The Catastrophe In- Waiting

The incidents like the Gulf of Mexico oil spill are bound to have severe disastrous effects on the environment in the years to come.




On April 30, 2010, US President Barack Obama released a statement barely seven days after an explosion in the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig one mile below the Gulf of Mexico, which triggered off a massive oil spill into the Gulf. The oil spill soon began to affect the shores of the coasts of US states of Louisiana, Mississippi.

The Deepwater Horizon, which was considered as one of the most technologically advanced drilling platforms in the world, became a victim of an explosion on April 20.The explosion gave rise to one of the greatest oil spills in the American history. The drill had already drilled a well in the sea floor and was working in one of the last stages of the operation, and was building a cement casing to reinforce the well. The oil spill was estimated to be below 5,000 barrels a day by the US Government officials on 28 April .However, barely a month later the government scientists came up with estimation of between 12,000 and 25,000 barrels a day of oil into the sea.

Apart from economy, the oil spill has had drastic effects on wildlife and the environment. The worst affected from this spill has been the US state of Louisiana. The $4.2 billion seafood industry of the state, which accounts for about 40 per cent of the US seafood supply, has been severely affected by the spill. The state is the second biggest seafood harvester and is also the leading provider of shrimps, oysters, crabs and crawfish. Moreover, the US government has declared a “fishery disaster” in the seafood producing states of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. Oil, some of it in thick sheets has begun to come on the shores of Louisiana wildlife reserves. The oil sleek has started threatening hundreds of species of fish, birds and other wildlife along the Gulf Coast.

The incidents like this are bound to have severe effects on the ecosystem and marine life of our planet. The spill might trigger off environmental disasters due to petroleum toxicity and environmental disasters. As the oil spill in large amounts are a potent threat to underwater flora and fauna. The immediate effects of oil contamination are toxicity of fish and other food species. However, in case of the Mexico oil spill, the marine life has been affected as the shellfish face a bigger threat as they need surface air to breathe and in this process they might ingest the toxic oil. Similarly, those birds and animals which prey on the shellfish are also in a bigger risk of being poisoned.

Whatever the reasons might be, the ultimate bottom-line is that the incident will have a long-lasting effect on our ecosystem.

Globalization:The Pros

Globalization in simple words , can be rightly defined as the exchange of ideas, goods or services beyond any geographical constraint. Wikipedia, a world renowned search engine defines it as,” a process by which regional economies, societies and cultures have become integrated through a global network of communication, transportation and trade.”Both the definitions clearly state that the aim of globalization is to bring the whole world under a single roof, hence termed as a “global village”.

When we talk about the benefits which have come along with globalization, the first thing which strikes our mind is the concept of “free trade”. In simple words, Free Trade as its name suggests, refers to the exchange of monetary trade between traders without any geographical constraints. Free Trade is facilitated by the help of a trade treaty known as Free Trade Agreements(FTA), which have helped in reducing or completely removing tariffs on trade. According to the World Trade Organization, more than 200 FTAs are in force at present. Some of the most popular FTAs are Asia Pacific Trade Agreement(APTA),North American Free Trade Agreement(NAFTA), South Asia Free Trade Agreement(SAFTA) etc.

Another positive impact of globalization has been in the field of media. In the early 90’s, there was an unprecedented boom in the field of media. Previously, the leading media organizations of that era were confined to the boundaries of the countries in which they were operating.But with the globalization creeping in, these media giants began to cross their borders and look towards expanding their area of operations on an international level. Many leading global media giants like News Corp., Warner Bros. Entertainment, and NBC Universal are a classic example of the globalization in the field of media.

When we talk of culture, globalization has indeed revolutionized this seven letter word.With the advent of the technology, globalization has helped to bring together people on a common platform to share their views on a common subject. The internet, which is the brainchild of this era, has connected people across the seas and reduced the communication gap between two or more individuals living maybe thousands of kilometers away from each other. Through the marvels of technology, say mobile phones, internet, cinema and television we are now globally more connected than we were ever before.



Globalization has indeed revolutionized the way we see the world. It is absolutely necessary that we should strive unitedly to make this world a better place to live in.

 

The Great Indian Garland Saga.......

March 24. The recent saga surrounding Mayawati's Rs 5 crore garland has become a burning issue around the country. The garland offered to the BSP chief on Kanshi Ram Jayanti on 15th March in Lucknow has ceased to be a mere publicity stunt by the ruling party and its chief. Rather it has shown that the BSP can go to any extent to win back its support base in the state.

The party through its grandeur on March 15 has tried to show that it is not behind other parties when it comes to showing the money power.Despite Opposition's hue and cry over the drain of money on the celebration, the party workers did not stop from presenting another garland worth Rs 18 lakhs, a few days later.

This clearly shows that Mayawati is in no mood to let the Dalit votes slip away from her hands amidst the resurgent Congress and a fuming Mulayam Singh Yadav. However, the garland will not improve the state which has deteriorated in terms of basic resources. The state government, in a bid to immortalise the Chief Minister has spent lavishly on erecting memorials even as the state is in dismal state. The misrule of the ruling government has given teeth to the armour of the Opposition, which is leaving no stone unturned to target the CM.

It would be interesting to see whether the government policies or the garland will benefit the state and the government or not.

Times at Connaught Place

Feb 22."bhaiya, zara golgappe toh chakh lo"(Brother, please taste my golgappas?) I turned back to see an old man of 50 something looking at me with anticipation.Actually, golgappas are balls made out of flour with mashed potatoes and water containing spices are filled into them.It is a popular snack item in India. I couldn’t resist the temptation of the spicy golgappas and pounced upon them. With watering eyes and soaring throat, I managed to eat 10 of them. I paid the vendor and set out for my next destination, the Kaventer’s.

Flashback. It was a bright sunny Sunday morning when I decided that I would not let this day go wasted. Actually, Sunday is the only day I get to sleep late till 10 in the morning.As none of my friends were willing to sacrifice their slumber for a sunny afternoon walk amidst crowded lanes of CP, I had to make up my mind to go alone.The Connaught Place was bustling with activity, as usual. Moreover, today was Sunday and many people had come to enjoy with their families. After a long spell of chilly winter, everyone was relieved that they wont have to cover themselves with sweaters.

As I was lost in my flashback, I collided with a Mercedes Benz standing in front of the Kaventer’s in the parking lot.I managed to support myself . The driver of the car stared at me scornfully. I apologized to him and felt it wise to move away from the place. Kaventer’s is a famous eating outlet in Delhi , known for its milk shakes. I had a cup full of butter scotch flavor and then advanced towards the Wenger’s just at a stone throw’s distance. Wenger’s is famous for its pastries.

It was going to get dark and I felt it necessary to go back. With a heavy heart I left the CP for the Metro station for my hostel. That was the end of myholiday.

GenNext Politicos: Should the youth take over the affairs?

Jan 1. The previous year 2009 saw a major turnaround in the Indian political scenario. The most significant event being the 15th Lok Sabha Elections which gave the Grand Old Party of India, the Congress its highest number of seats since 1989 and enabled it to return to power for the second time in succession.


But the change which the nation witnessed was the role which the youth brigade played in deciding the political course during the elections. The young leaders, especially Rahul Gandhi, the scion of India's first political family smilingly stole the show as political stalwarts like L K Advani and Mayawati watched in utter silence. The tireless effort by Rahul Gandhi and other Congress leaders propelled the party to 206 seats as compared to 145 in the 2004 polls. The elections saw 79 MPs under 40 from all the parties altogether making their way to the symbol of India's largest democracy.


Now, talking about the youth, the Congress was able to use the youth factor successfully as compared to other parties. Though, almost all of the young MPs of the Congress belong to various dynasties , but it cannot be ruled out that the people, of whom 75% are below 40 , now prefer young, dynamic leaders instead of old leaders accused of caste ,religion and regional politics. Young Turks like Sachin Pilot, Jitin Prasada , Jyotiraditya Scindia ,Priya Dutt and many others were not only able to re-elect themselves to the 543 MPs strong House of the People but also managed to catch the voter's attention and support.

The upcoming decade might see a number of young , dynamic leaders shaping the outlook of the country. But the major concern is that almost all of the prominent young politicians have inherited their fathers legacy. As a result, many aspiring youth feel themselves handicapped due to the absence of any political background with them. Also because of the corruption and criminalisation of politics, the youth are reluctant to join the system.

At the end, it is left to the political parties to decide whom they want to give the responsibilty of running the country after them

Hard Days Ahead

Dec 15. It was May 2007, when Ku. Mayawati led Bahujan Samaj Party swept the Uttar Pradesh Assembly Elections,winning 206 out of 403 seats. The dalit czarina silenced all her critics by taking her party to majority for the first time,becoming the first majority party in the state since 1991.The social engineering agenda of the 52 year politician had reaped huge dividends as Mayawati became centre of all attention in the politics of India. Mulayam Singh Yadav and his Samajwadi Party associates could never understand what had hit them.

Fast Forward,March 2009.Mayawati begins her campaign of becoming the first Dalit Prime Minister of India by initiating her Lok Sabha campaign.She fields 509 out of 543 candidates, most of whom are either rich industrialists or dreaded goons bailed out by the Chief Minister.Two months later, the results are declared. The Manmohan Singh led Indian National Congress wins 206 out of 545 Lok Sabha seats. But the even more shocking is the Congress romping home in UP, winning 21 out of 80 seats in the state.On the other hand ,BSP could just win 2 seats more than its previous tally of 18. The victory of Congress was widely attributed to Congress General Secratery Rahul Gandhi's vigorous campaign in the state.The Gandhi scion's visit to Dalit homes worked wonders as Congress made deep inroads into the BSP's Dalit votebank.

As the recent results of the bye-elections to the 11 assembly constituencies and a Lok Sabha seat is to be taken into account, BSP has won 9 out of 11 seats while the Congress has only won one seat of Lucknow West by Shyam Sharan Shukla. However , Congress won the crucial Firozabad Lok Sabha seat,with SP rebel Raj Babbar defeating Mulayam singh's daughter -in-law, Dimple. The win was crucial as Firozabad seat was vacated by Akhilesh Yadav ,as he had chosen to vacate it over Kannauj.

Now speaking about Mission 2012, BSP has managed to win 9 seats which indicates that the BSP has still not lost touch with its voters. On other hand,its main rival,the Samajwadi Party has shown a degradation both in terms of votes and seats.The Congress may have won 21 seats this time but the party has much to do before it can hope to pull of an upset in 2012 when the state goes for polls. No doubt the Congress leadership has been entrusted upon the responsibility to strengthen the party base in the state. Congress general secy. Rahul Gandhi has instructed its party workers to build up the party base in the state. The NSUI and Youth Congress wings have been instructed to recruit more youths to the party.

It is now left to be seen how much does the Congress succeed in rebuild itself in the journey towards winning back the state which was its stronghold.

Will he repeat it again.....??

Dec 15. Not less than a year is left when the state of Bihar goes on the electoral floors next year.Post Lalu, the state has batted a numerous eyelids more due to the 'sushasan' claimed by its ruler,Nitish Kumar.The 4 yr and 23 days old BJP-JD(U) government in the state which witnessed a 15 yr old 'jungle raj' by Lalu Yadav and his better half Rabri Devi led RJD government.The state voted for a change during the re-polls in November 2005,which ousted the RJD government out of power and installed JD(U) politician Nitish Kumar as the state's 31st Chief Minister. The JD(U)-BJP alliance then had bagged 147 seats as compared to RJD's tally of 65.

The 55 yr old Kumar began a journey towards his promise of transforming Bihar from a' jungle raj ' to a 'sushaasit pradesh'. this included a massive crackdown on the feisty politicians or the 'baahubalis', mostly fom the RJD. The Bihar government fell heavily on the corrupt politicians and bureaucrats ,who were unable to give up their old habits. The Chief Minister began to hold 'junta durbars' to listen to the grievance of the common people. The Nitish wave reaped rich dividends in the 2009 Lok Sabha elections when BJP-JD(U) combine bagged 32 out of the state's tally of 40.The JD(U) bagged 20 and BJP romped home with 12. On the other hand , it spelt doomsday for RJD and LJP,the other two parties in the state.While the once ruling RJD had its seats tally down from 22 to 04, LJP failed to win a single seat.The greatest shock was the defeat of LJP chief Ram Vilas Paswan, from his constituency Hajipur,which he had held it unbeaten since 1977.

However, the bye elections for 18 assembly seats concluded in September have yielded surprising results.the results have come as a shock to the ruling NDA government. JD(U) could win only 3 seats with its ally BJP win 2,while RJD-LJP alliance winning 8 out of 18 seats which had gone for bye-polls.The JD(U) has been riddled with inner party discontent as senior leaders like Digvijay Singh and George Fernandes have left the party due to what they have alleged as Nitish's 'dictatorship'.however,the bye elections shouldnt be taken so seriously as the Bihar government has won accolades from all over the state,and chances are there that he will repeat its victory again in 2010,when the state goes for the polls.