Indian Opinion

Mukesh Devrari The tallest Pashtun leader before the independence was Abdul Gaffar Khan, also known as Frontier Gandhi. He was one of the most fascinating and towering figures of Indian National Movement who preached truth and non-violence to his people who are mostly known for their tribal culture of revenge. He was the pre-eminent figure of Indian National Congress. “The British just about knew how to contend with vegetarian Hindus who raised slogans rather than guns, but Bacha Khan’s “unarmed army” of Pashtuns, which turned the martial race stereotype on its head, left them completely bewildered” (Shamsie, 2016) .   After Congress accepted the partition plan, he famously said, “You have thrown us in front of the wolves” (Tempest, 1988) . “He rejected a separate Muslim homeland and sought instead to join India to avoid Punjabi domination”  (Schofield, 2011, p. 38) . Due to his influence, many Muslims from the region migrated to India at the time of partition (Shukla, 2016) . Alth

Mukesh Devrari India is facing a severe health crisis, not due to coronavirus, but in general due to the neglect of the healthcare sector for generations by the various union and state government since independence in 1947. Over the years, governments’ have given de facto acceptance to the idea that universal healthcare is not possible in India. So, those who cannot afford healthcare should die as human society is also akin to a jungle where only fit has a right to survive. This narrative only shows the medieval mindset prevalent in India.   BJP and Congress are equally responsible for the terrible situation of the healthcare sector in the state of Uttarakhand. Over the years, neither central nor state governments have allocated adequate funds to the health sector. Not enough hospitals, nursing colleges, pharmaceutical institutions were created in the state. Health and education are the two most crucial sectors to ensure opportunities for upward mobility. People expect that the g

Mukesh Devrari The tiny state of Uttarakhand has produced many great politicians in the past who have played an important role in the politics of Congress Party. The legacy of great Uttarakhandi leaders starts with Govind Ballabh Pant, Hemvati Nandan Bahuguna, Murli Manohar Joshi, Narayan Dutt Tiwari and Yogi Adityanath and perhaps ends with Harish Rawat. Harish Rawat is the only politician who satisfies masses intellectually while remaining extraordinarily connected to the people, culture and their customs. He is the one who can debate on a national television channel on contentious issues and can also patiently hear villagers who visit his house for seeking help almost every day in large number. Even his opponents suggest that no one understands the state of Uttarakhand better than Harish Rawat. He is perhaps the most suitable candidate to rule the state. He is our public intellectual who understands the pitfalls of national politics and fully aware of Uttarakhan

Mukesh Devrari In my opinion, it is futile to seek confrontation for few kilometres of land in this day and age on the grounds that hundreds of years ago or thousands of years ago it belonged to us, now it belongs to our neighbours, but we don’t accept it. China’s military may succeed in intruding at certain places, but it would not be possible for China to substantially alter the 3488-kilometre long boundary. If CPC thinks it can change the LAC as per its imaginary borders with India military force, then it must be looking at the full-fledged attack on India which might result in the killing of hundreds of thousands of soldiers and civilians on both sides. If the human lives are important than it is immaterial whether the widow lives in Shanghai or Mumbai. After much bloodshed, even if China succeeds in capturing Tawang region of Arunachal Pradesh and parts of Union Territory of Ladakh. Will it be worth it? Although CPC can go to any extent to achieve its objectives.

Mukesh Devrari   Banning Tiktok in India is without a doubt a great decision by BJP government after the killing of 20 Indian soldiers at the Line of Actual Control at Union Territory of Ladakh. Globally the Tiktok has been downloaded by more than 2 billion smartphone users and 30 per cent of its customers are in India. If the Tiktok will be replaced by an Indian company, only then this ban is worth it, other it is immaterial from India’s point of view. Otherwise, it makes no difference to our national interest whether the parent company is from the United States or China or Congo. Indian companies must intervene and capture the vacated market. They must offer similar apps to users. The Communist Party of China’s (CPC) aggression at the border gave this once in a lifetime opportunity for India’s businesses to capture the vacated spaces. The CPC is responsible for the global downfall of Tiktok & Huawei. First of all, China should use the opportunity of BJP havin

WHO website marked the spread of coronavirus around the globe Coronavirus has come as a danger not only to the life chances of people but also to the livelihood of the people who work every day and dependent on that money for survival. Apart from the government employees, pensioners, people belonging to the upper-middle class, all others are facing questions of survival. Large private companies are still paying to their employees, but small-scale business cannot afford it. The government should also think about the direct cash transfer to ordinary people who are directly affected by the lockdown. Although the US, China, Germany and a few other countries are likely to develop a vaccine in coming months, it is very unfortunate that India could not develop anything significant to deal with the virus. Once the vaccine hit the market India will end up paying billions of dollars for the vaccine.   It is a tragic reality that if COVID-19 lockdown expanded further, India is simp

Mukesh Devrari Arab backlash cannot be ignored as Pakistani or Muslim propaganda against India. It can be described as a genuine reaction against the rising hatred in India. First of all, unlike Pakistanis, Arabs are not negatively disposed towards India or Hindus. They have no reason to hate India. Neither Indians know much about Arabs, except the ones who have travelled to the Middle East for work. PM Narendra Modi and his party failed in governing the country. Rather than focusing on economic development in the last six years, BJP made the country hotbed for religious unrest and chaos. BJP leaders focused more on divisive issues than on development. It was one of their ploy to hide their failures, critics argue. In the latest development, Arabs public intellectuals have started outlining how Indians are criticizing Islam and Muslims while living in Arab countries. Although there is nothing wrong in criticizing the religion and religious practices but intent must not

Mukesh Devrari    On January 23, 2020 The Economist ran a story titled ‘Narendra Modi stokes division in the world’s biggest democracy’. First, it must be remembered that ‘The Economist’ is a British magazine. It has no role to play in the making of India. There is no reason for Indians to be overjoyed when it praises their country, neither they should feel despair at criticism.  It is basically a white man’s take on world affairs. Secondly, it is also important to note that the whole world watches India with keen interest. Almost 20 per cent of the world’s population live in South Asia. The world has a stake in the economic progress of the region if India will be focusing more on the issues other than the economy, the world community is likely to question the country.  Unfortunately, over the last six years, India is in news for wrong reasons. IMF has forecasted that the growth rate this year likely to remain less than five per cent. Just a decade earlier India was pois