With focus on CBMs, India and Pakistan talk today/THEY FOCUS ON IMPROVING TRADE AND PEOPLE TO PEOPLE CONTACT APART FROM A RE-LOOK AT THE VISA PROTOCOL.THE MEETINGS OF THE EXPERT GROUP ON VARIOUS OTHER CBM'S,INCLUDING THE NUCLEAR AND CONVENTIONAL ONE!!
Jayanth Jacob, Hindustan Times
New Delhi, July 26, 2011
Pakistan's foreign minister Hina Rabbani Khar arrives at the AFS Palam, in New Delhi....
The foreign ministers of India and Pakistan who will meet for talks on Wednesday are expected to follow a carefully drafted template to take the peace process forward through a ‘step-by-step’ approach. The template looks at keeping the dialogue process on track, working on a gradual
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* Indo-Pak foreign secys finalise CBMs
* Giving direction to Indo-Pak bilateral ties a priority: Khar
* Our response to N-attack would be heavy: IAF chief
* Khar will carry 'complete mandate' of Pakistan: Gilani
* 'Khar meeting Geelani and Mirwaiz a bad idea'
approach to reduce the trust deficit through various confidence building measures (CBMs), extending ministerial-level dialogue in some areas and — most importantly — to ensure that the core issues of J&K or terrorism don’t derail the dialogue process.
That in a nutshell seemed to be the way forward as foreign secretary Nirupama Rao met with her Pakistan counterpart Salman Bashir on Tuesday to give the finishing touches to the agenda for the foreign ministers’ meet on Wednesday.
Striking a positive note, Pakistan’s foreign minister Hina Rabbani Khar said she hoped that the two countries “have learnt lessons from history but are not burdened by it.”
She arrived in New Delhi on Tuesday. Khar, who talks to her Indian counterpart SM Krishna on Wednesday, said both countries could move forward as “good, friendly neighbours, who have a stake in each other’s future”.
While reviewing the dialogue process, both ministers will focus on keeping the dialogue process ‘compressive and sustained’, Indian officials said.
Going ahead with the step-by-step approach towards normalisation of ties, a host of CBMs are expected to be announced.
The cross border CBMs finalsed at a recent meeting between top officials of the two countries will also be announced on Wednesday.
They focus on improving trade and people-to-people contact apart from a re-look at the visa protocol. The meetings of the expert group on various other CBMs, including the nuclear and conventional one, will be held soon.
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
‘Jayalalithaa inspired the US squeeze on Lanka’ - July 27, 2011
‘Jayalalithaa inspired the US squeeze on Lanka’
* July 27, 2011
* By M. Gunasekaran
*
The ruling AIADMK is mighty thrilled at the U.S. congressional committee voting to ban aid to Sri Lanka pending ‘accountability’ over atrocities in the final phase of the Eelam war.
Scores of AIADMK seniors, including ministers, have issued big advertisements in Tamil newspapers in Tuesday hailing the American initiative, which they insist was inspired by chief minister Jayalalithaa’s resolutions in the state Assembly demanding that Delhi should impose economic embargo on Lanka.
The US move has come as a major setback to the Mahinda Rajapaksa regime in Sri Lanka, which came under worldwide criticism following the recent TV documentary, Killing Fields of Channel Four of Britain. The video was also telecast in India and created huge revulsion amid the thousands of viewers across the country.
The video caused a fresh bout of anti-Colombo protests in the Tamil Nadu.
Not just the AIADMK lieutenants, even large segments of the Tamil Diaspora across the world are hailing Jayalalithaa’s strong support of the Lankan Tamil cause — particularly on the issue of rehabilitation of the war-displaced people and also bringing to trial the war-criminals in the island. It is alleged that over 40,000 civilians were killed in the last few days of the Eelam war in May 2009.
Diaspora websites are in fact expressing hope that Jayalalithaa would emerge as the ‘Indira Gandhi of the Tamils’ securing for them their Eelam “just as Indira Gandhi liberated Bangladesh”.
Diaspora meetings in several parts of the world have expressed happiness at Jayalalithaa’s initiatives and hoped she would be able to exert pressure on Delhi to shake off its “long-held indifference to the Tamil plight”.
At the same time, DMK president M. Karunanidhi has been fast losing his ground with the Diaspora, with many being upset that he let down the Eelam Tamils in their hour of crisis.
“Even the local pro-Eelam sympathisers are now his bitter critics. They are looking to Jayalalithaa to secure justice for the Tamils”, said Mr Viduthalai Rajendran, general secretary, Periyar Dravidar Kazhagam.
* July 27, 2011
* By M. Gunasekaran
*
The ruling AIADMK is mighty thrilled at the U.S. congressional committee voting to ban aid to Sri Lanka pending ‘accountability’ over atrocities in the final phase of the Eelam war.
Scores of AIADMK seniors, including ministers, have issued big advertisements in Tamil newspapers in Tuesday hailing the American initiative, which they insist was inspired by chief minister Jayalalithaa’s resolutions in the state Assembly demanding that Delhi should impose economic embargo on Lanka.
The US move has come as a major setback to the Mahinda Rajapaksa regime in Sri Lanka, which came under worldwide criticism following the recent TV documentary, Killing Fields of Channel Four of Britain. The video was also telecast in India and created huge revulsion amid the thousands of viewers across the country.
The video caused a fresh bout of anti-Colombo protests in the Tamil Nadu.
Not just the AIADMK lieutenants, even large segments of the Tamil Diaspora across the world are hailing Jayalalithaa’s strong support of the Lankan Tamil cause — particularly on the issue of rehabilitation of the war-displaced people and also bringing to trial the war-criminals in the island. It is alleged that over 40,000 civilians were killed in the last few days of the Eelam war in May 2009.
Diaspora websites are in fact expressing hope that Jayalalithaa would emerge as the ‘Indira Gandhi of the Tamils’ securing for them their Eelam “just as Indira Gandhi liberated Bangladesh”.
Diaspora meetings in several parts of the world have expressed happiness at Jayalalithaa’s initiatives and hoped she would be able to exert pressure on Delhi to shake off its “long-held indifference to the Tamil plight”.
At the same time, DMK president M. Karunanidhi has been fast losing his ground with the Diaspora, with many being upset that he let down the Eelam Tamils in their hour of crisis.
“Even the local pro-Eelam sympathisers are now his bitter critics. They are looking to Jayalalithaa to secure justice for the Tamils”, said Mr Viduthalai Rajendran, general secretary, Periyar Dravidar Kazhagam.
MY TRIBUTE TO KARGIL MATYRS ON THE VIJAY DIWAS AND ON EVERYDAY OF OUR LIFE,AS THEY FOUGHT AND DIED TO SAVE US AND OUR BOUNARIES..VT
EVERYONE IS FREE TO WRITE THEIR PERSONAL COMMENTS AND POINT OF VIEW WITH ONE'S OWN PERSPECTIVE HERE...IF ITS SUITABLE AND RELATATED TO THE SUBJECT/ISSUE I WON'T DELETE IT,THOUGH I DON'T WRITE IN ANYONE'S,OR HAVE EVER WRITTEN IN ANYONE'S PERSONAL BLOGS!! THANKS!! REGARDS!!....VT
EVEN SUDHIRJI HAD CONTRIBUTED BY AUCTIONING HIS 9PM'S FRAMED CARICATURES FOR INDIAN EXPRESS FUNCTION...IT WENT FOR ITS CHARITY FOR KARGIL MATYRS FAMILIES WELFARE!!!..A TRIBUTE BY HIM.
EVEN SUDHIRJI HAD CONTRIBUTED BY AUCTIONING HIS 9PM'S FRAMED CARICATURES FOR INDIAN EXPRESS FUNCTION...IT WENT FOR ITS CHARITY FOR KARGIL MATYRS FAMILIES WELFARE!!!..A TRIBUTE BY HIM.
26/07/2011 Nepal police arrest Mumbai blast suspect: Report
26/07/2011
Nepal police arrest Mumbai blast suspect: Report
Kathmandu: A Nepali man, believed to be in his early 40s, has been arrested from capital city Kathmandu on the suspicion that he had links to this month's serial blasts in India's business capital Mumbai which killed 24 people and injured nearly 150, Nepal's official media said.
Nepal police arrest Mumbai blast suspect: Report
Mohammad Zahir, a resident of Sarlahi district in Nepal's Terai plains near the Indian border, was arrested by Nepal Police's anti-terrorism cell on the basis of intelligence reports, the state-run Gorkhapatra daily reported Tuesday.
The man was said to have been conducting suspicious activities from his rented apartment in Baluwatar, an upmarket area in the capital where the official residence of the prime minister is located.
He was found to have had phone conversations about the Mumbai blasts as well as sent text messages on his mobile phone, the daily said.
It said Zahir was arrested last week but the news was kept secret. Currently, he is in police custody.
Nepal police arrest Mumbai blast suspect: Report
There were no immediate comments from police authorities.
Three serial blasts rocked Mumbai July 13, causing death and destruction in Zaveri Bazaar, a jewellery hub, the Opera House business district and Dadar.
A terrorist group, the Indian Mujahideen, is suspected to have been behind the attacks.
With India and Nepal sharing an open border, Indian authorities have often claimed that several groups planning terror attacks in Indian cities had links in Nepal, either smuggling in firearms and hit men from the Himalayan state or providing logistical support from there.
Source: IANS
Nepal police arrest Mumbai blast suspect: Report
Kathmandu: A Nepali man, believed to be in his early 40s, has been arrested from capital city Kathmandu on the suspicion that he had links to this month's serial blasts in India's business capital Mumbai which killed 24 people and injured nearly 150, Nepal's official media said.
Nepal police arrest Mumbai blast suspect: Report
Mohammad Zahir, a resident of Sarlahi district in Nepal's Terai plains near the Indian border, was arrested by Nepal Police's anti-terrorism cell on the basis of intelligence reports, the state-run Gorkhapatra daily reported Tuesday.
The man was said to have been conducting suspicious activities from his rented apartment in Baluwatar, an upmarket area in the capital where the official residence of the prime minister is located.
He was found to have had phone conversations about the Mumbai blasts as well as sent text messages on his mobile phone, the daily said.
It said Zahir was arrested last week but the news was kept secret. Currently, he is in police custody.
Nepal police arrest Mumbai blast suspect: Report
There were no immediate comments from police authorities.
Three serial blasts rocked Mumbai July 13, causing death and destruction in Zaveri Bazaar, a jewellery hub, the Opera House business district and Dadar.
A terrorist group, the Indian Mujahideen, is suspected to have been behind the attacks.
With India and Nepal sharing an open border, Indian authorities have often claimed that several groups planning terror attacks in Indian cities had links in Nepal, either smuggling in firearms and hit men from the Himalayan state or providing logistical support from there.
Source: IANS
India Vs Pak: at birth, and now A shared historical legacy has led India and Pakistan more into strife than any cohesion-26/07/2011.
By Jyothi Raghuram, India Syndicate, 26/07/2011
India Vs Pak: at birth, and now
A shared historical legacy has led India and Pakistan more into strife than any cohesion.
India Vs Pak: at birth, and now(GOOD WISHES AND WELCOME TO HEENAJI AND HER COLLEAUGES IN OUR COUNTRY.I HOPE THEY WILL ENJOY OUR HOSPITALITY AS "AATHITHI DEVO BHAV IS MOOL-MANTRA OF OUR CULTURE"....I HOPE THEY'RE HERE TO FIND THE SOLUTIONS OF OUR YEARS OLD PROBLEMS WITHOUT ANY PREJUDICES.I HOPE SEPARATISTS WHO'RE GETTING UNDUE IMPORTANCE BECAUSE OF J AND K SHOULD SHOULD THINK ABOUT COUNTRY FIRST....AND MR OMAR ABDULLAH AND HIS GOVERNMENT MEMBERS NEED TO BE CONSULTED IN THIS SOLUTIONFINDING PROCESS SIMULTANEOUSLY.WE ALL HAVE HOPES THAT "THIS OPERATION FOR HEALING PENDING DISPUTES AND PROBLEMS AND FINDING SOLUTIONS FOR FUTURE WILL BE IN RIGHT TRACK AND SUCCESSFUL"....GOOD WISHES TO OUR COUNTRYMEN...BE POSITIVE,KEEP HIGH HOPES,MUST MEET 24/11 AND 13/7 ATTACKS VICTIMS AS WELL AND COMBAT TERRORISM FROM THE ROOTS/AND MUST PUNISH TERRORISTS ATTACKERS....."...VIBHA TAILANG
It is not merely a history of centuries that India and Pakistan share. Culture, language and geography also links them, although both countries view this shared heritage differently. If religion defined the national identity of Pakistan during partition, the same has continued as a national philosophy over the decades.
What is known as Indian civilization is as much a legacy of Pakistan, but it is only Mughal history that it acknowledges as its own. And it is this difference in perception that has damaged the psyche of the two nations.
The partition of the two countries, one of the bloodiest in human history, marked the migration and death of millions across the subcontinent. It is also a story of one of the most contrasting developments of two neighboring nations, both of whom began with little political experience at governance, empty coffers, and wounded societies.
Pakistan today is the hub of terrorism, a "failed state", while India is considered an emerging economic superpower. Historically, India was never a cohesive whole, so the concept of a nation was more geographical at birth. India had to carry religious minorities along, whereas Pakistan was created and built around an Islamic identity.
A look at the socio-economic scenario of India and Pakistan in 1947 and the situation now, reveals a chasm that is as much economic as it is political.
Next page: The growth graph of India and Pakistan on major fronts
India Vs Pak: at birth, and now
ECONOMY INDIA PAKISTAN
GDP(purchasing power parity) $4060 billion (2010 (est.) $464.9 billion (2010 est.)
GDP(real growth rate) 10.4 % (2010 est.) 4.8 % (2010 est.)
GDP -per capita (PPP) $3,500 (2010 est.) $2,500 (2010 est.)
Unemployment rate 10.8 % (2010 est.) 15 % (2010 est.)
Population below poverty line 25 % (2007 est. 2007) 24 % (FY05/06 est.)
Budget revenues $170.7 billion (2010 est.) $25.33 billion
Budget expenditures $268 billion (2010 est.) $36.24 billion (2010 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 11.7 % (2010 est.) 13.4 % (2010 est.)
India's booming economy contrasts with Pakistan's instability. India's economic growth rate has averaged over seven 7 per cent since 1997. The country is a major exporter of information technology services and software professionals. The Indian economy bounced back from the world financial crisis, thanks to its domestic demand.
The political unrest in Pakistan has led its economy to the brink of bankruptcy. Economic instability has in turn depreciated the Pakistani rupee. Much of Pakistan's export earnings is from the textile sector. Rising inflation, and poor investment in healthcare, education and the power sector, besides dependence on foreign aid are the major concerns.
Next page: Social indices
India Vs Pak: at birth, and now
India is expected to become the world's most populous country by 2025, with its population crossing 1.6 billion. It will also continue to be the youngest country -- the average Indian will be 29 years of age by2020. Pakistan will surpass Indonesia as the world's largest Muslim country by 2030.
POPULATION INDIA PAKISTAN
1947 361 million 76 million
2011 1.21 billion 187 million
Birth rate (2009) 2.62 3.17
Infant mortality rate (2009) 47.27 deaths/1,000 live births 63.26 deaths/1000 live births
Sex ratio (2009) at birth 1.12 male/female 1.05 male/female
Sex ratio (2009) at 15-64 years: 1.06 male/female 1.05 males/female
Adult female-male ratio 914:1000 925:1000
Fertility rate 2.68 (2010) 3.58 (2008)
Next page: Indo-Pak military
India Vs Pak: at birth, and now
Indo-Pak military: Arms race in the subcontinent
The defence history of India goes back millennia, as does its maritime history.
India has consistently refused to sign the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). It has however a no-first-use policy of nuclear weapons. India's 2008 International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) agreement makes it the only non-NPT nuclear weapons country that can do nuclear business with the rest of the world.
Pakistan is the only Muslim-majority country to possess nuclear weapons. A close non-NATO ally of the US, it finds a friend in China for its arms build-up and know-how. The Pakistan armed forces is the seventh largest in the world.
INDIA PAKISTAN
Military expenditure GDP 1.8 % 3.00 (2007)
Total defence budget 2011 Rs 1,64,415 crore Rs 325900 crores
Major ports 9 2
Main battle tanks 3000 1000
Artillery units 1000 2500
Fighter aircraft 500 300
Support aircraft 250 50 special mission aircraft
Naval fleet 173 11 combat ships
Aircraft carrier 1
Nuclear submarine 1 8 submarines
Nuclear weapons 100-120 100-11-
Available military power 556,075,946 75,807,598
Next page: Low literacy rates run parallel to poverty and ignorance
India Vs Pak: at birth, and now
Low literacy rates run parallel to poverty and ignorance
Family planning programmes have been unsuccessful in both countries due largely to illiteracy particularly among women
LITERACY INDIA PAKISTAN
Total literacy rate (in percentage) 74 %# 58 % *
Female 65.46 %# 45 % *
Male 82.14 % # 69 % *
# Indian Census 2011
* Pakistan Millenium Development Report 2010)
The literacy rate in India was just 12 per cent in 1947. Kerala has the highest literacy rate of 93 per cent. India has the largest illiterate population anywhere in the world.
Low literacy rates in Pakistan have had a negative impact on family planning. Coupled with the political unrest, it has retarded the country's socio-economic progress.
Next page: Lop-sided education systems
India Vs Pak: at birth, and now
Lop-sided education systems
Despite being heavily loaded against the girl child, higher education in India has thrown up women professionals and added substantially to the country's work force
EDUCATION INDIA PAKISTAN
Primary schools(2007) 6,88,000 1,56,592
Secondary schools 1,10,000 3,20,611
Central universities 42 NA
State universities 274 128
Deemed universities 100 NA
Expenses on education 4.1 % of GDP 2.8 % of GDP(2009) -- World Bank
Technical and vocational institutes 3125 NA
*NA: Not Available
Institutes of higher learning in India have received much impetus, whereas schooling is yet to be recognized as crucial to inclusive and balanced growth.
The Pakistan government is actively into promoting technical and vocational training institutes as one of the avenues to tackle unemployment in the country.
Next page: Celestial forays
India Vs Pak: at birth, and now
Celestial forays
India's space programmes have been acknowledged as meant for peaceful purposes
SPACE PROGRAMMES INDIA PAKISTAN
No. of satellites launched 50 NA
Space mission (moon) Chandrayaan I NA
Major satellite system (for communication services) INSAT NA
Major satellite system (for natural resource management) IRS NA
Launch vehicles for IRS PSLV NA
Launch vehicles for INSAT GSLV NA
Indigenously developed satellite system INSAT BADR
The Indian Space Research Organization -ISRO-- is the nucleus of India's space programmes. It began working towards developing its own launch vehicles, necessitated by geopolitical and economic compulsions. The lunar spacecraft, Chandrayaan-1, entered the lunar orbit without a hitch, in 2008. Unmanned missions to Mars and to celestial bodies such as comets and asteroids nearer earth, are on the anvil. The IRS enjoys the status of the largest body of remote sensing satellites put to civilian use anywhere in the world.
Pakistan's Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission -SUPARCO -- launched Badr-A from the Xichang Launch Center, China, in 1990. BADR-B, an Earth Observation Satellite, followed suit in 2001, from the Zenit 2 rocket from Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan. The mission aims to launch the high-resolution Pakistan Remote Sensing Satellite (PRSSS).
Source: India Syndicate
India Vs Pak: at birth, and now
A shared historical legacy has led India and Pakistan more into strife than any cohesion.
India Vs Pak: at birth, and now(GOOD WISHES AND WELCOME TO HEENAJI AND HER COLLEAUGES IN OUR COUNTRY.I HOPE THEY WILL ENJOY OUR HOSPITALITY AS "AATHITHI DEVO BHAV IS MOOL-MANTRA OF OUR CULTURE"....I HOPE THEY'RE HERE TO FIND THE SOLUTIONS OF OUR YEARS OLD PROBLEMS WITHOUT ANY PREJUDICES.I HOPE SEPARATISTS WHO'RE GETTING UNDUE IMPORTANCE BECAUSE OF J AND K SHOULD SHOULD THINK ABOUT COUNTRY FIRST....AND MR OMAR ABDULLAH AND HIS GOVERNMENT MEMBERS NEED TO BE CONSULTED IN THIS SOLUTIONFINDING PROCESS SIMULTANEOUSLY.WE ALL HAVE HOPES THAT "THIS OPERATION FOR HEALING PENDING DISPUTES AND PROBLEMS AND FINDING SOLUTIONS FOR FUTURE WILL BE IN RIGHT TRACK AND SUCCESSFUL"....GOOD WISHES TO OUR COUNTRYMEN...BE POSITIVE,KEEP HIGH HOPES,MUST MEET 24/11 AND 13/7 ATTACKS VICTIMS AS WELL AND COMBAT TERRORISM FROM THE ROOTS/AND MUST PUNISH TERRORISTS ATTACKERS....."...VIBHA TAILANG
It is not merely a history of centuries that India and Pakistan share. Culture, language and geography also links them, although both countries view this shared heritage differently. If religion defined the national identity of Pakistan during partition, the same has continued as a national philosophy over the decades.
What is known as Indian civilization is as much a legacy of Pakistan, but it is only Mughal history that it acknowledges as its own. And it is this difference in perception that has damaged the psyche of the two nations.
The partition of the two countries, one of the bloodiest in human history, marked the migration and death of millions across the subcontinent. It is also a story of one of the most contrasting developments of two neighboring nations, both of whom began with little political experience at governance, empty coffers, and wounded societies.
Pakistan today is the hub of terrorism, a "failed state", while India is considered an emerging economic superpower. Historically, India was never a cohesive whole, so the concept of a nation was more geographical at birth. India had to carry religious minorities along, whereas Pakistan was created and built around an Islamic identity.
A look at the socio-economic scenario of India and Pakistan in 1947 and the situation now, reveals a chasm that is as much economic as it is political.
Next page: The growth graph of India and Pakistan on major fronts
India Vs Pak: at birth, and now
ECONOMY INDIA PAKISTAN
GDP(purchasing power parity) $4060 billion (2010 (est.) $464.9 billion (2010 est.)
GDP(real growth rate) 10.4 % (2010 est.) 4.8 % (2010 est.)
GDP -per capita (PPP) $3,500 (2010 est.) $2,500 (2010 est.)
Unemployment rate 10.8 % (2010 est.) 15 % (2010 est.)
Population below poverty line 25 % (2007 est. 2007) 24 % (FY05/06 est.)
Budget revenues $170.7 billion (2010 est.) $25.33 billion
Budget expenditures $268 billion (2010 est.) $36.24 billion (2010 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 11.7 % (2010 est.) 13.4 % (2010 est.)
India's booming economy contrasts with Pakistan's instability. India's economic growth rate has averaged over seven 7 per cent since 1997. The country is a major exporter of information technology services and software professionals. The Indian economy bounced back from the world financial crisis, thanks to its domestic demand.
The political unrest in Pakistan has led its economy to the brink of bankruptcy. Economic instability has in turn depreciated the Pakistani rupee. Much of Pakistan's export earnings is from the textile sector. Rising inflation, and poor investment in healthcare, education and the power sector, besides dependence on foreign aid are the major concerns.
Next page: Social indices
India Vs Pak: at birth, and now
India is expected to become the world's most populous country by 2025, with its population crossing 1.6 billion. It will also continue to be the youngest country -- the average Indian will be 29 years of age by2020. Pakistan will surpass Indonesia as the world's largest Muslim country by 2030.
POPULATION INDIA PAKISTAN
1947 361 million 76 million
2011 1.21 billion 187 million
Birth rate (2009) 2.62 3.17
Infant mortality rate (2009) 47.27 deaths/1,000 live births 63.26 deaths/1000 live births
Sex ratio (2009) at birth 1.12 male/female 1.05 male/female
Sex ratio (2009) at 15-64 years: 1.06 male/female 1.05 males/female
Adult female-male ratio 914:1000 925:1000
Fertility rate 2.68 (2010) 3.58 (2008)
Next page: Indo-Pak military
India Vs Pak: at birth, and now
Indo-Pak military: Arms race in the subcontinent
The defence history of India goes back millennia, as does its maritime history.
India has consistently refused to sign the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). It has however a no-first-use policy of nuclear weapons. India's 2008 International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) agreement makes it the only non-NPT nuclear weapons country that can do nuclear business with the rest of the world.
Pakistan is the only Muslim-majority country to possess nuclear weapons. A close non-NATO ally of the US, it finds a friend in China for its arms build-up and know-how. The Pakistan armed forces is the seventh largest in the world.
INDIA PAKISTAN
Military expenditure GDP 1.8 % 3.00 (2007)
Total defence budget 2011 Rs 1,64,415 crore Rs 325900 crores
Major ports 9 2
Main battle tanks 3000 1000
Artillery units 1000 2500
Fighter aircraft 500 300
Support aircraft 250 50 special mission aircraft
Naval fleet 173 11 combat ships
Aircraft carrier 1
Nuclear submarine 1 8 submarines
Nuclear weapons 100-120 100-11-
Available military power 556,075,946 75,807,598
Next page: Low literacy rates run parallel to poverty and ignorance
India Vs Pak: at birth, and now
Low literacy rates run parallel to poverty and ignorance
Family planning programmes have been unsuccessful in both countries due largely to illiteracy particularly among women
LITERACY INDIA PAKISTAN
Total literacy rate (in percentage) 74 %# 58 % *
Female 65.46 %# 45 % *
Male 82.14 % # 69 % *
# Indian Census 2011
* Pakistan Millenium Development Report 2010)
The literacy rate in India was just 12 per cent in 1947. Kerala has the highest literacy rate of 93 per cent. India has the largest illiterate population anywhere in the world.
Low literacy rates in Pakistan have had a negative impact on family planning. Coupled with the political unrest, it has retarded the country's socio-economic progress.
Next page: Lop-sided education systems
India Vs Pak: at birth, and now
Lop-sided education systems
Despite being heavily loaded against the girl child, higher education in India has thrown up women professionals and added substantially to the country's work force
EDUCATION INDIA PAKISTAN
Primary schools(2007) 6,88,000 1,56,592
Secondary schools 1,10,000 3,20,611
Central universities 42 NA
State universities 274 128
Deemed universities 100 NA
Expenses on education 4.1 % of GDP 2.8 % of GDP(2009) -- World Bank
Technical and vocational institutes 3125 NA
*NA: Not Available
Institutes of higher learning in India have received much impetus, whereas schooling is yet to be recognized as crucial to inclusive and balanced growth.
The Pakistan government is actively into promoting technical and vocational training institutes as one of the avenues to tackle unemployment in the country.
Next page: Celestial forays
India Vs Pak: at birth, and now
Celestial forays
India's space programmes have been acknowledged as meant for peaceful purposes
SPACE PROGRAMMES INDIA PAKISTAN
No. of satellites launched 50 NA
Space mission (moon) Chandrayaan I NA
Major satellite system (for communication services) INSAT NA
Major satellite system (for natural resource management) IRS NA
Launch vehicles for IRS PSLV NA
Launch vehicles for INSAT GSLV NA
Indigenously developed satellite system INSAT BADR
The Indian Space Research Organization -ISRO-- is the nucleus of India's space programmes. It began working towards developing its own launch vehicles, necessitated by geopolitical and economic compulsions. The lunar spacecraft, Chandrayaan-1, entered the lunar orbit without a hitch, in 2008. Unmanned missions to Mars and to celestial bodies such as comets and asteroids nearer earth, are on the anvil. The IRS enjoys the status of the largest body of remote sensing satellites put to civilian use anywhere in the world.
Pakistan's Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission -SUPARCO -- launched Badr-A from the Xichang Launch Center, China, in 1990. BADR-B, an Earth Observation Satellite, followed suit in 2001, from the Zenit 2 rocket from Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan. The mission aims to launch the high-resolution Pakistan Remote Sensing Satellite (PRSSS).
Source: India Syndicate
Saturday, July 23, 2011
Edge of the city by Aditi TailangCutting chai BPO workers and rickshaw-pullers alike work hard for their cuppa. New graffiti at the Modi Mills flyover
Edge of the city
by Aditi Tailang
Cutting chai BPO workers and rickshaw-pullers alike work hard for their cuppa. New graffiti at the Modi Mills flyover
by Aditi Tailang
Cutting chai BPO workers and rickshaw-pullers alike work hard for their cuppa. New graffiti at the Modi Mills flyover
The magic of black and white- Jul 15, 2011
The magic of black and white
THANE: Eminent photographer Chirodeep Chaudhuri's pictures are driven purely by his instinct and not by the rigid guidelines of the techniques of photography.
He is going to display his work in a slideshow organised by the Foto Circle Society on July 17 at Kala Bhavan in Thane. Chaudhari's multiple interests, creative vision and perfection in compositions and other photographic techniques assure to provide a visual treat to art lovers in the city.
"I'm a self made photographer," insists Chaudhuri. He doesn't have any family background in this field. A commerce graduate, Chaudhuri never used a camera till he completed college. "Since my childhood, I loved reading. I used to visit book stalls and street vendors in search of new books. One day, I came across a magazine named Life at a book stall in Fort, Mumbai. I was marveled by the quality of pictures in the magazine. This triggered my interest in photography. As there was no one to guide me, I decided to learn the art myself. In those days I used to spend most of my pocket money on the books related to photography," says Chaudhuri.
Initially, he used to experiment with simple point and shoot type cameras. He was so inspired by the art that he decided to make a career in photography. His started his career by working in an advertising firm. He used to save up the money he earned in order to buy a new camera.
"My first assignment as a photographer was with the Bombay Tribune. After gaining practical knowledge, I started working as a news photographer for Sunday Observer," says Chaudhuri. Chaudhuri interest in literature, poetry, anthropology, town planning, lifestyles and travel made him work with historian Sharada Dwivedi and architect Rahul Meharotra for their books Bombay: The city within and Fort walks.
Currently, Chaudhuri is working as a creative editor of Mumbai, Delhi and Bangalore editions of Timeout Magazine. "My native place is West Bengal. Since the last 12 years I have been visiting my native place near Baradwan regularly.
My ancestors used to conduct Durga pooja since the last 200 years. So, every year I go there during Durga pooja, take pictures and I try to catch the rural lifestyle and people of all age groups on my lenses. Soon I'm going to publish a book on this project. In fact in my slideshow in Thane I'm going to showcase excerpts of this project," says Chaudhuri.
"Photography has provided me soulful pleasure. It provided me the opportunity to meet outstanding people in all walks of life. I was also able to cover many international events like India winning the World Cup. Taking pictures of crooks and criminals and of good and bad incidents has become a part and parcel of my life. No other career would have given me such fulfilling life," he says. Chirodeep Chaudhuri's slideshow is open to all on July 17 at 5.30 pm. at Thane Kala Bhavan.
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