Editorial 1 : Delhi and a new London
Introduction: As the Tories in Britain head for a historic defeat in tomorrow’s elections, India is well-placed to advance the bilateral relationship under a new Labour government led by Keir Starmer. It is also time for New Delhi to analyse London’s labour government freshly.
The India-UK relations in Conservative party’s 15-year rule
- When it comes to India, there is no doubt that the Tories have presided over a positive reorientation of ties between London and Delhi.
- Shedding some of Britain’s colonial baggage, the party has unshackled British policy towards India from the Pakistan and Kashmir factors and framed the engagement in the broader Indo-Pacific framework.
- They have also negotiated a roadmap for the transformation of bilateral relations across the board, from green transition to defence and from new technologies to maritime security.
- The Migration and Mobility Agreement helped the two sides grapple with the challenge of illegal immigration and ease the flow of Indian talent into the UK.
Some irritants remained in the relationship
- Not all problems have been resolved.
- Delhi remains concerned about the impunity that anti-India activity in Britain seems to enjoy.
- There has been enduring resistance in Britain’s permanent establishment to a fresh relationship.
- In Delhi, too, the “anti-colonial” posturing on the left and right prevents the establishment from seizing the full range of possibilities with Britain.
The sour memories from Labour Party’s rule for India
- Labour’s return to power might reignite some of India’s anxieties about bilateral ties due to the disastrous turn in India-UK relations in the late 1990s when Labour presided over a visit by Queen Elizabeth II to India in 1997.
- Meant to signal post-colonial reconciliation on the 50th anniversary of India’s Independence, the visit became a lesson in how not to organise major diplomatic events.
- In a stopover in Pakistan during the mission’s visit to India, the newly-minted British Foreign Secretary, Robin Cook, talked about helping mediate on the Kashmir question.
- Inder Kumar Gujral, the Indian Prime Minister travelling in Egypt at that time, dismissed the offer and called Britain a “third-rate power” wallowing in delusions about its post-imperial weight in the world.
- The Queen’s visit to Jallianwala Bagh to express regret at the 1919 massacre was to be the sombre centrepiece of the visit.
- But Prince Philip, the Queen’s Royal Consort, remarked that the Jallianwala Bagh death count may be exaggerated and triggered a massive uproar in India.
- Although British PM Tony Blair sought to limit the damage, the squabbling over Pakistan and Kashmir continued to cast a shadow over bilateral relations under Labour’s tenure.
Could the return of Labour open up old wounds?
- This will be highly unlikely.
- Starmer has put down the anti-India fires lit in the Labour Party by Jeremy Corbyn.
- The Labour Manifesto’s references to Kashmir in the 2019 elections triggered a storm in Delhi and mobilised the Hindu community to support the Tories.
- But Starmer has sought to crush the radical ideologies. There is no longer a free run to anti-India groups.
- Starmer has signalled the intent to build on the foundations laid by the Tories.
- At home, Labour is reaching out to the Hindu vote (as are the Tories).
- Starmer was at the Swaminarayan Temple in Kingsbury with the promise to protect the interests of British Hindus.
- But the new Labour can’t ignore other minorities, including the Pakistani diaspora which stands at 1.2 million (the Indian diaspora is at 1.5mn).
- The UK-based Khalistani groups will continue to lobby the new government to push an anti-India agenda.
The task is cut out for Diplomacy in Delhi
- For Delhi, there is no escaping the fact that India’s domestic politics and the fractures of the Subcontinent will continue to resonate within the large South Asian diaspora.
- Like in most democracies, retail politics in the UK involves cultivating vote banks.
- Delhi, then, has a two-fold task.
1. Engage with all stakeholders in UK to put pressure to curb anti-India activities
- One is to maintain the pressure to curb anti-India activity in the UK. Delhi must also intensify its engagement with the “deep state” in Britain to lay out sensible protocols to manage the problems arising from the UK’s large and growing South Asian diaspora.
2. Positively engage with UK
- The other is to build on the positive potential that limits the salience of the negative factors.
- Shedding misperceptions about Britain is equally important.
- Gujral was wrong when he called Britain a “third-rate power”.
- In the mid-1990s, Britain’s GDP was higher than China and India put together.
- Today, India certainly has a slightly bigger economy than Britain (nearly $4 trillion to $3.5 trillion).
- But India, with a per capita income of less than $3,000 (Britain is at $50,000), has much to gain from a deeper partnership with London.
UK’s significance for India
- Delhi should stop underestimating the relative importance of Britain for India.
- India’s exports to Britain today, at nearly $30 billion, are nearly six times the exports to Russia.
- Although far behind the US and China, Britain is among the front-ranking middle powers.
- Its financial clout, technological depth, and global reach make Britain a force multiplier for a rising India.
- As he nudges Labour towards political moderation, Starmer gives India the opportunity to strengthen ties with Britain.
- David Lammy, expected to take over as the next foreign secretary, in a major speech last week laid out an ambitious vision for the relationship with India.
- Criticising the Tories for over-promising and under-delivering on the India relationship, Lammy says Labour is ready to step on the political accelerator to wrap up the free trade deal and push forward on the technological and defence fronts.
Conclusion: New Delhi must not see the possible new Labour party government with any pre-conceived motions. The new Labour party has given enough signals of their moderate view on India’s immediate concerns. It is time for India to stop underestimating the importance of UK and starts energised economic and political engagement with UK.
Editorial 2 : A home for the Cheetah
Introduction: Gandhi Sagar Wildlife Sanctuary in Madhya Pradesh is set to be the second home for cheetahs in India. An assessment of the carrying capacity of Kuno National Park has revealed that the animal’s current habitat in the country has exceeded its carrying capacity.
How Kuno National Park is overwhelmed?
- The overabundance of cheetahs in the protected area (PA), also in Madhya Pradesh, has led to a 25 per cent loss in the big cat’s main prey base — the chital.
- The animals from Africa, and their offspring, are not the only predators in the national park. Kuno’s leopards compete with the cheetahs for herbivores.
- In an open savannah, the African animals can outrun the leopards, but the latter seems to have made the most of its home advantage.
Why forest department is translocating Cheetah?
- The forest department believes that translocating surplus cheetahs to Gandhi Sagar could restore Kuno’s ecological equilibrium.
- However, the two feline predators will continue to compete for prey — now in two PAs.
- Project Cheetah will have to ensure that past mistakes are not repeated and translocation is not band aid.
About Gandhi Sagar Wildlife Sanctuary
- It is situated on the northern boundary of the Mandsaur and Nimach districts in Madhya Pradesh.
- It is spread over an area of 368.62 km2 (142.32 sq mi) adjoining Rajasthan state.
- It lies in the Khathiar-Gir dry deciduous forests ecoregion.
- It was notified in the year 1974 and added to the list of sanctuaries in 1984.
- River Chambal flows through the sanctuary, dividing it into two parts.
- The sanctuary is characterized by its diverse topography, which includes hills, plateaus, and the catchment area of the Gandhi Sagar Dam on the Chambal River.
Challenges in the translocating Cheetah
- The first challenge will be to remove leopards from this area.
- Project Cheetah’s long-term plan, to develop a longer stretch of the 3,600 km sanctuary as habitat for the feline, will pose greater challenges.
- An insufficient prey base reportedly continues to be an issue at the sanctuary in Western MP.
- A 2021 study revealed that, despite the reasonably good health of the sanctuary, ungulate densities are extremely low.
- Apart from leopards, the sanctuary has other co-predators including sloth bears, striped hyenas, gray wolves, golden jackals, jungle cats, Indian foxes, and marsh crocodiles.
- The PA authorities will also be challenged in monitoring the health of a species that went extinct in the country more than seven decades ago.
- Last year, the Supreme Court had admonished the government after a string of fatalities in Kuno.
- Gandhi Sagar’s authorities would do well to learn from Project Cheetah’s experiences — and setbacks — in the past two years.
The unintended consequences of introducing big cat in Kuno park
- Project Cheetah’s Steering Committee is reportedly considering a proposal for introducing a larger cat in the Kuno mix to reduce leopard activities.
- This could, on paper, reduce the pressure on the National Park.
- However, this could also push leopards out of the park, increasing chances of human-animal conflict.
Conclusion: Project Cheetah has spurred conversations on longstanding problems of Indian conservation. It’s up to policymakers to seize the moment. They must ensure a prey base for the animal. The sanctuary’s officials need to be equipped to monitor the big cat’s health.