Bihar's Industrial Renaissance

Once synonymous with the "land of opportunities", the outbreak of political corruption in the early 1990's saw Bihar fall from grace. Long periods of misrule based on casteist politics in the guise of social justice thwarted progress and development in the state. Post liberalisation, while other states were riding the high tide of growth, Bihar was wading through (political) inaction which defied growth aspirations that tolled and shambled its impressions outside. Between 1990 and 2004, Bihar suffered hardships more acutely than those revealed by any official statistics.

Due to strong political governance, Bihar had been one of the performing Indian states prior to 1990; it lost that edge in the next fifteen years. The process of recuperation began with the arrival of a thinking leader, Nitish Kumar, in 2005. He took charge of a state in ruins and made it thoroughly functional and even competent by boosting basic services such as infrastructure, law and order. This has had a radical impact and helped metamorphose the state's work culture positively.

Post independence, India's planned economy was single-mindedly shaped on an industrial policy targeted towards developing heavy industries near raw material supply centres along with creating an effective infrastructure network for mobilising the resources among different aimed destinations. An undivided Bihar, with its rich mineral base and close proximity to Kolkata for transport access, became an exciting hunting ground for large scale investments. The operations of Tata Iron and Steel Company (Tisco) in Jamshedpur and public sector units like SAIL in Bokaro testify to the positive prospects Bihar was offering. Despite the flaws of policies regarding traditional communities, new industrial cities such as Ranchi, Bokaro, Jamshedpur, Dhanbad and others came up under the changed policy atmosphere.

The pattern of industrial policy manoeuvrings in the initial five years plans significantly influenced the shaping of growth prospects in Bihar for the long run. Their impact was felt in three different ways. Firstly, the resource rich southern parts of Bihar, especially the regions of Chhota Nagpur emerged as the hub of industries. Secondly, over emphasis on heavy industries in South Bihar undermined any chances of developing agro-based industries in the naturally conducive Gangetic plane of northern region of the state. Consequently, the industries of southern Bihar failed to establish any significant interface with the minor industries located in North Bihar. In the absence of such strong linkages between south and North Bihar, the bifurcation of the state in the year 2000 (the creation of Jharkhand) came as a severe blow to the newly formed Bihar.

Moreover, the bifurcation resulted in some structural changes in the overall industrial pattern of Bihar. All big mineral based industrial houses were located in the new state of Jharkhand and very few large scale industries are left in post bifurcated Bihar. Thus,there have been no mineral based industries in the state and the industrial enterprises were bound to be restricted in lightweight segments such as agro-based, food processing, textiles, leather, wood and paper industries.

Despite this, macroeconomic overview on the economy of Bihar marked a significant increase in Gross State Domestic Product(GSDP) since the beginning of the last decade and during the second half of the decade. As per the Central Statistical Organization (CSO), the average annual growth of GSDP in Bihar has been robust at 8.5 per cent during the period 1999-00 to 2009-10 and more importantly in the second half of the decade. During the period from 2005-06 to 2009-10, the state income of Bihar grew at an impressive average annual growth of 10.9 per cent.

As a result, the economy of Bihar has undergone major structural changes during the last decade with the changes in composition of its GSDP between 2000-01 and 2009-10. The share of agriculture has declined from 38.8 per cent in 2000-01 to 20.8 per cent in 2009-10. On the other hand, the share of secondary sector increased from 10.7 per cent to 19.9 per cent and share of the service sector increased from 50.5 per cent to 59.4 per cent during the same time period. But the Per Capita Income (PCI), measured by the per capita net state domestic product at current prices, of Bihar remained abysmally low at Rs 13,663 compared to all India average of Rs 37,490 in 2008-09.

The fiscal front of the Bihar shows that the gross fiscal deficit ratio to GSDP is at 2.7 per cent in 2010-11 which is within the desirable Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management (FRBM) target level. The revenue receipt/GSDP ratio is also at a comfortable level in Bihar at 28.1 per cent for 2010-11 and the state enjoys a revenue surplus as per the budget estimate of 2010-11. Bihar is among the top states when it comes to central transfer (CT). The 2010-11 budget shows a CT- GSDO ratio at 21 per cent. Even Bihar's expenditure pattern is very impressive as the state spends mostly under the heads of developmental expenditure, social service expenditure and capital outlay. Therefore, Bihar gives strongest fundamentals, which are considered essential for sizable investments; undoubtedly it has an undeniable edge on this in eastern side.

Micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) have been playing major role in the economy of Bihar. 2000 onwards this trend has grown stronger. As on 2010-11, the state has about 183729 registered MSME units with a total investment of Rs 1,275 crores, which creates employment to about 6 lakh people. According to the fourth all India survey of micro, small and medium enterprises conducted in 2006-07 by Ministry of MSME, a total number of 71,435 enterprises were surveyed in Bihar. Out of these surveyed enterprises, 52,188 MSME units are operational. These operational units constitute more than 73 per cent of total number of enterprises surveyed in Bihar during 2006-07. The future growth of industry in Bihar will be continuing heavily propelled by MSMEs.

A FICCI- KAF (Konrad Adeneur Foundation) report has made wide-ranging recommendations for improving industrial growth in the state. The suggestions, based on industry's feedback on land allocation, power, labour, taxation, transport infrastructure, marketing, credit availability, technology upgradation and agri-led industrial development, were based on macroeconomic assessments.CII too has made recommendations for Bihar's industrial growth; interestingly a wide ranging policy convergence could be seen with the pragmatism of state government.

More than the availability of resources, Bihar's industrial saturation or deterioration was caused by the inaction of policy makers. With the upgradation of machinery and absence of subversive politics in Bihar the focus on growth is evident from the signing of more than 176 Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for major business deals. Nevertheless, rate of execution is still short of a satisfactory primarily because of the Centre's apathy to provide coal linkage for the critical needs of thermal power in the state. Despite north Bihar being a rich resource of water, hydroelectricity capacity of the state remains abysmal.

There is huge potential in the flood affected districts of Madhubani, Saharsa, Supaul, Sitamarhi,Purnea, Araria, Kishanganj, Katihar to be used as the cluster of hydroelectric generation through effective water management for commercial uses. This can help make Darbhanga a major industrial city in the north Bihar; with historical preeminence and excellent geographical location, this place deserves to retrieve its lost glory. A new vision with comprehensive action plans is needed to include Bihar's northern regions (Mithilanchal) in the proper growth framework. This will not only help in boosting entrepreneurship in these regions alone but across the state. Also a renewed negotiation with Nepal is need of this hour; Patna must be allowed to play bigger role in the future bilateral dialogues of India and Nepal.

Today Bihar presents the ideal high ground for attracting investments and business activities from both within and outside. Among the eastern states, Bihar has a clear lead for placing its claim for a new potential based on its immaculate governance and a regime of clean politics. Hitherto, it was never so persistently resonant and especially after one and a half decades of intense gloom, the new found optimism in Bihar is a 'pleasant end to a tragedy'. Under the sea of changes, the concentration of debate has shifted from 'parochialism to progressivism'. This gives big hope to industry becasue unlike Gujrat, in Bihar, both the politics and enterprise are rational and sustainable, so there is no longer any reason of industry's inhibitions to operationalise its activities in the state. The culture of coalition politics mars the unbiased functioning of the state, this is quite clear with the Centre's consistent apathy to assist the Bihar through special aides in last seven years. However, Bihar's growth agenda will not be compressed too much and the present sense of optimism should be maintained.
Atul Kumar Thakur
August31st2012,Friday
Email: summertickets@gmail.com
(Published in Businessworld on August 13th2012/ http://businessworld.in:8080/en/storypage/-/bw/bihar%E2%80%99s-industrial-renaissance/473137.30752/page/0 )

Teething troubles of a linchpin and beyond!

Book Review: Fiction/Chronicle of a Corpse Bearer by Cyrus Mistry, Aleph, 247 pp; Rs495 (Hardback)
Under the socio-cultural practices in vogue, a corpse bearer seldom is known for a heroic claim-alone going beyond the corporeal construct to look on them too will be not considered less than ‘altruistic’. But against the limiting factors, Cyrus Mistry’s “Chronicle of a Corpse Bearer” makes thing malleable with bringing a reneged as catalyst and his lively overtures as the frame of reference for this beautiful literary fiction. Hitherto, very few novels have written in English on the enterprising Parsi community of Mumbai and certainly the life of a Parsi “corpse bearer” never drawn any workable attention from the writers, who dwelt extensively to work on this city surrounded with hypes and its collapses.

Zoroastrian faith was a beginning with an inter-community marriage of a girl, which later shaped through the normal growth of her family and turning into a social group in the course of time. Zoroastrian theology considers all dead matter bruising and unhygienic. Cyrus derives the idea of the novel from a Parsi dock worker who married Khandhia’s daughter. The timeframe of novel is set in the pre-independence era, with having a corpse bearer (Phiroze Elchidana) as narrator. Phiroze, the son of a revered priest who fall in love with Seppy (Sepideh), the daughter of Khandia-Elchi agrees to become a Khandia (on his father-in-law Temoorus’s condition for marrying his daughter), but unfortunately loses his beloved Seppy to snakebite soon after the birth of their daughter, Farida. Mistry presents lucidly, and with amazing clarity, dark humour, the social and occupational details of a Khandia and his continuing low position in Parsi community.

Khandias are sort of ‘untouchable’ because they deal with the corpses, which are symptomatic of frenzied biases in favour of standard or sub-standard socio-economic existence, never such heavy dose of emotion allow to accept something like ‘exhuming’ as an important work done by the corpse bearer. Availing the mass-market senses, here too rituals downgrade the potential of rational thinking. Though the Parsis do not officially have castes or sub-castes, barring an overt categorisation of Athornan and Behdin but Mistry’s analysis of Parsis seems dominating those old narrow and misleading systemic beliefs. His verbalization of clear occupational biases are supported by the impressive odysseys, so it would be hard for anyone to let down this well conceived commentary on intrinsically closed Parsi society.

The good thing is, neither this book carries the amount of controversial puts to draw any ban or high sounding resistance of non-reading crowds (which are quite rampant these days) nor the author is acting in haste of dethroning the old set of beliefs, which are outdated and not so venial deserving simple pass off. Parsis have seen high time in India through theirs enterprising quest and the success came along with those merits. However, trade is much open now and drawing the interest of all sections-hence making things competitive in ideas and cronyism as the real plank of action. It’s not the Parsi’s business position has dwindled only because of liberalisation of India’s economic outlook but prominently through theirs persisting reliance on ‘closeness’ still as the order of the day.

Although, this novel is set in the time of greater orthodoxy but it’s hard enough even today to see Khandias lower positional claim caused with the poverty or any other factors-still the ‘rituals’ are the excuse for theirs segregation. Cyrus Mistry, a writer of high senses for those all who follow his works have a sound basis in putting forth his community’s inner life picture-while all this, the absorption of intricate social accounts confirms the high degree of authenticity coming through the author’s long solitary life and his overtures within and outside of the Parsi’s usually acclaimed close circle. Distinct from Mistry’s own earlier novel, The Radiance of Ashes; his present work deals more straightly with the Parsi community through having sharper focus on an unusual and telling subject.

Arvind Krishna Mehrotra’s blurb aptly defines the qualities of the novel in these scintillating words -“There’s more magic in Mistry’s realism than in magic realism”. His remarks are convincing for the readers and critics who have read this book that totally moves to tell on the margins of history with an amazing level of originality. Tells of tragic love and degradation seldom could be so charming and horrific at the same time, as it appears in the Mistry’s Chronicle of a Corpse Bearer. Beyond recognition, he was being taken for long as one of the leading literary merits of his generation; now this book will also give him the limelight as much he will desire. Still if left with the choices, Cyrus Mistry will be prefer to rove in the world of ideas rather with the noisy acclaims.

It would not be an exaggeration, if said “Indian writing is English is now more diversified and matured with this novel”. This is a kind of literary work repeats not frequently but in sporadic arrival, the level of such high standard works imbue new spirits, essential for the functionalities and excellence alike. The floods of writing can’t do good except making irrelevant interfaces as popular habit-the well shaped and targeted writing like this, certainly has better reach to the readers (even though not very high in numbers). A pure literary fiction on Mumbai celebrated Parsi’s community life is a new phenomenon, here the underlyings are not bollywood, Shiv Sena or the filthy capital-so giving time for a special overview on forgotten Khandias and his personal life. Personally, I will rate this book as the best literary work of the year, written so far…readers seeking insightful reading must spend time with Cyrus Mistry’s Chronicle of a Corpse Bearer..!
Atul Kumar Thakur
August31st2012,Friday, New Delhi
Email: summertickets@gmail.com

The many facets of Premchand

Book Review: Fiction/ The Temple and the Mosque: The Best of Premchand-Translated from Hindi by Rakhshanda Jalil, Harper Perennial, 197 pp; Rs250 (Paperback)
Munshi Premchand’s writings depict the ‘other’ world — a world which most of us see either as wretched, poverty-stricken or idealist, self-sufficient, depending on the side of the ideological divide we stand. In the process, this well-known Hindi writer too has become the other. A compassionate litterateur and visionary, Premchand strived for progressive ideals. But hardly many English-speaking, city-wallah Indians know him. And, even less people know that Premchand was only a pen-name adopted by Dhanpat Rai, who left behind more than a dozen novels and about 300 short stories.

Today, we don’t have a congenial milieu for translation works, thus hindering our indigenous literature from getting a larger audience. Imagine if Maupassant, Leo Tolstoy, Kafka and Milan Kundera had met the fate of Premchand, would they have been the international phenomena they are today. It doesn’t seem so. And, herein lies the importance of The Temple and the Mosque. The 17 stories of Premchand, selected and translated by literary critic Rakhshanda Jalil for this volume, introduces him as a literary genius. Unlike the usual translated works, there is no attempt made by the translator to force ‘transcreation’ while dealing with the natural ambience and characters of these stories. Jalil has done justice to her translation with this collection of Premchand’s stories and earlier with Phanishwar Nath Renu’s stories (Panchlight and Other Stories, Orient Blackswan, 2010).

In this work, the inclusion of stories like, Idgaah, Do Bailon ki Katha, Namak Ka Daroga, Mandir Aur Masjid, Budhi Kaki, Push Ki Raat, among others, gives ample chances for the first-time readers of Premchand to comprehend the other world. Also, the stories, in no way, seem dated. The villages of Premchand’s literary world may have changed today but the basic flaws that cause agrarian crisis remain as agitating as ever. In fact, the deprivation today is more acute in both relative and comparative terms. Yet, responses during the adversities have radically changed and they are closer of escaping the situation rather facing them the way a young Hamid did in Idgah. A new India with its consumerist strength has many avenues to hide its moral dilemmas.

Jalil has done a commendable job to get Premchand back to the centre-stage of literary discourses. In the changed time too, his works remain as relevant as they were before.
Atul Kumar Thakur
August31,2012,Friday, New Delhi
Email: summertickets@gmail.com
(Published in The Pioneer,Sunday-August4th2012/ http://www.dailypioneer.com/sunday-edition/sundayagenda/books-reviews/85422-the-many-facets-of-premchand.html )

Clearing the fog!

Book Review: Non-fiction/In search of a new Afghanistan by Sujeet Sarkar, Niyogi Books, 273 pp; Rs395 (Paperback)
Though not for the good reasons, but Afghanistan can be counted today as the most special non-NATO ally for U.S.A-even more important than both India and Pakistan weighing together on this. This closeness is not romantic; rather it’s based out of USA’s ‘usual diversion’ from a balanced global strategic vision. After spending more than a decade with the expense in trillions of dollar and thousands of lost lives, USA has made Afghanistan a changed place though not less ravaged than what this unfortunate nation had been in status since the USSR’s intervention in 1980’s.

Sujeet Sarkar’s “In search of new Afghanistan” delves deep inside the existing scenario that new Afghanistan presents. This book has the details, which media often overlook from the core issues and scholars mostly ignore them on their own rigid parameters. Sujeet Sarkar, as a consultant with an international developmental organisation has articulately used his years of staying and working in war torn Afghanistan for the source of rich insights in present work. This book covers well the existing and historical socio-cultural trends that determine the perspective on Afghanistan for the outside world.

Afghanistan and neighbouring north-west frontier have been influencing the strategic scenario of south and central Asia since the time immemorial, also a chunk of Europe consist the regions of erstwhile USSR were in its catchment. From the time of Derius and Alexander to the occupation of this unusual country by the USSR, Talibani forces and now USA for last ten years, a kind of negative limelight has always surrounded the Afghanistan and its affiliates-good or bad. But against the negative notions, Sujeet Sarkar’s personal overtures with the country of dear “Kabuliwala” inspire his positive narrative and exude a sort of ‘countercurrent’ against the popular rhetoric.

His concentration is centered on the events and lives following the long course of brutal war that made this once peaceful country an easy hub of terror with no emancipation in sight to curb those flaws. Unfortunately, war is incessant and perennial reality in Afghanistan, whose time has not yet come to rest with any rational end. Author’s angle is humane and pragmatic to look after on the conditions generated by the USA’s long staying in Aghanistan. His personal account provides a good chance for readers to come in term with the reality that’s prosaic, plain but believable.

Here, the subject is a country in remaking with frequent odds on its way but life has many dimensions that give sometime escape, sometime solace by moving ahead. Despite the havocs of USA’s presence in Afghanistan, it has generated some hope among a section of middle class Afghanis who are now redreaming for modernity. Afghanistan was cut off with normalcy for last three decades, though things are still not very balanced but atleast in urban areas, changes have settled somehow better, which this book emphatically confirms.

Falsifying these positive turnouts would be a misnomer. Afghani peoples are now standing for an acceptable collective life with greater tolerance for modern ideas; even those are coming outside of the Afghanistan’s periphery. Very few work have done so far that can notices the change taking place in Afghanistan through an unbiased point of view, Sujeet Sarkar’s work certainly has an edge in this regard by accommodating the truths and spirits, which the new Afghanistan is reckoning now. With finest convictions and factual accuracy, this book is worth of exploration by both the readers of expert and enthusiast categories. This book gives hope for a new Afghanistan in making-nothing could be better for those who care for this land, which is full with potential.
Atul Kumar Thakur
July30, 2012, Monday, New Delhi
Email: summertickets@gmail.com

The flame of enterprise

Book Review: Non-fiction/Business/Memoir, Flame: The story of my mother Shahnaz Husain by Nelofar Currimbhoy, Hachette, 236 pp; Rs295 (Paperback)

Aristocratic background can’t make a flaming spirit saturated; Shahnaz Husain’s exceptional entrepreneurial journey makes the belief firmly established. She made her business plans modestly and started her further deliberations with the help of family and close friends, though rose to the rank in no time with her consistent innovation in the business of cosmetology. She and her company deserve credit for pioneering Ayurvedic beauty treatments; today it’s hardly surprising if the peoples from sixty countries are having reliance on her hundreds of beauty products. This could be inspiring for young entrepreneurs who have drive to strive best in the segment of small and medium businesses with frugally available resources and frequent odds on the way.

Nelofar, author and daughter of Shahnaz covers intricately about the mix shades of her mother’s long journey into a filed less travelled by the Indian entrepreneurs. The focussed narratives on the facts than impulses, the best quality her book has. She has learnt and lived up avidly her mother’s professionalism and spontaneity in judgement that this biography exudes well in beat and pieces. Life of an extraordinary businesswoman and a mother, both are precisely covered and in great deal it leaves momentum for readers to get in the success story with their own perspective too. Here, a less authoritative yet balanced command of biographer makes around the overtures very simple and meaningful, which enthusiasts of businesses may find apt and worth of sustained preservance.

The opening of Indian economy twenty-one years back has played formidable role in shaping of the consumer driven businesses, infact both the company-Infosys and Shahnaz could be counted among its outcome of high shot. Also they strengthen the notion that India’s business growth path is uneven and diverse through fluctuation in ‘economies of scale’, which India’s new entrepreneurial spirits correspond with the market sentiments and their end targets. Well before the present time, when business strategies are more in news for their consistent shambling drives, India also had a period of productive market experiments, when ideas indeed worked with the capitalist leverages. Without going in deep of its rational, it would be right if acknowledgement be made that entrepreneurship plays not less pivotal role than the market conditions.

Nilofar’s work will be read by the peoples from different set of profession and choices as the subject of her delineations can be correlated with all of them without stucking a tint of confronting spikes. When a noble business idea get execution well streamlined, world knows it for long as phenomenon, when not then certainly otherwise. There is nothing like sole powering of only big businesses in the domain of ideas, the good business idea and its executions is attainable to a large extent by the small/medium business too, which Shahnaz’s business confirms.

This is not the best time for growing companies, unlike few years back when ‘glitters too were resembling gold’. Situation is more compressed now with the prolonged indecisive policy approaches on the domestically generated ‘downward spiral’ in business. Whether things will be good or bad-time will tell but India’s chances are still alive in the world market, which atleast some of India’s original business practitioners is maintaining. A biography is always good if it tells the truth instead compulsively ordered letters, this book follows the previous case, so certainly it deserves to be taken in cognition by the readers. Book writing pattern is swiftly changing in India, ahead, which will be breaking the conventional settings where the conclusion could be drawn in different prisms and order!
Atul Kumar Thakur
July 26th, 2012, Thursday, New Delhi
Email: summertickets@gmail.com

The enigma of arrival

Book Review: Non-fiction/The Moslems are coming by Azad Essa, Harper Collins, 243 pp; Rs299 (Paperback)
An accidental academics turned ‘desktop terrorist’ and finally as an ‘incidental journalist’, Azad Essa exudes many flavours of multitasking. An irreverent, witty and unusually focussed writer on the wide range of inner contradictions, this India centric updated version of his mildly classic book ‘Zuma’s bastards’ holds much promises than his own anticipation in an interview given to Sarah Khan for New York Times, where he could classify his target readers among the toddlers preparing for SAT type of an obligatory professional target!

Azad, who loves his affiliation with the identities prefer not to shadow his disenchantment towards the odds his surroundings deliver quite often than not. His sarcastic light tone relatively appears more serious when he points on the slushy sanction on burqua in France, notwithstanding even the slight infatuation with this tent like fabrics, he consider this culturally politicized dress not aesthetically fit for romance but still notionally wants no imposition of external compulsions for its functional manuals.

While delving on India’s news making terrains, like Manipur or Kashmir, Azad seems following a much travelled and easy route of looking on the whole issues through a restricted vision of ‘human right violation’. There could be no denial that, it’s also a part of story but over the years, excessive and adamant western conceptualisation has made it more like a bandwagon phenomenon. Problem in Kashmir or Manipur is multi folded and can’t be delved alone through the wit, it requires depth and interface with the ground realities, which certainly this book is lacking.

Being an Al Jazeera journalist, author has used his travelling experiences quite energetically throughout his book-the flow of his opinion on diverse themes, from Arab spring to the cricket world cup of 2011 is quite fascinating and informed. A competent journalist can weave the stories with few facts and lot of imaginations, Azad’s incidental overtures with journalism doesn’t deter him doing the same. The best thing is, he has balance within to make explanation correct and their spontaneity as resolute and impactful as the situation demands.

Many of the essays in this book justifies its aggressive title, and that shrewdness is good but would not be long lasting against the opposite school of thoughts, which believes in ban instead reading of a text for advance contextualization. So far, by chance not any recognizable power has banned this book, although some of Azad’s family members have half heartedly tracked this book and further made unofficial fatwa on this book-this is a family matter, the fine point is! This free flowing collection of Azad’s writing enhances more the capability of judgement than argument, hence readers will find it exactly intelligent through reading most of the pages.

This will be worth of saying on record that, Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandela are the most inspiring faces of India-South Africa diplomatic projects…in opposite, if author consider Hansi Cronje as the third icon of commonness between the India and South Africa on the basis of corrupt entrepreneurial drive, then off-record, he too deserves to be called second counter icon. His occupational fluctuations and extraordinary capacity to derive the facts based on fiction is also not very much untoward of the qualities, on which he deserves this new claim!
Atul Kumar Thakur
June 26th, 2012, Tuesday, New Delhi
Email: summertickets@gmail.com

Nepal’s politics at a cross roads

Prithvi Narayan Shah, 18th century king and the father -figure of Nepal, had once termed his country’s position as “a yam between two boulders”. He was, of course, referring to Nepal’s unusual status between the two intimidating giant powers — India and China. Even to this day, his metaphor aptly defines the existing state of affairs in Nepal’s strategic terms with its neighbours. Despite the fact that Nepal as a nation is far older than both of its principal neighbours, it has not been able to come out of the major influence of the two, especially India.
While the India-Nepal relations have historic backing from a series of factors, China’s quest to downplay India’s special friendly status with Nepal is part of Beijing’s narrow imperialistic ploy. Now, both in international relations and domestic politics, Nepal is facing the adverse implications of recently increased political engagement with China.

In broad terms, Nepal has suffered a lot by mismanaging its conventional role of a passive and focussed nation that tempered its special peaceful standing in South Asia. In his later days, King Birendra shared close relations with China, and so the royal massacre of 2001 shocked the Chinese greatly. King Gyanendra, who then occupied the throne in highly suspicious circumstances and without the respect that his predecessors enjoyed from an average Nepali, sought to cement ties with China by offering it space in the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation in 2005. India had been understandably less than amused by Kathmandu’s overture to China.
Since the end of the monarchy, Nepal’s politics has turned more inward looking. The breathless twists and turns hatched by political parties, whose working patterns are radically different from one another. Such is the friction among them that the attainment of any goal collectively or individually has become a lot more challenging. After the bloodless coup in February 2005, Mr Baburam Bhattarai, a thinking leader from the Maoists’ camp, came forward against the obstinate ideological hardline pursued by the likes of Mr Puspa Kamal Dahal, popularly known as ‘Prachanda’, called for the democratic means of struggle — that was a point of highest accomplishment in Nepal’s democratic transition.

Things are not similarly idealistic and flexible now, even with Mr Bhattarai as the elected Prime Minister having greater acceptability inside the party and outside. The conclusion that can be drawn over the failures of Constitution making on another deadline is that Nepal’s polity is undergoing a major change in its fundamentals.
Consequently, the assertiveness could be found at an all-time high among the elite political participants, though this is hardly surprising as every major political change in Nepal (even in the past) has created a new class of elite with shrewd aspirations. That’s why the project of democratic revolution has not met with the success that it deserved in Nepal since 1950.

Chronic political deadlock is denting the credibility of mainstream political forces in Nepal. There is the need for an immediate consensus among the country’s political parties to acknowledge the progress that democratic movements have made since 1990, when the county first tasted democracy, although on restricted scale. Misleading demands of the Rashtriya Prajatantra Party, the Rashtriya Janshakti Party and others for bringing back the Constitution of 1990 or to go for an election only because the term of the CA has ended is condemnable. Such a move will give a fresh lease of life to a defunct monarchy. Despite the failures of the CA, revisiting the last seven years since the abolition of monarchy presents many positive landmarks on which the future base of democracy could thrive.

In this time of uncertainty, the Interim Constitution of 2006, which is still functioning, can offer the new proposed Constitution all the progressive set of rules that is enshrined in it and has a degree of high credibility. The Interim Constitution consists of all the major issues to be followed in the future, such as the abolition of monarchy, provision of federalism, participative representation in state services and others.

The intra-party feuds in the major political parties of Nepal and the failure of these parties to reach a consensus on crucial issues including on the CA, have severely damaged the democratic spirit of the country through decades of struggle. As compared to the Nepali Congress and the CPN (UML), the Maoists are new to power and lack the soundness they should have as representative of a ruling collation.
The issues of federalism based on ethnic identity need a sensitive response on the policy front. Unfortunately, exactly the opposite has been done by the top political leaders. Before the Madhesi parties’ total convergence with the Maoists on this front and their outsmarting acts over NC-CPN(UML), the region of Madhesh had passed through a rather volatile phase in which many lives were lost in the process of peaceful demonstrations in favour of statehood. A major blast in Janakpur (unofficially Nepal’s political laboratory) left four dead, including an emerging Maithil-Nepali leader Ranju Jha.

Kathmandu has to be more accountable in the changing times to the Madhesi-Janjatis who now have a greater say over political matters and can easily make or break the established political discourse for their long-anticipated rights. The concentration of power in Kathmandu has to be reduced. While this will happen with the upcoming execution of the federal model, it may not cure all the maladies of ‘divisive political mania’. Still, its impact at least in selected terms would be long-lasting in favour of a peaceful and stable Nepal.
In the ongoing round of political manoeuvrings, India has played an apparently passive role. Diplomatically though, this cannot be taken as inertia, as silence speaks too. No longer is India ‘Swyambhu’ and no longer is Nepal ruled by the comprador capitalists.
Atul Kumar Thakur
June 24,2012,Sunday, New Delhi
Email: summertickets@gmail.com
(Published in The Pioneer, June 18, 2012/ http://www.dailypioneer.com/columnists/item/51822-nepal%E2%80%99s-politics-at-a-crossroads.html )