The
calamities in Uttarakhand are not just due to natural disasters but they have
been seriously aggravated by the Himalayan blunders of our policy makers. On
the face of it these blunders are being committed by the managers of this quite
unviable State which lacks good arable land or minerals to survive is per forced
to exploit resources anyhow for its costly survival in the name of rapid
development and industrialization. In this blind race of development resources
are being plundered by the powerholders in connivance with exploitative
corporates. To maintain its statehood anyhow it has resorted to desperate
development in which the hilly rocks, tracts and terrains have been dynamited,
deforested, depleted and made vulnerable and fragile with false and virtually
impossible assurances of safety and relocation under a number of power, mining,
infra and such other so called development projects. The CAG Reports have also confirmed that all
this has been done completely ignoring the invaluable warnings and
prescriptions coming from different corners of environmentalists, scientists
and other well-wishers from time to time. But this plunder is not only spoiling
the beauty of the mountains but also play toying with lives and ecology of not
only natives of that State but also of the nation and the mother earth.
The
reality is that the creation of this State (with small population of just 30
lakhs and small area of just 13 districts) in the year 2000 was in itself a
great political blunder of those at the helms of affairs in India at that time.
Since then both the dominant parties in India—BJP and Congress have interspersally
tried to command this state with utter failure—the present disaster being the
latest case in point—which has proven the greatest disaster in Indian history
requiring the largest relief operation so far. Though this is not the time to
encash political benefits out of this tragedy, but can we allow this tragedy to
pass with time by some anointing, some lip service or some superficial and
shallow measures and forget until a
larger happening again reminds us to think again in a longer strategic
perspective.
This
is not just a matter of disaster management anyhow. But this phenomenon some
strong hearted bold steps. This unviable State of Uttarakhand as well as
Himachal Pradesh have waiting for long to be merged with Jammu & Kashmir to
form a large and strong state on the northern strategic borders of India.
Within that large state five autonomous socio-economic regions (some call them
bio-regions or eco-regions)—Kashmir, Laddakh, Kumaun, Garhwali, Pahadi, Kinnauri,
Dogri Samaj—for preservation of their cultural identity and self-respect and
for vivid development of these regions according to their potential and
aspirations. In fact, this is part of the historic KAJAHIL (Kashmir, Jammu,
Himachal and Laddakh) proposal which was sent by Lord Anandmurtiji (Sri P. R.
Sarkar) to the Central Government through one of his disciples in 1965 when
Punjab was yet to be divided into three states. But just to fulfill the
ambitions of a party leader, Y. S. Parmar, to become the first Chief Minister
of the new State of Himachal, this proposal was ignored also allowing the
Kashmir problem to bloom further. The creation of Himachal with a little
population then of 30 lakhs and just 13 districts was a great blunder of the
then Congress government. Another blunder was committed by creating Haryana as another separate small
state in the narrow tradition of reorganization of states merely on language
basis whereas creating two autonomous socio-economic regions Punjabi and
Haryanvi Samaj would have served the purpose. The further problem of Khalistan
was a logical culmination of such narrow political decisions. The fact that
none of the two states could leave its claim over Chandigarh as a capital
testifies to it. Many disputes between both the states on water and area issues
are also witnesses to this wrong decision. Such has been the foolish approach
of the Congress party. Rest of the
leeway was made up by the BJP through creating Uttarakhand as another unviable
state. On the other hand many
socio-economic regions with sufficient size and population like Bhojpuri,
Telangana, Royalseema, Vidarbh and Saurashtra have been prevented since long
from statehood. Now it is for the masses to give befitting reply to such
disastrous decisions as it is they who are the ultimate and real sufferers.
They should identify their real well-wishers rather than being swayed by the
short-sighted narrow sentiments created by the over-ambitious but cunning
politicians and parties to serve their own ends.
Prof. Ravi Pratap Singh
Department of Commerce, DDU
Gorakhpur University
and Vice Chairman, Pragatisheel
Bhojpuri Samaj,
Gorakhpur, India
http:// theproutist.blogspot.com
