My New Rhythm,Poem, imaginary.....

LBSNAA 

                                              

                                  "  My Progenitor "

                                                                       By Sir Rikomht

My initiator,my dean,my  introducer ,

To the world,I bid salute and obeisance,

Bow down to your feet bend down my head,

Burst out estimation,adoration honor glad.

In sparkling unbeaten blessed,delight.

gleeful mind surrender to his infinite polite.

At problematic arduous,difficile, toilful,

unsparing severe,operose,rigorious,effortful.

Moment remember joystickk,energetic dialect,

narrated in polite soft hearted vocal conflict.

Allocation and appeal for modest pretend,

to achieve aim,vision,and operation errand.

Father is ecstasy heaven eternity fairlyland,

He is likely belief in divinity orthodoxy creed,

prayer to God,Doctrine,Myth piety rites,

he likely supreme contemplation meditation.

Deep thought ,deliberation,speculating version.

musing,pondering imagining,impression.

Palate of mine to natch the fear,tension,

and responsible,of home ,incline,disposition.

My affection my concern,sensitivity tenderness,

felt me for arise,and struggle in the bitterness.

in the time of detrauded, beguiled bunned fate.

the world of swindled,overcharged swindled.

Tears moisture the eyes and bawl lament face,

pray for God to create a good,a truthful grace.

shed tears comes out the moment of purely,

disobedient work and denizen donot suffer.

My New Poem......"A deep Frozen Thirst " written on 28/04/17

           

                                   LBSNAA

    A Deep Frozen Thirst 

                                          Sir Riko Mahato(Rkmht

At he end of my destiny to work, 

a narrow sick old lady pleasantly ask,

for food earnestly ,humble in tears,

put on display ;hidden horrible despair,

Urging,pleasing,weeping mewl fear,

that shake,her trembled quake container.

Not abundant dominion to steady raise,                                              

 Seldom put vessel down to ground edge.

 At peak moment of procession to work, 
almost all depart,pass,her hungry mare, 
when clock stuck nine,her fully wish vision,
looks for abrupt ,huge men of lenient,
compassionate to her empty inchoate,
container,a tiny sound emerge sickle thirst,

incline more notes and coins for his trust.

  More procession more men raise her crave,     hunger fur many days nutriment grub.
 Gradually sparse the worker crowd,

revealing ,her expects,plunging happy mode. 

           It was seldom to me observe ravenous,
           empty stomach ,hollow,faint,unconscious,
           In glitter,flashed sunlight shine illuminate,
           the black mouth turn colorless,damned attack.

In Bare footed and shaken hands woman,
Raise her container in front of compassion,
Of me,which tender my concord zest,
My mind spirit and soul ,demand for support.
Balm compensate a amount of coin;
Which overflow mine banishment mourn.

       

Blubbering my eyes,drops of water,
wetting my face,moisture,the lips.
Realized nourishment ,remedy,assist,
is the supreme power to raise purity.

With a little aspiration endurance and wish,

shaken hands wraps torn turmoil with tender,

convoke stick container,slaved shawl,

standing up,with a fearful flashed face,

with little invocation for next beautiful morn,                                                              
                                                      with a new expect ,hope ,a new ray of thirst......

 Dedicated to my wish of respected Father,Mother,Brother

       

        
         

The IMF could turn irrelevant unless it reforms to keep up with rival global institutions. ..

nance Minister Arun Jaitley has demanded reforms to the International Monetary Fund’s controversial quota system, shedding light on the problems facing the Bretton Woods institution in today’s global economy. Quotas determine the size of contingency funds at the disposal of the IMF to lend to countries in need of help, as well as the power of individual countries to influence lending decisions and tap into the funds themselves. Though developing countries hold less than half the overall quota at the moment, with their rapidly increasing economic heft they have demanded a greater share — with limited success. In this context, speaking at the spring meetings of the IMF, Mr. Jaitley reiterated the need to reform the quota system further. Else, he warned, the legitimacy and credibility of the IMF could be eroded. The 15th General Review of Quotas (GRQ), the most recent attempt to revise the size and composition of the system, was to be completed by October 2017, but the deadline has now been extended to 2019. The delay was not unexpected, given the poor precedent set by the long delay in adoption in 2016 of the previous GRQ (originally approved in 2010). That had doubled the overall size of the quotas to $659 billion (from $329 billion) while allotting an additional 6% of quotas to the developing world. But with the rise of competing global institutions ready to meet the capital needs of the developing world, the patience of countries such as India may be tested more easily.

Also at stake is the potency of the IMF in keeping up with the changed fundamental needs of developing economies. The developing world is looking beyond the short-term crisis management tools that the IMF, as the sole international lender of last resort, has traditionally offered them for decades now — albeit in an unsatisfactory and politically biased way. China, for instance, with its steadily rising influence on the global economy, has grown to be the focal point for economies seeking alternative sources of capital to fund their long-term growth needs. This month, Mr. Jaitley announced that India is seeking $2 billion from the New Development Bank, set up by the BRICS countries in 2015 with a more equitable power structure, to fund infrastructure projects. The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, launched in 2014, could be an even bigger threat to the IMF’s influence given its larger membership, lending capacity and international reach. In this environment of competition, the IMF will have to do more than just superficially tinker with its asymmetric power structure and outdated quota system. Else, it could be slowly but steadily pushed into irrelevance. Meanwhile, it remains to be seen whether India will continue to push for reforms at the IMF even as it simultaneously seeks to diversify its funding base, or whether it will assume a bolder stance in openly favouring one over the other.

150 militants waiting near LoC in PoK to infiltrate: Army. . .

About 150 militants are waiting near the Line of Control (LoC) in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) to sneak into the Valley, a top Army official said today with an assertion that the attempts would be foiled.

Lt Gen J.S. Sandhu, Commander of Srinagar-based 15 Corps which is responsible for security of the Kashmir valley, said there would be more militants at the launching pads in PoK in the areas facing Poonch and Rajouri in Jammu province.

“According to an estimate, in our area — 15 Corps — there are about 150 militants at present. There would be some more near Poonch-Rajouri areas (in Jammu region) as well,” he said.

He was speaking to the reporters at the end of a two-day youth festival ‘Jashn-e-Baramulla,’ organized by the Army in the north Kashmir town.

The Army commander said the infiltration from PoK across the LoC has been low this year compared to the last year.

“Last year, the infiltration from across was high. This year, till now, we have been able to stop them (infiltrators). Snow has also helped us as more snow this year has made it difficult for them to infiltrate. We will continue to stop them so that there is no increase in the militancy,” he said.

He said the Army was “fully geared to stop infiltration” on the LoC.

Investors stay put to drive a historic rally in the Indian bourses. . . .

The major Indian stock indices have rallied strongly despite lingering concerns over their historically rich valuations. Both the BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty reached all-time highs on Wednesday, up about 13% and 14%, respectively, since the beginning of 2017 and well above the performance of developed markets. The Sensex surpassed its previous high to end the day at 30,133 while the Nifty settled on a record closing high of 9,351. Investors have attributed the rally to the better-than-expected earnings results of blue-chip companies (like Reliance Industries Limited that posted record earnings this week), strong fund inflows from foreign institutional investors (FIIs) and the strengthening of the rupee. Waning concerns over the election results in France, U.S. President Donald Trump’s anticipated tax reforms, and the allaying of concerns about the long-term impact of demonetisation may have also helped fuel the rally. FIIs have been at the centre of action over the past few months, turning into bullish buyers after the temporary slump in their investments after the demonetisation exercise. In the first three months of 2017, FIIs have poured $6.75 billion into equities, up from inflows of just $3.19 billion and $3.18 billion in 2015 and 2016, respectively. Adding strength to the rally, domestic investors have been net buyers of equities, investing almost ₹16,000 crore since the beginning of 2017.

Going forward, despite the willingness of foreign buyers to pay higher multiples, there remains the substantial risk of a downside attached to this rally. The market capitalisation of Indian stocks, according to a report by Motilal Oswal Securities published in March before the rally, rose 40% over the last year compared to a 21% increase in the overall world market cap. This increased India’s share of world market cap to 2.5%, marginally above the historical average of 2.4%. Yet corporate earnings, which determine equity returns in the long run, have been lacklustre despite showing early signs of recovery from the demonetisation shock. While the current earnings season has been modestly positive, overall, reasons to justify the high multiples remain elusive. The implementation of the Goods and Services Tax is expected to dampen earnings in the near term, and the absence of recovery in capital expenditure by India Inc. offers little hope to expect an earnings boost. The impact of the strengthening rupee on corporate earnings is another concern. Investors, especially foreigners who benefit from an appreciating rupee, have taken the strong rupee as a vote of confidence in the economy. But its likely impact on the earnings remains ignored. According to UBS, a 1% appreciation in the rupee could reduce the Nifty’s earnings by some 0.6%. All that said, the bears in the Indian markets have been proven wrong for long. It would not be surprising if investors stretch themselves further to support the rally. 

The SC verdict reinstating a DGP limits the political executive’s discretion in transfers. . .

 2006, the Supreme Court ruled in the Prakash Singh case that the chief of a State police force should have a fixed tenure of at least two years. Despite this, State governments have failed to protect Directors General of Police from arbitrary transfers. In the event of a regime change following an election, new political dispensations assume they have an unfettered right to reshuffle officers in the civil and police services. Rarely has this assumption been challenged. The Supreme Court’s ruling reinstating T.P. Senkumar, who was replaced as head of the Kerala police soon after the Left Democratic Front assumed office last year, reinforces its 2006 judgment. It limits significantly the discretion enjoyed by the political executive in effecting transfers at whim. Expanding on the import of thePrakash Singh verdict, in which the court had given directions to insulate the police from external pressure and political influence, a two-judge Bench has delineated the limits of the State government’s subjective satisfaction in removing the DGP. No longer is it valid for the government to justify a DGP’s removal on the vague ground that it has reached a prima facie conclusion that the public is unhappy with the efficiency of the force. The government’s ‘subjective satisfaction’ about the state of affairs must be based on “cogent and rational material”, the court has ruled. On going through the record, the Bench found there was no material adverse to Mr. Senkumar, except some opinions and views

The verdict is undoubtedly a political setback to Kerala’s LDF government, which is already battling controversies caused by the words and deeds of a few ministers. The Pinarayi Vijayan government had defended its transfer of Mr. Senkumar by citing dissatisfaction among the public about the efficiency of the police following the Puttingal fireworks tragedy in Kollam and the murder of a Dalit woman named Jisha in April 2016. However, the court noted that these issues had “suddenly resurfaced” more than a month after the incidents — that is, after the present regime assumed office. In a telling indictment, the court has observed: “This might perhaps be a coincidence, but it might also be politically motivated…” The LDF government must immediately abide by the order to reinstate Mr. Senkumar, whose original two-year tenure was to have ended on May 21, 2017, and who is due to retire in June. However, the legal import of the verdict is not confined to Kerala. State governments would do well to implement the measures outlined in Prakash Singh, the message of which was that the police must be answerable to the rule of law and not to political masters. In particular, every State should set up a State Security Commission — Kerala has one — to both guide the police and decide on top police appointments and transfers.

NITI Aayog’s shift away from five-year plans requires more substance. . . .

Narendra Modi is not the first Chief Minister to have gone on to become Prime Minister. But given his well-known disdain for the erstwhile Planning Commission’s control-and-command approach towards States and his oft-repeated emphasis on ‘cooperative federalism’, there were great expectations from the successor organisation, the NITI Aayog. The Five Year Plans — the last one ended on March 31 — were relegated to history, to be replaced by a three-year action plan. This was to be part of a seven-year strategy that would in turn help realise a 15-year long-term vision. When the Aayog’s Governing Council that includes the Prime Minister and all Chief Ministers met, it was hoped that the fine print as well as the big picture of the new planning approach had been worked out. However, all that was handed out was a draft action agenda for the three years till 2019-20, with 300 specific action points. This agenda is meant to be the first step towards attaining the envisioned outcomes by 2031-32. This ‘New India’, as NITI Aayog Vice Chairman Arvind Panagariya put it, will ensure housing for all, with toilets, LPG, power and digital connections; access to a personal vehicle, air conditioner and white goods for ‘nearly all’; and a fully literate population with universal health care.

Assuming that the economy grows at 8% annually hereon, the Aayog has presented estimates about the size of the economy and per capita incomes by 2031-32, though juxtaposing these with China’s performance in the last 15 years is a bit odd. India’s GDP will rise by ₹332 lakh crore in the next 15 years, the Aayog reckons. The bare details of the 15-year vision that have been shared seem like motherhood statements with some optimistic numerical guesswork. But even that is more than we know about the seven-year strategy. Without the larger strategy and vision in place, the three-year action plan is likely to be more of an abstract wish list that Chief Ministers will now evaluate and revert on. Effectively, till it is ratified by the Council, there is a vacuum in India’s policy framework — similar to the delayed starts of past Five Year Plans. It is not yet apparent if the 12th Plan’s innovation of painting alternative scenarios (of actions and outcomes) — a more useful tool for longer-term planning — has been adopted. Meanwhile, the PM’s message to States to speed up capital expenditure and infrastructure development is important as pump-priming the economy is not only the Centre’s task. All the same, asking the States to take the initiative on switching India’s financial year to match the calendar year is unusual as it requires the Centre to take the lead by making public the report of the committee that has recommended this. To make cooperative federalism truly effective, the Council, or Team India as Mr. Modi calls it, must meet more often — a nearly two-year gap in doing so is a recipe for communication breakdown.

Murder at noon: On Maoists attack in Chhattisgarh's Sukma . . .

Monday’s ambush of a Central Reserve Police Force battalion in Chhattisgarh’s Sukma district is a tragic reminder of the failure of the Indian state to effectively address the security challenge the Maoists continue to pose. At least 25 CRPF personnel were killed near the Burkapal camp in south Sukma while out on duty to provide protection for road construction on the Dornapal-Jagargunda belt when the Maoists struck. This is the deadliest such attack in the past seven years. In April 2010, in neighbouring Dantewada district in the same Bastar division of the State, 76 CRPF personnel had been killed in a Maoist strike. Besides confirming the strong Maoist hold in the region, Monday’s attack also raises questions about the Standard Operating Procedures and precautions adopted by the CRPF. Around 300 armed insurgents swooped down on the battalion around 1 p.m., when the soldiers were taking a break for lunch and their guard was presumed to have been down. According to initial estimates and eyewitness accounts, the Maoists used automatic weapons that they had stolen a month ago when they ambushed and killed a dozen CRPF men not very far from this encounter site. The site of the attack too carried a message. The road under construction will provide easy access to the backward region, where Maoists have for long held sway. It has been a long-held strategy of the Maoists to blow up infrastructure that enables connectivity, such as roads and bridges, or establishes the presence of the state, such as schools.

The response must be to double down to extend the presence of the administration in Bastar, to break the isolation and reach social services to the people. There is also a need to boost the morale of the security and police forces. The recent spate of attacks and ambushes indicates a breakdown in intelligence-gathering, possibly on account of a lack of effective coordination between the State police and paramilitary forces. It may have had no bearing on the attack, or the probability of averting it, but the fact that the post of the Director General of the CRPF continues to be vacant is a lapse amplified by the tragedy. The inadequacies are more grave than this administrative oversight. The State police forces in Maoist-affected areas have more or less abdicated their duties of law and order, leaving the job almost entirely to the paramilitary forces. The Centre needs to urgently put in place, in mission mode, measures to strengthen, expand and arm the State police, most of all in Chhattisgarh. This needs the State governments to show far more political will to persuade local communities than they currently do. The Maoists long ago lost the argument with their murderous ways; but the political and civil establishment is yet to win that argument by addressing the people’s security and welfare needs, and their concerns about extractive state policies.

Investors stay put to drive a historic rally in the Indian bourses. , . . .

Going forward, despite the willingness of foreign buyers to pay higher multiples, there remains the substantial risk of a downside attached to this rally. The market capitalisation of Indian stocks, according to a report by Motilal Oswal Securities published in March before the rally, rose 40% over the last year compared to a 21% increase in the overall world market cap. This increased India’s share of world market cap to 2.5%, marginally above the historical average of 2.4%. Yet corporate earnings, which determine equity returns in the long run, have been lacklustre despite showing early signs of recovery from the demonetisation shock. While the current earnings season has been modestly positive, overall, reasons to justify the high multiples remain elusive. The implementation of the Goods and Services Tax is expected to dampen earnings in the near term, and the absence of recovery in capital expenditure by India Inc. offers little hope to expect an earnings boost. The impact of the strengthening rupee on corporate earnings is another concern. Investors, especially foreigners who benefit from an appreciating rupee, have taken the strong rupee as a vote of confidence in the economy. But its likely impact on the earnings remains ignored. According to UBS, a 1% appreciation in the rupee could reduce the Nifty’s earnings by some 0.6%. All that said, the bears in the Indian markets have been proven wrong for long. It would not be surprising if investors stretch themselves further to support the rally.

Investors stay put to drive a historic rally in the Indian bourses. . . .

e major Indian stock indices have rallied strongly despite lingering concerns over their historically rich valuations. Both the BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty reached all-time highs on Wednesday, up about 13% and 14%, respectively, since the beginning of 2017 and well above the performance of developed markets. The Sensex surpassed its previous high to end the day at 30,133 while the Nifty settled on a record closing high of 9,351. Investors have attributed the rally to the better-than-expected earnings results of blue-chip companies (like Reliance Industries Limited that posted record earnings this week), strong fund inflows from foreign institutional investors (FIIs) and the strengthening of the rupee. Waning concerns over the election results in France, U.S. President Donald Trump’s anticipated tax reforms, and the allaying of concerns about the long-term impact of demonetisation may have also helped fuel the rally. FIIs have been at the centre of action over the past few months, turning into bullish buyers after the temporary slump in their investments after the demonetisation exercise. In the first three months of 2017, FIIs have poured $6.75 billion into equities, up from inflows of just $3.19 billion and $3.18 billion in 2015 and 2016, respectively. Adding strength to the rally, domestic investors have been net buyers of equities, investing almost ₹16,000 crore since the beginning of 2017.

A stretched market: On Indian stock indices hitting a new peak. . .

e major Indian stock indices have rallied strongly despite lingering concerns over their historically rich valuations. Both the BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty reached all-time highs on Wednesday, up about 13% and 14%, respectively, since the beginning of 2017 and well above the performance of developed markets. The Sensex surpassed its previous high to end the day at 30,133 while the Nifty settled on a record closing high of 9,351. Investors have attributed the rally to the better-than-expected earnings results of blue-chip companies (like Reliance Industries Limited that posted record earnings this week), strong fund inflows from foreign institutional investors (FIIs) and the strengthening of the rupee. Waning concerns over the election results in France, U.S. President Donald Trump’s anticipated tax reforms, and the allaying of concerns about the long-term impact of demonetisation may have also helped fuel the rally. FIIs have been at the centre of action over the past few months, turning into bullish buyers after the temporary slump in their investments after the demonetisation exercise. In the first three months of 2017, FIIs have poured $6.75 billion into equities, up from inflows of just $3.19 billion and $3.18 billion in 2015 and 2016, respectively. Adding strength to the rally, domestic investors have been net buyers of equities, investing almost ₹16,000 crore since the beginning of 2017.

Going forward, despite the willingness of foreign buyers to pay higher multiples, there remains the substantial risk of a downside attached to this rally. The market capitalisation of Indian stocks, according to a report by Motilal Oswal Securities published in March before the rally, rose 40% over the last year compared to a 21% increase in the overall world market cap. This increased India’s share of world market cap to 2.5%, marginally above the historical average of 2.4%. Yet corporate earnings, which determine equity returns in the long run, have been lacklustre despite showing early signs of recovery from the demonetisation shock. While the current earnings season has been modestly positive, overall, reasons to justify the high multiples remain elusive. The implementation of the Goods and Services Tax is expected to dampen earnings in the near term, and the absence of recovery in capital expenditure by India Inc. offers little hope to expect an earnings boost. The impact of the strengthening rupee on corporate earnings is another concern. Investors, especially foreigners who benefit from an appreciating rupee, have taken the strong rupee as a vote of confidence in the economy. But its likely impact on the earnings remains ignored. According to UBS, a 1% appreciation in the rupee could reduce the Nifty’s earnings by some 0.6%. All that said, the bears in the Indian markets have been proven wrong for long. It would not be surprising if investors stretch themselves further to support the rally.Going forward, despite the willingness of foreign buyers to pay higher multiples, there remains the substantial risk of a downside attached to this rally. The market capitalisation of Indian stocks, according to a report by Motilal Oswal Securities published in March before the rally, rose 40% over the last year compared to a 21% increase in the overall world market cap. This increased India’s share of world market cap to 2.5%, marginally above the historical average of 2.4%. Yet corporate earnings, which determine equity returns in the long run, have been lacklustre despite showing early signs of recovery from the demonetisation shock. While the current earnings season has been modestly positive, overall, reasons to justify the high multiples remain elusive. The implementation of the Goods and Services Tax is expected to dampen earnings in the near term, and the absence of recovery in capital expenditure by India Inc. offers little hope to expect an earnings boost. The impact of the strengthening rupee on corporate earnings is another concern. Investors, especially foreigners who benefit from an appreciating rupee, have taken the strong rupee as a vote of confidence in the economy. But its likely impact on the earnings remains ignored. According to UBS, a 1% appreciation in the rupee could reduce the Nifty’s earnings by some 0.6%. All that said, the bears in the Indian markets have been proven wrong for long. It would not be surprising if investors stretch themselves further to support the rally.

mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

Politics and the police: On reinstating Kerala DGP Senkumar. .. . .

 2006, the Supreme Court ruled in the Prakash Singh case that the chief of a State police force should have a fixed tenure of at least two years. Despite this, State governments have failed to protect Directors General of Police from arbitrary transfers. In the event of a regime change following an election, new political dispensations assume they have an unfettered right to reshuffle officers in the civil and police services. Rarely has this assumption been challenged. The Supreme Court’s ruling reinstating T.P. Senkumar, who was replaced as head of the Kerala police soon after the Left Democratic Front assumed office last year, reinforces its 2006 judgment. It limits significantly the discretion enjoyed by the political executive in effecting transfers at whim. Expanding on the import of thePrakash Singh verdict, in which the court had given directions to insulate the police from external pressure and political influence, a two-judge Bench has delineated the limits of the State government’s subjective satisfaction in removing the DGP. No longer is it valid for the government to justify a DGP’s removal on the vague ground that it has reached a prima facie conclusion that the public is unhappy with the efficiency of the force. The government’s ‘subjective satisfaction’ about the state of affairs must be based on “cogent and rational material”, the court has ruled. On going through the record, the Bench found there was no material adverse to Mr. Senkumar, except some opinions and views. 2006, the Supreme Court ruled in the Prakash Singh case that the chief of a State police force should have a fixed tenure of at least two years. Despite this, State governments have failed to protect Directors General of Police from arbitrary transfers. In the event of a regime change following an election, new political dispensations assume they have an unfettered right to reshuffle officers in the civil and police services. Rarely has this assumption been challenged. The Supreme Court’s ruling reinstating T.P. Senkumar, who was replaced as head of the Kerala police soon after the Left Democratic Front assumed office last year, reinforces its 2006 judgment. It limits significantly the discretion enjoyed by the political executive in effecting transfers at whim. Expanding on the import of thePrakash Singh verdict, in which the court had given directions to insulate the police from external pressure and political influence, a two-judge Bench has delineated the limits of the State government’s subjective satisfaction in removing the DGP. No longer is it valid for the government to justify a DGP’s removal on the vague ground that it has reached a prima facie conclusion that the public is unhappy with the efficiency of the force. The government’s ‘subjective satisfaction’ about the state of affairs must be based on “cogent and rational material”, the court has ruled. On going through the record, the Bench found there was no material adverse to Mr. Senkumar, except some opinions and views.
The verdict is undoubtedly a political setback to Kerala’s LDF government, which is already battling controversies caused by the words and deeds of a few ministers. The Pinarayi Vijayan government had defended its transfer of Mr. Senkumar by citing dissatisfaction among the public about the efficiency of the police following the Puttingal fireworks tragedy in Kollam and the murder of a Dalit woman named Jisha in April 2016. However, the court noted that these issues had “suddenly resurfaced” more than a month after the incidents — that is, after the present regime assumed office. In a telling indictment, the court has observed: “This might perhaps be a coincidence, but it might also be politically motivated…” The LDF government must immediately abide by the order to reinstate Mr. Senkumar, whose original two-year tenure was to have ended on May 21, 2017, and who is due to retire in June. However, the legal import of the verdict is not confined to Kerala. State governments would do well to implement the measures outlined in Prakash Singh, the message of which was that the police must be answerable to the rule of law and not to political masters. In particular, every State should set up a State Security Commission — Kerala has one — to both guide the police and decide on top police appointments and transfers.

To become a pan-India party, BJP must respect India’s diversity: Rajdeep Sardesai | Opinion. . .

There are many joys of living in Goa, but its gastronomic pluralism is easily one of the tiny state’s biggest attractions. On the day that RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat was calling for a national law against cow slaughter, I was having dinner with a Goa BJP minister: On the menu was fish curry, pork sorpotel and beef chilly fry. When I asked the minister how he interpreted Bhagwat’s remarks, he smiled indulgently: “Bhagwatji lives in Nagpur, we live in Goa. One India, many diets, now enjoy the food!” This was, to borrow Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi’s remark that went viral, truly an example of “yummy-mummy” beef politics.

The truth is, the BJP in Goa is a very different party to its national avatar: A Manohar Parrikar has less in common with his Haryana counterpart, Manohar Lal Khattar or with Uttar Pradesh’s Yogi Adityanath, than he does with his political rivals in Goa. Of the 13 BJP MLAs in Goa, seven are Catholics: The BJP would have been reduced to a rump if its local unit had not reached out to the minority Catholic community. In fact, it was a conscious attempt to bridge the divide with the Catholics that enabled Parrikar to lead the BJP’s first majority government in 2012. Much water has flown under the Mandovi river since then, but the fact is, Goa is the only state where the BJP has at least partly succeeded in breaking its Hindu majoritarian image.

This is at one level a reflection of demographic compulsions: At around 22% of the state’s population, Goa’s Catholics are simply too large and influential to be neglected. The BJP can get away by not giving a single Muslim a seat in the country’s most populous state, they cannot risk that prospect in Goa. In a UP, the BJP can seek to marginalise the state’s 18% Muslim population by consolidating its Hindutva constituency, but in Goa the nature of Hindu-Catholic inter-dependence is too deep-rooted for it to be swept away by any single religious ideology. In a Haryana, the BJP can come up with stringent anti-cow slaughter legislation, but they cannot do so in Goa because vote-bank politics works against such an imposition.

Indeed, as the BJP attempts to geographically expand and become a true pan-Indian party, it will be confronted with the limitations of its Hindutva belief system in a multi-cultural society. The party’s outreach in the North-east, especially in states with large tribal populations, cannot be built around its ideological core issues like Ram mandir or cow slaughter: Here, the party has attempted to create a loose federal power-sharing arrangement where Centre and State share resources in a coalitional system of mutual benefit. There is no ideological glue that binds the BJP governments in Manipur and Arunachal Pradesh with the Modi regime in Delhi apart from a desire to capture power at all costs.

A similar dissonance can be witnessed as the BJP tries to expand its footprint south of the Vindhyas into states like Kerala and Tamil Nadu. In Kerala, there have been a chorus of local BJP voices who have distanced themselves from the traditional party narrative on beef. Already, the party has been embarrassed by its former MP and RSS ideologue, Tarun Vijay’s comments on dark skin, a classic example of how a north Indian ‘Hindu-Hindi-Hindustani’ mindset is unable to embrace the Dravidian identity easily.

Which is also why it is not a morally and intellectually bankrupt Opposition but the sheer diversity of India that offers the biggest challenge to any attempt to impose a religio-cultural homogeneity across India. The RSS may visualise a Hindu rashtra but the BJP cannot afford to be similarly cavalier with the country’s republican constitution. Nor can a Narendra Modi, with his neatly cultivated ‘inclusive’ image, be seen to publicly align with divisive and violent gau-rakshak groups.

The Ambedkarite constitutional vision revolves around the notion of individual rights and freedoms that recognised India as a land of multiple identities. It is this vision that saw cow protection being placed in the directive principles and not in the fundamental rights guaranteed by the Constitution: The decision was a compromise arrived at after a vigorous debate that eventually accepted that while the cow is a sacred animal for millions of Hindus, India cannot be seen as a ‘Hindus-only’ nation.

In a discourse in June 1947, Mahatma Gandhi reflected this sentiment when he said: “How can I force anyone not to slaughter cows unless he is himself so disposed? It is not as if there are only Hindus in the Indian Union, there are Muslims, Parsis, Christians and other religious groups too.” Seventy years on, India is being asked to choose again: Between the Mahatma and the RSS sarsanghchalak’s vision of a ‘new’ India.

Post-script: A day after consuming delicious beef chilli fry in Goa, I drove into neighbouring Maharashtra, also ruled by a BJP government. Here, I could now be fined Rs 10,000 and spend five years in jail for possession or sale of beef unless I can prove the meat was imported from outside Maharashtra. Can anything be more absurd and patently hypocritical?

Why PM Narendra Modi would love to see a united Opposition in 2019. . .

The Bharatiya Janata Party’s national executive meeting this weekend in Bhubaneswar underscores its intent, and optimism, to conquer the east and the south, where regional parties dominate the political landscape. The two-day mega show in the capital of Odisha, a state that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is trying to project as a “laboratory” for his “development agenda”, will likely push regional parties to close ranks. It comes weeks after the Hindu nationalist party, with a landslide victory in Uttar Pradesh, demonstrated it can take on regional parties in their bastions.

At this point, the BJP is on a roll; and its leader, PM Modi, appears unstoppable from returning to a second term in 2019. But two years is a long time in politics. A lot can happen between now and the next Lok Sabha elections, just as it did in the first three years of Modi’s tenure. Shortly after the BJP swept to power in May 2014, it suffered a humiliating defeat in the Delhi state polls. Months later, Nitish Kumar and Lalu Prasad succeeded in forging a winning front in Bihar. Also around this time, Rahul Gandhi’s narrative of Modi’s being a “suit-boot ki sarkar” was beginning to find takers. In no more than two years of winning a historic mandate, Modi had begun to lose grip, until Assam happened. The BJP was quick to learn the mistakes it had made in figuring out the arithmetic of caste and religion in Bihar. It was quick to cash in on the Assam victory and turn the tide with spectacular wins in elections that followed – from local body elections in Mumbai and Odisha to the big-ticket fight in Uttar Pradesh.

Along with its political goals, BJP must also have a plan to stimulate job creation. . .

It is to serve these goals that Mr Modi gave a new gloss to the BJP’s OBC outreach. The political resolution adopted at the weekend conclave in Bhubaneswar, therefore, highlighted the government’s recent move to accord the National Commission for Backward Classes a constitutional status.

The OBCs account for nearly 52% of India’s population whose support can make or break a party. These social groups gradually aligned themselves with regional players as the Congress grew weaker. The rout of Mayawati and Mulayam Singh Yadav in Uttar Pradesh gives the BJP a hope that the OBCs were mobilising behind the party. Mr Modi’s plan also includes reaching out to backward Muslims. He reiterated the BJP’s stand on banning triple talaq, a move largely aimed at winning over women from the minority community. The OBC and Muslims outreach is also aimed at weakening the regional players, particularly in northern and eastern India, who thrive on these vote-banks

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, however, sought to raise the bar, urging party leaders to aim big and expand — ideologically, geographically and socially. He set new targets: Winning in states that go to polls between now and the next Lok Sabha elections in 2019; winning in those 120 Lok Sabha seats that the BJP has never won; and winning the support of those communities that have shunned the party in the past.

Along with its political goals, BJP must also have a plan to stimulate job creation. .. . .

The two-day meeting of the BJP’s national executive ended on Sunday on a high note. A new level of confidence among the party’s rank and file marked the conclave that came close on the heels of the its emphatic victory in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, and its success in retaining Goa and wresting Manipur from rival Congress.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, however, sought to raise the bar, urging party leaders to aim big and expand — ideologically, geographically and socially. He set new targets: Winning in states that go to polls between now and the next Lok Sabha elections in 2019; winning in those 120 Lok Sabha seats that the BJP has never won; and winning the support of those communities that have shunned the party in the past.

A progressive framework for macro-economic policy. . . . .

The idea of a fiscal council has been proposed at a time when the country has created a monetary policy council to decide the policy rate and a GST council to administer the new unified Goods and Services tax regime that will come into effect later this year. India is clearly moving to a new and progressive framework for macroeconomic policy.

The declining sex ratio will affect us socially, economically and politically. . . .

All things being equal, women would outnumber men, the girl child is more likely to survive in infancy than the boy. But in India, according to a Youth in India report brought out by the ministry of statistics and programme implementation, the sex ratio is declining steadily. From 939 women to 1,000 men in 2011 it is projected to fall to 898 by 2031. This should set off alarm bells in the government, civil society groups and the law. This ratio is man-made through selective sex determination with the aim of getting rid of the girl child, early death due to neglect and infanticide. But there is no reason why things cannot be set right.

The consequences of a falling sex ratio are already evident and none of it is good news. The shortage of women has led to a sharp rise in violence against them. This has led to a situation where, apart from the ingrained son preference, people don’t want girls all the more as they feel that it is difficult to keep them safe. In a study done by the Centre for Social Research in Haryana, fear of violence is a cause for female foeticide. Also the women who produce daughters face much more domestic violence which makes them complicit in getting rid of the girl child. The ugly social practice of polygamy has made a comeback in certain areas as well as forcible marriages of widows and purchasing of brides from poor areas. With the advances in technology, sex determination has become easier very early on in pregnancy with fatal consequences for the girl child.

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With Mannargudi mafia sidelined, AIADMK must focus on governance. . .

The political battle within the ruling All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) in Tamil Nadu appears to be heading in the right direction. In the early hours of Wednesday the rebel faction of the party’s MLAs headed by former chief minister O Panneerselvam joined hands with a majority of MLAs in the opposite camp, now headed by current chief minister Edappadi K Palaniswami, to sideline party general secretary VK Sasikala and TTV Dinakaran, Sasikala’s nephew and the AIADMK’s deputy general secretary.

Since the demise of AIADMK leader and chief minister J Jayalalithaa in December, Sasikala and her family members have taken over the party structure, or what little of it that exists. This was a move widely opposed by the party cadre.

Politically, the continuation of Sasikala or any member of the infamous ‘Mannargudi mafia’ comprising her family members in the AIADMK should be a concern of the party. But because there isn’t a clear church-state separation, it is most likely that party leaders would meddle with the free functioning of a democratically-elected government. Thus, the sidelining of Sasikala and Dinakaran in the AIADMK is a positive move. One could argue that there could be better ways of handling this crisis, but there’s little doubt that the ouster of leaders charged with corruption will send the right message to the rank and file of the party.

It is hoped that with this internal churning the ruling party in the southern state gets a grip on itself and turn its focus on governance. While the ruling party’s legislators were gravitating from one power centre to the other, in the national capital the protest by drought-hit farmers from Tamil Nadu entered its 38th day. The protest is just an indicator of the dire situation in the state. Tamil Nadu is facing a severe drought with alarmingly low levels of water in reservoirs and power outages becoming a regular feature.

Babri demolition case: After 25 years, and two more in the offing, there is no closure on this. . . . . .

It is inexplicable why the process has taken so long and that too in such a landmark case. Much of what happened over the course of the past 25 years has faded from public memory and we know very little of what became of those who lost loved ones and property in the malevolent aftermath of the fall of the mosque. The Babri case is indicative of how justice that has been delayed so much eventually amounts to justice denied. This should occasion a serious review of how badly and ineffectively the criminal justice system works. However, even at this late stage, the fact that the court has said there will be no adjournments is welcome. Ideally, the submission of the Liberhan report should have seen the case concluded. The court’s move may be a setback to the BJP’s veteran leaders. But it is equally a setback for those who have been waiting 25 years for some sort of closure.

The Liberhan commission, which was set up 10 days after the event, clearly stated when it finally submitted its report seven years later that BJP politicians were to blame.. . .

The mills of the gods grind slowly but they grind exceedingly fine is a dictum meant to bring comfort for those who wait long for justice. But in the Babri masjid case, the course of justice while being excruciatingly slow has not been particularly productive so far. The Supreme Court’s decision to reopen the criminal conspiracy charges against senior BJP leaders such as LK Advani, Murli Manohar Joshi and Uma Bharti – Kalyan Singh being a governor has immunity for the duration of his term – comes nearly a quarter of a century after the fateful day on which the ancient mosque in Ayodhya was razed to the ground by frenzied Hindu mobs. This singular act of violence changed India’s political landscape forever, deepening the faultlines of polarisation and communalisation. The deadly riots which followed Mr Advani’s rath yatra brought a militant Hindutva to the fore and claimed the lives of over 2,000 people.

Despite an overwhelming amount of evidence and various commissions, the most notable presided over by Justice Manmohan Singh Liberhan, which was set up 10 days after the event, justice has never been seen to be done in the case. The Liberhan commission clearly stated when it finally submitted its report seven years later that BJP politicians involved were to blame. Yet the case has dragged on and now the Supreme Court has given the proceedings another two years. Many of those named in the cases relating to the destruction of the mosque have died, others have been let off.

It is inexplicable why the process has taken so long and that too in such a landmark case. Much of what happened over the course of the past 25 years has faded from public memory and we know very little of what became of those who lost loved ones and property in the malevolent aftermath of the fall of the mosque. The Babri case is indicative of how justice that has been delayed so much eventually amounts to justice denied. This should occasion a serious review of how badly and ineffectively the criminal justice system works. However, even at this late stage, the fact that the court has said there will be no adjournments is welcome. Ideally, the submission of the Liberhan report should have seen the case concluded. The court’s move may be a setback to the BJP’s veteran leaders. But it is equally a setback for those who have been waiting 25 years for some sort of closure.

Redouble efforts to break the wildlife trafficking value chain, . . .

That the world’s natural heritage is under severe threat is old news. But if you want to know the depth of this global crisis, then do read this latest report from the WWF: Halting Illegal Trade for CITES Species From World Heritage Sites. According to the report, Natural World Heritage sites are threatened by destructive industrial activities, overexploitation and trafficking of CITES species. The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) is an international agreement that aims to ensure that transnational trade of wild animals and plants does not threaten their survival.

These natural world heritage sites support large populations of rare plant and animal species, including almost a third of the world’s remaining 3,890 wild tigers and 40% of all African elephants, and function as the last refuge for critically endangered species such as the Javan rhinos and vaquitas. From an Indian perspective, the three world heritage sites that are being plundered are: The Western Ghats, the Great Himalayan National Park and the Khangchendzonga National Park. The illegal harvesting of species not only impacts biodiversity but also has social and economic costs. More than 90% of natural heritage sites support recreation and tourism as well as provide jobs. Many of these benefits are dependent on the presence of CITES-listed species in these sites.

It goes without saying that this cannot go on. As the WWF correctly says, “Governments must redouble their efforts and address the wildlife trafficking value chain.” There must be more collaboration between CITES, the World Heritage Convention and national authorities to lead a more coordinated, comprehensive response to halt wildlife trafficking - from harvesting of species in source countries, transportation through processing destinations, to sales in consumer markets. Closer home, the Indian government should take note of the report and, not dither over giving full legal protection to the country’s world heritage sites such as the Western Ghats.

President Donald Trump signed an executive order to try to bring jobs back to American workers and revamp the H-1B visa guest worker programme.... . . .

When it comes to immigration stories, the United States government’s decision to raise the salary requirements of H-1B visa workers have received the most attention among Indians. Contemporaneously, Australia and New Zealand have also announced plans to slash the number of visas available to high-skilled temporary workers. Similar policy moves are being considered or are being carried out by many other countries, largely in the developed world.

None of this should come as a surprise. High-skilled worker migration has generally been a phenomenon of advanced economies – and most of these are suffering from anaemic growth, weak job creation and stagnant middle-class incomes. As has happened before, poor economics undermines political support for this particularly category of visas. The parameters by which H-1B visas been issued have kept shifting over nearly three decades, depending on the political economy of the US at the time.

There are demands that New Delhi should treat this as a litmus test of the bilateral relationship and make H-1B visas a point of contention with the Trump administration. This would be a mistake. A country’s immigration policy, in effect its control of its own borders, is among the most sovereign-based decisions of any government. Washington will rightly reject any attempt to be told to who and whom it can issue a visa to – as would New Delhi if it was in a similar position. The larger geopolitical and economic drivers in the Indo-US relationship are much more important than the US’s decision to raise the cost of a visa. In fact, the preservation of the steady flow of legal Indian migration to the US, a human bridge which has benefited both countries, is of greater importance than the H-1B niche.

Having said this, there can be no doubt that such visas have a larger-than-life profile with the Indian public because of their association with the successful software services sector. But the so-called Mode 4 model that drove the H-1B visa is slowly dying thanks to automation and an increasing preference in Silicon Valley for in-house software expertise. The Indian software industry is within its rights to lobby the US Congress for to save the H-1B visa, but the Indian government should be wary of investing too much diplomatic capital in what is likely to a quixotic campaign. There are much more important issues to be worked out with the Trump administration. New Delhi could have fixed skilled worker visas with some of these countries as part a free trade agreement – as other countries have done. But since India is allergic to such agreements, that was never a serious option. Migration is a door that slams shut when even a small breeze blows. Right now, a gale is blowing and India must wait for it to wane.

Thanking you..

India must play its part in the global trading system, not shy away from it. . . . .

India is among the countries most vulnerable to rising global protectionism warns the most recent Global Financial Stability Report of the International Monetary Fund. Most of the demand that drives the international trading system still remains in the developed countries and as they raise the drawbridge against imports, the biggest losers will be emerging economies like China, India and South Africa.

The knock on effect on India will be not merely in terms of falling exports. It will also be in increased financial pressure on the balance sheets of local corporations and, therefore, the non-performing asset problems in the banking sector. And among six emerging economies that the IMF looked at, India has by far the most vulnerable banking sector.India is among the countries most vulnerable to rising global protectionism warns the most recent Global Financial Stability Report of the International Monetary Fund. Most of the demand that drives the international trading system still remains in the developed countries and as they raise the drawbridge against imports, the biggest losers will be emerging economies like China, India and South Africa.

The knock on effect on India will be not merely in terms of falling exports. It will also be in increased financial pressure on the balance sheets of local corporations and, therefore, the non-performing asset problems in the banking sector. And among six emerging economies that the IMF looked at, India has by far the most vulnerable banking sector.

The IMF report does not dwell on what can be done to salvage the global trading system. But it is an issue to which the Narendra Modi government should give some thought. India is a nation that has long been gripped by export pessimism, a term applied to countries who believe they cannot compete and opt out of international trade.

Yet almost all the countries who have pulled themselves out of poverty and into the ranks of high-income states have done so on the back of international trade.

The Modi government has run away from negotiating even the smallest free trade arrangements, ripped apart existing foreign investment treaties and run interference at multilateral trading talks.

This is unfortunate. New Delhi’s reluctance to more actively support the multilateral trading system – and in fact act as a spoiler to its success – is a remarkably short-sighted policy. India’s future growth continues to heavily depend on foreign investment and trade. Also the ability of India’s homegrown companies to become global players is tied strongly to their success in tapping the larger world market.

The Modi government’s reform measures, like “ease of doing business” and the Goods and Service Tax, will be important in making India globally more competitive.

Perhaps the government plans to re-engage the international trading system when it feels domestic industry is competitive enough. That may be a long time coming: Protectionism breeds mediocrity. Worse, there may not be much of a trading system to rejoin if countries like India are not prepared to lend it support when it is under attack.