Vacation Travel India

Tigers

Tiger sightings are very rare these days. The 2001-2 census by Project Tiger recorded only 3,642 tigers in India (over half of the world’s total), slightly up on 1997. A typical day’s kill on a hunt in the days of the British Raj would be close to 100. Now, dead tiger parts are sold clandestinely to Chinese pharmacists for use in what is, quite frankly, outright quackery. The poachers rarely use guns, especially since there is no longer a premium on intact pelts. Instead a carcass is wired to a few sticks of dynamite, and a curious tiger comes along and triggers an explosion. Often they simply poison the tiger’s own kill, or lay snares. Poorly paid game wardens are no match for the organized poachers working in remote game parks.

A formidable hunter, the tiger usually takes its quarry from behind, laying its chest on the back of the animal, grabbing the neck in its canines, sometimes bracing a forearm on the forelimb of the quarry and trying to pull it down by their combined weight. The tiger’s sharp retractile claws also play a significant role in capturing and holding on to its quarry. A swipe of the forearm is sometimes used to stop a fleeing animal or to kill very small prey like monkey or peafowl. Depending on the size of its kill, a tiger may feed on it for four to five days. By the end, it will have eaten all the flesh, small bones, skin and hair.

The tiger’s choice of quarry is not chosen by species. It is, rather, by size; the bigger the better. With very large prey, such as the gaur or the buffalo, a tiger will generally go for the sub-adults.

Dominant males may occupy very extensive territories, as large as 50 to 100 sq km (20 to 40 sq miles). Up to three or even five females may occupy mutually exclusive sub-territories within a large male territory. The females in such an organization are assured of food supply for themselves and their offspring and, in return, owe allegiance to the territorial male.

The best bet for glimpsing a tiger in the wild is to visit an Indian sanctuary before it is too late. At Kaziranga (Assam), Bandhavgarh or Kanha (Madhya Pradesh), Dudhwa or Corbett (Uttar Pradesh) or Bandipur (Karnataka) odds are more favourable than at parks where poachers penetrate. Even during the dry season, when thirsty animals slow down and are visible against the parched leaves, luck is still a key ingredient. Dusk or dawn is a likely hour. Jeeps, elephants, and even dugout canoes carry visitors deep into the bush, and few will be disappointed by the experience, even if they only see the pug marks of big predators.

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Big beasts

The one-horned Indian rhinoceros keeps mainly to the northeastern woods around Kaziranga in Assam, though a number have been reintroduced to Dudhwa park in Uttar Pradesh, nudging India’s total of rhinos to around 1,700. They stand about 1.6 metres (5.5 ft) at the shoulder and weigh around 1,820 kg (4,000 lbs). Adult males are larger than females, with horns that are usually thicker at the base and often broken or split at the tip (the horn of the female is usually slender and unbroken). Adult females may also be accompanied by calves.

Floodplain grassland interspersed with marsh, swamp and lake, and the adjoining riverine forest, are their favored habitat. Rhinos prefer to feed on short grasses and seek shelter in thick stands of tall grass, sometimes 6-8 metres (20-25 ft) high.

Elephants make large demands on their environment; an adult animal consumes something like 200 kg (450 lbs) of green fodder a day, probably wasting an equal amount in the process. The elephant has few natural enemies, calves are jealously guarded by their mothers and tigers seldom have the opportunity to take them. The elephant, therefore, is an apex species and an excellent indicator of the health of their habitat. A habitat that is good for the elephant is also good for its associate species, such as the sambar deer, spotted deer and barking deer, which in their turn - as prey species - support predators like the tiger or the leopard.

Rhinos are usually viewed from elephant back. These mounts are domestic elephants. Wild tuskers found in the jungles are feared, with good reason. Some may roam close to villages, developing a taste for alcohol after drinking the contents of a still. Others stampede through villages, mowing down everything in their path - usually after being provoked by villagers defending their crops. Yet spying a herd of wild elephants tearing calmly through the shrubbery is a definite thrill. Such enormous beasts can move with surprising silence.

There are an estimated 9,000 wild elephants in India, with thousands more working at temples, logging camps, game parks, or hired out for weddings. Periyar, in Kerala, is the best place to view elephants in the wild. Parks in West Bengal and Assam are also good bets.

Game tourism

Indian game viewing began on a grand scale in the 1950s, and even today the arrangements sometimes resemble gentlemen’s shooting parties of that era. Creature comforts are not ignored in the wild, and some tents are quite luxurious, though many forest houses are rustic, and safari suits are now worn mostly by chauffeurs for the middle class.

Wild animal-watching in India takes patience. Many of the most spectacular beasts hide in the shadows, lone predators waiting for their opportunity. Game reserves are not easily accessible (except for Ranthambore in Rajasthan, near a railway connection). A few parks require special permits in advance, usually for a minimum group of four. In the north east, where shy pandas and macaques hide, militants and Adivasis often do, too. The government limits visits near strategic borders or guerrilla areas. It is always wise to check before setting out, since situations change without warning. At any sanctuary, dress in sensible camouflage and keep quiet; the creatures are easily frightened. Yet with almost 350 species of mammal, a couple of thousand types of bird, and at least 30,000 kinds of insect (more than you want to know personally), India provides an unmatched range that justifies several trips.

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esides an Everest tour, one of the most exciting adventures in India is to explore its wildlife.

Animals are never far away in India. Even common house pests could include such exotics as a red-rumped monkey or a mongoose, besides the geckoes flexing on the wall or a scorpion hiding inside a shoe. Mynah birds and an occasional cobra in the garden come as no surprise. Camels and elephants wander in the street traffic and humped cattle sometimes outnumber the vehicles on the road. Water buffalo loll beside the dhobi ghats, where laundry is done. Huge birds of prey - vultures or pariah kites - spiral overhead.

Lions, tigers and bears - savage and shy - inhabit South Asia from Himalayan cloud forests to desert scrub. Land-clearing has encroached on much of the former hunting grounds, and without the game reserves and sanctuaries many more might disappear. There’s no chance of spotting a cheetah now; the last of these died in 1994. The government of India continues to permit the destruction of big cats which are proven man-eaters, and so-called “cattle lifters” are often gunned down for revenge as well. These can be leopards, panthers, or tigers, though snow leopards and the daintier clouded leopard are often spared.

Hundreds of stocky Asiatic lions prowl the Gir Forest Reserve in Gujarat, the only place in the world where they thrive. Unlike African lions, these cats don’t have much mane, but carry most of their shaggy hair on the tip of their tails and elbows. In the 1990s some young males strayed outside the park and were neutered by rangers, who were anxious that local cattleherders shouldn’t start shooting the lions if they dared put a paw outside their sanctuary. Striped hyenas feed on the lions’ leftovers and there are more panthers visible in the Gir - pronounced “gear”, not “Grrrr” - than at any other Indian park.

Bears are more aloof. Himalayan brown bears are heavy-set and larger than their black cousins, who live below the tree line on Himalayan slopes. Sloth bears, found over much of India, are mostly nocturnal. All three varieties can climb trees and swim if put to the test. The sloth bear grunts with pleasure or anger, and digs for termites and other grubs. It gobbles bees, but prefers honeycomb or sweet fruits and berries. The bears are hunted for their gall bladders, sold for Chinese fertility medicine. Miserable sloth bears can be seen in cities, shuffling along in chains and a muzzle, and earning a few rupees for their captors. In the forests of the northeast red pandas, resembling slim, auburn raccoons, are found.

Surrounded on three sides by the sea, life in Mumbai draws much of its character from the beaches, seaside promenades and coastline. Beyond the central city are the beaches of Juhu, Versova, Madh Island, Marve, Manori and Gorai, one-time secluded seaside resorts.

Marine Drive (otherwise known as Netaji Sub-hash Road) links Malabar Hill to Fort and Colaba. This long, gracefully curving road along the buttressed sea-coast, viewed from the Hanging Gardens on Malabar Hill, provides at night a view of the glittering “Queen Victoria’s Necklace” and, by day and night, a panorama of Mumbai’s skyline.

Along Marine Drive runs a wide sidewalk, ideal for the early-morning jogger, evening walker and late-night stroller. During the monsoons the turbulent waves splash over the parapets.

In the south Marine Drive ends at Nariman Point. Close by are numerous offices, including those of Air India and Indian Airlines, but at the very tip of the promontory is the National Centre for the Performing Arts, set up by the Tata Trust in 1966. One of India’s premier cultural centres, it hosts exhibitions and puts on music, dance and drama performances. Chow-patti, at the north end of Marine Drive, is a stretch of sandy beach. In the evenings, it is crowded with people enjoying the cool sea breeze and stalls selling delicious Mumbai bhelpuri and other snacks. Chowpatti is famous also for its kulfi and ice creams. During the Ganesh Chaturthi festival processions from the city meet here with images of Ganesh, which are then immersed in the sea. The Taraporevala Aquarium, also on Marine Drive, has a good collection of tropical fish (open Tues-Sat 10am-7pm, Sun 10am-8pm).

Sacred places

Gillian Tindall called her historical study of Mumbai City of Gold and, certainly, the pursuit of wealth is a major occupation here. But Mumbaikars do not forget the “temples of their gods”, though often in pursuit of equally material aims. Appropriately, a major shrine near the racecourse is dedicated to Mahalaksmi, goddess of wealth and prosperity. Many in this cosmopolitan city attend holy shrines, whether of their own religion or of others. Peoples of all faiths queue patiently on fixed days of the week to make their offerings, whether at the tomb of the Muslim saint, Haji Ali, on the tidal island off the shore opposite the Racecourse at Mahalaksmi; or for the Wednesday “Novenas” at St Michael’s Church at Mahim; or at the Siddhivinayak Temple at Prabhadevi on Tuesdays. Bandra’s Fair, in celebration of the feast of St Mary, is centred on an image of St Mary at the Mount Mary Shrine and attracts thousands of seekers of succour and favors - with no particular distinction of caste or creed.

Gujaratis from the state north of Mumbai constitute a substantial proportion of the city’s Hindu and Parsi populations, and especially of its business community. Fleeing persecution in Persia, the Parsis migrated to Gujarat and moved to Mumbai in large numbers in the 17th century. Being Zoroastrians, they built Fire Temples and a “Tower of Silence” on Malabar Hill. The tower is an isolated facility for the disposal of the dead (dokhura) by exposure to the elements and vultures. Burial and cremation are ruled out for Zoroastrians, since they hold both fire and earth sacred. This very private and sacred site is off limits to visitors.

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The Fort (downtown) area in South Mumbai derives its name from the fact that the area fell within the former walled city, of which only a small fragment survives as part of the eastern boundary wall of St George’s Hospital.

Memories of this walled area were preserved in such names as Churchgate, Bazaargate and Rampart Row, all renamed in recent years. Within the Fort was the Castle, the headquarters of the Mumbai Government. Until India became independent, government orders were issued as from “Mumbai Castle”, though the castle itself had long ceased to exist.

Flora Fountain stands in a crowded square at the heart of the Fort area, now called Hutatma Chowk (Martyrs’ Square). The fountain was erected in honour of the governor, Sir Henry Bartle Edward Frere, who built new Mumbai in the 1860s. The memorial that has given the square its new name - Hutatma - commemorates those who lost their lives in the cause of setting up a separate Maharashtra state in the Indian Union. This has traditionally been the business centre of Mumbai, with major banks and airline offices.

The Maidan, just to the west of Hutatma Chowk, is a long stretch of park that runs from Colaba up to the end of M.G. Road. Facing the Maidan are some of Mumbai’s finest buildings. The Old Secretariat and the Public Works Department Secretariat on K. Baburao Patel Marg were designed and built by Colonel Orel Henry St Clair Wilkins during 1867-74, and are high Victorian Gothic in style. Also here are the University Hall, funded by Sir Cowasjee Jehangir Readymoney, and the Library and Florentine-style Rajabai Tower (Clock Tower), completed in 1878. On VeerNariman Road, which bisects the Maidan, is the imposing Western Railway Central office building at Churchgate, built in grey-blue basalt with bands of white in 1890, it has towers with oriental domes. West of Hutatma Chowk along Veer Nariman Road is Horniman Circle. Lined with elegant sandstone buildings, in the centre are very well-maintained gardens. On the southern side is St Thomas’s Cathedral (1672-1718). Inside there are some wonderful monuments to the British colonial great and good. South of Horniman Circle is the main financial district, centred around Dalai Street, now shorthand for the SENSEX, or Mumbai Stock Exchange. Also close by is the Town Hall, which now contains part of the State Central Library (open Mon-Sat 10am-7pm). Along with copies of every book printed in India, the archives include more than 10,000 rare antique manuscripts, among them a copy of Dante’s Divine Comedy rumoured to be worth US$3 million - Mussolini tried to buy it once but was turned down.

The most impressive High Victorian Gothic structure in Mumbai, designed by Frederick William Stevens, is Chatrapati Shivaji Terminus (CST, formerly Victoria Terminus, VT) and the adjoining headquarters building of the Central Railway, known originally as the Great Indian Peninsular Railway. Just off Nagar Chowk, it was built between 1878 and 1887 using yellow sandstone and granite with polychromatic stones and blue-grey basalt for decoration.

The Municipal Corporation Building opposite CST is another Stevens masterpiece, especially the domed central staircase and the cusped arches in the arcaded storeys. Another building of note near CST is the General Post Office, designed by George Wittet. He also left his mark in the Ballard Estate area, where his office buildings reflect those of 19th-century London.

Jyotiba Phule Market (previously Crawford Market, built 1865-71), north of CST along Dr Dadabhai Naroji Road, was designed by William Emerson and has bas-reliefs by J.L. Kipling, Rudyard Kipling’s father. A fascinating place to explore, you can seemingly buy any kind of foodstuff here.

The Muslims of Mumbai, like the Parsis and Gujaratis, have merged with the rest in the melting pot of urban culture. Yet there are areas in Mumbai where their contributions to city life can still be observed and enjoyed. On Mohammed Ali Road, north of Jyotiba Phule Market, one can get kababs rolled up in rotis (unleavened bread), or hot jalebi sweets, at all hours. Close by is the highly ornate Jama Masjid. currently under armed guard to protect it from Hindu extremists. Between the Jama Masjid and Lokmanya Tilak Road is Man-galdas Market, a covered warren of little stalls selling a huge variety of fabrics.

The School of Art, on Lokmanya Tilak Road, was built at the same time as Crawford Market. Rudyard Kipling was born and spent his early years here. His father, John Lockwood Kipling, was principal of the school and under his guidance many local artisans prepared panels and motifs to adorn the new buildings of Mumbai. Elphinstone High School (1872), with its central tower and canopied balconies, and St Xavier’s College (1867) are further down. The latter has panels by J.L. Kipling.

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The Gateway of India on the waterfront at P.J. Ramachandani Marg (previously Apollo Bunder) was conceived as a triumphal arch to commemorate the visit of Britain’s George V and Queen Mary for the Delhi Darbar in 1911. The honey-colored basalt of the arch, designed by George Wittet, faces the sea and catches the light of the rising and setting sun and changes from shades of gold to orange and pink. It was through this arch that the last of the British troops left India by sea. Opposite the Gateway is the Taj Hotel. After the industrialist J.N. Tata was refused entry to the “European” hotel Watson’s, he exacted revenge by constructing a far more opulent hotel nearby. It opened in 1903 and heads of state and celebrities have been passing through its doors ever since.

The foundation stone of the domed Maharaja Chatrapati Sivaji Museum (open Tues-Sun 10.15am-6pm, entrance fee), on M.G. Road, was laid by George V in 1905 during his visit to India as Prince of Wales. The museum contains some excellent examples of Indian miniature painting of the Mughal and Rajasthan schools. There are also collections of jade artefacts and chi-naware. The Jehangir Art Gallery, next to the museum, stages regular exhibitions of contemporary art and crafts. Some exhibits are for sale (open 1 am-7pm). Perhaps its greatest asset is the popular Samovar cafe. Opposite the museum, completing the cultural trilogy, is the National Gallery of Modern Art (open Tues-Sun llam-7pm, entrance fee).

The Afghan Memorial Church of St John the Evangelist is in south Colaba. The church, on Capt P. Pethe Marg, was established in 1847 and consecrated 11 years later as a memorial to those who fell in the First Afghan War. It is a lovely piece of architecture with Gothic arches and stained-glass windows.

Sassoon Docks is where the city’s trawler fleet lands its catch each morning. If you can cope with the overpowering stench, wander around the quays to watch the fish being flung into crates of ice balancing on the heads of waiting porters, who carry them at top speed to the adjacent auction halls for sale. Hundreds of boats tie up here during the day, their flags, masts and rigs forming one of Mumbai’s more arresting spectacles. This is also where you will see the city’s signature dish, ‘Bombay duck’, being dried in the salty breezes.

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Mumbai Municipal Corporation provides primary and secondary education in at least 10 languages, including English. Mumbai has developed its own patter, “Bombay speak”, which regular Hindi/Urdu speakers find rather comical. It is often caricatured in Indian films and plays. The Hindu population of Mumbai is largely Marathi, though most non-Marathi Mumbaikars are also Hindus, with Jains among the Gujaratis, and neo-Buddhists among the Dalits.

Local Muslim nawabs ruled this region, but handed it over to the Portuguese in 1534 in exchange for support against the Mughals. This was the beginning of Mumbai’s large Christian (mainly Roman Catholic) population and its numerous churches, which led to two separate areas in Mumbai coming to be known as “Portuguese Church”. A few churches retain their Portuguese facades: St Andrew’s in the suburb of Bandra is a fine example. There are also minor remains of Portuguese fortifications both on the main island and the much larger island of Salsette north of the city and now mostly incorporated in Greater Mumbai. (Also being developed is a New Mumbai on the mainland, a few miles across Mumbai harbor.) At Vasai (Bassein), 50 km (30 miles) from Mumbai, there are ruins of a Portuguese walled settlement.

In 1662 Charles II of England married Catherine of Braganza, a Portuguese princess. As part of the dowry, the British crown received the islands of Mumbai. This company of merchant-adventurers had for some time felt the need for an additional west-coast port, to supplement and ultimately to supplant Surat in Gujarat. Far-sighted governors of this period, such as Gerald Augiers, began the construction of the city and harbor, inviting the settlement of Gujarati merchants and Parsi, Muslim and Hindu manufacturers and traders to help develop the city. This led to the settlement of all these communities in Mumbai.

Cotton boom town

The slow transformation of the swampy islands during the 17th and 18th centuries gave way in the 19th century to rapid change. In 1858, the Honourable East India Company returned the islands to the British crown. In the 1850s came the steam engine and by the end of the century Mumbai was linked with central and northern India by the Great Indian Peninsular Railway and, some time later, with eastern India, too. During this period, Mumbai became an important cotton town. Raw cotton from Gujarat was shipped to Lancashire, spun and woven into cloth and brought back to Mumbai for sale all over the country. Notwithstanding this, Mumbai’s cotton textile industry was established in this period, thanks to the persistence of Mumbai’s entrepreneurs. The outbreak of the American Civil War in 1861 and the opening of the Suez Canal gave further impetus to cotton exports. The city’s new-found wealth led to the construction of many impressive buildings.

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Renamed Mumbai, India’s most populous city is the country’s glamorous commercial hub, a magnet to rich and poor, surrounded on three sides by the Arabian Sea.

The story of Mumbai is fascinating. From obscure, humble beginnings as a set of seven small islands with tidal creeks and marshes between them, the city has risen to such eminence that today it is India’s most important commercial and industrial centre. The seven islands have been merged by land reclamation into one and thus survive only as names of localities like Colaba, Mahim, Mazgaon, Parel, Worli, Girgaum and Dongri. Known until 1995 as Bombay, the Marathi name “Mumbai” derives from the local deity, Mumba Devi. The first Portuguese settlers called the area “Bom Baim” (Good Bay).

Today, Mumbai is booming. Home to the wealthy and the glamorous, it has long been India’s Hollywood (”Bollywood”), producing more films each year than any other city in the world. Nowadays, it is also the home of India’s own fast-growing satellite and television industries.

Like all big cities, Mumbai has its seamy side, its slums and its overcrowding, the foothills of poverty on which are built towering skyscrapers. And like all success stories, there have been chapters of intrigue, violence, happiness and calm, and the struggles of the pre-independence years, when Mumbai became the political capital of nationalist India. Some of its more disgraceful moments during the 1990s were communal riots between Hindus and Muslims, encouraged by the chauvinist Shiv Sena, and its shady founder, Bal Thackeray.

Mumbai is on India’s west coast, running down from Gujarat, through Mumbai to Goa, Karnataka and Kerala. South of Mumbai, narrow beaches and plains sweep up into the forested hills of the Western Ghats. The city has a natural harbour, which was developed by the British and, once the Suez Canal opened in the 19th century, the port never knew a dull moment. Today it handles more than 40 percent of India’s maritime trade.

India’s largest city now stretches 22 km (14 miles) into the Arabian Sea. The maximum width of the composite island that now constitutes metropolitan Mumbai is no more than 5 km (3 miles). Into this narrow strip are squeezed the majority of Mumbai’s 16.3 million people, its major business and commercial establishments, its docks and warehouses, and much of its industry - including almost the whole of its major textile industry, which employs thousands of workers.

Mumbai summers are hot and humid, the winters warm, while the sea breeze brings relief throughout the year. The monsoon hits between June and September, bringing curtains of heavy rain that obscure the view and flood the roads.

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Demise of Congress

In the meantime, power devolved to P.V. Narasimha Rao, a Congress party stalwart from South India. It was a classic compromise, but Rao’s staying power was underestimated. Rao made the rupee convertible and allowed foreigners to control 51 percent of their joint ventures. Import tariffs were cut and foreigners were allowed to buy and sell shares on India’s 20 stock exchanges. But the old demons would not easily disappear. The fight for independence in Kashmir rumbled on, with stories of appalling atrocities. In 1992 tens of thousands of Hindu zealots used their bare hands to tear down a mosque in Ayodhya.

The political kaleidoscope of India is forever changing, creating unlikely patterns and alliances. Parties with a wide constituency include the Congress (Indira), which still plays on the Nehru legacy; the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Hindu nationalists; the Left Front, a coalition of parties, including the Communist Party of India and the Communist Party of India (Marxist); and the Samajwadi Party, representing the low-castes and Muslims. Regional parties include the Sikh activists, Akali Dal; two Dravidian parties in Tamil Nadu, the aiadmk and their rivals, DMK; the Telugu Desam Party from Andhra Pradesh; and the Hindu and Maratha extremist Shiv Sena based in Mumbai.

Mumbai was rocked by a dozen bombs in a single day in March 1993. Terrified Muslims fled the city and gangsters appropriated valuable downtown land. The BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) triumphed in the next state elections. Bal Thackeray, sinister leader of the Hindu chauvinist Shiv Sena (Shiva’s army), called for state borders to be closed to all non-residents.

Under Rao, Congress lost considerable support. Reports of a cash-crammed suitcase left as a blatant bribe, and profiteering from import scams, surfaced in the newspapers. Economic liberalization measures were criticized for lining the pockets of the rich while doing little to help the poor.

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The rise of the Sangh Parivar

The demise in support for Congress gave the BJP its chance to bid for power. Formed in 1980 out of the Jana Sangh Party, part of the Janata Party coalition that had ousted Indira after the Emergency, the BJP is the political wing of the Sangh Parivar, a collection of right wing Hindu organisations that includes the RSS, the VHP (Vishva Hindu Parishad) and the youth wings of the Bajrang Dal and Durga Vahini. In elections in 1989 it was part of a shortlived coalition government that was replaced by left-leaning coalitions under prime ministers Deve Gowda and I.K. Gujral. However, the momentum gained through the 1992 destruction of the Babri Masjid continued to grow, and in 1998 the BJP found itself at the head of a coalition government.

As well as persuing a virulently neo-liberal economic agenda (after ditching its pre-election claim to promote swadeshi, Indian-made goods) the BJP oversaw a communalisation of education and encouraged intolerance towards minority communities.

India, once hailed for its doctrine of nonviolence, continued to flex its muscles in the region. As well as maintaining the largest standing army in the world, Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee in 1998 authorised five surprise nuclear underground tests at Pokhran in the Rajasthan desert, 24 years after Indira Gandhi first pushed the button. In 1999 he formed a more durable coalition government called the National Democratic Alliance (nda) with the support of regional parties including the TDP (Telugu Desam Party) and Akali Dal.

An election upset

That same year India and Pakistan engaged in a 50-day war in the Kargil Valley in Kashmir that threatened to escalate into a much broader conflict. Pakistani infiltrators were eventually pushed back, though not before more than 1,000 soldiers had been killed. Patriotic fervour, whipped up by politicians, created an ugly mood in the country. Tensions continued to increase between the neighboring countries, reaching their height in 2002 when the two nuclear powers teetered on the brink of all-out war.

However, geopolitics held little interest for the great mass of Indians who still lacked electricity and had to make do with poor sanitation and filthy water. When they were given a chance to make their voices heard in the general election of 2004, the judgment of the 380 million people who voted came as a complete shock to the political class. They decisively rejected the Bjp-led alliance in favour of a Congress-led alliance.

The shock was compounded by the fact that the Congress party’s leader was Sonia Gandhi. The thought of having a 59-year-old Italian-born woman as prime minister. Perhaps, some mused, Sonia Gandhi was consoled by the hope that the family succession might eventually pass to her son Rahul, who in the same election won a seat in his father’s old constituency of Amethi in Uttar Pradesh by more than 100,000 votes.

After the event

As it turned out, the stock market need not have been jittery about the new government. The new Prime minister, along with the new finance minister was anathema to many, and the stock market, fearing that the new government might be less business-friendly, took a tumble. Sonia Gandhi, having listened to her “inner voice”, declined the premiership and appointed instead Manmohan Singh, previously a Congress finance minister, who thus became India’s first Sikh prime minister Palaniappan Chidambaram, have maintained the neo-liberal economics of their predecessors while, admittedly, putting money into social relief programmes.

However, there have been some important changes: school books are being re-examined and re-written to remove any communal bias; a Common Minimum Programme was agreed with the Left Front - comprising the Communist Party of India (Marxist), the Communist Party of India, the Forward Bloc and the Revolutionary Socialist Party - who continue to support the government from the outside; and, perhaps most importantly, India’s relations with Pakistan are the best they have been for many years.

Ongoing peace talks started between Pakistan’s General Pervez Musharraf and Prime Minister Vajpayee in 2003. Since the accession of Congress and its allies to power these have continued apace and a great deal of progress has been made over the divisive, and central, issue of Kashmir. In early 2005 this received a boost with the adoption of “confidence building measures”, including the opening of a bus route between Srinagar and Muzaffarabad in Pakistan-Occupied-Kashmir. With both countries describing the peace process as “irreversible” there is hope that a final settlement might at last be in sight.

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