Terrorism and militancy are being fanned to destabilise the economy of the country which is at the threshold of a double digit growth, Union Home Minister P Chidambaram on Wednesday said.

He said hostile forces seek to undermine the security and stability of our nation.

“Even while they (hostile forces) challenge our borders and our boundaries, they make attempts to destabilize our economy. Terrorism and militancy are being fanned to hinder the growth of our country,” Chidambaram said in his address at the CISF Raising Day Parade here.

He said since the 1980’s, India has emerged as one of the most happening economies of the world. “The past decade has seen good growth and our economy is on the threshold of a double digit growth,” Chidambaram said.

He said the country’s growth depends on infrastructure and the CISF, which guards some of the most critical installations, is securing India’s future.

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Indian external affairs minister S.M. Krishna has reiterated that the Sri Lankan government should empower the Tamil-speaking people through a political process, reports Colombo Today.

By that, the government should open a new chapter in the country’s history, he has told the media in Chennai.

According to PTI, Mr. Krishna has said that India was for the implementation of the 13th amendment to the constitution conferring equal rights to people.

Asked if India sought to play a key role in Lankan affairs, he said New Delhi would “assist the friendly power in whatever manner possible.”

The loan waiver year of 2008 saw 16,196 farm suicides in the country, according to the National Crime Records Bureau. Compared to 2007, that’s a fall of just 436. As economist Professor K. Nagaraj who has worked in-depth on farm suicide data says, “the numbers leave little room for comfort and none at all for self-congratulation.” There were no major changes in the trend that set in from the late 1990s and worsened after 2002. The dismal truth is that very high numbers of farm suicides still occur within a fast decreasing farm population.

Between just the Census of 1991 and that of 2001, nearly 8 million cultivators quit farming. A year from now, the 2011 Census will tell us how many more quit in this decade. It is not likely to be less. It could even dwarf that 8 million figure as the exodus from farming probably intensified after 2001. The State-wise farm suicide ratios — number of farmers committing suicide per 100,000 farmers — are still pegged on the outdated 2001 figures. So the 2011 Census, with more authentic counts of how many farmers there really are, might provide an unhappy update on what is going on.

Focussing on farm suicides as a share of total suicides in India misleads. That way, it’s “aha! the percentage is coming down.” That’s silly. For one thing, the total number of suicides (all groups, not just farmers) is increasing — in a growing population. Farm suicides are rising within a declining farm population. Two, an all-India picture disguises the intensity. The devastation lies in the Big 5 States (Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh). These account for two-thirds of all farm suicides during 2003-08. Take just the Big 5 — their percentage of all farm suicides has gone up. Worse, even their percentage of total all-India suicides (all categories) has risen. Poor States like Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh are doing very badly for some years now.

In the period 1997-2002, farm suicides in the Big 5 States accounted for roughly one out of every 12 of all suicides in the country. In 2003-08, they accounted for nearly one out of every 10.

The NCRB now has farm suicide data for 12 years. Actually, farm data appear in its records from 1995 onwards, but some States failed to report for the first two years. Hence 1997, from when all States are reporting their farm suicide data, is a more reliable base year. The NCRB has also made access much easier by placing all past years of “Accidental Deaths & Suicides in India” reports on its website.

The 12-year period allows us to compare farm suicide numbers for 1997-2002, with how they turned out in the next 6-year period of 2003-2008. All 12 years were pretty bad, but the latter six were decidedly worse.

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Australia is in denial on racially motivated attacks against international students and has failed to take action to deal with the issue, an internationally respected Australian academic has told a major conference in Switzerland.

Melbourne University professor Simon Marginson, delivering a keynote address to the World Universities Forum in Davos, said the Australian government was trying to spin itself out of crisis following this month’s murder of Indian accountancy graduate Nitin Garg in a west Melbourne park. “The Australian government is in denial,” Professor Marginson told the high-powered meeting of academics. “Racist targeting is involved (in the attacks). Indian students do have a special problem. And there isn’t enough official and civil concern about international student security in Australia.”

India’s Foreign Minister, S.M. Krishna, yesterday warned that continued violence against Indian students could damage relations and called for immediate “corrective action” by Australia. This followed a decision by the Indian government to issue a travel warning advising expat students to take precautions while living in Australia generally and Melbourne in particular.

Foreign Minister Stephen Smith was yesterday in talks with Mr Krishna. “We both agreed this was an issue we did not want to disturb or get in the way of what the External Affairs Minister described as an excellent relationship,” Mr Smith said.

In a statement released after their conversation, Mr Krishna “reiterated the need for immediate corrective measures, pointing out that the issue had consistently figured in our parliament”.Garg’s unsolved murder has sparked diplomatic, government and public protests in India, further weakened one of Australia’s most important education export markets and prompted a defensive response from Australia’s political leaders and Victoria Police.

Read more here.

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President Asif Ali Zardari on Tuesday said all super powers should come forward to settle the Kashmir dispute.

Addressing a joint session of the Azad Jammu and Kashmir Assembly and the Kashmir Council, President Zardari said India wanted to suppress the voice of the Kashmiri people through use of force.

According to Dawn.com, President Zardari said fighting for Kashmir’s liberation was Pakistan’s responsibility.

Regional peace would not be possible without the Kashmir dispute’s resolution, he said.

The president told the session that a committee on Kashmir Affairs had also been constituted. He also announced a countrywide increase in number of seats for medical students from the region.

Worries over inflation caused by spiking in the prices of agricultural commodities, so-called agflation, are emerging, even though they have not yet reached a serious level, reports The Korea Times.

The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) reported Thursday that food prices have been rising worldwide.

A number of possible causes, such as the low level of cereal stocks, crop failures among major exporters and increased oil prices, can lead to a sudden hike in food prices, it said.

The FAO food price index, consisting of the export prices of 55 food products, jumped 16 percent to 168 in the first 11 months of this year.

Recent market signs are much bleaker. Global food costs jumped 7 percent in November, the most since February 2008, according to the organization.

A lot of food commodities will be under upward pressure next year. Bloomberg reported that grade-B Thai white rice, a benchmark in the market, may rise 63 percent to $1,038 per metric ton from $638 mainly due to a rice crop shortfall in India.

Stockpiles of corn and rice will drop before the 2010 harvest for the first time in three years, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. It also forecasts sugar inventories will drop to the lowest level since 1995.

The prospect of food price inflation cannot be ruled out next year since many of the factors that contributed to higher prices in 2007 and 2008 are still lingering, Barclays Capital said.

Agflation from 2007 to 2008 was mostly attributable to fast-growing demand from emerging markets and the production of bio-diesel fuels. A reduction in crops from major food-producing countries due to abnormal climate changes and the actions of speculators fueled the price surge.

As India marks the 25th anniversary of the Bhopal disaster, which The Hindustan Times rightly calls ‘one of the world’s worst industrial disasters,’ the Indian Express writes that India today offered to effect at least a 20 per cent cut in its carbon intensity by 2020 over 2005 levels, hoping this would satisfy demands from developed countries for some sort of quantified commitments.

Union Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh told Parliament today that India would reduce its carbon intensity by a minimum of 20 per cent and “most likely 25 per cent” by the year 2020, a target that is quite conservative considering the trend observed in carbon intensity over the last two decades.

Ramesh added that India would do “more,” if there was a “satisfactory and equitable” agreement in Copenhagen.

Read more here.

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The Madhya Pradesh government will throw open to public the now defunct Union Carbide factory on the 25th anniversary of the gas tragedy killing around 3,500 people, but the move has been slammed as a “publicity stunt,” reports The Hindu.

The factory which has been shut since the tragedy on the intervening night of Dec 2-3, 1984, will remain open for a week from November 20.

Thousands of persons were maimed for life when tonnes of Methyl Iso Cyanate (MIC) and other lethal gases spewed out of the Union Carbide Corporation’s pesticide plant here exposing over 5,00,000 people to the toxic fumes.

A decision to allow public to visit the plant was taken by the State government recently, official sources said today.

The organisations working for the gas victims flayed the government’s decision calling it a publicity stunt to try to convince people there is nothing dangerous in the factory site. The move also violated court orders, they said.

State Gas Relief and Rehabilitation Minister, Babulal Gaur, said the government can extend the period for public visits to show that there was nothing dangerous at the factory site any more.

But the NGOs are not impressed voicing fears of dangers to humans.

Rachna Dhingra of International Campaign for Justice in Bhopal said, “More than 10 governmental and non-governmental studies have confirmed the presence of highly toxic chemicals in the soil and environment of the factory site.”

Bhopal Gas Peedit Mahila-Purush Sangarsh Morcha leader, Syed M. Irfan said the Centre and the Madhya Pradesh governments are using the 25th anniversary of the Gas tragedy as an occasion to bury the disaster along with all the pending liabilities.

“As per a 1999-study by Greenpeace, over 20 per cent of the factory site was contaminated and mercury level at one sample location was 60 lakh times more than normal,” Ms. Dhingra said.

Besides, the study also found high levels of lead, nickel, copper, chromium, chlorobenzene and sevin in soil samples taken from the factory site, Ms. Dhingra said.

Read more here.

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Members of the pro-CDU Konrad Adenauer Foundation (KAS) conducted an international press review in the aftermath of the German elections. The following is a summary of the reactions on the German election outcome. Additional reactions and opinions on the fate of the other parties are omitted.

USA

The US press is mainly concerned with the future German commitment to the mission in Afghanistan and possible economic reforms.

For instance the Wall Street Journal expressed its satisfaction with the results stressing Germany’s move towards market reform and “continuity in German foreign policy, including on Afghanistan, where the FDP is expected to continue to support Germany’s troop presence, while calling for an exit strategy in the medium term”.

The New York Times instead seems to be more critical about what can be expected from the new coalition government with respect to market reforms: “Rising budget deficits as a result of the economic crisis have drastically limited the kind of tax cuts on which the would-be coalition partners [FDP] campaigned.” Moreover, concerning Afghanistan, the New York Times expects a reopening of the debate on German military involvement. However, “analysts do not expect immediate change or a call for a quick removal of German troops.”

The Washington Post expects difficult times for the CDU-FDP coalition since Merkel’s Christian Democrats are likely to be reluctant towards realizing the Free Democrats’ plans for market reform. According to the Washington Post, the CDU will have to face a strong coalition partner which might become an obstacle for smooth cooperation.

Finally, the LA Times expresses its faith in the continuation of Germany’s commitment in Afghanistan even though the decision is unpopular with Germans.

Latin America

Reactions from Latin America were relatively reserved.

It is worth mentioning that, overall, the results were interpreted as a “movement to the right” (KAS). According to KAS, Merkel’s re-election was especially welcomed by the Venezuelan opposition. Instead, the Chilean press attributes Merkel’s success more to the good results of the FDP.

Concerning Germany’s relations to Latin America, no major changes are expected. In Peru, the press did not even mention anything with respect to a future outlook in German-Peruvian or German-Latin American relations. In the Mexican press a view was expressed that Latin America was not a “global player”. That is why Germany had no interest in the South American continent.

Rather, Germany is expected to focus on Afghanistan and economic recovery. In Chile, it is believed that the CDU’s and FDP’s respective programs have much in common. As a result, governing will be relatively smooth. By contrast, the Brazilian press maintains that the CDU-FDP government will have to face a strong opposition which, in turn, will render economic and social reforms more difficult.

Africa

The KAS conducted press reviews only in South Africa and Namibia, therefore it is questionable how representative the opinions are for the whole continent.

Apparently, the reception of the German elections was relatively low in both countries. In South Africa, the second Africa South America Summit (ASA) received more interest. However, KAS observers have reported that the general reception of the election results were ranging from neutral to slightly positive. Moreover, changes in German-South African relations are not expected.

Namibia’s German-language Newspaper “Die Tageszeitung” focused on the consequences of the elections on German-Namibian development cooperation, which is expected to remain stable.

Middle East

Also, the Middle East was not covered fully by the KAS press review.

With respect to the Arab press, it was reported that the Egyptian provided background information on the German elections. Only the “tabloid press” (KAS) published an opinion describing chancellor Merkel as “the most powerful women in the world”. Moreover, it was said that the outcome is more favorable to the US than to Russia. Differently, in the United Arab Emirates a clear line in German foreign policy concerning Iran was demanded and hopes for a global economic impetus expressed.

Reactions from Israel were documented in more detail. In general, the media  did not pay much attention to German elections. Nevertheless, the results did not remain unobserved.

According to KAS, Merkel has many sympathizers in Israel. Her stance on Israel is recognized as being favorable to Israel.

The newspaper Jedioth Aharonot is said to reacted enthusiastically on Merkel’s re-election. The chancelloris perceived as a “friend of Israel“ who does not blindly except all policy decisions of the Israeli government. With respect to Iran she has shown a clear position. Most importantly, Merkel is one of the few European politicians that accepted that Israel is threatened by radical Islam.

Similarily, the Jerusalem Post welcomes the next Merkel government. By contrast, the newspaper is more critical with the leader of new coalition party, Guido Westerwelle, who is seen as less Israel-friendly. For instance in 2006, Westerwelle spoke against  German participation at the UN Mission (UNSCR 1701) to disarm Hezbollah. In general, it is perceived that the FDP’s economic orientation favors good relations with Iran and the Arab world. It is remembered that in 1984 former FDP foreign minister Hans Dietrich Gentscher was the first European foreign minister seeking economic and political relations with Iran after the Islamic Revolution.

On the contrary, the newspaper Haaretz perceives Westerwelle as more Israel friendly than the Jerusalem Post. Further, Haaretz expects the CDU-FDP coalition to introduce liberal reforms and a clear pro-American foreign policy including measures to reduce antisemitism.

Asia

According to KAS, Asian countries showed divided opinions on the formation of a new CDU-FDP government.

In India, the media published mainly positive comments. In India, a German CDU-FDP leadership is often brought into relation with positive experience under earlier CDU-FDP coalitions, such as the ones under former chancellor Helmut Kohl. In Addition, this years election results were interpreted as the people’s preference for economic stability.

Differently, the Chinese Global Times focused more on the future of Sino-German relations. Earlier, this newspaper had reported about a worsening in bilateral relations. On the occasion of the German elections it cited political science professor Gerd Langguth who maintains that Merkel’s government is interested in good relations with China. Moreover, the newspaper expects the coalition will not work smoothly due to the CDU’s movement to the left over the last four years.

The Chinese version of the Global Times (Hanqiu Shibao) as well as the Guangming Daily, both directed by the Central Committee, do not expect any changes in German foreign policy. In particular, it is maintained that 90% of the parliamentarians will vote in favor of the Afghanistan mission despite the fact that 60% of the German population are against that decision. Other than the Indian media, both newspapers sustain that the coming CDU-FDP coalition differs from those of earlier times. Over the coming years, it will have to face several challenges, such as a strong opposition composed of the SPD, the Green Party,  and the leftist party (Die Linke). It is further believed that Merkel will most  likely reveal her true face as an “iron lady”.

The official newspaper of the Communist Party, the Renmin Ribao comments that the new German government has moved to the right, and will therefore be less social. In its Tuesday’s edition the newspaper asked why Merkel was re-elected. The answer given was that the Germans have an inflexible mentality. Moreover, having a PhD in Physics, Merkel possesses a reputation as an intellectual person, and as the first female German chancellor with roots in East-Germany, many women in the eastern parts voted for her.

The KAS press review in Japan has not been fully updated yet, but, according to sources of the KAS, Japanese media will most probably focus on German nuclear energy policy as well as economic policy in the near future.

Europe

Different reactions were recorded in EU member states as well as non-EU countries.

The British press generally welcomed the election-results which it sees as a continuity in Germany’s foreign policy. Above all, the British media hope for economic reforms and speculate about Germany’s future energy policy. Furthermore, the British press sees the possibility that the opposition will challenge Merkel’s government’s position on Afghanistan and Iran.

For the French media, the  election results were not unexpected. However, the press is aware that a new CDU government would not have been possible without the FDP. This, in turn, gives the FDP a strong negotiation position. In general, most newspapers welcome Merkel’s re-election. Only the newspaper “Liberación” speaks of a “German paradox” meaning that exactly at the hight of a global crisis of neoliberal policies the liberal FDP gets into government.

Germany’s neighboring country Poland welcomes a CDU-led government. Positive effects on German-Polish relations are expected. Yet, Poland is mostly hoping for Germany’s quick economic recovery and more protection against Russia.

Similarly, most Eastern and Central European countries, for instance Bulgaria, Latvia, or Czech Republic, wish for a relaunching of the German economy.

The Spanish press instead expressed a critical view on the consequences of a CDU-FDP-led German government on EU policies which are believed to become more conservative and less socially oriented.

Similarly to France, the election results were not surprising for the Media in the BENELUX countries. There was a general welcoming of CDU-FDP coalition. However, some doubts were expressed with respect to the compatibility of CDU and FDP programs. It is held that governing will not be easier than during Grand Coalition.

Instead, non-EU countries such as Turkey and Serbia concentrated more on the consequences of a German CDU-FDP government on their prospects of future EU membership. In Turkey, it is feared that the CDU will speak against a possible Turkish EU membership. By contrast, in Serbia, one counts on German support against the Dutch “No” to the EU Stabilization and Association Agreement with Serbia. The CDU-FDP coalition stands for continuity, thus meaning continued support for Serbia’s future EU membership.