|
India Thinkers Net Archives Index
|
Subscribe
|
|
| << May17, 2005 - [India Thinkers Net]Bhagalpur riots ,Freedom of Expression |
May22, 2005 - [India Thinkers Net] Nikahnama news >> |
|
From: Regi P George <george_regi@yahoo.com> Date: Thu May 19, 2005 4:22pm Subject: 'Cong-BJP in poll pact in Kerala to beat Left' 'Cong-BJP in poll pact in Kerala to beat Left' ');//-->Press Trust of India Posted online: Thursday, May 19, 2005 at 1440 hours IST Thiruvananthapuram, May 19: National Congress (Indira) leader K Karunakaran today accused the ruling UDF of having entered into a secret understanding with the BJP for the two Assembly by polls in Kerala, to be held on June 2. "Chief Minister Oommen Chandy and some of his confidants had met and held discussions with the BJP leaders in Kozhikode recently, which is an open secret," the veteran leader said after laying the foundation stone for the state headquarters of the newly floated party. He said all those who knew the background of the two Assembly segments---Koothuparamba and Azhikode in Kannur district-- could rest assured that the UDF was not going to win both the seats. Karunakaran's son and NCI president, K Muraleedharan, said his party would prove that it was the real Congress in Kerala after the Panchayat polls due in September "Those in Delhi would realise which is the real Congress in Kerala after the Panchayat polls," he said. ---------------------------------------------------------- [2] From: dnrad1 <dnrad1@sancharnet.in> Date: Thu May 19, 2005 Subject: Ex-SC judge to head armed forces Act review panel Ex-SC judge to head armed forces Act review panel : HindustanTimes. Com Ex-SC judge to head armed forces Act review panel Rajnish Sharma New Delhi, November 19 The five-member panel constituted by the Centre on Thursday to review the contentious Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) will not limit its role only to Manipur. The panel would review the Act implementation in other states like J&K, Nagaland and Assam. This was spelt out in the terms of reference of the committee, which will be headed by a former Supreme Court Judge. The panel would submit its suggestions to the government in six-months. Significantly, the announcement comes ahead of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's visit to Manipur and Assam from November 20. It was earlier perceived that the government might limit the exercise only to Manipur, following protests against the Act. However, the government decided to go in for the "review exercise'' as it felt that restricting the exercise only to Manipur might trigger protest in other states. Home Ministry sources said a formal notification on the committee and terms of reference are expected on Friday, following the clearance from the Prime Minister's Office. The decision to form the AFSPA review committee was taken after a delegation of the Apunba Lup - the umbrella organisation heading the campaign against the Act in Manipur - met the PM earlier this month. The committee will study in detail on whether the Act should continue in these states or it should be withdrawn. "The committee will also recommend whether the Act should be withdrawn partially or completely. The panel has been formed to study the complete Act and its implementation across the country rather than being state-specific," a senior ministry official said. According to the terms of reference, the committee will also recommend what contentious portions of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act have to be dropped completely. Similarly, the committee will also recommend what new sections in the Act could be incorporated. Interestingly, the committee can suggest certain special provisions in the Act for a particular state. The Prime Minister had stressed the need to give the Armed Forces Special Powers Act a "humane face" following his meeting with the Apunba Lup delegation. Formation of the review committee and handing over the Kangla Fort back to the Manipur government will be the thrust of the PM's visit to the state. ---------------------------------------------------------- [3] From: "River Basin Friends\(NE\)" <riverbasinfriends@yahoo.co.in Date: Thu May 19, 2005 Subject: Chasing India'Look East dream riverbasinfr... FYI Chasing India#8217; s Look East dream Some months ago Rajiv Sikri, Secretary (East) in the external Affairs Ministry said in a forum at Guwahati, #8220; The #8216; Look East#8217; policy emirsages the northeastern region not as the peripherg of India, but as the Centre of a thriving and integrated economic space linking two dynamic regions with a networks of highways, railways, pipelines, transmission lines crisscrossing the region#8221;. His hopes, as he said, is that it would be possible some day to drive from Guwahati to Bankok or Yangon in a couple of days time. There is reason for the Northeasterners to be happy and compliment the new approach of India which would bring to bear on a subject which is of that importance for the region. Closer relation with South East-Asia will open up significant possibilities for the North East. Apart from the ambitious proposal of a 1,360 kilometre trilateral highway from Moreh in Manipur, connecting MaeSoi in north Thailand via Bajan in Myanmar, more modest scenarios that come to the mind are that North East supplying hydro electric power to its cross border Asian neighbours, and tourists from the Asia-Pacific region coming in through the eastern doors. This is certainly an attractive proposition. With the #8216; Look East#8217; policy is now a summit level partner of the ASEAN and is making impressive headway. Trade between India and ASEAN countries is expanding fasts. There is a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with Thailand. A Comprehensive Economic Co-operation Agreement (CECA) with Singapore is in the process. By 2011 there will be an FTA each with Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei, and by 2016 with the remaining countries like Philippines, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam. These countries will present a strong trading bloc for India that will have more than 600 million people and a combined economic output worth a staggering $1000 billion. Their Individual economies will attract investment in industries in that region with Singapore as the leader in several services industries. The bloc would have a wide range of economic activities from biotechnology to consumer electronics. Is this the beginning of India#8217; s globalisation fever? Indeed, the data and the mood suggest that. For those who donot understand the larger strategic picture, it is rather confusing for India, a close economy, doing this with ASEAN, an open economy. India has some compulsions. It has to address the pressing problems of unemployment and poverty reduction, and at the same time there is the need for greater participation in the international trades, exchange of services and capital. For all these, the reform process of the economy has to work. There is no alternative but to open up the economy to global market if India is to gain from the global economic system. There is now increasing realisation that FTAs are signal to the outside world about the outward orientation of a country, even though the direct economic benefits may not be very large India#8217; s FTAs with Thailand and Sri Lanka are precisely that. However, despite the problems FTAs can provide opportunities to Indian companies to globalise and become full fledged MNC. Today, over 70 per cent of the world trade is through FTAs and India#8217; s share is minuscule. It is only natural that in the tussle between economic diplomacy, domestic concerns and the urge to transform Indian companies into global players, some companies or sectors are bound to get hit. For instance, India#8217; s FTA with Thailand is changing the dynamics of doing business in India in several sectors. Since the FTA entails minimal or zero import duty on Thai products, it has become cheaper for Indian firms to procure goods from Thailand or, even better to produce them there and export to India. For many companies in India, setting up production bases in Thailand is a lucrative option by which they can go global. Thailand is an up coming global export base, it exports 90 per cent of its auto-components and over 80 per cent of the electric goods it makes. Globalisation has threats and negative fall-outs like this. However, economic co-operation between developing countries is a way to jointly counter the threats of globalisation. There is not much of a choice today under the WTO regime than coming into the global economic system. Now the north eastern region is envisaged as a #8220; thriving and integrated economic space,#8221; linking the mainland India with the neighbouring South East Asia, in India#8217; s #8220; Look East#8221; policy. But mainland India#8217; s ties with South East Asian countries have traditionally been maritime. Even today, India finds it cheaper and easier to trade with South East Asia by sea rather than by land. Is there danger that the policy may get de-linked from the vision of North East as a gateway? Whether the #8220; Look East#8221; policy envisages the North East as a #8220; periphera#8221; or not, it cannot ignore a robust continental thrust with a thriving North East linking the country#8217; s economic role to a daynamic South East Asian economy, otherwise it will be disastrous not only for the North East but for India#8217; s diplomatic ambition as well. There is no alternative to confronting the domestic and foreign policy choices and to debating them with the vision of the North East as a gateway in mind, otherwise, the gateway metaphor will soon begin to sound like another broken promise. The North East has not quite been playing the role of a gateway during all these years nor is it about to. Now there is an Action Plan made out for formulating a vision document with a 15 years perspective as to #8216; NER 2020#8217;. Inaugurating the 50th meeting of the North Eastern Council Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had suggested for people#8217; s involvement in drafting the vision document as a people#8217; s plan which would give them a glimpse of their future being planned. Indeed, the participation of the people of the region in the process is very much crucial. The concept of turning the North East into a thriving economic region and as the gateway will have to be the focus of a grand project involving the governments, the civil societies as all as corporates and other agencies. Projects with clear backward and forward linkage will have to be designed and their social, environmental and economic impacts carefully assessed. It is not just money that is needed, there has to be investment of political, economic and intellectual energy as well. These are serious challenges, and choices have to be made among many things for the North East to fulfil the potential as a gateway. The cultural affinity between the people of North East India and South East Asia should make the task easy to build bridges with South East Asian nations. The provincial government of China#8217; s Yunnan province and institutions like the Yunnan Academi of Social Science are playing very active roles in China#8217; s efforts to build bridges with South and South East Asia. Unlike other States, the North East states are privileged with a DoNER ministry and a development council as the NEC to look into the developments and the problems of the region. With the good intention and meaningful support from the Prime Minister of the country, North East should have been able to put things in place to fulfil rising expectation of the people. Perhaps, responsiveness only to money and position is the major reason for widespread avoidance of duty and a host of abuses intending growing corruptions in the regions. In this rand effort, the media must don a special role for dissemination of every bit of information#8212; the momentum, the direction and the analyses to mobilise popular response and to move forward the vision NER 2020 to its most logical level, otherwise the danger of delinking of the #8216; Look East#8217; policy from the vision of North East as a gateway will exist. And if that happens the North easterners will continue to experience the hazards of ordinariness.http://www.assamtribune.com Circulated by :-- River Basin Friends AKAJAN District-Dhemaji. 787059. Assam. India E mail.assamravi@... |
|
| << May17, 2005 - [India Thinkers Net]Bhagalpur riots ,Freedom of Expression |
May22, 2005 - [India Thinkers Net] Nikahnama news >> |
|
India Thinkers Net Archives Index
|
Subscribe
|
|
|
Archives powered by Zinester's Mailing List Service
Details on India Thinkers Net |
Browse for more newsletters at Zinester's Ezine Directory
Managed by Zinester's Mailing List Management |