Re: States News and Discussions
Posted: 10 Dec 2009 23:17
Looks like one school of though (at BRF) feels smaller States are some kind of threat to the Nation. If this understanding is correct on my part, why is that the case?
Consortium of Indian Defence Websites
https://forums.bharat-rakshak.com/
SwamyG,SwamyG wrote:Looks like one school of though (at BRF) feels smaller States are some kind of threat to the Nation. If this understanding is correct on my part, why is that the case?
It is not the small states themselves but the conditions used to create them is the heartburn for some.SwamyG wrote:Looks like one school of though (at BRF) feels smaller States are some kind of threat to the Nation. If this understanding is correct on my part, why is that the case?
Aside from the unwisdom of breaking up South India’s largest State, a separate Telangana will fuel demands for a separate Rayalaseema, for a separate coastal Andhra, and, maybe, even for union territory status for Hyderabad — and there will be no Pradesh left. The problem of uneven regional and intra-State development is one of the major challenges rising India faces but there is little to suggest that smaller States will make for a more even process of development.
Aside: Savarkar in his "Letters from Andaman" worries that the nascent Telugu pride movement ( ~ 1911?) could lead to the fracturing of idea of India.
There is good and bad to this smaller states proposition. Good part is what you covered but the bad part is imagine a 1000 regional parties with no cohesion trying to rule the country.
This is 1953-redux. At least Potti Sriramulu was a Gandhian and a credible one at that. You forgot Kamtapur, Gorkhaland, and even a south-TN. Slowly, we may be back to pre-47 560 odd states. Since there are no precise equations that govern human dynamics, noone knows what kinda tiger they have mounted on. One thing is certain: this could either be a masterstroke or a complete disaster, nothing in between. Future will have to tell what it is.
Weakening of power of individual states, consolidation of Central power, and surrender of India to non-Indian interests.
I don't include the links and BRFite's name in the above quotation, as it does not matter. I sensed a pattern in at least 5 BRFites. They are from the last 3 pages of this thread.1. The creation of a smaller state will mean lesser resources (police force etc) to fight the Maoists. This is suicidal. Example: The increased impotency of the state in combating Maoists after the creating of Jharkand and Chattisgarh. Advantage Marxist.
If you are referring to this suggestion from you to Munna, then to my defense I am not really posting or commenting on the issue. Since I don't know I am asking questions.Munna the traditional dynamics dont apply here. please dont post without knowing the issues. Andhra is the historic gateway of Deccan. Any trouble ther will affect all that area.
yvijay wrote:It seems even though the agitation was started by KCR’s fast, the movement went to the students hand and it went out of hand. And congress didn’t know whom to talk to, defuse the situation. May be this was ploy just to buy time and figure out who is the leader and whom to talk to?
No needRamaY wrote:
You call them students?
I am an alumni of OU (campus). I know many people who stay in those hostals for more than 5-10 years. They do one MA degree after another, if at all they complete one. No insults but it is true.
Did the agitation really gone out of control? Govts dealt with even worse communal tensions. This is a childs play for a determined police force. If Indian police/army can handle a Khalistan movement, a Kashmir movement, an ULFA, a Bodo and what not, this Telangana movement is nothing from law-and-order perspective. Given the motivation, the govt can control it in 5 days.
I think we should remove this option. Without hyderabad, telangana has nothing, absolutely low number of industries, no water, not many good educational institutions and so on.ramana wrote:- Separate Telangana with Hyderabad
Is it possible for DMK and AIDMK to merge in post MK and JJ scenario?Karunanidhi plans to call it a day
Kalyani Shankar
But will the DMK chieftain stick to his decision or is it just a ploy to influence voters before by-elections? If he were to really retire from politics, a fierce and bitter succession battle cannot be ruled out
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee has hinted at his retirement at the end of his current Lok Sabha term. Expectations are that BJP leader LK Advani may call it a day soon. CPI(M) veteran Jyoti Basu and former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee are already leading a retired life. Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Muthuvel Karunanidhi is the latest to announce that he will retire in June 2010.
The 85-year-old DMK chief has had a successful public life for more than six decades. He worked with DMK founder CN Annadurai closely. He faced many challenges in his political career and is considered as one of the tallest leaders Tamil Nadu has produced. Kalaignar, as he is affectionately called, made his electoral debut in 1957, winning the Kulithalai Assembly constituency.
He was re-elected from Thanjavur in 1962 but soon shifted to Saidapet in Chennai in 1967. That was the year the DMK wrested power from the Congress in the State for the first time under the leadership of Annadurai. Mr Karunanidhi succeeded Annadurai and since then he became Chief Minister five times.
Mr Karunanidhi significantly said in a public meeting last week, “Brushing aside politics and power, I will come closer to the people.” When will he do it? After the completion of the new Assembly complex, building a world-class library in memory of the DMK founder and holding the world Tamil Conference in June 2010. These three are his unfinished agenda.
Some see Mr Karunanidhi’s announcement giving a cut-off date for his retirement as a pressure tactic to ensure a smooth succession. While the Opposition leaders see it as a political drama ahead of the two by-elections scheduled for December 19, some see it as a threat to his party and family to behave but the party downplays this.
The post-Karunanidhi scenario will be quite fascinating and also a little confusing as he is the only unifying factor at present. With the party ready to accept a dynastic rule, the sibling rivalry among his children may damage it. Trying to divide power within his family, he dispatched his son MK Azhagiri to Delhi as a Minister and his daughter Kanimozhi as an MP. His grand nephew Dayanidhi Maran is also a Central Minister. Above all, he anointed his son MK Stalin as the Deputy Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu hinting his desire that the latter should take over from him.
In the past six months, Mr Karunanidhi has already taken semi-retirement allowing his son to manage the show. Even in the Assembly he allowed more space for Mr Stalin and intervened only when required. It is both a signal and warning to the party and his family. The succession plan of Mr Karunanidhi may not be a smooth affair, as his politically ambitious children will fight for their space in the family and party. Various branches of the Karunanidhi family head the factions in the DMK and this announcement is bound to push these groups to become active.
Mr Karunanidhi is already facing tremendous pressure from Mr Azhagiri who is disenchanted with Delhi politics. He wants to get back to the State politics as he has a strong base in the southern Tamil Nadu and does not want to leave the State entirely to Mr Stalin. This is bound to create tension.
Second, there will be a vacuum as none in his family or in the party will be able to fill it. Mr Karunanidhi is known for his political acumen, shrewdness, political manoeuverings and administrative skills. He has worked with many Prime Ministers, including Mrs Indira Gandhi, Mr Vajpayee and now Mr Manmohan Singh. He has the loyalty of the bureaucracy.
Third, his retirement will have a huge impact on the politics of the State as well as the Centre. AIADMK chief J Jayalalithaa, who is presently waiting and watching, is hopeful that the post-Karunanidhi scenario may be beneficial to her and her party. The two Dravidian parties, DMK and AIADMK, have dominated the Tamil Nadu politics for many decades now. The Congress has been riding piggyback since it lost power in 1967, alternatively aligning itself with the DMK or the AIADMK. Smaller parties like the MDMK, the PMK, dalit parties and the Desiya Murpokku Dravidar Kazhagam of film actor Vijay Kant have only cut into the votes of the DMK and AIADMK. Ms Jayalalithaa, being a shrewd politician, will try to make the most of the confusion and infighting in the DMK once Mr Karunanidhi is out of the picture unless the latter is able settle things to the satisfaction of all.
At the central level too, the DMK may lose its present relevance. Despite not speaking English, Mr Karunanidhi was able to manage the coalition politics effectively without sacrificing his party’s interests. He had managed hefty portfolios for his party at the central level whenever the DMK was part of a coalition. He was able to play a role in the national politics even during the National Front and United Front regimes. His party shared power with almost all the coalition combinations at the Centre.
Fourth, the alliance politics in Tamil Nadu will also change with the Congress trying to occupy the central space of the DMK. Already AICC general secretary Rahul Gandhi is talking about the Congress getting back its lost primacy in the State.
Fifth, the Left parties, which had been aligning with both the Dravidian parties, are keeping their options open. A clear picture will emerge only before the 2011 elections. After a brief honeymoon with the AIADMK in the 2009 polls, the Left has broken free of the AIADMK.
The DMK needs another Karunanidhi but will it get one?
ramana wrote:To get clearer picture of the news as it develops,
I think we should tabulate the pros and cons and who wins or loses for three options?
- Keep Andhra Pradesh united
- Separate Telangana with Hyderabad
- Separate Telangana without Hyderabad
I am not even considering the nightmare of Rayalaseema statehood.
Most probably they are too stupid or Chankian move to control something else.ramana wrote:So then what is the problem that the Center agrees suddenly to creating this nightmare?
Dont attribute chankian motives as they are themselves surprised at turn of events going by Press statements.
KCR loves his peg too much to even think about this. The fast-unto-death nonsense gives ample time for destruction to occur on your name and yet live.ramana wrote: Will KCR immolate himself this time?
If the state doesnt come about the families of those 26 might turn on him.Tension on streets eases, revelry takes over
Omer Farooq | Hyderabad
The announcement of Union Home Minister P Chidambaram has brought cheers to the people of the neglected and under-developed region. There was a dramatic decrease in tension in Hyderabad and other parts of the region as thousands of people came out on the streets to celebrate the much-awaited victory in five decade-old struggle for Telangana.
While Telangana Rashtra Samiti president K Chandrasekhar Rao broke his 11-day fast after hearing Chidambaram’s statement that the State Government was asked to move a resolution in the Assembly to pave the way for the creation of Telangana, thousands of students in Osmania University in Hyderabad and Kakatiya University in Warangal sang and danced to mark their celebration. The students of the Joint Action Committee, which had organised its agitation separate from the TRS movement, were happy with the turn of the events but were not willing to celebrate victory as the goal was yet to be achieved.
The biggest gathering of the revelers was seen at the Nizam’s Institute of Medical Sciences where thousands of supporters of KCR celebrated the occasion by bursting crackers, beating drums and shouting slogans hailing KCR as the “Tiger of Telangana” movement.
Despite the decrease in the tension and Osmania University students cancelling their plans of storming the State Assembly on Thursday, the strict security arrangements involving 18,000 police and paramilitary personnel remained in place. A curfew-like situation prevailed in almost half of the city as all the major roads were closed for traffic. As a measure of precaution, the Osmania University campus was also cut off from the city and five big flyovers in different parts of the city were also closed from the traffic.
The massive traffic restrictions and diversion of vehicles caused a lot of hardships to the people. But this could not stop the JAC and other organisations from taking out a procession from Baghlingampally to
Osmania University to pay respect to the martyrs of the Telangana movement. The ABVP too organised a victory rally on the campus.
The JAC has warned that they will continue to mount pressure on the Government and intensify their agitation if the resolution was not moved in the State Assembly with in four days.![]()
People also celebrated the occasion in other nine districts of Telangana region and took out processions and held meetings.
Meanwhile, K Chandrasekhar Rao, who has become very weak and exhausted after 11 days of fasting, made telephone calls to the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi, leader of opposition LK Advani and Rashtrya Lok Dal president Ajit Singh for their support to the cause of Telangana.
Though the Central Government has invited KCR for talks in New Delhi, the doctors have said that he will be able to travel only after a week of rest and treatment.
In his first reaction to the announcement of Chidambaram, KCR said last night, “The victory is the result of five and a half decade long struggle of the poor people of Telangana,” he said in his first reaction after breaking the fast with a glass of lemon juice offered by Prof Jaishankar, the ideologue of Telangana movement.
“The message is clear that voice of the people has a respect in Indian democracy,” he said. His voice choked and he broke down as he remembered more than 26 students and youth and party workers who committed suicide and laid down their lives during the struggle for Telangana during last 11 days.
“It was an unbearable loss for me. They are like my family members. We will definitely stand by these families for ever.”![]()
KCR said, “I also promise to the employees of Telangana and the students that they will be taken care of for all the sacrifices their made in this struggle. I am grateful to all the intellectuals and other people form different sections of society who supported this cause”.
SaiK wrote:is there a data on telangana's economic, political, demography, etc. compared with AP as a whole?
More @ LinkEducation
Elementary education is recognized as one of the fundamental human rights. And yet this human right has been denied to the people of Telangana: the region has the lowest literacy rate and minimal educational infrastructure in the state.
Andhra Pradesh, with a literacy rate of 44.09 percent ranks among the least literate state. It ranks 26th in the country out of 31 states and Union Territories. It is the most backward in the entire south. As many as eight districts of Telangana out of 10 (including Hyderabad) figure among the most backward educationally. Mahbubnagar has the least literacy rate, both among males(40.8 per cent) and females(18 percent). The entire Telangana, except Hyderabad city and Ranga Reddy Urban areas which are Hyderabad, has lagged behind educationally. Not a single mandal of Telangana has the national literacy rate of 52.19 percent. Coastal Andhra districts account for 33 out of 45 rural mandals which exceeds the national literacy rate (the rest being Rayalaseema). The mandals with lowest literacy rate of less than 20 percent are more in Telangana, as a consequence: 35 such mandals are in Telangana, almost three times those in Coastal Andhra (14). There are only two such mandals in Rayalaseema. District-wise, Adilabad has most of these mandals (14), followed by Mahbubnagar (9), Medak (6), Khammam (3) and Nizamabad, Karimnagar and Nalgonda (one each).
Although Telangana accounts for half of the state's population, less than 25 percent of educational institutions from primary to college level are situated in the region. Only 15 percent of aided junior colleges are in Telangana while it has only two medical colleges. As many as six medical colleges are in the other areas. The region is discriminated in the field of technical education also. Only 26 out of the 72 government ITIs, 20 of the 91 polytechnic colleges are in Telangana. The gross injustice to Telangana can be seen from expenditure on education. Of the total expenditure of Rs 1150.2 crore the state has incurred on the aided degree colleges since 1956, coastal Andhra cornered the loin's share of 73.71 percent while Telangana got a paltry 10.43 percent. The corresponding share of the two regions in the expenditure incurred on the aided junior colleges is 62.71 percent and 9.45 percent, respectively. In this kind of lopsidedness, how can literacy spread? This is no accident; it cannot be especially since it has continued since 1956, and it pervades all type of education - school, college, professional and technical. This discrimination is deliberate, conscious and planned given its spread, the extent, and all-pervasiveness, it cannot be anything but a conspiracy against the people of Telangana.
Irrigation
Of the three regions of the state, Telangana has the largest area, with 11,48,000 sq km, followed by coastal Andhra with 9,28,000 sq km. The cultivable area is estimated at 64,02,358 hectares in Telangana and 46,33,304 hectares in the Coastal Andhra. But 13,12,795 hectares or 28.33 percent of the cultivable land in the Coastal Andhra is being irrigated under canal irrigation system, whereas 2,66,964 hectares or 4.17 percent of the cultivable land in Telangana is receiving canal waters. The entitlement of Telangana of waters of Krishna and Godavari rivers is 975 tmc. ft. In 1974, 800 tmc.ft water was allotted to AP by the Bachawat Award to Andhra Pradesh. A re-distribution of this in 1981 saw coastal Andhra getting the major share with 377.07 tmc, Telangana 266.783 tmc and Rayalaseema 123 tmc. Telangana's share in Godavari waters is 709 tmc.ft of the state's total allotment of 1,495 tmc.ft. Out of its total share 1153.50 tmc (from all sources) barely 380 tmc is used for irrigation.
The discrimination against Telangana stands out glaringly in the amounts spent by the state on irrigation. The amount spent in Telangana so far is Rs. 4005 crores while that spent in Coastal Andhra is Rs. 19,693.50 crores, nearly five times higher. In terms of percentage, while Telangana got a mere 15.5 percent, coastal Andhra got 76 percent. If the principle of expenditure proportionate to cultivable area were to be followed (as it should be), Telangana, with 44.28 percent cultivable area should have got an equivalent amount and coastal Andhra 32.04 percent. Instead, coastal Andhra got more than twice its share.
Since 1956 to date, the additional irrigation potential created in Telangana is only 5 percent since none of the planned irrigation projects have been completed although they were planned 30-40 years ago. The 12 projects sanctioned for Telangana at an estimated cost Rs. 5,449.53 crore to provide for 10.08 lakh hectares have been progressing at snail's pace for decades.
The Sriram Sagar Project (SRSP) was started 1n 1963 and is yet to be completed. Even the first phase of the project was not completed after 33 years. The rehabilitation of the displaced people under this project is still pending. The Bheema project, which is older than Andhra Pradesh has remained on paper. Jurala, Icchampally too have languished. While experts and decision makers debate interminably and have still not decided on Srisailam Left Bank Canal (which is to irrigate about 3 lakhs hectares in Telangana), to supply water either through lift or tunnel. The Srisailam Right Bank Canal feeding the coastal districts progresses steadily. Even the 33 medium projects proposed in Telangana which could utilize 80 to 100 tmc of water at a cost Rs 500 crore have been kept pending. Compare this delay with alacrity attending on the Telugu Ganga project: it got funds allocated consistently year after year, within 12 years of its grounding, the project is supplying water to Chennai.
Even budgetary allocation are not fully spent on projects benefiting Telangana. For the Bheema lift irrigation scheme, the budgetary allocation was nine crore rupees in 1996-97, which was pruned to Rs 10 lakhs. Subsequently, only six lakh rupees were spent. On the SRSP, only six crore rupees were spent during 1996-97 against an allocation of Rs 25 crores. In 33 years only Rs 978 crores had been spent on SRSP. And yet Rs 1075 crores were spent on Telugu Ganga in 12 years.
Callous indifference and neglect of maintenance of tanks in Telangana has reduced the area under tank irrigation by half, an unprecedented occurrence. In 1956-57, 4,47 lakh hectares were under tank irrigation which has come down to 2.26 lakh hectares. This increasingly made Telangana farmers resort to exploiting groundwater which is suicidal for a semi-arid region. This dependence on pumpsets saw a great tragedy befall Telangana farmers early this year: as power supply was erratic, irregular and of low quality (low voltage), they incurred huge losses as other region suffered as much due to power scarcity as Telangana.
Power Situation
As irrigation projects for Telangana got bogged down in delays, cost-overruns, controversies, power generation projects too suffered. The Srisailam Left bank canal is one such project. Only 1543 mw of power is generated in this region whereas the generating capacity of the other two regions is 7477 mw. All power situations with the exception Ramagundam and Kothagudem are located outside Telangana, although Telangana accounts for a major share of power consumption and more than three-fourths of catchment area of Krishna and Godavari rivers is in Telangana. That the needs of Telangana are at the bottom of priorities of the government is evident from the fact as many as two lakh applications for new power connection is pending with the government. Yet, there is no plan to increase the power generating capacity in Telangana even as two lakh people wait in vain for a power connection.
We need to know how many of these 51 Telangana INC MLAs belong to YSJ faction. That is the influence YSJ lost with this move.Of the 158 Congress MLAs, 51 are from Telangana region and 107 from coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema
Yes, it is possible provided someone from the extended Karunanidhi-Maran family consolidates power and still has enough money to buy off ADMK functionaries whose finances have been run into the ground by the stupid politics of Amma and her "Sister"!!! I expect Azhagiri would be completely marginalized after MK. Stalin has the muscle to match Azhagiri and the Marans have the money/media power to buy entire TN if need be and they are on the same team. Kanimozhi played her cards right by not antagonizing the Maran-Stalin group during their little family tiff a couple of years ago. Azhagiri's muscle in the South can be easily bought off by the money these guys have. He wants to get back to TN because Delhi's babus and netas don't give a crap about him and he is slowly losing ground in his own fiefdom by staying away. MK is a master politician and knows who will carry on his legacy (ain't that there is any, just corruption and thuggery). I always think of Don Corleone trying to make his family legal before his death and his younger son who keeps trying. This family has reached that stage but now they need to survive there. Things will get bloody soon! Oh and the 3 employees of Dinakaran were killed by nobody. They just mysteriously died by burning themselves!!!ramana wrote:Is it possible for DMK and AIDMK to merge in post MK and JJ scenario?
A big thing that I expect is the rise of Muslim Identity among tamilian muslims. MK is one of the few remaining guys who had some association with the Dravidian Movement. He had pretty good control over different factions within DMK; with him gone it because easier for the factions to fight. These could cause them to pander to their base even more and seek newer bases. The DK goons or ideologues kept the Dravidian Identity at the forefront. It is often accused they did this at the cost of Hinduism. But an equally important aspect is that the Muslim Identity was kept in check. It did its little bit to the integration.ramana wrote:Is it possible for DMK and AIDMK to merge in post MK and JJ scenario?
This is what worries me the most Ramana-ji.ramana wrote:Looks like we are in the season of fracturing States and undo the efforts of the freedom struggle centralizers like Patel etc. After every major consolidation Indians cant get along and demand break-up of territory and get external help.
We are ~ 50 to 60 years after last major consolidation.
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Andhra Pradesh IT minister K Venkat Reddy set the cat among pigeons when he said that some ministers were encouraging the resignations. "We don't know what their motive is but it is unfortunate," he said.
Legislators from Rayalaseema began the resignation in protest against the Congress high command's move to set up Telangana. Most of those offering to quit are known loyalists of late CM YS Rajasekhara Reddy, and were at the forefront to install his son, YS Jaganmohan Reddy, as his successor. Their move was in vain after the Congress high command backed Rosaiah.
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