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CHANDIGARH | SUNDAY | 13 MAY 2018

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Is Royal family really ‘worth it’?

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POTPOURRI

RINCE Harry will marry Meghan Markle in the St George Chapel of Windsor Castle on May 19. The cost of the wedding itself — the food, the Ralph & Russo Couture dress, etc. — will be picked by the Royal family. But the security costs have been estimated at more than £20m (over Rs 182 crore). And that will be borne by public. Yet the wedding might also attract additional tourists from abroad, whose expenditure will help defray some of those public costs. Which leaves us with the perennial questions: How much money do we spend on the British monarchy? Is the Royal family really “worth it”? Direct funding to meet the monarchy’s official expenditure is through the “Sovereign Grant”. In 2016-17, the Sovereign Grant was £42.8m, rising to £76m in 2017-18. This does not include the security costs of looking after the family. One republican pressure group has estimated the actual annual public cost of the monarchy closer to £350m (Rs 3,200 crore). The money goes into the funding of their official duties — opening buildings, hosting garden parties, travelling, etc. The Queen, Prince Charles and other members of the Royal family have private incomes too from their estates and financial assets. A sum of money called “The Privy Purse” goes to the Queen as revenue from a landed estate called the Duchy of Lancaster. This was £19.1m in 2016-17. The Queen has paid income and capital gains tax since 1992 on her private income. Prince Charles has also paid tax on his income from another landed estate, the Duchy of Cornwall, since 1993. In 2016-17 that estate yielded him revenue of £22.5m, on which he paid tax of £4.76m. But the situation is complicated. The majority of Prince Charles’ official duties are financed from the Duchy’s income, which also covers the costs of official duties of Camilla, William and Kate and Harry. All the “working royals” in Charles’ direct family also get some revenues from the Sovereign Grant too. And what financial benefits do the royals bring? VisitBritain reckons that tourism linked to royal residences such as Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle adds up to 2.7 million visitors a year. Brand Finance, a consultancy, estimated in 2017 that the monarchy’s annual contribution to the UK economy to be around £1.8bn, drawing in an additional

uncompetitive,” Professor Hornsey said. In their paper, Professor Hornsey and his colleagues explain the most prominent conspiracy theory is that climate change is a hoax “perpetrated by scientists who see it as an opportunity to wield influence, secure funding or act out a green/Marxist agenda”. Psychologists surveyed 5,323 people across 25 countries to determine their worldviews. “We found that the more Americans believed conspiracies generally, the more they also thought that climate change was a hoax,” said Professor Hornsey. “This relationship was not found in the vast majority of countries.” The study, published in the journal Nature Climate Change, revealed that while it may not be a totally American phenomenon, it is not far off.

FREED, BUT STILL BONDED

ILLUSTRATIONS: SANDEEP JOSHI

£550m of tourism revenues a year, and an increase in trade worth £150m a year. It’s certainly more than the higher estimates of the Royal family’s costs to the public purse, but it’s important to put those numbers in context.

CLIMATE CHANGE DOUBTERS

Belief in outlandish conspiracy theories goes hand-in-hand with rejection of climate change among Americans, according to a new study. Around 97 per cent of scientists believe climate change is real. Nevertheless, opposition to climate change has entered the mainstream in some nations, with the US perhaps the most prominent example. Under Donald Trump, the US has withdrawn from the Paris climate agreement. Prof Matthew Hornsey and his colleagues

at University Queensland set out to investigate the roots of this phenomenon in the US and elsewhere by looking at the relationships between belief in conspiracy theories and climate scepticism. To do this, they determined people’s endorsement of four internationally recognised conspiracy theories on the subjects of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the existence of a New World Order and the deaths of John F Kennedy and Princess Diana. Professor Hornsey was drawn to investigate this topic by the US President’s apparent endorsement of conspiracy theories surrounding the existence of climate change. “The inspiration for this question was Donald Trump's tweet saying that climate science was a hoax created by the Chinese to make US manufacturing

India has not paid full compensation to anyone freed from bonded labour since introducing policies in 2016 to fight the crime, which included grants for rescued workers of up to Rs 300,000, officials said. People freed from bondage are given Rs 20,000 soon afterwards, but the remaining compensation is paid only once the perpetrators are convicted. Yet, there have only been a handful of convictions since 1976 when India banned bonded labour, said Onkar Sharma, deputy chief labour commissioner. India announced an ambitious goal last year to rescue more than 18 million trapped in bonded labour by 2030. Campaigners say the plan is flawed in linking compensation to conviction. “Court trials can go on for years,” said Nirmal Gorana, convener, National Campaign Committee for Eradication of Bonded Labour. “Who will you give compensation if the verdict comes after 15 years?” Makhanlal Aharwal is one of those awaiting compensation if the man who sold him into slavery in

New Delhi is convicted. He has his release certificate — a government document that entitles him to Rs 100,000, jobs and housing. But none of that has materialised yet. About 18 million people in India are unpaid workers or held in debt bondage, according to the government. Until 2016, freed bonded workers were paid a total rehabilitation amount of Rs 20,000, which is now dispersed as an interim measure until the entire compensation can be paid. However, campaigners say it has become harder to access even that amount since 2016. Officials are reluctant to process bonded labour cases, worried over people making false claims, said Kandasamy Krishnan of the National Adivasi Solidarity Council. According to labour ministry data, only 250 of the nearly 9,000 claims that it settled in the last two fiscal years were for interim relief under the new scheme.

COSTA RICA DECARBONISED

Costa Rica’s President has announced a plan to ban fossil fuels and become the first fully decarbonised country in the world. Carlos Alvarado, a 38-year-old former journalist, made the announcement to a crowd of thousands during his inauguration on Wednesday. “Decarbonisation is the great task of our generation and Costa Rica must be one of the first countries in the world to accomplish it, if not the first,” Alvarado said. Symbolically, the president arrived at the ceremony in San Jose aboard a hydrogen-fuelled bus. Last month, Alvarado said the Central American country would begin to implement a plan to end fossil fuel use in transport by 2021 — the 200th year of Costa Rican independence. “When we reach 200 years of independent life we will take Costa Rica forward and celebrate ... that we've removed gasoline and diesel from our transportation,” he promised. —Sources: The Independent & Reuters

Real issues lost in the noise

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TOUCHSTONES IRA PANDE

Today’s youth, it seems, have no interest in serious events and news. Media, too, is feeding them what they want

don’t know about you, dear reader, but I am sick of the noise in our media over the forthcoming elections in Karnataka. From a potted history (often wrong) of its various regions, to their religious and ethnographic differences, to rallies, roadshows and ‘exclusive’ interviews, what have we not been bombarded with in the past weeks? To top it all, a leading journalist decides to eat his way through mounds of food as he talks to fellow foodies in canteens and roadside eateries. Is this stuff to be aired on prime time news? Seriously, I am as clueless as I was before this deluge about what the real issues are. What is becoming increasingly clear is that elections in this country are morphing into the popular IPL matches and the onedayers that entertain our cricket-mad youth. Add to this the posts that are flying around on social media and you have a country on so high on adrenaline that even a little spark can set off a fire. To this new generation, serious news appears something so boring that only unclejis and senior citizens watch it: that is, those who want to know about the devastation being wrought by climate change, the slow but

determined march of communal dadagiri and the dismantling of our institutions of higher education. For the young and restless, trigger-happy with the remote, it is so much more fun to see the shenanigans at Sonam Kapoor’s wedding instead. I can’t say I blame them because they have defined their lives neatly into fun and boring events. In the space their brains occupy, language and long discourses have ceased to be ‘fun’. Jinnah bad? Yes, so off with his portrait. By the way, who was he? Kathua rape? Bad? Yes, so hold a candlelight march and go back to your mobile texting. Modi or Rahul? BJP or Congress? Who or what is the JD(U)? Can a man seriously name his son Ravana? Oh, is it Revanna? Ewww! Simple choices and simple answers are what they want and that is what they are fed, both in their classes and by our media. If a topic is not important for an exam, then why waste time trying to read about it? By the same logic, who cares in the north about the nuances of the caste wars between the Lingayats and the Vokkaligas? When even our Prime Minister talks of Thimayya and Cariappa as if he hastily read up some notes provided

Indians as flyers

President’s job or not. To add to this, his lifestyle has come under the scanner. It’s not easy to be the President of the most powerful nation, it is stressful. In this context, we can only join the Americans in wishing Donald Trump a healthy life and a memorable term in office.

When I was in service I travelled a lot across India and abroad (We Indians love in-flight chat with strangers). My inflight experience is very much fresh in my memory. Though not all Indians are loud, most of them are, and won’t care about others around them. Some would keep kicking your seat from behind. While de-boarding, they would hurry to exit as if their seats are on fire. I would not like to mention the loud burpers, snorers and gasbags. Some time you take it all in your stride when you are in a pleasant mood, but generally, they drive you up the wall. It is really your luck to have an airplane companion next to you, who is well mannered and respects your space. LAL SINGH BY EMAIL Email your letters ■ Readers are invited to send their feedback to [email protected] The mail should not exceed 150 words.

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The revelation by Donald Trump’s doctor comes at a time when questions are being raised whether he is fit for the US

LJS PANESAR BY EMAIL

Support Churian women

It is encouraging to see that women of Churian village near Harike wetland are converting hyacinth into things of daily use (From weed to wealth. Economic independence for women is a must as it provides them dignity and self-esteem. It’s commendable that these women are maintaining a fine balance between their domestic responsibilities and aspirations to be financially independent. These women need to be provided with all support to market their products as good market is imperative to sustain their effort. RAVI SHARMA, JAMMU

by a bhakt, why make fun of the poor naamdar, who only knows what his family did for this country (if that!). To shake off this depressing scenario, let me play a round of ‘What if?’ with you. What if the Partition had never taken place? What if Gandhi had not died in 1948 and Jinnah soon after? It is all very well to say that Nehru and Jinnah conspired with the British to partition the subcontinent but if the Partition had not happened, would this vast land have been

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Self-help groups can play a positive role in empowering women living in rural areas. In such groups, women are engaged in different income-generating activities like knitting, tailoring, making pickles, spices, handicrafts, etc. The government can play a constructive role by setting up more such groups and creating market for their products. Such efforts will go a long way in sustaining rural economy. RAJ KUMAR KAPOOR, ROPAR

Keep corporates away

The tourism ministry’s decision to allow a private firm to “adopt” the Red Fort — a national monument — is not in the nation’s interest (Let corporates restore monuments). The control of structures of national importance must remain with the government only. The need of the hour is to make government departments accountable, but not absolve them of their duties. Accept

governable under a single government? Can you see many similarities between the tribal chieftains of Balochistan and the Pashtun areas and the Dravidian cultures of our South? What wars would we have not fought over language, culture and faiths amongst ourselves in these 70 odd years? When even a small island state like Sri Lanka could not handle ethnic tensions, it boggles the mind to think of these separate areas forever locked in strife and bloody insurrections. Instead of one Kashmir, there would be a hundred no-go areas. Similarly, if Gandhiji had not fallen prey to an assassin’s bullets in 1948, what would the Congress Party done with him? He would never agree to become the Prime Minister (or President) and would be a perpetual thorn in the side of the ruling party with his insistence on truth and honesty. He may have even gone on a spree of fasts to force an issue, placing the government of the day in a very embarrassing situation. His economic vision would have clashed violently with the industrial development Nehru and his cabinet chose to follow and his dream of independent village

republics would be a tough map to hold together. Idealists are easy to admire but hard to follow. So like it or not, we are in for interesting times. With the country now loaded in favour of the young, you can expect many old and hard-held articles of faith to be junked. The old and familiar election campaigns, where contemplation and long thoughtful pauses marked speeches and orations are now passe. It is now all about high-octane oratory, with crowdpleasing slogans and promises. The old rath-yatra is now a called a roadshow and a darshan of the leader weighed under garlands and flower petals a mandatory ritual. It reminds one of the old temple yatras when the local deities were taken out in a procession once a year to show people that even the gods descended to visit them once in a while. For the next five years or so, these new gods will vanish into their plush offices and homes and operate through their chosen few (the new priests, one could say). Forests will be cut down, common lands will be pillaged and natural resources looted by cronies as we hurtle through to yet another election. Ho-hum.

funds or donations from private companies under corporate social responsibility to restore monuments but don’t give them their control.

private possession, which is not permissible. At home, these may be safety hazards for children. Officers should avoid false show of power and misuse of authority.

MAHESH KAPASI, NEW DELHI

SUBHASH VAID, NEW DELHI

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Now Dalmia Bharat Group has been entrusted with restoring the Red Fort, we must wait and watch without making it a political issue. In case things unfold as per expectations, the option of dealing with other major monuments on similar lines can be exercised judiciously. JAGDISH CHANDER, JALANDHAR

Officers, behave responsibly

Celebratory firing is not only illegal but dangerous too (Trigger-happy officers & celebratory firing). This is not expected of those who are responsible to maintain law and order. Some officers keep restricted bore weapons and explosives in their

Mama Machli

‘Mama Machli’ made an interesting read. In the story, I have been quoted as saying, “Spellbinding is a tiger’s stately gait and the playful fight of a tigress with her cubs. All this I watched with bated breath from an unsafe distance of a parked jeep.” As a responsible filmmaker, I follow the rules and regulations and there is always a forest guard with us who monitors our activities. It would be highly irresponsible, if we film from an unsafe distance. We always ensure the safety of the crew and the animals. I hope there is no misunderstanding between forest officials and readers because of the typo. NALLAMUTHU, NEW DELHI