UID and certain concerns

The article was written some time before when Nandan got appointed as UIDAI chairman. Valid doubts and questions were raised on the objective of this massive project but this article is not addressing those issues; it just focuses on "free s/w and UID".

We choose to write about an important topic concerning each citizen of India.

Let us start this with a simple question. Why do we endorse free software?

Free software is 'freedom' software. The user has the full freedom to understand the software (by analyzing the source code), has complete freedom to upgrade or customize according to his need, and can also fix the bugs without any dependency. So freedom to understand a piece of source code is very crucial as far as an individual is concerned.

We know this, then why are we reiterating this basic question?

The union budget '09 proposed to provide a Unique Identifier (UID) number to each citizen in this country. It is argued that this UID number would help the Government in identifying targeted beneficiaries for various welfare schemes. Various departments based on their needs, would be using this number. Going forward, this UID number would avert the need for multiple proof of identity for citizens like, ration card, electoral card, pan card, etc.(Apart from availing Government services, it would be used for private needs also, such as opening bank accounts or seeking telephone connections). Hence no doubt, the role of this number is very crucial. Taking all these arguments into consideration, the implementation of this project has to take place with utmost care as it carries a very important projected role as far as society's progress, justice and welfare is concerned. Another important aspect is security. The UID database hold very crucial information and is very much important as far as National Security is concerned. Virtually this UID Database holds the key for all kinds of information. Considering the global and national scenarios, this project is of prime importance. The project is very huge. Initial budget estimation is of Rs 120 crores. And for sure it would be revised multiple times before implementation (and can end up 3 to 5 times above budget estimation considering our practical experiences from the industry.) Any one can oversee the complexity of the work which includes construction of a new online database with identity and biometric details of each citizen of India. We feel this includes development of sophisticated applications which may include many tiers, huge databases, different types of reports, packages etc. It may also include interaction with different existing systems, and migration of data from those system.

So, what has happened?

Well, some disturbing news is heard.

“Microsoft is keen to partner in this project.” We have serious reservations on the involvement of Microsoft in this crucial project. Freedom is each individual's fundamental right. He cannot allow infiltration to his privacy or dictating terms to him. What about a society? A society can be termed as progressive only when each individual's right and freedom is protected. This is exactly the State's role. It should ensure the freedom and well being of each of its citizens. Microsoft is notorious on denial of the freedom (in digital world). Restricting access to source code and not allowing modifications from users is denial of his fundamental right - freedom to know – which is the corner stone of any society's progress. Denial of freedom to know (for a user and in this context the user is Indian government) gives freedom for Proprietary Software companies to infiltrate his(user's) privacy. The sheer number of anti- rust suits against Microsoft and other Proprietary Software makers is a testimony to the monopolistic tendencies of corporates and their utter disregard to the laws of the land, in pursuit of making money by hook or crook. In one of those cases, Microsoft argued that it cannot continue revealing further information to the judge, as the information is closely related to US national security. In short Microsoft is bound by the US Laws and is having strong strategic alliance with US Government, obviously this is in conflict with our national interest as USA can use this alliance for achieving any objectives they wanted (they have also announced Cyber warfare NSPD 16 for crippling any networks across the world, which makes the whole scenario more complicated). All these facts suggests an impending danger is looming on the sovereignty of India if we allow Microsoft in implementing this project. Just imagine how terrible it will be if the presence of malicious code or bugs in Microsoft's proprietary closed source crashes or corrupts the database, where future ofmillions depends. The source code of a project which is having tremendous importance to India, should be owned solely by the Govt. of India and not by Microsoft or any other corporates. A software can be termed as secure only if the freedom to examine or modify the code lies with its user, in this case Govt. of India. As per IT Act 2000, public systems cannot have malicious code inside. IT Act further says, public systems should not cause leakage of sensitive information relating to "privileges of parliament, trade, or other sensitive information". This can only be ensured if public systems are only on Free Software. Besides this, what if Microsoft resorts to steal the most vital and crucial information (as Satyam computers did to World-bank) and thereby destabilizing the country as part of USA's global imperial agenda? It is unimaginable. Another classic example is the case of Venezuela’s state-owned oil company PDVSA, which demonstrated how Proprietary Software is a threat to the sovereignty of a country. (click here). Apart from the security concerns shared above, we identify Microsoft's attempt as a crooked one! Microsoft sees the huge benefits it could accomplish by involving in this project. Huge budget involvement, support work (in software industry, majority of revenue is churned from the support work, and one can not deny the possibility of introducing bugs in the software for getting the support work!), upgradation work, backward entry to National E-commerce project implementations, increased market penetration and forcing of the implementation of IPR and copy right laws by close association with the policy makers etc are few of the advantages they could easily get! Adding to above, storage, distribution and display formats of this crucial data is very important. Openness and Interoperability are two vital and basic requirements for any standard. It is often correctly noted that the closed standards would drive one in to the folds of proprietary realm and thereby much serious patent complications. We must ensure that vital data of this stature is stored in formats that are open and free of all constraints like royalties, patent claims etc and there by should not allow to be controlled by anyone. Incidentally,this is also time where India's Draft Policy on Open Standards close to finalization, and in a surprise move, Nasscom – a representing body of the industry and MAIT recommended inclusion of standards under RAND terms and the usage of multiple standards in the same domain. Both of these recommendations have serious implications as far as India's interest is concerned. Issues of interoperability (between different standards), complications (on adhering to multiple standards) and high cost (of proprietary standards and bringing one in to the fold of patent issues) are few of the major issues. We suspect Microsoft's role and motivation on Nasscom and MAIT's recommendation. Another disturbing fact is Nandan Nilakeni whom our union ministry entrusted to implement this crucial project. This project can be handled easily by any senior administrative officer who is having prior experience of implementing complexecommerce applications. He could be biased as his previous company shares, business interest with Microsoft and also they voted for OOXML, much against national interest. Considering his links and role he played in Infosys, the possibility of Infosys being promoted cannot be overruled (and obviously going with the proprietary realm). All indications are that Microsoft is directing heavy lobbying in India for accomplishing its vested interests. Different studies have shown the superiority of Free Software when compared with Proprietary Software. Robert Francis Group (IBM-sponsored research) found security evels in GNU/Linux generally exceeded those in Windows, providing a more secure and manageable environment out of the box with significantly more functionality in terms of security integration and management. The Linux kernel programming code is better and more secure than the programming code of most Proprietary Software - based on a four-year analysis of the 5.7 million lines of Linux kernal source code conducted by five Stanford University researchers. So we should use only Free Software for the implementation of this crucial project. It is the only way for developing a superior implementation, in a very economical way which is important for a country like India where majority of population is in poverty and destitution. We are afraid that this project may lead to giving pathway for the Proprietary Software companies and their products to the e-commerce projects, which is against National interest in different ways – Huge economic loss for the national exchequer, inferior quality products, with future liabilities and the most important one - invoking gross vulnerability to National Security and stability. This needed to be countered at any cost. State should have control on the software products it purchases or develops. We cannot allow these proprietary s/w companies to loot public money for inferior quality products and allowing them to infiltrate in to the freedom of our fellow citizens. We appeal our readers to raise your voice against the infiltration attempts of Microsoft(and other companies who endorse proprietary realm in software industry) and to endorse Free Software for keeping nation's interest forefront.

“The most unfortunate thing is that India still

seems to believe in proprietary solutions”

Dr.A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, Former President of

India, May 28, 2003

considerably updated, edited and rewritten by friends (and editorial board members of fsmk) who are active in free software domain

Left Democratic Governments in Kerala

(this is an attempt to collaborate vast amount of data present in WWW; )


The Left democratic Governments in Kerala have changed the social and economic topography of the state permanently. CPI[M] led Left democratic governments set shining example of pro-people governance by implementing historic land reforms, a comprehensive people’s education plan, establishing a decentralized model of local self-government, which had empowered millions of rural poor and irreversibly changed their lives for the better. Left governments’ intervention for social provisioning of education and health, land reforms, public distribution systems and a number of social security measures helped to develop a society with its social sectors achievements comparable to developed countries. Its record in defending secularism, securing democratic rights and upholding honesty in public life is unanimously hailed.

Formation of first Government

The formation of the Left Government in Kerala was the first communist party led government in the country in 1957, was a culmination of decades of struggle - the historic Punnapara Vayalar struggle, Kayoor struggle, and numerous other struggles, which had been carried forward along with the independence struggle, anti feudal and anti imperialist struggle by various sections of the people — workers, peasants, teachers, dalits, marginalized backward caste people — under the leadership of the Left and united Communist Party.

Severe socio-economic issues had been burning the Kerala society. Socioeconomic oppression, cast discrimination, class inequalities, land lordship were the backbone of that backward society. Literatures by Changampuzha the famous poet, Takazhi, Cherukad and Vivekanda's infamous caption about Kerala society (as a 'Mental assailam') mirrors the exact hardship faced by poor masses in that feudal agrarian society. Apart from that, the living conditions of tenants, laborers, farmers, agricultural workers were becoming more and more worse; more masses were thrown in to poverty and destitution. Keeping in mind of different constitutional constraints (which were meant to serve the ruling class interests), the Left government embarked upon a program to provide immediate relief to the people and implementing alternative policies in spheres where the State government had some say. The government passed 88 bills, and 21 ordinances with in the span of 28 months highlight the commitment of the government towards the working class. The major initiatives of the first Left government were to carry out land reforms, educational institutional reforms, establishing a vibrant decentralized local body system, various democratic reformation at the ruling machinery like judiciary, state police etc. These historic initiatives broke the back of land lordism in the rural areas which could not be digested by the bourgeoisie part and landlord mafia. Congress with the unholy partnership of all upper caste and communal groups - the representatives of higher echelons of society led ‘liberation struggle’ (usage of that word to the whole event is a gross injustice to the history and whole mankind) removed the left from the governance (by the central government’s undemocratic intervention using the article 356 of constitution). Autobiography of USA ambassador Patrick Moynihan says that CIA - the notorious USA spy agency spent lakhs of money to the congress leadership and the above said non-progressive crass caste-religious organizations and groups for removing the left government. Congress the bourgeoisie’s party preached Imperialism (and vice versa) for betraying the people’s interests showed its true class nature. (and history repeats)

However the initiatives by left government empowered the poor peasantry and agricultural workers immensely and decisively changed the correlation of class forces in favor of the rural poor. Large sections of the rural poor, moved towards the Left and the CPI (M). Several other pro-people initiatives were also undertaken regarding workers’ rights and social sector development, which benefited different sections of the people: factory workers, unorganized workers, government employees, school and college teachers, students, youth, women.

Some historic policies

Land Reforms

The land reforms initiated in Kerala had two major parts: (i) effective imposition of land ceiling and vesting of ceiling surplus land (ii) redistribution of vested land among the landless cultivators and occupants of homestead land (kudikidappu). It also sought, not, to impose limits on land ownership and distribute surplus land to the landless. Statistics shows, the left government has distributed some 3 Lakhs hectares of land among the masses, which accounts to some 7% of total distributed land. This is no less achievement. It had brought down to a great extent the economic, class and caste inequality in Kerala society, ended statutory landlordism and the janmi system, and limited the ownership of landholdings. It offered protection to tenants from eviction, provided sites for the construction of houses to thousands of families and was instrumental in raising rural wages and in the introduction of social security schemes for agricultural workers.

Decentralization of power

Reorganisation of the system of local government was one of the most important of the institutional changes brought about by the Left Front government. It was an approach which gave much weightage to democratic decentralization. It went far beyond the usual conceptions of it either as simple bureaucratic decentralisation, or as a process where the local bodies confined themselves just to civic functions or even development functions. Left front placed the process of decentralisation squarely within the larger political process - a process by which democratic governance would be extended from central and state level to the local level. Decentralisation facilitates the mass of people and their organisations to directly intervene in the planning and implementation of development. In a centralised system their participation in planning can be only indirect at central or state level. In the process, Kerala has created a history of participation of the common people through the process of decentralisation, which is unique in India.

Education

Left governments’ involvement for achieving heights in social development and quality of life are inspiring and encouraging. The state has achieved a human development index comparable to the developed countries of the World. Besides these achievements, Left front govt has given large priority to education, which the state has accorded to high literacy among all Indian states and education for a long time. It attached so much importance to education that made sure that the school in Kerala is really the nucleus of the social microcosm. Better education kindles the aspirations of the people and the main concern is on how to improve the quality of education. The Left front attempted to transform the entire education system to suite the modern requirement. It started from the historic Education bill by first communist govt in 1957. It contained provisions to ensure fair conditions of service to teachers and to end exploitative practices followed by private managements. It empowered the Government to take over the management of private schools, which did not comply with the provisions of the Act. Another noteworthy provision in the Act was on free and compulsory primary education. (Parliament has yet to enact a law for this!) These attempts drew fierce opposition from the church and commercial education management. It executed some really revolutionary steps for ensuring the social justice with quality. It started different program s like for restructuring of higher education and for clustering of colleges, Comprehensive program s for improving the quality of school education and for universalization of secondary education, a well thought out quality improvement program for the most backward 104 high schools, which ensured is that in most of these schools, the pass percentage in SSLC examination has increased to more than 70% and more than 30 of them have achieved pass percentage of 100%. Efforts are also being made to establish centers of higher learning in the state with the support of the Central Government. The LDF Government has also initiated steps to protect the democratic rights of students in educational institutions. Through these continuous strenuous efforts, Kerala became the first state in India near 100% literacy

Health care, poverty, and other social welfare measures

A comprehensive health plan was envisaged for People and it helped to achieve a remarkably high healthcare situation which can be compared to developed countries. The basis for the state’s impressive health standards is the statewide infrastructure of primary health centers. There are over 2,700 government medical institutions in the state, with 160 beds per 100,000 populations, the highest in the country. With virtually all mothers taught to breast-feed, and a state-supported nutrition program for pregnant and new mothers, infant mortality in 2001 was 14 per thousand, compared with 91 for low-income countries generally.

In Kerala the birth rate is 40 per cent below that of the national average and almost 60 per cent below the rate for poor countries in general. Kerala’s birth rate is 14 per 1,000 females and falling fast. India's rate is 25 per 1,000 females and that of the US is 16. Kerala’s infant mortality rate is 15.3 per 1,000 births versus 57.0 for India and 7 for the US. In fact, a 1992 survey found that the birth rate had fallen to replacement level. Life expectancy of Kerala is 73 years, and female life expectancy is just as same as male. Kerala is ranked 1st among Indian states in the Human Development Index [India is ranked 132th overall].According to the Global Hunger Index 2008, Kerala tops Nutrition Index rank and Hunger Index rank among the states in India, only behind Punjab. These are direct indicators and figures of the left govt's aims and immense pressure created by working class and its party CPI[M]. The LDF Government has brought all Self-Help Groups attached to various departments under LSGIs which ensured development centered on women’s empowerment and self reliance through the Kudumbashree — a poverty eradication mission is a real alternative to the World Bank model of SHGs. The program is brought in to tight control of the govt and coupled with local bodies for funding and forming the groups for doing different group activities (which would empower the poor and women.) Massive training programs were organized for the Panchayat functionaries, officials and activist in the rural area for this. Kudumbasrees has been given central place for implementing NREGA(National Rural Employee Guarantee Act) (NREGA implementation in state was hailed at national level due to its success rate.)

While keeping in mind the significance of the co-operative sector in Kerala’s rural economy, the maximum possible interest rates charged on agricultural loans has been reduced by the LDF Government. Through interest relief, moratorium and writing off loans, concessions to the tune of Rs. 3100 crores have been extended to farmers, which was very much essential as they were the marginalized community due to extremely volatile globalized economy (during UDF tenure, state was victim of 1000 farmers suicides and this tendency was completelt stopped by the government’s intervention!). Similarly Left govt intervened by giving importance to traditional sectors like coir, cashew nut, copra industries, and fisheries, and had concrete plans for revival of PSUs, ensured the interests of the working class.

The LDF government has taken steps to protect the poor and ordinary people from the impact of price rice through revamping the PDS and through strengthening the network of Maveli stores and Co-operative markets. A number of essential commodities are sold through these outlets at a lower price than the open market. The Government has also enhanced the PDS subsidy, giving rice and wheat at Rs.2 per kilo to a larger number of families.

The initiatives of the Kerala Legislature in the field of labour welfare have gained country wide recognition. Laws protecting the rights of agricultural workers and head load workers have been hailed as models for other States. The workers in almost all the segments, organized as well as unorganized, have been brought under the purview of welfare funds through appropriate legislation. Equally important is the contribution made by the Cooperative Societies Act of 1964. The Act ensures democratic functioning, transparency and voluntary membership of co-operative societies. Provisions to establish an autonomous Recruitment Board for making appointments in Co-operative institutions were introduced by an amendment in 2000. In short the Kerala Co-operative Societies Act provided a stable legal framework to the co-operative sector, enabling it to play a vital role in the State’s development.

A major intervention of government has been the reclaiming of public land from encroachers of various shades from corporate plantations to real estate barons and the redistribution of it to the landless.

The Left Front government has also taken positive initiatives to uplift the Muslim minorities, who comprise over remarkable% of the State’s population. The Left govt is planning to implement the recommendation of Paloli committee, which would make sure, the condition of this minority community is much better in any cases.

Constraints

The Left government has been proactive in taking initiatives to do away with the shortcomings that continue to exist in its developmental effort. Several new initiatives have also been taken to improve the quality of public service in school education and public health in order to improve the human development scenario. However, the capacity of the Left government to deliver in the spheres of peoples’ welfare and social infrastructure has been severely constrained by the limited availability of resources. Unless the resource constraint is overcome, major welfare initiatives cannot be undertaken. While a part of the additional resources can be generated through internal resource mobilization, much depends upon the direction of economic and social policies of the Central government too. The power to take crucial economic policy decisions in India rests with the Central government and not the State governments. For most parts of its tenure, the Left governments have had to encounter hostile governments at the Centre. There was a conscious effort on the part of successive Central governments, particularly those run by the Congress, to discourage the activities and initiatives by government

Conclusion

The biggest achievement of the Left governments in Kerala is its steps for ensuring an impeccable social index and its record in safeguarding democratic rights. Its impeccable record in upholding secularism, dealing with communal elements with a firm hand and defending the rights of minorities is a welcome exception to the programmatic or pragmatic communalism practiced by the bourgeois parties and the state governments led by them. Born out of the struggles against authoritarianism and State repression, it is the commitment of the Left government to democracy, which has won it enormous credibility in the eyes of the people of Kerala.

Despite the achievements, the experiences of CPI[M] led govts taught several lessons in spite of the serious limitations of the bourgeois landlord constitution in general and a federal unit in particular a working class revolutionary party can certainly make use of the parliamentary opportunities for the sake of the dispossessed and oppressed classes. It showed an alternate of path of development different from the one proposed and practiced by the advocates of globalization, privatization and liberalization. The Kerala model of development emphasizes that the economic growth need not be at the expense of equity and social justice.

Are You Relegious Or Communal

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Are You Relegious Or Communal

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(prepared by Bangalore friends as part of a program againt communalism and terrorism... group included Senthil, nidhjin, karthik, JK,KK,myself etc... )