India and the World

Yulin dog eating carnival outrage: The politics of food

- by India Writes Network

There has been a major outcry for banning the Yulin Festival, a dog-and-cat meat eating carnival held annually on the occasion of the summer solstice on June 21st in the city of Yulin in China. Many gruesome images of dogs and cats jam packed in cages, being cooked in stewing pots and hung in slaughter houses have been circulated on social media to rouse public opinion against the ‘ghastly’ tradition.
Whilst the ban may or may not actually take place (China had earlier banned a dog eating festival in 2011), and the uproar has raised legitimate concerns about animal torture and human health risks (such as rabies), it may be helpful to look at the issue as placed within some larger debates- animal rights vs. humans rights, perceptions of barbarism in oriental cultures through ethnocentric norms and relevance of (‘outdated’) culture in today’s modern times- which constitute the politics of food.
Different cultures have varying conceptions of what can and cannot be eaten. In India the pervasive caste system bans consumption of meat for the upper castes, but Dalit communities have long eaten meat, even beef, as a source of protein.

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Blurring borders, millions in India and world celebrate yoga power

- by India Writes Network

As night melted into the first glimmer of sunlight, all roads in New Delhi led to the majestic Rajpath area of the capital, as more than 37,000 people gathered around the venue to commemorate the first International Day of Yoga. It’s not just the capital Delhi which celebrated the power of yoga to transform one’s life, but across India and the world millions of celebrants of this ancient Indian practice of yoking body, mind and spirit joined in this collective rite, blurring borders and ideologies.
India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who had only a few months ago called for observing a Day of Yoga at the UN General Assembly, led the celebrations, performing several yogic ‘asanas’ (postures). Wearing his trademark kurta-pyjama and matching them with a white tracksuit and a scarf with the colours of the Indian flag, the Indian leader took part in synchronised yogic exercise and pranayams.
Addressing the congregation, Mr Modi underlined the universal character of yoga, elevating it above politics and partisan rhetoric that had threated to spoil what is clearly not just India’s heritage, but that of the entire humankind. “This is a programme for ‘manav kalyan’ (welfare of manking), a tension-free world and a programme to spread the message of ‘sadbhavana’ (goodwill).”

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Delhi-Dar bonding: Blending energy and business with tourism & strategy

- by Manish Chand

It’s Africa time for Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Energy, business, developmental assistance, Indian Ocean strategy and tourism promotion melded anew in a new configuration as the Indian leader held wide-ranging talks with Tanzania’s President Jakaya Mrisho Kikewete, the first head of state from the resurgent continent Mr Modi hosted since taking charge in May last year.

The outcomes of the talks in New Delhi, which included the signing of eight MoUs to expand engagements swaddling diverse areas, reflected the Modi government’s emerging Africa policy in a miniature. Expanding its developmental partnership with the East African state, India extended a line of credit for $ 268.35 million for a host of projects, including the extension of a pipeline project.

Reflecting the growing importance of the African continent in India’s energy security calculus, India offered its expertise to Tanzania in development of its emerging natural gas sector.

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India, Pakistan make placatory noises to improve strained ties

- by India Writes Network

After protracted posturing and sharp rhetoric, India and Pakistan are now making placatory noises saying they want to improve and normalize their bilateral relations. New Delhi, however, put the onus on Islamabad, indicating that any marked improvement in the accident-prone bilateral ties can happen only after the latter delivers on its promise of curbing anti-India terror.

Speaking at a think tank in New York, India’s Finance Minister Arun Jaitley underscored that India wanted to improve or at least normalise its relations with its neighbour, but made it clear that the onus was on Islamabad.

“The message that we are interested in normalising our relationship with them or at least improving our relationship with them and the onus is on Pakistan for this purpose has been loud and clear,” he said at the New York-based think-tank Council on Foreign Relations.

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Global refugee crisis: When will we wake up

- by India Writes Network

The United Nations refugee agency has released statistics that show the number of displaced people around the world has reached more than 60 million people. That means one in every 122 people on the planet is either a refugee, internally displaced or seeking asylum. And while this is reportedly the highest level of displaced people ever recorded, there is profound apathy in global responses to the refugee crisis.

While UNHCR head Antonio Guterres told the BBC that the “world is a mess”, stricken with conflicts which are causing the crisis with no clear end in sight, he also mentioned how the lack of a humanitarian response is a major impediment in cleaning up the mess.

The statistics are grim. The report says that 59.5 million people were displaced by the end of 2014, which included 19.5 million refugees, 38.2 million internally displaced people and 1.8 million still awaiting the outcome of asylum claims. Of these numbers, a staggering 50% of the refugees were children. Almost 86 per cent of all refugees are in the developing countries, which lack the infrastructure and resources to tackle the challenge.

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Modi, Sharif likely to meet at SCO summit in Russia

- by India Writes Network

The guessing game has begun, the usual media frenzy that kicks off whenever the leaders of India and Pakistan are expected to be present at a multilateral event.

India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s telephone call to his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif has fuelled speculation about a possible meeting between the two leaders on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization’s annual summit in the Russian city of Ufa next month.

Against this backdrop, Mr Modi’s Ramzan call to his Pakistani counterpart on June 17 is widely seen as a sign of thaw between the two prickly South Asian neighbours. During his conversation with Mr Sharif, Mr Modi emphasised that there was a need for maintaining “peaceful” and “friendly” bilateral ties between the two neighbors.

However, no official request for a meeting has been initiated from either side so far.

India and Pakistan are expected to be given full membership of the SCO at the forthcoming summit on July 8-9.

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Lalit Modi visa row: Govt, BJP chorus in Sushma Swaraj’s defence

- by India Writes Network

Amid a raging controversy over India’s External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj’s decision to help former IPL impresario Lalit Modi procure British travel documents on “humanitarian grounds”, the government and the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) strongly rallied to her defence, asserting that she did nothing wrong.

India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi has firmly stood by Mrs Swaraj, who has been facing a blistering campaign by the Congress party asking for her resignation. In a robust assertion of solidarity, senior Cabinet ministers have spoken in support of the low-key foreign minister, who is widely recognised as one of the most effective ministers in the Modi cabinet.

Two days after Home Minister Rajnath Singh defended Swaraj’s action, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has now rallied to her support, saying she acted “bona fide” and with “good intentions” and the entire government and party were one on the issue.

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From Dar to Delhi: Tanzania President in India, focus on business

- by Manish Chand

With months to go before the third India-Africa Forum Summit, New Delhi is putting its Africa diplomacy into high gear as it rolls out the red carpet for Tanzania’s President Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete.

The Tanzanian leader, accompanied by a high-level delegation, including ministers and senior officials, will be in India on a five-day visit starting June 17.

Bolstering infrastructure through soft loans has been the overriding focus of India’s diplomatic outreach to the East African nation. The Indian government extended a Line of Credit (LOC) of US$ 40 million for supply of tractors and agricultural equipment in June 2009 and another LOC of US$ 36.56 million for supply of Ashok Leyland trucks to Tanzania. During Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s visit to Tanzania in 2011, India unveiled another LOC of US$ 178.125 million for the development of water supply projects.

The 50,000-strong Indian community forms an enduring bridge between the two countries.

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‘Despite being a woman’: Terror has no gender, Mr PM

- by India Writes Network

“I am happy that Bangladesh Prime Minister, despite being a woman, has declared zero tolerance for terrorism,” said India’s PM Narendra Modi, while lauding Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s zero tolerance on terror policy, in a speech on June 7 in Dhaka, eliciting a flurry of commentary on social media networks and fervid opinion pieces.
The remark was an error of judgement by an otherwise astute politician in a speech which, on the whole, spoke very favourably about women in Bangladesh.
Still, two observations – the unfortunate reality – that women, in all positions, are constantly judged in their respective fields through a gendered lens; and the more heartening one- the outrage the comment garnered from diverse sections is an indication that things are changing, albeit slowly. For most people following the subsequent outrage over the comment, one did not need to point out what is wrong with the statement, and that itself is a triumph of feminism. Realizing the problem is the first step towards fixing it, after all.

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