A promise fulfilled, ………….. but my fight against corruption will go on

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

http://nitishspeaks.blogspot.com/2011/09/promise-fulfilled-but-my-fight-against.html

I am writing after a long time. As a matter of fact, it is the first occasion since the results of the Bihar assembly election came out in November last year that I am sharing my thoughts with you.
It tickles me to be connecting with you again through this blog. I would begin by thanking the people of the state for their wholehearted support and unflinching faith in our government.
Many people from different parts of the world asked me in the past few months as to why I stopped writing my blogs. To be honest, I had not stopped writing this blog altogether. I was just waiting for a worthwhile moment to connect with you online. Now, that time has come.
Last week, our government finally demonstrated something that I had been rather passionate about all the while We have opened a primary school in the house of a senior government official facing a disproportionate assets case. Last Thursday, we shifted a primary school for underprivileged children into this house in Patna, seized under the Bihar Special Courts Act which our government had enacted last year.

This building, confiscated recently by the Patna district administration following a directive from a special court trying corruption cases in the state, was handed over to the Human Resources Department which subsequently converted it into a primary school in no time.
This Act empowers the competent authority to confiscate the movable and immovable property of a public servant even during the trial. Our government has set up six special courts for the speedy trials in corruption cases.
Such was a moment I had been patiently waiting for all these months to resume my blog writing. When it finally happened I decided to share my thoughts with you.
The opening of a school in this building is no ordinary event, to say the least In fact, this has happened for the very first time in the country. It embodies our government’s resolve to address corruption, even as it is being touted as a practicable measure to deal with incidences of corruption.

The basic objective of the state's anti-graft legislation is to instill a sense of fear in the minds of corrupt public servants. I think the provision for the confiscation of the assets of the accused will act as a deterrent among the public servants indulging in unscrupulous practices to earn wealth. When they see that their property earned through corrupt practices is ultimately seized by the government, they will realise the futility of amassing wealth. Our aim is to inflate the component of “loss” to such deterrent levels that it automatically defeats the notion of “gain” that impels people into dubious and corrupt pursuits to amass wealth.
Before this Act came into force, corruption cases against public servants used to drag on for years. In fact, the accused used to hire the best of lawyers to fight their cases while enjoying the fruits of their ill-gotten money. There was no law for the confiscation of their property during trial.
The bid to confiscate the property of the corrupt public servants had started soon after the setting up of the fast-track courts but it got delayed because of the legal processes involved. When the special courts ordered confiscation of property of a few accused, they moved the superior courts to seek stay. But the decks were recently cleared for opening a school in one of the buildings owned by an accused after the Patna High Court upheld the validity of the Act.
This should serve as a warning to all those public servants who have acquired ill-gotten money In the coming months, many more buildings are likely to be seized and turned into schools, night shelters or any centre related to public utility across Bihar.

I find it useful here to dispel doubts about who would constitute a public servant. I think that the nature and scale of public role and responsibility being handled by an individual must be the key to deciding his /her categorization as a public servant. Clearly thus, peoples’ representatives like MLAs, MPs, and ministers, besides the category of officials would fall under the “public servant’ nomenclature.
During my assembly election rallies last year, I had made a promise to the people of Bihar I had told them that I would open schools in the buildings of the corrupt public servants. When it finally happened this week I thought I had fulfilled my promise.

But that does not mean that our government had not been doing anything to tame the scourge of corruption since winning the elections last year. We took many landmark initiatives to minimize red-tapism and check corruption at all levels. Firstly, I decided to put the details of my assets as well as those of the members of the council of ministers on the official website of the state government.
This was followed by the decision of our government to make it mandatory for all government employees, up to Group III staff, to declare their assets on the official websites. From the Chief Secretary to all the Group III employees, everybody subsequently posted the details of their property on the government websites.
I also decided to get the Local Area Development Fund of legislators abolished because it had come under the cloud. There were several complaints about the way this scheme was executed across the state. I thought it was better to abolish this fund altogether and introduce an alternate, more transparent scheme involving the legislators to ensure all-round growth of the state.

During my visits to different parts of Bihar, I am often confronted with people complaining about corruption at the grassroots level. They complain about difficulties in getting work done at government offices. They allege that they have to pay bribes for things like caste and income certificates to driving licenses and police verification for getting passports, etc.

With a view to checking it, our government last month enacted the Right to Public Service Act which ensured completion of work related to public services within fixed timeframes. This law came into force on the Independence Day this year. Under this Act, the government officials have to dispose of the people’s applications related to public utility services within a stipulated period. There is also a provision under this Act for imposition of fine on the defaulters for any delay on their part. We have now ensured that our people do not have to run around the offices and grease the palms of the public servants to get their work done. All they have to do is submit their applications and wait for their work to be done within the time-frame fixed by the government.
Now, I am working towards making the institution of Lokayukta more effective and broad-based in the state. Bihar has had a Lokayukta since 1973 but I feel there is a need for giving it more powers. I am also in favour of bringing the Chief Minister under its ambit. We are already working on the draft to bring about an amendment bill in the winter session of the state legislature.
These are a few steps that I have taken as part of my fight against corruption I can assure you that this fight will go on in the future as well. There has been widespread support from people across the country for the campaigns against corruption in recent times. It proves that the people in general are disgusted by the menace of corruption that appears to have made inroads into all spheres of public life.

We, therefore, need effective legislations more than ever before Confiscation of assets of the corrupt is one small step in that direction. This will restore the faith of the common man in the system of governance, encourage law-enforcing agencies to act against the corrupt and deter those who believe in acquiring ill-gotten wealth. If we have to stamp out corruption we will have to take steps like these everywhere to achieve our goal.

Before I conclude, let me also briefly touch upon two of our novel initiatives. Firstly, the number of beneficiaries under the bicycle scheme for school students has now exceeded 6 lakh, including 2.25 lakh boys, in the state. As you know, this project was initially launched only for schoolgirls, but was later extended to schoolboys as well. At start, the government had distributed bicycles among 1.50 lakh girls. This number has gone up to 3.75 lakh now.
I would also like to talk about the Harit Bihar (Greener Bihar) campaign we have recently launched in the state. Under this campaign, both the state government and our party, Janata Dal (United), have resolved to increase the forest cover to at least 15 per cent by planting saplings across the state in a big way, and instituting measures to see these plants grow into trees. I think it is time that generations of today demonstrate their commitment to act and protect our environment.
 

I look forward to your views.

Nitish Kumar

 

अब रेल यात्रा से अलख जगाएंगे अन्ना

By visfot news network

भ्रष्टाचार के खिलाफ अभियान चलाने वाले अन्ना हजारे ने अब एलान किया है कि वह अगले महीने से देश भर की रेल यात्रा पर निकलेंगे। अन्ना अब जन लोकपाल बिल के साथ-साथ चुनाव सुधारों के मसले पर भी जनजागरण का अभियान शुरू कर चुके हैं। अन्ना के गांव रालेगण सिद्धि में टीम अन्ना की दो दिवसीय बैठक में दूसरे दिन यह फैसला किया गया। बैठक के बाद टीम अन्ना के सदस्य अरविंद केजरीवाल ने बताया कि अन्ना ने कहा है, वह अगले महीने ही रेलयात्रा शुरू करेंगे। इसका मकसद चुनाव सुधारों और भ्रष्टाचार जैसे मसलों पर जनता को संघर्ष के अगले दौर के लिए तैयार करना माना जा रहा है।

टीम अन्ना ने विरोधियों के दुष्प्रचार का जवाब देने का भी एलान किया। केजरीवाल ने बताया कि अन्ना की कोर टीम के सभी सदस्यों की संपत्ति का ब्योरा अगले महीने की 15 तारीख तक सार्वजनिक कर दिया जाएगा।

दिग्गी के बयान पर कड़ी प्रतिक्रिया
इस बीच कांग्रेस महासचिव दिग्विजय सिंह के बयानों पर कड़ी प्रतिक्रिया जाहिर करते हुए टीम अन्ना ने कहा कि झूठे आरोप लगाना उनकी आदत हो गई है। प्रशांत भूषण ने कहा कि टीम अन्ना पर लगाए उनके आरोपों के लिए उन्हें लीगल नोटिस भिजवाया जाएगा। केजरीवाल ने कहा कि हमने अन्ना हजारे के नाम पर कोई चंदा नहीं लिया है।

अन्ना के आंदोलन से आगे का रास्ता

By पुण्य प्रसून वाजपेयी

अनशन तोड़ने के 48 घंटे बाद ही प्रधानमंत्री ने अन्ना हजारे को फूलों के गुलदस्ते के साथ 'गेट वैल सून' का कार्ड भेजा था। संकेत यही निकला अन्ना बीमार है और मनमोहन सिंह अन्ना की तबियत को लेकर चिंतित हैं। लेकिन तेरह दिनों के अन्ना के आंदोलन के दौर में जो सवाल रामलीला मैदान से खड़े हुए उसने देश के भीतर सीधे संकेत यही दिये कि कहीं ना कहीं बीते बीस बरस में सरकार बीमार रही और समूची व्यवस्था की तबियत ही इसने बिगाड़ रखा है। और अब जब जनलोकपाल संसद के भीतर दस्तक दे रहा है तो फिर संसद में दस्तक देते कई सवाल दोबारा खड़े हो रहे हैं, जिसे बीते बीस बरस में हाशिये पर ढकेल दिया गया था।

तीन मुद्दो पर संसद का ठप्पा लगाने के बाद जो सवाल अन्ना हजारे ने अनशन तोड़ने से पहले खड़े किये वह नये नहीं हैं। राईट टू रिकाल और राईट टू रिजक्ट का सवाल पहले भी चुनाव सुधार के दायरे उठे हैं । चुनाव आयोग ने ही दागी उम्मीदवारो की बढ़ती तादाद के मद्देनजर राईट टू रिजेक्ट का सवाल सीधे यह कहकर उठाया था कि कोई उम्मीदवार पसंद नहीं तो ठप्पा लगाने वाली सूची में एक खाली कॉलम भी होना चाहिये। लेकिन संसद ने यह कहकर उसे ठुकरा दिया कि यह नकारात्मक वोटिंग को बढावा देगा।

अन्ना के किसान प्रेम के भीतर खेती की जमीन हड़पने के बाजारी खेल का सवाल भी बीते बीस बरस में संसद के भीतर बीस बार से ज्यादा बार उठ चुका है। भूमि- सुधार का सवाल बीस बरस पहले पीवी नरसिंह राव के दौर में उसी वक्त उठा था जब आर्थिक सुधार की लकीर खींची जा रही थी। लेकिन इन बीस बरस में फर्क यही आया 1991 में खेती की जमीन को न को बचाते हुये व्यवसायिक तौर पर जमीन के उपयोग की लकीर खींचने की बात थी। मगर 2011 में खेती की जमीन को हथियाते हुये रियल-इस्टेट के धंधे को चमकाने और माल से लेकर स्पेशल इक्नामी जोन बनाने के लिये समूचा इन्फ्रास्ट्रचर खड़ा करने पर जोर है। जिसमें किसान की हैसियत कम या ज्यादा मुआवजा देकर पल्ला झाड़ने वाला है। अन्ना हजारे अदालतों के खौफ को न्यायपालिका में सुधार के साथ बदलना चाहते हैं। लेकिन यह सवाल भी बीते बीस बरस में दर्जनो बार संसद में दस्तक दे चुका है। लेकिन हर बार यह न्याय मिलने में देरी या जजो की कमी के आसरे ही टिका रहा।

यह सवाल पहले कभी खड़ा नहीं हुआ कि न्यायपालिका के दामन पर भी दाग लग रहे है और उसमें सुधार की कहीं ज्यादा जरुरत है। इस बार भी संसद इससे सीधे दो दो हाथ करने से बचना चाहती है। वहीं गांव स्तर पर खाकी का डर किसी भी ग्रामीण में कितना समाया होता है, उसका जिक्र अगर अन्ना हजारे कर रहे हैं और उसमें सुधार चाहते हैं तो संसद के भीतर खाकी का सवाल भी कोई आज का किस्सा का नहीं है। वोहरा कमेटी की रिपोर्ट ने तो खाकी के समूचे खेल को ही आइना दिखाते हुये पुलिस सुधार की मोटी लकीर खींची। यानी अन्ना हजारे के सवालों से संसद रुबरु नहीं है, यह सोचना बचकानापन ही होगा। और देश के आम आदमी इसे नहीं जानते समझते होगें यह समझना भी बचकानापन ही होगा।

असल सवाल यही से खड़ा होता है कि अन्ना एक तरफ बीमार व्यवस्था को पटरी पर लाने के लिये संसद को आंदोलन का आइना दिखाते हैं तो दूसरी तरफ प्रधानमंत्री फूलों का गुलदस्ता भेज कर अन्ना को बीमारी से जल्दी उबरने का कामना करते हुये भी नजर आते हैं। तो देश चल कैसे रहा है। अगर इसकी नब्ज सियासत तले सामाजिक परिस्थितियों में पकड़ें तो देश के कमोवेश सभी कामधेनू पद आज भी बिकते हैं। चाहे वह पुलिस की पोस्टिंग हो। कोई खास थाना या फिर कोई खास जिला। इंजीनियर किसी भी स्तर का हो कुछ खास क्षेत्रो से लेकर कुछ पदो की बोली हर महीने कमाई या फिर सरकारी बजट को लेकर बिकती है। समूची हिन्दी पट्टी में संयोग से सबसे बुरी गत सिंचाई विभाग की है। यही आलम स्वास्थ्य अधिकारी का है जो सरकारी बजट की रकम को किस मासूमियत से हडप सकता है और कैसे राजनेताओ की भागेदारी कर सकता है, यह हुनर ही रकम डकारते हुये भ्रष्ट्राचार की नयी परिभाषा गढ़ने में काम आती है। सरलता से समझे तो उत्तर प्रदेश में राष्ट्रीय स्वास्थ्य मिशन में मोतियाबिंद आपरेशन के नाम पर हडपे गये 3200 करोड रुपये से समझा जा सकता है जिसमें ऑपरेशन किसी का नहीं हुआ लेकिन एनजीओ के जरीये वोटरो की सूची जोड़ कर सबकुछ सफल बना दिय गया।

इसी तरह पद क्षेत्रीय ट्रासपोर्ट अफसर का भी बिकता है। सबसे मंहगा पद तो सबसे न्यूनतम जरुरत की लूट के हुनर के साथ जुड़ा का है। और वह है जिले का फूड सप्लाई ऑफीसर। यानी जिन हाथो से देश की न्यूनतम जरुरत को पूरा करने के लिये संसद में हर दिन पहला घंटा सवाल जवाब में जाता है कैबिनेट से लेकर संसद में बिल पास कराने की जद्दोजहद से लेकर बजट देने में ही सरकार लगी होती है, जब संसद के बाहर सारा खेल ही उसे लूटने के लिये रचा जाता है तो फिर रास्ता जाता किधर है। अगर सरकार के आंकड़ों को ही देखें तो देश के 70 करोड से ज्यादा लोगों में अनाज बांटने के लिये बनाये पीडीएस सिस्टम की कहानी चंद शब्दो में यही है कि सिर्फ दस फिसदी जरुरतमंदों तक ही अनाज पहुंच पाता है। बाकि 43 फिसदी सरकारी व्यवस्था के छेद से निकलकर कहीं और पहुंच जाता है। 47 फिसदी राजनेताओ का ताकत तले बांटने की व्यवस्था को ही चंद हथेलियो में डालकर मुनाफा बनाने के खेल में खेला जाता है। अगर इसी खाके में सरकार के खाद्द सुरक्षा बिल को डाल दिया जाये तो क्या होगा। इसे समझने से पहले जरा दिल्ली और देश में भ्रष्टाचार की लूट को सामांनातर देखने का हुनर आना चाहिये। नेशनल फूड सिक्योरिटी बिल की उपज सोनिया गांधी की अगुवाई वाले राष्ट्रीय सलाहकार परिषद की है। जो चाहती रही है देश का एपीएल तबके की भी इसमें शुमार हो। लेकिन मनमोहन सरकार की अगुवाई वाले योजना आयोग ने पहली लड़ाई इसी बात को लेकर शुरु की कि इससे सरकारी खजाने पर जहरदस्त बोझ पड़ेगा। और संसद में इस बिल के दस्तक देने से पहले अभी भी लगता यही है कि बीपीएल और एपीएल की लडाई में ही यह विधेयक अटका रहा। सवाल है कि किसी भी हालत में जैसे ही यह बिल लागू होगा, देश में सबसे ज्यादा लाभ उसी व्यवस्था को होना है जो राजनेताओ की वर्दहस्त में समूची लूट प्रणाली से खाद्य आपूर्ति प्रणाली को हडपे हुये है। क्योंकि देश में सबसे ज्यादा लूट अगर बीते बीस बरस में किसी वस्तु की हुई है तो वह अनाज की लूट है। और इसी दौर में जो वस्तु राजनीतिक चुनाव में सबसे ज्यादा मुप्त या कौड़ियों के मोल लुटाई गई वह भी अनाज ही है।

तो नेशनल फूड सिक्यूरटी बिल का इंतजार इस वक्त कौन कर रहा है? राजनेता, नौकरशाह, ट्रासपोर्टर और फूड सप्लाई विभाग के साथ साथ फूड सप्लाई कारपोरेशन के अधिकारी। यानी जिन अस्सी करोड़ लोगों के लिये विकास का कोई मंत्र सरकार के पास नहीं है, पहली बार उसी बहुसंख्यक तबके की न्यूनतम जरुरत से लेकर उसके जीवन जीने का माध्यम भी अंतराष्ट्रीय बाजार में बोली लगवाकर बेचे जा रही है। इसलिये सवाल यह नहीं है कि गांव का जो पटवारी बीस बरस पहले खेती की जमीन को व्यवसायिक जमीन में बदलने की एवज में सौ रुपये लेता था अब वह बढ़कर औसतन पचास हजार पहुंच चुका है। और अन्ना हजारे इसी निचले स्तर के भ्रष्टाचार पर नकेल कसने के लिये संसद से सिद्धांत: सहमति लेकर अनशन तोड़ने पर राजी हो गये। बल्कि संकट यह है कि सरकार की नीतियों तले बीते दस बरस 175 लाख करोड़ से ज्यादा की खनिज संपदा से लेकर खेती की जमीन को कौडियों के मोल चंद हाथो में सौप दिया गया। और इस लूट प्रणाली को रोकने के लिये कोई सरकार अपने कदम बढ़ा नही सकती क्योंकि सरकार चुनने और बनने की दिशा भी इस दौर में उन्ही आधारो पर जा टिकी है जो लूट प्रणाली चलाते हैं। ऐसे में सवाल सिर्फ अन्ना के आंदोलन से संसद को हड़काने का नहीं है। सवाल उस नयी धारा को बनाने का भी है जिसमें प्रधानमंत्री के गेट वैल सून का जवाब राजनीतिक तौर पर अन्ना हजारे भी गेट वैल सून का कार्ड भेज कर प्रधानमंत्री को इसका एहसास कराये कि बीमार वह नहीं बीमार व्यवस्था है जो ठीक नहीं हुई तो आने वाले दौर में आंदोलन सिर्फ संसद को हड़कायेंगे नहीं बल्कि डिगा भी सकते हैं। लेकिन सवाल है यह राजनीतिक पहल होगी और क्या सिविल सोसायटी इसके लिये तैयार है?

IACB

('http://www.youtube.com/p/0BE647291032F552?version=3&hl=en_US',)

अब उन राज्यों का दौरा करेगी टीम अन्ना जहां होने हैं चुनाव

आईबीएन-7

रालेगन सिद्धि। अन्ना के गांव रालेगन सिद्धि में हुई दो दिन की बैठक में तय किया गया है कि अगले दो ढाई महीने के भीतर अन्ना हजारे खासकर ऐसे राज्यों की यात्रा करेंगे जहां विधानसभा चुनाव होने हैं।

दरअसल टीम अन्ना अब सरकार से आर या पार की लड़ाई के मूड में है। संसद के शीतकालीन सत्र से पहले टीम अन्ना स्टैंडिंग कमेटी के सभी सदस्यों और राजनीतिक दलों के बड़े नेताओं के चुनाव क्षेत्रों में राय शुमारी करवाएगी। जिसमें जनता से ये सवाल पूछा जाएगा कि क्या वो उस उम्मीदवार को वोट देंगे जो जनलोकपाल बिल का विरोध कर रहा है।

साथ ही अन्ना ने अपनी टीम के साथ उन सभी राज्यों के दौरे पर जाने का फैसला किया है जहां आने वाले महीनों में चुनाव होने हैं। टीम अन्ना के मुताबिक यात्रा के दौरान लोगों को ये बताया जाएगा कि किस राजनीतिक दल का जनलोकपाल बिल पर क्या रुख है।

सरकार से उसके काम-काज में पारदर्शिता की मांग करने वाली टीम अन्ना ने खुद भी पारदर्शी दिखने का फैसला किया है। इसके तहत 1 अप्रैल से 30 सितंबर तक आंदोलन के दौरान हुए खर्चे का विशेष ऑडिट करवाने का फैसला लिया गया है। साथ ही कोर कमेटी के सभी सदस्य 15 अक्टूबर तक अपनी संपत्ति का ब्यौरा इंडिया अगेन्स करप्शन की बेवसाइट पर डाल देंगे। अगर टीम अन्ना के खिलाफ आम आदमी को किसी तरह की शिकायत है तो उसकी जांच तीन रिटायर्ड जजों की कमेटी करेगी।

इसी के साथ टीम अन्ना की दो दिनों की बैठक खत्म हो गई। शनिवार को अन्ना हजारे ने फैसला किया था कि वो राइट टू रिकॉल के मसले पर पीएम को पत्र लिखकर उनकी राय मांगेंगे। जाहिर है अन्ना हजारे ने रामलीला से अपना अनशन खत्म करने के वक्त अगली लड़ाई का बिगुल फूंकते हुए राइट टू रिकॉल को आंदोलन का अगला हथियार बनाने की घोषणा की थी।

शहीद दिनेश यादव की पत्नी एवं परिवार के बारे में भी सोचें

आप सबों से निवेदन है कि शहीद दिनेश के परिवार के भरण पोषण के लिए अगर आपका हृदय कहे तो कृपया इस खाते, जो उनकी पत्नी के नाम से खुला है, में स्वेच्छा से दान देवें.

Account Number: 31917096429
Name: MANAMATIYA DEVI
Bank:  SBI, Akhtiyarpur

धन्यवाद.
पंकज भूषण

Janlokpal Banners

Corruption behind farm-crisis

By Devinder Sharma

Corruption has not only hindered development of India but its role in creating and aggravating farm crisis is no less critical. Corrupt scientists, bank officials and policy makers have pushed farmers to the brink.

Farmers are at the receiving end of corrupt scientists and officials

I haven’t forgotten that night. Sitting with a group of farmers in a village in Ludhiana district in Punjab, at the height of the Green Revolution, a farmer showed me a bag of fertiliser that he brought from the market.
“Why are you showing me this bag”, I asked. “Wait”, he said, and began to open the bag. It was only when he crushed the granules with his hands that I realised why he wanted me to see the fertiliser bag. The fertiliser was spurious. The jute bag, neatly packed and branded, contained mud granules.
Several years later I was travelling in the villages of Warangal district in Andhra Pradesh to understand the reasons behind the spate of farm suicides that had first rocked the nation. This was in 1997 when 37 farmers committed suicide in this district alone. While everyone blamed the weather gods for inflicting a terrible blow to farmers, I found spurious pesticides to be the reason for the failure of the cotton crop.
More than 80 per cent of pesticides sold in Warangal district that year were later found to be fake.
Two and a half decades later, agriculture is in ruins. The story of slow death of agriculture across the country is the same. Dying crop fields, and crying farmers. With degraded soils, depleting groundwater, and chemical pesticides playing havoc with the environment, agriculture is in terrible distress. With farming becoming a losing proposition, and with the entire equation going wrong, agriculture is witnessing a mass exodus.

While academicians, economists and policy makers are ascribing several complex reasons for the decline of agriculture, the dark underbelly has somehow remained unexposed. What has actually eaten into the vitals of agriculture over the years is rampant corruption. It is like the vultures swarming around a dead animal carcase. Believe it or not, the despicable farm scenario is no less gory.

Fake and sub-standard inputs – seeds, fertiliser, pesticides and machinery is only one part of the story. With quality control in complete shambles, and with many testing laboratories known to have a fixed price tag for approving samples, farmers are always on the receiving end. No wonder, the post of plant protection officers as well as quality control is one of the most sought after in the State Departments of Agriculture.
Massive public outlays under the National Horticulture Mission, Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojna, and the National Food Security Mission are in fact being used as grants. When I see the misuse of these outlays, often going into the pockets of senior farm officials, I have always wondered why the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) has refrained from focusing on the flagrant misuse of resources in the name of food security.
Agricultural officials and input suppliers have always maintained a cosy relationship. Even where upright officials have blacklisted erring firms, it isn’t difficult to pull down the shutters and then float a new company. Over the years, I have seen the business growing for those who were once known to be selling sub-standard products.

If you think scientific research, agricultural development and policy framing is devoid of corruption you are grossly mistaken. Much of what hits the farmer is the result of wrong policies.

Fly-by-night operators adorn the seed industry, and despite seed laws spelling out stringent punishment for marketing fake seeds, the market is full of spurious seeds. Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar had recently said that a big seed company had supplied inferior maize hybrid seed, and had refused to account for the losses. Ultimately, Bihar government had to pay for the Rs 60-crore loss.
Post harvest, the travails of a farmer take a different turn. In areas where procurement centres and mandis exist (mainly in the Green Revolution belt of Punjab, Haryana, western UP and some parts of Madhya Pradesh), invariably farmers are at the mercy of the arhtiyas and the mandi agents. In rest of the country, the farmer is exploited, fleeced and ends up selling his produce in distress. It will not be wrong to say that it is a nightmare for a farmer to get a fair price for his produce and that too after putting in so much of hard labour.
Banks, money lenders and micro-credit agencies have been perpetual suckers. Several studies have pointed to the mismanagement (and corruption) in distribution of bank credit to be the primary reason for the agrarian crisis. Usurping interest charged by micro-finance institutions, often exceeding 24 per cent and that too to be repaid at weekly intervals, as well as the dependence on private money lenders has been the bane of farming.
A recent study by NABARD shows how farmers are being duped by nationalised banks. Farmers are being charged double the interest rate for subsidised credit as announced in the annual budget last year. Against the provision of a maximum of 7 per cent interest, banks have included the contingency expenses and other costs, which in reality means the farmer has to shell out an interest of 14 per cent.
If you think scientific research, agricultural development and policy framing is devoid of corruption you are grossly mistaken. Much of what hits the farmer is the result of wrong policies. These policies are framed keeping the interest of service providers before farmers. But then, it is topic for another day.

 

Signature campaign for Sharmila from Oct 2

Sep 4, 2011, 03.25pm IST

IMPHAL: Come October 2, a number of social organizations will launch a 68-day-long nationwide signature campaign to support Irom Sharmila's unrelenting struggle against the controversial Armed Forces (Special) Powers Act.

The signatures will be handed over to President Pratibha Patil on the occasion of International Human Rights Day on December 10. Sharmila (39) has been on a hunger fast since November 5, 2000, seeking repeal of the controversial Armed Forces (Special) Powers Act that gives unbridled powers to forces, even to the extent of shooting persons on mere suspicion.

She embarked on her mission a couple of days after Assam Rifles personnel mowed down 10 civilians near a bus stand in Imphal West. At present, she is being forced-fed through her nose at the security ward of Jawaharlal Nehru Hospital, which is close to her Konpal Kongkham Leikai residence in Imphal East.

मुख्यमंत्री नीतीश कुमार ने किया अन्ना का समर्थन

http://hindi.lokmanch.com/2011/08/20/mukhymantri-nitish-kumar-ne/

पटना। मुख्यमंत्री नीतीश कुमार के द्वारा बुजुर्ग समाजसेवी अन्ना हजारे की जंग को समर्थन देने से बिहार अन्ना-अन्ना हो उठा। वहीं लगे हाथ बिहार विधान सभा के अध्यक्ष उदय नारायण चौधरी ने सिविल सोसायटी के जन लोकपाल बिल को हर कीमत पर संसद के द्वारा पारित करवाने की दिशा में पहल करने से आम आदमी खुश है। बिहार के इन दोनों दिग्गजों के द्वारा जन लोकपाल बिल को लेकर मैदान में आने से अन्ना के समर्थकों में जोश आ गया है।
इंडिया अग्रेंस्ट करप्शन के आह्वान पर कारगिल चौक के सामने सिविल सोसायटी के द्वारा अनशन किया जा रहा है। भ्रष्टाचार विरोधी मंच के अरूण दास और संघर्ष वाहिनी मंच, बिहार के टी. उपेन्द्र, विजेन्द्र कश्यप के द्वारा चार दिनों से अनशन किया जा रहा है। वहीं मंजू डुंगडुंग, धीरज कुमार सिंह, अजित बहादूर, संजीव कुमार, मुकुल प्रकाश आदि 12 घंटे के अनशन पर हैं। अनशनकारियों को डाक्टर तेजस्वी जांच कर रहे हैं। सभी सामान्य स्थिति में हैं। कार्यक्रम का संचालन कारूजी, पंकज भूषण और सुश्री वर्षा ने किया।
जंतर-मंतर पर सिविल सोसायटी के द्वारा 4 अगस्त से अनशन शुरू किया गया था। समाजसेवी अन्ना हजारे अनशन पर थे। अन्ना के सामने सरकार की आन नहीं ठहर सकी। सरकार झुकी और सरकार के पांच और सिविल सोसायटी के पांच सदस्यों को मिलाकर जन लोकपाल बिल का मसौदा समिति बनायी गयी। कई दौर की बैठक के बाद मसौदा समिति विभक्त हो गयी। दोनों की ओर से अलग-अलग जन लोकपाल बिल बनायी गयी। सरकार ने सिविल सोसायटी को धोखा दे दिया। सरकार के पांच सदस्यों ने लोकपाल बिल बनाकर मंत्री परिषद की बैठक की स्वीकृति ले ली और संसद के सामने पेश कर दिया। बस क्या था विरोध के स्वर मुखर होने लगे। टीम अन्ना ने सरकारी लोकपाल बिल को लोकपाल के नाम पर जनता को धोखा बताया। टीम अन्ना ने सरकारी लोकपाल बिल की अनेक कमियों को गिनाया। लोकपाल बिल में प्रावधान किया गया है कि रिश्वतखोरी से दुखी आम आदमी की शिकायतें नहीं सुनी जाएंगी। नीचले स्तर के अधिकारियों व कर्मचारियों के भ्रष्टाचार जन लोकपाल के दायरे में नहीं आयेंगे। नगर निगम, पंचायत, विकास प्राधिकरणों का भ्रष्टाचार इसकी जांच के दायरे में नहीं आएगा। राज्य सरकारों का भ्रष्टाचार इसके दायरे में नहीं आएगा। प्रधानमंत्री, जजों और सांसदों का भ्रष्टाचार इसके दायरे में नहीं आएगा, यानी 2-जी, कैश फॉर वोट, कामनवेल्थ, आदर्श, येदुरप्पा, जैसे घोटाले इससे एकदम बाहर रखे गए हैं। 7 साल से पुराना कोई भी मामला इसकी जांच के दायरे में नहीं आएगा। अर्थात बोफोर्स, चारा घोटाला जैसा कोई भी घोटाला इसकी जांच के दायरे से पहले ही अलग कर दिया गया है। लोकपाल के सदस्यों का चयन प्रधानमंत्री,एक मंत्री, लोकसभा अध्यक्ष, प्रधानमंत्री द्वारा मनोनीत एक बुद्धिजीवी, एक ज्यूरिस्ट के हाथ में होगा क्योंकि इसके चयन के लिए जो समिति बनेगी उसमें एक बाकी के एक दो लोगों और होंगे, उनकी कौन सुनेगा?
कारगिल चौक पर समय-समय पर तरह-तरह के नजारे उत्पन्न होने लगते हैं। कभी चिकित्सा जगत के छात्र आ जाते हैं। कभी डेंटल कॉलेज के छात्र आ जाते हैं। मीडिया के सामने आने के लिए टोली बनाकर पोस्टर प्रदर्शित करने लगते हैं। कुल मिलाकर अन्ना हजारे के दीवाने पटनाइश हो गये हैं।

जनदबाव से विवश हुई सरकार

पटना (एसएनबी)। अन्ना हजारे के आंदोलन को समर्थन देने के लिए इंडिया एगेंस्ट क्रप्शन के पदाधिकारी अरुण दास ने कहा कि अटल जनदबाव के चलते ही जनलोकपाल बिल के प्रमुख मुद्दों को पारित करने के लिए संसद को मजबूर होना पड़ा। अनशन के समर्थन में राज्य के कई लोगों ने अनिश्चित कालीन और क्रमिक उपवास रखा। छपरा के मनोहर तिवारी, उमेश सिंह मुनि, रवीन्द्र सिंह और कवि जी और पटना में टी. उपेन्द्र और अरुण दास ने 16 अगस्त से 28 अगस्त तक लगातार अनशन पर थे। वहीं देवचंद्र मंडल, धीरज कुमार नायक, गौतम कुमार और सीताराम पटियाला ने भी विभिन्न समयावधि के लिए उपवास रखा।उन्होंने कहा कि अन्ना के अनशन टूटते ही सरकार की ओर से अन्ना टीम के सदस्यों पर कार्यपालिका और विधायिका की तरफ से आत्मघाती कुठाराघात होने लगे हैं। टीम अन्ना के सदस्यों को फंसाने की साजिश कर रही है। इंडिया एगेंस्ट क्रप्शन 15 सितम्बर को राज्य के सभी जिलों में जाकर कार्यकर्ता प्रशिक्षण शिविर लगाएगी। प्रतिनिधि वापसी का अधिकार और चुनाव में किसी को भी नहीं चुनने का अधिकार के लिए आवश्यक कदम उठाएगी। इस मौके पर राजेन्द्र पासवान, निर्मल चंद्र, पंकज भूषण, अरविंद कुमार, डॉ एएन सिंह, चंद्र भूषण, सूर्यदेव यादव, इकबाल इमाम और प्रकाश बबलू सहित अन्य लोग मौजूद थे।

For Team Anna: Five lessons from California about direct democracy

Sep 7, 2011, http://www.firstpost.com/ideas/look-before-you-leap-team-anna-five-lessons-from-california-about-direct-democracy-77461.html

The next stop for the Anna Hazare express: Electoral reforms. Reject and Recall has a nice “throw the bums out” ring to it, that’s just in keeping with the post-Ramlila we-the-people mood prevailing in the country these days.

Just listen to this:

The opponents of direct legislation and the recall, however they may phrase their opposition, in reality believe the people cannot be trusted. On the other hand, those of us who espouse these measures do so because of our deep-rooted belief in popular government, and not only in the right of the people to govern, but in their ability to govern; and this leads us logically to the belief that if the people have the right, the ability, and the intelligence to elect, they have as well the right, ability, and intelligence to reject or to recall.

Sounds like Team Anna?  Except this is Hiram Johnson, California’s governor, addressing his citizens in 1911. Johnson gave California its great experiment with direct democracy. California has embraced it with gusto.

It’s recalled Gov. Gray Davis and installed Arnold Schwarzenegger.

It’s mandated that 2/3 of the legislature must approve tax hikes which basically means no tax hikes.

It’s put pretty much every contentious issue – affirmative action, same-sex marriage, marijuana – directly to the voters. And along the way a lot of bizarre ones as well – a ban on circumcision, rules for chiropractors, greyhound dog racing.

Now one hundred years after Hiram Johnson, California is broke, perpetually lurching from election to mid-term election to special election and issuing IOUs to its employees and vendors.

Direct democracy sounds like a great idea. It eliminates the middleman and lets the little guy tell the politicians what to do. “People like us will finally get a say in where our country is headed,” we think. It’s quick. It’s easy. It’s clean.

The only problem is democracy is not a packet of instant noodles. You can’t just add a cup of boiling anger and have it ready to serve in three minutes. The package looks great. But let’s look at the fine print before the slippery slope of direct democracy turns us into another California.

Ballot box budgeting. This sounds like a super idea. Instead of letting those politicians siphon off our money, how about we tell them exactly where we want it spent? Direct democracy does just that by setting aside money for issues that voters care about. But as more and more of the budget is locked away, there’s less and less money to go round for the rest of the government’s business –salaries, roads, police, firefighters. By some estimates 65-85% of California’s budget has been tied up through ballot measures, 40% towards education alone. “The irony is that the more the hands of the Legislature and governor are tied up, the more frustrated people are,” says Tim Hodson, director of the Center for California Studies at Cal State Sacramento.

The voter tends to look at the big headlines on TV, not the big picture. Reuters

Goodbye special interests. Not exactly. It takes a lot of money to keep the people’s democracy going. To get a referendum on the ballot, to collect signatures doesn’t just happen over Twitter and Facebook. It needs money. And guess who has the money? The same fat cats who once co-opted the politicians. So in 2006 LA real estate mogul Steve Bing pumped $50 million into his pet proposition to raise taxes on oil producers. The Mormon Church funneled millions of dollars into a campaign to ban same-sex marriages in California. In 2004 supporters spent $16.9 million just to qualify a proposition on non-tribal gambling expansion for the ballot. So much for the little guy setting the agenda by embarking on a fast.

Transparency and stability. Direct democracy is supposed to settle issues with the definitive bang of “the people have spoken.” Politicians can’t pretend they know what the voter wants and just push their own agenda. But it doesn’t quite work out that way. Every election settles an issue in California. Until the next election. If a referendum on affirmative action fails at the ballot one year, its backers immediately start plotting for the next go-around. Same sex marriage, gay rights, abortion rights  have all been going through a see-saw battle in the polls for years now. It creates, writes Troy Senik “a state of permanent revolution in California politics.” Not to mention a state of permanent elections.

Voter knows best. As the old song goes: Yeh public hai, sab jaanti hai. (This is the public, it knows everything).  Even, it seems, the fine print of the Indo-US nuclear deal. Prashant Bhushan recently stumped for referendums saying “It is wrong to say people do not understand these issues. There could have been a referendum for an issue like the Indo-US nuclear deal.”  Sorry, Mr. Bhushan, the individual just doesn’t know enough. Not even about your  Jan Lokpal bill. The voter tends to look at the big headlines on TV, not the big picture. Voters are fickle, they often contradict themselves. Poll after poll in California shows they oppose cutbacks in most of the big categories of spending like healthcare and education. But they don’t want a tax hike either. As Nathan Gardeis, an advisor to the Think Long Committee for California told the Economist, California has become a “diet-Coke civilisation of consumer democracy, of services without taxes, like sweetness without calories, of rights without duties”.

Recall is all about people power. They might give the people muscle. But they emasculate the legislature. That might not sound so bad but it means they will just pass the buck on tough decisions. Why take a tough stand if that could trigger a recall? Recalls sound like a good kick-in-the-butt kind of democracy in action. But just two cautionary words – Arnold Schwarzenegger.  He was the action hero of “people power” knocking out Gray Davis who had just been re-elected. It wasn’t exactly the grassroots revolution it’s made out to be. A Republican congressman actually poured $1.7 million of his car alarm fortune into it.  That election cost California $66 million. And as the success story of people power, it didn’t quite have a Hollywood ending.

In his last year in office, Schwarzenegger managed to garner the lowest job rating of any sitting governor in more than 50 years. His disapproval rating ended up around 75%, worse than the governor he ousted.

His fall from grace is in its way a textbook story about the promise and peril of direct democracy. Team Anna would do well to study it.

Be careful what you wish for. Sometimes you might just get it.

Anna effect: Traders' to broaden drive against FDI in retail

Country wide signature campaign planned

New Delhi, Sept. 6: 

Inspired by the Anna Hazare effect, traders are chalking out an all-India action plan to build opinion against foreign direct investment in retail.

The plan includes a country-wide signature campaign, which will be submitted to the President, Ms Pratibha Patil, approaching all political parties, members of Parliament and State legislatures as well as civil society groups.

“We have begun the process of making presentations and the response from all political parties, including the BJP and Left, has been very positive,” Mr Praveen Khandelwal, Secretary General, Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT), said.

He was speaking on the sidelines of a national workshop on ‘Impact of FDI in Retail Sector of India', attended by experts and traders from 20 States.

Traders said despite the Parliamentary Standing Committee submitting its report in June 2009, Parliament had still not debated the issue. The panel, headed by Dr Murli Manohar Joshi, had recommended a ban on the entry of multinationals and big domestic corporates into retail trade.

Fearing an adverse impact on family-run retail business and “massive” unemployment, CAIT said FDI will not result in better prices for farmers and small producers. Instead, the Government should work out a strategy to upgrade and modernise existing retail trade, it added.

Mr Shekhar Swamy, Group CEO, R.K. Swamy Hansa, a marketing communication firm, said unlike other countries, the Indian retail market was balanced. “It is near perfect, as nobody dominates. Even top retailers' market share is in single digits,” he added.

He, however, said Indian retailers needed to modernise and allegations of adulteration and higher pricing margins need to be dealt with.

Recently, the high-powered Committee of Secretaries had given its nod for 51 per cent FDI in multi-brand retail. The final decision now rests with the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs.

At present, FDI up to 100 per cent is allowed in wholesale trade and up to 51 per cent in single-brand retail. The size of India's retail market is estimated at Rs 15 lakh crore, of which 96 per cent is with the self-organised sector.

Police reply to notice on Anna arrest

Dwaipayan Ghosh, TNN | Sep 7, 2011

NEW DELHI: In a reply to a NHRC notice on whether Anna Hazare's arrest was a violation of human rights, Delhi Police has said that it never intended to send Anna to Tihar Jail.

It was the Gandhian's dogged refusal to take a legal recourse that had bound the magistrate to send him to judicial custody, said police. In its reply, police said the arrest was necessary to maintain peace and the rule of law.

Senior police officers said that the arrest was necessary as Anna had announced on TV that he would fast at JPN Park though he had been refused the permission to do so. This would have led to commission of a cognizable offence under Section 151.Cops said that there was no other way from stopping the breach of peace and they were forced to arrest Anna.

Delhi Police's official reply to National Human Rights Commission's notice came after the human rights watchdog issued a notice on the complaint of one Amrita Sudan Chakrabarty from MANAB, a human rights group of West Bengal. The complainant has accused Delhi Police for not only violating the human rights of Anna Hazare and his supporters, but also denying them their right to protest.

Meanwhile, cops said they were examining the video-recording of Anna's 13 days at the Ramlila Maidan. A local court on Monday had asked Delhi Police to file a status report of its probe into a complaint accusing Anna Hazare and his team of defaming the government and instigating innocent people during their anti-corruption campaign.

"The SHO of Kamla Nagar has begun the probe. We will analyze the footage and the speeches and a reply will be filed in due time,'' said Dharmendra Kumar, special CP (law and order).

A Guide to Government Anti-Corruption Tools

By Preetika Rana

The Jan Lokpal Bill championed by Anna Hazare is designed to tackle corruption in the bureaucracy. But what can individuals do to get redress when they witness graft in officialdom? For those with faith in the government’s own mechanisms to root out corruption – and we realize hundreds of thousands protested over the last month precisely because they lacked that faith – here are some options. They come with the caveat that we have not tested these processes for their efficiency, but for frustrated citizens they may provide a place to start:

Project Vigeye : Launched in December 2010 by the Central Vigilance Commission of India,  Project Vigeye is an anticorruption program that allows individuals to lodge complaints against public officials, public enterprises, state governments or central government ministries. Complaints can be registered via the Internet, the telephone, or through an SMS. The project also allows for the uploading of audio, video and photo evidence. “Demo Videos” have been set up on YouTube to help those who want to use the process.

A total of 892 complaints have been filed since the project’s inception. The first project report, dated Jan. 11, lists a total of 93 complaints. Seven were dealt with in less than 48 hours, 21 were forwarded to State Vigilance Commissions and the rest were marked for further investigation.

Trap Cases: India’s premier investigative agency, the Central Bureau of Investigation, encourages public participation in “traps” to catch government officials demanding bribes. The CBI monthly report for June lists six successful trap operations, executed by citizens in New Delhi, Mumbai and Chandigarh.

The CBI also operates anticorruption hotlines; to find the one in your region, check here

Right to Information Act : Enacted by the Indian Parliament in 2005, the Right to Information Act has emerged as a powerful tool to mobilize public opinion on issues of national significance. Under provisions of the Act, citizens may request information from a “public authority” which is compelled to reply within 30 days of receipt.

The Act also requires each public department to computerize records for wide dissemination and pro-actively publish reports to minimize the need for citizen requests. RTIs can be filed, submitted and tracked through the central government’s online portal. 

Some estimates suggest more than one million RTIs have been filed over the last five years. 

To engage public opinion and greater participation, the central government also launched an RTI  fellowship earlier this year.

Portal for Public Grievances: A central government initiative launched in 2007, the online Portal for Public Grievances seeks to curb corruption among central and state departments. Citizens can lodge complaints against a corrupt central or state official or a central or state-run ministry through the portal. Citizens can also view their application status, send reminders and seek clarification on complaints lodged through the website.

Various state governments also have initiated campaigns to combat corruption. The Maharashtra state government, for instance, launched its own “trap cases” program modeled on that of the CBI.  And the Bihar Rural Development Ministry is using social media tools including YouTube to try to monitor corrupt dealings at the Indira Awas Yojana, a housing project for the underprivileged.

Have you used any of the services above? We are interested in your experience and in whether these programs were efficient in curbing corruption. Please let us know in the Comments.

 

Why Was Hazare Such a Media Hit?

By Margherita Stancati and Krishna Pokharel

As the drama of Anna Hazare’s anticorruption hunger strike unfolded, India was glued to its television screens.

In the two weeks that surrounded his fast, the viewership of news channels skyrocketed: Around 2.5 million more people a week turned to news channels during the Hazare agitation than in earlier weeks. The figures were measured for the weeks starting Aug. 14 and Aug. 21.

In the week through Aug. 27, a day before Mr. Hazare’s fast-breaking ceremony, news channels had 15% of television share, up from an average of roughly 9%, according to latest available data provided by News Content Track, a tool of media research firm TAM. In this period, reports on the Lokpal bill dominated India’s 24-hour news cycle, accounting for 83.4% of viewed news stories.

So what is it that made Mr. Hazare’s fast such a media hit? There was, of course, the appeal of their cause: to press the government to pass their own, tougher version of their anticorruption bill. And many among the throngs that showed up at the Ramlila grounds hailed from the aspirational middle classes that are a television network’s dream audience.

But Team Anna also deserves a lot of PR cred. This contrasts sharply with the government’s handling of the crisis, which could have been worse, but not much worse.

Here are a few things that we felt Mr. Hazare and his team – led by former policewoman Kiran Bedi, India Against Corruption founder Arvind Kejriwal and activist lawyer Prashant Bhushan – got right:

Timing. Team Anna’s decisions have been consistently well-timed to maximize effectiveness and media exposure. Look at the timing of Mr. Hazare’s first fast: it started right after the cricket World Cup and ended before the Indian Premier League was in full swing. Overlapping with either sporting event would’ve stolen some of the limelight from his anticorruption protest.

Ahead of the second fast that began in mid-August, Anna’s camp refused to comply with a police order that it should not last more than three days. This led to Mr. Hazare’s brief stint at Delhi’s Tihar Jail, an episode that backfired spectacularly against the government. Not only did support for the 73-year old activist swell, his refusal to leave prison unless he could stage a hunger strike on his own terms was one of his team’s best-played hands.

Associated Press

Baba Ramdev wearing women’s clothes: not a great PR move.

(One can’t help wonder what yoga guru Baba Ramdev, whose anticorruption fast earlier this summer ended rather unglamorously, would’ve done had he been in Mr. Hazare’s place – perhaps attempted to escape from prison in a police uniform?)

Mr. Hazare’s decision to break his fast on Sunday morning – rather than Saturday evening, when a deal with Parliament that laid the ground for the fast’s end was reached – allowed for a full day of coverage on the issue. (Announcing Mr. Hazare’s decision to end his hunger strike, Ms. Bedi tweeted that “Anna is known to have never broken his fast after sunset…This is his decision again.”)

Personality politics. Mr. Hazare’s movement would never had garnered the support it did had it not been for Mr. Hazare’s Gandhian reputation and for Team Anna’s other high-profile leaders. For many, they epitomized honesty at a time when a string of corruption allegations marred the political class. Mr. Kejriwal and Ms. Bedi both have a proud record of their time working in the public sector, as an income-tax officer and a senior policewoman, respectively.

Although the reputation of Mr. Bhushan and his father Shanti, both senior lawyers, have been tarnished after Bhushan senior was accused of attempting to fix a judge, allegations he denies, both are well-known for vociferously championing public causes in court. Mr. Hazare also attracted a celebrity following: Aamir Khan, Anupam Kher  and Om Puri were just some of the big-name stars that rallied behind them. Yoga gurus including Art of Living Founder Sri Sri Ravi Shankar and Baba Ramdev also made their appearance at Ramlila’s fasting stage. All this gave the media plenty of fodder.

Patriotic symbolism. Team Anna styled their anticorruption campaign after India’s freedom struggle, inciting popular mobilization through symbols borrowed from a historical narrative most Indians are familiar with.

The second fast started a day after India’s Independence Day on Aug. 16, making calls for a “second Independence struggle,” ring especially familiar.

Mr. Hazare, who models his social activism on Mahatma Gandhi, even made a stop to the Independence leader’s memorial in New Delhi en route from Tihar to Ramlila grounds, the site of his public fast. There, a black-and-white picture of Gandhi towered over the stage for the whole 13 days.

When he broke the fast, the ceremony was made even more theatrical by the presence of two young girls, a Muslim and a Dalit who handed a glass of coconut water to the septuagenarian activist. This also helped counter earlier criticism that in his movement there was little space for Muslims and Dalits, a community traditionally at the bottom of India’s caste hierarchy.

His supporters’ patriotic chants, tricolor-striped cheeks, and ubiquitous Gandhi-style caps are likely to leave a lasting imprint on the popular imagination – and was media gold.

A well-oiled PR machine. Team Anna’s PR team regularly called press briefings and kept journalists up-to-date through text messages and their campaign’s main Web site. Mr. Hazare’s media volunteers, led by Aswathi Muralidharan, a member of Mr. Kejriwal’s NGO, were consistently responsive to media requests, even late at night. They were even good about picking up the phone, something government spokesmen are known to avoid. In the two-week period, Messrs. Bhushan and Kejriwal and Ms. Bedi frequently lent themselves to interviews and talk show appearances, which helped keep the momentum alive.

The Anna Camp also embraced social media. During the crisis Ms. Bedi was a prolific microblogger, tweeting breaking news including Mr. Hazare’s video appeal from Tihar jail and his decision to end the hunger strike.

Throughout the standoff, Team Anna spoke pretty much with one voice, an impressive feat considering the strong and outspoken personalities Mr. Hazare’s top aides are known to be.

Marketing the bigger picture. Marketing their campaign in favor of a specific piece of legislation – the Jan Lokpal Bill – as a broader movement against corruption was the movement’s key achievement.

They did this by tapping into people’s widespread revulsion against graft, through a rhetoric that focused more on opposing corruption in general than on the nitty-gritty of their proposed bill, which would’ve been a tougher premise for a mass movement.

This also meant their success could be measured on the mass support they rallied, not just on the concessions they got from the government. Let’s not forget that Mr. Hazare’s camp got little of what it originally hoped for: Parliament’s adoption, in full, of the Jan Lokpal Bill by the end of August. They settled instead for a non-binding resolution that includes some of their key demands but leaves other out, most notably that the Lokpal should have jurisdiction over the judiciary. It is unclear when the bill will finally be ready.

Garnering support for their version of the bill and saying no to corruption are two different things – yet Team Anna successfully blurred the lines.

बुद्धिजीवियों से आग्रह है कि रास्ट्र-हित के लिए अपना-अपना निश्छल विचार दें

बुद्ध के धरती पर जन्मे और समृद्ध बिहार के रचयिता ''देश वाशियों के पूजनीय'' श्रीमान नितीश कुमार जी के द्वारा, बिहार वासियों को एक और तोहफा देने की तैयारी करने में लगे हुए हैं ,सूत्रों से पता चला है की अन्ना जी और सिविल सोसाइटी के सदस्यों को विचार-विमर्श के लिए आमंत्रित किया है जिससे की बिहार में एक सशक्त से सशक्त जनलोकपाल बिल बनाया जाय और इसे जल्द से जल्द लागु किया जाय और जनता को भ्रस्ताचार से मुक्ति दिलाई जाय ,एक तरफ देश की केंद्र सरकार,अन्ना जी और सिविल सोसाइटी के सदस्यों को तरह-तरह से प्रतारित किया जा रहा है ,वहीँ दूसरी तरफ बिहार की राज्य सरकार अच्छे काम करनेवाली टीम को उत्साहित कर रही है और केंद्र सरकार हतोत्साहित ?अब हम सबों को इनके बीच के अंतर को समझना होगा की कौन जनता के हित में काम कर रही है और कौन सिर्फ अपने हित के लिए ? इसमें बिहार सरकार में शामिल भाजपा भी खुलकर साथ दे रही है !!

बुद्धिजीवियों से आग्रह है कि रास्ट्र-हित के लिए अपना-अपना निश्छल विचार दें ,धन्यवाद !!

प्रबोध सिन्हा 

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=१०००००८३८३५८९१४

 

मैं सत्ता के शिखर पर बैठा हूँ .........

मैं सत्ता के शिखर पर बैठा हूँ

मेरी रगों में हिटलर का खून है,
मुसोलिनी का मैं वंशज हूँ,
नाजी मेरा गुरू है,
रावण मेरा संरक्षक,
मैं सत्ता के शिखर पर बैठा हूँ .........

तुम अन्ना हो
बाबा हो
या अन्य कोई ताकतवर सामाजिक कार्यकर्ता

कुछ नही कर सकते
तुम मेरा
क्योंकि तुम कुछ नही हो

क्या है तुम्हारे पास ?
ये अदना सी जनता
जिसका अपना तो कोई बजूद ही नही है
जिसे हम
जब चाहे
हांक देते हैं
भेड़ बकरियों की तरह
जिसे हम लडाते रहे हैं
धर्म, जाति, भाषा और सम्प्रदाय के नाम पर
जिनको इस्तेमाल करते रहे हैं हम
चुनावों में

क्या बिगाड़ लोगे तुम मेरा ?.........

मेरे पास पुलिस है
प्रशासनिक अधिकारी मेरे तलुवे चाटते है
क़ानून को मैं ही बनाता हूँ
अपने और अपनों के फायदे के लिए
और जरूरत होने पर
मैं ही खुद बनाता हूँ
क़ानून से बच निकलने का रास्ता

और ये क़ानून
ये अधिकारी
ये पुलिस करती है
मेरे ही इशारे पर
अपनी अंतरात्मा को मार कर
एक पालतू कुते की मानिंद
करते है
मेरे आदेश का पालन

अगर कोई बाबा कोई अन्ना
करता है मेरी खिलाफत
करता है मेरे भर्ष्टाचार को उजागर

तो मैं
अपनी सारी ताकत लगा देता हूँ
उसके सफेद दामन को दाग दार करने में
और मेरा वादा है तुम सभी से
मैं पहुचाउंगा तुम्हे ही
जल्दी  बहुत जल्दी
जेल की सलाखों के पीछे
या फिर
मुझ में शामिल गुंडा तत्व
बहा देंगे
सरे राह
सरे आम
तेरा लहू पानी की मानिंद
और फिर मैं खुद ही
पहुच जाउंगा
तुम्हे महान
अति महान
महान कहने के लिए

Team Anna to take up fight against bad roads

Linah Baliga | Sep 4, 2011, 

MUMBAI: All those who thought that the India against Corruption (IAC) campaign will sink into oblivion after activist Anna Hazare broke his fast, think again. Come Tuesday, two major campaigns will be flagged off by Team Anna in Mumbai to ensure accountability of agencies that come in contact with citizen's everyday lives.
For starters, IAC plans to take up the long pending and unresolved issue of bad roads. "Bad roads s affect everybody and it remain an unresolved issue. The menace affects the poor, the rich and the middle-class alike right from Amitabh Bachchan to a slum-dweller. Hence, we decided to take it up,"said Piyush Bhatia, co-ordinator, IAC, Mumbai.
Citizens who had participated in anti-corruption rallies and took initiative in the IAC events will function as 'local pressure groups'. So far, 12 zonal groups have been formed for 24 administrative wards in the city. These will identify the worst stretches in their respective areas.
"They will file an RTI plea, seeking details on specifications, contractor's name, budget allocated, warranty period, quality of material used, the sample test report, etc. They will get samples tested from a laboratory. Once the report is in, mediapersons, contractors, BMC officials and citizens will discuss the issue and find out if there are lacunae in the work carried out by the BMC," said Bhatia.
The second campaign will have 12 zonal groups going to local zonal offices like ration card offices, RTOs and police stations. Around 200-500 volunteers will go in groups and they will meet the seniormost officers at the ration card office and ask them to sign a declaration saying that "I and my office staff will not indulge in corruption, nor ask for bribes".
"In case they refuse, our volunteers will persist. We will have a list of government officers who have refused to sign the declaration. We will submit that to the chief minister," said Bhatia. Asked how signing a declaration would ensure that officers won't ask for bribes, he said, "This is an assertive approach. But
At least they will know people are keeping a watch and they are accountable to local citizens. There are 1 lakh stickers saying, 'Corruption Prohibited, Brashtachar Nishedh'. Our volunteers will go with the declaration and put up these stickers in government offices."
On Tuesday, IAC will flag off the campaign at ration card offices, followed by Mumbai Metropolitan Regional Development Authority (MMRDA and Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA) on Thursday and civic ward offices on Friday.

DEMAND JUSTICE FOR IROM SHARMILA

DEAR FRIENDS,

IROM SHARMILA’S FAST (SINCE YEAR 2000) IS IGNORED AND NEGLECTED FROM THE SIDE OF GOVERNMENT. CIVIL SOCIETIY HAS NOT DONE MUCH ON THIS NON VIOLENT PROTEST OF IROM AND GENERAL PUBLIC IS NOT AWARE ABOUT IROM’S FAST WHICH HAS BECOME WORLD’S LONGEST FAST.

AFSPA HAS ALREADY BEEN REGARDED AS DRACONIAN LAW BY VARIOUS NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL ORGANISATIONS AND IT HAS BEEN OBSERVED THAT SUCH TYPE OF INHUMANE LAWS ARE NOT ONLY RESPONSIBLE FOR HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS BUT ALSO RESPONSIBLE FOR CREATING ANGER AMONG THEM AND NEGATIVE PSYCHOLOGICAL EFFECTS.

NOW, VOLUNTEERS OF SAVE SHARMILA HAVE DECIDED TO SPREAD PUBLIC AWARENESS ABOUT IROM SHARMILA AND TO GENERATE SUPPORT FROM PUBLIC.

THEREFORE A JOURNEY FROM SRINAGAR TO IMPHAL IS PLANNED TO SPREAD THE MESSAGE OF LOVE & PEACE AND TO DEMAND JUSTICE FOR IROM SHARMILA.

THE JOURNEY WILL START ON 16^TH OCT FROM SRINAGAR AND WILL REACH IMPHAL TILL 26^th OCT VIA JAMMU, LUDHIANA, PANIPAT, NEW DELHI, ALIGARH, KANPUR, LUCKNOW, VARANASI, RANCHI, PATNA, MALDA TOWN, KOLKATA, GUWAHATI AND DIBRUGARH. AROUND 10 STATES WILL BE COVERED DURING THIS 4500 Km. OF JAN KARWAN.

JOURNEY SCHEDULE IS GIVEN HERE:

Starting Date: 16^th October : SRINGAR  

17^th October : JAMMU

17^th Evening program & Night stay: Ludhiana

18^th Morning: Panipat

18^th Evening Program & Night Stay: Delhi

19^th Morning: Aligarh

19^th Night Stay : Kanpur

20^th Morning Program: Kanpur

20^th Evening Program: Lucknow

21th Morning Program: Varanasi

22^nd Morning Program: Ranchi

23^rd Morning Program: Patna

24^th Morning Program: Kolkata

25^th Morning Program: Guwahati

25^th Night : Dibrugarh

26^th October: Imphal

NOTE- 

During this journey, we will organize public meetings, distribution of pamphlets, candle light vigils, nukkar natak, school/college meetings etc. 

Meeting Notes: Anna Hazare and Sharmila Irom

By Chitra Ahanthem

It was 1997, the year India was marking her 50th year of Independence. There would have been many celebrations of this momentous occasion but only one unique observation of this historical timeline stays on with me: a NGO based in Mumbai was taking about 250 young people from India and across the world to places of India’s history and future in a train specially reserved for the purpose! The announcement was made on a popular cultural TV program (which we don’t see the likes of now) called Surabhi beamed on Doordarshan and various other newspapers. It was a happy moment when I got confirmation that I was to be one of the said young people on the train that would ultimately travel for 11 days across the country facilitating interactions with people who were inspiring: Mark Tully, Abdul Kalam (then with ISRO and who talked us then of the possibility of an Indian moon mission which did become a reality!), Bunker Roy of Tillonia (married to Aruna Roy and behind hugely successful rural enterprises, water harvesting, adult literacy among others in Tillonia in Rajashthan), Kiran Bedi (much before her controversial stint in Mizoram) and Anna Hazare who was known at that point of time mostly for his pioneering work in Ralegan Siddhi, a village in Ahmednagar district, Maharashtra.

The said rail yatra was mainly organized to instill in young people the essence of leadership, innovation and social development. The routine was that we would be traveling in the train non-stop till we reached the places we were meant to be and then getting back to the train for the night. So, there was an air of curiosity when we were told that we would have an overnight stay at Ralegan Siddhi to meet a Gandhian who had taken up rural conservation and community work. The villagers took us around the place and we were told how small canals had been dug up to generate water flow. But it was two things that impressed me greatly: a school for juvenile children and the practice of Shramdaan or volunteer work as a form of social charity. The school had classrooms but if the children so wanted, classes would be held under the shade of trees in the open. There were yoga classes for “anger management” while most constructions in the village: the small dams, solar panels, wells, places of worship were all built through Shramdaan.

In the evening, we sat in a community hall and then, in walked Anna who spoke of his “second life” (he was the lone survivor during an enemy attack during an India-Pakistan war). We talked then mostly of philosophy and working for social upliftment. Like many of my fellow yatris, we thought nothing much about questioning his rigid stand against alcoholics (they were beaten up, period) and I even piped in my two bit and told him how Nishabandi women in Manipur were also doing the same! It would take me some years to understand the concept of public health and harm reduction and see that the greater crime of punitive measures on substance abusers only marginalizes them and do nothing about addressing the dependency. Anna Hazare’s activism against corruption started later and one cannot say much of what happened in between. But personally, the posturing Anna that one sees on TV (wagging fingers and dictating terms) is a very different person from the Anna I met all those years ago. The Anna then actually asked us young people on what we thought he should incorporate more into his work in his village in terms of forest and water conservation etc. The Anna one gets to see now refuses any kind of disagreement with his thoughts and beliefs.

November 2000 and a young woman called Irom Sharmila decided to fast to protest after 10 civillians were gunned down at Malom. My first reaction then (and I am/ not ashamed to own up to this now) was that it would be some token fast. Some days later, there was the “fast against AFSPA till the act is taken off” context and I thought that hers was an illogical/irrational and totally crazy stand to take. I also shrugged it off as “some group must be behind her” motive. I totally bought the “AFSPA is necessary till there are insurgents” theory for quite a long time till my own readings on militarism and armed conflicts around the world and conflict resolution/reconciliation processes made me sit up and engage in some serious questioning.

The first meeting happened in March 2009 during her customary yearly release. It was total chaos: there was a meeting of over 50 odd woman journalists from all over the country happening in Imphal and they all wanted to meet her. And then, there was the usual local media attention too. The first meeting was more of a brief sighting especially since I did not believe I needed to add my own questions to the many that were being addressed to her.

The second meeting happened in a unique setting: something that I have only shared with a few friends but one that can be let out in the public domain now. January 2010 saw me with very high fever after a trip to Bangkok and my Uncle, a doctor asked me to get a swine flu test done. Since he was with Jawarlal Nehru hospital then, I went there. Those who follow news would be aware that I was tested positive for swine flu but much before that news broke, I was raising hell over the state of the isolation ward at the hospital. What I did not want to call attention to the media then was that while I was standing outside the isolation ward with the face mask on, waiting for hospital staff to find the keys to the room (they took about an hour and a half!) I saw a familiar figure some 10 metres away from me. It was Sharmila Irom! My heart plummeted inside me: here was this one person I wanted to talk with and I was supposedly at risk of an infection that I could pass on to her. I have a small face and the mask covered most of it and I saw Iche Sharmila looking quizzically at me. I rolled my eyes at her and hoped that she would not come near (I did not want to be responsible for her health!). When eventually, my test results came in positive, I wasn’t too worried about my own health (I did not take Tamiflu medication) or my family (they did not have any fever) but I obsessively kept an ear open for any news on Sharmila’s health!

In May 2010, I got third time lucky and I had a long meeting with Iche Sharmila. I was going along as a sort of translator for a journalist and writer. We talked mostly of non-political issues: of her books and poetry we talked at great length. And then she took both my hands and said solemnly, “remember when you were at this hospital with your mask on?” And then she laughed and told me, “you don’t know the amount of activity and consternation that happened here after you left!” There was no air of moral superiority following the status of icon-hood that has settled on her: I was face to face with a unique person yes but also a normal human being, a young woman kept in isolation but very aware of the world around her.

End-point:
Many people have pitched Anna Hazare’s crusade against corruption and Sharmila Irom’s stand against AFSPA. But their stands are different and the battlefield totally apart from each other. My own interaction with both of them happened at different times and stages of their journey. But what stays on following my interactions with Iche Sharmila are the little ways in which she is so much a person than an icon. It is something that one does not get to see in other people who take on the mantle of greatness.