HARRYING ON HARYANA

by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group

Haryana is unique in many ways. Its newness, being carved out of East Punjab as late as 1966, is set off by its rapid rise to the frontline of a bouquet of accomplishments. It is the second wealthy state of India, after Goa. It is most advanced agriculturally, with the largest number of rural crorepati.Haryana’s mix of high-end industry, like automobile and ancillaries, with the post-industrial chrome-and-glass modernity of Gurgaon, and its IT empires, is unparalleled by Indian standards.

Caste in silence

by Harish Gupta, National Editor, Lokmat Group

Most of the policy roadblocks the Narendra Modi government now faces that might have been set up by its predecessor, the Congress; but BJP, today's ruling party, was complicit in the acts. The 2013 Land Acquisition Act is a classic example. Sumitra Mahajan, currently the Lok Sabha Speaker, headed the committee that vetted the bill; she let it pass with an approving nod. During discussion of the bill in the Lower House, BJP's Lok Sabha leader Sushma Swaraj was among its most vocal supporters. But Modi wanted it to be overturned from day one he came to power. Such excessive exhibition of interest by BJP in populist policies, with a potential to backfire, has become Modi's albatross.