Devinder Sharma

PRIME Minister Manmohan Singh often expresses his side of the dormant human face that lies somewhere burried deep inside him. A day before yesterday, as a Maoist bandh began in Orissa and in parts of West Bengal, Prime Minister acknowledged there has been a 'systemic failure' in ensuring the progress of tribals. "We've failed tribals, want to rectify that."

He was addressing a conference of chief ministers and tribal affair ministers in New Delhi, on Nov 4.
This is not the first time the Prime Minister has made such meaningful statements or let us say has come out in the open acknowledging the faults that prevails in the official system. Remember the last time he talked about crony capitalism, and then on one ocassion he had pointed at the vulgarity of the massive take-home monthly packages by the corporate and business heads at a time when the country was faced with hunger, poverty and growing unemployment.

"The alienation built over the decades is taking a dangerous turn," said Singh. "There has been a systemic failure in giving tribals a stake in modern economic processes. The systematic exploitation of our tribal communities can no longer be tolerated."

Very powerful words indeed. Coming from the Prime Minister himself it gives the nation an impression that man at the top is after all humane, and is willing to set the house in order. It looks as if the apathy and crime that the civilised India, and that includes the Corporate India, or call it modern India, has been inflicting on the tribals will come to an end. But don't forget, it is often said that if dreams were horses, beggars would ride.

I remember soon after he had for the first time taken over as Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh had in one of his speeches said that there were 161 districts which were inflicted with Maoism. Today, nearly a third of India, close to 235 districts, are faced with Maoist violence. These people have picked up the gun, not because they are trigger-happy, but because of the decades of oppression and suppression that they have been subjected to. What do you expect when someone is driven to the wall, and that too for ages.

The ruthless exploitation has gone on for generations, and what do you expect the simple folks in the tribal areas to do. They can't go on chanting bhajans and hope that someday the gods would listen to them. Picking up the gun comes as a last resort, and we must accept that it is because of our failure as a society that the tribals are on a warpath. No amount of fire-fighting or sending the army to fight the tribals in the guise of Maoists is going to be helpful, the Prime Minister must know this.

I agree that "no sustained activity is possible under the shadow of the gun," as the Prime Minister stated the other day. But no 'sustained activity" is possible when the government on the one hand is busy facilitating the process of continued exploitation of the tribal lands, and at the same time bringing in economic policies that displaces the tribals and forces them to sell their daughters and wives as a last resort to survive the State onslaught.

Mr Prime Minister, let us first acknowledge that it is your own economic policies that are alienating the tribals. The Special Economic Zones (SEZ) for instance that your government is aggressively pushing, the massive land acquisitions that your government is again thriving on, the usurping of the traditional rights of the tribal communities and above all the systematic destruction of sustainable agriculture all over the country, is primarily responsible for growing violence.

A Planning Commission report had very clearly brought out that roughly 360 districts in India (out of the 600-odd) are faced with one kind of strife or the other. If you leave aside communal violence, much of the fault rests with the Planning Commission itself for perpetuating policies that have acerbated the crisis, by alienating the people from their natural resources, by taking away their right of life.

We all know that the tribal lands are rich in natural resources, including forests, minerals and diamonds. We know that the economic growth the country talks about is actually built on criminal exploitation of these tribal resources. You call it growth economics, I call it violent economics.

Violence not only in the form of the gun culture that prevails now, but includes the global economic crisis which also is the outcome of this violent economics. The climate change the world is faced with is also the result of the flawed economic thinking, another form of violence that has brought the world closer to a tripping point.

And then you say that "Nor have those who claim to speak for tribals offered an alternate economic or social path that is viable." This is not true, Mr Prime Minister. The fact is that you actually do not want to see any reasoning in what those who speak for tribals are trying to say. There are ample suggestions being put forward. If not, you can spend some time visiting the tribal leaders, setting an example by leading from the front (like the young parliamentarian Mr Rahul Gandhi is doing).

The reality is that it is only you who is not keen to listen to these voices of reasoning.

Please tell the nation when was the last time you sat with them to find out the reasons behind the cult violence in the tribal lands. When was it that your government (or the State governments) have even thought of putting together a 'sustained activity' to restore the pride of the tribals. Your only interest is to see how the Corporates make more profits, because that is what will add to GDP, your sole rating criteria. You have your self said once that SEZ is an idea whose time has come. And how many of these SEZ are coming up in the tribal lands, will you please tell the nation.

There are enough reasons to get more worried. Privatisation of natural resources, including water, destruction of the sustainable farming practices, and the policies that are meant to push farmers out of agriculture, the population transfer that your government is contemplating, will add on to the existing crisis. It will lead to a still more 'dangerous turn'.

You will therefore agree Mr Prime Minister, every great leader must find some time to introspect, to see where he/she is going wrong. It is high time you re-discover the human side of Manmohan Singh, and then initiate policies and actions that can make that historical correction that you often talk about but never meant it. I am sure you can do it. You have the ability, and the capability. Do it, Mr Prime Minister, and this nation will remain eternally grateful to you. [Courtesy Devinder Sharma Blog]

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Hindu spiritualism: A study in contrast – 3

Om Prakash Sharma

THE Vedic system came to have two schools of thought: of the gyan-kand (Upanishadic path of knowledge) of the uttar-mimasa, and karma-kand (path of ritual) of the Poorva mimasa of Jamini. Differences at times were acute but never violent. They called karama-kandis as ‘devam priya' which according to Panini meant idiot. Upanishads and the Bhagwad Gita, were to draw the attention of the world to the greatness of the Hindu philosophy. The earliest translation of fifty Upanishads by Dara Shukoh attracted the attention of European scholars in the year 1775 when Anquetil Duperron received one MS of the Persian translation of Upanishads, sent by M.Gentil, the French resident at the court of Shuja ud Daula, and brought to France by M.Bernier. It was translated into Latin, published in 1801 and 1802, under the title of Oupnekhat. Schopenhauer proclaimed to the world ‘the vast treasures of thought which were lying buried beneath that fearful jargon’. His philosophy is powerfully impregnated with the doctrines of the Upanishads. He wrote: “Indian air surrounds us, and original thoughts of kindred spirits. And oh, how thoroughly is the mind here washed clean of all early engulfed Jewish superstitions, and of all philosophy that cringes before these superstitions! In the whole world there is no study, except that of the originals, so beneficial and so elevating as that of the Oupnekhat. It has been solace of my life, it will be solace of my death!” Max Muller fully agreed with him. Deusen, the German philosopher, explained the validity of the Vedantic message: ‘Because all other selves are your own selves’. He used to keep a copy of the Oupnekhat by his bed-side and read it before going to sleep. The German philosopher Nietze was very much influenced by the Upanishads which he learnt from Schopaneuher and Deusen.

The Upanishads proclaim that Brahman is the only God-head. In Kathopnisad, it is Vishnu; in Mandukyaopnisad it is called Shivam. Staunch advaita monotheist, Adi Shankaracharya with his concern for unity, instituted six religious systems or sanmata: which included the prevailing worship of Shiva, Vishnu, Sakti, Ganapati, Kumar and Surya. Shankaracharya, a seer and a great nation builder, set four coordinates of the Indian nation by establishing four mathas at four geographical extremities at Puri, Sringeri, Dwarka and Badrinath, in 8th century when communications should have been extremely difficult. It is for every Indian to remember with pride that India owes its status as a nation to the harmonizing influence of Hindu spiritualism and the great vision of Hindu seers.

The role of Bhagwad Gita, as an interpreter of the Upanishadic thought and a synthesiser of Hindu systems, deserves attention. Gita has been translated 1412 times in Indian languages and 191 times in other languages. Abul Fazal a scribe in Akbar’s court translated it in Persian. Dara Shukoh translated Gita in 1656. Its first English translation was done by Charles Wilkins, the first librarian of the East India Company. Warren Hastings, a soldier and a statesman observed: “Gita and the Indian scriptures will survive when the British dominion in India shall have long ceased to exist.” Thoreau observed about Gita that ‘in comparison with which our modern world and its literature seem puny and trivial.’ Oppenheimer, father of the atom bomb, who knew the Gita, on seeing the first atomic explosions in 1945, spontaneously quoted the Gita and described the spectacle as: divi surya sahasraya – brilliance of thousand suns.

The Gita had a role in nation building. It democratized the spiritual pursuit by opening the doors to all by taking to the devotional path. Besides, Shri Krishna gave freedom of pursuit of any faith, saying that ‘what ever paths men have taken any where, all paths lead to Me’: mam vartma ‘nuvartante manusyah partha sarvasah-Gita.4.11.. The Hindu God does not emerge as ‘a jealous God’ or a sectarian like a ‘Hebrew God’ or a God with a regional bias. The Gita is a synthesis of prevalent thoughts. The Sankhya, an atheistic school of philosophy in the beginning was given an equal status by Shri Krishan in the Gita: (III.iv, V.iv and V.v)- ekam sankhyam cha yogam cha yah pashyati sa pashayati- he who sees that both the Sankhya and the Yoga, both paths, are the same, he truly sees (the truth).

How Jainism and Buddhism two great non-theistic faiths found a common meeting ground with theistic Hindu religion makes an intersting study. The Jain view is called Syadvada since it holds that all knowledge is only probable. It is a common feature of the Indian philosophies. As in the case of Buddhism, the founder of Jainism was a Kshatriya. Spiritualism was not a monopoly of Brahmins. Brahmanism was, however, too strong to be resisted. When the followers of the Krishna cult came into the fold of Jainism, a relationship was established between the 22nd Tirthankar (Aristanemi) and Krishna. Many Hindu gods crept in, so that there were divisions among Jains as Vaishnavas and non-Vaishnavas.

Hinyana Buddhism is a colourless religion denying God in doctrine. A religion more catholic and less skeptic was required. A readjustment to the emerging situation also became imperative. At the formative stage of Mahayana, there was an influx of nomadic tribes from outside the country. It imitated the success of Hinduism and imbibed the theism of the Yoga of the later Upanishads and of the Bhagvad Gita. Mahayan believes in a saviour God. Emancipation could be delayed for the good of humanity. Life of the people was dominated by Brahamanism. It came to dominate Buddhism as well. Buddhism included Indra, Brahma and other Hindu divinities in its pantheon. While the Brahamins accepted Buddha as incarnation of Vishnu, the Buddhists identified Vishnu with Boddhisatva. Buddha represented the world as soulless. The religious instinct of man requires a God, so Buddha himself was deified.

The six Brahmanical schools of Philosophy, or darshanas, make the liberal Hindu approach to spiritual matters clearer. These are: Gautama’s Nyaya, Kanada’s Vaishesik, Kapila’s Sakhya, Patanjali’s Yoga, Jaimini’s Purva Mimasa, and Badrayana’s Uttara Mimasa or the Vedanta. First five of these do not regard God as the creator of matter. Early Nyaya was not theistic. Vaishesika does not openly refer to God. It traced the primeval activities of the atoms and souls to the principle of adarshta. Kanad held that the Vedas were the act of seers and not of God. For Sankhya, the world is not a creation of God. Theism is not part of Patanjali’s creed. A personal god serves the practical purpose as an aid to Yoga. The central theme of Purva Mimasa is ritual; of the Uttara Mimasa, it is knowledge or Truth. Jamini doe not as much deny God as much he ignores Him. Later writers slowly smuggled God into it.

The Epic period, which falls prior to the sixth century BC, was the era of Charvaka as well as of the Buddha. Acharya Brahaspati, the founder of the Charvaks, did not believe in God or religion. The Buddha and the Charvaks strongly denied the authority of the Vedas. The Charvakas denounced the scriptures, priests and the rituals. The worshippers would merely laugh at their diatribes and move ahead. There was no head-hunting, no bloodshed, not even bad feelings. This is the greatness of Hinduism. The epicurean thought finds a mention in other religious books as well. In a famous argument in the Hindu epic of Ramayana, Javali, a minister told Rama; “O Sagacious Prince, there is no world but this; let this thought be absorbed by thee. Concern yourself with what is evident and turn thy back on what is beyond our knowledge. Take the crown”.

During the epic period Brahamanism adjusted to the revolt against it in the east, and to fresh changes in the west in view of the influx of communities with their new beliefs. The Aryan culture met the new entrants half way ‘to build a new Aryan culture based on non-Aryan symbolism’, as observed by Dr. Radhakrishan. The concept of Trimurti was evolved in the Mahabharata, when the Greeks (Yavanas), Parthians (Shakas) and the Parthians (Pahlavas) entered the country. The Mahabharata apart from becoming a Brahamanical theistic poem, was a multi-disciplinary encyclopedia. It earned the title of the Fifth Veda as all classes could have access to it. Sister Nivedita observed that there were two distinct features quite discernible in the Mahabharata: “One of Unity in complexity and second constant impression upon its hearers of the single centralised idea of One India, with heroic tradition of its own”.

Durga Puja figures in Mahabharata. Durga soon became the consort of Shiva. The merger of three philosophic and historical streams in present day Hinduism, one of Vedic through Upnishads and Vaishavism, the second of Shaivism from the South, with Agams (108) being the basic scriptures, and the third of the Shakta religion emanating from eastern India, was a vital homogenizing process that integrated Hindus.

The Bhakti movement that democratized the spiritual pursuit served as a strong stabilizing force through the length and the breadth of the country. The medieval saints of north India inherited the traditions set by Alavar saints of the south. Their compositions were in the local language instead of Sanskrit. Their faith was accessible to all without distinctions of caste and status. The Tamil Alavars were twelve in all and belonged to the Pallava and Chola times from the fifth to ninth centuries AD. They came from different backgrounds. They believed in monotheism. Alavar means one who is "immersed" in the experience of God, the omnipresent mysterious One. The Alavars composed approximately 4000 Tamil verses. In the 9th-10th century, the philosopher-saint Nathamuni arranged them as the Divya Prabandham, or Divine Collection, popularly called the Tamil Veda.

Hindu saints endeavoured to bring a social revolution through the medium of religion. Sri Basava of Karnataka, and Ramanujacharya in Tamilnadu in the 11th century took up the cause of the oppressed. Basava founded a sect in 1160. This sect led to social reforms, such as the elevation of the status of women, abolition of caste distinction, removal of untouchablity, and inculcating the dignity of manual labour and simplicity of life in the community. These preachers, in many cases, came from the submerged classes of Hindu society. This trend was earlier set in motion by the parivrajikas, the itinerant religious teachers in Buddha’s time, who often belonged to non-Brahmanic castes. In medieval times, the followers of Ramanand came from the lowest classes and even from outside the fold of Hinduism. This was the period when Muslim invaders were drenching the Indian soils with the blood of Hindu ‘Kafirs’. According to the estimates of historians, nearly seventy Muslim invasions had taken place before Guru Nanak. He had witnessed the atrocities perpetrated by Babar, whom he called as ‘yam’, the god of death. These saints were the consolidators of the Indian nation in the true tradition of Rishi Vyas and Adi Shankaracharya.

After an overview of the Ancient Hindu Way spread over several millennia it is time to address the present-day reality. The Hindu society is experiencing a state of siege. The nation is facing two types of aggressions; one demographic, inundating the country with millions of illegal immigrants altering the demographic map of India, and second of Christianization by missionaries, of vulnerable chunks of the Hindu society. In both cases they get impetus from the vote-bank politics. If the Hindu society shows concern about infiltration and conversions they are dubbed as Hindu chauvinists. Even if they talks about reconverting the converts they earn the odium of being communal and divisive. Two different norms are applied to the same problem.

It is hard to ignore the subversive impact of missionary activities backed by powerful foreign churches. The nation is still feeling the subversive impact of Baptist missionaries in the northeast. Baptist Mission entered Naga Hills in 1872, when the Hills came under the British administration. The Baptist Missionaries in Nagaland infused secessionism, when Independent India was in an embryonic state. A senior British ICS officer who served in Nagaland had forewarned that the activities of the Baptists who were a source of inspiration for the terrorist outfit of the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) in America, did not augur well as they would be a source of trouble in times to come. He proved right. Under the permissive political climate, the missionaries have further spread their tentacles in the north-east region, in recent times.

There is a clear ruling on conversions. In the Stainislaus v. State of Madhya Pradesh (AIR 1977 SC 908), the Supreme Court has held that Article 25 (1) of the Indian Constitution does not grant any right to convert any person to one’s own religion. However, there is no halt to aggressive evangelization. While addressing missionaries in New Delhi on 7th November, 1999, late Pope John Paul II gave a call to convert Asia to Christianity as follows:- “Just as the first millennium saw the Cross firmly planted in the soil of Europe, and the second in that of America and Africa, so may the Third Christian Millennium witness a great harvest of faith on this vast and vital continent”. His successor and present Pope Benedict XVI reiterated this agenda of conversion with the words: “The Church is by its very nature missionary; its first task is evangelization. Hindus in India and Nepal are prime targets for this harvest of faith”. It was expected from a self-respecting nation to strongly rebuff such moves and additionally insist on getting an apology from the Pope for the Hindu holocaust in Goa Inquisitions, instead of listening to papal harangue about the aggressive evangelisation in the sub-continent.
Hindus had promoted secular environments and social harmony in ancient India. The present-day unprincipled politics, has regrettably replaced the British policy of ‘Divide and rule’ with the more sinister political tactics of ‘Fragment and Rule’. Fragmentation of the Indian society on communal, regional and caste lines has been the most dubious contribution of politics of opportunism. The Indian society was never so fragmented with each group confronting the other as it is now. The word “Hindu” has become synonymous with ‘communal’; Hindu bashing is considered secular. The process of social integration has given way to social engineering to meet demands of political expediency. The state has become a partisan by catering to the sectarian needs of certain religious groups with special dispensation. This is nothing short of state- promoted communalism. Under true secularism the state should stay neutral.

The nation is facing a new threat from modern day generation of iconoclasts from ‘eminent historians’ to pseudo intellectuals. Their efforts to deny and denigrate India’s rich and liberal heritage is diabolic. Hindus that were burnt on the stakes are martyrs of their faith and of the nation. Millions of Hindus put to the sword by fanatic invaders are martyrs of the motherland. They deserve a memorial in the hearts of all true Indians if not in monuments. Not to recall their sacrifices for their faith and the motherland is an act of disrespect towards them. Vidiadhar Naipaul summed up the situation well: "In art and history books, people write of the Muslims "arriving" in India as though they came on a tourist bus and went away again. The Muslim view of their conquest is a truer one. They speak of the triumph of faith, the destruction of idols and temples, the loot, the casting away of locals as slaves."
Yet India is a nation, despite incongruities, fractious politics, and massive backlog of unfulfilled missions. It is on account of the indestructible, all-sustaining and ever rejuvenating soul- ‘The Ancient Hindu Way’. India is a land of many creeds, customs and mores, and peoples savouring the munificence of mother India. It is the bounden dharma of all Indians to contribute to an atmosphere of peace and harmony under which every one develops according to one’s own peculiar genius, respecting the sensibilities of fellow citizens. It is befitting to conclude the exposition of the ‘Ancient Hindu Way’, by quoting the lines from the last Sukta of the Rig Veda, which is in the nature of an international anthem for its message of harmony to the entire humanity. Such sublime sentiments can be expressed only by a spiritually alive civilization. The thrust of the message in the Sukta is Sahchittamesam- to be of one mind, as a key to the harmonious living.

Sangacchadhvam samvadadhvam
Samvo manamsi janatam
Samano mantrah samiti samani
Samanam manah Sahchittamesam.

"Let all men meet and think as one mind,
Let all hearts unite in Love,
Let the goal be common,
May all live in happiness with a common purpose".

[The writer is former governor of Nagaland and a well known commentator on public affairs]

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Pakistan: Vibrant city loses colour, verve amid escalating attacks

Irfan Ahmed

LAHORE, known to the world as "the city of the live-hearted" has been in the grip of extreme fear since Oct. 15, the day when three suicide attacks took place here simultaneously. Suicide bombers targeted two police training centres and the regional office of the Federal Investigation Agency, leaving 17 people dead and 22 others injured.

Since that day the whole city has turned into a virtual battlefield guarded by armed gunmen at pickets, roadsides, government offices, markets, schools and what not.

Crowded markets, food outlets and recreational parks—once the hallmark of life in Lahore—wear a deserted look.

The people of Lahore are known for their exemplary resilience against all odds, but this time the situation is totally different. Fear is all over the place, especially written on the faces of the locals whose smiles have vanished.

Sheikh Mushtaq, a grain merchant in Akbari Mandi-Lahore’s biggest wholesale foodmarket—tells IPS that what worries everyone is the change in the terrorists’ strategy. "This time they are going for soft targets. They have attacked a university and a busy marketplace in other parts of the country. They can go for a repeat of that in Lahore as well," he says.

Mushtaq adds the business activity in the market is reduced almost by half of what it was a month ago. People are wary of coming here, he says, adding that even if they want to, they are not allowed to park their vehicles close to the market.

The situation is the same in all the wholesale markets situated in the densely populated Walled City, also called the Old Lahore.

Nadeem Aslam, owner of a department store in Iqbal Town, says he has stopped visiting the wholesale market. "Now I place an order by phone and get delivery at my place," he tells IPS. "It costs me more, and sometimes the quality is also not the same, but nothing is more precious than my life."

The new spate of terrorist attacks in Lahore has come after a lull of almost four and a half months. The last major terrorist activity in the city, before the Oct. 15 attacks, broke out on May 26. At that time suicide bombers had targeted the offices of emergency response police and the country’s top spy agency, the Inter-Services Intelligence, leading to more than 20 deaths and at least 100 injuries.

The city’s popular eateries also depict what the people are going through. Hardly a month back diners would stand in queues and endlessly wait for their turn. "Now we stand in the middle of the road and woo every passerby, asking him or her to grace our place," says Mukhtar Ahmed, a waiter at a fried fish shop in Baghbanpura, Lahore.

He says people do come to the shop, but hardly anybody sits for longer than needed. "They quickly devour the food and walk away," he tells IPS. Ahmed adds that in the past people would hang around there for hours and have fun besides food. "Now the laughter is nowhere; everybody is tense."

According to Ahmed whenever fear seems to subside, some mishap takes place anywhere in the country and creates panic among the masses. The images of the blast and the damage shown by television channels in real time have a terrifying effect on the people, he adds.

A commuter traveling on the roads of Lahore is bound to see endless construction going up everywhere. Whether it be a government office, public or private school, popular market or a luxury hotel, construction workers are seen raising boundary walls, laying barbed wires and building bunkers.

"It has been made binding on occupants of many private premises, including schools, to install walkthrough gates and close-circuit cameras, hire private security guards, raise or construct boundary walls and equip their staff with metal detectors," says Babar Ali, an inspector with Punjab police.

He says all the citizens have been asked to carry their valid identification with them, which can be asked for anytime. Besides, Ali says, the general public must also look out for suspicious people in their neighbourhood and inform the police about them without delay.

The law enforcers in Lahore suspect that terrorists may try to take the students of some schools hostage and demand the release of their accomplices. This has led the provincial government to increase security at government schools and compel private ones to arrange for their own.

The Lahore police found dried dates, roasted chickpeas and water bottles from the suicide attackers’ rucksacks left at the blast sites on Oct 15. This indicated that they wanted to hold the police recruits and trainees inside the attacked buildings as hostages.

Kashif Mirza, president of All Pakistan Private Schools Owners’ Association, thinks it is undue on the part of the government to issue such strict security guidelines to private schools. Very few schools can bear this additional cost without passing on the burden to the parents, he tells IPS.

Mirza says the government has instructed them not to increase the school fees on this ground. He says parents are worried but mainly due to the government’s failure to detect terrorist movement. The schools have also been stopped from operating bus services to pick and drop their students, he adds.

Zahid Ali, a sales executive at a life insurance company, says he has no choice but to visit at least a dozen people in different parts of the city. "I am selling them life insurance policies at a time when I am not sure whether I’ll live another day," he says.

Ali tells IPS that his mother or wife calls him after every hour asking about his well-being. "They want me to quit my field job and look for a desk-based one which they think is safer. I have no choice. Jobs don’t come easy these days," he says.

Faced with a major threat this time, even the journalist community of Lahore is worried about its own safety. The Lahore Place Club—a meeting place of thousands of journalists, their acquaintances, and the general public—is rarely visited even by its members.

Majid Husain, a council member of the club, tells IPS that if he has to go to the place at all, it is only to collect some documents and leaves shortly. He says terrorists have warned several media organisations of the dire consequences of not mentioning them, ‘mujahideen’ (warriors waging a holy war), in their reports.

Husain says the military operation in restive South Waziristan—main bastion of Al Qaeda-linked Tehrik-e-Taliban, or Taliban Movement of Pakistan, an alliance of radical Islamist groups that is fighting the government—has forced many terrorists to run for safer places down country.

These terrorists are targeting ordinary human beings in revenge and a bid to pressure the government to stop the military operation, he adds. He soon bids goodbye, saying there is a major threat of a suicide attack in Lahore that day and he does not want to take any risk.

Husain’s fear is not unfounded at all. Hardly an hour passes by when two suicide bombers blow themselves up when their car is stopped by policemen at an entry point to the city. Luckily, there is no casualty, yet it brought injuries to 20 individuals.

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Haryana Day

ON the 44th Haryana Day falling on November 1, 2009, Mrs Usha Sharma was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award by the Haryana Government for the promotion of Haryanvi dance and culture in the state and abroad.

Mrs Sharma, who was born in a humble family in a Gurgaon village, started her career by learning Kathak under Birju Maharaj at Kathak Kendra, New Delhi. Later, she joined Shri Ram Bhartiya Kala Kendra and became the star of their ballet, RAMA, where she played the role of Sita. Later, after getting married to her writer and poet husband late Mr Devi Shankar Prabhakar, she started a mission to promote Haryanvi culture for the newly-formed state of Haryana. She was the pioneer who brought the present-day Haryanvi dances to the stage from obscurity. She was the first one to perform Haryanvi dance on stage both at the national and international arena. In 1974, she was awarded the Young Dancers’ Award by the Sangeet Natak Academy, New Delhi. Later, in 1983, she produced and acted in first superhit Haryanvi film, CHANDRAWAL, which broke all records at the box office.

Later, she also produced Haryanvi films like Laddo Basanti, Phool Badan and Jatani. In 2007, she was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award by the Department of Women and Child Development.

Currently, she is working as Director of Haryana Kala Parishad, an autonomous body created by the Haryana government for the promotion and preservation of Haryanvi culture. Here, she has started Haryanvi folk dance competition at the state level having a cash prize of Rs 1 lakh and State Ragani Competition having a cash prize of Rs 31,000. To promote poor musicians, like jogis, deru, been and thumba performers, she started the Haryanvi music festival which was performed in New Delhi and Panchkula and was well received. She is also working on the script of a yet untitled Haryanvi serial and remake of the movie Chandrawal, which will be produced by her banner, Prabhakar Films.

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