VOL. 8 NO. 2 DECEMBER 2010 www.civilsocietyonline.com ` 50 DOES ANGLING SAVE INDIA’S TIGER FISH? MAHSEER MUDDLE can there be a homeless welcome aadhar Pages 6-8 south asian identity? nitish gives bihar a future Pages 8-10 Meenakshi Gopinath on peace, democracy and identity in india’s new age enterprises Pages 22-25 the region Pages 10-11 kashmir reality in film Pages 31-32 COnTEnTS reAD u s. We reAD yo u. Swimming with the mahseer anaging india’s biodiversity is a complex responsibility. it requires a vision for natural resources and their ownership which goes much Mbeyond government control. Our cover story on the mahseer is all about the travails of india's super fish and how it has been saved from extinction by opening up stretches of COVER STORY the Cauvery to sport fishing. anglers find the mighty mahseer a great chal - lenge. They have for several years now come from all over the world to the banks of the Cauvery in Karnataka to live in camps and catch the mahseer MAHSEER MUDDLE but also to be careful enough to put the fish back into the river. India’s tiger fish was on the brink of extinction. But catch The result is that the mahseer has gone from being threatened to now and release angling increased its numbers. Now angling being available in plentiful in these parts. The money earned from the has been banned and conservationists are divided. 18 anglers and others who would come to savour the joys of eco-tourism was used to turn former poachers into guides and to feed the fish and main - tain the banks of the river. However, sport fishing along the Cauvery has recently been stopped Forgotten witness to Gandhi’s killing . 12 because some of the camps were found to be within the sanctuary located there. a question mark now hangs over the future of the mahseer. The camps as long as they were around ensured that the super fish wasn't No green gold for rural India . .13-14 plundered. now old-fashioned policing will have to deliver the same results. it is well established that conservation works when people earn from Forest rights in doldrums . 14 their natural resources and therefore have a robust interest in perpetuat - ing them. in the case of the mahseer, poachers became tour guides. Many other benefits accrued from eco-tourism. if there were downsides such as Talking about bunkers . 15 camps breaking rules they needed to be dealt with. The mahseer's case is interesting because india's amazing biodiversity is subjected to stress daily. Saving it will require flexibility and imagination. Bright school from nothing . 16 There is need for recognition of local ownership and the advantages of community management. This is as relevant to the mahseer as it is to bee- keeping or propagating medicinal plants or banking traditional seeds. For sometime now the indian law on biodiversity has existed only on The code for inclusion . 24-25 paper. The problem it seems is the inability to truly involve local people and make them beneficiaries of the natural wealth they have traditionally been so good at preserving. 26-27 Reaching the last mile Both in terms of conservation and economic development this is an opportunity missed. Communities which can assert their commercial rights over their natural resources have a lot to gain from the world's inter - The power of pink . 33 est in india. 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Chandigarh: The Browser. vOiCES The most difficult aspect of microfi - ment which he regrets in his inter - On another note, may i request nance is that debts can become pub - view on the microfinance sector you to make articles like this share- LETTERS lic knowledge in the community. published in the november issue of able with non-subscribers as well [email protected] Civil Society: since the issues Civil Society writes "My interview has come out well, about need a much broader forum. anything claiming to help the poor, but there is one inaccuracy and one The article on Lafarge's revocation but works for profit, is a sham. These regret i have. The inaccuracy is that of environmental clearance is one microfinance companies get cheap the point about disgorgement (being such piece. Stakeholders, especially funds, why should they use this forced to pay back ill-gotten earn - conscientious vendors, need to money for profit? They must just cut ings) was not only about Suresh know how the cement giant is flout - out the operating expenses and pass gurumani. i meant it to apply pari ing environmental laws. Can we the rest on to the poor. When you passu to vikram akula and other look forward to a 'share' link soon focus on profits, you don't focus on shareholders of SKS, and, subject to on your website, please? helping the poor! as simple as that! an investigation proving any wrong- Amit Kumar Bose, Kolkata [email protected] doing, to Padmaja Reddy and the shareholders of Spandana and to Companies need to almost everywhere around the world Udaia Kumar and the shareholders stock markets have been falling due of SHaRE. do much more to things like banks losing money in My regret is that i made a mention i have a serious difference of opin - subprime loans. But not everyone is of Mr Rosaiah's caste. in principle, i ion with v Ravichandar’s ‘CSR diktat losing money. The microfinance am against casteism and i should won’t work.’ Microfinance industry is developing and more tra - not have made this comment even if The corporate sector gets large ditional financial institutions are to prove my point. i apologise for freebies from the government in Microfinance is being increasingly opening their eyes to microfinance seen as a major development tool. this thoughtless remark." terms of tax holidays, revenue fore - because they are starting to see huge Vijay Mahajan, Hyderabad it's promise to help the poor by pro - gone, subsidies, incentives, etc. in opportunities. investing in microfi - an analysis of the 2010 Union viding financial services is seen as nance and helping people start busi - the major reason for its support. Budget, P Sainath, pointed out that nesses means profits for both the Prabhat Khabar the government gifted over $ 109 nevertheless, micro finance’s effec - lender and borrower. it is a stable and tiveness in actual poverty reduction its great to read about the success of billion in write-offs, direct and indi - secure investment since the repay - Prabhat Khabar . This shows that a rect. The revenue foregone in this is not yet clear and therefore it gen - ment rates are on an average close to erates some unresolved ethical regional newspaper with quality in budget in direct tax concessions to 100 per cent. content can take on heavy weights corporate taxpayers is close to over questions. [email protected] These become even more promi - in the media. Congratulations to Rs 17 billion. This means that in improvement in disclosures is Prabhat Khabar and its team. direct tax freebies alone the corpo - nent in the process of commercial - [email protected] ization. The impact on poverty is required to make the microfinance rate sector has had the equivalent of some 15 'farm loan waivers' since usually measured in financial sector more accountable. improved The picture of Harivansh at his 1991. terms. corporate governance would enable a press is brilliant. Where do you see One farm loan waiver has every - [email protected] more transparent and regulated sec - editors in the press anymore? tor. it would also create more faith in Anupam, New Delhi one up in arms. Then, revenue fore - Microfinance is one of the most customers, regulators and competi - gone on excise duty in the 2010 important tools for development. it tors. CSR diktat Budget is over $37 billion, customs has been misused because of the fail - [email protected] duty $54 billion. Together with ure of public sector banks in reaching The article 'CSR diktat won't work' more than $ 17 billion in direct it seems to me that many top indus - out to the poor. by v Ravichandar in your november write-offs, the total nears $ 109 bil - trialists who take the moral high MFis are there because the public issue raises a very vital and explo - lion.