Afghanistan The reality

Afghanistan The reality

The shocking death of two Indian engineers,
M P Singh and C Govindaswamy,
in a terrorist attack last week in Afghanistan
has once again exposed the strains
the Indian diplomacy towards the country is being subject to.
The timing of the attack,
immediately after Afghan Defence Minister
Abdul Rahim Wardak's weeklong India-visit stands out.
During Wardak's visit,
it was agreed that Indian Army
would soon share experience with
Afghanistan in providing counter-insurgency training
to Afghan Army.
While India ruled out any military involvement in Afghanistan,
it pledged to continue helping
in it's reconstruction and rehabilitation.

It is well known that
Taliban-members
are against India's engagement in Afghanistan,
even in development- oriented projects.
The timing of the attack
clearly signals that
Taliban-activists remain opposed to India's involvement
in reconstruction work.
This was the second suicide attack
targeting an Indian project this year.
On January 3,
two Indian security personnel
were killed and more than nine Indian
and Afghan security officials injured
during a Taliban attack on a convoy of Indian workers
in Nimroz province.
The group kidnapped and killed
a Border Road Organization driver
M R Kutty in December 2005 demanding that
all Indians should leave the country.
In the latest incident,
two were killed and five Indian personnel injured.

India has strongly condemned the terrorist attack
and also asserted that this would not limit India's work
for Afghanistan's reconstruction.
India
is the fifth largest donor in Afghanistan,
having pledged $850 million for reconstruction.
Displaying its resolve not to succumb
to such pressure tactics from militants in Afghanistan,
India
has officially reiterated its
"determination to continue to work
with the Afghan people and government
for the rehabilitation and reconstruction of Afghanistan
and the well-being of the Afghan people."
The two engineers were among the
400 Indian personnel constructing a 217-km highway
between Zaranj and Delaram which,
when complete,
will link Afghanistan's major cities,
also link them to Iran and Central Asia.
Thankfully,
the recent tragedy
has not brought this project to a halt,
which is likely to be finished this year.
Nor has it created any strain in
India-Afghanistan ties.
But
the two deaths
have certainly raised concern about lives
of other Indians working there.


Sriram Savarkar
Hinduism is more a way of life than a method of worship.
Dharmo Rakshati Rakshithaha
If you protect Dharma, Dharma will in turn protect you.

Hindus,
If people slap you once,
slap them twice!