When I got married this summer, I don’t remember if it ever crossed my mind about getting a toilet along with my man. A man with a toilet has never been a marital prerequisite or anything I have ever really thought twice about. Indoor plumbing is something we take for granted in USA; India is a very different place.

A few years ago, Haryana, a northern state in India, implemented a ”No Toilet, No Bride” campaign in an effort to combat the lack of proper plumbing (See the full Washington Post article here). Villages have walls with slogans painted in Hindi reading - “Na bahun beti us ghar mein jismein na ho shauchalaya.” This is a lengthier version of the ‘no toilet, no bride’ comment literally translating to ”If you don’t have a proper lavatory in your house, don’t even think about marrying my daughter.”  There are print ads and radio commercials including the popular radio jingle, “No loo, No I do.” There are even commercials on television and the new slogan was recently incorporated into the plot of a popular soap opera. Ironically, there are more televisions than toilets in India, so this advertising medium works well to spread the word!

This campaign has come as an effort to combat health hazards and create a better environment for women. The health hazards relating to lack of sanitation are monumental – they can lead to the spread of diseases such as typhoid, malaria, polio, and diarrhea. According to the World Health Organization, child deaths from diarrhea outnumber those from AIDS, malaria, and measles combined, making sanitation a big concern.

The slogan’s direct link to women (and their value as a bride) in India relate to their need for privacy. Women are modest and will tend to go to the bathroom outdoors during hours of darkness.  This means they must get up in the pre-dawn hours to use the bathroom or wait until after the sun goes down.  Being out at night alone can be dangerous for women.  Also, limiting yourself to a strict schedule can lead to health problems.  Ashok Gera, a local Haryana doctor, says that he sees many young women who have prolonged urinary tract infections, kidney, and liver problems because they don’t have a safe place to go.

So far, this new campaign has proven to be successful. Over 1.4 million toilets have been built! Some were built with government funds, but some were funded by eager potential husbands. Harpal Sirshwa, a 22 year old bachelor says, “I will have to work hard to afford a toilet. We won’t get any bride if we don’t have one now.”

I find this campaign to be a novel approach to an age old problem. Linking sanitation needs to courtship is a way to capture the attention of the decision-making men in India. Female foeticide has led to a distinct gender disproportion, with the population of India consisting of 8% more men than women.  This means there are more eligible bachelors than available brides. This puts women in a position of leverage for pairing off for marriage, allowing them to request toilets in homes. Is the threat of being stuck as a single man enough to overhaul the country’s sanitation practices? What will the women of India use their marital leverage for next?

-Catherine Kristensen

One of my favorite aspects of travel is sampling the local fare, and I’ve never been more excited than for my next big culinary destination: India. This trip poses some new risks for me as a traveler however, and it reflects a common perception of international travel, particularly while in India. We’ve even been warned by our instructor and trip leader, who is Indian, that we should probably not eat from street vendors due to the inherent risks posed to our American stomachs.

India is famous for it’s very flavorful, frequently spicy curries. And just as many people who have lived in virtually any large metropolitan area in America know, some of the best food you can find are from small street vendors. But the sanitary standards in India are very different than what most are accustomed to in America.

One of the meals popularized to many Americans is the vada pav, thanks to foodie/chef/traveler Anthony Bourdain (Click Here). This is a spicy potato patty between two buttered buns, smothered in curry sauce. Patties are pressed by hand, meals are prepared by hand, and with hands that may not look to have been washed in some time. And even if they have been recently washed, water that is used threatens us with similar results of water in Mexico. Our American stomachs aren’t accustomed to that water, and while it may be safe for locals, it probably would upset our fragile gastrointestinal systems.

Many travelers either do get sick, or perceive that they may get sick, and so things are changing, purely out of sheer Indian entrepreneurial spirit. There are now chains opening up that attempt to mimic the taste of the street vended snack, with the sanitary conditions that are closer to what Americans expect, for a price that is above street vendors prices but low enough to ensure people still purchase.

This example is just one small microcosm of how India is transforming itself. Preserving the feel, taste, and experience that is India, repackaged and presented in a way that attracts foreigner travelers albeit at a higher price.

But what are the side effects of doing this? Does this type of business model follow the sometimes negative, traditionally American view point that everything can (some say should) be capitalized; in effect, stomping out the mom-and-pop or local feel in favor of a generic, standardized, but safe product? Or is it a good first step in the direction of increasing the sanitary conditions of India? After all, who cares what the motivations are, if the result benefits everyone.

-Chase Janvrin

It wasn’t too many years ago when tags reading “Made in India” carried a negative connotation. Quality was not associated with most products that came from this country. Yet, those days are gone and times are changing. Indian businesses are now recognized for the quality of not only their products, but also their business practices. In 2008, Tata Steel Limited, the first integrated steel plant in Asia, was the only company to receive the prestigious Deming Prize, which recognizes companies that make major contributions to the advancement of quality (Click Here).

The Deming Prize is named after Dr. William Deming of the United States, a statistician and an expert in quality control. After several years of consulting in the United States and receiving little recognition for his ideas, he moved to Japan. The Japanese embraced his ideas, particularly his concepts of Statistical Process Control (SPC). He not only worked with senior management on his ideas, but also with all the layers of the companies he consulted in order to integrate SPC fully. He was well recognized in Japan, and in December 1950, the Union of Japanese Scientists and Engineers (JUSE) named the Deming Prize after him. Since then, the Japanese have recognized at least one company each year with the Deming Prize for their advancements in quality. Receiving the award is a prestigious accomplishment and one that is highly difficult to attain. It is the highest achievement in the world of Total Quality Management (TQM).

For the most part, only the Japanese companies or the companies based in Japan have received this award. Typically, these are manufacturing companies. It wasn’t until 2001 that a non-Japanese company was awarded the prestigious Deming Prize. Since then, at least one Indian company has received the prestigious quality award every year, with the exception of 2006. In 2008, Tata Steel was awarded the prize. To put all this into perspective, only one US Company has ever received the Deming Prize since the awards’ inception.

I think that the greatest achievement of Indian companies winning this award so consistently every year is not the actual winning of the award — it’s their drive and constant desire  to improve their products and processes. It indicates their craving to fit in and even be superior to other countries in terms of quality management. It’s obvious that the companies are pushing hard to be competitive in the global economy.

Considering this award is typically given to a manufacturing company, it’s not representative of all types of companies in India. However, it’s definitely a start. Many other companies have set quality standards for their businesses in consonance with the Bureau of Indian Standards, which creates national standards for businesses. Even other companies are following standards that most U.S. companies follow such as ISO 9000.

With all the advancements that India is making in terms of quality and quality management, what does this mean for the United States? The real threat here is how their quality management processes will sustain their companies to be directly competitive with the United States. What can companies in the United States learn from this threat?

For more information on the Deming Prize, please visit the Deming Institute site (Click Here).

- Danielle Steussy

Although business is booming in India, and the country is making progress by leaps and bounds in areas such as science and technology, it still faces many challenges: terrorism, illiteracy and poverty, crumbling roads and infrastructure, an overflow of waste and pollution, and diseases like HIV. These challenges are not met with optimism either. Many critics of Indian social problems don’t expect any of these issues to be resolved any time soon. On the other hand, there have been changes in the way Indians are viewing their own problems and are now using their resources to their country’s advantages. In an article appearing in NYT titled “Plastic Roads Offer a Greener Way to Travel in India,” business owner Ahmed Khan is taking advantage of two of India’s greatest issues — deteriorating roads and excess waste — to make streets out of recycled plastic and aid the country in becoming more environmentally friendly (Click Here).

The article explains that Ahmed Khan, age 60, owns a waste management company in Bangalore, India that focuses on salvaging plastic thrown away in landfills and mixing it with asphalt. This mixture can then help pave the roads in India. So far, his company has paved more than 745 miles of roads in India and, he hopes to continue spreading his business to other cities.

In the 1980s, the Indian government demanded increases in plastic production in order to become more competitive. Since then, the amount of plastic consumed in the country has dramatically increased but has led to several problems. Most of the plastic ends up in the landfills where it can take up to 1000 years to decompose, or in the ocean where it kills marine life. Furthermore, the plastic becomes a nuisance, come the monsoon season when the plastic clogs drains and causes floods. Even India’s sacred cows suffer as a result of consuming plastic bags, which line their stomachs and leads to calcification of the bags and ultimately starves the animals to death. Plastic has become a hazard in India and the new found way to reuse them for streets will help out the country in more ways than one.

Not only will the plastic streets minimize the problems stated above, but they will also save India time and money. With the normal asphalt concoction, the streets last for a maximum of four years, owing to the harsh weather and the immense usage. The plastic streets’ lifetime is up to one or two years longer than pure asphalt streets. Though the increase in lifetime may not seem very significant, given the costs needed to repair and maintain the roads, it does actually save the country more money and, thus enables the country to spend elsewhere.

In India’s attempt to become more resourceful, more environmentally friendly, and more sustainable in general, this is a big step in ingenuity to help overcome India’s most severe problems. It’s amazing to see entrepreneurs step up and be proactive given the state of their country, as well as the state of the world’s economy presently. Now the question is, what other applications can India come up with to turn its weaknesses into sustained competitive advantages? In what areas can Indian businesses grow to become more environmentally-friendly and benefit the country as a whole? What can companies in the U.S. learn from Mr. Khan’s thought process and ingenuity?

-Danielle Steussy

When I first tried Indian food, a number of years ago, I was immediately impressed. I went to a small Indian restaurant in San Jose, CA, with a friend who was a veteran of Indian culinary arts. We ordered vegetable kormas, palak paneer, garlic naan, rice, and heavily spiced trumpet mushrooms. The meal was incredible. It was spicy, colorful, aromatic, exotic, and extremely flavorful. After the first bite, I was surprised. After the second, I was thirsty, and after the third, I was hooked. Even today, Indian food remains one of my favorite cuisines. I have had all of these dishes and more since, except for the trumpet mushrooms which I have not seen on other menus. Alas, there are only two Indian food restaurants in town, but there is a light at the end of the tunnel. Soon, we will be savoring Indian meals right at the source of the spice-filled culinary traditions.

As much as I love Indian food, I admittedly know very little about it. I have only tasted a small fraction of the dishes available. I have attempted to cook a few Indian dishes with modest success, however with prepackaged mixed spices and powders. I was curious about what I was actually cooking with. I wondered, what are all the spices in these mixtures (masalas) and powders? Where did they come from? Are they good for me? I decided to do a little research.

I discovered that there are even more spices used in Indian cooking than I thought. Some of the typical spices include ajowan seeds, asfoetida, black and green cardamom, red and green chili, coriander, cumin, fenugreek, black pepper, clove, fennel, cinnamon, nutmeg, mace (the covering of nutmeg), Kari/curry leaves, garlic, mustard seeds, mango powder, nigella, tamarind, turmeric, and ginger. Most of these spices are grown in India and many are widely used throughout India. Some spices that are more heavily used in North India include black cardamom, cumin, fennel, ginger, and ajowan. The people of South India use more Kari leaves as well as coconut in dishes. It is mind boggling to think about all the flavor possibilities through the combination of all of these spices.

Many of these spices are also thought to have medicinal purposes and are used in Ayurvedic medicine practices. These uses are not scientifically proven but are believed to be effective by many Indian people. Let’s go through the list. Ajowan seeds aid digestion. Asafetida acts as a flatulence suppressor. Cardamom freshens’ the breath and soothes the stomach. Chilies help treat respiratory disorders. Coriander aids digestion and is believed to be a diuretic. Cumin suppresses flatulence and may help to soothe colds and the flu if brewed in a tea. Fenugreek and black pepper both help to prevent flatulence. Black pepper is also used as a digestive stimulant and to treat cold and flu symptoms. Cloves help to soothe the stomach and reduce toothache. Fennel is used to aid digestion and cleanse the palate. Cinnamon helps relieve colds and nausea. Nutmeg and mace are used to reduce rheumatism (joint and connective tissue problems). Nutmeg also reduces insomnia and aids digestion. Kari leaves help strengthen the hair. Garlic helps clear congestion. Mustard seeds increase circulation and act as a stimulant. Nigella helps relieve digestion problems. Tamarind assists digestion and acts as a mild laxative. Turmeric helps to cleanse the blood and skin. Last but not least, ginger is thought to help with nausea, flatulence, sore throats, colds and gout. It appears that a typical Indian meal will leave you with a healthy, gas free digestive system, and free of cold symptoms and joint pain. All of this sounds pretty healthy to me.

The powders that I have used in my own cooking have typically been curry powders. There are four spices that are found in most curry powder mixes. These are coriander, cumin, fenugreek, and turmeric. All of these spices are grown in abundance in India. Together the medicinal properties of these spices listed above include gas suppression, digestion aid, and blood and skin cleansing. Other spices often found in curry powders include mustard seed, chilies, ginger, curry leaves, garlic, cloves, and fennel.

All of this talk of tasty and healthy Indian spices has made me hungry and even more excited to hit the streets of Indian and try some traditional foods. I would like to be prepared for the trip with a list of “must try” Indian dishes. Are there any suggestions on what to try? Are there dishes that should be avoided? Does anyone know of a good restaurant or market located in the cities we will be visiting? Any suggestions will add to the overall experience of India this summer.

The information that I found about Indian spices is just the tip of the ice berg. There is so much more to learn about Indian cooking. Please share any hints and tips, corrections, and/or additions to the list or anything else related to Indian spices and cuisine. Also, if you have a good Indian recipe please post it so I can give it a shot. Happy eating!

-Tim Lynds

If you’ve ever come across the former CNN commentator Lou Dobb’s views on the offshore  outsourcing issue, you’d get the idea that the U.S. was going down the tubes because of offshore outsourcing.  He has even called business leaders who use offshore outsourcing “Benedict Arnold CEO’s.”

I think there’s a lot of emotion involved in discussions on offshore outsourcing that cloud the discussion. Instead of trying to gain a real understanding of the impact of global outsourcing (Click here) and  focusing on a strategy to combat the real  threats, there are calls for more tariffs, taxes and laws against the practice.

Why is offshore outsourcing considered bad? On a macro scale, outsourcing is good for the economy. Customers and investors drive businesses, and customers demand lower prices and investors demand higher profits. In order to lower their costs, companies outsource non-core activities and tasks to places where they can get the most value for their money. That’s the upside.  The downside is that factories that don’t adapt or use advanced manufacturing techniques or outsource themselves, will be less competitive, less profitable and may be more likely to fail, then people lose jobs.

I think the question should be, How can the U.S maintain and increase it’s global competitiveness and maintain a low unemployment rate while still outsourcing ?

The U.S. is the acknowledged leader in many ways.  In spite of the economic catastrophe that we are in the midst of, the U.S. is still the safest place to invest.  The U.S. is known for the quality of it’s educational institutions and it’s pace of Innovation.  It is also the acknowledged leader in Information Technology and Biotechnology.   The US is also a huge consumer of goods. This the framework that the U.S. must work within to maintain and increase it’s presence in the world economy.

To maximize a company’s profitability, they should focus on their core competencies.  What do they do best?  Which activity performed where adds the most value?  Keep those skills and activities at home, but outsource where it makes sense.   Companies in India are presently outsourcing to the US on a larger scale following the same reasoning.  The Indian Plug-in EV company Reva is collaborating with the New York automotive parts company to build a plant in New York. The Indian IT company Wipro is finding a greater value added by having software written in the U.S. rather than in India…. Why?  If the contract is U.S. defense related it may be a requirement.  If it’s a new concept or interface that’s being developed and if it’s being targeted for the U.S. market, it’s more efficient to have it done in the U.S. than in India.

I recently attended an MIT sponsored forum in Santa Barbara that discussed the issue of turning research and innovation into a greater economic advantage. I enjoyed and got the most out of a presentation by William Jeffrey, CEO of Hughes Research Lab.  He was the first speaker and set the stage for the rest of the speakers.  He had gathered data and presented charts to show the realities of the state of pure research vs commercial development in the US.  His summation essentially was that we need to have a shared vision in this country of the importance of spending money on pure research and then have the motivation to transfer the innovations resulting from this to products that we need.  He compared and contrasted the “old” serial method of development, publishing, then “casting it out”  to see if anyone liked it enough to commercialize it, to a more focused NRC “Tire Track Model” method, where you try to match up applications while innovating and removing the time lags inherent in the “old” methodology.

In summary,  I believe if we refine our method of turning research into products, focus on our strengths like education, innovation, IT and biotechnology, and outsource where it makes sense, the U.S. can maintain and increase economic advantage over the rest of the globe.

-Jeff Severn

About a year ago, Barry Bond’s marketing agent, Jeff Bernstein, started a contest in India to find someone that had the talent to pitch in the Major Leagues. They called it the Million Dollar Arm Contest and it invited any person from the age of 16-21 to pitch a baseball as hard as they can for the chance to win a million dollars or a guaranteed hundred thousand dollars (Click here). The contest was a success and two raw and talented Indian teenagers were found that could pitch a baseball close to 90 MPH (Click here)!

These two teenagers have been drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates as international free agents and are progressing quite well, considering that they had absolutely no baseball experience prior to the contest. This result has left me with a simple question. Can India be the next resource for Major League Baseball?

Let’s look at the facts first. Baseball is becoming an increasingly popular sport worldwide with Major League Baseball players from Central and South America and also all over Asia. India has not had a single athlete play major league baseball prior to this contest, but it does have a population of 1.1 billion people. Many of these people have grown up playing cricket, which uses similar techniques with baseball. Also, it is a developing country with many people trying to find some way to make money.

Although it is safe to say that not many people in India understand how to play baseball, I couldn’t believe the amount of people that could pitch a baseball above 80 MPH in the contest. At least thirty individuals threw the ball faster than 80 MPH, which is staggering since they have had little training in the correct way for throwing a baseball. One of the scouts was quoted as saying that most of them used a running approach with an awkward throwing motion to pitch the ball, but they were still able to throw them with some accuracy and speed. Their ability to throw comes mostly from playing cricket, which has some similarities to baseball but is still a different sport. Unfortunately, I do not believe world-class athletes in baseball will be found in India until baseball becomes a sport that is played in the country. Luckily, the Million Dollar Arm Contest is a good start, but I am not sure if it is enough to make baseball popular in a country that stops everything to watch cricket matches.

So I leave you with these questions:

Will baseball in India gain popularity or will it be like what soccer is for Americans? What will it take to make baseball popular in India? Is it worth it for pro baseball teams to invest money in people with no baseball experience?

For a pretty good video by ESPN about these two athletes check out this site.(Click here)

-Frederick Peemoeller

As a scientist and avid supporter of environmental sustainability, the issue of genetically modified (GM) food is a hot-button topic for me. For this reason, I wanted to share some thoughts related to this issue and address some points of discussion in author Dr. Sujatha Byravan’s November 6, 2009 online article entitled, “Where is the science?” posted on the India Together website (Click here).

GM crops have come under much scrutiny in the past five to ten years due to the shortage of third-party data on the safety of these crops for human consumption and the overwhelming amount of restrictions on third-party scientific research of GM products. We are now starting to see evidence of how far-reaching the impacts of GM crops really are- from the contamination of native plant species to the proliferation of GM food allergies. The dominant GM seed conglomerate, Monsanto, continues to wield a heavy hand in protecting its interest in the expansion of its GM seed bank catalog. GM seeds are patented and protected under the full scope of the law, and infringement of such patents are punished so egregiously that non-GM farmers (in the U.S.) whose nearby crops are contaminated with GM pollen from winds, are sued by conglomerates, like Monsanto, for patent infringement. Additionally, there are countless cases of scientists and regulators who have spoken out about Monsanto’s coercion and threats against them to keep quiet about adverse findings regarding GM crops. Most are threatened with being financially and professionally ruined, which has no doubt kept the buzz about GM foods very one-sided.

Proponents of and investors in GM crop production often exploit fears of imminent food shortages to support their agenda, and they fail to provide transparency in their R&D processes and scientific developments. Such cases are exemplary of the scientific and ethical concerns surrounding the production of GM food. These concerns must be addressed, especially now that companies like Monsanto are seeking to expand their market share to include India. Why is this significant? Not only does India have one of the largest populations to feed, but it also ranked second worldwide in farm output, and its agricultural industry employed 60% of the Indian workforce in 2007. The extent to which India adopts GM crop production will have a large influence on the way food is produced and people are fed on a global scale. It will also amplify the concern of unknown adverse impacts to human health, ecological balance, and biodiversity. Due to its size alone, the extent to which India decides to integrate GM crop production, will set a trend for the rest of developing countries. As Dr. Byravan points out in her article, “developing countries such as India with its large population and huge potential for markets are very attractive to agribusiness. In India where the vast majority of the people still depend on agriculture for their livelihood, and where diverse ecosystems and crop varieties still thrive, control over food security needs to be a top priority that is not to be handed over to anyone: corporations, governments, or even civil society for that matter. . . India might be where the fight for control over food security between corporations and farmers now lies.” I strongly agree with her assertion.

The nature of food cultivation goes far beyond the scope of filling hungry stomachs. How will India integrate its strong desire for economic growth and increased standard of living with the biological and cultural impacts of introducing GM crops into its food supply? What are the potential cultural impacts of introducing corporate food production and GM seeds to India? What are the benefits? What are the drawbacks? What do you think will be the global repercussions of India’s decision whether or not to adopt GM food production on a large scale?

-Erika Bylund

Honey has been sought after in India for centuries. It was considered a gift from the gods; was the first sweet food found in the region; and was believed to give fertility to women, cattle, and crop harvests. Today, beekeeping in India can help rural and tribal families generate extra income, requiring only a few hours per week to maintain a few hives. Different bee species are used depending on the beekeeper’s location within India.

To anyone familiar with apiculture, the mention of bees in India should instantly trigger two words: Apis dorsata, the world’s largest honeybee, sometimes referred to as “The Giant Honeybee.” Apis dorsata live in large, often half-crescent shaped hives that hang down from natural objects like tree branches, or man-made structures like parts of the Taj Mahal. Due to this unique hive structure, honey from this species is difficult to collect. Still to this day, honey gatherers take on the responsibility of harvesting the honey from wild Apis dorsata colonies, just as they did for generations in Old India.

In the countryside, it is common for honey gatherers to bid at an auction for the rights to harvest honey on a given plot of land. It is very common for many Apis dorsata hives to occupy a single large tree, with about twenty kilograms of honey per hive in a good year. This translates to about four tons of honey from one tree! Unfortunately, the honey gatherers use antiquated processing technology, yielding low quality honey. In addition, honey gatherers must climb tall trees and scare the bees with fire, making it impractical to utilize Apis dorsata as a major resource for honey and other bee products.

Throughout India, Apis mellifera, an Italian honeybee, has been introduced in India’s bee industry. Apis mellifera’s popularity is due to it’s ability to be housed in the stereotypical and efficient Langstroth hive. In higher elevations like the Himalayas, Indian beekeepers use Apis cerena, a smaller “mountain bee.” These bees typically make smaller hives and produce less honey, but do not require medications to prevent disease unlike the European honeybees.

It is not uncommon for families in rural villages to have half-a-dozen honeybee colonies in the rural parts of India. Usually, his honey is only used for local consumption. Overall, India generates almost 30,0000 tons of honey per year. About one third of this honey is exported; China exports about ten times as much as India. Only about twenty-five percent of bees in India are utilized for honey production or other bee products. India’s honey production centers include the states of Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and West Bengal. It has been theorized that there is a great potential for India to increase its total honey production from 7,000 tonnes to three lakh tonnes, or about 330,000 tons exported annually. This leaves a lot of room for a developing honey and bee product market in India.

Overall, the preceding paragraphs were merely a “crash course” in Indian apiculture, which someone could write (and already has written, actually) an entire book on the topic (Click here).

If India’s bee industry could be expanded, should indigenous bees be used, or should more Italian bees be introduced to the region because they are the easiest to care for? Is it more practical to utilize a mass bee industry, or have individual families harvest and locally distribute honey or other bee products? Do you think India is capable of expanding its honey exports fifty-fold? How could Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) play a role in this? While you may not have a wide knowledge about apiculture, I encourage you to ask me or Google any general questions that are buzzing around your mind regarding this unique topic.

-Jay Ponto

When my alarm went off on Tuesday morning, NPR was playing softly in the background. As I lay there listening, a story about India’s relations with Pakistan was on the air waves.  (Click here)

As India emerges on the international stage as the most populated democracy in the world, there is always talk of the future. But there is one large aspect of the past that still may still play a large part of the future, the India’s relations with Pakistan and the conflict in Kashmir.

In 1947, the British declared India an independent secular nation, and Pakistan a Muslim nation. The already existing rivalry between Muslims and Hindus only grew stronger. Since 1947, India and Pakistan have fought three wars. The geographical area called Kashmir (located in the North of both countries) is still a disputed territory. Each night at the border between India’s Kashmir and Pakistan’s Kashmir, there is a flag ceremony on both sides. Bleachers full of hundreds of people come to watch and cheer for their respective country and yell taunts at those across the border.

There is a group in Kashmir that wants their own autonomy. They want to separate from Pakistan and India, and become independent. Earlier this week, Indian leaders held secret meetings with Kashmir separatists. The separatists have demanded India to pull back troops and release some prisoners before they continue the talks. At the time I am writing this, I could not find any information on whether or not India agreed to their demands.

Recently, Rahul Gandhi, of the India’s ruling Congress party, and son of the party’s president, Sonia Gandhi, has spoken out for a change in attitude toward their Pakistani neighbors. “I actually feel we give too much time in our mind to Pakistan. We are now becoming a serious international player. Pakistan is a very small piece of our worldview.” Many people share this view, and are ready to forget the tension of the past and move on to a peaceful future. Most youth of both the nations don’t care about the rivalry and have already moved past it. This may be easier said than done.

Can you sweep a deep seeded religious conflict under the rug in a generation? How similar is this to the conflict between Israel and Palestine and the debated region of Jerusalem? Can we draw any conclusions and similarities? Can diplomacy work to resolve this conflict?

- Lindsay Leaver