SEPARATE UNION TERRITORY STATUS SOUGHT FOR KARAIKAL : 2006

The justification for separate 

Union Territory status for Karaikal

Small States for Good Governance is not a mere slogan in global politics, but it is an existing reality. In these days of globalization, when globe has shrunk into a village, one must have a global vision.

In the developed world particularly Europe has twelve small states, five of which are islands or island groups. Monaco, a small urban enclave on the northern Mediterranean coast, is one of the most prosperous and best known of all small states. With just 32,000 permanent residents (8,000 of whom are citizens) and 500 acres of territory, it is famous for its high-stakes casino and elegant hotels. In recent years, though, Monaco prosperity has increasingly relied on its role as an offshore financial haven. While Monaco is a sovereign state, its independence is somewhat limited, since its big neighbor, France, manages its foreign relations, postal services and defense, while the French franc has served as its official currency. Monaco may be the only state in the world with a symphony orchestra that is larger than its military and police forces.  In addition to Monaco, the smaller European territories of this type are: the Principality of Liechtenstein (pop. 31,000), the semi-independent state lets of Andorra (pop. 64,000) and San Marino (pop. 24,000) and four British territories -- the Isle of Man (pop. 70,000), the Channel Islands (pop. 150,000), the Faeroe Islands (pop. 45,000), and Gibraltar (pop. 29,000) – as well as Vatican City State.

With just 700 residents and 109 acres, the Vatican may be the only state in the world with a diplomatic corps larger than its resident population. In such a world scenario, there is nothing wrong in Karaikal Struggle group demanding a separate Union Territory status for Karaikal. The Caribbean area has a number of small states, the majority islands. According to our adjusted World Bank figures there are 14 states and 15 territories in this class in the Caribbean region, ranging in size from Montserrat (pop. 6,400) to Trinidad and Tobago (pop. 1,300,000). Belize (pop. 236,000), Suriname (pop. 431,000), French Guiana (pop. 168,000) and Guyana (pop. 705,000) are all located on the mainland.  Some of the better-known islands include Aruba (pop. 80,000), Barbados (pop. 257,000), the Bahamas (pop. 284,000), Martinique (pop. 412, 00), and Grenada (pop. 94,500).  The Netherlands Antilles (pop. 208,000) is home of George Soros' famous Quantum hedge fund, while Bermuda (pop. 63,000) has recently become an important center for the global insurance industry. The tiny British self-governing territory of Cayman Islands (pop. 23,000) has risen to special prominence in recent decades.

  The Pacific Ocean region has two dozen island SSTs, ranging in size from Fiji (pop. 773,000) to tiny Tokelau, an atoll with just 1,700 residents. Some of the territories embrace hundreds of islands scattered over more than a thousand miles of ocean. The Indian Ocean is site of four large island groups, including the Maldives (pop. 245,000) and the Seychelles (pop. 79,000), as well as a number of other territories including the French island of Reunion (pop. 718,000). Among the smallest Pacific SSTs, Nauru (pop. 10,000) and Niue (2,100) have specialized in offshore finance, a field where newcomers can have an advantage.  Africa, too, has a number of SSTs – 12 states according to the World Bank count, including the islands of Cape Verde (pop. 416,000) and Sao Tome and Principe (pop.142, 000), coastal Djibouti (pop. 636,000) and continental Swaziland (pop. 969,000), as well as a number of territorial remnants of colonialism, like Ceuta (pop. 69,000) and Melilla (pop. 60,000), Spanish territories on Morocco’s Mediterranean coast. Asia, by contrast, has relatively few SSTs, many of which are quite prosperous. The island of Bahrain (pop. 629,000), peninsular Qatar (pop. 724,000), and coastal Brunei (pop. 323,000) are all petroleum-rich monarchies.

Thirty-two of the Commonwealth's 53 member countries are small states - mostly with populations of less than 1.5 million They range in size from micro-states such as St Kitts and Nevis, Nauru, Niue, and Tuvalu with less than 50,000 people each, to countries like Botswana, The Gambia and Mauritius The world’s political map, dominated by large states, includes many lesser-known small states and territories.

Using the World Bank benchmark of 1.5 million populations, there are 56 small states, as well as more than a hundred small territories under the sovereign control of others. A substantial majority of these small political units are islands or island federations, like Fiji in the Pacific or Barbados in the Caribbean. But others are located on the continental mainlands, sometimes as coastal enclaves, like Monaco or Brunei, and sometimes as landlocked (often mountainous) territories, like Swaziland or Liechtenstein. A large number of the SSTs have emerged only recently from colonialism. KARAIKAL :

The Union Territory of Pondicherry constituted out of the four erstwhile French establishments of Pondicherry, Karaikal, Mahe and Yanam.  Karaikal has an area of 161 sq. km. has a population of 1, 70,640 as per the 2001 census. Going by global trends, we are not demanding separate country status like the small states listed above.

We are only arguing that if countries with lesser population comparable to Karaikal are small sovereign states, there is nothing harm in Karaikal becoming a separate Union Territory within Indian Union, liberated from the rule of the impartial and unjust rulers nourishing only one constituency and neglecting Karaikal.

 WITHIN INDIA SOME PRECEDENTS:

If a particular region is neglected in development, public demands for equitable development is not met by mere formation of District, as is being done as eyewash measure with regard to Karaikal. Let us look in other states, on ways to resolve such issues.

 The left ruled West Bengal gives us a precedent. The Darjeeling Gorkha Autonomous Hill Council, previously known as Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council is an autonomous body that looks after the District of Darjiling within the state of West Bengal. The body has a fair amount of autonomy in the district and handles healthcare, tourism, education and governance. The state of West Bengal looks after the law and order, judicial system, communications and the higher education in the district. So autonomous council is one way to resolve people’s demand for being the rulers of their own destiny, West Bengal shows the way.Chandigarh with a population of 900635 and an area of 114 kms is a separate Union Territory, that serves as the capital of two states of Punjab and Haryana, at the same time, administratively, the city is not under the jurisdiction of either state, it is administered by the Centre government and hence classified as a U.T. The Governor of the Punjab is the Administrator of Chandigarh. If a city that is the capital of two big states has autonomy to be a separate Union Territory under Indian Union, what is wrong or illogical in demanding separate Union Territory status for Karaikal? Daman and Diu with an area of 122 square kilometers and a population of 1, 58.059 is a separate Union Territory after parting with the main enclave of Goa. Such being the case, there is nothing harming in Karaikal becoming a separate Union Territory. All these and more can be cited to compare the population and area of these separate existing Union territories and Karaikal, aspiring to become a Union Territory.

Lakshadeep is a Union territory (pop., 2001 prelim.: 60,595) of India. Located in the Arabian Sea off India's southwestern coast, it includes 27 islands (10 of which are inhabited), with a total land area of 12 sq mi (32 sq km). Britain gained sovereignty over it in the 18th century and assumed direct administration in 1908. It passed to India in 1947 and became the nation's smallest union territory in 1956. So for granting Union territory status to Karaikal the arguments advanced against that the population is less cannot be cited, since Lakshadeep with lesser population is already a Union Territory. The argument that all enclaves of French should be one Union Territory too is ridiculous, since Portuguese colony Goa became separate and Daman and Diu are union territories in our country. There is no hard fast rule that all 4 enclaves of Puducherry U.T. should remain under same administrative umbrella. Separate Union Territory status is not an unreasonable demand.

Andaman and Nicobar is also a Union territory (pop., 2001: 356,152),  consists of two groups of islands in the Bay of Bengal  about 800 miles (1,300 km) east of the Indian subcontinent and Sri Lanka; the total area is 3,185 sq mi (8,249 sq km).

Dadra and Nagar Haveli too is a Union territory (pop., 2001 prelim.: 220,451), western India. Located between Gujarat and Maharastra states and consisting of the entities of Dadra and Nagar Havali, it has a total area of 190 sq mi (491 sq km); its capital is Silvassa

Union Territories Act shielded and shields all these tiny territories and with more and more Union Territories becoming full-fledged states, the number of Union Territories is dwindling.

Hence granting Union Territory status to Karaikal will stop the numbers in the list dwindling. Regions that were denied justice by bigger states can aspire to become Union Territories, thereby keeping the Union Territory Act and role model alive as an Indian constitutional experiment. Hence Karaikal Struggle Group formed by 8 founding members working the idea mooted by Dravida Peravai to address the issues of neglect of Karaikal by the political masters of Puducherry, urge His Excellency to apply his mind and to recommend or otherwise forward our memorandum to the Union Government for consideration. This is the first visit and attempt by Karaikal Struggle Group to the RajNiwas to present our views to your Excellency’s Government. 

It is true the Government here woke up after our group raised the separate Union Territory demand. Karaikal became a District half heartedly, but we welcome and thank even this small gesture. But it never addressed the core issues. Cosmetic changes and eyewash schemes are being announced and made, but the one constituency development and one constituency employment goal practiced by the current government, created a wave of discontent in Karaikal enclave. As a result out of 6 assembly constituencies, all the 4 Congress legislators, including two former Ministers’s lost their seats. The remaining two from DMK scrapped through in slender margin.Karaikal Struggle Group did not contest elections, and if it had all the 6 constituencies would have voted as if it is a referendum. Even now, Karaikal Struggle Group urges your government to take the electoral verdict as a referendum in favour of a separate Union Territory and grant Karaikal separate Union Territory status.

The recent assembly session witnessed all 6 assembly members of Karaikal region threatening boycott of the session to appease their voters, though ultimately the drama ended in 3 exposing their double standards and three continuing to boycot.It shows that elected representatives are aware of the wave of discontent in Karaikal over the UNJUST JOB POLICY pursued by the current government. In Police selections, the interest of Karaikal jobless youth was thrown to winds. This is one of the many issues that generate people’s anger over step motherly treatment to Karaikal. Karaikal Struggle Group urges your government and Your Excellency to immediately draft a job policy that will give proportionate representation to all the enclaves of Puducherry and to all the 30 assembly constituencies of Puducherry.Bypassing employment exchanges, rules, regulations, ethics and morals, one constituency stands totally favored resulting in lot of youth shifting residences to that favorite constituency. Once in job which is not made permanent they have to back the political master on whose survival, their future is secure. Nepotism is also a corruption, various enquiry commissions have stated, about which A.G.Noorani’s book “Minister’s Misconduct will speak in detail. Nursing ones constituency has limits; the political masters who assume ministerial office are for whole of the state and had to be fair to all. Hence this golden rule of a transparent democracy had been broken with immunity, Karaikal Struggle Group urges for immediate framing of job policy with justice to all. Even those who sneaked into jobs must be dispersed from one constituency and scattered to all constituencies, if they are to be considered for being made permanent or regularizing an irregularity on humanitarian considerations. If this approach is adopted dispersing from one constituency to other constituencies, changes in voters list, ration cards, residences will ensure that the motive to build a vote bank at the cost of 29 constituencies stands defeated and justice is opened to all giving equal opportunities to all, especially the jobless youth of Karaikal region, as long as it remains under Pondicherry administration. We want to breathe the air of freedom by becoming separate Union Territory, and our demands like uniform job policy are only steps to resolve issues in the period of transition from a District to separate union territory. Thanking you yours sincerely N.Nandhivarman [Founder: Karaikal Struggle Group & General Secretary Dravida Peravai] A.S.T.Ansari Babu [Founder Member: Karaikal Struggle Group]

 KARAIKAL STRUGGLE GROUP

Founder: N.Nandhivarman Puducherry 605001 Founder Member: A.S.T.Ansari Babu: Karaikal Tel: 0413-2221025 Cell: 9362-993337 and 04368-224599 Cell: 9362910663

The Karaikal Struggle Group on 28 th December 2006 met the Lt.Governor of Puducherry Mr.Mukut Mithi and presented a memorandum urging the Government of India to grant separate Union Territory status for Karaikal region, an enclave of Puducherry encircled by Tamilnadu. 

Apart from the Founder N.Nandhivarman, Founder Member A.T.S.Ansari Babu,Tamilnadu Indian National League General Secretary Nagore V.S.Sadiq, Puducherry Maanila Indian National League President S.S.Hamid and office bearers of various wings of Dravida Peravai including its Head Quarters Secretary S.P.Manimaran M.B.A.