Pakistan: Now or Never?
Perspectives on Pakistan
Between golf and war, Pakistan’s General Kayani’s future is debated
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The Pakistan Army prides itself on being an institution which rises above politics and personal ambition, committed to defend the interests of the nation. That this has not always been the case is demonstrated by its history of military coups, and a tendency of past military rulers, from General Zia ul-Haq to former president Pervez Musharraf, to impose a very personal brand of leadership. Where Zia pushed Pakistan towards hardline Islam, Musharraf aimed at “enlightened moderation” in a country he wanted modelled more on Turkey than on Saudi Arabia.
While no one expects the military to launch another coup, some of that historical memory is feeding into increasingly intense speculation about the future of Pakistan Army chief General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, who is due to retire in November.
The general who is arguably Pakistan’s most powerful man has given few clues as to whether he might seek an extension in office beyond November. But earlier this week Pakistani paper The News reported that the army’s corps commanders wanted him to stay on to see through the battle against Islamist militants in the tribal areas bordering Afghanistan. One theory doing the rounds is that Kayani could be appointed as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, with oversight over the air force and navy as well as the army, and with the role given enhanced powers to ensure he remains in command.
Kayani has been credited with restoring the army’s image in Pakistan - it had suffered from the popular resentment against Musharraf, who stepped down in 2008 . He has also made it clear the military had no intention of taking over the country, although it continues to call the shots on foreign and security policy. He has overseen some successful operations in the tribal areas and built a reasonable working relationship with the Americans.
A former head of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agency, Kayani never gives public interviews and therefore remains somewhat inscrutable for those trying to gauge his attitude to the United States or Pakistan’s traditional enemy India. That said, he has always made his views clear when it seemed that either the United States or the civilian government were about to over-step the boundary into what the Pakistan Army considers its own domain. A suggestion floated by President Asif Ali Zardari in 2008 that Pakistan adopt a policy of no first use of nuclear weapons was quickly dropped after raising hackles in the army which determinedly guards its control of the nuclear arsenal.
Kayani spoke out fiercely against a reported incursion by U.S. ground troops in 2008 and in 2009 condemned provisions in the Kerry-Lugar U.S. aid package which called for greater civilian oversight of military appointments and promotions.
The civilian government has given mixed messages about whether it wants Kayani to stay on, but is seen as unlikely to challenge the military or the United States if either or both of them decide they need to keep him in command. In any case, after a rocky start, the civilian government and the military appear to have found – for now at least – an accommodation with each other in which the government relies on the army to fight the Pakistani Taliban in the tribal areas and knows better than to cross its red lines when it comes to foreign and security policy.
Pakistani analysts, journalists and officials I have spoken to tend to have mixed views on whether Kayani should stay on beyond November – although so far at least the discussion is rarely as animated as it can be on other subjects involving Pakistan.
On one side are those who say that Pakistan needs to build its institutions - from the government to the military to the judiciary – rather than allowing itself to be dominated, as has happened in the past, by a single strong personality. “Generally speaking we should not rely on people; we should rely on institutions,” argued one senior Pakistani journalist. “Otherwise you get the example of Zia and Musharraf, who took the country from one side to the other.” Moreover, the power of the army in the past has been blamed for never allowing democracy to mature – behaving as it does as an anxious parent who lets his child learn to crawl, but gets worried when he or she learns to run.
On the other are those who argue that Pakistan, above all, needs continuity right now – and nowhere more so than in the army. The United States is deeply unpopular in an army which while not Islamicised, is nonetheless manned by Muslims, many of whom are seriously unhappy about American policies following the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks, including its campaign in Afghanistan and invasion of Iraq. (I once had the experience of having to change the subject from Iraq to Kashmir during a lunch with some Pakistani army officers in order to bring us into calmer territory.)
No one is expecting disgruntled junior officers to rebel against their seniors because of Pakistan’s support for the United States – the army is extremely disciplined, as Anatol Lieven, a professor at Kings College in London, argues in this article for the National Interest. But the army is nonetheless involved in fighting its own people in the tribal areas and – so the proponents of an extension for Kayani argue – would cope with the strains better if he were to stay on.
It seems unlikely we will get an answer any time soon on whether Kayani will stay on after November - the inscrutable general has not in the past behaved like a man who would show his cards before he needed to. All we can say with near-certainty is what he might do if he were to retire. According to the official biography on the website of the army’s Inter-Services Public Relations wing, he is an avid golfer and President of Pakistan Golf Association.
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@G W
I assume you do not want my comments to your rant. People like you must believe that this forum is for propaganda purpose or spreading venom to your assumed opponents. I am not from Pakistan not have any affiliation with your apparent adopted land. I wonder about the source of your unnecessary aggression towards others.
Rex Minor
mirzausman:
@I sleep well at night. I suspect 10 centuries of subjugation can’t be washed away as easily as you would have us believe.
—–First I admire you of accepting that Pakistan lost wars. But are you finding solace in Mughal glory for that?
Also by doing so, are you not insulting your Hindu ancestors who were converted to Islam (much like how Sikhs and Hindus are getting converted to Islam in Pakistan)?
There is nothing worse than not knowing ones roots. But that is not your fault. Your fault is you think your ancestors came on horses and you are the direct pure lineage of that martial brigade. Hmmmm…..quite an assumption that one!
Perhaps you and all those who want to Sing songs of Mughal glory should get their genotyping done. With human genome sequenced and the availability of cheaper new technology, you can get it done now and become eligible to sing songs of Mughal glory.
My point is one will be cautious in stating something that attacks one’s own roots. Isn;t it?
@ “Perhaps you and all those who want to Sing songs of Mughal glory should get their genotyping done” Posted by RajeevK
I would imagine that mmany of the genotyping centers in Pakistan would be mandatorily giving ‘hangig ropes’ as parting gifts to their clients since many of them, like ‘mirzausman’ would be using them once the reults are in
@ mirzausman
Somehow, I had missed your statement that Pakistanis shouldn’t be called as ‘Indians’. Can you PLEASE tell that to your country-men living here in the US & west, who are dumping their Pakistani identity in a rush & busy posing as ‘Indians’ in an effort to gain some respect, which is hard to come by as a Pakistani these days, in light of the extra cirricular activities of your “non-state actors” across the world.
@pakistan,
What propaganda have I stated, have I stated anything that is factually untrue? I don’t need to spread propaganda, the fact that every other day a Pakistani’ trained terrorist is caught, is enough for anybody to point fingers at Pakistan on an almost weekly or monthly basis.
I just get irate when I see Pakistani’s crying foul for Kashmiri muslims, when Pakistani’s in 1971, genocided the poor Bengali’s, minorities are constitutionally and legally lower on the ladder than Sunni’s. That kind of injustice and constitutionally deliberate disproportional treatment of others is racist with the intent to kill off minorities over time and that really makes my blood boil.
If you see my standing up to ignorance as kind of venom, so be it.
>> I shall try to respond to all of your queries.
expected you to accept them since doing so would eaquate to expecting a delusional schizophrenic to accept his misdeeds, which is always an excercise in futility.
>> Expect to accept to eaquate (sic) to expecting to accept misdeeds. Why don’t you put your thoughts together and get back to us. You did not prove Al qaeda is a pakistani proxy. so fail.
since you had to balance all your “losses” and coudn’t find any wins of your own,
>> Pay attention. Go back, Read.
you had to dig into the 1100s to eek out some “wins” by Mahmud Ghazni & Ghori thump on his chest? Lol!
>> Is thumping your chest for Bangladeshi heroism any different?
And may I ask, what gives Pakistanis like you, the right to thump their chests on a those Persian invaders?
>> No, no. You are thinking of Nadir Shah of Persia. I know, So many conquerors, it can be a bit confusing. I was referring to Pushtun and Balochi man-handling the Marathas — It doesn’t get any more indigenous to Pakistan than that. You can come visit a couple Baluchi & Pashtun brothers in my mohallah. If you want I can “reacquaint” you.
It’s quite comedic when ‘identity challanged’ Pakistanis like you claim persian, arabian & turkish ancestries,
>> I think you have some sort of attention-span dysfunction. I did not claim p/a/t ancestry. That’s what you imagined I said because you have been indoctrinated to believe this.
Pakistanis being the descendants of Mughals, who won wars centuries ago in what is now India, Pakistan & Afghanistan, what does that have anything to do with today?
>> I was not aware that there was a rule on this forum that restricts discussion to 1971-2010. I will make a mental note of this.
Wake up from your slumber, open your eyes & you will see that in 2010, your country is Failed & bankrupt State which is only known in the world for it’s export of terrorism
>> I think you are forgetting our other exports: Shaan Masala, Karachi Gosht, Burfi, Biriyani & Evil. Moderator, please note this discrepancy.
& it’s begging appetite
>> Begging Statistics
AID TO INDIA: 168.3 Billion USD
AID TO PAKSITAN: 59.9 Billion USD
Source: OECD
My apologies to OECD. you along with Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch will forever be branded as “ISI propaganda”.
wheras India is regarded by the world (including Islamic nations) as a rising economic power & respected globally.
>> No, actually they think 3 mega technology parks, call-center coolies surrounded by a massive slum the size of 4 large sub-saharan countries. They think slumdog millionaire, city of joy & temple of doom plus open public defecation. Please note that I disagree with this perception. I thought City of Joy was too upbeat and glamorous.
These are the facts as they exist today, whether Pakistanis like you accept them or not.
>> We accept baba, we accept. 1.3 billion people = Economy smaller than Italy. If the Chinese bragged 1/10th as much as you, the internet would run out of disk space.
I think if one could rewind the tapes, so to speak and if they could watch in horror as their hindu ancestors were butchered, and subjugated to extremely cruel treatment and genocide, and converted by the sword,
>> How does one convert by sword after a genocide? I am troubled by the sequence of your logic.
that they would not be able to stand and say the same thing that they have been taught.
>> Let’s entertain your theory for the purpose of humor.
1. If Islam was so inherently wicked that it required unmatched violence to spread its message, why did Hindu Indonesia, Malaysia accept islam without a maurauding army of muslim ogres?
2. If Islam was so hell-bent on liquidating hindus, why did it pass laws to stop the practice of suttee and caste system? why not let the women kill themselves? why fight for equality for sudras? How effective was this genocide that resulted in the world’s most densely populated nation?
3. No race has been as battered for so long, so viciously and so consistently as the Jews. The catholic inquisition has no match in its horrific suppression of judaism. Yet Jews managed to keep their traditions. Why is it that upon 1000 years of reflection, the Muslims of South Asia have not returned to Hinduism or Buddhism? Indeed, Why does it continue to grow to this day?
I have a feeling that sometimes humans only learn when they lose everything and all hope, that is when they learn and become wise. Perhaps that is the situation with Pakistan, time will tell. At the end of the day, I have a feeling, it will be India to come to the rescue aid of the Pakistani’s, after they plead with India, after things go wrong there, nobody else will come to help Pakistani’s, not China, not anybody, only Indians.
>> This is what I love about you pretentious, self-righteous Indians. So unashamedly self-adulating that I find it almost.. adorable. “Pakistan come to plead to us and then we help” — classic. Read your last 20 posts, you celebrate when we bleed, you rejoice when we suffer.
Pakistanis like mirzausman will certainly learn their lesson & the day isn’t too far either
>> Could you give me a timeline? I want to plan my holidays around the cataclysm.
History will repeat itself in Pakistan, once it is talibanized.
>> So India will get conquered again? I don’t quite follow.
Only this time, it will be muslims persecuting muslims & we are already seeing the begining. How ironic, indeed!
>> Yes how deliciously ironic indeed… ooh I think I just leaked some bodily fluids just at the thought of Pakistan imploding.
@G W
I assume you do not want my comments to your rant. People like you must believe that this forum is for propaganda purpose or spreading venom to your assumed opponents. I am not from Pakistan not have any affiliation with your apparent adopted land. I wonder about the source of your unnecessary aggression towards others.
Rex Minor
>> Rex, don’t be disheartened. you are talking to a people that blame the ISI every time there is an unexpected pregnancy.
—–First I admire you of accepting that Pakistan lost wars.
>> I am sure this was the only needle in a haystack of “fact-distortions”.
But are you finding solace in Mughal glory for that?
>> Not so much solace as dismay at man’s inherently violent nature. Not claiming Mughals so much as the Ghauris, Durranis, Suris, Lodhis, Ghazni etc. Do I have your permission?
Also by doing so, are you not insulting your Hindu ancestors who were converted to Islam ?
>> My Hindu/Buddhist/Pagan/Zoroastarian ancestors converted for reasons other than your preferred national narrative.
There is nothing worse than not knowing ones roots. But that is not your fault. Your fault is you think your ancestors came on horses and you are the direct pure lineage of that martial brigade.
>> There is more than just a religious aspect to our rivalry. Is it a nationalistic rivalry. We are ALL descendants of apes. Why don’t you abandon hinduism and start throwng feces at each other?
Hmmmm…..quite an assumption that one! Perhaps you and all those who want to Sing songs of Mughal glory should get their genotyping done. With human genome sequenced and the availability of cheaper new technology, you can get it done now and become eligible to sing songs of Mughal glory.
>> So the NWFP will be proven to be the same as Tamils? Balochis will be proven to be no longer from the Iranian plateau? Descendents of Arabs and Jews in India are no longer semitic? Parsis are no long Persian? Tamils are no longer Dravidian? This is a hang-up more for Indians than Pakistanis. I think this crippling history weighs heavily on you and dominates your hostile attitudes towards modern-Pakistan. Personally, I take great pride in my South Asian heritage. I am the inheritor of the IVC, the buddhist gandhara civilization. I have no issues with hindu ancestry. Our prophet’s family was pagan. Our moral compass and national poet’s grandparents were brahmin Hindus. Our beautiful national anthem was written by a hindu in farsi. Our parliament has hindus. Please stop insulting hindus.
Ask yourself this, Why does Muhammad Ali, a black american take pride in Cordoba/Andalusia of a millenium ago? Why do Turks take pride in Muhammad Ali a retired former world champion from a different country thousands of miles away? If tomorrow a Sudra accepts Islam, he is AS Muslim as the direct descendant of the prophet. That’s the beauty of Islam that you Islam-haters will never quite comprehend.
My point is one will be cautious in stating something that attacks one’s own roots. Isn;t it?
>> Budhism was dominant in Pakistan area (if memory serves) from 500 Bc to 500 Ad, Islam was introduced in 700 AD, it spread for the various reasons:
1. Conversions occurred for non-religious reasons of pragmatism and patronage such as social mobility among the Muslim ruling elite or for relief from taxes
2. Conversion was a result of the actions of Sufi saints and involved a genuine change of heart
3. Conversion came from majority Buddhists and the en masse conversions of lower castes for social liberation and as a rejection of oppressive existent Hindu caste strictures.
4. Was a combination, initially made under duress or opportunism followed by a genuine change of heart
5. As a socio-cultural process of diffusion and integration over an extended period of time into the sphere of the dominant Muslim civilization and global polity at large.
6. Conversion was a result of Islam’s inspirational message that continues to grow to this day.
Somehow, I had missed your statement that Pakistanis shouldn’t be called as ‘Indians’.
>> Face it. You are slow and the moment has passed. Even after two days of reflection, your rebuttal still comes off concocted, stale and weak. I heard Indian students in Australia are passing themselves off as Pakistanis.
Final Thought:
I wish no insult to decent indians or hindus — These responses are for obsessed pakistan-haters.
Regards,
http://reformistani.wordpress.com
What propaganda have I stated, have I stated anything that is factually untrue
>> you stated Al-Qaeda is a proxy of the Pakistani government. This is factually untrue.
With Love,
Mirza
Mirza
@Do I have your permission?
–Son! what’s the point if you are not going to listen to me? you are independent since last 63yrs and you may do whatever.
I love your shifty logic which you use to suit your taste!!!
@I suspect 10 centuries of subjugation can’t be washed away as easily as you would have us believe.
”
@My Hindu/Buddhist/Pagan/Zoroastarian ancestors converted for reasons other than your preferred national narrative.
so you know for certain the reason of conversion. Is it the chest-thumping “subjugation of Indians” or is it one of those subjugation,,,followed by conversion,,,,followed by change of heart,,,,many centuries later,,,,to a point where that lineage has “Mirza” who now claims subjugation as some sort of victory and feels happy about it. Note first quote of yours “us”. How comical!
—
@How does one convert by sword after a genocide? I am troubled by the sequence of your logic.”
–are u trying to get mileage out of words. I tell u how. Invaders kill and reign terror—”subjugation” and For a vulnerable and what a better way than to convert and join the invaders than be invaded. Like your ancestors did.
@1. Conversions occurred for non-religious reasons of pragmatism and patronage such as social mobility among the Muslim ruling elite or for relief from taxes”
—you mean much like what Sikhs in Pakistan would do for the fear of sword (err bullet) and Jaziya (taxes). Is this is pragmatism by your logic. Clapping!
>> There is more than just a religious aspect to our rivalry. Is it a nationalistic rivalry. We are ALL descendants of apes. Why don’t you abandon hinduism and start throwng feces at each other?
—-I have no idea what you are blabbering.
@”feces”. This one takes the cake. is this what you were taught in your school.well a report from Pakistan says so. And yes another assumption that I am a Hindu.
@So the NWFP will be proven to be the same as Tamils? Balochis will be proven to be no longer from the Iranian plateau? Descendents of Arabs and Jews in India are no longer semitic? Parsis are no long Persian? Tamils are no longer Dravidian? This is a hang-up more for Indians than Pakistanis. I think this crippling history weighs heavily on you and dominates your hostile attitudes towards modern-Pakistan.”
–Perhaps you seriously missed the point. No need to do all this. Let people have their identity,,,,changed overtime or remained original does not matter. Just live your life and let other live theirs. The day you dig history and make certain assumptions and false claims, it will get dirty like it is happening now.
The 17th century thinker, theologist and philosapher Descartes said that since people do not complain about the lack of commonsence, proves that the God all mighty has given this ability to the whole humanity. In my view he ignored the fact that people having not sufficient commonsence would not easily detect or admit this shortcoming. I do not mean to belittle anyone’s ability to think, but to equate an american citizen alleged crime in the USA to his visit to his former country Pakistan and getting PHD in explosives can only be imagined by a person or a group of people having the lowest level of commonsense. More logical would be to call him a human and then blaming the entire Humanity for alleged crime. What a sad state of affairs in the USA, they should check the identity of the people involved in the oil company who have dug a hole which is likely to prove more destructive for North America, than the more destructive than the few minutes inconvenience for the NY traffic. The security people from Israel to the USA are going crackers. It is the fear which paralysis the countries and people.
Gentlemen, there is no need to throw mud at each other quoting historical events, most of history is usually not very accurate, but follow the current affairs where handful of talibans have engaged the so called powerful countries with their marines who are bogged down and are struggling to avoid the humiliation of the former Soviet Union. Have a nice day
Rex Minor
Mirza,
@ “Why don’t you put your thoughts togethe and get back to us. You did not prove Al qaeda is a pakistani proxy”
What I meant, would be clear to anyone with an average IQ & moderate understanding of the english language but I guess you get confused with similar sounding words in the same sentence. I’ll try to keep it simple for you next time, my apologies!
Al Qaeda-Pakistani connection: As per the 9/11 review commitee, ISI transferred over $100,000 to Al Qaeda operative & ring leader of 9/11 Mohammad Atta in the weeks & months leading upto 9/11, which he used to pay for flying lessons & living expenses.
http://911review.org/Sept11Wiki/Atta-Isi .shtml
@”You can come visit a couple Baluchi & Pashtun brothers in my mohallah. If you want I can “reacquaint” you”
Actually, I’ve come across & known quite a few of your Baluchi & Pashtun “brothers” as well & I can’t really quote the expletive laden language they use in relation to Pakistan, on this blog. At a time when Baluchis & Pashtuns can’t wait to be disassociated from Pakistan, your comment seems quite comical.
@”It doesn’t get any more indigenous to Pakistan than that”
Wrong about that one too. Baluchis & Pashtuns form less than 20% os Pakistan’s population.
@”I think you are forgetting our other exports: Shaan Masala, Karachi Gosht, Burfi, Biriyani”
Read my comment again. The operative phrase there is “known for”.
@”We accept baba, we accept. 1.3 billion people = Economy smaller than Italy”
Country GDP- Purchasing Power Parity (2009) : 1. USA – 14,260,000, 2. China – 8,789,000, 3. Japan – 4,137,000, India – 3,560,000, Germany – 2,811,000
(India expected to overatake Japan by 2012)
Population (2010) – 1.18 bln, so you’re off by just 120 mln
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cou ntries_by_GDP_(PPP)
@”If the Chinese bragged 1/10th as much as you, the internet would run out of disk space”
For bravery, you thump on the chests of foreign invaders, for economy you thump on the chests of the chinese. Do you guys have any achievements of your own to speak of, so that for once, you can thump your own chests? Oh, I forgot, you are climbing up the “Failed State Index” quite rapidly. You could be # 1 in a couple of yrs & thump your chests in front of Somalia & Sudan. Good luck!
@”So India will get conquered again? I don’t quite follow”
I’m sorry, I forgot you need to be explained things thoroughy. You probably just forgot that Pakistan was once, a part of India.
@ they think 3 mega technology parks, call-center coolies surrounded by a massive slum”
Is that why India is among the top 3 destinations for foreign investment & amongst the top 5 in tourism growth, gobally?
Is that why S & P and Goldman Sachs rate India’s economy, along with China’s, as the best in the world & most analysts expect it to be a mojor global power by 2020-2025?
Is that why 7 Indian companies are amongst 50 of the world’s fastest growing companies, as per forbes?
Actaully the perception which you describe above is something which is resereved exclusively “for Pakisanis only”. Given that your own failed country resembles a pathetic sh**t-hole, I understand that it helps you guys sleep better at night. So keep dreaming & my sympathies!
@”Face it. You are slow and the moment has passed. Even after two days of reflection, your rebuttal still comes off concocted”
Gosh, did I miss the deadline? Next time please leave me a note about the cut-off time & date, so that I can put my life on hold & submit my response to your nonsense, in good time. Also, I’m really crushed that you find my rebuttal weak!
BTW, You still haven’t responded about the genocide of Bengalis by your army, so a big fat FAIL!
Do you guys have any achievements of your own to speak of, so that for once, you can thump your own chests?
>> Yes one important achievement: Being the only small country in South Asia to check Bharat’s hegemony dead in its track. Given the disparity in size, this is no minor task. The second feat: Surviving against all odds. We have survived – even if you hate us – you must appreciate this fact.
It is not part of the Pakistani character to self-congratulate and self-promote. we don’t run to the internet to post the latest 5 rupee increase in per capita income. It’s just not part of our nature. However if you insist, here are some humble facts and accomplishments:
* World’s 6th largest Nation – 165.8 Million Population
* World’s third largest English Speaking Nation
* World’s 5th largest democracy
* One of the World’s fastest growing economy despite a one in 100 century eartqhquakes that destroyed an entire province/state
* 6th largest standing armed forces – 0.7 Million strong
* 300 dailies, 400 weeklies and 700 periodicals (circul. of 10 million)
* GDP $128.83 Billion. (GDP rate: 7%)
* 7th largest pool of scientists and engineers in the World.
* Pakistan – The Legacy of Majestic Mughal Empire
* Pakistan – The Land of the Oldest Civilization – Indus Valley
* Pakistan – The Land of the Oldest City of the World – Moenjodaro
* Pakistan – The Roof of the World, Five out of 14 highest peaks are in Pakistan (K-2, Nanga Parbat, Gesherbrum I & II, Broad Peak,
* Disteghil Sar, Rakapushi, Kanjut Sar, Tirich Mir, Masherbrum)
* Pakistan – Some of the longest glaciers outside polar region are in Pakistan
* Pakistan – The Largest Salt Deposits – Khewra Mines
* Pakistan – One of the Largest reserves of Natural Gas
* One of the largest Bird Sanctuaries in the World – Haleji Lake
* World-class recognition in Textile, IT, Engineering Services, Automobile Parts
* Road on the top of the world – Karakoram Highway (16,000 feet)
* World’s one of the largest reserves of Chromium Ore
* Pakistan – The largest explored reserves of Coal at Thar.
* Pakistan – Agha Khan University, Karachi has recently been
* declared as 2nd best residence medical university of theworld
* Pakistan – World’s 9th Biggest Produced of Cotton
* Pakistan – Largest network of water distribution canals in the world.
* Pakistan – Third Largest Producer of Milk
* Pakistan – Fifth Largest Producer of Dates
* Pakistan World Champion in Cricket, Hockey, Squash, Wrestling, Snooker
* 6th largest standing armed forces – 0.7 Million strong
* Established Nuclear Power
* JF17 Thunder (equivalent to F16) completely built in Pakistan and being exported
* AGOSTA 90b submarines – completely built in Pakistan
* Al-Khalid Tank, completely built in Pakistan and having better standards than other modern tanks from the developing countries.
* Indigenously Developed Nuclear Weapon Carrying Missiles
* Complete Aircraft Rebuilding Complex in Kamra
* Indigenous Manufacturing of Pilot less Aircraft, “Uqaab”
* 80 Million Cell phone Users
* Karachi Stock Exchange was the world’s best performing
* stock market in 2005 & 2006 with a market capitalization of over 45 billion dollars.
* The availability of natural gas in 60% of house-holds via net-work of pipes
* Largest net-work of man-made irrigation water-canals in the world
* Global Manpower – almost in every country
* World’s Biggest Earth-filled Dam – Tarbela Dam
* Five of the world’s major Automobile makers are obtaining components from Pakistan companies
* This business fetched Pakistan $0.25 Billion in 2004, and will reach $2 Billion by 2010.
* New emerging industries areas include, Mechatronics, Bio-Technology,
* Clinical Research and Pharmaceuticals.
* Carrier Air Conditioning Co, the American giant for Air Conditioning
* equipment is to set-up Research and Development Center in Pakistan
* Pakistan revenues from Information Technology Industry will reach $ 5
* billion in the year 2010.
* Many American companies have shown interest in opening software
* design Centers in Pakistan.
* Pakistan is one of the world’s largest exporter of textiles and related products such as yarn
* and cotton.
* Garment exports are expected to increase from the current level of $ 1.5 billion to $ 5 billion by 2010.
* Pakistan is one of the world’s largest Jewellery and precious gems exporter in the world, its exports were worth $ 48 Million in 2007.
* About 4 out of 10 precious stones sold anywhere in the world, pass through Pakistan.
* Mobile phones are growing by about 1.0Million a month. Long distance rates are down by two-thirds in five years and by 80% for data transmission
* Many US and European Giants Chains sources $ 0.5 Billion worth of goods from Pakistan –
* Quarter of their apparel. It is expected to increase to $ 2 Billion in the next couple of years.
* The country’s foreign exchange reserves stand at an all-time high of $16 Billion.
* Export of Engineering goods – 282 Million at the end of 2007
* Pakistan is among Seven countries that launch their own satellites .
* Pakistan’s PAKSAT is among the world’s largest domestic satellite communication
* systems.
* Pakistan is among only few countries that have ADVANCED SPACE PROGRAM.
* All of its satellites were indigenously manufactured.
* Pakistan is one of the countries which intends to put its national Spacecraft in Space.
* Pakistan is among the few countries in the World that have built its own Nuclear
* Power Station by its own indigenous technology.
* Pakistan is among the few countries in the World that have built its own Training
* Aircraft (Mashaq) by its own indigenous technology.
* It has also prepaid millions owed to the World Bank and Asian Development Bank.
* Pakistan is providing aid to 7 countries, writing-off their debt including Bosnia (20
* Million US$).
* The Pakistani pharmaceutical industry at $ 1.4 billion and growing
* at 8% annually, is the 8th largest pharmaceutical industry in the
* world, and is expected to be worth $2.0 billion by 2010.
* Its exports are over $0.75 billion. Pakistan is among the top ten bulk
* drug makers and at home, the local industry has edged out the Multi-
* National companies.
* Trade of medicinal plants has crossed $ 500M already.
* There are 40 biotechnology companies in Pakistan, involved in the
* development and manufacture of genomic drugs, whose business is
* growing exponentially.
Pakistan: Foreign Multi-National Companies
* Top 5 American employers of Pakistanis:
* General Electric: : 2,600 employees
* Hewlett-Packard : 1,200 employees
* IBM : 2,500 employees
* American Express : 1,500 employees
* Dell : 2,200 employees
* It is estimated that there are 80,000 IT professionals in
* Pakistan as against 120,000 in Silicon Valley.
Pakistan: Technology Power
* Over 50 Foreign Companies have plan to set up R&D facilities in Pakistan
* in the past five years. These include GE, Bell Labs, Du Pont, Daimler
* Chrysler, Eli Lilly, Intel, Monsanto, Texas Instruments, Caterpillar, Cummins,
* GM, Microsoft and IBM.
* Pakistan’s telecom infrastructure between Karachi, Lahore and New York,
* provides one of the largest bandwidth capacity in the world.
* With more than 50 universities, 15 research institutions and 20 highereducation
* institutes, Pakistan produces 20,000 engineering graduates
* and another 10,000 technically trained graduates every year.
* Besides, another 0.1 million other graduates qualify out in Pakistan annually.
* NED, UET- Lahore, NUST, GIK IST, LUMS, and FAST are among
* the top universities from where many of the world’s biggest consulting
* firms hire most.
Pakistani Overseas Work Force – 7.5 Million
* United States of America 1.5 million
* United Kingdom and Ireland 2.0 Million
* Canada 500,000
* Western Europe 100,000
* Saudi Arabia 1,200,000
* United Arab Emirates 300,000
* Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman, Yemen 200,000
* Australia, New Zealand 30,000
Pakistanis in the USA.
* Of the 1.5M Pakistanis living in the USA, 1/5th of them live in the Silicon Valley.
* 10% of Silicon Valley start-ups are by Pakistanis.
* Pakistani students are the fifth largest in number among foreign students in USA.
* Statistics that show:
* 5% of doctors in the USA,
* 6% of scientists in the USA,
* 9% of NASA scientists,
* 10% of Microsoft employees,
* 6% of IBM employees,
* 9% of INTEL scientists,
* 7% of XEROX employees,
* … are Pakistanis
Distinguished Pakistanis
* First Asian Governor General of British Common Wealth – Mohammad Ali Jinnah
* Nobel Prize in Physics, 1979 – Dr. Abdus Salam
* Designer and Architect of Sears Towers – Dr. Fazal ur Rahman
* Twice Nominated for Nobel Prize in Chemistry – Dr. Saleem uzzaman Siddiqui
* First Governor of Saudi Monetary Agency (SAMA) – Anwar Ali
* Author of Constitution of Malaysia – Fazal Qader
* Chief Advisor to Five Year Economic Plans, South Korea –Maboob ul Haque
* Founder of Int. Center for Theoretical Physics, Trieste, Italy – Dr. Abdus Salam
* World’s Top Desalination Expert – Fayyaz Muddassir Mubeen
* King of Squash, President International Squash Federation – Jehangir Khan
Distinguished Pakistanis
* First Commander-in-Chief of Zimbabwe Air Force – Air Chief Marshal Dawood Pota
* MP in the British Parliament – Lord Nazeer Ahmed
* Developer of Indigenous Nuclear Technology in Pakistan – Dr. Abdul Qadeer Khan
* Among Top Ten IT Investor (according to Forbes) – Asad Jamal (e-Planet)
* Pakistani Executive who was awarded British OBE Award – Munawar Hamid (ICI)
* Pakistani who gunned down 5 enemy aircrafts in single dog flight – Sq. Ldr. M.M. Alam
* President of U.N Gen Assembly/Judge of Int. Court of Justice – Zafarullah Khan
* World Squash Champions – Hashim Khan, Roshan Khan, Azam Jehangir Khan,
* Mohibullah, Jehangir Khan, Jan Sher Khan, Qamar Zaman
* Pakistani Admiral in British Navy – Rear Admiral Amjad Hussain (app. 15 April 2006)
* Pakistani who Conquered Mount Everest –- Nazir Sabir
Distinguished Pakistanis
* Founder of BCCI and FAST – Agha Hasan Abdi
* Winner of King Faisal International Award – Maulana Abul Ala Maudoodi
* World Leader in Organic Chemistry – Dr. Attaur Rehman
* Member of 2008 Nobel Peace Prize Panel with Al-Gore – Prof. Adil Najam
* World’s Top Cricket Legend (499 in 1st Class/334 in Test)- Hanif Mohammad
* Poet of the East, Philosopher of the Nations – Sir Mohammad Iqbal
* World’s Top Hockey Legends – Islahuddin, Rashid Jr., Samiullah,
* World’ Youngest Certified Microsoft Expert – Arfa Karim
* Princess of Jordan – Princess Sarwat (Wife of Prince Hasan)
* Pakistani who Conquered K-2 Second Highest Peak –- Aman Ashraf
* Author of United Nations Human Charter – Ghullam Ali Allana
* Nominee for 2009 Nobel Peach Prize – Abdus Sattar Eidhi
* Architect of Saudi Desalination Program – Arshad Hussain
* Dean of Engineering/Jeddah University – Prof. Dr. Mohammad Ibrahim
* World’s Top War Planner & Strategist – General Hameed Gul
* Ruler of the State of Bhopal – Princess Abida Sultan
* Designer of the Singapore Seaport – Captain Jalal
* US Representative in Organization of Islamic Countries (OIC)- Sada Cumber
None of you losers answered MY questions about your denigration of Islam.
1. If Islam was so inherently wicked that it required unmatched violence to spread its message, why did Hindu Indonesia, Malaysia accept islam without a maurauding army of muslim ogres?
2. If Islam was so hell-bent on liquidating hindus, why did it pass laws to stop the practice of suttee and caste system? why not let the women kill themselves? why fight for equality for sudras? How effective was this genocide that resulted in the world’s most densely populated nation?
3. No race has been as battered for so long, so viciously and so consistently as the Jews. The catholic inquisition has no match in its horrific suppression of judaism. Yet Jews managed to keep their traditions. Why is it that upon 1000 years of reflection, the Muslims of South Asia have not returned to Hinduism or Buddhism or Paganism or Zoaraostarianism? Indeed, Why does it continue to grow to this day?
4. Muslims ruled India for 1000 years, yet 75% remained non-muslim – Where was the “genocide”?
What I meant, would be clear to anyone with an average IQ & moderate understanding of the english language but I guess you get confused with similar sounding words in the same sentence. I’ll try to keep it simple for you next time, my apologies!
>> Sorry my angreJi is weak. I have trouble with run-on sentences. Inch’allah with your assistance, I hope to improve.
Al Qaeda-Pakistani connection
>> Loose connection not the same as proxy; fail #4
Actually, I’ve come across & known quite a few of your Baluchi & Pashtun “brothers” as well & I can’t really quote the expletive laden language they use in relation to Pakistan, on this blog. At a time when Baluchis & Pashtuns can’t wait to be disassociated from Pakistan, your comment seems quite comical.
>> Were these fake pathans like Irfan Pathan or real brothers like Shahid Afridi? It’s interesting that you are a serial pak-hater yet you socialize with Baluchis in another country. I live in Karachi and I know ONE baluchi family which we love dearly. Finally, were there words as vicious as kashmiris, kamtapur, karbi, nagaland, dimasaland, manipu, mizoram, punjab khalistanis, tripura.
Wrong about that one too. Baluchis & Pashtuns form less than 20% os Pakistan’s population.
>> And this matters how ??? of course 5% of those 20% are your friends!
@”I think you are forgetting our other exports: Shaan Masala, Karachi Gosht, Burfi, Biriyani”
Read my comment again. The operative phrase there is “known for”.
>> you are so utterly humorless, that you can’t comprehend a joke.
I’m sorry, I forgot you need to be explained things thoroughy. You probably just forgot that Pakistan was once, a part of India.
>> Just like pakistan, there was never a country “India” before the Muslims conquered states, city-states etc. and the British consolidated the conquered territory. FAIL.
Where is the mention of the country of India that spans from the “indus to burma”?? Can someone please help. All I can find is these countries, city-states, kingdoms, religions, races, cultures that existed in south asia…
* Mahajanapadas
* Harappa
* Gandhara
* Magadha
* Nanda kingdom
* Maurya kingdom
* Sunga kingdom
* Kanva kingdom
* Kharavela kingdom
* Kuninda Kingdom
* Indo Scythian Kingdom
* Chera dynasty
* Pandyan Kingdom
* Chola kingdom which spread to Malaya, Indonesia, Ceylon
* Satavahana kingdom
* Indo-Greek Kingdom
* Indo-Parthian Kingdom
* Western Satraps
* Kushan kingdom
* Indo-Sassanid Kingdom
* Kalabhras Kingdom
* Gupta kingdom
* Pallava dynasty
* Kadamba Dynasty
* Western Ganga Dynasty
* Vishnukundina
* Huna Kingdom
* Chalukya dynasty
* Harsha
* Eastern Chalukyas
* Pratihara kingdom
* Pala kingdom
* Rashtrakuta Dynasty
* Paramara dynasty
* Yadava Kingdom
* Solanki
* Western Chalukya kingdom
* Hoysala kingdom
* Sena dynasty
* Eastern Ganga dynasty
* Kakatiya dynasty
* Kalachuri
* Muslim Sultanates
o Delhi Sultanate
* Ahom Kingdom
* Vijayanagara kingdom
* Kingdom of Mysore
* Madurai
* Thanjavur Nayak kingdom
* Maratha kingdom
* Sikh kingdom
* Mughal kingdom
* British Empire – included Afghanistan, Kashmir, Burma, Thailand, Andaman, Nicobar, Ceylon, Malaysia, New Guinea, Somalia, Oman, Yemen, Maldives
To the sikh gentleman above, i understand that you hate pakistan, that’s fine. I just want you to know we respect and admire you. when you come here for your pilgrimage, we extend tremendous hospitality. sikhs sometimes get their bills paid anonymously in restaurants. the only gripe i have with you is how you kicked our backsides in indo-pak wars. i demand that you not join the indian army.
as for mistreatment of sikhs, i apologize personally but as we all know there is an extremist element here. please find it in your heart to treat us individually.
If this is not possible, i understand.
The accomplishments of the past and/or sheer geographic good fortune are largely irrelevant. Is it really relevant today that there was some dude who shot down 5 planes in a battle three decades ago? Or that Pakistan was home of the Mughal Empire? Or that Pakistan is the roof of the world? How is any of that relevant to the situation at hand?
What concerns the rest of the world is the state of Pakistan today. Whereas before Pakistan aspired to be a thorn in India’s side, today Pakistan’s policies are increasingly threatening global peace and security. And even it’s own national security as well. It’s incredible that some Pakistanis take such a flippant attitude to this turn of events.
Democracy is incredibly fragile in Pakistan. Extremism is on the rise. And so is intolerance.
None of that would be any concern to the rest of us if it all stayed inside Pakistan. If Pakistanis want to kill each other, after all, what is it to the rest of the world?
Unfortunately, it’s not that way. The vast, vast majority of terror plots in the West are traced back to Pakistan. Their problems are becoming our problems. And that’s the issue.
Yet, it’s clear from this article that we don’t even know who’s in charge in Pakistan. Can anybody imagine that Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff dictating to the US President what to do or how long the CJCS would keep his post?
I am not saying that Kayani is a bad leader. He’s actually a terrific leader. But something is seriously wrong when the civilian government doesn’t even have the confidence and authority when a guy like Kayani is in-charge. What does this say about the state of democracy in Pakistan?
@”KeithZ” Indian masquerading as American,
The value of Pakistan through the cold war, soviet-afghan war and post 9/11 is well understood by real Americans. Only an indian agitator would call Al-Qaeda a proxy of Pakistan.
—-
I am neither Indian nor American. If you had read my past comments on this forum, you’d know that. But whatever. If that’s the best you can come up with when somebody challenges your points so be it. “oooooh he’s…he’s INDIAN!!!!”
And you obviously can’t read or read very selectively. I said AQ was sheltered by Pakistani proxies. What else would you call the Taliban?
http://www.fundforpeace.org/web/index.ph p?option=com_content&task=view&id=99&Ite mid=140
This is what keeps me up at night. I am lucky to live in a country that’s green. But I worry about those red patches sending their problems our way!
mirzausman,
If this is what you call an accomplishment, and this is what Pakistanis trumpet as successes, I am staring to wonder if the world has even more to be worried about with Pakistan:
http://reformistani.wordpress.com/2010/0 6/06/indian-women-gaga-over-pakistani-me n/
To flip your arguments around (might as well enjoy the agitation since you seem that type), why is that successful Pakistani men need to find their matches outside Pakistan? What does that say about Pakistani women, when their men take pride in getting foreign brides?
And is it really a point of national pride that Britney Spears had a Pakistani boyfriend? Heck, after her recent antics most Americans I know would be ashamed to admit she’s a yank!
Anyway, keep up your work. It’ll make a good historical record some day of how educated and middle class Pakistanis proved to be really ignorant and bought into Zaid Hamid’s vision for reform in Pakistan. Reformistan indeed.
Oh Usman,
I found another gem on your site:
http://reformistani.wordpress.com/2010/0 5/17/muslim-girl-wins-miss-usa/
Seems like you and the Taliban aren’t that far apart on your views on the place of women in society.
So tell us again what type of reform you are pushing for in Pakistan?
By the way, here in the West, we don’t judge people by their race or religion. It’s a testament to the multi-culturalism of the West (and in particular the USA) that a lady of Muslim Lebanese descent can win Miss USA.
And if you had bothered to get past your typical male chauvinism, you’d have read her bio that says she has degrees in economics and business management (from the University of Michigan no less) and will be attending law school after her one year stint as Miss USA. Beauty and brains? What a concept…
there was some dude who shot down 5 planes in a battle three decades ago?
>> This record stands to this very day. So it is relevant. Gopal initiated the conversation about “Indian” martial heroics from decades past so I am not sure why this is not acceptable as a response.
Or that Pakistan was home of the Mughal Empire? Or that Pakistan is the roof of the world? How is any of that relevant to the situation at hand? What concerns the rest of the world is the state of Pakistan today.
>> Gopal’s assertion is that there is not a grain of sand that is good in Pakistan, that nothing productive has occurred here. He challenged me to provide dubba-dubba-ding-ding facts, so I did as humble as they may be. Since you have a horrible case of confirmation bias, you were highly selective in what you wish to discuss.
Whereas before Pakistan aspired to be a thorn in India’s side, today Pakistan’s policies are increasingly threatening global peace and security. And even it’s own national security as well. It’s incredible that some Pakistanis take such a flippant attitude to this turn of events.
>> If only Pakistan held 1/1000th of the influence you think it wields. First of all the Afghans defeated 3 superpowers for a combined total of 4 times. You think the jokers in Islamabad can do a damn thing about Pushtun warriors? Are Americans/Russians/Indians even remotely complicit in the destabilization of the region? Read a book not authored by the RSS. Who left with a flippant attitude in the vacuum of soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan?
None of that would be any concern to the rest of us if it all stayed inside Pakistan. If Pakistanis want to kill each other, after all, what is it to the rest of the world?
>> Quite right, when Iraqis die by the thousands or Afghans or Palestinians or Kashmiris – It doesn’t matter. When India kills 3000 Muslims in Gujrat, 5000 Sikhs in Punjab or 100,000 kashmiris, it does not matter until it does.
Unfortunately, it’s not that way. The vast, vast majority of terror plots in the West are traced back to Pakistan. Their problems are becoming our problems. And that’s the issue.
>> Americans flushed them into our wild-west border. An area that was not controllable by the British Empire at its zenith, the Soviets at its zenith and now America at its zenith, can’t be controlled by Pakistan. This is why we have given US the green light on the drone thingies. Speaking of the drones, when are they exporting that technology to us? We need them for our eastern, I mean western border.
Yet, it’s clear from this article that we don’t even know who’s in charge in Pakistan. Can anybody imagine that Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff dictating to the US President what to do or how long the CJCS would keep his post?
>> I agree with you here.
What does that say about Pakistani women, when their men take pride in getting foreign brides?
>> let’s just say our women are not as “charitable” as our Indian/Western hostesses. Also, picking off the cream of the crop in India given the male competition is a statistical dream.
And is it really a point of national pride that Britney Spears had a Pakistani boyfriend? Heck, after her recent antics most Americans I know would be ashamed to admit she’s a yank!
>> I didn’t write that article you ninny some Indian did. and “LEAVE BRITTANY ALONE!!!” lol.
So tell us again what type of reform you are pushing for in Pakistan?
>> Take your inherited colonialist attitude somewhere else. This isn’t 1800′s when western countries could terrorize “noble savages” and impose their will on their subjects. We don’t want to ape your culture like some cheesy bollywood flick. We will reform as WE see fit as WE wish on our own terms. Please refrain from intruding in our internal matters.
I am glad you enjoy my super-sexy blog. Thanks for your support.
Peace,
Mirza
http://reformistani.wordpress.com
Mirzausman:
Cockroaches are running under the rock of history. Do not time and again move it.
Focus on the outside (the present).
@And if you had bothered to get past your typical male chauvinism, you’d have read her bio that says she has degrees in economics and business management (from the University of Michigan no less) and will be attending law school after her one year stint as Miss USA. Beauty and brains? What a concept…
Posted by kEiThZ”
–UofM….Go Blue!
A sample of how a point should not be made since all of this is happening—aping the Bollywood and aping/or reacting to the West.
@Take your inherited colonialist attitude somewhere else. This isn’t 1800’s when western countries could terrorize “noble savages” and impose their will on their subjects. We don’t want to ape your culture like some cheesy bollywood flick. We will reform as WE see fit as WE wish on our own terms. Please refrain from intruding in our internal matters.”
—-Mirzausman
@mirzausman
@”Yes one important achievement: Being the only small country in South Asia to check Bharat’s hegemony dead in its track”
And how exactly did you check India’s so called “hagemony”? By fighting unnecessary wars, creating & sending proxies to India and in the process becoming a radicalized, failed & bankrupt state? That’s indeed quite an achievement. Maybe the other countries in the region should also learn the learn the formula from Pakistan. lol.
@”We have survived – even if you hate us – you must appreciate this fact”
Actually I sympathize. From your grand plans of ruling South Asia (like your mughal “ancestors” lol), now you guys are just happy to exist. That’s quite a drastic downgrade & a sad turn of events.
I went through your list of “facts & accomplishments” & hate to inform you that most of it is irrelevant, grossly exaggerated or just blatant lies. I haven’t responded to items like the size of your population or the height of your mountains since we non-Pakistanis don’t consider them achievements. Don’t think I have the time to refute all the balony but I’ll start with a few. I’m sure, by the end, you’ll get the picture!
* World’s 6th largest Nation – 165.8 Million Population – Irrelevant
* World’s third largest English Speaking Nation – LIE. As per UNESCO, less than 50% of Pakistan is literate & out of which only 20% can read or write some english.
* World’s 5th largest democracy – Democracy, that’s a joke, right?
* One of the World’s fastest growing economy – LIE. #78 (2010 est.) & amongst the lowest in Asia & developing countries.
* GDP $128.83 Billion. (GDP rate: 7%) – LIE. 2010 Est GDP rate: 2.4%
* 7th largest pool of scientists and engineers in the World. – LIE. Not in the top 20.
* Pakistan – The Legacy of Majestic Mughal Empire – Yeah right!
*World’s one of the largest reserves of Chromium Ore – LIE. South Africa, Khazakastan, India.
* Pakistan – The worlds largest explored reserves of Coal at Thar. – LIE. US, Russia, China, India
*Pakistan – The Largest Salt Deposits – Khewra Mines – LIE. USA, Canada, Iran
* Pakistan – Largest reserves of Natural Gas – LIE. USA, Russia, Canada
* World-class recognition in Textile, IT, Engineering Services, Automobile Parts. – Gross Exaggeration.
* Pakistan – Agha Khan University, Karachi has recently been declared as 2nd best residence medical university of theworld – LIE
* Pakistan – Largest network of water distribution canals in the world. – LIE (USA, Canada, China)
* Pakistan World Champion in Cricket, Hockey, Squash, Wrestling, Snooker – Presently?
*JF17 Thunder (equivalent to F16) completely built in Pakistan and being exported – LIE. You mean the Chinese JF17, being bulit in Pakistan?
* AGOSTA 90b submarines – completely built in Pakistan – LIE. You mean the French Agosta being operated in Pakistan?
* Al-Khalid Tank, completely built in Pakistan – LIE. With Chinese help?
* Indigenously Developed Nuclear Weapon Carrying Missiles. LIE. Indegenius? You mean made with stolen european blueprints & Chinese help?
*Karachi Stock Exchange was the world’s best performing stock market in 2005 & 2006 with a market capitalization of over 45 billion dollars. – Distortion. Currently, the market cap of the Karachi stock exchange is 30 bln (The market cap of the Reliance Group of India is more than that)
* Largest net-work of man-made irrigation water-canals in the world – LIE. USA, Canada, China
* Global Manpower – almost in every country – Yeah, we’re familiar with your cab drivers.
* World’s Biggest Earth-filled Dam – Tarbela Dam – LIE. 6th bggest.
* New emerging industries areas include, Mechatronics, Bio-Technology, Clinical Research and Pharmaceuticals. – Let us know when they’ve ‘emerged’.
* Carrier Air Conditioning Co, the American giant for Air Conditioning equipment is to set-up Research and Development Center in Pakistan. Let us know when they actually do.
* Pakistan revenues from Information Technology Industry will reach $ 5 billion in the year 2010. – That’s peanuts. India’s TCS, Infosys & Wipro each have bigger
* Many American companies have shown interest in opening software design Centers in Pakistan. – Let us know when they do
* Pakistan is the world’s largest exporter of textiles and related products such as yarn and cotton. – LIE. USA, India, Uzbekistan
*Pakistan is one of the world’s largest Jewellery and precious gems exporter in the world. LIE. Pakistan not in top 20
* Many US and European Giants Chains sources $ 0.5 Billion worth of goods from Pakistan – That’s not even peanuts.
* The country’s foreign exchange reserves stand at an all-time high of $16 Billion. LIE. Currently it barely has enough to pay 1 months expenses.
I can go on & on but I’m short on time here. Anyways, I’m sure you get the picture.
@ “Of the 1.5M Pakistanis living in the USA, 1/5th of them live in the Silicon Valley.
* 10% of Silicon Valley start-ups are by Pakistanis. * Pakistani students are the fifth largest in number among foreign students in USA.
* Statistics that show: * 5% of doctors in the USA,* 6% of scientists in the USA, * 9% of NASA scientists, * 10% of Microsoft employees,
* 6% of IBM employees, * 9% of INTEL scientists, * 7% of XEROX employees, * … are Pakistanis”
I had to bring this one up as I almost fell on the floor laughing. This one really underlines, how much you guys distort facts & lie. FYI, The total Pakistani population currently in the US is anywhere between 250,000 to 500,000 by most estimates. The statistics that you state above are really hillarious. If, you’re gonna lie at least be smart about it. I challange you to provide me with a verifiable non-Pakistani source for these manufactured statistics of yours.
@”Al Qaeda-Pakistani connection >> Loose connection not the same as proxy”
Go back & read my comments. I never stated that Al Qaeda was a proxy of the Pakistani army. I said that it was one of the jehadi outfits which your army was in bed with at some time or the other. The connection which I mentioned, proves my point.
@”It’s interesting that you are a serial pak-hater yet you socialize with Baluchis in another country”
I even socialize with Pakistanis. I don’t hate Pakistanis but I do hate the bigotry, belligerance, lack of introspection & the finger-pointing attitude, which I see in most Pakistanis.
Like a true Pakistani, please continue to ignore the bengali genocide.
And how exactly did you check India’s so called “hagemony”?
>> what the hell is “hAgemony” ?
1. Azad Kashmir would not be well… Azad
2. Akhand Bharat of Nehru would have been realized.
3. Bhutan, Nepal, Bangladesh, sri lanka would go the way of Sikkim, Goa, Junagarh, Hyderabad
4. Askai Chin would be yours.
5. Chinese territory would be yours
6. Economic blockades and interference of weaker neighbors like nepal, sri lanka.
7. Indian territory that rightfully belongs to you but taken by the chinese would be yours!
8. the territory we ceded to china just to irritate you would be yours!
:O
Actually I sympathize.
>> Lie.
I went through your list of “facts & accomplishments” & hate to inform you that most of it is irrelevant, grossly exaggerated or just blatant lies.
>> Let’s just assume 99% are blatant lies, you demanded but ONE accomplishment of Pakistan, did no item on your list fulfill your original criteria?
How about this fact to your threat of erasing pak borders:
150 intra-continental ballistic missiles pointed at 150 of your slums. Want to test if this is an exaggeration as well? Do cross the border and find out.
————————————————–
Rajeev, Your metaphors and analogies are so deep, insightful yet mystical. Now, would the cockroaches represent the legacy of Aryans racist, caste, culture and religion on India or do these types of things conveniently apply to South Asian Muslims only? Your single-minded obsession with the distant but not too distant past betrays some sort of deep humiliation that you feel in your own family tree. Perhaps, your history is analogous to cockroaches to be hidden under a rock. I am perfectly content with my past nay proud of my history. Look at the posts above, you threaten annihilation and salivate at our suffering than claim the moral upper ground with disingenuous concerns for Pakistan’s welfare. Who needs enemies with “friends” like you. F Blue. Go Green! Now if you’ll excuse me, there is a cyclone coming and like the rest of Pakis, I am going seaside.
Bye Haters.
A brief look will abundantly expose the facade of the Indian economy; which will collapse at the first signs of uncertainty or instability. In 2008, its external debts increased to around $221 billion. In 2007, Indian exports stood around $145 billion, while imports were around $217 billion; a deficit of $72 billion in a single year.
Its factory output account for 27.6% of the GDP and employs 17% of the total workforce. Rest of the workforce is largely dedicated to the agriculture sector. According to a 2008 World Bank report, 75.6% Indians live on less than $2 per day. It suffers from higher rates of malnutrition than Sub-Saharan Africa. Over 70% of its population is either illiterate or educated below the primary level. Indian tourist industry is 1/6 of Las Vegas. Recently, Standard & Poor’s announced, India risks a downgrade from BBB-minus rating to the lowest investment-grade rating. Clearly, Indians are hardly in a financial shape to even contemplate on waging a war.
Around six out of 10 Indians live in the countryside, where abject poverty is widespread. 34.7 % of the Indian population lives with an income below $ 1 a day and 79.9 % below $ 2 a day. According to the India’s planning commission report 26.1 % of the population live below the poverty line. [World Bank's poverty line of $1 a day, but the Indian poverty line of Rs 360 a month, or 30 cents a day]
“A major area of vulnerability for us is the high consolidated public-debt to GDP ratio of over 70 percent … (and) consolidated fiscal deficit,” says the Governor of Reserve Bank of India (RBI), Mr. Yaga Venugopal Reddy.
According to CIA world fact book, the Current account balance of India is -10,360,000,000 (minus) while China is the wealthiest country in the world with $ 249,900,000,000 (Plus). India is listed as 152 and China as no.1 [CIA: The world fact book].Amnesty International (AI) 2008 report on issues within India
The Human Development Report for 2007-08 released by the UNDP ranked India 128 out of 177 countries, working it out through measures of life expectancy, education and income. Malaysia ranked 63 and listed at under High Human Development category. The report found that India’s GDP per capita (purchasing power parity) is $3,452, far below Malaysia’s $10,882. China listed as 81. Read the statistics from UNDP website.
According to the Indian census of 2001, the total population was 1.028 billion. Hindus numbered 827 million or 80.5 %. About 25 per cent (24 million) of those Hindus are belonging to Scheduled Castes and Tribes. About 40 per cent (400 million) are “Other Backward Castes”.
15 per cent Hindu upper castes inherited majority of India’s civil service, economy and active politics from British colonial masters. And thus the caste system virtually leaves lower caste Hindus in to an oppressed majority in India’s power structure. The 2004 World Development Report mentions that more than 25% of India’s primary school teachers and 43% of primary health care workers are absent on any given day!
89 percent of rural households do not own telephones; 52 percent do not have any domestic power connection. There are daily power cuts even in the nation’s capital. The average brownout in India is three hours per day during non-monsoon months, 17 hours daily during the monsoon. The average village is 2 kilometers away from an all-weather road, and 20 percent of rural habitations have partial or no access to a safe drinking-water supply. [Tarun Khanna, Yale Center for the Study of Globalization]
Around 60 per cent people are not having access to financial institutions in India. This figure is less than 15 per cent in developed countries. (NABARD) According to the National Family Health Survey data (2005-06), only 45 per cent of households in the country had access to improved sanitation.
Education
India has over 35 per cent of the world’s total illiterate population. [UNESCO Education for All Report 2008] Only 66 per cent people are literate in India (76 per cent men and 54 per cent women)
About 40 million primary school-age children in India are not in school. More than 92 % children cannot progress beyond secondary school. According to reports, 35 per cent schools don’t have infrastructure such as blackboards and furniture. And close to 90 per cent have no functional toilets. Half of India’s schools still have leaking roofs or no water supply.
India has the single highest share of neonatal deaths in the world, 2.1 million.107,000 Leprosy patients live in India. 15.3 % of the population do not survive to the age of forty. Serpent attacks kill as many as 50,000 Indians while the cobra occupies a hallowed place in the Hindu religion. Heart disease, strokes and diabetes cost India an estimated $9 billion in lost productivity in 2005. The losses could grow to a staggering $200 billion over the next 10 years if corrective action is not taken quickly, says a study by the New Delhi-based Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations.There are only 585 rural hospitals compared to 985 urban hospitals in the country. Out of the 6,39,729 doctors registered in India, only 67,576 are in the public sector and the rest either in private sectors or abroad, pointing towards the severity of the problem.Tuberculosis (TB) is a major public health problem in India. India accounts for one-fifth of the global TB incident cases. Each year about 1.8 million people in India develop TB, of which 0.8 million are infectious cases. It is estimated that annually around 330,000 Indians die due to TB. [WHO India]Economy under the siege of Elite HindusMap of India showing the highest concentration of Brahmins and Hindu extremists known as Hinduvta”]
Amnesty International (AI) 2008 report on issues within India (http://rupeenews.com/2008/05/29/amnesty -int-2008-report-excoriates-horrid-india )India today allocates lower than one per cent gross domestic product (GDP) to health. According to United Nations calculations, India’s spending on public health as a share of GDP is the 18th lowest in the world. 150 million Indians are blind. 2.13 per cent of the total population (21.9 million) live with disabilities in India. Yet, only 34 per cent of the disabled are employed [Census 2001
In India, wealth of 36 families amounts to $ 191 billion, which is one-fourth of India’s GDP. In other words, 35 elite Hindu families own quarter of India’s GDP by leaving 85 % ordinary Hindus as poor!
The dominant group of Hindu nationalists come from the three upper castes ( Brahmins, Kshatriyas, and Vaishyas ) that constitute only 10 per cent of the total Indian population. But, they claim perhaps 80 % of the jobs in the new economy, in sectors such as software, biotechnology, and hotel management.
According to TI, 25 % of Indians paid bribe to obtain a service. 68 % believe that governmental efforts to stop the corruption as ineffective. More than 90 % consider police and political parties as the worst corrupt institutions. 90 % of Indians believe that corruption will increase within the next 3 years. “Corruption is a large tax on Indian growth, It delays execution, raises costs and destroys the moral fiber.” says Prof. Rama Murthi. Transparency International estimates that Indian truckers pay something in the neighborhood of $5 billion annually in bribes to keep freight flowing. According to Rahul Gandhi, only 5 per cent of development funds reached their intended recipients due to hierarchical corruption in the country! [Financial Times]Discrimination against Dalits
Crime against Dalits occur every 20 minutes in India. Every day 3 Dalit women are raped, 2 Dalits are murdered and 2 Dalit houses are burnt down! These figures represent only a fraction of actual incidents since many Dalits do not register cases for fear of retaliation by the police and upper-caste Hindu individuals. Official figures show that there are still 0.343 million manual scavengers in India from Dalit community. More than 165 million Dalits in India are simply abused by their Hindu upper castes for their birth! . [HRW Report2007]
@” Azad Kashmir would not be well… Azad”
Yes, It’s so “Azad” that as per a recent poll, about half of it’s population wants Azadi from Pakistan.
@”the territory we ceded to china just to irritate you”
It’s more like, the territory you gifted to China to kiss their a$$.
@”Let’s just assume 99% are blatant lies, you demanded but ONE accomplishment of Pakistan, did no item on your list fulfill your original criteria?”
Maybe. But compared to your humungous & disastrous self-inflicted failures, they appear glaringly minute & negligible.
@”150 intra-continental ballistic missiles pointed at 150 of your slums. Want to test if this is an exaggeration as well? Do cross the border and find out”
We don’t need to cross the border. Fortunately, you guys are stupid enough to self destruct & blow those 150 missiles at your own faces.
Have fun at the beach!
Usman,
In that article you posted, can you please put up the equivalent Pakistani statistics? I’d like to compare.
For example what is the poverty and illiteracy rates in Pakistan? What percentage live below the poverty line in Pakistan? And what percentage of Pakistan survive on less than $1 per day.
You’ve provided tons of stats about India. For comparison sake, I’d be interested in seeing the same stats for Pakistan. And as a Pakistani resident, I am sure you are best placed to furnish them for us.
Usman,
Can you please give sources for your stats. To start with the rupeenews link is broken. But beyond that I’d like to know where you got the stat that 150 million Indians are blind. In my travels to India, it certainly did not seem like 1 in 10 Indians are bline. And if 150 million Indians are blind, how come only 2.19% of the population is characterized as disabled? Surely, being blind is a disability.
Nor do I buy that 89% of rural residents have no telephones. Land lines maybe. But I don’t recall seeing a single Indian the last time I was there, who didn’t have a mobile phone.
Then there’s stats like, “India has over 35 per cent of the world’s total illiterate population. ” Being the second largest population on the planet and a developing country, surely one would expect that they have a large number of the world’s illiterate. What’s remarkable is the flip side of that stat: they have one of the world’s largest pools of scientists and engineers. Every developing country should be so lucky.
And then there’s this line: “15 per cent Hindu upper castes inherited majority of India’s civil service, economy and active politics from British colonial masters.” Are civil service jobs in India reserved only for Hindus? I’ve had several meetings with Indian government officials. One fellow was Parsi, another Sikh, several hindus, a couple of muslims, two Christians. So what exactly does this line tell us? And where did you get it from?
And then there’s your bizarre comparisons of economic stats to China and Malaysia. How is that relevant? Should we compare Pakistan’s GDP to that of Switzerland? Or per capita GDP of India to the US? That India is a developing country isn’t exactly news to anybody. Here or in the rest of the world.
Anyway, I’d love to see some actual links, so I can compare all those stats for all the various states in South Asia.
More copy/paste lies, distortions & BS from the Pakistani “fact-churning” machine. I suggest that from which ever propaganda site, you’re blindly copying & pasting these “facts” from, please tell it’s creators that they really need to upgrade/alter them, in order to avoid embarressment to themselves & other Pakistanis like you, who post them on the web.
@”A brief look will abundantly expose the facade of the Indian economy; which will collapse at the first signs of uncertainty or instability”
If the biggest global crisis since the great depression, wasn’t enough to expose the “facade” of the Indian economy, what exactly are you hoping for? An alien invasion? Lmao
Here we go again, with your new India “facts”:
“Its factory output account for 27.6% of the GDP and employs 17% of the total workforce. Rest of the workforce is largely dedicated to the agriculture sector”
LIE. Out of the remaining work force 34% is employed by the Services sector (2009), which is expected to increase to 40% by 2015. Services sector growth is regarded as the best indicator of a country’s economic development before Industrial & Agricultural sectors.
“Over 70% of its population is either illiterate or educated below the primary level”
LIE. 67% of India’s population is literate (2008). Male: 79%, Female 54% & the rates are expected to go higher every year.
“Indian tourist industry is 1/6 of Las Vegas.”
LIE. India’s tourism industry generated $110 bn in revenues in 2009 & expected to increase to $300 bn by 2017, which will be the highest growth rate in the world.
“Recently, Standard & Poor’s announced, India risks a downgrade from BBB-minus rating to the lowest investment-grade rating”
LIE. It was actually upgraded in March & expected to be upgraded again later this year in Oct/Nov.
“India has the single highest share of infant deaths in the world.”
LIE. India ranks #53
“15.3 % of the population do not survive to the age of forty”
Why the cherry picking? Average life expectancy is app. 67 yrs.
“In India, wealth of 36 families amounts to $ 191 billion, which is one-fourth of India’s GDP. In other words, 35 elite Hindu families own quarter of India’s GDP”
LIE. India’s GDP is app. 3.7 trillion. So that makes the wealth of these 36 families, app 5.16% of the GDP & not one-fourth or 25%. By the way, those 36 families aren’t of hindus only. It consists of muslims like Azimji Premji, Sikhs like Mavinder & Shavinder Singh, Parsis like the Tatas & Godrej and others of India’s minority community.
We know that India has high levels of poverty, corruption, income disparity, health care issues etc. but the bottom line is this: In every catagory of social & economic progress that you can think of, India’s statistics are getting better by the day & expected to get even better whereas comparable statistics for Pakistan in the same catagories are getting worse by the day & expected to get worse, at least in the forseeable future. So, instead of wasting your time churning out this false & nonsensical propaganda, try to do something productive & constructive for your country.
I am starting to see why Pakistanis have such a distorted view of India and the rest of the region. If the quality of this list is anything to go by, then Pakistanis scarcely know how to find, read and interpret accurate statistics. So it’s all made up or grossly exaggerated and passed on from website to website.
From rupeenews (we all know how reliable that fellow was….not to mention racist) right to Reformistani.
Too bad, I guess Zaid Hamid is leading the reform movement in Pakistan. Don’t know what’s worse. Him or the Taliban.
@Keithz,
A distorted view of India?..don’t you mean deranged?
You know like everybody else Keithz, that in Pakistan they have a different set of books to propagandize their population against India and to further justify consolidation of Islamic power against non-muslims.
Even when you read the Pak Army blogs, it just blows my mind, when you read some of the BS there, Pakistani’s actually believe that Pakistan nation has been around for like 3,000 years and Indian culture never even existed…gather that? I wonder if they feel the same way about Palestine…of course not…Islam must have started when the universe was created..the rest of us are just figments and anomalies generated by the Matrix?!?!
On top of that, they believe that they won every war with India, with exception of 1971. All that Indian Army, they say and still India can’t beat Pakistan….Pakistani’s don’t understand the concept of kid gloves..
Pakistani’s must be from an alternate dimension…there is too much more nonsense to list here, …if you can imagine it…it is there…go have a look.
@”I am starting to see why Pakistanis have such a distorted view of India and the rest of the region. If the quality of this list is anything to go by, then Pakistanis scarcely know how to find, read and interpret accurate statistics. So it’s all made up or grossly exaggerated and passed on from website to website”
Posted by kEiThZ
What’s even more disturbing is that these guys are seemingly educated & smart and yet they blindly follow this fallicious propaganda without checking their validity from any of the dozens of neutral & credible sources on the internet.
As far as the “reform” agenda of these guys is concerned, it mainly focuses on 2 objectives: Spread hatered for India, US, Jews west etc. & sling mud at their own civilian leaders while tooting the horn of their army. There are some real reformists ou there in Pakistan like Nadeem Pracha (Dawn) but unfortunately, they’re dwarfed by numbers & popularity by the likes of Zaid Hamid etc.
Sorry for the delay in response. The weather has been uncooperative.
So look at all you indians clamoring for my attention and intellect the way your women swoon over my raw machismo and physique. This reminds me of when one of your illustrious batsmen hits our bowlers for a 4. The Pak bowler still stares down the batsmen with a smirk. This confidence comes from knowing that when that batsmen makes love to his wife later that night, it is the ruggedly handsome pak bowler she is thinking about.
A disclosure; All that stuff, I copied and pasted, i didn’t even read it. LOL. However the perennial H1B social outcast mortal painstakingly proof-reads all of it and even suggests corrections. Now I can basically copy mortal’s hard work and paste in on my super-sexy site! In essence, mortal has done Pak a service by cross-checking everything like an indentured servant geek! In a few days, you will see the cleaned, revised version of these facts that meet the strict editorial standard of my blog courtesy of Mortal. Here is the icing on the cake, I will not give mortal credit!
MUHAHAHAHAHA (Evil villain laugh)
Next thing, the negative stuff about India, i copied and pasted from an indian dalit site. it’s not even pakistani! you wasted your time contradicting your own countrymen.
MUHAHAHAHAHA (Evil villain laugh)
@ Now I can basically copy mortal’s hard work and paste in on my super-sexy site! In essence, mortal has done Pak a service by cross-checking everything like an indentured servant geek! In a few days, you will see the cleaned, revised version of these facts that meet the strict editorial standard of my blog courtesy of Mortal. Here is the icing on the cake, I will not give mortal credit!”
——-Mirzausman
Mirzausman is the future of Pakistan. Wow! I pity Pakistan.
Ah, here comes my favorite part: the personal attacks! So, now that you’ve been proven to be a moronic liar, you come back with the “Oh, I’m a handsome Pakistani hunk & you’re and Indian nerd” routine. That’s quite rich & original of you, indeed!
@”However the perennial H1B social outcast mortal painstakingly proof-reads all of it and even suggests corrections. In essence, mortal has done Pak a service by cross-checking everything like an indentured servant geek!”
And how exactly do you know so much about me?
How do you know that I’m not an institutional global fund mangaer, who hardly had to cross check anything since he has extensive knowledge about economic/social statistics of many countries including India & Pakistan, as well as global commodity production data?
How do you know that besides being a “geek”, I don’t have the physical attributes to kick the living sh**t outta your sorry li’l “macho” a$$ any day of the week & twice on sundays and that I don’t have a social life which the likes of you can’t even afford to dream of?
And, oh gosh, how did you find about my expiring visa status? (Please don’t inform the USCIS, I plead with you! lol)
@”In a few days, you will see the cleaned, revised version of these facts”
If by revised version, you mean the true version, I doubt that there’ll be much left to put up there.
@”Here is the icing on the cake, I will not give mortal credit!”
Oh no, that just ruined my day, nah, make that week.
@”Next thing, the negative stuff about India, i copied and pasted from an indian dalit site”
Lie. Let’s have the link to the stuff that you copied from this “indian dalit site”.
Alright Haters, here are some facts with sources:
This is from my super-sexy blog so you know its gold.
The purpose here is to basically expose the mantra of India is some sort of Switzerland.
According to WFP, India accounts around 50% of the world’s hungry. (more than in the whole of Africa) and its fiscal deficit is one of the highest in the world. India’s Global Hunger Index (GHI) score is 23.7, a rank of 66th out of 88 countries. India’s rating is slightly above Bangladesh but below all other South Asian nations and listed under “ALARMING” category. Ref: IFPRI Country Report on India
Around six out of 10 Indians live in the countryside, where abject poverty is widespread. 34.7 % of the Indian population lives with an income below $ 1 a day and 79.9 % below $ 2 a day. According to the India’s planning commission report 26.1 % of the population live below the poverty line. [World Bank’s poverty line of $1 a day, but the Indian poverty line of Rs 360 a month, or 30 cents a day].
The Current Account Balance of India
“A major area of vulnerability for us is the high consolidated public-debt to GDP ratio of over 70 percent … (and) consolidated fiscal deficit,” says the Governor of Reserve Bank of India (RBI), Mr. Yaga Venugopal Reddy.
According to CIA world fact book, the Current account balance of India is -37,510,000,000 (minus) while China is the wealthiest country in the world with $ 426,100,000,000 (Plus) . India listed as 182 and China as no.1 [CIA: The world fact book]
Discrimination against Children
According to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, India has the highest number of street children in the world. There are no exact numbers, but conservative estimates suggest that about 18 million children live and labor in the streets of India’s urban centers. Mumbai, Delhi and Calcutta each have an estimated street-children population of over 100,000. The total number of Child labor in India is estimated to be 60 million.
The level of child malnutrition in India is among the highest in the world, higher even than some countries in sub-Saharan Africa, says the report ‘Extent of Chronic Hunger and Malnutrition in India’ by the UN’s special rapporteur on the right to food. While around 25 percent children globally were underweight, in India the number was 43 percent. A quarter of all neo-natal deaths in the world, (2.1 million) occurred in India, says UNICEF Report 2007 . More than one in five children who die within four weeks of birth is an Indian. Nearly fifty percent of Indian children who die before the age of five do not survive beyond the first 28 days.
Discrimination against Women
According to the 2001 census, female literacy in India is 54.16 % against male literacy of 75.85 %. Most of the working women remain outside the organized sector: A mere 2.3 % women are administrators and managers, and 20.5 % professional and technical workers.
There are an estimated 40 million Hindu widows in India, the least fortunate of them shunned and stripped of the life they lived when they were married. It’s believed that 15,000 widows live on the streets of Vrindavan, a Hindu holy city of about 55,000 population in northern India. Many widows – at least 40per cent are said to be under 50 – are dumped by their relatives in religious towns and left to live off charity or beg on the streets. Their plight was highlighted in Deepa Mehta’s award-winning film Water, which had to be shot mainly outside India because of Hindu extremist opposition to the production.
Nearly 9 out of 10 pregnant women aged between 15 and 49 years suffer from malnutrition and about half of all children (47%) under-five suffer from underweight and 21 % of the populations are undernourished. India alone has more undernourished people (204 million) than all of sub-Saharan Africa combined. Nearly 20 % of women dying in childbirth around the globe are Indians. Six out of every 10 births take place at home and untrained people attend more than half of them. 44 % of the Indian girls were married before they reached the age of 18. It added, 16 % of girls in the age group 15-19 years were already mothers or expecting their first child and that pregnancy is the leading cause of mortality in this age group.
On an average one Indian woman commits suicide every four hours over a dowry dispute. During Indian marriage, women should bring jewellery, cash and even consumer durables as part of dowry to the in-laws. If they fail, the victims are burnt to death – they are doused in kerosene and set fire to. Routinely the in-laws claim that the death happened simply due to an accident.
Rape is the fastest growing crime in India. Every hour Indian women face two rapes, two kidnappings, four molestations and seven incidents of cruelty from husbands and relatives [National Crime Records Bureau Report 2006]
Fetus Killing
Women to men ratio were feared to reach 20:80 by the year 2020 as female fetus killing is rampant. Ten million girls have been killed by their parents in India in the past 20 years, either before they were born or immediately after, told Indian Minister for Women and Child Development Renuka Chowdhury to Reuters. According to the 2001 census, the national sex ratio was 933 girls to 1,000 boys, while in the worst-affected northern state of Punjab, it was 798 girls to 1,000 boys. The availability of ultrasound sex-determination tests leads to such mass killings in India.
Around 11 million abortions are carried out in India every year and nearly 80,000 women die during the process, says a report from Federation of Obstetrics and Gynecological Societies of India (FOGSI)
Discrimination against Women
According to the 2001 census, female literacy in India is 54.16 % against male literacy of 75.85 %. Most of the working women remain outside the organized sector: A mere 2.3 % women are administrators and managers, and 20.5 % professional and technical workers.
There are an estimated 40 million Hindu widows in India, the least fortunate of them shunned and stripped of the life they lived when they were married. It’s believed that 15,000 widows live on the streets of Vrindavan, a Hindu holy city of about 55,000 population in northern India. Many widows – at least 40per cent are said to be under 50 – are dumped by their relatives in religious towns and left to live off charity or beg on the streets. Their plight was highlighted in Deepa Mehta’s award-winning film Water, which had to be shot mainly outside India because of Hindu extremist opposition to the production.
Nearly 9 out of 10 pregnant women aged between 15 and 49 years suffer from malnutrition and about half of all children (47%) under-five suffer from underweight and 21 % of the populations are undernourished. India alone has more undernourished people (204 million) than all of sub-Saharan Africa combined. Nearly 20 % of women dying in childbirth around the globe are Indians. Six out of every 10 births take place at home and untrained people attend more than half of them. 44 % of the Indian girls were married before they reached the age of 18. It added, 16 % of girls in the age group 15-19 years were already mothers or expecting their first child and that pregnancy is the leading cause of mortality in this age group.
On an average one Indian woman commits suicide every four hours over a dowry dispute. During Indian marriage, women should bring jewellery, cash and even consumer durables as part of dowry to the in-laws. If they fail, the victims are burnt to death – they are doused in kerosene and set fire to. Routinely the in-laws claim that the death happened simply due to an accident.
Rape is the fastest growing crime in India. Every hour Indian women face two rapes, two kidnappings, four molestations and seven incidents of cruelty from husbands and relatives [National Crime Records Bureau Report 2006]
Fetus Killing
Women to men ratio were feared to reach 20:80 by the year 2020 as female fetus killing is rampant. Ten million girls have been killed by their parents in India in the past 20 years, either before they were born or immediately after, told Indian Minister for Women and Child Development Renuka Chowdhury to Reuters. According to the 2001 census, the national gender ratio was 933 girls to 1,000 boys, while in the worst-affected northern state of Punjab, it was 798 girls to 1,000 boys. The availability of ultrasound gender-determination tests leads to such mass killings in India.
Around 11 million abortions are carried out in India every year and nearly 80,000 women die during the process, says a report from Federation of Obstetrics and Gynecological Societies of India (FOGSI)
Armed Conflicts in India
Almost every state has separatist movements, many of them armed. A large number of Muslims were killed in the past few years across the country and the numbers are on a steady rise. On top of that India has become a pariah for its neighbours. None of its neighbours appreciate their closeness to India and they all blame it for meddling in their affairs.
63 per cent of India’s new budget will go to the military, police, administration and debt service (2008-09). The military might of centric Hindu elites in Delhi isolated people of Jammu & Kashmir and the northeastern states. It is difficult for any community to feel part of a larger country when the armed forces of the country are deployed to silence them.
According to an Indian official report , 165 of India’s 602 districts — mostly in states like Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh, Jharkhand, Bihar, Orissa, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh — are “badly affected” by tribal and dalit violence, which government termed as “Maoist terror”. India’s military spending was recorded at US $21.7 billion in 2006 and it planned to spend $26.5 billion during 2008/09 financial year. 85 percent of the Army’s budget is spent on the enormous manpower of 1,316,000, which is the fourth largest in the world.
In 2005, Business Week reported that India became Israel’s largest importer of weapons, accounting for about half of the $3.6 billion worth of weapons exported by the Jewish state.
“Do remember that 34 years ago, NSG was created by Americans. Hence it has been their onus to convince the group to grant the waiver to India to carry out the multi-billion dollar business as India is a large market,” says former Atomic Energy Commission chairman, Mr P K Iyengar.
Suicides of Farmers and collapse of Agricultural sector
In the last two years, more than 218,000 people across India committed suicide mainly due to poverty, family feud, strained relationship with loved ones, dowry harassment and health problems. In a research by the Indian National Crime Records Bureau, it was noted that suicide cases in the country were registered at 118,112 and over 100,000, in 2005 and 2006, respectively.
Most of those who committed suicide were farmers, and the victims took their lives either by hanging or consuming poison. Aside from farmers, women also topped the list of people in India with suicidal tendencies. Since 1998 about 25 000 Indian farmers have committed suicide because they could not repay their debts. These debts, however, have largely accumulated because these farmers were severely overcharged by their money-lenders asking for up to 32% of interest.
76 per cent of the nation’s land is belonging to 23 per cent of population. More than 15 million rural households in India are landless. Another 45 million rural families own some land, less than 0.10 acre each, which is hardly enough to make them self- sufficient, let alone generate a profit. 340 million people in India are dependent largely on agricultural wage labour, $1 or less a day.[Rural Development Institute (RDI), Washington]
70 per cent of the Indian population still directly depends on agriculture, but growth in this sector declined from a lackluster 3.8 per cent to an even more anaemic 2.6 per cent last year.
Unemployment
Recently, a national report on the employment situation in India has warned that nearly 30 percent of the country’s 716 million-strong workforce will be without jobs by 2020. Government of India doesn’t have the resources or political will to find jobs for such a large population.
Retail trade employs 8 percent of India’s population, the largest employer after agriculture. There are more than 12 million small retailers in India, 96 percent of whom are small mom-and-pop stores, each occupying less than 500 square feet, creating the highest retail-outlet density per capita in the world. [Tarun Khanna, Yale]
Call centers and other outsourced businesses — such as software writing, medical transcription and back-office tasks — employ more than 1.6 million people in India, mostly in their 20s and 30s. Heart disease is projected to account for 35% of deaths among India’s working-age population between 2000 and 2030 says World Health Organization study. That number is about 12% for the United States, 22% for China and 25% for Russia.
A 2006 opinion poll by Outlook—AC Nielsen shows that 46 % of India’s urban class wants to settle down in US. Interestingly, in the Hindutva heart land of Gujarat, 54 % of people want to move to US.
Even Parliament members of the Hindutva party are involved in human trafficking from India. Recently police arrested, Babubhai Katara, a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP, who was part of such a racket. He received 20,000 US $ per person for US migration from victims.
Discrimination against Minority Muslims
Recently, Justice Rajinder Sachar Committee report admitted that 138 Million Muslims across India are severely under-represented in government employment, including Public Sector Units. Ironically, West Bengal, a communist ruled state reported 0 (zero) percent of Muslims in higher positions in its PSUs! It has found that the share of Muslims in government jobs and in the lower judiciary in any state simply does not come anywhere close to their population share. The only place where Muslims can claim a share in proportion to their population is in prison! (Muslims convicts in India is 19.1%, while the number of under trials is 22.5%, which exceed their population ratio) . A note sent on January 9 by the army to the defence ministry in 2004 says that only 29,093 Muslims among a total of 1.1 million personnel — a ratio of 2.6 %, which compares poorly with the Muslims’ 13.8 % share in the Indian population. Officially, Indian Army don’t allow head count based on religion.
A Muslim child attends school for three years and four months, compared to the national average of four years. Less than two percent of the students at the elite Indian Institutes of Technology comprise of the Muslim community. According to the National Knowledge Commission member Jayathi Ghosh, ‘there is a need to re-orient official strategies for ensuring better access of Muslim children to schooling outside the madrasas which cater to only four per cent of children from the community.’
Discrimination in Media
Hindu upper caste men, who constitute just eight per cent of the total population of India, hold over 70 % of the key posts across newsrooms in the country. The so-called twice-born Hindu castes dominate 85 % key posts despite constituting just 16 % of the total population, while the intermediary castes represent a meager 3%.
The Hindu Other Backward Class groups, who are 34 % of the total population, have a share of just 4% in the Indian newsrooms. Muslims, who constitute about 13 % of the population, control just 4 % top posts while Christians and Sikhs have a slightly better representation. But the worst scenario emerges in the case of Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes /Aborgines (STs): Based on CSDS study, 2006. Ref: The Hindu, June 05, 2006