Beware of Mind Games

“The mind is its own place, and in itself can make a Heaven of Hell, a Hell of Heaven,” wrote the English poet, John Milton. This signifies the unique space that the mind occupies in our psychological construct. At times, we are rejoicing and are buoyant, but within a few moments, we could feel disappointed and dejected. Quite often, the tornado of thoughts with its whirlwind speed hits us so badly that it leaves us completely disenabled. As a result of the trauma within, a person may appear physically fit but may be paralysed internally. In the Mahabharata, even a distinguished warrior like Arjuna became depressed at the very thought of waging war. On the battlefield, he got emotionally and intellectually paralysed till such time as Krishna came to his rescue. How should a person extricate himself from a paralysed state of mind? First, we need to understand the basic nature of mind. ‘Mind is a beautiful servant but a dangerous master,’ said the Buddha. We need to hand over the reins of our mind to our ‘intellect’, so as to ensure that all our actions are governed by rationale, logic and realistic considerations than emotions. Second, the mind being fickle, it invariably falls prey to worldly things and beings. This, in turn, gives rise to innumerable desires that, if not satiated, result in an agitated mind. Let’s focus on higher ideals without egocentric and selfish desires. Lastly, the mind being restless like a monkey, regular practice of meditation can help in gaining serenity and tranquillity of mind.

Economic Times, 3/02/2020

Quote of the Day

November 4, 2019

“You can rehearse a wedding but not a marriage.”

‐ Al Batt

“आप विवाह के समारोह का तो अभ्यास कर सकते है, लेकिन विवाह का नहीं।”

‐ अल बेट्ट

Economic & Political Weekly: Table of Contents

Vol. 54, Issue No. 43, 26 Oct, 2019

Editorials

Mandate for a Strong Opposition

Turkey Invades Syria

From the Editor's Desk

In Search of a Morally Sensitive Democracy

Gopal Guru

Strategic Affairs

Perils of Relying on American Support

Atul Bhardwaj

Commentary

Stares of the Blind - Neglected Facet of Human Bonding

Hemachandran Karah

Troubles with Cash Food Subsidy - A Case Study of Jharkhand Villages

Barun Kumar Barnwal, Mrityunjay Pandey

Road Map for Agricultural Technology Transfer and Commercialisation

Manoj P Samuel, Karim Maredia, R Kalpana Sastry

Book Reviews

How Developing Countries Can ‘Beat the Odds’

Rahul A Sirohi

Emergent Nation State and the Class of Capitalists - Through the Lens of the Bombay Plan

Arjun Jayadev

Perspectives

Caste and ‘Seeing Double’ - The Challenge of Aniket Jaaware’s Practicing Caste

Sasheej Hegde, Sanjay Palshikar

Special Articles

Are You Talking about ‘Jungle Patta’? - FRA Implementation in West Bengal

Bidhan Kanti Das

Pushing Back Delhi’s ‘Day Zero’ - Centralised Efforts Needed for Rainwater Harvesting

Georgina Drew

Subaltern Historiography, the Working Class, and Social Theory for the Global South

Kristin Plys

Postscript

The Killing of Avni

Gana Shruthy M K

From Albert to Salim - The Bookends of a Jarring Transformation

Ananya

A Monsoon Bus Ride to Uttarkashi

Kaaren Mathias

Last Lines

From 50 Years Ago

From 50 Years Ago: Is Telengana Over?

Letters

Corporate Tax Cut

Sudip Das

Need for Inclusive Education

Supriya Singh

Minimising Global Poverty

Mukul Jaspal

Current Statistics

Current Statistics

Many Paths to Salvation

Since ages we have been wondering about the existence of a god or not, and if a god exists, how to reach him, and to know how the world is governed. Seers and saints have given deep thought to this. The Vedas, Upanishads, Bhagwad Gita, Puranas and other works have highlighted a number of aspects related to existential questions. Broadly, most religions concur that there is a super power, and that super power is called by various names. God is believed to be omnipresent, omnipotent and omniscient. The ultimate goal of all would be to get freedom from the cycle of life and rebirth, but one kind of spiritual path may not be suitable for all. Hence, sages have devised four paths of Yoga. These are Bhakti Yoga, Karma Yoga, Jnana Yoga and Raja Yoga. In Bhakti Yoga, the seeker tries to attain salvation through the heart, surrendering to the will of God. Karma Yoga focuses on good action, based on the law of cause and effect. Krishna says in the Gita that we should perform our karmas without longing for its fruits, results. Even in case of good karmas, we should give up sense of attachment, doership. Jnana Yoga is followed through the intellect. According to this path, everything in this world is an expression of Brahmn. It means, “I am Brahman, you are also Brahmn, everything is expression of the same reality and universal consciousness, Brahmn.” Raja Yoga practitioners try to reach the peak through the mind. Sage Patanjali has described the following steps to achieve this: yama, niyama, asanas, pranayama, dharana, dhyana and samadhi.

Source: Economic Times, 4/11/2019

Amending and updating the 1981 Air Act will help in the battle against pollution

In its present form, India’s Air Act does not mention or prioritise the importance of reducing the health impact of rising pollution. This is the first change that a new law on air pollution should bring.

Accountability and deterrence are essential in making sure industries comply with emission standards. (Illustration: CR Sasikumar)

As Delhi’s Air Quality Index crosses 500, the national capital has officially entered the public health emergency category. Schools have been shut, children are complaining of breathing problems, but the state and Central governments are simply indulging in blame-games. When something as fundamental as the health of our children is at risk, we should devise a more robust, permanent solution to the problem of pollution. This forms the basis of the need for amending the 1981 Air Act and making it more compatible with contemporary India.

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Air pollution in India is not simply an environmental problem, but a major public health concern. It impacts all those breathing in the polluted air — children, the elderly, women and men alike. As its concentration worsens in India and statistics grow more grim, so do our policymakers’ reactions. As a father of a three-year-old, my concern for my child’s health is shared by numerous other families. Recently, the Centre for Science and Environment reported that air pollution kills an average 8.5 out of every 10,000 children in India before they turn five. Similarly, the WHO in 2016 reported that pollution has led to the deaths of over 1 lakh children in India. Overall, several internationally acclaimed studies have affirmed that life expectancy in India has declined anywhere between two to three years.

Statistics show that India is in a worse situation compared to its global counterparts. According to Greenpeace, 22 of the world’s 30 most polluted cities are in India and Delhi has yet again bagged the position of the world’s most polluted capital. These are grim figures, especially when compared to India’s neighbours: Five in China, two in Pakistan and one in Bangladesh. In 2018, India was placed in the bottom five countries on the Environmental Performance Index, ranking 177th out of 180 countries, along with Bangladesh, Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, and Nepal.

Because of the toxic air and the lax liability system, young children’s health and quality of life are being significantly affected. Currently, breathing in Delhi’s air is similar to smoking 22 cigarettes in a day. One can only imagine the impact on the lungs of our children. And yet, there is a deafening silence at the helm of policymaking because it has not become an electoral priority for political leaders. Besides a few underfunded programmes, the government shows no willingness to bring a bill or law compelling central and state governments to ensure that its citizens are breathing clean air.

Over numerous conversations with taxonomists over the years, I realised that every new discovery of a plant or an animal species had the possibility of becoming a news story, not only because it would reveal something new to the world, but also expand our knowledge beyond flagship species that always make it to the news. The publications of these survey organisations are a treasure trove, opening a floodgate to fascinating, weird and exciting information about India’s biodiversity. For instance, I was excited to discover that water striders have appendages that are designed to enable them to walk on water. Similarly, the discovery of several ginger and balsam species in the Northeast highlights the importance of these biogeographic zones.

A single new discovery on the basis of morphological features or genetic diversity highlights the importance of conservation. Many species may be lost without ever being discovered. It also shows us the importance of ecological hotspots such as the Western Ghats, the Himalayas, and the Northeast, where most of these discoveries are made.

The fact that both these organisations are headquartered in Kolkata is useful to me as I am able to interact with scientists directly. The principle I follow is that I write a story only after details of the discovery are published in a science journal or a book and are available in the public domain.

For reporters on every ‘beat’, every assignment is a dot on a learning curve. For me, it has been a unique experience. When the news is otherwise almost always about losses — of lives, biodiversity — the thrill of publishing stories on gains — of new species and the ways in which they add value to the ecosystem — is of a different kind.

Source: Indian Express, 4/11/2019

All creatures great and small

On the joy of reporting on new species of plants and animals.

Every year on World Environment Day, the Botanical Survey of India and the Zoological Survey of India, set up in the colonial era in Kolkata to record the flora and fauna of the country, publish a list of new species of animals and plants discovered the previous year.

About seven years ago, when I began visiting these organisations as a reporter, I found it difficult to get the scientists and taxonomists to explain their work in common parlance to me. I had no formal training in zoology or botany and was full of questions and doubts about the scientific jargon in their explanations. But what I funnily found as difficult was convincing them that what appeared as routine work to them could in fact be of interest to common people.

For instance, in 2015, the Zoological Survey updated its list of raptors (birds of prey) in India. I was interested in knowing how many of the world’s raptors were found in the country. It turned out that India was home to 106 species of raptors, which is 18% of the number of species found in the world. These included raptors that can only be found in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Similarly, I found out that there exists a new species of banana, which is edible and sweet and with orange coloured pulp. The scientist was not convinced that this species, found in a tropical rainforest on the Little Andaman Islands, would be of interest to anyone but scientists. It turns out that the story was interesting enough to make it to the Civil Services Examination in the form of a question later.

Over numerous conversations with taxonomists over the years, I realised that every new discovery of a plant or an animal species had the possibility of becoming a news story, not only because it would reveal something new to the world, but also expand our knowledge beyond flagship species that always make it to the news. The publications of these survey organisations are a treasure trove, opening a floodgate to fascinating, weird and exciting information about India’s biodiversity. For instance, I was excited to discover that water striders have appendages that are designed to enable them to walk on water. Similarly, the discovery of several ginger and balsam species in the Northeast highlights the importance of these biogeographic zones.

A single new discovery on the basis of morphological features or genetic diversity highlights the importance of conservation. Many species may be lost without ever being discovered. It also shows us the importance of ecological hotspots such as the Western Ghats, the Himalayas, and the Northeast, where most of these discoveries are made.

The fact that both these organisations are headquartered in Kolkata is useful to me as I am able to interact with scientists directly. The principle I follow is that I write a story only after details of the discovery are published in a science journal or a book and are available in the public domain.

For reporters on every ‘beat’, every assignment is a dot on a learning curve. For me, it has been a unique experience. When the news is otherwise almost always about losses — of lives, biodiversity — the thrill of publishing stories on gains — of new species and the ways in which they add value to the ecosystem — is of a different kind.

Source: The Hindu, 1/11/2019

Quote of the Day

November 1, 2019

“Kindness, a language deaf people can hear and blind can see.”

‐ Anonymous

“करुणा, एक भाषा जिसे बधिर सुन सकते हैं और नेत्रहीन देख सकते हैं।”

‐ अज्ञात