Man made borders are for men only
Devesh , 14 January 2008, Monday
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In spite of the high security posted at the Indo-Pak border, an intruder has made its way across the fence into the Indian territory, but no one seems to be complaining. The intruder is one of the rare species of deer, the ‘Sambar’ deer.
SAMBARS ARE primarily browsers that live in woodlands and feed mainly on coarse vegetation, grass, and herbs. This species of deer prefer the Indian climate to that of Pakistan. This particular deer had crossed the fence on the border and had made its way to India. In the process, it fell into an army ditch. It was rescued by the army and, is now, in the safe custody of a zoo outside Jammu.
The crossing of the border by the Sambar deer is a gentle reminder of the fact that these man-made borders are for men only! The great Indian lyricist Javed Akhtar seems to have put it very aptly in his song from Border, “Panchi nadiyan pawan ke jhoke, koi sarhad naa inhe roke” (no border can stop birds, rivers and gusts of winds). No border should stop them. God gave us one single planet to live together in harmony. It is our greed that compels us to build borders and create partitions.
This brings us to the question, if life were to be discovered on Mars or on some other planet, would every country immediately send their spaceships to plant their flags and mark their areas? Well, this thought could become a reality in a couple of decades. A similar incident happened recently when Russians planted their flag at the North Pole.
The Arctic Circle is very rich in certain minerals and oil. This could well become a cause of dispute in the future. Canada, Norway, and the Unites States too have shown their interest in this mineral rich area.
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Though India and Pakistan are separated, they share the same subcontinent. Who would want to be fighting with neighbours? After all, neighbours are the ones that are supposed to be helping us in dire times, whether they are our next-door neighbours, staying on the same floor or the ones across the border. We don’t need a third party to come forward to help us. If a few sensible people sit together, there are no problems to which an amicable solution cannot be found.
It is great to see our friends from across the border coming over to take part in talent hunt competitions. Pakistan’s Rauf Lala was voted by an Indian audience as the winner of Star One’s popular comedy show, The Great Indian Laughter Challenge: Dwitiya. Mussarat Abbas and Amanat Ali from Pakistan were finalists of Zee’s musical show Sa Re Ga Ma Vishwa Yudh. It was great to see these singers sing songs of Kishore Kumar, Lata Mangeshkar and Sonu Nigam with the same ease as that of their competitors from this side of the border.
The India-Pakistan matches are a great exhibition of the camaraderie between the players. Gone are the days of Indo-Pak rivalry. It now exists only in the media. Pakistani captain Shoaib Malik visiting Virendra Sehwag’s house when the latter’s father expired. The Indian physiotherapist rushed on to the field when a Pakistani player got injured during an India-Pakistan hockey match. These are all signs that the border exists only on paper, and not in the hearts of the people.
In the cyber age, interaction between Indian and Pakistanis has increased. Indian and Pakistani students going to foreign universities and studying under the same roof has ensured that they spend quality time with each other. When Indians and Pakistanis meet abroad, peace seems to be the most favoured option. Ask Bhairavi Desai, who is the founding member of the New York Taxi Workers Alliance. Desai works long hours, often without pay for the betterment of taxi drivers, who generally hail from India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. She describes the taxi system in New York as ‘a sweatshop on wheels’, and has been fighting incessantly for the rights of the drivers, whether they are from India or Pakistan.
India and Pakistan together, account for one fifth of the world’s population. Their size and influence have made the continued conflict between them a long-standing cause of global concern. If both the countries are to become global superpowers, then peace between them is the only option. The Samjhauta Express from Delhi to Attari is an encouraging step in this direction. And the blasts in the Samjhauta Express are a reminder of the fact that there are extremist groups, who do not want India and Pakistan to get closer.
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If we have to maintain peace between the two nations, it is up to the younger generation to realise this dream. John F Kennedy had once said, “It’s in the hands of the youth of the country to make this generation the best in mankind or the last.” Student exchanges between the two countries should be encouraged, so that the students can study a bit of History from the other’s point of view.
Coming back to the Sambar deer, let’s just hope that more and more animals continue to cross the border from one side to another. And then a day would dawn, when the most social and the most rational of animals would be allowed to cross the border too. When that happens, no visa or passport will be required.