The 'poor' Neighbour

67 Posted by Cobra on August 17, 2007 10:05:20 am
#62, well said,

You should have seen the south Indian cities before and our Konkan area even now. It is much more cleaner that most of the places in North India.
Unfortunately not any more. These folks have flocked down in our cities and villages. Now our cities are over crowded, dirty and filthy.

True,
The cities in Punjab were cleaner a deacade ago, Migrants Bangla Desh, UP, Bihar and Bengal are taking a toll on the cities.
A friend from abroad said they keep the houses so clean, the gardens too, but the country , mainly the smaller towns ,are a one big dustbin for everyone.
In Chandigarh, which is a fairly clean city, backlanes were made for collection of rubbish, the MC does not collect rubbish for days. Citizens now hire private kachrawallas to to pick up rubbish

On the ground, of course, the reality is different and first-time visitors to Pakistan are almost always surprised by the country's visible prosperity.There is far less poverty on show in Pakistan than in India, fewer beggars, and much less desperation. In many ways the infrastructure of Pakistan is much more advanced: there are better roads and airports, and more reliable electricity. Middle-class Pakistani houses are often bigger and better appointed than their equivalents in India.

Moreover, the Pakistani economy is undergoing a construction and consumer boom similar to India's, with growth rates of 7%, and what is currently the fastest-rising stock market in Asia. You can see the effects everywhere: in new shopping centres and restaurant complexes, in the hoardings for the latest laptops and iPods, in the cranes and building sites, in the endless stores selling mobile phones: in 2003 the country had fewer than three million cellphone users; today there are almost 50 million.

Mohsin Hamid, author of the Booker long-listed novel The Reluctant Fundamentalist, wrote about this change after a recent visit: having lived abroad as a banker in New York and London, he returned home to find the country unrecognisable. He was particularly struck by "the incredible new world of media that had sprung up, a world of music videos, fashion programmes, independent news networks, cross-dressing talkshow hosts, religious debates, and stock-market analysis".

I knew, of course, that the government of Pervez Musharraf had opened the media to private operators. But I had not until then realised how profoundly things had changed. Not just television, but private radio stations and newspapers have also flourished in Pakistan over the past few years. The result is an unprecedented openness. Young people are speaking and dressing differently. Views both critical and supportive of the government are voiced with breathtaking frankness in an atmosphere remarkably lacking in censorship. Public space, the common area for culture and expression that had been so circumscribed in my childhood, has now been vastly expanded. The Vagina Monologues was recently performed on stage to standing ovations.

things

Another thread with Injuns gone wild.

The issue is of branding. Anyone who visits Pakistan will see the obvious: Pakistan is better than India in most thing.

Unfortunately ... there is no branding. Hence no one visits. I say its their loss not ours.

Ranjit,
#62,
These parasites, the left parties etc have a vested agenda in keeping the country backward. Also the babus have yet to come out of their socialist mindset.When New Delhi airport was made, the bid was given to the company qoututing the lowest rate,not best facilities etc.
I was in New Dehi airport in July, there is a visible change, the smell is gone, there are new chairs, new carpets, good phone service new shops etc with the new airport coming up by 2010, and thankfully being built by a foreign company we, will have a world class airport.

There ate flyovers all over delhi and on the highway to Chandigarh, some poorly made, surely a private firm could have done a better job. The flyovers take ages to make causing great inconvenience to the public. International companies can put up pre-fabricated bridges in 2-3 months.

#140 madani: I hope chinese enjoy our warm blankets and fine basmati rice. Hope they dont enjoy it so much that they want more, because what will our people do in winter if they take away our blankets?

#140 madani: I hope you have given the matter of Musharraf some thought, and realized that democracy is better than military rule.

#137 Same negative minded individuals acting superior because they got visas to the west on rediff as on chowk. What they dont realize is that the cesspool is in their heads, not in India or Pakistan. And by mocking poverty and other difficult conditions in India (as the same lot does about Pakistan on chowk), they merely reveal the poverty inside their own heads.

Friend in need is friend indeed.
Long live sinopakistani friendship.
If indians bahave they can get friends also.
"Pakistan sends relief supplies for China floods ISLAMABAD, Aug 17(AFP): Pakistan on Friday despatched relief supplies including rice and tents to China for victims of devastating floods there that have killed more than 500 people, the foreign ministry said. A plane carrying 150 tents, 1,000 blankets, five tonnes of rice and 200,000 water purifying tablets had left for the northwestern Chinese city of Urumqi, a ministry statement said. (Posted @ 16:00 PST)"

Re: # 138
Pakistanies do not leave country as it is hard here but in foreign better opportunities.

HP, I presume you left Pakistan because it was too good for you??

Rediff is one hell of site. Here are some gems that I discovered today!
The article
What are you doing for India?
http://www.rediff.com/india60/2007/aug/17india.htm

Read some responses:
The article’s title should have been:
face it ,tat country sucked so we left

hey rajesh the very fact we lve in america says so much bout our intent to contribute ,now dnt talk bout the dollars we send home to our families ,face it ,tat country sucked so we left

RE:when
by ashish on Aug 18, 2007 03:32 AM
i wudnt want my kids to live there ever ,so if u want go ahead cause tat rat hole will never change ,get real

RE:when
by ashish on Aug 18, 2007 05:29 AM
im no hyppocrite mr on ,if wat i said wasnt tue then all the millions of people knockin at us and uk embassies to migrate shud make my point more clear ,no my mum is cool dont worry ,at least i havnt left her and run away ,she in america too relax

by BRIGHTMORNINGSTAR on Aug 18, 2007 05:17 AM
You are right Avinash. But minor correction. India does not rock. Most part of India is still in stone ages. watch TV . Hundreds of thousands swimming right now in Bihar . BJP ministers held special prayers for the death of Manmohan Singh. MODI continue to kill innocents, Govt of karnataka decided not to give land to IT companies in Bangalore, Chikken GUNYA is kiling dozens every day in kerala from last 6 months and no one has a clue what is the cause / remedy. India rocks in your bloody dreams


face it ,tat country sucked so we left

Now this guy really knows India
“We don;t need to do any thing for India. we love india but Indian structure suck.
I am glad i m not living india coz India is for muslim and backward cast.
There is nothing for common educated Hindu.
Hetal Patel.”
And the agreement
“RE:I am proud to be not living in india.
by INDIAN on Aug 18, 2007 01:29 AM
Ya I agreed, 20% population running the Government. All decision are always taken in Favour of second largest majority of India.”

face it ,tat country sucked so we left

Re: # 122
DrDr, have you finally been pinned down as a Pakistani after years of being coy and enigmatic?

seriously..who are you guys fooling...

Pakiland says 200% sure US won't attack...huh? what about damadola and bajaur and other places?

Pakiland angry that US selected Bhutto...huh? you were unaware of your canine status?

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2007/08/18/story_18-8-2 007_pg1_7

US deal-brokering reports draw anger

ISLAMABAD: The US was accused on Friday of meddling in Pakistani affairs amid reports that Washington is trying to broker a power-sharing deal between President Pervez Musharraf and his archrival Benazir Bhutto.

Sources in both government and opposition denounced reports that Washington was pressuring military ruler General Musharraf to come to an arrangement with two-time former prime minister Bhutto ahead of national elections.

A government spokesman said the choice of national leader lay with the people of Pakistan and should depend on the vote. “Pre-judging the mandate of the people of Pakistan is an insult to the electorate,” Deputy Information Minister Tariq Azeem said.

In a report on Thursday, the New York Times had said that the US was discussing reforms with key political players in Pakistan amid reported plans to get Musharraf to share power with Bhutto. US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice discussed the power-sharing arrangement in a telephone call to President Musharraf last week, the newspaper said, quoting American and Pakistani officials.

Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA) leader Liaqat Baloch said Musharraf sought to stay in power “at any cost” and had allowed US influence in Pakistani political and military affairs to escalate to unprecedented levels.

Senior Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Raja Zafarul Haq said the reports showed how Pakistan’s sovereignty had been undermined during Musharraf’s eight-year “dictatorship”.

“What the US wants to see is a peaceful, prosperous, secure, stable Pakistan – that’s in the interests of the Pakistanis, the interests of the region, and interests of the whole world,” National Security Council spokesman Gordon Johndroe said. “We want to see a moderate political centre form there, following democratic processes.”

#37 Posted by echoboom on August 17, 2007 8:05:26 am

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Laakhh Laanut on the Westernism...AaaakHHHH Thhhhhhhooo!
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Birth is an accident. You cud have been born to a typical ooon family in an Akhthooo western country.

Escho Sir, What is this? U are a well read, sophisticated person. If a gora like Mr.Dalrymple writes 4 us then it's great but a brown man write for them it's laanut?

Give us some perspective on this. phlz!

Re: # 73
Zeemax, this is my soap box, please give it back to me. I find the dirt and lack of basic hygiene in a lot of India really heart-breaking. Having workied in Dharavi, let me tell you Muslims who live there-and throughout India- are as fatalistic as anyone else. The problem is, they all feel they cannot complain because there is someone "worser" off, as my friend's 6 year old would say. I maintain it comes from generations of poverty, not from a religion.