Wednesday, March 08, 2017

Women’s Day: Please don’t promise CCTVs for their safety

Imagine a city with a camera at every street corner to record your move. You step out on a breezy March evening to enjoy the cold with your partner but there’s not a moment of anonymous pleasure to be had.

An app on your phone buzzes to locate areas declared unsafe for women, and it includes every place you used to frequent – the “unsupervised” Jahapanah forest, the “dark” bylanes of Mehrauli and the low-income parts of Jamia Nagar he lives in. The safety that was supposed to set you free has locked you in. The makings of this dystopia are swirling around us – in recent years, every incident of crimes against women in Indian cities has been followed by a torrent of discussion on bolstering safety mechanisms for women.

But as a string of crimes in Bengaluru showed earlier this year, the imagination of safety for women in public spaces always ends up focusing on monitoring their moves – by dotting the cityscape with closed-circuit television cameras. The Karnataka government responded to the allegations of rape and molestation by announcing the purchase of 550 more CCTVs, never mind that the thousand-odd such devices had failed to stop the assaults in the first place.

When AAP came to power in Delhi in 2015 on the back of a pledge make the national capital more safe for women, the first thing it promised was more CCTVs and marshals on buses. Two years on, rapes are as rampant as ever and few women take night buses, despite the token marshals.

The focus on CCTVs is a dangerous trend because it erases the socio-economic history of women’s safety and reduces it to a question of State surveillance, in the process prioritising resources to purchase of cameras and cementing existing biases.

“The core philosophy behind the proliferation of CCTVs is an unsubstantiated claim – that people are likely to be deterred from exploiting their historically accumulated power to harass women if they know cameras are watching them,” says Jasmine George, a women’s rights activist whose organisation Hidden Pockets maps cities.

Remember, she adds, that no such deterrence was effected by tough laws or policing but it is assumed that CCTVs – which at best are crime solving and not crime deterring tools – will be the magic bullet. In London, in spite of having more security cameras than any other country in Europe, only 3% of street robberies in London were solved using CCTV images in 2015.

Additionally, this bolsters the notion that crimes against women are always inflicted by unknown persons -- the ubiquitous stranger rape – and erases that most such violence happens within the home, by family members, where there are no CCTVs.

The diversion from a movement seeking a social power structure change to one that stresses on monitoring hurts those who need the narrative to change the most – women locked inside the family. Ten cases of cruelty by husband and relatives are reported every hour across the country as per the National Crime Report Bureau.

Source: Hindustan Times, 8-03-2017

`Men in India Earn 67% More Than Women'

Rica Bhattacharyya

Mumbai

Men in India earn 67% more on average than women, according to a survey conducted by Accenture which shows that disparity in the country is much higher than the global average of 40% across industries.The `Getting to Equal 2017' survey is based on the average pay gap between men and women in employment over a 12-month period excluding bonuses across levels in 31 industries. It took into consideration more than 28,000 women and men, including undergraduates, across industries in 29 countries.
“The gender pay gap is due to a combination of factors, one of the major reasons being cultural and social issues,“ said Rekha Menon, chairman, Accenture in India. “Culturally, women are still meant to be prime care-givers at home. It is culturally acceptable for women to take breaks. Even otherwise, women don't negotiate for better pay and are more accepting of what they are offered.“
On current trends, the pay gap won't close until 2080 in developed markets, and 2168 in developing markets, as per research based on the survey.
Digital fluency, career strategy and tech immersion could together reduce pay gap in India 19% by 2030, the research shows. This will lead to an addition of 2.2 crore women to the paid workforce and add $39 billion to women's income by 2030.
Globally, companies could bridge the pay gap 35% and add $3.9 trillion to women's income by 2030 by adopting these three equalising measures, as per the research.
“Digital fluency gives more flexibility to women and results in more women staying back in the workforce. At the same time women have to learn new skills and adopt new technology . Tech immersion helps in getting STEM (science, technology , engineering and mathematics) skills in coding and computing,“ said Menon.
Adding to this imbalance is the fact that women (50%) are much less likely than men (76%) to have paid work. In India 80% of the pay gap in India is attributed to a lack of female participation in the workforce, with 93% men compared to 31% women in paid employment.
This contributes to a `hidden pay gap' that increases the economic inequities between men and women, as per the research. On this metric, globally for every $100 a woman earns a man earns $258.
Working fewer hours than men (4%), working in a lower paying industry (3%), and lacking a tertiary education (2%) contribute only slightly to the hidden pay gap in India, according to the research, which says cultural and social issues account for 62% of the reason for the pay gap among employed men and women.

Source: Economic Times, 8-03-2017

Women Must Reclaim Their Spiritual Eminence

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar

As we celebrate International Women's Day , we find that there is more awareness and commitment in society towards women's empowerment. Along with the need for economic and political empowerment, we must also give the spiritual aspect due consideration.Often there is a perception that women are mandated by nature to live a less spiritual life and they need less access to spirituality . I am often asked to comment on why women are barred from performing certain spiritual practices like Gayatri japa! This notion that women have less spiritual rights than men is totally erroneous. No scripture sanctions it. Instead, ancient scriptures place tremendous amount of power in women.Shakti is the primordial energy , the life force behind the whole creation.
In Indian mythology , female energy is depicted as the slayer of injustice. The trinity of Durga, goddess of valour and vitality, Lakshmi, goddess of wealth and well-being, and Saraswati, goddess of knowledge and art have always been worshipped. It means that energy (of women) is entrusted with the important portfolios of defence, finance and education.
We also need to emphasise that real empowerment is from within. Women must empower themselves to believe in themselves and stop doubting their place in society .
Women are innately powerful, multi-talented and multi-faceted. They have the right blend of strength with grace, courage with compassion, affluence with values, and wisdom with vision.
Women possess the ability to create as well as make a difference. They give birth to us and teach us to live. Our mother is our first guru, first teacher, giving us the very first lessons in good conduct. She leads the whole family in many ways. So, every woman is already a leader.
In her, lies the seed for profound social transformation. She can be a strong peacemaker; at home, in the community , in society and in the world. Women can overcome differences and bring people of diverse natures together she does it in her home all the time! You have equal rights. You don't have to go and ask somebody! Do not wait for the power to be given.
Just assume it.
The biggest challenge women face today is to maintain a balance between feminism and dominance in any field. Women sometimes forget the innate power they possess. Freedom and empowerment should not take away from their motherhood and their maternal or feminine s. Fine feminine qualities like qualities. Fine feminine qualities like softness, gentleness, compassion, nurturing instincts should not be lost while becoming powerful. A truly empowered woman is one who is confident, creative and brings people together rather than create disharmony . She is truly empowered when she has inner strength, peace of mind and self-confidence. Spirituality nurtures these qualities which are the greatest forces of transformation.
We need women to come to the forefront and take more responsibility for spreading values. In building character and integrity , women can do a better job.
In this fast-paced life, we need to balance our inner peace, and ethical values with the external challenges we face. And women make this happen without getting stressed as these qualities are inherent in them.
The biggest strength that a woman has are her emotions, feelings, motivation and inspiration. Men can inspire to fight but women inspire to unite. She has the potential to bring prosperity , happiness and joy to this world!

Monday, March 06, 2017

Economic and Political Weekly: Table of Contents

Vol. 52, Issue No. 9, 04 Mar, 2017

Editorials

When Hate Trumps Tolerance

Right to Safe Abortion Care

How ‘National’ Beat ‘Regional’

From 50 Years Ago

From 50 Years Ago: Fundamental Rights

Margin Speak

Robbing Rohith of His Dalitness

Anand Teltumbde

H T Parekh Finance Column

Twin Balance Sheet Problem - Causes, Consequences, Remedies

T T Ram Mohan

Commentary

Budget 2017-18

Erroneous Understanding of Macroeconomic Challenges - Reliance on Supply-side Responses

C P Chandrasekhar

Once More on the ‘Humbug of Finance’

Prabhat Patnaik

Business as Usual

M Govinda Rao

What Does the Rural Economy Need? - Analysis of the Promises for Rural India

Amit Basole

Emerging Issues in Union–State Fiscal Relations

Pinaki Chakraborty

Not for Growth - Analysing Union Budget 2017–18

J Dennis Rajakumar

An Examination of Revenue Generation

Ajit Karnik, Mala Lalvani

Book Reviews

Analysing Coalition Politics through a Narrative Lens

E Sridharan

A History of the Farmers’ Movement

V Krishna Ananth

Perspectives

The Mirage of a Caste-less Society in India

A M Shah

Special Articles

Economic Reforms and Agricultural Growth in India

Shantanu De Roy

Healthcare Consumption in Uttar Pradesh - Iniquitous Growth and the Social Factors Contributing to Impoverishment

C S Verma, Shivani Singh, Alok Ranjan, T Sundararaman

Equity in Oral Healthcare in India - A Review on Health System Analysis

Chandrashekar Janakiram, Rajeev B Rudrappa, Farheen Taha, Venkitachalam Ramanarayanan, Harikiran G AKALGUD, Sushi Kadanakuppe

Notes

An Unequal Process of Urbanisation

Judhajit Chakraborty

Current Statistics

Appointments/programmes/announcements

Appointments/Programmes/Announcements

Letters

Muzzling Media, Killing Tribals

Vithal Rajan

Explanations Seem Correct

R Mohan

Disability and Denial of Banking Services

Avinash Shahi

Web Exclusives

The Zero Case: Deadly Implications of the Birla–Sahara Judgment

Vijay Simha

Demonetisation through Segmented Markets: Some Theoretical Perspectives

Parag Waknis

Court Restrains Water Sale from Tamirabarani in Tamil Nadu

S Rajendran, S Ramaswamy

Some Concerns Regarding the Goods and Services Tax

Surajit Das

- See more at: http://www.epw.in/journal/2017/9#sthash.GOXJ677K.dpuf

No firsts among equals

India’s Constitution gives great respect to each citizen. Its values must be safeguarded

The forefathers of our Constitution dreamt that India would be a country which would ensure its citizens many fundamental rights, including human rights. The Constitution of India was in fact drafted under the influence of a universal declaration known as the International Bill of Human Rights. Equality truly was a golden dream that we saw as a country, and gifted to ourselves to cherish over the years to come.

But I question myself now about whether we act in absolute accordance with the ideology of equality; one needs to bear in mind that when you talk of “equality” between two unequal entities, the approach and treatment have to be different from the one we adopt for two equals. To ensure that we, as a society, are loyal to our constitutional values, we need to imbibe respect for the viewpoints of others, which could be about their beliefs, religion, customs, conventions, dietary habits, language and clothing. Equal treatment, not only to all individuals, but also to all religions, is the express command of our Constitution.

At times, we see prejudices operating against particular groups of people; these may be Muslims, Christians or Dalits, facing biases only because their beliefs, religious books, customs, conventions, etc., are not like ours. The makers of the Constitution might not have even thought that there would be a day in this country when a group of people would do or undo anything to impose their own ideology, their beliefs, their viewpoint on another group: Torture, boycott and other contemptible kinds of conduct, all of which have become routine news today, are a matter of shame, and absolutely not in accordance with the ideology and values of the makers of our Constitution.

We also hear many grievances about discriminatory treatment being voiced by some powerful groups, referring to oppressed, suppressed, marginalised people. This is not what our freedom fighters and the fathers of our Constitution foresaw. The process of building the nation can be termed complete only when, without any exception, we all respect our constitutional values to an extent that this becomes our religion — I firmly believe that in public life, you should have only one religion, and that is to remain wedded to our constitutional values, our constitutional commands, ensuring respect for the fundamental rights of every fellow countryman, and acting in strict compliance with constitutional duties.

But because we could not fully imbue this ideology into every citizen for a long time, the situation has worsened to the extent that a person working honestly with a constitutional mandate can become a victim of persons with vested interests. Such honest people have to pay a price by facing numerous challenges, like threats to one’s person, property and family members. It is time to wake up and re-think our situation in the light of our constitutional values and the ideals of public life.

Let me humbly state that I have been imparting legal education for the last 32 years. A person who joins legal education is thoroughly taught legal principles, impartiality in the administration of justice, the concept of rights, duties, powers, etc. But the majority of our youth doesn’t join the legal stream. And there are currently no means by which these young citizens can be taught these concepts or ideology, knowing which is a must for public life.

Students across our diverse fields need to be enlightened on the commands of the Constitution that cover secularism, liberty, freedom and equality; these should be so deeply imbibed by all that every person understands the role of each functionary connected with the law and the administration of justice. But unfortunately, that does not happen.

I had a goal as a teacher of the law to at least mould my students to act in accordance with constitutional mandates, principles of equity, rights and justice. I also thought of adding colour to their lives by ensuring that they learn to respect diversity, in views, beliefs, customs, food habits, etc. Though my efforts are just drops in an ocean, my conscience is satisfied that as a teacher, I have contributed towards shaping society through my students and preparing young citizens to fulfill the dreams our forefathers had while writing the Constitution.

After my retirement, to further my goal, I started working exclusively for legal education: It is different that I had to resign under particular circumstances. Be that as it may, I have continued my march by starting my own academy. I want to reciprocate the encouragement and affection society has showered on me, at least, to the fraternity already in the legal field or younger people in the process of joining the same.

I believe in a positive ideology and therefore, I am sure that the day will come when the dreams seen by the founders of our Constitution will translate into reality.

Source: Indian Express, 6-03-2017

The geopolitics of environmental issues

Environmental degradation and natural-resource insecurity are undermining our ability to tackle some of the biggest global issues we face

Environmental insecurity is a major, though underestimated, contributor to global instability

Much of the world seems to be on edge. The West’s relationship with Russia, the future of Nato (North Atlantic Treaty Organization), the Syrian civil war and refugees, rising right-wing populism, the impact of automation, and the UK’s impending departure from the European Union: All these topics—and more—have roiled public debate worldwide. But one issue— one might say the most significant of them all—is being ignored or pushed aside: the environment.

That was the case at this year’s annual meeting of the World Economic Forum at Davos, Switzerland. Beyond a mention of the Paris climate agreement by Chinese President Xi Jinping, topics like climate change and sustainable development didn’t even make it to the main stage. Instead, they were relegated to side meetings that rarely seemed to intersect with current political and economic events.

Allowing environmental issues to fall by the wayside at this time of geopolitical and social instability is a mistake, and not just because this happens to be a critical moment in the fight to manage climate change. Environmental degradation and natural-resource insecurity are undermining our ability to tackle some of the biggest global issues we face.

Environmental insecurity is a major, though often underestimated, contributor to global instability. The UN High Commission on Refugees reports that natural disasters have displaced more than 26 million people per year since 2008—almost a third of the total number of forcibly displaced people in this time period.

Even the current refugee crisis has an environmental element. In the years leading up to the war, Syria experienced its most extreme drought in recorded history. That drought, together with unsustainable agricultural practices and poor resource management, contributed to the internal displacement of 1.5 million Syrians and catalysed political unrest ahead of the 2011 uprising.

The link between environmental and agricultural pressures extends far beyond Syria. Over-reliance on specific geographies for agriculture means that food production can exacerbate environmental problems, or even create new ones. This can pit global consumer interests against local citizen interests, as it has along the Mississippi river, where fertilizer run-off from one of the world’s breadbaskets is contributing to concerns about water quality.

The connection goes both ways, with environmental conditions also shaping agricultural production—and, in turn, the prices of agricultural commodities, which represent about 10% of traded goods worldwide. For example, rising temperatures and altered precipitation patterns are already driving up the price of coffee. With the global land area suitable for growing coffee set to contract by up to half by 2050, price pressures will only intensify.

A sudden shift towards trade protectionism could drive up agricultural commodity prices further. Such an increase would affect farm-level household income, favouring some farmers while harming others. End consumers, particularly the poor and vulnerable, would also suffer.

Another reason why the environment should be at the centre of economic debates is its role as the world’s single largest employer. Almost a billion people, just under 20% of the world’s labour force, are formally employed in agriculture. Another billion or so are engaged in subsistence farming, and therefore don’t register in formal wage statistics.

Any initiatives to support economic development must support this population’s transition towards higher-productivity activities. This is particularly important at a time when increasingly sophisticated and integrated technology threatens to leapfrog an entire generation of workers in some countries. Efforts to benefit this huge population must focus not only on training and education, but also on new models that allow countries to capitalize on their natural capital—the landscapes, watersheds and seascapes—without depleting it.

Just as natural-resource insecurity can cause displacement and vulnerability, effective natural-resource management can support conflict resolution and sustainable economic development. On this front, efforts to achieve environmental remediation, to boost the resilience of rural communities, to advance sustainable agricultural production, and to support community-based environmental stewardship have all shown promising results.

Consider the Northern Rangelands Trust (NRT), an organization focused on creating community conservancies to enable sustainable and equitable land-use in Kenya. The NRT has helped pastoralist communities establish effective governance mechanisms for the environment on which they depend, reducing conflict over grazing rights, especially in times of drought.

For many communities, members’ relationship with the landscape in which they live is an integral part of their identity. With effective governance and planning, open dialogue, resource-sharing frameworks and sufficient investment, including in skills training, these communities can translate this relationship into effective environmental stewardship—and build healthier and more secure societies.

The crises engulfing the modern world are complex. But one thing is clear: The environment is connected to all of them. Solutions will mean little without a healthy world in which to implement them.

Source: Mintepaper, 6-03-2017

When social media defines our existence

Social media is an integral part of today’s world. It comes with problems, but the benefits are far too many

As I sat on that dainty white couch of my living room, “be strong”, I whispered to my WiFi signal. From dawn to dusk, Monday to Sunday, do you happen to invest heaps of time on social media? If you just nodded, you are no different from the millions of other teenagers who spent over 27 hours and 36 minutes of a week on it. Since the dawn of the 21st century, all global citizens have become members of this miraculous world where without making eye contact with someone, we can talk, where without even stepping out, we can be the most ‘social’ person alive, and where we can get the feeling of being friends with the entire world without even meeting a person!

We are all living examples of Stephen Hawking’s statement — “We are all connected by the internet like neurons in a giant brain”. But it is worth spending some time to ponder whether social media is a boon or bane. The answer has two sides, depending upon your vantage point. In simpler words, one could call social media a ‘perilous helper’ to mankind. It is indeed undeniable that in such a fast-paced world, where people are so short on time, the importance of social media happens to grow with every passing day. Today, we can get thousands of results on almost anything and everything in this world in a ‘puff of electrons’. Widening your horizon of knowledge and knowing what you never knew has become effortless. Getting information is just like ‘name it and get it’.

Even communication has become so facile that only a few keystrokes is what it takes. One can connect over oceans for free. Despite being miles apart, social media has made it possible for humans to feel as if they are just footsteps away. It is like being a part of a person’s world even though the distance keeps you apart. It has also provided humans with a very burly platform to express their views and standpoints. Awareness and opinions spread like an epidemic. Any social cause can very easily receive global voice and the support of millions. Social media has also paved the way for businesses to gain unprecedented exposure. It is through social media that entrepreneurs, professionals, and organisations seek recognition at a very economical price.

Bill Gates is absolutely right when he stated that “If your business is not on the internet, your business is out of business”. If one has any sort of interest in furthering a business, she simply cannot ignore social media. In fact, even social media wouldn’t want to ignore you! Yet, not all consequences of this technology are good ones. It has allowed us to hide behind screens and limit our social interaction face-to-face. It is a downcast truth that social media has started taking over our lives. Have you ever noticed how glued people are to different platforms, which in this context could be called a ‘virtual time black hole’?

Social media is gradually emerging as the ‘mother ship’ of us. What we eat, where we go or who we meet, social media ‘knows everything’. In the same vein, as a result of the anonymity provided by social media, cases of cyberbullying have been on the rise.

Once upon a time, ironically not very long ago, there existed a saccharine and blithe world where people would gain happiness by playing outside and meeting new people instead of equating their smiles and contentment to the number of likes on their posts or the number of followers one has. Social media has dug its claws deep into the evolving cyberworld, and it is indeed an unforgivable crime to not take advantage of its great power and influence.

Source: DNA, 6-03-2017

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