When I first saw a cover by Arundhati Roy, I dreaded to read it...I thought it would expose me to something which would deeply trouble my conscience. After dithering for five days, I did venture on The Road to Harsud (July 26). By the end of it, the article had successfully impregnated me with the consciousness of Harsud. Once again, Ms Roy has proved that when it comes to eloquence, courage and standing up for the oppressed, very few can put the power of prose to better service. And Outlook, by beaming powerful voices like her, is challenging readers like me—cocooned in their good life, oblivious to the structural damage that goes by the name of ‘development’ and ‘economic reform’.
Vijay Kumar, London
What a great sob story from Arundhati Roy. She laments, sheds crocodile tears and fills in page after page with data that is of little or no value to the water- and power-starved people of India. I strongly think that if the dam is going to benefit a majority of the people, then go ahead and sink the village. Damn the opportunist politics, the self-righteous garbage and writerly ego. Let the Roys of this world rave and rant, they have nothing to lose but their breath.
Raj Purohit, Toronto
Even as the people of Tamil Nadu grieve over the Kumbakonam fire tragedy, Arundhati Roy’s piece on Harsud comes as another heartburn. Her write-up overtook the lyricist Vairamuthu’s poignant account of the people displaced by the Vaigai dam in 1958 in his Sahitya Akademi-winning book, Kallikattu Ithikasam (The Epic of Kallikkadu). And her last two lines provoked a rueful smile.
V. Pandy, Tuticorin
I need to confess. I hold strong prejudices against Ms Roy and people of her ilk. They’ve consistently fought the wrong battles while trying to paint capitalism and the mncs as totally evil. They have constantly tilted at the windmills and Vinod Mehta and Outlook have played curious Sancho Panzas in this fight. They’ve cried wolf so many times that now even when my mind says that this one time she’s talking sense, I find it hard to empathise with her. But at the very least I’d say this. She could easily have confined herself to the social circles of Delhi or Mumbai, easily have become a fixture on the talk circuits of the world, heck, she could’ve written another God of Small Things. But she chose to be a rabble-rouser and if history has taught us anything, it’s that capitalism needs its rabble-rousers, its gadflies, its union leaders, its whistle-blowers, its Arundhati Roys, because, if left unchecked, corporations can become as evil as the East India Companies, Union Carbides and Enrons of the world.
Vikas Chowdhury, Madison, US
Roy could use her talent to help her country in other ways than always playing spoilsport. She’s a writer, and a passionate busybody. Her understanding of development projects is smaller than a dehydrated peanut. I couldn’t go beyond the first page.
Lalit Bagai, Denmark
Outlook’s obsession with the jehadi of the third (intellectual) kind is well-known. Yet again Ms Roy takes nine pages to spew venom against the Narmada dam—pretending she knows better than all the planners and economists and is more judicious than the highest court of the land where the nba lost its case. Development—anywhere and everywhere—is never free of cost, financial or human. Recently Tehri town, the ancient capital city of Tehri Garhwal and much older than Harsud, was taken over by the waters of the Bhagirathi. What then makes Harsud your cover at a stage that is irreversible?
M.C. Joshi, Lucknow
Every time Arundhati Roy writes, there’s an uproar saying she understands little of development. Well, nor do I. But if throwing me out to nowhere is development, then who wants to understand it? The evacuation business is all right as long as it stops at the neighbour’s, right? It almost makes a commie out of me!
Radhakrishnan K.R., Tiruvalla
The question is not whether people get relief under a capitalist or communist system. If it’s a bunch of bureaucrats who decide what they must get and it’s a bunch of brokers who dole out that relief and it’s the guys in the supply chain who decide to keep that compensation for themselves, then you cannot blame any economic system. Perhaps the right way is a social audit by the government and the ngos, followed by a negotiation on what and how people should have got compensated as well as transparent delivery of that relief by blocking leakages in the supply chain. Rather than argue about macro issues, a simple micro-level change in the process would be advisable. That’s my 90 paise.
Dharmayudh Singh, Philadelphia, US
Arundhati Roy’s article was both heart-wrenching and frustrating. We all know that big dams are less social causes, more money games. Millions of people are displaced and thousands of acres of precious forest wealth inundated. We treat our environment so casually that we get a situation where some parts of India reel under floods while others stare at a drought. All because powerful politicians, businessmen and the bureaucracy exploit our natural resources in the name of "larger interests" and we half-heartedly commiserate and then go on with our lives. Until the water is above our noses. It’s only thanks to relentless activists like Medha Patkar and writers like Arundhati that such issues are kept alive and hopefully will some day turn into mass movements.
Amrit Hallan, New Delhi
Medha Patkar has been fighting the Narmada cause for the past 20 years. Arundhati Roy is only a recent entrant. Why then do we hear more from her than from Medha on Sardar Sarovar?
Vishwanath Rao, Bangalore
I agree with Ms Roy when she says that people who are displaced should be taken care of. But I do not agree with her derogatory, depressing, misplaced, misleading, harmful and anti-social comments about progress... to which dams are integral.
Anant Vijay Joshi, Rahway, US
Dear Ms Roy, you waste your breath. I remain, sincerely, unmoved. I can’t believe you really give a damn about the people who will be displaced by the dam. You just like the sound of your own voice, the sight of your own writing. You are no different from the politician; he seeks power, you’re looking for cheap publicity. Had it not been for Outlook, you’d have been just another insignificant socialist who’s had her two minutes of fame. You have already discounted the executive, the legislature and the judiciary. I wonder if there’s any aspect of Indian governance that you can appreciate.
Rajarshi Purwar, Phoenix, US
I feel that Arundhati is wrong in crinkling her nose at the swear word Kallu Driver used. For a change, it was very appropriate—if you consider India as your motherland and what those in power are doing to her. Of course, Arundhati as a post-modernist, or whatever beast she may be, may still crank her nose at notions of motherhood and nation. As for the dam issue, along with the nuclear power disaster waiting to explode, it’s one of the few things the Congress, the bjp and the Left, all approve of silently.
S. Srinivasan, Baroda
It ‘s already begun—the adverse effects of the grand river-linking project was well evoked by Arundhati Roy even though most probably it will be an exercise in vain. But I also register my exception to her language. You can get a point across without resorting to swear words and who better to know that than Ms Roy?
Chaitanya Varma, Hyderabad
An evocative, heart-rending essay on human suffering and greed, on man’s inhumaity towards man and the total apathy of governments. As for seeking justice from the courts, Roy says it all. It took 20 long years for the victims of the Bhopal gas tragedy to get a pittance of a compensation. Speedy justice, like Parliament and assembly sets, is reserved only for the rich.
D.V. Madhava Rao, Chennai
Since Independence, the politician under the pretext of various plans, projects and schemes has swallowed the Indian riches and deposited it in Swiss banks. Like Harsud, Bajalkot town in Karnataka with a population of two lakh was partly submerged under the Almatti Dam project, its people subjected to the same harassments as being visited upon Harsud. That project began with an estimated cost of Rs 460 crore, it has already surpassed Rs 5,000 crore and is still incomplete. The ministers, mlas, MPs and government staff have followed 90 per cent of the project funds. That too under the efficient Project Authority Shri Jamadar Saheb.
V.S. Lingaraj, on e-mail
If Arundhati Roy can get through without running water even for a day, I would support her views.
Abhilash Thadhani, on e-mail
On the basis of riparian law, Punjab as a lower riparian state has the full right to use and distribute water according to its needs and priorities (The Weight of Water, July 26). Water is a state subject. It is a natural resource and should be treated as a mineral and commodity. If Punjab has excess water after its own use, then it may give it to other states.
Sunil Haripur, Vancouver, Canada
Mariana Baabar’s interview with Pak PM-in-waiting Shaukat Aziz (July 26) evoked deja vu about Pakistan and its susceptibility to external influences. The Saudi tinkering with the politics in Pakistan and in Afghanistan has been documented well by journalists like Rashid Ahmed. We’ve also seen the extent of Saudi influence on Pakistan’s military that made Musharraf depose Nawaz Sharif. Aziz’s appointment has to be seen in this light too. A former resident of Saudi Arabia, he’s also an employee of Citibank where Saudi prince Alwaleed bin Talal Alsaud has put in a huge $10 billion investment. It does not take a Mensa notable to figure out that the strings stretch back to Riyadh from Islamabad. But it should not end in as big a mess as Afghanistan given that Pakistan has nuclear weapons and is bigger than Afghanistan.
Mehul Kamdar, Wisconsin, US
Well, in case you don’t know Mr Ambassador, there was a Chilean called Pablo Neruda and he was a good enough poet to have won the Nobel. But he never wrote advertisements for governments in magazines which have their space ready for sale (Chile: The Hot News, July 26). Chileans are a very friendly people and telling us more about them would have helped.
Rohit C.J., Kochi
Apropos Write, Erase (July 26), even during the colonial rule, India opted for liberal education. It aims at arousing curiosity among young minds, develops their rational faculties. Modern pedagogy now stresses inculcation of humane values such as fellow feeling, tolerance, compassion and justice alongside. Unfortunately, in its six-year-rule, the bjp turned the whole structure of liberal education upside down. Education, under its dispensation, became a vehicle of ideological indoctrination. Rewriting history, for the bjp, was the best way of conditioning young minds about "historical wrongs" which it felt ought to be corrected. But the writing of history texts should be left to autonomous institutions like the universities, free from state interference. This will stop the ritual rewriting of history every time there’s a change of government.
K.K. Joshi, Lucknow
It was nice to read about the legendary conservationist ‘Billy’ Arjan Singh doing what he so greatly loves, and is loved for (A Tiger in Winter, Juy 26). We owe a great deal to devoted ‘generalists’ like him, who continue to champion the cause of our forests and wildlife selflessly. It’s interesting that while politicians are standing up for the "right" of encroachers in national parks to stay on, a member of the much-maligned Indian royalty stands up for a noble cause. For all the accounts of maharajas and their shikar expeditions, their conduct in the field has been far better than the slime that are our politicians.
Vikram Singh Chauhan, Jabalpur
This refers to an item in Bibliofile (July 26) which says that Amitav Ghosh’s first novel, The Circle of Reason, was first published by Ravi Dayal in 1986. It was actually Roli Books; our publisher Pramod Kapoor passed on the right to the novel after Ravi Dayal published his second novel Shadow Lines, since Roli at that time had decided not to publish fiction (which it’s since resumed). Also, the split between Ghosh’s hardback and paperback rights happened with his previous book, The Glass Palace, not his latest.
Renuka Chatterjee, Managing Editor, Roli Books
At a time when counterfeit notes are surfacing all over the country, I was surprised to see Outlook endorsing the use of a bookmark modelled exactly like a Rs 500 note, as part of a promotion by the Kotak Mahindra Bank. It surely generated a lot of interest but perhaps also fuelled ideas among the unscrupulous.
Odette Katrak, Bangalore
I sincerely disagree with the praise Swapan Dasgupta showers on former cec J.M. Lyngdoh in the review of his memoir (Books, July 26). To me Lyngdoh was one of the most irresponsible persons to ever sit on one of the most prestigious constitutional posts. It was just an unholy audacity that made him treat politicians like ‘parasites’. Recently, he advocated Article 370 and a separate constitution for Kashmir. It’s unfair if T.N. Seshan, who commanded respect from all quarters, is compared to publicity-hungry Lyngdoh.
Rajeev Mehta, Bath SPA, UK
It was indeed shocking to learn that Shiv Khera, a person who has (allegedly) been inspiring so many, actually has feet of clay and has been blatantly plagiarising without so much as a thank you (You Can Steal and Win, July 26). No wonder then that this self-proclaimed motivational speaker could motivate no one to vote for him in the past elections.
Surabhi Agarwal, New Delhi
When I met Shiv Khera during an autograph session in Bhopal for his book You Can Win, little did I know that behind the pleasant facade was a plagiarist. And who knows how many such Amrit Lals exist.
Prateek Badwelkar, Bhopal
Great that Outlook took on Shiv Khera despite his celebrity status. Hope this stirs up enough public opinion against people who openly copy from other less well-known but talented writers. A sum of Rs 25 lakh is a measly sum compared to the millions Kheras must have earned. Is donating to charity the only punishment one gets in our country for openly and defiantly copying another writer’s work?
Vandana M., Delhi
People like Khera are a disgrace to India. They should be exposed and no out-of-court settlements should be reached with them.
M.S. Sodhi, Singapore
This incident proves the adage that one must count the cutlery after guests like Khera leave.
Col S.K. Jain, on e-mail
Your article on Shiv Khera didn’t come as a surprise. He has been doing this for a long time. Surprising was his comment "...cannot have a copyright...unless you patent them as your trademark..." The gentleman needs an immediate crash course in intellectual property rights before blurting out such inanities. Copyright, Patent and Trademark are all independent statutory protections.
Prashant Mishra, Bhopal
Winners, according to Khera, need not innovate, they can just pinch ideas from what distinguished people before them have said and done, cut-paste it, then flip it horizontally and pass it off as individual inspiration.
Tanu K. Kapoor, New Delhi
I had the chance to listen to Khera in Bhopal once. We got in after much jostling and pushing to hear the wise man. I came back feeling cheated. He pranced on the stage all evening, repeating one-liners he had memorised to mesmerise people. He turned out to be nothing more than a conman.
Manju Dhall, on e-mail
You find Kheras in every walk of life. Marketing oneself has become all too common. Personal brand-building is the done thing and there are even specialist consultants. The bigger the splash, more suspicious you ought to be about a person.
Neelima Thomas, on e-mail
