While growing up as a student, I was inundated with umpteen 'isms', all of them caricatured out of the text books to find a permanent place in our psyche. However, as things most probably don't turn out the way they are always supposed to, a vast majority of these concepts relinquished their positions to give way for other things. A seemingly veritable reason for their exodus could be understood in our experiences of not having them faced or seen/felt those 'isms' as it is. Unless you have been through what a concept stands to conceptualize, its imprints are hard not to be eroded by passage of time. A retreat to the yellowish pages of our history books would present us with various names sans any soul, primarily because they have been a part of history, things we could have never lived through. A vicarious thrill is easy to come by, but its essence will again be insignificant and one we could never relate to the experiences of our times. The path to glory for a progressive India is fraught with uncertainties and problems, both extrinsic and intrinsic. The media glare for things headed our way from outside has been ubiquitous. I would like to ponder over issues which come from within, and probably have greater firepower to weaken us from inside.
Tracing the roots of Naxalism won't yield the right results in the current scenario. The ideologies have undergone a sea of change, and as they stand right now, there are no strings attached to the original plans. It's in no way reflective of a total abandonment of original ways, but just that there are few more radical faces of their modus operandi in this millennium. They had always been institutionally quite limited in how they wanted to express themselves, but with the passage of time and their feel of the current pulse, we have seen some outrageous expressions from their side. From their rudimentary stages of inflicting damage only on police and the government, they have shown a handful of temerity to strike against the general public in some cases to important Industrial bases. This militant form of their operations is what we have to keep an eye on. Their movement has been in our opposition for quite a long time, and I must admit, that we have not done enough for them to stop in their strides. And the result is being manifested in their zealous attacks on institutions which are an important constituent of our economic fabric. We must own the responsibility of not being able to check their resurgence in various ways, our incompetence in not being able to handle them efficiently and in our inability to have thought over a well chalked out plan to counter them. The home ministries of yore are culpable of not being far-sighted and not being able to put an exemplary intelligence machinery to track naxalites' movements and plans. There are various fronts which could be brought about as a paradigm of utter failure on the ministries of past. But, that's not going to serve any purpose going further, apart from the fact that we may have a lot of things to learn when we sit to examine the rubble. Let's come up with a steely resolution and a fool proof plan to counter them effectively. Here's my take on what we could think of doing:
1. We are all cognizant of the fact that all naxals find a soft corner in the hearts of people in rural belts from where they operate. They in the garb of being their messiah, always find a safe shelter and escape route whenever required. The fight is in the name of rights and opportunities. Government must appoint cells who would go and closely work with the villagers to find out their issues, and in turn, give them assurances that proper action would be taken for their betterment.
2. Engage the educated as well as uneducated youth in these belts to let them have a feeling that they are considered important, and that the government cares for them. If we can have even a semblance of success in achieving what we propose, we would know we have ventured out on the correct path.
3. Take the dwellers in these belts into confidence and start developmental schemes which would help them directly - give opportunities to the villagers to be able to earn good wages by engaging them in such schemes, allay all fears of not having any security net over them, empower them suitably so that they can work with the government for development. Opportunities will entice the youth away from guns.
4. Infrastructure building in such areas would automatically weaken naxalite movements as our forces would have the liberty and easy access to resources in a known environment.
5. Provide for the education and rehabilitation of young ones in such areas. It would go a long way in defining what the future holds for us in this battle.
6. Establish a strong intelligence network to thwart any naxal movements in such areas. This again would come in handy if we work simultaneously on the infrastructure front as well. Such a network should have a representation form the dwellers of such belts. Their knowledge of the surrounding areas will always come in handy.
To summarize all of it, we must ensure that we build good infrastructure in such areas, engage the local population in development activities and intelligence network building, provide for education to the young ones, ensure that the needy have a safe access to wages and that the villagers' grievances are properly heeded to with a provision for good compensation and rehabilitation schemes. The onus lies on our governments, their willingness to dig themselves out of this hole and provide conclusive answers to problems of this nature which are threating to breach national security. It will be equally good if we could evince enough support form all the sides - central state partnership, public private partnership, government NGO partnership etc. At the end of it, it is us, Indians, who are going to be benefited out of this. So there's a role for everyone to play. We have to ensure that no one shirks away from his/her responsibility, and that would come with a need to identify ourselves with such problems.
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Saturday, April 3, 2010
Lessons from IPL 3.0
The timing of this article may be questionable, and my deductions a bit presumptuous, but that's not going to stop me from making my observations of what I have seen till now in the third edition of ongoing IPL. Ask the players, and they would be faster than light to admit that it has been generous. For me, its generosity has been extended to let me view the happening of IPL in a different light - little to do with sports and everything to do with day-to-day life. Of what I have managed to extract in my limited capacity, following are worth mentioning.
If you believe in something, back it to the hilt
At the risk of sounding a supporter of Modi (as the majority doesn't approve of his methods), I would quote his example to drive home my point. India had long abstained from playing T20 matches and the general public had not got the taste of its excitement. Modi had long rallied for a private league, which in his opinion could bring in the families and not just the cricket lovers for niche viewer ship, but couldn't bring this idea to be acknowledged by those who mattered in the echelons. To his advantage, Subhash Chandra came up with the idea of ICL, which saw a significant erosion of local talent, players who were coaxed into joining this league as they had lost all hopes of getting selected for their country. BCCI took cognizance of this alarming trend, and with certain fillers from Modi to strike the rod when it was red hot, Modi was given the go ahead signal to formulate the advent of a league from India. Modi was equally up to the task and showcased before the world a professional league which sold like hot cakes. There was a frenzy about the whole thing and rest, as they say, is history.
While it is to be noted that such a talk would seem reasonable only if the league was successful, but it nevertheless, goes a long way in demonstrating the power of belief. There are rich dividends to be had, if you believe in your plans, and as the IPL showcases, we must back them strongly.
Trust those who haven't been tested yet
We chase success stories or get bedazzled by it. I being no exception, would opportunistically cite the example of a resurgent Mumbai Indians in this regard. Leadership defines the kind of examples that would be quoted as the "best-of-them-all" in future. Sachin is as able as it can get, both as a player and a leader, and is being magnanimous in letting us learn from his leadership. Saurabh Tiwary and Ambati Rayudu are the likes who could have very well warmed benches in other teams, but not so under the aegis of Sachin. They are talents of fine degree, and have been given an opportunity upfront to express themselves. Results are there for everyone to see, with each reciprocating with fine consistent performances. This sort of confidence is hard to come by, and hence worth mentioning here.
Believe in the power of one
Sticking with team MI, I wouldn't be required to try too hard to drive my point here. Their success story, however short-lived, would give us ample opportunities to learn and examples to quote. They are doing well as a team, with good performances coming in from all quarters. And that has been possible because of its management and its ability to let them believe that united they progress and divided they perish. They perform as one team, with each member complimenting the other, to bring out the maximum as a team.
Relish your unique role in the scheme of things
An effective team will always have effective team players. You have to let go of your ego to be that effective. You may have thought a thousand good things which you always wanted to do, but in reality you may never get to perform that role. But the management still believes in you, precisely for your overall ability, the various other ways you can contribute to team's success. Those who honor this respect are worthy of being talked about and one such player form this edition is Satish(MI). He bats lower down the order and may not be called to bowl at all. But his role has been that of a finisher and he has readily accepted this role with elan. He enjoys his specific role in the team and that's the reason behind his success so far.
Keep it simple
T20 is supposed to be a game where you go hammer and tongs from ball 1, or at least that's the perception players seem to be giving when they go out to bat. The sense of urgency is hard to ignore. But here again, it takes a Master to show how others have grossly misconstrued the way this game should be played. Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar has been all class, playing his usual self, finding the gaps at will and more importantly with proper cricketing shots. 7 games into the IPL, he has already bagged the orange cap once and has the maximum boundaries to his name(47) and only 1 six! Message is loud and clear from the Master - Keep it simple.
Diversify the produce, if possible
In the race to be the most valuable player, you have to be a multi utility player to reap rich dividends. The aggregate of all the scores has a participation from various components from the game viz. bowling, fielding and batting. If you could contribute in all these fields, you would do yourself a favor to win others' confidence. The idea is to be able to contribute in all the ways possible, if you fail while batting, compensate it with good fielding or bowling. Fill the void with a sterling performance somewhere else and be useful to the team in the truest sense of the word. Classics from this edition being Harbhajan, Kallis and Raina.
I'm sure there will be few more of these to be taken care of as we enter into the second leg of the tournament. Let's wish we keep on getting inspired from all things around us, draw an analogy to how those could be replicated in our lives, and then use them to achieve better results for ourselves.
If you believe in something, back it to the hilt
At the risk of sounding a supporter of Modi (as the majority doesn't approve of his methods), I would quote his example to drive home my point. India had long abstained from playing T20 matches and the general public had not got the taste of its excitement. Modi had long rallied for a private league, which in his opinion could bring in the families and not just the cricket lovers for niche viewer ship, but couldn't bring this idea to be acknowledged by those who mattered in the echelons. To his advantage, Subhash Chandra came up with the idea of ICL, which saw a significant erosion of local talent, players who were coaxed into joining this league as they had lost all hopes of getting selected for their country. BCCI took cognizance of this alarming trend, and with certain fillers from Modi to strike the rod when it was red hot, Modi was given the go ahead signal to formulate the advent of a league from India. Modi was equally up to the task and showcased before the world a professional league which sold like hot cakes. There was a frenzy about the whole thing and rest, as they say, is history.
While it is to be noted that such a talk would seem reasonable only if the league was successful, but it nevertheless, goes a long way in demonstrating the power of belief. There are rich dividends to be had, if you believe in your plans, and as the IPL showcases, we must back them strongly.
Trust those who haven't been tested yet
We chase success stories or get bedazzled by it. I being no exception, would opportunistically cite the example of a resurgent Mumbai Indians in this regard. Leadership defines the kind of examples that would be quoted as the "best-of-them-all" in future. Sachin is as able as it can get, both as a player and a leader, and is being magnanimous in letting us learn from his leadership. Saurabh Tiwary and Ambati Rayudu are the likes who could have very well warmed benches in other teams, but not so under the aegis of Sachin. They are talents of fine degree, and have been given an opportunity upfront to express themselves. Results are there for everyone to see, with each reciprocating with fine consistent performances. This sort of confidence is hard to come by, and hence worth mentioning here.
Believe in the power of one
Sticking with team MI, I wouldn't be required to try too hard to drive my point here. Their success story, however short-lived, would give us ample opportunities to learn and examples to quote. They are doing well as a team, with good performances coming in from all quarters. And that has been possible because of its management and its ability to let them believe that united they progress and divided they perish. They perform as one team, with each member complimenting the other, to bring out the maximum as a team.
Relish your unique role in the scheme of things
An effective team will always have effective team players. You have to let go of your ego to be that effective. You may have thought a thousand good things which you always wanted to do, but in reality you may never get to perform that role. But the management still believes in you, precisely for your overall ability, the various other ways you can contribute to team's success. Those who honor this respect are worthy of being talked about and one such player form this edition is Satish(MI). He bats lower down the order and may not be called to bowl at all. But his role has been that of a finisher and he has readily accepted this role with elan. He enjoys his specific role in the team and that's the reason behind his success so far.
Keep it simple
T20 is supposed to be a game where you go hammer and tongs from ball 1, or at least that's the perception players seem to be giving when they go out to bat. The sense of urgency is hard to ignore. But here again, it takes a Master to show how others have grossly misconstrued the way this game should be played. Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar has been all class, playing his usual self, finding the gaps at will and more importantly with proper cricketing shots. 7 games into the IPL, he has already bagged the orange cap once and has the maximum boundaries to his name(47) and only 1 six! Message is loud and clear from the Master - Keep it simple.
Diversify the produce, if possible
In the race to be the most valuable player, you have to be a multi utility player to reap rich dividends. The aggregate of all the scores has a participation from various components from the game viz. bowling, fielding and batting. If you could contribute in all these fields, you would do yourself a favor to win others' confidence. The idea is to be able to contribute in all the ways possible, if you fail while batting, compensate it with good fielding or bowling. Fill the void with a sterling performance somewhere else and be useful to the team in the truest sense of the word. Classics from this edition being Harbhajan, Kallis and Raina.
I'm sure there will be few more of these to be taken care of as we enter into the second leg of the tournament. Let's wish we keep on getting inspired from all things around us, draw an analogy to how those could be replicated in our lives, and then use them to achieve better results for ourselves.
Strange story of the hunters being hunted
Complacency continues to remain one of the inseparable virtues of an average smug Indian - quite content with with things at his/her disposal. I would request everyone's generosity to take my generically styled statements with a pinch of salt, as a lot of it has been engendered from experiences, both personal and environmental. Success, instead of being a companion of your journey, still enjoys the enviable position of being a destination. Everyone's growth story has seen diverse routes being taken, and along its course, things continually getting trampled. And it requires a reasonable mind to see where's this going - another of those pyrrhic victories! Do we have enough reasonable minds today in India, who could look beyond material ends, and do something about what brings me to write here? Fortunately, there's a silver lining to be had, but am quite apprehensive about how it could be used properly.
Almost everyday I wake up to the advertisement which shrieks into our ears, loud and clear, that we may not have more than 1411 tigers as of today in our country. 1411? That's lesser than even the transport allowance we get from our employers! The enormity of the situation strikes you only when you realize that we are talking about our national animal here. That's when it strikes, and only if you are bothered. As our juggernaut continues to roll, we have cared even lesser for our national wealth. And when some of us have taken the pains to come out of this morbid slumber, we are left with this depleted number to struggle against and tigers' dilapidated state to take care of.
As things stand right now, we have got too little time to act fast and too many questions to contend with. It leaves you with a nebulous mind, partly under the pressure of acting fast and partly due to what we were not able to do in the past to stop this. We have been presented with a challenge, and we should not lose any time in wresting the initiative from the gloomy present. So, here's what I think about all this and expect participation from each one of those reasonable minds.
- We know the monsters we are fighting against. Our collective appeal can make the home ministry see reason and act in a way they have never done before.
- Apart from the accountability attached with forest rangers' roles, we should reward them pro-actively with incentives in cases where they had been able to arrest the slump in the numbers or had been involved in missions which have made tigers' lives better. This will give them enough reason to guard the borders intricately.
- While we provide enough safety to the tigers in our national sanctuaries, we should work aggressively towards incubating young ones in zoos across the country by providing for good food and health conditions.The safe confines of zoos would guarantee that we would be successful in doing that.
- We should have a MoU, or strengthen the clauses if one exists already, with nations where the big cats are not in depleted numbers, to have an exchange program of their ilk.
- To prevent any fringe incidents resulting in their deaths, we should undertake a campaign to educate those living around such sanctuaries of the current situation. We should also have some reward programs in place, to entice them in contributing constructively to this cause in any which way.
- We should make sure that their natural habitat is not tampered at any cost. We should have stringent laws on poaching which would act as a deterrent for those who engage in it
- Equip the rangers with latest technology to allow them to keep a tight vigilance over the area - it could be in terms of how they sweep the area on their vehicles, their ammunition and the modes of communication between various units.
- Create awareness about the impending danger, and hope that those who matter get to learn about this development and could help in formulation of a fool-proof plan.
If you are interested in joining this campaign, here are few links you would be interested to take a look at:
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