The Thar Incident - 4
Continued from Part 3.
******************
The Principal Scientific Advisor to the Prime Minister read his handwritten notes of the 0700 AM meeting one last time before he destroyed them. The PSA (as he was more commonly addressed in the bureaucracy) was reputed to have a photographic memory. His notes were only a guide. The meeting had been attented by the Principal Private Secretary to the PM (PPS), the Chairman of the National Security Council Secretariat(CNSCS), the National Security Advisor(NSA), the Principal Scientific Advisor to the PM (PSA), the Cabinet Secretary (CabSec) and the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS).
As he carefully shredded the notes, the PSA's mind wandered as he reflected on the happenings of last night. The voice in his mind ran like an unfettered stream,
"There was too little information to do anything at this point or even to form a concrete opinion, though one would ideally like to prepare for what might happen."
"There were really only two possibilities, either the craft was of terrestrial origin and was the product of a very advanced technology development cycle that we in India had no clue about or the craft was not from Earth."
"Both possibilities were quite worrisome. Over the past 60 years the Govt. of India's policy had invested heavily in the development of technology. The idea was to gradually narrow the technology gap that existed between the developed world and India. This was the key to ensuring that India's economy remained competitive and the political mess that resulted in the fall of the Mughal Empire would not repeat. A decidedly post-colonial paranoia had driven this policy at all levels. If this vehicle was evidence of a completely unknown technology development cycle operating in the developed world - then that would imply that the gap between India and the world economy was far more severe than earlier imagined."
The innate strength that came with a mind capable of intense divergent thinking now raced to the fore, as the PSA now built up the differential analysis.
"Alternatively this craft is not of terrestrial origin and a completely unknown race of sentient beings inhabited nearby regions of space or even possibly lived below the surface of the earth."
This second possibility though troublesome was not nearly as discomforting as it might have been to others in the world. The PSA was after all an Indian. The obsessive emphasis on the idea that Man alone was the pinnacle of divine creation had left Indian theology centuries ago. This idea was actually only prevalent among certain segments of the (non-Indian) adherents of Abrahamic faiths. The idea of a non terrestrial intelligence still posed quite a challenge as it suggested that mankind had inadequately explored its surroundings and quite possibly was not nearly as aware of the laws of the universe as some of the high priests of science would have it believe.
"Perhaps" the PSA had opined at the meeting " the answer to this question will reveal itself - whoever owns this will come to claim it. The time they take to come ask for it will tell us a lot about who they are. If the craft has a homing beacon of some sort they will have an easier time finding it.If they are on the planet then it will take them very little time to act. If they are not from the planet then their response could take time."
"So all that remains to be done now is to learn as much from the craft as possible before whoever owns this comes back to get it. It possible delay the discovery of the craft to facilitate a more thorough investigation."
"What to do when the owner returns? - well that is a more complicated problem, the owner would not be happy and would doubtlessly have more such advanced technology. The first thing that would have to be done would be to ensure that hostilities did not break out. To this end it is best to tell the owner the truth about the manner of the crash and what was done subsequently to investigate it. Another dimension worth considering is to proceed slowly in investigating the craft's apparent occupants, if by some chance the owner wanted the occupants' remains to be intact, it would not do to hand over the remanents of an autopsy. It is best if the investigations of the craft were minimally invasive and any invasive procedure was non-destructive to the best of our knowledge."
The PSA realized he would need a very capable team of investigators with a penchant for secrecy. Reaching for the phone, the PSA called up the director of the only lab in the country that could be relied to perform such testing. A thousand kilometers away at an office overlooking the picturesque Gateway of India monument, a phone rang and the man at the desk reached for it - the director was an early riser, but this was indeed an unexpected call.
While the PSA spoke to his subordinate, the Chairman of the National Security Council Secretariat (CNSCS) was having thoughts of his own. The Prime Minister had handed the task of evaluating the risks in this investigation to him. As there were so many unanswered questions and because the PSA had expressed the possibility of a prolonged investigation, the CNSCS had recommended absolute secrecy in dealing with the matter. The CNSCS knew that despite his secrecy this would eventually leak out and a number of strategic communication plans would have to be drawn up. It was also on the NSCS's recommendations that the Chief of Defense Staff (CDS) had been given orders to conduct a nationwide military exercise. The exercise was supposed to involve having the Army deploy in response to two major disasters in the country. The cover story being released to the press was that chronic instability in Pakistan had forced the Indian Army to push for a series of national emergency preparedness tests. The lie - the CDS hoped would hold off more serious questions about what was being done.
The NSA had stayed behind in the meeting room with the PPS and the CabSec. The NSA had been assigned the task of evaluating the implications of this development on India's foreign policy. The NSA had until recently been completely submereged in discussions with the American and Russian intelligence communities about technology proliferation problems. It was only as a reflex but the NSA now pondered the proliferation implications of this unknown technology.
Thinking aloud the NSA spoke - looking towards the CabSec,
"You know - mankind has never managed to limit the spread of technology. The age of humanity has almost continously been bedevilled with terrible wars on account of technology proliferation. I can almost hear the voice of Leo Szilard in my head - the biggest secret is that this is possible to do - once that is out it is only a matter of time before someone tries to replicate it. What God does not permit - Man will endeavor to do...."
His words hung in the air... he continued..
" What if this had landed on the Pakistani side of the border. What would their reaction have been? Would they have questioned things the way we have? ... what should our reaction be? What should we do if some other nation with more nuclear weapons decides to coerce us to surrender this discovery with them"
The PPS now uncharacteristically cut him off,
"Perhaps you should take the day off to think this through?"
The NSA was lost in his own musings and mumbled his reply,
"Yes perhaps I shall fall sick today."
The CabSec grumbled, "If only all of us could take a day off like that.."
The PPS smiled and shook his head. The CabSec - the mother of the adminstration - perpetually overworked. Gone were the days when the CabSec could comfortably relax as Joint Secretaries did all the work. In the mid 80s under the influence of the reigning secretary C. R. K. Rao, the CabSec's sword-arm the Department of Cabinet Affairs had faded into the background. This withdrawal from the limelight had enabled the secretariat to carefully screen people that demanded access to its time. The result was a more optimal configuration where the Secretariat continued to be the intellectual powerhouse of the Iron Frame of government and yet did not have to bother itself with every random piece of information that popped up. Though he did not weild as much authority and decision making power as the CabSec of yesterday, today the CabSec barely had time to sit. Keeping an eye on things and screening out the problems which could be solved from the ones which couldn't was a demanding job.
This latest mess in the Thar represented a problem that could not be solved. The only thing the CabSec had to do now was to talk to his people to make sure that the secretaries in the MOD and the Finance Ministry would do what they were told. That was about as much time as the CabSec could spare on this. And with few words exchanged the CabSec walked out of the office.
The PPS was a quiet man given to deep thinking about issues. He now shuffled towards his office down the hall, he decided that he would call an old friend, the director of one of the institutes of advanced studies that the Government had set up some years ago. The man he would speak to was the country's highest ranking social scientist, the author of several major textbooks in sociology and psychology. The PPS hoped that his friend would help him grasp the likely trends in public opinion to events that might come to pass. As a very tired and somewhat irritated sociologist reached for his annoying phone in the city of Bangalore, he really had no clue what he was going to be pushed into.
******************
The Principal Scientific Advisor to the Prime Minister read his handwritten notes of the 0700 AM meeting one last time before he destroyed them. The PSA (as he was more commonly addressed in the bureaucracy) was reputed to have a photographic memory. His notes were only a guide. The meeting had been attented by the Principal Private Secretary to the PM (PPS), the Chairman of the National Security Council Secretariat(CNSCS), the National Security Advisor(NSA), the Principal Scientific Advisor to the PM (PSA), the Cabinet Secretary (CabSec) and the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS).
As he carefully shredded the notes, the PSA's mind wandered as he reflected on the happenings of last night. The voice in his mind ran like an unfettered stream,
"There was too little information to do anything at this point or even to form a concrete opinion, though one would ideally like to prepare for what might happen."
"There were really only two possibilities, either the craft was of terrestrial origin and was the product of a very advanced technology development cycle that we in India had no clue about or the craft was not from Earth."
"Both possibilities were quite worrisome. Over the past 60 years the Govt. of India's policy had invested heavily in the development of technology. The idea was to gradually narrow the technology gap that existed between the developed world and India. This was the key to ensuring that India's economy remained competitive and the political mess that resulted in the fall of the Mughal Empire would not repeat. A decidedly post-colonial paranoia had driven this policy at all levels. If this vehicle was evidence of a completely unknown technology development cycle operating in the developed world - then that would imply that the gap between India and the world economy was far more severe than earlier imagined."
The innate strength that came with a mind capable of intense divergent thinking now raced to the fore, as the PSA now built up the differential analysis.
"Alternatively this craft is not of terrestrial origin and a completely unknown race of sentient beings inhabited nearby regions of space or even possibly lived below the surface of the earth."
This second possibility though troublesome was not nearly as discomforting as it might have been to others in the world. The PSA was after all an Indian. The obsessive emphasis on the idea that Man alone was the pinnacle of divine creation had left Indian theology centuries ago. This idea was actually only prevalent among certain segments of the (non-Indian) adherents of Abrahamic faiths. The idea of a non terrestrial intelligence still posed quite a challenge as it suggested that mankind had inadequately explored its surroundings and quite possibly was not nearly as aware of the laws of the universe as some of the high priests of science would have it believe.
"Perhaps" the PSA had opined at the meeting " the answer to this question will reveal itself - whoever owns this will come to claim it. The time they take to come ask for it will tell us a lot about who they are. If the craft has a homing beacon of some sort they will have an easier time finding it.If they are on the planet then it will take them very little time to act. If they are not from the planet then their response could take time."
"So all that remains to be done now is to learn as much from the craft as possible before whoever owns this comes back to get it. It possible delay the discovery of the craft to facilitate a more thorough investigation."
"What to do when the owner returns? - well that is a more complicated problem, the owner would not be happy and would doubtlessly have more such advanced technology. The first thing that would have to be done would be to ensure that hostilities did not break out. To this end it is best to tell the owner the truth about the manner of the crash and what was done subsequently to investigate it. Another dimension worth considering is to proceed slowly in investigating the craft's apparent occupants, if by some chance the owner wanted the occupants' remains to be intact, it would not do to hand over the remanents of an autopsy. It is best if the investigations of the craft were minimally invasive and any invasive procedure was non-destructive to the best of our knowledge."
The PSA realized he would need a very capable team of investigators with a penchant for secrecy. Reaching for the phone, the PSA called up the director of the only lab in the country that could be relied to perform such testing. A thousand kilometers away at an office overlooking the picturesque Gateway of India monument, a phone rang and the man at the desk reached for it - the director was an early riser, but this was indeed an unexpected call.
While the PSA spoke to his subordinate, the Chairman of the National Security Council Secretariat (CNSCS) was having thoughts of his own. The Prime Minister had handed the task of evaluating the risks in this investigation to him. As there were so many unanswered questions and because the PSA had expressed the possibility of a prolonged investigation, the CNSCS had recommended absolute secrecy in dealing with the matter. The CNSCS knew that despite his secrecy this would eventually leak out and a number of strategic communication plans would have to be drawn up. It was also on the NSCS's recommendations that the Chief of Defense Staff (CDS) had been given orders to conduct a nationwide military exercise. The exercise was supposed to involve having the Army deploy in response to two major disasters in the country. The cover story being released to the press was that chronic instability in Pakistan had forced the Indian Army to push for a series of national emergency preparedness tests. The lie - the CDS hoped would hold off more serious questions about what was being done.
The NSA had stayed behind in the meeting room with the PPS and the CabSec. The NSA had been assigned the task of evaluating the implications of this development on India's foreign policy. The NSA had until recently been completely submereged in discussions with the American and Russian intelligence communities about technology proliferation problems. It was only as a reflex but the NSA now pondered the proliferation implications of this unknown technology.
Thinking aloud the NSA spoke - looking towards the CabSec,
"You know - mankind has never managed to limit the spread of technology. The age of humanity has almost continously been bedevilled with terrible wars on account of technology proliferation. I can almost hear the voice of Leo Szilard in my head - the biggest secret is that this is possible to do - once that is out it is only a matter of time before someone tries to replicate it. What God does not permit - Man will endeavor to do...."
His words hung in the air... he continued..
" What if this had landed on the Pakistani side of the border. What would their reaction have been? Would they have questioned things the way we have? ... what should our reaction be? What should we do if some other nation with more nuclear weapons decides to coerce us to surrender this discovery with them"
The PPS now uncharacteristically cut him off,
"Perhaps you should take the day off to think this through?"
The NSA was lost in his own musings and mumbled his reply,
"Yes perhaps I shall fall sick today."
The CabSec grumbled, "If only all of us could take a day off like that.."
The PPS smiled and shook his head. The CabSec - the mother of the adminstration - perpetually overworked. Gone were the days when the CabSec could comfortably relax as Joint Secretaries did all the work. In the mid 80s under the influence of the reigning secretary C. R. K. Rao, the CabSec's sword-arm the Department of Cabinet Affairs had faded into the background. This withdrawal from the limelight had enabled the secretariat to carefully screen people that demanded access to its time. The result was a more optimal configuration where the Secretariat continued to be the intellectual powerhouse of the Iron Frame of government and yet did not have to bother itself with every random piece of information that popped up. Though he did not weild as much authority and decision making power as the CabSec of yesterday, today the CabSec barely had time to sit. Keeping an eye on things and screening out the problems which could be solved from the ones which couldn't was a demanding job.
This latest mess in the Thar represented a problem that could not be solved. The only thing the CabSec had to do now was to talk to his people to make sure that the secretaries in the MOD and the Finance Ministry would do what they were told. That was about as much time as the CabSec could spare on this. And with few words exchanged the CabSec walked out of the office.
The PPS was a quiet man given to deep thinking about issues. He now shuffled towards his office down the hall, he decided that he would call an old friend, the director of one of the institutes of advanced studies that the Government had set up some years ago. The man he would speak to was the country's highest ranking social scientist, the author of several major textbooks in sociology and psychology. The PPS hoped that his friend would help him grasp the likely trends in public opinion to events that might come to pass. As a very tired and somewhat irritated sociologist reached for his annoying phone in the city of Bangalore, he really had no clue what he was going to be pushed into.
posted by maverick at 8:24 AM
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