Unprecedented Migrant Deaths in the Mediterranean Sea

On April 18th closer to the Italian island of Lampedusa along Straits of Sicily migrant boat from Libya carrying 900 people capsized of them 28 could be rescued so far making it the deadliest case of migrant drowning. It is the worst maritime disaster since World War II in the Mediterranean Sea. The alarming scale of migrant death in the Mediterranean Sea shook the Western World from the deep slumber of egotism and cynicism.

According to the reports of the Interior ministry of Italy, after the latest tragedy 23,556 entered Italy by sea since January 1^st and the numbers were 20,300 for the year 2014. While the numbers are more or less equal the death toll this year is 10 times more. 

Hapless citizens from Syria, Eritrea, Libya and Somalia unable to bear the torture, war and deprivation are moving in large numbers to Europe. In what is considered as the largest wave of migration since the World War II thousands of the migrants are trying to enter the safer shores of Europe illegally through the sea route. In spite of worst climatic conditions, daring the rigors of the sea journey desperate people board the dilapidated and wrecked boats in search of green pastures.

Syria has been ravaged by the unabated civil war since 2011 forcing the citizens to move to the neighbouring countries which are brimming with refugee population. In Libya the warring factions overthrew the Colonel Muammar Gaddafi’s regime and pushed the government into anarchy. Wild rampage by the Islamic extremists is forcing people to migrate to safer shelters. The precarious situation compounded by a war forced the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and International Organisation for Migration (IOM), the two largest refugee advocates to drastically downsizing their operations in Libya. With no support from their government and International Agencies people are approaching smugglers (illegal human traffickers).  Eritrea, ranked 180^th in the World freedom Index ranking, is facing the bloodiest authoritarian regimes. People fleeing from Eritrea constitute the second largest group of migrants to Europe after Syrians. Eritreans migrating to neighbouring Egypt and Sudan are deported back to their military regime. While deaths have been increasing exponentially it is not deterring migrants to embark on a risky sea journey. The dire circumstances at home are forcing these people to migrate to far off lands but the disastrous and illogical EU’s policy on asylum had put lives of thousands of migrants in peril.

Humanitarian agencies slammed the EU which claims to be haven of democracy and liberalism for rejecting the people who are fleeing dictatorship and underdevelopment. They points out to two major factors that led to death of asylum seekers in the Mediterranean. One, Italy initially ran an ambitious rescue and search mission, Mare Nostrum that saved lives of 150,000 migrants till October 2013. Since the EU and other European countries failed to offer any monetary support Italy suspended the programme. UK believed that Mare Nostrum acted as a pull factor, encouraging more migrants to enter Europe and lobbied the EU for its termination. Subsequently Operation Triton was commissioned by the EU’s border agency Frontex. It runs on a frugal budget, less than one–thirds of the Mare Nostrum and merely patrols 30 miles from the shores. Secondly, the illegal human traffickers are cramming more number of people into boats which are barely navigable due to scarcity of boats.

Italy and Greece are the gateways to Europe for several thousands of asylum–seekers and most UN conventions say refugees are the responsibility of the country whose doors they knock but there are instances where allies too share the burden. But the EU’s timid approach to the humanitarian crisis is embroiled by the European leaders whose are conscientious of the public opinion that favour anti-immigration policies. European countries are shying away from sharing the burden of the asylum seekers. Some countries are shutting these migrants inside detention centres, preventing them to work outside and making lives miserable so that people seek refuge elsewhere. Various agencies and intellectuals across the World lambasted the EU for shirking their responsibilities for short term budgetary reasons and for forgetting the incidents of past. Wherein Spaniards sought the refugee of French by the end of the economic crisis in 1930 and similarly French were offered protection by the British during the worst Nazi executions in 1940.

Following the huge uproar of human rights activists, the EU officials convened a summit on April 23^rd to engineer a plan for tackling the Mediterranean crisis. According to a confidential report of the summit accessed by the Guardian, the callous attitude of the EU is mirrored. The emergency summit crisis package the EU would allow resettlement of 5000 migrants across Europe and others will be repatriated. Further the 150,000 migrants who survived the arduous sea journey and reached Italy last year will be sent back under rapid-return programme coordinated by its border agency, Frontex. Despite international pressure the EU is unlikely to expand its search and rescue operations along Mediterranean Sea but would strengthen its existing operations in the 30 mile area from the shores. But the immediate outcome of the summit would be to identify, capture and destroy the vessels used by traffickers. It was decided to mobilise all its resources to reduce loss of lives in the Mediterranean, curtail illegal migration and to fight traffickers. As per the UN shipping migrants towards Europe from Libya is a $170 m industry. It was decided to extend emergency aid to its frontline states of Italy, Malta and Greece besides providing support to Tunisia, Mali, Sudan, Egypt and Niger to monitor and control the land borders to prevent potential migrants from reaching the shores of Mediterranean. The British which earlier took a firm stand on immediate withdrawal of Mare Nostrum is now slowly easing its stand as elections just weeks away and the public envisaged the tragedy in Mediterranean as a humanitarian crisis rather than an immigration issue.

In the past both America and Australia dealt the migrant crisis by landing refugees in their islands. America placed refugees in its Guantanamo Base on Cuba while Australia directed them to the island state of Nauru and to Manus Island in Papua New Guinea but never allowed them to enter their own land. Europe lacks a convenient island nation to resettle these migrants. In the past around 1 million Vietnamese refugees were rehabilitated under a co-ordinated plan across the World. Later the merchant ships who aided in rescue efforts were compensated. Subsequently deal was struck with Vietnam for the orderly repatriation of the undeserving. Unfortunately during the current crisis, Europe failed to show any commitment or ambition for sorting out this issue. Hence expecting any help from the rest of the world seems far-fetched.

The EU as an entity is a strong confederation of nation states but there is a lack of solidarity between the nations in the North and South. Apart from Germany and Sweden all other nations are averse to the idea of accommodating refugees. Even European leaders neither have appetite for a generous gesture nor do they have a collective immigration policy. EU doesn’t have any policies that govern burden-sharing nor do they have set standards for the treatment offered to third world countries. Each country has its own immigration policy and they are averse to idea of surrendering control over immigration issues. But so far the stance of the EU has been disappointing and exuded lack of humanity and compassion.

The flow of migrants is going to be long term since the chaos and uncertainty in the Middle East is less likely to settle down. The chronic underdevelopment and political instability is expected to last longer in the North Africa. Hence piece meal strategies of the EU might in long term can cause greater harm. It is time for the EU to move pragmatically and evolve a profound strategy to make the world a better place to live.

 

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The Himalayan Tragedy: Nepal’s Earthquake

The heart rendering images of the victims of the Nepal’s devastating 7.9 magnitude earthquake is appalling. The epicentre of the quake was 80 kilometres from Kathmandu, the most densely populated region of the country. This region is known to be earthquake prone and the deadly tragedy of this magnitude was long anticipated by scientists. The intensity of this disaster was believed to be as powerful as the explosion of 20 thermonuclear weapons. The last earthquake that struck the Kathmandu valley 81 years ago in 1934 was biggest in the region with intensity of 8.3 killed 19,000 people in Nepal and Bihar.

Scientific Explanation for incidence of Earth Quakes:

According to the reports of the Nepal National Society for Earth Quake Technology, old records dated from 1255 referred to this region as Indus-Yarlung suture Zone and pronounced that the region would record earthquake of high magnitude every 75 years. The periodical incidence of earthquakes is due to the tectonic collisions between the Indian subcontinent plate and the Eurasian plate which collided 40 to 50 million years ago. The Indian subcontinent plate is constantly pushing itself towards Asia in the North at a geographically faster rate of 5 centimetres or 2 inches a year. As the plates push against each other constantly they generate lot of friction and stress and the pressure remains accumulated until the crust ruptures leading to a massive earthquake. Stresses in the earth’s outer layer push the sides of the fault line releasing energy which travels through the earth’s crust and cause tremors thereby the ground starts shaking. During this process they dissipate lot of energy similar to a thermonuclear weapon explosion.

 

According to an earthquake expert of Chinese University the plate moved forward 6.5 feet or 2 meters in Saturday’s earthquake causing a shallow earthquake of approximately 11km deep. Usually shallow quakes tend to cause more damage and more aftershocks than the deeper ones. Nepal is located on the southern edge of the thrust fault line where one tectonic plate forces itself upon the other and hence the region is earth quake prone.

The tectonic collisions in the region have resulted in the formation of the youngest Himalayan ranges. The fault line lies along the 2500 kilometre range and the constant collision between the Indian and Eurasian plates pushes up the height of the ranges by a centimetre every year. While the region experiences severe earthquakes regularly due to the tectonic collisions, occurrence of these events couldn’t be predicted with accuracy. But some scientists opine that if the pressure build up is consistent and homogenous, the region could be rocked by severe tremors every four or five decades. But due to the complexity of the forces along the fault lines, the time of occurrences of the disaster couldn’t be predicted.

Some scientists maintained that plains of Nepal in the quake affected region suffered less tremors and hence less damage as they were on solid bed rock. Contrastingly the regions in the North Indian plains near Indo-Nepalese border experienced greater tremors because of their shallow silt and sandy surfaces. Past Earth quake tragedies in this region suggest that quakes of very high magnitude were unusually high leading to severe loss of lives and property.

Global Earth Quake Safety Initiative report of 2001 had warned Kathmandu of high potential lethality disaster. It had also enlisted 21 other cities across the World in the list. While Nepal has been trying to implement new building codes to cope up with the disasters, it being one among the poorest and least developed countries of the World, money has been biggest hiccup to implement the envisioned building codes. According to Engineers without borders UK, nearly 80% of the buildings constructed informally in Nepal without engineering expertise. Unfortunately in the recent earthquake collapsed buildings and structures accounted for three quarters of all fatalities. After the earthquake of 1988, Nepal has formulated recommended building codes in collaboration with United Nations Development Program by 1994. But poor adherence and enforcement by the municipalities has resulted in mushrooming of thousands of houses in the Kathmandu valley which don’t comply with the set codes.

The Darbar Square, the densest region of the capital, several historical structures and other administrative buildings are reduced to rubbles. With poor infrastructure in place, even the emergency and rescue teams are now finding it increasingly difficult to reach the disaster struck region. Rainfall on the second day of the quake impeded the rescue operations. Of the seventy districts of Nepal thirty five districts were struck by quake. All the regions that experienced intense tremors lie in steep mountainous region have high propensity of landslide occurrence. In 2008 mountainous Sichuan province of China was jolted by an earthquake of magnitude 7.9 generated nearly 200,000 landslides. Similar kind of situation is expected for Nepal. The disaster so far claimed 4800 lives and the numbers are expected to swell as more bodies are extricated from the debris. The toll of severely injured has crossed 10,000 mark.  While the scale seismic activity is not so huge to cause severe damage but the intensity of destruction was compounded by the dense population and degradation of the environment.

Situation in India and lessons to be learnt

States of Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Sikkim and Assam too suffered damages from this earthquake leading to death of 70 people. Geologists repeatedly warned and cautioned the countries in the region of impending Himalayan Seismic Hazard. They predicted that capital cities of Nepal, India, Bhutan, Bangladesh and Pakistan teeming with millions of people to be more vulnerable to damage from quakes. Delhi, the densely populated capital sits on three active fault lines. The tremors of the recent quake were felt in Delhi 970 kilometres away and it falls in category four of seismic zone. Moreover the density of the high-rise buildings and the soil conditions makes it highly quake-prone. North eastern states and Jammu and Kashmir are in category five seismic zones making them more vulnerable.

India having suffered the worst humanitarian disaster during the Uttarakhand cloud burst and the recent Kashmir floods should abandon its cavalier attitude towards earth quake safety and development in Himalayas. The developmental plans must accommodate environmentally viable projects. 58.6% of land mass in India is prone to earthquakes of medium to high intensity. Since earthquakes can’t be predicted or prevented Indian authorities should implement measures to mitigate the extent of damage. These mitigation measures must be crafted into new development projects and old buildings should be retrofitted with materials that can withstand quakes. Municipalities must strictly enforce building codes which comply with disaster mitigate measures.

Operation Maitri

Responding to the impassioned appeal of Prime Minister Sushil Koirala of Nepal for humanitarian aid, India swiftly despatched NDRF personnel to Nepal. The rescue and relief operations in Nepal carried by the Government of India and the Indian Armed Forces coded as Operation Maitri started its action barely 15 minutes after the quake with ex-servicemen of Gorkha Regiment guiding the rescue teams. The instantaneous readiness of the rescue personnel and the alacrity displayed by Modi in convening various meetings and assigning specific tasks in the crucial hour of need is commendable. Lately encumbered by natural disasters India has developed immense capacities to carry out missions in trying situations. India’s operations dating back to 1980’s in Sri Lanka, Maldives and Mauritius are a testimony to its credentials as a valued responder.

During the 2004 tsunami Indian ships were the first to reach Sri Lanka. A couple of months back when fresh water units of Maldives collapsed India replenished them with adequate supplies of fresh water by air and water too. India has been consistently demonstrating sophisticated capability to use its military and civilian resources for humanitarian causes. These swift actions have been instrumental in boosting India’s foreign policy in the neighbourhood. Despite the inclement weather conditions, within 24 hours of the quake Indian personnel brought home 250 nationals from the disaster zone. Besides deployment of rescue personnel, material and medical teams were flown to Nepal. Indian armed forces on rescue operations besides earning laurels for the country are reorienting underutilised military assets for humanitarian endeavours. The back to back missions-Operation Rahat, aimed at bringing back the Indian nationals trapped from the war-torn Yemen and the Operation Maitri vouch for India’s unparalleled commitment towards humanitarian activities. India is receiving requests from various countries for evacuation of their national trapped in Nepal. So far, 24 military aircrafts, Unmanned Aerial Vehicles and hundreds of armed personnel are pressed into action to aid authorities of the tragedy struck nation. According to UN estimate 46 lakh people have been affected and property worth $5 billion was destroyed due to the earth quake. 

Over the years Indian forces accumulated rich experience and enormous capabilities making them front runners in disaster relief and ambassadors of peace. With its prowess in disaster operations India would rise into a benign power whose growth will be welcomed in the region.

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Obsessed with India, Pakistan to use its weapons in fight against India

The propitious beginnings made by the Prime Minister to foster friendly relations with the immediate neighbours culminated with his swearing-in ceremony. The attendance of Pakistani Prime Minister to that event was touted to lay new foundation for restoring friendly ties with India. But the opportunity was immediately floundered by unprovoked firing across the LoC. Later, miffed by the Pakistani High Commissioner’s interactions with separatists, the scheduled talks between the foreign ministers of both the countries were suspended by India in August 2014. This ended the euphoria pertaining to the rejuvenation of friendship across the border. The stalemate between the two leaderships continued for seven months following which Modi called up his counterpart to express best wishes to Pakistani Cricket Team for the forthcoming World Cup. Later official meetings with Pakistan were resumed by the Indian foreign secretary Subramanyam Jai Shankar on his four-country SAARC Yatra. This strategic outreach program was aimed to achieve a breakthrough in the India-Pakistan dialogue process. Consistently Indian leadership exuded faith and sought refuge in dialogue process but frequent cease fire violations from Pakistani side scuttled Indian commitment. Now the sensational musings and authentic revelations of Pakistani intentions are made public by their former ambassador to US, Hussain Haqqani. In an article penned for the wall street journal, he tacitly justified India’s qualms and reprimanded the nefarious motives of Pakistan. The recent string of events across the Western border too holds testimony to the dubious stance of Pakistan.

In light of the US President’s approval to supply $1 billion worth sophisticated weaponry in the form of war helicopters, missiles etc to Pakistan Mr Haqqani minced no words in saying that this bounty would fuel intense rivalry in the South Asia region. Aid was extended to the Pakistani regime by the US to support its counter terrorism and counter insurgency operations.  But the former diplomat insists that instead of curtailing the jihadi movement Pakistan will subvert these arms to tackle their obsessive domestic enemy- India.

Since 1950 Pakistan has been extracting aid from the US by invoking its apprehensions of being overridden by a bigger neighbour- India. Till now it obtained $40 billion from the US under the mask of security concerns. Thus the US has been instrumental in quenching the insatiable hunger of Pakistan of being India’s military equal in the region. The US instead of discouraging Pakistani ambitions of rivalling with India started providing more military equipment to them. Drawing comparisons to the parities between the nations- Indian economy is 10 times larger than Pakistan and has six times the population. India’s $2 trillion large economy has managed to grow consistently; Pakistan’s $245 billion economy’s grew sporadically and its financial pursuits are largely impeded by the domestic choas and jihadi movement. In sharp contrast to the secular outlook of India which advocates no religious preference/bias Pakistan got caught up in the quagmire of Islam ideology which began cast its shadow on all the state institutions. It was soon engulfed by the religious intolerance and extremism.

Further since independence Pakistan leaders advocated a strong anti-Indian tirade. Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq, military dictator during 1977 expounded greater vehemence towards India. Overwhelmed by the objective of turning the state into a Citadel of Islam, he strongly enforced Islam ideology and laid foundations for a religious extremism. This ideological milieu enabled the religious and political groups to take control over the Pakistan establishment, led by the military. The people’s representation has become nominal as elections were held sporadically paving way for the outgrowth of jihadi groups, one more vicious than the other.

Pakistan’s state sponsored terrorism received a shot in the arm with the latest bounty extended under the provisions Kerry-Luger Act. The US president on his visit to India sharply condemned the punitive actions of Pakistan but continued with the largesse, a precedent set by its predecessors and expects a different outcome. It is highly intriguing as how the US continues to fund Pakistan even when LeT chief, Hafeez Muhammad Sayeed openly spew venom against the US on television in Lahore and a mystery that how it could suddenly trust Pakistan in spite of the Navy SEAL operation which hunted down Osama bin Laden from the garrison town of Abbotabad in Pakistan and killed him.

The generous bounty from the US at regular intervals of time had emboldened Pakistani despotic terrorist attacks against India. The relentless aid packages of the US to Pakistan for the past six decades augured Pakistani extremism. Mr. Haqqani opined that it must have been easy for the US to sell helicopters than strategically change the deeply ingrained hatred of its ally. As declassified documents of the US reveal, between 1950 and 1969 the US has granted aid of $ 4.5 billion to use the Pakistan army for destroying the communist troops. Pakistan didn’t send even a single soldier to aid American troops in their war with Vietnam or Korea. Instead it prepared for a war with India in 1965.

The US unperturbed by Pakistani avarice, granted an aid of $4.5 billion during 1980 to combat the Russian troops in Afghanistan. Pakistan diverted all of it for training the jihadis and for stealthily dispatching hundreds of them across the border to Jammu and Kashmir. It also fomented trouble in Punjab by rousing the passions of people through an organised movement. Pakistan violated its promise to the US of not acquiring nuclear weapons and went ahead with nuclear weapons testing in 1998 on a pretext that it can’t afford to remain without nuclear weapons as India went ahead with its nuclear program.

The list of Pakistan misdemeanours continued endlessly. From 1990 it started arming various kinds of jihadi’s including the Afghanistan Talibans. After General Pervez Musharaf assumed reigns as President he vowed to discontinue support to the Islam radicals and the US subsequently granted $15.1 billion but he went back on his promise and started silently patronising the extremist outfits. He later admitted in an interview with the Guardian that he continued to support the Afghanistan Talibans even after 9/11. Thus the US was relentlessly aiding the country that was in turn arming the insurgents, who were killing American soldiers fighting on the Afghan soil.

Last year in a dastardly, inhuman act Afghan Talibans opened fire in a school which claimed lives of 130 innocent children. This raised intense domestic and International furore spurring Pakistan into immediate action. Following the uproar Pakistan vowed that henceforth it will not discriminate between good and bad terrorism and will root out the evil from its soil. In retrospective it launched massive combing operations and enforced strict punishments for the punitive actions of Talibans. But the disarming, dismantling and destruction of the terror elements was never part of the serious agenda of Pakistan as it lacked the strong will to exterminate the extremist outfits. Till date jihadi elements and the home bred terrorists of Pakistan didn’t refrain from indulging in their scandalous operations.

Needless to say the Pakistan’s vindictive attitude indicates that it would definitely utilise the latest equipment acquired from the US in promoting the jihadi movement in the Kashmir and against the secular insurgents in the Southwest province of Balochistan but not against the abdominal Afghan Taliban. It is really startling as how Obama administration could trust the Pakistan in spite of repeated detractions. The US could have at least attested the intentions of the Pakistan by initially leasing out the helicopters and monitoring where they are deployed before showering the generous gift of modern weaponry.

Incidentally over the years Pakistan has become an all-weather friend of China. President Xi Xinping during his recent visit to Pakistan had pledged $46 billion towards purchase of submarines and infrastructure development. With reigning super powers of the World shouldering and supporting Pakistan, it should no longer feel insecure about its neighbour India. Thanks to the interminable monetary aid from the US, a country of 200 million people with one-third of subsisting on less than one dollar per day waged four conventional wars with India and continues to flare up aggression and chaos in the state of Jammu and Kashmir, an integral part of India. The succinct essay of Pakistan’s former diplomat clearly surmised the future course of action of his country based on its past history.

For the original article, kindly follow the link: http://www.wsj.com/articles/why-are-we-sending-this-attack-helicopter-to-pakistan-1429480299

Even Pakistan’s latest move pertaining to the release of Zaikur Rahman Lakhvi, the commander for the Laskhar e Taiba (LeT) who master minded terrorist operations not only in India but in Afghanistan, Chechnya and Bosnia also testifies its dubious stance of obliterating terror elements on its soil. India was keen on his persecution for his dispensation in the 26/11 Mumbai terrorist attacks and 2006 Mumbai train blasts that killed over 200 people. The release of Lakhvi was strongly condemned by the international community as 28 citizens from the US, the UK, Israel, Australia, Singapore and Canada perished in the 26/11 terrorist attacks. Under the present circumstances, Delhi can only think of activating the Congress and the public opinion of the US to extradite Lakhvi in the US courts for killing US citizens.

 

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Mystery shrouding Netaji’s death should be unravelled

Ordinary people and masses look forward for an able leadership for guidance, assurance and enthusiastically wait for their visionary approach to lead the nation. Leaders in any part of the World are held in high reverence and especially those who made phenomenal contribution for the liberation of the nation from the foreign hands are adored. The recent episode of the leakage of crucial information regarding the whereabouts of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose revealed how the custodians of history and heads of state failed us appallingly. Setting aside the contributions or sacrifices made by leaders who hogged in limelight, it has exposed the most cynical side of a venerable leadership. While it might be too precocious to make frivolous observations about the overpowering charisma of our hallowed freedom fighters, the quirkiness of the common man forces him to question the nobility of the towering personalities.

As more and more details emerge about the declassification of the files expounding the nexus between Indian leadership and other World leaders’ curiosity of Indian youth about the nitty-gritty details of the independence movement and its aftermath is augured. It is matter of utter shame and disrespect to know that a family who lost their dearest one for the noble cause of liberating nation was snooped for 20 years. Their personal communication, movements were under surveillance by the Intelligence Officials at the behest of the Indian government. It is a duty of every citizen and the state to accord high statures to the extraordinary men and patriotic sons of India.

Indian History tried to portray Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose as a controversial freedom fighter for his ideological concussion with the Orthodoxy of Mahatma Gandhi. In his pursuit of obtaining independence for the country he sought help from countries like Russia, Germany and Japan. But he was neither a communist nor a fascist but a nationalist. His extraordinary motivation in forming the Indian National Army (INA) with the limited monetary funding caused tremors in the colonial rule and warranted them to leave India in 1947. Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar in his interview to the BBC in 1955 revealed that the British left India for two reasons-The INA raised by Bose aroused patriotic fervour among the Indian Soldiers who shifted their loyalty and spurred them to form a battalion to fight out the British. It also attracted public interest and with sympathy from the Indian military British feared that it could turn out be another 1857 sepoy mutiny. British Prime Minister Clement Attlee confided these details in Dr. Ambedkar in a private talk and later disclosed it in his autobiography too.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZJs-BJoSzbo

Setting aside the political affiliations and the implications that the current government can accrue, isn’t it a matter of pride and honour for the country to know about the whereabouts of a leader who gave up his life for the freedom of country? Meanwhile the political mudslinging has already begun with Congress lambasting the NDA government of wilfully damaging the aura of the nation’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru. After almost seven decades of independence and with latest scientific techniques at our beck and call it is responsibility of the state to investigate the details of the leaders associated with freedom movement. It is moral binding on the government to take a call and restore Bose’s legacy.

All other democratic nations, India loves to emulate have a well laid out system of declassification of files. It is high time that government should evolve a system to expunge the lurking doubts about the life of the freedom leader by having tacit declassification system of files in place. Noble freedom fighters who threw away British in spite of their ideological differences always addressed each other with great praise and never harboured any ill will. The contemporary political parties too instead of getting overenthusiastic in stirring unfounded controversies must work in tandem to develop a credible system for declassifying over 150 files locked up in national depositories. They must also refrain drawing political mileage from the revelations of the files and leave it to the discretion of public to draw conclusions. Already some of the crucial files shrouding the mystery of Netaji were destroyed. Unveiling the mask of secrecy over remaining documents in government’s possession can be the ultimate tribute the nation can pay to its esteemed son. @ Copyrights reserved.

Is it time to consolidate a clear foreign policy strategy towards Pakistan?

Sudden surge of cumulative actions across our Western border has become cause of serious concern and outrage. For the past months, the sequence of events has resulted in blowing off the lid of belligerency of our western neighbour Pakistan. In the latest development in the last fortnight, Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi, the master conspirator of 26/11 from the Rawalpindi’s Adayala Jail was released on bail in spite of his reputation as one of the most dreadful terrorists of the South Asia. Also, the brazenness and temerity of the Pakistani High Commissioner in holding series of meetings with the Hurriyat leaders under India’s nose despite India expressing severe reservations for any such negotiations challenge India’s incoherent foreign policy towards Pakistan.

While the arrest of Lakhvi the commander of LeT (Laskhar E Toiba) has been a part of the high-handed drama staged by Pakistan to assert the World and to please its western master that it is hard on terror, it is very clear that Pakistan will never act against its self-groomed and patronised hard core militant. India should read between the lines and change its strategy. Though India handed over enough evidence in form of dossiers to nail down the conspirator of the Mumbai attacks, Pakistan always defended that the evidence is inconclusive and insufficient. It will be a futile exercise on part of India to keep pursuing Lakhvi’s bail with Pakistan who treated LeT commander as a state guest in Jail.

Frustrated by recalcitrance of Pakistan India always took an umbrage under suspension of talks with Pakistan as a knee-jerk political reaction. Instead, India should adopt the long standing Chinese strategy of holding prolific and perpetual border talks, which it has been continuing for the past 30 years. Unfailingly, India should disappoint Pakistan by persistently engaging in border talks. This way India can project its unflinching faith and commitment in resolving the border issue peacefully to the International community. The talks between both the nations from the past six decades didn’t entail substantial gains as Pakistan is not ready not part with even an inch of territory. It is an open secret that Pakistan never willed or even showed signs of containing its state-sponsored terrorism which has become its national tenet.  Thus India without conceding much to Pakistan during talks can win brownie points.

Recently the Pakistani government received a bounty from the US whose President on his bilateral visit to India expressed concern over inaction of Pakistan towards the growing terrorism in South Asia. The benevolent gift from the Western master in the form in the sophisticated arms and weapons were disbursed to the country under the banner of arming the soldiers of Pakistan to support its counterterrorism and counter-insurgency operations. In spite of the growing clout against the nation as the hub of terrorism it is distressing as how the US is deliberately committed to arm the nation. Since the year 2000, portraying themselves as victims of terrorism, Pakistan suckered $31 billion from the US.

The list of the covert Pakistani actions aimed at destabilising India understates it ideology of death by a thousand cuts. Some of its covert operations include the Khalistani terrorism patronised in Punjab from across the border 30 years ago followed by igniting separatist movement in Jammu and Kashmir. Immediately after the partition Pakistan commenced its clandestine military operations in the form a tribal raid initially in 1947. These were followed by three conventional wars. In a move to destabilise India it supported every form of separatist movement in the North-East Region as well. Pakistan has never left any stone unturned to foment trouble in India.  Unfortunately the monster of the Pakistan state-sponsored terrorism spread its tentacles in different parts of country. The movement rapidly gained momentum by targeting and recruiting India youth.  The Pakistani jihad had thus spread a reign of terror across India resulting in several fatalities outside J&K in various terrorist attacks. Pakistan over the past few decades inflicted tremendous harm on India. It has successfully created a reign of terror in India by periodic terrorist attacks across various cities in India. The economic damage, in terms of maintaining Special Forces to monitor, mitigate and effectively tackle terrorist activities is incalculable. Even the colossal loss of human lives lost due to this sustained violence is demoralising.

Pakistan has been persistently amplifying its hatred towards India as its sustained national project the lack of strategic coherent policy towards Pakistan by the successive regimes in India has augmented proliferation of terrorism in India.

But unlike Pakistan which is steadily heading towards the path of ruination India in spite of its vulnerabilities and lack of strong leadership continued to flourish. Pakistan has been fostering sectarian violence and flushing jihadis into Afghanistan and India for several decades. Subsequently it was conjured up by the growing conflagration of uncontrolled extremist Islamic terrorism. Every state institution in the country is trapped by the corrosive Islamist terrorism and the venom of the extremism is now poisoning its own roots threatening the very existence of the state itself. Ajai Sahni, a counter- terrorism expert in his paper: Counter Terrorism: The core issue in Pakistan indicated that “if India can hold onto Jammu and Kashmir operation for another 15-20 years, Pakistan will eventually destroy itself without India doing anything substantial to secure this end”.

BJP has made a great beginning in this regard by performing extremely well in the assembly elections of Jammu and Kashmir. It displayed stupendous determination and commitment to salvage the state by extending a friendly hand to the pro-Pakistani PDP party and became a coalition partner in the state administration. During the initial days of government formation, BJP’s sentiments and its nationalistic credentials were severely rebuked due to the release of Masrat Alam, a hard-core separatist leader. Modi in his parliamentary address silenced the opposition by promising stern against the separatists. But massive controversy broke few days back when Masrat Alam commanded a huge rally in Srinagar where separatist leaders hoisted Pakistan flag and raising pro-Pakistan slogans. The central home minister immediately issued a stern warning to the PDP to arrest the separatist leader. Within two days he was arrested and the situation was brought under control. The pro-Pakistan slogan in the valley is music to Pakistan government. But the centre quickly dashed its hopes by scuttling the separatist movement.

Tough days are ahead for the Indian leadership with Pakistan gearing up the visit of Chinese President Xi Jinping who has vouched to stand by its strong-ally and partner of all times who promised investments worth $46 billion. The visit will finalise the long pending sale of 8 submarines to Pakistan. In turn Pakistan as token of friendship has offered China 40-year rights to run its strategic Gwadar port. Gwadar port is located at the mouth of the Persian Gulf is the gateway for 20% of the World’s oil. By gaining operating rights Chinese oil imports can bypass the Straits of Malacca between Malaysia and Indonesia which risks blockade during wartimes, gain access to Gulf countries and can possibly built a naval base in the strategic Arabic sea. China is also planning to build an economic corridor connecting Gwadar to Xinjiang province to transport oil and gas.

To reinstate India’s resolve to strengthen friendly ties with the neighbouring nations the foreign secretary of India recently embarked on a SAARC yatra. But India’s positivity is responded with alarming hostility. Under these circumstances India has to inevitably evolve a strategic and coherent foreign policy towards Pakistan to stem the growing clout of terrorism.

 

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An Adventurous Road Trip from Delhi to Munshiyari Part-4

 

Munshiyari-Thal-Sheraghat-Jageshwar-Almora-Bhimtal-Haldwani-Rampur-Delhi

Day 4 (Saturday):

Morning we got up by 6am to watch the peaks at sunrise. The beauty of the snow capped peaks was augmented by the radiance of the brilliant sun’s rays.  But soon clouds ensconced the peaks and thus our countenance with the majestic peaks ended.

The ominous dark clouds cautioned of the looming alarming weather conditions. After a quick breakfast, we checked out from the room and started preparing for the return journey.  Way back could have been awesome had it not been for the rain and the clouds which continued to haunt us. Waving a farewell to the Himalayans which are no longer visible even from Kalamuni, we bowed at the Durga temple praying for safe journey. As we started descending, drive has become more dangerous as we were encapsulated by the misty clouds. The near zero visibility warranted extreme care and caution on the part of the driver.  Thankfully my husband’s ace driving skills helped us to avert any kind of mishaps. The hair-rousing dangerous encounters retrospective of inclement weather kept us on tenterhooks till we reached Birthi Falls which at the base of the hill. We soon crossed all the villages and cautiously tread through few rough patches and reached Thal in 3 hrs. While the journey downhill was supposed to be cool bad weather played a spoiled sport.
 

Driving in rain

 

At Thal we visited an Old Bhaveshwar Shiva temple on the main road which is accorded the status of protected monument. Locally referred to as deepalay it was built somewhere in 11^th century. But exact details are not available. We had a brief conversation with the Pandit of the temple who is a retired mechanic from army. He too couldn’t shed more light about its ancestry. Some of the temples chambers in use are recently renovated. After attending the harathi we resumed our journey and headed to Berinag, 28 km away. From there we reached Sheraghat which was 34km head via Raiagar. Unfortunately the spell of the bad weather continued to chase us all along the hills. The road to Sheraghat doesn’t have much traffic and the drive was pleasant though the roads were not up to the mark. In between impressed by an elegant temple located uphill we stopped at the Sankat Hanuman Mandir at Jateshwar. But it was closed so we quickly paced towards Sheraghat. Saryu River was running parallel to our road, as we moved further we could see its river basin which was lush green and pleasant. 2 km ahead of Sherghat, at Machikhana village we escaped a landslide by a fraction of second.

Temple in Thal

Our next destination was Almora, 60 km from Sheraghat. Beyond Sheraghat we started encountering more rubble and rocks that rolled from hill tops. Clearly the disastrous effects of deforestation are clearly visible along the hills. Denuded hill tops are cracking down during rains and contributing to increased incidence of landslides. Sheraghat to Almora route is prone to landslides and it also passes through number of hills each of them connected by bridges. The road passes through scantly inhabited places and dense forests. This route is almost devoid of any eateries. We were famished and were on a look out for a decent to munch on. At around 18 Km from Sherghat was Dhaulchina, we stopped there for a late lunch. As we enquired more about the place we were informed of two important tourist attractions nearer to this place. A kilometre ahead of Dhoulchina, the road bifurcates leading to Binsar (3km) on left and to Almora. As we already viewed the Himalayan peaks we ruled out visiting Binsar and continued to drive towards Almora. After driving for 12km, we hit upon a road leading to Jageshwar, the famous Jyotirlinga at Barecchina. Though we vaguely knew that Jageshwar was close to Almora, we weren’t aware of the route. Having travelled this far we wanted to visit the renowned temple. So we drove to Jageshwar, 17 km inside. Road was newly laid and is in excellent condition. As we neared Jageshwar we were surprised by the serenity and splendour of the place. The place was impeccably clean, first we encountered Dhandeshwar group of heritage temples a kilometre behind the Jageshwar temple complex. These reminded us of the temples of Khajuraho.

Sarayu River Basin

Jageshwar is one of the famous religious towns located at an elevation of 6000 ft in the Jataganga river valley amidst dense Deodhar forests. The temples were constructed near the confluence of the rivers Nandini and Surabhi. Earlier pilgrims used to halt at this place en-route to Kailash Mansarovar yatra.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  

Dhandeshwar Group of Temples

Dhandeshwar group of temples house 14 other subsidiary shrines besides the tallest Dhandeshwar temple where all the rituals are performed regularly. Dhandeshwar is one the tallest and biggest temples of the Kumaon region and built between 9^th and 10^th century by the Katyuri rulers. But the shikhara is different than other Nagar style temples of the region. The temple dedicated to Lord Shiva is considered to be containing Lord in sukhasana where the stone lingam is a natural rock and not carved. All other small shrines in the complex are in dilapidated condition. We even visited a Hanuman temple just outside the complex but located in the tranquil deodhar forest next to the flowing stream of Jataganga. Little ahead of the complex there is an Eco Park and an Archeological Museum was present near the Jageshwar Temple complex.

Jageshwar Temple

 

While the records indicating the accurate dating of the construction of these temples were unavailable ASI (Archaeological Survey of India) ascertained that the temples date back to post-Gupta and pre-medieval eras and estimated to be 2500 years old. Jageshwar is considered as the Abode of Nagesh Jyotirlinga dedicated to Lord Shiva. The group consists of 125 temples of various shapes and sizes ranging between 7^th and 18^th century. These temples are dedicated to Lord Shiva, Mritunjaya, Surya, Navadurga, Navagraha, Lagulish, Kedareshwar, Baleshwar, Pushti Devi, Kalika and Lakshmi. The temples were renovated by Katyuri King Shilavahandev. Later the Chand Kings of Kumaon regions were also patrons of the Jageshwar temple. It is believed that Adi Shankaracharya visited Jageshwar; he renovated and re-established many temples before leaving for Kedarnath.

While it continued to drizzle uninterruptedly, we visited all these temples and luckily we had darshan of the deities. The truly mystic, tranquil environs and the surrounding beautiful environment augur great reverence towards the Supreme Power. For all the people who denounce any kind of ritualistic worship, this place would incite a humbling experience towards the transcendental bliss proffered by the Mother Nature. By and large these temples and its pristine locales undeniably bestow a mystical contentment. With fond memories of the place we soon started travelling towards Almora. With invigorated mind and spirits we soon sped fast towards Almora and then without entering the main town, we drove towards Haldwani where we wanted to rest for the night. Road from Almora to Haldwani was in excellent condition so our journey comfortable. After reaching Haldwani my husband decided to drive back to Delhi even if he had to drive throughout the night. I was flabbergasted by his idea as I was scared of the heavy trucks plying at nights. But he remained firm and drove us back to Delhi by early hours of Sunday (around 4:30 am).  In total he drove around 600km in a day despite the inclement weather. Finally the real unsung hero turned out be our car Hyundi i10, Sportz of 2013 make.

 

Jageshwar Group of Temples

Unlike our previous road trips, this was very special etching indelible experiences in mind’s eye. Travelling most of the times inculcates tolerance and toughens the mind to undertake challenges on at a time. 

 

Photographs Courtesy: Dr. T. L. S. Bhaskar

 

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An Adventurous Road Trip from Delhi to Munshiyari Part-2

Kashipur-Ramnagar-Ranikhet-Kausani-Baijnath-Bageshwar-Chakouri

Day 2 (Thursday):

Smitten by driving through bad road, we started enquiring at the hotel’s reception desk about the condition of roads before we chalked down our travel plans for the day. We decided to drive to Ramnagar, the base of the hills, 27 km from Kashipur. We set out on the road by 8:30 am. The drive was very refreshing; roads had scant traffic and devoid of heavy vehicles. Green vegetation along the sides of the road appeared more tender and beautiful. With the onset of spring the budding foliage on the small bushes along the hedges was brimming with life. The tall trees gently swaying along the wind brought about new freshness and vibrancy.

Road to Ramnagar

Ramnagar, the tourist town, gateway to the hills and the Jim Corbett National Park is bustling with activity. From Ramnagar we began to feel the ascent along the hilly terrain and it was drizzling, but very soon rain stopped and skies have become clear. Our next destination is Ranikhet 94 km from Rampur. On the way to Ranikhet, we stopped at the Amba Devi Temple few meters before the famous Garjiya Devi Temple @ Garjiya to enjoy the pleasant and the calm hilly tracks. Garjiya village is on the outskirts of the Jim Corbett National Park. The famous temple of Shakti or popularly called Garjiya temple was constructed on a huge rock in the Kosi River and very popular among the devotees. As we moved along the road, we crossed the Jim Corbett National Park. Little ahead of the park, the road was almost chipped away by a stream flowing over the road. Ramnagar to Ranikhet road is very narrow and almost desolate except for so few trucks.

Jim Corbett National Park

The drive through the Mailani ranges was very pleasant. Except for few isolated resorts scattered within few kilometres distance from Ramnagar, there was no traffic. It was quaint journey, very peaceful but as mentioned earlier, roads are narrow and little bumpy.  Certain stretches of the road till Mohan are cracked. But they are drivable, beyond Mohan to Dhanghadi, road is very windy and the expertise and patience of driver are put to real test. From Dhangahadi, it is a single road and it ascends slowly. The person behind the steering wheel is on tenterhooks cautiously watching out for traffic coming in the opposite direction. There were varied patterns of vegetation across these ranges. As we hopped on from one hill to another we could have a glimpse of the villages spread out in the Ram Ganga valley. The awesome pattern of the step cultivation along the inclines of the hills is very beautiful. The dense vegetation along jungle ridges near Chiliakula had partly cut off the penetration of sunlight too. We came to know later that this route is less travelled and explored. The villages lying along this route were cut off from the overwhelming urbanisation. People too were laid back and conceited with their sustainable livelihoods.

 

Ramnagar to Ranikhet Road

People usually prefer to reach Ranikhet via Nainital route which is 50 km longer. While the level of difficult in driving along this terrain was high, it is worth the adventure as we had ample time to assimilate the serenity of the cooler climes. As we started reaching higher elevation we were very eager to have a look at the Himalayas so we stopped in Totam which had a platform for Himalaya Darshan but to our grave disappointment, the skies were very cloudy and snow capped peaks were not visible. We continued our journey and at a toll booth near Tarikhet, we took a left turn to bypass the Ranikhet town.

View of a Village

 

Ranikhet is located at an elevation of 6100 ft, is the headquarters of the Kumaon regiment. The Kumaon Regiment quarters are spread across the entire town. Earlier Ranikhet was under Nepalese rule, but the Kumaonese with the help of the British won it back in 1816 and from then it continued to be a part of India. The Jhula Devi Temple dedicated to Maa Durga and Chaubattia Gardens, the two important tourist attractions are distantly located from the main town. During our drive we didn’t enter the town and instead we  bypassed it by crossing the outposts of Kumaon regiment headed towards Kausani.

Shasastra Seema Bal Ranikhet

From Ranikhet we had to descend a hill to travel towards Kausani along NH 87 E and crossed river Gagas Bridge. A right turn at the bridge will take us to Kausani and left turn leads to Karna Prayag. Along the Gagas River basin we passed through many villages. Agriculture being the main occupation several acres of the river basin is under wheat cultivation. It is interesting to find most of the houses had a standing crop of Wheat in their back yards. Surprisingly all the farm labour and cattle grazing activities were managed by women folk. The drive from Ranikhet to Kausani was excellent and ideal. The impeccable greenery a sign of prosperity and wellbeing of the region seem to emanate some positive vibes. We felt rejuvenated and energised by this luxurious green belt. Road was wide, without sharp bends or curves and gradient along the hills was not very steep. Meanwhile we stopped at Someshwar for Petrol and the owner warned us that we will not be able to find another filling station till Bageshwar (or for the next 60 km). Till then we didn’t realise how difficult life in hills could be. Interestingly, while distance in regular parlance refers to the linear distance between two places but across the hills, it has two dimensions, the elevation and the linear distance.

Green Fields

Kausani is 59 km from Ranikhet and since we wanted to reach Chakouri by night so decided not to visit any tourist attractions located within the town. Impressed by the picturesque beauty of Kausani Mahatma Gandhi called it Switzerland of India. Anashakti Ashram the place where Gandhiji spent time writing a commentary on Anasakhti yog in Kausani is a highly revered place. It is quite popular for its scenic splendour and its spectacular panoramic view of the Trishul, NandaDevi and Panchachuli Himalayan peaks. Located atop of ridge of 6200ft elevation is enveloped by the dense pine forests and overlooks the Someshwar valley on one side and the Katyuri valley on the other is an ideal place for honeymooners. Kausani is also known for its Tea gardens. People flock to this hill station to have an unobstructed view of the Himalayas. It is a leisurely place with few local attractions.  The recent unseasonal rainfall which created havoc in the Northern part of India has spoiled our travel plans in part as the cloudy skies reduced the visibility of the mountains from Kausani. Though little disappointed we drove along the road leading to Baijnath 16 km away through Garur the popular twin cities of this region.

Baijnath is a historical town and derives its name from the deity Vaidyanath, the Lord of Physicians an incarnation of Lord Shiva. Baijnath temple dedicated to Vaidyanth was constructed by the Katyuri Kings, the local Kumaon Kings in the around 1150 BC along the banks of the river Gomti. According to Hindu Mythology, it is believed that Goddess Parvati married Lord Shiva at the confluence of Gomti and Garur Ganga. The temple complex was built with stone in Nagar Style. Besides the main temple of the Vaidyanath, there are 17 other subsidiary temples of Kedareshwar, Lakshmi-Narayan and Brahmini Devi in this complex. It is now declared as UNESCO world heritage site. Domes of some of the temples have collapsed due to earth quakes. The main attraction of these temples is the stunningly beautiful idol of Goddess Parvati with tresses of 26 miniature images around it. Baijnath was the capital city of Katyuri kings and was referred to as Kartikeypura before the construction of the temple. Just lying next to calmly flowing waters of river Gomti, the temple is idyllic symbolising the glory of the Indian civilisation of those years. After the darshan of the deities in the temple complex we resumed our journey along the Baijnath-Bageshawar road.

Baijnath Temple

 

Bageshwar is 28 km away from Baijnath and we passed through several villages during the drive. The drive through the Katyur valley is so fulfilling and amazing.  As we were driving deeper into the hills, the mystic hues of Nature’s began to transcend our souls slowly cleansing us of our expendable stress and tensions reposed by urban lifestyle. Bageshwar is a vibrant town with lot of activity as it is the most prominent tourist centre of this region. It is the base camp for trekking to Pindari, Suderdunga and Kafni Glaciers and famous for the old Bagnath temple. Located at the confluence of the Gomti and Saraju River it has so many prominent temples in its vicinity. Again stocking Petrol from filling station we moved ahead towards Chakouri, our night halt.

 April in general is considered as the ideal time to visit hills. But the untimely rains have played a spoil sport with cloudy skies obstructing the view of beautiful Himalayan peaks throughout our drive so far. Firmly determined to have a glance of the majestic mountains we logged onto the NH 309A, Bageshwar-Chakouri route. As dusk is slowly setting in we wanted to reach Chakouri, 53 km away before it becomes very dark. The picturesque setting of the Bageshwar town in the valley as we ascended towards the NH309A was awesome. The drive was through forests comprising of the tall Pine trees was very pleasant. Since full moon day was a day ahead, the exciting drive at dusk under the radiant bloom of moon was delightful. Road was in good condition except for occasional bad patches where waterfalls were flowing over the road. We slowly drove along the hill and reached Chakouri by 7:45pm and checked into a modest inn, Hotel Him Shikar since the KMVN (Kumaon Mandal Vikas Nigam) Guest House is undergoing a major renovation. KMVN is supposed to offer a splendid view of the Himalayan peaks. After savouring piping hot onion paranthas, rotis and aloo jeera we retired to bed and prayed Heavens for a bright sunny day.


 Photographs Courtesy: Dr. T. L. S. Bhaskar

 

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An Adventurous Road Trip from Delhi to Munshiyari Part-1

 Delhi-Hapur-Moradabad-Kashipur

Day 1 (Wednesday):

Consecutive four public holidays in the first week of April propelled us to embark on an audacious road trip. Ever since we first heard about the tiny town Munshiyari, the window to Himalayas in Uttarakhand we have been patiently waiting for the apt time to visit the place. In North India by April winter makes way for spring and rightly so the pleasant weather is felicitous for venturesome journey to the hills. We soon started making necessary preparations for the road trip- the first and foremost was a quick and thorough check on the condition of our car, then gearing with nitty-gritty stuff like the warm clothes, snacks to munch on, adequate bottles of water and fruit juice and last but not least a container to stock some petrol.

By 4 pm on Wednesday, we hit the road, armed with a map of the road and details about the brief stopovers to make on our Odyssey to the Uttarakhand hills. Though we were keen about visiting Munshiyari, (600 km from Delhi) the long distance drive along the hills with just three of us was little intimidating. So we have settled down for Chakouri, (480 km from Delhi) a small hamlet in Pithoragarh district of Uttarakhand and offer a spectacular view of the Nanda Devi, Nanda Kot and Panchachuli group of Himalayan peaks in India.

Ghaziabad-Dasna Highway

Soon we were on a way to Moradabad via Ghaziabad, the erratic, unruly traffic and clumsy roads really tested the patience of the person behind the wheel. Since it was sugarcane harvest season, all along the way slow moving bullock carts stalled the motor vehicle traffic. As the road began to widen along the Philkhuwa-Garh Mukteshwar, NH-24 highway we had brief respite. Garh Mukteshwar is place of great religious significance with famous temple of Mukteshwar Mahadeva of Lord Shiva and Meerabai ki Reti, a sandy stretch where Meerabhai used to offer prayers to Lord Krishna. We moved along over the bridge across the river Ganga near Garh Mukteshwar. The road was in good condition and was congenial for a comfortable drive. The huge expanse of green fields and tall trees on the both sides of the road was a great relief from the polluted and crowded locales of the Metros. Shortly before hitting the Moradabad- Bareilly Express Highway, we briefly halted at Gajraula, a vibrant town with few industries and a medical college. The highway had eight lanes and it was a pleasure driving over such a wide road. We almost travelled 170 km from Delhi by the time we reached the outskirts of Moradabad, bypassing the city we decided to travel to Kashipur which is 65 km away.

Garh Mukteshwar 

We hit Moradabad-Kashipur road around 7 pm. It has begun to slowly drizzle and with total absence of street lights, it was pitch dark. Little did we realise that the next two and half hours of drive could be the most cumbersome. As we moved on we realised that road was heavily pitted, but were hopeful that this bad stretch would extend for 2 or 3 km. To our horror, the entire stretch of road of almost 55km was extremely bad, with potholes of meteorite size. Added to our distress, part of the road was dug up and huge piles of rocks were stocked up on either side of the road for laying a new one. Since it has rained the previous night, some of the potholes and even the sandy patches on the sides of the road were filled with water. By far this has been the most strenuous stretch to drive. The situation is really pathetic. Kashipur is an industrial town in Uttarakhand with several industries and paper mills. As we entered the town, though roads were okay, heavy trucks and carriers on the roads compelled us to break our journey. We checked into Gautami Heights, a decent hotel and relaxed for the night. To our delight, the weather became very pleasant as it started raining and gradually our exhaustion waned. 


Photographs Courtesy: Dr. T. L. S. Bhaskar

 

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