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Balancing
humanity against numbers
[IKRAM
SEHGAL]
Budget-making
is an exercise that must remain the domain of human
beings rather than that of computers. Given that statistical
data of revenues collected and projected spending thereof
have to be made coherent into an annual plan, budgets
must facilitate the living in coping with the basic
necessities of a comfortable and dignified existence
rather than making the rich richer. Unfortunately we
live by a philosophy of “reverse swing”,
the common man's common needs have no priority, the
priority of gift-of-the-gab being to favourably impress
whoever is the primary ruler of the country, then satisfy
the World Bank, IMF, Asian Development Bank (ADB) and
not the least the wealthy and influential elite, in
that order. Statistics brush aside the needs of the
masses, the buzz-word being “trickle-down”
economics and a treasury bulging with foreign exchange
reserves. As long as macro-economic indicators are favourable,
micro-economics can play catch-up! The Indian masses
recently gave BJP's “India Shining” electoral
plank a stinging rebuke, could this be an early warning
signal for our rulers who depend too much for the country's
Budget-making on computers impersonating as humans?
Look
at what India's new Harvard-educated Finance Minister
Chidambaram is inheriting from the BJP, viz (1) an extremely
high economic growth at 10.4% with GDP growing at 8%
(2) overflowing foreign exchange reserves (in excess
of US$ 100 billion) and (3) consumer spending on a roll.
On a smaller scale, Pakistan compares relatively favourably
on a pro-rata basis. With such favourable economic indicators
any political party in the developed world would have
been a shoo-in at electoral time, the “ignorant
and ungrateful” Indians reacted adversely because
these benefits were visible to only a third of the population.
Adverse factors posing problems for the new incumbent,
viz (1) the financial market is presently volatile because
in the face of “Left Front” partners of
Congress and an anticipated roll-back of economic reforms
(2) growing unemployment despite considerable foreign
direct investment (FDI) (3) deteriorating fiscal deficit
and (4) rising world fuel prices. All well and good
but can Mr Chidambaram balance high trajectory of growth
with visible socio-economic initiatives to assuage the
aspirations of the masses for basic needs, and if, when
and where these are available, at affordable prices?
This is true more or less the dilemma for Shaukat Aziz
in preparing Pakistan's budget.....more
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Islamic
Pakistan
The correct perspective for the Constitution of Pakistan.
[RIAZ JAFRI] |
The Objectives Resolution passed
by the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan in March,
1949, was made a substantive part of the Constitution
of Pakistan by P.O (Presidential Order). No.14 of
1985, Art.2 and Sch.item 2 (with effect from March
2, 1985). It apart from having many highly laudable,
far reaching and significantly democratic clauses
has the following article as well:
Wherein the Muslims shall be enabled
to order their lives in the individual and collective
spheres in accordance with the teachings and requirements
of Islam as set out in the Holy Quran and the Sunnah;
which has been grossly misconstrued and has somewhat
changed the complexion of the type of the constitution
and consequently the type of the government that should
govern the country. Though it has been many a time
amply clarified that, “No law repugnant to Qura'n
and Sunnah will be incorporated by the parliament”,
yet it stays short of satisfying the religious parties'
leaders (fundamentalists and obscurantist) who insist
that, “Only Qura'n and Sunnah will be implemented
in Pakistan”. Not only that, on the top of it
they also insist upon their interpretation of the
Qura'nic injunctions and Sunnah on discussable matters.
They invariably, come up with the argument that Pakistan
was created in the name of Islam and for the enforcement
of Islamic Shariat.
An effort is, therefore, made here
to give the correct perspective for the creation of
Pakistan and what kind of Islamic values and socio-economic
systems its founding fathers had visualised......more
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India
Vows to Modernise Military
The country's new administration
is very firm in modernising the military to bring it
upto par with modern armies.
[MUHAMMAD IRSHAD]
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| India's
new administration said that it would modernise the
armed forces and speed up deals to bring in new hardware
while down playing rumours that military ties with Israel
would be put on ice. “The objective will be to
modernize the armed forces, upgrade their skills it
will be a continuous process“, Defence Minister
Pranab Mukherjee, said in his first news conference
since assuming the new office.
This present Indian
thinking is exactly in line with the desire being exhibited
by the Indian leadership since the dawn of their creation
or even since the period before that. A short preview
of the philosophy, which also might explain why the
Indians are amassing the foreign hardware as well as
boosting their tremendous local talents and resources
could be had from the speech of the Indian Defence Minister,
in their very first defence budget on 13th March 1948,
when he stated, “India could not fail to recall
the misery and horror and shameful crimes inflicted
on so many of our countrymen, women and children, when
hordes of well armed tribesmen and others trained in
the use of arms were let loose on our civil population
from the neighbouring dominion. It was therefore imperative
on the part of government of India to proceed to train
our nationals in the use of arms, so that our citizen
would never again be exposed to the risk and dangers,
and the security of the motherland be never at stake.
The cadet corp. will, I hope provide a fruitful source
of recruitment for our future officers in the armed
forces.“
This marked the
beginning of the compulsory training for the Indian
youth which in the first 25 years (till 1973) produced
30 million cadets. After 25 years of the said Indian
decision, Pakistan government in August 1973, decided
to start programme for defence training for various
walks of life under the headings of Mujahid force, the
Janbaz force, the women guards and the national cadet
corp. From the very first day, these programmes were
started with half-hearted moods and it is no wonder
that all such programmes have been abandoned in Pakistan
since last few years....more
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