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"During the [Nagaland] state elections of 1982, I once hitched a ride with the venerable Scato Swu, then a nominated member of parliament. I asked him why did his people not take over in 1962 and declare independence.
"It's funny, young friend, that you ask this question. Indians usually do not even remember 1962. You know, your army had gone away and I had 10,000 men carrying automatic weapons. If only I had blown the whistle, Nagaland would have been ours," he said.
"Precisely," I said. "Why didn't you do so? That opportunity will never come again. You have lost the fight for sovereignty."
"Because that was the moment of truth. We had a series of meetings to think of our future as an independent republic. It was a great feeling. Then somebody said, "see, the Indians will go but the Chinese will be hereabouts.""
"But why would that be a problem?" I asked. "The Chinese were your allies and masters."
"Yes," he said. "But we had been to China, seen their system. We knew what they had done to religion. Why were they going to be more tolerant of our Christianity? Here the Indian army had so many Christian officers who even came to our churches. All of us had been trained at Lhasa. We also knew what the Chinese had done to the Tibetans and their culture. Why were they going to be more kind to the Naga way of life?"
"You mean just when you could have got sovereignty you lost your nerve," I taunted the wise old man.
"No. We Nagas are honourable, realistic and fair. We had no blood feud with you. We were fighting against you to preserve out tribal culture and identity, our way of life and Christianity. It just so seemed that these might be better preserved in your shadow even without soverignty than as an independent, but Chinese satellite state."
-- Shekar Gupta
in "The New Indian Express"
Jan 11, 2003
MAGAZINE
The road from Marx turns right at Gandhi:
Mary and Bablu didn't settle at Timbaktu to retire, but to begin again with the conviction that nature is what really matters.
Dreams come true in Ratnagiri:
An unlikely team of clerks in government offices in Mumbai are reaching out to rural school children in Ratnagiri district
Battling for governance :
Parivartan's unknown little Indians like Santosh, have fought to clear the thickets to form tracks to good governance.
The Ganga in the sky:
Residents and establishments in Tamil Nadu have taken to rain water harvesting and water recycling proving that local action can alleviate shortages.
The two-pit privy man:
Perfecting a simple sanitation solution and getting it to revolutionise Indian society has taken 35 years of Dr Bindeshwar Pathak's life
Young voices rising:
Nandana Reddy and Damu Acharya have approached the issue of India's working children by creating activists from children's own ranks.
Minimalism in service:
Dada Lakhiani is a role model for everyone who is sitting out for the right time, funds and opportunity to do something for India.
Staring down droughts:
Amidst the gloom of droughts and suicides, we have this transformation of farmers who will look a drought in its eye.
A Gandhi education pays off:
Cherkady Ramachandra Rao, now 86, lost his parents when 2, found Gandhi when 7, and has not been lost ever since.
Inside China's anti-poverty success:
Does China's economic performance show-up India, or are there some unique merits in our system that we do not value sufficiently?
Beyond even his dreams:
When J Krishnamurthy spotted that banyan tree in 1925, it is doubtful if he envisioned how it might change the grim landscape and lives around it.
Enfolding the lost ones in Goa:
Bernadette D'Souza and Gregory D'Costa strive for the dignity of immigrants who built today's shining Goa - and, are abandoned on its streets to their own devices.
Jim Garthe's innovation:
The pioneering work of Jim Garthe at the Univ. of Pennsylvania, in converting plastic waste into an energy resource has a great significance for India's environment.
Help for puzzled visitors:
Caring for autistic and special children in India, has been entirely mothers' and private citizens' effort, as typified by Shristi Special Academy in Bangalore.
World standard toilets:
Since 1999, Fuad Lokhandwala has been demonstrating in New Delhi that building and running toilets to world standards is possible along sound commercial lines.
The new Indian rope-trick :
In the decade since it opened its economy, India has survived early shocks and has now assimilated with elan the tricks of making good profits in world markets.
A daughter returns:
Anuradha Bakhshi's sense of debt to India is over-imagined considering how little she has taken from this land but therein lies a lesson for many of us who have drawn much.
Digging deep into Sanskrit:
Prof. Lakshmi Thathachar at Melkote is a teacher, ecologist, animal breeder, computer adept and a champion of Sanskrit as an unmined knowledge source.
Where water flows in veins:
The Smile Index of children and adults here, proves that the networked farm pond idea pioneered by BAIF's branch in Tiptur, Karnataka needs to be spread wide.
Biodiesel goes from lab to land:
Prof Shrinivasa's SuTRA has proved to India's tribal people that biodiesel is the best way to electrify their homes. And they are making a revolution of it.
A Marathon man in village-India:
The success of Rangaswamy Elango at Kuthambakkam village justifies the hope that Gram Swaraj will yet bloom all across India.
After micro credit, it's micro capital, now:
Aavishkaar is a pioneer attempt by India's overseas professionals to bring venture capitalism to socially, environmentally relevant small businesses.
This postman delivered more than mail:
This vintage classic from the 1930s should give us heart because it shows service to fellowman is intrinsic to Indian way of life.
A soldier's march into peace:
Anna Hazare's work with Ralegan Siddhi has thrown up a model for all round development of India's villages.
Bridges to mainstream life:
Girish Bharadwaj's foot bridges for isolated villages are transforming communities -- and are aesthetic as well.
Rare grit at young age:
Deciding in their teens to make social service their profession, Vandana and Vaishnavi have gone on to build the Banyan in Chennai.
Lay naturalists befriend mangroves:
Kerala's mangroves are struggling to survive but faceless Indians with no access to power or wealth are answering the call.
A jewel in India's crown:
Ignored --and often mocked-- India's Parliament is a vastly under-appreciated engine of reforms, change and progress in this land.
Law's pastor:
George Pulikuthiyil guides Jananeethi's lawyers and volunteers to serve over 3000 a year that are lost and arrive at its doors.
Growing pride:
From a starving nation in 1947, India became a country of food surpluses by 1975, thanks to our green revolutionaries in the countryside.
Consumer corps:
Built on a large, stable membership, Mumbai Grahak Panchayat is a leader is addressing consumer issues in India.
Forest maker:
Abdul Kareem has stood vigil for 25 years on 32 acres of a rocky hill to see it regenerate into a living forest.
Rain man:
For seven long years Shree Padre has campaigned for rain water harvesting -- and the results are beginning to show.
Sifting the poverty numbers:
Prof. Xavier Sala-i-Martin's fresh look at global poverty is causing a wave now - and Indians can surf it for some cheer.
Farmers' channel:
Holding that in India, the rural family is the sole reality, BAIF, founded by Manibhai Desai has been serving to enrich it since 1967.
A history and a testament:
The memoirs of Dr Desai, founder of BAIF is an inspiring Indian story with rare glimpses of Gandhi and his times.
Shedding innocence:
Dr Anil Gupta runs a programme to discover India's barefoot inventors and lead them to the world of Intellectual Property Rights.
Housing the poor with dignity:
Two architects of Pune are convinced that sound housing and sanitation for the poor will result in better life for all.
Grass economy:
Blades of grass have cut through poverty, instilled hope and revived the eco system in a village in the Himalayas.
Maharashtra gets it right:
A brilliant scheme to clean up Maharashtra villages succeeds because Gadge Maharaj's spell is still potent.
India in the sky:
ISRO -in barely 30 years- has become a respected space technologist and put India into orbit.
A Guru for these times:
Since 1983, Dr.Kalbag and his wife Mira have lived in the rural wilds to deliver hands-on education to kids.
Parenting trees:
Thimmakka and her husband spent 45 years on a 4kM road raising 300 trees - and people's consciousness.
Naturals in forest conservation:
Not laws, not guards, not force - it is millions of unknown gentle folk that are saving India's forests.
Trash becomes wealth:
"Sugar cane leaf trash is gold, not just in colour, but also in vaue," says Ashden Award winner A D Karve.
Markets minder:
India's financial markets are modern, efficient, honest and world class -- thanks to the NSE.
...list of all stories
