UN Security Council meet on Article 370

The UN Security Council meet to discuss the Kashmir issue yielded the expected outcome - no result. Pakistan's all weather friend China supported the rouge nation. Russia accredited India's decision to scrap Article 370 as its internal matter. The rest 3 other veto holding members, US, Britain and France stayed neutral, again as expected.

We, in India being brought up in a Bureaucracy dominated environment consider UN as a big thing. Needless to say, it is the world's biggest, bloated bureaucracy which houses a bunch of entitlement seekers, famous for their inefficiency and lack of accountability. A spineless organization, it is known more for failures than success on its Balance Sheet ever since its inception in 1945. 

A sizable amount of its maintenance is born by the Americans Taxpayers. Now high time it gets dissolved, or US kicks them out of its own soil. What a blatant waste of prime real estate properties in New York and Washington DC for a bunch of freeloaders !!!

The nations in United Nations, in contrary to the name suggests, are hardly United. In spite of tons of money poured into many poor nations (mostly American money), those nations still languish in poverty. Those who have succeeded in moving 10s of millions out of poverty (notably China and India), have done so by helping themselves and with some help from Private charitable agenies, rather than anything remotely from UN.

The Security Council is used as the personal fiefdom of its veto wielding members, to further their own selfish agenda. It has hardly achieved any world peace and stability, which was supposed to be the primary goal when the United  nations was formed 70 years ago.

In June, 1981 following the Israeli strike on the Iraqi Nuclear Reactor on the outskirts of Baghdad, US promptly vetoed any UN resolution against Israel.

I still vividly remember this cartoon by R K Laxman on the front page of Times Of India, where the UN Secretary General says to the recalcitrant, mockingly grimacing Israeli PM - "The more you launch such an attack, you will be condemned more severely".

35 years down the road, not much has changed. Now this behemoth global Babudom is not expected to fix the Kashmir imbroglio. So, more their meets on Kashmir is ignored, better it is. 

At the same time, let's not be under the illusion that every nation on earth shares our hatred towards Pakistan and our BHAKTI (devotional love) laden blind support for each of Modi's decisions when it comes to foreign policy. Just because Modi scrapped 370, every nation on earth will blindly support us - simply because we view India being right and Pakistan is wrong 

International geopolitics is purely self interest driven and everything is not judged black and white. There are tons of gray areas. All politics is local and preservation of self interest laced with hypocrisy is the leitmotif of the foreign policy of every nation. 

Let's take the example of the famous five permanent members of the UN Security Council. They all have all their self interest to grind. Russia is not our bosom friend, it's supporting us because we have been its ally since Cold war days and we buy a lot of military weapons from them. America can't abandon Pakistan due to its strategic interests. China needs to outsource its containment of India to Pakistan to keep India busy. Britain and France had no interest and hence no intention in taking sides.

And there is so much hypocrisy - China forces its Uighur Muslim dissidents to eat pork, drink liquor, cut beards whereas the Islamic world is conspicuously quite. It harasses protesters in Hong Kong while lecturing India on peace in Kashmir. Other nations have their share of hypocrisy, listing all of them is beyond the scope of this blog. All said and done - Each one has it's own self interest to support, oppose or stay neutral to Indo - Pak tension.

Let's say Rwanda and Burundi, two nations with history of fighting start fighting again. India knows Rwanda is the perpetrator but has billions of dollars of business interest in the country. I am sure hardly anyone will bother or raise a voice if Modi takes a neutral position in Rwanda - Burundi issue. He will be hailed as practicing pragmatic geopolitics.

Everything in this world is relative. Someone's terrorist is another one's freedom fighter - rest of the hardly care if unimpacted. Real diplomacy will be long term - which will be more outside UN and how the relevant powers US, China, Russia, Japan, Gulf nations, African Union react as dust settles down. We have to wait to see that. 

Article 370 and memories of Srinagar

Article 370 of the Constitution was scrapped by the Centre. A bold step in the right direction dmhas this overnight decision changed the mindset of the Kashmiris towards India or Indians ? Your guess is as good as mine.

The Kashmiri valley was never with us. During the West Indies 1983-84 tour of India, an One Day International held in Srinagar prematurely scrapped due to the crowd violence. It didn't go unnoticed in the teenager in me the crowd cheering wildly for every wicket India lost and every boundary hit by the Windies. Bottom line - the spectators hated India to the core.

Fast forward by 5 years. Ideally the Article 370 should have been scrapped in the year 1989 when Rubiyya Saeed, daughter of Cabinet Minister Mufti Muhammad Saeed was kidnapped by terrorists. The Central non-Congress government then well supported by BJP acquiesced by releasing some hardcore militants in exchange for the release of a VIP's daughter. This decision had its long unforeseen consequences, emboldening the terrorists and reinforcing the perception of India being a weak state.

Soon Violence took over the Valley. REC (Now NIT) Srinagar was closed Sine die and all the students from Odisha were transferred to NIT, Rourkela. It included some of my childhood friends. We welcomed them with open arms to REC, Rourkela (tagging those on my friend list Ashutosh Mallick Dave Patnaik Asis Kumar Swain) who were among them. Those brilliant brains lost a valuable year due to our Centeral government's indecisiveness and vacillation.

Our new NIT Srinagar immigrants brought us exciting anecdotes from Srinagar. Most of us in our upper teens with adrenaline rushing through our body and fickle minds ruled more by emotions than logic were battered by the events surrounding them. 

The Valley's antipathy towards India and sympathy for Pakistan is not something new. The locals in Kashmir valley hardly considered themselves as part of India, clearly seeing those from the Mainland India as outsiders. The environment inside the Engineering College Campus perpetually resembled a room filled with flammable gas. All it needed was to light a match stick, in form of celebration of a section of students post India's win or defeat in a cricket or Hockey game.

They narrated many interesting and harrowing stories. One of them Ashutosh Mallick, was taunted frequently "SALIM MALIK TO MUSALMAN HAI, TU KAISE HINDU BAN GAYA, "Salim Malik is Muslim, how come you are Hindu", pointing to his last name and referring to Salim Malik, a Pakistani Cricketer.

The students from the Srinagar Valley were mostly Muslims, who kept to themselves and were completely segregated from their Hindu and Sikh counterparts from Mainland India. Except perfunctory interactions of exchanging academic notes and greetings on Eid and Diwali, there were hardly any interactions between them

Pakistan was seen as the Promised Land, the land of freedom & opportunity. When Zia Ul Haq died that fateful day in August, 1988 the mostly Muslims Kashmiris felt bereaved while the rest rejoiced in silence.

Nothing reflected the mental partition and the hiatus based on faith than cricket. The rooms of the Kashmiri Muslims adorned the pictures of Imran, Akram, Miandad and Salim Malik. In their common room, during Indo-Pak cricket encounters they used to sit segregated, with Kashmir Muslims vociferously cheering for Pakistan. Only Indian players who ever got an occasional cheer from the predominantly Muslim Kashmir students were Azharuddin and Arshad Ayub.

Unfortunately for the students from the Mainland, India used to lose often to their traditional rivals. Their hapless supporters had to bear the brunt of taunts from the Pakistani supporters from Srinagar. It's no surprise for the politicians from the Valley to sympathize with Pakistan, for he has correctly assessed the pulse of the locals.

I am sure this will ring a bell to my friends who studied in that institute a quarter of century ago. Though scrapping of 370 is a step in the right  direction Kashmir is still very much a volatile problem - a political issue of extremely complex dimension, which in Engineering parlance is not a fluid dynamics equation which can be solved in minutes or overnight. It needs a political solution and we have a long way to go. 

Dream of PAKHALA Khia Progeny

Yesterday came like bolt from the blue Government of India's surprise announcement about Article 370 on Kashmir which should henceforth allow Indians outside the state to settle down there. The state of Kashmir is often alluded as "Paradise on Earth". On the social media there is a growing wishlist of starting from buying plots overlooking Dal Lake and Chinaar trees, to marrying Kashmir girls.

Most of these flood of wishes can be  caltegorized as pure GULLI KHATTI (nonsense chatting to pass time). But surprisingly I saw a sizable number of serious enquiries if they can marry the nubile, fair skinned Kashmiri girls and settle down in the valley (there is always a perennial craze for fair skinned women in India and Kashmir vouches for most). 

I have little knowledge of Article 370 and little knowledge can be a dangerous thing. From whatever I gather, it is a bold step in the right direction. But how far it will contribute in solving or even ameliorating the well entrenched Kashmir crisis, only time will bear the testimony of that. 

But overnight settling down with Kashmir girls in the turbulent region is strictly fantasy, rather on the periphery of sheer hallucination. This is a classic case of NAI NA DEKHUNU LANGALA, which transliterated from Odia means - "Becoming naked before seeing the river". In other words, jumping into conclusions too fast, too soon.

It brings me flashbacks from the year 1991. Months after Iraq lost the Gulf war to the American Allied forces, there was this serious rumor in Odisha - that there is a dearth of males in Iraq who perished during the war followed by high number of war widows. The Government of Iraq as relaxed its Visa rules to allow every able bodied Odia to enter as full paid house guests to procreate as many children as possible during their stay. 

Added to this myth - Only SANDHA MARKA TOKA (Bullish males) from Odisha, with tremendous physique and immense stamina meeting such demand will be granted this coveted Iraqi visa. Once the demand is fulfilled, the hosts and the guest had enough, plenty of bastards produced, the male is free to return home.

Such kind of fantasy is not unusual, especially in a sex starved milieu. It could be very well be the daydream of an Odia youth feeling hot after consuming a stomach full of PAKHALA for lunch on a hot day afternoon ( PAKHALA is locally consumed water soaked rice blamed for the complacency and laziness of Odias as a race). Yet many bought the story and started enquiring if any agency was there to facilitate such trip to Iraq. 

Now fast forward to almost 30 years, I can see some parallels and history repeating itself. The basic human nature has remained unchanged over the years, only the platform of expression has changed to social media which wasn't there in the year 1991. From Iraq to Kashmir, the dream of delivering PAKHALA KHIA progenies still thrives.

The hypocrisy of cow vigilantism

Recently while talking to a friend of mine, I got enough fodder to write about this latest fad of cow vigilante in India and the staggering amount of lies and hypocrisy involved in it.

First lies - Sundry politicians from BJP propagate the theory that cows exhale Oxygen. I studied basic science in my school and college to be knowledgeable enough to proclaim with confidence that cows don't possess chlorophyll - a compound found in plant which produces oxygen only during daytime. Cows, like all animals inhale Oxygen 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and 365 days a year. In actuality, cows fart enough methane to contribute towards global warming. With such leaders at the helm, God bless our scientific temper.

Next comes the Hypocrisy part - lot involved in tannery and beef exports are Hindus and staunch supporters of BJP.  Many of them are Jains and Marwaris, strictly vegetarian but no qualms about making money out of bovine skin and beef.

In my home state Odisha back home, illegal Challan (transportation) of Cows to Bangladesh has been going on since time immemorial. Only the state of West Bengal separates Odisha from the final destination of Bangladesh - the path though heavily populated, is not a whole lot of distance to cover. 

Many stray cows and bulls roaming around are rounded up and packed liked sardines in trucks in their hundreds of miles of journey. They pass through multiple check gates where hefty bribe is exchanged to let them pass. Upon reaching the border, the ironically called Border Security Force (BSF) manning it let the cows pass through the other side to be butchered which is heartily welcomed by the Islamic majority nation who has no qualms about eating beef.

I am sure an overwhelming majority of folks involved in this trade in the long journey profiteering and taking bribes are Hindus - a good number of them vote for the BJP. No wonder for the BSF folks Bangladesh border posting is coveted and cherished one where they pay hefty bribes for such posting.

My dear Sangh, Bajrang, BJP supporters - if you got guts, go try stopping this cow challan mafia, rather than doing this nonsense lip service of cow vigilantism. If you really want to help our society we have a long list of dirty laundries to clean. Better get your act together and focus on more serious issues facing the nation. Nothing wrong in being a cow lover, or any animal per say - but it's your hypocrisy that sucks.

Ankush movie - A reminder of the 1980s

Love is strongest when it's unreasonsble. But it can reasonably be said that love always comes with a reality check. This is best depicted in a scene from the epic movie ANKUSH (Barb) I was watching today. This movie is from the year 1986, catapulted the actor Nana Patekar to fame. In the movie, a boy unemployed in spite of having a Civil Engineering degree, solicits love from a girl in his neighborhood by approaching her with a Rose. 

She rudely rebuffs him, throwing away the flower sideways, "HUN, MAHINA 100 RUPIA KAMAA NAHI SAKTA, CHALA AYA PYAAR KARNE KE LIYE" - "Huh, Can't even earn Rs.100 (Roughly $10 those days) a month, now comes to express his love". Few days away from my Engineering College admission, this scene was profound enough for me not to opt for Civil Branch of Engineering. 

One of the big hits of our teenage days, the movie captures the ethos and pathos of the youth of the time. The milieu was morbid, unemployment was rampant with not much hope and scope for the youth to dream aloud. Bollywood was a vent for the frustration and disillusion of the youth of the day.

Though a serious movie with depiction of few ghastly murders, the movie had its comic moments too. A feminine boy went around the neighborhood swinging his hips while Nana Patekar and friends passed comments to a girl (a term used for teasing girls back home). The boy protests - LAKDIYON KO CHHENE SE TUMHE SHARAM NAHIN AATI ? MEIN SAARE LADKIYON KO APNI MAA SAMAJH TA HOON (Don't you feel ashamed to teasing girls. I consider all girls as my mom).

To this Nana delivers his epic Punchline, "TERA NIYAT TO THIK HAI, LEKIN TERA BAAP KA KYA HOGA - You're fine, but what will happen to your dad". Ankush was a few good movies at a time when Amitabh Bachchan was the one man of an industry which struggled against mediocrity. Ankush was a breather, a breath of fresh air.

Rahul Bose and Banana

Indian actor Rahul Bose ordered couple of Bananas to his room in JW Marriott in Chandigarh, India. He was billed Rs.440 ($6) - almost $3 a piece. The actor went Bananas and twisted it.

No question it is highly priced. But I am not surprised. I have seen Samosas priced at Rs.100 ($1 and 25 cents) inside flights inside India. The same would cost less than 10% of that price in decent  hotels in Bhubaneswar, Rs.5 a piece across the street from our house in the Old Town neighborhood. It costs much more in bigger cities like Mumbai and Bangalore. This is called Capitalism. So, it is not something out of the ordinary in a 5 star hotel. 

The price of an item is not determined by social media economists, rather by supply to demand ratio, factoring in the purchasing power of the consumer. I know middle class folks like me in Odisha who won't mind paying an hefty amount for a Banana depending on place, time and circumstances (STHANA, KALA, PATRA). 

Recently I ate a regular MEETHA PAAN (Sweet Betel) for $2 in Atlanta. The same would cost almost the same in Bhubaneswar. So, what's the fuss about !!! It's another  thing to protest against price gouging - Yet actor Rahul Bose earns enough to pay that amount. He was free to cancel his room service order and step out to get the fruit at much cheaper rate if he was too price conscious. It will take a while for us to get over the hangover of socialism. 

In the context, I am reminded of this Odia song from eminent singer Akshay Mohanty from late 1970s.

HASA TA LAKHE TANKA
CHALI TA ANKA BANKA;

RAGILA NAALI LANKA

RUSILA OOI HUNKA

TA GHARA KU BATA KHARCHA,

ADHEI TANKA.

(Her smile is worthy of Rupees One lakh
Her manner of walk is zig zag;
Her anger is like red chilli
She being upset is akin to  termite hill;
The traveling expense to her home
Is 2 and 1/2 rupees).

These days 2 and half rupees will not take one beyond 10 feet in the cheapest bargain one can get for a rickshaw. A guy has to be exceptionally lucky to find such a girl close by in an age when couple of Bananas cost more than 400 Tanka.

Visit to Zoo Atlanta

Today's Hotlanta weather was an aberration. (Atlanta is also known as Hotlanta for its long hot and humid summer, very typical of Southeastern United States). While entire North and Central US is now sizzling under record heat, with the temperature topping 100°F (38°C) with heat index of 110 (43°C), Atlanta was surprisingly pleasant today, with temperature hovering in Upper 80s (30°C) with the afternoon interspersed with on and off showers, with dark clouds and forked lightening ornamenting the horizon.

July and August being the hottest months in America, such heat waves are  neither unusual nor unheard of at this time of year, though this is nothing in terms of heat and humidity we see back home in India and particularly in Odisha during its summer months. In contrast except the desert Southwest, the summer in USA is milder and the best time for outdoor activities.

Living close to Atlanta for close to two decades we never found time to visit the Atlanta Zoo. There is a saying in Odia - DIPA TALA ANDHARA (the bottom of lamp is always dark). We kept the Atlanta Zoo in dark from our to - visit list. For us it was so near, yet so far. This time we decided to leave no stone unturned and shed some light on Zoo Atlanta by paying it the long due visit. 

The zoo is not huge, does not possess a whole lot of animals to write about. We have seen bigger zoos in Cincinnati, Pittsburgh and Portland Oregon. But the zoo is professionally maintained, animals well taken care of - with plenty of attractions and activities for the kids. 

The best part - we could see Animals from very close, sometimes too close for comfort. A giant Panda was enjoying its post lunch siesta. A mountain sized Gorilla was scratching his private parts in one hand and munching lettuce using the other in full public view. Blame sultry weather for that. 

Not long ago, I saw a passenger inside the Bhubaneswar Airport surreptitiously scratching his private part in public. When our eyes met he looked flustered, lifted his pants a bit, faked trying to adjust his belt. I didn't pry on him any further, letting him enjoy the small pleasures of life on a muggy morning. One fine morning early June morning of 2017 at a local HAAT (Flea market) in Old town of Bhubaneswar a guy suddenly walks in wearing a LUNGI (loincloth wrapped around waist), vigorously scratching his private parts in public and asked a lady vendor "ALO BAIGANA KETE NEKHA meaning "Hey, how much is the Brinjal (Eggplant ). So why blame the poor simian. A la every human, every Gorilla has his day - unlike humans he doesn't have the guile of hypocrisy.

Orangutans were no less funny. I saw a giant red faced one sitting grumpy faced under a tree like our President Trump. He reminded me of grand old men sitting on elevated, high porch in front of houses in our village exhibiting a forlorn look. A baby Orangutan was hanging around, literally on a canopy of ropes crisscrossing over his head. 

Late afternoon there were thunderclaps in the distance, but what caught our attention were claps emanating from a melee in front of a nearby enclosure. The scene was a peacock dancing with its plumage spread wide with the peahen watching closely. In the Animal kingdom, male of the species are more handsome than the females. Look at the Male Lions and Deers, apart from peafowls.

While walking back to the parking lot after visiting yet another zoo, I came to the conclusion that no country on earth has such a huge variety of wildlife as India. Probably with a few exception like Giraffe and Zebra, almost all tropical species are part of India's fauna. India is the only country which has both Tigers and Lions (Africa though rich in wildlife doesn't have Tigers). The King Cobra, a native of India is the World's largest poisonous snake. The amount of venom released by it in a single bite is gargantuan - potent enough to kill a full grown Bull Elephant and twenty adult humans.

Willam Dalrymple's well researched book "LAST MUGHAL" mentions about one of the last Mughal Emperor Bahadur Shah Zaffer's sons was eaten by crocodile in river Yamuna in the year 1850. It is interesting to know that Crocs roamed as far as Delhi. Around the same time, Lions now restricted to Gir forest of Gujarat and the now extinct Asiatic Cheetah were roaming in large numbers in North and Central India.

The rate we are killing many of these exotic animals, unless some drastic measures are implemented we might see the extinction of some species during our lifetime, only restricted to the zoos. Today's trip to Zoo Atlanta though entertaining, was a stark reminder to this hard truth.