Palash Speaks

CBI Probe Commenced as case Lodged against Todi
Palash Biswas
Contact: Palash C Biswas, C/O Mrs Arati Roy, Gosto Kanan, Sodepur, Kolkata- 700110, India. Phone: 91-033-25659551
Email: alashchandrabiswas@gmail.com">palashchandrabiswas@gmail.com
Commencing its probe into the mysterious death of computer graphics teacher Rizwanur Rehman in West Bengal, the CBI has registered a case against his industrialist father-in-law Ashok Todi and others.After analysing the entire judgment of Calcutta High Court on October 16, the CBI formed a special team headed by a Joint Director, to go into the circumstances leading to how Rizwanur met his end.The agency, while registering an FIR against Ashok Todi and others under Section 302 of IPC, will now visit the area where Rizwanur's body was found.The High Court had directed the CBI to go into the circumstances of the unnatural death of the youth whose body was found on the rail tracks near Dum Dum on September 21.The agency, while registering an FIR against Ashok Todi and others under Section 302 of IPC, will now visit the area where Rizwanur's body was found. The High Court had directed the CBI to go into the circumstances of the unnatural death of the youth whose body was found on the rail tracks near Dum Dum on September 21.Political leaders in Bengal have no easy explanation how the non-political protest over the Rizwanur Rahman case grew from strength to strength without the participation of any party or organised group and finally forced Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee to bite the dust. It may be too early to say if it will stay to set a trend, but Gandhian politics has clearly won a big round in Indian Marxists’ very own city. And this should worry both the Marxists and Mamata Banerjee if their brand of politics is losing its steam.The public outcry over the Rizwanur Rahman case may be gaining momentum, but the 30 years of Left rule in West Bengal is replete with many such mysterious deaths and disappearances where investigations have been inconclusive and justice elusive.
CBI Director Vijay Shanker had earlier said that the agency will comply with the High Court order ''in the cause of justice and complete the investigation in the quickest, transparent and objective manner''.
Rizwanur's death, following his marriage to Priyanka on August 18, had sparked a national outcry. The youth had allegedly been threatened by senior Kolkata police officials, including two Deputy Commissioners, to separate from his wife.Rehman was found dead on railway tracks under mysterious circumstances on September 21, a few days after he married a Hindu girl from an influential business family who opposed the wedding.
Rizwanur's mother Kishwar Jahan and elder brother Rukbanur had moved the High Court seeking a CBI inquiry into his death, claiming they did not have faith in any probe conducted by any state agency.Rizwanur Rehman’s brother Mr Rukbanur Rehman was provided with security cover by Kolkata Police’s special branch last evening after his family had been alerted of possible threat to his life. The threat alert was made by a man who identified himself as Mr S Bhattacharjee, a police constable from North 24-Parganas. Mr S Bhattachrarjee was later handed over to Kareya police. Mr Javed Shamim, DC (South) said that after this incident, Mr Rehman has been provided with protection.
Veteran CPI(M) leader Jyoti Basu on Friday lashed at Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee when he said the delay in action against police officials, allegedly involved in the death of Rizwanur Rehman, had caused "a political loss for the party".
"This has caused political loss for the party. The step to transfer the police officers should have been taken earlier by the West Bengal government than when it finally did," Basu said here after the weekly CPI(M) state secretariat meeting.
"Though late, the step was right," added Basu who earlier said he had been told by the chief minister that action had been taken against the officers involved.
He was commenting on the transfer of three IPS officers, including the Police Commissioner Prasun Mukherjee and two other officers of the Kolkata Police by Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee on October 17 following the public outcry over the computer graphics teacher's unnatural death.
"We still do not know how he died," Basu said.
Most of these cases had grabbed media attention with allegations of political conspiracy. But they soon faded from public memory and the culprits were not even booked, let alone punished. The brutal rape and murder of a health worker had even provoked the now infamous remark by then chief minister Jyoti Basu that “these things happen”.
At a time when Rizwanur’s death has triggered candlelight vigils, online petitions, and demonstrations seeking a CBI probe and action against the policemen involved, DNA takes a look at the high-profile cases that stirred hearts and grabbed headlines in the past.
Bhikhari Paswan’s disappearance: A police team led by then additional superintendent of Hooghly Harmanprit Singh picked up jute mill worker Bhikari Paswan from his residence on October 30, 1993. Paswan has been missing since. Following public outrage, the case was handed over to the CBI, but investigations remained inconclusive. Why Paswan was picked up remains a mystery. Singh is presently an inspector-general of police and received all his promotions in time, including prize postings

After becoming the subject of multiple investigations in the Rizwanur Rahman death case, Kolkata Police tried to project a people-friendly image as newly appointed Commissioner Goutam Mohan Chakraborty called up the Rizwanur's brother and promised security to his family. Chakraborty called up Rukbanur, Rizwanur's brother, on Thursday and enquired after him and other family members. The police commissioner also gave him his mobile phone number and asked him to get in touch with him if they required any help.
Rizwanur's brother had earlier expressed fear of a backlash from people unhappy with the latest developments and sought help from Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharya.
''We were pleasantly surprised at receiving the call from the new police commissioner. We hope the police will cooperate with us,'' he said.
A police picket was posted outside their home at Tiljala in central Kolkata on Thursday after a stranger warned Rukbanur about possible attacks on the family.
Rukbanur had been invited to inaugurate a Durga Puja in Barasat, on the city's fringes, by members of the All India Minority Forum on Wednesday. Just as he was about to leave home, a stranger warned him against venturing out.
''He told me I would be attacked at the pandal and I would be taking a big risk if I went there,'' he said.
''Ever since we got the threat, we have decided not to take any chances. We do not feel comfortable going out,'' said Zahida, Rukbanur's wife.
A police picket was posted on Thursday outside Rizwanur Rahman’s residence at Tiljala in Kolkata after a stranger warned his brother about possible attacks on the family.Despite the presence of three policemen, the Rahman family said they were feeling unsafe venturing out as they feared "a backlash from people unhappy with the latest developments". Five police officers — including two deputy commissioners and the police commissioner — were shunted out on Wednesday after the Calcutta High Court ordered a CBI probe into the case.
Rizwanur’s elder brother Rukbanur was warned against venturing out by a person when he was about to leave his home to inaugurate a puja organised by members of the All India Minority Forum on Wednesday. "A man who identified himself as S Bhattacharya told me that I could be attacked at the pandal and I would be taking a big risk if I went there," said Rukbanur.
"Ever since we got to know of the threat, we have decided not to take any chances. The police picket is welcome but we do not feel comfortable leaving home," said Zahida, Rukbanur’s wife. Even though the family has said that the transfer of officers was not enough and called for the punishment of those involved in Rizwanur’s mysterious death, Tiljala residents were jubilant. "This is a victory for all of us and a lesson for the government," said a neighbour.
ASHIS CHAKRABARTI reports for The Telegraph:
The unnamed individuals who had hit upon the idea of the citizens’ vigil outside the gate of St Xavier’s College were anxious to keep the politicians at bay. Opposition politicians who sought to sneak in there to lend their names to the protests were politely told to go away. Even when they went elsewhere — to Rahman’s home at Tiljala or some other place — they failed to strike a chord with the mourners and protesters.
While the setback for Bhattacharjee is obvious, the political implication of this successful non-political intervention may take time to sink in. The obvious explanation, though, is that the peaceful protest succeeded precisely because the politicians were not in it and that it signalled a rejection of Bengal’s familiar, mostly violent, form of oppositional politics.
The symbolism of the candles burning outside a Jesuit-run college — no roadblocks, no siege of the police station across the road, no stone or bomb-throwing mobs — is too Gandhian to be missed even by the ruling Marxists.
Mamata, too, tried a familiar Gandhian form of protest, when she was on a 25-day hunger strike at Esplanade last December to protest against the eviction of farmers in Singur. Nothing about it was Gandhian, the politicians and the people knew, except the form.
First, the politics of fasts has become so routine in India that the people have almost forgotten its Gandhian association. More important, the antecedents of politicians always colour the public perceptions of their agitational forms.
Mamata’s politics of street battles is too well-known for her fast to be taken seriously as a Gandhian protest. Even as she fasted in Calcutta, her partymen fought the police with bombs and stones in Singur.
The Marxists can worry even more about the success of the protest. They have long benefited from the Opposition’s aimless politics of street violence and the people’s growing aversion to it.
In a way, Mamata’s kind of politics has been their best bet. Large sections of the people who had resented many of the Left’s policies and politics were as disgusted with Mamata’s antics. She was not their alternative to the Marxists.
The result was that the so-called civil society had practically no role in matters relating to Bengal’s politics and government. And, that, as always, helped the rulers.
Even when small sections of this society did speak up, the voice was so feeble and the number so small that the rulers had nothing much to fear from them. Even in the early days of the vigil outside St Xavier’s, CPM leaders hoped that this anger of the “genteel class”, as one of them put it, would do no better than the noises in the seminar circuit over Singur and Nandigram.
The government had to back down from the proposed chemical hub at Nandigram, the party’s leaders told themselves, not because of the chattering classes, but because of the resistance by the villagers on the ground.
After the Rizwanur story so far, they cannot sit pretty on their old assumptions. In the age of televised revolutions and riots, no protests are just urban or rural.
Nobody, not even those who took part in the candle-light vigil, would claim that candles — and not stones, bombs and roadblocks — would henceforth be the most potent political weapon in Bengal. Or, that organised party politics would lose its place in the state’s politics.
But this protest seems to have taught Bengal’s politicians two basic lessons — that they cannot take any section of the people for granted and that the people, pushed to a corner, would invent new forms of politics or go back to some old, Gandhian ones.
Rizwanur Rehman’s death - a long tradition of Police atrocities in Bengal
http://sanhati.com/front-page/383/
Sign online petition here
Nagarik Mancha - Cause of Action:
‘…mysterious death of 30-year-old graphics designer Rizwanur Rahman on September 21, just over a month after he married Priyanka Todi, the daughter of prominent city businessman Ashok Todi, chairman and managing director of Lux Hosiery…’ [Indian Express, 30.9.2007].
A number of issues have come up after Rizwanur’s death at Kolkata – the Government’s role, activities of the police and the limitations of civil society initiatives.
1. It does not matter much as to who is in the government, or who the Minister is, or how he values culture or for that matter how honest he is. During Congress rule Ms Ashima Poddar, a CPI (M) activist from Beleghata, was tortured in police lockup. Later during the victory celebrations at the Brigade Parade Ground, after the formation of the first Left Front Government in 1977, her plight was mentioned as an instance of atrocities on the woman of Bengal. That such selfless sacrifices from people like her had contributed towards Left Front’s success was acknowledged. However none of the police personnel guilty of atrocities on Ashima have been punished during the last 31 years of Left rule in West Bengal.
2. Runu Guha Neogi who tortured and tyrannised Ms Archana Guha and Ms Latika Guha during early ’70s remained scot-free till his death. Even after being convicted by the Court, this police officer was not even suspended. Conversely the Jyoti Basu-led Left Front Government promoted him for his reported efficiency in nabbing dacoits.
3. Ms Brinda Karat, Polit Bureau member of CPI (M), has stated that Judicial Enquiries are held in West Bengal, but in other States even such probes are not ordered. Maybe she is right. However in our State reports of such enquiries are not published and even when published the police personnel found guilty are not punished as per recommendations. During the Left Front rule 26 Judicial Enquiry Commissions have been set up. Till 2000, twenty such reports have been submitted. The West Bengal Government has not taken any action, as per recommendations, even in one case. Justice Samarendra Chandra Deb Commission was set-up to probe into the death of Idris Mian in the Central Lockup of the Calcutta Police Head Quarters at Lalbazar. Almost after five years, seven police personnel were found guilty. No legal action was initiated against them. Only the Officer-in-Charge of the Central Lockup Mr Dipak Roy had been suspended. Justice Ambika Prasad Bhattacharya Commission was set-up to probe into student’s death caused by police firing at Darjeeling in 1981. The report was submitted to the Government after four years but till date neither has any action been taken nor has the report been published. Even after 19 years the Justice Haripada Das Commission is yet to submit its report regarding incidents at Katra, Murshidabad. Ordering Judicial probes, delay in submission / publication of reports, apathy to take action as per Commissions recommendations have reduced this entire exercise into a farce – a tactics to delay and/or deny justice.
4. The police are held to be guilty or accused or convicted for the death or missing cases related to Kamal Thakur, Bhikari Paswan, Babai Biswas, Raj Chakraborty, Muhammad Alam, Khagen Majhi, Sanjib Pal, Harish Biswas, Suresh Barui, Partha Majumdar and so on. Fake encounters, abduction, cases of forced disappearance from police custody tantamount to kidnapping with motives of murder – and the list goes on.
a) In 1987 Subhankar Sarangi was murdered at Jhargram, Midnapore. In this case four police personnel were sentenced to five years of imprisonment in 2001. The convicted police personnel were not even suspended leave alone terminated or jailed.
b) Muhammad Alam was arrested for a petty crime from Garden Reach in 1995. Police personnel demanded four thousand rupees as ‘ransom’ for his release. When denied he was beaten up viciously and produced in Court. Without inspecting his injuries the Hon’ble Judge remanded him to judicial custody. Alam succumbed to his injuries in jail. 28 injuries were detected on Alam’s body during post mortem. A case was initiated against police personnel. Six of them were convicted and arrest warrants were issued. However the convicted police personnel have not been ‘found’! Fresh arrest warrants have been issued but they have not been served though it is known that at such points of time they have been posted at various police stations and even at Lalbazar. The State Administration has not taken any departmental action against them.
c) In 1997, Officer-in-Charge, Kalyani PS and some other police personnel picked up Khagen Majhi from his home. Later he was reported to be killed in an ‘encounter’. The Human Rights Commission report disagreed with the encounter-story and held the above police personnel guilty. The mother of Khagen filed a case against the accused police personnel. The family was offered money. Denial was met with threats of dire consequences. The Court directed the police to provide security to the family. The Superintendent of Police did nothing. Threats continued unabated. The Court issued arrest warrants against the convicted police personnel. Here too none of them could be found! On 23 January 2004, the police abducted Nagen Majhi the brother of Khagen. He has not been traced till date. All the guilty, accused and convicted police personnel are in service.
d) On the day West Bengal Assembly elections were held in 2001, the police chased Topi Das and he fell into the Subhash Sarobar at Beleghata. Police jumped into the lake and beat him up. Topi died. The Court issued arrest warrant against an Assistant Commissioner, an Officer-in-Charge and a Constable. Their anticipatory bail petitions have been rejected in the lower Court, High Court and the Supreme Court. The State Administration have not arrested them, have not suspended them and all of them are in service
5. On 5 September 1997 the police, in another ‘fake’ encounter, killed Suresh Barui. The police of Habra PS, North 24 Parganas, took away Partha Majumdar, from the place of occurrence. He had a bullet wound too. All this in front of many villagers. The State Human Rights Commission refuted the plea of encounter and recommended CID investigation. The CID on 12 January 2004 and 19 February 2004 charge-sheeted eleven accused police personnel u/s 364/201/34 of IPC, the charge levelled being kidnapping or abducting in order to murder. However two other police personnel named in the WBHRC report have not been charge-sheeted. It is notable that the State government has not given any cognisance to the demands of arresting, suspending or taking the accused police personnel into judicial custody during the trial. Conversely some of the police personnel have been promoted during the last 10 years. Some of the accused come to the Court in official cars with red lights flashing.
6. Despite the Chief Minister’s speeches at the annual meetings of the Police Associations urging the police personnel to become friends to the general public, citizens face a different story. Even for petty problems like diarising loss of mobile or cheque books the citizens need to pay bribes. At least a pack of cigarette is required for lodging a general diary. Hence it is needless to mention that the hyper activity of the Kolkata police on the face of a complaint about the ‘abduction’ of a businessman’s daughter has been powered by money.
7. Using the threat of police action political parties and leaders involve themselves in various nefarious activities. Many are implicated in false cases, are threatened with dire consequences and terrorised to gain favour from the moneyed and powerful section of the society. Only because of this Justice Molla had called the Police, a State backed force of organised hooligans.
8. In many instances of marriage in accordance with Special Marriage Act there have been undue and illegal involvement of well-to-do relatives, police and political leaders in such personal matters. So much so that even in cases of members of Leftist political parties the power of the police have been used.
9. Police personnel were responsible for the death of Kamal Thakur. For demanding punishment for the accused police personnel, his father and then his brother have been murdered under the guise of accidents.
There are many more such incidents. The Police Administration is doing its utmost to use their power to try to influence the witnesses and tamper with evidences. In many cases there have been no trials, in others the convicted have not been punished.
The conscious and well-meaning citizens have remained silent in order not to invite trouble.
Rizwanur was apprehensive. That is why he informed Kareya PS, Kolkata Police Commissioner, human rights organisations and many others. Maybe most of them initiated timely and effective actions. Yet the life threat from the police continued. Threats to be implicated in false cases and consequent arrest continued.
It is sad that the news media did not come to know about the ‘news’ before Rizwanur died. Or even if they did come to know maybe they could not find the appropriate ‘focus’ or ’story line’.
Those who are champions in combating police atrocities and torture, both experienced and inexperienced, perhaps became active but Rizwanur died.
Now there will be many walks, meetings and other forms of protest. There will be promises to stand by the victim’s family. It will happen. It has happened. A great number of families have lost a great number of their dear ones in West Bengal. They have lost them to police atrocities and foul play.
There are only a few families who are still really fighting an unequal battle – demanding justice. Demanding that the accused or the convicted police personnel be punished. Come let us all now stand by their sides.
Naba Dutta
Phone: +9133 2344 9328
Email: nprajna2005@yahoo.com, duttaraychaudhuri@gmail.com
Globalisation of Capital: Some Questions
April 7, 2007

By Debarshi Das, Sanhati
The New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman is a known whipping boy of the liberal left. When his bestseller The World is Flat was released in 2005 it was received with usual disdain and ridicule (I found the following review particularly enjoyable: The peculiar genius of Thomas L. Friedman). In the book, Friedman argues that due to advancement in information technology, globalisation has become a practical panacea for us. Here ‘us’ implies all the citizens of the world, not just those living in the first world. The playing field has been levelled so much that it has become flat. What is required is to reap the benefits of globalisation by pushing for greater openness of trade for goods and services and freer movement of capital. Globalisation creates wealth for all the stakeholders, and interconnects them in gigantic supply chains. People all over the world will be keen to maintain the supply chains undisturbed. World peace will thus be attained. There are some who are creating obstacles on this highway to peace and prosperity. Friedman calls them Islamo-Leninists.
Leaving aside the inanity of his arguments, the thrust of it – that the world is becoming a level ground for the smooth movement of capital more than ever before – has been knocking at our door for quite some now. Have we taken due recognition of the change? Have the programmes for social revolution been accordingly amended?
Let us do a little stock taking of Indian communist parties. Our attempt here is to draw a brief sketch, which runs the risk of being a caricature. One of the first tasks which a communist party does in its programme is to identify the ruling class of the nation state in which it is located. It gives a clear idea as to who are the rulers, who are the ruled; who may be identified as an ally and who are the enemies of social revolution. This document fundamentally sets one party apart from another, since identification of one’s friends and enemies decides what the immediate and eventual tasks of the party are.
Almost all the communist parties of India identify imperialism as a great threat to social revolution. This formulation has its basis not only in the colonial history of India – Lenin’s theorisation of imperialism as necessarily being of reactionary nature had an influence as well. However some of the parties believe that in the fight against imperialism the domestic capitalist class can be an ally, since the interests of the national bourgeoisie are mostly in conflict with the imperial capital. Participation in parliamentary politics therefore is part of the tactic, as it only strengthens the nation state in the fight against imperialism. Alliance with the domestic bourgeoisie is needed also to engender a process of indigenous capitalist development, which by strengthening the nation state will ensure a tougher resistance against imperialism. In order to assist development of domestic capital one needs a strong public sector. Some of the important functions which the public sector will serve are, (a) investing in sectors which are shunned by private capital due to high risk or long gestation period needed to recoup the return (these sectors may be vital for the long run growth of even private capital); (b) account for the externalities which do not enter into the cost-benefit calculations of private capital (simply put, it takes social costs and benefits into consideration, such as establishing a water purifying plant or a public park). These parties recognise that in agriculture, where the majority of India earns its livelihood, capitalist mode of production may not be dominant. There is prevalence of tenancy farming, subsistence family farming which do not satisfy the principal conditions of capitalist production (namely, production for the market, existence of wage labour and accumulation of capital). But capitalism seems to have made an entry into the scene and it is believed to be the ascendant mode.
On the other side of the spectrum are the political groups and parties which do not have much faith in the national nature of the domestic bourgeoisie. Their formulation draws from Mao Tsetung’s idea of comprador bourgeoisie – a capitalist class which does not see much profit in developing independently, in conflict with or in disjunction to imperial capital. It mostly works as agent of the latter. This class is incapable of bringing about a vibrant capitalist economy, where reinvestment of surplus will transform the productive forces. Capitalism is often thought to be associated with huge transformations. Marx had identified it with change, creation and dynamism. Joseph Schumpeter had described its trajectory as that of ‘creative destruction’. But compradors do not have such ground shattering changes on their agenda. They are what Mao described as ‘underlings’; they are for the status quo, not for change. Therefore there is not much point in allying with this reactionary class. Parliamentary politics, a ploy of the agents of global capital and feudal landlords, may not at all be a weapon for bringing about ‘new democratic revolution’ – a revolution to transform a semi-feudal, semi-colonial state into a capitalist one (with the important qualification that this change is to be brought about at the behest of the new democratic state). Therefore the principal tactic for throwing out the semi-feudal, semi-colonial state is to apply extra-parliamentary means. Mass organisations will keep contact with the ‘civil society’ – whereas the party will work from underground. These parties and groups are often pigeon-holed in the nomenclature Naxalites, and more recently Maoists.
What brings Tom Friedman into this unlikely company is the change that has taken place in the last three decades or so. Friedman, perhaps unknowingly, is referring to the fluid identity and movement of global capital. Capital is losing its national origins more than ever before. Lenin’s finance capital had a strong nation state and other state-centred paraphernalia tethered to it. Since nation states, controlled by their capitalist classes, had their stakes in their respective capitals, they fought world wars in the service of capitals. The neoliberal world of today presents us with a different beast. The new finance capital is much more faceless and swift. Unprecedented amounts of capital are crossing national borders in a matter of seconds. These flows do not owe allegiance to any nation. Capital originating from India will be as swift in the global hunt for higher return as the capital from Honduras.
In the wake of dominance of ‘nation-less’ capital, the identity and existence of the nation state itself is increasingly coming under pressure. Nonetheless, it is true that much of the flow is denominated in terms of US dollars. This provides the US economy the freedom to go on purchasing goods and services from the rest of the world by simply issuing dollars. The faith of the global investors on dollars is partly explained by the fact that (a) US has been the leading capitalist nation for several decades now, (b) though its economic might may be waning, it’s military and global political prowess are still unchallenged. However, a declining US economy running on huge current account deficit can not carry on the way it has been doing. A collapse of global confidence on US dollar is long overdue. In sum, the mightiest of the nation states is itself not very comfortable with the new beast.
Need not the programmes of communist parties be responsive to these political economic changes? Should we not move away from the binary of domestic capital (national or comprador) and imperial capital, when their colours are intermingling like never before? Following are some tentative hypotheses.
National capital a la Bombay Plan and Nehruvian Socialism is long gone. One seldom finds corporate houses beseeching the State’s intervention in support of ‘Indian’ capital for fighting multinational corporations. Communist Party of India and Communist Party of India (Marxist) seem to be much more concerned about indigenous capitalist development than the domestic capitalists. Exhortations for nation state from party quarters notwithstanding, the domestic bourgeoisie does not appear to be troubled by the nation state’s future either. On the other hand, the subservient nature of domestic capital seems to be on the decline too. Indian business houses are buying large businesses of First World origin. There are instances of the reverse nature as well. Perhaps all this demonstrates: capital is on a process of metamorphosis – to become a homogenous, single and global category. Conflicts between different capitals, with trenches dug along national boundaries, are subsiding. In sum, there is not much hope of indigenous capitalist development to be carried out by the ‘national’ bourgeoisie. Moreover, the fight against imperialism in a particular country can not be seen in isolation from the fight in other countries. As capital loses its national mooring and becomes global, it is transforming its dialectical opposite into a single mass. Successful resistance against capital has to be built up at an international level. There are insinuations – political or academic – harping on the differences among labours. These have to be clearly analysed and put into perspective. Leon Trotsky’s Permanent Revolution seems to be relevant. So do the World System theories a la Andre Gunder Frank et al.
What effect did these developments have on the domestic ruling class alliance? The previous characterisations had feudal landlords as one important partner in the ruling alliance. Has their stature remained the same? Who will be the allies in the resistance against capital?
Events in India seem to indicate that the balance within the ruling class alliance is tilting in favour of industrial capital (as also services). Terms of trade in the domestic economy has been going against agriculture for a long time now. This is affecting profitability in agriculture and the surplus generated from it. Procurement operations of grains and farm subsidies are being curtailed in the name of fiscal prudence. Quantitative restrictions on farm products imports have been lifted, import duties have been drastically reduced; land is being grabbed on a massive scale. Compensations paid for acquired land should have kept the landlords contended, since their livelihood does not depend on land. But it will imply an eventual emasculation of the landlords – as the basis of their political and social power is eroding.

Singur Flares Up Once again as Kolkata Indulged in carnival
Palash Biswas
Contact: Palash C Biswas, C/O Mrs Arati Roy, Gosto Kanan, Sodepur, Kolkata- 700110, India. Phone: 91-033-25659551
Email: alashbiswaskl@gmail.com">palashbiswaskl@gmail.com
Self-appointed publicists like to believe India has moved into the modern age. Sensex shining India is all out to destroy Rural india, the Bharat Varsh. A new Americanised NRI nationality has taken over and everything indigenous is uprooted mercilessly. Killingfields escalate and peoples resistance is answered with Boots and guns of Absolute Statepower representing Zionist Brahminical White supremacy. The controversy surrounding a small car plant of Tata Motors at Singur does not seem to die down, with about 200 farmers from Baraberi and Bajemelia villages attempted to break into the acquired land for the manufacturing plant on Friday, triggering a fresh violence. Like the seemingly contradictory variedness of life in India, so too the responses of villagers threatened by industrialisation reflect almost the entire gamut of consciousness. In Orissa, over the weekend, three POSCO officials, all Koreans, were kidnapped and later released in a grim and perhaps hopeless replay of bravado. After the incident, the Korean steel major, setting up a $12-billion plant near the Paradip Port, issued an angry statement for the first time after k eeping silent over the previous four such incidents. Across the country in Maharashtra, four villagers near Pune who had violently protested the proposed SEZ by Videocon experienced a leap of faith. They have now sought the revocation of the SEZ and the de-notification of 5,000 acres of acquired land that they insist they would like to develop themselves. Instead of learning from the inert receptiveness of farmers happy with a lumpsum payment or from the violent rejection of land sale as in Nandigram, the farmers of the four villages found their inspiration in Magarpatta City, the hugely successful township created and run by the Magar farming community in the Hadapsar suburb of Pune.

Darkness prevails in Rural Bengal as Puja Carnival, the Hegemony festival gets momentum on Mahastami.Though a light shower in the afternoon threatened to dampen the festive spirit, the sun reappeared soon after, bringing a sigh of relief for one and all. The city has suddenly been transformed into a place of light and sound as Durga Puja is back after a year-long wait. Devotees on Friday thronged puja pandals across the state to offer obeisance to Goddess Durga as part of the auspicious Mahastami day, the second of the four-day festivalBig corporates are pumping in crores this festive season after all banners at key spots is the best way to get consumer attention. Organisers say the money from corporate sponsors is the major chunk for the pandals and the rest of it comes from membership and contributions.And there's another way the sponsorship is coming — the local channels tie up with pandals for live telecast of the puja. In fact, the price can go upto 15 lakhs as it has for one of the most popular pandals.. Durga Puja now seems to be an event more for advertisers than devotees. Meanwhile,Residents of Sagar Island on Tuesday joined hands with Greenpeace to begin a massive mangrove planting drive. Nearly 8,000 saplings were planted on Monday and Tuesday. With sky clearing up after showers considerably dampened celebrations on Thursday, revellers chanted hymns of the Goddess as lakhs of people from near and afar made a beeline at pandals to offer anjali (prayer). The whole city virtually turned into a walk-in art gallery as colourfully illuminated pandals , housing idols of the Goddess, invoked the spirit of merriment. Each pandal is a tribute to the consummate skill of the artisans and artistry -- both in terms of innovation in pandal -making and lighting.
At Belur Math on the banks of Ganga in neighbouring Howrah district, 'Kumari Puja' was held as per the custom -- started by Ramakrishna Paramahansha in the late 19th century. The puja , offered to a young girl as the mother Goddess by the Ramakrishna Mission monks, was watched by thousands of devotees at the Math before partaking of the mahaprasad . People spent time with friends and relatives during the day and visited award-winning pandals like the Suruchi Sangha in New Alipore and Badamtala in the south of the city. The euphoria that sets in during the four-day carnival that is the Durga Puja brings both a resurgence of economy and faith in this otherwise beleaguered city. For the days that Durga is worshipped, Kolkata is transformed into a city enchanted.Faith and economy are inexorably linked together with the Durga Puja. The commercialization of the Puja in West Bengal began in a big way in the 1960’s. Businessmen, from the industrialist to the hawker, saw in this annual event an opportunity to mint money. The community Puja dates back to the 19th century. But the Durga Puja in its essence started earlier around 1610, in the homes of zamindars. What later came to be known as community pujas were started by zamindars in a competitive mood. They called them “Barwaris” derived from Baro Yar or 12 friends, who were essentially sycophants of the zamindar. Over the years the “Barwari Puja” has undergone subtle changes of form but the spirit remains the same. What has, however, really changed, is its economics.Over the years the potential of the Durga Puja was explored by merchants. Today the Pujas mean a massive carnival, sending fiscal waves across the country. The money generated during this festival in West Bengal flows into different States and runs into several crores of rupees, precisely how many no one has attempted to calculate.

After their repeated requests to the farmers to disperse went in vain, police resorted to firing teargas shells and also lathicharged the crowd fearing the situation might get out of control.Accusing the government of illegally acquiring the land through excessive force, the farmers said they wanted to offer prayers at their lands on the occasion of mahaashtami at the ongoing Navaratra festival.The farmers said they were working peacefully on the land surrounding the Tata factory and police instigated them by charging at them with batons.
"Today was ashtami so we came here to offer prayers. But the police harassed us. In the police offensive, my daughter was hit on the head while I was hurt on legs", said Prashant Kumar Singha, a local farmer.
Tata Motors started work on its factory in Singur earlier this year on what is touted as the world's cheapest car for 100,000 rupees.
But the project, which has become a test case for the ruling Communists party in West Bengal, has been mired in controversy with some farmers declaring that the government took their land against their will.There have been regular protests in West Bengal this year over the acquisition of agriculture land for industry.

On the other hand, TCS and Singapore-based realty major Ascendas are among the 14 SEZ proposals cleared by the government on Frioday while a decision on DLF and Unitech Hitech projects in Noida was deferred. Formal clearance for 10 proposals and in-principle nod to three applicants were given by the Board of Approvals chaired by Commerce Secretary G K Pillai, taking the total number of formal approvals to 395. This is the first decision on SEZs after the Union Cabinet had cleared the Resettlement and Rehabilitation policy on October 11, making the process of land acquisition transparent and easy for the promoters.
"Of the SEZs given formal approval, 156 have been notified and an investment of Rs 50,906 crores has already taken place in these zones," Pillai said. He said a decision on DLF and Unitech Hitech was deferred since the promoters did not have land in possession.
Formal approval was given to TCS to set up an IT zone in West Bengal and Ascendas received in-principle clearance for electronics and multi-product SEZs in Tamil Nadu.
The BoA cleared Perfect IT SEZ's proposal for a 10 hectare IT and ITeS zone in Noida. Adani Group's 1,000 hectare multi-product zone at Mundra in Gujarat was also given a go-ahead.
The other proposals that were formally cleared include Saloni Business Park's 27.24 hectare biotechnology park in Maharashtra as well as a 14.77 hectare electronic hardware and IT zone in Raigad, proposed by Modern India Property Developers.
Privilege Power and Infrastructure Ltd's 2,245 hectare multi-product zone in Maharashtra was given in-principle nod.
The recent Supreme Court ban on acquisition of “good agricultural land” has sent ripples through the far-flung villages of Beraberi, Bajemelia and Khasherberi, where large tracts of agricultural land have been acquired to make way for the Tata small car factory.
The SC verdict, which stated that governments should not acquire land for a private company under the guise of public purpose, came in handy for Krishi Jami Raksha Committee (KJRC) that took out a rally on Thursday at Beraberi Purbapara to whip up sentiments against the state government.
Tata Motors officials have taken care to assuage feelings by flagging off its initiative to support the cause of primary and secondary school education in Singur. On Thursday, the company provided desks, benches, chairs, tables, cupboards and electrical fittings in addition to educational and sports materials to a primary school at Ruidaspara in Beraberi.
KJRC though was not bothered by this. On Thursday, its convener Becharam Manna was back in Singur, telling the villagers that the KJRC stand had been vindicated by none other than the Supreme Court. So, he wants the government to return agricultural land at Bajemelia, Beraberi and Khasherberi .
“The government has acquired fertile plots under the guise of public purpose. I am not talking of areas such as Joymollah where the land is not fertile, but the SC verdict holds true for vast stretches of Gopalnagar, Beraberi and Khaserberi, which have small and marginal farmers,” said Manik Das, a marginal farmer from Gopalnagar.
Dibakar Das of CPM-backed Pragatishil Shechchhaye Jami Bikreta Shilpa Sthapan Committee, said: "The state has not acquired vast stretches of rich agricultural land."
The recent policy on resettlement and rehabilitation of the potentially displaced adds a splash of novelty to the old package of compensation and little else. The proposal to include a choice of compensation through shares worth 20 per cent of the land value will make the farmer as much a stakeholder in the project as the old Integrated Rural Development Programme turned landless labourers into poultry farmers with the offer of a pig or cow. And in any case, how much less of a fraud would the volatile equity be on the farmer selling his land than an outright grab?
The new policy on resettlement and rehabilitation now endorsed by the Cabinet is like a Band-Aid for a patient racked with a virulent fever. For decades, successive governments have had to tackle the problem of displacement by public sector projects, the Sardar Sarovar being the most prominent. Precisely because of its star-studded opponents, the issue of displacement riding on the back of a larger issue of land for non-farm activity remained hidden from public view. The question of empowering displaced persons with options was not even considered.
With the rapid growth in industrial output over the past few years and the growth in incremental investments that accompanied the pick-up in output slack over the past four years of rapid growth, the vulnerability of displacement through land acquisition surfaced from the deep, of all places most violently in Nandigram in west Bengal.
Complacent State governments and an even more smug Commerce and Industry Ministry simply assumed that once capital was assured with the promise of tax privileges, the Special Economic Zone would become the economy’s special purpose vehicle, racing it along to a ten per cent growth and full employment.

Mangrove trees have a proven anti-soil erosion ability and are extremely effective in preventing cyclonic disasters. During the supercyclone that hit Orissa in 1999 and flattened nine districts, Kendrapara suffered the least because of its mangrove jungle. Despite being close to the eye of the cyclone, the death toll in Kendrapara was 10 times less than other districts.
The latest initiative in the Sunderbans, led by Sugata Hazra from the School of Oceanography at Jadavapur University, aims to arrest the rate of coastal erosion in these endangered islands as a result of global warming. An unprecedented rise in sea level has already submerged some islands in the Sunderbans.
Earlier on Monday, Greenpeace had organised an awareness campaign at Gangasagar. Over 10,000 residents, many of them schoolchildren, voiced their demand for immediate action globally to tackle climate change which impacts their daily lives. Greenpeace flagship Rainbow is currently in the Sunderbans en route to Bali.
According to the findings from the report of ‘Vulnerability assessment of the Sunderbans island system in the perspective of climate change’ by Hazra, the vulnerability of the Sunderbans to climate impacts is very high in comparison to other coastal areas of India. Over 70,000 people from the Sunderbans are under the risk of losing their habitat permanently due to sea level rise, increased cyclone intensity and flooding by the year 2030.
"Mangrove planting will arrest the rate of coastal erosion. This is an immediate adaptation measure and the people are taking this collective action for the sake of their lives and livelihoods. However, it is evident that unless large scale measures to stop climate change by means of emission reduction are taken globally, a substantial part of the Sunderbans might disappear from the map," he warned.
Greenpeace Climate and Energy spokesperson Soumyabrata Rahut said the Sunderbans was one of the first climate hot spots in India and would set a precedent for the impacts of sea level rise.
"Increased displacement of people due to loss of habitation and land will increase India's count of climate refugees and add to the burden of poverty under which we are already reeling. At this critical juncture where we only have eight years to act, strong and time bound mitigation measures must accompany measures for adaptation," he said.
Nandigram:State Sponsored Mayhem
By Nilanju Dutta
17 October, 2007
Combat Law
http://www.countercurrents.org/dutta171007.htm
Far removed from Kolkata's hubbub, Nandigram always belonged to the rural backwaters of West Bengal. It needed appendages like East Midnapur district or Haldia Development Authority to be spotted on state's map. Yet all of a sudden it lost its anonymity when it became the centre of peasants' resistance against an attempt by the government to acquire their agricultural land for setting up a Special Economic Zone (SEZ). The SEZ controversy started when the West Bengal government decided to set up a chemical hub under the SEZ policy at Nandigram. It led to brutal repression by armed police and CPM cadre who resorted to firing, assault and rape. Villagers narrated what they went through before a people's tribunal on Nandigram that called the violence a 'preplanned, state-sponsored massacre' carried out 'to teach a lesson' to people resisting acquisition of their land for the SEZ project.
On January 7, at around 3 am, the villagers of Nandigram woke up to the sounds of bombs and gunfire coming from the house of a CPM activist. At least five persons were killed in the encounter. In retaliation, the villagers set fire to the CPM camp at Baratole in Khejuri as well as to the house of the CPM activist, Shankar Samanta, who was burnt to death in the incident. The ironical part, though, was that the police and the administrative officials were nowhere on the scene when this violence was taking place and confined themselves to the Nandigram Police Station. In total contrast to this on March 14, 2007 there were thousands of unarmed Nandigram folk- mostly women and children-gathered in the early hours of morning near the Bangabhera bridge to peacefully block any attempts by the state forces to invade their villages. Ranged against them was an about 2,000-strong police contingent along with several hundred armed cadre of the CPM -- some of them allegedly dressed in ill-fitting police uniforms. Without any warning the police began lobbing teargas shells. This blinded the crowd and created panic and commotion. Soon the police and the goons began firing. The violence continued for the next an-hour-and-a-half approsimately. Many complaints of horrific and deliberate violence resorted to by the police were made by the residents before the tribunal in this incident.
The report People's Tribunal on Nandigram brought out by All India Citizens' Initiative is replete with testimonies given by villagers of inhuman and brutal vendetta unleashed by the police, state administration and ruling CPM cadre. The report begins with an introduction giving in details of where and when the Tribunal took place and as to what were the responses of the state authorities. Then it goes on to give a brief summary on the backdrop of Nandigram that led to the violence of March 14, 2007 brutally demolishing the past, present and the future of the victims. The impact of the incident on women and children along with the list of dead, missing and injured persons are categorically brought out in the report. Reading it gives a first hand picture of the actual occurrence of the carnage and its aftermath. The details given show that the slaughter caused by the police firing on the retreating villagers, mainly women and children, was pre-planned. The individual testimonies by the victims show that there was lack of trust or faith in the police or, indeed, in the system since it would tantamount to seeking help from the perpetrators who had tortured them.
Going by the summary one comes to know that the medical help provided to the victims was simply shocking. Victims of rape were not examined for sexual assault and nothing was recorded medically. From the various depositions of the victims, the picture becomes clear that the minimum facilities required in a hospital were missing, no separate facilities for men and women existed and that operations were done under torchlight in the village hospital. Even the medical reports were tampered and several discrepancies came up through the testimonies of the victims. The victims were forcibly discharged with bullets still lodged in their bodies. Therefore, it is quite obvious that there was a link between the police and the district medical and other authorities, all of whom apparently were covering up the true nature, cause, extent and gravity of violence.
The remarkable section of the report, though, is the Findings and Recommendations, the report has within it various observations which are made on the basis of factual evidence along with the numerous depositions of the victims before the tribunal and these recommendations are aimed at relevant state authorities to take up immediate action, particularly in the context of the worsening humanitarian situation on the relief and medical front. The report also goes on to suggest the necessary recommendations that the Tribunal had come up with. A thorough reading of the recommendations shows that they are in fact sensitive and insightful. Efforts have been made for police reforms as well as for the 'establishment of human rights courts to provide justice in the cases of human rights violation that arises from conflicts between state and the people or amongst different political group.' It also suggests, "there should be an immediate end to the economic and physical blockade of the people of Nandigram by the armed CPM men active in the surrounding areas have been preventing the flow of essential supplies as well as safe movement of people in and out of the area."
The report in every possible way highlights the pain, agony, helplessness and the courage of the poor as well as the total lack of respect and profound apathy with which the authorities treat the poor and the helpless of our country
Because most of the victims of this massacre were women who were sexually assaulted and molested and suffered in the most cruel, degrading and inhuman manner, the report also recommended, "the judiciary should consider setting up a special bench, headed by a woman judge, to hear all the cases of rape, molestation and violence against women of Nandigram by both police personnel and armed cadre of the CPM." Along with it the report also emphasises on the appointment of a 'monitoring committee' so as to ensure that there is no repetition of the violence of March 14 suffered by defenceless villagers of Nandigram.
The report in every possible way highlights the pain, agony, helplessness and the courage of the poor as well as the total lack of respect and profound apathy with which the authorities treat the poor and the helpless of our country. No rehabilitation measures have been made available to the victims who suffered such brutal atrocities that fear has been besetting them and loss of hope in future is common among them. There has been deliberate negligence on the part of the administration in not attending to the victims and providing them immediate medical assistance, and relief as per the universal guidelines. The poor seems to be the only ones who are expected to show discipline. The report is noteworthy in the sense that it reflects the voice of the marginalised people who are otherwise neglected and left to face sub-human conditions. Such report gives a little glint of hope as it shows that there are people who want to make the difference and contribute to the struggles of individuals by asking for quick justice, transparency and fair play.
The author is a lawyer, HRLN, Delhi
Nuclear Technology 1960 v/s 2007 © Ravinder Singh

Concerns expressed by a friend appears to be genuine BUT ARE OUTDATED. There is quantum jump in technology since CIRUS or Tarapur reactors were built. Automatic & Remote controls, improved designs and accurate instrumentations had made Nuclear Plant operations safe. Optical Fiber technology has made communication billion times faster and economical. Operators in India can get technical support from Technology Providers on continuous basis. Every big country with high-energy demand have planned big share coming from Nuclear Source.

Commercial Reactors of 9,00,000 MWe rating may come up by 2040. So there is great interest in developing “Third and Fourth Generation Technologies” that are very efficient and cost substantially less. To this inventor Pebble Bed technology may emerge as the most efficient and economical design beating the global leaders like GE, Mitsubishi, AREVA, SIEMENS and Westinghouse etc.

GE introduced ABWR in 1996 but within a decade announced ESBWR that cost substantially less – 30% to 40% less than conventional LWR but 3000 times safer.

http://en.wikipedia .org/wiki/ Pebble_bed_ reactor
http://www.pbmr. com/contenthtml/ Annual2007/ pdfs/fullreport. pdf
http://en.wikipedia .org/wiki/ ABWR
http://en.wikipedia .org/wiki/ ESBWR

[A nice operational feature in the ABWR design is electric fine motion control rod drives. Older BWRs use a hydraulic system to move the control rods in six-inch increments. -- The ABWR is fully automated in response to a loss-of-coolant- accident LOCA, and operator action is not required for 3 days. These and other improvements make the plant significantly safer than previous reactors.]

UK- http://www.world- nuclear.org/ info/inf84. html
Japan- http://www.world- nuclear.org/ info/inf79. html
Russia - http://www.world- nuclear.org/ info/inf45. html
China - http://www.world- nuclear.org/ info/inf63. html

Japan the only country to suffer Nuclear Bombs plans to have 60% of its electricity by 2050 from Nuclear Power and use nuclear power to produce Hydrogen to run clean Hydrogen Vehicles.

[Projected nuclear generating capacity in 2050 was 90 GWe. This means doubling both nuclear generating capacity and nuclear share to about 60% of total power produced. In addition, some 20 GW (thermal) of nuclear heat will be utilised for hydrogen production. Hydrogen is expected to supply 10% of consumed energy and 70% of this will come from nuclear plants.]

[By 2006 the government's (Russia) resolve to develop nuclear power had firmed and there were projections of adding 2-3 GWe per year to 2030 in Russia as well as exporting plants to meet world demand for some 300 GWe of new nuclear capacity in that time frame.]

[Additional reactors are planned (China), including some of the world's most advanced, to give a fivefold increase in nuclear capacity to 40 GWe by 2020 and then a further three to fourfold increase to 120-160 GWe by 2030.----- The State Power Grid Corporation expects to supply 3810 billion kWh in 2010 from 852 GWe. Growth is then expected to slow to 2020, when capacity is expected to reach 1330 GWe.]

OLDER Technology;

[The first Magnox power station, Calder Hall, was the world's first commercial nuclear power station. First connection to the grid was on 27 August 1956, and the plant was officially opened by Queen Elizabeth II on 17 October 1956. When the station closed on 31 March 2003, the first reactor had been in use for nearly 47 years. --- In all, 11 power stations totalling 26 units were built in the UK where the design originated.]

http://en.wikipedia .org/wiki/ Magnox
http://en.wikipedia .org/wiki/ CANDU
http://en.wikipedia .org/wiki/ Nuclear_reactor_ technology

[It should be noted that a nulear explosive involves an uncontrolled chain reaction, and the rate of fission in a reactor is not capable of reaching sufficient levels to trigger a nuclear explosion (even if the fission reactions increased to a point of being out of control, it would melt the reactor assembly rather than form a nuclear explosion).]

CANDU design has side entry of fuel rods that was subjected to leaking and Magnox the first generation reactor didn’t have “Containment Shield”.

CONTAINMENT SHIELD;

You can see in the following that entire Nuclear Reactor is housed under a large reactor dome therefore entirely safe.

http://en.wikipedia .org/wiki/ Pressurized_ Water_Reactor
http://en.wikipedia .org/wiki/ Image:Reactorves sel.gif
http://en.wikipedia .org/wiki/ European_ Pressurized_ Reactor

I worked in a power plant in Delhi in 1975, more than 15 years after India’s Nuclear Program began and two decades after Calder Hall was commercialized. Four reactors of 40 years “Vintage Are Still Operational”. After a month training CEO of the project entrusted me with the job of procurement. I was thus connected to all sections of the project.

There was no computerization operators relied entirely on their skills. They would ask boiler operators on public announcement system about water level etc and most of the equipments were operated manually on instructions of broadcast to entire unit. Though initially some critical equipment were operated from controller’s room but there was no way to find out the coal carried by conveyors or water pumped by boiler feed water. Operator had to take regular readings of water level to make sure water level in the boiler is within specified in the manual. Boiler feed water pump had to be switched on or off to regulate water supply to boiler. There were no automatic controls.

Covers of bunkers or sprinklers in coal handling plants once worn out were never replaced for they were either imported or the procedure was complicated. Maintenance standards were poor. Coal & ash dust and smoke at many locations were blinding, lighting was poor.

Within a year of working in power station labor engaged in handling coal or ash would get Tuberculosis.

NTPC now run the projects as also private players competently. Companies make excellent profits and can afford to keep the environment clean.

India can adopt these new technology which are much more safer and simpler in design also fully computer controlled.

Only fools think of Atomic Bombs than using nuclear technology for power generation.

Ravinder Singh October06, 2007

Re: Nuclear Power For France & Japan Bombs For India
Posted by: "krishna n"
Thu Oct 4, 2007 5:57 am (PST)

APPARANTLY THE WRITER HAS NOT WORKED IN A NUCLEAR PLANT OR IS AWARE OF THE PROBLEMS ASSOCIATED WITH IT. AS A PERSON WHO IS CLOSELY ASSOCIATED WITH THE NUCLEAR FIELD, WE SHOULD STAY AWAY FROM NUCLEAR POWER. NUCLEAR BOMB IS REQUIRED AND FOR THAT WE REQUIRE ONLY PLUTONIUM PRODUCING REACTORS. THE PLUTONIUM HAS TO BE EXTRACTED BEFORE THE URANIUM IS BURNED FULLY DUE TO REASONS OF CONTAMINATION BY OTHER ISOTOPES. THE FEW PARAMETERS ON WHICH WE SHOULD NOT PROCEED WITH NUCLEAR POWER ARE'
THE NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS REQUIRE HIGHLY TRAINED PERSONNEL TO OPERATE IT. IT TAKES A TWO YEAR TRAINING OF A GRADUATE ENGINEER TO BE AUTHORISED AS A JUNIOUR SHIFT ENGINEER. ROUND THE CLOCK OPERATION THE PLANT REQUIRES THE SUPERVISION OF SENIOR SHIFT ENGINEERS WHO ARE FUTHER CETIFIED BASED ON THE SUCESSFUL EXPERIENCE AND PERFORMANCE OF JUNIOR SHIFT ENGINEERS OVER MANY MANY YEARS. ONE SHOULD REMEMBER THATTHE CHERNOBYL HAPPENED BECASUE THERE WERE NO SENIOR SHIFT ENGINEERS ON DUTY TO REACT TO A CRISIS. IN THE SEVENTIES I WAS IN THE PANEL TO SELECT ENGINEERS AND IT WAS FOUND THAT GOOD ENGINEERS DOES NOT APPLY FOR JOBS IN THE DEPARTMENT OF ATOMIC ENERGY DUE TO POOR SALARY AND DUE TO RADIATION HAZARDS. MOSTLY DAE IS AN EMPLOYMENT EXCHANGE FOR BRAMINS FROM SOUTH AND MOST OF THEM ARE NOT GOOD. AS LONG AS DAE IS WITH GOVT. THE SALARIES WILL BE BAD AND GOOD FELLOWS WILL NOT JOIN. ON THIS ASPECT WE SHOULD NOT PROCEED FURTHER ON THE NUCLEAR POWER.
NEXT POINT IS THE RADIATION HAZARD. THERE WAS A TIME WHEN STAFF FROM ALL OVER DAE WERE SENT TO TAPS TO DO REPAIR AS THE AMERICAN SUPPLIED REACTOR PLANT HAS BECOME A RADIATION BOMB. BOSSES FROM ALL OVER THE DAE ESTABLISHMENTS SENT PERSONS WHOM THEY WANT TO PUNISH FOR DOING THE REPAIR WORK IN THE PLANT. MANY RADIATION RELATED DEATHS OCCURED AND NOT KNOWN TO THE PUBLIC.
WHEN THE CIRUS REACTOR STARTED IN THE SIXTIES THERE WAS A CONTAINMENT DOME, BUT THERE WERE NO SYSTEM TO SCRUB THE RADIOACTIVITY IN THE CONTAINMENT IN CASE OF A MAXIMUM CREDIBLE ACCIDENT. THAT WAS INSTALLED SOME TWO DECADES LATER. SO THE WHOLE OF BOMBAY IS UNDER THREAT AND NO ONE TOLD IT OUTSIDE. FREQUENT FAILURE OF HEPA FILTERS THAT FILTER THE EXHAUST AIR OF CIRUS AT TROMBAY FAILED AND NO ONE IS AWARE OF IT. SO ALSO HIGHLY CONTAMINATED COOLANT WAS SIMPLY PUMPED IN TO THE TROMBAY CREAK AFTER EVERY SPLIT ROD INCIDENT IN CIRUS. MANY OF THE REACTORS ARE NOT DESIGNED TO STAND THE EARTHQUAKE OF THE LOCATION. NAPP IS AN EXAMPLE. TSUNAMI WAS NOT HEARD DURING THE DESIGN OF THE FAST BREEDER REACTOR AT KALPAKKAM.
ANOTHER REASON WHY WE SHOULD NOT PROCEED WITH NUCLEAR POWER IS THE MUSLIM TERRORISM. THERE IS NO PROTECTION AGAINST THE SUICIDE MUSLIM BOMBER SQUAD FOR ANY OF THE NUCLEAR PLANTS AND THE WHOLE AREAS COULD BE LIKE CHERNOBYL AFTER AN ATTACK.
THE COSTOF POWER PRODUCTION IS NOT ONLY FIVE TIMES HIGHER, BUT AFTER THE PLANT LIFE IS OVER, IT COULD STILL BE A MOST HAZARDOUS PLACE TO BE PROTECTED AS ANY ATTACK ON IT COULD LAID TO WASTE THE WHOLE AREA.. WE DO NOT EVEN HAVE THE TECHNOLOGY TO STORE THE WASTES FOR MILLIONS OF YEARS.
THIS LIST COULD GO ON. BUT THE FACT THAT AFTER THE THREE MILE ISLAND ACCIDENT THE US STOPPED CONSTRUCTING NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS. ALSO THERE IS ONLY ONE PLANT THAT IS PROCTECTED IN THE WORLD AND THAT IS A RUSSIAN REACTOR THAT IS UNDERGROUND. VARIOUS ASPECTS OF THE NUCLEAR POWER IS BLOGGED BY ME OVER THE YEARS AND I CONSIDER OUR NUCLEAR AGREEMENT WITH US IS A TREACHERY BY THE CIA AGENT MANMOHAN WHO PERMITTED THE BANK BCCI THAT WAS FUNDING PAKI NUCLEAR PROGRAMME AND TERRORISM FOR ISI AND THE DRUG MONEY LAUNDERING FOR CIA, IN 1983 WHILE HE WAS THE RBI GOVERNOR AGAINST RAW ADVICE.
I HAD NEGOTIATED A NUCLEAR FUEL AGREEMENT AND DRAFTED THE AGREEMENT WHICH WAS SIGNED BY OUR GOVERNMENT, AND THE PRESENT AGREEMENT VIOLATES ALL STANDARD NORMS FOR SUCH A DOCUMENT.
THE PLANT AND GRASS CONVERT THE SOLAR ENERGY WITH AN EFFICIENCY OF ONE PERCENT AND THAT IS THE BEST OPTION FOR US. WE CAN ALSO GO ON A MASSIVE SCALE FOR SOLAR POWER, WIND POWER AND WAVE POWER. WE CAN ALSO USE OUR COAL FOR POWER PRODUCTION.

Get Ready to be raped by US Strikepower Omnipresent!
Palash Biswas
Contact: Palash C Biswas, C/O Mrs Arati Roy, Gosto Kanan, Sodepur, Kolkata- 700110, India. Phone: 91-033-25659551
Email: alashchandrabiswas@gmail.com">palashchandrabiswas@gmail.com
Get ready to be raped by US strikepower omnipresent. Asia has already witnessed it happening in Vietnam, Korea and Iraq! bangladesh had been raped by Pakistany Army during liberation war in 1971. Submissive ruling comradors in Asia, weakest as well as so called emerging superpower japan provides enough space and scope for US adventure. India has been least aware of developements around since the first day of Independence or rather the rulers never cared for the suffering people as it allowed to happen partition holocaust. It was never moved to witness the persecution and refugee influx across the border. Moreover, military rule under AFPSA covering kashmir to northeast has enough cause to justify the raping phenomenon. Indian Ruling Class has never been ashamed of the events like naked parad in Manipur very recently. dalit and minority women are often subjected to sexual exploitation as it turns as joy for the consumer Corporate culture prevailing!
A top United Nations official has suggested that incentives backed by strong encouragement might persuade the Myanmar's military junta to move towards national reconciliation and establishment of democracy. While, Japanese authorities are investigating the alleged rape of a teenager by four U.S. Marines in southwestern Japan last weekend, officials and media said Friday.Police in Hiroshima prefecture are working with U.S. military officials to investigate the allegation, which the 19-year-old woman made to police, top government spokesman Nobutaka Machimura told reporters.
"It would be unforgivable if this turns out to be true," Machimura said.
The U.S. military has about 50,000 troops based in Japan under a bilateral security treaty. Many Japanese complain of crime, pollution and noise associated with the bases.The rape of a schoolgirl by three American servicemen in Okinawa, which has the largest U.S. military presence, sparked large protests in 1995.
The woman in the newly reported incident allegedly met the men, believed to be Marines from the nearby Iwakuni Marine Corps Air Station, at a restaurant or bar in Hiroshima early Saturday morning, local media reports said, citing unnamed police officials.The men allegedly took the woman outside to a car and drove her to a parking lot about a mile away where they raped her, according to the reports.
The U.S. Embassy said that it was "aware of the reported incident" and, together with U.S. Forces Japan, was cooperating fully with Japanese authorities.
"We take reports of this nature very seriously," it said.
USFJ spokesman Master Sgt. Terence Peck made a nearly identical statement.Neither officials nor the media reports named any of the people involved in the alleged incident.Hiroshima is about 430 miles southwest of Tokyo.

"The world is not just there to punish Myanmar, but to see that there is engagement to address the root cause of discontent," said UN Secretary-General's special envoy Ibrahim Gambari, who is in the region to hold consultations with the neighbouring countries including India.
Gambari, who has just concluded discussions in Indonesia, now heads to India, China and Japan to discuss the situation in Myanmar.
He has already held discussions with officials of Thailand and Malaysia.
Gambari, is scheduled to go to Myanmar in the middle of November for another round of discussions with the military leadership and the opposition seeking a democratic set up.
Polls must be held, elected govt will run the country : Gen Moeen

Friday October 19 2007 01:08:05 AM BDT

Army Chief General Moeen U Ahmed on Wednesday said the next general election is a must, as an elected government will run the country.He was addressing an opinion-exchange meeting with the Bangladeshi expatriates(Bangladesh Today)
at World’s Fair Marina in this US city, explaining the situation that led to the 1/11 changeover and the changes now underway.
"Election must be held. An elected government will rule the country," he told the gathering of over 200 Bangladeshi people living in America.
He urged the Bangladeshi expatriates to work for ensuring participation of honest candidates in the next general election. After his speech, the Army Chief, whose force is acting in aid of the present caretaker government, replied to a volley of questions from the audience.
Replying to a question as to what if Awami League or BNP assumed power again or they boycotted the election, General Moeen said, "The people of Bangladesh don’t want to go back to the situation prevailing before 1/11."
As a purge is going on against corruption in high places, he hailed the activities of the Anti-Corruption Commission.
Naming the names of detained ex-premier Sheikh Hasina and Khaleda Zia, he said the ACC during the time of the last elected government could not do anything. " But, after getting independence, the ACC has been successful in bringing the big corrupt to justice."
The visiting Army Chief said the past governments amended the constitution to serve their own interest. " That’s why the MPs could not work for the welfare of the state. Now time has come to put an end to such practice."
Responding to another question whether the government is sparing Jamaat leaders in the current anti-corruption drive, Moeen pointed out that there are several Jamaat leaders on the list of 222 corruption and terror suspects.
"So it is not correct that the government is exempting Jamaat leaders from the anti-corruption drive. The ACC is being run by completely neutral persons." He urged the Bangladeshi expatriates not to create any divisions among them and to work together for the welfare of Bangladesh.
General Moeen said if there is no problem or crisis in future, all works of formulating voter list plus ID cards would be completed before July.
He said it is expected that some 9 crore genuine voters would be enrolled in the new list.
Referring to separation of the Judiciary from November 1, General Moyeen hoped that many changes would come in the country’s law-and-order situation after the execution of the decision. About the recovery of smuggled money, he said the past government had taken initiative to take back the smuggled money, but could not bring back a single penny.
Replying to another question about the distortion of history of liberation war, the army chief said it is beyond all doubts that Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman is father of the nation. "In fact Bangabandhu and Ziaur Rahman both are respected persons. There should not be any controversy over them."
Explaining the political situation during the takeover by the present caretaker government, General Moeen said there were three options open before the Jan 11 changeover. The first was to hold back and not to intervene in politics.
The second was military takeover and the third was to declare a state of emergency to create a proper environment for the elections.
Moeen categorically said that he did not follow the footprints of past military rulers.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Appointment of consultants to CG under consideration: Mainul
Staff Correspondent
The government is considering the appointment of consultants to help the advisers in discharging their duties as the present government would continue for another year as per election schedule.
"We are mulling over how some people can be included in the caretaker government to help the over-burdened advisers in discharging their duties", said Law adviser Mainul Hosein while talking to The Bangladesh Today.
As per constitution there is no scope to appoint more advisers so the government has no intention to appoint advisers, he added.
Referring to Army Chief Moeen U Ahmed’s proposal to expand the advisory council, the law adviser said, "We will discuss the matter his return home from abroad".
Earlier, Communications adviser M A Matin and LGRD adviser Anwarul Iqbal at the secretariat on Thursday said, "We have not discussed it at the advisory council meeting".
Bangabandhu remains Father of the Nation: All freed, except 222 listed corrupts: Jamaat leaders were not spared

Friday October 19 2007 02:33:21 AM BDT

Army Chief General Moeen U Ahmed has said that all are freed except 222 corrupt persons whose names were published by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC).(New Nation)
General Moeen was speaking at a civic rally at New York in the United States on Wednesday.
Responding to a question by an expatriate Bangladeshi, he said the list of corrupt individuals published by the ACC also included the names of several leaders of Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh. So, the allegation is not true that Jamaat leaders were spared from the corrupt list.
"In fact, those who looted the state's wealth have been sent to jail and it will continue, because the anti-graft watchdog is now being run by completely neutral persons," he said.
The Army Chief said movement of a single individual, except these 222 corrupt persons has not been restricted. "So, it would be a blatant lie if someone claims that the caretaker government was trying to restrict the movements of all," he said.
Replying to a question of Shah Shahidul Huq, president of World Human Rights Inc, General Moeen said formation of a human rights commission in Bangladesh has already been completed.
This commission now awaits a formal announcement.
The Army Chief called upon the expatriate Bangladeshis not to create divisions among themselves over trifle matters. "Perhaps, the caretaker government could not take right decision in one or two cases. But, the entire Bangladesh ought not to be blamed for it," he said.
"Such incidents might happen due to the failures of the persons concerned. So, those who are at abroad must give priority to the interest of Bangladesh."
General Moeen said, "Bangladesh is a country which is all of us. It is not a country of any particular individual or political party. Lack of good governance does not mean that the entire country is bad."
Responding to a question of Colombia University teacher Dwijen Bhattacharya, General Moeen asked, "What's the minority community? We've only one identity and that is we're Bangladeshis. No one would be able to create division among us identifying us as majority or minority."
Replying to another question, the Army Chief said Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman is "our Father of the Nation." "There is no scope to create any controversy over this matter. It has already been included in the textbooks. In fact, Bangabandhu and former president Ziaur Rahman are the respected personalities to us. So, it would not be wise to create any controversy bringing them into politics," he said.
The Army Chief addressed the civic rally of eminent persons of the Bangladesh community on the first day of his weeklong visit to the United States at the invitation of globally renowned Harvard University.
The Bangladesh Embassy at Washington organized the rally at World Fair Marina Restaurant at Queens in New York City. It was also addressed by Bangladesh Ambassador Humayun Kabir.
Bangladesh's Permanent Representative to the United Nations Ismat Jahan was present at the rally.
General Moeen will hold talks with the president of current session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) at the UN Headquarters this morning. Later, he will exchange opinion on various issues with the media in New York.
The Army Chief is scheduled to hold talks with Congressman Joseph Crowley, who is the co-chair of Bangladesh Caucus in the US Congress tonight.
Later, he will visit Florida, where his son and brother live.
General Moeen will hold a breakfast meeting with eminent persons in Florida tomorrow and address a rally of the Bangladesh community on Sunday morning. Afterward, he will leave for Harvard University in Boston to deliver an address on Bangladesh situation.

From Information Economy To Marketing Economy
http://www.calicocat.com/marketing_economy.htm
The decline of the manufacturing economy and the rise of the information economy
The traditional explanation of our nation?s economic development is that we have moved from an agricultural economy to a manufacturing economy, and then from a manufacturing economy to an information economy.
It was technology that moved us from an agricultural economy to a manufacturing economy. Technology automated and improved farming so that a much smaller number of workers could grow a much greater of food. So jobs moved from farms to factories.
One should point out that most of the factory jobs weren?t all that great. The term ?sweatshop? arose from the harsh working conditions in factories. At most of these factory jobs, the workers were mere automatons, instructed to do a repetitive task over and over again. These were not jobs that gave meaning to people?s lives, they just put money in their bank account. For these reasons, many have trumpeted the arrival of the information economy as a good thing, an improvement to the lives of most working Americans.
With respect to the decline of the manufacturing economy in the United States, the numbers speak for themselves. In 1950, 34% of non-farm workers were in the manufacturing sector, and that has declined to only 13% in 2002 (see USA Today, 12/12/2002: U.S. manufacturing jobs fading away fast).
Unlike the switch from the agricultural economy to the manufacturing economy, in the switch from the manufacturing economy do the information economy, it hasn?t simply been a matter of the manufacturing jobs being replaced by technology. Some of that has happened, but the bigger story is that most of the manufacturing has moved overseas. And the reason it has moved overseas is because there are people in other countries willing to work for only a small fraction of what American workers gets paid.
Some argue that this is a good thing. From the article cited above:
It's good for us to displace low-wage, manual kinds of labor with higher-skill, higher-tech, higher-education-content labor," says Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis President William Poole, who compares what's happening with the decline in agricultural employment of the early 20th century.
The economic boom we experienced during the 1990s was driven by the information economy. The computer chips and software that the rest of the world uses were designed here in the United States.
But now we see a new trend in the move to overseas sourcing. It?s not just manufacturing that?s moving overseas, the information jobs are moving there also! Thanks to the internet and inexpensive long distance phone service, the barriers to doing business with someone on the other side of the world have mostly been eliminated. Already we see call centers moving all over the world. When you call up customer service or technical support, you may very well be connected to someone in the Philippines or in India. And the biggest new trend in software development is using computer programmers in India who work for one third the salary of American programmers.
There is no reason to think that this trend will not continue. Any type of job that could be done overseas will be done there. There are 1.3 billion people in China and one billion in India, and they are willing to work for a fraction of what Americans get paid. They may not speak English in China, but that is not a barrier. With more information jobs being exported from the United States, the people in other countries will discover that if they learn English they will enjoy a huge salary increase. Money talks. People will learn English if it means that they can double their salary.
The new marketing economy
What happens when all the information jobs move overseas? What we will have left is what I call the marketing economy. Nearly all jobs that involve creating actual value, such as manufacturing, computer programming, engineering, or just answering the phone at a call center, will be moved overseas. The only jobs left in the United States will be marketing jobs.
Instead of creating real value, marketing merely creates the perception of value. But perception is a very powerful thing. The weekend before Christmas in Manhattan, I spotted a vendor on the street selling sweaters for only $5 each. But a Polo by Ralph Lauren sweater at a mid level department store like Macy?s sells for $99. What?s the difference between the two sweaters? Even if the Polo sweater costs more the manufacture, I guarantee you that it doesn?t cost twenty times as much to manufacture. It?s doubtful that it even cost twice as much to manufacture. Nope, that $99 sweater is actually only a $5 sweater that has a higher perception of value. The manufacture of the sweater takes place in Macao and costs only $5. Then $85 is spent marketing the sweater in the United States, with $10 of profit for Macy?s and Polo.
The marketing economy, like the information economy, has many tiers of jobs. There are low paid workers manning the cash registers at Macy?s, and high paid models who pose in the ads for the sweaters. There are advertising people who think up the ads and salesmen who attempt to get stores like Macy?s to sell the sweaters. All of these people are working in the marketing economy, magically turning a $5 sweater into something that someone is willing to pay $99 for.
Another good example of a marketing industry is the investment banking industry. What most people know about investment bankers is that they make a lot of money. Few know what they actually do. To find out about what investment bankers really do, the best source of information is the book Monkey Business which gives out the inside scoop on investment banking. What the investment bankers actually do to earn their huge salaries is to pitch deals to companies. Investment bankers are nothing but salesmen who understand accounting and the lingo of Wall Street, that?s all. One shouldn?t be surprised to discover that they are making huge amounts of money from doing sales, because mostly all of the very high paying jobs in our economy are sales jobs.
Once the company agrees to the deal, the actual work is done by a much lower paid workforce, including lawyers. Lawyers are among the highest paid of people doing real work, primarily because their jobs are protected by law. It?s illegal to do legal work unless you are a member of the bar. It?s too bad for computer programmers that they don?t have similar legal protection; then their jobs wouldn?t all be moving to India. It should be noted too that the very highest paid of lawyers, the partners at the big law firms, are mostly doing rainmaking activities (marketing in other words), while the real work is done by associates who get paid a much lower salary.
The sustainability of the marketing economy
I recently explained my theories of the marketing economy to a friend, and his response was that it?s impossible for our country to sustain itself if we don?t actually create anything that has real value. But he?s wrong, the economy can sustain itself, because at the top of the economy we have capitalists, people who own assets. The assets are now in other countries, but the capitalists still get rich, and the money from the capitalists trickles down to people working in the marketing economy.
How it works is that the capitalist invests his money in a business where the real work is done overseas. He makes a return on his investment that can be quite substantial. The capitalist doesn?t have to personally work in order to make money. His money makes money for him.
I might even go so far to say that we are moving towards a new mercantilism. What exactly is mercantilism? It?s ill defined, but prior to the 1800s, nations believed that their wealth was based on how much gold they had in their treasuries. Adam Smith, who wrote the book The Wealth of Nations , helped to change that viewpoint, and afterwards it was understood that a nation?s wealth was based on it?s ability to produce valuable goods. But this leads to a conundrum, because how can the United States be the world?s richest country if nothing is actually produced here at all? The answer is that we own all of the assets, and now that the U.S. dollar has replaced gold as the worldwide medium of exchange, we can create dollars a lot more easily than the Spanish could plunder gold from the new world. So our wealth is now based on the supposedly discredited system of mercantilism.
It is still worthwhile to ask how long can the United States be the world?s richest nation if we no longer contribute anything of real value to the rest of the world? I think it can be quite a long time. Decades, not years. But eventually our failure to contribute anything of real value to the rest of the world will catch up with us. The next world superpower will probably be China with its 1.3 billion people.

Paper presented at the Parallel Session II ,
" Reform in Agriculture – Country Experiences from Asia"
http://www.gdnet.org/pdf2/gdn_library/annual_conferences/fifth_annual_conference/okamoto_paper.pdf
GDN the5th Conference
28th, Jan. 2004
Agricultural Marketing Reform and Rural Economy in Myanmar
The Successful Side of the Reform
Ikuko OKAMOTO
Institute of Developing Economies, JETRO
3-2-2 Mihama–ku Wakaba Chiba, Tokyo

Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of marketing reforms implemented
in the late 1980s in Myanmar. Particular emphasis is placed on the impact of the reform on the
rural economy and its participants, namely farmers, landless laborers and marketing
intermediaries. The reform had a positive effect on all these participants through the creation of
employment opportunities and increased income. The driving force of this success was "market
forces," generating virtuous cycles in the transition economy. At the same time, the "absence of
bad policy" is emphasized as a key for the success in the context of Myanmar, where excessive
and murky government intervention often resulted in failure to induce private sector
development.
2
I. Introduction
Agricultural marketing reform in 1987–88 was the very first measure taken in the process of the
transition to a market economy in Myanmar (Burma). At the same time, it was the sole reform
measure adopted in the agricultural sector under the present regime.1 The major feature of the reform
was a reduction of the state’s intervention in the marketing of major agricultural commodities. It
marked the end of the so-called "Burmese way to Socialism" which had been in place for over a
quarter of a century. It is extremely symbolic that the reform efforts began in the agriculture sector,
which is the mainstay of the Myanmar economy. The agriculture sector (the crop sector alone)
accounted for 35.2 % of GDP and 62.8% of the labor force as of 1997/98iADBC2001j.2
If we postulate that one of goals of marketing reforms in general is the transformation of the
production and marketing system into a market-oriented one, the experience of Myanmar is rather
mixed. The most "positive" response to the reform can be found in the area of pulses and beans. Table
1 shows changes of the sown acreage of pulses. It shows a clear increase in the sown acres in 1990s,
which is quite dramatic in comparison to other major pulse/beans producing countries.
Table 1. Changes of Sown Area for Pulses
of Major Producing Countries
70's 80's 90's
World -5.2% 11.4% -1.1%
China -28.7% -30.0% -11.7%
Australia 272.2% 636.5% 60.1%
India 2.5% 2.2% -9.7%
Pakistan 22.9% 3.1% -16.1%
USA 28.2% 2.7% -14.9%
Bangladesh 117.1% -24.9% -32.5%
Brazil 30.7% 0.1% -8.5%
Mexico -12.9% 29.0% -26.6%
Myanmar -8.0% 26.3% 247.8%
Source: FAO STAT
1 The present regime is called the SPDC (State and Peace Development Council). It was reorganized in 1997
from the SLORC (State Law and Order Restoration Council), established in 1988.
2. The structure has not basically changed much since Independence in 1948.
3
Figure 1. Share of Pulse Production
0.0%
5.0%
10.0%
15.0%
20.0%
25.0%
30.0%
1988 1993 1998 2002
Year
India
China
Brazil
Myanmar
Source: FAO STAT
As a result, Myanmar’s share in world production of pulses increased throughout the 1990s
(Figuire1). Among the various pulses and beans produced in Myanmar, black grams, green grams and
pigeon peas are the major exports, and their main destination is India. Pulses have also become the
prime foreign exchange earner among agricultural commodities, accounting for 72% in 2000/01
(Table2).
Table 2. Changes of Agricultural and Pulse Exports
1985/86 1989/90 1990/91 1992/93 1994/95 1996/97 1998/99 2000/01
Agricultural Export Value
iMillion Kyatsj 1,126 432 942 1,299 2,478 1,981 1890 2312
Share in Total Export Value 43.9% 15.2% 31.9% 36.2% 45.8% 36.1% 28.0% 18.9%
Pulse Export
Volume (10,000 tons) 8.9 5.6 19.5 44.9 42.5 59.5 62.2 83.1
ValueiMillion Kyatsj 238 123 515 667 799 1,272 1135 1658
Share in Total Agricultural Export 21.1% 28.5% 54.7% 51.3% 32.2% 64.2% 60.1% 71.7%
Source:@1985/86-1993/94 Statistical Yearbook 1998
1994/95-2000/01 Statistical Yearbook 2001
4
This contrasts sharply with crops such as paddy/rice, cotton and sugarcane, where the
liberalization policy had to be modified, with a re-imposition of state controls, due to the food
security or budgetary concerns.3 As a result, the response in the latter category of the crops has been
rather week.
To simplify the argument, this paper’s focus is on the most positive side of the reform, namely the
cases of pulses and beans, one of the few areas that generated a successful outcome. The objective is
to demonstrate the effects of marketing reforms for pulses and beans on the development of the rural
economy. Specific attention is given to the diffusion of the new production system and income
creation both for farmers and non-farmers and the development of the rural marketing system. The
discussion is based on the findings of a field survey conducted in one of the newly developed
producing areas from 1998 to 2003. It shows the potential of Myanmar’s rural economy to generate a
positive reform outcome. It is also expected to provide some insights for other crops that still face
problems stemming from the socialist legacy.
This paper is organized as follows. In Section II, we explain the nature of the agricultural
marketing reform, together with details on the specific reform measures, in order to provide general
information on the system transformation. Section III provides a detailed examination of the impact
of the reform on the rural economy. In Section IV, we explore the factors that induced the "positive"
response to the reform. The final section tries to draw some policy implication for the general
agriculture sector reform in the context of Myanmar.
II. The Nature of Agricultural Marketing Reform
The system before the reform
During the socialist regime, the state control over agricultural marketing ranked as a prime
component of the agricultural policies (Takahashi 1992). No private trade was allowed. Farmers had
3 Reversal or incomplete policy reform during the implementation phase has frequently been observed in other
countries. See Kheralla et.al (1994).
5
to sell a prescribed amount at the official price, which was designed to absorb almost all the
marketable surplus (compulsory delivery system) (Saito 1981, Mya Than and Nishizawa 1990). The
objective of the state monopoly was threefold: to maintain food security, gain foreign exchange
earnings and achieve the "Burmanization" of marketing channels, which were once dominated by
other ethnic groups. Behind the system was a strong political/economical belief, that existed within
the government, that control over the production and marketing of rice and other major agricultural
commodities would be the key to staying in power. Therefore, every measure was taken to sustain the
monopoly over the domestic and external marketing of these major commodities. For example,
farmers were basically given no freedom of crop choice, to prevent them from switching to crops
without any quota requirements. Farmers were sometimes threatened with the loss of their tillage
rights4 if they failed to meet the quota. Traders who managed to operate in the parallel market faced
stiff regulations from time to time.
Motivation
The government’s motivation for the marketing reform lied in the following two aspects. One was
the long-term stagnation of the agricultural sector. This was especially evident in paddy production,
where the export levels of the colonial period had not been maintained.5 It was natural that the state
monopoly worked as a disincentive for farmers to increase production or to improve quality, since
any potential surplus was absorbed by the government at fixed price. The second was the difficulty
faced by the responsible state agency, as shown by its cumulative deficitiTin Soe 1994, 21j and
inability to achieve annual procurement targets. However, it is questionable whether the Socialist
government had any intention to promote the commercialization of agriculture or to promote the
private sector aggressively at that stage. As evident by the demonetization carried out one month after
the liberalization of agricultural marketing, the motivation seems not to have been very positive in
4 The state land ownership was another measure agricultural policy. Officially, farmers cannot own the land.
They are granted tillage right. However, as a reality, as long as the household continues the cultivation, the right
can be inherited. Moreover, the "illegal" transfer of the right seems to be also increasing among farmers in the
area where the commercialization of agricultural production proceeds.
5 The peak of rice exports was in the 1930’s, when they reached 3 million tons per year. However, during the
Socialist system, it was around 300,000 to 400,000 tons per year.
6
nature. It may be have been a more passive one, namely, the abandonment of the previous
institutional setting.
Contents of the Reform
The agricultural marketing reform proceeded in two steps. One was domestic marketing reform, in
1987. The second was export liberalization in 1988.
The first step, domestic marketing reform, had two components. The first was the abolition of the
compulsory delivery system. This meant that farmers no longer had to sell their produce to the
government. Instead, they could sell it freely in the market at prevailing market prices. The second
component was the admission of private traders in agricultural marketing. Basically, no legal
regulation was introduced to prevent them from engaging in every stage of trading.6
Under the second step, private traders gained permission to export commodities freely upon
registration as exporter.
These two steps were literally applied to pulses and beans, culinary crops, and some oil seeds
crops. This stands in great contrast to other crops such as paddy/rice. We will not go into the details,
but for paddy/rice, the procurement system was revived with fewer quotas, and no private exports
was allowed. Some other crops also saw the imposition of sudden export regulations without any
advance notice, leading to the disruption of the market.7
III. The Impact of the Reform on the Rural Economy
This section will take a closer look at the responses of the participants of the rural economy towards
the marketing reform in one of the major pulse (green gram) producing areas, township "T" in Lower
Myanmar. "Participants" here refers to those who constitute the economy and who are potentially
under the influence of a particular policy, either directly or indirectly. In the context of Myanmar’s
6 In the initial years, wholesalers were required to apply for trading licenses. However, it soon became nominal
and there is no registration requirement at the wholesaler level at present.
7 A good example was sesame. A sudden export ban in 1998 caused a drastic price drop, and farmers and
traders suffered.
7
rural society, the producers, landless laborers and marketing intermediaries (traders or agents) make
up the participants. There is no need to explain why farmers and marketing intermediaries are
"participants" in this context, but agricultural laborers may require some explanation.

What if that Nuke Deal on Hold, Now Space odyssey begins for Indians
Chidambaram blames the 700-point decline in stock markets on Thursday occurred on “motivated rumours” that the Prime Minister was resigning
Palash Biswas
Contact: Palash C Biswas, C/O Mrs Arati Roy, Gosto Kanan, Sodepur, Kolkata- 700110, India. Phone: 91-033-25659551
Email: alashbiswaskl@gmail.com">palashbiswaskl@gmail.com
Space odyssey begins for Indians as Finance Minister P Chidambaram blames the 700-point decline in stock markets on Thursday occurred on “motivated rumours” that the Prime Minister was resigning.Indian PM Manmohan Singh has rejected calls from the main opposition party to resign after his government appeared to have shelved a nuclear deal with US. Mr Singh said he had not "given up hope" on the controversial deal that has been stiffly opposed by the government's communist allies. Mr Singh told US President George W Bush recently that he was having difficulty implementing the deal. Sceptical as we might be about the future of such travel, space travel company Virgin Galactic was launched in India. So now the rich among us Indians can certainly dream of taking a flight into space, as early as 2010. Yes, the rich, because it costs $200,000 a trip. Meanwhile in Kolakta , The nonagerian Marxist Patriarch Comrade Jyoti Basu has decalred the Nuke deal on Hold!As of 2007, space tourism opportunities are limited and expensive, with only the Russian space agency providing transport. The price for a flight brokered by Space Adventures to the International Space Station aboard a Soyuz spacecraft is now $30 million. Flights are fully booked until 2009. Here in India, Deluxe Travel Europe, which is the accredited space agent for India will be selling the trips. They have tied up with GD Goenka World Travel to create a company called Spazio Travel, which will spearhead the marketing effort in India.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Thursday rejected reports that he was considering to resign. He attacked on NDA led by BJP and spared the trouble makers the Left partners in UPA simply defending as well as escalating the Truce to carry on the GOI and buying time for favourable Vote Bank mobilising. The mainstream political parties are also afrid of the rising Mayawati doing wonders with her social engineering accomodating the neglected power hungry Brahmins in North India. Her emergence as a potential prime minister candidate makes the Cease Fire amongst the Ruling Hegemony quite mandetory as well as entertaining consisting of all elements of a classic malodrama!And a hint that nuclear deal may be a virtual war while aam aadmi issues are fought on the real battlefield had come nearly three weeks back at the conclusion of the CPI-M’s Central Committee meeting in Kolkata. CPI-IM General Secretary Prakash Karat talked about the government’s economic policies and wanted “a high-level enquiry into this scandal of wheat imports.”
The row between the Left and UPA will continue in Parliament but George Bush and Washington may be spared some of the vitriol.The Left, through rallies, plans to embarrass the government on its inability to control the prices of essential commodities and says its policies have created an agricultural crisis. The parties will also organise protests against opening up of the retail sector. The UPA's implementation of some of its flagship social sector projects is also under Left scrutiny.The CPI(M) on Friday said it was expecting the Government's final stand on the Indo-US nuclear deal to be announced on October 22, when the next meeting between the UPA and the Left on the deal is scheduled. Talking to reporters at the airport in Chennai , CPI(M) Polit Bureau member Sitaram Yechury, evaded a direct reply when asked whether a consensus between the Congress and the Left was possible on the issue. Apparently not giving up hopes on persuading the Left on the Indo-US nuclear deal, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had said at the India-Brazil-South Africa summit on October 17 that the process of evolving a "meaningful consensus is still on". Escalating the war of words, BJP spokesperson Ravi Shankar Prasad went so far as to personally target the Prime Minister, saying he has lost his mental balance. "The tirade by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh against the BJP is not only condemnable, but also outrageous. It is the desperate rattling by a Prime Minister who is much weakened, much concerned, who does not enjoy authority in the cabinet, support within his party or that of the coalition parties supporting his government."

Earlier Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh said in what is the most strident attack yet on the main opposition party the PM said, “The BJP of all parties is least qualified to talk about the moral right to govern. It was in power when the Gujarat holocaust took place, when the Indo-Pak Agra summit ended in fiasco and was sleeping when the Pakistanis intruded into Kargil. I will not resign.”With the prime minister making it clear that he still wants to push through the nuclear deal, the big challenge for him now is to bring an adamant Left Left around, and the next meeting is scheduled on Oct 22.
In reply to BJP's statement Congress Leader Janardhan Diwedi said that the Prime Minster is not only a Congressman but also a Global Leader and the BJP has no right to use such defamatory language. "He is prime minister of the country and at some level the Prime Minister represents every citizen of the country. Any responsible person should think twice before using such language and I won't say anything beyond this except to request the BJP leadership to advice their spokespersons and representatives to maintain their mental balance".
The Left parties will not allow the Indo-US nuclear deal to move forward and will continue their support to the UPA government as long as it sticks to the common minimum programme, CPI-M leader Mr Prakash Karat said in Mumbai Thursday. “The operationalisation of the deal should not go ahead,” he said at a public meeting here. He asked the government to tell the USA that “we cannot move forward on the deal”.
“Our stand is not unreasonable. The deal is not in India’s interest,” he added. If the nuclear deal goes through “India becomes a junior partner of USA,” he said in a sarcastic tone. “The Left will not allow that to happen,” he said. Mr Karat said even if China agrees to support an exemption for India in the Nuclear Suppliers Group meet next month his position won’t change. If the deal goes through it will open the doors to defence cooperation with Washington and that means missiles will be placed on Indian soil pointing to China and Russia, he added. He added: “The Gujarat election is due. The government has to decide on the political situation, as we must see that the BJP and Narendra Modi are defeated.” Speaking about the a