Leaders or Dealers???

The land of spices, coconut and lush greenery…
God’s own country, carving a niche for itself in world tourism…
First state to achieve near universal adult literacy… developed-world like life expectancy rate and good quality health care…
(The much touted Kerala Model of the 1970s has sadly collapsed and crumbled since then.)
Women outnumber men and that is so rare when compared to the typical Indian scenario…
The much prized secular co-existence with people of all religions… (even here dents are making inroads, thanks to vote bank politics.)
Politics courses through the peoples’ veins and newspapers are a must read for even the very average Keralite…

Along with all these feel-good factors in the field of education, health care and harmony, Kerala has so much to offer by way of resources also – be it natural resources including water and the most important of all – human capital. Yet, development is scarce. It is also stagnant. Politics, infighting, corruption and a host of other issues plague this little state of mine. Hartals and strikes are our regional pastime. Threats to public and private property during such enforced holidays have stunted growth at a cost of very large number of man hours. Boozing is the state hobby. The enormous consumerist culture, conflicting interests and petty politics have come to vitiate the very fabric of the once peaceful and productive state.

The young population is the pillar of any region. They are tomorrow’s citizens, nation builders, leaders and peace makers. What if some of these youth show signs of deviancy and delinquency? That is frightening. And it is sad and shocking to see that this happened in of all places, Kerala.

A gang of politically inclined youth affiliated to the Congress’s youth wing, Kerala Students Union (KSU), marched into the Higher Secondary Education Director, Keshvendra Kumar IAS’s office on last Tuesday. After some slogan shouting and in spite of hearing a patient explanation by him, without any provocation they splashed black engine oil all over the IAS officer. (Earlier cowitch powder was sprinkled on unsuspecting students by teachers in the course of a teachers’ strike. What ingenuity when it comes to rotten deeds! I wish people could use their brains for creative purposes and not for such heinous acts!!) The Officer has gone on record saying, “I never expected this to happen in a civilized state like Kerala known for its progressive ideas and a high literacy rate,’’ said HSE Director, the incident. Ouch! Civilized? Progressive ideas? What bearing does high literacy have on a person? Culture and wisdom? I wonder if anyone would call us having any of those after what has happened.

The young IAS officer, Keshvendra, who hails from Sitamarhi district in Bihar on the other hand worked as a ticketing clerk in the Railways in Kolkata. After his day time work with the Railways, he toiled hard at night preparing for the civil services exam. He enrolled for a distance education course with IGNOU, passed IAS in his first attempt in 2008 and was ranked 45, an amazing feat from a man who could not even continue his regular classes after school. He needed a job to support his family which had been struggling hard to meet his education expenses.

It is indeed a blot on the state that these rogues engaged in such vandalism and deviant behaviour. Punitive punishment must be meted out to such disgruntled elements. These youth are the canker of the society. They should never be allowed to be part of any political party now or ever.  That will serve not only them but also those who sport such ideas a very essential lesson.

Mr Kumar, I apologize, profoundly and sincerely, for what a few of my compatriots did. I hope and pray that you will not judge the state and its people by the hooligan act of a handful. We need more IAS officers like you, Mr Kumar, to showcase strength of character, tenacity of purpose and  high aspirations to these youth who are honestly devoid of role models and are totally value-less. May your life and the insight into your travails in the course of your journey to the IAS be something inspirational to each young mind, here and all over the country.

Dehumanizing Violence

The beginning of the annual northern journey of the Sun well after the winter Solstice is celebrated as Makara Sankranthi all over India. The name originates from the Sanskrit word Sankramana which means “to begin to move”. Did you know that while most Indian festivals are based on the lunar calendar, this is the only one which is based on the solar one; and the date in the English calendar is mostly static at 14th January? When the glorious Sun begins its ascendancy and entry into the Northern Hemisphere and Capricorn (Makar) in particular, it seems to remind human beings of one of finest Shanthi Mantras from The Bṛhadāraṇyaka Upanishad (1.3.28):

असतोमा सद्गमय। तमसोमा ज्योतिर् गमया।
मृत्योर्मामृतं गमय॥ ॐ शांति शांति शांति                       

Asato mā sad gamaya
Tamaso mā jyotir gamaya
Mṛtyormā amṛtam gamaya
Aum śānti śānti śāntiḥ                                                   

The mantra translates like this:

“From ignorance, lead me to truth;
From darkness, lead me to light;
From death, lead me to immortality
May there be peace everywhere.”

The second line Tamaso Ma Jyotirgamaya' exhorts us to go higher & higher, to more & more Light and never to Darkness. But methinks we are plunging into abysses of darkness with each passing day. Makara Sankranthi festivities include Kite Flying in some parts of India and bull taming down south in Tamil Nadu. While the glass coated manjas of kites have wrought suffering to humans and animals alike (refer to my my post http://bit.ly/102jeST ), the bull taming competition called Jallikattu is even more virulent and violent. In some other rural areas this is also the time for cock fights, buffalo fights and the like.

The term Jallikattu comes from the term "Salli" kassu (coins) and "Kattu" (meaning a package) tied to the horns of the bulls as the prize money. At the centre of this traditional sport which is considered very auspicious is a man (or men) who locks horns with the bull.  Taming the bull is considered to be a virile, macho act and the victor walks away with a prize money too. The event is held amidst loud cheering from thousands of spectators including foreign tourists. Many a time the bewildered animal runs amok.

At the core of this so-called sport is unimaginable cruelty to animals. Participants pull the bulls' tails, squeeze lemon in their eyes and even slash their skins and apply chilly powder to turn them wild just to enhance the spectacle of the fight, and to win. There is also danger to the public viewing this spectacle. Is this any kind of valour? Over and above these is the untold miseries the animal (s) suffers when it falls, fractures it limbs, gores down people in its wild agony and after it all loses the battle either in painful impairment or cruel death.

Though the centre has banned Jallikattu, it is conducted as per the guidelines of Supreme Court and Tamil Nadu Jallikattu Regulation Act. The bullfights though initially held only during Pongal time, later started running from January to May. Organizers of the event are required to deposit 2 lakhs as compensation for those injured during the event - a common fallout. This conversion of a ritual into business was slammed by the Supreme Court as mercenary. Yet the spectacle goes on.

What is it that makes human beings so very cruel and sadistic that they derive pleasure in inflicting pain and heaping suffering on poor dumb animals? For the sake of justice and fair play at least, shouldn’t fights be between equals? How can one be considered manlike while indulging in this kind of barbarism? Shouldn’t it be considered most diabolic and fiendish? It is time that we banned such sports that debases and dehumanizes us. If you want to voice your opinion against this heartless and inhuman sport and get it banned, please click this link: http://bit.ly/102pXMH . I just did.

TICK-TOCK... The Clock is Ticking

Today I watched this award-winning documentary (Click on the play button to watch it) by Mr. Sohan Roy titled “Dams: Lethal Water Bombs”. I confess that many a shiver went down my spine. I am a Keralite; but I am not writing this as one but as a human being who wants peaceful existence possible wherever I live – not only for us, human beings but for all forms of life. 

This post therefore is not about politics.

It is not about one state versus the other.

Neither is it about water sharing.

Nor is it about who is right and who is wrong.

This is just about living beings' right to live.

It is about the stark reality staring at human beings in a land that houses a decrepit dam, one that is in a “rare state of dilapidation”. In Silenced Rivers: The Ecology and Politics of Large Dams, Patrick McCully says, “Once a dam has proved itself well enough built to hold back a reservoir (many dam failures occur either during construction or during or shortly after reservoir filling) its structure and component parts will begin to age. The unique nature of each dam means that every structure will age at a different rate in a different way. Some dams may remain safe for a thousand years, others may start to crack and leak after less than a decade. Around the world, some 5,000 large dams are now more than 50 years old, and the number and size of the dams reaching their half century is rapidly increasing.”

MULLAIPERIYAR ...  if one goes by what McCully says about ageing dams, this one is decrepitly old – to be precise a grand old age of 116 years! The location of the dam further complicates issues. Built at the confluence of rivers Mullai and Periyar, in Idukki district, Mullaiperiyar is situated at an elevation of 850 MSL, in the ecologically fragile landscape of the Western Ghats. Being so, the catchment area alone boasts of over 2000 mm of rainfall annually. To add insult on injury, it is also precariously perched on the seismic fault line and has a fair share of tremors. In 2011 alone as many as 22 mild tremors and after-shocks have occurred in parts of Idukki and adjoining Kottayam and Pathanamthitta districts since January this year, the latest ones being on 18^th November, 2011 measuring 2.02 and 3.04 respectively on the Richter scale.

What does all this mean to me as a lay person?

A catastrophe is awaiting millions living downstream Mullaiperiar! And sadly it could be the worst in the annals of human history!!

The force of the rushing waters can bring down all small dams downstream including and even the mighty Idukki dam! That will unleash the latent water power akin to power of nuclear bombs!!

Heavy silting and unstable hill tops will bring more disasters in its wake!

An ecological time bomb awaits the destruction of fragile yet pristine forests and hundreds of species of flora and fauna including the endemic and red listed ones!

A realistic estimate predicts sheets of water about 42 feet in height would gush down – which would reach the Arabian Sea in just over 5 hours!

So people, can we set aside parochialism, differences in perceptions, ideas and political beliefs and look at this from a purely humane angle, in the name of lives of not only people but also flora and fauna housed in a part of one of the world’s hottest biodiversity spots??? 

By sheer coincidence the movie titled DAM 999, an upcoming 3D Hollywood movie, a tribute to the two and a half lakh people who perished in the world's worst man made China’s Banqiao dam disaster of 1975, directed by Sohan Roy is all set for release on 24^th November in the Middle East and 25^th November in India.  

Let us hope that the mass appeal of the silver screen will be an eye opener to the powers that be and do its best to spread the message of untold misery and suffering a dam catastrophe can bring in its wake.

SAVE MULLAPERIYAR! SAVE PEOPLE!! SAVE THE FRAGILE ECOSYSTEM AND ITS DENIZENS!!!

Sources:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gS0PwCmjIt4&feature=share

Silenced Rivers: The Ecology and Politics of Large Dams, by Patrick McCully, Zed Books, London, 1996

http://www.nias.res.in/docs/B4-2010-%20Mullaperiyar.pdf

http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/article2643938.ece?css=print

http://www.damthemovie.com/blog/