Clash in Gultari

THURSDAY’S Indian infantry and air attack on a Pakistani post in northern Kashmir takes the military stand-off between the two countries to a slightly higher notch. So far, since India began massing its troops along the Line of Control and the international border, neither side has used its air force in skirmishes. This was the first time since the Kargil clashes of 1999 that India used its air force in a military operation against Pakistan. The Indian aim apparently was to capture a post at a height of 17,000 feet in the Gultari sector, 30 kilometres from Skardu. The Indians failed to capture the post and withdrew, leaving behind several casualties. Thanks to the restraint shown by Pakistan, which only took defensive action, the clash remained localized.

India has denied that any such action took place at all. However, this is not the first time that the Indians have done so. As a Pakistan army spokesman pointed out, there was a clash in July also, but India had denied it. Later, New Delhi sacked one of its commanding officers. For the world at large, the Gultari clash serves to highlight the danger that the massing of troops along the border and the unsolved Kashmir issue pose to peace in South Asia. More specifically, the ground-air action in the snowy heights shows how things could have gone out of hand if Pakistan had also called in its air force for retaliatory action. Nobody then could have predicted the consequences that would have followed.

The armies of the two countries have now been in a state of eyeball-to-eyeball confrontation since December. India began massing its troops on Pakistan’s border in a threatening posture after the terrorist attack on the Indian parliament building. By May, the situation had become so critical that the world feared a nuclear holocaust in South Asia. Following the diplomatic initiatives taken by powers friendly to both, especially the US, a war was averted. But the danger still persists, because the two armies continue to face each other in battle formation along the common border.

During the diplomatic drive launched by the major powers, India remained intransigent in its stand that it was opposed in principle to a dialogue with Pakistan. This continues to be its position, on the pretext that Islamabad has failed to stop “infiltration” across the LoC. But Pakistan’s efforts to control extremist groups and elements are now widely recognized. Indeed, on his last visit to New Delhi, US Secretary of State Colin Powell had asked India to reciprocate Pakistan’s gestures and take de-escalatory steps to defuse tension and start negotiations. One hopes that during his talks in New Delhi, US Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage would also have stressed upon the Indian leadership the need for starting a dialogue with Pakistan on all outstanding issues, including Kashmir, because there is no other way to reduce tension and normalize relations between the two countries. The incident has proved how easy it is in the present state of tension to blunder into something more horrendous.

Criminals in uniform

THERE never seems to be any end to what our police force is capable of. Normally, one hears of sorry tales of harassment and extortion by personnel posted at various checkpoints, refusal to register a complaint, illegal detentions of innocent people, highhandedness and so forth. But Friday’s incident of five Karachi policemen barging into a house in Kharadar where a wedding was taking place and robbing the inmates is most regrettable and calls for swift and stern action against the offenders. Just goes to show how many among the police personnel consider themselves far above the very law that they are supposed to enforce. The fact that the incident in question took place in the heart of a heavily populated area, with some of the policemen in uniform and travelling in their official vehicle, means that there are many policemen who think they can do just about anything and get away with it.

That the city’s police chief has said that the offenders will be dismissed from service is somewhat reassuring. However, to meet the ends of justice, the full force of the law must be brought to bear on them. Indeed, it would be appropriate to make an example of these scoundrels in police uniform — if for nothing else then at least for the edification of similarly inclined officers and men in the police force. Incidents of this and similar other kinds make a mockery of the police’s supposed standing as a force meant for the safety and protection of the citizens against criminal elements. Pleas for purging the force of all black sheep have been made repeatedly from various forums with senior police and government officials claiming to be in wholehearted agreement. But surely, incidents like the present one make it clear that a lot more needs to be done in terms of reforms, cleansing and reorientation before it can be safely assumed that those entrusted with upholding the law are actually doing that.

Twin cities’ water woes

SINCE the recent rains have failed to alleviate the water shortage problem for many residents in Rawalpindi and Islamabad, there has to be something really wrong with the system. The water problem has become a chronic one, especially for certain localities in Rawalpindi city and the Cantonment area as well as in the G sectors in Islamabad. Rain or no rains, having to continuously depend on the undependable water tankers for, say, washing and cooking is not only frustrating for those affected; it also speaks volumes about the apathy and callous attitude of the concerned authorities — the Capital Development Authority (CDA), the Water and Sanitation Agency (WASA) and the Rawalpindi Cantonment Board (RCB), towards their daily routine duty and work, which is to ensure that all residents, regardless of the locality that they are living in, have clean water coming through their taps. Since the problem was not tackled at the initial stage, it has now grown to proportions where it seems that the overall water storage, supply and distribution system for the twin cities needs a complete overhaul if the problem is not to deteriorate any further.

No doubt the root cause of the problem lies simply in an insufficient water supply for the existing and growing population of Islamabad and Rawalpindi, from both storage in reservoirs and tubewells. Lack of foresight, planning and action by the authorities concerned is responsible for this situation. The problem, however, has been worsened by an inadequate and inefficient water supply and distribution system which has not been maintained properly nor upgraded sufficiently to cater for the ever increasing demand for water. The problem of shortage and erratic supply has also been compounded by corruption among the officials and the field staff. The result is a highly unsatisfactory water supply situation which can only grow worse, especially with CDA planning to develop new sectors in Islamabad, if nothing is done quickly to tackle it.