Build New Dam at Mullaperiyar or We’re Dead

Right now this writer is sinking; sinking in messages, discussions and appeals from all over the world from Malayalees on the subject matter of Mullaperiyar dam and the hazards it poses to four districts in Kerala – Idukki, Ernakulam, Kottayam and Alapuzha. The dilapidated dam that was built in 1895 holds 15 TMC of water. When the dam was built it was said that the life span of the dam was just 50 years and now it is more than 115 years. The dam can’t withstand an earthquake of magnitude 6.5 in ritcher scale and it compromises the safety of about 3 million people living downstream. If a new dam is not built sooner this writer would also sink in the deluge that would inundate central Kerala.

Kerala’s neighbouring state of Tamil Nadu which makes use of the water in the Mullaperiyar dam for irrigating their four districts is against Kerala building a new dam as they fear that they would lose control of the dam and hence the water. The water sharing agreement on the Mullaperiyar was signed during the British rule for 999 years. It defies common sense why an agreement for 999 years was signed for a dam that had a life span of just 50 years. When the British left India and we got independence in 1947 all agreements between princely states became void and hence the Mullaperiyar agreement also got void. But in 1970s Kerala government magnanimously re-entered into an agreement with Tamil Nadu for water sharing as farmers in that state were reeling because of lack of water for irrigation. Tamil Nadu uses the water from Mullaperiyar for agricultural purposes and for generation of electricity and accrues a profit of about 1200 crores a year and gives Kerala a meagre 30 lakhs as rent. Even now Kerala agrees that it will not reduce the amount of water given to Tamil Nadu even after building a new dam, but Tamil Nadu is obstinate that they will not allow a new dam. As the matter is pending before the Supreme Court and because of the clauses in the water sharing agreement Kerala is not able to build a new dam without the approval of Tamil Nadu. But growing indignation from the people of Kerala has forced Kerala government to look for legal loopholes in the agreement to build a new dam.

If Mullaperiyar dam gets demolished as a result of an earthquake the water from the dam will reach the Idukki dam, which is situated just 36 kilometres away, in 45 minutes time. Idukki dam has a capacity of holding 70 TMC water and 79% of it is already filled. Hence it won’t be able to hold the water coming from Mullaperiyar and it would also collapse leading to a flood of enormous magnitude which would wash away four districts of Kerala. The people in these four districts of Kerala are living in perpetual danger as a water bomb is hanging above their heads. It is estimated that if the dam collapses the destruction it would cause would be 180 times as severe as the destruction caused by the atom bomb in Hiroshima.

All over the four districts in Kerala everywhere people are discussing about the dangers of the dam collapse and thinking about saving themselves and their loved ones if and when such a calamity occurs. Tamil Nadu shows scientific studies done by some experts which show that there is no danger to the Mullaperiyar dam and is saying that politicians and people in Kerala are foolishly panicking for something that is not going to happen. But they are oblivious or pretending to be oblivious of the grave danger that the dam holds as a result of the weathering down of the lime surkhi mortar used to build the dam. The increasing number of tremors in the dam region recently has added to the danger to the dam.

The time to act is now and if the Central Government won’t take immediate steps to find an amicable solution to this dam row we are on to something extremely terrible. If Tamil Nadu government doesn’t agree to a new dam to be built by Kerala they will have to take the responsibility of 3 million lives that would be lost when the dam collapses. There is no time to wait and the people of Kerala are up in arms in a bid to save their own lives. The catastrophe of a dam collapse can happen anytime and this could well be this writer’s last essay. We, the people of Kerala, are not against our brothers and sisters in Tamil Nadu, but no one can stop us from fighting for our lives and fight we will.

The Folly of Celebrating Contempt of Court

MV Jayarajan, a leader of the CPI (M) who was sentenced to 6 months imprisonment by Kerala High Court for contempt of court is out on bail and he was given a rousing welcome by the party cadre and leaders. When the High Court ordered to put Mr. Jayarajan behind the bars without giving him bail or time to appeal against the verdict, legal experts pointed out that it is against principles of natural justice as in Indian legal system bail is the rule, jail is the exception. There is no doubt that the verdict of the Supreme Court in quashing High Court order and granting bail to Mr. Jayarajan is a victory for the CPI (M); however to celebrate the release on bail of a person convicted of contempt of court is an absolute folly which has no place in a democracy like India.

It must be noted that the Supreme Court of India has only upheld Mr. Jayarajan’s right to bail and hasn’t given any verdict on the charges of contempt of court. The celebration on account of his release on bail was made in a magnificent fashion as if he was acquitted of all charges. It is for the leaders of the party to think how morally or politically correct it is for a political party working in Indian democracy to do such a thing. In a democracy it is quite true that political parties carry the greatest worth as they directly represent the people. But it is incumbent upon all political parties and their leaders and activists to respect other democratic institutions, particularly the court. By no stretch of imagination is it a matter of pride for political parties to celebrate the deeds of someone who has been convicted of contempt of court. In the past, during pre-independence period, it was certainly a matter of pride as the courts were illegitimate institutions governed by laws and rules made by the British, who were unlawful occupiers of our country. However in present day courts are democratic institutions established under the constitution of India and any denunciation of such courts is the denunciation of democracy, denunciation of the constitution.

Having said that this writer is not at all making an impression that democratic courts are above criticism, but one should maintain certain level of decency in the choice of words in such criticisms. Mr. Jayarajan crossed all boundaries of decency when he used the Malayalam word “shumbhan” (that roughly translates to fool) to describe judges of the court. He made further mockery of the Indian judicial system when he unsuccessfully made arguments by bringing Malayalam and Sanskrit professors from colleges to establish that the word didn’t mean fool but have some positive meaning.

Politicians are supposed to be the role models, watching and emulating whom the younger generations of a country would become ideal citizens. However the standards set by present generation of politicians is so poor that it is always better for the young people not to make them their role models. Politicians cutting across party lines use such bad and terrible words in their criticism of their opponents that it is honourable not to speak about it. Kerala, a state that prides itself of far better social indicators and education in comparison to other states in India, has been greatly ashamed by the recent conduct of politicians - of UDF as well as LDF - who have used foul language and did uncivilised deeds in the legislature and outside. If they don’t mend their ways sooner, Keralites would lose the trust in them and that would not be a good sign for the state of democracy in Kerala.

Certainly the CPI (M) has set a very bad example in democratic India by celebrating the release of a leader who has been convicted for contempt of court. By doing that the party has sent a message to the civil society that contempt of court is not a crime but a matter of great pride and glory which anyone and everyone can follow and gain appreciation of the crowd. Had it been so that MV Jayarajan had accepted his mistake or the court found that all allegations against him on matters of contempt of court were void, it would have been fine to bestow on him such lavish praise; but incidentally it is not the case. Freedom of speech and expression that Indian constitution grants us comes with reasonable restrictions. Therefore the claim that what Mr. Jayarajan did was upholding that freedom holds no water. This writer wants to point out that getting behind the bars for contempt of a constitutional institution is a matter of shame and disgrace and not pride, if anyone holds such a view.

It is precisely true that politicians epitomise all the vices that human ingenuity could invent, a fact proven time and time again by the politicians of all hues in Kerala. Some sort of shock treatment from the people is needed for these politicians to understand their mistakes and blunders. Whenever anyone criticise the politicians for being unscrupulous they would make a huge cry saying that such opinaions and criticisms would belittle the whole tribe of politicians in the eyes of people which would be inimical to the existence of democracy in the country. But they themselves often use harsh words to criticise the judicial system in the country knowing very well that rubbishing courts is as inimical to democracy as is belittling politicians, as they claim. Politicians in our country often behave as spoilt brats and are incorrigible to a great extend and the day that they would have a rude awakening is not any far off as people have reached their threshold of patience.

What Should the World Offer to its 7 Billion Population

The global population has reached the dubious number of 7 billion according to some UN estimates. This news has raised alarm bells among many population experts as they see this as a matter of concern, for the natural resources that would support this bludgeoning population is shrinking at an alarming pace. If radical and drastic measures are not taken immediately this perilous situation would run out of control. World leaders at the forthcoming G20 meet at Cannes would brainstorm on finding solutions that would kick-start actions for sustainable development in the world.

The force of the 7 billion population is gathering steam as is evident from the various instances of street protests that we see around in the different countries of the world. The realisation about the superiority of democracy over other forms of government is driving people to fight against the autocrats who had usurped power from them through unscrupulous means. The defeat of Zine El Abidine Ben Ali of Tunisia, Hosni Mubarak in Egypt or Muammar Gadhafi in Libya is a sign of this growing people’s power. The lesson we have learnt is that whenever people tend to have trust deficit on their rulers they will get out on to the streets and can bring down powerful rulers.

The Census Bureau estimates show that about 255 people are born every minute whereas about 106 people die per minute. With the advancement of science and technology and the subsequent improvement in health facilities around the world life expectancy of people has increased. High quality health care provided by welfare governments in the various countries of the world has accounted for such an improvement in human life. Even then there are millions of people around the world who die every minute because they don’t get access to good health care facilities. With population increase every government has this additional responsibility to make sure that the whole population get the health care benefits offered by them. Insofar as the plight of the millions of poor people of the world is concerned, there is much left to be done.

Growing economic uncertainty in the world, coupled with market volatility and increasing inequality result in losing trust of the people on their leaders as well as the public institutions. In many countries people believe that the government works for the rich and often forget the poor. The bailing out of big banks by governments when they were in financial trouble because of their poor management of finances has caused much indignation among people. The moral force behind movements like ‘Occupy Wall Street’ comes from such public fury. Governments around the world have got their task cut out, for unless and until they stop this growing tide of people’s legitimate discontent, they are sure to perish.

Sustainable growth and development should be the slogan of the welfare states around the world. For improving the lives of people and to lift them from the pits of abject poverty it is essential for governments to increase welfare spending on infrastructure development. However many governments struck by financial troubles are looking for fiscal austerity, which results in reduced government spending. This would automatically result in reduced developmental activities which would pull down countries further down to economic instability. Governments must continue investing on developmental policies and programmes including women and children’s health, agricultural growth as well as gender equality.

Women and young people are taking to the streets and asking for economic and political improvements in their life. They constitute two-thirds of the world population and governments around the world can no longer exist without hearing their voices and demands. Even some Islamic countries are making amendments in their constitutions to give greater representation of women in the political arena. Their involvement in many recent pro-democracy movements in the world is worth mentioning. The world recognised the growing involvement of women in the societal improvement of many populations by naming three women for this year’s Nobel Prize for Peace.

7 billion is a mere number but the human lives that it signifies are our hope for the future. Now is the time for making the hard choices and with wisdom, foresight and commitment we can start on the path of sustainable growth and development. We have squandered many such opportunities in the past but let us not waste anymore, for it is now or never.