Vinesh, the Politician

Wrestler-turned-political wannabe Vinesh Phogat’s claim that the Indian delegation at the Paris Olympics did not do enough to support her appeal against her disqualification for being overweight has come as vindication for those who had felt there was a strong political undercurrent to the agitation by Phogat and fellow wrestlers Bajrang Punia and Sakshi Malik. The claim that Indian officials let her down and Indian Olympic Association (IOA) chairperson PT Usha visited her for just a photo-op does not stand up to scrutiny. IOA mounted a strong bid to overturn the disqualification with well-known counsel Harish Salve—who secured a reprieve from the gallows for Indian national Kulbhushan Jadhav held in Pakistan—representing her case. But the problem is that the rule on the weight of contestants is not flexible; nor are the international officials monitoring the contests. Those in the know point out that earlier the entire contest in a category, including the medal matches, would happen in a day. In Phogat’s case, she managed to control her weight on the first day of the contest. But despite a frantic and rigorous overnight routine, she failed to do so by weigh-in time the next day. The wrestler is actually a better fit for the 53kg category but would not have qualified with the spot clinched by Antim Panghal, who won a bronze at the 2023 Hangzhou Asian Games. Accepting the plea of Olympic quota winners that the final round trials, which would have allowed Phogat to challenge Panghal in the 53kg category, might expose them to injuries, the Wrestling Federation of India did away with the event. Sources close to the events said the claim that the Centre did not seriously engage with the wrestler is incorrect as negotiations were conducted for hours over several days. An exception was made for Vinesh to allow her to compete in both 50kg and 53kg selections on the ground that there is no specific rule barring this in the trial stage. She lost the semi-finals in the 53kg tamely, which some argue was because she was assured of a top-four finish and a chance to challenge Panghal. But any such calculation would be her call. In the end, maintaining the required weight became a bridge too far, marking a sad end to a career spanning three medal-less Olympics.

Vande Bharat Facts

The railway ministry termed as misinformation claims that the cost of Vande Bharat trains has shot up, saying the total contract value for sleeper coaches and trains has actually declined. The ministry said the number of coaches has been increased from 16 to 24 per train. This means 133 trains are needed to operate the same number of coaches as 200 trains did earlier. The costs have come down as there are economies of scale when train length is increased and the number of non-AC coaches under production is at a record 12,000. Vande Bharat trains are much in demand and their regular flag-off, particularly in the ongoing election season, does amount to political signalling. The attack on Vande Bharat is therefore not unexpected even though the Opposition MP concerned made a simple, perhaps deliberate, arithmetical mistake by dividing the previous contract value by the fewer number of trains. As the railways ministry said, the cost of a train is cost per coach multiplied by the number of coaches.

Manipur Foreign Hand

The success of the Assam Rifles in arresting a Myanmar national who is a member of the Kuki National Army (KNA) saw Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh congratulating the force and asserting that the apprehended militant is proof of a foreign hand in the state’s troubles. Singh said KNA, active in Myanmar, has been interfering in the situation in Manipur, seeking to fan violence by supplying weapons and even fighters. KNA is linked to an organisation wedded to the idea of carving out an independent state on the basis of ethnic and religious identity. The militants and overground civil society
organisations have worked in tandem to ensure Manipur remains on the edge. The recent instances of targeted killings are intended to provoke a reaction in the Meitei majority areas and the plan succeeded with demonstrations in Imphal demanding security. The pattern is sickeningly predictable. Just as Manipur begins to fall off the front pages, an attack in a remote village in the early hours triggers a fresh round of violence. The Centre has made it clear to agitators that tiny Manipur is not going to be further divided into administrative divisions that can only be seen as a forerunner to secession.

A Swachh Story

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A research paper in Nature that said India’s Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM) has prevented as many as 70,000 infant mortalities a year is more evidence of how building toilets in mission-mode delivered significant health outcomes. The toilet-building programme was criticised for being hampered by lack of water supply and while this was indeed true in some areas, the first step to eliminating open defecation was building the facility for every home. The water supply issue and advocacy to persuade people to give up open defecation took time but it has changed life in urban and rural India. In doing so, SBM has erased a national shame. There remains a section of academics and commentators continuing to question SBM’s results, arguing that it was not the first such effort. Yet, studies of the pre-2014 situation point to a high number of deaths due to diarrhoeal infections and a high level of stunting among children due to unsanitary practices. Today, SBM is in its Phases 2 and 3 with the government supporting initiatives for in-situ disposal of waste water and disposal practices to reduce plastic pollution in villages.

100 Days Of Modi 3.0

The 100-day record the Modi government unveiled on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s birthday on September 17 is a fair indicator that the Centre will continue with its accelerated investments in building connectivity-related infrastructure. Projects that have been sanctioned include development of national highways and rural connectivity for close to 50,000 villages that are not linked to a road and strategic tunnels like the one linking Ladakh to Himachal Pradesh. So, apart from the politically necessitated projects that relate to Bihar and Andhra Pradesh where BJP allies TDP and Janata Dal (U) head the governments, the overall direction of the Modi government’s economic policies is largely unchanged. The government points out that the Indian rupee has been among the least volatile of currencies and did not breach the `84 to the dollar mark. This is particularly significant for importers as well as individuals making foreign exchange payments on a regular basis.

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