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ASSEMBLY POLL '98
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' Vande Mataram invokes patriotism in any Indian. To drag it into a controversy is pitiful'
Date sent: Sun, 22 Nov 1998 19:56:04 -0600
Vande Mataram was our cry of defiance against British misrule and invokes patriotism in any Indian. It is indeed pitiful that it is being dragged into a controversy by some individuals. Both sides are to blame -- the UP government led by Kalyan Singh underestimates the patriotism of the public and feels it a moral duty to force patriotism down people's throats. A blind man would see through this political gimmick that Kalyan hopes could fetch him votes. It sure will, but only if the people of Uttar Pradesh are as dumb as he is, which I am sure is not the case. Muslim leaders, who are so used to raising a hue and cry and giving a communal hue to any act of the BJP government, predictably took up arms. They don't even stop to think what they are protesting about. I wonder where they get the feeling that being anti-Indian is being anti-Hindu and pro-Muslim. Refusing to accept the national song of the country that they belong to is downright stupid. Somebody please drive it into the heads of these people that there are many more important issues to be addressed to make us a world power. Arguing and fighting like juveniles isn't going to help anyone. Mukund
Date sent: Tue, 24 Nov 1998 17:04:52 -0600
Pathetic. In spite of 50 years of Independence and 48 years of being a republic, you still prefer to address erstwhile royalty by their old titles. This shows how much progress we have made. Gautam Bajekal
Date sent: Tue, 24 Nov 1998 07:53:04 -0500
This article lacked sufficient concrete facts on the progress made in Rajasthan in the past.
Date sent: Mon, 23 Nov 1998 13:47:54 -0800
Every question posed to Rajasthan Chief Minister Bhairon Singh Shekhawat was primed to antagonise. Someone needs to put some sense into Syed Firdaus Ashraf and improve his interviewing skills. Anand
Date sent: Wed, 18 Nov 1998 12:57:23 -0800 (PST)
Kudos to Amberish K Diwanji for his realistic coverage of the Rajasthan assembly election. Having lived in Rajasthan from 1991 to 1997, I find his article about the development of Rajasthan is honest. The Congress may accuse the BJP of not developing the state in the past eight years. But there has been a lot of development in Rajasthan in that period. In fact, the deputy chairman of the Planning Commission during the Narasimha Rao regime, Pranab Mukherjee, had praised the BJP government and increased the plan outlay for the state. For example, the road network in Rajasthan today is the best among the northern states. The Rajasthan Electricity Board and roadways have been earning profits. During the Congress regime, both were registering huge losses. Law and order in Rajasthan has been traditionally better than in adjoining UP and MP. It's not true to say that it has worsened in the recent past. However, as Govindacharya puts it, "It's not the development but the image of development that matters." It's true that B S Shekhawat has certainly become more and more autocratic and hence unavailable to BJP workers over the past few years. Similarly, many ministers, including those with a RSS background, do not entertain even the genuine demands of their cadres. As a result, BJP workers and Sangh Parivar members are deeply dissatisfied with their leaders. It is ironical that many BJP workers have to often take help from Congress leaders or brokers to get their work done, though their own party is in power. This, along with the price rise, may play a vital role in the election. Luckily, the BJP has an excellent planner and selfless leader like Govindacharya, who is trying hard to put everything together. However, it is not enough to look to the workers only at the time of elections and ignore them afterwards. BJP leaders should learn to respect the needs and sensibilities of their cadres instead of depending on their dedication and discipline alone. Otherwise, they will have to pay a heavy price in future elections. Sunil Kumar
Date sent: Sat, 21 Nov 1998 02:42:52 -0800 (PST)
I entirely agree with Dr Kalam that we as a nation, a culture, feel lowly about ourselves. But I can't think of a more natural thing happening after a civilisation is conquered and enslaved while it was decaying. It's not entirely an intellectual's fault if he looks up to a race, recorded in the history textbooks as our conquerors, as being advanced and still on the path of growth. Today we are educated in their language, their science, their mathematics. Almost everything that is taught to us is from the West. No doubt we are in awe of them. Our attitude, lifestyle, media are derived from the West. If the Indian civilisation has to come back from the ashes, it has evolve on its own, think on its own, be creative -- on its own. We've had enough of borrowed ideas (even I write this in English). Let us respect Indian languages, instead of considering English to be superior, let us tailor and accommodate every new technology into our culture. Let us be inventors, leaders and not followers... A civilisation that invented numbers, science, even spiritualism, is now ignored by its own custodians. It is due to this that one feels pride in the successful nuclear tests, and the advancement of the science of nuclear energy. I also hope we achieve similar breakthroughs in other areas and get to the frontline of science. Again at peace with our chequered history and glorious past. Shyam
Date Sent: Mon, 09 Nov 1998 18:16:44 -0800
Thank you for bringing out and publishing some insights about Sen's economic thesis based upon conscience and science. This is not an easy task, but only great thinkers like Sen attempt to balance the seemingly antagonistic views into a coherent whole. Common people like me appreciate such elaboration.
Date Sent: Fri, 6 Nov 1998 08:05:05 -0800
Bibek, your point is well taken. Goods should be free to move unhindered from Kashmir to Kanyakumari. In India nothing moves before you grease the palm of the babusand chaprasis. One point that I'd like to emphasise is that farmers are producing more kids than agricultural products. After the farmer's death, the distribution of the land among the children divides the farm into smaller bits, making it uneconomical for mechanised farming, thus reducing the yield. The Indian government should control population, crime and corruption; everything else will move smoothly once we achieve that. Roads, railway and cheaper means of transporting goods from farm to market and also government loans to farmers for crop insurance and to enhance farming are the need of the hour. The farmer should be given modern tools to cope with the explosion in population. Without that we will be constantly fighting one shortage after other.
Date Sent: Wed, 11 Nov 1998 23:48:00 +0530
Dubashi's whining about the Indian economy sounds like sounds made in distress and fear. I remember years ago when Jay Dubashi used to write very positively about the affairs of this country and all that could be done to correct its various problems. He used to write about reducing duty, taxes, government interference, removing controls, allowing foreign competition, freeing the Indian industry, trashing the licence raj, freeing imports etc. At that time the Congress was in power. Now that the BJP and its allies are in power, Jay Dubashi sounds more like a spokesperson for the Bombay Club and other assorted businessmen with agendas different from what Dubashi used to preach earlier. This man can't be taken seriously. Ashok Rai
Date sent: Sat, 21 Nov 1998 10:58:09 -0700
I feel you can't be wrong about this movie. Hindi movies, of late, have been quite ridiculous. I'm not sure if it was the same writer who wrote the review for Prem Aggan. I must say you guys are doing a good job preserving the sanity of some people out here. That's one reason why I didn't dare go for that moronic movie. And I can bet my life on it that I shall never go and see this movie though I'd love to see Preeti Zinta. Make sure to make it quite explicit when you feel a movie is not worth mentioning. Sunil
Date sent: Sun, 22 Nov 1998 11:37:35 PST
Does anyone else think Shah Rukh is hyped as an actor and does not impress anymore? He has developed a taste for coming with two heroines lately, for example, Duplicate, Dil To Pagal Hai and now Kuch Kuch Hota Hai. It just stinks. KKHH was an unimpressive movie which picked not just from DTPH, but also Dilwala Dulhaniya Le Jayenge, Raja Hindustani and Hum Aapke Hain Koun. Not to mention Jatin-Lalit's music is getting lame. Shah Rukh has lately developed a habit of stealing the heroine from others. It looked cool in DDLJ, but now it really sucks. He's done it in DDLJ, DTPH KKHH, Pardes, Yes Boss etc. Fine, Shah Rukh, we get it: you can get anyone's girl. Now move on, will ya? Is this Shah Rukh II, Shah Rukh I being the villain in Baazigar, Darr, Anjam and so on?
Date sent: Tue, 24 Nov 1998 06:27:17 -0500
Plain boring! Anirvan Mukherjee How Readers responded to Varsha Bhosle's earlier columns
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