A dismal scenario
Immobilisation of mainstream parties creating a
dangerous political vacuum in the Valley
For the last few weeks a series of untoward incidents occurring in some parts of the Kashmir Valley with cascading political fallout have virtually immobilised all the mainstream parties including the two main ruling coalition partners. None of them is able to do anything to influence the course of events on the ground when it really matters the most. Barring habitual press statements and occasional media-oriented physical 'on-the-scene presence' these parties and their coattails (smaller groups) have been silenced by the fast moving events. From Shopian to Baramulla and Larkipora, incidents have been taking place with consequences over which none of these forces has any control. The result is that the opposite camp, separatists is having a field day, in spite of sharp divisions within its constituent units. To a large extent the situation resembles the contours of what was happening around this time last year over an altogether different issue, namely the row over allocation of land to the Amarnath Shrine Board. That issue had precipitated a vicious crisis causing communal/regional divide. Its fallout continues to reverberate even within the legislative precincts. The nature of the present day crisis is different but its sum total in ultimate political terms is largely quite similar. The most marked feature being that the separatist camp has practically edged out their mainstream rivals who find themselves with their back to the wall.
This turn around in the situation is astounding. Only a few weeks ago the mainstream camp was feeling on top of the world, for good reason apparently. Two rounds of elections held within a short span of a few months had seen a sizeable section of the Valley's population defying the separatists and flocking towards their rivals. Turnout of voters in the assembly elections held in 2008 as well as in the parliamentary polls held in 2009 came as a rude shock to the pro-boycott lobby. Commentators and analysts in a hurry sought to write off the separatists. The mainstream parties and their supporting-smaller groups went to town with their 'achievement' and interpreted it as proof of their popularity. The dust and noise over these celebrations had not yet settled down when Shopian incident burst on the scene. Thanks to terrible mishandling by a stupid regime, the tragic criminal case acquired explosive political dimensions sending shock waves across length and breadth of the Valley. With each passing day, the state administration fumbled from one blunder to another while the mainstream parties receded into the background. The picture that emerged out of this turnabout of events was just the opposite of that witnessed in the wake of two rounds of elections. Gone was the euphoria and pretence of triumph.
In the circumstances prevailing in a volatile place like Kashmir, these are ominous signs. One has only to look at the history to realise how such situations in the recent and distant past have unfolded with devastating effect. Perhaps it might not be wrong to presume that, notwithstanding the existence of seemingly powerful mainstream parties, there is a dangerous political vacuum with all sorts of sinister implications. Political functioning of the mainstream parties has been reduced to nothing in real terms. The two main ruling parties, National Conference and the Congress, are struggling to breath in the suffocating atmosphere. They are in no position to play any worthwhile role in influencing the course of events. Political leadership has lost its potency, barring their empty posturing with trappings of power.
The most surprising thing is that the National Conference has nearly abdicated from the scene. Its organisational presence is not visible, unlike in the recent past. The party president, Dr Farooq Abdullah, has surprisingly not shown even the symbolic response to these developments. Barring fleeting appearance on his maiden visit here after becoming a central minister, Dr Abdullah did not care to activate his cadres which he could have done without much difficulty. All this adds up to a dismal scenario.

Alarming fire incidents
Issue too serious to be ignored
Recurrent fire incidents in and around Trikuta hills are a pointer towards the grim scenario, where the state government, notwithstanding its tall claims vis-…-vis foolproof preventive measures, has failed to save forests from devastation. This is a matter of concern that in the past two months, around 9 incidents of fire at Trikuta hills in and around Vaishno Devi cave shrine have been reported. The gravity of the situation can be gauged with a fact that many a time during fire incidents, either Yatra has to be suspended for a brief period or pilgrimage route has to be diverted. On one or two occasions, even the chopper services, too, have to be suspended briefly as the sky-touching flames were posing danger to both the civil and defence helipad. Not only this, the loss of green gold worth crores has already been incurred on account of frequent fire incidents. The loss of wildlife, unfortunately, is not counted generally in the estimation of damages. However the concerned authorities continue to maintain that they are taking all vital steps to prevent recurring incidents. These tall claims, though, don't gel well with the situation on the ground. Particularly, the alarming incidents, in the recent past, have already exposed the preparedness of the concerned authorities vis-…-vis disaster management. Agreed that the inaccessible, difficult terrains pose great difficulty in fire-fighting operations and perhaps this is the reason, which particularly necessitates fool proof preventive measures to avoid the impending danger. The authorities need to understand that any slackness, saggy approach may prove disastrous given the huge rush of pilgrims all across the route at any point of time. So their preparedness vis-…-vis disaster management should not remain restricted to the state of rhetoric or paper horses only. In fact the incidents of forest fires, with the onset of summers, across Jammu region are a matter of serious concern. Many a time, these incidents are a result of human negligence. Yet in several cases, this is a willful act of forest mafia in connivance with the concerned government officers. Sadly, the helmsmen discharge their duties only by ordering probes in these criminal acts. No wonder these acts are mainly aimed at pulling the wool over masses' eyes as these reports never come to the fore and thus the guilty are never identified and punished. And all this goes on as the helmsmen have never taken this grave issue seriously.