Round-up of regional news July 2009
Bangladesh/Nepal
Monopolistic diplomacy
Bangladesh may be Nepal’s second-largest trading partner in Southasia (after India), but who would believe that the total amount of their trade only comes to a measly USD 65,000 per year? There is undoubtedly much room for improvement here, and that is exactly what officials from the two countries met to discuss recently in Dhaka. While the meeting ended in agreement that a bilateral preferential trading agreement and better transport links are key to an increase in trade, serious political barriers seem to be making both upgrades nearly impossible at present.
The key barrier to greater trade is the high import tax levied by both sides. As a result, Kathmandu has asked for duty-free trade on a list of 140 agricultural items, which currently form the bulk of the country’s exports to Bangladesh. But Nepali officials say they cannot provide their Bangladeshi counterparts with similar concessions when it comes to the latter’s most significant exports, such as cement and clothes. The crux of the problem? Nepal has a pre-existing agreement with India that stipulates that it cannot provide a third party with greater facilities than those it provides to New Delhi. And as there is no Nepal-India duty-free regime to date, the former is now unable to sign one with Bangladesh.
Bangladesh and Nepal, of course, do not share a border. Instead, all goods going to and fro between the two must pass through the ‘chicken’s neck’ that is India’s only connector to its volatile northeastern states. Though there is a trilateral agreement allowing Bangladesh and Nepal to traverse the about 50 km strip between the border towns of Banglabandh and Kakarbhitta, problems have constantly arisen due to inadequate communication between the parties on the ground, including a lack of proper identification cards to ensure access.
The talks in Dhaka achieved little progress. As seems to happen so often, the only real agreement was that there is a further need for talks, which are now tentatively slated for October. Oh yes, also agreed was the need for trilateral talks, with India included.
Region
Not neighbourly
An attempt by the US Congress to grant 14 so-called least-developed countries (LDCs) duty-free access for a number of products has been revived after failing in 2005. Included on the list are many of the Southasian brethren – Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, the Maldives, Sri Lanka and Nepal. As such, one would assume that the US’s move would quicken the hearts of many in the region; instead, it seems to be creating more friction.
Textiles and garments exports are at the root of the problem. Having sent clothes worth more than USD 3 billion to the US last year, Bangladesh, the largest exporter in the group, is in competition with countries already established in the market, such as India. Surprisingly though, the most vocal opposition in the region to Bangladesh’s entry is coming from Pakistan, which wants either to be a part of the concession list or to halt Bangladesh’s inclusion till the next Doha round of world trade talks. In this, Islamabad has the support of a number of African countries – who are similarly ‘disadvantaged’ not to be on the LDC list, and are similarly concerned about their exports should Dhaka gain special status.
The Dhaka government is now preparing to lobby for its cause. Part of its strategy is to negotiate with the African countries, which export large quantities of cotton to Bangladesh. This, of course, will not change Islamabad’s way of thinking. What is curious is that Pakistan was not included in the list in the first place, as American lawmakers are arguing that the concessions will help
these countries counter ‘religious extremism’.
Sri Lanka
War booty
With the defeat of the LTTE, the parallel infrastructure set up by the Tamil Tigers in the north and east of Sri Lanka has also come crashing down. This includes the 10 so-called Eelam Bank branches that had been created in former Tigers-controlled areas. Anticipating defeat, those with access to the rebel bank-vaults are believed to have broken into the lockers.
That, at least, is the only explanation for what the Colombo government claims to have found in one instance: a former bank manager from Kilinochchi on the run with LKR 13 million (USD 113,000) in his bags. Officials have subsequently announced plans to return the money to their respective depositors. To fill the void created by the collapse of Eelam Bank, the government has set up mobile branches of the state bank for locals who are displaced. These services are much needed, says the government, citing the case of one individual who has already deposited some LKR 40 million.
As necessary as banking facilities undoubtedly are to a population struggling to get back on its feet, the 280,000 displaced currently living in over 40 camps on the island undoubtedly have more-pressing needs. One of these is assistance in returning to and rebuilding their homes – a process that, according to the UN, Colombo is not anxious to facilitate. The proof: Manik Farm in Vavuniya, a sprawling area with hundreds of camps, is rapidly being built from a temporary spread of tents into what appears to be a permanent settlement with concrete homes and schools. Banks are also in the planning, as are ATM machines.
Nepal/India
Whose land?
With an open India-Nepal border stretching across some 1800 km, tussles between the two – whether through the involvement of governments or citizen groups – over frontier territory and border pillars is hardly uncommon. But things clearly got out of hand recently, with complaints of harassment and worse by Indian border security forces and what was said to be displacement of people in the border areas of Dang district in Nepal.
Allegedly, border guards with India’s Seema Surakshya Bal (SSB) forced some 6000 families from 22 border villages out of their homes in early June, burning properties and assaulting women. Following the incident, 1800 families are now said to be living in makeshift tents in a nearby community forest. There are also allegations that the SSB moved border markers 35 metres inside Nepali territory.
With India’s role in Nepal always a highly sensitive issue, the alleged encroachment has inevitably been politicised – perhaps getting in the way of the truth of what actually took place. For instance, there is a huge discrepancy between the initial reports and the numbers eventually released by the Nepali government. According to the Home Ministry in Kathmandu, primary data indicates that only 500-600 Nepalis were displaced, and does not indicate any involvement by the SSB. Kathmandu officials are now waiting for detailed reports from district officials before taking any action, and the latter are restricted in making a report that may go against the received wisdom. Some suggest that the sudden flurry of news on border pillars and displacements could be a consequence of the Maoists’ need to show an anti-India flair once having left government last May.
In an additional attempt to establish the truth, the Constituent Assembly in Kathmandu has dispatched its own fact-finding mission to the disputed areas. Representatives from 18 political parties as well as legal experts, civil-society activists and journalists were part of the group, which at press time had yet to present its final report. Meanwhile, throughout the furore to the north, South Block has quietly maintained that the charges of encroachment and harassment were absolutely false. However, the two sides are now working to complete a new boundary map of which 98 percent is said to be agreed upon. When there will be a consensus on the remaining two percent is anybody’s guess.
Sri Lanka/Burma
Bold step
President Mahinda Rajapakse brought his newly adopted pronounced swagger on a state visit recently, his first following the defeat of the LTTE. His port of call? Burma. In the jungle capital of Naypyidaw, both sides waxed eloquent and congenial about the bond of shared state religion (Theravada Buddhism), signed an agreement regarding diplomats (they no longer require visas), and drew up a memorandum of understanding (the two states will be cooperating, somehow, on tourism).
While the official occasion was the marking of the 60th anniversary of diplomatic ties between the two countries, there is much more to the story. Cooperation between the two on the trade front has been minimal to date. Currently, all physical transactions are conducted through Singapore, though there is an agreement to set up direct flights as well as sea routes. Among the Southasian states, India is the only other country attempting to make economic headway in Burma.
As Sri Lanka recovers from its three-decade-long civil war and gets increasingly close to China – also Burma’s greatest benefactor – one can understand why it is keen to jump into the game. This point of view was reinforced by Finance Minister Rohitha Bogollagama, who accompanied President Rajapakse and spoke with business leaders in no uncertain terms about Colombo’s interest in working with Burma.
There is also perhaps a more cynical reading of motives to make sense of this first post-war visit, as well. In many countries across the world, President Rajapakse would be bound to draw public protests, perhaps even censure from certain governments, for the excesses during the fighting and the subsequent refusal to allow in independent observers. But in Burma, of course, the presence of General Than Shwe’s iron fist was enough to ensure that not even a squeak of protest would be heard. Indeed, the general is known to be a fan of the president’s “bold steps” in dealing with his insurgency.
India/Bangladesh
Declining empire?
Gang uberlord Dawood Ibrahim and the activities of his D-Company operations received a blow lately, with a number of his men being taken into custody. Termed a ‘global terrorist’ by the US (and listed as number four on Forbes list of the world’s ‘most dreaded’ criminals, in 2008), Dawood is accused of masterminding the 1993 serial blasts in Bombay, injuring a thousand people and killing at least 250. Ibrahim is also said to maintain close links with al-Qaeda, and is accused of funding the Pakistan-based Laskhar-e-Taiba and other extremist outfits. Such a wanted man having managed to evade arrest for so long is a wonder.
Others around him are falling, however. Recently, four of his senior aides – Abdur Rauf Merchant, Rashid Malbari, Zahid Shaikh and Kamal Miya – were arrested. More importantly, the captured are said to have given authorities information about the sprawling Ibrahim empire. Merchant, who was arrested in Bangladesh, told interrogators that Ibrahim works closely with the Pakistani intelligence and the extremist Harkat-ul-Jihad-al Islami (HuJI). Shaikh and Miya, meanwhile, have shed light on the group’s extensive network in Bangladesh. Malbari in particular, after his arrest in Colombo, has been giving out significant information that has since led to the arrest of more members of the group.
Following Merchant’s information, Dhaka has learned that at least 50 of Ibrahim’s men are regular visitors to Bangladesh, where they are politically well connected. Indeed, a list naming the men and their addresses was found during a raid, and security forces are now visiting each of the locations. The end result of all this activity, say security analysts, is a significant lessening of the D-Company’s criminal activities on the India-Bangladesh frontier. Moreover, a tip about the group’s global activities has meant that a number of Ibrahim’s men were arrested in Colombo – Malabari among them – and are soon to be moved to India for questioning.
While all this certainly counts as progress, Dawood’s network remains extremely well organised and wealthy, and extends far beyond India. And with the likelihood of capturing Ibrahim – or even his deputy, Chota Shakeel – still very slim at best, the excitement evident in the media is undoubtedly premature.
Tibet
Planting time
Tibet’s natural geography is such that the plateau has never been the most fertile of places, and current numbers show that fully 18 percent of its territory can be considered desert. But a recent report from China’s Forestry Bureau reveals that this percentage is increasingly rapidly, largely due to human activities including mining, overgrazing and deforestation. According to the document, approximately 400 sq km – of the 1.2 million sq km that makes up the plateau – is being ‘desertified’ every year.
Grim as these numbers are, Chinese authorities seem confident that they can manage the problem. The official stance is that the government can ensure that no more land turns into desert by 2010 (a mere five months away), and can make half of the lands already lost productive by 2020. These ambitious goals are to be achieved by undertaking large-scale programmes to plant forests, and by closing existing grasslands to cattle grazing.
Unrealistic as all of this may sound, China has indeed been pumping a great deal of money into Tibet in the hopes of seeing quick improvements. For instance, in February, Beijing formally approved the Plan for Protection and Establishment of Ecological Safety Grid in Tibet. In this, it pledged to spend more than USD 2 billion on 10 environment-related projects in Tibet over the next five years. But neither dollars nor yuan can necessarily return fertility to a parched land.
Afghanistan
Wild list
If recent activities are anything to go by, Afghanistan seems eager to revitalise an environment ravaged by over three decades of war. In June, the Kabul government published the country’s first list of protected wildlife, meaning that the 31 species – 20 mammals, seven birds and four plants – on the list can no longer be hunted or harvested. The move is certainly timely, with a presidential decree forbidding hunting having just expired, thus leaving vulnerable species even more at risk.
The list, which includes leopards, wolves and brown bears, was put together by the National Environment Protection Agency (NEPA). Though a young institution, established only in 2005, NEPA appears to be taking its job seriously. The list, which officials hope to expand to include 70 species by the end of the year, is the agency’s second step towards protecting the country’s animals and landscape.
The first was declaring the Band-e-Amir area and its six lakes a provisional national park, the first ever in Afghanistan. Located in the same province as the now-destroyed Buddha statues of Bamiyan, the park is in one of Afghanistan’s most popular tourist sites. Unfortunately, the area is said to be fragile, with lakes behind natural levees. Decades of mining and neglect are also said to have created environmental chaos. That most of the wildlife in the area has already been killed off only serves to highlight the importance of the new moves to protect those that remain, as also part of the new protected list.
Pakistan/India
No man’s station
The rebuilding of an old railway station in Pakistan would not usually be of great interest to India. But New Delhi claims to be greatly concerned by its neighbour’s plans to re-construct what it terms an “illegal station” near the border district of Barmer, in Rajasthan. The station, also called the Zero-Point, is located about 150 metres away from the no-man’s land between the two countries, and lies on the train route between the Rajasthani town of Munabao and the Sindhi town of Khokhrapar.
Until 2006, when service was resumed, trains had not plied along this historic route for over 30 years. In fact, the station in question was built at that time and, as today, created tension. Now, three years later, the station has resurfaced as an issue, with Islamabad building another structure, one likely to be permanent. New Delhi has announced that it will do everything in its power to resist the move, the first step being talks at various levels.
There is, however, more to the story of India’s anger over the project: Pakistan Railways has hired a Chinese company to do the construction. Close Islamabad-Beijing ties are, of course, old news. But at a time when India is already concerned about China’s growing involvement in Sri Lanka, Nepal and Bangladesh, all in its sphere of influence, perhaps hearts are beating just a bit faster than normal in South Block over what is, in the end, just a railway station.
Sri Lanka
Straw hopes
If what the Postgraduate Institute of Agriculture (PIGA) at the University of Peradeniya in Sri Lanka is promising actually comes true, Colombo may be a bit less dependent on the Gulf sheikhs in the years to come. The PIGA scientists have successfully used straw to produce butanol, a fuel similar to petrol, and say that only 25 percent of the country’s total straw production would be required to produce the total supply of butanol needed by the island for all of its transportation needs.
As the newly developed process does not use chemicals, pollution would be non-existent. The waste material generated in the process, meanwhile, would in turn be used either as animal feed or compost. Now, there are plans to set up butanol factories in several places across the country, largely in rice-producing areas. Such plants would also generate jobs for the country’s youth, advocates say.
Other countries have used straw and other crops to produce butanol in the past. Indeed, research shows that a small percentage of butanol can be blended into petrol and used in engines without modifications. At the same time, the commercial use of butanol has not become widespread, largely due to the lack of adequate research on its efficiency.
As such, it is yet unknown what obstacles will crop up in the attempt to undertake large-scale production. But the University of Peradeniya now appears set to find out.
The Maldives
Religious environment
Considering its precarious geographical position, the Maldives has long been at the forefront of advocacy over the impending doom of global climate change, both at home and across the world. Now, Male appears to have found a novel way of spreading the environmental word: getting the Ministry of Islamic Affairs involved, thus forging a relationship between Islam and the environment.
Sheikh Mohamed Shaheem Ali Saeed, the minister of Islamic affairs, says his department now intends to launch several programmes to promote environmental issues in an Islamic context. These will include television and radio discussions, public speeches, the distribution of leaflets and the publication of books on the subject. And on 5 June, World Environment Day, the ministry proved that it means business, with an imam from the ministry giving a sermon on climate change and the environment, and calling upon devotees to protect and preserve all living organisms.
The sermon was very much an example of governmental cooperation across departments, with the Environment Ministry also sending along notes on the hard data behind anxieties over climate change. And Sheikh Mohamed is eager to continue this cooperation, saying that although people are not aware of the link between Islam and the environment, the ministry is now working on identifying what the Quran and the Hadiths have to say on the subject.
Region
Kabul twinkling
War and conflict notwithstanding, life has recently become a bit easier for at least some citizens of Kabul. Based on an agreement made between the Afghan government and neighbouring Uzbekistan, a number of Kabul’s districts now have 20 hours of electricity every day – a massive improvement from the five spotty hours they were receiving earlier. Kabul now gets 150 MW of electricity per year, half of what the city needs, through a recently completed transmission line stretching over 400 km from Uzbekistan. Another line along the same route is currently in the works, as are others from Tajikistan and Turkmenistan.
These lines are particularly needed, considering that only seven percent of the country has electricity access at all, with most of the provincial population living in darkness once the sun sets. This is a dismal statistic for a country that is potentially rich in water resources, and already has a number of (marginally functional) hydropower plants. While several of these have been affected by drought, problems have also cropped up related to politics and corruption.
Back in Kabul, the general sentiment is one of joy at having electricity, combined with a dose of scepticism as to how long the lights will actually stay on. Such concern is justified considering how dependent the country is on its neighbours, who can naturally be assumed to cut the lines to Afghanistan during tough times at home. Moreover, with the electricity already quite expensive, there is always the fear of the supplier country hiking up the price even farther, thus making it beyond the reach of most.
For the moment, at least, Kabul is lit up at night. Its residents can now use their television sets to sit at home and watch Indian serials.
Monopolistic diplomacy
 |
| All illustrations by Bilash Rai |
The key barrier to greater trade is the high import tax levied by both sides. As a result, Kathmandu has asked for duty-free trade on a list of 140 agricultural items, which currently form the bulk of the country’s exports to Bangladesh. But Nepali officials say they cannot provide their Bangladeshi counterparts with similar concessions when it comes to the latter’s most significant exports, such as cement and clothes. The crux of the problem? Nepal has a pre-existing agreement with India that stipulates that it cannot provide a third party with greater facilities than those it provides to New Delhi. And as there is no Nepal-India duty-free regime to date, the former is now unable to sign one with Bangladesh.
Bangladesh and Nepal, of course, do not share a border. Instead, all goods going to and fro between the two must pass through the ‘chicken’s neck’ that is India’s only connector to its volatile northeastern states. Though there is a trilateral agreement allowing Bangladesh and Nepal to traverse the about 50 km strip between the border towns of Banglabandh and Kakarbhitta, problems have constantly arisen due to inadequate communication between the parties on the ground, including a lack of proper identification cards to ensure access.
The talks in Dhaka achieved little progress. As seems to happen so often, the only real agreement was that there is a further need for talks, which are now tentatively slated for October. Oh yes, also agreed was the need for trilateral talks, with India included.
Region
Not neighbourly
 |
Textiles and garments exports are at the root of the problem. Having sent clothes worth more than USD 3 billion to the US last year, Bangladesh, the largest exporter in the group, is in competition with countries already established in the market, such as India. Surprisingly though, the most vocal opposition in the region to Bangladesh’s entry is coming from Pakistan, which wants either to be a part of the concession list or to halt Bangladesh’s inclusion till the next Doha round of world trade talks. In this, Islamabad has the support of a number of African countries – who are similarly ‘disadvantaged’ not to be on the LDC list, and are similarly concerned about their exports should Dhaka gain special status.
The Dhaka government is now preparing to lobby for its cause. Part of its strategy is to negotiate with the African countries, which export large quantities of cotton to Bangladesh. This, of course, will not change Islamabad’s way of thinking. What is curious is that Pakistan was not included in the list in the first place, as American lawmakers are arguing that the concessions will help
these countries counter ‘religious extremism’.
Sri Lanka
War booty
 |
That, at least, is the only explanation for what the Colombo government claims to have found in one instance: a former bank manager from Kilinochchi on the run with LKR 13 million (USD 113,000) in his bags. Officials have subsequently announced plans to return the money to their respective depositors. To fill the void created by the collapse of Eelam Bank, the government has set up mobile branches of the state bank for locals who are displaced. These services are much needed, says the government, citing the case of one individual who has already deposited some LKR 40 million.
As necessary as banking facilities undoubtedly are to a population struggling to get back on its feet, the 280,000 displaced currently living in over 40 camps on the island undoubtedly have more-pressing needs. One of these is assistance in returning to and rebuilding their homes – a process that, according to the UN, Colombo is not anxious to facilitate. The proof: Manik Farm in Vavuniya, a sprawling area with hundreds of camps, is rapidly being built from a temporary spread of tents into what appears to be a permanent settlement with concrete homes and schools. Banks are also in the planning, as are ATM machines.
Nepal/India
Whose land?
 |
Allegedly, border guards with India’s Seema Surakshya Bal (SSB) forced some 6000 families from 22 border villages out of their homes in early June, burning properties and assaulting women. Following the incident, 1800 families are now said to be living in makeshift tents in a nearby community forest. There are also allegations that the SSB moved border markers 35 metres inside Nepali territory.
With India’s role in Nepal always a highly sensitive issue, the alleged encroachment has inevitably been politicised – perhaps getting in the way of the truth of what actually took place. For instance, there is a huge discrepancy between the initial reports and the numbers eventually released by the Nepali government. According to the Home Ministry in Kathmandu, primary data indicates that only 500-600 Nepalis were displaced, and does not indicate any involvement by the SSB. Kathmandu officials are now waiting for detailed reports from district officials before taking any action, and the latter are restricted in making a report that may go against the received wisdom. Some suggest that the sudden flurry of news on border pillars and displacements could be a consequence of the Maoists’ need to show an anti-India flair once having left government last May.
In an additional attempt to establish the truth, the Constituent Assembly in Kathmandu has dispatched its own fact-finding mission to the disputed areas. Representatives from 18 political parties as well as legal experts, civil-society activists and journalists were part of the group, which at press time had yet to present its final report. Meanwhile, throughout the furore to the north, South Block has quietly maintained that the charges of encroachment and harassment were absolutely false. However, the two sides are now working to complete a new boundary map of which 98 percent is said to be agreed upon. When there will be a consensus on the remaining two percent is anybody’s guess.
Sri Lanka/Burma
Bold step
 |
While the official occasion was the marking of the 60th anniversary of diplomatic ties between the two countries, there is much more to the story. Cooperation between the two on the trade front has been minimal to date. Currently, all physical transactions are conducted through Singapore, though there is an agreement to set up direct flights as well as sea routes. Among the Southasian states, India is the only other country attempting to make economic headway in Burma.
As Sri Lanka recovers from its three-decade-long civil war and gets increasingly close to China – also Burma’s greatest benefactor – one can understand why it is keen to jump into the game. This point of view was reinforced by Finance Minister Rohitha Bogollagama, who accompanied President Rajapakse and spoke with business leaders in no uncertain terms about Colombo’s interest in working with Burma.
There is also perhaps a more cynical reading of motives to make sense of this first post-war visit, as well. In many countries across the world, President Rajapakse would be bound to draw public protests, perhaps even censure from certain governments, for the excesses during the fighting and the subsequent refusal to allow in independent observers. But in Burma, of course, the presence of General Than Shwe’s iron fist was enough to ensure that not even a squeak of protest would be heard. Indeed, the general is known to be a fan of the president’s “bold steps” in dealing with his insurgency.
India/Bangladesh
Declining empire?
 |
Others around him are falling, however. Recently, four of his senior aides – Abdur Rauf Merchant, Rashid Malbari, Zahid Shaikh and Kamal Miya – were arrested. More importantly, the captured are said to have given authorities information about the sprawling Ibrahim empire. Merchant, who was arrested in Bangladesh, told interrogators that Ibrahim works closely with the Pakistani intelligence and the extremist Harkat-ul-Jihad-al Islami (HuJI). Shaikh and Miya, meanwhile, have shed light on the group’s extensive network in Bangladesh. Malbari in particular, after his arrest in Colombo, has been giving out significant information that has since led to the arrest of more members of the group.
Following Merchant’s information, Dhaka has learned that at least 50 of Ibrahim’s men are regular visitors to Bangladesh, where they are politically well connected. Indeed, a list naming the men and their addresses was found during a raid, and security forces are now visiting each of the locations. The end result of all this activity, say security analysts, is a significant lessening of the D-Company’s criminal activities on the India-Bangladesh frontier. Moreover, a tip about the group’s global activities has meant that a number of Ibrahim’s men were arrested in Colombo – Malabari among them – and are soon to be moved to India for questioning.
While all this certainly counts as progress, Dawood’s network remains extremely well organised and wealthy, and extends far beyond India. And with the likelihood of capturing Ibrahim – or even his deputy, Chota Shakeel – still very slim at best, the excitement evident in the media is undoubtedly premature.
Tibet
Planting time
 |
Grim as these numbers are, Chinese authorities seem confident that they can manage the problem. The official stance is that the government can ensure that no more land turns into desert by 2010 (a mere five months away), and can make half of the lands already lost productive by 2020. These ambitious goals are to be achieved by undertaking large-scale programmes to plant forests, and by closing existing grasslands to cattle grazing.
Unrealistic as all of this may sound, China has indeed been pumping a great deal of money into Tibet in the hopes of seeing quick improvements. For instance, in February, Beijing formally approved the Plan for Protection and Establishment of Ecological Safety Grid in Tibet. In this, it pledged to spend more than USD 2 billion on 10 environment-related projects in Tibet over the next five years. But neither dollars nor yuan can necessarily return fertility to a parched land.
Afghanistan
Wild list
 |
The list, which includes leopards, wolves and brown bears, was put together by the National Environment Protection Agency (NEPA). Though a young institution, established only in 2005, NEPA appears to be taking its job seriously. The list, which officials hope to expand to include 70 species by the end of the year, is the agency’s second step towards protecting the country’s animals and landscape.
The first was declaring the Band-e-Amir area and its six lakes a provisional national park, the first ever in Afghanistan. Located in the same province as the now-destroyed Buddha statues of Bamiyan, the park is in one of Afghanistan’s most popular tourist sites. Unfortunately, the area is said to be fragile, with lakes behind natural levees. Decades of mining and neglect are also said to have created environmental chaos. That most of the wildlife in the area has already been killed off only serves to highlight the importance of the new moves to protect those that remain, as also part of the new protected list.
Pakistan/India
No man’s station
The rebuilding of an old railway station in Pakistan would not usually be of great interest to India. But New Delhi claims to be greatly concerned by its neighbour’s plans to re-construct what it terms an “illegal station” near the border district of Barmer, in Rajasthan. The station, also called the Zero-Point, is located about 150 metres away from the no-man’s land between the two countries, and lies on the train route between the Rajasthani town of Munabao and the Sindhi town of Khokhrapar.
Until 2006, when service was resumed, trains had not plied along this historic route for over 30 years. In fact, the station in question was built at that time and, as today, created tension. Now, three years later, the station has resurfaced as an issue, with Islamabad building another structure, one likely to be permanent. New Delhi has announced that it will do everything in its power to resist the move, the first step being talks at various levels.
There is, however, more to the story of India’s anger over the project: Pakistan Railways has hired a Chinese company to do the construction. Close Islamabad-Beijing ties are, of course, old news. But at a time when India is already concerned about China’s growing involvement in Sri Lanka, Nepal and Bangladesh, all in its sphere of influence, perhaps hearts are beating just a bit faster than normal in South Block over what is, in the end, just a railway station.
Sri Lanka
Straw hopes
 |
As the newly developed process does not use chemicals, pollution would be non-existent. The waste material generated in the process, meanwhile, would in turn be used either as animal feed or compost. Now, there are plans to set up butanol factories in several places across the country, largely in rice-producing areas. Such plants would also generate jobs for the country’s youth, advocates say.
Other countries have used straw and other crops to produce butanol in the past. Indeed, research shows that a small percentage of butanol can be blended into petrol and used in engines without modifications. At the same time, the commercial use of butanol has not become widespread, largely due to the lack of adequate research on its efficiency.
As such, it is yet unknown what obstacles will crop up in the attempt to undertake large-scale production. But the University of Peradeniya now appears set to find out.
The Maldives
Religious environment
 |
| President Nasheed at a children’s festival to mark World Environment Day 2009 |
Sheikh Mohamed Shaheem Ali Saeed, the minister of Islamic affairs, says his department now intends to launch several programmes to promote environmental issues in an Islamic context. These will include television and radio discussions, public speeches, the distribution of leaflets and the publication of books on the subject. And on 5 June, World Environment Day, the ministry proved that it means business, with an imam from the ministry giving a sermon on climate change and the environment, and calling upon devotees to protect and preserve all living organisms.
The sermon was very much an example of governmental cooperation across departments, with the Environment Ministry also sending along notes on the hard data behind anxieties over climate change. And Sheikh Mohamed is eager to continue this cooperation, saying that although people are not aware of the link between Islam and the environment, the ministry is now working on identifying what the Quran and the Hadiths have to say on the subject.
Region
Kabul twinkling
War and conflict notwithstanding, life has recently become a bit easier for at least some citizens of Kabul. Based on an agreement made between the Afghan government and neighbouring Uzbekistan, a number of Kabul’s districts now have 20 hours of electricity every day – a massive improvement from the five spotty hours they were receiving earlier. Kabul now gets 150 MW of electricity per year, half of what the city needs, through a recently completed transmission line stretching over 400 km from Uzbekistan. Another line along the same route is currently in the works, as are others from Tajikistan and Turkmenistan.
These lines are particularly needed, considering that only seven percent of the country has electricity access at all, with most of the provincial population living in darkness once the sun sets. This is a dismal statistic for a country that is potentially rich in water resources, and already has a number of (marginally functional) hydropower plants. While several of these have been affected by drought, problems have also cropped up related to politics and corruption.
Back in Kabul, the general sentiment is one of joy at having electricity, combined with a dose of scepticism as to how long the lights will actually stay on. Such concern is justified considering how dependent the country is on its neighbours, who can naturally be assumed to cut the lines to Afghanistan during tough times at home. Moreover, with the electricity already quite expensive, there is always the fear of the supplier country hiking up the price even farther, thus making it beyond the reach of most.
For the moment, at least, Kabul is lit up at night. Its residents can now use their television sets to sit at home and watch Indian serials.
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Jouno kormir shantan by Debolina Dutta and Oishik Sircar
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(Related stories in our August edition)
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| Indigenising extremism – Iqbal Khattak writes about how the rise of the so-called ‘Punjabi Taliban’ is another step in the escalating spiral of extremist violence in Pakistan. |
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| Minor offence – Dilnaz Boga on the children who have been gunned down since January in the escalating cycle of violence in Jammu & Kashmir. |
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