Is Mulayam losing the won battle?

As the dark clouds of Assembly elections hover over Mulayam Singh Government in UP, the wrestler in him finds it difficult to escape the prospects of president’s rule during hustings.

Beleaguered due to the growing discontent against Samajwadi Party rule, Mulayam Singh is busy with last ditch efforts to retain his chief ministership during forthcoming (April-May) Assembly elections. In his attempt to thwart the danger of president’s rule, he called in the Assembly session from Jan 15. A notification to this effect was issued by Mata Prasad Pandey, the Assembly speaker.
On the other hand, the UP Government Rajeshwar Rao closed the session ‘sine-die’ w.e.f. 9th Jan 2007. This created an unprecedented constitutional crisis in the state of UP.
Why Mulayam Singh and his Samajwadi Party are getting desperate? Opposition parties including BJP and BSP have called upon the governor and the president of India stressing the need to impose president rule. The Congress, BSP and BJP have been citing incidents to show that the administration in UP has ‘collapsed’ and ‘law and order’ has failed.

The dailies in the state carry almost every day the stories about murder, loot, kidnapping, chain snatching, extortion and to top it all the refusal of the police to write FIRs.
The most recent incidents are of the disappearance or murder of Meerut University lecturer Dr. Kavita Chaudhary and serial killings about 20 boys and girls in Nithari (NOIDA). These are the hottest cases, which have been referred to CBI, now, reluctantly by the state government. The resignations of three ministers of Chaudhary Ajit Singh’s LOK DAL (LD) on 9th Jan, from the Mulayam Singh Ministry have sent shivers in the Mulayam Singh camp. Problem has been further aggravated due to Congress’s decision to withdraw support.
The latest Party position in the UP Assembly is as under:

SP 152 CPM 1
BSP 67 others 2
BJP 83 Independents 16
Congress 15 Nominative 1
LBD 33 Unattached 6
LD 15 Vacant 2
KCP 2 Debarred from voting rights 9

Out of total 404 (2 MLA have died) as such the effective strength of the UP Assembly is 393 members. For a majority 197 members are required. 13 independents are either ministers or CMDs of Government corporations. The Congress, LBD, LD, LCP, CPM, were supporting the government till now but the Congress has given a jolt to Mulayam’s plans by announcing withdrawal of support, making it almost inevitable that UP is heading towards President’s rule without Congress and Lok Dal.
Congress and Lok Dal’s decision means that Mulayam Singh will have a wafer thin majority of 204 members. If eight of these, too, withdraw their support, the government could collapse.
In spite of numerical strength at the moment, the imposition of president’s rule in UP appears imminent. The constitution crisis may take a curious turn. The coming days will be eventful.

Public is there to be fooled

You and I comprise the ‘public’. And it is evident that we, the public, are being taken for granted by those in the high echelons of power. Moral: we are meant to be fooled. In other words, we deserve that we are fooled time and again.
If we are not being befooled, why is it that the election promises are not being honoured and the parties go to polls every next time? If we are not being befooled, why is that the politicians say something at one time and altogether different thing at other instance? Glaring example: Congress that gave support to Mulayam Singh till a day before citing ‘secular’ reasons withdraws support a shade prior to election, citing ‘secular’ reasons once again. But the most glaring example is undoubtedly the mother of most gruesome of all tales – Nithari. Was it because the Government didn’t want to distribute any more cheques of 5 lakh each (already the State was emptied by a huge amount) that the skeleton digging drive was stopped? Was it because they had no more land to give to the families of sufferers? Or was it that they didn’t want any more adverse publicity (already their image has been much sullied)?
However, those who were saying that it is not Samajwadi Party’s fault if an incident of this nature occurs are finding no cover to hide their faces. Accepted that there was no fault of the Samajwadi Party, but who gave orders to stop further probe, after 19 skeletons were recovered from the drains in Nithari.
Raj Babbar is right when he says that some thing is fishy here as well. Says he: “Now after CBI taking over the investigation, not only more body parts were recovered from there; the investigating team also managed to lay its hands on 40 gunny bags containing human organs.” Latest recoveries clearly indicate that the police attempted to dilute the magnitude of the ghastly incident, Babbar charged.
Moreover, Babbar has charged that a sum of Rs. 3 crore is spent on annual cleaning of drains in Noida. He said: “I have definite information that this exercise has not been undertaken during the last three years but Rs. 9 crore has been shown as spent on this head. The Noida authority too has accepted this fact,” he claimed. Babbar seems to be right here as so many skeletons would not have been thrown overnight.
With more and more bags being recovered, there remains no doubt that Nithari was the case of organ trade and not just individual crime like ‘child-abuse’ or ‘flesh-eating’. If this is so, it cannot be the work of just two persons. Who are the others involved? More importantly, who are those who are shielding them even now? A thorough probe is required.

Young people from India and Australia come together

Young people from India and Australia have come together to tackle river pollution and global warming as part of the 5th International Swatcha Ganga Chhatra Sangam being organized on Tulsi Ghat, Varanasi on 17th and 18th January.
Telling details of the program, Dr. VB Mishra, President of the Sankat Mochan Foundation said: “River Ganga is one of the greatest rivers of the world, providing spiritual and physical sustenance to hundreds of millions of people. The health of the river is threatened by numerous open drains that are pouring raw sewage directly into religious bathing areas. Global warming also threatens the future and health of the river, as the major glaciers feeding into Ganga are melting. The solutions of both these problems lie in the hands of the people.”
Dr. Mishra further informed: “There are 30 drains discharging raw sewage into the religious bathing areas in Benaras and 69 drains discharging into Ganga and Yamuna at Allahabad. We estimate there are 2000 sewer outfalls discharging sewage and industrial pollution along the whole length of the river. This is 95% of the problem for Ganga and it must be stopped. Appropriate technology and natural systems that don’t depend on electricity are available. We know how this sewage problem can be solved. We need to act now.”
Mrs. Lennox, Co-Founder of Global River Environmental Education Network – Australia (Oz Green), said: It is disturbing to see that after 15 years of visiting Benares, the situation of sewage pollution of the religious bathing areas continues. I am concerned about the health of the people and the risk of water borne diseases.”
5th International Youth River Congress is aimed at sharing the experiences of young people from Varanasi schools and young Australian leaders. During the congress, young people will learn from the Swatcha Ganga Research Laboratory (SGRL) about the state of water quality in Ganga and its impact on the common people. The congress is taking place between the major religious bathing days of the Ardh Kumbh Mela and Makar Sankranti and also amid recent water quality testing conducted by the SGRL which reveals that river water quality in the religious bathing areas is thousands of times above the safe limit for bathing.

‘Strict action is taken against corrupt at Jal Nigam’: MD

Corruption is a bane that is devouring the administrative set-up of the country. Krishan Kumar Aggarwal, managing director, Jal Nigam claims to have put a brake on it, at least in his organization. “Since hon’ble Urban Development Minister has taken over as President – Jal Nigam, we have made a great deal of progress in this direction. Whenever any incident of corruption comes to our knowledge, we take strict action. I do not say that we have been able to stop it altogether, but it has been curbed extensively,” says the MD.
KK Aggarwal has several decades of experience working in this field. A civil engineer from Roorkee University, who later did ME in Hydraulics, he joined what was then LSGD on 15th February, 1971, which was later converted into Jal Nigam in 1975. He is at helm of affairs as MD, Jal Nigam since 30th June, 2005 and has been instrumental in Jal Nigam’s recent focus on improving work load and quality. Other than the usual chore of handling water supply, sever and drainage, Jal Nigam also builds and hand over sever treatment plants to local bodies like Nagar Nigam, but there are several cities like Allahabad, Lucknow and Varanasi where sever treatment plants, built as part of Ganga Action Plan, are also being operated by Jal Nigam due to paucity of technical resources with the local bodies. “Cities like Muzzaffarnagar, Saharanpur, Mathura and Vrindavan have been taken over but the rest are still being handled by us,” informs Mr. Aggarwal while describing the nature of Jal Nigam’s work.
Mr. Aggarwal is a busy man today. “Present posting is routinely hectic,” says he adding that other than the routine work, there is enough work pressure owing to the huge size of area that he has to handle. Due to this, he is unable to pursue his hobbies. Says Mr. Aggarwal: “I have been a sportsman all my life. Other than studies my time was spent in playing table tennis, badminton and volleyball. When the club was close, I used to go to watch movies, another of my favourite past-time. Now it’s not possible to play. I do see a movie occasionally on TV but it has been a long time since I went to a picture hall.”
Hailing from a small town of Hasanpur in district Moradabad, KK Aggarwal has come a long way. Today, both his children are settled. While his son Prashnu Aggarwal is a practicing lawyer in High Court, with Arun Sinha, his daughter is doing MSc in Computers.
When asked where he finds the society heading, KK Aggarwal candidly refutes though he adds: “I won’t talk much as values have changed with generation. People are becoming more materialistic. What will be the end, I cannot tell.”
Whatever, one thing is certain. This man has spent lifetime doing a great service – serving the society through providing one of the most basic needs – water. May the devata of rain and water shower on him a just reward!

LESA’s revenue collection hampered

An extensive revenue generation drive from defaulters is currently on at LESA. But while meters are being disconnected and FIRs being made with an eye on generating more funds, the monthly revenue collection received by LESA has suffered tremendously due to certain inadvertent changes.
There are close to 10 lakh electric connections in Lucknow. LESA has to undergo a monumental task of getting meter reading done for all the subscribers every month. Owing to the fact that LESA does not have the resources and staff to carry forth this exercise on its own, the task of taking meter-readings is outsourced to private parties.
Until now, four companies were doing the job with circles allotted to each one of them in Lucknow. Problem arose in Circle I (covering most of Old Lucknow including Chowk) and Circle III (covering two divisions, viz. Aishbagh and Alambagh divisions) when Signals and Systems India Ltd wound up its work from Circle I and Alambagh Division of Circle III and Sai Computers, another company handling Aishbagh division of Circle III was asked to take care of meter-readings in the areas handled by Signals and Systems India Ltd.
The problem arose when Signals and Systems, whose services were being given extensions of one month each, for reasons best known to LESA. Signals and Systems wanted an extension of at least six months to be able to do the job better. But this was not admissible to LESA, who have already opened fresh tenders and short-listed four companies, all of whom will commence work from beginning of March. Owing to its demand not met, Signals and Systems gave notice to LESA on 20th of last month that it was winding up its work and consequently Sai Systems was asked to take care of meter reading in Circle I as well as Alambagh division of Circle III till the end of February after which the newly short-listed companies will take over.
Severe problems emanated as consequence of this, as Sai Computers was not prepared – neither strength-wise nor aware of the geographical location of Circle I – informs Mohammad Firoz, Executive Engineer, Circle I, LESA. Consequently, the regular payers of bill could not come to pay as out of about 8000 readings that should have been made till when this correspondent made enquiries, Sai was able to complete taking only 1000 readings. More than 7 lakh rupee worth of payments are received from the consumers through cheques, who pay at time when men from these companies visit their houses, that revenue too has been severally hit.
Owing to this, revenue collection in Circle I has been severally hit, rues Mohammad Firoz, though he could have done little to change the situation.
The problem is as severe in Alambagh division of Circle III as well where BK Singh, Executive Engineer responsible for this area, is resorting to frantic efforts like print advertisements and loudspeaker announcements to make the consumers aware of the situation and ask them to deposit the bills after taking the reading themselves.
This also hit revenue collection at Aishbagh division of Circle III when Sai shifted some of its work force to Circle I and Alambagh division of Circle III. However, VK Kaushik, Executive Engineer at Circle III feels there is no cause for dissatisfaction from Sai Computers as they are only doing their job though he agrees that there is always scope for improvement.
This problem is likely to continue till the end of February as Sai Computers is not likely to recruit much in this area, as it is uncertain whether it will continue to work in the same area after fresh tenders. Until March, Old Lucknow as well as Alambagh division is to remain severally hit both in terms of customer satisfaction and revenue collection. Till then Mohammad Firoz and BK Singh are left with no choice but to advertise in newspapers and use loudspeakers, asking consumers to take their own readings and deposit the amount on the basis of that, efforts that they are already making.
However, till new companies take over in March, the revenue generation drive from defaulters has become a frantic revenue collection drive from the regular payers and particularly Mohammad Firoz and BK Singh, the two Executive Engineers whose area got most affected, were left with no choice but to shift focus, in this exigency.

LESA on revenue generation spree

Geographical condition of Old Lucknow hampering efforts

A special revenue generation drive is currently on in LESA with enforcement team moving door-to-door to generate as much revenue as possible. Simultaneously, defaulters are being booked and their electric connections being disconnected, in case the full and final payment is not collected immediately. This was disclosed by Er. A.K. Singh, Chief Engineer at LESA in a special conversation with this correspondent. LESA has about 10 lakh connections in Lucknow.
Leading LESA’s monumental task in Old Lucknow is Mohammad Firoz, the Executive Engineer, who took up this arduous responsibility after proving his mettle in cities with similar geographical conditions to Old Lucknow, viz. Aligarh and Allahabad. In Circle-I itself, which comprises nearly whole of Old Lucknow, about 1500 connections have been cut so far out of nearly 15000 disconnections carried out so far in Lucknow. “Four teams are already on move in the area government by me, and about 25 FIRs have been made till now, besides generating the much needed revenue for the electricity department,” informs Mohammad Firoz.
However, Firoz’s work is largely affected due to the very nature and pattern of housing construction in the area. “Most of the area has narrow lanes and bylanes where power lines run extremely close to the houses, making it easier for theft to be carried out. Most of this theft is carried out at night. Though we are taking the assistance of police too in this regard, even they avoid getting into the houses during night,” adds the Executive Engineer.
More than 90% of consumers in Firoz’s area are domestic ‘light and fan’ users and consumption is as it is low compared to houses in localities in other circles. And places where there is high consumption, there are other constraints that prohibit action, informs Firoz, citing the case of KGMU – a big government-run hospital.
Chief Engineer, AK Singh too agrees to the enormous work pressure and limitations in enforcing regulations in sensitive areas of Lucknow. For instance, KGMU that lies in the area governed by Mohammad Firoz owes more than Rs. 1.5 crore to the electricity department. The hospital staff spends lavishly on construction, seminars and convocations and foreign travel of its senior staff but has no funds to pay to the electricity department. Even electricity cannot be disconnected, as this would lead to inconvenience to the patients.

‘Training of police personnel essential’

Training is an inherent part of all management functions. It enables the personnel and staff to remain fighting fit and move ahead with time – something that is extremely essential for smooth and satisfactory working of an organization.
For police department, it is even more essential that a proper training system is built. The police force in UP is over-worked and stressed and a proper fitness regime would help them cope with these more effectively. Moreover, training is particularly needed for the police force as bulging bellies are not just an eyesore but also a deterrent in their duties that at times require extra energy and stamina to nab the culprits.
Owing to this, SSP-Lucknow Rajiv Krishna, a fitness freak himself, is in favour of an extensive training drill, not just for the new recruits but also for the existing workforce, time and again. But for the fact that the police force is already understaffed and cannot be spared much for training sessions and fitness drills, Rajiv Krishna would have put into force a plan to bring about much-needed training and fitness regime for police officers of all ranks. “Not just physical training, there is a need to make the officers aware of changing technological and scientific developments, like computers, internet, modern mobile gadgets besides ever-changing laws related to human rights, CrPc and IPC rules and Indian constitution,” informs the SSP.
Though he has not been able to do enough in this regard, whatever time Rajiv Krishna gets he spends that in encouraging officers and informing them of the positive effects of remaining fit.
He informs that there are three training facilities in Lucknow at present. These include the 32nd Battalion PAC RTC, 35th Battalion PAC RTC and Reserved Police lines RTC. At present, training of 98 new recruits is going on at Reserved Police Lines RTC where the training starts at 4 in the morning and goes on till dinner time. Apart from impart training in squad drill and police drill, the recruits are taught riot dealing and traffic management. Arms’ training too is an important part of the training exercise. Other than this jawans are taught horse-riding and rope climbing besides games like volleyball, football, hockey and kabaddi. During the day they are taught law, Indian constitution, rules related to human rights, IPC, CrPc and how to write FIRs and other reports in police stations. This forms a major portion of the 11-month training, consequent to which they get their respective postings.
Reserved Police Lines is manned by a team of one SI, three SI-Teachers, 7 it is, 3 PTIs for physical training and 11 followers to take care of mess for a total capacity of 200 people for training at a time. Their work is supervised by a RTC Major about whom there is an ASP – an IPS officer Pritinder Singh – who give briefing of the progress to the SSP.
At times when such extensive training for new recruits is not taking place, small courses are run related to computers, how to improve the image of police, human right laws, technological updates and other courses Refresher courses too are conducted from time to time for existing personnel.
Yoga and regular motivation camps, including interaction with psychiatrists too are essential, Rajiv Krishna says, but lack of adequate staff doesn’t allow him to do all that he wishes to do.

Multi-million fraud with Hajis

Even the Haj is not safe from frauds. The faith with which Muslims go to this sacred pilgrimage is being used to dupe them. Hi Time has learnt that on this Haj alone, frauds amounting to millions of rupees were done, both by people within India and the Saudis.
News of fresh scandals is percolating down, as more plains carrying Hajis return from Jeddah, the Saudi capital.
Zaheer Zaidi, associated with a leading travel agency in Delhi, who has just returned from Haj, revealed to Hi Time how even fake Tashrihs were sold by the apex authority of Saudi government – Mossisa – with no proper arrangement for stay for the Hajis. Tashrihs are the permits granted by the Mossisa after proper scrutiny of residential facilities, including fire-fighting equipments, safety and general amenities, where the Hajis are to say. Without proper Tashrihs, visas for Haj are not issued. The Hajis who went to Makkah with Tashrihs this year found to their surprise that the addresses on which residential permits were issued were not in existence. Finally, such Hajis had to look for other accommodation, at far off places.
Moreover, it is being said that the fake Tashrihs were sold at 350 riyals each. Considering the fact that lakhs of Hajis go on Haj and the going rate for riyal is around Rs. 12 per riyal, the total amount of illicit deal can well be gauged.
Buzz was also circulating among the Hajis, while on Haj, particularly among the tour operators, that of the total quota of Tashrihs that was sent to Ministry of External Affairs, the minister distributed a good number (1700 as per the rumours) among his relatives, thereby leading to a situation where there were less permits for visas and more Hajis standing in queue to go. Resultantly, tour operators were left with no choice but to purchase the Tashrihs at higher prices, at times from these relatives of the Minister himself, and the consequent higher charges were passed on to the Hajis. Hi Time has learnt that while the visa (along with the Tashrih and moallim fee) was costing around Rs. 12,000 each, it was sold to the Hajis for price ranging from Rs. 20,000 onward. Consequently, the tour operators charged more this time, owing to there being more Hajis and lesser visas available for them.
As if this was not enough, a travel agency, named Royal Tours and Travels, duped more than 100 unsuspecting village-folks and ran off with the money they had laboriously collected to go on pilgrimage. Located at Rustamnagar under the Saadatganj police station, the agency, run by Intezaar Mehdi as the co-ordinator and Naaz Naqvi - the patron - collected Rs. 80,000 to Rs. 1,20,000 from people and even set December 14 as the date of leaving Lucknow for Delhi by Neelanchal Express. Bidding adieu to their near and dear ones, the Haj aspirants reached the station with their relatives, only to find that there were no reservations on train. The names of 36 members of agency’s committee were given on the payment slip, some of whom are influential people of the society. However, when these people were contacted they said their names were put on the slip without their permission. When asked why they didn’t object when the print campaign in various Urdu newspapers was being carried out and their names were even printed on the brochures, they had no reply to give. A lot many of the mobile numbers given on brochures were found to be switched off. An FIR has been registered in this connection and SSP, Lucknow has promised that the culprits will be nabbed soon. But perhaps because some of the respected names of the community are involved, the police has till now refrained from taking action against all those whose names figured on the brochures.
Hi Time enquiries have revealed that this is not the first case that Intezaar Mehdi has duped people on Haj. He was running a travel agency by the name of BBC Travels in Delhi till a few years and had to close shop when he was rounded up by the Hajis when he tried to sell airline ticket with fake ‘OK’ stamp. He still owes money to several people and companies in Delhi.
A short while ago, a leading TV channel too had brought to light the illicit deals which people connected with Haj committee were doing for sending the Hajis. This included even selling the application form for a price, given free otherwise, and also promising names in lottery for tour groups. Some of the members of the Haj committee were removed from their positions consequent to this exposure.
Hi Time’s revelations further prove that all sort of illicit and shady deals are being done in the name of Haj, by people whose sole wish is to earn, even if it means earning from the hard-saved money for the once-in-a-lifetime pilgrimage of Haj. But with names of certain respected figures, prominent Saudi authorities, the Haj cell and even the minister for external affairs coming in picture, it remains to be seen to what extent action will be taken.

Half-baked news, full-fledged experts

At a time when we were writing an article headlined “Executed on the day when goats and sheep are sacrificed” (Hi Time, 6-12th January, 2007), a correspondent of a leading fortnightly magazine ‘Frontline’ had this to write in his article ‘Victor’s justice’ published in the 12th January issue of the magazine: “The appeals court ruled that the sentence of death by hanging should be carried out within 30 days but the American-installed Iraqi government preferred to carry it out two days before the holy feast of Id. The feast symbolizes the sacrifice of Prophet Ibrahim to Allah. Some Iraqi politicians and preachers who opposed Saddam have started characterizing the hanging of Saddam as a gift from God. Such symbolism is bound to alienate further a significant section of the Iraqi populace.”
This contradiction in views amply reveals how short deadlines increasingly push the journalists to pursue and derive conclusions from half-baked news to build stories, something that has potential for large-scale ramifications. The journalist, in the aforementioned case, not only miscalculated the day on which Saddam Hussain was sacrificed but also derived his own view based on the wrong judgment.
Fact is that Saddam Hussain was killed not two days prior to the Id, but very much on the dawn of the day when the entire Middle East woke up to celebrate Id, while the Muslims assembled at Makkah were readying to perform Haj. Id was celebrated two days later in India, due to the confusion created over sighting of moon sometime back, and this became the reason why the behind-the-scene dynamics of execution of Saddam could not be told to the Indian readers.
Question arises what was the motive behind executing Saddam on the day of Id? Was it not a purposeful attempt to make Saddam a martyr and ignite the passions of the Sunni world, thereby further heightening the divisions between the Sunnis and Shias in the region? Already, Iraq is on the verge of civil war, something that the occupying forces badly need to go ahead with the division of the country and thus strengthen their hold in the region. This is to be reminded that as per Pentagon’s latest quarterly report, violence in Iraq has reached the highest level recorded so far. There was an average of 959 attacks by the Resistance every week in the last four months, an increase of 22 per cent, clearly suggesting that Iraq is on the brink of disintegration.
That there is a deliberate attempt to heighten the wedge between the two sects of Muslims can be gauged from the latest reports that the execution ‘ceremony’ was filmed under the sanction of the US authorities. It were the US soldiers who were posted at the entrance of the room in which execution was carried out who searched all those entering into the room and took their mobile phones but allowed two people to carry mobiles inside. The photos were released to the Western media almost immediately after the execution, thereby further heightening fears of a sinister design.
Already, the Baath Party, in a statement posted on the web, had said that it would retaliate against American interests everywhere if the sentence on Saddam was carried out. “The American administration will be held responsible for any harm inflicted on the President, because the United States is the decision maker in Iraq and not the puppet Iraqi government,” the statement had warned. The release of pictures with Shias cheering the execution was to take the blame away from the United States, so that the Iraqis remain involved in killing each other and leave the occupying forces in peace. That has already begun to happen!
Moreover, millions of Muslims come to Haj from all corners of the globe. Gulf between the Shias and Sunnis could have reached all over the globe if certain Shias there had celebrated the execution, as happened in Iran and elsewhere, or Sunnis would have mourned the death.
All these consequences could not be derived due to ‘half-baked news’ that the reporter in contention presented. Unfortunately, this bane has crept into our media, particularly the electronic media, where recruitment is made of youths, more on looks and speaking capabilities, rather than analytical skills and understanding of the affairs of the society. Of course, that is another thing that given an opportunity, all of these would be staking claim as ‘full-fledged experts’.

The dawn of a new era - SSP Lucknow

Inspired by real life incidents of a SSP of Lucknow, a film ‘Sehar’ (Dawn) has been made that shows the might of organized crime, ever changing dynamics of UP’s politics, railway contracts, politician-mafia-police-builder nexus, activism of criminal gangs, criminalization of University and how the SSP – played by Arshad Warsi – organized a Special Task Force to fight all these evils.
Far away from the glamour of reel life, the real life hero of our story is Lucknow’s present SSP – Rajiv Krishna – who may not agree that all the aforementioned evils are part and parcel of Lucknow’s society but he definitely has the looks and built to give Warsi a run for his money. Talking about ‘Sehar’, Rajiv Krishna agrees that the theme of reel life is based on real life but the events are further dramatized using intuitive genius, something that does not happen in real life.
The ’91-batch IPS officer, who completed graduation from Roorkee University in 1989, got schooling in several schools, courtesy the transferable nature of his father’s job. Even after joining as IPS officer, traveling seems to be inadvertently linked with his profession. Starting with ASP-Bareilly, Rajiv Krishna has worked as ASP-Kanpur, SP City-Aligarh, SP-Intelligence (Kanpur), SP-Firozabad, SSP-Etawah, SSP-Mathura, SSP-Fatehgarh, SP-GRP (Agra), SP-Human Rights (Lucknow) and was posted in Moradabad before coming back to Lucknow. All this is courtesy the policy of frequent transfers that the present-day governments put into practice, for reasons best known to them. Rajiv Krishna though justifies this policy of frequent transfers and says that a person who stays for long period is likely to develop vested interests. However, he agrees that too short stints mean that the officer is unable to know the area fully or build an effective, result-oriented team.
Rajiv Krishna rues the fact that there is little personal life and agrees that his is a high pressure job; as everybody right till the level of destitute and poor expect you to deliver. This is the reason why, upon coming to Lucknow, the first thing that he focused on was the common man. The visible law and order is the petty crime, something that common man has to encounter every day. These crimes are of such a nature that at times it is not even possible to register a case. People, however, feel that law and order is bad. “I stressed the need to curb these crimes and have been successful to an extent,” says Rajiv Krishna. Another area that is of prime concern to him is the strengthening of the communication network so that what you want and desire percolates down to the lowest level. In this regard, he has already taken 4 meetings at various levels, during the one-month stay in Lucknow.
Another list of 3000 criminals is being prepared, their verification being done and the officers are verifying whether they are still involved in crimes or not.
Krishna is of the opinion that law and order in Lucknow is fairly good and it is when people wrongly start relating daily problems that are not linked with the police department, like cleanliness, non-availability of electricity and water, sewage problems and encroachment, they conclude that law and order is bad.
As regards to Nithari killings, Rajiv Krishna is of view that legally no FIRs could have been registered in cases of ‘missing children’. It is only when a person points an accusing finger at somebody that FIRs can be registered. But he agrees that the very fact that about 30-35 children got missing from a locality in a short span of time should have raised the antennas, at least at SO level and they should have reported the case to their seniors. ‘Missing children’ is not a crime but the frequent nature of these incidents should have made them suspicious of criminal intent. The Government has wisely made each of these cases a special report case and now the matter will come in front of senior officers, as soon as some child gets missing.
Undoubtedly, Rajiv Krishna is sitting on a chair that has enormous clout and responsibilities. Expectations too are high and from all quarters. Naturally, under such circumstances, the job pressure could lead to stress. “Proper time management is necessary,” says he and smilingly passes on his mantra of facing the stressful life. “Don’t get stressed!” A mere utterance to some, commentaries running into pages can be written on this statement by those who are aware.
Of course, Rajiv Krishna has a two-and-a-half year old kid at home who surely is a good de-stressing agent, an area of his life that he doesn’t talk much about, while on duty.

India the most allied ally of the US and Israel

One of the world’s largest economies in aggregate terms and once a leader of the Non-aligned Movement, India is now on way to become the most allied ally of the US and Israel. This has largely been due to the policies adopted by various governments during the last decade or so, each of whom has vied with the previous government to give a little more of space to the US and Israel than their predecessors. The fact that there has been no stable government in India ever since the assassination of Rajeev Gandhi coupled with the Pakistan factor prompted the succeeding governments to work to strengthen this relationship even if it meant bending forward or backward.
Manmohan Singh government too has followed the same path perhaps because it was quick to realize that a mere leak of some classified information at the US’s behest, like in the case of Natwar Singh, could threaten the foundations of the government at the Centre. The Congress was left with not many choices but to distance itself with Natwar Singh to save its government.
Manmohan Singh government has followed the same path of its predecessors and has been able to win over US faith to such an extent that the US Government under George Bush, went out of the way to get the Henry J. Hyde, United States-India Peaceful Atomic Energy Cooperation Act of 2006, named after the outgoing Chairman of the House International Relations Committee, passed by the House of Representatives and the Senate in the US. Normally, for any agreement that exempts a recipient non-nuclear weapons state (NNWS) such as India from full-scope safeguards (FSS), as required by section 123 a (2) of he Atomic Energy Act (AEA) to come into force, a specific congressional vote of approval is required. But the substantial changes already incorporated into the legislation by the House and the Senate ensured the passage of bill.
If there was no pressure from top, why would have the House and the Senate gone out of the way to pass the legislation by 330 votes to 79, if India has not given enough guarantees to follow the US policies, particularly putting on stake its freedom in independent foreign policy by ensuring that it would “fully and actively participate in US and international efforts to dissuade, sanction and contain Iran for its nuclear programme,” a point that was very much part of the conditions right from beginning though India did not say so officially. That India was moving on the same lines was evident by its stance and consequent voting against Iran during the UN meeting.
This is a well-known fact that after Afghanistan and Iraq, Iran is the biggest eyesore for the US. India was one of the countries which could have rallied support to Iran owing to the cordial relations between the two countries, the potential of trade between them and the fact that Iran was merely talking of making peaceful use of its nuclear resources while India had already gone ahead with making the nuclear bomb. Owing to the US actively pursuing India and offering the bait, India got into an awkward position in front of the international community, which saw dual policy of the US that was on one hand going out of the way to provide civil nuclear cooperation to India and was on the other hand going out of the way to build pressure against Iran, which was claiming to put its nuclear technology to civil use, and even tried to extract a promise India to support it on this issue, something that the Indian government readily complied with.
India’s lukewarm stance on several international issues, including the attack on Lebanon and Palestine (there was a time when Yasser Arafat was acclaimed as best of our friends) and subsequent killing of thousands of civilians in these two countries and now the execution of Saddam Hussain too has confirmed that India has now become the most allied ally of the US and Israel.
This is good news for those Indians who keep personal gains foremost, whatever the cost to the rest of the world. To those who still wish to value the principles of justice and truth foremost, which has remained the hallmark of Indian history since ancient times, it is definitely not good news as this means India will have to look the other way on many an occasions, just as the US did so when Saddam was slaughtering his own countrymen or used chemical weapons against Iranians. Choice is not there as our government already appears to have opted for the former.

The farmer’s plight

Farmers are restless. Be it Vidarbha in Maharashtra, Punjab, MP or UP, a fire is smoldering which has the potential to erupt with serious consequences. Who is responsible for the farmer’s plight?
A general apathy towards farmer’s grievances and rampant corruption at all places are the prime reasons.
Take the instance of Vidarbha in Maharashtra. The State Government started cotton procurement in December, delaying it by two months after the crop was harvested. In several places, procurement centres were yet to open. With their harvest remaining unsold, farmers were restless. Those who came to few centres that were open, like Wani, had to wait for days in chilling cold. Some of them had hired trucks to bring the produce there and as the trucks remained stranded for days, the rent mounted. Graders were refusing to buy all the cotton, saying it was moist. With time and when they realized something was wrong, farmers grew restless. They ransacked the furniture and put the building on fire. Finally police had to open fire to disperse the farmers.
What happened at Wani is not a stray incident. The same is happening all over India leading to restlessness among the farming community. A senior officer connected with the agriculture department in UP spilt the beans to us though only on condition of anonymity. This is the time when paddy and sugarcane is being purchased by State departments. Cheques worth crores of rupees are issued daily from the offices of Regional Food Controllers in various divisions. What happens on ground is that the graders label a particular farmer’s produce as moist. The farmer is left with no choice but to take back all the produce. Reluctant to fall in the clutches of private traders, the farmers are left with no choice but to negotiate underhand price with the graders. For instance, if the going rate is 620 per quintal and the farmer agrees to pay back Rs. 20 per quintal, the same produce that was about to be marked as wet is bought.
If it is not apathy on part of our system then what it is that in Vidarbha, where 1200 suicides have been reported since June 2005 alone, and nearly 75% of the families (12.75 lakh households) are in great distress, as per a State survey, the Cotton Corporation of India did not open centres for more than two months after the harvest, while at several places the private traders had already started buying cotton from October onwards.
Moreover, no adequate arrangements were made for farmers who waited all this while so that they could sell to the government. Finally, when some centres did open and the farmers went there, they had to wait for days and their cotton rejected on flimsy grounds. Is it not a clear enough indicator that with more and more of private parties entering into purchase of agri-produce, certain officials of the government actually played in the hands of these private players by denying the farmers an equal opportunity to sell to the government and private traders alike.
Unless the government takes remedial steps right now, the future appears to be bleaker for farmers of the country who comprise nearly 70% of the population, particularly after the entering of private players like Reliance, Bharati and ITC into this sector. Reliance has already started with creating petrol pumps and motels all across the country to build a sound network of bases from which to operate. Bharati has announced that it would make foray into schools in rural areas while ITC too is strengthening its network deeper into the country. With such giants dealing with weaklings – the farmers – the farmer’s voice is like to get throttled further unless an adequate checking system is evolved, devoid of corruption. Or else, just as several consumers complained that the mobiles at Rs. 500 were followed by exorbitant back-breaking bills and subsequent legal notices, right under the glare of us all, that too in metro cities, and the poor consumer in most cases was left with no choice but to pay up, the rural farmer who is still largely straight-forward and uncorrupted compared to us city folks, would find himself incapable of standing up in front of the well-oiled and perfected battery of lawyers, white-collared enforcers (you may call them goons) and shrewd business managers.
Is anybody listening?

‘Lucknow is at take-off stage’

Lucknow’s infrastructure is rapidly changing. Major real estate players with deep pockets have come to the city and development is taking place at all places. Hi Time Express talked to Sheikh Mohammad Arif, Chairman and Managing Director of Arif Industries Limited, who is constructing the single largest group housing project of Northern India, as reported by CNBC, with 630 apartments, commercial centre, community centre and allied infrastructure. Excerpts from an interview:
Hi Time: Where do you place the real estate infrastructure of Lucknow?
Sheikh Mohammad Arif (SMA): Lucknow is growing with no stoppage. Demand too is rising due to large scale resettlement of people. Recent attempts to give it a metropolitan status and its selection as Jawaharlal Nehru Urban Renewal Progam will further give boost to its development. In entire North India, maximum development is taking place here after the cities surrounding Delhi, viz. Gurgaon, Faridabad, Noida and Greater Noida. Cost of living is cheaper and cost of real estate is very modest, even half of neighbouring Kanpur
Hi Time: What do you have to say of entrance of Delhi-based players with deep pockets?
SMA: Most of them who have come are merely five-year old. True that they have a strategy of mass construction in lot many destinations but are actually promoters and not builders. In our case, whatever we do we are sure what we are doing.
Hi Time: How are conditions different from Delhi?
SMA: In Lucknow, there are several things that count which are not that important in Delhi. For instance, surface transport is of paramount importance here. That is why development on outskirts takes 20 years for appreciation to show its effect. If Eldeco Udyaan could become successful in 15 years, that was because of SGPGI. Even those who had taken plots with UNITECH found difficulty in selling them.
Hi Time: What about malls and multiplexes that are coming up in good number?
SMA: All these are failures of tomorrow because they have not thought of a long-term plan. Government should drastically change the parking norms, which are very weak at present. Out of 100 footfalls, 5 are not customers. An entry fee should be put in order to make malls successful and one who purchases inside should be able to encash this amount. This is how unwanted crowd could be controlled.
As soon as some mall comes in Lucknow which has good parking facilities, all the existing malls including the Sahara mall, Zee mall and Rave, will become deserted.
Hi Time: What about areas that need to be taken care of?
SMA: Slow-moving traffic, encroachments and rapid commercialization without adequate planning are a major roadblock to fast development. All these should be removed. One thing that Lucknow lacks is industrialization. If government succeeds in making LIDA, it would be equated with any city of the country.

King of the Jungle

And the beasts within city limits

Such is the shocking nature of Nithari episode that Mulayam, when asked whether there was actually jungle-raaj in UP couldn’t deny the allegations and merely said that if there was jungle-raaj in UP, then he was its king. No doubt, this ‘jungle kingdom’ has beasts in human garb wandering in cities, devouring and killing fellow human beings at their whims.
Unable to brush aside the issue of killings at Nithari, in which more gruesome developments are being added every passing day, the State administration tried to show that something was being done when it distributed cheques of 2 lakhs each (raised to 5 lakh later) and suspended six policemen, CO, SP-City and the then SSP of Noida. Proof that all this was merely done to silent the raging emotions and the subsequent media glare can be gauged from the fact that there are still cases, like that of a girl named Payal, whose father has not been given the cheque yet.
But too little has been done too late. Who would punish the policemen who refused to register FIRs when the children were being abducted for the last two years, who gave clean chit to Mohnder Singh when complaint was made against him, who subverted the evidence and then considered it their moral duty to lathicharge the aggrieved parents and relatives. All those who acted as patrons or thwarted investigation should be probed.
It seems law and order is only for those with clout and money. Nobody is able to tell how child after child was taken up inside the premises of D-5, sexually violated (as per present beliefs) and killed. More than 40 children have met with the same fate, at the hands of Surendra, Mohinder Singh’s aide in these heinous crimes. More shocking is that while the children from the poor locality continued to be abducted, the neighbouring rich residents continued to lie in slumber, only to wake when one from their own community was kidnapped. Then it became big news.

Box
UP Under Abduction Threat

The state government has been under fire for the poor law and order situation. Proof is here, about 135 abduction cases have been registered in ‘06.
The worst picture was revealed with the news of abduction of Anant Gupta, son of Adobe CEO Naresh Gupta from Noida. This was the first case that drew the attention of government as well as the concerned authorities. Anant was kidnapped few yards away from his home. The police department tried to do its best not to gain adverse publicity as the matter had already become highly publicized, but in vain. After about a week all off a sudden Anant came back to his home. Police claimed to solve the case later though it has been revealed that his father gave ransom amount of 50,00,000 rupees.
Anant’s abduction case brought a chain of abduction cases in light. In this series, on December 8th, Ankit, (13), was kidnapped. Ankit was son of RK Vishwakarma, a technician at SGPGIMS. He was abducted soon after he left his Eldeco Colony residence along with two teenagers on a motorcycle. Later, he was brutally murdered by the kidnappers; police recovered the body in pieces. In this case police took a ‘take it easy’ attitude, perhaps because the case was not that high profile as that of the Adobe CEO’s son. However, two people Vikas Gupta and Satender Singh were arrested for kidnapping.
On 13th December, B Tech II-year student Saif Siddiqui of Integral University disappeared under mysterious circumstances. He was reportedly kidnapped from Vikas Nagar locality when he was on way from Madiaon. When police probed the boy was found in Meerut, this case came under controversy as the police suspected that the case was of faux kidnapping.

These kidnapping and subsequent brutal murder cases seem to have little effect on the lackadaisical attitude of police. A 12-year–old student of Rani Laxmi Bai School, Indira Nagar was abducted. But the cops did not initiate any efforts to trace the boy, despite information given by the victim’s father. The cops sat idle while the boy returned home, giving the abductors a slip.

On 29th of last month, a two and a half year boy Muzamil, son of Tanveer Kamil, was kidnapped by Noor Alam from Thakurgunj area. The abductor was asking for ransom money of ten lakh rupees.

In recent times murder case of Kavita Devi lecturer of Chaudhary Charan Singh University of Meerut again raised questions over the law and order situation in the State. Kavita’s case registered under section 364 (abduction with intent to murder), names of some politicians like Babulal were allegedly involved in the case. The case has given Mulayam Singh Yadav government sleepless nights.

Year ‘06 has ended with the news of gruesome tale of kidnapping and then brutal killing of 18 children in Nithari Village near Noida by a serial killer Surender Koli alias Satish and his master Mohinder Singh. According to police reports, 31 children of Noida were missing from the last two years.
Now it has been clear that the innocent children were kidnapped by them to benefit their self. But it’s still not clear that who would take the responsibility of the safety of the state and people living in this ‘crime capital’? This is surely not the ‘Uttam Pradesh which was visualized by all of us.

Sad End, Saddam?

Sad end, Saddam be damned

Our heading itself is an indication that the Muslim community is giving mixed reactions over Saddam’s execution. Those who suffered his ire during his regime celebrated the execution while a good number of them mourned and could even be heard speaking ill of the US. There was a big majority who was least bothered and never wanted the news of execution to hamper their Eid celebrations, some of whom have woken up to demonstrate now that three days of Eid have passed.
Hi Time Express spoke to several people and took their views on Saddam’s execution. Prof. Naiyer Masud, one of the most prominent literary figures at Lucknow, rues the fact that society is on verge of split. He is of opinion that people should not allow differences to creep in between themselves owing to Saddam’s execution, both in India and in the Muslim world. Saddam is dead and nothing can bring him back, the Muslim world should work to rebuild the tattered Iraq and other countries which are passing through the same condition.
S. Mahmood Naqvi, journalist and a prominent social worker from Delhi, too stresses on the urgent need to make efforts to build Iraq. He says that Saddam’s execution is neither an occasion for rejoicing but a matter of deep concern for the rulers of Arab countries, a warning that the US is the supreme power and they ought not to ignore the unblemished allegiance to the US.
Likewise, Sheikh Mohammad Arif, Chairman and Managing Director of Arif Industries Limited says that killing of Saddam Hussain shows that the US wishes to tell to the world that it would do what it wants and nobody can stop it. “If it is said that 100-odd people were killed when Saddam was president, we forget that he was the President and as a president he was authorized to pass a judgement. You do not hang a judge if he by mistakes hangs somebody who is innocent. But who is responsible for killing lakhs of people. I am not defending Saddam but what the US is doing is that they are dividing Muslim community to the core and they have succeeded in doing that.”
Arif cites the case of the British who was caught in Arabian attire in Iraq with RDX and other weapons and later the British forces surrounded the police station and got the man released. Says he: “So-called Sunni Shia killing is actually motivated. If it is in their capacity they will destroy Iran tomorrow but because they are showing themselves pro-Shia at the moment, they are showing a soft stance towards it.” And adds: “This is an international conspiracy. Who is supplying arms in Assam and Afghanistan? Who killed Rajiv Gandhi which resulted in instability in the country for last 15 years?”
Giving his views on Saddam’s execution, prominent Sunni cleric Maulana Khalid Rasheed Firangimehli said that this was 100% unfair to Saddam because U.S.A. has no rights to hang him as he was elected President of his country. When asked what was his view on Saddam brutally killing many of his countrymen, Maulana Rasheed said, “He had killed only those who were traitors and I don’t think Saddam had killed any innocents.”
However there are still some like Shia cleric Maulana Saif Abbas who disagree with this statement. From his point of view the death of Saddam had been delayed; he should have been hanged earlier. Had he been hanged earlier, so many innocent lives of women and children would have been saved, he feels.
Maulana Saif also said, “If we talk of Americans they also don’t have the responsibility to kill anyone, to destroy America, God will send some other person. But the lines of Prophet Mohammad comes true which he had earlier explained that “Zulm karne wale ko usse bada zulm karne wala marta hai.”
The President of Nationalist Congress Party (Uttar Pradesh Unit) Ramesh Dixit said, “This is absolutely an act of evil which the US performed because they don’t have such rights to kill a person which did not belong to their country. The people who are contented with his death must have to understand that America cannot create an atmosphere of brotherhood with anyone. It can do the same with others also.”

Sad End, Saddam?

Executed on the day when goats and sheep are sacrificed

Eid was celebrated two days later in India. Hence not many Indians know that Saddam was executed on the dawn of the most auspicious day of Muslims in the region, at a time when millions of people, both Shias and Sunnis, had gathered at Makkah to perform the sacred rites of Haj. This was also the day when the Muslim world sacrifices goats and sheep to please the God. That Saddam was hanged on that day itself cannot be without a purpose.
Millions of Muslims come to Haj from all corners of the globe. A small spark of sectarian divide there would have clearly divided the Muslim world into two distinct blocks, already being propagated as Sunni and Shia triangle by the Western media. This apparent division is a new coinage to divide and was never heard of till now, as all the countries of the region have mixed population of Shias and Sunnis. The fact that this term was conceptualized and propagated by the West talks of a clear-cut plan to ignite bloodshed and hatred in the Muslim world.
A riot on Haj between Shias and Sunnis could have resulted in unimaginable consequences and would have further isolated Iran, Syria and Hizbollah, US’s biggest enemies of the day. That it didn’t happen shows that the Muslim world has started seeing into the game-plan. How long?

Sad End, Saddam?

Politics of Video Release

It was a video filmed inside the confines of high security Abu Ghraib prison that ignited the entire Arab world. The photos were seen by the Arabs as an attack to subdue the spirit of freedom and independence that the Arab people are known for. It was more of an attack on the Arab psyche as the men, who had refused to subdue their minds even after they were physically subdued, were seen behaving like dogs, their sexuality compromised and lying in a mound of naked men. On another occasion, news of the Holy Quran being flushed got leaked out and spread like forest fire.
The proud and defiant Saddam, who decided to embrace death boldly and refused to get his face covered, too, was seen as epitome of the same spirit of Arab pride. Earlier examples, which caused much embarrassment due to release of photographs, must have necessitated that special care should have been taken this time keeping the sensitivity of the issue involved and particularly when the executioners too were aware of this and took special care to hide their faces behind masks. Saddam’s execution had the potential to ignite the entire country. The mobile video footage of the execution of Saddam Hussain and voices of those around him that clearly identify the executioners as Shias, reveal that certain people with vested interests are hell-bent on creating the divide between Sunnis and Shias of Iraq. No Sunni would have agreed to execute Saddam. Even if he had done so, it was better advisable to have Shias doing the job, considering the strict security that was required. But the fact that not one but two mobile videos were present inside the execution chamber is a clear indicator of sinister designs. Naturally, the government officials of Iraq, to whatever sect they belong, would not want the community to get divided on sectarian lines. Who is it who wants the wedge to deepen?
Zia Haider Rizvi, a prominent lawyer of Lucknow who visited Iraq twice in the past says: “The difference between Sunnis and Shias was not there in Iraq at all. Inter-marriages between the two sects and the people lived amicably.”
The country has been taken from that amity to chaos where car bombs nearly every day threaten to torn the fabric of unity. No eyebrows were raised when a British citizen was caught by Iraqi police with RDS stacked in his car. As the police interrogated, the police station was surrounded by the British forces, with tanks and guns, and the prisoner released by force. Iraq’s rapidly disintegrating social fabric appears to be a well-calculated game plan with roots in Abu Ghraib, car bombs, Saddam’s execution and now the politics of video releases.