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West Bengal Governerer flays Nandigram ‘recapture’ — calls
Nandigram War Zone.
[
AOL,
The Statesman,
The Telegraph]
Counterviews Watch
The Rizwanur Incident has opened a Pandora’s box for us. At the outset it has exposed the social maladies like the intolerance of the rich for the poor and the conservative attitude of one community to the other (carefully been pushed under the carpet). It has also exposed the State’s failure to ensure the individual’s human and legal rights and give appropriate protections to his life. The protectors have turned out to be the killers.
Deep down, it has also dug out some more basic issues: how social pressures dictate, corrupt and fashion the basic, primary relationships in our lives and how the daughter is treated as a property in a family.
Rizwanur Incident, thus, is not at all a ‘non political’ one, as it is being pointed out by many. Rather, it has all kinds of ‘politics’ intertwined in every thread of the story. Rizwanur’s death has exposed a lot of murky things in society and state polity. But it has also helped people to unite, in protest.
Rizwanur’s Death : A Long Tradition Of Police Atrocities And The Views Of A Citizen
— Naba Dutta
This article discusses a number of issues which came up after Rizwanur’s death at Kolkata — the Government’s role, activities of the police and the limitations of civil society initiatives. [ pdf, 100 KB ] , Bengali Version [ pdf, 432 KB ]
Some Lessons for ‘Politicals’ from the Rizwanur Tragedy
— Dipanjan Raichaudhuri [ pdf, 24 KB ]
Post-mortem : A report on why one is dead (and it makes news)
— Atig Ghosh [ link]
Recent Articles
No Diwali in Nandigram
— Dipanjan Raichaudhuri, [ pdf, 28 KB ]
FLOTSAM AND JETSAM : Corporate Retail And The Predicament Of The Neighbourhood Grocer
Those who buy cheap and those who depart from the gainful economic scene are two different sets of people. So the joy of one set and sadness of the other can never be seen together. It looks as though we are becoming too modern, little too fast for the comfort of a few to the utter dismay and discomfort of too many. — writes Debabrata Bandyopadhyay [Fisrt published in The Statesman, 4th November, 2007.] [ pdf, 52 KB ]
The Singur Nandigram Syndrome: Corporate Appropriate Ecosystem Services
— Rabin Mazumdar [ pdf, 52 KB ]
Haldia Petrochemicals and Unemployment in East Midnapore
— Prof. Dipanjan Raichaudhuri
It supplements and amplifies the Haldia picture sketched in the in booklet “Shilpayan : Rupkatha Ar Bastob (Industrialization : Fairy tales and Reality )” [ pdf, 60 KB ]
Shilpayan : Rupkatha Ar Bastob (Industrialization : Fairy tales and Reality )
— Prof. Dipanjan Raichaudhuri, Courtesy : Sanhati
This booklet puts under critical scrutiny what is currently going on in the name of industrialisation in West Bengal. The author begins with a detailed discussion on “economic development” in China during approximately the last two decades. This is required, the author feels, as much of the current strategies of development is inspired by the Chinese experience. The Chinese experience compels one to ask questions related to generation of employment — this is what the author addresses next. The role of big capital also is seen critically in this context. The big investments by big capital, which are heralded as a panacea for the ills of West Bengal, are shown, through case studies, to generate employment pitifully insufficient for any meaningful attack on the unemployment problem. The discussion poses questions related to alternative strategies of economic development. The author has made a few suggestions keeping this in mind. In particular, he has discussed how market for agricultural and industrial products may be generated, bringing land reform into the discussion. Finally, the author discusses the important question of taking peoples’ consent as part of process of development. The booklet ends with the note that drive for industrialisation is part of a political struggle. The author has supplemented the discussion with enough data, including sources, and several relevant references. [ pdf, 268 KB ]
Ongoing Debate : The Indo-US Nuclear Deal and Nuclear Power
The Indo-US Nuclear Pact and the hoax of Nuclear Power
Prof. Dipanjan Raichaudhuri critically examines the myths over Nuclear Power. [ pdf, 84 KB ]
Nuclear Power for Eastern India : No Basis for Choice
The nuclear establishment has clearly acknowledged that nuclear power is more expensive than thermal power within a 1000 km radius of pithead. So why is looking for a site for a nuclear power plant in West Bengal and eastern-india? — argues Deb Kumar Bose (EPW, September 23, 2000). [ pdf, 44 KB ]
Ongoing Debate : Use of Agricultural Land for Industries
“ Prohibiting the use of agricultural land for industries is ultimately self-defeating”
Nobel laureate Amartya Sen speaks to The Telegraph on land acquisition for industrialisation, one of the most important issues facing Bengal and large parts of the country. [ Read online ]
Sen, Sense and Nonsense : On the difficulties of being Amartya Sen in a time like ours
This essay by Aseem Shrivastava takes issue with Amartya Sen's pronouncements on the topic in the interview given to The Telegraph. [ pdf, 100 KB]
Amartya Sen: The Master as Apologist
In this article, Dipanjan Raichaudhuri contradicts Prof. Sen’s points. [ Read it ]
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