varnam

When the Congress Govt. with Communist support came into power in India there was a fear that the relations that the previous NDA Govt. had built with United States and Israel would erode. But on the contrary, the relation seems to be going fine, even though many of us don't like the kid glove treatment that the General across the border is getting.

What does all this mean geopolitically? First, there is the fact that the left-of-center Congress Party-led government willingly worked with the United States in responding to the tsunami. In the past, such a regime would have gone to great lengths to torpedo any American effort to provide relief in the region. For example, when a massive cyclone hit Bangladesh in 1991, leaving extensive devastation in its wake, India expressed misgivings about the U.S. response, which was called "Operation Sea Angel." These anxieties, a product of the cold-war years, have steadily dissipated over the past decade, replaced by a willingness to work with, and even court, the United States on a range of issues, from anti-piracy operations in the Indian Ocean to jointly confronting terrorism. Indeed, the growing scope of military-to-military contacts between the two countries over the past several years (a centerpiece of the new Indo-U.S. relationship) made it possible for the two states to play a leading and coordinated role in post-tsunami relief. To be sure, the countries remain at odds over certain issues, such as India's ties to Iran and the brutal regime in Myanmar. But the signs point in a positive direction. For example, in a sharp departure from the past, the ongoing U.S. military presence in Sri Lanka to provide humanitarian assistance has not elicited any visceral, reflexive comments from New Delhi officialdom. The latent suspicion of all American initiatives in the region that until recently preoccupied India's foreign policy elite now appears to be in steady decline. [Assist Leader via Dan Drezner]

After the nuclear tests, there was a series of discussions between India and United States in which both the nations understood each other more clearly. During the Kargil crisis, United States sided with India, much to the surprise of New Delhi, according to Strobe Talbott.

But one of the important reasons for the removal of suspicion is improved trade relations between the two countries and India was one of the three countries which supported Bush's re-election.

A 9th century Vishnu temple, which remained dilapidated for years, is being rebuilt at Perumpazhuthur, near here, thanks to the initiative of the local people.

Authenticated by historians as having been built during the rule of the ''Ay" dynasty in 867 A.D, the temple is one of the rarest of its kind the country with a circular-shaped sanctum santorum.

Though the temple finds mention in the ''Monuments of Kerala'', published by the Archaeological Survey of India, it remained dilapidated with most of its remains buried till the people of Perumpazhuthur organised themselves to reconstruct the edifice and restore its old glory a few months ago.

The book, authored by H Sarkar, mentions only a few circular temples in Kerala, including that at Perumpazhuthur. He also highlighted that circular temples were rare for Dravidian style.

''The Arts and Crafts of Travancore,'' authored by Stella Kramrish and pubished by the Department of Culture, carries the photo of the temple in a dilapidated condition and the damaged statue of Vishnu. [Local people rebuild a 9th century Vishnu temple via IndiaArchaeology]

Before the Cheras established themselves as a major force in Kerala, it was ruled by the Ay dynasty sometime between 7th to 11th century AD with Vizhinjam as the capital.The Ay dynasty ruled the land between Nagercoil and Thiruvalla. In A History of South India, Nilakanta Sastry writes that the Ay kingdom lay around the Podiya hill, the southernmost section of the Western Ghats. He also writes that the Greek geographer Ptolemy wrote about one 'Aioi' was ruling the country at that time which included Cape Comorin and Mount Bettigo.

To promote peace and stability in the broader Middle East, the United States will work with our friends in the region to fight the common threat of terror, while we encourage a higher standard of freedom. Hopeful reform is already taking hold in an arc from Morocco to Jordan to Bahrain. The government of Saudi Arabia can demonstrate its leadership in the region by expanding the role of its people in determining their future. And the great and proud nation of Egypt, which showed the way toward peace in the Middle East, can now show the way toward democracy in the Middle East.

To promote peace in the broader Middle East, we must confront regimes that continue to harbor terrorists and pursue weapons of mass murder. Syria still allows its territory, and parts of Lebanon, to be used by terrorists who seek to destroy every chance of peace in the region. You have passed, and we are applying, the Syrian Accountability Act -- and we expect the Syrian government to end all support for terror and open the door to freedom. [Transcript of State of the Union]

While the President asked Saudi Arabia opt for democracy, a very bold statement considering the relations between the President and the monarchy, he left our the major ally Pakistan. Since he was speaking in the context of the Middle East, he may have left out the major non-NATO ally. But still that is no excuse for letting one of the biggest proliferators and violators of democracy off the hook.

While on the subject of terrorism, most jihadists claim to be fighting for the rights of Muslims in various countries. In Iraq, Kashmir and Palestine, the voters choose their leaders, while the terrorist sponsors live in dictatorship or monarchy.

Rajiv Malhotra in an e-mail notes that the History of Science and Technology has a new volunteer and the site has been updated with new articles.

Matt Marshall, investigating the anemic growth of American startups think that a lot of VC money is now going overseas, especially to India and China.

That said, Battery Ventures, which has offices in San Mateo, raised a $450 million fund in September, and recently led it's first investment in India: $15 million in Bangalore's Tejas Networks, which is developing optical networking products in the Indian market for a fraction of what American companies do, says partner Thomas Crotty. Battery hopes to help it expand into the U.S market with the help of a partnership with Nortel, he said. Matrix Partners, another big-name firm with offices in Menlo Park, also recently opened an office Bangalore to start investing there. They plan on about one or two a year. Stay tuned as we follow this trend -- unfortunately, there are no great statistics out there that reliably quantify it. [Is VC money going abroad?]

Less than 2 km away from Taj Mahal is Agra Fort, which was the first building project of Akbar. Built between 1565 and 1575, this fort contains the famous Diwan-i-Khas (private court) and Diwan-i-Am (public court). This was also the fort in which Aurangazeb imprisoned Shahjahan. The fort has two gates, the Delhi Gate and Amar Singh Gate. Now workers in the fort have discovered two new gates.

Workers engaged in the fort's repair discovered the hidden 'Water Gate' and the 'Haathi Gate' during their restoration work. Historians say that the British who set up their military bases here and made alterations to the fort's architectural structure had sealed the gates for their own convenience.

Hathi Gate forms one of the four main entrances to the fort, whereas the Water Gate lies hidden between the fort's wall and a ditch.

"When work was being done from Amar Singh gate to Haathi Ghat gate, all the undergrowth and bushes surrounding it was being cleared. Then two gates namely the water gate and hathi ghat gate were revealed," said Amarnath Gupta, Conseravation Assistant.

Trade was mainly conducted through the Hathi Gate whereas the existence of the Water Gate has also been acknowledged in historical texts.

It is believed that the gate was operated in times of water crises. Moreover it was also the gateway, which the queens used for boating. [Hidden gateways discovered in Agra fort]

Maximum City : Bombay Lost and Found by Suketu Mehta, Knopf, 560 pages

The first story in Roma Eterna is about a Greek ambassador visiting Rome and being taken on a tour of the Roman underworld by the youngest prince. Like this prince, Suketu Mehta takes us on a tour of the Mumbai underworld to meet people whom you may not encounter in your daily life. These people open up to him like they are standing in a confession box and thus we get to hear a Shiv Sena man explaining how it is to kill a Muslim, a gangster explaining what he does after shooting a victim and one of the top cops explaining why they do encounters where suspects are just murdered without trial.

Mehta lived in Mumbai and then moved to New York and various other cities before coming back to Mumbai to write a book about the city.

It is not just the unknown people who open up to him, but also people like Bal Thackerey, Chotta Shakeel and Sanjay Dutt. The portrait of Mumbai is drawn through the lives of these people. In one incident actress Preity Zinta is on an outdoor shoot and asks Suketu Mehta to point out some gangsters who have killed others. This curiosity about the lives of people who violate law is the underlying thread which connects most of the stories in the book.

There are ironies: Director Vidhu Vinod Chopra who thinks that Indians have screwed up Kashmir makes a politically correct movie on the issue titled Mission Kashmir with Suketu Mehta as the co-writer. Vinod Chopra also places himself as a brilliant film maker who has to make movies for what he calls ulloo audience.

Then there are more ironies. The star of Mission Kashmir, Sanjay Dutt, plays a cop but was arrested for illegally possessing an AK-47. Rakesh Roshan, father of Hritik Roshan who plays the terrorist was shot by actual gangsters. During the filming of the interrogation scene with Sanjay Dutt, the actual cop who arrested Sanjay Dutt turns up at the set. The Shiv Sena member who murdered a Muslim (because he was a Muslim), now befriends Muslims. Bal Thackerey who is out to ban Valentine's Day celebrations, invites Michael Jackson to his home and sees no fault in that.

In this book, the author is not a distant spectator, but gets involved with the characters in the book. He gets gangsters to visit his hotel room and speak out their minds. He befriends a beer bar girl and travels with her when she is meeting her father after a long time. Sometimes these incidents seem so unrealistic to be true - or too filmi.

Mumbai is not just a city of law violators, there are people who struggle to make a living. People who travel from Virar to Churchgate everyday, go back home, sleep and do it again the next day. These people age faster, but their lives do not have tales worth writing. You will not find many such people in this book.

This book will shock the hell out of you and also this must be one of the few non-fiction page turners I have read (Into Thin Air is another). Mehta has done wonderful research and gets us involved with the lives of so many criminals and glamorous people at great personal risk. The narrative is gripping and the characters we encounter are so different that the book holds your attention till the end. Most of the tales are sensationalist and there is a tendency to romanticise the gangsters (They have families and they pray and some are even vegetarians). But this is a book on Mumbai unlike any other and is a excellent read.

Related Links: Terri Gross interviews Suketu Mehta, Sandeep's Review of Maximum City

The other day I chanced on a blog called the Great Separation which had an entry titled Christians in India Threatened with Death by Hindu Fundamentalists. Christians are about 24 million people, a numerically large number. So were all those Christians threatened by Hindu Fundamentalists ? No, on reading the entry, this title was put by the site owner based on an article whose title was "Christian Adivasi victims of violence and forced �?�??re-conversions�?�?? in Amravati". A bit of sensationalism for the Lord.

The article quoted is based on the statement of Edwin Cola�?§o, Bishop of the diocese of Amravati, who claims that some one came from Ayodhya and asked people to convert to Hinduism or else face the sword. The story also mentions Uddhav Thackeray issuing warnings to Christian missionaries.

This story dated Feb 3 is not mentioned in any other newspaper. The Bishop felt that Asianews.it (Motto: Asia, our common task for the Third Millennium) was the right medium to tell his story and not other Christian newspapers like Malayala Manorama or Deepika. Prominent "secular" newspaper like The Hindu or the newspaper from Maharashtra, Times of India did not have any report on this event.

But two days later the story was picked up Catholic World News with the title Hindu mobs intimidate, threaten tribal Christians.

Is this how stories are manufactured ?

Every other day there seems to be a story on meditation and yoga in the United States. Meditation has been found in scientific experiments to reduce hypertension as well as even alter the brain structure. Now Yoga alongwith some mantra meditation is used to cure anger of juveniles in a detention center.

"I got hooked on it and now I go every Friday," the darkskinned girl says. "I didn't really know you could find such a calm place in your body. It's like you go off somewhere else; it's like I'm not even in my body, like you go floating off the ground up in the sky. It's really awesome."

"(Gina) was really, really ADD at first," Lord says, referring to attention-deficit disorder. "She could not even stop talking in the middle of a pose. She was incapable of closing her mouth, and now she is quiet in class. That's a huge, huge change."

After nearly an hour of poses, Lord directs the girls onto their backs for the "corpse" pose. She turns off the lights, hands out blue washcloths for the girls to cover their eyes and starts a new tape of Indian music. As the girls lie silently, muscles unclenched and hands open, a woman on the tape lightly chants the mantra, Om namah Shivaya ("I honor my higher self"). Some of the girls move their lips along with the words.

"Don't pay attention to any sounds," Lord purrs. "Focus on the mantra. If a thought comes into your mind, just pretend it's a little butterfly floating across the blue sky of your mind. . . . Repeat this mantra whenever you need it. The mantra is a tool." [Yoga Gives Young Offenders Tools Against Trouble]

Security agencies manning the Indo-Nepal border have been issued orders to let in all Nepali citizens, including Maoists, fleeing the crackdown after the dismissal of the Himalayan Kingdom�??s democratically elected government.

And Indian communist leaders seem to be responsible for the change of heart. They are exerting pressure on the federal government to adopt a soft line towards Nepali Maoists for the sake of democracy.
Earlier, India supplied Nepal not only helicopter gun ships, automatic weapons and shared vital intelligence, but also had a policy of deporting Maoist rebels arrested in India. But now Maoists are being allowed to walk in. Analyst�??s say Indian states adjoining Nepal�??s southern Terai region are the poorest in the country and there is strong sympathy for Maoists there. [India Throws Open Border to Fleeing Nepalis and Maoists]

Maybe the border guards just read Suketu Mehta's Maximum City where he presents the human side of murderers of Mumbai and thought that why not let some more terrorists into India. After all they are being victimized in their own country, and India has a historical record of offering assylum to anyone knocking our door. Some skeptics might say, won't these Naxalites from Nepal join forces with Naxalites in India and create more trouble for us ? To them we have some words of advice: Have you forgottten your heritage young man! Didn't your parents teach you Adithi Devo Bhavah. Gandhiji taught us, if we are hit on one cheek show the other one too. Now you have a choice, offer one cheek to Indian Naxalites and the other to Nepalese ones. Thank God we have only two cheeks.

I think it was last year that we asked the Bhutanese Govt to get rid of the separatist groups operating there. The naive Bhutanese went after them and massacred them. Like how Kiera Knightley asked for "parley" when she was surrounded by pirates, in Pirates of the Carribean, these people too should have asked for assylum. Now the dead separatists sitting in Hell must be smacking on their forehead wondering why did we not follow the path of these Nepalese Naxalites or the Hurriyat.

The Hurriyat folks must be rolling on the floor laughing at the naivette of the separatists who took assylum in Bhutan. When you can take assylum in India itself, why go and live in another country ? When you get can get Tandoori Chicken and Aalu Paratha at the tax payers expense why live in the jungle ?

In Kerala there is this mythology about a guy called Naranathu Pranthan (a mad man). Every day he used to roll up a heavy stone to the top of a hill with lot of effort and then roll it down and then clap his hands in glee. Now Naranathu Pranthan looks like a sane person to me.

I have been watching so many Hindi movies and at the end of each one I wonder, "Which brain dead person wrote this one ?". But then I read this note from Suketu Mehta in National Geographic and was happy that this story did not get made into a movie. 

Hanging out with Shah Rukh Khan was great fun. He told me about the kind of bizarre scripts people propose to him. In one story idea given to him by a politician, Shah Rukh's character dies. But there is no human body available for reincarnation. So he is born again as a dog. After nine months, he falls in love with a woman.

The politician had spent hundreds of thousands of rupees buying puppies and training them. He had many books about dogs on his table. I asked Shah Rukh if he was expected to act as the dog. In answer, he scratched his ear rapidly with his paw. [On Assignment from Bollywood]

Assailants wearing masks attacked Iranian dissidents sheltering in Quetta on Monday night, killing one of them, police said. The gunmen opened fire with AK-47 rifles inside a house in Killi Kabir, where three Iranians were staying, said Sher Nawaz Marwat, a Quetta police official. Ahmed Mashoof, 29, was hit by four bullets and died instantly, Marwat said. The other two Iranians were unhurt. Marwat said police were investigating to determine the motive and trace the attackers. �??Mashoof and the other Iranians are opponents of the Iranian government and they had rented the house in Killi Kabir,�?� he said. One of the survivors, Rahim Raeesi, claimed he and the other two Iranians were members of an Iranian dissident group, the Balochistan National Front. [Iranian killed in Quetta]

"They had boarded the aircraft at Saigon and after a refueling stop, the plane was flying over Northern Taiwan when one of the engines began to sputter. "The plane rapidly lost height but the pilot managed to bring it down on a clearing where it crashed into heavy undergrowth. The occupants were severely injured, some dying instantly, others escaping with injuries. Habib himself had been thrown clear as the plane plunged into a thicket because he was sitting near the tail of the aircraft," Khan wrote. "Though bruised and groggy, Habib found he could still move and ran immediately towards the burning aircraft to see if he could rescue his leader and others who may have survived. When he reached, he saw the charred body of Bose lying beside the aircraft. Bose had seemingly died because...his suit had caught fire and burnt his body beyond recognition," Khan wrote in his book. [I saw Netaji dying: Pak Brigadier]

"The sea has thrown up evidence of the grandeur of the Pallava dynasty. These have been buried for centuries," the archaeological body's superintending archaeologist, T. Sathiamoorthy, said late on Thursday. "We're all very excited about these finds." Among the tsunami "gifts" found in Mahabalipuram, 70 kilometers south of Madras, are the remnants of a stone house and a half-completed rock elephant, archaeologists say. There are also two giant granite lions, one seated and another poised to charge. The statues are each carved out of a single piece of granite stone, testifying to the carver's skill. The archaeologists are also excited about a report from locals that just before the waves struck on December 26, the sea withdrew a great distance baring the sea bed on which lay a temple structure and several rock sculptures. "We'll be exploring the sea bed to document these Pallava relics," Sathiamoorthy said, adding the Archaeological Survey of India would dispatch a team of marine archaeologists next month to the area. Experts are examining as well a 15-centimeter tall bronze Buddha found inside a bamboo basket attached to a raft to determine its age and origin. The figure with Myanmarese writing on its back is seated lotus style and holds a begging bowl on his lap. [Tsunamis reveal ancient Indian sculptures via Zinken]

While scholars try to portray a confrontational relationship between Buddhism and Hinduism, many facts point to the fact that they just co-existed. The book I am reading, Massacre at the Palace: The Doomed Royal Dynasty of Nepal has some information on the relations between Hindus and Buddhists in Nepal.

The Newars of Nepal developed a kind of Buddhism quite different from that practiced elsewhere. As Buddhists they were allowed to eat meat including buffalo and the pig. The Newars could have a Brahmin as a priest and Hindus would worship in Buddhist shrines. The Shiva temple at Pashupathinath has a strict prohibition on entry by non-Hindus, but Newars are allowed to enter.

There is a festival of the Hindus involving a Kumari, who is considered a living godess. In Indrajatra, she is pulled on a chariot through various parts of Kathmandu and she gives blessings to the King who is considered a partial reincarnation of Vishnu. This Kumari who features prominently in the Hindu festival is chosen from the Buddhist priestly clan of Sakyas (the same clan as Buddha).

When it comes to Pakistan, all the rules regarding proliferation and democracy have a new angle for the Western World. Sometimes silence, sometimes a harsh word immediately followed by generous finacial assistance has now become a standard Pakistani handshake protocol. Now that the General has refused to step down, the Commonwealth in a big bold move actually, as WaPo says scolded Pakistan. We don't know if the General wet his pants laughing.

Colin Powell, the buddy of Musharraf was always reluctant to criticize him, and it seems the new Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice too has the same DNA. Recently speaking in Luxemborg, she said that Iran's support of terrorism, nuclear ambitions and lack of democracy are out of step with trends in neighbouring nations notably Pakistan.

Daniel Larison writes

We should remember that Musharraf seized power because of his frustration with the insufficiently militant stance of the Sharif government over Kashmir, which Pakistan was infiltrating in force in the Kargil region in 1999. There has been relatively little improvement in Indo-Pak relations since the near-war in 2002, and it would not be all together too biased to say that, were it not for Indian forebearance and goodwill, even these improvements would have been impossible.

It has been Pakistan's basic foreign policy for at least the last 15 years to support Islamic fundamentalists along its borders, using them as cat's paws against their main rivals, thus avoiding any further humiliating defeats at the hands of India's military or direct confrontations with the Iranians. Within the last three and a half years, during which Pakistan has supposedly been doing so much to curb extremism, terrorists based in Pakistan organised and carried out the stunning attack on India's parliament in Dec. 2001, and this was hardly the last attack in northern India by Pakistani terrorists. To ignore this sponsorship of terrorism by a principal ally is a blunder in terms of legitimate American interests and the egregious double standard our government has for Pakistan-based terrorism has not gone unnoticed in India. [Rice Foolishly Praises Pakistan]

I heard on her first trip abroad, the Secretary of State gifted some atlases to the correspondents traveling with her so that they would know the countries they were traveling to. A proper gift for Dr. Rice would be a good history book on Pakistan.

Praful Bidwai has an article on Sania Mirza which he then converts that to a roll call of achievers who are Muslims. After some Hindu nationalist and middle class pseudo-liberal bashing, he lists all the Muslims who have made it in India. These include the Khans of Bollywood, Shabana Azmi, Tabu, Saif Ali Khan, Saeed Mirza, Zayed Khan, Javed Akhtar, Mohammed Azharuddin, Irfan Pathan, Mohammed Kaif, Zaheer Khan etc. But one very important name is missing from the list, one person whom most of us see as a great Indian - the Indian President Dr. A P J Abdul Kalam.

I am sure Mr. Bidwai accidently missed this name and it has nothing to do with the fact that Abdul Kalam was involved with India's nuclear weapons, missiles and was nominated by NDA Administration to the position of the President of India.

Related Links: The importance of Sania Mirza (according to Praful Bidwai)

One organization calling itself Tamil Protection Movement decided that from now, Tamil movies should have only Tamil names. Their ire is against Kamal Hassan and S J Surya, both of whom are releasing movies with English names. Besides this, the organization also wants Tamil to be made the language of worship in temples and commericial establishments have Tamil names prominently displayed.

It has been our stand that Tamil films should have Tamil titles. It is true that many films have had English titles in the past. But this trend can�??t continue forever. In the last three years about 80 films have had English titles like Jeans, Run, Boys, and New. This is not a healthy trend. ['We will stop Mumbai Express']

It is just pure hubris to suggest that Tamil needs protection. This classical language has survived for many thousand years even when its contemporary language Sanskrit has declined in usage. Anti-[something] is a great way to grab attention and start a political movement (Ask Bal Thackerey).

While these few Tamilians are hugging the olive tree, Gujaratis are going the way of the Lexus (Reference: Lexus and the Olive Tree). The Gujarati Govt. decided to introduce English from Class I itself.

Speaking at the inauguration of prayer hall at Swaminarayan Gurukul in Chharodi, Mr. Modi said the controversy over teaching of English is unessential. There is no need to fear English if our sanskaras, culture and languages are vibrant, he added.

"Language is just a means of expression. We should be proud of our language and culture but that does not mean we should fear foreign language and not embrace it," he said.

He lauded the efforts of the Swaminarayan Gurukul in maintaining Indian values and culture while imparting education through English. The Gurukuls across the state have not compromised the culture, tradition and values of Gujarat so far, he added. [English will be introduced in class I : CM]

Of course, since Narendra Modi is introducing it, someone has to oppose it. Before anyone one else could jump on the issue, the RSS has scored the essential self goal.

Related Links: Yurt lit

Marxist bastion Jawaharlal Nehru University has banned the Nescafe outlet from its campus because Nestle is a multinational.

The students and faculty of JNU are already known to be hostile towards anything related to Indian traditions. Combined with their hatred for multinationals, this leaves them with no acceptable brand of toothpaste or toothpowder as all brands are either related to multinationals or have some connection to Indian tradition. So, when you come across a JNU student who has not brushed his or her teeth, remember that it is all for the sake of the proletariat.

Also, watch out for JNU students smashing the computers on their university as the computers are made by multinationals.

From the SABHA 4M Report

Even though Nepal as a state was established by King Prithvi Narayan Shah, later the monarchs became prisoners of their Prime Ministers and even had to get the Prime Minister's permission to get out of the palace.

One of the first Prime Ministers in Nepal had decreed that the position would be hereditary and thus parallel to the Royal dynasty there was the Prime Minister and his family. They occupied positions of importance and also they prevented the Kings from exercising their power.

One person who got fed up with this arrangement decided to take the matter into his own hands and that was King Tribhuvan who got the throne when he was five years old. He and his sons established contact with Indian embassy officials and made a plan for an escape from Nepal. India had got freedom in 1947 and the Prime Minister of Nepal Mohan Shamsher did not want Nepal to go the democracy way of India.

In November 1950, the King got permission from the Prime Minister to go on a picnic with his family. The King himself drove his car, his children drove other vehicles and they set out with their families. The Indian embassy was on the way and Chacha Nehru had asked the embassy to help the King.

So as the King's convoy approached the embassy, the gates were opened and in a scene not seen in any Hindi movie, the King and his children drove their cars into the embassy, shocking their security escorts. The doors were closed. Thus to protest the way their country was run, the King of Nepal took assylum in India. Some Ranas wanted to storm the Indian embassy but fearing a military a response they backed away and allowed the Royal family to leave for India.

The Ranas had installed the King's grandson Gyanendra as the king, but Chacha Nehru worked with the Governments of United States and Britain to deny them any legitimacy. Pro-democracy Nepalis attacked the troops of the Ranas from their base in India and soon there was a fear of civil war. Since a destablizied Nepal is not good for India, Nehru proposed that the King return to Nepal under what is known was the Delhi compromise.

The King returned to Nepal and assumed real power after a long time, thanks to J. Nehru. Mohan Shamsher was appointed the Prime Minister(!) and was later dismissed and exiled to India.

[Adapted from Massacre at the Palace: The Doomed Royal Dynasty of Nepal]

It is said a picture is worth a thousand words. On the occasion of the agreement to start the bus service between the Indian side of Kashmir to the Pakistani side, you have the Pakistani dictator in his Army uniform shaking hands with the Indian Foreign Minister in an image rich with symbolism. Anyways it is hard to find a democractically elected official to shake hands when you travel north from India.

Now that his breakthrough has happened, and no passports are needed for travel, the question in my mind was how do they prevent a terrorist from boarding a bus in Muzzffarabad to Srinagar ? Here is how it will work.

The history-making bus service that will for the first time link the divided parts of Kashmir from April 7 will actually be two buses whose timings will be carefully synchronised and whose passengers screened before being allowed to travel.

Titled simply LoC Crossing Permit, the application form, similar to passport application forms, will be made available at designated offices in Srinagar and Muzaffarabad alone. Open only to Indian and Pakistani nationals, not just those belonging to Kashmir, each application would require clearance from both sides.

After getting provisional clearance, the traveller from wither side would go up to the LoC checkpoint where his or her name would be handed over to immigration authorities of the other side. Only when the intending traveller gets a final go-ahead from the other side would he or she be allowed to cross the LoC and take a bus belonging to the other side that would take him to his or her destination. [Two buses, not one, will link Kashmir halves ]

Looks like the normal junta who have relatives on either side and extremely happy. The terrorists and Hurriyat folks are not amused.

Still I have a few questions

• If the militants are unhappy about this, to whom do they complain ?


• Can a PoK Kashmiri entering on this LoC Crossing Permit visit other parts of India ?

Last time the Indian Prime Minister took a bus to Pakistan, we got the Kargil war. I hope this bus service remains uneventful.

One of the treasures thrown up by the tsunami in Mahabalipuram was a Buddha statue (picture) which Archaeological Survey of India now says could belong to the 17 - 18th century. The other treasure was a granite lion which Volker Thewalt in an e-mail says was seen in 1980. He also has photographs to prove it.

The tsunami has also revealed some ancient relics.

Carved out of single rock, the exposed stone remains have engravings depicting animal figures and characters from Hindu scriptures.

"When water was receding, it has taken away some of the monuments de-silted the entire area. As a result we have found three more bas-reliefs belonging to Pallava period, dated about 700 A.D. They are all bas-reliefs cut by the Pallava kings," said Sathiyamurthy. [Tsunami waves uncover ancient temple relics near Chennai]

Even though Einstein had declined an offer to be Israel's President, he worked for Israeli causes and one such instance was when he wrote a letter to Jawaharlal Nehru, the prime minister designate of India in 1947 for supporting the establishment of a Jewish state. Nehru was aware of the sufferings of the Jews, but did not like the idea that the new state would be located on someone else land.

Einstein's four-page letter of June 13 1947 to Nehru focused on moral and historical arguments. He opened with praise for India's constituent assembly, which had just abolished untouchability. "The attention of the world was [now] fixed on the problem of another group of human beings who, like the untouchables, have been the victims of persecution and discrimination for centuries" - the Jews. He appealed to Nehru as a "consistent champion of the forces of political and economic enlightenment" to rule in favour of "the rights of an ancient people whose roots are in the East". He pleaded for "justice and equity". "Long before the emergence of Hitler I made the cause of Zionism mine because through it I saw a means of correcting a flagrant wrong."

But then Einstein took the bull by the horns, "the nature of [the] Arab opposition. Though the Arab of Palestine has benefited... economically, he wants exclusive national sovereignty, such as is enjoyed by the Arabs of Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Lebanon and Syria [sic]. It is a legitimate and natural desire, and justice would seem to call for its satisfaction." But at the end of the first world war, the Allies gave the Arabs 99% of the "vast, underpopulated territories" liberated from the Turks to satisfy their national aspirations and five independent Arab states were established. One per cent was reserved for the Jews "in the land of their origin". "In the august scale of justice, which weighs need against need, there is no doubt as to whose is more heavy." What the Jews were allotted in the Balfour Declaration "redresses the balance" of justice and history. He concluded by appealing to Nehru to brush aside "the rivalries of power politics and the egotism of petty nationalist appetites" and to support "the glorious renascence which has begun in Palestine". [Einstein's other theory via Smooth Stone]

Nehru replied back saying that due to India's national interests (Muslim minority and Arab friendship), we could not support them and India voted with the Muslim states against partition. Einstein's exchange with Nehru recently surfaced in the Israeli archives and provides details of the mails they exchanged and the mails they did not exchange. Even though Nehru declined Einstein's request, he went and met him later in 1949.

Nehru's opposition for the creation of Israel, did not stand his way of asking their help during the 1962 war with China. Nehru asked David Ben-Gurion for help and Israelis sent military equipment. During the 1965 and 1971 wars too Israel sent mortar rounds, while our so called friends did pretty much nothing. India also demanded that while Israel sent ammunition, they remove any Israeli markings from it. The ammunition was obtained regularly as demanded and India condemned them in public and always supported the Palestinian cause.

In the 19th century Britain moved from the empire where the sun did not set to one which had lost all its power and a number of factors have been cited for this. A book by Anirudh Deshpande examines the British Military strategy during its age of decline.

Besides inadequate capital investment, the armed forces also suffered from a shortage of officers. In the inter-war period, young Britons were not willing to join the army. And racism and insecurity prevented the British government from allowing a large number of Indians into the commissioned ranks. The Indian army remained a regiment-centric and frontier-oriented force during World War II. Deshpande asserts that the raj had to recruit the urban �??non-martial�?� classes under the pressures of war. However, the failure of the colonial state to address their economic grievances resulted in discontent in the armed forces. These, in turn, had an effect on the freedom struggle, the net result being unplanned decolonization.

Deshpande asserts how faulty the British security policy was, which finally culminated in decolonization in 1947. His claim that mass indiscipline, desertions and mutinies between 1940-45 threatened the Indian army cannot be sustained after analysing the court martial and war cabinet records. Even during the Quit India movement, the Indian army stood firm by its white master. Only after 1945, when the sahibs failed to provide jobs for the demobilized sepoys did the latter turn �??nationalist�?�. [HOW TABLES GOT TURNED]

Guess the country where anti-American feelings are the highest ?

Notwithstanding its cooperation with the US in the war against terrorism, Pakistan is probably the "most anti-American country" in the world right now, according to the Congressional Research Service.

While Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf vowed in August 2003 to "finish off extremism," Kronstadt notes, Pakistan's Islamists routinely denounce Pakistani military operations in western tribal areas, resist government attempts to reform religious schools that teach militancy, and harshly criticise Islamabad's cooperation with the US government.

"Reports indicate," says Kronstadt, "that profits from drug sales are financing the activities of Islamic extremists in Pakistan, Afghanistan and Kashmir. Pakistan's counter-narcotics efforts are hampered by lack of full government commitment, scarcity of funds poor infrastructure, government wariness of provoking unrest in tribal areas, and acute corruption." [Pak 'most anti-US country': CRS]

So long as Musharraf is alive and is on our payroll, how does it matter what normal people or Islamists think ?

Last month, there was a discussion on opening the skies between India and United States, thus allowing more flights between the two countries. India, in the mean time allowed its local carriers to fly to countries around India. But now in another exciting development, Indian private carrier, Jet Airways has been allowed to fly to New York.

While Jet Airways officials refused to comment on when they would launch the New York operations, the airline has been planning to acquire large wide-bodied aircraft like Boeing 777s, Boeing 747s and Airbus-340s.

The civil aviation ministry had on January 31 allotted a total of nine flights to the UK to Jet Airways and Air Sahara from March-April this year.

While Jet Airways was allotted seven flights to London Heathrow per week, Air Sahara has been allotted two to Gatwick.

Air India would be operating 24 services to UK and had applied for additional flights, instead of 18. Earlier this month, the two private carriers were allowed to carry out daily operations to Singapore and Kuala Lumpur. [Jet gets nod to fly to New York]

Jet Airways with its excellent service and tasty Porotta (not Paratha) and Chicken Curry can give Singapore Airlines a run for its money. Singapore Airlines is minting money from their West Coast services to India and there is no reason why Indian companies should not get a share. Jai Globalization Bhagwan!

Related News: Jet IPO sold out in five minutes

When the urns containing human skeletons were discovered in Adichanallur in Tamil Nadu, they were initially dated to 800 BC. Now one of the urns has been dated to 500 BC and what makes this interesting is the script which was present in the urn.

The claim on the date of the script and the assertion that it is in Tamil-Brahmi will be subjected to the scrutiny of scholars in the field.

The term `Tamil-Brahmi' is used when the script is in Brahmi but the language is Tamil. The Brahmi script was predominantly used for Prakrit from the Mauryan (Asokan) period. The Brahmi script was brought to the Tamil country in the third century B.C. by the Jain and Buddhist monks during the post-Asokan period.

According to Iravatham Mahadevan, one of the foremost authorities on the Tamil-Brahmi script: "The Brahmi script reached Upper South India (Andhra-Karnataka regions) and the Tamil country at about the same time during the 3rd century B.C. in the wake of southern spread of Jainism and

Buddhism." In his magnum opus, Early Tamil epigraphy, From the Earliest Times to the Sixth Century A.D., Mr. Mahadevan says that "the earliest Tamil inscriptions in the Tamil-Brahmi script may be dated from about the end of 3rd century or early 2nd century B.C. on palaeographic grounds and stratigraphic evidence of inscribed pottery. The earliest inscriptions in the Tamil country written in the Tamil-Brahmi script are almost exclusively in the Tamil language." [`Rudimentary Tamil-Brahmi script' unearthed at Adichanallur]

Tamil Brahmi scripts have been found in the caves of Jain monks in Tamil Nadu and they were dated to 3rd century BC, thus working with the theory that Buddhist and Jain monks could have bought the Brahmi script to the south. But if the date of around 500 BC is accurate, it means that the script reached Tamil Nadu during the time of Buddha itself and not much later

The French have been doing lot of excavation in Mehrgarh (in Balochistan), home of one of the oldest farming communities in the subcontinent that existed about 8000 years ago. Mehrgarh was abandoned by the time of emergence of the Indus Valley Civilization and now findings have surfaced which link these two.

Most of the ruins at Mehrgarh are buried under alluvium deposits, though some structures could be seen eroding on the surface. Currently, the excavated remains at the site comprise a complex of large compartmental mud-brick structures.

Function of these subdivided units, built of hand-formed plano-convex mud bricks, is still not clear but it is thought that many were used probably for storage, rather than residential, purposes. A couple of mounds also contain formal cemeteries, parts of which have been excavated.

Although Mehrgarh was abandoned by the time of the emergence of the literate urbanized phase of the Indus civilization around Moenjodaro, Harapa, etc., its development illustrates the development of the civilization's subsistence patterns, as well as its craft and trade.

Mr Jarrige said that many beautiful ceramics had been found at the site in Balochistan and were believed to be of the era as early as eighth millennium BC. The French archaeologist said that studies suggested that the findings at Mehrgarh linked this area to the Indus civilization.

There are indications that bones were used in making tools for farming, textile, and there are also evidences of the use of cotton even in that period. Mr Jarrige pointed out that the skeletons found at the site indicated that the height of people of that era was larger than that of the later period.

He said that the architecture at that time was well developed. Rice was the staple food for those people and there were also indications of trade activities. [8,000-year-old civilization in Mehrgarh proved via IndiaArchaeology]

Last time we told you about the satirical report on Jawaharlal Nehru University students who had stopped brushing their teeth. But now here is a report, which is real.

Independent thought in India's better universities is alive and well. Office bearers of the Jawaharlal Nehru University students union in Delhi were requested by the university's administration to present flowers to President Abdul Kalam at the annual convocation. They flatly refused, saying that he is a nuclear hawk and an appointee of a Hindu fundamentalist party. Moreover, as young women of dignity they could not agree to act as mere flower girls presenting bouquets to a man. [India, as Seen Today Through the Eyes of an Eminent Pakistani Scholar]

Indian President Dr. A P J Abdul Kalam was the person whom Pervez Hoodbhoy's friend Praful Bidwai accidently left out from his list of Muslim achievers.

State Of Fear by Michael Crichton, HarperCollins Publishers, 603 pages.

"The United States of America is an international pariah, isolated from the rest of the world and justifiably despised because we failed to sign the Kyoto Protocol to attack a global problem", says one of the characters in Michael Crichton's new book State Of Fear. This is countered by one of the main characters in the book with the statement that Kyoto protocol does plan to reduce warming by 0.04 degrees Celsius in 100 years. Right now we cannot even predict weather beyond five days accurately and how do we know what's going to happen in 100 years.

In the book the villain is Nicholas Drake, the head of National Environmental Resource Fund who thinks that people have lost interest in environmental causes and need to be shocked into action. For this he plans some eco-terrorism with a group called Environmental Liberation Front. Fighting them are George Morton, a billionaire philanthropist, Peter Evans, a junior attorney, and John Kenner an M.I.T professor who works for the National Security Intelligence Agency.

After the heroes and villains have been introduced, they embark on their well choreographed behaviors. The villains try to blow up things and the heroes reach just in time to foil it. For foiling the terrorist activities, our heroes follow the Dan Brown design pattern which says that there has to be clues to the actual locations of terrorism which the heroes will decode with their brains and Internet. The Dan Brown pattern also says that even though the villains know that the hero has decoded the location, they will still go ahead with their plans. During this dance, we are given lectures on how much we trust all these global warming advocates who themselves have no idea on how the weather changes.

Crichton's books are mostly techno-thrillers. Prey was about nanotechnology, Timeline was about time travel and Airframe was about the airline industry. This book questions the blind faith that people have in the global warming theory and Crichton quotes several research papers in footnotes to lend authenticity to his arguments.

The book does manage to raise awareness on the global warming data and on the agenda of the NGOs who claim to work for environmental causes which is refreshing. After reading this book, you will look at global warming with skepticism. As a thriller it is predictable and the characters are two-dimensional. This book is not as good as Jurassic Park or even Prey or Timeline, but better than Airframe.

Remember the tsunami treasures that were discovered in Mahabalipuram ? One of the items was a granite lion which was actually seen in 1980. Now it seems the Buddha statue that washed ashore is not really Buddha but Jalagupta, a Hindu diety worshipped in Myanmar.

K Gurumurthy, a member of the Indo-Myanmar Chamber of Commerce, who visited the Meyyurkuppam site upon advice from the Myanmar Embassy, New Delhi, has now confirmed that the idol is of Myanmarese origin but not that of the Buddha. The raft-shrine that houses the idol must indeed have come from Myanmar as the robe, bowl and photograph that accompanied the idol on the high seas all contained Myanmarese letters.

However, contrary to media reports till now, the statue with distinct Mongloid features is not that of Buddha but of Jalagupta, a local Hindu deity much in worship in Myanmarese village as a �??floating deity�??. �??It is a practice to send the Jalagupta floating from one village to another on the raft so that people in the coastal villages can offer worship. It must have been washed onto the seas during one such ritual when the tsunami struck. ['Tsunami Buddha' may not be Buddha at all via IndiaArchaeology]

Last year, Amartya Sen had an article in New York Review of Books on the 2000 year old relation between China and India. Now on the occasion of Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao's upcoming visit to New Delhi in March, China Daily has an article on the same topic, acknowledging the cultural imports from India.

China was thus linked culturally to India, via its adoption and transformation of Mahayana Buddhism (of the "Large Vehicle," as opposed to Hinayana Buddhism of the "Small Vehicle," which spread from Sri Lanka to Myanmar, Thailand, Laos and Cambodia). Both were already pursuing their "wider Asian interests" then, as they dominated the philosophical and cultural psyche of Asia. This "civilization dialogue" between China and India (and through China to the rest of Confucianist Asia) could be seen in three aspects of Chinese civilization: architecture and temple-building, sculpture (in China's famous "temple caves"), and paintings and creative arts.

The teachings of Gautama Buddha indeed added flavour to Chinese civilization. Buddhism "with Chinese characteristics" had in fact helped galvanize Chinese civilization, as was built up to an apogee (of Chinese culture and civilization) during the Tang Dynasty. The Tang was also at the zenith of Chinese art and culture in its millennium-old history, and India and Buddhism have undoubtedly contributed to China's cultural apogee.

Although Buddhism was first introduced to the Chinese courts during the Han Dynasty, the religion only pervaded Chinese society and culture progressively, as Buddhist concepts and philosophy were infused into a fast-developing and affluent Chinese society, with its own inherent characteristics and personality. [Cultural factors bind China and India]

TVR Shenoy has an article criticizing the suspension of military aid to Nepal

Scenario One: The Maoists intensify their attacks, controlling larger swatches of that unfortunate country. They already rule 39 of Nepal's 75 districts. If India chooses to starve the Royal Nepal Army of supplies, in the name of restoring democracy, there is an excellent chance that the king and his forces will simply throw in the towel and give in to the Maoists. The Maoists will then join hands with their murderous Naxalite brethren in India.

Scenario Two: What happens if King Gyanendra becomes desperate at the Indian decision to stop military supplies? Let us remember that it is open to him to seek aid from Pakistan or China. This gives him a fighting chance of beating the Maoists. The victorious monarch shall then be an enemy of India as long as he lives (and probably his successors too).

Scenario Three: The Government of India decides to reverse its stance and resume the flow of arms to the Royal Nepal Army. The politicians in Nepal will protest vehemently. Irrespective of whether King Gyanendra carries the field against the Maoists, a section of the Nepali people will hate India. [India's short-sightedness]

While India tolerates a King in Bhutan, dictators in Myanmar and a General who exiled a Prime Minister, suddenly we have come intolerant of a King. The Maoists are gaining in Nepal and that is not good for India as well as Nepal. Most Communist/Maoist coming of power is followed by genocide and getting them off the chair is almost impossible. India has its own Naxalite problems and thanks to the lenient handling of the borders by the present Indian administration, both these guys are able to exchange notes.

Now that India and Britain has suspended aid, King Gyanendra has asked for international aid which means that some other countries could get involved in India's neighborhood. India's best bet would be to help Gyanendra in his fight against the Maoists while exerting sufficient pressure to bring back democracy.

Was Sonia Gandhi behind the economic blockade imposed by India against Nepal 1989 ? According to Jonathan Gregson in his book Massacre at the Palace: The Doomed Royal Dynasty of Nepal, there was an issue between Sonia Gandhi and Queen Aishwarya during the SAARC meet over who should take precedence. This incident strengthened Rajiv Gandhi's determination to teach and an economic blockade was imposed over Nepal using the pretext that the trade treaty between the two countries had expired.

Later when a widowed Sonia Gandhi visited Kathmandu, the Queen made sure that she was denied permission to enter Pashupathinath temple on the basis that she was born a Catholic. The Queen thus gained happiness of standing up against India, whom she hated because she thought India was behind the Spring Awakening of 1990 that led to democracy.

Devyani Rana was one of the women shortlisted for marrying Prince Dipendra and she was related to the Scindias of India. Devyani's mother cosidered the Nepali Royal family below them. This combined with the Queen's hatred for India, made the Queen oppose Dipendra's marriage to Devyani. Later it was over this woman that Dipendra massacred the Royal family and killed hi