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US pressure on Indian Cabinet formation?

New Delhi: There is a rather odd interview Anand Sharma has given to Reuters. He is off to Washington and the interview comes just before the visit. Part of the interview is about India being keen to break the deadlock in WTO negotiations. That's a fair point since multilateral agreements are preferable ....Read more

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10 Comments |

jt secyBy: Dinesh ahuja | Thursday , 18 Jun '09 14:44:59 PM Reply | Forward this columnist is talking all nonsense, what happened to facts? quite a waste of time reading this. express should not let people like this write, get better people on board.

WTO rejoices over Kamal Nath's exit from commerce ministryBy: mediavigil | Thursday , 18 Jun '09 11:44:59 AM Reply | Forward Even prior to Bibek Debroy article, Devinder Sharma, a well known food policy analyst said, "WTO heaved a sigh of relief when Kamal Nath moved out of the Commerce Ministry, the probability of concluding the contentious Doha Development Round of the WTO appears much brighter. Kamal Nath had a strong grip over the trade negotiations that helped India to resist bullying. WTO chief Pascal Lamy would remain eternally grateful to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for shifting Kamal Nath. Kamal Nath has been an eye sore not only for Pascal Lamy, but also for the US and EU. Even Prime Minister Manmohan Singh wasn't very happy with Kamal Nath because he did not blindly follow the Prime Minister's directive. Remember the failure of the WTO latest round of talks in Aug 2008. Kamal Nath was aware that George Bush had called up Manmohan Singh thrice and yet he didn't give an impression as if he was buckling under pressure."

US influence in selection of Indian Cabinet ministersBy: Ravi | Wednesday , 17 Jun '09 23:33:17 PM Reply | Forward One whole column solely based on a rumour??? Surely, the columnist can find a better gossip area for his next column. Yes, entire US administration was losing sleep over India's cabinet selection. In another related story, IE columnist also found, err 'heard', President Obama had to be treated for exhaustion and had to undergo phsychological counselling after he suffered through prolonged uncertainty regarding appointment of Indian commerce minister. Our liberal intellectuals, amazing creatures, I tell you!!!

EditorBy: Nparry | Wednesday , 17 Jun '09 21:45:02 PM Reply | Forward Agree completely with 'baffled' about the mediocre and incoherent writing in this article. Most Indian newspapers are poorly written with no quality check, fact-check or spelling-check. For example, most papers write 'pressurising so-and-so' and not pressuring. A simple grammar check would reveal the difference. Mediocrity has seeped into and found a home in the Express.

The Race to the BottomBy: Dr. Gene Nelson | Wednesday , 17 Jun '09 17:27:13 PM Reply | Forward Kamal Nath was remarkably candid in a 15 April 2007 NY Times article. He said that the controversial H-1B Visa was the "outsourcing visa." As a displaced U.S. information technology professional, I don't see that as good. The H-1B program is a strong example of a bloated "government subsidy" program. That's what Nobel economist Milton Friedman called in a 2002 article. U.S. employers benefit because they can hire labor that is effectively indentured for below-market wages.The numbers of visas are excessive... Over 4 million visa admissions between FY 1975 and FY 2005. To learn more, please google the PDF version of the new article, "The Greedy Gates Immigration Gambit." You will learn how Bill Gates, III hired the "best and brightest" lobbyist and his Team (Jack A. Abramoff) to help procure 3 employer - friendly changes to H-1B Visa law. Microsoft also spent about $100 million in political expenditures between 1995 and 2000. Yes, corruption is alive and well in the U.S. IMO.

Anand Sharma should stay a night in a marginal landholder's farm By: Prof. J. George | Wednesday , 17 Jun '09 15:32:41 PM Reply | Forward Indeed shocking to read the press release about grand resumption of the dead locked Doha negotiations. It is not a matter of conjecture to know whether or not Mr. Anand Sharma during these few days would have familiarised himself with the vocabulary of the Doha Round documents. The least he could do is to do a Rahul Gandhi like night out with marginal farmers at least in four corners of the country to familiarise himself with the ground realities of the Indian agriculture. The deepening contours of agrarian crisis under the UPA-2 regime are already visible. Albeit, this heist by Mr. Sharma completely overshadows the UPA-1 conflict of interest practiced by the ministry of agriculture and foods on the one hand and the knowledge initiative in agriculture (KIA) a joint project between India and US.Protecting and nurturing smallholder agriculturist is the avowed objective of the government. Loan waiver was merely the iceberg tip and pales into insignificance compared to these showmanship.

The Author is drunkBy: M.Kondratiev | Wednesday , 17 Jun '09 14:54:59 PM Reply | Forward The author is talking nonsense. A Multilateral negotiations can never by definition satisfy everyone. If Brazil or Australia gains, Indian farmers will lose. If Indian IT gains, Americans IT will lose. If South American banana gains African banana will lose.WTO has failed. It is better to get out of it now before it is too late. The author cannot understand the real issue.

Muslim Appeasement and Police reformsBy: S>madhavan | Wednesday , 17 Jun '09 13:28:11 PM Reply | Forward Any party that desires to come to power has to take note of the power of the muslim vote.After all it can be mobilized en bloc in many areas unlike the so called HIndu vote which has always been fragmented and will continue to be so. Reservation on communal basis in the police will so the seeds of another partition.It is doubtful if the congress as it is constituted to day has any worry about long term effects of its policies on the Indian social fabric. After all this country has accepted foreign rulers for over a thousand years, the present dispensation being not different in substance what if it continues for ever?

Did you get paid for this article?By: baffled | Wednesday , 17 Jun '09 7:01:56 AM Reply | Forward This has to be the most incoherent article I have ever read in the Indian Express (and quite close to some of the articles that regularly appear in the Times of India). A prime example of mediocrity in every walk of Indian life, including its leading newspaper.

MUSLIM APPEASEMENT VIA POLICE REFORMS.By: Alok Nath | Wednesday , 17 Jun '09 1:12:06 AM Reply | Forward Media need to know that police reforms will be done by Congress conditioned by the now famous 'Muslim appeasement plank' which has done magic for Congress unexpected victory in LS elections,2009,courtesy EVM machines of Congress sympathiser Navin Chawla,whose dismissal letter running into 90 pages was sent by his boss Gopalaswamy to President because Chawla ha done many favors to Congress.Media,of course,knew thr result:President Patil not only rejected dismissal of Chawla and promoted him as CEC on 24.4.2009 in the middle of election.Gopalaswamy was not allowed to see through LS elections,2009.Grounds of this notorious plank were prepared by Congress president and prime minister after Jama Masjid Immam threatened in 2003 from Lucknow Masjid: "We (Muslims) are 22 crores in India and we know how to extract the price of our vote".They have received their price from PM who said:"Muslims have first claim on national resources of India"while Sachar committee report(called Muslim report).