Right now, India is facing a number of crises and calamities-bravely. The nation is trying to stand up and cope with all these problems as best as it can. Human endeavor and time will help the people over-come the difficulties. The spirit is not lacking, but in the face of the nature's fury, especially in Bihar , 10 million people are engaged in a battle of life and death.

Food is being dropped from the air by four Air Force helicopters round the clock. They are being rescued by a thousand boats and taken to higher ground and other places of relative safety, be they railway lines or stations. But greedy private boatmen are also looting the people they pick up of all they are able to salvage, include cash, jewellery or any other valuables and even threatening to dump the hapless in the torrents flowing down from Nepal at great speed in the river of sorrow, the Kosi, which keeps changing its course and breaches all embankments.

Engineers' efforts to close the breaches on India-Nepal border were frustrated by angry Nepalese who did not wish their own land to be inundated. A thousand villages in five districts have been swamped, homes and crops washed away by the reckless current which is 13 km wide over an area of 100 km. The last 45 years have seen the Kosi flooded the Mithilanchal area eight times, three times in the 1980s alone. It is a great catastrophe being compared to a tsunami-like situation even as a tsunami once more threatens Indonesia at this point of time.

Long-term measures have been in the planning, but there is not enough money and perhaps even less will on the part of the rulers of the States in the past 300 years. The proper solution would be build reservoirs and power projects, which would spruce up the economy of Nepal, enrich it and make it a great exporter of power, but politicians there would have to be prepared to accept World Bank proposals and assistance. Bilateral cooperation from India would be readily available, financial and technical, with no strings attached, but would the present rulers be willing anytime soon? India could buy the surplus power after Nepal 's own needs have been met and new industries set up in the country of mountains and valleys.

The second problem that India faces is Pakistan 's aggressive stance and continued and repeated firing across the line of control and international border in Jammu and Kashmir and even attempts to cut the border fence to push in infiltrators and terrorists to create mayhem in this country. Militants from Pakistan are known to have joined the protest rallies in Kashmir Valley and engaged in firing at police and security forces, with the result that the authorities had no option but to impose curfew, which have been defied.

The separatist leadership and elements visit Pakistan so often, even as they proclaim that they want azadi from Pakistan as well as India for all Kashmiris, that it is well known that they are heavily financed and encouraged by the Pakistan Government agencies, if not illegal outfits. They have so much money power that they can hold rallies of 40,000 people. Omar Abdullah admits he cannot attract that kind of audience and insists that azadi for Kashmir Valley is unviable with three nuclear armed nations surrounding it. If India were ever to consider withdrawing troops even theoretically, the result would be obvious: Pakistan and China would gobble it up in no time.

In the third scenario, West Bengal faces a turmoil in Singur, thanks to the thoughtlessness of the CPI(M) rulers of the State, who chose to hand over fertile land for a car project to a private investor, just 30 km from Kolkatta city. Industry associations are of the opinion that land acquisition for industrial projects should not be the business of governments but of captains of industry themselves in direct dealings with land owners and even then fertile land should preferably be left alone, unless farmers are made stake holders in the project. Social responsibility of industrialists is now standard policy and not sheer profit motive.

Ms Mamata Banerjee wants the Tatas to vacate only 400 acres out of the 1,000 acres they have taken and restore them to the farmers. These 400 acres are for ancillaries and for Tatas' own use and since neighbouring Orissa is offering land, why can't the ancillaries be located there without much difficulty? But if the Tatas decide to leave Bengal and move to Maharashtra or Uttarakhand, they will lose face, but even more the Bengal Chief Minister, Mr. Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, will have received a tight slap in the face from the people and Ms. Banerjee even as Buddha insists he will not back down. Sometimes, a slight retreat might be better than total defeat.

The Trinamool Congress protest in Singur was joined by the irrepressible Mr. Amar Singh of the Socialist Party, to try and gain some mileage for himself, but as he sat on dharna, Ms. Mamta Banerjee kept her distance and turned her face away from him, refusing to acknowledge his presence. After showing up repeatedly on news channels during the days prior to the confidence vote in the Lok Sabha in July, Mr. Amar Singh fell silent. Now he seems to have revived his political activity by writing letters to the Prime Minister over the politics and economics of two business houses of this country.

At this time of the year, when petroleum prices are going up or down more than twice a week in a range of $111 and 120 per barrel, India is trying hard to live with the energy crunch and the resultant inflationary pressures.