JohannaK
Heroically Clueless
The Indostan Express est. Srinagar 1894
"Though Our State be established by Sikhs and is still ruled by Sikhs, it would be foolish to think that it is only of Sikhs and only for Sikhs. Our State is preoccupied with the state of all Our Subjects, Sikh or not, and extends far beyond the lands where Sikh people could be found before this State brought them there. It is therefore foolish to call our State a Sikh one. Whilst the principles of our governance be rooted deep in our Sikh faith, and precisely because the Sikh faith demands that our treatment and considerations towards our subjects be Just and Equanimous, Our State cannot be Sikh itself; for a State is but a reflection of the Subjects under it. We have decided, then, that Our State be henceforth known by the name of the land it stands on, which since times of old has been known as Indostan."
Since it surfaced a few weeks ago that the Maharaja's last mission to Delhi was something more than a cordial embassy seeking new business, the state of Indostan was in a stir. This stir is sure to spread across the learned elites of occupied Bharat as well as beyond its borders, after it has come to the public attention that the mission's intent was to negotiate a new status for Nepal. It is of the public domain that there has been agitation in Nepal itself for a Gorkha restoration, some in the movement even going so far as seeking Sikh support for their cause. There had been, until now, no signs that the Imperial cabinet would act on such pleas, even as the emergence of transhimalayan protectorates and a rhetoric of pan-Asianism bolstered by Thale Noi made many sympathetic to such pleas.
It is now clear that those pleas were effective, with several public officials admitting implicitly or explicitly that foreign policy is currently oriented to seeking a solution for Nepal. There is, then, a commotion that if the situation is not addressed, war may be looming over the horizon. With Europe and America already deeply embroiled in armed conflict, will Bharat suffer the same fate? Retired staff officer with the rank of sabedar, Tarseem Singh has commented to the Express that, were this to happen, Indostan is in a favorable situation. "With commitments in the west and defeated everywhere at Sea, this could be the first time since the last war that Indostan could win a war against Britain." Sabedar Singh nevertheless dismissed the possibility and advised caution. "Could something foolish in the Himalayas cause an Asian war? Britain is still a giant among giants, and to invoke its wrath would be like digging into an active volcano."
Engine Contest Piping Hot - Mahmud Alamuddin, Karachi
Along the last week, the last members of the German and Russian engineering teams have been arriving in Karachi for the government-sponsored Compound Engine Contest. This event is expected to deliver a working and functional compound steam engine ready for production in Karachi itself. Production of such machinery will benefit from last year's implementation of job shops supply chains by the Grand Vizier Bharan Singh.
Teams are now waiting for the official opening of the Marine Engine Design and Testing Facility, the first facility of its kind, and first completed structure of the new Karachi naval arsenal, which will include two additional drydocks to enlarge the capacity and speed at which ships can be repaired or, in this case, retrofitted with the experimental engines. The Contest will unfold in three phases: building, static testing, and dynamic testing. Teams will have to assemble their engines at the Testing Facility's workshop from pieces commissioned in Indostani foundries and workshops. Each team was allowed to bring with them particularly delicate or specially crafted parts requiring particular expertise or techniques currently unavailable in Indostan.
Once assembled, the engines will first be tested in a variety of propulsion configurations in the Facility's testing pool. Should there be no major problems, further testing will occur when the engine is fitted to one of the navy's steam frigates. There has been controversy over such old and outdated ships being the protagonists of such an event, but the official explanation is concern over live engine failure or even catastrophic malfunction: if such things were to happen, the loss of wooden steam frigates would be much less than that of a protected cruiser.
Karachi, Sindh, Indostan, the world at large, brace themselves for an event that could revolutionise maritime transportation for years to come.
Maharaja Khan Noonien Singh, 31st December 1893
Uncertainty over Nepal - Sulfjan Azad, Multan
Since it surfaced a few weeks ago that the Maharaja's last mission to Delhi was something more than a cordial embassy seeking new business, the state of Indostan was in a stir. This stir is sure to spread across the learned elites of occupied Bharat as well as beyond its borders, after it has come to the public attention that the mission's intent was to negotiate a new status for Nepal. It is of the public domain that there has been agitation in Nepal itself for a Gorkha restoration, some in the movement even going so far as seeking Sikh support for their cause. There had been, until now, no signs that the Imperial cabinet would act on such pleas, even as the emergence of transhimalayan protectorates and a rhetoric of pan-Asianism bolstered by Thale Noi made many sympathetic to such pleas.
It is now clear that those pleas were effective, with several public officials admitting implicitly or explicitly that foreign policy is currently oriented to seeking a solution for Nepal. There is, then, a commotion that if the situation is not addressed, war may be looming over the horizon. With Europe and America already deeply embroiled in armed conflict, will Bharat suffer the same fate? Retired staff officer with the rank of sabedar, Tarseem Singh has commented to the Express that, were this to happen, Indostan is in a favorable situation. "With commitments in the west and defeated everywhere at Sea, this could be the first time since the last war that Indostan could win a war against Britain." Sabedar Singh nevertheless dismissed the possibility and advised caution. "Could something foolish in the Himalayas cause an Asian war? Britain is still a giant among giants, and to invoke its wrath would be like digging into an active volcano."
Engine Contest Piping Hot - Mahmud Alamuddin, Karachi
Along the last week, the last members of the German and Russian engineering teams have been arriving in Karachi for the government-sponsored Compound Engine Contest. This event is expected to deliver a working and functional compound steam engine ready for production in Karachi itself. Production of such machinery will benefit from last year's implementation of job shops supply chains by the Grand Vizier Bharan Singh.
Teams are now waiting for the official opening of the Marine Engine Design and Testing Facility, the first facility of its kind, and first completed structure of the new Karachi naval arsenal, which will include two additional drydocks to enlarge the capacity and speed at which ships can be repaired or, in this case, retrofitted with the experimental engines. The Contest will unfold in three phases: building, static testing, and dynamic testing. Teams will have to assemble their engines at the Testing Facility's workshop from pieces commissioned in Indostani foundries and workshops. Each team was allowed to bring with them particularly delicate or specially crafted parts requiring particular expertise or techniques currently unavailable in Indostan.
Once assembled, the engines will first be tested in a variety of propulsion configurations in the Facility's testing pool. Should there be no major problems, further testing will occur when the engine is fitted to one of the navy's steam frigates. There has been controversy over such old and outdated ships being the protagonists of such an event, but the official explanation is concern over live engine failure or even catastrophic malfunction: if such things were to happen, the loss of wooden steam frigates would be much less than that of a protected cruiser.
Karachi, Sindh, Indostan, the world at large, brace themselves for an event that could revolutionise maritime transportation for years to come.
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