Should the people approach the UN for averting disaster at Mullaperiyar?

Averting disasters the world over is the responsibility of the UN as well. Doesn’t matter whether it is an internal problem of a country concerning two states.

If both the states do not come to an understanding to avert the imminent disaster, the Centre should use all its powers to avert the calamity. If the Centre is not prepared to go the whole hog, or if the Centre stands helpless, one cannot blame the people, if at least some human rights organizations or other NGO approach the world body seeking its good offices to take steps to prevent a disaster of Mullaperiyar.

If no authority is amenable, including the Supreme Court which is dilly-dallying with stale statistics, who would save the people of Kerala? The propensity of the people is to seek from wherever it would be possible to get solace.

Is it not cowardice on the part of the Tamil Nadu Government to ban screening of the film, DAM 999, fearing that the sensitive people of Tamil Nadu would come to know of the reality of the imminent danger?

The authorities cannot sit in ivory towers and take their own convenient time to decide about scrapping the fragile Mullaperiyar dam.

Action is needed now. Quakes can intensify and can worsen the fragility of the dam.
Suppose, the dam bursts and lakhs of people perish, will Tamil Nadu be able to have a dam at Mullaperiyar ever?

Also if a new dam is constructed, Tamil Nadu will get more water. Perhaps the water level of the new dam can be increased and more water would be available to be let out.

Wake up and decommission the dangerous dam.Before that bring down the water level to below 120 feet.

The indecision on decommissioning dilapidated Mullaperiyar dam is cruel

The Centre and Tamil Nadu Government have the bounden duty to ensure the safety of lakhs of people of Kerala by decommissioning the 117-year-old dilapidated lime and earth masonry dam of Mullaperiyar.

After all, what is the purpose of this dam? To provide water to the people of Tamil Nadu. There has been no hurdle to fulfil this purpose. Tamil Nadu has been making a lot of money by generating power from the water released from Mullaperiyar, in addition to using the water for irrigation purpose. This would continue to be provided even after a new dam is built.

Our celebrated Chief Minister the late C.Achutha Menon had renewed the contract for 999 years with Tamil Nadu without raising any objection. Now on hindsight, one should say a clause should have been inserted to ensure the safety of the dam as it was constructed using age-old and irrelevant technology.

The broad-mindedness of Kerala should not be taken advantage of by the Tamil Nadu Government. Does it think that this fragile dam can withstand for another 999 years.
A breach of the dam would cause devastation on a larger scale than the destruction of a nuclear bomb.

Now that Tamil Nadu would not see reason and common sense would not prevail, the Centre should intervene quickly and if there is any problem with Tamil Nadu it can approach the Supreme Court to make a quick decision on the basis of the reports of damages wrought on the dam by now. There are many reports, including those from the Intelligence wing about the fragility of the dam.

It would be cruel on the part of the Centre not to act in the matter.

OC plans so many things to do; but the proof the pudding is in the eating

With a benevolent Centre and a lot of experienced bureaucrats whose services are available to the state, the Oommen Chandy government is planning to launch ambitious projects on many fronts.

But there should be visible results for the people, and posturing will not do.
Farmers are in dire straits, not to specially mention Wayanad farmers. Farm Debt commission has been toothless. There was no mechanism to file application for assistance after 2009.

A person undertaking farming is a farmer whether on own land, leased land or others’ land. A simple affidavit that should be obtained from him should be sufficient for the banker to offer assistance. If there should be evidence about one’s farming, there are umpteen number of neighbours, panchayat representatives and the like to vouchsafe for the same.

Recently, I was made aware of a poor woman who has no known sources of income and whose husband died six years ago having not been given widow’s pension. She has been representing about it through the panchayat member. She was told that there are a lot of other women like her. Why not give her and all others the eligible widow’s pension? The point is, whatever is said in public about social welfare schemes is not being implemented.

We have come across a lot of schemes announced by governments from time to time. There are some which are undertaken as a pilot project, turnkey project and the like. These are misnomers for doing nothing or doing something to favour something.
Where is the Smart City scheme now? Is something cooking?

It is adulterated decontrol

The regime is going in for the easy way, by decontrol, removing subsidies.

It is quite easy to narrow the gap in income level by simply taking away the subsidies and hiking prices.

The regime should, instead, provide a clean slate, even if it is copy book capitalism, by not mixing taxes while it says there would be decontrol of prices.

Now what the regime is doing is simply allowing the taxes attached years ago to the prices of petroleum products and then giving up responsibility and allowing companies to go on hiking prices.

When the court intervened in the 2G scam, so many skeletons are falling off the cupboard. Just like that the court should intervene and look into the state of affairs of the petroleum companies before allowing them to hike prices.

Now the people know many things- about Rs 1.76 lakh crore swindle in the 2 G scam, Rs 1.20 lakh crore in the give-away of gas plots in the Cauvery basin and what not. Lakhs of crores flow out like this. The known figures are flabbergasting, and the unknown figures could be unimaginable.

You are wasting money like this to a few, and then fleecing 120 crore people of whom the majority are common people. It is easy to swipe their coffers.

There should be imaginative ideas to save the people from burden, even if you decontrol. But then, the decontrol you speak about is not decontrol as such, it is adulterated decontrol.

One may say the price of petrol in France, US, UK is roughly equivalent to Rs 70-75. But then the minimum wages for a worker could be seven dollars, seven Euros, seven pounds per hour.

And also there a citizen has fabulous social welfare schemes. The complaint there is that people go lethargic, without going to work, and enjoy the social welfare benefits.

Here what is it? If you have Rs 26 in the rural areas or Rs 32 in the urban areas, you are above poverty line.

So whatever be the assertions about liberalisation etc, don't burden the people without offering social welfare benefits- full stream.

End this cat and mouse game

It is high time we ended the cat and mouse game of increasing the price of petrol and then drawing it back a little bit and again going in for another hike, creating a havoc in the country.

It was a pathetic sight of the Finance Minister on television channels on Friday just parroting that the petrol price is decontrolled, the government has no role.

Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh has said more items have to be decontrolled.
Who is against decontrol, if it is done judiciously?

You cannot call it decontrol, when other levies are tagged with the actual prices being levied from the people.

First of all, before imposing decontrol, the government has to ensure fair practices. The performance of the petroleum companies should be vetted in an objective manner.

The Comptroller and Auditor-General should have the accounts and reports audited in an impartial manner. Otherwise, how can the so-called losses be considered true?
All other levies tagged with petroleum products should be detached and the petroleum prices should be considered in an impartial manner.

The stance of the government simply walking off the stage, leaving the mismanaged companies to fix a price is irresponsible.

Let there be transparency in the affairs of the petroleum companies.
You say prices are hiked when there is hike in international prices. Mind you, much of the purchases are done by prospecting, future trade and speculation. How can real prices in the international market be a reason for the consumers?

There should be a hard look into the affairs of the petroleum companies by the judiciary.

There would be an explosive situation soon if petrol price hike goes like this

The government would learn only when an explosive situation arises. And no doubt, the people would stage opposition in a strong manner, if the hike in petrol prices goes on like this.

The government seems to think that it can wash its hands off by saying it is all the job of the petroleum companies.

Earlier, Dr Manmohan Singh had said the system would absorb hikes. It would not be true always, for the people have suffered enough.

The price hike occurs not because of the increasing prices in the international market alone. Our prices are linked to other taxes and levies.

The government is getting money by simply taxing the people using the petrol path.
The pity is that no one is seriously working on finding a way-out. The price inflation is at its vortex, when the petrol price has been pushed up.

Who is aware of the intricacies of the activities and expenses of the petroleum companies? Their prospecting, projects and governance are not that transparent, and people are simply told they are making losses.

Maybe at one time, the courts would be forced to interfere even in policy matters.
Things are bad for the country, which levies the heaviest in the neighbourhood.