, Secretary, Ministry of Water Resources. The judicious use of canal water, growing crops that were appropriate to a region, encouraging drip irrigation and reviving traditional systems such as the use of tanks are also as important as creating new storage.

“Drought prone systems have a traditional network of tanks that were always employed for harnessing water during should be prioritised before making big-ticket investments in river interlinking.
The old city of Jodhpur has over 200 stepwells and they were built from around the 6th century onward as part of an incredibly sophisticated water architecture,” he explains. During the little rain that the region receives between June and September water is diverted from canals built on the hilly outskirts of the city to man-made tanks or talabs.

It then seeps into the ground, raising the water table and recharging an intricate network of aquifers that were built deep, with steps narrowing down to the well to minimise the water that could evaporate.

All that changed after 1996, when the Indira Gandhi canal brought water from the Sutlej River in Punjab and the government started supplying piped water to households. “Earlier people had to collect water from the stepwells with buckets but once piped water came there was suddenly a surfeit and then people no longer cared. They started using the stepwells to just dump garbage,” says Dhananjaya Singh, whose family owns a hotel in Jodhpur and is involved in the restoration of the Toor ji ka jhalra, another stepwell in the old city.

Dehradun declaration

‘DEHRADUN DECLARATION’ has been adopted at the end of two day conference of CSIR Directors held at CSIR-Indian Institute of Petroleum in Dehradun today. It was resolved by Directors of CSIR labs that technologies will be developed for National missions like Swachh Bharat, Swasth Bharat, Skill India, Smart Cities, Digital India, Namami Ganga. It was also decided that CSIR LABS will devise ways to develop industry driven technologies, including game changing technologies. Each laboratory would also develop at least one technology in strategic sector for India. The resolution also declares that all CSIR Institutions will make preparation for Platinum Jubilee celebrations beginning Sept. 2016 

The two days of ‘Chintan Shivir’ held on 12th & 13th June 2015 concluded this evening with all CSIR labs agreeing to make efforts to be self financing in next 2 years. In his concluding remarks the Union Minister for Science & Technology and Earth Sciences Dr. Harsh Vardhan said that CSIR should be a catalytic agent to evolve India into Samarth Bharat-Sashakt Bharat.The Minister said that a revenue model is to be developed in businesslike manner with clear input-output cost analysis. Emphasis will be laid to achieve global standards and to build confidence in society about relevance of CSIR labs in terms of social benefit. Labs will endeavour to build up entrepreneurship in Small, Medium and Big industries. Dr. Harsh Vardhan said that CSIR should focus on developing technologies for improving quality of life of the common man. 

The Minister said that coming months would see each of the laboratory focusing its resources on developing specific lines of inventions which would contribute to the social and economic objectives of the Narendra Modi government for the poor and common man. 

The Union Minister of State for Science & Technology and Earth Sciences Shri Y S Chowdary urged directors of the Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR) to come up with at least 12 cutting edge technologies which are to be commercialized every year. He was addressing the Director’s Conference of CSIR, being held at CSIR-IIP, Dehradun on the second day today. He also emphasized the need for CSIR labs to be self-financing through generating funds by offering technology to Industry. 

The Director-General, CSIR Dr. M.O.Garg and all the Directors of CSIR Institutions across the country attended the two day meeting. 

Each of the laboratory heads made a presentation about his or her respective lab achievements in transferring products and processes developed by him or her to industry. They also disclosed the patents awarded, the skill development programmes carried out, socio-economic interventions made, villages adopted and upgraded and contributions to Swachh Bharat and other Govt. programmes. The success in realizing Royalties and License Fees receipts were also shared with projections made for the next year. 

The “Make in India” and “Innovate in India” visions of the Prime Minister came up for extraordinary focus at the two-day meeting and saw all CSIR heads accept the challenge to provide the Science & Technology research findings as backbone to a great and new manufacturing economy. 

Dr Harsh Vardhan said, “I have full confidence in our scientists. With proper encouragement and focused approach, I am sure India will achieve the status of world’s greatest scientific powerhouse. 

Bureaucracy and science tech

The proposal for an independent S&T authority needs more thought

Earlier this year, top administrators in Indian science submitted a detailed project report to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. This paper has reviewed portions of the 48-page report, titled Vigyan 2030: Science and Technology as the Pivot for Jobs, Opportunities and National Transformation. And the report, in its assessment of the state of Indian science, is stingingly honest: “The stature of Indian science is a shadow of what it used to be… because of decades of misguided interventions. We have lost self-confidence and ambition and the ability to recognise excellence amongst our own. In a false sense of egalitarianism, we often chose the mediocre at every level.”

One of its key recommendations is to have an independent science and technology authority that will have two parallel arms. One, a ‘discovery arm’ that can organise the expertise of various organisations across states and regions to solve a basic research problem. Two, a ‘delivery’ arm that will closely work with industry and evolve public private partnerships. Such an authority, the report envisions, will report directly to the Prime Minister. SPARK (Sustainable Progress through Application of Research and Knowledge), as the body is tentatively named, will be overarching yet have “light touch” governance.

Check out the past

All very good, except that India already has bodies that were, in their wisdom, conceived as umbrella organisations that can pool the intellectual and technological resources of organisations and direct them towards specific missions.

The Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India is one such office. The NITI Aayog, now essentially a policy think tank, and tasked with coordinating States and research agencies, is another. Though they have no dearth of eminent, experienced scientists, they haven’t substantially vaulted science and technology in the country either. The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research faces its own challenges of effectively translating its know-how. Scientific departments in India, from the Department of Atomic Energy to the Department of Science & Technology, have bureaucracies of their own. They battle the dilemma of having to take bold, expensive risks — that science by its very nature requires — and on the other hand, be accountable to the Finance Ministry. Not only does a new overarching body run the risk of “stepping on toes” but it will also be a challenge to exert solemn authority without being a cantankerous accountant. It must, somehow, marry commerce and knowledge without being commercial and ensure that good ideas — beyond the Indian Institutes of Technology and Science — don’t die out for lack of funds or recommendations from influential scientists. Any new idea, to rejuvenate the administration of science, must also ensure continuity. Very often, bold experiments are supported and incubated for a few years and by the exertions of individually-motivated leaders. A change of government and new leaders has frequently meant ‘new priorities’ and the infant-death syndrome for the bold experiment. Can SPARK have a legal structure that can have continuity and the purpose of its creation hard-wired into it? These are difficult questions that the council of science secretaries, who authored the report, must address.

Disaster mangement

Amateur radio (also called ham radio) describes the use of radio frequency spectrum for purposes of non-commercial exchange of messages, wireless experimentation, self-training, private recreation, radiosport, contesting, and emergency communication. The term "amateur" is used to specify "a duly authorised person interested in radioelectric practice with a purely personal aim and without pecuniary interest;"[1] (either direct monetary or other similar reward) and to differentiate it from commercial broadcasting, public safety (such as police and fire), or professional two-way radio services (such as maritime, aviation, taxis, etc.).

Diamond and polishing industry

Going beyond diamonds, a new roadmap sees $60 bn. of annual gems & jewellery exports in 5 years, from $35 bn. now

After diamonds, now it is time for jewellery of all kinds to glitter. Jewellery manufacturing in India, which dates back over 2,000 years, is being given an impetus to enable India emerge as a leading exporter of gold and diamond jewellery in the world. , Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in his visit last week to the diamond city of Surat, reiterated his vision to make India the gems & jewellery hub of the world.

“Enough of just diamond cutting and polishing work. Now we have to be number one in gems & jewellery, not only in ‘Make in India’ but ‘Designed in India’ jewellery in the world,” he said.

The diamond cutting & polishing industry may be only 60 to 70 years old in India but the country has established its dominancein the global market. Today, 12 out of 14 diamonds sold in the world are polished or cut in India. In value terms, India has 60% market share in the global diamond market and in volume it is 90%.

The aim of the government now is to have India corner more than 50% of the jewellery exports market currently dominated by manufacturers from Italy, Turkey, Germany and Hong Kong.

The government has asked the industry to layout a roadmap to boost exports and has assured all help including skill development of artisans and jewellery manufacturing. Skills become critical as the global market demands fashion jewellery, unlike heavily fabricated jewellery which are in demand from customers in India and people of Indian origin.

‘Skill development starts’

“The skill development process has already started. Then the next phase would be infrastructure development,” said K. Srinivasan, MD, Emerald Jewel Industry India Ltd. and convener of Gold Panel of Gems & Jewellery Exports Promotion Council (GJEPC), the commerce ministry body responsible to boost gem and jewellery exports.

“Once that is done, jewellery exports will increase. Today we are not exporting much as we lack the capability to manufacture designs foreigners want,” Mr. Srinivasan said,

Indian manufacturers have the expertise to make 22 and 20 carat gold jewellery but exports market demand jewellery that are made of 8 or 10 carat gold.

Buyers in the U.S., the biggest exports market for jewellery, are fashion oriented and buy lightweight jewellery that does not cost much.

So India needs to go for large scale production of jewellery through machines to cater to the global demand.

“For that we need to set up common manufacturing facility as every jeweller does not have money. Besides, we need to increase our ability to understand the fashion trends of foreign buyers and come up with designs that they would like,” Mr Srinivasan said.

Rajesh Exports Ltd., India’s largest jewellery exporter exports about 150 tonnes of jewellery a year. The company said an export push would benefit the industry.

“Jewellery exports from India are growing by 5-10% a year and the idea to promote jewellery exports is very good,” said Siddharth Mehta, Chief Strategist, Rajesh Exports Ltd.

‘Never too late’

“India has a strong base in jewellery manufacturing and a lot of workers are engaged in this business. We should have encouraged jewellery exports a long time ago because our strength has been in jewellery making for ages.” Manufacturing and exports of other sectors were more recent, he added.

The global retail jewellery market is estimated at 2,900 tonnes per year and Indian and China are the biggest consumers. In the exports market, the U.S., Europe and UAE are the biggest followed by Japan and Australia.

Sanjay Kothari, CEO, Diatrends Jewellery and past chairman of the GJEPC said, “For us sky is the limit. We are now developing the managerial skills of people to run the factories. We are also training workers for the same.”

The Indian Institute of Gems & Jewellery (IIGJ) located in Mumbai is being strengthened for capacity building and skill development across India. It is opening two more branches in Varanasi and Udupi to support jewellery making in those areas. It is also increasing the student intake to help India achieve the desired objective in the jewellery business.

“ In jewellery we are meeting around 10% of the global demand. We want to achieve 60-70% share. Hong Kong is famous for studded jewellery, Italy is famous for plain gold jewellery. We have the capability to manufacturing and supply both these types. Easily we can increase out share to 30% within five years,” Mr. Kothari said.

GJEPC data shows most of the plain gold jewellery was exported to Malaysia followed by exports to the UAE, Singapore and the U.K. In 2016, most of the studded jewellery was exported to France and the US.

Industry insiders said jewellery exports could not achieve full potential due to apathy of successive governments.

“India did not give any attention to the jewellery sector all these years,” said Ashok Minawala, past president of Gem & Jewellery Federation. “We are selling jewellery to countries where Indians are there. We never tried selling much to an American or a German in a big way. The market has tremendous potential,” he said.

He added that the government must support the industry. “There has to be ease of doing business. Today, it is a nightmare to export a shipment of jewellery. It is not the same with diamonds. The amount of documentation that takes place deters people from export,” he said.

“Foreigners go to Dubai and find out about India. When they go to Gold Souk in Dubai, 90% of the jewellery is from India, the people selling jewellery are Indians. But the credit goes to UAE and not to India. UAE could turn Dubai into the city of Gold but not India which had everything in its favour,” Mr. Minawala said. Jewellery exports to the UAE in 2016 were close to $5,527 million compared with the U.S. to which exports amounted to about $1,676 milloin.

Export strategy

Indian exporters have prepared an export promotion strategy and a target of $60 billion worth of gems and jewellery exports in five years, from last year’s $35 billion which included over $22 billion from exports of cut & polished diamond.

“We have set a jewellery exports target of $60 billion by 2022 in a detailed vision document. Apart from generic promotion, we would focus on hand-crafted jewellery and value addition to achieve the target,” said Praveen Shankar Pandya, chairman, GJEPC.

In their revised strategy, Indian diamond exporters are planning to reduce exports of cut and polished diamond pieces and focus more on shipment of value-added products which include studded jewellery.

“Apart from the Middle East, European and American markets are reviving which is a good sign to achieve higher export growth. So, we are aiming at higher exports through value addition, brand promotion and re-orientation of rough diamond import strategy through its auction sale in India,” said Sabyasachi Ray, executive director, GJEPC.

Currently, Indian jewellery manufacturers are primarily shipping out unbranded products to overseas importers who then tag these products with their own brand and charge a premium from buyers. Indian jewellers are now planning to shift from unbranded to branded jewellery for higher value realisation.

GJEPC, with the help of the commerce ministry, is setting up a gold craft and design institute at Udupi in Karnataka to reskill local artisans. The institute, which is aimed at reviving manufacturing activity in Dakshina Kannada cluster, will have a common facility centre to help artisans of the Udupi region work with state-of-art machines in the jewellery sector.

Similarly, a jewellery park is being planned in Mumbai and also in the offing is a university for ,ewellery.

However, it is no easy job. A leading jeweller said, “The PM wishes that we should focus more on exports than the domestic sector. It is just like asking a Kirana to get into exports. It is not that easy. The dynamics are different. A jeweller is essentially a Kirana store and a massive transformation is required to achieve the goal.”

Unstring string of pearl

f Pearls Theory

Being said that, the passiveness which India exhibits is mere a show to the world, in reality the story is slightly different. In the background India has stealthily developed a version of its own string of pearls theory. India may or may not keep the will and power to alone challenge China openly, but is involved actively with other Indian Ocean Region island nations to collectively “unstring” the Chinese string of pearls. China has a number of times claimed that India is forming a metal chain or “Iron Curtain” in Indian Ocean to block its interest. (Read more: The Strait of Malacca: The Meeting Point of Giants)

View of various countries on South China Sea conflict, String of pearls theory or their political inclination

India has quietly made way for its interests in the island nations and African nations in Indian Ocean Region, which includes Mauritius, Maldives, Seychelles and Madagascar and the countries of South Africa, Tanzania and Mozambique with a very agile foreign policy, economic compensations like the double taxation exemption with Mauritius, and military aid.

Indian Navy maintains a robust hydrographic arm, with eight sophisticated survey ships, a number of survey aircrafts, and state of the art facilities in Dehradun and Goa. The well equipped surveying arm of the Indian Navy has made several successes in undertaking various survey assignments for countries like Oman, Saudi Arabia and island nations in the Indian Ocean making a positive strategic footprints that would certainly irk China. India has in fact gained ship berthing rights in Oman which is a strategic location for the fight against piracy. The port also allows the Indian Navy to monitor the SLOCs of Hormuz and Aden.

Read  Why Indo-China ties will be more favourable than Sino-Pak

India has signed an MoU with Mozambique that will provide the African nation Indian piracy patrols. Going a further step, in a 2007 report, which has not been denied by the government, it was reported that India has setup a listening post in the African island nation of Madagascar.

Forums like IOR-ARC (Indian Ocean Rim – Arrangement for Regional Cooperation) and IBSA (India-Brasil-South Africa) have been formed for better commercial, energy and resources link with Africa. Assertive India not only brought Mauritius, Mozambique and Madagascar to back India’s move to block Pakistan’s membership in IOR-ARC, but also managed to block China’s access to IBSA.

According to an unconfirmed report, India signed an agreement on Defence Cooperation in 2001 with Mongolia stationing radar systems able to monitor Chinese missile tests. Defence cooperation also included holding bilateral military exercises and discussion  on having an airbase which has not yet been successful.

India on the other hand has developed strong military relationship with Maldives, which includes basing two helicopters permanently in the island nation to enhance its surveillance capability. India will setup 26 radars in Maldives along its entire coastline for seamless coverage of approaching vessels and aircraft. This radar chain will be interlinked with the Indian radar chain with a central control room in India’s Coastal Command.

African island nation of Mauritius enjoys deeper relations with India. India had setup the Mauritius Coast Guard in the 70s and the island nation gone even further to lease two islands to India allowing it to use it “as per its benefit”. Coming back to the land, India maintains Farkhor air base and has been involved in renovating Ayni air base both in Tajikistan minutes away from Pakistan Occupied Kashmir and China occupied Kashmir. (Read Both the Stories: India Expanding Its Strategic Presence in Other Countries).

Indian Iron Curtain (String of Pearls) on Chinese Backyard

As Chi Haotin, general of People’s Republic of China said, “The Indian Ocean is not India’s Ocean”. India says, “South China sea is not China’s sea”. Seeing Chinese increasing activities in Bangladesh, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, India took similar steps to irk China by increasing its activity in South China sea. India knows that it may not be able to contain China alone, as a result India collectively with Japan, Russia and the US stands against China.

India and Vietnam has signed several defence agreement which includes selling of state of the art, world’s fastest supersonic cruise missile, Brahmos. Vietnam has also provided basing rights to Indian Navy on its port of Nha Trang on a western shore of the South China Sea. Russia, which has been recently partnering with China in almost all the global events surprised China with its move to provide six Varshavyanka-class submarines to Vietnam which has enhanced anti-ship and anti-submarine warfare capabilities to perform in shallow waters, a perfect card to play in the South China sea. Russia whose superpower attitude has been on decline since 1991 is expecting to enter South China sea conflict in its own way when people have started analyzing that Russia has lost to China in its race to become the next superpower (What’s your opinion on this?).

Read  Iranian Oil Import: What US Sanction on India Could Mean for US

In 2011, India’s state-run explorer, OVL signed a three-year deal with PetroVietnam for developing long-term cooperation in the oil sector, accepting Vietnam’s offer of exploration in the South China Sea making China protest against this move.

Vietnam, which had a tough history with United States has invited US presence in the region giving the signal that for regional peace and stability Vietnam doesn’t mind participation of non regional nations. To solidify its relations further with United States, Vietnam is expected to request the US government for the sale of Lockheed Martin P-3 Orion maritime patrol aircraft, a senior company official told IHS Jane’s. This makes clear that Vietnam is trying India’s long trusted policy of forming good relations with both the United States and Russia. Vietnam’s attitude shows the potential, which it has, to become the regional power of south east Asia.

In the meantime, US Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel has assured Asian nations that despite their sharp cuts in defence budgets, the Pentagon will continue to shift its military focus to the Asia Pacific region.

In 2009, India contributed $1.2 million and advanced $774,000 to the TTEG (Tripartite Technical Experts Group). India volunteered to survey wrecks in the Malacca Straits which approved by the TTEG, further irking the Chinese.

Responding to the recent visit of Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to Japan discussing maritime security cooperation, Chinese media has raised concerns that Japan is trying to encircle China with the help of military and economic cooperation with India.

While India easily bows down to China making compromises on its own territories, India is seen very assertive and aggressive in its policy of containing China in the international soil and waters. Leadership of both the nations often meet with shaking hands and smiles on their face signing more trade agreements and contracts and hoping for better cooperation in the future, but behind their smiley face both the nations know what they are doing and what is needed to be done.

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Naga bitches

The Mizo customary law was even more discriminatory. But it has been amended without any fuss by the Mizos themselves and women's reservation in local bodies allowed. They have made changes relating to divorce, etc also to provide empowerment to women. Naga men should draw lessons

The tribal bodies’ protest against reservation for women in local municipalities in Nagaland must not be allowed to settle the argument

All-male tribal bodies have been against the 33% reservation for women in urban local bodies (ULBs) in Nagaland right from the time the Nagaland government enacted the Nagaland Municipal (First Amendment) Act in 2006, on the grounds that reservation for women in ULBs would violate Article 371(A) of the Constitution and infringe on Naga culture, traditions and customary laws. Faced with vehement opposition, the Nagaland government did not conduct elections to civic bodies for over 10 years.

Spearheaded by the Naga Mothers’ Association (NMA), Naga women filed a writ petition challenging the State government’s refusal to hold municipal elections before the Kohima Bench of the Gauhati High Court on June 26, 2011. In October 2011, a single-judge bench of the court upheld the Naga women’s petition and directed the government to hold elections to municipal councils and town councils on or before January 20, 2012. But before the deadline, the Nagaland government filed an appeal before a Division Bench of the Gauhati High Court, which stayed the previous ruling. One of the arguments put forward by the Nagaland government was the claim that implementing such a law would ‘upset the peace’ in Nagaland. On September 22, 2012, the Nagaland State Assembly adopted a resolution rejecting women’s reservation in ULBs on the ground that it infringes on the social and customary practices of the Nagas, which Article 371(A) safeguards.

The Joint Action Committee on Women Reservation (JACWR) then moved a Special Leave Petition in the Supreme Court in September 2012. On April 20, 2016, the Supreme Court upheld the single-judge ruling of the Gauhati High Court of October 2011. So, the Nagaland government enacted the Nagaland Municipal (Third Amendment) Bill 2016, which revoked the September 2012 resolution, paving the way for women’s reservation in ULBs. Early in January, the State government announced that elections to the ULBs would be held on February 1.

Tribal threats

The tribal bodies protested loudly as soon as the elections were announced and threatened candidates who intended to file nominations that they would be ex-communicated from their respective tribes. Coming under pressure, some candidates didn’t file nominations and some others withdrew their papers. Those who refused to withdraw from the fray were ex-communicated, ranging from 10 to 30 years.

Through all this, the State government remained a silent spectator and failed to assert the rule of law, especially because these tribal bodies are not traditional institutions recognised by Article 371(A). The ULBs too are not traditional Naga institutions but constitutional bodies under Part IX of the Constitution over which Naga traditional bodies have no mandate.

When the State government refused to call off the elections, the tribal bodies announced a bandh from January 28 to February 1. They enforced the bandh across Nagaland although elections took place in several places on February 1. Clearly, some towns did not agree with these tribal bodies.

Meanwhile, on January 31, two persons were killed in Dimapur, the commercial capital of the State. Things soon took an ugly turn, and the Nagaland government declared the elections ‘null and void’. Since then, tribal bodies have begun clamouring for more, seeking the resignation of the Chief Minister, no less. Though life is limping back to normal, there is still a bandh on government offices and a restriction on movement of government vehicles.

But it must be said that even before the bandh call, the focus had started shifting from women’s reservation to issues of taxes and land ownership contained in the Nagaland Municipal (Third Amendment) Bill 2016.

Unconstitutional demand

What is even more alarming, and preposterous, is that the Nagaland government has decided to write to the Centre demanding that Nagaland be exempted from Part IX A of the Constitution. “If the State Government and all the stakeholders cannot arrive at an amicable resolution of this issue at the earliest, the best option appears to be to seek exemption of Nagaland from Part IX A of the Constitution, which contains a mandatory provision under Article 243T for 33% women reservation in ULBs, which will put to rest the issue and avoid further misunderstanding among the people,” the Chief Minister’s office explained in a release.

Clearly, to rescue itself, the Nagaland government is doing a Pontius Pilate by washing its hands of the reservation issue and sacrificing the rights of Naga women at the altar of Naga males’ primeval tribal ego. If Nagaland is exempted from the purview of Part IX of the Constitution, Naga women will have absolutely no hope of entering into and participating in decision-making bodies.

Reservation for women is necessary in patriarchal societies like Naga society, for instance, where there is a historical culture of inequalities even though Nagas don’t practise sati, female foeticide and infanticide, and do not believe in dowry or the caste system. But Naga customs, culture and traditions preclude women from inheriting land and participating in the decision-making process, which is exactly what Article 371(A) protects.

The other deeply worrying issue is that because the government at the Centre appears to be misinformed about ground realities in Nagaland, it is possible that the State government’s claim that the reservation issue may ‘upset the peace’ in the state could cloud its judgment.

Undeniably, the constitutionally guaranteed rights of Naga women now depend on the Centre, as much as on the gender sensitised public of India.

Repromulgation

Re-promulgation of ordinances is a fraud on the Constitution and a sub-version of democratic legislative processes, as laid down in the judgment of the Constitution Bench in D C Wadhwa

The verdict of a seven-member Bench of the Supreme Court breaks new ground in highlighting the constitutional limitations on the cavalier resort to ordinances. The Supreme Court had already declared in 1986, in D.C. Wadhwa , that repeated re-promulgation of ordinances was unconstitutional. Now, in Krishna Kumar Singh v. State of Bihar , it goes deeper and concludes that the failure to place an ordinance before the legislature constitutes abuse of power and a fraud on the Constitution. It noted in this case that a 1989 ordinance by which the State government took over 429 Sanskrit schools in Bihar was promulgated several times until 1992, but not once tabled in the State Assembly.

The judgment widens the scope of judicial review of ordinances. The court can go into whether the President or Governor had any material to arrive at the satisfaction that an ordinance was necessaryand to examine whether there was any oblique motive. The judgment will be welcomed by those who believe in constitutional propriety, legislative control over lawmaking and the larger ethical basis for the exercise of power in any circumstance. However, it is not always that the ordinance route can be neatly explained as a cynical move to privilege political expediency over parliamentary accountability. While contending that ordinances should be issued only to meet certain exigencies and under compelling circumstances, it is equally important to understand that disruption as a parliamentary tactic plays a significant role. A dysfunctional House sometimes constitutes a compelling circumstance in itself. Generally, it is the combination of Opposition obstructionism and government obstinacy in not making any concessions to those across the aisle that derails legislative business and leads to ordinances. The courts can only define the boundaries between the use and abuse of power, but it is up to parties in the legislature to observe the limits of constitutional propriety and show that they have both the time and the will to enact laws.

Single directive

Q&A

Why is “single directive” a violation of equality before law, according to a recent Supreme Court ruling? 

Central Government had made it mandatory for the CBI to take the prior approval of the government to even conduct a preliminary inquiry into allegations of corruption against officers in all civil services of the rank/grade of Joint Secretary and above. This was called the 'Single Directive'. A three-judge Bench of the Supreme Court struck down this Single Directive as being arbitrary and violative of the guarantee of equal treatment and equal protection of the law for all officers under Article 14 of the Constitution. That was in the Vineet Narain judgment. Central Government gave statutory status to the Central Vigilance Commission through the Central Vigilance Commission Act (CVC Act) and brought back the Single Directive in that law as well as by amending the Delhi Special Police Establishment Act (DSPE Act). What the Apex Court had struck down earlier was only an executive direction/resolution. Now the protective shield for senior officials was given legal sanction with the stamp of Parliamentary approval to the 'Single Directive'. The Government argued that such protection was essential for senior level officers to function in an independent manner without fear of prosecution for every decision they made. This was like immunising the senior bureaucracy from any inquiry into allegations of corruption against it. On being challenged under a PIL, the Supreme Court referred the matter to a Constitution Bench How did the Court rule? The Constitution Bench of the Court held that the 'Single Directive' contained in the CVC Act and the DSPE Act violated the guarantee of Article 14 of the Constitution. Same is not granted to junior level officers. Further, equal grade officers at the state level do not enjoy such immunity. Therefore, it is violative of Art.14.

Pc act 1988 amendments

Parliament is considering an amendment to the Prevention of Corruption Act which would only end up helping the corrupt. Its passage would administer a big blow to our already weak anti-corruption mechanism

As the nation engages in a doubtful “war on black money”, we run the risk of disengaging ourselves from any action on corruption, the fountainhead of black money. Indeed, we may be moving backwards in the battle against corruption. While everyone is busy debating demonetisation, Parliament is all set to change the Prevention of Corruption Act (PCA), 1988, into a law that can only be described as Protection of the Corrupt Act. Worse, this move enjoys cross-party support, as in most instances where the political establishment protects itself. All in the name of war against black money, of course.

On the face of it, the Prevention of Corruption (Amendment) Bill, 2013, which is pending before Parliament, merely proposes some amendments to the PCA. This Bill was first introduced in the Rajya Sabha in 2013, during the United Progressive Alliance regime following massive anti-corruption protests. The purpose, ostensibly, was to tighten existing anti-corruption legislation. But it had some worrisome provisions. The real death knell was sounded after the National Democratic Alliance government proposed additional and fatal amendments in 2014. A Select Committee of the Rajya Sabha, comprising members across the political establishment, has already approved these changes. So has the Cabinet. This regressive piece of legislation was to be taken up for passage in the current winter session, now nearly washed out.

Hydra-headed amendments

As it stands now in the version cleared by the Select Committee in August this year, the Bill serves to dilute and defeat the whole point of anti-corruption legislation in more ways than one. It narrows down the existing definition of corruption, increases the burden of proof necessary for punishing the corrupt, makes things more difficult for the whistle-blower, and strengthens the shield available to officials accused of corruption. And it slips in a diabolic clause that would protect the babu-neta nexus from ever facing any serious anti-corruption probe. If this Bill becomes law, our already weak anti-corruption mechanism would receive a fatal blow.

Let us examine how each of these key amendments serves to protect the corrupt rather than prevent corruption.

First, the proposed amendment narrows down the definition of corruption, as demanded by the powerful lobby of civil servants. Section 13(1)(d) of the existing PCA covers various indirect forms of corruption including the obtaining of “any valuable thing or pecuniary advantage” by illegal gratification or by “abusing his position as a public servant”. The present Bill removes this section and replaces it with a truncated definition of criminal misconduct by a public servant: fraudulent misappropriation of property under one’s control, and intentional, illicit enrichment and possession of disproportionate assets. Under this new definition, any benefit that is not economic, that is indirect or that cannot be proven to be intentional fraud will not be punished as corruption. The Law Commission studied this proposed amendment carefully and disagreed with the narrow definition. Instead it proposed an even wider definition. The Law Commission suggested that any “undue advantage” that results from “improper performance of public function or activity” of a public servant should be punishable. Yet the government and the Parliamentary Committee disregarded this suggestion and have obliged the babu lobby.

This is critical, as the existing Section 13(1)(d) is the only provision in the PCA which deals with corruption in high places where, typically, no under-the-table transactions take place. The corrupt public servant usually receives illegal gratification in an extremely clandestine manner such as off-shore transactions or non-monetary considerations such as a better posting, post retirement benefits, etc. All major scams, right from Bofors to the 2G scam, the Commonwealth Games scam, the coal scam, etc. became criminal offences by virtue of this section. This is precisely why a section of bureaucrats has been demanding a deletion of this provision on the ground that it inhibits fearless decision-making that may involve exercise of discretion and bona fide errors. This argument is simply not true. T.S.R. Subramanian, a retired Cabinet Secretary known for his integrity, has repeatedly said that the existing law offers adequate protection to honest officers. It does not punish any bona fide difference or even mistake unless it is a clear abuse of power leading to financial or other gains.

Raising threshold of proof

Second, the Bill makes it more difficult to hold someone guilty of disproportionate assets as it raises the threshold of proof. Under the existing law, the possession of monetary resources or property disproportionate to the public servant’s known sources of income is enough to prove corruption. Now the prosecutor will also have to prove that this disproportionate asset was acquired with the intention of the public servant to enrich himself illicitly. Although the Select Committee of the Rajya Sabha agrees that proving intention should not be made mandatory, we don’t know the government’s final position. Besides this, currently, “known sources of income” are limited only to those receipts which had been “intimated in accordance with the provisions of any law, rules or orders for the time being applicable to a public servant”. This provision was made in 1988 in order to cover an earlier loophole, whereby many accused persons would cite fresh sources of income at the stage of trial, resulting in acquittal in a large number of disproportionate assets cases. Strangely, the government proposes to delete this requirement without any recommendation to this effect from any stakeholder. Thus the big offenders have secured a vital escape route for themselves.

Third, the proposed amendment makes it more risky for a bribe-giver to give evidence against a bribe-taker. Under the existing law, if a person makes a statement during a corruption trial that he gave a bribe, it would not be used to prosecute him for the offence of abetment of corruption. The current Bill omits this provision and proposes that bribe-taking and bribe-giving will be equally punishable. This would obviously deter bribe-givers from appearing as witnesses in cases against public officials.

Admittedly, there is some merit in not granting complete exemption to bribe-givers, but there was no need to do away with it altogether. The government had better options. The report of the Second Administrative Reforms Commission has recommended a distinction between “coercive” and “collusive” bribing. Those who are coerced into bribing but report it thereafter should be given some protection. At one stage there was a proposal to give a seven-day window for declaration by the bribe-giver in order to qualify for exemption. But all such ideas were rejected. The final proposal now seeks to punish everyone and thereby reduces the chances of evidence against the bribe-taker.

The fourth change reduces the chances of prosecution of the corrupt. The existing PCA requires the government’s or higher officials’ sanction before any serving public servants can be prosecuted under the Act. The basic idea is to protect honest public officials from harassment, persecution and frivolous litigation. The proposed amendment extends this protection to retired public servants, if the case pertains to the period when they were in office. This seems a reasonable and necessary corollary of the original provision. But it also adds another unnecessary and pointless condition. If a private person approaches the government for sanction to prosecute a public servant for corruption, he would now need a court order to this effect. This additional layer of protection for the accused would discourage victims of corruption and anti-corruption activists from prosecuting corrupt public servants. Clearly, the government is concerned more about shielding government officials than prosecuting the corrupt.

Getting the nod first

And, finally, the most deadly and diabolic provision that the government has quietly slipped in without much public scrutiny. It proposes to insert a new Section 17A that would bar investigating agencies from even beginning an inquiry or investigating the offences under this Act without prior approval. The amendment proposed by the government said this sanction was to be obtained from a Lokayukta or Lokpal. The Select Committee of the Rajya Sabha makes it worse: it shifts the power to give this sanction to an “authority competent to remove” the person from office. Effectively, it means that now, the political masters will decide whether they wish to allow a corruption inquiry against any government employee or not.

This defies logic. As noted earlier, Section 19 of the Act already protects officials from mala fide litigation. If someone wishes to harass an innocent officer without any credible evidence of corruption, the government can refuse to give sanction for prosecution. But why insist on sanction even before an inquiry? Surely, if there is no inquiry, there is no credible evidence. On what basis then would the government (or the Lokpal, if we go by the previous proposal) give or refuse to give the sanction? Or, how would anyone produce evidence to secure this sanction without an inquiry in the first place? Even if the sanction is granted, would it not alert the corrupt official about the impending inquiry and give him time to hide evidence? This diabolic provision can only serve one purpose: make the higher bureaucracy and political bosses the ultimate arbiters in cases of corruption. If a politician wants to protect a corrupt officer, he can not only save him from prosecution (which can be challenged in a court) but also prevent any evidence gathering from taking place.

Reactivating the ‘Single Directive’

The babudom has thus managed to bring back the infamous “Single Directive”. This refers to an older governmental order that no senior officer (of the rank of Joint Secretary or above) could be investigated without permission from the government. In the famous Vineet Narain judgment, the Supreme Court had held this order as illegal, in 1997. The government brought it back, this time as provision of law, in 2003. Finally, as recently as 2014, a Constitutional bench of the Supreme Court held that this provision was unconstitutional, as it violated the right to equality. Such is the power of babudom and its hold over netas that it has managed to bring this immunity clause back for the third time.

As the winter session of Parliament draws to a close, it seems that this Bill may now be postponed to the Budget session. This gives concerned citizens another couple of months to build public opinion against this attempt to protect the corrupt. It is time to revive the anti-corruption movement.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Not all the >amendments to the Prevention of Corruption Act cleared by the Union Cabinet last week inspire public confidence or meet the objective of filling gaps in domestic anti-corruption law. In significant respects, the proposals fall short of public expectations and fail to address key issues in corruption jurisprudence. In its Bill introduced in the Rajya Sabha in 2013, the UPA government proposed to extend the protection of prior sanction for prosecuting public servants to former officials. The ostensible reason was that Section 197 of the Code of Criminal Procedure protected retired officials, while the PCA covered only serving officials. The government wants to stick to this change, when it would have been more advisable to bring the CrPC in consonance with the PCA. The sanction provision ought to have been restricted to prosecutions that flow from deviations from public policy, laws and regulations. Possessing unexplained assets, being caught red-handed while taking a bribe and misappropriating property cannot be actions in the course of official functions, and in such cases prior sanction cannot be required. The Bill drops the protection accorded to bribe-givers if they depose during trial, thereby deterring those coerced into giving a bribe from subsequently testifying against offenders. A distinction ought to have been made between collusive bribery and bribery under coercion.

The expanded provision relating to bribery and enhanced jail terms are positive developments, but the idea of subsuming most offences now covered under ‘criminal misconduct’ into a single clause should be revisited, lest some form of abuse of office slips through the net. Another worrisome aspect is the change made to the offence of possessing ‘disproportionate assets’. When the 2013 Bill used the term ‘intentional enrichment’, it seemed as though the prosecution needed to prove the possession of unexplained assets as well as the ‘intention’ to enrich oneself. The government now says “possession of disproportionate assets” will be proof of “such illicit enrichment”. It is to be hoped that this will mean the prosecution need not prove the intention to amass wealth, as such an additional requirement would allow those in possession of ill-gotten wealth to escape the law. The proposed amendments have positive aspects too. They seek to curb commercial entities from offering inducements to public servants and provide for punishments to individuals in charge of such entities. The trial court itself can now deal with the process of attachment of property instead of the district court. Fixing a time frame for grant of sanction and completion of trial is a welcome feature. A crucial opportunity to overhaul the anti-corruption law should not be lost through imperfect amendments.

Sc cat and prakash singh

The Supreme Court for the first time in history, on Monday, ordered the reinstatement of ousted Kerala DGP T.P. Senkumar, sending out a clear message that police officers cannot be made "scapegoats" by politicians in power.

In a resounding blow to Pinarayi Vijayan-led LDF government, a Bench of Justices Madan B. Lokur and Dipak Gupta held that Mr. Senkumar has been "unfairly treated" by the newly formed government.

The decision is likely to have repercussions in States were police chiefs were removed by the political dispensation against the Supreme Court's ruling in Prakash Singh that DGP should have a fixed tenure of two years and not be subject to the whims of the political powers in the State.

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Senkumar verdict: Govt. will act after getting copy of SC judgment, says Pinarayi

 

"On an overall consideration of the facts and circumstances of the case, we are of the opinion that Mr. Senkumar has been unfairly treated. We have no hesitation in setting aside the judgment and directing the reappointment of the petitioner," the Supreme Court held.

The decision would unseat the present DGP Lokanath Behara.

Mr. Senkumar, who was removed as State Police chief, by the LDF government immediately on assuming office, had approached the Supreme Court after failing in his bid to get a favourable order from the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT).

The LDF government had removed him contending that his handling of the Puttingal firework disaster and the rape and murder of the Dalit law student at Perumbavoor were “totally unsatisfactory.” The CAT had taken the position that the State government was well within its power to remove him from the post.

Mr. Senkumar, represented by senior advocate Dushyant Dave and advocates Prashant Bhushan and Haris Beeran, launched a strident personal attack against Mr. Vijayan in the Supreme Court, accusing the Chief Minister of removing him for "political motives".

"My performance is 9 put of 10. I was in no way directly responsible for the two cases (Puttingal and Dalit student murder). If that is the case, 96 police officers were transferred by this government. Nine political murders occurred in the State. Will the Chief Minister, who is also the Home Minister, take responsibility? If not, why should the Chief Minister say I should take responsibility?" Mr. Dave had submitted.

Mr. Dave said there should be "some semblance of law".

Modern indian painting

Post the end of 19th century there was nothing to take the place of declining indian miniature painting. Schools such as company style and baazar style were existing sporadically.

However this changed with advent of victorian naturalism. Raja ravi verma became the driving light and painted his lady in the moon light photo.

As a reaction to this the revivalist school of Bengal painting came about. Its romanticism and mediviel revivalism was clearly a reaction to the victorian naturalism. Abinanadra nath tagore's baharat mata

Things again changed post ww2 and independence
Contemporary Indian art has travelled a long way since the days of Ravi Verma, Abanindranath Tagore and his followers and even Amrita Sher-Gil.  Mf husain is also there. Broadly, the pattern followed is this. Almost every artist of note began with one kind of representational or figurative art or the other tinged with impressionism, expressionism or post-expressionism. The irksome relationship of form and content was generally kept at a complementary level. T

The Modern Indian art movement in Indian painting is considered to have begun in Calcutta in the late nineteenth century.The old traditions of painting had more or less died out in Bengal and new schools of art were started by the British.[1] Initially, protagonists of Indian art such as Raja Ravi Varma drew on Western traditions and techniques including oil paint and easel painting. A reaction to the Western influence led to a revival in primitivism, called as the Bengal school of art, which drew from the rich cultural heritage of India. It was succeeded by the Santiniketan school, led by Rabindranath Tagore's harking back to idyllic rural folk and rural life.

y the time of Independence in 1947, several schools of art in India provided access to modern techniques and ideas. Galleries were established to showcase these artists. Modern Indian art typically shows the influence of Western styles, but is often inspired by Indian themes and images. Major artists are beginning to gain international recognition, initially among the Indian diaspora, but also among non-Indian audiences.

The Progressive Artists' Group, established shortly after India became independent in 1947, was intended to establish new ways of expressing India in the post-colonial era. Its founder was Francis Newton Souza and S. H. Raza, M. F. Husain and Manishi Dey were early members. It was profoundly influential in changing the idiom of Indian art. Almost all of the major artists of India in the 1950s were associated with the group. Prominent among them were Akbar Padamsee, Sadanand Bakre, Ram Kumar, Tyeb Mehta, K. H. Ara, H. A. Gade and Bal Chabda.[18] In 1950, V. S. Gaitonde, Krishen Khanna and Mohan Samant joined the Group. The group disbanded in 1956.

Pseudorealistic Indian painting. Couple, Kids and Confusion. by Devajyoti Ray.

Other famous painters like Narayan Shridhar Bendre, K.K.Hebbar, K. C. S. Paniker, Sankho Chaudhuri, Antonio Piedade da Cruz,[19][20] K. G. Subramanyan, Satish Gujral, Bikash Bhattacharjee, Jehangir Sabavala, Sakti Burman, A. Ramachandran, Ganesh Pyne, Nirode Mazumdar, Ghulam Mohammed Sheikh, Jahar Dasgupta, Prokash Karmakar, John Wilkins, Vivan Sundaram, Jogen Chowdhury, Jagdish Swaminathan, Jyoti Bhatt, Bhupen Khakhar, Jeram Patel, Narayanan Ramachandran, Paramjit Singh, Pranab Barua, Dom Martin (the Surrealistic Painter from Goa) and Bijon Choudhuri enriched the art culture of India and they have become the icons of modern Indian art. Women artists like B. Prabha, Shanu Lahiri, Arpita Singh, Anjolie Ela Menon and Lalita Lajmi have made immense contributions to Modern Indian Art and Painting. Art historians like Prof. Rai Anand Krishna have also referred to those works of modern artistes that reflect Indian ethos. Some of the acclaimed contemporary Indian artists include Nagasamy Ramachandran, Jitish Kallat, Atul Dodiya and Geeta Vadhera who has had acclaim in translating complex, Indian spiritual themes onto canvas like Sufi thought, the Upanishads and the Bhagwad Geeta.

Indian Art got a boost with the economic liberalization of the country since early 1990s. Artists from various fields now started bringing in varied styles of work. Post liberalization Indian art works not only within the confines of academic traditions but also outside it. Artists have introduced new concepts which have hitherto not been seen in Indian art. Devajyoti Ray has introduced a new genre of art called Pseudorealism. Pseudorealist Art is an original art style that has been developed entirely on the Indian soil. Pseudorealism takes into account the Indian concept of abstraction and uses it to transform regular scenes of Indian life into fantastic images.

In post-liberalization India, many artists have established themselves in the international art market like the abstract painter Natvar Bhavsar, abstract Art painter Nabakishore Chanda, and sculptor Anish Kapoor whose mammoth postminimalist artworks have acquired attention for their sheer size. Many art houses and galleries have also opened in USA and Europe to showcase Indian artworks.

Art scholars such as C. Sivaramamurti, Anand Krishna, R . Siva Kumar[21][22] and Geeta Kapur[23] have taken Indian Art to a global platform.

Western art

French art and the state

Despite the brief dismantling of the Royal Academy during the French Revolution, art remained an extension of the power of the French State which regularly purchased art that it favored (often art that supported its political objectives). Through the Royal Academy (originally been founded by Louis XIV), the state extended its reach to the official exhibitions (salons) and to matters of style and subject matter through the École des Beaux Arts (School of Fine Arts). These were not just the official institutions of art, they were, in essence, the only institutions available for living artists to train and to make their work known. This tutorial looks at a crucial moment for painting, on the eve of the Revolution of 1848. We also examine one of the great State commissions of the Second Empire, the Opera House.

Realism

In the mid-Nineteenth Century, great art was still defined as art that took it’s subjects from religion, history or mythology and its style from ancient Greece and Rome. Hardly what we would consider modern and appropriate for an industrial, commercial, urban culture! Courbet agreed, and so did his friend, the writer Charles Baudelaire who called for an art that would depict, as he called it, the beauty of modern life. Courbet painted the reality of life in the countryside—not the idealized peasants that were the usual fare at the exhibits in Paris. The revolution of 1848, in which both the working class and the middle class played a significant role, set the stage for Realism. Later, Manet and then Degas painted modern life in Paris, a city which was undergoing rapid modernization in the period after 1855 (the Second Empire

Impressionism

Impressionism is both a style and the name of a group of artists who did something radical—in 1874 they banded together and held their own independent exhibition. These artists described, in fleeting sensations of light, the new leisure pastimes of the city and its suburbs. It’s hard to imagine, but at this time in France, the only place of consequence that artists could exhibit their work was the official government-sanctioned exhibitions (called salons), held just once a year, and controlled by a conservative jury. The Impressionists painted modern Paris and landscapes with a loose open brushstrokes, bright colors, and unconventional compositions—none of which was appreciated by the salon jury!

European painting

influence of European paintings was started during the period of Akbar when he encouraged European, Chinese and south-east paintings. however European paintings influenced grossly during the colonial period i.e. second half of 18th century and 19th century. e.g.-

1] in goa, hybrid style of paintings called ' company art' which included both indian and british. nawab of Arcot had painter european painter fransis for his european painting collections.
2] oil paintings, water colour techniques, use of paper and ivory,etc was now inserted in painting field.
3] europe romantic movement also influened the indian painting by bringing picturesque such as evocative landscape.
4] 'kali ghat paintings' in calcutta [now kolkata] featured lively, brightly coloured mythological and secular subject. one popular feature was depicting bureaucratic red tapism and infamous work.
5]western colleges of art were eastablished at chennai[1850], calcutta[1854], mumbai[1857].most famous painter from india was raja ravi varma who got international recognition in second half of nineteenth century.

however, elite artist engrossed to nationalism in late nineteenth-century. e.g. tagore brother abanindranath and ravindranath tagore. his ' bharat mata' painting become iconic for nationalists.

Muduro venezuela

The Bolivarian Revolution is a leftist social movement and political process in Venezuela led by late Venezuelan president Hugo Chávez, the founder of the Fifth Republic Movement and later the United Socialist Party of Venezuela. The "Bolivarian Revolution" is named after Simón Bolívar, an early 19th-century Venezuelan and Latin American revolutionary leader, prominent in the Spanish American wars of independence in achieving the independence of most of northern South America from Spanish rule. According to Chávez and other supporters, the "Bolivarian Revolution" seeks to build a mass movement to implement Bolivarianism, popular democracy, economic independence, equitable distribution of revenues, and an end to political corruption in Venezuela. They interpret Bolívar's ideas from a socialist perspective.[citation needed]

On his 57th birthday, while announcing that he was being treated for cancer, Chavez announced that he had changed the slogan of the Bolivarian Revolution from "Motherland, socialism, or death" to "Socialist motherland and victory, we will live, and we will come out victorious."[1]

Sand mining

According to the Geological Survey of India (GSI), riverbed mining causes several alterations to the physical characteristics of both a river and riverbed. These can severely impact the ecological equilibrium of a river and damage plants, animals and riparian habitats. The GSI has issued guidelines to address the massive damage that riverbed mining can cause, including lowering the groundwater table in a floodplain. Excessive pumping out of groundwater during sand mining, especially in abandoned channels, generally results in depletion of groundwater resources causing severe scarcity and affecting irrigation and potable water availability.

In February 2012, the Supreme Court of India ruled that approval under the 2006 Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) notification is needed for all sand mining and gravel collection activities, even if the area being mined is less than 5 hectares (12.5 acres). It also made some critical observations related to environmental impacts of sand mining. Then in May of 2012, the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) issued an order mandating compliance with the Supreme Court’s February 2012 judgment and directing that permissions be sought for all mining activities. These permissions must come from the respective State Environment Impact Assessment Authorities (SEIAA) constituted under the 2006 EIA notification.

Some of the key features of illegal sand mining are:

1. Sand was being dredged illegally and operations were claimed to be carried out non-stop 24 hours a day all the year round including during monsoons. 
2. Round-the-clock operations were facilitated by mechanical dredgers and suction pumps which were deemed to be illegal. 
3. Several mangrove forests had been destroyed by illegal construction of storage docks, roads and other infrastructure to facilitate easy removal, storage and transfer of sand from the river. This made Mumbai and the neighbouring regions more vulnerable to floods. 
4. Local people were denied a voice in the matter. Despite opposition from several Panchayats (local governments), dredging operations were still carried out with impunity because a mafia controlled the trade and many involved were either close relatives or friends of local politicians. 
5. The livelihoods of local fishermen were being threatened by the sand barges which often destroyed their nets. Yet the fishermen claimed that no one was willing to register an official complaint. They were instead threatened and intimidated against making a fuss about such incidents. 
6. Many institutional processes to promote consultation with various stakeholders were short circuited when consultations were sometimes deliberately scheduled at times that were inconvenient to the villagers. For e.g. in a village, that was predominantly Muslim, consultation meetings were scheduled on Friday afternoons. Since religious commitments took precedence, most villagers could not attend the consultations. This was then construed to be a lack of participation and decisions were made on their behalf. 

The National Green Tribunal (NGT) issued a restraint order against all sand mining activity being carried out across the country without environmental clearance. The order was passed in the light of the recent controversy surrounding the suspension of IAS officer posted as sub divisional magistrate (SDM) in Greater Noida in Gautam Buddh Nagar in Uttar Pradesh after she cracked down on the mining mafia. While passing the order, NGT reaffirmed the Supreme Court’s order  last year which banned any kind of mining of minor minerals, including sand, without environmental clearance from the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests. 

A bench comprising justices Swatenter Kumar, U D Salvi, S N Hussain, and experts, D K Agarwal and Ranjan Chatterjee on Monday said that removal of minerals from river beds is posing a serious threat to the flow of rivers, survival of forests upon river banks and most seriously to the environment of river banks, especially those of the Yamuna, Ganga, Chambal, Gaumti and Revati rivers.

Lucknow pact

If we look back at India’s freedom movement, we see two milestones when Hindu-Muslim cooperation reached its zenith. One was the 1857 War of Independence, when Hindus and Muslims fought shoulder-to-shoulder against “Company Rule” – the colonial advancements of the East India Company.

The other was the Lucknow Pact between the Congress and the Muslim League in December 1916, the principal architects of which were Tilak and Mohammed Ali Jinnah. 

Remarkably, Jinnah those days was a member, simultaneously, of both the Congress and the Muslim League. He was held in high esteem in both parties, and was popularly known as an ‘Ambassador of Hindu-Muslim Unity’.

Tilak and Jinnah had worked together in the previous decade. Hence, a confluence of India’s two main political streams led to the historic Lucknow Pact in 1916. AG Noorani, a prolific scholar, has described this convincingly in his book Jinnah and Tilak – Comrades in the Freedom Struggle.

More by design than by coincidence, the annual sessions of the Congress and the Muslim League took place around the same time, in the last week of December 1916, in Lucknow. The highlight of the Lucknow Pact was that the Congress and the Muslim League agreed on separate representation to Muslims and gave due weightage to their representation, higher than their percentage in population would warrant, in the Imperial/Provincial Legislatures where they were in a minority.

At the same time, applying the same principle, it increased the representation of non-Muslims and suitably reduced the representation in Muslims in the Muslim-majority provinces like Punjab and Bengal. As a result, the Pact conceded to the Muslims one-third of the seats in the Imperial Legislative Council.

The idea of separate electorates sounds odd, even repugnant, in today’s India. So does the seemingly undemocratic concept of over-representation to a religious community (to Muslims in Hindu-majority provinces and to Hindus in Muslim-majority provinces). However, we have to view this agreement from the point of view the conditions prevailing in India in the second decade of the last century.

The Indian Councils Act 1909, also known as the Morley-Minto Reforms, had conceded the Muslim demand for separate electorates in its highly restricted devolution of power to Indians. This was opposed by the Congress, which was in favour of joint electorates.

Sumitra Mahajan, Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, Prakash Javadekar , Santosh Gangwar, SS Ahluwalia, LK Advani and Subramanian Swamy paying tribute to Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak on his birth anniversary at Parliament in New Delhi. (Photo: PTI)

At the same time, there was a realisation in large sections of both the Congress and the Muslim League that a united front of Hindus and Muslims was necessary to move towards meaningful self-governance. Tilak best represented this new thinking in the Congress and spoke effectively in favour of the party’s session in Lucknow endorsing separate electorates for Muslims and other provisions in the Pact.

Influential leaders like Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya, BS Moonje and TB Sapru opposed him, saying he had surrendered to the Muslims by conceding the ‘anti-national and anti-democratic’ system of separate electorates. Yet, he stood his ground in Lucknow and staked his all for the Hindu-Muslim settlement.

Addressing over 2,000 delegates in the open session, and using words that only a leader with enormous conviction and self-confidence can, Tilak said: “It has been said that we, Hindus, have yielded too much. The concession that has been made to our Muhammadan brethren in the Legislative Council is really nothing too much. In proportion to the concession that had been made to the Moslems their enthusiasm and warm-hearted support is surely greater. I urge the audience to give effect actively to the resolution adopted by the Congress.”

Explicating his stand further in his address at the concurrent session of the Home Rule League in Lucknow. Tilak remarked:

There is a feeling among the Hindus that too much has been given to the Muslims. As a Hindu I have no objection to making this concession.We cannot rise from our present intolerable condition without the aid of the Muslims. So in order to gain the desired end there is no objection to giving a percentage, a greater percentage, to the Muslims. Their responsibility becomes greater, the greater the percentage of representation you give to them.They will be doubly bound to work for you and with you, with a zeal and enthusiasm greater than ever. The fight is at present a triangular one.

Tilak’s stand was that the “triangular” fight among Hindus, Muslims and the British should be reduced to a “two-way” fight between the British and the common front of Hindus and Muslims. And for bringing about this fundamental change, he was prepared to show that Hindus were willing to be magnanimous towards their Muslim brethren, who, after all, were fellow Indians.

What was important was for the Hindus and Muslims to sink their differences in the united struggle for Swaraj. Jinnah echoed Tilak’s thoughts and sentiments: “My message to the Mussalmans is to join hands with your Hindu brethren. My message to Hindus is to lift your backward brother up.”

Aurangzeb persecution

The Mughal Emperor, Aurangzebcherished the ambition of converting Indiainto an Islamic country. This philosophy was also pleaded by Shaikh Ahmad Sirhindi (1569–1624), leader of the Naqashbandi School of thought, to counter the liberal policies of Akbar's reign.

Although most of the conversions in Kashmir happened peacefully. Yet, the Emperor's experiment was carried out in Kashmir. The viceroy of Kashmir, Iftikhar Khan (1671–1675) carried out the policy vigorously and set about converting non-Muslims by force.

A group of Kashmiri Pandits (Kashmiri Hindu Brahmins),  approached GuruTegh Bahadur Ji for help. Guru Tegh Bahadur realised that sacrifice is needed to stop the injustice being done in India by the Mughul empror.He adviced the kashmiri pandits to tell the Mughal authorities that they would willingly embrace Islam if Tegh  Bahadur did the same.

Orders of the arrest of the Guru were issued by Aurangzeb, who was in the present-day Khyber Pakhtunkhwa of Pakistansubduing Pushtun rebellion. The Guru was arrested at a place called Malikhpur near Anandpur after he had departed from Anandpur for Delhi. Before departing he  nominated his son, Gobind Rai (Guru Gobind Singh) as the next Sikh Guru.

He was arrested, along with some of his followers, Bhai Dayala, Bhai Mati Dasand Bhai Sati Das by Nur Muhammad Khan of the Rupnagar police post at the village Malikhpur Rangharan, in Ghanaula Parganah, and sent to Sirhind the following day. The Faujdar (Governor) of Sirhind, Dilawar Khan, ordered him to be detained in Bassi Pathana and reported the news to Delhi.  His arrest was made in July 1675 and he was kept in custody for over  three months. He was then kept in an iron cage and taken to Delhi in  November 1675.

The Guru was put in chains and ordered to be tortured until he would  accept Islam. When he could not be persuaded to abandon his faith to  save himself from persecution, he was asked to perform some miracles to  prove his divinity. Refusing to do so,Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji was beheaded in  public at Chandni Chowk on 24 November 1675. The Guru is also known as "Hind Di Chadar" i.e. "The Shield of India", suggesting that he gave up his life to protect the religious freedom of non Muslims in Mughal India. The three sikhs arrested with him were also tortured to death by boiling in hot water, cutting by saw and burning alive.

Letter from guru gobind singh to aurangzeb

One of the most quoted verses from the Zafarnama is the following couplet:

Chu kar az hama heelt e dar guzshat,Halal ast burdan ba shamsheer dast."All modes of redressing the wrong having failed,raising of sword is pious and just

In the 111 verses of this notice, Guru Gobind Singh Ji rebukes Aurangzeb for his weaknesses as a human being and for excesses as a leader. Guru Gobind Singh also confirms his confidence and his unflinching faith in the Almighty even after suffering extreme personal loss of his Father, Mother, and all four of his sons to Aurangzeb's tyranny. Guru Gobind Singh Ji invited Aurangzeb to meet him in Kangar village near Bathinda (Punjab) and said no need to worry as Brar tribe will not harm him (Aurangzeb) as they are under his command. On the way, there will be no danger to your life, For, the whole tribe of Brars accepts my command. (59)[citation neede