Should India outsource disaster relief?

“Natural disasters are a universal reality, more so with global warming. Yet, with so much technology, advanced communication and warning systems at our disposal, India fails miserably in its response to such events. Even 15 days after the floods inundated Bihar, thousands are still without food, water, shelter or hope. A devastating natural disaster has been compounded by a man-made one” – states Aroon Purie, editor-in-chief, India Today in the September 15, 2008 issue. My compliments to Aroon Purie for providing us with such a detailed information about this calamity in Bihar. I, for one, would not blame only Nitish Kumar, Chief Minister of Bihar, for the mis-management of the relief effort. Lalu Prasad Yadav was playing dirty politics with the whole federal assistance. Criticising the Chief Minister of the State publicly at such a time was nothing but dirty politics. He should be ashamed of himself! He would have done no better, had he been in the hot seat at this time. The fact of the matter is that India does not have the ‘Disaster Relief Infrastructure’ to deal with such emergencies.

Lalu Prasad Yadav is no “Lulloo”…

Lalu Prasad Yadav is a very savvy politician today. Was he always so shrewd or not, is difficult to judge but he has certainly grown in his job. Lalu has a very solid base in his home-state of Bihar and therefore brings a huge political capital to the Union Cabinet. Unlike the political gigolos like Shivraj Patil (Union Minister for Home Affairs) and Pranab Mukherjee (Minister for External Affairs of India) who have zero base in their home-states and bring absolutely nothing to the Central Government. These two characters are disgustingly loyal to Sonia Gandhi (Congress Party President) and pose no regional or national challenge to her unqualified writ on the Indian Government. Unlike Lalu Prasad Yadav, Patil and Mukherjee are more of a liability than any kind of an asset. This is no way to provide a stable central government.

Yadav was born on June 11, 1947 in Gopalgang, Bihar. He was a student leader at Patna University and a staunch follower of Jai Prakash Narayan during the 70s. He was only 29 years old when he was elected a Member of Parliament of the 6th Lok Sabha. He won the seat on a Janata Party ticket, specifically promoted by Satyendra Narayan Sinha (the erstwhile Chief Minister of Bihar). Lalu Prasad Yadav belongs to a backward caste and so became a formidable force in Bihar state Politics. He was elected the Chief Minister of Bihar in 1990 and from there he and his wife, Rabri Devi, ruled the state for the next 15 years. Lalu and his family behaved like the local Rajas of their fiefdom (Bihar) and were involved in a politically toxic ‘Fodder Scam’. He was sent to jail five times. His wife took over as Chief Minister of Bihar.