On the occasion of Independence Day, Union Minister Prakash
Javadekar has released a patriotic song “Watan” produced by Doordarshan. The
song pays tribute to New India. It highlights several path breaking initiatives
of the government including the determination and vision behind the recent
successful launch of “Chandrayaan 2”.
The song also pays tribute to the bravery and valour of our armed forces
and the martyrs of the country.
Speaking on the occasion, Javadekar congratulated Doordarshan
and Prasar Bharati for creating the song. He added that the song will add
colour and fervour to the Independence Day celebrations this year.
Sung by famous Bollywood singer Javed Ali, penned by lyricist Alok
Shrivastav and musically composed by Dushyant, this special song has been
produced by Doordarshan, Prasar Bharati. Being broadcast by all the stations
and kendras of Akashvani and Doordarshan, this song has been made free of
copyright by Doordarshan and Ministry of I&B for all the FM stations, entertainment and
news TV channels, social media and all other communication platforms to ensure
that more and more citizens of this country can enjoy and share this song and
celebrate Independence Day with this song.
Chairman, Prasar Bharati
Dr. A. Suryaprakash; CEO, Prasar Bharati Shashi Shekhar Vempati; DG,
Doordarshan Supriya Sahu; DG, DD News, Mayank Agrawal; DG, AIR, F. Sheheryar
along with senior officers of Ministry of I&B and Prasar Bharati were also
present on the occasion.
Beach and Sugarman (2019) provided an analysis of
the SDM or shared decision-making framework in clinical practice, in which
clinicians are encouraged to engage patients on the values and preferences of
the patients.
“Professional societies and
other groups generating screening and treatment guidelines specifically
recommend SDM. In 2015, reimbursement from Medicare for lung cancer screening
was made contingent on SDM,” the authors of the JAMA article stated.
If the values and preferences of the patients sit
on morally firm foundations, then there can a more reliable process moving
forward for the benefits of the patients. It respects the cultural and
individual variations in values and preferences while also dignifying the
independent judgment of the patient about their own health and welfare.
Even so, SDM, as a practice, is “rarely achieved in
practice.” The reasons provided for this theory and practice gap is the
multifactorial nature of the problem. There are many factors leading to reduced
implementation of it.
“Studies show that patients
tend to think they have been involved in making decisions when direct observation
suggests they have not,” Beach and Sugarman reported, “This may be because
patients are unaware that a decision was made, the measurement standards for
observed behavior are too dogmatic, or both.”
Then
the coding of the information can be problematic as well as creating an
environment in which patients know their role in decisions and processes with
the medical professionals. Further time
placed into the hands of the medical professionals to explain to the patients
may be wasted time better spent on other medical issues or medical duties.
Benefits of more time explaining remain uncertain.
The
positions of the author of the paper is that SDM should be implemented in
medical settings more in spite of the lack of clarity in the reportage. They
provided solutions includng more specificity for the task in the calls for SDM,
the use of decision aids to become more routine and available, the
prioritization of decisions requiring SDM over others to increase its
prevalence, the facilitation of engagement with a better interpersonal
environment, and the importance of the communication models of practitioners more
conducive to the independence of the patients and the giving of recommendations
by the medical professionals with a modicum of prudence.
“SDM is a means to an end. The principal goals of SDM are to
respect patients as individuals and to deliver care consistent with their
values and preferences. Achieving these goals will sometimes involve explicitly
engaging patients in decision-making. But decision-making can be emotionally
demanding, and imposing a standard by which patients are expected to engage in
all (or even most) decisions is not only unrealistic and inefficient, but also
potentially burdensome to patients and clinicians,” the authors concluded.
Reference
Beach MC, Sugarman J. Realizing Shared Decision-making in Practice. JAMA. Published online July 25, 2019. doi:10.1001/jama.2019.9797
For some artists money remains the ultimate deciding factor in life, with no concern for ethics, morality or humanity. At a time when Pakistan is busy strategizing how to destabilize the ensuing peace in Kashmir, post Article 370, Singer Mika Singh and his troupe recently performed at the wedding of a billionaire’s daughter in Karachi, apparently close to former Pakistan President General Pervez Musharaff. Mika apparently charged USD 150,000 for his performance.
According to a report in Daily Jang newspaper, Mika reportedly performed on August 8 at the ceremony and his presence in the city came to light when some guests uploaded videos of his performance on social media.
India’s action to revoke Article 370 of the Constitution and
decision to bifurcate the State of Jammu and Kashmir into two Union Territories,
drew a sharp reaction from Pakistan. As a result Pakistan downgraded its
diplomatic ties and snapped trade relations with India, besides suspending the
Samjhauta Express services between the two countries.
Opposition leader of the Pakistan Peoples Party Syed Khursheed
Shah said the government must find out who gave the security clearance and
visas to the Indian singer and his 14-member troupe to visit Pakistan at a time
when the country had suspended diplomatic and trade relations with India. “This
is a time when there is a ban on Indian films, dramas, shows, and Pakistan has
made its views clear to the Indian government. Even if visas were issued early
on they should have been cancelled,” Shah said.
The newspaper reported that apparently the groom was a big fan
of Mika and wanted to see a live performance and to grant his wish the in-laws
used their connections to procure high-level security clearance and visas for
the Indian band.
Twitterati in India, lambasted the singer on social media. One
of the Twitter users wrote, “Shame on you traitor.”
“Mika Singh Paaji we Indians gave you so much love… And
in a situation like that when Pak banned all trade ties with us, sending
terrorists across the border, our tensions are very high right now. Why did you
go to Pakistan for a show? Few bucks are bigger than India? ” another user
tweeted.
While the government of India has been a major supporter of
startup ecosystem in the country, the Income Tax department has been the cause of
major heart burn in the startup sector. The Finance Ministry is now taking
steps to simplify the process of assessment in the case of Startup entities.
In cases where scrutiny assessments of Startup entities are
pending, the CBDT has decided that:
i) In case of Startup Companies recognized by DPIIT which have
filed Form No. 2 and whose cases are
under “limited scrutiny” on the single issue of applicability of section
56(2)(viib),the contention of the assessee will be summarily accepted.
ii) In case of Startup Companies recognized by DPIIT which have
filed Form No. 2 and whose cases have been selected under scrutiny to examine
multiple issues including the issue of section 56(2)(viib),this issue will not
be pursued during the assessment proceedings and inquiry on other issues will
be carried out by the Assessing Officer only after obtaining approval of the
supervisory authority.
iii) In case of Startup Companies recognized by the DPIIT, which
have not filed Form No. 2, but have been selected for scrutiny, the inquiry in
such cases also will be carried out by the Assessing Officer only after
obtaining approval of the supervisory authorities.
In addition to the above, the Central Government has further
decided to relax Para-6 of the DPIIT notification No.127 (E) dated 19.02.2019
and make it clear that this notification will also be applicable to Startup
Companies where addition under section 56(2)(viib) has been made and the
assessee has been recognized by DPIIT and subsequently filed Form No. 2. The Circular
to this effect in F.No 173/149/2019-ITA-1 of CBDT dated 8th August, 2019, has
been placed on www.incometaxindia.gov.in.
For the last seven decades, Pakistan has been shouting
from rooftops that India is in “illegal occupation” of Kashmir but no one has
cared to listen because this claim is factually untrue. To buttress its stand, Islamabad
keeps talking about the UNSC (United Nations Security Council) resolutions and
asserting that Kashmir is “disputed territory”, but even here it hasn’t been
able to find any support from the international community because of its
selective application and interpretation of these resolutions. But even after
having twice failed to wrest control by force, the Pakistan Army still hasn’t
given up and has been waging a proxy war in Kashmir for the last three decades
as it gives it a face-saving mechanism and serves as a source that enhances its
relevance amongst the people of Pakistan.
By abrogating Articles 370 and 35 A of the Indian constitution and reorganising J&K into Union Territories of J&K and Laddakh, India has sent out a loud and clear message that J&K is very much an integral part of India. This decision has punctured Pakistan’s balloon of lies and also proved that neither does Islamabad have the diplomatic ability to garner support of the international community to challenge this move, nor the military capability to intimidate India into making amends. Yet to think that Pakistan Army will finally reconcile with reality and stop its mischief would be suicidal because keeping the Kashmir pot boiling gives the military an excuse to corner a lion’s share of the impoverished country’s GDP.
Unlike other militaries who keep changing their
stratagems to baffle the enemy, the Pakistan Army appears to be a ‘one trick
pony’ which believes that it can continuously fool the world by disguising its personnel
and then denying their existence even if it amounts to disowning their own dead
soldiers. In 1947, Pakistan Army personnel masquerading as tribals invaded
Kashmir; in 1965, they secretly infiltrated into J&K in the guise of ‘razakars’
(volunteers) and in 1999 they intruded across the Line of Control (LoC) in
Kargil disguised as ‘mujahideens’ (holy warriors). Generals and those heading
terrorist groups being nurtured by the military openly speak about the
involvement of the Pakistan Army and terrorists in Kashmir and enumerated below
are a few examples:
In 2012, Syed Salahuddin, who as chief of ISI created ‘Muttahida Jihad Council’ controls various terrorist groups operating in Kashmir said during an interview that “We are fighting Pakistan’s war in Kashmir” and even threatened that “if it (Pakistan Army) withdraws its support, the war would be fought inside Pakistan.”
In a 2014 TV interview, Gen Musharraf accepted that Pakistan Army was fomenting unrest in Kashmir by admitting that “People in Kashmir are fighting against (India). We just need to incite them.”
In 2015, Lashkar-e-Taiba co-founder who has been designated international terrorist by UN admitted that the jihad’ (holy war) in Kashmir being waged by his terrorist organisation was being supported by Government of Pakistan and its army.
Even a few weeks back, while at the US Institute of Peace, Prime Minister Imran Khan admitted “we still have about 30,000- 40,000, armed people who have been trained and (have) fought in some part of Afghanistan or Kashmir.”
But despite such incriminating revelations, the indifference
of the international community is surprising and so is the lack of
determination in New Delhi’s part in highlighting the dangers being posed to
the world by Pakistan Army’s continued patronage of terrorist groups.
Resultantly, the military has been able to get away with only a mild rap on its
knuckles and continues to nurture terrorist groups.
With no support forthcoming from the international community, Pakistan’s much publicised plans to gather international support and move the UNSC against India’s decisions has turned out to a damp squib. Due to this, the present situation has become extremely volatile because the only option the Pakistan Army is left with is resorting to the use of violence in order to reaffirm its relevance by ensuring that there is no peace and tranquility in Kashmir. The hostile reactions emanating from Pakistan substantiate this apprehension and therefore one can expect continued ceasefire violations by the Pakistan Army in an endeavor to keep the LoC ‘hot’.
In the hinterland, the ISI will increase the tempo of
its two-pronged strategy to disrupt normal life. Separatists would be
instructed to organise demonstrations on a massive scale and incite protesters
to indulge in acts of violence and arson in a bid to provoke law enforcement
agencies to use force. Simultaneously, while intensity of terrorist activities
will increase, an upsurge in frequency of grenade attacks against security
forces in crowded places is likely as this could compel the security forces to
retaliate and could cause collateral damage. By saying “We fear more bloodshed in coming days in
the Occupied Kashmir,” Pakistan Foreign
Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi has given a clear hint about Islamabad’s future
plans for Kashmir!
New Delhi needs to apprise the world of how, by airing
apprehensions of Indian excesses against Kashmiris just to prejudice the
thinking of the international community, Pakistan is cleverly preparing ground
to facilitate deniability of its own deep involvement in inciting violence in
Kashmir. On more than one occasion, Islamabad has talked about how India’s
“reckless approach” could result in “some
false flag operation” or a “Pulwama-2” type of action and “Pakistan blamed on
the fake pretext of terrorism.” Whereas this prognosis is theoretically within
the realms of possibility, but who would ever believe that a country would
target its own citizens just in order to humiliate a neighbouring nation?
Tailpiece
Despite unsuccessfully
trying to sell the “false flag operation” hypothesis a number of times,
Islamabad still continues to do so. But this also has a positive side as it
serves as a timely warning of an impending act of terrorism and that’s why
Pakistan Army Chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa’s willingness to “go to any
extent” to help Kashmiris should give New Delhi a wakeup call!
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan is an angry man.
But that’s understandable because even before he could fully savour the euphoria
of his US visit (the success of which he likened to “having won the World Cup”), his Indian
counterpart Narendra Modi spoilt the party by altering the seven-decade old status
quo on Kashmir. But there’s more to it- by abrogating Articles 370 and 35A of
the Indian constitution and carving out two new Union Territories (J&K and Laddakh) out of what was
earlier the state of Jammu and Kashmir, Modi also disproved the prediction made
by Khan just four months ago to a group of foreign journalists when he said that
“Perhaps if the BJP, a right-wing party, wins, (then) some kind of
settlement in Kashmir could be reached.”
Even though abrogating Article 370 and 35 A was part
of the BJP-led NDA’s election manifesto it seems that Islamabad and Rawalpindi
didn’t take this forewarning seriously. Perhaps, since this promise had also
been made by the NDA in its last election manifesto but not acted upon and so Pakistan’s
Foreign Office may have rejected this as another election gimmick. Even when
New Delhi rushed additional security forces into Kashmir, the Pakistani
establishment and its army failed to connect the dots. US President Donald
Trump’s talk about him being asked by Modi to mediate between India and
Pakistan on the Kashmir issue could also be a reason why the otherwise deeply
suspicious Pakistan Army failed to visualise this eventuality.
Miffed by the latest developments in J&K, Pakistan has resorted to a series of knee-jerk reactions and in the process ended up inadvertently making some monumental blunders that give India even more substance to expose the absolute fallacy of Islamabad’s narrative on the issue of Kashmir. Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi is reported to have said that “Indian move to revoke Article 370 has no legal or constitutional justification.” But he has failed to offer any justification to buttress his views other than his plea of J&K being an “international dispute” which has no bearing on this move. Qureshi’s anger is also understandable but in case he wants to be taken more seriously by the international community then he will have to replace rhetoric with logic and with Washington terming India’s actions in J&K as an “internal matter” it should be clear to him that his is just a voice in the wilderness.
On the other
hand, by using constitutional provisions and following legitimate legislative procedures
to permanently alter status quo on Kashmir, New Delhi has sent out a strong
signal to the world that J&K is an integral part of India and this is what appears
to have actually rattled Islamabad. But Qureshi conveniently forgets that if Islamabad
wants the international community to view abrogation of Articles 370 and 35 A along
with the reorganisation of J&K’s administrative structure as an act that
has “no legal or
constitutional justification,” then doesn’t the same yardstick also apply to
Pakistan’s unilateral decision of handing over Shaksgam Valley, which is part
of the Hunza-Gilgit region of J&K, to China in 1963?
One of the most serious reaction is Khan’s aggressive
announcement that “incidents
like Pulwama are bound to happen again, (and) I can already predict this will
happen.” This isn’t a mere foreboding or the emotional outburst of an
out-manoeuvred politician; when one co-relates this with his own recent
admission at United States Institute of Peace during his three-day US visit that “when you talk about militant groups, we
still have about 30,000-40,000-armed people who have been trained and fought in
some part of Afghanistan or Kashmir,” his rant actually turns out to be a
sinister threat and a clear expression of intent. Additionally, by warning that
“there will be bloodshed,” Qureshi has literally let the cat out of the bag!
Pakistan’s
special advisor to PM Imran Khan for information and broadcasting, Firdous
Ashiq Awan’s declaration that “Pakistan will continue to extend moral,
diplomatic and political support to Kashmiris until they achieve their right to
self-determination under UN Security Council resolution” is fine. But how does
any sane person decipher Pakistan Army chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa’s pledge
that “Pakistan Army firmly stands by the Kashmiris in their just struggle to
the very end. We are prepared and shall go to any extent to fulfil our
obligations in this regard”?
Since an army
has only military means and warlike material at its disposal, isn’t Gen Bajwa’s
specific reassurance amount to directly or indirectly providing military
support to terrorist groups operating in Kashmir? Once again, there’s a need
for New Delhi to co-relate this statement with undisputable proof of Pakistan
army patronising terrorist groups that are fighting in neighbouring countries.
Isn’t it because of this that Pakistan has landed itself in the grey-list of
the Financial Action Task Force (FATF)? Therefore, Gen Bajwa’s promise to “go
to any extent” in helping Kashmiris to fight against New Delhi’s decision
(which has constitutional sanctity) needs to be brought to the notice of the
international community and FATF yet once again!
Tailpiece: New Delhi can’t afford to be complacent
because the Pakistan Army will definitely escalate violence levels through its
proxies to keep the pot in Kashmir boiling. Hence, rather than dismissing the
menacing voices emanating from Pakistan as hollow threats arising out of anger
and sheer frustration, it would be more appropriate for New Delhi to pay heed
to the old saying that one must always “listen to people when they are angry,
because that is when the real truth comes out!”
It was a special moment for Sanjay Leela Bhansali when National
Film Awards were announced this year. His
film “Padmavaat”, won three National Film Awards, including two for
music. The film won the best music director award (songs) for Bhansali in
addition to best choreography (Kruti Mahesh Madya and Jyoti Tomar) and best
playback singer to Arijit Singh for “Binte Dil” at the 66th National
Film Awards that were announced on Friday.
It is the first National award for Bhansali as a music director.
He has previously won for awards for “Devdas”, “Black” and
“Bajirao Mastani” in different categories.
Recalling his experience of making the film he said, “It is
the most difficult film that I have ever made. There has been physical assault,
morcha, dharna, banning of the film and every possible thing that could have
gone wrong. But every time I felt low, I created a song and it was a nice
outlet for me. It (music) was a positive way of looking at all the
difficulties,” Bhansali added.
“In any creative field, an artiste goes through some
difficulties here and there. In my case, it was more than necessary but you
still look at it positively… We went to the recording studio and shut all the
sound that was coming from the protests and concentrated on making music. It
has come from the heart and it resonated with the people.”
Bhansali said the awards, chosen by a jury of qualified people,
encourages one to work hard. “Any
recognition, and especially the one coming from the government, means a lot. It
is chosen by the jury of very qualified and respected people. It encourages you
to work harder. It is a pat on the back and an emotional moment.”
After a delay of four months, the 66th National Film awards were
announced today by Rahul Rawail, head of the Jury for feature films. 419 films
competed for the awards this year.
While normally, the recipients of the National Film Awards are announced in April and the presentation takes place on May 3 every year, it was delayed this time owing to the Lok Sabha polls. The national film awards are given in 31 categories. Vicky Kaushal and Ayushmann Khurrana were named Best Actors and Keerthy Suresh won the Best Actress award. Uttarakhand declared most film friendly state.
Here is the full list of
awardees
Most film friendly state: Uttarakhand
Best Feature Film: Hellaro a Gujarati film directed by Abhishek
Shah
Best Actor: Ayushmann Khuranna for Andhadhun and Vicky Kaushal
for Uri : The Surgical Strike
Best Actress: Keerthy Suresh for Mahanati
Best Supporting Actor – Swanand Kirkire for Chumbhak
Best supporting actress – Surekha Sikri for Badhaai Ho
Best non feature film: Son Rise by Vibha Bakshi and The Secret
Life of Frogs by Ajay and Vijay Bedi
Best Educational Film: Sarala Virala
Best Director: Uri : The Surgical Strike- Aditya Dhar
Best Action Direction: KGF Chapter I
Best Choreography:
Padmaavat for Goomar
Best Film for National Integration – Ondalla Eradalla (Kannada)
Best Cinematography – Olu (Malayalam) to MJ Radhakrishnan
Best Popular Film: Badhaai Ho
Best film on Environment issues – Paani
Best Debut Film of a Director: Naal (Marathi)
Best film on Social Issues: Padman
Best Child artist: P V
Rohith (Kannada), Sameep Singh (Punjabi), Talha Arshad Reshi (Urdu) and
Shrinivas Pokale (Marathi)
Best Children’s Film: Sarkari Area Prathamika Shaale Kasaragod
Best Cinematography: MJ Radhakrishnan for Olu, Malayalam
Best Special Effects: KGF
Special Jury Award: Award shared by Sruthi Hariharan, Joju
George for Joseph, Savithri for Sudani From Nigeria, Chandrachood Rai
Best Film on Environment Conservation/Preservation: Paani
Best Regional films
Best Rajasthani Film: Turtle
Best Tamil Film: Baaram
Best Marathi Film: Bhonga
Best Hindi Film: Andhadhun
Best Urdu Film: Hamid
Best Telugu Film: Mahanati
Best Assamese Film: Bulbul Can Sing
Best Punjabi Film: Harjeeta
Music
Best Lyrics: Nathichirami (Kannada)
Best Music Direction (Songs): Sanjay Leela Bhansali for
Padmaavat
Best Music Direction (Background score): Uri
Best Sound Design: Uri
Best Female playback Singer: Bindu for Mayavi Manave (Kannada)
Best Male Playback Singer: Arijit Singh for Bhinte Dhil
Production
Best Make Up artist- Awe
Best Production Design:
Kammara Sambhavam (Malayalam)
With the reorganisation of the
state of Jammu and Kashmir done, all eyes are on the possible fall out, more
so, from Pakistan. The neighbouring country has partially recovered from the
shock to rustle up a response, however incoherent and disjointed.
In the initial stages came the
tweets. “CCC on Kashmir situation at GHQ. Forum
fully supported Government’s rejection of Indian actions regarding Kashmir. Pakistan
never recognised the sham Indian efforts to legalise its occupation of Jammu
& Kashmir through article 370 or 35-A decades ago efforts which have now been revoked by India itself.
Pakistan Army firmly stands by the Kashmiris in their just struggle to the very
end. We are prepared and shall go to any extent to fulfil our obligations in
this regard,” COAS affirmed. The above were the brave words tweeted on @OfficialDGISPR, the official Twitter handle of the
Pakistan Army.
Pakistan has also announced
that it will be downgrading diplomatic relations with India and will suspend
bilateral trade. As an afterthought, it chose to order partial closure of its
airspace. In another demonstration of pettiness, it stopped the Samjauta
Express on its own side of the border and told Indian authorities to send their
own crew to take the train back.
All of this and more was
expected from Pakistan. Security experts have been cautioning about escalation
in the conflict spectrum. “The biggest challenge comes from the Kashmir’s
hinterland, where rabble-rousing will be attempted under instigation from
Pakistan….. We cannot afford a repeat of either 2010 or 2016. In the latter
case, India became the target of international criticism due to the blinding by
pellet guns,” said Lt. Gen. Ata Hasnain, a military veteran who, while in
service, commanded the Srinagar-based Chinar Corps.
There exists universal
agreement that Pakistan will emerge as the pivot for all activities directed against
India for having changed the status quo in Kashmir. Pakistan Army is poised to
not only invoke its massive infrastructure of terrorists as a riposte; it is also
ready to get into the fray with military interventions, while the government
looks into the diplomatic and religious aspects. It is from Pakistan that
anti-national elements will get the finances, direction and facility to go for
the rabble-rousing that Gen. Hasnain has referred to. In assistance to Pakistan
will be such people who have lost control over the region and would now need to
contest the emerging scenario with all might that they can muster.
The moot question that arises
is: Does India need to be worried about these actions that all experts are very
rightly pointing towards as the response from Pakistan and its proxies? The
answer lies in a counter-question, “Would there be anything new or
extraordinary, that India has not handled earlier, in these actions if taken by
Pakistan and its proxies?” The response is a big “NO.”
Thus, the
assurance given by Home Minister Amit Shah that there will be no untoward
fallout of the decision of the government in Jammu and Kashmir has been further
substantiated by the Army Commander on ground. Overall, the security forces are
firmly in control of the situation and necessary arrangements had been put in
place for ensuring peace.
Nevertheless, there exists a
need to remain both cautious and vigilant since the enemy is going to leave no
stone unturned in attempting to wrest back the initiative. He is like a wounded
animal and can strike in any direction. There is a need for the nation to stay
ready to face all eventualities– political,
security, administrative, international and economic.
The silver lining is that the
nation has done what it set out to do and thus it holds the benefit of the
first strike. The requirement is simply to respond to what the enemy throws at
us and for that detailed preparation has been done. Of maximum importance is the
capacity to instil in the people of the state a sense of security since what
they considered to be normal has been disrupted. This is possible only through
application of a national will. More than promises of development and financial
gain, it is propagation of the political empowerment and social justice derivatives
that will pay dividends in the reconciliation phase. If there is conviction
that what has been done is to the benefit of the nation and more importantly
the people of Jammu and Kashmir, there will be no hurdle that cannot be
crossed.
I vividly remember that day in school when a simple exercise about map
explanation turned out to be a big shocking experience for me. The assignment
was to draw the external boundaries of various Indian states and mark important
cities therein.
Each student chosen to draw the boundaries of one Indian state would
also mark its major cities and explain the state’s historical, geographical and
political importance to the whole class.
I was to explain about Jammu Kashmir.
“This is Jammu Kashmir and this is the state’s capital city Srinagar,” I
said pointing my little finger towards Srinagar on the map.
“…the famous ‘silk route’ passed through this state which served as the
world’s major trade route since ancient times. Jammu, Gilgit-Baltistan,
Muzaffarabad, Gulmarg, Mirpur are other important cities of this state. The
state has famous pilgrimage centres such as the Sharada Peeth, Amarnath Shrine
and Mata Vaishno Devi….” I went on with my erudite explanation about the state.
“So, where do you want to go in Jammu Kashmir?” the teacher asked.
“Hmmm….well, I want to go to Sharada Peeth,” I replied after a brief
pause.
I had read that Sharada Peeth was the great centre for learning and was also ancient place for Vedic learning, but this seat of higher knowledge was now in ruins and shambles. Yet, being a student I felt a strong connect with Goddess Saraswati’s abode–the Sharada Peeth, and wanted to visit the shrine.
The teacher smiled and said, “Yes that’s a noble thought but you need to
have a passport to go to the Sharada Peeth….”
“Passport? Why do I need a passport to visit an Indian city?” I asked in
exasperation.
“Well, the Sharada Peeth is part of Kashmir that is with Pakistan and is
now known as the Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK)…so you must seek Pakistan’s
permission by taking a visa to visit any place in the PoK,” the teacher
explained.
“B…but how can this be true… see this is the map of Jammu Kashmir and
here are Sharada Peeth, Srinagar, Jammu, Gilgit-Baltistan, Gulmarg, Mirpur,
Muzaffarabad which are all within the territorial limits of this state and a
part of India so why do I need a visa and a passport…,” I blurted out.
“Yes this is true but then this truth exists only on paper…in reality a
huge portion of our Jammu Kashmir is still with Pakistan which is known as the
Pak-occupied Kashmir…so cities such as Gilgit-Baltistan, Sharada Peeth, Mirpur,
Muzaffarabad are all under Pakistan’s illegal control ever since India’s
independence. And we in India have still not been able to get back this entire
region…,” the teacher elaborated and I listened with stunned silence.
When this incident took place I was a student of standard sixth and
found it hard to believe that India has not been able to take back its own
region from Pakistan.
This was several years back.
Much water has flown through the Jhelum and Indus rivers of Jammu Kashmir since then, but I still find it hard to digest why India has not been able to wrest back its own region– the Pakistan-occupied Jammu Kashmir (PoJK) despite winning four wars against Pakistan.
Ironically, Pakistan that has committed worst forms of human rights violation with the people of Gilgit-Batistan, Muzaffarabad, Mirpur destroyed the centre of learning–Sharada Peeth, and many other parts of PoJK celebrates a “solidarity” day for “Kashmiri people” on February 5. The Pakistani establishment commemorate this day to reaffirm their commitment to support all kinds of terrorist activities on the Indian side of Jammu Kashmir.
Pakistani politicians, ministers and terrorist leaders take a pledge on this day to provide arms and ammunition to separatists and terrorist outfits operating across Jammu Kashmir to help them continue their proxy war against the Indian security forces and Indian establishment. And then the mainstream media (lame-stream media?) never dares to question Pakistani regime over its sponsorship of terrorism in Jammu Kashmir!
Background
During India’s partition there were two kinds of territories: British
India and Princely States. The portion of India that was ruled directly by the
British was partitioned as India and Pakistan, and the rulers of princely
states were given the option to join either India or Pakistan.
Hari Singh, erstwhile Maharaja of the then princely state of Jammu
Kashmir signed the Instrument of Accession with the Indian government on
October 26, 1947. With his signature on the Instrument of Accession and India’s
subsequent acceptance of it, the entire state of Jammu Kashmir became an
integral part of India, which includes Gilgit-Baltistan and other Pak-occupied
regions of Jammu Kashmir. And it is in these regions wherein the revered Sharada
Peeth lies. Sadly, this ancient and pious pilgrimage site that was the seat of
higher vedic learning is now in ruins.
India and Pakistan have fought four wars since 1947, and despite winning all four wars India has let go each opportunity to wrest control of the Pak-occupied Kashmir.
The accession of Jammu Kashmir with India happened through the same process as that of other Princely States so no questions can be raised about the region being an integral part of India. Even the oft-repeated claims of Plebiscite in Jammu Kashmir had become invalid after United Nations said that Pakistan never fulfilled the mandated preconditions before a referendum could be held in the state.
Further, on February 22, 1994 both houses of the Indian Parliament (Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha) passed a unanimous resolution reaffirming its stand to take back the region of Jammu Kashmir occupied by Pakistan. “On behalf of the People of India…(we) firmly declare that the State of Jammu Kashmir has been, is and shall be an integral part of India and any attempts to separate it from the rest of the country will be resisted by all necessary means… and demands that Pakistan must vacate the areas of the Indian State of Jammu and Kashmir, which they have occupied through aggression and resolves that all attempts to interfere in the internal affairs of India will be met resolutely,” the Parliamentary resolution of February 22, 1994 read in clear terms.
The ease with which Indian Parliament has ratified the bill to revoke Articles 370 and 35A proves that there’s an overwhelming support for Modi to settle this “Kashmir issue” once and for all.
It is time that the world knows about Sharada Peeth and its importance
for Hindus. It’s time Narendra Modi government takes decisive action against
blatant human rights violations by Pakistan in Gilgit-Baltistan, Mirpur and
Muzaffarabad. The region’s culture, traditions and historical monuments are
systematically being destroyed. And the most glaring example is our revered
Sharada Peeth.
India cannot shirk its responsibility of protecting its citizens even if those territories continue to be in illegal occupation by Pakistan. It’s time that we initiate diplomatic processes to get back remaining portion of Jammu Kashmir to India.
Sharada Peeth, the seat of higher Vedic learning now lies in ruins in the Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.
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