Dinesh Kamath's Editorial 'Opposition should constructively attack the Ruling Party' that was published in Newsband

Opposition should constructively attack the Ruling Party

Congress president Rahul Gandhi alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi deliberately “inflicted the wound of demonetisation on the country to help his 15-20 crony capitalist friends” and described it as a “scam.” The note ban was a deliberate attack on India’s medium and small businesses, he added. He also alleged that the Prime Minister was “lying” about the Rafale deal and reiterated his demand for a Joint Parliamentary Committee probe to find out “what is the deal struck between Modi and industrialist Anil Ambani.” He said the note ban was meant “to help the richest people, the most corrupt people on this land to change their money from black to white.” “Prime Minister Modi should answer why he inflicted a deep wound like demonetisation when issues like unemployment and low GDP rate remained,” he said.

Rahul Gandhi is wrong about the PM’s intentions. Demonitization is neither a mistake nor a failure. It has provided some financial order in the society. Now we know clearly what is black and white. A common man or people are afraid of keeping in black. They make their transactions as transparent as possible. They know they will be caught. Nobody will take risk. That is why savings in mutual funds are increasing day by day, tax collection is increasing. We know how rich have converted their unaccounted in to white but they also will be caught one day. People thought it was a good measure and supported the Government. If 99.3% money come back in to the system you have satisfaction that you have not taken forcefully from the people.

Demonetisation is an excellent scheme which requires real guts to implement was unfortunately very badly implemented due to the failure of the Finance Ministry and Reserve Bank. It’s a very laudable scheme which could have done wonders by removing black money in Toto and all ills of the economy. Had the scheme been implemented effectively, the image of the NDA government would have reached a very high level.

For Rahul Gandhi, it is better to focus and answer the question as to what "he" had done for the country in the previous five years and on what basis would the innocent and ignorant people of India will vote for Congress? Modi has at least done something for the countrymen by taking some harsh steps which Rahul Gandhi lacks. There is no one in the opposition to match the personality of Modi; at least Rahul Gandhi is nowhere in the list.

The politicians should be accountable for their previous five years schedule and this must be the criteria of their victory or defeat in the upcoming election. It’s better to rise above the caste and dirty politics instead of backstabbing, cheating and blaming each other and on the whole, looting Indian people and their sentiments. Sometimes what Rahul says is not logical to many.

The opposition parties do not constructively criticise Ruling Party. The opposition is openly against Modi and not against Modi's principles. We require healthy criticism and not opposing anything done by Modi.

Dinesh Kamath's Editorial 'Proof is important' that was published in Newsband

Proof is important

The arrest of five prominent activists by the Pune police has disturbed the law abiding people. The case for proceeding against them will be properly scrutinised. The focus will now be on the next hearing of the Supreme Court.

Is this yet another clumsy failure to distinguish between those who indulge in or actively support violent activity, and those who attempt to understand or empathise with the social conditions that breed extremism and insurgency? The activists are accused of doing much more than inciting the violence that broke out in Bhima-Koregaon, near Pune, this year. They allegedly made provocative speeches at a Dalit conference relating to the 200th anniversary of an iconic battle site

Human rights activists, particularly those working in conflict-prone areas, have been harassed and even arrested on the suspicion of being in league with extremists. The bald truth is that successful prosecutions are rare. Charges such as sedition, waging war against the government and promoting disaffection against the state rarely end in conviction.

The Pune police claim that the five who have now been arrested were raising funds for the Maoists, and indulging in unlawful activities; that they had a nexus with other unlawful groups and, ominously, were plotting to “target high political functionaries”. Now the burden of proof on the police is extremely high.

The liberal/secular media is clearly batting for the "activists" and vilifying the government. These people take advantage of the rights and liberties enshrined in our Constitution and misuse them to further their own agenda. Police should be given a chance to prove its case before condemning it of high- handedness. Finally the judiciary has woken up and not allowed police to carry highhanded arrests in clear disregard to process and rights of citizens. It is time that police reforms are implemented fully.

The persons who were involved in arrests are just tools of the rulers. They need not prove anything. The powers that be should prove that they are not muzzling dissent and debate. Targeting dissent, as you aver, is an inexcusable and fundamental flaw in a democracy. Empathy and compassion are essential components of a civil society for its progress, prosperity and progressiveness.

That dissent is the bedrock of democracy may be a clichéd axiom. But its verity and relevance never recede. However, the apex court intervention in favor of the five activists signals that everything is not lost in the nation.

Dinesh Kamath’s column ‘New movies released in Navi Mumbai’ (Yamla Pagla Deewana Phir Se, Stree and Papillon) that was published in Newsband

New movies released in Navi Mumbai

By Dinesh Kamath

Yamla Pagla Deewana Phir Se

Yamla Pagla Deewana: Phir Se (transl. Crazy mad lover: Once again;) is an Indian Bollywood action comedy film, directed by Navaniat Singh. It is a sequel to the 2013 film, Yamla Pagla Deewana 2 and the third installment of Yamla Pagla Deewana film series. The film stars Dharmendra, Sunny Deol, Bobby Deol and Kriti Kharbanda in lead roles.

The film would not be a continuation of the earlier parts, but a completely new story with Dharmendra, Sunny Deol and Bobby Deol playing new characters. Inheriting from our ancestors, the legacy of the Ayurveda panacea 'Vajrakavach', a famed and effective remedy for all ills, the brother duo Pooran and Kaala use the kavach with varied intentions. While Pooran who is good-hearted puts in use his heritage to help people, Kaala looks out for his interest in money. Parmar, an erstwhile Casanova and a colorful character who is also a sharp and intelligent lawyer of repute, is the paying guest in the brothers' house. He is a thorn in Kaala's side, as he is paying the same rent, Rs. 125.00, for the last 35 years. Adding to the Punjabi mix, Chikoo is a pretty Gujarati girl, who steals Kaala's heart and brings a sinister twist to the tale.

The film has Dharmendra as Mana, Sunny Deol as Pagala, Bobby Deol as Kalaa, Shatrughan Sinha, Kriti Kharbanda as Chikoo, Binnu Dhillon, Johnny Lever, Asrani, Satish Kaushik, Sharat Saxena, Paresh Ganatra, Gurmeet Saajan, Rana Ranbir, Salman Khan as Mastana (Cameo Appearance), Rekha Special Appearance, Sonakshi Sinha Special Appearance and Gippy Grewal as Cameo Appearance.

The soundtrack of the film has been composed by Sanjeev-Darshan, Sachet - Parampara, Vishal Mishra and D Soldierz while the lyrics have been written by Pulkit Rishi, Kunwar Juneja and D Soldierz. The song "Rafta Rafta" which is rapped by Rekha and sung by Sonakshi Sinha. The film has songs like "Little Little", "Nazarbattu" and "Rafta Rafta Medley".    

Stree

Stree (English: Woman) is an Indian horror comedy film directed by Amar Kaushik and produced by Dinesh Vijan and Raj Nidimoru and Krishna D.K. under the banner of Maddock Films in association with D2RFilms. The film is based on the Indian urban legend, Nale Ba, about a witch who knocks on people's doors at night. Stree stars Rajkummar Rao, Shraddha Kapoor, Pankaj Tripathi and Aparshakti Khurrana.

In the town, there are fables of this strange woman who calls men by their name and abducts them, leaving their clothes behind. Nobody knows any facts - and those who are abducted seldom show up to tell stories - but the fear is palpable. Everybody diligently makes sure the inscription O Stree, Kal Aana (O Woman, Come Tomorrow) is written on their walls, and at night try and stay indoors.

The film has Shraddha Kapoor as Stree, Rajkummar Rao as Vicky, Pankaj Tripathi as Rudra, Aparshakti Khurrana as Bittu, Abhishek Banerjee, Vijay Raaz, Nora Fatehi (special appearance in song "Kamariya") and Kriti Sanon (special appearance in song "Aao Kabhi Haveli Pe").

The music for the film has been composed by Sachin-Jigar. The lyrics are written by Vayu, Badshah and Jigar Saraiya. The film has songs like "Milegi Milegi", "Kamariya", "Nazar Na Lag Jaaye" and "Aao Kabhi Haveli Pe".

Papillon

Papillon is a 2017 biographical drama film directed by Michael Noer. It tells the story of French convict Henri Charrière (Charlie Hunnam), nicknamed "Papillon", who was imprisoned in 1933 and escaped in 1941 with the help of another convict, counterfeiter Louis Dega (Rami Malek). The film's screenplay is based on Charrière's autobiographies Papillon and Banco, as well as the former's 1973 film adaptation, which was written by Dalton Trumbo and Lorenzo Semple Jr. and starred Steve McQueen and Dustin Hoffman.

Papillon follows the epic story of Henri “Papillon” Charrière, a safecracker from the Parisian underworld who was unjustly convicted of murder and condemned to life in a notorious penal colony on Devil’s Island in French Guiana, South America. Determined to regain his freedom, Papillon forms an unlikely alliance with quirky convicted counterfeiter Louis Dega, who in exchange for his protection, agrees to finance Papillon’s escape, ultimately resulting in a bond of lasting friendship. The film is based on the international best-selling autobiographic books Papillon and Banco.

The film has Charlie Hunnam as Henri "Papillon" Charrière, Rami Malek as Louis Dega, Roland Møller as Celier, Tommy Flanagan as Masked Breton, Eve Hewson as Nenette, Michael Socha as Julot, Ian Beattie as Toussaint, Yorick van Wageningen as Warden Barrot, Nikola Kent as Deputy Warden Brioulet and Petar Cirica as Abda.

Dinesh Kamath's news 'The 3rd edition of Lonavala International Film Festival India 2018 (LIFFI) is all set to enthrall film lovers From 7th to 9th September 2018 at ‘Triose Plaza, Lonavala’' that was published in Newsband

The 3rd edition of Lonavala International Film Festival India 2018 (LIFFI) is all set to enthrall film lovers

From 7th to 9th September 2018 at ‘Triose Plaza, Lonavala’

By Dinesh Kamath

Ø  An engaging and captivating International Film Festival for film enthusiasts, providing them with a platform to explore and experience different genres of films under one roof

Ø  The festival will kickstart with Bimal Roy’s epic “ Sujata “ & Sridhar Rangayan’s “Evening Shadows” followed with 16 Films,3 Master Class & Interactive seminars will  be conducted to impart learning and an enriching experience for film students and enthusiasts.

Ø  As a tribute to the ace Director Bimal Roy’s unparalleled contribution to Indian Cinema, six of his widely acclaimed films will be showcased. A short documentary on him will also be screened on the occasion. This section will be curated by his daughter Ms. Rinki Roy Bhattacharya.

Ø  As a precursor to the festival, there will be an exhibition of Bimal Roy’s film posters, stills, memorabilia, and artifacts from 1st September onwards at Triose Plaza. Books about him authored / edited by his daughter will be on sale at special prices.

The 1st and 2nd editions of LIFFI witnessed immense interest and participation from all over. The 3rd edition of LIFFI 2018 is all set to enthrall cinema lovers with its wide range of films. LIFFI 2018 is setting the right tone to offer its visitors and patrons a completely different and a memorable “Cinematic Experience”. The Festival which has been scaling new heights since its inception, will have a variety of add-ons this time. This includes Q&A sessions after each screening, workshops, master classes etc.

Bimal Roy’s classics films like Devdas, Bandini, Madhumati’ and others. Marathi films like ‘Nude, Kachcha Limboo, Dr. Rakhmabai’ will also be screened. Other engaging activities include an interactive session with Director Ananth Mahadevan on his remarkable movie Life is Good and Dr. Rakhmabai. Director and Producer Viveck Vaswani will conduct a thought provoking workshop with the media students. Due to popular demand, his film Rough Book screened in LIFFI 2016 has been included once again. Other films like Iqbal, Joggers Park, Kashmakash, “The Genius – Ramanujan” and the 1st Ukrainian English Animation film "The Stolen Princess’ will also be screened at the venue in English & Hindi

Students from reputed media schools from Mumbai, Lonavala and Pune have been invited for this festival with a view to help them improve their skills and gain knowledge. LIFFI 2018 aims to provide a unique and everlasting experience to all its visitors through this entertaining medium.

Bimal Roy’s Documentary link: https://www.dropbox.com/s/dwcw90odjvodt81/VTS_01_1.VOB?dl=0

Links of the movie posters -

Ø  Nude (Marathi): http://www.ultraindia.com/files/nude.jpg

Ø  Iqbal (Hindi): http://www.ultraindia.com/files/iqbal.jpg

Ø  Devdas (Hindi): http://www.ultraindia.com/files/devdas.jpg

Ø  Evening Shadows (Hindi): http://www.ultraindia.com/files/es_poster.jpg

Ø  The Stolen Princess (English + Hindi): http://www.ultraindia.com/files/THE-STOLEN-PRINCESS-ENGLISH-POSTER.jpg

“Lonavala International Film Festival India 2018” is organized by Triose Plaza. Mr. Madhav Todi is the Festival Director. Mr. Viveck Vaswani is the curator of the festival. The Chief Patron for the festival is Mr. Sushil Kumar Agrawal, Managing Director, Ultra Media and Entertainment Pvt Ltd.”

Dinesh Kamath's Editorial 'Dynastic politics in Tamil Nadu' that was published in Newsband

Dynastic politics in Tamil Nadu

As DMK president, Stalin has no challengers from within in winning the political legacy of his father M. Karunanidhi. The undisputed leader of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, M.K. Stalin faced the greatest challenge from within his immediate family than from the wider party organisation. Stalin also needed to beat back the challenge from his elder brother, M.K. Alagiri. Alagiri had been expelled from the party in 2014 on the suggestion of Karunanidhi himself. Alagiri is putting up a fight from outside the party. He is politically isolated now. Unless Stalin leads the DMK to successive electoral defeats, Alagiri cannot hope to win back any support within the party.

For Stalin, the real worry is not his brother but his political opponents. The election that matters most for him, the Tamil Nadu Assembly election, is not due for another three years. Stalin must be hoping that the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam government of Edappadi K. Palaniswami will not survive that long, The entry of film actors Kamal Haasan and Rajinikanth into electoral politics has introduced new variables into the political mix.

Stalin will need to reinvent himself and the DMK. Sons succeeding fathers as political leaders, and that also unopposed, is not good for demicracy. Unless Azhagiri and Kanimozhi unite and float a party, there is no scope for the former in political arena. By outwitting his elder brother, Stalin has shown that he has learnt the tricks of the trade fairly well. The big question is whether he will use this to earn the support of the people of Tamil Nadu by instigating programmes that will benefit the common man, or whether he will use his Machiavellian expertise to amass personal wealth. Only time will tell.

The fact that this is yet another dynastic fight does not augur well for the people of Tamil Nadu. The people of Tamil Nadu, like those in other parts of India appear to believe in modern versions of Kings and Queens ruling the state. A pathetic situation.

It may be too early to conclude that there is no challenge to Stalin. Discontent is brewing and may pose future obstacles. The other son Allagiri is waiting to bid his claim. It is not appropriating the legacy but appropriating the family business. The media unfortunately allows this kind of family political companies to flourish instead of condemning the lack of democratic space in these parties.

If one looks at the Tamil Nadu political scenario pragmatically, there is no real challenge facing Stalin's ascent to power as its next CM. However, for him to retain power, it will be essential for him to break away from the past political processes of patronage and drive towards corruption-free government focused on rapid social, scientific and economic development, setting aside old political red herrings of caste and religious questions, to bring Tamil Nadu into the 21st century comity of civilized communities.He will feel disruptive pressures from Delhi, and elsewhere.

DMK reached the top, although the group was split into a formidable AIADMK under MG Ramachandran (MGR) that continued to have sway in TN during Jaya's period, through Tamil and Dravida sentiments. Karuna Nidhi played with his deft hands, mainly oratory skills and one-upmanship in Political maneuvering. Today the situations and challenges are different: Jobs to young people; Industrial and Agricultural development; affordable housing; affordable medical support and social inequality - these are prime matters that need attention of any Political party, and if Stalin is able to lead his group on even just one of those problem-solutions, he could be the next BIG Tamil Nadu leader. Or else, he would simply be another also-ran Leader like a Vaiko/ Ramdos/Mooppnar etc. The TN cauldron is hotting up.

The challenges before Stalin are bigger than what his father faced in his long political journey. The chief among them is to maintain the firm hold his father kept till the end on the party and the rock solid support he commanded from the cadres. The squabbles within the family are only likely to increase instead of abatement. Much depends on the outcome of the ongoing cases against Maran brothers and Kanimozhi. He should be able to quickly overcome the impending surprises and shocks. The lacklustre performance of the state government should create a tailwind for Comrade Stalin.

Dinesh Kamath's Editorial 'Neeraj Chopra creates history' that was published in Newsband

Neeraj Chopra creates history

India's Neeraj Chopra won the gold medal in the men's javelin throw event at the 18th Asian Games in Jakarta on August 27, 2018. One must thank his coach Uwe Hohn. Liu Qizhen of China was a distant second while Pakistan’s Arshad Nadeem won the bronze.

Neeraj Chopra became the first Indian javelin-thrower to win an Asian Games gold medal as he shattered his own national record by clearing a distance of 88.06m in Jakarta on Monday. Chopra’s gold is only the second medal India has won in javelin throw in Asian Games history after Gurtej Singh won bronze in 1982 in New Delhi. The 20-year-old’s winning throw came in his third attempt. He began with 83.46m and fouled the second attempt.

The Commonwealth Games and reigning Asian champion completely dominated the competition as he bettered his own national record of 87.43, which he had come up with in Doha during the first leg of the Diamond League series in May. None of the competitors in the field had a 85-plus throw this season.

Chopra has also shown a great responsibility towards nation. His achievement is because of his hard work and dedication. Sports authority of India had accurately picked him up for the right job. Blessings and love of India's people is always with Neeraj and we hope he earns more gold medals in the future with same hard work and dedication towards his passionate game jevelin. A great future lies ahead for Neeraj. Let's hope that his achievement will inspire the Indian Government to make more investment in providing facilities and training for children to become future champions.

Dinesh Kamath's Editorial 'Is Legislative Council necessary?' that was published in Newsband

Is Legislative Council necessary?

Is there a need of a second chamber in States? Is there was any real benefit in having a Legislative Council? If yes, then all States in the country should have a second chamber.

There are only seven such Councils. Odisha’s State Cabinet has approved a 49-member Legislative Council. The process of creating an Upper House is lengthy. The State Assembly has to pass a resolution. Parliament has to enact a law to create it.

An Upper House provides a forum for academicians and intellectuals. This forum is likely to be used to accommodate party functionaries who fail to get elected.

Today, legislatures draw their talent both from the grassroots level and the higher echelons of learning. There are enough numbers of doctors, teachers and other professionals in most political parties today.

There are disadvantages too. Unless there are specific functions of upper houses in the states, they may be used for ' rehabilitation ' of the political leaders. Councils may serve as a back-door entry to live a luxurious life without any accountability and responsibility. Hence all legislative councils should be abolished. Their sole purpose is to give administrative powers to persons who are rejected by the people.

Rather than such absurd councils, the need of the hour is to set up a bench which could evaluate and testify all the projects if they are being carried out without any corruption and to ensure that the work is not restricted on paper only but on the ground reality as well. However, it is no wonder that politicians are more interested in keep pushing this country behind in place of taking it forward and in addition to that, citizens are also not at all interested in having better basic amenities like pot hole free roads, good infrastructure etc.

What are the advantages? If there is a legislative council with necessary power to evaluate the laws passed in the assembly, certainly it will be a check on laws passed on the assembly by parties which are not conducive to the welfare of the people. If formed, a legislative council should not be teethless just to affix the rubber stamp for the laws created by the assembly without constructive criticisms and discussions. The party members must not be eligible to become members in such council and only members with no party affiliation will give neutral analysis of legislative laws that will be brought to the floor. But dummy councils containing party people is useless and better to shun with it.

Dinesh Kamath's Editorial 'Prevent catastrophe' that was published in Newsband

Prevent catastrophe

There should be a focus on the Western Ghats ecology. The catastrophic monsoon floods in Kerala and parts of Karnataka is a wake-up call. There is need for preservation of the fragile western peninsular region. The recent havoc in Kerala is a consequence of short-sighted policymaking, and warned that Goa may also be in the line of nature’s fury.

Western Ghats should be a matter of concern to state governments of Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Goa and Maharashtra. The task before the governments of these states is to initiate correctives to environmental policy decisions. There is a need for stronger protection of the Western Ghats ecology.

Quarrying and mining near the sea should be controlled. Find out the sensitive core and what activities can be carried out there. The goal has to be sustainable development for the Ghats as a whole. The role of big hydroelectric dams, built during an era of rising power demand and deficits, must now be considered afresh and proposals for new ones dropped. Other low-impact forms of green energy led by solar power are available. Kerala’s Finance Minister, Thomas Isaac, has acknowledged the need to review decisions affecting the environment, in the wake of the floods.

Indian rainfall is controlled by orography - Western Ghats, Eastern Ghats, Himalayan Mountains - destruction of these not only affect the rainfall but also cause disaster. In the case of Kerala it caused severe disaster and inundated the rivers with rubbles, mud, etc. This caused the reduction in the water holding capacity of the rivers that flooded the state.

The other ecological disaster is the violation of CRZ norms by realtors and government [MoEF&CC] by reducing the zone to favour tourism activities and helping sand mafia to remove sand from the river mouths where they meet the Sea. This forced sea water in to rivers. Cutting of mangroves - protective walls - helped this process by not able to protect the sea water waves. We make laws but government weakens them to serve their vested interests. Bureaucrats blindly support them. These are lakhs of crores business.

Undoubtedly it is the outcome of ignoring experts’ reports. Every citizen should urge the Governements to pay proper attention at least now. As we are trying to keep the national goals ahead of the personal goals, we need to keep environment protection ahead of developments to save the human loss which is most essential.

Humans have destroyed whole environment to fulfill their unnecessary selfish desire. But, now the time has come to wake up from deep sleep. There are many ways to save us from natural calamities but one of the important way is that there should be ban on the activities like mining and industrial development in those cities which are situated near the sea.

While the recent floods in Kerala may not be directly connected to the destruction of the ecological balance in the Western Ghat, it is prudent to preserve the forests which reduce the green-house gases and thereby decelerate the process of global warming. Despite warnings from ecologists, the forest area in the ghat region is being destroyed by mining and industrial activities. The imbalance in climate is causing extreme and erratic climate changes

Ignoring people has become the norms and practice of the Government. Concerned citizens are ridiculed & portrayed as anti-development. The redressal cells should be formed at all level and public voice must be counted.

Dinesh Kamath's Editorial 'No harm in accepting foreign aid' that was published in Newsband

No harm in accepting foreign aid

The Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson said that “in line with the existing policy”, the Central government would meet requirements in Kerala through “domestic efforts”. Various governments have made specific offers to Kerala, from about ₹700 crore from the UAE to about ₹35 lakh from the Maldives. The spokesperson added that only PIOs, NRIs or international foundations could send money from overseas to the Prime Minister’s or Chief Minister’s relief fund.

Offers of aid from foreign governments must naturally be scrutinised to see if they compromise national security and other interests. But to stand on notions of self-reliance in a multilateral world, to spurn a helping hand, is to be beholden to a strange pride. There is no shame in taking help, just as there should be no hesitation in offering it. India has a longstanding tradition of rushing help elsewhere.

The most important point is whether India govt. has the capacity to make up the loss sustained in this devastating flood of the century? If India govt. can provide succour and relief in cash and in kind in keeping with the gravity of the situation then this snooty gesture bears some meaning otherwise it will be treated as a ploy, to score brownie points, by the central govt. over this issue. Of course the issue of security should be of paramount importance. But, the country like UAE, Maldives do not seem to be holding out helping hands with any malafide intent. Moreover, these small countries might take it as an insult for not showing respect towards their tiny yet sincere gesture. India will surely get opportunity to reciprocate this gesture. In this time of severe crisis we can embolden our diplomatic ties with the smaller countries by respecting their sincere attitude of help keeping the internal politics at bay. The opposition should stand by the govt. in accepting help.

The centre should examine each case and allow request for help since we have accepted such aids in the past and also given aid to others. UAE is a special case since they have a genuine desire to help due to their feeling that Keralites had a role in development of their nation. UPA's denial in the past need not be treated as a rule or policy but just a decision considering the then existing geo-political situation

There should not be any objection to accept the assistance from foreign countries when they accept our assistance when they are/were in distress

Dinesh Kamath's Editorial 'Protect the elephants' that was published in Newsband

Protect the elephants

Elephant corridors need to be protected. The Supreme Court has ordered to seal and close 27 resorts operating in corridors used by elephants in the Nilgiris to restore the ecology of these spaces.

The movement of elephants is essential to ensure that their populations are genetically viable, and help regenerate forests on which other species, including tigers, depend. Ending human interference in the pathways of elephants is necessary so that they don’t conflict with people. Such conflict claim the lives of about 450 people and lead to the death of nearly 100 elephants in retaliatory actions every year on average.

A review of elephant corridors indicates that there are 101 such identified pathways, of which almost 70% are used regularly. There are an estimated 6,500 elephants in just the Brahmagiri-Nilgiris-Eastern Ghats ranges. There is need for complete protection of the routes they regularly use.

Effort should be to expand elephant corridors, using the successful models within the country. About 40% of elephant reserves are vulnerable.

It is good initiative by the Apex Court for welfare of wild life animals. The other important issue that the railways authority should devise a suitable mechanism to avoid deaths of many wild life-animals and elephants due to collision with trains at railway tracks using state of- the- art technology especially in North Eastern States and other parts of the country. This may be of immense valuable to save the life of animals.

The SC has positively acted on ecological conservation and protection of wild species. Since governments are not showing any intent and offering forest areas to big corporates to plunder, SC should monitor other forest lands too from being pillaged

Wild Corridors for elephants and tigers are necessary to be expanded, and kept defragmented. Human activities like agriculture and road laying have to be discreet and if necessary should be in the form of Forest Flyovers; priority has to be for wild life activities, foraging preying and mating, to keep genetic diversity intact. Activities in forest fringes have to be monitored with a view to minimising civilisational commercial interventions; official training/dedication is needed to become freed from commercial temptation; politicians here are lacking in perspective and idealism. Rain water harvesting in forest fringes facilitating all weather availability is necessary; water bodies have to be complementarily preserved in as much as wild corridors. Denudation of forests are known to be behind flooding and drought calamities. Preservation of flora and fauna in all their diversity is a part of preserving land fertility and promotion of agricultural productivity/diversity in India.

Dinesh Kamath’s column ‘New movies released in Navi Mumbai’ (Happy Phir Bhag Jayegi, Genius, Karim Mohammed, Blue Jean Blues and Mile 22) that was published in Newsband

New movies released in Navi Mumbai

By Dinesh Kamath

Happy Phirr Bhag Jayegi

Happy Phirr Bhag Jayegi (transl. Happy will run away again;) is a Bollywood comedy film directed by Mudassar Aziz and produced by Anand L. Rai and Krishika Lulla. The film is a sequel to Happy Bhag Jayegi (2016). It stars Diana Penty returning as the eponymous character and Sonakshi Sinha. The production features an ensemble cast consisting of Penty, Sinha, Jimmy Sheirgill, Ali Fazal, Jassi Gill.

The film is a sequel of the sleeper hit, Happy Bhag Jayegi, with Diana Penty in the lead. The delightful film had a Punjabi girl who runs away from her marriage only to land up in Pakistan. Her fiancé, the police of Pakistan and sundry other people are after her and a comedy of errors follows. Happy is a funny person—she obviously has a distinct comic streak to her and is often oblivious of it herself. She often finds herself in untenable situations but invariably wriggles out of them.

The film has Sonakshi Sinha as Harpreet “Happy” Kaur, Diana Penty as Harpreet “Happy” Kaur (extended special appearance), Jimmy Sheirgill as Daman Singh Bagga, Ali Fazal as Guddu, Jassi Gill as Khushwant Singh Gill, Piyush Mishra as Usman Afridi, Aparshakti Khurana, Jason Tham as Chang and Bijou Thaangjam as Chinese Agent.

The soundtrack of the film has been composed by Sohail Sen while the lyrics are written by Mudassar Aziz and Qamar Jalalabadi (noted). The film has songs like "Swag Saha Nahi Jaye" sung by Sohail Sen, Shadab Faridi, Neha Bhasin, Shivangi Bhayana, "Happy Bhag Jayegi" by Daler Mehndi, Harshdeep Kaur, Suvarna Tiwari, "Chin Chin Chu" (Lyrics by Qamar Jalalabadi) by Jassi Gill, Sonakshi Sinha, Mudassar Aziz, "Koi Gal Nai" by        Shahid Mallya, Piyush Mishra, Rap by: Mudassar Aziz and "Kudiye Ni Tere" by Udit Narayan, Shivangi Bhayana.

Genius

Genius is an Indian action thriller film directed by Anil Sharma. It marks the debut of his son Utkarsh Sharma as a male lead, who also featured as a child actor in Sharma's 2001 blockbuster film Gadar: Ek Prem Katha. Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Mithun Chakraborty are in supporting roles in the film.

An orphan, with a brilliant mind, only wants one thing in his life: love. He finds it, but, by then he has joined RAW and is now burdened by the killing of his entire team. Until he doesn't avenge their death, he can't live in peace with his love. So, he hatches a genius plan.

The film has Utkarsh Sharma as Vasudev Shastri aka Genius, Ishitha Chauhan as Nandini Chauhan, Nawazuddin Siddiqui as Gangster Shah, Mithun Chakraborty as Devraj Mathur, Ayesha Jhulka, Zakir Hussain, Malati Chahar, Rajiv Kachroo, Abhimanyu Singh, K. K. Raina, Dev Gill, Amit Gupta, Gaurav Shinde and Parul Sharma.

The music of the film is composed by Himesh Reshammiya and Monty Sharma has done the background score while lyrics are penned by Manoj Muntashir, Kumaar, Shabbir Ahmed. The film has songs like "Tera Fitoor", "Dil Meri Na Sune", "Tujhse Kahan Juda Hoon Main", "Holi Biraj Ma", "Pyar Le Pyar De" and "Dil Meri Na Sune" (Reprise).

Karim Mohammed

Karim Mohammed is a film directed by Pawan Kumar Sharma and Writing Credits go to Jitendra Gupta. The film is produced by Ravindra Singh Rajawat and producer of Music is Balkrishan Sharma.

The film focusses on Kashmir’s Bakarwal community and their daily struggles within the terrorism fraught nomadic way of life. The protagonist is a young, bright and extremely curious boy, Karim Mohammed, whose point-of-view forms the lens for most of the film. The issues of adult self-preservation wrestle it out throughout the film’s narrative through the complexities of truth and the child's innocence. This film tries to show the life of the Bakarwals through the eyes of a child. Communities who live in the borderlands often end up harboring terrorists out of fear for their lives and to ensure the safety of their families. However, when these terrorists loot them off their food, clothing, and family members, the question that comes to the front is the importance of ‘zameer’ [integrity] in our ways of life. The first half of the film reveals the idyllic relationship of a family with their ecosystem and other members of the community, as their nomadic lifestyle is played out. Multiple episodes of filial bonding of the Bakarwals and the terrorists interrupting their idyll by looting or assaulting the community members along their travels make the focus of the film. The teachings of the father on loyalty, nationalism and zameer along with anecdotes of brave saints infuse Karim with ideals and ideas, while the pragmatism of the mother provides reality checks on these flights of fancy, every now and then. However, this serenity of existence soon meets an irrevocable dramatic tragedy that pronounces a clash of ideologies within the community and forces Karim to make some uncomfortable choices. A narrative that wishes to tackle the sensitive topicality of being a Muslim in a heavily Islamophobic world, especially within areas of conflict and struggles across India, would need further explication of actions and motivations, and the concept of truth beyond an often-reductive reliance on the idea of zameer.

The film has Yashpal Sharma as Hamid, Alka Amin as Mahvish Aapa, Rajesh Jais as Aaftaab, Ravi Jhanghu         as Rizvan, Juhi as Naazeen and Harshit Rajawat as Mohammed

Blue Jean Blues

Blue Jean Blues is directed by Nitin Mahajan who gets the writing credits too.  The film is produced by Nitin Mahajan and music composers are Kedar Divekar and Anay Gadgil.

A geeky 23 year old goes in to severe depression following a series of unfortunate incidents that occur to him. His friends and family try their best to get him out of it, but it is up to him to realize that the answers that he seeks lie within him.

The film has Raj Thakur as Krishna, Shweta Bist as Madhumita, Ashwini Ekbote as Devaki, Sanjeevkumar Patil as Kartik Mama, Radhika Deshmukh as Garima, Tejas Madhale        as Ajay, Dheeraj Kulkarni as Pankaj, Sunny Aherkar as Pranav, Shreyas Behere        as Aditya and Apoorwa Gurav as Riddhi.

Mile 22

Mile 22 is a 2018 American action thriller film directed by Peter Berg and written by Lea Carpenter, from a story by Carpenter and Graham Roland. The film stars Mark Wahlberg, John Malkovich, Lauren Cohan, Iko Uwais, Ronda Rousey, and follows an elite CIA task force, composed of paramilitary officers from Ground Branch of Special Activities Division, that has to escort a high-priority asset 22 miles to an extraction point while being hunted by terrorists.

CIA operative James Silva leads a small but lethal paramilitary team on an urgent and dangerous mission. They must transport a foreign intelligence asset from an American embassy in Southeast Asia to an airfield for extraction -- a distance of 22 miles. Silva and the soldiers soon find themselves in a race against time as the city's military, police and street gangs close in to reclaim the asset.

The film has Mark Wahlberg as James Silva / "child 1", Iko Uwais as Li Noor, John Malkovich as James Bishop / "Mother", Lauren Cohan as Alice Kerr / "child 2", Ronda Rousey as Sam Snow / "child 3", Nikolai Nikolaeff as Alexander, Carlo Alban as Douglas / "child 4", Terry Kinney as Johnny Porter, Poorna Jagannathan as Ambassador Dorothy Brady, Sam Medina as Axel, Alexandra Vino as Sergeant Thomas, Cedric Gervais as Greg Vickers, CL as Queen, Emily Skeggs as M.I.T. and Peter Berg as Lucas.

Dinesh Kamath's Editorial 'Imran Khan likes India, but what about Pak Army?' that was published in Newsband

Imran Khan likes India, but what about Pak Army?

There is controversy over Punjab Minister Navjot Singh Sidhu’s presence at Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan’s swearing-in ceremony. Imran Khan singled out India as a foreign policy relationship he hoped to work on, offering to walk “two steps for every one step” that India took. Narendra Modi responded with a phone call, and they spoke of a shared vision of “peace and development”. Resuming bilateral cricket is high on Imran Khan’s agenda for improving people-to-people ties.

Well-chosen words, however, will not be enough. Both leaders face political realities that could inhibit them from taking any major risks. To begin with, the situation at the Line of Control urgently needs attention, and a restoration of the ceasefire would be a major move forward for both countries. Imran Khan would earn more goodwill by directly addressing India’s concerns on the support to terrorists in Pakistan, and those being pushed over the LoC.

Imran Khan blamed the previous government for not having a tie with India and he has promised that he will look forward to solve Line of Control problem. But Pakistan is run by four internal powerful forces - Pak Army, ISI, Civilian, and Terrorist groups, and one external force - China. Any peace initiative by the civilian government is thwarted by Pak army and ISI with the help of terror groups like Lasker and Jaise. However, as Imran Khan is Pak army candidate, and China wants its CPEC to be successful, we can expect some forward movement in our relation with Pakistan. The positive remarks emanating from Pakistan cannot be discarded in rubbish bin.

Having failed to find a solution to Kashmir issue both India and Pakistan have demonstrated low intelligence. Pakistan was created on the premise of superiority of a particular faith over other faiths and is sustained by an enduring hatred and contempt for the non-believers. As such, all peace gestures from it should be spurned by India until it gives up its bogus claim over Kashmir and accepts it as an integral part of India.

Engaging in a meaningful dialogue with a clear agenda and time frame is very important. Pakistan should stop backing the terrorists and stop killings on both sides. Restoring peace in Kashmir is the top most priority. Talk and carry on talking until both sides realize that peace serves both countries. We have a lot in common, be it poetry, language and cinema topics, not to mention the food. But terrorism and Kashmir are the major hurdles, but history teaches us that all issues can be solved.

Only if the governments of both countries act above their party lines, peace would be a possibility. Or else, the tensions may continue. In the last four years, India has become a de-facto Hindu state and the trust factor has definitely taken a big hit in this period. The two nations were born on religious grounds. But for India we had a PM who was agnostic and moved it towards a secular agenda.

Modi has been criticized globally for his numerous failures and hence expecting any miraculous things from Imran will also be the same. It is all about just wait and watch because Politicians are more interested in earning from the issues rather than resolving them permanently.

No Pak PM can decide the fate of the India-Pak relationship. Pak Army Chief’s message to Sidhu about the policy decision to open Dera Baba Nanak corridor soon, conveys unmistakably who rules the roost there. Pak is cleverly playing on Punjabi bonhomie. Imran Khan (IK), as PM, is also going to reside in military secretary's house! IK has been an unapologetic supporter of Taliban, earning him the sobriquet 'Taliban Khan', as well as the founding member of Diffa-e-Pakistan, a group of terrorist and extremist organizations formed to prevent any thawing of relationship between India & Pak. His close advisers like Quereshi and Shireen Mazari are very shrill anti-India crusaders. With razor-thin majority, IK is under Army’s thumb.

Dinesh Kamath's Editorial 'India should not walk out of RCEP' that was published in Newsband

India should not walk out of RCEP

There were negotiations on the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), among 16 Asian and Pacific Ocean countries. They were the 10 ASEAN members and their Free Trade Agreement (FTA) partners, Australia, China, India, Japan, New Zealand and Republic of Korea. They want a “substantive agreement” on the trade deal by the end of this year. This was made clear at a meeting in Singapore.

India is among the countries that will have to take a call at this point, and the government has decided to set up a group of four ministers to advise Prime Minister Narendra Modi in this matter. India is the one country that doesn’t have an FTA with China, the government has proposed a “differential market access” strategy for China, which others are inclined to accept. After the Wuhan summit, China increased access for Indian goods such as pharma and agricultural products. There were demands by other RCEP countries for lower customs duties on a number of products and greater access to the market. The more developed RCEP countries did not accept India’s demands to liberalise their services regime and allow freer mobility of Indian workers.

Slowing down India’s RCEP engagement or walking out of the talks at this stage, owing to forthcoming elections, will give China further space in the regional trade and security architecture. At a time when the U.S. has broken from the global concord on multilateral trade agreements, an Indian walkout would cause more danger.  

India must press for more importance to WTO and less and less of the FTA with multiple partners. The FTA are making a mockery of the WTO and the simple rule based system. For businesses it is becoming more and more complicated and challenging to compete. Indian business suffer from high cost of capital, corruption and poor infrastructure, while other countries dump their products in India.

For "Look East", India can give easy travel for people and stick by the rules of WTO. India should approach the situation realistically with its need based policies rather than arbitrary decision of pulling out abruptly. The hesitation and fears to allow goods, services and manifold labour from other countries, here the RCEP countries with 40% of world GDP, show up the continuing archaic mercantilism, the merchants' manufacturers' and govts' policy opposition to import/economic contacts with foreign countries. This 18th,19th century economic policy proclivity has become inapplicable in view of technology, science and communication explosion. Economic symbiosis has been waiting to happen; govts and vested interests are refusing to learn from this. Adding to this backwardness is the tendency of rabble rousing parochial sentiments of power hungry politicians, rather uncommitted to Democracy and people's welfare in an all inclusive sense. Divisive politics operates in the name of welfare and protecting local interests. Regional economies have their own contributions to make comparative advantage. For example, there can be manpower contributions at various levels to even advanced economies from India.

India need not play down on RCEP absolutely and slow pedal until it gets the rhythm of joining other members with trade augmenting strategies. US shuns its role in multilateral trade and China is shaky on its major trade with US .Hence India can play the minimum role to use opportunities left by China and US in consonance with the trade of other RCEP members. Hit out or get out cannot be the strategy.

First of all, we should strengthen our manufacturing sector before giving greater access to other regional nations. Around 30 crore people are below poverty line. Our first aim should be giving proper employment to them.

India's exports over the last five years are lower than the level they attained in 2013 - 14. With oil prices hardening, we are back to having an annual trade deficit of $ 200 billion, even as remittances and software exports are levelling off. There is a worrying return to protectionism after a generation. Our diplomatic outreach to Asean and Africa is not being supported by robust growth of trade and investment flows. Inevitably, if we walk out of RCEP, all these countries will place us in the Talk, not Walk category.