Mr A G K Menon wrote
> I am surprised to see this message posted by Gita Dewan Verma.
My point!
ps
I did circulate or post a comment on the review, perhaps someone who has
not discarded it can forward it to Mr Menon; I also do post my comments on
expert-planner comments in media. I mentioned both these only to say that
they, like other such trivia, do NOT stand in my way to TVB-SHS.
Gita
--------
> I am surprised to see this message posted by Gita Dewan Verma. My reason
> for
> talking to her was just as she stated: I sought help on a student studio
> exercise. Nothing more. She however responded, even at the time I spoke to
> her, as recorded by her in the rest of her message. I realised that I had
> upset her and immediately apologised, terminating my conversation. I
> thought
> that was the end of the matter. So I'm puzzled to see this private
> dialogue
> in the public domain.
>
> Since it has now entered the public domain, I offer a few comments on what
> has been posted.
> I did review the book, Slumming India, but hadn't realised until now that
> Ms. Verma considered it "silly". Since she hasn't seen fit to clarify her
> objections to my review, I can only speculate as to how it was inadequate.
> Was it not a balanced and informed critique of her thesis? Should I have
> uncritically endorsed the book in public, airing my criticisms to the
> author
> only in private? It was my (evidently "silly") presumption that the
> culture
> of book reviews involves a mutually respectful and productive dialogue
> between the author and reviewer in a manner that benefits a wider reading
> community, rather than this belated, vehement and unprofessional display
> of
> pique by Ms. Verma. If Ms. Verma wished to respond to my review, I would
> have been delighted to read her comments in a letter to the Editor of The
> Book Review anytime after the review appeared over a year ago. Both I and
> the readers of the journal would have learnt much from Ms. Verma's
> response.
> By choosing to respond now (in February 2005), in this manner and forum,
> and
> in the context of my unrelated academic request to her, Ms. Verma fails to
> persuade me of her case.
>
> So much for the book review. As for the DMP process, we clearly disagree
> on
> the issues, but I think my colleagues will all vouch for me when I say
> that
> I have always welcomed discussion and debate on this matter. If I didn't
> make the five-minute walk down the road from the TVB-SHS campus to Ms.
> Verma's house in Vasant Kunj to solicit her comments, neither did she come
> to visit me. I don't translate her failure to do so as a sign of her
> unprofessionalism and I fail to understand why she cannot extend the same
> courtesy to me. I might make "silly" comments to the media, but I
> certainly
> don't prevent her from countering with erudite responses. As with the
> matter
> of the review, there is a time and a place in which to conduct these
> discussions, to say nothing of an etiquette which one must observe when
> doing so. I wish that Ms. Verma had respected me enough to seek me out for
> a
> conversation before venting her fury in the manner that she has.
>
> Since our disagreement is now a matter of public record, I wish to state
> clearly for that record that neither I nor my colleagues have ever had any
> intent to denigrate Ms. Verma professionally or personally. We firmly
> believe that we can disagree on some issues and still respect each other
> as
> colleagues. In fact, our request that she assist in a student studio
> exercise was, if anything, proof of our respect for her work rather than
> some machiavellian exercise in influence peddling.
> A.G. Krishna Menon
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Gita Dewan Verma" <mpisgplanner@xxxxxxxxx>
> To: <in-enaction@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
> Cc: <proudpora@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>; <mpisgplanner@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
> Sent: Saturday, February 12, 2005 8:23 PM
> Subject: [in-enaction] I think no one can *help* TVB-SHS
>
>
>> I received a call today from A G K Menon, Director TVB
>> School of Habitat Studies, to ask if I could *help*
>> with a housing studio, give orientation (to students,
>> obviously) about constitutional processes. Some days
>> ago Dean of Studies A B Lal had called to ask if I
>> could *help* about their illegal site, since I
>> understand best Delhi Master Plan processes.
>>
>> TVB-SHS is five minutes walk from my flat in Vasant
>> Kunj. For five years I have been engaging in support
>> of DMP processes, mainly as planner consultant to
>> citizens' groups, many in and around Vasant Kunj (in
>> all sorts of housing). For five years
>> *professional-trustees* (a phrase from Lal) like Menon
>> have lent *expert* credentials to extra-constitutional
>> processes to open-up, in name of an unlawful DMP
>> revision, public land acquired for half century in
>> name of DMP for world-class loot. Not once in five
>> years did *professional trustees* consider my work
>> worth a thumbnail in the professional space that they
>> control. After a full range of constitutional
>> processes has been subverted to substitute DMP with
>> lately approved draft DMP-2021, which I do not even
>> have access to forget expertise on, I am being invited
>> to *help* - what?
>>
>> Just last week my clients lodged complaints against
>> experts and NGOs supporting DMP violations challenged
>> in court cases, public notice responses, Central
>> Vigilance Commission references, memoranda on which
>> Parliamentary Committee is to hear oral evidence, etc.
>> I saw no point in telling Menon that a serious
>> professional-practice ethics issue (and not, say, a
>> silly but damaging review that he wrote of my book and
>> me, his silly but damaging expert-planner comments in
>> media, etc) stands in my way to his TVB-SHS - has been
>> driven to stand there because questions about what
>> generally stands in the way of those wanting to *help*
>> have been ignored for too long.
>>
>> I am posting this in case anyone wants to fret about
>> professional-space issues that such situations raise.
>> I myself have lately decided to save my fretting for
>> better things.
>>
>>