INDIA: Economic Colonialism
The village of Veldur is a bucolic little place a couple of hundred kilometres south of Bombay.
Its people would like to keep it this way - but theyre up against an enemy called ENRON ... an American multinational that has a couple of billion dollars to spend.
Vittal: You know, the people of this village are mostly fishermen. Some are farmers who grow mangoes and cashew nuts. But its mostly fishing up and down this coast.
The companys only interested in doing business here, they dont even think about the people. They just want to invest their money and then try to make as much profit as possible.
For Vittal and the rest of Veldur its an unequal battle thats all about fighting to hold onto a quiet backwater of Indian life.But what it is really all about is progress. And what price you have to pay for it.
Some of the cost is already evident in the scar that spreads itself above Veldur. These are site works for the American multinational Enron. Theyll bring a massive power station to the region, electricity to a nation that is desperately short of it. Enron has become a focus of not just local discontent but a political battle about where India is going.
Unfortunately for villages like Vittal the decision about what sort of development India does want is made elsewhere.
Much of Indias infrastructure is in such disarray that even in Bombay the Industrial and financial heart of the countrya regular monsoon downpour can bring the country to a halt.But ask any of the thousands of local and foreign businessmen theyll tell you to watch this space India is on the move.
The Dickensian machines of the British Empire days will soon be replaced by shiny new German ones - Swan Mills, like other businesses across the country, are busy investing in what they see as Indias great leap forward....
Cub tiger?Managing Director (Swan Textile Mills): Yes, we are a cub just now... Im very optimistic about this country.
Once we start rolling we will be termed as a tiger - it will take at least another 5 years to roll, but for the political stability factor and minor irritants it has got potential.
Indian entrepreneurship may have been stifled for too long, but you nevertheless still find it bustling away at all levels of society.
At the bottom end are ten thousand dabbawallahs ... following a simple occupation of amazing complexity.
They collect dabbas - or lunch boxes prepared by loving wives and mothers in the suburbs - and then cart them into Bombay.
A hundred thousand office workers and children get fresh home prepared meals daily, barely one goes astray. Its a fine example of enterprise and reliability as youll find anywhere and it costs just ten cents a day.
Mark Bullough: The Indian entrepreneur, the Indian people, the Indian labourer at all levels they can deliver the goods and what they need is to be unshackled and this is what this government is doing is giving them more opportunity to use their skills and entrepreneurialspirit and their intelligence to expand.
Theres no doubting Indians are ready to expand.
The nations first and only homegrown multinational is an iron and steel empire thats so proficient that its taken over and turned around loss-making plants in Indonesia, Canada, Mexico, and Jamaica - and now it has its eyes on Germany.
As India opens up its economy to domestic and foreign enterprise, so its founder believes the bottemless pit of cheap labour, a wealth of indigenous enterprise and a return of successful expatriate businessmen will make an unbeatable combination.
Inidan growth can be much faster in my opinion than China.
Why? China opened in 1982 India in 1992 but you see 1982 to 1988 you see Chinas growth was less than what we have done in three years in India.
There is a down side to all this optimism. Two and a half years ago Bomaby was burning as communal tensions between majority Hindus and the citys Muslims exploded across the city. From the fires of discontent rose a Hindu political opportunist who now runs Bombay and the State of Marahasta.Val Hakray compares himself favourably with Hitler he exploits ignorance and prejudice and is known as mister remote control for his ability to get things done. Such is the power of mister remote control that when his wife died recently his henchmen closed down Indias economic hub for a day to mourn a woman rarely if ever seen in public life.
The crowds that gathered were a testament to the Hindu fundamentalists who follow him
Mittal: His roots are such his emotions are have been fanned by the people of Bombay more than the state or the country. Hes a very good speaker, he can make firebrand speeches, he has come up because of his militant attitudes. At all given times he has come up because of religion.
... if he mellows down a little, he becomes more reasonable. This state will benefit a lot more..
Q: Do you see him mellowing?
It is not possible. It is uncharacteristic of him to be mellow - he cannot mellow down.
Far from mellowing, the new Hindu fundamentalist politicians of Bombay are becoming ever more nationalistic... totally at odds with Indias drive to attract international investment.
Theyve sent shockwaves throughout the business community by turning against Indias most prominent new investor... the multinational Enron and its 2-billion dollar power station.
Enron representative: There have been allegations for the last 3 years -
Interviewer: money siphoned off to Mauritius? -
Enron rep: Absolutely. The point is simply we have not seen anyone come forward with even a shred of evidence.
Innocent or guilty, Enrons become a symbol in Bombay for economic colonialism ... and in a country which was ruled by the British Raj for 400 years, colonialism of any nature is a dirty word.
Mark Bullough: Indias a very proud country and if you say the word economic colonialism then youre going to get people voting for you.
In a Bombay slum, theyre preparing for the most important Hindu festival of the year.
Thousands of the images of Ganesh a god in the form of part human part elephant are being prepared for a final and joyous journey to the Arabain sea.
The Lord Ganesh is said to have thrown out the many invaders of Indias history. Today the Hindu fundamenatalist politicians tell people that he will expel todays enemies like Muslims and the perfidious multinationals.
The social religious and economic tensions that knaw at the nations 900 million people are the nations achilles heel as it strives towards its dreams of a new prosperity.
Merchant (Managing Director of Swan Textiles): All these tensions are fanned by politicians to grab votes, to creat instability, to topple a government, allthese things are happening.. becuase religious instability means political instability.
Weve been asked not to film Ganeshs fianl immersion - an undignified toppling into ocean is not for foreign eyes.
But the Government gloats that Ganesh is taking his thoroughly modern enemy, the multinational ENRON with him.. for a public and very undignified burial at sea.
In the little fishing port of Veldhur one might expect to find the locals savouring their triumph but theyre not.
Vittal fears the Bombay local leaders are posturing against ENRON simply because its such a popular issue. When the heat dies down ENRON will back.
Vittal: Such a big company is trying to wheel and deal and cheat the people of India, trying to rob the Indian people and take all the profits back to America. Thats not right!
The people of Veldur have got strong grounds for their suspicions, for in the end theres just one subject upon which Indias divided politicians can unite. In Bombay or in the capital Delhi, they all know that foreign investment and - like it ir not - the multinationals are indispensible in the nations race to become Asias next and biggest tiger.
Mark Bullough: All the political parties have got the same economic manifesto: India cannot go back to being isolationist, if it tries to to go back to being isolationist, it will go bust.
So the decisions really already been taken: 900 million Indians need the ENRONs of this world far more than they need places like Veldur.
And thats the cost of progress.
The village of Veldur is a bucolic little place a couple of hundred kilometres south of Bombay.
Its people would like to keep it this way - but theyre up against an enemy called ENRON ... an American multinational that has a couple of billion dollars to spend.
Vittal: You know, the people of this village are mostly fishermen. Some are farmers who grow mangoes and cashew nuts. But its mostly fishing up and down this coast.
The companys only interested in doing business here, they dont even think about the people. They just want to invest their money and then try to make as much profit as possible.
For Vittal and the rest of Veldur its an unequal battle thats all about fighting to hold onto a quiet backwater of Indian life.But what it is really all about is progress. And what price you have to pay for it.
Some of the cost is already evident in the scar that spreads itself above Veldur. These are site works for the American multinational Enron. Theyll bring a massive power station to the region, electricity to a nation that is desperately short of it. Enron has become a focus of not just local discontent but a political battle about where India is going.
Unfortunately for villages like Vittal the decision about what sort of development India does want is made elsewhere.
Much of Indias infrastructure is in such disarray that even in Bombay the Industrial and financial heart of the countrya regular monsoon downpour can bring the country to a halt.But ask any of the thousands of local and foreign businessmen theyll tell you to watch this space India is on the move.
The Dickensian machines of the British Empire days will soon be replaced by shiny new German ones - Swan Mills, like other businesses across the country, are busy investing in what they see as Indias great leap forward....
Cub tiger?Managing Director (Swan Textile Mills): Yes, we are a cub just now... Im very optimistic about this country.
Once we start rolling we will be termed as a tiger - it will take at least another 5 years to roll, but for the political stability factor and minor irritants it has got potential.
Indian entrepreneurship may have been stifled for too long, but you nevertheless still find it bustling away at all levels of society.
At the bottom end are ten thousand dabbawallahs ... following a simple occupation of amazing complexity.
They collect dabbas - or lunch boxes prepared by loving wives and mothers in the suburbs - and then cart them into Bombay.
A hundred thousand office workers and children get fresh home prepared meals daily, barely one goes astray. Its a fine example of enterprise and reliability as youll find anywhere and it costs just ten cents a day.
Mark Bullough: The Indian entrepreneur, the Indian people, the Indian labourer at all levels they can deliver the goods and what they need is to be unshackled and this is what this government is doing is giving them more opportunity to use their skills and entrepreneurialspirit and their intelligence to expand.
Theres no doubting Indians are ready to expand.
The nations first and only homegrown multinational is an iron and steel empire thats so proficient that its taken over and turned around loss-making plants in Indonesia, Canada, Mexico, and Jamaica - and now it has its eyes on Germany.
As India opens up its economy to domestic and foreign enterprise, so its founder believes the bottemless pit of cheap labour, a wealth of indigenous enterprise and a return of successful expatriate businessmen will make an unbeatable combination.
Inidan growth can be much faster in my opinion than China.
Why? China opened in 1982 India in 1992 but you see 1982 to 1988 you see Chinas growth was less than what we have done in three years in India.
There is a down side to all this optimism. Two and a half years ago Bomaby was burning as communal tensions between majority Hindus and the citys Muslims exploded across the city. From the fires of discontent rose a Hindu political opportunist who now runs Bombay and the State of Marahasta.Val Hakray compares himself favourably with Hitler he exploits ignorance and prejudice and is known as mister remote control for his ability to get things done. Such is the power of mister remote control that when his wife died recently his henchmen closed down Indias economic hub for a day to mourn a woman rarely if ever seen in public life.
The crowds that gathered were a testament to the Hindu fundamentalists who follow him
Mittal: His roots are such his emotions are have been fanned by the people of Bombay more than the state or the country. Hes a very good speaker, he can make firebrand speeches, he has come up because of his militant attitudes. At all given times he has come up because of religion.
... if he mellows down a little, he becomes more reasonable. This state will benefit a lot more..
Q: Do you see him mellowing?
It is not possible. It is uncharacteristic of him to be mellow - he cannot mellow down.
Far from mellowing, the new Hindu fundamentalist politicians of Bombay are becoming ever more nationalistic... totally at odds with Indias drive to attract international investment.
Theyve sent shockwaves throughout the business community by turning against Indias most prominent new investor... the multinational Enron and its 2-billion dollar power station.
Enron representative: There have been allegations for the last 3 years -
Interviewer: money siphoned off to Mauritius? -
Enron rep: Absolutely. The point is simply we have not seen anyone come forward with even a shred of evidence.
Innocent or guilty, Enrons become a symbol in Bombay for economic colonialism ... and in a country which was ruled by the British Raj for 400 years, colonialism of any nature is a dirty word.
Mark Bullough: Indias a very proud country and if you say the word economic colonialism then youre going to get people voting for you.
In a Bombay slum, theyre preparing for the most important Hindu festival of the year.
Thousands of the images of Ganesh a god in the form of part human part elephant are being prepared for a final and joyous journey to the Arabain sea.
The Lord Ganesh is said to have thrown out the many invaders of Indias history. Today the Hindu fundamenatalist politicians tell people that he will expel todays enemies like Muslims and the perfidious multinationals.
The social religious and economic tensions that knaw at the nations 900 million people are the nations achilles heel as it strives towards its dreams of a new prosperity.
Merchant (Managing Director of Swan Textiles): All these tensions are fanned by politicians to grab votes, to creat instability, to topple a government, allthese things are happening.. becuase religious instability means political instability.
Weve been asked not to film Ganeshs fianl immersion - an undignified toppling into ocean is not for foreign eyes.
But the Government gloats that Ganesh is taking his thoroughly modern enemy, the multinational ENRON with him.. for a public and very undignified burial at sea.
In the little fishing port of Veldhur one might expect to find the locals savouring their triumph but theyre not.
Vittal fears the Bombay local leaders are posturing against ENRON simply because its such a popular issue. When the heat dies down ENRON will back.
Vittal: Such a big company is trying to wheel and deal and cheat the people of India, trying to rob the Indian people and take all the profits back to America. Thats not right!
The people of Veldur have got strong grounds for their suspicions, for in the end theres just one subject upon which Indias divided politicians can unite. In Bombay or in the capital Delhi, they all know that foreign investment and - like it ir not - the multinationals are indispensible in the nations race to become Asias next and biggest tiger.
Mark Bullough: All the political parties have got the same economic manifesto: India cannot go back to being isolationist, if it tries to to go back to being isolationist, it will go bust.
So the decisions really already been taken: 900 million Indians need the ENRONs of this world far more than they need places like Veldur.
And thats the cost of progress.