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 INSIDE COVER STORY
BREXIT

New World
9 Disorder
Top experts make sense of
India’s global challenges after
the UK’s exit from the
European Union

THE BIG STORY 5 GLASS HOUSE

NSG
83 GUEST COLUMN

34 The Great
Wall of Xi
Yet again, China stalls India’s bid to enter
84 BOOKS

the Nuclear Suppliers Group 88 NETFLUX

89 GLOSSARY

90 EYECATCHERS

EDUCATION
U-SPECIAL

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SPORT THE ARTS

CRICKET KASHMIR

72 Over to
Kumble 76 Songs of the
Wounded
India’s most successful bowler of all time Kashmir’s artists vow to rescue their state
takes over as coach of the national team, from the purgatory terrorism left them in. Cover by
determined to stay away from the spot- They hope to make a beginning with a NILANJAN DAS
light and not steal his players’ thunder Srinagar Biennale next year

02 INDIA TODAY u JULY 11, 2016

 MAIL
Happy Love
J U N E 2 7, 2 0 1 6
Mobile dating apps are changing the relationship landscape
Thank God for
Tinder Mercies
Your cover story Happy
Love amply illustrates how
dating apps have opened
up a new route to the
heart—via technology.
With these unfurling a
vista of possibilities for the
young and available, the
stodgy matrimonial sites
frequented by harried par-
ents are becoming redun-
dant. Such apps can usher
in a positive trend in
matchmaking so long as
security and privacy issues
are taken care of. Objective
algorithms replacing over-
bearing parents is a step
towards assertion of indi-
vidual choice. An obscu-
rantist approach to new
means cannot be used as
an excuse for scepticism.
It’s time we embrace the
heady complications of
romance, be it ecstasy,
heartbreak, friendship, de-
lirium and marriage.
HENA PRASUN, Mumbai
Are we to believe that 14
million Indians check one
site daily for prospective
mates? What happened to
family connections, intro-
ductions by friends, good
old college and workplace
Apps feed the addiction to mobile phones
with their promise of forever-evolving and
entertaining features. They are redefining
the very trajectory of modern relationships
and established norms of urban dating.
RAMESH SINHA , Gurgaon
often results in profiles
Own the Heritage of Yoga that conceal more than
Shripad Yasso Naik is doing they reveal. The rules of
justice to the ministry of the game are different and
Ayush without fuss or contro- people need to be careful
versy (Just Say Om). Modi’s while playing this game.
endorsement has elevated MANOJ GHOSH, Kolkata
yoga to a new level. We now
need to institutionalise the The present generation is
teaching and training of yoga. impatient, career-focused,
A scientific system to certify lonely and pressed for
trainers should be developed, time. Dating apps provide
including the awarding of de- it with ‘ready companion-
grees, just as in karate and ship’. Discovering compati-
other martial arts. The minis- ble matches has never
try must ensure that been so convenient. But as
untrained ‘quacks’ don’t be- the saying goes ‘easy
come ‘yoga trainers’. come, easy go’.
HARSH KALRA, via e-mail MANJU PANT, via e-mail
The Modi government has effectively created awareness of what Man, since the time of
promises to be a boost to the body, mind and soul. However, the Adam, has not succeeded
move to claim ownership of and spread information on the subject in understanding woman,
is acquiring the proportions of ‘operation overkill’. A gradual let alone wooing her—a de-
approach, sans the fanfare, would have insulated the government ficiency which costs him
from barbs and controversy. AVINASH GODBOLEY, Dewas break-ups and woes.
VALLANAD R. NAMASIVAYAM,
Cupid. The new generation Nagpur
romances or even old-fash-
wants to taste love and
ioned matrimonial ads?
Are we becoming a nation
ride the attendant roller- Ad Nauseam
coaster of emotions rang- The charm of your maga-
of robots? And, such a
ing from exultation to zine since its inception has
dubious distinction at
grief. Attractive user been the content. What
that—“one of the largest
names are key to navigat- used to be our favourite
and most exciting dating
ing the tangled pathways journal is now packed with
markets in the world”.
of cyberia. A word of cau- impact features or adverto-
KRISHAN KALRA, via e-mail
tion here. Given that the rials. This is a blow to its
internet allows people to dedicated readers. Your
Young India is determined
live out their fantasies, it June 27 issue was a read-
to let technology play
 FROM THE
MAIL ARCHIVES
er’s nightmare. Now one Officers’ Europe against Austerity
waits for supplements Outreach Fiscal conservatives look
Home, Spice and Woman The revival of police-com- askance at Hollande and his
for reading material. munity interactions in Keynesian friends, believing it
Please stop this migration Gadchiroli is a welcome is no more sensible to try to
of readership before it be- move (Hearts and Mines). defy the market than to defy
comes too late. It is a ray of hope, however gravity. It is the money mar-
SMITA SHAH, via e-mail fleeting, for villagers kets that will make their
caught daily in the cross- judgement on whether a gov-
Our family has been sub- fire in the area. These ernment is fiscally continent,
scribing to INDIA TODAY for Where the Wild by fixing the level of interest
newly-formed amicable
decades. To my horror, the Things Were ties have been beneficial levied on new government
June 27 issue had 54 of its The act of exasperatedly for both villagers and po- borrowing. To defy the mar-
98 pages dedicated to ads. declaring the crop-raiding kets, Hollande must convince
lice alike. Now, the police
I assure you I will never nilgai as vermin has set off Merkel it is in her interest to
have to establish consis-
touch your magazine again other states on a similar trail, allow the European Central
tency through trust-build-
and tell every reading en- which are contemplating Bank to bolster Europe’s frag-
their annihilation (The Unholy ing measures. The silver
thusiast about this insanity. lining should not be sty- ile banks and buy government
Surely, there are better Cow). Prakash Javadekar debt at a reasonable price.
took recourse to Section 62 mied by any slacking off on
ways of earning money. the part of sentinels. But Merkel has her own
of the Wildlife (Protection)
ANURAG PATERIYA, via e-mail RUCHI VARGHESE, Delhi electoral problems. Next year,
Act, 1972, to sanction the
she must convince German
exercise. Admittedly, the
A Wound gravity of the situation can- Too Big for voters she has protected
Still Raw not be undermined as locals its Paws both the European Union and
The taint of Kamal Nath’s are facing attacks and agri- Chinese internet giant the Euro, which hold the key
alleged involvement in the cultural property is targeted. Baidu’s attempt to make to Germany’s continuing
1984 riots far outweighs Yet, for the conservation of prosperity, while safeguard-
inroads into India will
his usefulness as a shrewd biodiversity, culling should ing them from what they con-
have to consider other
political operative (The be avoided or made the last sider reckless and profligate
players eyeing the Indian
Saviour that Wasn’t). The resort in man-animal con- behaviour by their indebted
market pie (Chinese Bear
fiasco of his appointment flicts. Till a long-term solution southern European neigh-
on Indian Trail). It’s inter-
as party-in-charge of is devised, fences, trenches, bours. Since WWII, Germans
esting to witness a market
Punjab and his subsequent moats, motion sensors, chilli have been prepared, if not
saturated by Google get-
resignation is yet another powder sprays can be resort- happy, to subsidise the rest of
ting a bold new player. We
indication of the clueless- ed to wherever possible. Europe, but now a new gener-
have to wait and watch if it
ness of the Congress high NALINI VIJAYARAGHAVAN, ation of young Germans, who
brings something new to
command. Unable to artic- Thiruvananthapuram have no guilt about their
the table. It has the poten- country’s Nazi past, are grow-
ulate a clear political or tial to make a mark by the
Your informative article omits ing impatient at having to bail
ideological vision and build route of forging partners
the food value aspect of the out those they believe do not
an organisation around it, and acquiring companies.
blue bull family. By virtue of work as hard as they do.
the Congress has become belonging to the antelope SHWETA CHAUDHARY, Delhi
dependent mostly on jaded The last word, however,
genus, it is apparently suit- goes to Keynes... he pre-
leaders, whose mass con- able for the table. We need a China is on the internet dicted that if at the end of the
nect is questionable, and plan to husband the species map! Technology has First World War the victorious
who prevent the rise of as a replacement for beef. crossed the ‘great wall’ in Allies beggared the defeated
young and new leaders. BISHAN SAHAI, via e-mail leaps and bounds... Germans with crippling repa-
P. ARIHANTH, Secunderabad K. SHESHU, via e-mail rations, extremist politics
would arise that would lead to
a WWII. He was proved
Readers are recommended to make appropriate enquiries before sending E-MAIL YOUR LETTERS TO: calamitously right. Now, it is
money, incurring expenses or entering into commitments in relation to
any advertisement appearing in this publication. The India Today Group letters.editor@intoday.com the Germans who are de-
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May 2012

4 INDIA TODAY ◆ JULY 11, 2016

GLASS HOUSE by SANDEEP UNNITHAN

STRIKING A BALANCE
T hat the way to Prime Minister Narendra
Modi’s heart is through yoga is something
everybody understands. Hence the attempt to
strike an asana or exult about it whenever the
opportunity presents itself. But what if you are
PIRATE WATCH outside the country and away from the thick

T elangana informa-
tion technology
minister K.T. Rama
of action on International Yoga Day on June
21? Take a cue from Shivraj Singh Chouhan.
In China on that particular day, the Madhya
Rao got US ambassa- Pradesh chief minister’s aides managed to find
dor Richard Verma to an enthusiastic yoga group in Beijing whose
launch the Telangana postures and turban-clad heads provided a
Intellectual Property sufficiently ‘Indian’ backdrop for the CM’s
Crime Unit that deals yogasanas. The message and the images were
with copyright viola- disseminated on social media too. Thus did
tions. Tollywood, which ancient Indian wisdom breach the Great Wall
makes two films a of China. It left the RSS happy too.
week, claims losses
of Rs 1,066 crore in
18 months because
of illegal movie down-
loads. KTR has roped
TWIST IN TALKING TERMS AND, ACTION
in the police and the
state’s film industry
With the decision to
postpone the June 27
F ormer Union tourism
minister K. Chiranjeevi
has begun the shooting
to work with the US
India-China financial of his much-hyped 150th
government.
dialogue on the same film—the Telugu remake
day Beijing stonewalled of the farmer-themed
India’s bid to enter Tamil superhit Kaththi.
the Nuclear Suppliers With the actor already
Group, speculation was extending support to
rife that New Delhi was the agitation to the Kapu
sending Beijing a mes- community cohort, to
sage that obstruction- which he belongs, the film
ism would come at a scheduled for release by
price. Officials, though, Sankranthi 2017, may mark
SHIFTING insist the real reason
was a last-minute deci-
his political comeback.

DEADLINE sion to have economic affairs secretary Shaktikanta Das

A ndhra Pradesh CM
N. Chandrababu
Naidu’s desire to shift
stay in Delhi to deal with the Brexit fallout. But consider-
ing the date of the Brexit vote was long known and Indian
and Chinese media had been invited only a few days ear-
the state administra- lier in Beijing, it was a left a tad puzzled.
tion from Hyderabad
to the interim gov-
ernment complex
Z MINUS
at Velagapudi in the
40
N
vicinity of proposed SG’s protection review group Commandos
capital Amaravati by has proposed to Union home
June 27 has come a minister Rajnath Singh that Z plus
cropper. With none of security cover be lifted for ex-Assam

1
the six blocks of the chief minister Tarun Gogoi and DMK
complex ready, Naidu
was forced to relax the
deadline for the 100-
leader M. Karunanidhi. Both Gogoi
and Karunanidhi’s parties were Bullet-proof
2
Escort vehicles
defeated in the Assam and Tamil vehicle
odd department heads Nadu assembly elections held this
to August. summer. Insult to injury?
 GLASS HOUSE
FREE FOR ALL by Anup Ray

KISSA KISS KA
K arnataka CM
Siddaramaiah
was taken aback when
Girija Srinivas, a taluk
panchayat member in
Chikmagalur, kissed his
cheek at a Kuruba com-
munity convention of
on June 26. The startled
CM told the media
that Girija was like his
daughter. Girija said she
saw him as a father fig-
ure. End of story.

DIVORCE NEW FRENEMIES

SPECIALIST
M ahara-
shtra
BJP spokes-
man
Madhav
Bhandari’s
fiery article in Tarun
Bharat had led to the
Janata Party break
in 1980. His barb at
Uddhav Thackeray in
September 2014 hinted
at a parting with Shiv
Sena. On June 24, Sena
activists burnt his effigy
for advocating a politi-
cal divorce. So what if
his picture with Uddhav
is displayed prominen-
tly at Mumbai party HQ.
COW SLIP
C hief Minister
Mehbooba Mufti’s
adviser Amitabh
Mattoo keeps a cow
named Lali at his
W hen RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav and his deputy chief
minister son Tejashwi Yadav attended former CM
Jitan Ram Manjhi’s iftar party on June 26, it caused ripples
Gogibagh house in
uptown Srinagar.
Mattoo calls her his new
in Bihar’s Grand Alliance. Nitish Kumar is still said to be house guest and even
unhappy with Manjhi, the man he made and unmade Bihar posted her picture on
CM. People in Patna wondered whether Lalu was sending Facebook. It attracted
Nitish a message, given that he is testing the waters in Uttar several likes, but the
Pradesh, a state ruled by Lalu’s kin. The jury’s still out, but post was swiftly delet-
Lalu and Manjhi, who hugged each other, haven’t spoken. ed. No one knows why.

MAY THE BEST DIET WIN

Notes from Didi’s exchange with two TMC MLCs in her cabinet room at the legislative assembly
Mamata Puffed rice, Vaishali Dalmiya
cups of tea. Rice and fish Mohua Moitra
Fruit diet, led by king
curry for dinner. Observes Cucumber and curd
of fruits, mango
Santoshimata vrat

with RAHUL NORONHA, ANANTH KRISHNAN, AMARNATH K. MENON, KIRAN TARE, AMITABH
SRIVASTAVA, NASEER GANAI, ROMITA DATTA, ARAVIND GOWDA

6 INDIA TODAY ◆ JULY 11, 2016

 NEWSFLICKS SPARK

IT’S NOT IN THE

MILEAGE BUT TAXES
IF YOUR FUEL BILLS HAVEN’T COME DOWN MUCH DESPITE
A FALL IN CRUDE OIL PRICES, BLAME IT ON THE TAXES

PEAK TO FLOOR CRUDE = PETROL OR DIESEL CENTRE GAINED

OIL PRICES DECREASE IN PRICE BETWEEN THERE HAVE BEEN NINE EXCISE DUTY HIKES
JUNE 2014 & JUNE 2016 SINCE NOVEMBER 2014
EXCISE DUTY HIKES (Rs/LITRE)

$115/ DATE PETROL DIESEL

BBL
Nov 14, 2014 1.5 1.5
26/BBL

58%
June 2014 $
Dec 1, 2014 2.25 1
June 2016
Jan 2, 2015 2 2
CRASH Jan 16, 2015 2 2
Oil prices
Oct 31, 2015 1.6 0.4

14% 6%
Diesel
Dec 11, 2015
Jan 2, 2016
0.3
0.37
1.17
2
Petrol
77% Jan 16, 2016 0.75 2
25%
Crude oil Diesel
23%
Petrol
13% Feb 1, 2016 1 1.5
depreciation in rupee vs dollar since June 2014
ALSO CUSHIONED THE FALL
TOTAL 11.8 13.6

AND SO DID... ...ALL THE STATES MORE TAX THAN OIL

MANY STATES HAVE ALSO INCREASED THE SHARE OF TAXES IN RETAIL PRICES HAS
SALES TAX/VAT INCREASED SHARPLY
SHARE OF TAXES IN PETROL
Andhra Pradesh 12%
INCREASE IN TAXES 10%
(APRIL 2014 TO JUNE 2016) 5%
Rajasthan
17% June 2016
April 2014
18%
Madhya Pradesh
20% 9% 54%
Gujarat
15% 29%
Karnataka 17% 8%
12% Uttar Pradesh
3% SHARE OF TAXES IN DIESEL

Punjab 16% 5%
Haryana
9% 5%
Maharashtra 15% Delhi 3% June 2016
10% 1% April 2014

18% 46%
Jharkhand
12%
11% Petrol Diesel Based on prices in Delhi
Source: Nomura Research, PPAC

VISUAL NEWS ON YOUR PHONE DOWNLOAD FROM OR SMS NF TO 52424

 COVER STORY
B R E X IT

THE NEW WORLD

DISORDER
Epochal 20th century events like the collapse of the Berlin Wall and the disintegration
of the Soviet Union triggered off a chain reaction that seemed to suggest the end
state was globalisation. This boundary-blurring new world order of interconnected
markets, technology and culture promised salvation. But as Brexit, Britain’s June 23
vote to exit the European Union, showed, globalisation may have hit a speed bump.
India’s worries are exacerbated by uncertainties like the upcoming US elections and
the rise of an increasingly assertive China. Our expert writers make sense of a world
in turmoil and chart a way through the storm

Illustration by NILANJAN DAS

 COVER STORY
THE NEW
NANDAN ROAD TO
NIRVANA
NILEKANI
BREXIT MARKS A TURNING POINT IN THE
CONTINUOUS TREND TOWARDS
GLOBALISATION. INDIA’S FUTURE LIES IN ITS
DOMESTIC MARKET, NOT EXPORTS
T
HERE IS NO DOUBT THAT
BREXIT is a seminal event.
That rare occasion when
everything comes together
to signal a major shift in
international affairs and
the way we organise and do things. It repre-
sents a turning point in the continuous trend
of globalisation that we had seen for the last
three decades. Everyone thought that glo-
balisation had become a one-way street.
Brexit has changed all that.
Going back into recent history, there are
both political and technological reasons for
the world going down the path of globalisa-
tion. Among the major political events that
set the course were the Grenada invasion
of 1983, the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989
and the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.
Signalling the rise of democracy, theorists
predicted the end of history as we knew it. It
also saw the rise of China, and its entry into
the World Trade Organisation in 2001 made
it among the world’s leading exporters. The
boom in software exports made India a glo-
balised country.
What made the rise of these two popu-
lous nations possible were two underlying
technological factors which enabled the
10 INDIA TODAY ◆ JULY 11, 2016
OUR
globalisation of both goods and services. One
was the containerisation of global shipping.
MENTAL The container or ‘Box’ was invented about
MODELS 60 years ago, and soon began to dramati-
cally lower the cost of international ship-
ARE DATED. ment. Containers did more for global trade
EXPORT-LED than any other single factor. China, with its
cheap labour, benefited hugely from that
GROWTH, development. You could put a bunch of gar-
MAKE IN ments in a box in China and deliver it to a
mall in Kansas at a much lower cost because
INDIA you could make the whole process known
AND BIG as intermodal transport—from shipping to
rail and to roads—seamless and automated.
FIRMS ARE So containerisation led to the globalisation
YESTERDAY’S of goods. The second major factor was the
dotcom bubble around 2000 that spurred
STORIES the massive investments in fibreoptics that
saw cables being laid across the Atlantic and
elsewhere. This enabled Indian companies
to export software and led to the globalisa-
tion of services. Just over 12 years ago, I
sat on the sofa outside my office in Infosys
and explained to Tom Friedman how the
playing field was getting levelled through
technology. This inspired him to write The
World is Flat, an international bestseller that
sold millions of copies and captured the zeit-
geist of the era.
Illustrations by ANIRBAN GHOSH

The reversal is happening because in the
last few years, the middle class, particular-
ly in Western countries, is seeing less and
less benefits in globalisation. They are see-
ing their incomes drop and jobs being lost.
They are seeing migrants and refugees from
countries with different traditions and cul-
tures. The signal from Brexit is that there
is going to be a lot more slowing down of
globalisation, and more and more countries
will create barriers for immigration and the
movement of labour. It is a defining moment
in the journey of the last 40 years. The Brexit
vote presents both challenges and opportu-
nities. It has proved that countries will have
to be more strong domestically and not rely
on exports as a vehicle for growth. If you look
at history—whether Japan in the ’60s, Korea
in the ’70s and China and Southeast Asia in
the ’80s—these nations grew themselves out
of poverty by connecting to the global supply
chain and exporting. So they exported their
way to development, China being the most
stunning example.
That story is now over. In the sense that
India or any developing country cannot
export its way out of poverty. It is going to
become increasingly difficult to export goods,
services or labour. So the export-led growth
BREXIT
strategy has outlived its usefulness. In gen-
CHINESE eral, countries will have to work towards
OVERCA- making their domestic markets more via-
ble and also work on reducing inequalities
PACITY AND in their own societies; only then will they
AUTOMA- have a social buy-in for global integration.
These broad trends have an implication for
TION HAVE India. Our mental models are dated. Our
SQUEEZED experts say that for faster growth we should
MANUFAC- do exports, we should do ‘Make in India’
and build our manufacturing by facilitating
TURING. large companies that can hire lots of people.
SERVICES IS These three are all yesterday’s story. I think
today the future of India lies in our domes-
WHERE THE tic market and not in exports. Already there
FUTURE LIES are indications. For 17 months in a row, our
exports have been dropping—that is stagger-
ing. Global trade is growing less than glob-
al growth. What that means is the world’s
domestic economic growth is fuelling global
growth, not exports. It is very, very unusual.
So domestic is where the action is. We need
to focus on that.
The other major trend is that India’s
growth will happen through services.
Manufacturing will happen, but it will not
be the driver as it was for Korea, China
and Japan. Manufacturing is facing a dou-
ble whammy. One is the rise of extreme
JULY 11, 2016 ◆ INDIA TODAY 11
 COVER STORY
automation. Today, robotics, 3-D manufac-
turing and artificial intelligence have made
manufacturing rely less on labour. A manu-
facturing facility today employs just a few
people with hi-tech skills. Look at the factory
that Foxconn is setting up to make iPhones in
the US using robots. Or the latest Gigafactory
Tesla has built to make batteries in Nevada.
The other factor is that China has built up
massive overcapacity in the last 30 years. For
instance, the country today produces 800 mil-
lion tonnes of steel annually. India’s total pro-
duction is only around 100 million tonnes. So
China will need to export all the surplus steel
which will make it difficult for us to manu-
facture it cost-effectively unless you create a
tariff barrier like we have now done for steel.
So manufacturing is squeezed on one side by
Chinese overcapacity and on the other side by
extreme automation. So the service sector is
where the action is.
HE ERA OF LARGE COMPANIES
T as we knew them is also over. It
will be a world of platforms that
aggregate small companies.
Amazon and Flipkart will aggregate goods
made by lakhs of vendors and provide a plat-
form to sell them. Similarly, Ola or Uber will
aggregate millions of drivers who will work on
the platform, Practo will aggregate doctors
and patients and so on. Aggregation by plat-
forms is the way that jobs creation will hap-
pen. This platform aggregation will also lead
to formalisation of the economy. India’s econ-
omy is largely informal. But once, say, a taxi
driver becomes part of Ola, then in fact he
becomes part of the formal economy. He is
able to use data, get a loan, buy a car, start
paying taxes. So the formalisation of a few
hundred millions of Indians will spur growth
and that is where our focus should be. My
larger point is that it is now all about domestic
not export, services not manufacturing and
platform aggregation not big companies.
In the light of Brexit, there is all the more
reason to focus on how we can make that
domestic economy thrive. We have advan-
tages. For one, India is a young country in an
ageing world. Secondly, it has a low per capita
income and just the act of raising per capita
income from $2,000 to $10,000 will create a
lot of internal business opportunity. Thirdly,
we have massive opportunities for productiv-
ity in our economy from urbanisation, English
skills, streamlining processes, reducing inter-
action costs using technology, smartphones,
12 INDIA TODAY ◆ JULY 11, 2016
BREXIT
Aadhaar and bank accounts. We now have all
IN THE NEW the right conditions—young people, produc-
WORLD tivity benefits and rising per capita income.
If we do things properly, it will lead to many,
ORDER many years of growth.
EVERYTHING Among the government’s first priorities
should be the improvement of literacy and
IS MICRO, numeracy for everybody. Because for one to
MILLIONS participate in this economy, you require basic
literacy and numeracy. For example, if you
OF SMALL have a taxi driver on Ola, he should be able
PRODUCERS to read a message from you or his map and
AGGREGAT- reach where you are. All the other countries
that grew rapidly, whether Korea, China or
ING THEIR Japan had already achieved universal literacy
CAPABILITY before their rise. So the focus on mass educa-
tion is something the government should be
BY USING pushing and also improving the learning out-
TECHNOLOGY comes in our education system.
Next, if you want the domestic market
to grow, you have to improve connectivity.
Tourism is a big thing. India gets only 8 mil-
lion tourists a year while smaller countries get
much more. Tourism is very labour-intensive
and is the kind of industry that will create jobs
and economic growth. Using the Aadhaar-
based platform we have something that the
think-tank iSPIRT calls the ‘India stack’ which
allows transactions at a fraction of their cur-
rent cost. It will result in paperless and cash-
less transactions which can be initiated from
anywhere, anytime on one’s smartphone. And
as Indians go from being data-poor to data-
rich, their digital footprints can be harnessed
to get loans, skills and jobs. All these new tech-
nologies would dramatically improve produc-
tivity and efficiency and take India towards a
zero transaction cost economy, making it as
frictionless as possible.
So in the emerging new world order,
everything is becoming micro. It’s about mil-
lions of small producers aggregating their
capability by using technology. It’s about
zero transaction costs. And it’s about high
trust. Once you have a real identity like
Aadhaar used in every transaction, then
you will build trust. I think going from low
trust to high trust, from high transaction
cost to low transaction cost and from large
monolithic organisations to platforms that
aggregate small producers, all focused on
domestic services—that’s the new Nirvana
and the road to self-actualisation.
The author is the former chairman of the
Unique Identification Authority of India, a
philantrophist and former enterpreneur
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 COVER STORY

SHASHI THAROOR

INDIA AND THE

NEW GREAT GAME
EVEN AS 21ST CENTURY WORLD AFFAIRS UNDERGO A STRUCTURAL CHANGE,
NEW DELHI NEEDS TO NEGOTIATE NEW TERMS WITH THE EXISTING GREAT POWERS

A
S BREXIT SHAKES THE
foundations of the European
Union, with right-wing par-
ties in several European
countries calling for similar
referenda, it is no longer
debatable that we have entered a period of
sustained geopolitical volatility. Add to this,
China’s negative stance at the NSG and in the
UN counter-terrorism committee, Russia’s
assertive role in Ukraine and Syria, and the
rise of a xenophobic Donald Trump in the US,
and we have all the ingredients for a troubled
‘new world disorder’. How should India navi-
gate its way through this turbulence?
The first and most essential ingredient of
the answer is that India must know what it is
seeking from the global system. Clearly, what
we need from other sovereign nation-states is
a recognition of our place in the world and a
seat at the international ‘high table’: one is,
after all, either at the table or on the menu. We
need the international system to facilitate our
own development and not impede the steps
WHAT WE Xenophobia and racism are on the rise as
Europeans blame ‘outsiders’ for the decline
required to ensure the prosperity, security NEED IS A in their quality of life and their easy assump-
and well-being of our own people. At a time
when challenges abound to the very notions
SEAT AT tions of future prosperity. The electoral ero-
sion of liberal democracy is apparent in the
of national sovereignty, non-interference in THE increasing vote-share of both right-wing and
‘internal affairs’, fixed territories, and control
over one’s own domestic politics—verities we
GLOBAL left-wing populist or radical parties across
Europe, from Marine Le Pen in France and
have routinely asserted for so long—we need ‘HIGH Geert Wilders in the Netherlands on the far
to negotiate new terms for ourselves with the
existing great powers. And we need to do so
TABLE’: right to Alexis Tsipras in Greece on the post-
modern left. The closing of Europe and the
even as a structural change appears to be ONE IS, likely turn to insularity and petty nationalism
occurring in 21st century world affairs.
Brexit may prove the first in a cascade
AFTER ALL, cannot leave us indifferent. After all, Europe
is one of our largest trading partners.
of dominoes as Europe struggles to keep the EITHER AT New Delhi should undoubtedly take steps
liberal-democratic project of a united Europe
alive. One of the consequences for global
THE TABLE to promote its own interests by negotiating
a new trade deal with the UK and start dis-
geopolitics is the risk of a closed Europe. OR ON THE cussing special visa arrangements for Indian
The inflow of migrants, especially from MENU nationals, especially students and techni-
Muslim countries, has opened political fault- cal personnel. With less competition from
lines within and between European coun- European migrants, Indians might be able to
tries, augmented by the inescapable costs play a more significant role in the British econ-
of economic recession. Europe’s open bor- omy. The long-stalled talks on a European
ders policy is unlikely to survive unscathed. Free Trade Agreement should also be revived

14 INDIA TODAY ◆ JULY 11, 2016


with a newly-chastened Brussels. India could
also seek to take advantage of the ailing trans-
atlantic partnership. Brexit will weaken it fur-
ther, as the US loses its English-speaking ally
as a bridgehead to Europe. Russia’s interven-
tion in Ukraine and the conflict in Syria have
already highlighted the limitations and divi-
sions of the US-European alliance. As a coun-
try with independently strong relationships
with the US, Russia, the UK and Europe, India
will have more space for manoeuvre in explor-
ing opportunities with all of them.
The developed world shows signs of moving
towards closed borders, closed markets, and a
politically-driven escape from empathy. Russia
is watching in bemusement even as President
Vladimir Putin is seen by the West as everyone’s
favourite hate figure. India needs to preserve
its good links with Moscow while taking care
not to be seen as sharing Mr Putin’s worldview.
ELATIONS WITH THE third mem-
R ber of the annual RIC meeting,
China, have become fraught, most
recently over its direct opposition
to India’s membership of the NSG and its block-
ing the blacklisting of terrorist Masood Azhar
by the UN Sanctions Committee. The rise of a
strong China, fuelled by economic prowess,
military might and increased willingness to
exercise its hard power in the South China Sea,
is of crucial importance to India. Pursuing con-
frontation with it seems unwise, especially for
such relatively minor objectives: India already
has what it wants from the NSG, its India-
specific waiver of 2008. China’s global aspira-
tions need not be at India’s expense: we have
obvious shared interests, for example, in keep-
ing open and secure the sea lanes of communi-
cation across the Indian Ocean. Cooperation on
a host of multilateral issues seems possible,
provided we do not stumble into confrontation
over bilateral ones. The biggest prize would be
a final settlement of the vexed border question
that has bedevilled relations for six decades.
That will only come if China believes it
has in India a partner worth investing in. The
Indian government’s decision to remove earli-
er restrictions on Chinese investment in sensi-
tive sectors like ports and telecom has not been
followed by a rush of Chinese bids for such
projects, which could be in both countries’
interests. China, meanwhile, is experiencing
a slowdown to 6 per cent—after decades of
double digit growth—and it seems unlikely to
rise above that for the next five years. More
Indian exports to China are unlikely in view
of reduced demand. But there is no need for
BREXIT
SINCE India to risk being the target of the assertive
Chinese nationalism that is rising to increase
INDIA HAS domestic support during the slowdown,
STRONG which is already apparent in territorial dis-
putes in the South China Sea and the Senkaku-
RELATION- Diaoyu islands in the Sea of Japan. Instead
SHIPS WITH of flailing fruitlessly after NSG membership,
India should be focused on increasing Chinese
THE US, investment and settling the border, rather
RUSSIA, than allowing secondary issues to become
obstacles to more important objectives.
THE UK In five months, the world may also face
AND the prospect of a volatile President Trump
whose unpredictability—the hallmark of his
EUROPE, campaign—would cast a shadow that looms
IT WILL large over the geopolitical climate. Just a year
ago, we were all contemplating with a yawn
HAVE MORE the prospect of another Clinton-Bush election:
SPACE FOR who would have thought that the domestic
political climate in the United States would
MANOEU- turn out to be another source of geopolitical
VRE IN volatility? Trump is a presidential candidate
EXPLORING
OPPORTUNI-
of one of the two major parties who doesn’t
believe in NATO, thinks US allies elsewhere
are enjoying a free ride, wants to bar his
country to Muslims and deport all illegal immi-
TIES WITH grants. He is, moreover, likely to run against
ALL OF a capable but flawed candidate in Hillary
Clinton. What could be a bigger threat to
THEM global stability than the prospect of the victory
of such a figure? And even if it doesn’t hap-
pen, the rise of Trump has revealed the wide-
spread frustration and discontent on the part
of Americans with the globalisation that has
altered the familiar assumptions of their lives.
With Brexit, a Trump victory no longer looks
inconceivable. No one in India knows what this
may mean for us, but it’s safe to assume that
fewer jobs will be outsourced here and fewer
Indian techies will be getting H1B visas to ply
their trades in a less welcoming America.
Amid all this, India must seek a place for
itself at the global high table. The increasing
insularity of that high table’s current occu-
pants may lead them to resist any expan-
sion, but it could also leave room for a nation
prepared to articulate and implement a truly
global vision. We have a great deal to contrib-
ute to the stewardship of the global commons,
since we have the expertise, the technology
and the resources to offer leadership on a host
of international issues, ranging from cyber-
space to outer space. But to get there, we have
to show more focus, determination and agility
than we have been displaying of late.
Shashi Tharoor is a Lok Sabha MP
and former Union minister
JULY 11, 2016 ◆ INDIA TODAY 15
 COVER STORY

IAN BREMMER

BRACING FOR A
WESTERN DISTURBANCE
BRITAIN’S WITHDRAWAL FROM THE EU COULD BURN THE BRIDGE THAT HELPS
AMERICANS AND EUROPEANS UNDERSTAND ONE ANOTHER AND REACH COMPROMISES

T
HE TRANSATLANTIC ALLI-
ANCE, the US-European
partnership of uniquely
capable and like-minded
allies, was in trouble even
before the British voted
themselves out of the European Union. With
no Soviet-scale threat to hide important dif-
ferences in their values and interests, the two
sides have grown apart, and historic internal
challenges have distracted US and European
political leaders in recent years from oppor-
tunities to redefine the alliance’s value.
US-European trade and investment ties
will continue to fuel growth, though a propo-
sed Transatlantic Trade and Investment Par-
tnership appears stuck in the mud. Russia’s
Vladimir Putin has given NATO new life, at
least for now, and it costs nothing for US and
European leaders to say all the right things
about the value of their partnership. But
divergent interests, divisions over how best to
respond to dozens of challenges, and a grow-
“EMOTIONS nation would depend heavily on oil revenue.
Two years ago, Scots voted no on indepen-
ing list of internal distractions will make this ARE dence with oil selling at more than double
alliance less relevant for Europe, the US, and
the rest of the world in years to come.
RUNNING its current price. Emotions are running high
for the moment, but the passage of time and
The Brexit vote makes matters worse HIGH, BUT the lack of an oil price rebound will probably
because Britain’s withdrawal from the EU
burns the bridge that helps Americans and
TIME AND keep Britain together, at least for now. Still, US
trade negotiators will be reluctant to devote
Europeans understand one another and THE LACK time and political capital toward negotiating
reach a compromise. There have been a series
of emergency meetings among EU leaders in
OF AN the US-UK trade that many in London would
like to see at least until it becomes clear that
recent days, and there will be more, but it OIL PRICE the United Kingdom can hold together.
will take months, perhaps longer, to define
Britain’s new relationship with Europe.
REBOUND EUROPE BEYOND BREXIT
France and Germany will hold national elec- WILL PROB- But Europe and the transatlantic alliance
tions in 2017, and uncertainty over Britain
and the economic impact of its eventual with-
ABLY KEEP face many other threats, and though we
have learned never to underestimate the
drawal may influence the outcomes. BRITAIN ability of Europeans to ‘muddle through’,
There is also concern that the exit from
the EU will force a breakup of the UK itself.
TOGETHER new challenges will soon test their agility.
First, it’s not as though Britain is the only
Some in Scotland, which voted heavily to country with growing anti-EU sentiment. A
remain within the union, have called for a new recent online poll found that 45 per cent of
independence referendum. That’s unlikely to more than 6,000 respondents in Germany,
happen, because the government of this new France, Italy, Belgium, Spain, Sweden,

16 INDIA TODAY ◆ JULY 11, 2016


Hungary and Poland want their own gov-
ernments to hold in-or-out referenda on EU
membership. New political parties, both left
and right, have built solid brands and voter
appeal on anti-EU fury over immigration
policy and many other issues.
France, in particular, has some tough
battles ahead. Recent polls suggest Marine
Le Pen has become a solid contender to
become president in 2017. Le Pen has already
pledged to hold a ‘Frexit’ referendum, and
she will bang that drum with enthusiasm in
the lead-up to next year’s election.
The populist Alternative für Deutschland
party continues to move German politics to
the right. In Italy, a candidate representing
the Five Star Movement, which began as a
protest party, has been elected mayor of
Rome. Anti-EU parties in the Netherlands,
Sweden, Denmark and Austria are making
headlines. Another election in Spain has pro-
duced an inconclusive result, Portuguese vot-
ers elected their current government to reject
EU-ordered austerity, and the European
Commission must soon decide how to pun-
ish both countries for flouting EU fiscal rules.
In the east, Poland’s government is fight-
ing with the European Commission (EC) over
a new law that would allow the ruling Law
and Justice Party to replace every judge on
the country’s highest court. Polish officials
accuse Brussels of trying to use this issue to
blackmail the country into accepting more
migrants. The EC could impose sanctions.
This fight will not end amicably.
But Europe’s biggest problem, and the
greatest distraction from efforts to reboot the
transatlantic alliance, is the entirely unresol-
ved migrant crisis. The flow of desperate
migrants into Europe from the Middle East
has slowed sharply since the beginning of this
year, a result of both newly erected obstacles
along the Balkan route and an increasingly
controversial EU agreement that depends
on support from EU member Greece and
non-member Turkey. Brussels has promised
Greece economic aid and, less formally, a
more understanding approach to managing
Greece’s ongoing financial troubles.
Turkey has been promised visa-free trav-
el throughout the Schengen area. The trou-
ble will begin in Ankara this fall. European
officials already find it increasingly tough to
ignore official harassment of local and for-
eign journalists in Turkey, and the EC warns
that the offer of visa-free travel depends on
Turkey’s willingness to rewrite terrorism laws
to ensure they can’t be used against reporters
BREXIT
or those who insult the country’s thin-skinned
president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Neither
side looks likely to back down.
If Turkey, home to about 2.75 million
migrants, renounces its migrant deal with
the EU, Greece will be in trouble. This coun-
FURTHER try, the beneficiary of three bailouts, will find
itself flooded with would-be migrants. Nearly
DISINTE- a quarter of working-age Greeks are unem-
GRATION ployed. For others, wages have fallen by 40
per cent since the financial meltdown began.
OF EUROPE Another surge in the migrant crisis ahead
WILL of a crucial reform referendum this fall in
Italy and national elections next year in
INFLICT France and Germany is the last thing Europe
LASTING needs. The further disintegration of Europe
will inflict lasting damage on the transatlantic
DAMAGE alliance when the current US president—and
ON THE his likeliest successor—have both committed
themselves to a US ‘pivot’ toward Asia.
TRANS-
ATLANTIC POST-BREXIT AMERICA
Some US pundits have speculated since the
ALLIANCE Brexit vote that British- and European-style
WHEN THE populism is headed for the United States.
Listen to a few words from presumptive
US PRESI- Republican Party nominee Donald Trump or
DENT—AND Democratic Party runner-up Bernie Sanders,
and you’ll hear that anger at government and
HIS LIKELY globalisation is already here. It is doubtful
SUCCES- that “if Britons can vote for Brexit, Americans
can elect Trump”. In fact, a Trump victory is
SOR—HAVE highly unlikely. Nor do the UK and US have
BOTH that much in common on populist issues.
Anti-immigration sentiment exists in both
COMMITTED countries, but the US has absorbed succes-
TO A US sive waves of immigrants throughout its his-
tory. Outside London, Britain remains much
‘PIVOT’ less racially and ethnically diverse. Finally, in
TOWARD November, US voters will choose between two
well-known people, not between hypotheti-
ASIA. cal relationships with abstract institutions.
Yet, even if the Brexit vote won’t matter
much for the outcome of the US election, its
impact on both Britain and Europe will make
it much harder for the US and European
leaders to coordinate action to meet security
and commercial challenges. It will heighten
political, economic and cultural differences
within the transatlantic alliance and add
urgency for both US and European leaders
to find new partners which, like China, rep-
resent very different political and economic
values than those that have always anchored
the transatlantic alliance.
Ian Bremmer is an American political
scientist and president of the Eurasia Group
JULY 11, 2016 ◆ INDIA TODAY 17
 COVER STORY

INDIA AND THE

RE-ALIGNED
SHYAM SARAN
MOVEMENT
BREXIT REPRESENTS ONLY ANOTHER, MUCH
MORE CONSEQUENTIAL, PHASE IN THE
MARGINALISATION OF THE EU IN A
SHIFTING GLOBAL TERRAIN

I
N OCTOBER 2004, we
were in the midst of negoti-
ating an India-European
Union Strategic Part-
nership. What were the ele-
ments of strategic
convergence identified by the two sides?
One, India welcomed a more integrated
and united Europe which could play the role
of a relatively independent international
actor even though it would remain anchored
in the western world. This would conform
to India’s preference for a more multipolar
global space for a bigger role befitting its
emergence as a major power.
Two, India saw a close affinity with a
multi-ethnic, multi-religious, multi-cultur-
al and multi-lingual plural democracy like
the European Union as mirroring India’s
own plural democracy based on celebrat-
ing diversity. The two sides felt that at a time
when the values of plurality and a liberal
order were under assault in several parts
of the world, India and the EU had to work
closely together to sustain and promote these
values. This affinity was further underscored
by an incident which took place on the eve
of the India-EU summit—the killing of the
Dutch filmmaker Theo Van Gogh by a mili-
tant Islamist which brought the scourge of
terrorism to the heart of Europe. India’s own
long-standing struggle against cross-border
terrorism began to find resonance in Europe.
Three, India and the EU were seen as
islands of relative stability at two ends of an
IT’S NOT arc of instability spread across the eastern
flank of Europe, and encompassing West
GLOBALISA- Asia right up to Afghanistan and Pakistan
TION PER on India’s western flank. Therefore, the two
sides needed to greatly enhance their strate-
SE THAT IS gic engagement in order to ensure that this
TO BLAME arc of instability did not threaten their secu-
rity and the well-being of their people.
FOR THINGS There were, of course, other sources of
COMING TO strategic convergence such as climate change
and energy security, nuclear non-prolifer-
THIS PASS. ation and counter-terrorism. However, the
PUBLIC POL- three elements referred to above constituted
the long-term strategic glue binding India
ICY OR THE and EU together.
LACK OF IT This expansive vision has unravelled and
now lies in tatters. Since the global financial
IS THE REAL and economic crisis, Europe has become
CULPRIT more inward-looking and preoccupied with
unprecedented economic challenges which,
in turn, have led to social and political conse-
quences. It has added to instability and dis-
ruption in West Asia with its ill-considered
interventions in Libya and Syria. It has lost its
coherence in projecting a European voice on
major global and regional issues. Europe has
reverted to narrow and increasingly nation-
alistic approaches. Added to this has been the
perception in some European countries that
hitching their destiny to an emerging Chinese
economic powerhouse may offer an exit from
their economic and financial malaise. It is
easy to see, therefore, why the strategic part-
nership between the two important plural
democracies has fallen off the radar. Brexit

18 INDIA TODAY ◆ JULY 11, 2016


thus represents only another, though much
more consequential, phase in the increasing
marginalisation of the EU in a shifting global
terrain and a further step in its fragmenta-
tion, in evidence for the last decade or more.
There is a sharpening tension not only in
Europe, but also in the US, indeed through-
out the world, between the relentless dis-
mantling of national borders by the forces of
globalisation, brought about by rapid tech-
nological advance and massive trade and
financial flows across nominally sovereign
jurisdictions and the failure to construct new
institutions of global governance aligned to
this new and still evolving pervasive real-
ity. The Trump phenomenon in the US is a
symptom of this tension as is the increased
salience of right-wing and nationalist parties
in countries which have long been seen as
the upholders of an open and liberal order.
There is a harking back to an imagined past
of sovereign states in the Westphalian mode,
BREXIT
where there is apparent control over nation-nation
al destinies, making it certain that the new
political dispensations lurching to the right,
would end up creating even more disruption
and economic dislocation because techno- techno
logical processes will continue to advance
and globalisation will march on. Whatever
is left of the post-Second World War global
order is being shredded into irrelevance.
This sounds apocalyptic but without con- con
fronting these elemental challenges, there
is every reason to fear that competing but
frustrated nationalisms will end up devour devour-
ing one another, unable to contain the rage
that powerlessness generates. This is starkly
on display in the UK where far from assuag-assuag
ing the very real concerns felt within British
society, Brexit is already leading to sharper
political and social polarisation and the very
real prospect of Great Britain being reduced
to Little England.
How has the world ended up in this bleak
and dismal place? Globalisation has been
blamed for creating a narrow but global
elite of spectacular winners and an expand-
expand
ing mass of losers. Even if life has improved
across the spectrum for a major chunk of pop- pop
ulations, inequalities have become structural
and entrenched in developed and developing
countries alike. But it is not globalisation per
se which is to blame for this state of affairs.
Public policy or the lack of it is the real culprit.
Elites across countries have become increas-
increas
THE WORST ingly self-centred and self-entitled, cynical
towards the fate of their less fortunate fellow
THING WE citizens. Most states have bought the neo-lib-
CAN DO eral argument of market discipline replac-
ing the state as an instrument of regulation.
IS TO FALL The space for public goods to be provided by
PREY the State, such as education, health, law and
order and social security has shrunk. Those
TO THE who have benefited from globalisation have
NARROW ensured that domestic tax laws and lack of
international regulation continue to shrink
NATIONAL- the very revenues the State needs to deliver
ISM WHICH these public goods. A different approach to
public policy, using the positives of globalisa-
WE NOW SEE tion and technological advance, could have
WRECKING A been used to empower citizens. New interna-
tional governance mechanisms and multilat-
POWERFUL eral processes could have been designed and
COUNTRY put in place to ensure that the powerful new
forces generated by technological advanc-
es and globalisation are leveraged to find
solutions to planetary challenges through
JULY 11, 2016 ◆ INDIA TODAY 19
 COVER STORY
collaborative approaches rather than mere
reliance on markets operating on competi-
tive principles. This includes the challenge
of climate change, transnational crime, pro-
liferation of weapons of mass destruction
and cyber crime, among others. Instead we
have a million mutinies spreading across the
world, to which answers can only be found
through more globalisation rather than less,
a more inclusive globalisation rather than
the selective and self-serving pursuit elites
across the world are guilty of.
It is against this background that India
must evolve its national security and devel-
opment strategies. It must take globalisa-
tion as a trend that cannot be reversed; we
must learn to ride the wave rather than be
swept aside by it. The worst thing we can do
is to fall prey to the lure of narrow national-
ism which we now see wrecking a powerful
country and eroding the very things which
were responsible for its success as a world-
class financial centre and a centre of excel-
lence in many other fields. A similar fate may
await the United States if it too succumbs to
a narrowing of vision, builds walls around
itself and stifles the very sources of creativity
and innovation which made it a great power.
What could be the geopolitical conse-
quences of Brexit, especially if the real les-
sons I have mentioned are not learnt by the
major powers?
The role of the European Union as a
loose yet influential grouping in global poli-
tics and in the global economy will signifi-
cantly diminish. Brexit will accelerate the
process of its fragmentation even though
the shell may remain. The power and influ-
ence of Germany will increase. There will be
no UK — or perhaps even France — to limit
its power though it may be reluctant to don
the mantle of a major global power for the
time being. But this will come; it is inherent
in the evolving situation. India would do well
to anticipate this and strengthen its bilateral
relations with Germany.
It is likely that a more self-confident
Germany will revert to its pursuit of a spe-
cial partnership with Russia, interrupted by
the Ukraine crisis. The US may not be able
to prevent this. Russia’s room for manoeu-
vre has increased even without a recovery in
oil and gas prices. Its assertiveness towards
the US and towards its near neighbour-
hood will escalate. It is not clear how this
would impact on China-Russia relations. On
balance, I believe that a more confident
20 INDIA TODAY ◆ JULY 11, 2016
BREXIT
Russia will revert to a more balanced policy
towards China given its deep-rooted sus-
picions of Chinese intentions, particularly
in Central Asia.
For China, the implications of Brexit in
the short run are negative. It banked heavily
on London to help internationalise its cur-
WITH NO UK rency and ease it into the arcane world of
TO LIMIT ITS international finance. The David Cameron
government courted China by projecting
POWERS, THE the UK as China’s best friend and partner in
STATUS AND Europe. That won’t mean very much after
Brexit. China’s structural reforms may slow
INFLUENCE down even further. Its economy is more glob-
OF GERMANY ally interconnected than India’s, so a disrup-
tion of global trade and investment flows
WILL RISE. will hit its economy, making an economic
INDIA WOULD crisis more likely. On balance, I believe that
despite these pitfalls in the short run, Brexit
DO WELL TO will likely reinforce China’s profile and its
ENHANCE assertiveness in the Asia-Pacific region as
the West declines. India’s China challenge
ITS BILAT- has acquired a sharper edge and will need a
ERAL TIES more nuanced and prudent response.
The US presidential elections have
WITH THIS taken on much greater significance pre-
COUNTRY cisely because of these developments. The
election of Hillary Clinton may forestall the
anti-globalisation trends roiling Europe.
On the other hand, the increasing salience
of these trends may reduce her room
for manoeuvre.
This is an emerging world which may no
longer provide a supportive international
political and economic environment to sup-
port India’s development prospects. We will
have to find more drivers of growth domes-
tically. In foreign affairs, what suits India
best in the current situation is a steady diffu-
sion of political and economic power which
expands the space for advancing our own
interests, but not a precipitous breakdown
of the global order even though it contin-
ues to endure in diminished form. This will
require careful balancing and adapting to
what may be unpredictable developments
such as Brexit. In the long run, however,
India may find its vital interests best served
through leading and contributing to a multi-
lateral and collaborative order which alone
can deal with the global and cross-cutting
challenges whose salience continues to
increase relentlessly.
Shyam Saran is a former foreign secretary
and currently serves as chairman, RIS
and senior fellow, CPR
 COVER STORY
BREXIT

BUILDING
ECONOMIC MUSCLE
INDIA CAN BRACE ITSELF FOR BREXIT’S ECONOMIC IMPACT BY
T.N. SRINIVASAN
INCREASING COMPETITIVE STRENGTH AND SHEDDING PROTECTIONISM

I
NDIA’S FOREIGN MINISTER
Sushma Swaraj said India’s
entry to the EU is through the
UK. Clearly the entry door has
been shut. This means she
and her bureaucracy have
not only to negotiate the economic relations
with the EU sans the UK but also with UK for
India’s various trade and investment treaties,
thereby testing their knowledge, competence
and diplomatic skills. However, the security
issues relating to military bases and current
location of nuclear arms in the UK that the US
has to renegotiate have no direct bearing on
India, although they may indirectly impact
India’s trade and investment. In my view, the
impact on India will be primarily economic
and I think manageable but for my concerns
about the state of the Indian economy.
As of the evening of June 25, two days
after the results of the referendum were
announced, the financial markets, includ-
ing foreign exchange markets, have settled
down after the panicky, initially steep fall,
based not so much on serious analysis but
primarily on a fear of the unknown. I expect
in the near and medium term, markets
would equilibrate, with most exchange rates
except of the UK pound (which would depre-
ciate a bit) and stock prices returning to near
their US dollar price per unit in a pre-June 23
medium-term equilibrium, including, in par-
ticular, the 15 country trade weighted real
effective exchange rate (REER) of the rupee.
Brexit would result in a diversion of EU
purchases from the UK to other non-EU coun-
tries, including India (and also UK purchases
from the EU to non-EU countries), includ-
ing emerging markets and Southeast Asian
countries. Whether on a net basis more trade
is created for India than gets diverted from
India, my hunch is it is unlikely to be large.
Since a major change in India’s REERs is
unlikely, it would depend on the competitive
strength of the Indian economy.
Inflation in wholesale prices was positive
in April 2016 after being negative for several
INDIA’S months in a row. Although the inflation rate in
NEGOTIATING consumer prices has been falling but positive
and near the RBI’s target, sustaining it at this
STANCE STILL level or below needs an RBI governor with an
REFLECTS international reputation and proven record
of performance. We had one in Raghuram
PROTECTION- Rajan. As a nation, we shot ourselves in the
ISM. KAMAL foot by letting petty domestic political consid-
erations force him to resign.
NATH AND The reform agenda of UPA II and NDA
NIRMALA have many things in common relating to
resource accumulation and allocation, in
SITHARAMAN particular for encouraging innovation and
ARE NO for the production of goods and services con-
DIFFERENT sistent with India’s comparative advantage
while paying attention to the supply of pub-
IN THEIR WTO lic goods in the education and health sectors
STANCE and for protecting the environment.
Our foreign trade policy is yet to shift
away from its import substitution strate-
gy. India’s negotiating position in the WTO
and the Make in India policy still reflect
the old protectionism. There is no percep-
tible difference between Kamal Nath and
Nirmala Sitharaman in their stance in WTO.
Formulating and completing a non-partisan
medium-term reform agenda is urgently
needed. Unless the rising intolerance in the
society is not curbed, no economic reform
agenda can be successfully completed.
T.N. Srinivasan is Emeritus
Professor of Economics, Yale University
 COVER STORY
THE NEXT
GEORGE
TECTONIC EVENT
IF TRUMP WINS, HE’LL HAVE MUCH TO LEARN ABOUT INDIA. A HILLARY WIN
PERKOVICH
WOULD BRING IN A PRESIDENT INVESTED AND INFORMED ABOUT INDIA
W
HEN THE BERLIN WALL
fell in November 1989,
Americans celebrated along
with their allies in Britain
and on the European conti-
nent. The Cold War would
soon end—peacefully, as almost no one imag-
ined it would. Four years later the Maastricht
Treaty entered into force, creating the
European Union and later the Euro. In Asia,
China had begun its opening to the wider
world, creating special economic zones along
its coasts. India, in 1991, began economic
reforms that gradually would bring its talent-
ed people and their products into the interna-
tional economy. The global marketplace for
goods and services was taking shape.
In the first decade of globalisation, its
champions asserted that the rising tide of eco-
nomic growth would lift all boats. Today, the
tide carries boats filled with traumatised refu-
gees. To stop the flow (supposedly), 52 per cent
of British citizens voted to exit the European
Union. Turkey is being paid to close its border.
Donald Trump—with no mind to the Berlin
antecedent—promises to build a giant wall to
keep Mexicans and Central Americans from
coming into the United States, and says he will
ban Muslims from travelling here too.
Racism and bigotry undeniably are a fac-
tor in all of this. But, fear and feelings of loss
may be deeper causes. Workers who attained
comfortable wages and relative security in the
US and Europe when the world economy was
divided into closed blocs, gradually discovered
that the globalised economy shifted employ-
ment—especially for less-skilled labour—to
foreign lands. The rich got much richer, but
the incomes of middle and working classes
stagnated. Since 1979, despite ample econo-
mic growth, the vast majority of American
workers’ wages have stayed level or declined.
Psychologists know that people fear loss
much more than they fear not making new
gains. It is more traumatic to be fired from the
job you have than it is to not get the new job
you want. ‘Loss aversion’ can be heard in the
22 INDIA TODAY ◆ JULY 11, 2016
voices of Americans who have rallied behind
Trump and the Democratic Party campaign of
Bernie Sanders (before he dropped out). Both
candidates have appealed to voters who feel
political and economic elites do not listen to
them and have ‘rigged’ the system against
the middle and working classes. Trump plays
GLOBALISED on the sense of loss by promising to “make
ECONOMIES America great again”.
Trump is very popular among white men
HAVE A PAT- who do not have college educations and who
TERN OF live outside of major cities. This parallels the
English electorate who voted to leave. These
SHIFTING people, generally, feel their positions in soci-
EMPLOY- ety have declined in the era of globalisation.
They blame their own leaders—elites—and
MENT— also the ‘foreigners’ whom they see in greater
TYPICALLY numbers now than when times were better.
Building walls, closing borders and angrily
FOR LESS- rejecting the views and policies of ‘established
SKILLED politicians’ feel like the only options left.
It is fine for economists and other experts to
LABOUR— present data and arguments that barriers and
TO FOREIGN retrenchment will not actually solve the press-
ing problems of stagnant wages and growth
LANDS and rising inequality. But, in the world of social
media and click-chasing, eyeball-seducing
‘journalism’, voters follow messengers they
‘like’ rather than those who may be right. Fact-
based analysis and debate of issues and policies
is less appealing than the gossip and personal-
ity contests that masquerade as news. It should
not be surprising that after the Brexit referen-
dum, British citizens scrambled to learn more
about what it would mean to leave the EU.
Hillary Clinton, the presumed Democratic
Party nominee, conveys mastery for detail and
a predilection to discuss policy proposals. Few
people would say she is a motivational orator
or a compelling campaigner. As a long-time
political figure, she is also implicated in the
American policies surrounding globalisation
from which so many people feel they have been
losers. (Trump labels her “crooked Hillary” and
a “world-class liar”, and polls report that many
people find her untrustworthy. Yet, Politifact
reports that 77 per cent of Trump’s statements

have been false, whereas, by the same anal-
ysis, 28 per cent of Clinton’s have been false.
Nevertheless, Trump’s supporters celebrate his
‘authenticity’ and decry her mendacity.)
If political and economic debates in the
US, the UK and other open societies display
the tendencies described here, the situation is
more mixed when it comes to foreign policy.
Americans, like citizens in many other coun-
tries, find much to fear in the world: terrorism
at home and abroad, horrific war in Syria, chaos
in Libya, continued bloodshed and disorder in
Afghanistan, refugee crises, Russia’s stealthy
invasion of Ukraine, tensions with China in
the South and East China Seas, North Korea’s
ongoing nuclear and missile programmes…the
list goes on. Perhaps because no obvious solu-
tion exists to any of these challenges, American
politicians largely avoid them, which is not the
worst possibility. (Another reason for avoid-
ance is that few political ‘leaders’ know even
the basic causes and features of these challen-
ges, let alone possible solutions to them).
The campaign between Trump and Clinton
will not reveal much about what the next presi-
dent and his or her government will actually
seek to do internationally. At most, the campaign
will indicate the type of thinking and tempera-
ment the next president would bring to these
challenges. Here, in unprecedented fashion,
121 experienced Republican foreign policy fig-
ures publicly declared their opposition to Trump.
Whoever wins in November, the American
public today is preoccupied with their own
problems and uninterested in spending tax-
payer funds and military lives on quests to fix
BREXIT
other people’s. Events could change this atti-
tude suddenly—such as a major state-spon-
sored terrorist attack on the US or the invasion
of an ally. But, absent a major provocation,
the US is unlikely to assume a disproportionate
burden of financing and fighting campaigns to
rectify injustices in distant lands.
What might this mean for India? The good
news is India, broadly, is not an issue in the
presidential campaign or American politics.
Aside from the supremely talented and suc-
cessful Indian diaspora in the US, few voters
know or think much about India. Americans
tend to focus on enemies and strategic com-
petitors; India is neither. In Washington, India’s
democracy is applauded. Businesses that oper-
ate in India or hope to, and that want to benefit
from India’s skilled engineers, will quietly press
for policies to facilitate greater trade, invest-
ment and visa accessibility. The time to make
this case will be after the election, out of the
glare and cacophony of this overheated season.
ASIDE US defence officials will continue to seek fur-
ther cooperation with the Indian defence sector,
FROM THE and this, too, should not be controversial when
TALENTED the new president takes office.
If Clinton wins, she’ll take office more
AND SUC- invested in and informed about India than any
CESSFUL prior US president. This background reflects
not only her tenure as Secretary of State, but
INDIAN also her years reaching out to India during Bill
DIASPORA Clinton’s presidency. Like all presidents, she
will pursue the interests of US taxpayers, busi-
IN THE US, nesses, agencies and NGOs. She will have to
FEW balance India’s preferences with those of other
states in managing the global commons. The
VOTERS tensions that normally arise between major
KNOW OR states will emerge here, too, but they will be
addressed with a determination to cooperate.
THINK If Trump wins, he will have much to learn
MUCH about India. But there is little inherent in the
interests of the two countries that suggests
ABOUT he would not be disposed to seek cooperation
INDIA too. For India, the bigger question would be
whether a Trump administration’s exertions
in other places and on other issues would cre-
ate an international environment more or less
conducive to India’s interests. The best advice
for Indians would be to make their country
ever more prosperous, stable and constructive
in international affairs. If American leaders
will do the same, the two countries together
will be part of the solution to the world’s prob-
lems rather than a cause of them.
George Perkovich is Vice President
for Studies at the Carnegie Endowment
for International Peace
JULY 11, 2016 ◆ INDIA TODAY 23
 COVER STORY
THE LEGACIES OF
THE LEAVE EU VOTE
THE UK’S DECISION WILL HAVE RAMIFICATIONS BEYOND ITS BORDERS
STUART ELDEN AND DEAL A BLOW TO THE SHARED PROJECT THAT EU SIGNIFIED
L
ET’S GET SOME THINGS
out of the way immediate-
ly. I voted remain, and am
hugely disappointed by the
result. But, though close, it
wasn’t that close. This was
a referendum without a turnout threshold,
without a percentage for victory other than
a simple majority. It is advisory and non-
binding, but it is hard to believe any politi-
cian or party could get very far ignoring it.
So, appealing though calls for a second ref-
erendum are; tempting though it might be to
dismiss the choice; frustrating as it is to hear
of people who regret how they voted, or that
they failed to vote…this is the situation, and
someone must deal with it.
The domestic and international conse-
quences of the vote have been quick, and
are changing on a daily, even hourly, basis.
David Cameron’s resignation as prime min-
ister, to take effect as soon as a new leader
for his party can be elected, came almost
immediately. Scotland’s first minister, Nicola
Sturgeon, made it clear quickly afterwards
that Scotland did not want to be pulled out
of the European Union against their will bec-
ause of a vote by the English and Welsh. She
is therefore exploring options for a new inde-
pendence referendum from the UK and a
basis to remain in the EU. Northern Ireland
is another tricky question. While Sinn Féin’s
call for a vote from the whole of the island for
their political future will be denied, the status
of that part of the UK is one of the most press-
ing issues to arise from this.
The reason is a geographical one. As and
when the UK leaves EU, the border between
Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland
will become an EU external border. This
will immediately become a crucial political
issue, especially given the concerns raised
about migration. If Britain leaves the single
market, then it becomes an issue for trade
as well. If Scotland becomes independent,
then the border between it and England
will present similar issues. Of course, only
24 INDIA TODAY ◆ JULY 11, 2016
a generation ago there was a civil war in
Northern Ireland, and all sides will be des-
perate to prevent a return to that.
The UK’s island nature makes its other
borders somewhat easier to define and
defend. But with the Channel Tunnel and the
TRADE cross-Channel ports, much of the process-
AGREE- ing work is done in Calais rather than Dover.
While the French government has said
MENTS this will not change—it is due to a bilateral
STRUCK agreement, not an EU one—local authori-
ties in Calais have already raised the ques-
BETWEEN tion. Why should they have to deal with the
OTHER problems and the refugee camps, instead of
the UK? Spain has already called for shared
COUNTRIES sovereignty over the disputed territory of
AND EU Gibraltar, a region which voted overwhelm-
ingly to remain in the EU.
WILL CEASE Before the referendum, there were wide-
TO APPLY spread, and likely genuine, pleas for the UK
to remain part of the EU from international
IN THEIR leaders. But now that it has voted to leave,
RELATIONS many EU members want it to do so quickly.
There is a lot to decide, and work needs to
WITH UK begin. Members are worried about elections
in their own countries, pressure for similar
referenda, and concern about instability and
the possible contagion from the UK’s econ-
omic problems. Those problems would be
the basis for another piece. A breakup of the
whole EU is not inconceivable, and it would be
catastrophic. So, while there might be some
self-interest from EU members, as the UK
remains a significant market for their exports,
they will also want to discourage other states
from going the same way. So the ideas that the
UK can retain access to the single market, but
without freedom of movement; be bound only
by rules of its choosing, when it has elected
to leave the political machine; and protect
the status and benefits of its citizens living
in other EU countries, while not allowing
reciprocal arrangements—well, these are
going to be exposed for the delusions they
always were.
Outside the UK, other countries will be
watching anxiously. Instability in EU will have

effects far beyond its borders, and the trade
agreements struck between them and EU will,
at some point, cease to apply to their econom-
ic relations with the UK. More generally, this
retreat into a single-nation, and nationalist,
vision for the future will be of wider concern.
This vote was always about more than EU
membership. It was a vote about what kind of
UK the people wanted. An open, inclusive, tol-
erant nation that saw itself as part of a wider
world; or a closed one which saw divisions
and barriers which it wanted hardened. The
nationalistic elements of the leave campaign
were deeply reactionary, and out of place in a
globalised world and a multicultural society.
There are already, disturbingly, widespread
reports of a rise in racist incidents.
The EU was far from perfect, and there
were serious problems with its democracy, its
economic policies, its migration attitude and
more. But it was a shared project to say that
Europe in the second half of the 20th century
and beyond could be better, not just compared
to the first half of the 20th century but the cen-
turies that came before. People tend to for-
get why the European Economic Community,
which became the European Community and
then the EU, was set up in the first place. The
original binding together of coal and steel,
especially between France and Germany,
BREXIT
was both politically important and militarily
structured. It was to try to ensure those two
countries could never wage war against each
other again. Other aspects grew from that
beginning. We tend to forget the recent history
of Europe and what has been achieved. An EU
breakup might seem unlikely to descend into
another war like the ones fought in the 19th
and 20th centuries, but smaller scale conflicts
between existing EU members over disputed
territories are much more possible.
The EU, for all its flaws, offered an alterna-
tive vision of how things could be organised.
A vision of sovereignty shared and balanced,
instead of held up as some mystical property,
even as globalisation exposed it as a chimera.
It may be that this jolt to EU causes it to unrav-
el; more hopefully that it realises the pressure
and finds ways to reform. The UK, now, will
be outside those discussions and decisions,
but it would be foolish to pretend it won’t be
affected by them.
Given all of these problems, who will
really want to be prime minister? Cameron
decided that he was not responsible for this
mess, and that others should sort it out. After
the leave vote he did one thing which he had
THE VOTE clearly stated he would not do, and did not
do something he had said he would. He said
WAS ALWAYS he would stay as prime minister, and that he
ABOUT would invoke Article 50—the legal clause in
the Lisbon Treaty which triggers the exit pro-
MORE THAN cess. Instead, he resigned immediately, stay-
EU MEM- ing in the post only until a new Conservative
Party leader is selected, and said it was for
BERSHIP, IT that leader to serve formal notice. As various
WAS ABOUT commentators have noted, no wonder that
Boris Johnson, whose choice to campaign for
THE KIND OF leave was widely anticipated to be a strate-
UK PEOPLE gic move to become prime minister, looked so
despondent the morning after. Now that the
WANTED— initial shock has worn off, key players are can-
AN OPEN vassing views and assembling teams. Whether
Johnson or some ‘stop-Boris’ candidate, and
OR CLOSED whether or not there is a new general election
NATION to give that new leader legitimacy, they are
going to have to deal with these issues. The
opposition Labour Party has turned inwards
again, refighting old battles and not listening
to the wider country. Cameron will not be the
last prime minister of the UK in the EU. He will
not be—though he nearly was in 2014—the
last prime minister of the UK. He is likely to be
the penultimate. Who will want that legacy?
Stuart Elden is Professor of Political Theory
and Geography, University of Warwick
JULY 11, 2016 ◆ INDIA TODAY 25
 COVER STORY

TOWARD WIN-WIN
COOPERATION
THE NEW HALLMARK OF CHINA’S FOREIGN POLICY AS IT PREPARES
RUAN ZONGZE FOR A MORE PROMINENT ROLE IN THE GLOBAL FUTURE

T
HE YEAR 2016 MARKS
the start of China’s 13th
Five-Year Plan and its host-
ing the G20 summit, which
will be a vital opportunity for
the country to offer solutions
to build a new, more cooperative and ‘win-win’
form of international relations.
With the continual build-up of China’s
comprehensive national strength, the inter-
national community has more expectations
of China and increasingly expects to hear its
voice and see its solutions. In the meantime,
China’s relations with the outside world are
undergoing profound change. What kind of
foreign strategy Beijing will enforce and how
it will respond to the anticipations of the inter-
national community are questions now very
much in the spotlight.
At the 70th Session of the UN General
Assembly on September 28, 2015, President
Xi Jinping delivered a keynote speech titled
‘Working Together to Forge a New Partnership
of Win-win Cooperation and Create a
Community of Shared Future for Mankind’.
BEIJING IS European Development Plan, its campaign
for international cooperation on production
Beijing is working hard to enhance major- WORKING capacity with Europe’s investment plan, with
country relations, adopt beneficial foreign
policies toward neighbouring and develop-
HARD TO a view to fulfilling the comprehensive strategic
partnership between the two sides.
ing countries, utilise multilateral diplomacy to ENHANCE China has particularly focused on deepen-
promote cooperation platforms and enhance
China’s say and influence in shaping the future
MAJOR ing the mutual benefit and win-win configura-
tion with neighbouring countries. At a
international order. COUNTRY conference on foreign policies toward neigh-
In terms of Sino-US relations, President
Xi stresses that smooth cooperation between
RELATIONS, bouring countries in October 2013, President
Xi outlined its basic principles such as build-
China and US can be a bedrock of global sta- ADOPT ing good relationships and partnerships with
bility. In September 2015, President Xi paid a
successful state visit to the US for the first time.
BENEFICIAL neighbouring countries, adhering to the policy
of bringing harmony, security and prosperity to
China and Russia have maintained close FOREIGN neighbours, and highlighting the idea of amity,
high-level contacts. President Xi has visited
Russia four times, and President Vladimir
POLICIES sincerity, mutual benefit and inclusiveness.
For this purpose, China has proposed such
Putin has visited China five times. All this has TOWARDS policy initiatives as the Belt and Road Initiative
deepened the China-Russia comprehensive
strategic partnership of coordination.
NEIGHBOURS and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank
(AIIB), and meticulously built new platforms
All-round dialogues and cooperation bet- for the implementation of foreign policies
ween China and the EU continue to deep- toward neighbouring countries on a bilate-
en. Both have made great efforts to dovetail ral and multilateral basis. China’s free trade
China’s Belt and Road Initiative with the agreements with the ROK and Australia have

26 INDIA TODAY ◆ JULY 11, 2016


come into effect. It has also actively involved
itself in the negotiations on the Regional
Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP)
and deliberated with ASEAN on the upgraded
version of the China-ASEAN Free Trade Area.
Being the world’s largest developing coun-
try, China will stick to the principles of sincer-
ity, practical results, affinity and good faith and
give top priority to the advancement of rela-
tions with other developing countries.
A NEW ROLE IN GLOBAL GOVERNANCE
China has taken an active part in UN affairs
and multilateral diplomacy, and carried out
comprehensive cooperation with the UN
and its affiliates. The country has played an
active and constructive role in many global
and regional multilateral mechanisms involv-
ing APEC, G20, the Nuclear Security Summit,
ASEM, the BRICS Summit, and dutifully made
its contributions in tackling climate change,
combating international terrorism, perform-
ing UN peacekeeping missions or helping
conflict zones with post-war reconstruction.
The international situation has been
undergoing major and profound changes and
the international order and system are yet to
deliver corresponding reforms for improve-
ment. With the growing emergence of new
challenges, the global governance mechanism
also calls for renewal and improvement.
At the same time, the rising momentum of
emerging economies is rewriting global politi-
cal and economic landscapes. Against this
backdrop, President Xi has proposed the new
cooperative and win-win international rela-
tions and building a community for the shared
future for mankind. China’s diplomacy is mak-
ing strides toward a new stage and the coun-
try is proactively participating in and leading
major global issues with the aim of converting
China’s opportunities into the world’s and con-
verting the world’s opportunities into its own.
A FAVOURABLE CLIMATE TO REALISE
CHINESE DREAM
The Chinese dream is one of peace and devel-
opment. It is closely connected with the dreams
of other people in the world.
Over 30 years of reform and opening
up have now passed as a period of peaceful
development in China. This peaceful develop-
ment has benefited from its integration into
the international system. And the internation-
al system has become more representative
because of China’s integration.
China has taken part in various interna-
tional affairs, including preparing the UN’s
BREXIT
2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development
and coping with global climate change. It
has vigorously promoted the Belt and Road
Initiative on the principle of mutual consulta-
tion, common construction and sharing.
Now the reform of the international sys-
tem is at a critical juncture. The world faces a
great opportunity to build a new type of coop-
erative relations. A new age of globalisation
BOTH INDIA has provided unprecedented opportunities
AND CHINA for lasting peace. All countries have gained
access to enormous space for development
SHOULD and embraced the opportunity to participate
PURSUE A in shaping the future international system.
The current world is still far from tranquil.
NEIGHBOUR- Hegemonism, power politics and zero-sum
HOOD FIRST games still haunt the world. How to realise
win-win cooperation is a long-term, ardu-
POLICY ous and tortuous process and entails the joint
AND WORK efforts of all stakeholders.
TOGETHER WHAT IT MEANS FOR SINO-INDIA TIES
TO CREATE Such a nuanced concept is bound to inject
powerful positive energy into China’s relations
A POSITIVE with India. Increasingly, the Sino-India rela-
CLIMATE tionship has a global impact since both coun-
tries are members of G20 and BRICS. China
FOR EACH is supportive of India joining the Shanghai
OTHER Cooperation Organisation.
Now there is a new opportunity for Beijing
and New Delhi to forge a community of shared
destiny. First, both countries should pursue a
Neighbourhood First policy. As vital neigh-
bours, both China and India are committed to
working together to cultivate a positive envi-
ronment for each other.
Second, China has a stake in India’s suc-
cess. It welcomes India’s rise as leading power
as envisioned by Prime Minister Narendra
Modi. It also means India will shoulder greater
responsibility in international affairs.
Third, both China and India are focusing
on similar tasks such as poverty reduction,
upgrading infrastructure and raising people’s
living standards. China and India can be the
best partners in working on all these issues.
Last but not the least, it is important to han-
dle the differences between China and India
smartly. China-India relations are so signifi-
cant that they should not be handicapped by
differences and disputes. Greater coopera-
tion and more trust-building will be condu-
cive to creating a benign condition in which to
address differences when the time is proper.
Ruan Zongze is Executive Vice President,
Senior Fellow, at the China Institute of
International Studies, Beijing
JULY 11, 2016 ◆ INDIA TODAY 27
 COVER STORY
BREXIT

EXIT WOUNDS
GIVEN ITS STRONG ECONOMIC LINKS WITH THE UK, INDIA WILL
NOT BE UNAFFECTED BUT ROBUST BILATERAL TIES WITH
SHASHANK JOSHI
FRANCE AND GERMANY WILL ACT AS A BUFFER

B
RITAIN’S UNEXPECTED
vote to leave the EU is per-
haps the most dramatic
political event for the coun-
try since World War II. It is
certainly the biggest shock
to Europe since German reunification a quar-
ter century ago. It presages simultaneous
economic, political and constitutional crises
in Britain that could persist for years. The
vote laid bare stark class divisions, with poor-
er and less educated voters backing Leave,
and even starker national ones, with Scotland
overwhelmingly backing Remain. The open
border between Northern Ireland (part of the
UK) and the Republic of Ireland (an EU mem-
ber) is in doubt, putting at risk the hard-won
Irish peace process. There is, in effect, no gov-
ernment or opposition. The prime minister,
having resigned, is a lame duck until a leader-
ship contest in October, while a coup against
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn is unfolding.
It is tempting for Indians to indulge their
schadenfreude. The jokes flow thick and fast.
Europe is a dangerous nuclear flashpoint.
Britain must be partitioned, for the Scots
JAPANESE cannot be left to English hegemony. But com-
edy aside, a sense of perspective is required
BANK both here, at home, and abroad. Britain is
NOMURA seriously weakened, but it remains one of the
world’s largest economies. Even if Scotland
ESTIMATES were to secede, the UK’s defence spending
THAT BREX- would remain higher than that of Russia,
France, or Germany. NATO remains the bed-
IT COULD rock of European security, and an unmoored
KNOCK Britain may even seek solace by redoubling
its commitment to the alliance, with a major
INDIAN summit due in Warsaw next month. In any
GROWTH case, the British departure will be gradual.
Under the EU’s so-called Article 50, a country
FROM 7.6 leaves by issuing a formal notification. David
PER CENT Cameron has said he will leave it to his suc-
cessor, that successor—very possibly Boris
TO 7.3 PER Johnson—will probably delay further, pre-
CENT ferring informal negotiations on a post-exit
status for Britain, and then there would still
be two years for formal negotiations. This is
a glideslope, not a cliff edge.
Even with the insulation of distance, India
is likely to face both risks and opportunities.
The short-term impact on global stock mar-
kets may well have been exaggerated. Asian

28 INDIA TODAY ◆ JULY 11, 2016

 COVER STORY
markets, including the Sensex, bounced back
on Monday after Friday’s tumult. The rupee’s
fall against the dollar, the largest in almost
a year, could put pressure on Indian macro-
economic policy. Japanese bank Nomura has
estimated Brexit may knock Indian growth
from 7.6 to 7.3 per cent, a larger impact
than on China or Australia. Less probably,
but more worrisome, is that Brexit heralds a
broader rejection of globalisation that asserts
itself in other parts of the world, notably in
Europe’s other big powers—France has an
election next year—and, of course, in the
United States. Were the EU and US to lunge
towards protectionism, the economic conse-
quences would be global in nature.
Of course, contagion to Asia and India is
far from the only concern. India trades with,
invests in, and receives capital from Britain
in substantial amounts. Britain has been
the largest G-20 investor in India for over a
decade, investing around $1.7 billion in 2014.
Between 2000 and 2015, Britain invested
$22.2 billion in India, 9 per cent of its FDI.
Meanwhile, India puts more capital into the
UK than into the rest of the EU, making it
Britain’s third-largest source of investment.
According to Bank of America Merrill Lynch,
the five largest Indian IT companies have an
8-15 per cent revenue exposure to the pound.
Indian capital flows into the UK will surely
slow in the short to medium term, in anticipa-
tion of Britain losing its tariff-free access into
the EU’s so-called ‘single market’. “As far as
India is concerned,” declared Narendra Modi
in November 2015 during his visit to London,
“if there is an entry point for us to the EU,
that is the UK.” By the end of the decade, that
may have changed. The Leave campaign has
set out confusing and contradictory visions
of how they see Britain trading with Europe,
some preferring an arms-length free trade
agreement, others pressing for Norway-like
arrangements which would keep Britain ins-
ide the single market. Investors may not stick
around to find out which scenario transpires.
There are some who have sought to high-
light a bright side to Brexit. Britain’s Indian-
born minister for employment, Priti Patel, a
staunch right-winger who is also the prime
minister’s Indian Diaspora Champion, cam-
paigned for Leave and has clamed that Brexit
will give a “massive boost to UK-India rela-
tions” through closer trading ties. This is part
of a broader argument of the Leave camp.
Departure from EU, argue the optimists,
would free the UK to sign trade deals with
rising powers, deals otherwise being held up
BREXIT
by vested economic interests in the 27-nation
bloc. The EU and India have been negotiating
a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) since 2007.
That has stalled because of a slew of issues
such as non-tariff barriers, investor protec-
tions and intellectual property rights.
Could the UK succeed where the EU has
failed, and strike a deal? Perhaps, but it faces
at least three problems. First, it has only a
dozen or so skilled trade negotiators. Many
of the most experienced, like former EU
High Representative Catherine Ashton, who
negotiated an agreement with South Korea,
INDIA’S are politically tainted because of their long
ENGAGE- involvement with EU. While this cadre will
expand, the overwhelming priority will be
MENT WITH negotiations with Brussels itself. The UK will
THE EU IS also have to start its own, fresh talks with the
US, Japan and China. Second, UK-India nego-
UNDER- tiations will run into many of the same prob-
WHELMING. lems EU-India talks did, not least because
services—a disproportionately large part of
BUT IT HAS UK exports—are often the hardest part of
STRONG such deals. Third, while it’s true that New
Delhi would want a deal—the UK accounts for
BILATERAL a third of Indian exports to the EU—London’s
TIES WITH bargaining power is also reduced, which may
result in a less favourable deal.
LONDON, The diplomatic implications are more
PARIS AND straightforward. Brexit will strengthen the
Franco-German core of the EU and bolster
BERLIN Germany’s leadership position in Europe.
The loss of the UK from the EU’s foreign
policy institutions might be felt in issues
such as sanctions, export controls and diplo-
macy around Iran and Russia. But British
and French-German policies are unlikely
to diverge in any dramatic way, even if the
EU’s overall position on Russia might soften
over the longer term. In any case, India has
maintained strong ties to all three, with Modi
making significant trips to Paris, Berlin, and
London in the past 18 months. India’s engage-
ment with the EU itself has, by and large, been
underwhelming, and it is these bilateral rela-
tionships that continue to matter most. It was
British intelligence agencies, not EU ones,
which gave India intelligence on the Mumbai
attacks. It is France, not the EU, which sells
Rafale aircraft to India. India is therefore insu-
lated from even a larger-scale unravelling of
the European project, as unwelcome as that
would be to all but Russia.
Shashank Joshi is Senior Research Fellow of
the Royal United Services Institute, London,
and Research Associate at the Changing
Character of War Programme at Oxford
 COVER STORY
SACHIN CHATURVEDI
CRISIS, OPPORTUNITIES
AND CHALLENGES
INDIA MUST FOCUS ON ENHANCING
ITS POSITION IN FOREIGN TRADE
B
REXIT, THE MOMENTOUS
outcome, from a rarely
used instrument—the ref-
erendum—will have signifi-
cant implications not only
for the United Kingdom but
also for the rest of the Europe and, of course,
for the Commonwealth Countries—India
among them. As expected, this exercise was
followed by a huge bombardment of analyses,
explications and commentaries. However, in
all this discussion, what we are probably
missing out on is a trend that the so-called
‘developed world’ is now going through with
the weakening of the welfare state.
The prolonged recession, accentuated
in 2008, is haunting the working classes in
several European economies. The declin-
ing ability of the State to respond to growing
unemployment, and declining social security
support, including a squeeze in the support
for health services and the NHS budget in the
UK, have triggered the demand for ‘regaining
30 INDIA TODAY ◆ JULY 11, 2016
BREXIT
control’. David Cameron’s campaign empha-
sised the economic fallout of Brexit, without
acknowledging that the Britons have opted to
embrace their own ‘Arab Spring’. The United
Kingdom Independent Party, UKIP, under the
leadership of Nigel Farage, articulated this
growing discontentment, knowing full well
that Brexit would not be a panacea for the
economic challenges the country faces. This
signifies a growing disconnect between poli-
tics and economics. This disconnect has also
emerged between the centre and the periph-
ery as London voted strongly to ‘remain’ while
many parts of the countryside voted to ‘leave’.
Here, let us remind ourselves that the
‘Arab Spring’ was not only about breaking the
chains of repressive states and moving toward
democracy but also very much about econom-
ic aspirations. The UNDP and ILO released
a report in July 2013 titled ‘Rethinking
Economic Growth: Towards Inclusive and
Productive Arab Societies’, stating that the
region’s greatest deficits have been in the
areas of social protection and social dialogue
DECLINING
and that governments paid little attention to
the social consequences of their economic
SOCIAL policies. This seems entirely apropos when
SECURITY we scan the statements from the leaders of
UKIP and the Alliance for Direct Democracy
AND RISING in Europe (ADDE), of which UKIP is a mem-
UNEMPLOY- ber. Unlike the heyday of the Washington
Consensus, there is now a growing realisa-
MENT HAVE tion that one policy prescription cannot meet
TRIGGERED the requirements of all. The G-20 has made
it clear that “each country should be able
A DEMAND to choose the development approaches and
TO ‘REGAIN policies that suit its specific characteristics”.
However, in an interdependent world, engag-
CONTROL’ ing the reverse gear bound for autarky may
prove to be a global challenge.
IMPACT ON THE GLOBAL ORDER
From bipolar to unipolar to multipolar to
increasingly bipolar: understanding global
governance in recent decades has not been
easy. However, Europe has played an impor-
tant role in global stability and largely value
 COVER STORY
based-interventions. It is unclear whether
this will still be the case for a Europe without
Britain. Global commitment for Sustainable
Development Goals was very much a British-
led effort for global cooperation.
Things will be equally challenging in
the financial sector. All these years, the UK
projected itself as a hub for global trade
and financial services. Depending on what
arrangements it now works out with the
European Union for trade, services and
investment linkages, the future may be
fraught with challenges. US President Barack
Obama, during his last visit to London, had
warned of the consequences for the Trans-
pacific partnership (TPP). With the loss of its
EU connect, the UK may well fall out of the
US-UK pivot, which ushered in several joint
initiatives for wider global governance. The
UK also projected itself as the ‘European’ con-
nect for China. Last year, under great media
glare, the China-UK Economic and Financial
Dialogue (EFD) was launched. With China
keen to promote its ‘One Belt One Road’ idea,
the UK fitted well into its framework as long
as it was a springboard to the rest of Europe.
But with limited European access, the UK
may not be able to leverage enough clout to
play this role much longer.
It is equally true that, without the UK,
Europe may be unable to play in the same
global league. The UK’s impact on global fora
was huge and largely an asset for Europe. At
the global level, it played an important role
in climate change negotiations, on finan-
cial stability during G-20 discussions and
in addressing the prevention of pandem-
ics in Africa. Since 2015, the UK has hon-
oured a long overdue commitment of 0.7
per cent contribution target of Overseas
Development Institute. It has also played an
important role in leading the EU towards the
Paris Agreement. As a nation, it is on track
to achieve 2020 carbon emission goals.
Partnerships with developing countries, and
particularly old Commonwealth partners,
may emerge as a new foreign policy prior-
ity. However, India would be able to leverage
this to its advantage only if our policymakers
set the right priorities.
INDIA’S PREPAREDNESS
Of course, the true implications of Brexit for
India will emerge only when the terms and
conditions of negotiations between the EU
and UK are clearer. Several Indian firms have
used the UK as an entry point for European
markets. They may have to redesign their
BREXIT
market strategies and some may even have
to relocate. Or it may just be business as
usual—as Boris Johnson said, “nothing
would change right away”.
However, for India to take advantage
of this moment, better preparedness is
required at several levels. Key among them:
domestic reforms for trade, investment,
THE PRIME finance and technology. The new FDI poli-
cy and a clear statement of the intellectual
MINISTER’S property regime (IPR) have generated the
WILLINGNESS desired feelgood factor, but they will not
have the desired results till we move on other
TO ENGAGE fronts. The prime minister’s willingness to
WITH engage with different and varied actors on
the global stage should be reflected in glob-
DIFFERENT al trading arrangements where the danger
ACTORS ON of India’s isolation is multiplying every day.
With receding exports and little progress
THE GLOBAL on global trading arrangements, there are
STAGE HAS not many choices left to us. What with the
WTO stalemate and the RCEP not moving in
TO TRANS- any direction and India being out of TPP, the
LATE INTO challenges facing India just to remain rele-
vant in global and regional trading arrange-
TRADING ments are huge.
ARRANGE- There is an urgent need for more clar-
ity of purpose as our new approach to free
MENTS trade agreements (FTA) evolves. FTAs
are about a lot more than trade. They are
instruments for efficiency, specialisation
and, of course, investment, standards and
trade facilitation.
With Brexit, India should now move fast
to conclude pending FTAs, including the
India-EU FTA. A keenness to review the
CEPA with South Korea and Japan is already
evident but the objective now should be to
maximise gains under the existing arrange-
ments. The need of the hour is to aggressively
usher in a new era of trade facilitation and
a planned revival of India’s manufacturing
sector through global value chains.
It may also be pertinent to draw on India’s
development cooperation efforts. There
are no official details available but calcula-
tions at RIS suggest that India is now giv-
ing around $4.5 billion every year to other
developing countries under different modali-
ties. Combining some of this with our global
efforts would help not only India but would
also provide a fillip to the economies of the
partner countries. In all of this, time is of
essence as delay has its own cost.
Sachin Chaturvedi is Director General at
the Research and Information System for
Developing Countries (RIS) in New Delhi
 COVER STORY
NO MORE GREAT
POWER SPEED DATING
INDIA HAS NO CHOICE BUT TO INFLUENCE THE EVOLVING
W.P.S. SIDHU
MULTILATERAL ORDER TO SUSTAIN ITS OWN INTERESTS
L
AST WEEK, three sig-
nificant though unre-
lated events unfolded
that are likely to influ-
ence the evolving glo-
bal order and India’s
role in it. The first was the dramatic
and disastrous referendum,
which will lead to Britain’s exit
(Brexit) from the European
Union (EU). The second was
India’s quiet entry into the Missile
Technology Control Regime
(MTCR)—one of four clubs of the non-
proliferation regime New Delhi is deter-
mined to join. Finally, there was the
valiant, though ultimately unsuccessful,
Indian effort to become a member of the
Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG); although,
with the appointment of a facilitator to the
chair, the door remains ajar. All three provide
opportunities and challenges for New Delhi to
shape the rules of the emerging world order,
particularly on issues of vital interest to India,
including climate, cyber, energy and trade.
At the global level, Brexit is likely to see
Britain, one of the key actors in decision-
making become increasingly distracted with
its internal divisions. This provides an oppor-
tunity for India to contribute to the liberal
democratic order’s leadership.
India’s NSG bid in Seoul should be seen
primarily as an effort to bridge the gap
between the existing nuclear disorder and
the changing world order. New Delhi believes
it cannot play a greater role in the emerging
world order without a change in the nuclear
order. Beijing’s fervent and vocal anti-India
stance in Seoul is only the latest in a series of
efforts to keep India out of the various global
decision-making processes.
As India seeks to become the world’s third
largest economy by 2025 and a key player in
the multipolar world, it faces a defining per-
iod. As the world’s biggest democracy with
an economy among the world’s seven largest,
India’s status as a re-emerging global power
is now not just recognised but increasingly
BREXIT
institutionalised: with a seat in the G-20,
and increasing clout in the international
financial institutions and partial entry
into the club of nuclear states.
At the same time, geopolitical shifts
have created simultaneous opportuni-
ties and challenges: the opening
with the US; the rise of China
as a great power; the global
financial crisis; India has expe-
rienced rapid growth through
participation in the multilater-
al order, and now its development
strategy as well as its energy require-
ments make it dependent on a stable glo-
balisation. India has growing economic,
trade and energy stakes in literally
every corner of the globe. It may have
no choice but to influence the evolving
multilateral order to sustain its own interests.
NEW DELHI Until recently, India pursued what Brookings
IS NOW vice-president and director of foreign policy,
Bruce Jones, calls “great power speed dat-
LIKELY TO ing”—courting competing countries like
BE MUCH China, Russia and the US simultaneously to
support India’s growing role. However, the
MORE very high-profile NSG showdown with China
HARD- might mark the end of diplomatic promis-
cuity. Instead, New Delhi is now likely to be
NOSED IN much more hard-nosed in demanding sup-
DEMANDING port from other powers as it takes on the
mantle of a rule-shaper—to contribute in
SUPPORT shaping emerging norms and regimes.
FROM There are huge challenges. India’s per
capita GDP is not just the lowest in the G-20
OTHER but more than 50 per cent lower than the
POWERS next lowest member, Indonesia. Moreover,
the number of diplomats, despite the recent
expansion, remains the smallest among the
BRICS group.
On account of these internal and other
external constraints, the road to shaping
global rules on several key issues will be long,
steep and hard. India has no choice but to
continue its journey to fulfill its destiny.
W.P.S. Sidhu is Senior Fellow at NYU’s
Center on International Cooperation
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 PM MODI WITH
CHINESE
PRESIDENT XI
IN TASHKENT

NSG
THE
GREAT
WALL
OF XI
GETTY IMAGES

The inside story of India’s audacious bid for membership of the Nuclear
Suppliers Group and how China’s sustained opposition thwarted it for now.
Despite the setback, Modi’s team remains confident of getting in
By Raj Chengappa
O
n June 27, at a quiet
ceremony in New Delhi,
Foreign Secretary
S. Jaishankar signed
India’s accession to
the Missile Technology
Control Regime (MTCR), making it the
35th member of this exclusive club.
It was a triumph of sorts because the
Regime was set up in 1987 to prevent
India and other aspiring countries
from acquiring the critical technology
and material required to build nucle-
ar-tipped missiles. What made India’s
entry special was that China, despite
several attempts, has still not been
admitted as a member.
Yet even as the diplomatic and sci-
entific community in India rejoiced at
the achievement, their celebrations
and those of the Indian government
were muted due to India’s recently
rebuffed bid to become a member of
another technology restraint regime,
the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG).
The NSG, a grouping of 48 members,
was formed in the wake of India’s first
nuclear test in 1974 and put in place
a rigid set of rules that prevented its
members from engaging in nuclear
trade with those who did not adhere
to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation
Treaty (NPT).
Just the previous week, at the
annual NSG plenary meeting in Seoul
from June 20-24, India fought a bruis-
ing battle to be admitted as a member
after it had put in a formal application
in May this year. But China, which was
admitted as an NSG member only in
2004, spearheaded a campaign that
stalled the consensus India was hoping
to build. Though member nations can
continue to trade with India, because
of the special waiver the NSG granted
in 2008 as part of the landmark Indo-
US civilian nuclear deal, there was
little doubt that the outcome of Seoul
was a diplomatic slap to India’s efforts.
The Opposition parties were quick
to castigate Prime Minister Narendra
Modi for his “ill-timed” high-decibel
diplomatic folly. Congress vice-presi-
dent Rahul Gandhi tweeted, “NSG:
How to lose a negotiation by Narendra
Modi #FailedModiDiplomacy.” Even
academicians and former diplomats
questioned the need for pushing for
NSG membership when India had alr-
eady been granted a waiver. The big
questions remained: Why did India
push for a full NSG membership?
Did the Modi government handle the
naysayers, particularly China, well?
Can India recover ground and push
for early admission to the NSG? INDIA
TODAY spoke to key officials involved
in the NSG campaign and the inside
story reveals it was not the diplomatic
debacle it has been painted as but a
carefully calibrated and audacious
bid. Here is why.
Should India have pushed
for NSG membership?
Among the major criticisms levelled
was that with India already getting a
NSG waiver, there was no need to push
so hard for what was being described
as “second class membership” which
didn’t give it any new privileges.
Satyabrata Pal, a seasoned former dip-
lomat, wrote in The Hindu: “This tilting
at the windmills of the NSG is manic,
but it’s not diplomacy, it’s folly.”
Pal’s well-argued piece ignores
several imperatives that India faced
in its NSG membership quest. When
Modi took over as prime minister
in May 2014, despite the outstand-
ing achievement of the Manmohan
Singh government in ending India’s
pariah status in nuclear commerce,
there was plenty of unfinished busi-
ness. Overruling objections his party
had about the Indo-US nuclear deal,
THE BIG STORY NSG
Modi went about implementing the
commitments and provisions with
extraordinary commitment and zeal,
and needs to be commended for his
bipartisan approach.
Top among the priorities was
to speed up India’s bid to become
a member of all the key restraint
regimes, including the NSG, that
had been put in place to slow down
or block India’s efforts to develop a
defence against weapons of mass
destruction. In November 2010, US
President Barack Obama had prom-
ised Manmohan Singh that the US
would work towards making India a
full member of the NSG apart from the
other three restraining regimes: the
MTCR, the Australia Group (to con-
trol the spread of chemical and bio-
logical weapons) and the Wassenaar
Arrangement (export controls for
dual use goods and technologies).
Modi’s team found that while the
Manmohan Singh government had
worked towards becoming a mem-
ber of all the four restraint regimes
from 2011 onwards, its efforts had
been bogged down for various rea-
sons. As a senior MEA official said, “It
was a policy choice then, but we took
on more than we could chew. All four
regimes required particular adminis-
trative and legal measures, fulfilling
which required a humongous effort
“IT WAS IMPERATIVE
THAT INDIA MOVE
INTO THE LIVING
ROOM RATHER THAN
WAIT IN THE
VERANDAH AND BE
TOLD WHAT TO DO,”
SAYS AN OFFICIAL
JULY 11, 2016 ◆ INDIA TODAY 35
 THE BIG STORY NSG
among several ministries. As a result
it became almost mission impossible.”
So rather than pursue all four at
the same time, Modi’s team decided
to prioritise their moves, putting the
NSG and MTCR membership at the
top of the list. On NSG, among their
concerns was that while in 2008 the
UPA-I government had claimed that
the NSG had given it a “clean waiver”,
that status was altered three years
later when UPA-II was in power. In
2011, the NSG revised and updated its
guidelines for all members to prohibit
trade in enrichment and reprocess-
ing technology with any country that
had not signed the NPT. Since India
had refused to sign the NPT since its
inception in 1968, calling it “unfair
and discriminatory”, the amendment
was clearly targeted at Delhi.
After India protested, the US,
Russia and France issued statements
that they stood by their agreements to
provide India “full nuclear fuel cycle”
cooperation irrespective of the NSG
guidelines. But as an official points
out, “It should have been a wake-up
call for the then policymakers that
the NSG could alter its rules and we
would be forced to adhere to it. It was
imperative that we move into the liv-
ing room where decisions were being
made rather than wait in the verandah
and be told what we can or cannot do.”
Why couldn’t the UPA-II do it?
Modi was advised to pull out all stops
to get NSG membership. For that,
Obama had to fulfil his commitment
and get the US administration to do
the heavy lifting as they did in 2008.
Given the preoccupations of the
UPA-II in the final years of its reign,
Indo-US relations had experienced a
drift. Shedding any personal hurt he
harboured against the US for deny-
ing him a visa since the 2002 Gujarat
riots, Modi brought the mojo back
into Indo-US relations by quickly
establishing a personal rapport with
Obama in his first meeting with him
in September 2014. Modi hardsold
his regime as more open to do busi-
ness with. American companies told
him that they had hoped that after the
36 INDIA TODAY ◆ JULY 11, 2016
Indo-US nuclear deal they could sell
nuclear plants to India, making the
deal a win-win for both countries. But
their efforts were stymied because of
the problems posed by the new Indian
nuclear liability law that was passed
by Parliament in 2010.
When he returned from the US,
Modi convened a team of the exter-
nal affairs, finance and law minis-
tries to overcome the problem. India’s
new liability law had put the onus of
any failure of a nuclear plant on the
manufacturers, including payment of
heavy compensation. The US saw red,
as did Russia and France, who were
also negotiating to set up new nuclear
power reactors in India. They pointed
out that it didn’t conform to existing
international norms on liability. Even
private domestic nuclear plant manu-
facturers were dissuaded by the new
law. So Modi’s team worked to find a
way to overcome the vexatious liabil-
ity clause without amending the law.
The government did that by setting
up a special Indian Nuclear Insurance
Pool of Rs 1,500 crore in July 2015
that took care of the liability concerns
of both foreign and domestic nuclear
plant suppliers.
There were two other issues with
the US that Modi addressed. Under
the Indo-US nuclear deal, India had
agreed to designate civilian and mili-
tary nuclear power plants and put
the civilian ones under safeguards.
In December 2014, India complied
by putting the two remaining civil-
ian plants that had been identified
under IAEA safeguards. Then to dem-
onstrate proof of its commitment to
IT WAS NOT A
SUMMER MADNESS.
IN A WAY INDIA HAD
NO CHOICE BUT TO
PUSH FOR ENTRY
WHILE OBAMA WAS
STILL AT THE HELM
TILL THE YEAREND
non-proliferation in January 2015,
India joined an expert group to discuss
how to move the stalled UN-sponsored
Fissile Material Cut-off Treaty (FMCT)
negotiations in Geneva forward.
Why the urgency to get NSG
membership now?
“It was not a summer madness,” as a
senior MEA official put it. The quest
for NSG membership became urgent
because of two major but unrelated
reasons: the Paris climate change
summit and the fact that Obama’s
presidency would end in December
2016. At the climate change summit
in November 2015, India was initi-
ally regarded as the problem as it was
refusing to commit to reduction in
its reliance on fossil fuel like coal for
energy. Modi boldly turned the tables
and made India a part of the solution.
Instead of dragging his feet, Modi pro-
actively committed that by 2030, India
would raise the share of clean energy
from non-fossil fuels to 40 per cent of
the total. He then outlined an interna-
tional solar alliance to evolve cheaper
and more efficient technology to har-
ness solar energy.
Yet more than solar energy, Modi
and his team were calculating that the
massive increase in nuclear power
would enable India to meet the targets.
Nuclear power now generates around
6,000 MW and constitutes only three
per cent of India’s total power. Modi
had outlined an aggressive plan to
ramp up nuclear power generation to
63,000 MW by 2032, pushing its share
of the total to 9 per cent. So apart from
sanctioning 16 new domestic power
plants that would generate an addi-
tional 10,600 MW, the Modi govern-
ment planned to enter into tie-ups with
foreign companies from the US, Russia
and France for 26 new power plants
that would generate 29,500 MW.
To fulfil such an ambitious target,
both Indian and foreign companies
needed finance and technological tie-
ups. For that, international investors
required stability in policy as well as to
ensure that there was no change in the
rules of the game. Large players in the
nuclear business like Europe, Korea
and Japan said they would be more 22 situation—we can’t start the pro-
comfortable if India became a mem-
ber—it would be easier to make invest-
cess till we have a consensus, and
we can’t work for a consensus till we
TO WIN OVER
ment commitments. Membership of have a process”. However, Australia NAYSAYERS, THE PM
the NSG had become a necessity for
India. “NSG membership was like the
bypassed the Chinese protest by host-
ing an event on the margins and India
SPOKE TO 12 HEADS
triple AAA rating for investors”, as an presented its case. OF STATE AND
official put it. Also, by linking its climate When the MEA team returned to SUSHMA CALLED
change goals to NSG membership, Delhi, they did a reality check as to
India was putting additional pressure where the 48 members stood. In their HER COUNTERPARTS
on major countries to push its case. assessment they had 24 yea-sayers, IN 26 COUNTRIES
Meanwhile, Indian policymak-
PTI
ers watched with increasing concern,
the race for the next US presidency.
Against all odds, the maverick Donald
Trump, with his bellicose statements
and charges against all and sundry,
was gaining ground and would go on
to win the Republican nomination.
Meanwhile, Hillary Clinton struggled
to beat her rival Bernie Sanders for
the Democrats’ nomination. All this
added to India’s uncertainty. Rather
than wait for the next president, Modi
and his team decided they should push
through India’s bid this year itself while
Obama was still at the helm. After all,
he had promised to secure India’s NSG
membership. “In a way, we had no
choice, events forced the timing—we
had to go the NSG plenary in June,”
says an official.

Did India do its homework

before applying?
In October 2015, when Ambassador
Rafael Marianno Grossi of Argentina,
then chair of NSG, came for his annual
review, India sought his advice on how
best to apply for membership. Grossi
advised that before making a formal
application they should talk to mem-
bers and check out the concerns they
may raise and then make a formal
presentation to them about how India
was addressing the issues they raised.
In April this year, when the NSG
Consultation Group was to meet in
Vienna, India wrote a letter to all
members requesting that it be per-
mitted to make a presentation. When
the NSG met, China stiffly opposed
such a move, stating, there is “no
consensus on India’s membership,
so no presentation.” An Indian offi-
cial present described it as a “Catch
JAISHANKAR AFTER SIGNING INDIA’S ACCESSION TO THE MTCR IN DELHI ON JUNE 27
while many others were either quiet
or wanted some criteria for member-
ship. Only a handful appeared opposed
to the idea. If India’s bid had to be
taken seriously, it needed more than
just a simple majority. Decisions in the
NSG are taken by consensus and even
one dissenting member could block a
resolution. So the MEA deployed sec-
retary-level officers as envoys to go
and brief all the NSG members.
It was also decided that Sushma
Swaraj, the Union minister for exter-
nal affairs, and the prime minister
would be requested to speak to select
ministers and heads of state. By the
end of the process, Swaraj had per-
sonally called her counterparts in 26
countries. And the prime minister had
spoken to 12 heads of states in addi-
tion to making it a point to include in
his travel plans countries like Ireland,
Switzerland and Mexico where he
made a personal request to back
India’s NSG bid. Answering criticism
as to why Modi had raised the pitch,
an official defended his action, saying,
“It is unfair to say the PM was making
a huge show for publicity—in his mind
he was willing to go the extra distance
for the good of the country.”
On May 10, Jaishankar formally
presented to Grossi, the NSG chair,
India’s 300-page application seeking
admission into the NSG and requested
that it be considered at the annual ple-
nary meeting to be held in Seoul from
June 20-24. A fortnight later, Pakistan
also put in a formal application for
admission into the NSG. It was evident
that Pakistan had China’s backing.
But as compared to India, Pakistan

JULY 11, 2016 ◆ INDIA TODAY 37

 THE BIG STORY NSG
had no credentials to show that it was
a responsible member of the nuclear
fraternity. Its top nuclear scientist,
A.Q. Khan, had been charged with sell-
ing nuclear secrets to North Korea and
Iran. Unlike India, it had not separated
its civilian reactors from military ones
or adhered to various key protocols the
IAEA had mandated. Pakistan’s appli-
cation to the NSG was seen by the rest
of the members as China’s effort to
either block India’s chances or to push
Pakistan through by hyphenating it
with India’s application. India knew it
had a big fight on its hands.
Why 2016 was different from
the 2008 NSG success?
The Modi government has been criti-
cised for the “ham-handed” way it
handled the NSG membership bid,
and it is now being contrasted with
the way Manmohan Singh and his
team went about “quietly” winning
support. It is not as if there was no
hype or hoopla around the UPA-I bid
to secure a waiver. There was stiff
opposition from the coalition partners
that finally saw the Left break away,
accusing the prime minister of being
a pawn of the US.
China had opposed India then too
but not as overtly as it is doing now. In
2008, China told India privately that
it would not oppose India’s waiver if
India got the support of all the other
members. What tilted the balance was
when George Bush called up Hu Jintao
and requested him to back India. The
Chinese smarted at the call but went
along with the consensus.
What has changed since 2008
for China? China in 2016, for one, is
a vastly different beast. Since taking
over from Hu in 2013, Xi Jinping has
outlined a far more robust foreign pol-
icy. Gone is the caution that defined the
Hu era. This is most evident in China’s
ties with the US. A central theme of
Xi’s diplomacy is “building a new type
of great power relations” with the US,
which implies, even if not explicitly,
that China now sees both countries as
equals in a league of their own. Beijing
is ready to stand up to the US in ways
it wasn’t quite prepared to do earlier,
38 INDIA TODAY ◆ JULY 11, 2016
and the US no longer has the leverage
with China it once had—a transforma-
tion Delhi needed to appreciate.
For many in China, the pressure
from Washington in 2008 to allow the
exception for India at the NSG still ran-
kles. “For the waiver in 2008, the US
worked very hard and finally succeed-
ed in getting India treated as an excep-
tional case. Would that work today? I
am not sure,” Zhao Gancheng, a senior
strategic expert and director of South
Asia Studies at the Shanghai Institute
for International Studies, told INDIA
TODAY. The Indian team was conscious
of the new international realities and
in 2016 did a lot of the heavy lifting by
itself rather than as one official put it,
“outsourcing it to America”. Also, they
were aware that they had to confront
a far more aggressive China which if
still not able to shape the international
order was strong enough to be what
an expert called “a blocking power”.
The other big shift in China’s diplo-
macy is that Beijing appears to have
gone all-in when it comes to its “all-
weather” ally, Pakistan. Gone is the
attempt—or pretence, some would
argue—of seeking a balance in ties
with India. In Beijing, Pakistan is
CHINA TOLD INDIA
THAT IT WAS
PREPARED TO
ACCOMMODATE ITS
REQUEST IF DELHI
DID NOT BLOCK
PAKISTAN’S BID
FOR THE NSG
increasingly described as China’s only
ally. Over the past few years, coincid-
ing with Xi’s rise, Chinese state media
have taken to referring to Pakistan as
“ba tie”, or “iron brother”.
Xi has made an economic corridor
to Pakistan a central feature of his pet
Silk Road initiative, planning roads and
energy projects in a corridor that runs
through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir
despite India’s protestations. What is
worrying for India is that perhaps for
the first time in more than a decade,
China’s policies are being shaped by
Pakistani considerations. “The irony
is,” one senior diplomat put it, “they
are re-hyphenating us with Pakistan
at a time when we have finally de-
hyphenated China and Pakistan.” This
was also evident in the NSG.
To secure China’s support,
President Pranab Mukherjee was
asked to request Xi’s cooperation when
he met him during his visit in the last
week of May. Jaishankar, who accom-
panied him, also spoke to his Chinese
counterpart and the foreign minister.
It is learnt that China conveyed the
message that “we may not be open
about an NSG membership for India
but we are not closed either”. The
foreign secretary then made a secret
visit to Beijing, days before the NSG
was to meet in Seoul, something INDIA
TODAY was the first to reveal. It is learnt
that China told Jaishankar, “We are
prepared to look at accommodating
India. But it can’t only be about India
in the long run.” China was clear: We
are willing to let you in but you should
not come in the way of Pakistan’s
entry. China’s concern was that once
India was in the NSG, it would block
Pakistan’s chances.
For India, this was the opening it
was looking for. Modi’s team was con-
fident that if criteria were laid down
for entry into the NSG, India was in
an excellent position to qualify. They
were also aware that Pakistan, with its
poor track record stood little chance of
gaining entry until it cleaned up its act.
Moreover, as some nations pointed
out, it was better to check Pakistan’s
nuclear ambitions by dangling the
NSG membership as a carrot.
So it was a confident Swaraj who,
in her annual press conference in
Delhi a day before the NSG met at
Seoul, asserted “China is not block-
ing India’s entry to the NSG. It is only
talking about criteria and procedures.
I am hopeful that we would be able to
convince China to support our entry to
the NSG.” As far as the Pakistan appli-
cation was concerned, she said, India
being a non-member has no comment,
but clarified that “we will not oppose
entry of any nation to NSG” and “each
country should be considered on the
basis of their merit.
China: From linkage
to blockage
When Jaishankar and Amandeep
Singh Gill, the MEA joint secretary in
charge of nuclear affairs, flew in to
Seoul for the NSG plenary, they were
confident that if China kept its word
India would be through. But they were
not taking any chances. They divided
the NSG members into five groups: the
core group of supporters included the
US, Russia, Japan, Canada, the UK,
Germany and Australia, who would not
only back India but were willing to per-
suade others to come on board. Then
there was a “wider support group”
consisting largely of East European
countries, Central Asia and some from
Western Europe like the Netherlands
and Belgium. Together, these groups
totalled 38 of the 48 countries.
Of the remaining 10 countries,
the third group consisted of six coun-
tries, including Brazil, Switzerland
and Turkey, that believed in what
was termed the “soft process”. These
countries were willing to back India
at the meeting if the NSG simultane-
ously agreed upon criteria for admit-
ting non-NPT members like India and
Pakistan. The fourth group consisted
of three members—Austria, New
Zealand and Ireland—who were cate-
gorised as wanting the “hard process”.
They were not opposed to India’s bid
but wanted to get the sequencing
right—maintaining that the criteria
should be fixed first before the Indian
or any other application could be con-
sidered. China was unique in its oppo-
sition and was classified as a Group of
1. It was willing only if Pakistan’s appli-
cation was also considered. But within
a day China changed its stand when
it found that very few NSG members
wanted Pakistan’s case to be consid-
ered. The estimate was that 46 mem-
bers opposed Pakistan and only two,
China and Turkey, were supportive.
When China realised that there was
stiff opposition to Pakistan’s applica-
tion, it changed its stand from “linkage
to blockage”, as an Indian official put
it. China first pursued procedural tac-
tics and told the chair, now headed by
South Korea, that India’s application
was not on the agenda and couldn’t be
discussed. India’s supporters hit back
by forcing the chair to agree to a dis-
cussion. It was then that China turned
the tables on India. South Korea nee-
ded China’s backing to come out stron-
gly against North Korea’s nuclear
shenanigans. As a quid pro quo, China
persuaded South Korea into passing a
killer decision: There would be a dis-
cussion on India’s application but no
decision in this meeting.
The moment the chair decided the
THE DOOR REMAINS
OPEN. WE WILL STAY
THE COURSE AND
USE POWERS OF
PERSUASION TO WIN
OTHERS OVER”
S. JAISHANKAR
Foreign Secretary
norms, India knew its chances to be
admitted in this round were close to nil.
Nevertheless, Modi raised the stakes
by requesting Xi in his meeting with
him on the sidelines of the Shanghai
Cooperation Organisation summit in
Tashkent, to consider India’s case for
the NSG in a “fair” and “objective”
manner. Meanwhile, with no decision
in sight, some nations that had pledged
support to India, talked of evolving cri-
teria to permit non-NPT members, a
development China cited as indicative
of other members’ opposition.
It also gave China the opportu-
nity to put out its maximalist posi-
tion: Unless a nation signs the NPT, it
should not be admitted as a member.
This was a no-no for India. Instead,
India pointed out that the NSG stipu-
lates that a member needs to “adhere”
to the NPT rules but does not explicitly
state that it should be a member. India
pointed out that in 2008 when the NSG
had given its waiver, India had agreed
to the widest possible implementation
of the NPT provisions and had already
proven its credentials.
Knowing that waiting for the next
year’s NSG plenary could create fresh
problems, India then lobbied hard
to keep the door open for it. Mexico
pushed for Argentina’s Grossi, the
outgoing chairperson, to head an
informal panel to evolve a consensus
on how to proceed with India’s appli-
cation. India is hoping that this winter
will bring it some nuclear content-
ment. When contacted by INDIA TODAY,
Jaishankar remained cautious and
said, “The door remains open and we
will stay the course.”
While India came out with a tough
statement, singling out China for its
opposition, the MEA later toned down
the rhetoric. Rather than demonise
China, the strategy was to use per-
suasion. In his interview to a televi-
sion channel, Modi didn’t reveal any
bitterness and instead said, “Foreign
policy is not about changing mindsets.
It is about finding common ground and
where our interests converge and how
much.” The fallout of the NSG issue on
the bilateral relationship is still uncer-
tain. In the past, India and China have
largely succeeded in compartmen-
talising problems such as the bound-
ary issue to keep relations on an even
keel. In truth, India’s leverage on this
front is limited. Two-way trade which
touched $71 billion last year is heav-
ily skewed in China’s favour, with the
deficit reaching $51 billion.
What is clear is that playing the
trade card would also come at a price:
the Narendra Modi government has
worked overtime to turn around inves-
tor sentiment in China after a decade
of lukewarm response. Beijing is
going forward in a big way with infra-
structure projects that India needs,
from massive solar plants in Andhra
Pradesh to energy parks in Gujarat.
Investments in 2015 were double the
total amount of the past decade.
Overall, Jaishankar remains san-
guine that India’s membership would
get through saying, “We will continue
to use reason and our powers of per-
suasion to win NSG member nations
over including China.”
with Ananth Krishnan in Beijing
JULY 11, 2016 ◆ INDIA TODAY 39
NATION SUBRAMANIAN SWAMY
WHO ISN’T
AFRAID OF
SWAMY?
HIS IS A MALICE TOWARDS ONE AND ALL. BUT BEHIND
THE INVECTIVE IS A SHREWD INTELLIGENCE
By Shougat Dasgupta
O
ffered the
opportunity to
publicly scold
Subramanian
Swamy, Prime
M i n i s t e r
Narendra Modi
opted for prudence. Without nam-
ing names, he asked reporters not
to cover those with a “fondness
for publicity”. He warned those
who would think of themselves
as “bigger than the party” to
show restraint. The kerfuffle that
has consumed the media has, of
course, been Swamy’s relentless
baiting of Raghuram Rajan, the
departing governor of the Reserve
Bank of India, and latterly Arvind
Subramanian, the chief economic
advisor to the government. What
has been called in some quarters
a “snub”, a “rebuke”, a “castiga-
tion” has really been the gentlest
of taps on the wrist for a serious
breach of party discipline. The
Congress responded with deri-
sion, describing Modi’s response
as an “advisory, not action”.
Ashutosh, the Aam Aadmi Party’s
national spokesperson, told INDIA
TODAY that “Swamy is nothing but
a hatchet man for Modi, that’s
why he can target senior officials
with impunity”.
BJP insiders told INDIA TODAY that
Modi had been “highly reluctant”
to give Swamy his seat in the upper
house, never mind the Cabinet
post that Swamy was really after
in 2014. Modi had to be persuad-
ed by influential backers in the
Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh
(RSS) who were now “running for
cover”, concerned that Swamy
had taken too many liberties. A
senior BJP leader said the decision
to grant Swamy his seat was a cal-
culated manoeuvre to keep him at
arm’s length. “How correct the PM
proved to be,” said the senior lead-
er, wishing to remain anonymous,
“had he taken Swamy into the
Cabinet, the peace of the govern-
ment would have been destroyed.”
Another BJP leader, ensconced
in his comfortable office, a large
tricolour wafting in the cool air-
conditioned breeze, said a “senior
post in any ministry or of Cabinet
rank was now extremely unlike-
ly”. But he said he didn’t believe
Swamy was motivated by that sort
of political ambition. “You have to
understand,” he said, “Dr Swamy
cannot help himself. He loves a
brawl. If he has a motive, it’s what-
ever political grudge he has at that
moment.”
Indeed, Swamy has a compli-
cated history of grudges. His pres-
ent grudge, BJP sources accept,
is against Union finance minister
Arun Jaitley. While there is no overt
sanction for Swamy, the suspicion
will remain, as Ashutosh puts it,
that “Modi either wants Jaitley out
or insecure about his position and
so Swamy has been let loose.”
On Twitter, where he has over
2.8 million followers, Swamy
employs an elaborate argot, a
bewildering swirl of acronyms
and Donald Trump-like nick-
names and diminutives that tickle
his followers. Rahul Gandhi, for
instance, goes by the sobriquets
‘buddhu’ and ‘bambino’; Sonia
Gandhi, rather obscurely, is TDK,
after Tadaka, Ravana’s grand-
mother; Arvind Kejriwal is Shree
420; Aam Aadmi Party followers
are AAPtards; Congress is Congi.
Jaitley, Swamy-watchers con-
jecture, is Shakuni, the man with
the loaded dice, the devious catalyst
 Photograph by
BANDEEP SINGH/FORTUNE INDIA
 NATION SUBRAMANIAN SWAMY
for war in Kurukshetra. Swamy,
though he is almost 77, is a nat-
ural on Twitter. His pugnac-
ity is manifested in the insults and
open threats he has been posting
pretty much on the hour every hour
for seven years. Here, for example,
is a typical threat tweeted on the day
this article was written: “Now that
MSM has been sobered and got off the
slandering binge against me at behest
of TDK, I think it is time to take correc-
tive measures.”
The tweet has everything his fol-
lowers could want—mainstream
media (boo!), Sonia Gandhi (boo!),
slander (boo!), corrective measures
(yay!). On Twitter, Swamy is not a
maverick so much as an antic arsonist
prepared to set the whole thing alight.
Jaitley, arguably against his better
judgement, was provoked into a few
stuffed shirt responses to criticisms of
Subramanian and a finance ministry
functionary. Highly-placed sources
inside the finance ministry dismissed
Swamy’s tweets as a “publicity stunt”.
Jaitley, meanwhile, tut-tutted: “An
unfair and false attack on a disciplined
civil servant.” Unfair and malicious,
Jaitley should know, is what Swamy
does; it’s what has kept him newswor-
thy for nigh on 50 years.
Swamy’s malice is theatrical, car-
toonish. There is no question that he
lowers the tone of any debate. But no
one denies the size of his brain. True
to form, it was a grudge that led to him
being accepted to study for a PhD in
economics at Harvard. The eminent
P.C. Mahalanobis was a professional
rival of Swamy’s statistician father.
Swamy, resentful of their rivalry, wrote
a paper which exposed a Mahalanobis
paper as derivative. On such petty
details are academic careers built.
Yet Swamy also has personal cha-
risma, is able to make friends as eas-
ily as enemies. Family members, who
asked to remain anonymous, pointed
out that whatever Swamy’s public
views—in one article that led to the
hate speech accusations, he called for
“Muslims to acknowledge with pride
that though they may be Muslims,
their ancestors are Hindus”—his per-
sonal relationships are a microcosm
of Indian diversity. Swamy’s wife, for
instance, is Parsi; his son-in-law is
Muslim and, as Swami himself has
42 INDIA TODAY ◆ JULY 11, 2016
SWAMY AND In his long career, the maverick poli-
tician has hunted the biggest scalps.
FRENEMIES Here’s a selection of some of his most
prominent targets
SONIA AND RAHUL GANDHI
Swamy has a curious history with the Gandhis. He
embarrassed Indira during the Emergency, making him
a hero for the RSS faithful. But he thought of himself as
a close friend of Rajiv. Sonia and Rahul, though, are the
main targets of his ire. He filed the National Herald case
in court, accusing them of criminal misappropriation
JAYALALITHAA Swamy filed a case against her in
1996 for using her office to amass disproportionate wealth.
It resulted in a conviction and prison sentence for Amma,
a verdict the Karnataka HC overturned last year. In 1998,
Swamy claims to have brought her and Vajpayee together
for a coalition agreement. A year later, he claims he brought
Sonia and Amma together to destroy that same coalition
P. CHIDAMBARAM In 2011, having forced A. Raja to
court in the 2G scam, Swamy petitioned the apex court Court
to order a CBI investigation of Chidambaram’s involvement. A
few months later,
er, Swamy accused PC of misusing his position
to help son Karti profit in the Aircel-Maxis deal. In February, he
demanded the Centre move a contempt petition against PC
for a wrong affidavit in the Ishrat Jahan case
ATAL BIHARI VAJPAYEE Swamy claims Vajpayee
blocked his ascent in 1977 to a high-ranking post in the
finance ministry in Morarji Desai’s Janata Party government.
He also blamed Vajpayee and Ramkarishna Hegde for bri-
nging down the Janata government. He later called Vajpayee
a drunk. He took further revenge in 1998, claiming to have
been instrumental in bringing down Vajpayee’s government
said in interviews, he has a Christian known Swamy for decades, said over
sister-in-law and Jewish brother-in- the phone that “Swamy is completely
law. While this does not mitigate his egotistical, a performing seal”. Swamy,
publicly stated positions, it does make Aiyar says, was once a friend. When
them strange, make them seem like Aiyar was consul general in Karachi,
positions he has adopted out of politi- from 1978-1982, Swamy came to visit.
cal expediency rather than conviction. “I took him to the Press Club,” Aiyar
How seriously, after all, should any- says, “and sat on the stage with him
one take a position stated thus: “Now while he abused Indira Gandhi. The
with the publication of Dan Brown’s Da local press were really impressed with
Vinci Code and its revelations about the the nature of democracy in India.”
Opus Dei organisation, Hindus have to Indira Gandhi was an old enemy. She
go on high alert about Christian mis- once called him a “Santa Claus with
sionaries from abroad.” This sentence unrealistic ideas”. Swamy had returned
is taken from Hindus Under Siege: from Harvard in 1969 at the behest
The Way Out, a recent reprint by Har- of Amartya Sen to teach at the Delhi
Anand Publications of a book Swamy School of Economics. But, according to
wrote 10 years ago. Coomi Kapoor, Swamy’s sister-in-law,
Mani Shankar Aiyar, who has in her book The Emergency: A Personal
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 NATION SUBRAMANIAN SWAMY
History (ironically foreworded by Arun
Jaitley), Swamy’s “views were too pro-
market and anti-establishment for the
leftists who dominated the school at the
time”. Kapoor, who politely declined
interview requests for this article, cit-
ing family considerations, wrote that
his “nationalist views appealed to the
Jana Sangh, which nominated him to
the Rajya Sabha in 1974”.
During the Emergency of 1975-
77, Swamy found refuge in the United
States. But before he effected his
escape, he travelled several times to
Gujarat where, Kapoor writes, the
RSS “often sent a young pracharak to
pick him up from the station.... This
humble pracharak was Narendra
Modi”. Swamy’s daring during the
Emergency, including returning to
Parliament from America unan-
nounced to deplore that “democracy
had died” before slipping away again,
made him a cult hero for RSS pracha-
raks. He was cocking a snook at Indira
Gandhi and the RSS loved him for it;
Swamy’s disdain for the Gandhis con-
tinues to be the basis for the esteem
in which he is held by the RSS. After
the Emergency ended, Swamy was
elected to the Lok Sabha from Mumbai
North East, serving from 1977 to 1984.
This should have been the moment
for him to ascend to the prominent
public role he always believed was
intended for him. Swamy, though,
had made an enemy of another ris-
ing star, Atal Bihari Vajpayee. Morarji
Desai, Swamy later claimed, had
intended to give him a Cabinet berth,
possibly nominate him as minister of
state for finance, until Vajpayee, then
Union minister for external affairs,
intervened. Twenty years later, in an
autobiography serialised in a Tamil
weekly, Swamy described Vajpayee
as an out of control drunk.
Vajpayee, Swamy has claimed,
reneged on an offer to make him
finance minister in his second stint as
prime minister in 1998. He apparently
went back on his word once he knew
he had secured Jayalalithaa’s sup-
port for his coalition. Swamy got his
revenge, bringing Sonia Gandhi and
Jayalalithaa together for a tea party
that resulted in the latter withdrawing
her support from Vajpayee and pre-
cipitating the fall of his government;
the same Sonia Gandhi whom Swamy
44 INDIA TODAY ◆ JULY 11, 2016
RAJIV IS THE ONE
GANDHI SWAMY NEVER
ABUSES, SAYS MANI
SHANKAR AIYAR. IT
SHOWS HOW FICKLE
HE IS, A FINE MIND
SUPERIMPOSED WITH
A CHILDLIKE PERSONA
now professes to detest and the same
Jayalalithaa against whom he filed
corruption charges that led to her
arrest. Swamy’s career is proof that
friendship and enmity in politics are
indistinguishable. Swamy was Union
minister for commerce and law for a
few months from 1990 to 1991 in the
short-lived Chandra Shekhar govern-
ment. He also “built a rapport with
Rajiv Gandhi”, Aiyar says, “and that is
why he is the one Gandhi that Swamy
doesn’t abuse”. It is, says Aiyar, evi-
dence of “how fickle Swamy is, a very
fine mind superimposed with a child-
ish personality”.
S
wamy has reemerged in the
public consciousness in the
past half decade or so as a furi-
ous defender of the Hindu nation and
a scourge of the corrupt. His petition
to the Supreme Court resulted in the
2012 arrest of A. Raja, the telecom
minister at the time of the 2G spec-
trum scam that cost the exchequer,
the Comptroller and Auditor General
estimated, some Rs 170,000 crore. His
fondness for litigation and his ability
to put Sonia and Rahul on the back-
foot has made him indispensable to the
RSS. Cosy as the relationship is now,
Swamy had in 2000 written an arti-
cle in the fortnightly newsmagazine
Frontline that warned of the “creeping
fascism of the RSS”. The good news, he
wrote, “is that the game plan can fail...
The vibrations of Mother India will...be
its undoing.”
Supporters of Swamy—especially
the journalists he keeps close, who
worked with him on 2G, for instance,
or on the money-laundering accusa-
tions against Karti Chidambaram,
son of former Union finance minister
P. Chidambaram—insist that he is a
“straight talker”, has “no axe to grind”.
But the record suggests that Swamy
conducts vendettas based on small,
barely perceptible slights. Jaitley,
says a BJP source, was responsible
for Swamy not getting a coveted tick-
et from Delhi for the 2014 Lok Sabha
elections. Whether this story is true
or not, Swamy seems to believe. So he
now goes after the finance minister
with a vengeance. Jaitley also has the
job Swamy has always wanted. Savvy
enough not to target Jaitley directly,
Swamy relies on his facility for Twitter.
His barb about Indian officials looking
like waiters in Western suits was a mas-
terpiece, pricking Jaitley’s vanity, mak-
ing him look ridiculous, and apparently
pushing him to complain to the prime
minister and the BJP president.
Any analysis must conclude that
Swamy is entitled to claim Rajan’s
scalp. Buoyed by this ‘success’,
Swamy then turned his invective on
Subramanian. “Sack him,” he thund-
ered on Twitter, adding three exclama-
tion points to bring the total up to five
exclamation points in a single tweet. A
sly follow-up tweet referred to “Arvind
Subramanian of Washington DC”.
Casting aspersions on a target’s
‘Indianness’ is a favourite Swamy
trope. Three years ago, he filed a
public interest litigation in the Delhi
High Court seeking the dismissal of
Siddharth Varadarajan, then edi-
tor of The Hindu, because he was
an American citizen. Swamy argued
that as opinion-formers, editors of
Indian newspapers had to not just
be resident in India but citizens.
Speaking on the phone, Varadarajan,
who went on to found the news web-
site The Wire, said that “challenging
Swamy becomes very difficult for the
BJP without laying themselves open
to the charge of betraying their very
core”, the hyper-nationalist support-
ers for whom Swamy has become a
plain-speaking hero.
The BJP tolerates Swamy, one
leader argued, “because of his nui-
sance value”, his ability to get under
his opponents’ skin. It appears that
Swamy’s public swan song is to be the
BJP’s Shakespearean fool, exposing
the party’s fault lines in the guise of
providing comic relief. Given what he
might have been, such a fate is tragic. ■
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 LEAD ESSAY
Photograph by BANDEEP SINGH

GENERAL MEDICAL TECHNICAL L AW

DELHI UNIVERSITY ALL INDIA INSTITUTE OF INDIAN INSTITUTE OF NATIONAL LAW SCHOOL OF INDIA
Delhi MEDICAL SCIENCES New Delhi TECHNOLOGY Bombay UNIVERSITY Bengaluru

NUMBERS THAT
DON’T COUNT
INDIA’S HIGHER EDUCATION SECTOR HAS SEEN SHARP EXPANSION IN THE LAST
TWO DECADES BUT IT HAS BEEN MORE QUANTITATIVE THAN QUALITATIVE
By Kaushik Deka
n the last two years,
I
university campuses
have emerged as the
political nerve centres
of the country. Down
south, Rohith Vemula’s suicide on
the University of Hyderabad cam-
pus brought the ugly undercurrents
of caste and religious fault lines to
the fore. In Delhi, Jawaharlal Nehru
University became a battle zone
between the followers of two conflict-
ing ideologies. The debate veered from
the sanctity of autonomy of education-
al institutes to fixing the maximum age
for a PhD student in a university.
But the first big battle, where the
central government and the authori-
ties of a university came in direct con-
flict was faced by Delhi University, the
topper in 2016 India Today Group’s
best universities study, conducted by
the Nielsen Company. A visionary vice
chancellor’s endeavour to introduce
radical reforms in the curriculum and
duration of courses was curbed mid-
plan by the Union government, thanks
to pressure mounted in unison—per-
haps for the first time in India’s his-
tory—by educationists, teachers and
students, both right- and left-wing.
Despite these unsavoury episodes,
both DU and JNU did not lose sight
UNIVERSITY SPECIAL
of the objective they had set out for
themselves. The political hullabaloo
did not halt DU’s quest for maintaining
its numero uno status in the country,
a position that has remained unchal-
lenged for the last four years. JNU has
left open the debate whether it’s the
ultimate custodian of free speech or a
bastion of anti-national elements, but
quietly jumped from No. 5 position last
year to second position this year.
This year, the study has intro-
duced three new categories—medi-
cal, technical and law—to differentiate
domain-specific universities from the
general ones offering courses in the
three main streams—arts, science and
commerce. There has been a change
in the methodology as well. This year,
we have considered only perceptual
data because of non-availability of
actual data for all universities in the
same time frame.
This change also explains the
dominance of government universi-
ties in every category despite a tre-
mendous growth in privately-owned
institutes. Several experts even attri-
bute the expansion of the higher edu-
cation sector in the last two decades
to the contribution of the private sec-
tor. The number of universities in India
has increased from 20 in 1950 to 757
in 2015, of which 267 are privately
managed. The gross enrolment ratio
in higher education has seen a steep
climb between 2001-02 and 2013-14
from 8.1 per cent to 23.6 per cent. The
reason behind this surge is the rise of
the private sector, which now accounts
for over 60 per cent of enrolment in
higher education. Yet, in public per-
ception, the quality of education in pri-
vate sector has remained debatable.
“Of course the growth in enrol-
ment has been more than expected
but private universities have played a
big role in this. There is no doubt that
at many stages quality has been com-
promised,” says Sachidanand Sinha,
THE STEEP CLIMB IN
GROSS ENROLMENT
RATIO IN HIGHER
EDUCATION BETWEEN
2001-02 AND 2013-14
FROM 8.1 PER CENT
TO 23.6 PER CENT WAS
PUSHED BY A SURGE IN
PRIVATE UNIVERSITIES
JULY 11, 2016 ◆ INDIA TODAY 47
 LEAD ESSAY
METHODOLOGY
The India Today Group’s best universi-
ties survey was conducted by the Nielsen
Company to determine the ranks of uni-
versities across four categories—general
(arts, science, and commerce), medical,
technical and law. In the general category,
only those universities which offer at
least two post-graduate courses in each
stream—arts, science and commerce—
were considered.
A formula based on a perception
score (from a structured interview con-
ducted among academic experts) was
evolved. In the first step, a desk research
was conducted to generate the list of
universities for the survey. Secondary
data sources such as the internet, pub-
lished reports and the Association of
Indian Universities Handbook were used.
Suggestions from experts were also
included. A comprehensive list of more
than 200 universities was drawn up.
In the second stage, semi-structured
interviews were conducted with experts
to ratify the 11 parameters on which the
universities were to be evaluated. These
include reputation of the university, qual-
ity of academic input, faculty, research
48 INDIA TODAY ◆ JULY 11, 2016
UNIVERSITY SPECIAL
MANEESH AGNIHOTRI
publications/reports/projects, student
care, infrastructure, innovation and gov-
ernance, admission procedure, place-
ment opportunities/enrolment for higher
education, global exposure and security
arrangements for students.
In the third stage between April
and June, 600 experts were shown
the list of 200 universities and asked
to rate them on the basis of the identi-
fied parameters. These experts—deans,
registrar, heads of departments, profes-
sors and readers—were not allowed to
rate their own university, to avoid bias
towards their own universities. They were
asked to distribute 100 points across the
11 parameters.
Each parameter was assigned a
weight based on the average importance
given by the experts. Hence the most
important parameter got the maximum
weight and the least, the minimum. The
overall perceptual score of a university
was calculated on the basis of the rat-
ings given by experts on the parameters
weighted by their importance. The uni-
versities were then ranked on the basis of
their overall perceptual scores.
professor, Centre for the Study of
Regional Development, JNU. He
was one of the members of the
committee which in 2008 submit-
ted a report on Higher Education
in India, dealing with issues related
to expansion, inclusiveness, quality
and finance.
Sinha points towards lack
of quality teachers even in
government-funded universities
of repute. In 2014, the teacher
pupil ratio in universities and col-
leges was 24 compared to 14 in
the United States and 18 in the UK.
“The country’s best university and
colleges under it have over 5,000
vacancies. In several private uni-
versities, especially in the techni-
cal institutes, most names in the
faculty list are fake. One teacher
could be teaching in 10 institutes,”
says Sinha.
All eyes are now set on the
Union ministry for human resource
development, which is now in
the process of formulating the
new education policy. The T.S.R.
Subramanian Committee, which
was formed to make the frame-
work for the education policy has
already submitted its report. The
HRD ministry has recently taken a
few corrective steps to clear certain
administrative bottlenecks in uni-
versity education. For instance, it
announced rules to make granting
of deemed university status much
faster. It also made foreign univer-
sity collaborations easier for col-
leges and varsities. In fact, a NITI
Aayog report suggests that the gov-
ernment allow foreign universities
to set up campuses in India.
Such collaborations could be a
welcome step, but the government
still has to get its basics right. As
Sinha points out, good education
depends not on buildings of brick
and mortar but on the teachers.
The quality of education in both
private and government sectors is
incumbent on a move to produce
better teachers in numbers that
can fill up vacancies.
Follow the writer on Twitter @kdscribe
 GENERAL
1 DELHI UNIVERSITY New Delhi
RANK

A STICKLER FOR
DU PROCESS
DELHI UNIVERSITY BEHEMOTH IS A STERLING INSTITUTE OF HIGHER
EDUCATION, COMBINING A SPIRIT OF INQUIRY WITH THE STREAK OF INNOVATION

By Karishma Goenka

RAJWANT RAWAT

he very earth of Delhi
T
University (DU) is
steeped in history and
revolution. The elegant
white pillars of the Vice
Chancellor’s office do not betray the
presence of a former dungeon in its
bowels, which housed Bhagat Singh
and his comrades during the free-
dom struggle nor the carnage of the
1857 revolt, when a number of British
families sought refuge within. But the
whiff of activism still lingers in the air,
channelled through its robust student
politics and stubborn, but effective
social outfits. Although DU has given
the country some of its most influen-
tial political leaders, the university
has proven itself to be so much more
over 94 years of its existence.
The journey that began with three
affiliated colleges, two faculty and 750
students in 1922 has now grown to 85
colleges, 86 academic departments
and over 132,435 students. Under its
wing are St Stephen’s college, Lady
Shri Ram College for Women, Hindu
College, Miranda House and Shri Ram
College for Commerce, all highly cov-
eted for higher education. In 1973, a
campus was created in south Delhi
in an effort to keep up with the fast-
paced growth of the DU family.
With some of the highest under-
graduate cut-offs in the country,
getting into Delhi University and its
colleges is every student’s greatest
ambition. “The university has grown
and evolved since the time I stud-
ied there in 1971,” says professor
JP Khurana, director of DU’s South
campus. “The craze for admissions
GURUMANTRA
DU has the highest number of publi-
cations and mould some of the best
researchers in the country made pos-
sible by the hunger for knowledge.”
PROFESSOR YOGESH KUMAR TYAGI
Vice Chancellor, Delhi University
UNIVERSITY SPECIAL
in the affiliated colleges has skyrock-
eted because the quality of students
has grown better over the years. The
cut-offs which hovered around 80 per
cent in my time, even at the best col-
leges are now 96 per cent and above.”
Delhi University featured 66th in
the globally regarded QS Asia rank-
ings this year with only a handful of
IITs preceding it. A thorough dedica-
tion to research and a large number
of research publications has proved
to be their ticket to success, attract-
ing not only the best faculty from all
over the world but also abundant
grants and funding from the govern-
ment. The department of science and
technology was awarded over Rs 40
crore in 2013 as part of a Promotion
of University Research and Scientific
Excellence (PURSE) grant for having
the highest H-index in the country.
The H-index is a metric that mea-
sures the productivity and impact of
an author’s citations.
To enhance the research environ-
ment, the university started a Cluster
Innovation Centre about five years
ago. It offers innovative degree pro-
grammes that include a B.Tech with a
confluence of information technology
and mathematical innovation, a BA
Honours in humanities and social sci-
ences and a unique Masters of educa-
tion dual degree in collaboration with
Jamia Millia Islamia designed on the
basis of the Meta University concept.
Through these new courses and a
variety of other activities that support
and mentor new innovations, the uni-
versity hopes to aid students in solving
real world problems.
TOP 10
UNIVERSITIES
1 UNIVERSITY OF DELHI Delhi
2
JAWAHARLAL NEHRU UNIVERSITY
Delhi
BANARAS HINDU UNIVERSITY
3 Varanasi
4 CALCUTTA UNIVERSITY Calcutta
5 MADRAS UNIVERSITY Chennai
6 MUMBAI UNIVERSITY Mumbai
7 ALIGARH MUSLIM UNIVERSITY Aligarh
8 PUNE UNIVERSITY Pune
9 JAMIA MILLIA ISLAMIA Delhi
10 JADAVPUR UNIVERSITY Kolkata
WHAT MAKES
DELHI UNIVERSITY UNIQUE
DU’s Cluster Innovation Centre aims
1
to enhance creativity of the student
body through innovative curriculum
that is tailored to incubation of ideas
2 Because of a large number of research
publications and citations, Delhi
University receives generous support
and funding from the government
3 DU is the only Indian university other
than IITs to feature in the top 100 of
QS Asia global rankings
4 Admission procedure of colleges are
conducted entirely online
NUMBER OF
Students
216,463
Faculty
10,006
Colleges under
Delhi University 85
JULY 11, 2016 ◆ INDIA TODAY 51
 GENERAL
UNIVERSITY SPECIAL

TOP 20
UNIVERSITIES
Reputa- Quality Research Innova- Admi- Place- Security
tion
of the of aca- Faculty Publica-
tions/ Student
Total
Infra- tion and ssion ment Global arrange- Perceptual Perce-
ptual
2016 UNIVERSITY NAME (ART/SCIENCE/COMMERCE) demic care structure Gover- Proce- opportu- Exposure ments for
Univer- input Reports / nance dure nities students Score Ranking
sity projects

1 UNIVERSITY OF DELHI Delhi 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 628419 1

2 JAWAHARLAL NEHRU UNIVERSITY Delhi 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 499854 2

3 BANARAS HINDU UNIVERSITY Varanasi 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 427256 3

4 CALCUTTA UNIVERSITY Calcutta 4 4 4 4 5 5 5 4 5 4 4 366421 4

5 MADRAS UNIVERSITY Chennai 5 5 5 5 4 4 4 5 4 5 5 364789 5

6 MUMBAI UNIVERSITY Mumbai 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 345568 6

7 ALIGARH MUSLIM UNIVERSITY Aligarh 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 269482 7

8 PUNE UNIVERSITY Pune 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 253400 8

9 JAMIA MILLIA ISLAMIA Delhi 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 220938 9

10 JADAVPUR UNIVERSITY Calcutta 11 10 10 10 10 11 10 10 10 10 10 182880 10

11 PUNJAB UNIVERSITY Chandigarh 10 11 11 11 11 10 11 11 11 11 11 180734 11

12 INDIAN INSTITUTE OF SCIENCE 12 12 12 12 13 12 12 12 13 12 12 169213 12

13 UNIVERSITY OF HYDERABAD Hyderabad 13 13 13 13 12 13 13 13 12 13 13 164766 13

14 LUCKNOW UNIVERSITY Lucknow 14 14 14 14 15 15 14 14 14 15 14 155645 14

15 OSMANIA UNIVERSITY Hyderabad 15 15 14 15 14 14 16 16 16 14 15 153571 15

16 CHRIST UNIVERSITY Bengaluru 17 16 16 16 16 16 15 15 15 16 16 147605 16

17 PONDICHERRY UNIVERSITY Pondicherry 16 17 17 17 18 17 17 17 17 17 17 141945 17

18 ANDHRA UNIVERSITY Hyderabad 18 18 18 18 17 18 18 17 18 18 18 136497 18

19 BANGALORE UNIVERSITY Bengaluru 19 19 19 19 19 19 19 19 19 19 19 132232 19

20 MADURAI KAMRAJ UNIVERSITY Madurai 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 123973 20

To help its large student body find
safe lodging, it has tied up with NGOs
to create an official network of pay-
ing guest accommodations in areas
close to colleges. An online repository
of research publications for students
and faculty is being built, which will
help them access the same even when
not on campus. Among the universi-
ty’s initiatives towards modernising
facilities is the digitisation of its online
application process. From this year,
students will be able to apply online,
right up to fee payment and can take
entrance tests at five new centres in
cities other than Delhi.
It might seem like a cliché, but
the university has succeded in cre-
ating a conducive atmosphere for its
students; it reflects in the way they
TOP 2 PUBLIC TOP 2 PRIVATE
talk about their personal learning
UNIVERSITIES UNIVERSITIES
and leanings. “If you have no politi-
cal background, but still have a hid-
1. University of Delhi 1. Christ University den leadership gene in your body. It
Delhi Bangalore will blossom as soon as you enter the
2. Jawaharlal Nehru 2. Amrita Vishwa gates of Delhi University,” says Shiva
University Delhi Vidyapeetham Tripathi a fourth year PhD student
Coimbatore from the botany department.
The beneficiaries of the educa-
tion system at DU are not just stu-
NEW COURSES dents but also teachers. “Intellectual
freedom and mutual respect for
introduced in last five years free thinkers from classroom level
onwards makes it a delight to teach
BTECH IN IT AND MATHEMATICAL
here,” says Professor Kishore Kumar
INNOVATION
Das, department of English, who is
BA IN HUMANITIES AND SOCIAL also India’s first visually challenged
SCIENCES Fulbright Scholar. ■

52 INDIA TODAY ◆ JULY 11, 2016

 GENERAL
2 JNU - Delhi UNIVERSITY SPECIAL
RANK

THE CENTRAL
LIBRARY IN JNU

VIKRAM SHARMA

BEDROCK OF IDEALISM
BATTERED BY WINDS OF CONTROVERSY AND HATE, THE UNIVERSITY FOUNDED
ON DIVERSITY CONTINUES TO IMPRESS WITH ITS ACADEMIC CREDENTIALS

By Siddhartha Rai Afzal Guru’s hanging in February this

year. But with its academic creden-
few seats of learning, tials it has proved that good grades

A
through the march of
history, have had the
privilege of becoming
symbols of collective
consciousness. Jawaharlal Nehru
University (JNU) is one of them. As
a microcosm imbued with the admi-
rable quality of diversity contained
within our country, JNU is to India
what Cambridge is to the UK.
It has bettered its tally from last
year’s, moving up two places to upset
last year’s second spot-earner the
Banaras Hindu University (BHU).
JNU face widespread public ire in the
aftermath of the commemoration of
here aren’t a casualty of activism.
One of the first campuses in India
to be conducive to the differently
abled, JNU has a nurturing and inclu-
sive culture. “We have a social obliga-
tion to provide education to the most
marginalised,” says vice-chancellor
M. Jagadesh Kumar. “From here on,
we want to reach out to an increas-
ing number of students who cannot
afford to come to Delhi and get qual-
ity education despite being talented.
We want to reach to this larger cross-
section of society using technology as
only campus-based education is no
more feasible. We are moving towards
WHAT’S UNIQUE
ABOUT JNU
Rigorous entrance test to screen
1
students
2 Top-notch research facilities, in both
sciences and social sciences
3 Holistic inter-disciplinary approach
in teaching
4 Healthy exchange of ideas between
students and teachers; freedom of
expression is sacred

54 INDIA TODAY ◆ JULY 11, 2016

 GENERAL
MOST POPULAR
COURSES
MASTERS IN COMPUTER
APPLICATION’S (MCA)
MA IN SOCIAL SCIENCES
(POLITICAL SCIENCE,
HISTORY AND SOCIOLOGY)
MA IN INTERNATIONAL
STUDIES
providing online programmes.”
The distinctive quality of the cam-
pus is that students subscribing to all
shades of opinions and ideologies,
ranging from extreme left to right,
are equally proud of the heritage
of the university. It has consistently
increased the ambit and numbers of
disciplines in which it imparts qual-
ity education, essentially at the level
of research, but also in its catchment
area of a diverse student body.
This is not the only survey that
acknowledges its worth. In the first
ever ranking of Indian universities
by the government, JNU was ranked
third in the National Institutional
Ranking Framework, 2016.
On its way to add new ‘schools’ and
‘centres’ of study, as they are called
here, to its repertoire of academic
excellence, a lot of thought is given
to interdisciplinary harmony. In the
department of science, the university
is set to launch a state-of-the-art data
and analytics centre. In the realm of
social sciences, the university is com-
ing up with a centre for northeastern
studies, so far a field relegated to the
fringes of Indian academic discourse.
JNU is a mecca of sorts for free
thinkers, its flourishing student cul-
ture a potpourri of fierce debate,
niche cultural events, student activ-
ism, classroom excellence and
insightful research. The varsity is
known for its intense and dynam-
ic political life on campus. The JNU
students’ union (JNUSU) is not just
a representative body, but one that
actively collaborates with teachers
UNIVERSITY SPECIAL
NEW COURSES
introduced in last five years
DIRECT PHD IN NORTHEAST INDIA STUDIES,
HUMAN RIGHTS STUDIES AND ENERGY STUDIES
PRE-PHD/PHD IN MOLECULAR MEDICINE (FOR NET
QUALIFIED ONLY) RESTARTED & INTEGRATED MSC-PHD
MPHIL/PHD WOMEN’S STUDIES
MPHIL/PHD DISCRIMINATION AND EXCLUSION
MPHIL/PHD IN MEDIA STUDIES
and administration in deciding on
policies. The fabled JNUSU elections
have acted as a model for other edu-
cational institutions to emulate. The
most colourful festive event of the
campus (barring the chaat sammelan
on Holi) has the contestants indulge
in a public debate, to which students
bear witness.
Interestingly, student parties can-
not get posters printed: campus walls
instead are an exquisite collection
of hand-drawn posters and murals.
The university even has a written
GURUMANTRA
Campus-based
education will not fulfil
India’s hunger for
quality education. A new
approach is required.
Delivery of education
will have to go online.
M. JAGADESH KUMAR
Vice-Chancellor, Jawaharlal
Nehru University
NUMBER OF
Students
8,000
Faculty
650
constitution for itself.
JNU takes pride in the motto of
‘What India thinks tomorrow, JNU
thinks today’. “The Jawaharlal Nehru
University is a campus where a stu-
dent from an ordinary social and eco-
nomic background can compete on
equal terms with those from the top of
the social and economic pyramid. It is
a great leveller that imparts a sense of
the banality of material life and simul-
taneously the high ideals of academ-
ic pursuit. That knowledge is above
material acquisitions is writ large
across the ethos of JNU,” said Ritesh
Rai, a PhD student from the School of
International Studies (SIS). Such ide-
alism may seem arcane today, but it
has sound practical application in a
campus that, for the most part, walks
the talk. Rai is a case in point, he is
from a backward Ghazipur district of
Uttar Pradesh.
The university is known for its
alumni who now occupy important
political and bureaucratic positions.
While JNU has been dubbed a factory
that supplies the country with numer-
ous civil servants every year, one
such illustrious name is that of Indian
foreign secretary Subrahmanyam
Jaishankar. It also counts several
leading political figures among its
alumni. Some significant ones are
NCP general secretary D.P. Tripathi,
former Union minister Digvijay
Singh, minister of state (independent
charge) Nirmala Sitharaman, CPI(M)
leader Prakash Karat, psephologist
Yogendra Yadav and Udit Raj. Noted
journalist P. Sainath is from JNU too. ■
 GENERAL
3 BHU UNIVERSITY SPECIAL
RANK

VICE-CHANCELLOR
GIRISH CHANDRA TRIPATHI
WITH STUDENTS

MANEESH AGNIHOTRI

TRADITION
By Ashish Misra

andit Madan Mohan

P
Malaviya situated

MEETS
the Banaras Hindu
University (BHU) pat in
the middle of the syl-
van fringes of the revered town of
Varanasi in 1916. A hundred years

MODERNITY
MADAN MOHAN MALAVIYA’S BRAINCHILD RETAINS ITS
ICONIC STATUS AS IT ADDS MORE STRENGTH AND
VARIETY TO ITS COURSES AND DEPARTMENTS
later, the centre of learning is excel-
lence personified. But, little could
he have imagined the pollution that
would come to settle around it. Now,
exactly a century on, BHU’s execu-
tive council has decided to establish a
research centre for Ganga river devel-
opment and water resource manage-
ment that will be poignantly named
after the visionary founder.
 GENERAL
WHAT’S UNIQUE
ABOUT BHU
1 It’s the largest residential universi-
ty in Asia with 72 hostels for 18,000
students and 2,000 teachers with-
in a 1,360-acre walled campus
2 Only one in the world where courses
ranging from nursery and primary
school to post-doctoral studies are
offered and pursued
In 2015-16, 54 MoUs have been
3
signed with international institutes
for collaboration
For the prestigious centre to take
off, the university plans to enlist 100-
odd scientists to develop environment-
friendly technologies and harness
their multi-disciplinary expertise to
meet the present and future needs
of water resource management and
rejuvenation of rivers. The Union min-
istry for water resources is to provide
Rs 235 crore to establish the centre,
which is also intended to strength-
en Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s
ambitious Namami Gange Project in
his constituency.
As one of the older universities
started in a semi-urban agglomera-
tion, BHU has focused consistently on
culturally relatable themes and built
on the innate strength of departments
through domain-specific institutes.
These include the highly specialised
agricultural sciences, medical sci-
ences, environment and sustainable
development and management stud-
ies. “Yet, we impart education based
on a holistic approach that empha-
sises building of character and instils
values,” says BHU vice-chancellor
Girish Chandra Tripathi. “It is the
confluence of Oriental Indian knowl-
edge and modern scientific temper.”
Significantly, BHU has a separate
Sanskrit Vidya Dharm Vigyan Sankaya
and faculty of Ayurveda. It has 15
specialised centres of study, includ-
ing a Malaviya Centre for Human
Values and Ethics which is aimed at
inculcating humanistic values and
UNIVERSITY SPECIAL
GURUMANTRA
We impart education
based on a holistic
approach that also
emphasises building of
character and instilling
of values.”
GIRISH CHANDRA TRIPATHI,
BHU Vice-Chancellor
MOST POPULAR
COURSES
MSC IN FORENSIC SCIENCES
MASTER’S IN CORPORATE
COMMUNICATION MANAGEMENT
BACHELOR’S IN NATUROPATHY
AND YOGA SCIENCES
NUMBER OF
Students
32,000
Faculty
3,000
Departments
135
DID YOU KNOW?
RECITATION OF
GITA IS MANDATORY ON
EVERY SUNDAY IN BHU
ethics among students and teachers
and a Bharat Adhyayan Kendra for
study and research of Indian Oriental
knowledge. An underexplored sub-
topic, Oriental as a category can
throw light on a fascinating conflu-
ence of cultures.
“This Rs 25 crore facility created
as part of the centennial celebrations
in the last academic year is to explore
and reconnect ancient Indian wisdom
with modern knowledge,” says BHU’s
joint registrar Dr Neeraj Tripathi. The
university has also developed a south
campus spread over 2,740 acres at
Barkachha in Mirzapur district which
is double the size of the 1,360 acre
main campus.
V-C Tripathi says there are
grand growth plans in the pipeline.
It includes a Rs 100 crore Central
Discovery Centre for high quality
research, which houses the Centre
for Advanced Instrumentation (CAI),
Centre for Advanced Computing
(CAC) and Centre for Digital Media
(CDM). The university has plans of
launching the department of yogic art
and science and naturopathy, depart-
ment of defence and strategic studies
and department of anthropology.
As part of its social outreach ini-
tiatives, BHU has commissioned a
334 bed state-of-the-art Trauma
Centre as an adjunct to its institute of
medical sciences with no comparable
tertiary health care facility between
Kolkata and Lucknow to serve the
needs of eastern Uttar Pradesh. It even
addresses the medical needs of near-
by states such as Bihar, Jharkhand,
Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, and
Nepal. The university has already
adopted five nearby villages and
there are plans to raise the number
to 100 so that they serve as model
villages in literacy, sanitation, health
and environment standards.
Seven personalities associated
with BHU have been conferred the
Bharat Ratna. Another fact that
people might not know: India’s phi-
losopher-president Dr Sarvepalli
Radhakrishnan was the vice-chan-
cellor of the university for almost a
decade, from 1939 to 1948. ■
 MEDICAL
ALL INDIA INSTITUTE OF MEDICAL SCIENCES New Delhi

ALL-INDIA
By Damayanti Datta

iles of corridors snake

M
down the middle of each

INSTITUTE OF
floor at the All India
Institute of Medical
Sciences (AIIMS), Delhi.
If you walk down these neon-lit corri-
dors, you’ll come across closed doors

EXCELLENCE
on each side, sporting nameplates of
doctors and departments, occasional
academic posters on bright beige walls
and, of course, brusque signboards:
“Medical representatives NOT wel-
ITS CLAIM ON BEING INDIA’S PREMIER MEDICAL come.” On most weekdays, the sound
of your footsteps will reverberate
INSTITUTE NEAR-PERMANENT, AIIMS CONTINUES down these quiet and tidy walkways.
TO GO FROM STRENGTH TO STRENGTH These are the corridors of knowledge,

CHIEF OF AIIMS TRAUMA

CENTRE DR M.C. MISRA
WITH STUDENTS

58 INDIA TODAY ◆ JULY 11, 2016

 UNIVERSITY SPECIAL
the academic arena within which
students learn from their teachers
the ways of the human body—how it
works, what makes it tick.
Further down the corridors, an
unsavoury smell hangs in the air:
the stench of disease. The temple
of knowledge loses its way into a
teeming mass of humanity, spilling
over from every side. This is the out-
patient department, where every
day, over 4,000 people—ill, unwell
or injured—throng the passages, a
Rs 10 coupon in hand, and besiege
the doctors. They wait for hours on
uncomfortable wooden benches till
their turn comes. In their little cham-
bers, the doctors toil away, perfectly
RAJWANT RAWAT
WHY AIIMS
IS THE BEST
1 IDEAL PUBLIC INSTITUTION:
Has autonomous status, is
well-funded, enables
academic freedom and doesn’t
allow private practice. A centre of
excellence in terms of teachers
and students, values, teaching,
research and clinical care
TEACHER STUDENT RATIO: The
2
teacher to student ratio at AIIMS
is exceptional: 1:1.2 overall. This
allows modern, interactive, small-
group teaching. Problem-based
learning, with problems prepared
from clinical experience, is its
unique curriculum model
3 BODY OF KNOWLEDGE: A fresh
MBBS student in India is
supposed to spend the maxi-
mum number of hours on
anatomy. But there’s a severe
shortage of cadavers. Hence,
in most places, the ratio at the
dissection table is 1:30 or more,
because of few anatomy
teachers. At AIIMS, the ratio is
1:8, with students spending more
time in anatomy classes
4 CUTTING-EDGE CLASSROOM:
AIIMS consistently experiments
with new teaching tools: ultra-
scope, video-instruction systems,
MRIs, CTs, X-rays, ultrasono-
grams, e-learning and digital
technology, breathing new life
into the lecture theatre
5 A FUN EXPERIENCE: Those who
imagine AIIMS to be a hub of
uptight nerds, think again. It can
be a life-changing
experience, where you study
what you love, and interact with
some of the brightest young
minds. The annual student fes-
tival, PULSE, is considered the
largest socio-cultural-
literary-sports festival in the
medical fraternity
 MEDICAL
UNIVERSITY SPECIAL

TOP 10
MEDICAL UNIVERSITIES
Reputa- Quality Research Innova- Admi- Place- Security
tion Perce-
aca- Faculty publica- Student Infra- tion and ssion ment Global arrange- Total percep-
2016 UNIVERSITY NAME (TECHNOLOGY) of the of tions/ ptual
univer- demic reports / care structure gover- proce- opportu- exposure ments for tual score ranking
sity input projects nance dure nities students

ALL INDIA INSTITUTE OF MEDICAL SCIENCES

1 New Delhi
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 290041 1

2 MANIPAL UNIVERSITY Manipal 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 198341 2

KING GEORGE'S MEDICAL UNIVERSITY

3 Lucknow
3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 142995 3

UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF MEDICAL SCIENCES

4 New Delhi
4 4 4 4 4 5 5 4 4 5 5 126386 4

5 SRI RAMACHANDRA UNIVERSITY Chennai 5 6 5 6 5 4 4 4 6 4 4 124742 5

RAJIV GANDHI UNIVERSITY OF HEALTH

6 SCIENCES Bengaluru
5 5 5 5 5 6 6 6 4 5 5 123389 6

NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF MENTAL HEALTH

7 AND NEUROSCIENCES Bengaluru
7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 105424 7

8 DR DY PATIL VIDYAPEETH Pune 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 96173 8

9 BHARATI VIDYAPEETH UNIVERSITY Pune 9 9 10 9 9 9 9 10 9 9 9 78110 9

MAHARASHTRA UNIVERSITY OF HEALTH

10 SCIENCES Nashik
10 9 9 10 12 10 10 9 10 10 10 75436 10

aware that for most of their patients,
they are the last resort of hope. Dr
Amlesh Seth, surgeon of urology,
smiles: “It’s a great learning experi-
ence. Where else would students get
to see such a wide range of patients
and diseases?”
What makes a university great?
That’s the question to ask in this
season of rankings. Is it one that
matches academic credentials with
stunning surroundings? In a World
Bank report on what makes the best of
the best universities, education econ-
omist Jamil Salmi writes that a high
concentration of talented teachers,
researchers and students distinguish
top universities from their competi-
tors. But every ranking of universities,
globally, suffers from a problem: who
will measure the quality of teaching
in technical fields and how will the
impact be quantified?
The annual college rankings by
the US News & World Report ignores
‘intangibles’, such as ‘faculty dedica-
tion to teaching’. The Times Higher
Education rankings have tried to solve
the issue by measuring reputational
GURUMANTRA
questions on teaching, teacher-stu-
dent ratios and so on.
Let us consider AIIMS: if about
9 per cent of nearly 6 lakh students
who take the All India Pre-Medical/
Pre-Dental Entrance Test (AIPMT,
now NEET) exams get into a medical
college, just 0.67 per cent of the 1 lakh
students who take the AIIMS entrance
exam every year are able to clear it.
With manpower of over 10,000
AIIMS has not reached people, including 826 faculty, over
its stature overnight. 700 scholars in various courses,
Decades of extreme 800-plus postgraduate trainees and
fellows, it enjoys a very high stu-
hard work and dent-teacher ratio of 1:1.2 overall.
dedication have gone “The philosophy, ethics and patient
management that our students get
to make it the most trained in cannot be found anywhere
trusted brand in else,” says Dr G.K. Rath, chief of the
India. But there’s still Dr B.R. Ambedkar Institute-Rotary
Cancer Hospital at AIIMS. “In the last
immense untapped 10 years, the number of people apply-
potential in AIIMS” ing for teaching posts here has gone
up 10 times. Senior people from other
DR M.C. MISRA hospitals take up junior posts, just to
Chief, AIIMS Trauma Centre be in AIIMS.”

60 INDIA TODAY ◆ JULY 11, 2016

 MEDICAL
UNIVERSITY SPECIAL

NUMBERS

10,000 60 1,100
footfalls a day, years and still going strong. Jawaharlal annual publications a year, ranking
with some Nehru dream institute, set up to foster a third in a review of the world’s largest
4,000 patients scientific culture in modern India in 1956 database of peer-reviewed literature
coming to its by an Act of Parliament, is celebrating in the world, reports Current Medicine
main OPD alone its diamond jubilee this year Research and Practice, 2016

and most motivated young minds

WHAT’S NEW IN TOP 2 PUBLIC from around the country, the institu-
CURRICULUM? UNIVERSITIES tion has been able to experiment with
its unique model of curriculum and
ADOPT A PATIENT: AIIMS has just launched a new 1. AIIMS New Delhi
1 mode of learning: from modern, inter-
plan: Adopt a Patient, which involves seeking public 2. King George’s active, small-group teaching to prob-
donations for patients who are awaiting surgery Medical University
lem-based learning, allowing students
because they don’t have the money or are unable to Lucknow
the lead time to spend more hours in
continue rehabilitation expenses anatomy classes, experiment with
2 ELEVATED HELIPAD: With the Centre providing new teaching tools such as ultrascope,
funds, the project to build an elevated heliport for TOP 2 PRIVATE video-instruction systems, MRIs, CTs,
private use is under way at AIIMS UNIVERSITIES X-Rays, ultrasonograms, e-learning
and digital technology—breathing
3 ONLINE TRACKING: From online registration linking 1. Manipal new life into the lecture theatre.
all departments to facilitate appointments to online University Manipal But you will never understand
verification of BPL card holders seeking free services 2. Dr D Y Patil what AIIMS means unless you are
and treatments, AIIMS is going digital big-time Vidyapeeth Pune a patient there. Take Dr Seth, for
instance. Even his daily surgeries tan-
tamount to sessions with students.
And even patients, if they are not on
Another factor that sets top uni- publications is what AIIMS produces general anaesthesia, can follow what
versities apart is their sizeable bud- a year, ranking third in a review of is going on.
get, reports the World Bank task force the world’s largest database of peer- As Nirmal Joshi, 78, a patient with
on higher education: elite institutions reviewed literature in the world, initial stage cancer in the urinary
have higher funding for impressive reports Current Medicine Research bladder, says, “I saw my entire pro-
facilities, good infrastructure, opera- and Practice, April 2016, right after cedure on the screen in front of me.
tional spending and research. “All Massachusetts General Hospital and What’s more, with the doctor explain-
these are vital part of the educational Mayo Clinic in the US. ing to several of his students help-
experience of students,” says Dr M.C. World-class universities invari- ing him in the OT, I understood the
Misra, Director, AIIMS. ably thrive in an ecosystem that fos- entire experience fully.” It did not just
As the premier-most brand, AIIMS ters creativity, competitiveness and distract him during the procedure,
has the largest budget sanctioned by critical thinking. Flagship universi- explains his wife, it also made him
the Indian state: Rs 1,000 crore for ties in North America and Europe more positive during the healing pro-
planned allocation and Rs 1,043 crore are known for successfully combin- cess, post-surgeries.
for non-plan in 2016. “An encourag- ing freedom, autonomy and lead- So is it the beauty of a strong lead-
ing move,” says Misra. AIIMS has ership. Jawaharlal Nehru’s dream ership team, a well-thought-out cur-
already started the process of hir- institute, set up to foster a scientif- riculum, qualified academicians and
ing 100 faculty members and 1,000 ic culture in modern India in 1956 meritorious students? “AIIMS cer-
nurses to further boost the institution, by an Act of Parliament, AIIMS has tainly provides some of that, but what
he points out. New projects are com- been an autonomous body under the makes it great as an institution is
ing up: from expansion plans for the Union ministry for health right from its ability to take the hard road when
AIIMS Emergency block and Trauma the beginning. It is not answerable to the chips are down,” says Dr Misra.
Centre to new OPD blocks and a mother clunky bureaucracy and externally “Here, the only thing we are interes-
and childcare unit. A significant focus imposed standards. As a result, with ted in is making AIIMS a true place
area is research. About 1,100 annual its small student body of the brightest of learning.” ■

JULY 11, 2016 ◆ INDIA TODAY 61

 TECHNICAL
INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY Bombay

DIRECTOR DEVANG
KHAKHAR WITH IIT
BOMBAY STUDENTS

ENGINEERING
hen Shivam Garg and

W
his 20 friends partici-
pate in Europe’s biggest
educational motors-

AN EDUCATION
port event, Formula
Student, on July 14 in London, UK,
it will be another feather in the cap
of Indian Institute of Technology (IIT)

REVOLUTION
Bombay. Theirs is the only Indian
team which has designed an electric
car for this competition. They will
try to win their fourth straight award
as the best non-European team in
WIDE CHOICE, EXTRA-CURRICULAR this competition.
EMPHASIS AND A GREEN CAMPUS The racing team’s success story
is in sync with the rising graph of IIT
MAKE IIT BOMBAY A FUN ALMA MATER Bombay in the academic as well as
the non-academic sphere. Its healthy
By Kiran Tare educational climate and research-
oriented outlook has made it one of
the best technical institutes that also

62 INDIA TODAY ◆ JULY 11, 2016

 UNIVERSITY SPECIAL
MANDAR DEODHAR
encourages students to excel in
extracurricular activities.
With an impressive 1:14 fac-
ulty-student ratio, IIT Bombay is
the most sought-after institute for
engineering aspirants. It has wit-
nessed three big trends in the past
few years. The number of students
has grown from 5,300 in 2009 to
10,000 now. Computer science and
engineering, electrical engineering
and mechanical engineering are the
most sought- after courses.
There is almost five-fold growth
in its research and development
activities. Simultaneously, there is
huge student interest in entrepre-
neurship, with a vibrant startup
ecosystem developing around the
campus. No wonder, the institute
spent Rs 243 crore on R&D in 2015,
TOP 10
TECHNICAL UNIVERSITIES
INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
1 Bombay
INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
2 Delhi
INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
3 Madras
INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY-
4 Kanpur
INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
5 Kharagpur
INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
6 Roorkee
INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
7 Guwahati
NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF
8 TECHNOLOGY Tiruchirappalli
NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF
9 TECHNOLOGY Surathkal
NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF
10 TECHNOLOGY Warangal
TOP PUBLIC TOP PRIVATE
UNIVERSITY UNIVERSITY
Indian Institute of VIT University
Technology Vellore
Bombay
published 1,500 research papers,
produced 266 PhD scholars and filed
130 patents.
High-tech infrastructure facilities
such as the Laser Doppler Vibrometer,
High Resolution Mass Spectrometer,
Orientation Imaging Microscope and
Image-Based Diagnostic Systems give
researchers here a head start. They
have obtained licences for innova-
tions like the electric three-wheeler,
an Ethernet switch router, modular
toilet unit for Indian Railways and a
modular hybrid air conditioner.
Second-year student Anuraj
Gupta says the alumni association,
good placement offers and good on-
field experience at IIT Bombay serve
as a magnet for students. “Students
get good placement offers as the alum-
ni working with different companies
 TECHNICAL
UNIVERSITY SPECIAL

TOP 20
TECHNICAL UNIVERSITIES
Reputa- Quality Research Innova- Admi- Place- Security
tion aca- Faculty publica- Infra- tion and ssion ment Global arrange- Total percep- Perce-
2016 UNIVERSITY NAME (TECHNOLOGY) of the of
demic tions/ Student
care structure gover- proce- opportu- exposure ments ptual
for tual score ranking
univer- input reports / nance dure nities students
sity projects
INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
1 Bombay
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 246901 1

INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

2 Delhi
2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 236946 2

INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

3 Madras
3 3 3 3 3 2 3 3 3 3 3 231413 3

INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

4 Kanpur
4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 225626 4

INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

5 Kharagpur
5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 216779 5

INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

6 Roorkee
6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 150002 6

INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

7 Guwahati
7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 101669 7

NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

8 Tiruchirappalli
8 8 8 9 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 76491 8

NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

9 Surathkal
9 9 9 8 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 74558 9

NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

10 Warangal
10 10 11 10 11 10 10 10 11 10 10 55688 10

11 INDIAN SCHOOL OF MINES Dhanbad 11 11 10 11 10 11 11 11 10 11 11 54316 11

12 JADAVPUR UNIVERSITY Calcutta 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 49881 12

INSTITUTE OF CHEMICAL TECHNOLOGY -

13 Mumbai
13 13 13 13 13 13 13 13 13 13 13 40312 13

14 VIT UNIVERSITY - Vellore 14 14 14 14 14 14 14 14 14 13 14 37939 14

INDIAN INSTITUTE OF SPACE SCIENCE AND

15 TECHNOLOGY Thiruvananthapuram
15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15 35483 15

HOMI BHABHA NATIONAL INSTITUTE

16 Mumbai
16 16 16 17 16 16 16 17 17 16 16 28966 16

INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

17 Hyderabad
17 17 17 16 17 17 17 16 16 17 18 27733 17

INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

18 Indore
18 18 18 19 18 19 18 18 18 18 17 25751 18

MOTILAL NEHRU NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF

19 TECHNOLOGY Allahabad
19 18 18 18 18 20 19 19 18 19 19 25146 19

NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

20 Durgapur
20 18 20 20 21 17 20 20 20 20 21 23922 20

GURUMANTRA are sentimentally attached to the

institute. They then come looking for
A highly flexible curriculum with a lot the best brains.”
Figures vindicate Gupta’s asser-
of choice of subjects and an emphasis tion. Till June 2015, 310 organisa-
on extra-curricular activities make the tions had taken part in the campus
IIT Bombay education very effective.” placements and offered 1,118 jobs.
The year 2014-15 saw the largest
DEVANG KHAKHAR, Director registration for placement at 1,675;

64 INDIA TODAY ◆ JULY 11, 2016

 TECHNICAL
UNIVERSITY SPECIAL

NUMBER OF WHAT’S UNIQUE

Students Faculty ABOUT IIT BOMBAY?

1 The extremely flexible curriculum takes pressure off the students. One can
study civil engineering and computer science at the same time
10,000 596 2 It has spent Rs 243 crore on research and development in the last couple of years

3 It has got licences for innovations such as their electric three-wheeler, sewage
MOST SOUGHT BRANCHES treatment plant and fuel additives

COMPUTER SCIENCE AND
ENGINEERING
ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING
MECHANICAL ENGINEERING
4 Its emphasis on extra-curricular activities give students an advantage as it keep
them engaged throughout the year in culture, sports and technology competitions
5 It encourages entrepreneurship through its two big annual events, Mood Indigo
and Techfest which attract sponsorships that often run into crores from across
the world

NEW COURSES
introduced in last five years
● BACHELOR OF DESIGN (BDES)
● EXECUTIVE MBA, JOINTLY WITH
WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY, ST LOUIS
THE FESTIVE
GROUND
MOOD INDIGO: Asia’s largest cultural
festival at college level
TECHFEST: A science and technology
festival to promote technology, scien-
tific thinking and innovation
SALARY
passouts earned in 2015
Highest Highest
international domestic Average
65 lakh 34 lakh 9.5 lakh
per annum per annum per annum
DID YOU KNOW?
BHARAT DESAI, THE RICHEST
IITIAN IS AN ALUMNUS
of them 1,118 got jobs. The institute
has not only produced well-quali-
fied engineers but also equally qual-
ified consultants. Last year, 155 jobs
were offered in field of data analytics
making it the biggest recruiter after
engineering and information tech-
nology companies. It was followed
by job offers in corporate consulting
(107), financial services (100), R&D
(48) and educational institutes (45),
public sector (10) and FMCG (6).
Obviously, jobs in engineering and
technology were the highest at 381
followed by IT (199).
In 2015, around 365 job offers
were of a salary more than Rs 11
lakh per annum. Only 83 were
offered a salary less than Rs 5 lakh
a year. The highest domestic salary
offer was Rs 34 lakh a year, and the
highest international salary offer
was Rs 65 lakh per annum. The
average domestic salary offer was
Rs 9.5 lakh per annum.
Located close to two lakes, Vihar
and Powai, the IIT Bombay campus
is a natural delight for its students.
The greenery and the pleasant
atmosphere keep him energetic,
says student Archit Sanadhya. Of
course, the Gulmohar Cafeteria,
or Gullu as students call it and the
Students’ Activity Centre remain
favourite haunts.
Director Devang Khakhar says
the highly flexible curriculum which
offer plentiful choice of subjects and
hands-on learning make the IIT
Bombay education very effective.
“The campus experience trans-
forms our students,” he says. “We
provide them rigorous academic
work and excellent extra-curricu-
lar facilities. Our modern laborato-
ries allow students to participate in
research. Our core strength is our
outstanding faculty.”
The institute introduced two
new courses last year, a Bachelor in
Design (BDes) and Executive MBA
,jointly with Washington University,
St Louis. Around 800 students had
applied for the 35 seat BDes course.
Separate gyms, playing areas,
sports library, mess and shops at
each of the 16 hostels keep students
occupied. They also look forward to
two big annual events, Mood Indigo,
Asia’s largest cultural festival at the
college level, and Techfest, a sci-
ence & technology festival to pro-
mote technology, scientific thinking
and innovation.
Stories of the simplicity of two
of its alumni—defence minister
Manohar Parrikar and entrepre-
neur-turned-politician Nandan
Nilekani—are legion. But there’s
equal interest in the likes of
Bharat Desai, chairman of IT firm
Syntel. “After all, he is the richest
IITian,” says a student. And his role
model too. ■
 LAW
NATIONAL LAW SCHOOL OF INDIA UNIVERSITY Bangalore

MAKING A
CASE FOR
EXCELLENCE
RENOWNED FOR THEIR
INCOMPARABLE
BREADTH AND
METHODOLOGY, NLSIU
CONTINUES TO RULE
THE ROOST
By Aravind Gowda

ow many educational

H
institutes in this coun-
try can boast of former
chief justices in its fac-
ulty? And not just chief
justices from India, but those from
other countries as well, who want to
be part of the distinctive brand of legal
studies that the university has creat-
ed? Not many students in the coun-
try are fortunate to be part of classes
conducted by such legal luminaries.
Doesn’t that make us the best?” asks
Prof (Dr) R. Venkata Rao, vice-chan-
cellor, National Law School of India
University (NLSIU), the premier insti-
tute for legal education in the country.
The proud VC doesn’t stop there,
rattling off figures to back his claims.
“All the top 55 students of CLAT
(Common Law Admission Test)
every year choose NLSIU by default.
We don’t ask them to join us…. I
have known students who have left
AIIMS, IIM Ahmedabad and IITs to VICE CHANCELLOR
R. VENKATA RAO WITH
join NLSIU. What motivated them to STUDENTS
drop such promising plans in favour
NILOTPAL BARUAH

66 INDIA TODAY ◆ JULY 11, 2016

 UNIVERSITY SPECIAL

of us? I believe it’s the impact NLSIU
has made on legal education in the
country and students want to study
in the best university,” declares Prof
Rao, with more than a touch of pride.
Heading the institute since 2009, he
is partly responsible for consolidat-
ing its image as one of the most cov-
eted places to study in.
Since it was established in 1987,
the NLSIU has single-handedly ush-
ered in a paradigm shift in legal edu-
cation in the country. Spread over
23 acres adjoining the Bangalore
University and the Institute of
Social & Economic Change (ISEC) in
Nagarabhavi, Bengaluru, the NLSIU
campus is an oasis of greenery, a calm
escape from the hustle and bustle of
the city. Law school students are easy
to spot taking a breather at eateries
and roadside outlets, which have
sprung up over the last few years.
NLSIU has become a landmark of
sorts for Bengaluru now, something
local residents take pride in.
Many legal experts are of the
opinion that the NLSIU is the pole
star of legal education in the coun-
try. It has spawned a new generation
of law schools that focus on interac-
tive teaching. Following the success
of the NLSIU model, the Union gov-
ernment proposed the setting up of
several law schools in many states
through a special Act. “Well, the pre-
amble of the Bill clearly states that
law schools will be modeled on the
lines of NLSIU. What more can I say?
This is our greatest recognition to
date. It will not be an exaggeration to
state that we have laid the foundation
stone for a realistic legal education
in this country where law cannot be
studied in isolation any more,” con-
tends Prof Rao.
The NLSIU offers an undergrad-
uate course (BA LLB), postgradu-
ate programmes (LLM), research
degrees and distance education
programmes. The BA LLB is the
most popular course, admission to
which students across the country
vie for. International students are
also admitted to the five-year pro-
gramme, considered one of the most
rigorous as students need to perform
consistently through the year.
There are multiple factors that
combine to make NLSIU distinctive.
“Reaching the top is, but maintain-
ing that rank is a major challenge.
The NLSIU continues to remain the
premier law school in surveys con-
ducted by leading media houses in
the country. We literally push our-
selves against the wall. Much of the
credit goes to our education system
and especially our teaching method-
ology, which has a profound impact

WHAT’S UNIQUE TOP 2 PUBLIC

ABOUT NLSIU UNIVERSITIES
1. National Law
1 The focus is on innovation in teaching and research— School of India
classroom interactions are dialogue-oriented University Bangalore
2. NALSAR University
2 There has been a paradigm shift in law education in India,
of Law Hyderabad
with students giving up IIM-IIT seats to join it, claims VC

3 Professionals from outside the university engage

with students on a variety of subjects for which TOP 2 PRIVATE
certifications are granted UNIVERSITIES
4 Students are empowered to take up responsibility of 1. ILS Law College,
managing activities involving faculty and students Institute of Advanced
Freedom of speech is sacrosanct here. There is a sign- Legal Studies Pune
5 2. Symbiosis Intern-
board in the campus and students can express their opin-
ion on the board by scribbling or drawing ational Educational
Centre Pune
 LAW
UNIVERSITY SPECIAL

TOP 10
L AW U N I V E R S I T I E S
Reputa- Quality Research Innova- Admi- Place- Security
tion Perce-
aca- Faculty publica- Infra- tion and ssion ment Global arrange- Total percep-
2016 UNIVERSITY NAME (TECHNOLOGY) of the of tions/ Student ptual
univer- demic reports/ care structure gover- proce- opportu- exposure ments for tual score
input nance dure nities students ranking
sity projects
NATIONAL LAW SCHOOL OF INDIA
1 UNIVERSITY Bangalore
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 242339 1

NALSAR UNIVERSITY OF LAW

2 Hyderabad
2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 228619 2

3 UNIVERSITY OF DELHI New Delhi 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 191494 3

4 BANARAS HINDU UNIVERSITY Varanasi 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 183396 4

5 INDIAN LAW INSTITUTE New Delhi 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 170428 5

ILS LAW COLLEGE INSTITUTE OF

6 ADVANCED LEGAL STUDIES Pune
6 6 6 7 7 6 6 6 6 7 6 121715 6

THE WEST BENGAL NATIONAL UNIVERSITY

7 OF JURIDICAL SCIENCES Kolkata
7 7 7 6 6 7 7 7 7 6 7 118376 7

GUJARAT NATIONAL LAW

8 UNIVERSITY (GNLU) Gujarat
8 9 9 8 9 8 8 8 8 9 8 110160 8

SYMBIOSIS INTERNATIONAL
9 EDUCATIONAL CENTRE Pune
8 8 8 9 8 8 8 9 9 8 9 109854 9

10 UNIVERSITY OF MUMBAI 10 10 11 11 10 12 11 12 11 10 10 84622 10

on students in the long term,” Prof
Rao points out.
Regular classes are conduct-
ed between 8.30 am and 1.30 pm,
but the academic discourse contin-
ues for long afterwards. There are
seminars and discussions lined up
through the day on contemporary
and evolving issues such as e-com-
merce, intellectual property, cyber
laws, climate change, international
law, mergers and acquisitions, com-
petition law, and infrastructure proj-
ects. Slotted after class hours, these
are conducted by external domain
experts and faculty. Though these
seminars are not part of the cur-
riculum per se, students are encour-
aged to attend them to broaden their
understanding.
As part of the curriculum, stu-
dents have to prepare and present
research papers on a variety of sub-
jects. Over five years, each student
would have prepared at least 63
such reports. “For every report, the
student will have to face viva-voce. By
the end of five years, the student is
equipped (with the tools of the trade)
to take part in any kind of discus-
sion. Students undergo rigorous and
GURUMANTRA intense training in report-writing and
discussion. In the process, their com-
munication skills, which are so vital
for them to succeed in this profession,
are enhanced,” adds Prof Rao.
Another added advantage is that
students are provided internship pro-
grammes in leading law firms, corpo-
rate houses, and even with high court
and Supreme Court judges from the
first year itself. Interestingly, even
Education is the during their vacations, students opt
for internship programmes. “We
process of mould- expose our students to every aspect of
ing personalities. It is the legal profession and culture from
the bridge you have to day one. Students opt for internships
by choice and not chance. Some of
cross to become truly them use the opportunity to explore
human. We seek to pro- the social sector and hone their inter-
vide this sort of learn- ests,” notes Prof Rao, adding that the
student profile has changed dramati-
ing to our students” cally over the years, as they are more
exploratory in nature.
R. VENKATA RAO, Students enjoy absolute freedom
Vice-Chancellor, National Law and liberty on the campus, and are
School of India University encouraged to engage in discus-
sions with faculty on a daily basis.

68 INDIA TODAY ◆ JULY 11, 2016

 LAW
UNIVERSITY SPECIAL

“Classroom sessions should never Bar Association (SBA) enjoys sub-

NEW COURSES be restricted to monologues. In our stantial autonomy to engage in a
introduced in last five years institute, the classroom sessions wide range of activities. It forms 12
are vibrant...students argue with ABCs (activity-based committees),
MASTER OF PUBLIC POLICY the faculty. We encourage them to each with a niche focus, be it festi-
LLM IN BUSINESS LAW & question our wisdom. At the same vals, debates and recruitment so that
HUMAN RIGHTS time, the faculty is indirectly chal- students can learn from the experi-
POSTGRADUATE DIPLOMA lenged by students to upgrade their ence of managing events and working
IN CYBER LAWS & CONSUMER LAWS knowledge. There’s an atmosphere with a team by the time they step out
of healthy debate and the students of the institute.
thrive on it.” The law school has also main-
“No educational institute can tained its pre-eminence by produc-
WHAT’S NEW IN achieve the best in its field without ing legal eagles who have conquered
CURRICULUM? giving absolute freedom of speech the toughest of moot court contests
and expression to students,” asserts across the world, including the fierce-
●e-commerce ● net neutrality Prof Rao. Controversial topics such as ly contested Jesuit Memorial Moot
● cyber crimes ● infrastructure contracts ban on beef, Bharat Mata ki Jai and Court competition and the Manfred
● international contracts the recent uproar over nationalism in Lachs Space Law Moot Court contest.
● private international law JNU have become the focus of debates Students of the college have also con-
at NLSIU. sistently been securing Rhodes schol-
Students have arships every year.
the option of explor- Though a major-
ing socially relevant ity of students get
issues through the DID YOU KNOW? into the corporate
medium of work- sector or end up
THE FESTIVE shops or debates. ROCK BAND working with mul-
GROUND Students recently PARIKRAMA HAD ITS tinational com-
conducted a study on BAPTISM IN NLSIU. ITS panies, the trend
NLSUI is known for its annual fests
queer issues on the FIRST PERFORMANCE seems to be chang-
LEGALA—Intercollegiate and campus. As many as WAS AT THE UNIVER- ing in the last five
cultural fest 397 students partici- SITY’S ANNUAL ROCK years. “It is heart-
pated in the survey MUSIC FESTIVAL ening that some of
STRAWBERRY FIELDS—Student
and openly revealed STRAWBERRY FIELDS our students have
rock show
their sexual orienta- been successful in
SPIRITUS—Sports festival
tion. It is a progres- the civil services
CONSILIENCE—Conference on law sive campus that allows participatory examination. Some pass-outs typi-
and technology issues talks on such divisive issues. cally pursue higher studies abroad
The liberal underpinnings of the while another lot prefers research.
campus shone through when students The strong foundation that the course
earlier this year took objection to the provides can be built upon to branch
NUMBER OF
remarks made by a faculty member out into any discipline. We take pride
Students Faculty on their classmate’s choice of attire. in a curriculum that allows that,” says
“We put that issue to rest…,” declares Professor Rao.
Prof Rao. There is no enforced dress The best part perhaps of being
code on campus and students can a student at NLSIU is that barring
550 60 wear what they please (this includes those enrolled in distance education
attending class in pyjamas). “We programmes, all students stay on the
believe in providing a comfortable campus and are always wired up for
SALARY atmosphere to students. They have the next thing on their agenda. “This
come so far to study in a setup that year’s CLAT topper is from Bengaluru
passouts were offered in 2015 focuses on excellence. So we have to and he has joined NLSIU. But he will
Highest Average make them feel comfortable,” says stay in our campus hostel and study
Prof Rao, smiling. here because we believe in provid-
Rs 18 lakh Rs 13.7 The students are empowered ing holistic education and it is pos-
per annum lakh pa to make decisions in some routine sible only when all the factors come
aspects of the institute. The Student together,” says Prof Rao. ■
 GUEST COLUMN
ARE WE BUILDING THE
UNIVERSITIES INDIA NEEDS?
ith eight Indian uni-
W versities in the top
100 and a total of
16 in the top 200
South Asian univer-
sities list, India has seen its best ever
performance in the Times Higher
Education Asia University Rankings
2016. However, the reality is that we,
as a country, still have a long way to
go when it comes to quality higher
education.
India has the highest number of
higher education institutes in the
world. There are 26.7 million stu-
dents enrolled in higher education
institutes across the country. The gov-
ernment has a Gross Enrolment Ratio
(GER) target of 30 per cent by 2020.
Our student enrolment number is
likely to go to 40 million by 2020. This
requires our higher education capac-
ity to expand 1.5 times in five years.
Clearly, we have a challenge of num-
bers. We have an even bigger chal-
lenge of quality.
The issue of quantity has largely
been met by the private sector. As a
result, the private sector accounts for
62 per cent students in higher educa-
tion and its role is likely to increase.
Though the private sector’s reputa-
tion on quality is suspect, yet, there is
a strong case for private investment
in higher education. If executed in the
right manner, private sector invest-
ment has the potential to transform
India’s higher education landscape.
However, some key aspects need to be
looked at if India has to build universi-
ties for the future.
The first key aspect is that of gov-
ernance. The issue of governance
firstly applies to the way higher edu-
cation is regulated, where we need
high standards for accreditation
rather than high barriers to entry.
70 INDIA TODAY ◆ JULY 11, 2016
VINEET PRAMATH RAJ ASHISH SANJEEV
GUPTA SINHA DHAWAN BIKHCHANDANI
Institutions need greater autonomy to The CSR Act is a shot in the arm for
design their own courses and recruit such a model.
faculty. The issue of governance also The second key driver to build-
applies to the way institutions govern ing universities that India needs is
themselves. Most universities in India high quality faculty. Top faculty are
are either controlled by the govern- more likely to join initiatives which
ment or by family-run trusts. While promise autonomy and focus on
the former governance structure has excellence. Also, critical to nurtur-
been steeped in bureaucracy, the lat- ing excellence is institutional inde-
ter has had a reputation for profi- pendence. Institutions not only need
teering and often compromised on to offer the right rewards and incen-
meritocracy. It may be worthwhile to tives for recruiting top faculty but
explore how some of the top univer- also need to develop student feedback
sities in the US got created. Stanford mechanisms and peer review to mea-
University was created by a generous sure faculty performance. Greater
grant from former California gover- emphasis needs to be given to faculty
nor Leland Stanford in memory of his development and training. The good
son, Leland Jr., who died at a young news is that a significant number of
age of 15. Harvard University received younger faculty graduating from top
a generous grant from John Harvard institutions from around the world
very early in 1638, two years after its are now willing to look at Indian pri-
establishment in 1636. The same is vate universities if they feel that they
true for a lot of US universities, which will get the right environment at such
came up on private philanthropy and institutions.
had independent broad-based gover- The third key aspect to build-
nance structures. These structures ing top quality universities is cur-
created private independent universi- riculum and pedagogy. Institutional
ties which were acting for public good. autonomy helps top faculty bring in
Also, a model of shared governance innovative curriculum and pedagogy.
brings in more accountability and Universities need to offer curriculum
helps foster a culture of innovation which encourages multi-disciplin-
and excellence. Shared governance ary learning and helps develop skills
and collective philan- of communication,
thropy also helps build THE STUDENT critical thinking and
trust with academics. problem solving. The
What does this
ENROLMENT curriculum needs to
model hold for India? NUMBER IS move away from rote
In a situation where LIKELY TO GO learning to a peda-
we need many high TO 40 MILLION gogy that encourages
quality universities, BY 2020. THIS debate and discussion.
can collective philan- Assessments need
thropy create institu-
REQUIRES OUR to change from pure
tions of excellence? HIGHER EDUCA- examinations to being
The answer is yes. It is TION CAPACITY TO more activity based
a difficult model to pur- EXPAND 1.5 TIMES and experiential. And
sue but a model that IN FIVE YEARS finally, technology has
India cannot ignore. to play a greater role
 UNIVERSITY SPECIAL
to enable instruction.
Enabling legislations from some
state governments has helped
unshackle bureaucracy and given
autonomy to private universities.
Haryana is a case in point. The state,
which has 17 private universities,
has created an enabling legislation,
which helped to cultivate autono-
my. Ashoka University was set up in
2014 in Haryana and is an interest-
ing model that bodes well for univer-
sities of the future in India.
The world is talking of spending
a billion dollars on setting up a new
university (Cornell’s new campus in
Qatar cost $750 million in 2002).
The Ashoka model has proven that
$120 million (roughly Rs 750 crore)
is what it takes to build a high qual-
ity university in India for about 4,000
students and with the right ingredi-
ents of governance, autonomy, fac-
ulty and academic rigour, such an
institution can impart a quality of
education comparable to top insti-
tutions of the world. The price point
for such an education can be around
$10,000 per annum or about one
fifth of what it will take in a top uni-
versity in the west. The economics
also allow you to recruit high qual-
ity students from around the world
and provide scholarships to students
who may not be able to pay the full
fee. Such an institution has a chance
of making it to global top rankings
over a short period of time.
The last five years have seen
some genuine private philanthropic
initiatives come up in higher edu-
cation. This augurs well for India.
Not only will this create more sup-
ply side capacity but also it will cre-
ate an intellectual environment that
will nurture faculty and excellence
in higher education in India. These
institutions have the potential to
create a revolution in India—a rev-
olution that can make India a glob-
al education hub. India can be the
place where the world will send its
children to be educated.
The authors are founders
and trustees of Ashoka University
INTERVIEW
Foreign varsities can
compete with Indian
universities on a
level playing field”
Suneel Galgotia, chancellor of
Galgotias University, an emerg-
ing private university, spoke on
the challenges faced by private
players in education.
Despite accounting for over 60
per cent of the country’s gross
enrolment, why do private
institutions still face scepticism
over quality?
The sudden rise of private edu-
cational institutions has resulted
in stiff competition. Only those
institutions able to combine
the essentials of quality profes-
sors, superior infrastructure
and ensuring good placements
for students have managed to
survive and grow. As the sec-
tor evolves, scepticism is being
replaced by enthusiasm.
Education in private universi-
ties is usually expensive and
thereby inaccessible. How can
you strike a balance?
There is an opportunity for all
sections of society to get access to
quality education in the private
sector. They can also avail of the
scholarship programmes being
offered by private institutions.
Do you support foreign
universities opening branches
in India?
I welcome foreign universi-
ties to India but a level playing
field needs to be established for
Indian universities to compete
with foreign ones internationally.
 SPORT CRICKET
OVER TO KUMBLE
India’s most successful bowler of all time takes over as coach of the national team,
determined to stay away from the spotlight and not to steal his players’ thunder
By Kunal Pradhan and Vikrant Gupta
F
or 18 years—the time it takes
a newborn to reach adulthood,
be eligible to drive, marry,
vote—Anil Kumble was a con-
stant in Indian public life, operating at
a level of excellence that is rare across
fields and disciplines. The most suc-
cessful custodian of the country’s spin
tradition, he is Indian cricket’s great-
est match-winner, highest wicket-tak-
er, and only the second man in history
to capture all 10 wickets in a Test
innings. Through this journey, he has
been written off a few times, criticised
more than once for “not turning the
ball enough”, and not quite accorded
the legendary status that Indian fans
seem to reserve only for batsmen.
But in spite of the highs and lows, ups
and downs, triumphs and disappoint-
ments, the only time Kumble was ever
truly nervous was on the morning of
June 21, when he appeared for his
first-ever job interview in Kolkata.
“It was quite a day!” the 45-year-
old says, speaking exclusively to INDIA
TODAY about his presentation to, and
the viva voce by, the high-powered
Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC) of
the Board of Control for Cricket in India
(BCCI) in response to his application
for the job of head coach of the nation-
al team. “I was sitting across
three people I’d spent so many
years in the dressing room with,
but it felt pretty different from
all the intense cricketing discus-
sions we’d had in the past,” he
says. “It was nerve-wracking.”
The three people inter-
viewing Kumble were his long-
time allies on the field—Sachin
Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and
72 INDIA TODAY ◆ JULY 11, 2016
with short-term gains. We must win
V.V.S. Laxman. And no matter how
at home, he told Ganguly, Laxman and
anxious Kumble might have felt, the
Tendulkar, but sharpen our skills for
view from across the table was that he
all conditions—we can’t have tailor-
managed to conduct himself with the
made turning tracks that allow our
same calm meticulousness they were
spinners to finish home Tests in three
well familiar with. A quick, official,
days, only for them to bowl hopelessly
almost unfamiliar “Good afternoon,
on faster pitches abroad. “The prem-
folks” disarmed the committee. From
then on, it was all Kumble. ise he took off from was exactly what
the committee wanted to hear,” says
“He raised issues and the CAC
another source explaining the thought
simply nodded in agreement,” says
process that led to ‘Jumbo’ (Kumble’s
an insider aware of the goings-on in
nickname because of his large feet)
the room. “He spoke about the aggres-
finally getting Indian cricket’s most
sive streak in Virat Kohli and some of
high-profile and high-pressure job on
the others in the team, and how to
June 23. “He convinced them that he
channelise it. He wasn’t too happy
had the right idea in mind.”
with the conditioning of spinners and
laid emphasis on picking 20 wicketsKumble had decided to throw his
hat in the ring a couple of weeks ago,
abroad. The committee could tell that
while on holiday with his family. “We
Kumble had done his homework. He
started talking about what I wanted
didn’t want the job solely on the basis
to do in the future, and the conversa-
of his credentials as a player.”
tion hovered around the head coach’s
The two key questions posed to
job, because I knew the Indian team
him were: why should he be chosen
would be looking for one,” he says. He
as coach, and how could he help India
told his wife, Chethana, that if he got
improve a poor overseas record. For
the assignment, it would mean being
90 minutes, Kumble cast his vision
away from home for months, like
for Team India over steaming cups of
it was during his playing days. “She
tea. With India playing almost all Tests
said she’d support me, as she’s always
at home over the next 12 months,
done, and how the kids were at an age
bar the four in West Indies this July,
where it would be okay. That was it: I
Kumble refused to get preoccupied
put in my application.”
The wheels within the BCCI
got into motion quickly. One of
“I WAS SITTING ACROSS THREE Kumble’s principal contend-
PEOPLE I’D SPENT SO MANY YEARS ers was another former Test
captain, Ravi Shastri, who had
IN THE INDIAN DRESSING ROOM been handling the team in vari-
WITH, BUT IT FELT DIFFERENT... ous capacities over the last 18
months, and had reportedly
IT WAS NERVE-WRACKING” built quite a rapport with Kohli.
Though the initial argument
Mr Googly
KUMBLE’S DAZZLING
CAREER IN NUMBERS

TESTS
Matches 132
Wickets 619
Best 10-74
Average 29.65

ODIS
Matches 271
Wickets 337
Best 6-12
Average 30.89

Photograph by VIKRAM SHARMA

 SPORT CRICKET
against Kumble was that he didn’t
have the experience or the coaching
diplomas that were mandatory for
the job, a player of his pedigree had
to at least be heard. “Once he got into
the meeting room, the balance tilted
quickly,” says the insider. Ravi Shastri,
disappointed at missing out, has hinted
that he didn’t get a fair hearing, with
Ganguly skipping his presentation, but
was graceful enough to congratulate
Kumble on the challenges ahead. He
was purportedly offered the job of bat-
ting coach, but turned that down.
GOLDEN GENERATION
What makes Kumble slipping into
this new role significant is that it
portends a new era in Indian crick-
et, wherein the ‘golden generation’
that retired between 2008 and 2013
is now involved in running the sport
in various capacities. Tendulkar and
Laxman are part of the CAC along with
Ganguly, who is also the head of the
Cricket Association of Bengal. Rahul
Dravid is the coach of the India A team.
And Kumble is the head coach of the
national team. It’s a kind of reunion
that Indian cricket had always hoped
for, not on the field of play but in the
corridors of power that have long been
accused of being too disconnected with
GETTYIMAGES
the concerns and needs of
the players and fans that
are the sport’s lifeblood. “MY JOB AS COACH IS TO BE
Of the five, Kumble was IN THE BACKGROUND, TO HELP
always the most unlikely
hero. Instead of being a MAKE INFORMED DECISIONS.
macho, bench-pressing ONCE THE MATCH STARTS, THE
sporting superstar, he
seemed to have walked CAPTAIN CALLS THE SHOTS”
out of engineering school
having studied trajectories
and rotations, and applied them on of the Test and go back home, not as
the field with the precision of a phys- a threat or an ultimatum but because
ics professor. He was an honest trier he felt he may have genuinely reached
whose effort couldn’t be questioned, the end of his tether. Dazed and con-
and matured into an elder statesman fused, Ganguly reasoned with Kumble
whose sense of self-worth was never to hang on, at least till the end of the
more than his actual value. series. In a twist of fate, Harbhajan suf-
An anecdote from India’s tour of fered a finger injury during that Test.
Australia in 2003 perhaps best high- Kumble got into the side, grabbed 24
lights Kumble’s unique mindset in wickets in the remaining three match-
a country where our top cricketers es, helped fashion a historic victory in
are almost always reluctant to let go. Adelaide, and completely reinvented
When Kumble was made to sit out of his bowling to remain at the top of
the first Brisbane Test—because his his game until he finally quit, at New
form had dipped after a shoulder injury Delhi’s Ferozeshah Kotla in 2008—
two years before that and Harbhajan this time as captain.
Singh had briefly donned the mantle Harbhajan talks about Kumble’s
of India’s principal spinner—Kumble ability to put team before self. “When
knocked on captain Ganguly’s door I first walked into the Indian dress-
on the end of the first day’s play. ing room, he was ‘Kumble Sir’ to
Kumble told Ganguly that he wanted me. Soon, when India would play
to announce his retirement at the end overseas, there were times when I
KUMBLE MAY HAVE TO WEIGH
IN ON THE ISSUE OF SPLIT
CAPTAINCY BETWEEN VIRAT
KOHLI (LEFT) AND M.S. DHONI

Highlights
1990 Makes his TEST DEBUT on the
tour of England at Old Trafford
NOVEMBER 27, 1993 GRABS
6 FOR 12 against West Indies in
Calcutta, a NEW INDIAN RECORD,
and wins India the Hero Cup
1996 PICKS UP 105 TEST and 61
ODI WICKETS, to be named as one of
Wisden’s CRICKETERS OF THE YEAR
FEBRUARY 7, 1999 Becomes
THE SECOND MAN, after England’s
Jim Laker, to take ALL 10 WICKETS
in an innings gainst Pakistan at Kotla
MAY 12, 2002 Bowls 14 OVERS
on the third day of the fourth Test
against West Indies in Antigua with a
heavily STRAPPED BROKEN JAW
DECEMBER 2003 Takes
24 WICKETS over three Tests, after
being LEFT OUT of the first, as India
draw the series against Australia
DECEMBER 10, 2004 GOES
PAST Kapil Dev as INDIA’S LEADING
TEST WICKET-TAKER in Dhaka
AUGUST 2007 Slams his
MAIDEN TEST HUNDRED—17 YEARS
into his career—at The Oval in London
NOVEMBER, 2007 Becomes
TEST CAPTAIN after 118 MATCHES
JANUARY 17, 2008 Grabs his
600TH TEST WICKET when he
claims Andrew Symonds’s wicket on
the second day of the Perth Test
NOVEMBER 2, 2008
Announces HIS RETIREMENT on
the fifth afternoon on the Delhi Test
against Sri Lanka
SPORT CRICKET
would be in the XI as lone spinner. But
‘Anil bhai’ never flinched. If his own
with, India’s first foreign coach, the
New Zealander John Wright, is the
sacrifice meant that the team would one Kumble wants to emulate. “His
benefit, he would readily do it,” he style was to observe, organise qual-
says, adding that he’s most excited ity training, focus on fitness, always
at Kumble’s new role because “we be available when we needed strate-
are lucky to have him in the dressing gic inputs, but let the captain lead. His
room again”. methods will definitely be in the back
of my mind. But I also believe a coach
COACHING PHILOSOPHY must get his hands dirty—be a part
But while the congratulatory messag- of the training, run around with the
es pour in—Sunil Gavaskar has predi- boys, maybe bowl a few deliveries in
cted Kumble as head coach means the nets. I’ll do all those things as well.”
“Indian cricket will soon see acchhe One tough choice Kumble may
din” and Kapil Dev has called it a soon have to make is weigh in on the
“bold move that will lend more teeth issue of the split captaincy between
to Indian cricket”—he has much to do. Kohli and M.S. Dhoni—a precedent
The critical question he has to that began during his own reign as
answer is how he envisages the role of Test captain when Dhoni started lead-
a coach in cricket, and what sort of phi- ing in the shorter versions. There are
losophy he will embrace. What makes growing calls that it’s time for Kohli
this an interesting discussion is that a to be appointed as the leader across
cricket coach is traditionally different formats, with outgoing coach Shastri
from a manager in football or basket- a public proponent of such a shift.
ball. In those sports, the action is so While Kumble is unwilling to spec-
fast-paced and the workload of indi- ulate on that, what excites him about
vidual players so high that a manager this Indian team is that it’s a young side
is needed to oversee strategy from the brimming with talent. “The average
sidelines. Cricket, on the
other hand, is played at a
more leisurely pace, allow-
ing a captain to take the “I ALSO BELIEVE A COACH
call, with the coach playing
a supporting role rather
MUST GET HIS HANDS DIRTY—
than being the boss. Teams BE A PART OF TRAINING, RUN
where coaches gets overas- AROUND WITH THE BOYS, BOWL A
sertive have almost always
floundered—for example, FEW DELIVERIES IN THE NETS”
the disruptive tenure of
the always-in-the-spotlight
Greg Chappell as the Team India coach age is in the mid-20s. Someone like
between 2005 and 2007. Virat, the leader of the Test team, has
Ask Kumble about his idea of played about 40-odd Tests. The most
coaching, and he, while not saying it experienced is Ishant, with about 65.
in as many words, suggests he’ll be There is a lot for them to imbibe, to
as far removed from the ‘Chappell learn, to grow. I feel the time is right
Way’ as possible. “It’s important for for me to give something to this unit,
a cricket coach at this level to under- and give something back to the game.”
stand that he’s not a player,” he says. So, for a generation that grew up
“My job is to be in the background, to watching Kumble and thought he was
give players my inputs so that they done rolling his arm over for India, the
can make informed decisions. Once appointment comes as a happy sur-
the match starts, the captain calls prise. The new coach of the Indian
the shots. I can just make sure he has team promises to roll his arm—in the
all the tools at his disposal, the right nets, away from the spotlight—over
preparation, and use various enablers and over again.
to ensure the players are motivated.” Follow the writers on Twitter @_kunal_pradhan
From the coaches he has worked and @vikrantgupta73
 SONGS OF
THE WOUNDE
Twenty five years of terror, alienation, exile. Kashmir’s art
echoes the rage. And is now demanding a stage to vent it.
The Srinagar Biennale will be a first step
By Chinki Sinha

76 INDIA TODAY ◆ JULY 11, 2016

 THE ARTS
KASHMIR
MASOOD
HUSSAIN, 63
Srinagar

A JJ School of
Art alumnus,
he returned to
Kashmir to teach
at the univer-
sity and is among “Come butcher,
sing me a song
the state’s most
famous artists.
Was one of the

For I am waiting for

organisers of Khoj
Kasheer in 2007

Photographs By M ZHAZO
sleep to come
Weave me a lullaby”
Ten sheep skins on the wall instead of a blackboard. On the school
chair, an oxygen mask. Underneath, an oxygen cylinder. Ice, and a
notebook. Shoe moulds on another wall.
A childhood in a lost place. A memoir of extremes. Made in 2013,
by a Kashmiri artist in Lahore.
The artist, a young man called Ehtisham Azhar, whose eyes
change colour with the intensity of the sun, is trying to free his art
of site. Art is not a safe pursuit for him any more. The question that
now troubles him is—“Who am I, and what am I to you?” Nostalgia is
nauseating, he says. It can morph everything into a grotesque motif
of what war can do.
Azhar, 25, is one of the many artists from the Valley who gath-
ered at the Zero Bridge Cafe on the evening of June 14 to make an
announcement that could liberate art from the purgatory the years
of insurgency have condemned it to. For 40 years, they have strug-
gled to get themselves an art gallery. The only art gallery that ever
opened in the Valley—in 2014—was shut down by its tourism depart-
ment. Now, it’s time for a Srinagar Biennale. That evening, artists
in the Valley made the announcement that it will be held next year.
Let the world witness the baggage, the emotions people in “paradise
lost” live with every day of their lives. In the absence of hope, they feel
their stories must have an audience. “Maybe some good will come of
it,” says painter Masood Hussain.
In 2014, Syed Mujtaba Rizvi, a painter and photographer who

ED
fancies himself a cultural entrepreneur, had opened the art gallery
under his registered organisation, Kashmir Art Quest. Called Gallerie
One, it was housed at the old Tourist Reception Centre. Artists such
as G.R. Santosh, Trilok Koul, S.N. Bhat, Nisar Aziz and others had
put up their works there in the 1960s in a hall in that building. But
it had to be taken down because Ghulam Mohammad Bakhshi, the
then prime minister of Kashmir, thought the paintings were “non-
sense”. The hall was later destroyed in an encounter between the
armed forces and the militants in April 2005.
“The Kashmiri artists were a league ahead, according to (Kash-
miri artist) M.A. Mehboob, and had heavily influenced the progres-
sive group,” Rizvi wrote in a piece for Kafila. “But due to lack of
space, they organised shows in a tent at Srinagar’s Pratap Park.

JULY 11, 2016 ◆ INDIA TODAY 77

 THE ARTS
KASHMIR

KHYTUL ABYAD, 23
Anantnag

A painter, she is currently

working on a graphic novel
based on a little girl in a
town that closely resembles
her hometown Anantnag.
A Kashmir University
alumnus, she will go to
Beaconhouse National
University, Lahore, next year

made installations questioning the

status quo.

“Ulfat, a little girl

in a torn frock ”
In the twilight zone, the stones have
been laid as barriers in the old down-
town of Anantnag, the place of springs.
Masked young men ran around, their
eyes blazing, stones in hands.
They stop, and point to a dark
alley. Khytul Abyad walks through the
back lanes, and at the shrine of Hazrat
Baba Syed Reshi in Anantnag, points
to a poster. It’s her father. A couple of
days later, it would be his death anni-
versary. Qazi Nisar, the founder of
Ummat-e-Islami, was killed in 1994
by unidentified gunmen. He was the
spiritual leader of South Kashmir.
“I hadn’t known what father meant
when others spoke of what their
fathers had done,”she says. “I hadn’t
known what death meant.”
Everyone is struggling for intimacy
here. Everyone is trying to be someone
else. In her case, she wants to be like
The members of the pro- another artist. It’s time the other girls.
gressive group used to “I CAN’T SAY the world knows the art On her canvas, memories are
visit Kashmir often and in Kashmir’s heart. being rearranged. She is painting
worked closely with ART CAN Showkat Kathjoo, an her life. Next year, she will go to
Kashmiri artists indepen- HEAL, BUT artist and a professor at Beaconhouse University in Lahore on
dently or in various artist the fine arts department a scholarship. For now, she is paint-
camps. But the exhibi- IT CAN of the Kashmir University, ing the story of Ulfat, a little girl in a
tion at the old Tourist MAKE YOU says history has been trou- town that much resembles downtown
Reception Centre was bling for them. “Can we Islamabad in Kashmir.
too bold for the people in
CALM” move forward?” he asks. In 2014, she had participated in
Kashmir, considering its Art is deeply political, the Kochi-Muziris Biennale along with
deep-rooted practice in handicrafts.” Kathjoo says. 14 students from Kashmir University.
In the land of much unfreedom, A man in the audience suggests There, they made installations with
the Biennale is an ambitious attempt. they try and be apolitical. objects they found in the September
“A biennale would boost the local But Kathjoo is the one who went flood debris.
economy,” says Naushad Gayyur, to prison, denied a passport for years, “Art is the only way to channel my

78 INDIA TODAY ◆ JULY 11, 2016


EHTISHAM AZHAR, 25
Baramulla
Installation and perfor-
mance artist who studied
at Beaconhouse National
University in Lahore and
will now study visual arts in
Europe. In His performance
‘In’, he stood behind a wall
with his hands handcuffed
for 24 hours
anger and frustration,” says Khytul. “I
can’t say art heals, but, yes, it makes
you calm. Through it, you become
aware of the little things happening
around you, you know how to react.”
Her story is timeless, and pre-
served in her own sketchbook in the
name of Ulfat.
“He left and
I stayed behind”
This was his city until the exodus. Veer
Munshi stares vacantly at the golden
sunset on Zero Bridge. He left Kashmir
in 1990 and keeps returning.
While leaving, he carried nothing
with him but the idea of home. The
first painting he made in Delhi was not
a landscape but an image of a terrorist
on floating land.
“I was naive and thought terror-
ism would go away,” he says. Painting
was a catharsis. “Art has power,” he
says. It gave him a voice. To speak of
the conflict. To catalogue visual his-
tory. Reportage is a prison most artists
find themselves in here, the narrative
shaped by what they have seen and
felt. Men and women (often those he’d
known) in a queue at a refugee camp in
Jammu. The absence of human dignity.
The Kashmiri Pandit, an exiled minor-
ity. It made Munshi a “human rights
painter” of sorts. “It was like writing,”
he says. “A release. It is now archival
material. We must dig into history.” He
thinks of the waters of the Nigeen, the
shikaras, the mountains in the back-
drop. He says he has bought a piece of
land. Maybe he will build a house.
Memory, trauma, survival and
redemption. There used to be a bridge
that would connect Kashmiri Pandit
and Muslim houses. “During wed-
dings, they would open it,” he recalls.
He painted such modes of existence
out of memory. Some were of victims
“EXOTIC
IS FINE.
EXOTICISM
IS NOT.
NOSTALGIA
IS NAUSEATING”
of the violence, some of its witnesses.
Those are the only two positions here.
The artists can’t escape that. Once they
had painted landscapes, and the blue
waters of the Dal. Then, the waters
turned red on canvas for Munshi, who
left, but couldn’t leave forever. He
keeps returning. The frequency has
increased. There is renewed hope. He
is a stranger here himself. He corrects
others who tag him as ‘Pandit’. He is
Kashmiri. In the old quarters, he stops
by to buy spices. He hasn’t been able to
sleep well in many years. Not anymore
in this town where he once lived.
For a few years, he tried doing
other things. But he was back in
Kashmir in 2010, when 110 children
were killed, and his art once again
became political.
He drew a series called Sharpnels.
It was peopled by familiar faces—his
tailor, doctor, teacher, others.
But as an artist, he is trying to
JULY 11, 2016 ◆ INDIA TODAY 79

preserve what was. A deer imposed
on the Kashmir landscape. “Because
only the deer and Pandits will soon be
in a museum,” he says, laughing.
The one who stayed behind has
the same crisis.
Who can abandon you? Could be
everyone. He tells me of Mugli, who
was waiting for her son. They found
her dead staring at the door. He had
slashed his painting then, broken
down, and said, “We are trying to
find someone who would heal our
wounds...with the hope that some-
body will come and stitch this painting
for me.” At the back of the canvas, the
grieving painter had scribbled “This is
the paradise lost”, the “r” in red.
In the 1980s, he returned to
Srinagar for personal reasons. He
studied at the JJ School of Arts, and
lived in downtown Srinagar when
Kashmir was not ravaged by insur-
gency. Back then, he says, there would
“WE ARE ALL
HERE BY
MISTAKE, AND
MISTAKEN.
WE ARE
AGELESS”
80 INDIA TODAY ◆ JULY 11, 2016
THE ARTS
KASHMIR
be picnics and artist camps. They
painted landscapes, and abstract art.
When he was growing up, there used
to be hobby classes at the River View
Hotel, where he first learned painting.
“After 60 years, geography can’t
change,” he says. “People started
dying and the silsila became com-
mon. How did I respond as an artist?
Art changed. The artist, whatever he
does, is a witness of his surroundings.
I haven’t come out of it. Artists here
have elements of misery and pain.
For my first exhibition in Delhi, I used
no colours. It was more about the
absence of elements. The art I made
portrayed loneliness.”
A canvas hangs in his studio. At the
back, a friend has signed, “Masood,
who I lost in the Valley.”
He experienced curfews, and saw
the shoes abandoned after a stam-
pede. He went to psychiatric wards,
and saw haggard faces. He painted
every bit he saw. .
“Humanity is an
ideology”
“Our belonging is very political,”
says Showkat Kathjoo. He grew up in
Srinagar and wasn’t good at anything
but drawing, so ended up in art col-
lege. As a first generation college-goer,
his parents didn’t oppose his decision.
“They had no expectations,” he says,
“they were working class. They hadn’t
known about such things.”
There are many metaphors at
work in his installations, a lot of re-
negotiation at work. In Revolt is a
Page Crumpled in the Waste Basket for
Khoj Kasheer in 2007, he worked with
the idea of ‘intimidation of the pres-
ent’ with a bunker-turned-viewfinder.
Inside that bunker, he played a loop of
images defined by the exotic and pic-
turesque landscape of Kashmir.
He had begun with a text image
from the popular couplet ‘If there is
Paradise on earth, it is here, it is here.’
“Who has seen paradise?” he asks.
“Kashmir is fiction.”
To create from what makes us
weep is an extension of suffering. Art
is not always beautiful landscapes,
although set in this context, it could be
a potent force opposing the reality of
bloodshed. Tourism is hegemony, too.
This is home. Paradise is never home;
it’s a place of visitation.
Perhaps Kashmir itself has
become an installation. Littered with
bunkers, sealed with barbed wires,
the state renders itself as an inspira-
tion, and every artist hopes to become
a storyteller. In homes, restaurants
and shrines, there are plastic flow-
ers. Because plastic flowers don’t die.
“I grew up in old downtown. My
childhood was all about downtown.
The way bunkers have entered our
linguistic landscape was my first
installation,” Kathjoo says. A hun-
dred helmets made up a phallus in an
installation denoting the masculinity
of the men in uniform or the State.
SHOWKAT KATHJOO, 38
Srinagar
Installation and perfor-
mance artist. Also professor
at the fine arts department
of Kashmir University. They
call him agent provocateur.
Works with irony, document-
ing the negotiations with the
victim, the victimiser and the
victimised victimiser

“It is an extension of the male libido
which is the nation state. I don’t call
myself an artist. I call myself a failed
artist,” he says.
His work, he says, he destroyed.
Now he makes artists, not art. He
lives in downtown Srinagar, and tells
students to challenge notions, not be
afraid of annihilation. For the last few
years, he has been trying to negotiate
space for them.
“We come from a condensed psy-
chological space. There is a war with-
in our heads. You can’t negotiate your
dreams, expectations. I travelled with
my students to the Kochi Biennale.
They are far better off there,” he says.
For the ones born in the years of
insurgency, making sense of what was
happening, and the twisted normality
of security crackdowns was like inhab-
iting a godless place. Like 23-year-old
Numan, a young musician who grew
up in Anantnag but insists on calling it
Islamabad. He says that when the men
in uniform came, he’d wait for them to
leave so he could resume watching TV.
“Cartoon network,” he says. That
was life then. They didn’t think any-
thing was wrong or misplaced in their
childhood. That was the damage.
Their art emerges from there.
Like an X-ray that Ehtisham Azhar
calls Constellation of Horrors.
THE ARTS
KASHMIR
“I HAVEN’T
TIED MY
SHOELACES
HERE.
I AM A
KASHMIRI.
NOT A
PANDIT OR
A MUSLIM”
VEER MUNSHI, 58
Srinagar
Painter, photographer
and installation artist, he
studied at the Faculty of
Fine Arts at MSU, Baroda.
A Kashmiri Pandit forced
to leave in the 90s, he
says his art is politi-
cal and a chronicle of
Kashmir. Works include
‘Silence of the Weaver’,
‘Sharpnels’
Only when he switches on the pro-
jector, the writing on the wall comes
alive: A woman, a body, a cabinet, few
books, and other things, that only the
artist can explain. He left it midway. A
passport lies on the table along with
brushes and tubes of paint. There is a
book about the philosophy of transit,
and the screensaver has an X-ray of
two skeletons with little perforations.
Pellets. That’s how he sees art.
It’s the wall that speaks. Two fig-
ures of women in clothes that sug-
gest they are from a village stand by
a table on which books are placed.
Their gazes are focused on the floor
where a skeleton lies. On a table next
 THE ARTS
KASHMIR
“I SHARE
MY BIRTH
WITH THE
CONFLICT”
to the skeleton, boots. In the distance,
a human figure with dark eyes. When
they drew these, Ehtisham and his
friend weren’t guided by a particular
narrative. Automatic drawing.
Azhar studied at Beaconhouse
University where he first dabbled in
abstract art, then moved to installa-
tions and performances.
“I don’t know why I am sad,
but I am. That’s how it is,” he says.
History for him is fictional memory.
When facts become memory, they are
contextualised.
His art emerges from when he
witnessed a house, on the threshold
between the old town in Baramulla
(where he grew up) and the new col-
ony, that had a front riddled with bul-
lets. Those who lived there had given
up on repairs.
He also remembers how in his
childhood, while crossing a bridge
sometime in the early 1990s, he had
seen his cousin’s hands shiver as the
security forces stopped them on the
way. “I don’t keep all the burden on
the artist. There are facts, they get
82 INDIA TODAY ◆ JULY 11, 2016
convoluted in memory. You don’t want
to do away with it. Maybe we are used
to it. It becomes a part of life,” he says.
In Come Butcher, Sing me a Song
—an installation he made in college in
2013—he has used everyday objects.
“Butcher is a heavy word, and
also a subtle metaphor. It can refer
to anyone. To the State. To me. Why
do I want the butcher to sing? I don’t
want to give the context. I was working
on geopolitics, different power rela-
tions. Everyone has the same idea for
someone. It is existential. It can refer to
intimacy with the oppressor, and with
oneself,” Azhar says.
In a “forbidden place” at the uni-
versity, where a Grade 4 employee’s
house was gutted, installation artist
Saqib Bhat, 23, tries to explain the
burials. A girl comes in with a ham-
mer. They are readying to turn over
the earth. Inside this ghost of a build-
ing, audio tapes are wrapped around
the beams, and crisscrossing space.
When the sunlight comes in through
the chinks in the roof, they reflect the
gaze. It’s nostalgia, he says. “When
you see the building like this, your
first reaction is that it must have been
SAQIB BHAT, 23
Srinagar
Installation artist
who got 10 students to
paint on a fallen Chinar
at Kashmir University’s
Naseem Bagh campus.
Next to it will be ‘Barracks’.
Believes in the imperma-
nent nature of all art
burned down by someone. Because it
is Kashmir,” he says.
Outside the building, a fallen
Chinar has artists’ visions painted
on it in papier mache. The first proj-
ect. Next is Barracks. For as long as
you stand inside the gutted building
where they are digging to prepare
for a burial of paintings in order to
make a case for non-art in a space
where the emphasis has always been
on traditional form, you are confused
about the entry points into this story.
What songs did these tapes have in
those days? “We present this to chal-
lenge ourselves,” says Bhat, who was
born in 1993. “We share our birth
with the conflict.” ■
 OPINION GENDER

AMBITIOUS BUT TENTATIVE

The draft national policy for women falls drastically short of being an empowering tool

“Better if I talk less.” So says superstar jargon, it is imperative that the revised policy is vetted by
GU EST
Salman Khan. A little late in the day. His an intra-ministry committee. Civil society organisations
COLUMN
public remarks of June 21, that he feels working on the issue should also be leveraged through
like a “raped woman” in the wake of a consultations to fine-tune the policy.
gruelling shoot, have already done their At the outset, it is a felt need that the policy address the
damage. Before the dust settled down, issues of 70 per cent women who have been excluded thus
Infosys techie Swathi has bled to death far—those living in rural and semi-urban areas.
on a Chennai platform, with a crowd The most important conceptual change in the new draft
watching the spectacle. is the shift from a welfare to a rights-based approach. Also,
RANJANA Add to this the rising trajectory of the inclusion of issues pertaining to single women, marital
KUMARI everyday cyber-crime harassments. rape and geriatric care are bold steps. Having said that,
And we are staring at an India where the policy lacks in its commitment to the political empow-
women’s participation in society has gone up exponential- erment of women. No time frame is given to passing the
ly, yet the social scenario needed to match up to her chang- Women’s Reservation Bill, pending for over two decades.
ing needs and expectations has not. Ours is a nation with The education section includes the much-needed
deep-rooted gender biases and socio-cultural stereotypes, ‘responsive complaint mechanism’ which targets sexual
but faced with the challenges of globalisation. Dramatic harassment in schools and colleges while the economic
shifts are taking place in the very fabric underpinning the section proposes to set up crèches for children whose par-
country and making women vulnerable to exploitation at ents are at work. Yet the policy does not have a focused tar-
every level. The need of the hour is for social infrastruc- get on the seven-decade backlog in women’s development.
ture and services, where women not only feel safe navigat- Technology should be utilised and Panchayati Raj insti-
ing in society, but also feel confident to tutions strengthened to ensure wom-
live life on their own terms. Illustration by ANIRBAN GHOSH en’s empowerment. The Workplace
The Union minister for women and Sexual Harassment Law as part of the
child development, Maneka Gandhi, National Policy seeks to protect women
has now taken the initiative to unveil a in informal sectors by setting up local
draft of the National Policy for Women, complaints committees as centres
2016, for comments and consulta- for grievance redressal. However, it
tion. Apart from the safety issues, the is unrealistic at this stage to set up a
draft also seeks to address the emerg- complaints committees for the unor-
ing challenges confronting Indian ganised sector when the sector itself
women: from a Maternal Mortality does not have the much-needed sys-
Ratio of 174/100,000 live births, Infant tems in place. To begin with, women
Mortality Rate of 38/1,000 live births to in the unorganised sector need guar-
59 per cent anaemia in women. anteed minimum wages, health insur-
Rural India has a high proportion ance and decent working conditions.
of women farmers, in stark contrast to It is very difficult to ensure that
lack of gender entitlements in land and the policy is converted to achievable
asset ownership, leading to an overall action. The government needs to
decline in labour participation rate in India (22 per cent ensure that a budget is allocated every year and money is
for women). With growing urbanisation and mass rural spent on the implementation of the policy, and its perfor-
decay, more families in villages have chosen migration, mance evaluated.
which sees more women competing for unorganised and The policy document needs to break away from the
unskilled labour in urban India (93 per cent). As per a dominant challenges of cultural, religious and social bond-
McKinsey report, by 2025, India could add 60 per cent to age. Marginalised women must become the centrepiece of
the country’s GDP by bridging the gender gap. any national policy for women, addressing not just their
The first draft of the policy in 2000 was a static docu- historical deprivation but also paving the way for the future
ment on which no action was taken. It is unfortunate that the needs of women and society in general.
then prime minister Manmohan Singh could not prioritise
the burning need for women’s empowerment. Considering The author is the director of the New Delhi-based Centre
the tendency of policies to stay frozen as documents and for Social Research

JULY 11, 2016 ◆ INDIA TODAY 83

 LEISURE BOOKS

In an expansive, ambitious ‘biography’

of the gene, Siddhartha Mukherjee

THE
tells the story of our quest for what
makes us who we are
By Prayaag Akbar

TIES THAT I n one way, perhaps obliquely, The Gene is a story

about families. Siddhartha Mukherjee beautifully
illuminates the long, twisting path between this

BIND
early incisive intuition in each of us—our awareness
of heredity—and the remarkable grasp science now
has of the manner in which biological traits are passed
from parent to offspring. I remembered my father’s fam-
ily. Each of us, old and young, without quite realising it,
confronted from an early age a special, vital characteristic
of the gene: dominance and recessiveness. Why do certain
traits show up in some members of subsequent genera-
tions and not others?
My grandfather had an eleventh finger. Hanging from
the base of the little finger of his left hand was a small
flap of coffee-brown skin, resembling a squished grape,
that he refused to have removed, believing it brought him
luck. The patriarch left his mark. Sprinkled amongst aunts,
uncles, cousins, nephews and nieces, with what seemed
nature’s infinite caprice, are mildly deformed or surplus
digits, either hands or toes. Caprice because, a genera-
tion down, the oddity rarely travelled from parent to off-
spring. Affected parents didn’t seem to pass it down, while
parents ‘digitally’ normal would occasionally find such an
appendage on their newborns. “His toe is like Dadu’s fin-
ger,” we’d agree, and think little more of the arrangement
that enabled such marvellous variance.
Before I read this book, I had only the flimsiest under-
standing of mutation, DNA, the genome, and even that
tiny edifice battered by prolonged exposure to the fabulist
science of television and superhero movies. Still I found
myself snickering as Mukherjee described the contorted
early formulations of heredity put forward by thinkers such
as Pythagoras, Plato and Aristotle. This made me realise
something. The solving of the genetic puzzle has become
a self-evident truth of contemporary society, like gravi-
tational force or the arrangement of the solar system. We
take it as fact because we must. Heredity is central to iden-
tity and identity is central to self.
Mukherjee calls his effort a ‘biography’ of the gene, and
that is appropriate, because the story he tells is infused
with personality, even whimsy. This is the long history of a
vital understanding. A chart of how conjecture developed
Illustration by ANIRBAN GHOSH

into idea, idea into hypothesis, hypothesis into understand-

ing. Thankfully, though, it isn’t a scientist’s dry, dissertative
history, a progression of enzymes and nucleic acids and
ribosomes. Mukherjee, like every good storyteller, knows
it’s the people who make the tale. The story of the gene is
told through the struggles of those who made the great
leaps. In vivid detail, from Pythagoras through Mendel and
Darwin and Galton and Watson and Crick, he shows the
missteps, the jealousies, the failures in cognisance, lives
spent in penury, obscurity, chasing absurd ideas. And of
course the breakthroughs, big and small, teams of scien-
tists devoting their professional lives to fashioning a corner
piece of an enormous jigsaw puzzle that humanity might
never finish.
Two themes run through this tale, both entirely suited
to a biography of the gene: competition and collaboration.
Mukherjee is sensitive to both the pathos that surrounds
human achievement and the vanity that propels it. In his
telling, at many of the key moments in this race towards
illumination, there are two or three individuals or groups
closest to formulating the next big advance. Darwin’s Origin
of Species might have circulated only amongst the great
man’s friends if he hadn’t read a paper by Alfred Wallace, a
young naturalist recently returned from his own epic jour-
ney in the Amazon basin, that “skirted dangerously close to
(his) yet-unpublished theory”. Darwin hurriedly published
Origin, within a day it was a publishing sensation, and so
began in earnest the quest for the gene. The Cambridge
duo Watson and Crick, immortalised in contemporary lore
(and my own biology textbook), raced principally against
a team at Caltech and another at King’s College, London,
before completing their iconic double helix structure of the
DNA molecule.
Yet collaboration is key. Mukherjee shows that Watson
and Crick mightn’t have got there without the photographs
of wet DNA that Rosalind Franklin, a member of the Kings’
London team, had managed to take—images Watson was
shown without her approval. The book teems with other
examples. Many of the important advances of the latter
20th century have come from the understanding that natu-
ral life is ultimately matter—that living cells are composed
of molecules and atoms, and subject to the same govern-
ing principles—that there was needed a glacial collabora-
tion between biology and physics. The physicists who came
thus to biology enlivened the search at the subatomic level.
Biophysicists have led the project for the genome.
Mukherjee calls the 20th century the century of the gene.
He presents a compelling case. Bookending the last century
are Darwin’s Origin of Species (approximately), and the
2003 announcement that the Human Genome Project was
complete, and all of the genes of the euchromatic regions
of the human genome had been identified and mapped. In
these hundred-some years, we’ve travelled from Darwin’s
incomplete, essentially taxonomic study, which failed to
grasp how likeness was passed between generations, to
finding the biological unit that enables heredity, under-
standing how this unit converts information to function,
or physical form and then how each unit of information
relates to the other within the whole.
Yet heredity and the gene have also been deeply misun-
derstood during this century.
No sooner had Darwin’s theory of origins gained
prominence than his cousin, Francis Galton, a lesser
intellect but equally ambitious, began his push towards
unnatural selection, or eugenics, the selective breeding of
THE GENE: AN INTIMATE
HISTORY
By Siddharatha Mukherjee
Scribner
Price Rs 699 Pages 608
TWO THEMES RUN THROUGH
MUKHERJEE’S TALE OF THE GENE:
COMPETITION AND COLLABORATION
the smartest, fittest humans. Inspired by the racial, aris-
tocratic ideals of Victorian England, eugenics suggested
that the white ‘superior’ races could improve themselves
to genetic perfection by ensuring that their lesser mem-
bers—the indigent, the sickly, the feeble-minded—
were not allowed to breed. In a heart-rending section,
Mukherjee tells the stories of some of the uniformly poor
and powerless, many of them recent immigrants, who
were sent to live in American sterilisation campuses, ‘col-
onies’ as they were called. It was the seeming success of
these American containment colonies that inspired the
Nazi experiments in race improvement, Mengele, and,
ultimately the death camps.
In India we have our own ideas of racial purity, linked
to caste. The tremendous societal pressure towards endo-
gamy is an expression of this need for innate—genetic—
purity. And we have our own experience of state-ordained
sterilisation. In the United States, mechanisms were set
in place to identify those unfit for procreation, leading to
graded, ‘scientific’ definitions of idiot, moron and imbe-
cile. Sanjay Gandhi didn’t see the need for court orders or
judgements of unsuitability. He looked out the window of
his touring Ambassador and saw a sea of low-caste people,
unrefined, uncultured, filthy, poverty-mired. Fit for removal
from the genetic pool of the India that he intended to build.
Science is easily misused to tear down, easier than it can
be used to build. Mukherjee writes that Galton travelled to
Egypt and Sudan and upon his encounter with the ‘savage
races’ could see only difference and was repulsed by it. But
when Darwin travelled down the coast of South America,
meeting various indigenous tribes, he was left with a
strengthened belief in the common ancestry of all humans. ■
JULY 11, 2016 ◆ INDIA TODAY 85
LEISURE BOOKS

THE
KARMA
CHAMELEONS
The unbridled energy of youth forms the backdrop of Somini Sengupta’s
exploration of a self-consciously assertive generation
By Bishakha Datta In her stories, there is no level playing field. Schools
don’t work, the rich-poor gap widens, caste continues to

I
ndia is finally shedding its skin. That’s the premise pull invisible strings, and the freedom to love remains a
of Somini Sengupta’s The End of Karma, a work of “power struggle between those who pry open the old rules
non-fiction that arrived in India two months after its of blood and sex and those who violently defend them”.
US debut. The old skin was karma. The new skin is Sengupta sees the one million Indians who turn 18
aspiration with a capital A, a skin that young people are each month as a potent destiny-busting force, wrought in
sprouting as they push India to deliver on the freedoms the fire of the economic and political changes of the last 20
promised at midnight. years. Her daughter is one of them. Through little implo-
Sengupta explores this meme of aspiration that “has sions, the noonday generation, as she dubs them, push-
infected India’s idea of itself” through seven stories set es India to make good on its promises, although it’s not
in rural and urban India. There’s Anupam, the son of an clear how. They are not willing to defer their dreams.
autorickshaw driver in Patna who disrupts his “They expect democracy to deliver something—
destiny through education. There’s Varsha, the for them.”
daughter of a dhobi in Gurgaon, whose dad’s fears Noonday generation? Unlike midnight’s chil-
stand between her and her dream of becoming dren, all it made me think of was boiling in the
a police officer. Anupam and Varsha are almost noonday sun. Youthful aspiration? Agreed. It is
mirror images of each other—but their genders a youth moment, as we see across college cam-
determine whose dream gets deferred. puses in ferment. But in terms of aspirations,
Between them sit other tales of moulting young people have had the exact same aspira-
India. Rinu and Shaheen land up in jail for lik- tions for centuries in India—to get ahead, rise up
ing a Facebook post. Shashi and Ankit’s job is to the ladder, make their own choices in love and
get enough likes for political campaigns. Monica THE END OF KARMA: life. What’s so different about the aspirations of
and Kuldeep’s love marriage doesn’t sit well with HOPE AND FURY AMONG this generation? That’s what’s not explored.
their families. Mani’s niece gets abducted and INDIA’S YOUNG A narrative lies not just in its tale—but also
forced into domestic work. And Rakhi wants to By Somini Sengupta in the telling. Sengupta offers us the minutiae of
overthrow the Indian State. W.W. Norton her subjects’ lives as moorings. Anupam “teach-
These are all young Indians in their 20s. Price Rs 956 Pages 256 es himself, hunching over books, morning, noon
While their lovingly-detailed stories allow us to and night, usually by the light of a kerosene
meander through their hopeful lives, they also lamp”. His mother padlocks “the front door from
show us something more. Something bigger. outside, keeping the kids inside” when she goes
How hard it is to climb up the ladder without a helping to the market. Their tin roof in their “higgledy-piggledy
hand—or rewrite one’s destiny when democracy doesn’t mohalla” traps the heat of summer, so when Anupam gives
deliver. In story after story, Sengupta demonstrates how his mum his scholarship’s savings, she buys a ceiling fan.
individual effort and “audacious ambition” must make up It works. We get the extent of this family’s poverty
for broken promises. through the details of their lives. And we get Anupam’s rise
LEISURE BOOKS

out of poverty when he buys “a sofa for the living room and
an iPad, on which his mother played Candy Crush for days”.
Sengupta faithfully follows the famous dictum, “Show, don’t
tell”, in each chapter—until she wears it down to a formula.
That’s where The End of Karma starts to break down.
Each chapter starts identically, with a personal story. First
few pages. Then it throws its arms back and broadens out
to a related, national canvas. Next few or many pages. In
Anupam’s story, the tale stretches far, far back in many
directions, including the economy and politics of Bihar,
where he lives. To Lalu Prasad Yadav, Bihar’s first back-
ward-caste chief minister who has his own homegrown
take on democracy. Pointing to a toenail that he broke
while riding a buffalo, he says, “See! I am missing a toe-
nail. That is democracy!”
WORDS AND PICTURES
TWO ARCANE BUT SUMPTUOUS RECENT RELEASES
A visually delightful peek into the seedy and
charming world of Indian 78 rpm record col-
lecting. The fruit of a year-long Fulbright fel-
lowship—and an obsession—Robert Millis’s
book is replete with close-ups of dusty shelves,
grimy but entrancing interiors and countless
vintage record labels. In a word, shellac-porn.
INDIAN TALKING There are also two CDs enclosed, loaded with a
MACHINE selection of favourite tracks from the author’s
by Robert Millis collection. Sadly, but appropriately, the book is
Price Rs 5,353 already hard to find—a collectible.

I
n some stories, like Anupam’s, the personal-national-
personal structure works, specially since each national
detour is carefully researched and related to the per-
sonal journey. In others, the structure loses its balance—
and its way. Varsha’s story, for example, starts off with her
ironing clothes in Gurgaon, which Sengupta rightly locates
as “the city that aspiration built”. We see how Varsha
navigates her way through gated communities, delivering
freshly-pressed kurtas and getting help with her homework
in return. (And here, a word about the editing: do we really
need to define what dhobis do for an Indian audience?) We
see her dad becoming both protective and paranoid about
her safety after the December 2012 gang rape.
And then we slip down the rabbit hole, this time to a slew
of rape stats followed by a slew of stats on gender, related or AN ANTIQUE GRAMOPHONE SHOP IN JAIPUR
otherwise. It doesn’t feel like a book any more. It feels like a
World Economic Forum report. It flashes me back to history
Tibet has had a rough time for the last
lessons in school, where we vacantly listened to the exploits
half century. It deserves better. This
of each successive dynasty, told through an unending plod
handsome—no, gorgeous—volume does
through facts and figures. It doesn’t build the argument; it
its bit to right some historic wrongs by
obscures it. And as a narrative ploy, using the exact same
cartographic means. Twenty years in the
structure in each chapter robs me of a sense of discovery,
making, Karl Ryavec’s work traces the
since I can easily predict how each story will end.
cultural and political history of this often
Once in a while, Sengupta switches from her carefully A HISTORICAL mythologised and sentimentalised pla-
held back authorial stance to tell us parts of her own story. ATLAS OF TIBET teau across the millennia with technical
In the introduction, which I enjoyed very much, she tells by Karl E. Ryavec mastery and visual aplomb. A treat for
us why and how she moved homes 22 times before her University of Chicago Press cartomaniacs, Tibetophiles, scholars and
daughter turned four. As she eloquently writes: “‘We are Price Rs 1,042 Pages 216
a lot of normal people too.
like turtles, me and Mama,’ my daughter says, parroting
what she has heard me say. ‘We carry our homes on our
backs.’” On one of these moves, Sengupta became the New
York Times’s bureau chief in India, a time when she started
covering many of the book’s stories as a journalist.
And it is the journalistic voice that predominates in The
End of Karma too, in its reliance on others’ voices, in its use
of descriptive ‘colour’, its observer stance, and its heavy bur-
den of proof. While Sengupta’s meticulous substantiation
is a relief in the Age of Untrammelled Opinion, she rarely
offers her own opinions or thoughts. Or her own emotions.
(Of course, these come through here and there.) Even so,
The End of Karma feels just a little too cautious. A little too
held back. A little too bystander. Just a little bit too safe. ■
CULTURAL AND RELIGIOUS GROUPS IN TIBET, CIRCA 2000
 NET FLUX by LAKSHMI KUMARASWAMI
Graphic by TANMOY CHAKRABORTY
net fail

63% 5.2% Hacking It

Facebook Instagram After hacking into Mark
Zuckerberg’s LinkedIn and Twitter
7.5% 1.6% accounts, hacker group OurMine
Linked In Snapchat decided to move on to Google CEO
Sundar Pichai. This time it was
7% 0.3% his Quora account they zeroed in
on. While no harm was done, they
YouTube Google +
did post a question from Pichai’s
account asking if it was possible to
6.7% 8.7% force all Android users to update
Twitter Others the app. The answer? ‘Hacked’

RIGHT
CHANNELS
Social media sites
business owners think
have the most impact

web lol smart sheet

GOTcha! Trumping Trump

A photograph of Comedian Aziz Ansari’s
Peter Dinklage aka opinion piece in the New York
viral video
GOTman Tyrion Times on Donald Trump’s
Lanister riding a immigration policies and
scooter while stand- worry for his parents, attract-
ing has been photoshopped by fans into ed some 200,000 likes and
dramatic and hilarious scenes 16,000 shares on Facebook

web wow Mango Delight twitter tattle WWE wrestler John Cena speak-
ing in fluent Mandrin at an event
Facebook recently paid 6-year-old Truly Original in China wowed over 1.5 million
Kochi chef Nihal Raaj $2,000 for his The UK had the
mango ice cream-making video. Raaj’s world talking when
parents put it up for fun, but FB decid- they decided to
ed to showcase the uses that social vote against Britain
network can be put to remaining in the
European Union.
While many were
concerned about the Over 3 million were amused by
value of the pound comedian Jimmy Fallon’s
and the general future of impression of Donald Trump
the country, a lot of
Indians took to Twitter to inform people that the original and
in their opinion the ‘best #Brexit’ was in 1947, when India won
Independence. Inspired, other former colonies of Great Britain
started posting similar tweets

Over two million have watched

what’s new Elsa tells you the most Blink lets you crop, a video tracing the origin of
accepted pronunciation edit, annotate and humans before history’s record
App Alert of English words share screenshots
Follow the writer on Twitter @lkummi

88 INDIA TODAY ◆ JULY 11, 2016

 GLOSSARY

LONG LIVE THE KING OF POP

ON HIS 7TH DEATH ANNIVERSARY, A LOOK AT WHY MICHAEL
JACKSON REMAINS A THRILLER IN THE WORLD OF POP

1 bn
NO. OF ALBUMS
SOLD WORLDWIDE

2,086
NO. OF WEEKS
MJ’S SONGS SPENT ON
THE BILLBOARD CHARTS

4,458
NO. OF WEEKS
13
NO. OF
MJ’S ALBUMS SPENT ON THE GRAMMIES
BILLBOARD CHARTS

$65 mn 4.4 mn
NO. OF TICKETS
AMOUNT PAID BY SONY SOLD FOR THE
IN 1991 TO RENEW HIS BAD WORLD TOUR
CONTRACT

3.5 mn
$20 mn NO. OF TICKETS SOLD FOR THE
DANGEROUS WORLD TOUR
AMOUNT JACKSON EARNED
FROM SELLING BROADCAST
RIGHTS OF HIS DANGEROUS
TOUR TO HBO 4.5 mn
NO. OF TICKETS SOLD FOR THE
HISTORY WORLD TOUR
110 mn
ALBUM SALES OF THRILLER
MAKING IT THE TOP-SELLING ALBUM 35 mn
ALBUMS SOLD WORLDWIDE
OF ALL TIMEAWARDS WON
IN THE 12 MONTHS FOLLOWING
JACKSON’S DEATH
211
NO. OF WEEKS THRILLER
WAS NO.1 BILLBOARD SONG 5,000/min
NO. OF TWITTER
POSTS PER MINUTE
THAT MENTIONED JACKSON
ON THE DAY OF HIS DEATH

31.1 mn
NO. OF US HOUSEHOLDS
Source: Forbes, CNN, IMDb, Sony, Statisticbrain THAT WATCHED HIS
Story: Rashi Bisaria; Design: PRAGATI MEMORIAL CEREMONY
 EYECATCHERS
STAR OF
HOW WAS THE WEEK?
FIRE FLYING HIGH

M
ouni Roy’s After starring in
shape-shifting act Anurag Kashyap’s
in Naagin and as Raman Raghav 2.0,
host of So You Think You Vicky Kaushal will ap-
Can Dance have been pear in Sanjay Leela
enough to get her lucky in Bhansali’s Padmavati.
Good Bollywood. Wazir director He plays the Mewar
Dutee Chand Bejoy Nambiar is eyeing ruler to the Deepika
The sprinter broke her for a remake of Mani
the women’s 100m Padukone character.
Ratnam’s Tamil hit Agni Ranveer Singh will be
national record
twice in a day to Nachathiram. Alauddin Khilji.
qualify for Rio 2016

GLIMPSE OF HOME
Dancer-choreographer-actress
Bad Sarabhai’s first film produc-
Mallika Sarabhai
Mary Kom tion will be inspired by and based on
India’s top pugilist the city she calls home—Ahmedabad.
failed to score a wild Based on the play Kadak Badshaahi, it gives a
card for Olympics glimpse of the city’s 600-year-old history.

Papa Pangs
Tusshar Kapoor became the latest
actor to go for in-vitro fertilisation
and surrogacy as he welcomed a new
member, Laksshya, to the family.
Unlike his Bollywood peers, though, Tusshar is un un-
married. “It’s just your paternal instinct when men men-
tally you feel you are ready to be a father,” he says.
Gimme Hope
Joanna
Zeenat Aman is the IN MAMA’S
latest to take to turn
to the popular web
Shekhar Kapur
and Suchitra FOOTSTEPS
series format as she Krishnamoorthi’s
appears in Love, Life daughter Kaveri is
& Screw Ups!!! As following in her mother’s
the happy-go-lucky footsteps with her singing
and glamorous café talent. Proud papa took to
owner Joanna, Twitter to promote
Aman will get to the 15-year-old
show her comic side. songwriter and
Joining her in the composer’s
romcom will be Mita first single
Did You Know.
GETTYIMAGES

Vashisht, Dolly
Thakore, Sonali Raut
and Diandra Soares.
■ Compiled by Suhani Singh Follow the writer on Twitter @suhani84

Volume XLI Number 28; For the week July 5-11, 2016, published on every Friday Total number of pages 140 (including cover pages)
90 INDIA TODAY ◆ JULY 11, 2016
 I
NDIANSEXUALDESI
RES
AN
DKINKSUNMASKED!
GE
TTHERE
ALST
ORI
ESON
LYONT
HE
‘
10YE
ARSOFSE
XSURVE
Y
DI
GIT
ALMAGAZI
NE’
KNOW MORE

SURVEYMAG NE
AZI
I
ATODAY.
NDI NS
/ EX
I
WWW.
 DIGITAL EDITION

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AMRI CHADHA,
ARCHITECT
SIMPLY PUNJABI Inside

Editor-in-Chief
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SIMPLY PUNJABI Cover Story

LESS IS
MORE
Amri Chadha, 25, Chandigarh

A
t 25, Amri Chadha is the
principal architect of
Chandigarh-based firm,
The Right Brain Collective.
She also teaches at the
Chitkara School of Planning
and Architecture in Patiala.
Of course, this does not
mean that the clients trust her instantly.
“Believe me, so many times I wish I was
a 40-year-old. Many clients seem to think
that age is directly proportionate to craft
and intelligence,” she smiles. For Chadha,
a graduate of the School of Planning and
Architecture, Delhi, designing gives her
the opportunity to see herself in places and
things. “No matter which project I under-
take, it has to have an intrinsic part of my
personality. Design has such immense
potential to influence lifestyle. It gives you a
peculiar sense of power,”she says.
❡SPECIALISATION “I seldom take up large-
scale projects. I am all for the intimate.
Schools, hospitals and large-scale buildings
are just not for me. Detailing is the most
important principle of my design. The larger
the project, lesser is the attention to detail.
That’s the reason you will find me working
on small interesting projects that breathe
and carry a strong individual signature.”
❡CHANGING TRENDS IN PUNJAB The architect
feels that the young Punjabi is opening up
to experimentation and going in for spaces
that reflect a part of his personality. “Now,
it’s no longer just about big places. I have cli-
ents who have come back to the region after
studying and spending time in other cities in
the country. They are looking for something
more than just a huge space to show off. For
them, small and functional is a good place Amri Chadha,
to be in. Also, there is a desire to break free principal architect,
from the predictable architectural ethos of The Right Brain
Chandigarh,” she says. Collective

2 SIMPLY PUNJABI ◆ JULY 2016

TOP ARCHITECTS WORKING IN THE STATE REVEAL THAT
MINIMAL IS KEY AND THAT MANY ARE SLOWLY ABANDONING
THEIR OBSESSION FOR GRAND BUNGALOWS TO LIVE IN
ENVIRONMENT-FRIENDLY COMPACT SPACES. ■ By SUKANT DEEPAK

Photograph by SANDEEP SAHDEV

SIMPLY PUNJABI Cover Story

Photograph by DANESH JASSAWALA

GREEN IS THE
COLOUR
OF LIFE
Nisar Ahmed Sheikh, 37,
Bombay-Punjab

S
heikh is clear, the best
design is about provid-
ing the end-user not just
with an aesthetic treat
but also simplicity of usage, inti-
macy and an absolutely cozy
environ. “We plan keeping in
mind the people who will actual-
ly live in the dwelling space and
not builders,” says the Associate
Architect at Architect Hafeez
Contractor, who is handling
prestigious projects like
Homeland Heights, JLPC, Falcon
View and Galaxy Heights in SAS
Nagar, Punjab.
❡SPECIALISATION “As a modern-
day architect, it is important
to realise that people living in
urban areas are looking for a
space that provides them with
all the comforts in the vicinity
but breaks the pace of the
fast life they experience
during working hours,” says
Sheikh, an architecture gradu-
ate from SPSMBH's College of
Architecture in Kolhapur (2002).
❡DESIGN PHILOSOPHY An
essential component of Sheikh's
designs, which he always
adheres to, is minimum land
coverage for structure and maxi-
mum space for greens. “You will
notice in our designs that we
make vertically high buildings,
leaving adequate area for nature
to live and grow,” he says.
❡CHANGING TRENDS IN PUNJAB
“Punjabis are now moving from
independent houses and real-
ising the benefits of living in a
community where facilities like
clubhouses, gyms and security
Nisar Ahmed Sheikh, associate architect at the firm, Architect Hafeez Contractor are a norm,” he says.

4 SIMPLY PUNJABI ◆ JULY 2016


G
THE RESPONSIBLE iven that he makes a
DESIGNER
difference in people’s lives by
giving a shape to their
definition of home, one can
Siddhartha Wig, 51, Panchkula decipher Siddhartha Wig's conscious
design philosophy. A graduate of the
School of Planning and Architecture,
who went on to get his Masters in
Technology degree in Building Science
and Construction Management from the
Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi,
in 1995, insists that the surprises and
challenges thrown at him by every
new client in this profession makes it
all worthwhile.
❡SPECIALISATION Wig’s Panchkula-
based firm The Elements, which he
runs along with his wife, Anant Mann,
Siddhartha Wig, co-owner, The Elements
Photograph by SANDEEP SAHDEV
46, is about sustainability and following
a holistic approach. “Our emphasis has
always been on energy efficiency and
causing minimal stress on the environ-
ment,” asserts Wig, who maintains an
elaborate organic garden on his terrace
and frequently uses his bicycle to work
and client meetings.
❡CHANGING TRENDS IN PUNJAB Wig
points out that more people are now
approaching him to make environ-
ment-friendly houses and buildings. “A
decade back, it took a lot of time to con-
vince people that it was the right thing
to do,” he says. However, when it comes
to preference for huge living spaces, he
thinks that it is a matter of affordability
and not design sensibilities.
JULY 2016 ◆ SIMPLY PUNJABI 5
SIMPLY PUNJABI Cover Story
I
NATURALLY f there is something that drives
HOME
architect Vijay Kataria, who
has been associated with major
builders in Punjab including the
Vijay Kataria, 39, Delhi-Punjab Chandigarh City Centre in Zirakpur,
it is amalgamation of the latest scien-
tific building technology and minimum
tampering with nature to make spaces
for end-users. “In other words, I am a
strong believer in following success-
ful global trends and get them to suit
local contexts,” says the architect who
graduated from School of Planning and
Architecture, and designed the first
green group housing in Punjab—Exotic
Grandeur in Zirakpur, that boasts of
Vijay Kataria, 5-star Crisil rating.
architect, IE ❡SPECIALISATION Kataria’s firm IE
Designs Designs, which is headquartered in
6 SIMPLY PUNJABI ◆ JULY 2016
Delhi, specialises in urban design and
mostly takes up large-scale projects
in Punjab’s cities. “The emphasis is
on making a living in urban areas less
chaotic and giving a sense of zero-
stress zone as soon as the client enters
the vicinity of his home,” he says.
❡CHANGING TRENDS IN PUNJAB The
architect believes that people’s prefer-
ence as far as the size of homes is con-
cerned has undergone a sea change.
“Lately more and more people are opt-
ing for compact living spaces,” he says.
He believes that this has happened
due to a number of reasons including
maintenance, security concerns and
better-built environment and adds that
“People are realising that extra
space is a complete waste”.
Photograph by CHANDRADEEP KUMAR
Photograph by SANDEEP SAHDEV

OF MORTAR AND
STONE
Namita Singh, 67, Chandigarh

I
t is difficult to list all the
contributions of Namita Singh in
the field of design and architec-
ture, but the architect requests
not to mention many. Singh gradu-
ated from the Chandigarh College
of Architecture in 1970 and has
several prestigious projects on her
resume. From Asia's largest naval
training academy spanning 27,000
acres in Kerala, Cardiac Centre at
PGI, Chandigarh, Punjab, to the
Haryana High Court in Chandigarh,
every project undertaken by her has
been vast.
❡DESIGN PHILOSOPHY Singh's projects
have an experiential quality and are
not restricted to form-oriented archi-
tecture. “For me, experience of the
people who are living in my building
takes over the visual treat that the
place offers. The place must uplift
the soul, integrate with nature, and
make the user happy everyday when
she/he lives there,” she says. The
architect prefers using natural
materials like bricks, stones and
exposed concrete.
❡CHANGING PREFERENCES IN PUNJAB
Singh has noticed that even in small
towns, people are spending lavishly
on houses, especially in the NRI belt
of Punjab. “It’s a different matter
though that these houses are seldom
used. But yes, no matter where you
go—be it Punjab or any other part of
the country, clients want to use rich-
er material,” says Singh.
Satisfied that architects have
become important in the scheme of
things and not just tools to get a plan
approved, Singh elaborates, “Earlier
there was certain reluctance in get-
Namita Singh,
ting us involved. Now clients want to
architect hire experts for interiors and land-
scaping too.”

JULY 2016 ◆ SIMPLY PUNJABI 7

SIMPLY PUNJABI Feature

HAVEN ON
AS THE REGION GETS
SET FOR A UNIQUE ARTIST
RESIDENCY, ANUJA LATH
SAYS SETTING IT UP HAS
BEEN LIKE SNATCHING
A PIECE FROM THE COL-
LAGE OF THE PAST

■ By SUKANT DEEPAK

S
he keeps pushing back
imaginary tresses from
her forehead. The few bril-
liant greys strike out amidst
sharply cut short hair.
Not that she is not enjoying what
she does presently. Being the CEO of
Chandigarh-based Red Alkemi Online
Pvt. Ltd, Anuja Lath has been on the
forefront of developing cutting-edge
products for national and international
Information Technology markets.
Life, ever since her days at
the Government College of Arts in
Chandigarh where she graduated from
in 1990 and specialised in advertising
besides studying sculpture, graphics
and pottery, had changed drastically.
“I realised that I wanted to spend more
and more time with artists and do
justice to my dimension as someone
who finds metaphors of life in paint,
stone and figures. Frankly, the idea

THE IDEA OF SETTING

UP THE ART STAY
OCCURRED TO ME WHEN
I WAS TRAVELLING FROM
DELHI TO CHANDIGARH
DURING THE RECENT JAT
AGITATION. ANUJA L ATH

8 SIMPLY PUNJABI ◆ JULY 2016

Anuja Lath with her
daughter Ada at the
Aura Art Stay
SIMPLY PUNJABI Feature

came to me when I was travelling from Delhi region, Lath laments that most people do not really
to Chandigarh during the recent Jat agitation. My know how to go about buying it. “This is where we
husband Atul Gupta and I were stuck for hours. We come in. Not everybody has the time and energy to go
started talking about what we really wanted to do to Delhi and scout different galleries for art. And let
besides running Red Alkemi. Having an art residency us not even talk about the way works are priced there.
and exchanging ideas with artists on frequent basis When it comes to this region, I don’t dismiss the fact
fascinated both of us” says the 48-year-old. that buying art here is also a fad for some socialites,
The residency, Aura Art Stay, is set in a three-acre but then artists should not have a problem with
farmhouse in village Manipur Sahrif in Mohali, Punjab, that,” she says.
will house 12 artists at one time, who are expected to Her daughter, Ada Lath, all set to backpack across
pay Rs 2,000 per day for stay, meals, studio facilities Europe after earning money from different freelance
of 1,000 square feet, complete studio equipment for projects, adds, “We did it all together, from conceiv-
pottery, metal work, painting, wood-work, airbrush- ing the physical structure to fine tuning details about
ing and sculpture. “We will also hold a major wine and how it should run. The whole experience of handling
cheese evening and exhibit their the project was not just educative
work to art patrons in the region,” but fun too. And yes, she was never
says Lath, who eventually plans to the ‘mother’ but in fact a co-worker
devote three days in a week to the who never bullied,” assures the
residency once it is inaugurated 22-year-old who completed her
next month. “In order to ensure graduation in Mass Media from
smooth running of the project, two St. Xavier’s College in Mumbai this
young ladies have been hired who year. Stressing that idea of the resi-
will look after the daily chores. I dency appealed to her as soon as
conducted extensive interviews to her mother mentioned it, the young
zero on these girls,” she says. woman says, “I love meeting people
While walking around the huge and spending time with artists. In a
green place, Lath stresses, “I am place like Chandigarh, one seldom
sure artists would love to spend SNAPSHOT gets exposure to a wide variety of
people. The project will ensure that
some time with themselves at a
place away from the madness of CEO OF CHANDIGARH-BASED we will constantly interact with
the city. Not only can they soak in IT COMPANY, RED ALKEMI people from different places.”
the solitude but also spend time in Ada just can’t wait for artists to
nearby villages to acquaint them- GRADUATED FROM arrive, “I am looking forward to
selves with the way of life in the GOVERNMENT COLLEGE OF enriching experiences and insight
countryside. In fact, I am also ARTS, CHANDIGARH into creative minds of different
thinking of inviting some phulkari artists engrossed in varied art
artists and dari makers to give live STUDIED ADVERTISING forms,” she says.
demonstrations to those attending SCULPTURE, GRAPHICS Anuja feels that the concept of
the residency.” AND POTTERY a paid residency will find many tak-
Hoping that at any time a mix ers. “We have in mind people who
of artists—from varied art forms, DESIGNED HER OWN HOUSE have passed-out from institutes
age-groups and from different AND THE ARTIST RESIDENCY like National Institute of Design
regions come to the residency to in Ahmedabad and Srishti School
produce a vivid body of individual of Art Design and Technology in
or group work, Lath adds, “This will allow not just Bangalore. Besides, we are really looking forward to
artists from different genres to interact with each inviting international artists who can come here and
other but also expose visitors and potential buyers to work. Interaction between artists of different nation-
several different art forms at one place. Yes, it will be a alities is always an interesting encounter of ideas and
collage, but an intelligent one.” how spaces shape them. And frankly, for them,
The entrepreneur is optimistic that her residency Rs 2,000 a day is not really a big amount.”
model will act as a perfect facilitator for artists. Lath, who designed the structure and interiors
“Most galleries charge 33 to 50 per cent on sales of the residency along with her husband Atul Gupta
while we would be keeping only 20 per cent of the would like to see it grow soon. “This is just the start.
same to recover the exhibition costs. Besides, we will We have several plans. If everything goes well, we
be networking with potential buyers to sponsor the would be increasing the number of participants, allot
artists’ stay at the residency and buy their works in more space, provide more facilities and ensure more
advance,” she says. aggressive marketing of the work done by artists at
Insisting that there is a sizeable art market in the Aura Art Stay,” she concludes.

10 SIMPLY PUNJABI ◆ JULY 2016

SIMPLY PUNJABI Feature

LONGING TO

BELONG
AS THE PARTITION MUSEUM FINDS A HOME IN TOWN HALL, AMRITSAR, ITS
CHAIRPERSON KISHWAR DESAI THINKS IT’S TIME TO LOOK BACK AT
THE TRAGEDY, SEEK RECONCILIATION AND PRAY FOR HEALING
■ By SUKANT DEEPAK

W
riter Kishwar Desai has put on hold
her new work, a book on early Indian
cinema. She says that what she is doing
right now is more important. As the
Chairperson of the Partition Museum,
which has been granted space at the historic Town
Hall building in Amritsar, she is excited. “Everything
is finally taking shape,” she says. It is important for
her personally too. After all, while growing up,
Partition was another family member. Always lurking
somewhere in the shadows, its silence amplifying its
presence. “Coming from a Partition family, I have
heard stories where some people who disappeared
were never talked about,” says the 59-year-old writer
who conceived the museum project in
early 2015 with four people and now has
nine members including art critic Alka
Pande, Ritu Kumar, Anjolie Ela Menon,
Barkha Dutt, Soni Razdan, Bela Sethi, YOUR HISTORY
Dipali Khanna, Bindu Manchanda, and
Mallika Ahluwalia, on board.The muse- GETS IN THE WAY
um will house documentaries, audio-
visual presentations, installations,
OF MY MEMORY
experimental art and facilitate work- AGHA SHAHID ALI
shops and lectures. “It will be technologi-
cally very advanced and all efforts will
be made to ensure that the present gen-
eration can relate to it,” says Desai who approached
Delhi-based Amardeep Behl, the person behind
designing Virasat-e-Khalsa in Anandpur Sahib, to
give a physical form to the project at an approximate
cost of Rs 10 crore, without any funding from the
government.
Even as India gets set to celebrate its 70th anni-
versary of Independence, Desai thinks the time is just
right to set up the museum. “There is enough distance
between now and 1947, we can look back without any
baggage. Historically, it is important for India and the
world to have a permanent space where the stories and
narratives of the 1947 tragedy are housed permanently. will also have oral histories and tales of romances
Every mature society needs to look at the confrontation
it has had, in order to learn, so as to evolve. Would we
not be a very incomplete country if we talked only about
our triumphs? Think,”asserts the author, who was
inspired by the Apartheid Museum in Johannesburg in
South Africa and wants to pay back the debt to those
who suffered the break up of the country. “That genera-
tion is fading away, as they are in their 80’s and 90’s.
The place will keep their voices alive. Their tales intact.
Of people who still have not forgotten the loss of their
homes so many decades back,” she adds.
Talk to her about the fact that it was not just
people on this side of the border that suffered, and
she is quick to say, “We completely understand that.
And that is precisely the reason that we are collaborat-
ing with intellectuals from across the
border. People like Salima Hashmi and
Jugnu Mohsin from Pakistan are on our
team. Frankly, we would love to have a
museum on similar lines in Lahore and
in the UK. In fact, there would be lot of
exchange programmes with Pakistan,”
says Desai, who is planning to visit
Lahore soon to have meetings with
historians and architects there.
As the conversation veers towards
museums in India looking haunted with
number of visitors dropping every day,
Desai says, “That is because we have dead objects and
trophies to offer to the young in most of the museums.
No effort is made to make things attractive and interac-
tive. Our museum in Amritsar will be a contemporary
one, where history will be told through modern tools.”
Thankful to Punjab government for allotting the
museum 16,000 square feet of space, she says this is
not really the first time that there has been talk of a
museum on Partition. Punjab Chief Minister Parkash
Singh Badal and journalist Kuldip Nayar had
discussed this idea way back in 1950 but it was too
‘close’ to the tragedy. “Did I tell you that the museum
that bloomed in refugee camps?” asks Desai.

12 SIMPLY PUNJABI ◆ JULY 2016

 Kishwar Desai, author
and chairperson of the
Partition Museum

Photograph by M. ZHAZO
SIMPLY PUNJABI Feature

“NATIONAL SCHOOL
THEATRE ACTOR AND
DIRECTOR, AAMIR RAZA
HUSAIN, FEELS THAT THE

OF DRAMA SHOULD ART FORM IS ALL ABOUT

ENTERTAINMENT AND

BE BOMBED”
NOT SOCIAL CHANGE,
POLITICAL OUTREACH OR
RELIGIOUS PROPAGATION
■ By SUKANT DEEPAK

I
n the year 2001, when
theatre person Aamir Raza
Husain staged Kargil in
Drass, 12 kilometers from
LOC, 1,100 shells from the
Pakistani side greeted his pro-
duction. “Guess they loved it too
much,” he winks.
Completely refuting the
observation that he does only
grand productions like Legend
of Ram and Kargil, the 59-year-
old Delhi-based director is quick
to point out, “Have you forgot-
ten about History of Taj and
Teardrop in Time? See, for me
the scale of the production is not
important. I relate to anything
that relates to theatre. I have
reached a point where content
is of paramount importance, the
scale of the production just does
not matter.”

THE STATE
HAS NO BUSINESS
SETTING UP ART SCHOOLS
AND ACADEMIES BUT
SHOULD JUST FUND EMINENT
INDIVIDUALS AND PRIVATE
TRUSTS TO DO THAT
AMIR RAZA HUSAIN,
theatreperson

Photograph by SANDEEP SAHDEV

SIMPLY PUNJABI Feature

Insisting that for him theatre should be seen pri- and DA, when will they teach acting? And what is the
marily as a medium of entertainment, Husain elabo- admission policy? Some kind of a fruit salad—get one
rates that the art form, which he considers most alive kid from the South, one from North-East? See what
and intimate, is all about “presentation” today. “The has happened to the Film and Television Institute of
first encounter of theatre in anybody’s life today is the India under the government. See the kind of a person
school classroom. The guy whose classes you enjoy we have as its chairperson.”
the most is doing good theatre. That’s it. Husain thinks that things can improve in top arts
It makes very little sense to talk about other dimen- institutes only if the government gets out of them com-
sions of this art form. Being a performing art, it has pletely. “The state should just fund private individuals
to hold people together. If it fails to do that, you don’t and expert organisations to run these institutes. We
know your job well. Frankly, I don’t like performing do not need unintelligent bureaucrats telling us how
for 10 people when the auditorium’s seating capacity to go about things. Do they even know how to spell
is 500. Someone like me wants to culture? And then they lecture art-
see 510 people there.” ists on art,” he says.
But when reminded of the con- Touch upon his association with
tribution of organisations like IPTA, ALL BJP, and Husain does not hold back.
which worked on a shoe-string
budget and took up strong political
ABOUT “I joined the BJP of AB Vajpayee
and LK Advani. Not the one that
themes, in making theatre popu-
lar and taking it to far-flung parts
THE ART is led by Narendra Modi and Amit
Shah. The party of today is all
in the country, Husain interjects, 1 about dividing the country on com-
“Well, they did give the film indus- BEST-KNOW FOR munal lines.” Stressing that he still
try excellent actors and ensured PLAYS LIKE THE FIFTY had friends in the party and that he
that the leftist banner flew high. DAY WAR (2000) BASED cherishes the time spent with the
However, the plays they performed ON THE KARGIL WAR party, the director says that the
seldom gained popularity.” AND THE LEGEND OF lack of any solid alternative is
For him setting up state-level RAM (2004) BASED harming the country. “Congress
theatre repertoires where theatre ON RAMAYANA. needs to start looking beyond
persons are given a basic salary to dynasty politics and get its act
survive is not really the right way 2 together,” he says.
to encourage youngsters towards AS CREATIVE DIRECTOR Insisting that school system
the art form. “It is just that most OF STAGEDOOR THEATRE in the country has done little to
youngsters are no longer willing to COMPANY, HE HAS STAGED encourage children in art forms,
sweat it out. This is the capsule age 91 PRODUCTIONS the director and actor adds that
where they want everything taken AND MORE THAN 1100 despite the fact that Central Board
care of. That’s the reason you see PERFORMANCES. of Secondary Education added the-
so many stars emerging and very atre in school curriculum three
few actors. What struggle does 3 years back, nothing has trans-
is enrich, don’t we all know this HE WAS THE DELHI lated on the ground. “They called
simple fact?” Insisting that during BJP VICE PRESIDENT me for a conference. It’s a very
his student years when he started BUT QUIT AFTER HE well designed syllabus. When I
doing theatre, he would also sell CRITICISED NARENDRA asked the school principals if they
tickets and approach companies for MODI IN 2013 planned to make English teachers
sponsorships, the director remem- teach theatre, most of them said
bers, “Besides acting, we contribut- yes. This, you see is the problem.
ed immensely in every aspect of the Theatre is not to be read but per-
production. From backstage work to marketing, and formed. When something as basic as this is not under-
making posters. How can youngsters think that they stood, no matter how well conceived the course is,
can sit at a pedestaland demand a salary just because nothing concrete will emerge,” says Husain.
they are interested in this art form? They will never Husain is happy that things are changing in the
shine unless they go through a hard grind.” country when it comes to corporate support for the-
Insisting that there was no need to set up more atre. “A long time back I decided not to publicise and
theatre schools in the country, Husain fumes, “If you sell tickets, and started seeking corporate sponsor-
ask me, even the National School of Drama in Delhi ship. Considering the fact that there is little support
should be bombed. It’s a pathetic place where people for this art form from anywhere else, it is only major
are not encouraged towards excellence. You make a business houses that promise some kind of energy
place great by getting brilliant professors and not giv- to go on. Without them, people like us would find it
ing reservations. Where teachers go on strike for TA almost impossible to live our dreams.” he concludes.
SIMPLY PUNJABI Discovery

Rammya Singh,
model and aspiring
actor, strikes a pose
AIMING FOR A PIECE
OF THE SKY
FOR RAMMYA SINGH, ALL SET TO REPRESENT INDIA IN MISS GLOBE
INDIA 2016 IN TURKEY, LIFE IS ABOUT BEING AT EASE WHETHER ON
THE FOOTBALL FIELD OR ON THE RAMP
■ By SUKANT DEEPAK
P
ost dinner and during the
long drive in her new car,
she says she is going to
buy a convertible some
day. She is told that she
must, for then she would be able to
borrow a piece of the sky.
As timing would have it, before
she can reply, her father calls to
ask how an interview can last two
and a half hours? She stops the car,
shouts, and “Am I taking the inter-
view? Why don’t you ask the guy
who is, he’s with me only, should I
give the phone to him?” He keeps
the phone down. She says, “Relax,
he won’t call again. Wait till I get
back home, the man will pam-
per me no end,” says 21-year-old
Rammya Singh from Chandigarh
who will be representing India at
RAMMYA ON HERSELF
CHILL MANTRA
Binging on South Indian food
RELAXING
Solo travels to the mountains
NEXT ON THE AGENDA
Learning mixed martial arts
IF NOT A MODEL/ACTOR
Fiction writer
Photograph by SANDEEP SAHDEV
the Miss Globe India 2016 to be held
in Istanbul in Turkey next month.
“I don’t know if I should be say-
ing this, but modelling is not some-
thing I want to do. This is just a
stepping-stone. I have my eyes set
on the big screen,” she elaborates.
Singh completed a Diploma in Film
Acting from Barry John Acting
Studio in Delhi in the year 2015.
Asserting that professional
training has given her a new world-
view towards the art form, she says,
“It taught me the real meaning of
the word preparation and how I
need to take my craft seriously and
work on it every day. It was very
important for me to be prepared
and learn the nuances of acting
before moving to Mumbai.”
She is excited that the inter-
national pageant would not just
give her enough exposure but also
popularity, making her entry into
the Hindi film industry a bit smooth.
“There are so many talented people
struggling out there. It’s not easy
to make a mark. Confidence is not
really a problem, I used to consider
myself sexy even when I wasn’t,”
laughs Singh, who looks upon
Boman Irani, Manoj Bajpayee and
Nawazuddin Siddiqui for their
acting prowess.
Despite several offers to act
from the Punjabi film industry,
Singh has no intentions of joining it.
“I have seen girls in this industry.
They start enjoying a certain com-
fort level and stop being ambitious.
Very few of them take the next flight
to Mumbai. Moreover, women are
always second-class citizens in the
industry here. I don’t want to be
just another pretty face. After my
stint at the acting school, I am
hungry for meaty roles,” says
Singh, who insists that she was a
“tomboy” before she gave glamour
a serious thought.
“I was an ace football player
who also loved basketball and
horse-riding. I was known for my
weird, loose t-shirts and keeping my
hair unkempt. After Class XII, when
I told my father that I wanted to get
into acting, he promised to groom
me on the condition that I would not
let my academic scores come down.
Did I tell you that I never got less
that 90 per cent throughout my
academic career?” says Singh.
It’s almost the end of the drive,
and she has skirted at least two
Police patrol vehicles equipped
with speed radars. “Let me make it
big, and we will talk about the sky,”
she promises.
JULY 2016 ◆ SIMPLY PUNJABI 17
SIMPLY PUNJABI Buzz

1FROZEN
TREATS
If the scorching hot sum-
mers are draining you of
energy and all you can think
of is an escape from the sulty
weather, then head to The
Gallery Bar at Hyatt Regency
in Ludhiana. Beat the heat
with a selection of some of
the best frozen mocktails
and cocktails of the season.
You will be spoilt for choice
with the variety—from
spiced to fresh herbs or fruit
innovations.
DRINKS FOR TWO
Rs 1,300 plus
AT The Gallery Bar, Hyatt
Regency Ludhiana

7 THINGS
TO LOOK
FORWARD TO
2 July 8 to 10
Planning to redo the lighting of your home or thinking of getting the coolest mobile gadget, be sure to visit the
ELECTRO Electro Vision. This yearly exhibition promises to bring you the latest in electronics, electricals and fittings, home
VISION appliances, air conditioners, air cooling, kitchen appliances, lighting, interiors, mobiles and gadgets.
So be there just to see and buy the latest in electronics. AT Welkom Palace, Ludhiana
 3WHAT’S YOUR
BURGER?
July 15 to 24
Burgers will be taken to a new level
at Hyatt Regency Ludhiana, offering
guests a different twist. Choose from
variety of burgers and distinctive
ingredients such as chicken,
ham, kidney beans, bacon,
Tofu, cheese, black pepper
seasoning, caramelised onion
jam and horseradish spreads etc.
AT Kitchen@95
MEAL FOR TWO
Rs 4, 400 plus taxes
TEL 01614071222

4THE
BRIDAL
BUCKETLIST
July 9 to 10
With the wedding season
in air, it’s time to go for
a makeover. And India
International Bridal Show
promises to cater to your
6 DESERT DELIGHTS
every whim and fancy. With July 8 to 31
over 60 designer brands, Treat your tastebuds and
latest styles and trends, Indulge in authentic taste of
experts from various fields Rajasthani dishes such as Lal
all under one roof, you will Maas, Gatta Curry, Sangri ke
be spoilt for choices. Kofte and more.
AT Park Plaza Ludhiana, MEAL Rs 2,000 plus taxes
Hotel Park Plaza, Bhai Wala AT Tannur, Hyatt Regency
Chowk, Ludhiana Ludhiana TEL 01614071222

5 WEDDING
WOWS
July 23 to 24
Wedding on the cards? Head straight to Celebrating
Vivaha—a one-of-its-kind destination for all your
wedding-related needs. At the event you will find
high-end products, designer garments, precious jew-
ellery, trousseau packaging, cosmetics, honeymoon
destination options and more.
AT Majestic Park Plaza, Ludhiana
SIMPLY PUNJABI Buzz
RESTAURANTREVIEW/BIGWICH
7
A BITE INTO WHOLESOME
GOODNESS
DITCH THE ROTI AND EXPERIENCE SOME FABULOUS SANDWICHES AT BIGWICH
L
ove your bread? Well, Bigwich is just the right
place for you as it boasts of being the first spe-
cialist sandwich outlet in North India to spoil you
for choice with 25-odd all-vegetarian varieties
of sandwiches.The décor and ambience of the eatery is
warm with spacious and rugged interiors. The layout of
the kitchen is such that you get to see the entire sand-
wich-making process. Everything that goes in making
your favourite sandwich including breads, sauces, etc.
are prepared in-house by the staff.
The sandwiches have been listed under five
broad heads—Panini Sandwich, Focaccia Sandwich,
Croissant Sandwich, Jumbo Grilled Sandwich and Sub
Roll—and priced in the range of Rs 89 to 199 per plate
plus taxes.
The menu leaves the customer with a rich variety
of choices. Under panini sandwich, there is Veggie, a
mix of shredded veggies and mayo grilled to perfection,
and Aloo-Mutter, a traditional aloo-mutter flavour with
The casual yet comfortable
interiors of Bigwich
fresh mint, again grilled to perfection.
Browsing through Focaccia sandwich, we came
across Americano, stuffed with sweet corn, green pep-
pers, onions mixed in mint mayo with added flavour of
fresh India cilantro, and Fiery has fiery focaccia fiery
sauce, cheese roasted garlic and caramelised onion
flakes. California has coloured bell peppers, red onion,
olive oil and garlic with lime flavoured mayo and feta
cheese gratinated.
To go with the sandwiches, settle for your favourite
drink out of the eight to ten robust, chilled and fizzy
drinks served on the rocks. These include Green Apple,
Passion Pro, Melon Melody, Healthy Lemonade, Fizzy
Masala Cola, Mint Mojito and Cold Cocoa. For the hot-
ties’ choice there is creamy hot chocolate.
MEAL FOR TWO Rs 400
AT SCO 24-25, Sector 9, Madhya Marg, Chandigarh
TEL 8591500600
■ By Sukant Deepak
 “Punjabi Film Industry
Needs a Script Writing Lab”
FILM CRITIC ASEEM CHHABRA ON THE NEED OF EXPOSING
THE YOUNGER GENERATION TO ART AT SCHOOL LEVEL

“
T
here are enough voices
around here, filmmakers
must start training their
ears and listen to stories
and not just repeatedly work on
themes that have traditionally done
well in the Punjabi market,” sug-
gests New York-based Film Festival
director and critic Aseem Chhabra
who was in Chandigarh
last month. Insisting
that a film labora-
tory can go a long
Interaction
way in bringing out ASEEM CHHABRA
rich stories from the
state, Chhabra elabo-
rates, “There is no dearth of tal-
ent. Directors like Anup Singh and
Gurvinder Singh are making inter-
nationally acclaimed Punjabi films.
A script lab comprising some fine
minds who can guide potential film
writers will surely help.” A regular
at film festivals across the country,
Chhabra, was here on the invita-
tion of Dikshant Group of Schools
which had organised a screening
of Vittorio de Sica’s classic film
Bicycle Thieves and facilitated the
launch of the critic’s book, Shashi
Kapoor—The House holder,
The Star. Chhabra talks about
the importance of exposing chil-
dren to art at the school level. “We
always complain about youngsters’
dwindling interest in
arts. How can they
be blamed when
schools do so little to
expose them to the
best in cinema, the-
atre, music and other
arts?” he asks. Insisting that very
few film critics in India are doing
justice to their craft, the author
opines that the ‘star system’ in giv-
ing reviews has killed film criticism.
“A newspaper like New York Times
gives no stars. People read the
reviews not just to know about the
film but also to get mesmerised by
the writing,” he says.
SIMPLY PUNJABI Buzz HOT LIST

1
2

MIXED
BAG
WHAT TO BUY THIS SEASON
3

6
22 SIMPLY PUNJABI ◆ JULY 2016
 7

1 Sunglasses, Maui Jim, Rs 15,490, available at mauijim.com

2 Stole, 1469, Rs 2,400, available at 1469workshop.com
3 Hair Cream, Bed Head by TIGI, Rs 900,
available at amazon.in
4 Wrist watch, Longines, Rs 2,25,500, available
at Longines stores across India
5 Stool, Pepperfry, price on request, available
at pepperfry.com
6 Slippers, Relaxo, Rs 350, available at Relaxo stores
across India
7 Belt, Koovs, Rs 795, available at koovs.com
8 Denims, Being Human, Rs 3,999, available at
beinghumanclothing.com
SIMPLY PUNJABI Technology

Short FOR THIS 13-YEAR-OLD, MAKING ROBOTS AND

Circuit
COMPLEX ELECTRONIC GADGETRY IS AS
EFFORTLESS AS SAYING CHEESE FOR THE CAMERA
■ By SUKANT DEEPAK

L ike any other 13-year-

Tushar Sarin with his robot
old, Chandigarh-based Tushar
Sarin loves Enid Blytons. And like
any teenager, he can spend hours
playing basketball. But unlike most
people his age, Tushar will be com-
peting with engineering graduates
in making robots during India’s first
and largest ever robotics show to
be held next month in New Delhi.
For someone who was bitten
by the science bug ever since he
was five years old, Tushar started
his journey in robotics six months
back with Chandigarh-based
RoboChamps, a sister-concern
of Robotics Education World,
engaged in providing Robotics
and Technology based education
to young minds through schooling
education in India.
“Technology and its applica-
tions intrigue me no end. Initially,
I concentrated on learning the
elements of robotics.Then came
circuit designing on breadboard. I
researched a number of basic cir-
cuits and started designing these on
breadboards,” he says excitedly.
Happy that his science teachers
at Vivek High School, Chandigarh,
where he studies, have been push-
ing him to explore his aptitude, the
young man thinks that the region
can surely do with some more sci-
ence clubs. “Unlike in other coun-
tries, people our age seldom get an
opportunity to pursue their inter-
ests. Clubs at different levels would
surely help tap more talent,” he
says. Tushar, who also paints and
sketches wants to be a physicist one
day. “My parents have always been
very supportive, something which
really encourages me to pursue
what I want,” he concludes.

24 SIMPLY PUNJABI ◆ JULY 2016