Undermining the EC is undermining democracy

Former AGI Soli Sorabjee takes a dig at the recent spat between EC and Congress ministers (Mr.Khursheed and Mr.Verma), who have taken EC for a ride by making and then regretting the statements violating model code of conduct.

http://expressbuzz.com/opinion/columnists/undermining-the-ec-is-undermining-democracy/364734.html

The Chief Election Commissioner is given the status of a Supreme Court judge regarding his tenure and conditions of service. The Model Code of Conduct for elections is not a useless advisory parchment. It has to be observed strictly in letter and spirit and its violation can be punished.

Did Bharata build Bharat varsha in vain?

India is a model to the world in the management of free and fair elections. But in terms of what comes out of this massive exercise, India is an argument against adult franchise. The author takes the example of candidates with criminal records contesting in UP elections, especially some in jails in various parts of the country.

http://expressbuzz.com/opinion/columnists/did-bharata-build-bharat-varsha-in-vain/364730.html

The other aspect of pain area the author touches upon is the D-word: Dynasty politics, exposing the Badal family overwhelming Punjab and the double standards Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray employs while claiming to be against it.

'Today, people have to continue learning throughout life'

Q&A


Howard Gardner created the theory of Multiple Intelligences, showing people have different ways of learning and expressing diverse information and therefore have many kinds of intelligence, not just one sort. Professor of cognitive psychology at Harvard's Graduate School of Education, Gardner's research impacted education deeply while influencing aspects of leadership, ethics and creativity: Visiting India, Gardner spoke with Tirna Ray about why people differ at certain skills, how teaching and learning must both change as commerce and industry evolve - and how flexible minds could have serious advantages now: 

Interview - Q&A

-The Times of India, February 20, 2012

The Land Of The Blind

Winners of the Manipur elections must remedy the lack of vision all parties have shown there

The Land Of The Blind

"No matter which coalition comes to power - probably with a wafer-thin majority - the state machinery can't afford to overlook the ethnic complexity in this strategic northeastern state"

-The Times of India, February 20, 2012

Arms and the mule

Whether man or beast, the army disciplines all

Arms and the mule

-The Times of India, February 20, 2012

Business Sense

Base corporate culture on merit, not clan

Business Sense

-The Times of India, February 20, 2012

Work Together

Centre and states must coordinate effectively to fight terrorism

Work Together

"There is an urgent need to make counterterrorism capabilities perennial rather than reactive."

-The Times of India, February 20, 2012 

Going green, with a large side order of mercury

"Despite the growing popularity of energy-saving fluorescent lamps, little has been done to address the issue of the safe disposal of the dangerous waste they generate."

Steady release of mercury into the air, soil and water poses a significant health risk. Annually, a large amount of this toxic, complex metal is simply dumped into municipal landfills or released into the air from millions of  fluorescent tube lights and compact fluorescent lamps. The Hindu : Opinion / Op-Ed : Going green, with a large side order of mercury. The issue should not be allowed to drift, and both industry and government must take responsibility for the toxic waste element in end-of-life lamps.

The solution lies in providing a cash incentive to consumers to hand them over to civic or authorised recycling industry workers, with the recovery paid for by the manufacturers as part of the extended producer responsibility principle.

The mercury question provides an opportunity to cities to not just address one problem, but to adopt the Municipal Solid Waste rules in their entirety. Any move to segregate waste at the level of the consumer and remove recyclable materials can build the full chain of waste handling measures. This will reduce pressure on the environment from various waste sources such as batteries, plastic, glass and metal and help in resource recovery.

Willing to wound, yet afraid to strike

"Rahul Gandhi's central role in the Congress campaign in U.P. has generated high expectations that the party is now scaling down."

The Hindu : Opinion / Op-Ed : Willing to wound, yet afraid to strike:

New game on West Asian chessboard

"For India, whose stakes are high not just in Syria but the entire region, the time has come to demonstrate a new form of non-alignment, between Saudi Arabia and Iran"

The Hindu : Opinion / Lead : New game on West Asian chessboard: Two facts are evident in the situation in Syria. The “international community” is determined to topple Bashar Al Assad's regime, and there is heavy and undisguised involvement of external forces, with active encouragement and assistance including financing and arming of anti-regime elements.

Once the dissidents in Syria manage to seize control over some territory anywhere in the country, the external involvement will become decisive in tilting the scales against Bashar. In addition, the opposition would also need to put together a coalition of their own so that foreign aid can be channelled to them - as happened in Libya.

Every successive country involved in Arab Spring has witnessed increasing levels of violence. The Syrian revolution has cost thousands of lives on both sides and will surely claim thousands more.

India might have to practise a new form of non-alignment or dual alignment between Saudi Arabia and Iran. Continued instability in Syria might make the region unstable, affecting the production and export of oil, and, most importantly, the situation of the six-million Indian diaspora working in the region.

For journalists, conflicts are never glamorous

"Anthony Shadid of the New York Times, who died last week while surreptitiously slipping into Syria to assess first-hand the incipient civil war there, was the latest casualty in a long line of correspondents and photographers. He was struck by a fatal asthma attack."

The Hindu : Opinion / Op-Ed : For journalists, conflicts are never glamorous: At 43, he had already won two Pulitzer Prizes, the highest awards in American journalism. He could well have rested on his laurels and coasted along in his career, perhaps taking on assignments in less fraught regions. But he believed that journalists need to see for themselves how societies dealt with stress, and how people coped with the horrors inflicted on them by rulers. He believed that such reporting offered insights for a larger world audience, and the basis on which future historians would produce more substantive works.

Mr. Shadid had been put through the mill, as editors put it. He had been taught the importance of integrity and truthfulness in journalism; he had been steeped in the uncompromising value of deeply reported facts. He had been taught the difference between reportage and opinion, which unfortunately is diminishing in this era of internet journalism.

There's a lesson for journalists in the untimely death of Anthony Shadid: No matter how honoured you are as a journalist, you can never afford to abandon the fundamentals of the trade. You simply have to be there to cover the story. Even if it costs you your life.

Make the pact workable

"For Mamata Banerjee to lay at the doors of the Central government the whole blame for the delay in implementation of the July 2011 agreement for the formation of an autonomous administrative set-up for the Darjeeling hills is less than charitable. "

The Hindu : Opinion / Editorial : Make the pact workable: The wishes of the people of the areas in question will need to be factored in before conclusive decisions are taken, in order to avoid incendiary outcomes. As yet, there does not seem to be any solution in view for this problem within the problem.

Spies shouldn't police us

"The Ministry of Home Affairs' proposal to arm the National Counter-Terrorism Centre (NCTC) with the power to conduct searches and make arrests derives. Indians should understand why the idea is profoundly misguided."

The Hindu : Opinion / Editorial : Spies shouldn't police us: Intelligence Bureau is not an organisation that is, or ought to be, concerned with criminal justice. Blurring the distinction between intelligence-gathering and policing will open up the possibility of abuses. The Union government already has an investigative service with a nationwide mandate, the National Investigation Agency.

IB has historically devoted extensive resources to political surveillance. Handing it the power to arrest will expand the possibility of political misuse. More importantly, India's counter-terrorism efforts have floundered because State police forces lack the training, resources and manpower needed to conduct effective investigations.

Never any 'agreement' with Raja not to revise entry fee

"Union Minister of Home Affairs P. Chidambaram responds to the report “Chidambaram may not be out of 2G thicket yet,” that was published in The Hindu on February 16, 2012"

The Hindu : Opinion / Op-Ed : Never any 'agreement' with Raja not to revise entry fee 

False nuclear fears cloud judgment on Iran

"A rational approach to preventing proliferation could avoid thousands of unnecessary deaths."

A non-hysterical approach to the Iran nuclear issue is entirely possible.

Iran would most likely “use” any nuclear capacity in the same way all other nuclear states have: for prestige (or ego-stoking) and to deter real or perceived threats. The Hindu : Opinion / Op-Ed : False nuclear fears cloud judgment on Iran

The popular notion that nuclear weapons furnish a country with the capacity to “dominate” its area has little or no historical support.

 If Iran wants to develop a nuclear weapon, the only way it can be effectively stopped is invasion and occupation, an undertaking that would make America's costly war in Iraq look like child's play. Indeed, because it can credibly threaten invaders with another and worse Iraq, Iran scarcely needs nuclear weapons to deter invasion.

The author concludes by stating "I have nothing against making non-proliferation a high priority. I would simply like to top it with a somewhat higher priority: avoiding militarily aggressive actions under the obsessive sway of worst-case scenario fantasies ..."

An Iranian oil embargo and a Russian oil boon

"Russian government has opposed the idea of Western petroleum sanctions against Iran. But new threats to Iranian oil flow could have at least one beneficiary: Russia. Its pipelines stand ready to serve customers willing to pay a premium price — with a grade of oil closely resembling Iran's."

The Hindu : Opinion / Op-Ed : An Iranian oil embargo and a Russian oil boon: Russia is now the world's largest oil producer. Though rising prices are a boon for every oil producer, Russia has a particular advantage: a pipeline system that can supply Iran's traditional customers in both Europe and Asia. Depending on which way the geopolitical winds are blowing, Russia has the ability to direct more or less of its oil either eastward or westward.

American politicians are divided in their willingness to disrupt global petroleum trading and financing to the potential detriment of strategic allies. At least one exemption in the bank strictures under discussion is meant specifically to limit the strategic benefits for Russia

There are other limits to Russia's ability to fully capitalize on the Iranian oil upheaval. The big one is that the Russian industry is already producing petroleum from its working fields at full capacity. But its extensive pipeline network gives Russia enviable flexibility to direct its oil to wherever demand — and prices — are highest.

Singapore seeks to slow surge in foreign workers

"Singapore will seek to stabilise the number of foreign workers amid growing discontent about rising housing costs, crowded public transport and stagnant wages for low-income workers"

A continued rapid infusion of foreign workers will also inevitably affect the Singaporean character of society. Singapore doesn't have a minimum wage, and opposition parties argue foreign workers help keep salaries low, especially at the expense of poorer Singaporeans. The Hindu : Opinion / Op-Ed : Singapore seeks to slow surge in foreign workers

The easy availability of foreign labour reduces the incentives for companies to upgrade, design better jobs and raise productivity.

Companies are now expected to boost productivity through investment in technology and worker training rather than relying on foreign workers.

This London dream has parts missing

"For Kolkata to improve, the greater part of the city must be involved."

The Hindu : Opinion / Lead : This London dream has parts missing

The right to vend

"With national urban policies repeatedly failing to improve access to cities and protect the livelihood rights of those who live in them, the hope and effort of more than 10 million street vendors lies in pushing the government to enact a Central law to secure their rights. "

The Hindu : Opinion / Editorial : The right to vend: A Central law, which can be enacted under the concurrent list that includes economic planning and labour welfare, will help enforce their rights through courts.

Co-opting street vendors is a necessary and important step towards making our cities inclusive and equitable.

Don't ignore the adults

"The proportion of older children and adults succumbing to malaria is high — “almost always more than 40 per cent.” This goes against the grain of acquired resistance seen in adults living in endemic regions. "

The Hindu : Opinion / Editorial : Don't ignore the adults: Higher mortality in adults reflects lower immunity, probably due to reduced infection during childhood.

The vital message is that while continuing to focus on those below five, older children and adults cannot be ignored in any malaria protection programmes.