Telangana issue is currently a hot topic; at least in the hearts of Telugu people, if not for the Centre. If we look at the immense number of issues that the Centre faces every day, Telangana is just one amongst them and they will deal it in similar fashion like any other issue that they come across. The Centre will take a strategic approach rather than emotional, while handling this issue. That’s the reason for me to say it is closer to the hearts of Telugu people, but not for the Centre. Before writing any further on this, let me tell you that I do not have any prejudiced opinion in this matter. I do not want to use those big sentimental statements or disclaimers which others use before writing an article on such sensitive issues, to prove their innocence and unprejudiced nature. My intentions are honest. Since I know I am not doing anything wrong except voicing what is right for everyone, I request people not to straight away reject this article based on my place of origin. Out of all the points that I hear from great intellectuals, politicians, activists, strategists etc... none have pointed to the one that I would be asking now; at least I haven’t heard anyone arguing from this perspective. Have you ever come across the phrase “LANDLOCKED COUNTRY” or “LANDLOCKED STATE”? A landlocked country is a country entirely enclosed by land. There are many disadvantages of being landlocked, one being lack of direct access to seaborne trade. Lack of coastal territory means no direct access to sea resources, such as fishing. No access to any ports, results in high transportation costs for moving goods across and possibly high tariffs from surrounding states/nations and so on. This makes it increasingly difficult for companies in landlocked places to be cost competitive. Due to this, expansion and growth of any landlocked country is near impossible. There are 48 landlocked countries in the world! Majority of them are either termed as developing, or under developed because of the economic and other disadvantages which they face. The situation is not different in a landlocked state as well. There are 18 landlocked states in India! For example, Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh etc... None of them are in the top 10 as of 2012, in terms of GDP, except Rajasthan. That too, Rajasthan’s GDP in 2012 was 204,398 crores, which is 1/5th of that of Maharashtra and 1/3rd of Andhra Pradesh. Remaining landlocked states are almost at the bottom end of the league. When development is at risk, other anti-social activities play active role in such states. If you look at Rajasthan or Bihar, caste politics, upper / lower caste differences are very distinctly visible compared to other developed states in India. Putting the discussion in right perspective, it doesn’t necessarily mean having sea access will bring riches automatically. There should be strong governance and will power from the state to develop any country. Singapore is a strong example for that. On the contrary, no matter how strong a government can be, if there is no sea access, it is very hard to thrust the economy at rocket speed. One can quote the example of Switzerland, which is a developed landlocked country, but this is a very tiny nation in the middle of rich European region, taking advantage of the world’s financial barriers, moreover thriving on tourism due to its natural beauty. Can you imagine a developed Switzerland if it’s landlocked in more poor regions like Africa or South Asia? There is no doubt that its fate will be similar to Zimbabwe, Ethiopia or Afghanistan. In my opinion, similar threat is looming for Telangana, if separated. None of these politicians are highlighting such dangers, due to the mileage they derive from separation. They are just aiming for short term gains. Current situation might be favourable to the people of Telangana because of prosperous Hyderabad being on their side. But what good a place can be without people and investment. When they split, more than 5 crores of Andhra people will divert their focus and investments from Hyderabad, to a new region. Can the rest of India compensate this loss? When it comes to investment, apart from potential growth, other important factors people look into are proximity, acquaintance and personal interest in that region. I don’t think rest of India will be placing Hyderabad on top of their investment choice, by ignoring what is available in their proximity. I sometimes hear many Telanganites feel bullied with their assumptions that some Andhra people are intelligent, arrogant and rich. If that is the case, separation might give them some respite. But that will only be short living. If they can withstand these minor differences, I believe, living together is a better option in the longer term. I lived and worked abroad most of my life and can tell that most NRIs have learned to adjust to the rich and dominant cultures of predominantly white background. This adjustment did help all of us tremendously. The ball is now in the hands of Telangana people. My only wish for them is that they should make a well informed decision. Things might look rosy now, but once a system is established, it will be very hard to change or fight against it. By Ramesh Vudathu, London, Source : Greatandhra
Posted on: Thu, 28 Nov 2013 02:27:21 +0000
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