India to host 1st BRICS Young Scientists Conclave 

New Delhi: The Department of Science & Technology (DST), Government of India, under the BRICS framework, is hosting a five day event where a group of about 50 young scientists/ researchers from BRICS countries are meeting in Bengaluru from 26-30th September, 2016. It would be organized and coordinated by the National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS), Bengaluru. 

 

The meet would provide a platform for engaging, connecting and networking among young scientists to hold discussions and find solutions to some of the common challenges and problems being faced in BRICS countries. The participants are drawn from science, engineering and allied disciplines. The focus of the Conclave would be on three thematic topics – Computational Intelligence, Energy Solutions and Affordable Healthcare.

 

This BRICS Young Scientists Conclave assumes importance as it is taking place during India’s chairmanship of BRICS in 2016 under a focal theme of ‘Building, Responsive, Inclusive and Collective Solutions’. The event shall be inaugurated by Prof K. Kasturirangan, former Member of Parliament (Rajya Sabha) and former Chairman, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). 

 

The BRICS Young Scientist Forum (BRICS-YSF), under which the BRICS Young Scientists Conclave is being organised, was initiated at the 2nd BRICS Science, Technology and Innovation Ministerial Meeting at Brasilia in March, 2015. The respective Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) Ministries of BRICS countries are the lead coordinating organisations for this Forum on co-investment and co-ownership principles.

 

The Conclave aims at building a BRICS Innovation Corps – who individually or collectively have specialized capability to work on their novel scientific ideas and technological solutions which transform and accelerate change through better quality of life and higher incomes for citizen of this region. It will pave way for creation of strong generation of S&T leadership that can accelerate change collectively.

 

Some of the lead speakers in the Conclave, among others from India and abroad, include Dr. K. Kasturirangan, Dr. Ashutosh Sharma, Secretary, DST, Dr. K. VijayRaghavan, Secretary, Department of Biotechnology, Dr. V.K. Saraswat, Member, NITI Ayog, and Dr. Baldev Raj, Director, NIAS.  Besides, the above the Conclave is hosting more than 20 distinguished persons from BRICS nations with extraordinary achievements through scientific research, innovation and techno-entrepreneurship.

 

Some of the topics to be covered by the Conclave include Interdisciplinary Science for Society and Humanity, A Scientific Identity for BRICS, Traditional Science and Indigenous Knowledge and Science, Technology and Social Equity. A session on ‘Talent Hunt’ is also being organised under which about 15 ideas shall be presented on 3 identified themes of the Conclave.    

 

Two reports will be released during the Conclave.  The first report titled “BRICS Science and Technology Enterprise Partnership” is prepared by a group of eminent scholars.  It envisions sustained critical efforts for achieving Science & Technology Research leadership and product driven enterprise mode partnership. It offers new ways for BRICS cohesion and connecting to the world.

 

The second report titled “Hampi: Splendours of a World Heritage Site” projects the historical significance of the heritage site as well as depicts the Intellectual movements to technological Innovations to the Conclave participants. The Conclave also offers a unique opportunity of witnessing India’s scientific, engineering, architectural, philosophical and cultural tradition, as provided through a field visit to Hampi, an UNESCO World Heritage Site.

 

Source: Indiaeducationdiary, 25-09-2016

What’s your choice?

Whether it is the U.S. or the U.K., the higher education system one opts for should be able to fulfil one’s academic objectives and enhance one’s skillsets.

An estimated 1,80,000 undergraduate and postgraduate students from across India fly abroad every year to pursue higher education. A majority (over 54 per cent) of them enrol at American universities while 11 per cent still prefer to enrol at British universities. With xenophobia on the rise after the June 23 Brexit referendum, and the difficulties caused by the current student visa system in the U.K., the flow of Indian students, which has been falling steadily in recent years, is likely to ebb further. Despite this new development, the U.K. remains the third most favoured destination for undergraduate and postgraduate students who are ready — given the astonishingly high cut-offs demanded by the few top-ranked colleges and universities in India — to pay an arm and leg for higher education abroad.

For adventurous students prepared to invest their family’s fortunes in higher education abroad, the first point to note is that the higher education system in the U.S. is markedly different from that in Britain. Before you choose your university or higher education institution, you should decide upon the country in which you want to study. The higher education system you opt for should be able to fulfil your academic objectives and enhance your skill-set. It may be useful to get an overview of the higher education systems of the U.S. and the U.K. to aid the decision-making process in this regard.

The concept of interdisciplinary learning is a common thread in the curriculum of America’s colleges and universities. The flexible U.S. higher education system encourages students to customise study programmes to suit their individual interests. For instance, you could combine religious studies with sociology, or pursue your love of music alongside your penchant for mathematics, or even learn art history and business management studies simultaneously. Moreover, in addition to the primary curriculum, you are free to attend lectures, study, write examinations and obtain credits in other subjects of your choice in wholly unrelated disciplines. For instance, the late Steve Jobs, legendary Apple Inc. co-founder, studied calligraphy conterminously with his major in science at Reed College, a combination which ultimately translated into the sleek designs of Apple products. Similarly, for students inclined toward research, the extensive lab facilities which are a standard feature of universities abroad are easily accessible and professors will welcome offers of assistance with their work and research studies. In short, in America’s universities, students have unparalleled opportunities to customise their education to fulfil all their interests in order to widen their horizons and acquire a well-rounded academic experience. Furthermore, the insistence of almost all universities that foreign students reside on campus for at least the first two years enables them to acclimatise to life in the U.S. and optimally leverage their academic experience when searching for employment opportunities.

U.S. admission

The admissions process for U.S. colleges/universities is thorough and extensive. For prospective undergraduate students, writing prescribed tests — SAT/ACT and language tests such as TOEFL / IELTS — is mandatory. In addition, application essays, letters of recommendation from school principals, class teachers and respected academics, a well-rounded profile furnishing proof of community service, internships and extracurricular activities are also required to be submitted to colleges/universities. It is recommended that aspirants start working on applications a year in advance. Once the admissions committee of your chosen undergraduation college reviews your application and finds you suitable for admission, you will receive a letter of acceptance even before you receive your Class XII board exam results.

Graduates of Indian universities applying for admission into postgraduate programmes of the U.S. universities will need to write the GRE or GMAT exams plus an English proficiency test (TOEFL / IELTS). Admission applications are judged on the basis of academics, professional exam scores and co-curricular and extra-curricular records of applicants during their undergraduate education and work experience. Besides, it is important to demonstrate a strong interest in the chosen field of study through a well-crafted resume and Statement of Purpose. After submitting your application, you may also receive an interview call. The decision on your admission is made after evaluating all these factors.

On the other hand, unlike the longer four-year bachelor’s and two-year master’s programmes offered by the U.S. universities, the shorter three-year undergraduate and 10 or 12-month master’s programmes of British universities provide a much more focused system of education, while offering arts, science and commerce and professional degree programmes. As in India, courses at British universities focus on a single discipline.

There are also similarities between the British and Indian school systems, both of which encourage early division into streams, making it easier for Indian students to adapt to the British tertiary education system. The shorter duration of British degree programmes is also a great advantage because of the lower overall cost of higher education, while the quality of education dispensed by the U.K.’s reputed universities such as Oxford, Cambridge, LSE and Imperial College, which routinely rank among the Top 10 in the annual World University Rankings league tables published by QS and Times Higher Education, is on par with the very best U.S. universities.

U.K. admission

The application procedure for British universities is simpler than the usual American process. For undergraduate admissions, writing standardised tests such as SAT and ACT is not required, although IELTS scores for proof of English competency are often mandatory. Moreover, applications to all British universities is centralised through UCAS (University and Colleges Admissions Service) which requires only one letter of recommendation and a single Statement of Purpose for all U.K. applications (there is a limit of 5 universities one can apply to). Of course, a strong profile with good academic scores and a record of co-curricular and/or extra-curricular activities is very helpful here as well.

For graduate students, GRE or GMAT scores are optional for specific universities and courses. Applications are judged on the basis of school and college academic performance and experience in the professional and extracurricular realms. Essays, Statements of Purpose, references and a well-drafted resume along with a standard IELTS score are sufficient for applications to graduate programmes in the U.K. Students can apply to as many universities as they wish, unlike the undergraduate system, and the applications are not centralised: the universities tend to handle graduate admissions directly.

Although scholarships for overseas students are rare and less generous than in the U.S., and admissions are fiercely competitive, the chances of students from Indian schools offering CIE and IB curriculums getting offers are very favourable. Top-ranked Oxbridge and other universities apart, the U.K. has numerous other universities spread across England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland that provide high quality, globally respected education. Unlike the U.S. where Class XII exam results are not of great importance, U.K. universities give conditional offers dependent upon securing a certain score in Board exams to secure a place.

The writer is co-founder, Collegify.

Keywords: Study abroad, Study in the U.K, education abroad

The benefits of rapid urbanisation have not reached real India

We were heading towards Mumbai’s Peddar Road. The cabbie suddenly pointed towards a multi-storeyed building and announced: “This is Antilia, Mukesh Ambani’s residence.” His voice was brimming with pride. India’s lower middle class generally takes pride in the monuments and renowned personalities of its cities. Till a few years ago, they used to point tourists to the residence of Lata Mangeshkar.

From Lata Mangeshkar to Mukesh Ambani. How did such a huge shift happen?

We know that about 70%of Indians were born after 1980. Their dreams reflect an ambition to become rich rather than live by sentimental slogans. That’s why founders of unicorn companies are their role models. In the malls of Delhi and Noida, cricketers such as Virat Kohli are discussed only when a cricket match is on. But Paytm’s Vijay Shekhar or Flipkart’s Binny Bansal can be the topic of discussion anytime, anywhere. For them the arrival and departure of a CEO of a large company to India is much more important than the battle between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton. The reason? Most of them were born in middle class families and managed to succeed and create a place in the changing world owing to their determination. ‘Start-up’ is an enticing buzzword for the young and a new slogan for the prime minister.

Has this become a national phenomenon?

Let us not jump to a conclusion in haste. Manmohan Singh’s ‘perestroika’ may have given the gift of corporatisation to metropolitan cities, but for the real India that resides in mid-sized cities, towns and villages, it is merely a fantasy.

So far, rapid urbanisation has failed to address this problem since turning villages into half-baked cities cannot be a solution. Cities are known for the way they function. That’s why the first priority of youngsters staying in the real India isn’t a start-up, but getting a job in the government. They perceive government jobs to be secure and full of “additional” income. That’s why the sheen of administrative services has still not worn off.

By now, you would have understood why government jobs have lost their way. In a nation full of glamour, if the primary motivation of its youth in choosing a career is misplaced, how can a country be on the right path?

So, how can we arrest this slide?

For this, businessmen in small and Tier 2 towns need to be motivated to create as many jobs as possible. Unfortunately, quarter of a century after liberalisation, businessmen in the Hindi belt still are not given the respect that they actually deserve.

The reasons for this are concealed in the folds of history.

According to author Nirad C Chaudhuri, India is the only country in the world where the rich are expected to fill the stomachs of the poor. It is true that Indians have a tradition of caring for the poor and taking every section of the society along. In cahoots with blood-sucking feudal landlords, the British turned this tradition into a joke. As a result our nation went into reverse gear.In 1757, when Clive laid the foundation for long-term British rule by winning the battle of Plassey, 25% of the world’s industrial outpuWhile celebrating Independence from British rule, instead of reviving the golden bird, the newly independent governments began showering the people with freebies. On top of it, nationalisation broke the back of the industry that had survived.

I was speaking to a few distinguished businessmen before the last elections in Bihar. I was saddened to know that they had sent their children to study outside the state. They don’t want their children to stay or settle down in the state. On top of it, the children of those goons who are instilling fear in these businessmen, themselves study in other “peaceful” parts of India. If the crumbling law-and-order and back-breaking taxation were not enough, the common man perceives us as corrupt, they complained. In lieu of paying their entire taxes, if these businessmen can get security and the respect of the society and the ruling classes, they are ready to give up on the “tainted” income from illegal activities.

Bihar isn’t an anomaly. Many other states are also in the grip of this epidemic.

What is the way out? A news item last week has given me a sliver of hope. Union finance minister Arun Jaitley has announced that those who pay their taxes and file their tax returns on time will get certificates of appreciation from the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT).t used to take place in India. By 1900 this share had reduced to just 2%. The British left behind a skeleton of the Sone ki chidiya (golden bird) that India used to be known as.

In the first phase, 843,000 taxpayers will get these certificates of appreciation. The amount of tax has been divided into four sections: Platinum, gold, silver and bronze.

For a country where businessmen have been perceived as walking-talking deposits of black money for such a long time, it is indeed a welcome change.

We should remember that just 1% of the 1.21 billion people who live in India pay income tax. The figure for the United States and China is 45% and 8% respectively.

The difference in these numbers reflects the ground reality in these three countries. One hopes the initiative that the government has taken to bridge this gulf will not die half-way down the road as it usually happens.

Source: Hindustan Times, 26-09-2016

Every Saint Has A Past & Every Sinner Has A Future

B K Brijmohan





Many people go through their lives carrying the burden of guilt or regret over past mistakes. For some, the weight is such that it crushes their sense of self-worth and they are unable to live a normal life, and they go to their grave haunted by the wrongs they have done.Most of us know, even if we do not remember it all the time, that every action has an equal and opposite reaction, and that we reap what we sow.This universal law warns us of the consequences of bad karma, but it also encourages us to do good karma. If one has done something bad, repentance cannot undo it. But one can learn from it and direct one's energy to doing good.
Positive and charitable actions lift our spirits and bring benefit to others.They keep the mind engaged in a healthy way , help one forge good relations and, when done repeatedly , create a habit of doing good.
Soon, a time comes when good deeds outweigh past mistakes, and the person not only feels happy himself, but is also a source of support for others. This is how character transformation takes place.
There are several examples in history of people leaving behind an ignoble past and achieving greatness. St Augustine is perhaps the most famous.A hedonistic party goer who fathered an illegitimate son, he eventually heeded the pleas of his devout mother and became a Catholic priest. Today , he is regarded as a Doctor of the Church, a title given to saints of particular importance.
Similarly, Angulimala, a serial killer, became a monk after an encounter with the Buddha, and Valmiki gave up life as a robber and meditated for years in penance before he went on to compose the epic Ramayana. He is now revered as `Adi Kavi', or first poet, as he is said to have invented the `shloka', the first verse, which defined the form of Sanskrit poetry .
These examples show that no one is beyond redemption, and each one of us has the potential for spiritual progress regardless of our background.
As Oscar Wilde said, `The only difference between saint and sinner is that every saint has a past, and every sinner has a future.' This is one reason criminal justice systems in some countri es encourage the convicted to do something charitable to make amends for a mistake, or do community service fully or partially in lieu of other forms of punishment, such as imprisonment or paying a fine. Even where such a provision does not exist, convicts get reduced punishment if they show true remorse or cooperate with law enforcement agencies, and sentences are commuted if the convict has a record of good behaviour. Such measures aim to encourage reform, so that convicted criminals emerge better persons from their experience of crime and punishment.
While one cannot change one's past, its negative influence on the present and the future can be eliminated by changing one's way of thinking and behaviour. The key is to turn over a new leaf. A mistake does leave a stain on one's life, but repeatedly thinking about it only darkens the stain. Instead, do good, so one can create bright spots that will eventually shine such that no one notices the stains.

Don’t call me a goddess, I am a farmer

A Dalit women farmers’ collective demonstrates the power of Rs10 in empowering the community and achieving food security for their families.

My name is Seema Mahila Kisan Samiti,” she said.

“Seema Mahila Kisan Samiti?” I repeated after her.

“Yes,” she nodded.

“Seema Devi,” I addressed her.

“Not Devi. Why Devi? Devi is that goddess we worship under the tree over there. I am no goddess, I am a kisan, a farmer.”

Seema, the farmer, is a member of the Saraswati Mahila Kisan Samiti, a women farmers’ collective in Sahar tehsil, district Bhojpur, Bihar. She is also the elected ward member from her community, the first woman from the Mahadalit caste to hold this position in their area.

“We have always been farmers,” Krishna Devi explains to me. We are standing in a group in the shade of a tree on the edge of rice fields. All around us is lush green standing crop. The only work the rice fields demand at this time is weeding.

Seema, Krishna Devi, Ganga Devi and Dukhni Devi are women who have emerged as leaders within the Dalit and Mahadalit community of Vishnupura village in Sahar tehsil, ever since landless women here formed a self-help collective to lease land and grow their own crops.

Seema Mahila Kisan, an elected ward member and farmer from the Mahadalit community demonstrates how she has learnt to sign on documents.

Today I am witness to a strategy and forward planning meeting in this open-air conference room. There is talk about seeds, fertilizers, soft loans and farmer welfare schemes that must be accessed. What they would like to do better in terms of soil preparation before they sow the next crop. There is exchange of information about cultivation of pulses in smaller plots and vegetables in their own kitchen gardens.

Some women have infants balanced on their hips. Toddlers are playing in the mud nearby. Older children are jumping into the irrigation canal repeatedly, squealing with delight. Childcare at the workplace is an accepted norm here.

“It is just that only men have been considered to be farmers, because they own land,” Krishna Devi tells me. “We have always worked in the fields, but we have never had access to money and resources. All through my life, I have cooked for everyone at home and gone to the fields. Women have always been in charge of seeding, sowing, transplantation, weeding, harvesting and storing the grain.”

“Now we do our own farming on our own land,” adds Ganga Devi. We get money in our own hands and we are able to save some of it. We can decide how to spend it.”

“Our families eat better now,” says Dukhni Devi, her voice tearing up. “When my children were small, they slept hungry. We were crushed under loans. Today I grow so many vegetables, I have to sell some of them in the market.”

Seema Mahila Kisan has a dramatic flair for storytelling. She narrates the story of the transformation in their lives using Rs10 to illustrate her point. The Rs10 that she didn’t have when she worked as farm labour in the fields of upper-caste men in the village.

“We got together and contributed Rs10 each every month. Slowly we collected enough money to lease a small plot of land. Why shouldn’t we work for our own selves?” she asks rhetorically. “The next year we leased a bigger plot. Slowly we began to grow potatoes and dal as well.”

Seema holds up her wrist and shows me two dozen green glass bangles on her wrist. “Today I have Rs10 to buy bangles for myself. You think I could afford this earlier? I didn’t even have the guts to sit on a dhurrie with people like you. I would have peeped from my window and hidden till you had left.”

This women farmers’ collective near the town of Ara is one of many such groups in Bihar that have been created through the efforts of the Pragati Grameen Vikas Sansthan (PGVS), a Patna-based organization that works for the land rights of underprivileged communities. Some of the most successful stories of women farmers’ collectives are to be found in Kerala, Punjab, Assam and the North-Eastern states.

“It is a reasonable estimate that 65-75% of the work involved in growing crops is done by women in India,” says Prem Kumar Anand, who is programme officer, economic justice, at Oxfam India. “What has been historically denied to women is ownership of land and the stature of a farmer. Less than 10% of women own land.”

Sindhu Sinha is a much beloved Didi (older sister) among the women of Vishnupura. She is the regional coordinator for PGVS and visits the community regularly to help with the logistics of running a collective. “When we first came to this village, no girl here was educated. None of them went to school. That is where we started from. Today five-six girls from this village have completed their matric studies.”

“I used to put my thumbprint on all official documents earlier. Since I became a ward member, I have started putting my signature,” says Seema Mahila Kisan, making a gesture of signing with her right hand on her left palm. “Today we know how to claim our Indira Awaas fund, disability allowance, widow pension and old age pensions. We receive fertilizers and seeds for wheat, onion and dalalso. It was hard to make people at the district headquarters take us seriously as farmers. But now they do.”

In the social and economic structure of the village, a person’s status, honour and identity is linked intrinsically to land ownership. Claiming land rights is also critical towards sustaining livelihood and food security for families of the poor.

“When a woman owns a piece of land, however small it may be, it raises her social status. This has influenced the government too. The land that is being distributed to the landless now includes the woman’s name in the legal deed. This is a big success for us,” says Sindhu Sinha.

Seema Mahila Kisan is a mother of four. She sends two daughters to school regularly. She is pleased with the uniforms the children have received from school. The midday meal is an added bonus.

“Where all have you travelled?” I ask her.

“I have travelled a lot now,” she tells me. “I have seen many other worlds that I had not seen earlier. Earlier, when I left home, I would go to Barahi bazaar or Sahar. Now I have seen Ara, Delhi, Gwalior, Ranchi, Bodh Gaya.” She turns around her to see who all have surrounded us to hear her words. Her laughter rings with happiness.

Natasha Badhwar is a film-maker, media trainer and mother of three. She tweets at @natashabadhwar and posts on Instagram as natashabadhwar.

Pushback against civil liberties

The sense of impunity that drives discrimination against Dalits is at the heart of recent demands for the dilution, or even repeal, of the Act for prevention of atrocities against SCs and STs

It is the sense of impunity nurtured by caste hierarchy that prepares the social ground for the “shockingly cruel and inhumane” crimes against Dalits called atrocities. It is this impunity that the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes(Prevention of Atrocities) Act (henceforth PoAA) criminalises. And it is the desire to defend the same impunity that motivates recent demands for the dilution or even repeal of the PoAA. To examine the validity of these claims, we must first understand the very different relationships that caste has with the Constitution, society, and state.

Caste and the Constitution

The Constitution is a portrait of the nation as it would like to be rather than as it actually is. Therefore, it is obliged to regard aspirations as achievements, uncertain journeys as assured arrivals. Beginning with the Preamble, where it presumes that “we, the people” are indeed a unified and homogenous collectivity, the Constitution proceeds to treat hoped-for outcomes as though they were established facts. This is not a defect — the Constitution is required to reflect the republic in the best possible light, and is at its most majestic when doing so. However, this also means that the Constitution is unable to directly confront obstinate realities like caste that flout its fundamental tenets, because acknowledging caste amounts to confessing that the republic is more desire than reality.

So, when the Constitution is forced to deal with caste, it does so with an averted face, allowing it only an inferential, shadow-like presence. But it also manages to be obliquely eloquent about what it cannot face. For example, caste makes its first entry in Article 15 rather anonymously, as one among many sources of discrimination. But this is compensated by Sections 2(a) and 2(b) which prohibit discriminatory restriction of access to (respectively) “shops, public restaurants, hotels and places of public entertainment” and “wells, tanks, bathing ghats, roads and places of public resort…”. Why is it necessary to explicitly prohibit discrimination in access to both modern and traditional facilities already declared to be for the public? Or take Article 17, which abruptly announces that “Untouchability” is abolished and its practice in any form is forbidden. What does this capitalised word stand for and why must it be quarantined in quotes? The answer, of course, is caste, which is an absent presence in the Constitution, addressed only as an exceptional or special circumstance.

Discrimination as dominance

The PoAA, 1989, and its older sibling, the Protection of Civil Rights Act, 1955, are “special laws” located at the strategic sites where the Constitution’s default setting of caste-blind formal equality must be changed to address the reality of substantive inequality. All citizens are not equally at risk of being subjected to the acts specified in the sub-sections of Section 3(1) of the PoAA, such as being forced to “drink or eat any inedible or obnoxious substance” (i); have “excreta, waste matter, carcasses or any other obnoxious substance” dumped in their premises or neighbourhood (ii); or being paraded “naked or with painted face or body” (iii), and so on. If there exist specific groups of citizens who have repeatedly suffered such gross violations of the fundamental right to dignity, then surely the republic owes them the protection of special laws like the PoAA.

But why do such groups exist in the first place? They exist because of the social relations promoted by caste. The atrocities that invite interventions such as the PoAA are made possible by caste society’s ability to sustain specific types of relationships, or mutually oriented attitudes and conditions. On the one hand, Dalit castes are forcibly invested with an enduring social vulnerability vis-à-vis castes higher up in the hierarchy, especially those dominant within a region. On the other hand, dominant castes are allowed to acquire, and to eventually take for granted, a socially sanctioned sense of impunity with respect to Dalit castes. When the dominant caste feels it has little prospect of economic and social mobility, its self-esteem and identity become increasingly dependent on the unequal relationships it maintains with subordinated castes. In such situations, the Dalit-dominant caste relationship turns into a zero-sum game where any real or imagined improvement in the lives of Dalits is seen as a reduction in the social distance separating the two groups, thereby implying a decline in the status of the dominant castes.

The caste-state relationship

The state is simultaneously the child of law and society as well as the mediating link between the two. Because of its idealistic orientation, the Constitution — mother of all laws — is external to society and has a largely exhortatory relationship to it. The state depends on the Constitution for its legitimacy, but the Constitution also depends on the state for the actualisation of its ideals. Since it is regulated by politics which in turn is rooted in society, and since its personnel are themselves members of society who embody the prevalent social prejudices, the state is strongly influenced by society. But because it is institutionally bound to obey the Constitution, the state cannot always be guided by the dominant social prejudices of the day; rather, it must at least occasionally rise above these prejudices to perform its constitutional duty. In sum, the caste-state relationship is necessarily ambiguous because the state is itself a differentiated and plural (rather than homogenous or monolithic) entity, capable of acting in a wide variety of ways with respect to caste.

Returning now to the demands for restraining or removing the PoAA, we can begin to decipher what is happening. Both in Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra, the two States where it has been voiced, the demand is coming from political parties representing regionally dominant castes. Both States have seen the emergence (or re-emergence) of Dalit assertion following some upward mobility. This has enraged the dominant castes, leading them to argue that the PoAA is being “misused”. The misuse argument is so popular that it can be called a syndrome, or “a characteristic combination of opinions, emotions or behaviour”. It has been used against every special scheme or law intended to empower vulnerable groups, including reservations, laws against dowry, sexual harassment and rape, and even theMahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA). In each case, it is alleged that the “genuinely deserving” never benefit and that the “vast majority” of cases are fake.

Underdogs and predators 

Since any law can be “misused”, it is not the potential for misuse but its actual occurrence and frequency that matter, and this needs to be established through credible evidence. No such evidence-based claims have been made as yet. On the contrary, reports from activist groups show that it is hard for ordinary Dalits to get cases registered, and extremely difficult to get them placed under the PoAA. But to be fair, the misuse argument is not always meant to be taken literally; it also acts as proxy for the more general perception that Dalits are no longer underdogs and may be turning into predators. This impression is confirmed when we recall that the Pattali Makkal Katchi leader, Dr. S. Ramadoss, reinforced his demand for dilution of the PoAA with the allegation that Dalit boys were luring non-Dalit girls by wearing “jeans, T-shirts and fancy sunglasses” (The Hindu, December 3, 2012). In Maharashtra, recent calls for reviewing the PoAA issued by the Shiv Sena and the Nationalist Congress Party have intensified after the rape-murder of July 13 in Kopardi (Ahmednagar district) in which the victim is dominant caste and the accused are Dalits.

While there is no reason to doubt that Dalits, like any other caste group, could become efficient oppressors if given the chance, the obvious question is if they are in fact getting the chance. Going by the nationwide evidence on the frequency of atrocities on Dalits, the shoe still seems to be firmly on the other foot. Ahmednagar district alone has witnessed three atrocities on Dalits in the past three years (Sonai, Kharda and Javkheda). Meanwhile, as the first anniversary of the Dadri lynching approaches, let us also spare a thought for vulnerable groups who do not have, and will probably never have, the constitutional protection of special laws.

Satish Deshpande teaches sociology at Delhi University.

Keywords: Crime agaiinst Dalits, SCs, STs, 

Source: The Hindu, 24-09-2016

We live disconnected lives as our connection to virtual world increases

Even if you haven’t read Andrew Sullivan’s longish article called “I Used to be a Human Being” in New York Magazine, chances are you might recognise his Internet addiction.

Sullivan, an author, editor and blogger, talks about his “personal crash” following years of what he calls a web obsessive lifestyle, publishing and updating blog posts multiple times, seven days a week.

The rewards were a profitable new media business, an audience of 100,000 people a day and a “niche in the nerve center of the exploding global conversation”. Yet, as his health began to suffer, as vacations became occasions for catching up with sleep, and as “the online clamor became louder”, he realised, “This new way of living was actually becoming a way of not-living.”

Most of us aren’t as deeply immersed in our online lives as Sullivan but it’s a difference of degree. A 2014 study by AT Kearney Global Research, for instance, found that 53% of Indian respondents said they were connected to the Internet every waking hour — higher than the global average of 51%.

Easier Wi-Fi access and the proliferation of affordable tablet and mobile devices, including Reliance Jio’s aggressive 4G plans that include free voice calls and rock bottom data price, has deepened this connection.

What does this mean to the way we live, communicate and interact?

The borders between the virtual and real world are now blurred. Look around you. That couple at dinner at a restaurant checking their mail. Holidays spent posting pictures on Snapchat and Instagram. The desperation for validation in the form of “likes” and retweets. At the doctor’s clinic, people swiping their phones rather than rifling through dog-eared back issues of Readers Digest.

The human race has never been better connected — earlier this year, I watched the coup in Turkey unfold in real time on my twitter feed — and yet, I find that my mails are increasingly perfunctory — send itinerary, read this story, free for dinner? — staccato bursts with no space for communicating ideas or even concern. Thumbs up emojis responding to reposts of articles I’ve not yet had the time to read. Facebook reminding you to send birthday greetings to “friends” you can’t remember.Some call this an age of mass distraction. I pick up my phone to make a call and before I know it I’m swirling down the rabbit hole of pings and updates, phone call quickly forgotten only to be substituted by a hastily remembered text message much later. I struggle with information overload. That guy whose book I read and loved six months ago? I need to Google his name.

Even as we lose focus, it is useful to remind ourselves of the many gifts of the online world. Fund-raising for small causes, online petitions, the ability to interact one-on-one with politicians, democratisation of news. But this comes at a human cost. And here’s the irony, our increasing connectivity is making us less connected to those we still meet physically. How do you make eye contact with the dad at the bus stop dropping off his daughter, when he’s immersed in his phone? If you’re going to buy books online, how can you receive recommendations from the erudite bookshop owner who has, in fact, now gone out of business?What we lose in the name of efficiency is an older, more relaxed way of life, a way of life where people mattered because they were humans not data in some complex algorithm.

Some talk of a weekly day off away from our smartphones. Others reserve family time with phones switched off, even if it’s just an hour a day. The idea is to recognise the need to inhale, the need to switch off but switch on elsewhere.

A friend once tried to explain the marvels of modern technology to his father. “Think of all the time you’re saving,” he exclaimed. The father remained unimpressed. “Time saved for what? To send another message?” There’s a lesson in there for all of us.

namita.bhandare@gmail.com

Source: Hindustan Times, 24-09-2016