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E-mail from readers the world over
Date sent: Tue, 20 Jan 1998 11:17:17 -0600
Yes, indeed, I too have experienced similar events. Although I was already married to my Keralite husband and we were on a backwater trip that started in Alzpuzha where we rented a private boat with another couple -- the jeers and nasty comments would not cease. Shouts from fishermen like, "Can we have her too?" or "Free sex?" were quite common. I am a native of Germany but have lived in the US for a long time -- insults from someone who does not even know me were more humorous than threatening. It speaks volumes of ignorance on the part of these impertinent Indians. My husband had prepared me well -- so these incidents were not surprising. Little did these people know, for instance, that I have never been promiscuous and am an absolutely faithful and devoted wife. Yet, because I am Western, I must be a floozy or a slut. Thank you very much, I am neither. The idea that Indian women are oh-so-innocent and shy is ludicrous. I know from my husband and his friends how much sexual activity, however covert, is actually going on. Just because it isn't spoken about does not mean it isn't there. It would behove the Indian woman to make a "reality check" and the same goes for Indian men. I count myself fortunate to be married to an Indian man who does not judge people by their skin colour, ethnicity, caste, status, gender or nationality, but by each individual's merit. It is high time that India applies some of my husband's wisdom. Education, education, education!
Renate Bhaskaran
Date: Tuesday, June 02, 1998 3:39 PM
I am an Indian and as patriotic as anybody who admires BJP, which wants to keep Kashmir at any cost, as a great party. I am as patriotic as anybody who worships Nehru as a great man who built modern India. When Nehru agreed to the division of the country on the basis of religion, didn't a Muslim-majority area rightly belong to the Muslim state? If it didn't, why were the erstwhile Hyderabad and Junagadh states annexed by India? Did we not send our army into Hyderabad to grab it? What is the justification for our duplicity? It was all because of Nehru's sentimental attachment to Kashmir, as it was the land of his forefathers, that he obstinately clung to Kashmir. It was foolish on his part to cling to it and more so to take the issue to the UN when there was no need to do so. Imagine how the country would have been today, if only we had put to better use the billions of rupees we poured into Kashmir. Think of the money that has been spent these last 50 years on problems that, directly or indirectly, have their root cause in Kashmir. Why does the BJP, which criticises everything the Congress did these 50 years, refuse to see the stupidity of continuing the same immoral and unrealistic Kashmir policy? With the amount we are going to spend if we still continue with our obstinacy, leave alone the billions we have already poured down the drain, every single Kashmiri Hindu family can be rehabilitated and comfortably settled in our country. They can all be given a better life than the one they are leading now. Don't we already have many Tibetans, Bangladeshis and such others adding to our population every day? Perhaps 'better life for Kashmiri Hindus' is not the real interest of our politicians, whether Congress or BJP.
M V Subbarao
Date: Sunday, June 07, 1998 4:57 AM
A Plane To Pakistan seems to me a classic case of a Muslim living in Hindu-dominated India, who is trying to build a professional career. The Muslim professionals are required to prove their loyalty to India by denigrating their Muslim brothers and, preferably, smearing Pakistan or Islam. A Muslim who loves Islam or sympathises with Pakistan can be considered a traitor in the Indian professional bodies. As for the factual correctness, nothing can be further from truth than generalisations like "a lot of young Pakistanis have developed pro-India leanings". Young Pakistani Mohajirs, despite all difficulties and pain, still love Pakistan and Islam. I hope the editors of Rediff will adopt better standards of journalism which are free of prejudice and anti-Pakistan bias. Good luck, Firdaus Ashraf! I hope your Hindu-appeasing approach will advance your career and bring you laurels. For the record, I am a young Mohajir from Karachi who is very much in love with Pakistan.
Jawaid Qadeer
Syed Firdaus Ashraf responds: I am sorry you found my article to be Hindu-appeasing and anti-Islam. The article was based on simple observation of incidents and was not meant to hurt anybody's sentiments.
The very fact that prayers are conducted before takeoff over the announcement system on every Pakistan Airways flight makes one believe that Pakistan is strictly following Islam. Unfortunately, except for praying five times a day, the Pakistanis do not really follow Islam.
Though I am no Islamic scholar, I know that our religion does not induce us to kill another human being in the name of caste or creed. Also, I am sure you will not deny the fact that rampant corruption prevails in Pakistan. I am sure you will also agree that this too is un-Islamic.
Agreed, a cross-section of the Hindus do discriminate against Muslims in India. But nowhere are Muslims killed on as large an ethnic scale as in Karachi. You may argue that Kashmiri Muslims are killed by the Indian army. But that is a different issue altogether, they are fighting for a separate homeland.
Since you claim to be a Mohajir, I am sure you are aware of how the Punjabis are systematically trying to shift their entire business operations and embassies out of Karachi. This is only being done to reduce the power of Mohajirs.
And last, but not the least. The Muttahida Quami Movement leader Altaf Hussain has been staying in London for the last five years because he fears for his life. Despite terrorism in Kashmir, anti-India Kashmiri leaders right from Yasin Malik to Shabbir Shah are safe in India. I am sure this would not be possible in Pakistan. Murtaza Bhutto's murder further bolsters my statement.
It is a shame that, except for its claim to faith, Pakistan cannot lend claim to anything -- neither unity nor discipline.
Date sent: Tue, 21 Apr 1998 09:35:35 -0400
I am glad that Rediff is trying to bring in a different perspective to news other than politics. There is so much culture in India, and I am glad it is shown in articles like this play about eunuchs. Plays are so important in Maharashtra, and they truly serve as a source of enlightenment in our society.
Ajay Bam
Date sent: Thu, 06 Nov 1997 10:09:14 -0800
The title suggests that the Congress's move is going to affect Indian software exports. There seems nothing that should concern the Indian software industry. On the contrary, this could be the opportunity for the industry to take on serious projects without the continuous threat of losing talent to international body shops. The reduction of US exposure from six years to three years is also an advantage for the industry. These exposed talents will come back sooner with bigger ideas, contracts and investment dollars to boost the Indian industry. If India has to become a world leader in the software industry, she has to create the required infrastructure so that she can control the global software development remotely and off-site. The software industry also has to create its own brandname products for the global markets -- and the ability to retain expertise is key to taking on such a powerful role. The way I see it, yes, some Indian entrepreneurs will be partially affected by this move. However, it is the best thing the US can do to boost India's position in the global marketplace.
Anil
Date sent: Wed, 05 Nov 1997 10:35:56 -0800
The interview with Dr Ashok Jhunjhunwala was very nice.
Bhaskar
Date sent: Thu, 06 Nov 1997 14:42:57 +0800
This story is actually wrong!! Sources at HP agree the infrastructure is good enough, but someone in HP India has revealed the printing technology to its competitor, Canon. So HP got wild and wanted to take precautions and withdraw at the last moment. Please check this info with your valid pointers/sources in HP. Don't blame India's infrastructure, I am not saying it is perfect but it is not as bad as Uganda or Brazil, etc...
Date sent: Wed, 13 May 1998 23:20:26 -0700
I think the US is the big loser. Since almost all Silicon Valley companies have development centres in India, the whole of Silicon Valley will be disturbed. With Y2K and Eurocurrency problems, they have no option but India.
Date sent: Wed, 13 May 1998 19:22:24 -0400
I found the following paragraph confusing:
However, he referred to a social dimension to making Indian industry competitive.
He said the capital intensive structural adjustments in industrialised countries had given them a competitive edge in global markets, but they also entailed massive layoffs. While many of these countries have welfare schemes to cushion unemployment, he said India does not have any such scheme. The context of the paragraph is not clear to me. Does he mean that this results in India not having capital-intensive structural adjustments, or that India needs to have schemes to cushion unemployment, or all these things would happen if Indian industry became competitive?
Dhananjay M Vaidya
Date sent: Sun, 28 Jun 1998 16:44:44 +0800
Utter nonsense!
Date sent: Wed, 29 Apr 1998 16:32:15 -0700
Just like the communists, most Indians think swadeshi means debarring MNCs. Swadeshi's actual agenda is to make Indian goods more appealing in the world market. That is not bad at all. Look at the Americans. Even though performance statistics prove that Japanese cars are better than American cars, many Americans would rather buy an American car made in America rather than a Japanese car made in America. They call it pride! Time our politicians, especially the communists, tone down their crappy ideologies (God knows what they are doing in a democratic setup!).
Venkat
Date sent: Mon, 26 Jan 1998 11:45:18 -0600
You are right. Now the Indian consumer has choice. But there are vital areas, which are still monopolised by the state, where the consumer is treated like a beggar: railways, roadways, basic telecom, public sector banks, post offices, radio, TV ... the list is not small. For 10 cents a minute, you can talk across the US anytime, anywhere. For equivalent four rupees a minute, can I call Hyderabad from Bombay? No. It should be possible to call, say, Delhi from Kanyakumari, during the day for that cost. People should need to travel less to get mundane things done right, by using phone/fax, instead of needing to personally going and 'see' some officer or babu. The fact that ministers have no better business than allotting gas connections or petrol dealerships or government houses and making money indicates to what extent we lag behind and how we are made to live in a 'banana' republic.
Vedula Sarma
Date sent: Wed, 13 May 1998 17:39:55 -0700
The BJP cares two hoots about the financial future of India.
Date: Tue, 16 Jun 1998 07:07:44 +0800
Quite interesting and informative. Possibly a bit of history and information about the sthalapuranam can be of interest! Anyhow, thanks for the feature !
Date: Mon, 15 Jun 1998 17:04:30 -0700
Excellent... One of the best articles written about tourism in AP. Bharat
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