India at 60: More growing pains

As India celebrates its 60th year of independence with a newfound international status, it battles the proverbial "million mutinies" at home and struggles to move forward. Even though the country made significant strides on the economic front, ranking 69th in global economic freedom index this year - well ahead of 86th-ranked China - growing internal squabbling and lopsided development significantly limits its major global power prospects.

Indeed, far from global aspirations, India's quest for maintaining physical integration has been jeopardized even after decades of self-rule by a prolonged Islamic militancy in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K), unabated separatist violence in the northeastern states and Maoist extremism that has exercised increasing dominance over a large swathe of land covering at least 12 states in central and southeastern India.

A more alarming trend in recent years is that Islamic militancy has proliferated beyond the boundaries of J&K. Backed by external forces, it has reached virtually every possible corner of India, targeting government infrastructure, public transport and religious places with impunity.

Strikes and shut downs have been regular features in restive pockets for each national commemoration of Republic Day or Independence Day .Conversely, candlelight vigils by peacemongers along with a high state of alert by security forces have become standard practice in these conflict zones.

Kashmir imbroglio

Since the partitioning of the subcontinent in 1947, India and Pakistan have fought two wars and many skirmishes over Kashmir, with Islamic militants fighting since 1989 for self-determination and, more plausibly, a merger with neighboring Pakistan. The latter has been blamed for instigating militancy and facilitating militant infiltration in Kashmir.

Peace parleys have been initiated by New Delhi and multiple rounds of talks have taken place between two major stakeholders in the conflict - Pakistan and J&K's main political separatist alliance, the All Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC) - to find a lasting solution.

Observers, including APHC leaders, blame New Delhi for overlooking the larger implication of this decade-long conflict and prolonging a concrete resolution unnecessarily.

More than a year has passed since the latest round of Kashmir talks were held in May 2006 between the Indian government and the APHC's moderate faction led by chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq in Delhi.

"I don't think […] New Delhi is much interested as the approach has always been to delay as much as possible, " Mirwaiz Farooq was quoted by Reuters news service as saying recently, questioning New Delhi's intention to find a political solution to the problems. Farooq said the delay could beget "more extremism" and a "hard-line attitude among the new generation" even though the current trend showed that the terrorist related violence in Kashmir was on the decline.

Lt Gen (Ret) Shankar Prasad thinks otherwise. "New Delhi has never ignored the 'K' word [Kashmir] and it can't afford to do that as this is the biggest internal security threat the country is facing still, more than anything else," Prasad told ISN Security Watch.

He further added that the "steadiness apparent in the government's approach should not be blamed as an intentional slow down" as there are other pressing internal issues to which the government must give equal attention.

The conflict has killed more than 42,000 people and displaced thousands displaced more in the last 17 years.

Northeast travails

Nagaland ,Manipur and Assam remain violence-prone states in India's northeast, with factional, internecine and xenophobic killings featuring regularly, impeding the region's overall development. Extortion and abduction for ransom top the agenda among militant groups operating in these states. Civilians bear the brunt of the violence and destr