ANDAMAN AND NICOBAR ISLANDS BILL - Contd.
MR. DEPUTY-SPEAKER: Before further discussion on the Government of Union Territory of Andaman and Nicobar Islands Bill moved by Shri Basudeb Acharia is resumed, I would like to mention that 3 hours and 28 minutes have already been taken on this Bill, thus exhausting the time allotted for its discussion.
Is it the pleasure of the House that the time for this Bill be further extended by half-an-hour?
SEVERAL HON. MEMBERS: Yes, Sir.
MR. DEPUTY-SPEAKER: So, the time is extended by half-an-hour.
Shri Sontosh Mohan Dev may now resume his speech.
SHRI SONTOSH MOHAN DEV (SILCHAR): Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I was on my legs last time.
MR. DEPUTY-SPEAKER: You are again on your legs!
AN HON. MEMBER: This time he is on his toes!
SHRI SONTOSH MOHAN DEV (SILCHAR): I had placed before this House that the consecutive governments at the Centre, including the present Government, have been seriously thinking about more decentralisation of power from the Centre to the States, Union Territories and other areas. During Rajiv Gandhi's regime, Nagar Palika Bill and Gram Panchayat Bill were introduced and now they have been a factor in our country. Panchayats and Nagar Palikas have been given more power. The present Government has not only given power, it has also given enough funds. We have seen in this Budget also that the quantum of money for the rural sector and also for the urban sector for development has been quite large, so that people can invest money on their own. The Government of India has given money and this money is to go directly to the Panchayats and Nagar Palikas. Of late, the Chief Ministers have suggested otherwise. I do not know whether this Government will accept it. But I understand that some of them may be accepted, but not all.
Andaman and Nicobar Islands is an isolated case. It should not be equated with Jharkhand, Uttarakhand, Darjeeling or anything else. They are an isolated Islands. But their thinking is like the mainstream thinking. They are not parochial in their attitude.
All shades of people live there. Whether they are the Bengalis, whether they are the people from Kerala, whether they are the people from Maharashtra or whether they are the people from Tamil Nadu, all sorts of people live there.
As a Minister of State in the Ministry of Home Affairs, I had an opportunity to visit that place, as a Tourism Minister, I have visited the Andamans and as a Defence Minister, I have visited all the islands there, each and every one of them, including the Indira Point.
Had Rajiv Gandhi been alive, the Andamans would have got the status of a Union Territory by this time. He also assured that the status of a Union Territory with a Legislature like the Union Territory of Pondicherry, would be given. We used to be there in the meetings of the Island Development Board as Ministers. We used to see how sympathetic they are.
I am not saying that the present Government is not sympathetic. The hon. Prime Minister has declared that `Uttarakhand' will be given the status of a Union Territory but the only problem is that the Assembly has to ratify it. Otherwise, it could not be done. That is the only hitch. He has made it clear.
Taking all these into consideration, the revenue earnings of the Andamans would be more than that of Nagaland and that of Mizoram. Today is a very significant day. The hon. Minister of Tourism has also assured this House that spots which have great attraction for tourism will be promoted, provided there is enough fund in the Budget. Tourism is a factor which earns foreign exchange without any investment. He said that very rightly. The fault lies in the policy of the Government. When the tourists arrive at the airports, they see that the approach of the Immigration Department is as if some culprits have come in. Some tourists told me at the time when I was the Minister of Tourism that the officials did not even smile at them, what to talk of a warm reception!
When Shri H.K.L. Bhagat was the Minister of Tourism, I was his deputy. There was a meeting where he said that for the foreign tourists India is a safe destination. At the same time, he had four black cat commandos behind him. The tourists asked, `Why are you having black cat commandos if India is a safe destination?' So, these are conflicting statements.
But the Andamans is a safe destination for the people belonging to the middle income group to visit. They can visit the place at less cost and derive much pleasure. They have made many arrangements there and the hotels have also been encouraged to provide good facilities. If a people's representative is there, I think, it will have more attraction. Now, the administration is run by one Lieutenant-Governor with some bureaucrats. What is the figure of investment there? I do not know that; my good friend who is looking after that area would be knowing it.
You cannot appoint a school teacher there. The Union Public Service Commission will appoint the teacher. The Ministry of Home Affairs cannot take any action to fill up the vacancy; they are not given the power. Everything will have to go through the UPSC and they will do it. Shri Bhakta had to run all over India to ask for establishment of an engineering college and a medical college. The Ministry of Home Affairs also helped him.
This is an island quite different from all the other areas which are demanding the status of a Union Territory or Statehood. The people there are peace loving. There is no infighting among the various communities. I have seen that all political parties that fight elections there are also very friendly. Every time they elect Shri Manoranjan Bhakta. He is the winner and there is no fighting there because the people are very very keen to see that in a small island on the border we must not create any problem about it.
When Shri Vajpayee was the Minister of External Affairs, he said, `When I visited that island, I felt guilty because we have such a good spot but we go to Switzerland and other places. Why is this being neglected?'
But the subsequent Government has failed to do it for environmental reasons. Shri Rajiv Gandhi wanted to develop an island with hovercraft facilities. Shri Seshan, the then Secretary, Environment, refused to give consent. At that time I was the Minister of Tourism. Now, people go to Nepal because they get more facilities there than what is available in India. So, I would appeal to the Government and to the House that Government must not make it a prestige issue.
This House, after a debate on this Bill, should recommend for a separate legislature for Andaman & Nicobar Islands. You say that you will go to the Cabinet, you will discuss about it and you will take the opinion of all political parties. If there is a consensus among the political parties, then you do it. We know your difficulties. You just cannot say that you will pass a Bill on it. Shri Manoranjan Bhakta is a reasonable person. We should give an opportunity to the Government. If the Prime Minister calls for an all-party meeting on this issue, I think, nobody would object to it. The pattern of Pondicherry is already there. You can bring a Bill on the pattern of Pondicherry after this Session.
With these words I would request Shri Maqbool Dar and Shri Srikant Jena to consider this.
(ends)
SHRI V. DHANANJAYA KUMAR (MANGALORE):
I am sorry,
SHRI V. DHANANJAYA KUMAR (MANGALORE):
MR. DEPUTY-SPEAKER: The Minister may please intervene now.
PROF. RASA SINGH RAWAT (AJMER):
1554 hours
(Original in Tamil) Even after 50 years of independence, the people of Andaman & Nicobar Islands have not got the fruits of independence. I am pained to point out that they do not have a representative Government of their choice which will give shape to their democratic aspirations. It has taken such a long time for us who sit in this House to think about the people of Andaman & Nicobar Islands. Infrastructural facilities like electricity, roads, transport, post and telegraph, hospital, etc., should be provided to them adequately. Only an elected Government there could attend to it properly. Otherwise what happens is, Government staff from the main land who are transferred to work there considered it to be a punishment transfer. Instead of discharging their duties to improve the lot of the local people there, these Government servants consider their tenure to be a term of punishment. Ultimately, the local people face grave problems because of slow-paced developmental activities.
We classify land areas and we may call them a, b and c. Unfortunately the people of Andaman & Nicobar Islands have also been classified like this. They feel segregated. They also feel that a step motherly treatment is meted out to them. They must be encouraged to take part in the governance of this country. They should be given opportunity to elect their own representatives who in turn will elect the President of India. This will ensure a sense of participation and this is possible only when we go in for setting up a legislative assembly for the Andaman & Nicobar Islands. They must be given rights to elect their representatives who will be legislating laws and frame rules and regulations in accordance with the local needs and customs.
1555 hours (Shri Chitta Basu in the Chair)
Government of India must fulfil their aspirations to have their representative body in the form of a legislative assembly. Shri Basudeb Acharia who introduced this Bill in this House pointed out that Hindi speaking people are in a majority in those islands. But the fact is to the contrary.
People who speak several languages are there. We find people from Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal and many other parts of India. We find people of many languages co-exist there. We also find several aborigins and tribals living in the interior islands. There is a tribal race called 'Ongis' who are considered to be early settlers. So we must ensure that people from all language groups get adequate representation in the legislative body to be formed there. We should not be misled by the wrong notion that only Hindi speaking people are there. All languages should be given equal status and all their representatives should have equal opportunity.
After independence several States were formed. Even after introducing a republic Government we have carved out several States. In the pattern of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Maharashtra, etc., a separate State should be formed there in Andaman & Nicobar Islands. People who live there should have enough of opportunities to lead their social lives together conforming to their various customs and traditions. For instance, people of Tamil origin are celebrating Pongal festival there. So people who live there should have opportunity to lead a life of harmonious coexistence with ample opportunity to follow their cultural traditions. People of Andaman & Nicobar Islands should be given opportunity to carry out their functions in their respective languages.
When we think in terms of establishing a legislative assembly, we must not forget the importance of ensuring security of that region. There are hundreds of islands and islets with various kinds of people. We must take care to preserve them all giving proper security. We must not forget what happened to Katchativu a small island between Tamil Nadu and Sri Lanka. Enough of security considerations were not given when we handed over that islet to the neighbouring island nation. Indian Government did not give due consideration and ignored the facts pertaining to the security considerations and the strategic importance of that island. So we must take adequate care to keep intact all the islands and islets in the Andaman & Nicobar.
So, we must come forward to create a legislative assembly which would ensure better life and living conditions to the people of Andaman & Nicobar Islands. This representative body will provide them with a sense of participation which would enable them to participate in the indirect elections for electing the President of India. They will get an opportunity to vote and elect the President of India. They are all Indians and they must get this opportunity. So I welcome the Bill moved in this regard by Shri Basudeb Acharia and I appeal to the House to ensure a smooth passage to this Bill. With this, I conclude.
Thank you.
(ends)
1600 hours
Sir, Andaman and Nicobar Islands is a beautiful piece of land. It may not be an exaggeration if I may be permitted to say that this is really a heaven on earth. Though Andaman and Nicobar Islands is a part of our country, it is situated at a distance. We are living in democracy. The essence of democracy is to give an opportunity to the people to express their true will. That is why, periodical elections are held and citizens of the country would be given an opportunity to elect their own representatives. There are about two lakh people living in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. As was being pointed out by Shri Sontosh Mohan Dev, if for each and everything like providing facilities or amenities, for appointing a teacher in a school or a nurse or an orderly in a hospital, decisions are to be taken from Delhi, by the people sitting in the Union Public Service Commission, then it would be great injustice on the part of the people of Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
Sir, one may wonder how I could stand up in support of a Bill moved by Shri Basudeb Acharia. But for a change, I support this Bill for the reason that my thinking, so far as this aspect is concerned, coincides with that of Shri Basudeb Acharia. Our Party, BJP believes in decentralisation of power and we want to give the rights at the hands of the people and we want to take the governing machinery to the doorsteps of the common man. So, it is very much necessary that a Legislature must be provided for Andaman and Nicobar Islands. It is already given the status of a Union Territory. But the administrative machinery does not have the required teeth. Everything is being controlled from Delhi. This cannot be termed as decentralisation of power. That is why, it is all the more necessary that a Legislature must be constituted in Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
Now, so far as the situation in this piece of land is concerned, I do not know whether anybody has given a thought to this or not. This could be definitely developed as a strategic international trade centre. It is situated in such an ideal location where we can attract more and more trade and business on these Islands. Apart from tourism - the tourists attraction is already existing there though the infrastructure is lacking there - fishing is also there. I know that my good friend, Shri Manoranjan Bhakta was mentioning even today and I believe the rule is prevailing that in the name of protecting environment, removing of sand and stones from Andaman and Nicobar Islands is totally banned.
For construction of even a small building for a school or a hospital, the building material, like sand and stone, will have to be transported from the mainland to the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. In such a situation, how can you expect development of these Islands? While someone would be sitting in Delhi, I do not know with what enthusiasm and speed all these provisions would be made for the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. That is why, it is all the more necessary that powers must be given into the hands of the people who would be elected by the citizens of Andaman and Nicobar Islands to have their own policy about governance and to achieve the development there. They can definitely stand on their legs.
Somebody expressed the doubt that now money is being granted from Delhi. Since it is a Union Territory, naturally, the Government of India is allocating more and more funds for it. But I am sure, once the legislative powers are given to the people of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, they can improve on their own. They can definitely improve their economic situation there. More and more trade and business can come there. Fishing can also be developed. They can attract more tourists so that the whole economy of Andaman and Nicobar Islands could be improved. That is why I fully support this Bill.
I would request the hon. Minister that he must make a firm announcement today that a Bill will be introduced in this Session of the Parliament. Shri Basu Deb Acharia, we are determined to vote for your Bill today itself and the Bill will be passed.
(ends)
PROF. RASA SINGH RAWAT (AJMER):