Wednesday, December 27, 2006

Dateline

Niraj Aryal

India’s visible role in restoring democracy as and when our leaders require, their helping hand from setting up hospitals, making roads, establishing schools to finally providing iodized salt to the Nepali public is appreciated by all quarters in the country. This help has continued since time immemorial that also continued to serve Nepalese during tyrannical panchayati regime and as well during the recently abolished royal rule, the non friendly state to India. To the surprise even during the insurgency the Indian emissaries continued to visit far fledged districts to open their pockets where it was impossible for the respective governments in Nepal and other international donor agencies to reach a cause the Maoists resistance over those areas.

To this friendly gesture the Indian establishment perhaps replies, “It is not the type of regime there but the age old ties between the people of two countries that forces India to help Nepal”. This Indian compulsion is well understood by all and sundry in this country.

Of late this Indian support has also become a tag for Indo-Nepal friendship that is clearly visible in the pouch carrying iodized salt the Nepalese are happily consuming on a daily basis. Thanks to the Indian establishment and their scouts in Nepal that we are reminded of this friendly gesture also in a regular basis.

This Indian magnanimity that is present in each and every nook and corner of this country forces people to think how large would be the financial pocket that comes into the form of Iodized Salt, Schools, Bridges, and Roads from India. Be it in any form what is comprehensible is that the pocket is filled by squeezing the world’s poorest population living in India to help yet another group of poor living across the border. To this remark the Indian agents in Nepal may reply, “It is not your concern to make out how this wealth is amassed and from whom, but we will not stop serving the poor in Nepal”.

There is another side of the story as well which is evident while analyzing news reports as appearing in the Indian news portals, and that is the authorities concerned over Nepali matters in India are not very happy with the dismal performances of Indian establishment here in Kathmandu after making investments all along these years. The growing western influence and in parallel the increasing anti-Indian sentiments in Nepal is obviously a matter of concern for those authorities.

Recently the Nepalese media brought about some cases of Indian meanness- this time invisible, whereby the Indian security forces have encroached thousands and thousands of hectares of Nepali territory all along the Indo-Nepal border that created furor among the student wings of various political parties, yet keeping the leadership mum, which was well reported by Nepali media. Surprise Surprise!

The conclusion is that pouring in money to construct bridges, schools and supplying iodized salt on a regular basis will have little impact until and unless India stops making nuisances of the likes of encroaching lands, halting consumer items including petro-products and the list goes on, ill feeling towards India will not come to an end as liked by India.