The Journal of Modern History: Table of Contents

Volume 90, Number 3 | September 2018

ARTICLES

An Information State for Elizabethan England Nicholas Popper pp. 503–535 First Page | Full Text | PDF (1055 KB) | Permissions

The Trouble with Authenticity: Backwardness, Imitation, and the Politics of Art in Late Imperial Russia Ekaterina Pravilova pp. 536–579 First Page | Full Text | PDF (2505 KB) | Permissions

The Paris Housing Crisis and a Social Revolution in Domestic Architecture on the Eve of the First World War Caroline Ford pp. 580–620 First Page | Full Text | PDF (1564 KB) | Permissions

International Law and the Transformation of War, 1899–1949: The Case of Military Occupation Jonathan Gumz pp. 621–660 First Page | Full Text | PDF (1089 KB) | Permissions

BOOK REVIEWS

Peter N. Miller, History and Its Objects: Antiquarianism and Material Culture since 1500 Suzanne Marchand pp. 661–662 First Page | Full Text | PDF (54 KB) | Permissions

Siep Stuurman, The Invention of Humanity: Equality and Cultural Difference in World History Andrew Jainchill pp. 662–665 First Page | Full Text | PDF (66 KB) | Permissions

Jürgen Kocka, Capitalism: A Short History Harold James pp. 665–666 First Page | Full Text | PDF (53 KB) | Permissions

Nicolas Drocourt and Éric Schnakenbourg, Thémis en diplomatie: Droit et arguments juridiques dans les relations internationales Charles-Édouard Levillain pp. 667–668 First Page | Full Text | PDF (56 KB) | Permissions

Frédéric Barbier, Gutenberg’s Europe: The Book and the Invention of Western Modernity Cristina Dondi pp. 668–670 First Page | Full Text | PDF (61 KB) | Permissions

Charles S. Maier, Once Within Borders: Territories of Power, Wealth, and Belonging since 1500 Jeremy Black pp. 670–671 First Page | Full Text | PDF (55 KB) | Permissions

Gilles Bertrand, Anne Cayuela, Christian Del Vento, and Raphaële Mouren, eds.,Bibliothèques et lecteurs dans l’Europe moderne (XVIIe–XVIIIe siècles) Jacob Soll pp. 671–673 First Page | Full Text | PDF (60 KB) | Permissions

Matthew L. Jones, Reckoning with Matter: Calculating Machines, Innovation, and Thinking about Thinking from Pascal to Babbage Adelheid Voskuhl pp. 673–675 First Page | Full Text | PDF (59 KB) | Permissions

Matthew Riley and Anthony D. Smith, Nation and Classical Music: From Handel to Copland; Esteban Buch, Igor Contreras Zubillaga, and Manuel Deniz Silva, eds.,Composing for the State: Music in Twentieth-Century Dictatorships Anthony J. Steinhoff pp. 675–677 First Page | Full Text | PDF (61 KB) | Permissions

Patricia Mainardi, Another World: Nineteenth-Century Illustrated Print Culture S. Hollis Clayson pp. 678–679 First Page | Full Text | PDF (55 KB) | Permissions

Steven Press, Rogue Empires: Contracts and Conmen in Europe’s Scramble for Africa Matthew P. Fitzpatrick pp. 679–681 First Page | Full Text | PDF (57 KB) | Permissions

Robert Gerwarth, The Vanquished: Why the First World War Failed to End Richard Bessel pp. 681–682 First Page | Full Text | PDF (51 KB) | Permissions

Rob Johnson, The Great War and the Middle East: A Strategic Study Ryan Gingeras pp. 682–684 First Page | Full Text | PDF (58 KB) | Permissions

Michele K. Troy, Strange Bird: The Albatross Press and the Third Reich Kara Ritzheimer pp. 684–685 First Page | Full Text | PDF (54 KB) | Permissions

Steven Casey, The War Beat, Europe: The American Media at War against Nazi Germany Nicholas J. Cull pp. 686–687 First Page | Full Text | PDF (55 KB) | Permissions

Noah Dauber, State and Commonwealth: The Theory of the State in Early Modern England, 1549–1640 Sarah Mortimer pp. 687–689 First Page | Full Text | PDF (61 KB) | Permissions

Emily C. Nacol, An Age of Risk: Politics and Economy in Early Modern Britain Jeffrey Collins pp. 689–690 First Page | Full Text | PDF (54 KB) | Permissions

Justin du Rivage, Revolution against Empire: Taxes, Politics, and the Origins of American Independence Stephen Conway pp. 691–692 First Page | Full Text | PDF (54 KB) | Permissions

Joseph Stubenrauch, The Evangelical Age of Ingenuity in Industrial Britain Theodore Koditschek pp. 692–694 First Page | Full Text | PDF (60 KB) | Permissions

Sally Crawford, Katharina Ulmschneider, and Jaś Elsner, eds., Ark of Civilization: Refugee Scholars and Oxford University, 1930–1945 Sheldon Rothblatt pp. 694–696 First Page | Full Text | PDF (61 KB) | Permissions

Daniel Todman, Britain’s War: Into Battle, 1937–1941 Alan Allport pp. 696–698 First Page | Full Text | PDF (60 KB) | Permissions

Alan Charles Kors, Epicureans and Atheists in France, 1650–1729; Alan Charles Kors, Naturalism and Unbelief in France, 1650–1729 Jonathan I. Israel pp. 698–701 First Page | Full Text | PDF (65 KB) | Permissions

Meghan Roberts, Sentimental Savants: Philosophical Families in Enlightenment France Alyssa Goldstein Sepinwall pp. 701–703 First Page | Full Text | PDF (58 KB) | Permissions

Paul Cheney, Cul de Sac: Patrimony, Capitalism, and Slavery in French Saint-Domingue Malick W. Ghachem pp. 703–704 First Page | Full Text | PDF (53 KB) | Permissions

Michel Winock, Flaubert Marshall C. Olds pp. 705–706 First Page | Full Text | PDF (56 KB) | Permissions

Aaron Freundschuh, The Courtesan and the Gigolo: The Murders in the Rue Montaigne and the Dark Side of Empire in Nineteenth-Century Paris Sarah Maza pp. 707–708 First Page | Full Text | PDF (56 KB) | Permissions

Darcie Fontaine, Decolonizing Christianity: Religion and the End of Empire in France and Algeria Naomi Davidson pp. 708–710 First Page | Full Text | PDF (61 KB) | Permissions

Minayo Nasiali, Native to the Republic: Empire, Social Citizenship, and Everyday Life in Marseille since 1945 Rosemary Wakeman pp. 710–711 First Page | Full Text | PDF (55 KB) | Permissions

Giorgio Caravale, Beyond the Inquisition: Ambrogio Catarino Politi and the Origins of the Counter-Reformation Wietse de Boer pp. 712–713 First Page | Full Text | PDF (59 KB) | Permissions

Dario Gaggio, The Shaping of Tuscany: Landscape and Society between Tradition and Modernity Marla Stone pp. 714–716 First Page | Full Text | PDF (60 KB) | Permissions

Antonio Feros, Speaking of Spain: The Evolution of Race and Nation in the Hispanic World Kenneth J. Andrien pp. 716–717 First Page | Full Text | PDF (54 KB) | Permissions

Kimberly Lynn and Erin Kathleen Rowe, eds., The Early Modern Hispanic World: Transnational and Interdisciplinary Approaches Lu Ann Homza pp. 718–719 First Page | Full Text | PDF (54 KB) | Permissions

Michiel van Groesen, Amsterdam’s Atlantic: Print Culture and the Making of Dutch Brazil Arthur Weststeijn pp. 719–721 First Page | Full Text | PDF (60 KB) | Permissions

Joel F. Harrington, trans., The Executioner’s Journal: Meister Frantz Schmidt of the Imperial City of Nuremberg Laura Stokes pp. 721–722 First Page | Full Text | PDF (55 KB) | Permissions

Heinz Reif, Adel, Aristokratie, Elite: Sozialgeschichte von Oben William D. Godsey pp. 723–724 First Page | Full Text | PDF (55 KB) | Permissions

Geoff Eley, Jennifer L. Jenkins, and Tracie Matysik, eds., German Modernities from Wilhelm to Weimar: A Contest of Futures; Jan Rüger and Nikolaus Wachsmann, eds., Rewriting German History: New Perspectives on Modern Germany; Konrad Jarausch, Harald Wenzel, and Karin Goihl, eds., Different Germans, Many Germanies: New Transatlantic Perspectives Thomas Rohkrämer pp. 725–730 First Page | Full Text | PDF (75 KB) | Permissions

Richard Swedberg and Ola Agevall, The Max Weber Dictionary: Key Words and Central Concepts George Steinmetz pp. 730–731 First Page | Full Text | PDF (55 KB) | Permissions

Susanne Kuss, German Colonial Wars and the Context of Military Violence Lora Wildenthal pp. 732–734 First Page | Full Text | PDF (59 KB) | Permissions

David F. Crew, Bodies and Ruins: Imagining the Bombing of Germany, 1945 to the Present Jeffry Diefendorf pp. 734–735 First Page | Full Text | PDF (57 KB) | Permissions

Ali Yaycioğlu, Partners of the Empire: The Crisis of the Ottoman Order in the Age of Revolutions Frederick Anscombe pp. 735–737 First Page | Full Text | PDF (62 KB) | Permissions

Max Bergholz, Violence as a Generative Force: Identity, Nationalism, and Memory in a Balkan Community Cathie Carmichael pp. 737–738 First Page | Full Text | PDF (54 KB) | Permissions

Mirna Zakić, Ethnic Germans and National Socialism in Yugoslavia in World War II Caroline Mezger pp. 739–740 First Page | Full Text | PDF (58 KB) | Permissions

Charles Steinwedel, Threads of Empire: Loyalty and Tsarist Authority in Bashkiria, 1552–1917 Sean Pollock pp. 741–743 First Page | Full Text | PDF (59 KB) | Permissions

Sarah Badcock, A Prison without Walls? Eastern Siberian Exile in the Last Years of Tsarism Alan Barenberg pp. 743–744 First Page | Full Text | PDF (54 KB) | Permissions

Jörg Baberowski, Scorched Earth: Stalin’s Reign of Terror Robert W. Thurston pp. 744–746 First Page | Full Text | PDF (59 KB) | Permissions

Chris Miller, The Struggle to Save the Soviet Economy: Mikhail Gorbachev and the Collapse of the USSR; Mikhail Gorbachev, The New Russia Mark Harrison pp. 746–749 First Page | Full Text | PDF (61 KB) | Permissions

The crackdown on civil society

With the raids and arrests, activists are being penalised for their unwavering vigilance

It is a truth universally acknowledged that the modern democratic state, armed with technologies of surveillance and control, possesses the kind of power that has never ever been exercised by any other state in history. In a democracy, the individual transits from subject to citizen. Yet there is no one more vulnerable and more helpless than our rights-bearing citizen if the, otherwise, democratic state decides to terrorise, kill and drill fear and trepidation in the mind of the body politic. The other dominant institution of our times, the market, is completely amoral. It is supremely indifferent to human suffering. It has neither sympathy nor room for citizens exploited by the state, and by its own need for resources, labour, and profit.

A vital sphere

The only sphere that stands between the individual and the omnipresent and omnipotent state is civil society. In this figurative space, individuals come together in webs of associational life. Associations have the capacity to challenge the brute power of the state through petitions, protests, dharnas and ultimately judicial activism. Given unresponsive political parties, citizens can access centres of power and privilege only through a vibrant civil society.

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Shock arrests: on activists' arrest

 

Civil society is, of course, a plural sphere, and all manners of associations find space for themselves here, from football clubs to reading groups to film fan societies. Each democratic association is important, but we cannot deny that civil liberty and human rights groups are an essential precondition for human well-being. Some Indian citizens were randomly and arbitrarily imprisoned during the Emergency (1975-77) and the fundamental rights of others were truncated. It is, therefore, not surprising that in the aftermath of the Emergency, the civil liberties movement made a dramatic appearance on to the scene of Indian politics. The movement which developed into, or acted in concert with, the human rights movement took on an extremely significant task, that of protecting the fundamental right to life and liberty granted by the Indian Constitution.

Every political revolution in the world has begun with the rights to life and liberty. These two rights lie at the core of other rights that have been developed and codified as critical for human beings. The two rights stretch from the right not to be tortured or killed, to the right not to be arrested and imprisoned by the lackeys of the state without due cause. The right to life is a basic right, but our lives do not mean anything if we are incarcerated for no rhyme or reason.

In the decades that followed, human rights groups have become the custodian of the Fundamental Rights chapter of the Indian Constitution. They have investigated cases of arbitrary imprisonment, custodial deaths, deadly encounters and coercion of any citizen who dares to speak up against the state or dominant groups. These organisations have carefully documented the causes and the triggers of communal and caste violence, and established an excellent archive on the abuse of power by governments. They have asked questions which few Indians have had the courage to ask. And above all, they have protected the rights of vulnerable sections of our own people, the Adivasis, the Dalits and Muslims.

Civil liberty and/or human rights activists are lawyers, academics, journalists and public minded citizens of India. What matters is their very human concern for the poor and the disadvantaged, the dispossessed and the vulnerable. What matters is that civil society activists protect the moral conscience of our society. Not all civil society groups do so, some are in the sole business of getting funds from the state or others. Not all sections of the media do so, they are often cowered down by their corporate bosses, and the lure of fame and lucre. Unhappily, the majority of Indians keep quiet when their own fellow citizens are tortured by the police, stripped of access to resources and livelihoods, lynched, exploited by corporate India, and neglected by the mainstream media. Human rights activists shoulder the fight for the rights of the oppressed.

The turf wars

Their role is crucial for democracy because today we are ruled by a government that openly defies ethics and morality, that casts itself in the mould of realism, and that is supremely indifferent to the plight of millions of its citizens. We are ruled by leaders who dismiss the need for civil society because the cadres and the front organisations of its ideological backbone, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, seek to dominate the space between the individual, the market and the state. The consequences are serious. Over 10 years ago, during UPA I, we were speaking of the right to food, to employment, to education, to information and to land. We theorised that India was moving towards a social democratic state vide civil society activism. Today there are few organisations that articulate the right not to be lynched, or who struggle for the right to life and liberty. Human rights activists are among these few organisations. They have courageously taken on the challenge posed by corporates, a ruthless state and its venal police, and the cadres of right-wing organisations that specialise in violence.

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Who are the activists who were arrested for 'Maoist links' in nation-wide raids?

 

Activists have been penalised for their eternal vigilance, which, as Irish lawyer-politician John Curran said in 1790, is the price we pay for liberty. The government and right-wing organisations have pursued and terrorised human rights activists. On August 28, lawyers, poets, academics and activists known for their defence of the dispossessed were targeted by the Maharashtra police. The houses of Sudha Bharadwaj, Varavara Rao, Vernon Gonsalves, Arun Ferreira, Gautam Navlakha, Anand Teltumbde and Stan Swamy were raided, and some of them imprisoned.

The reasons for the harassment of these warriors in the cause of justice are unsubstantial and unconvincing. The police simply cannot establish that their speeches at the Elgar Parishad meeting in Pune in December 2017 incited the violence unleashed on a Dalit gathering at Bhima-Koregaon on January 1, 2018. It was earlier reported that the peaceful gathering was attacked by activists belonging to two Hindu right-wing organisations: Shiv Pratishthan led by Sambhaji Bhide, and Hindu Ekta Manch led by Milind Ekbote. Mr. Ekbote, committed to Maratha/Hindu supremacy, was arrested in March 2018. Soon he was cleared by the police and the Maharashtra government. Now a completely different set of agents has been brought in and charged with urban Maoism, a term that has neither a history nor a geography. It is simply silly.

Boomerang effect?

This is the latest blow inflicted on civil society by a party that wishes to see only its own organisations dominating the space of associations. The attempt might just rebound on the party. The well-known Italian theorist Antonio Gramsci, jailed by the Mussolini government in the 1920s, set out to answer a crucial question. Why had a revolution occurred in semi-feudal Tsarist Russia, and not in the Western capitalist world as predicted by Marx? He concluded that revolutions only happen when the government directly and unashamedly exercises brute power, as in Russia. They do not happen in countries which possess civil societies, for here projects of domination and resistance can be played out. Citizens just do not need to revolt. Is there a lesson our rulers need to learn from this piece of profound wisdom?

Neera Chandhoke is a former Professor of Political Science at Delhi University

Source: the Hindu, 30/08/2018

Has India finally arrived on the sporting stage?

More and more parents are encouraging their children to seek a career in sports

India is attempting to make a mark in international sport and I love the public response to this. The athletes have fans who are backing them and praying for them. I am not really worried about the medals tally. Do you judge a sportsperson only by the number of victories? What if he or she loses a close contest? Is that not worthy of a salute?

Support and fan following

The atmosphere that has been generated in our country for the support of sportspersons is what makes me optimistic. More and more parents are encouraging their children to play and seek a career in sports. They have faith that sports can provide the platform for a healthy and decent future. I have seen this change in the last decade and I am convinced that India has arrived as a sporting nation. We must be patient. The day is not far when we will be a force to reckon with on the world stage.

It is good that we have an Olympic medallist as Union Sports Minister. This is a welcome change because the athletes are beginning to believe in the system. They are earning respect.

I don’t know about records at the ongoing Asian Games in Jakarta. We may break them, we may not. But we have competed well so far. Is that not an encouraging sign, an indication that we are moving in the right direction? I know the kabaddi defeats are going to hurt big. But have we not won medals in a variety of sports, from wushu and rowing to equestrian? Times are changing, India has taken to lesser-known sports in a big way. I am sure medals in these sports will show the way forward.

When the first Asian Games ended in 1951, India had clinched 15 gold medals. We have not achieved that mark again. That does not mean that the nation has lagged. You don’t become a sporting nation overnight. There are more people watching and more and more children playing. I can’t read the future but I can say with confidence that the stage is set for India to excel. We have set the ball rolling and the intentions are good. The recent victories of the Indian junior football teams have been very heartening.

The facilities provided by the government are second to none if you see the size of the country. Without government support, sport will die. A game like hockey will collapse if there is no government backing. It will also sink if there are no good competitions such as the Hockey India League which provides financial security to the players. The government is the provider, the driving force behind sports being given priority in schools and colleges.

Constant improvement

India has begun to offer competition in games which are not big at home. This is because we have talent. In traditional games like hockey, tennis, badminton and athletics, there is impressive progress. Swimmers have begun to make a mark and promise to rake in medals. To make a big splash at the 2022 Asian Games, we must begin preparations now.

Don’t measure success from the number of medals won. You must give importance to the fact that our boys and girls are constantly improving their personal bests and are very motivated.

Potential to shine

I know my generation played for the country even though there was no money. Today, sportspersons play for the country and also for the money. Given the growing number of youngsters taking to sports, I can say that India has shown the potential to shine on the world stage.

Source: the Hindu, 31/08/2018

Our infrastructure must become climate-resilient

A frustrating part about the Kerala floods is that the loss of life and economic devastation could have been prevented.

The Kerala floods have already claimed their place as one of the most devastating extreme weather events in India’s history. Perhaps the most frustrating part of this tragedy is the fact that this loss of life and the economic devastation was preventable. Between August 8 and 9, the state received 12 inches of rainfall in 24 hours. Dams reached their capacity and operators opened the gates of 35 of the 39 dams. This was not done in a planned manner with appropriate warnings to people living near them.

In an age of climate variability, our infrastructure must be climate resilient. A number of studies commissioned by the government and think tanks have outlined the steps that need to be taken on a national and sub-national level to make current and future infrastructure resilient to climate and extreme weather events.

However, no significant steps have been taken. The qualification of what makes infrastructure climate resilient is not codified. The 2018 budget allocated a significant amount of funding to create standards, but there hasn’t been any progress. Without these standards, any labelling of infrastructure projects as climate resilient will be ad hoc.

The Union government allocated $58 million in its budget to help deal with climate adaptation issues. Additionally, certain states have promised to use 1% of the budget allocated to each department to do the same. While these are good efforts, the funds fall woefully short of what is needed.Finding ways to finance infrastructure projects is already one of India’s largest challenges. According to the Economic Survey of 2017-2018, the current infrastructure gap stands at $526 billion. This estimate, we feel, is low. In recent years, innovative steps have been taken by the government and industry to find ways to divert funding for infrastructure projects. Yet, these innovate steps haven’t been extended to ensure that preventable disasters do not result in loss of life and property. Conservative international estimates approximate that $1 trillion will be needed to make existing and future infrastructure in India climate resilient.

Kerala is expected to suffer close to $3 trillion worth of economic loss because of the floods. Private players, who cut corners to make their roads and bridges less resilient, have lost these revenue-producing assets. The Indian insurance industry is facing the prospect of insurance claims of around $700 billion. The state government needs to provide incentives to builders to make the new infrastructure projects climate resilient, the industry needs to realise the risks they face in the era of climate change, and the insurance sector must make sure that it does not provide policies to builders or financiers if their projects don’t adhere to the right climate resilient standards.

Aparajit Pandey is programme director, Observer Research Foundation. Ritwik Sharma is research assistant with ORF’s climate change and development programme.

Source: Hindustan Times, 31/08/2018

Social Service Review: Table of Contents

Volume 92, Number 3 | September 2018

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Masthead First Page | PDF (33 KB) | Permissions

Announcement of Special Issue and Call for Papers: Lessons from Social Work’s History for a Tumultuous Era Michael Reisch pp. iv–vi First Page | Full Text | PDF (823 KB) | Permissions

ARTICLES

	Relationship Repertoires, the Price of Parenthood, and the Costs of Contraception Monica C. Bell, Kathryn Edin, Holly Michelle Wood, Geniece Crawford Mondé pp. 313–348 Abstract | Full Text | PDF (1121 KB) | Permissions
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	Privately Insured Women’s Expectations of Contraceptive Access without the Affordable Care Act and the Influence of State Contraceptive Equity Protections Anu Manchikanti Gómez, Jennet Arcara pp. 349–368 Abstract | Full Text | PDF (1039 KB) | Permissions
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	“Living off the Land”: How Subsistence Promotes Well-Being and Resilience among Indigenous Peoples of the Southeastern United States Catherine E. Burnette, Caro B. Clark, Christopher B. Rodning pp. 369–400 Abstract | Full Text | PDF (1014 KB) | Permissions
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	“We’re All Sitting at the Same Table”: Challenges and Strengths in Service Delivery in Two Rural New England Counties Jessica A. Carson, Marybeth J. Mattingly pp. 401–431 Abstract | Full Text | PDF (1019 KB) | Permissions
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	Evidencing Violence and Care along the Central American Migrant Trail through Mexico John Doering-White pp. 432–469 Abstract | Full Text | PDF (1079 KB) | Permissions
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BOOK REVIEWS

Marcus Anthony Hunter and Zandria Robinson, Chocolate Cities: The Black Map of American Life Eve L. Ewing pp. 470–474 First Page | Full Text | PDF (50 KB) | Permissions

Catherine E. Rymph, Raising Government Children: A History of Foster Care and the American Welfare State Melissa Hardesty pp. 474–478 First Page | Full Text | PDF (51 KB) | Permissions

Derek S. Hyra, Race, Class, and Politics in the Cappuccino City William Sites pp. 478–483 First Page | Full Text | PDF (54 KB) | Permissions

Brief Notices pp. 484–485 First Page | Full Text | PDF (815 KB) | Permissions

The right to privacy vs right to information

Finding the right regulatory structure is important in order to ensure that the two rights don’t come into conflict

Recently, information commissioner Sridhar Acharyulu, in an attempt to save the right to information (RTI) from dilution, cautioned against amending the RTI Act while implementing the data protection framework suggested by the Srikrishna Committee report.

The public focus so far has been on the conceptualization of personal data, consent fatigue and data localization. But the report raises a crucial question. What would be the mandate of the future data protection authority (DPA) it envisages? And how would the mandate be reconciled with that of the information commissioner? This concern becomes particularly relevant due to a history of bureaucratic conflict in various countries stemming from the tension between the discordant mandates of the two authorities.

Conceptually, RTI and the right to privacy are both complementary and in conflict. While RTI increases access to information, the right to privacy veils it instead. At the same time, they both function as citizen rights safeguarding liberty against state overreach. There are two possible frameworks for managing this tension.

A TWO-BODY MODEL

In most jurisdictions, the information commission and privacy commission are separate and distinct bodies. In a few countries, however, the RTI commission is a single-function body responsible for balancing competing interests. These jurisdictions include Hungary, Mexico and the UK.

Countries which have two commissions are able to champion both these rights distinctively. This is because they are unencumbered by the onerous task of balancing competing interests. However, this clarity of mandate and authority comes with a price tag. Disagreements between the two authorities can heighten transaction and opportunity costs involved in reconciliation, reducing overall efficiency in grievance redressal.

Canada has witnessed public tension between the two commissions due to politics and policy concerns. These concerns include delineating the extent to which a request to access “personal” information may be granted without undermining privacy. A Canadian task force reviewing its two-body model acknowledged the confusion arising out of conflicting recommendations. For instance, the two bodies could have conflicting opinions on whether educational records of public officials or asset records of spouses of public officials constitute “personal data” shielded from RTI requests.

A SINGLE-BODY MODEL

Adopting a single commission (as in the UK) instead would remove the transaction costs associated with conflict between two commissions. This would increase administrative efficiency and, in turn, public welfare. However, the possibility of a conflict between the two competing rights may end up prejudicing the authority in favour of one of them, endangering their intended harmonization. Moreover, additional mandates may over-burden the authority and undermine its efficacy, reducing social welfare instead.

ONE BODY OR TWO FOR INDIA?

The Supreme Court of India, while declaring the right to privacy as a fundamental right in Justice K. S. Puttaswamy (Retd.) and Anr. vs Union Of India and Ors, missed out on defining its contours with respect to the right to information. The Srikrishna Committee Report, while acknowledging that most commentators are in favour of an independent data protection authority, falls short of explaining the rationale behind it. These missed opportunities are regrettable. That said, the optimal solution for India is indeed two independent bodies.

While the cost-effectiveness of a single body model is attractive, in the Indian context, it may have a number of drawbacks. These include high levels of corruption that could encourage conflict of interest and a tendency to safeguard personal gains.

Moreover, there might be another kind of mismatch in giving an information commissioner the mandate of enforcing a data protection law. The information commissioner’s mandate is concerned with personal data only of public officials and not of citizens at large. The enforcement of a data protection law, on the other hand, would require familiarization with, and expertise in, a far broader mandate. Achieving these may require a structural overhaul of the commission, which could prejudice the existing regime. A body with specialized expertise in this field would be far more suited to serve this purpose.

We admit that there may be some agency costs involved in reconciling conflicts between the information commissioner and the DPA. However, these costs would not override the larger public interest served by ensuring the independence of a DPA. This is because the agency costs would be relatively small compared to the harm arising out of a prejudice to either of these rights.

Furthermore, a single commission may lean towards hierarchizing the enforcement of RTI over the realization of privacy. This fear arises from the false perception that a dichotomy exists between privacy and welfare. This perception is based on public attitudes that question the relevance of privacy within the Indian sociopolitical climate as opposed to RTI, which is looked upon more favourably.

Source: Livemint epaper, 29/08/2018

UGC to ease norms to admit more SC/ST students in PhD

If seats for SC/ST/OBC remain unfilled despite this relaxation, universities will launch a special admission “for that particular category within one month from the date closure of admission of general category”.

The University Grants Commission (UGC) is set to lower the eligibility cutoff for students from Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Classes for admission to M.Phil and PhD programmes in universities across the country in order to fill mounting vacancies in reserved seats, according to the human resource development (HRD) ministry.

UGC is also set to permit universities to launch a special ad–mission drive to fill vacant seats by setting their own criteria.

A new UGC notification, ‘Minimum Standards and Procedure for Award of MPhil/PhD Degrees (1st Amendment) Regulations 2018’ — which has been accessed by HT — says “a relaxation of 5% of marks, from 50% to 45% shall be allowed for the candidates belonging to SC/ST/OBC (non creamy layers)/differently abled category in the examination conducted by the Universities”.

If seats for SC/ST/OBC remain unfilled despite this relaxation, universities will launch a special admission “for that particular category within one month from the date closure of admission of general category”.

R Subrahmanyam, secretary, higher education, in the Union HRD ministry, said the government was hoping this move would help cut down on vacancies in such programmes.

“The government is concerned with the reduced numbers of PhD admissions from SC/ST categories after the introduction of the two-step admission process,” Subrahmanyam said.

“Whereas we are determined to improve the quality of doctoral education, we must ensure that the constitutional safeguards for SCs and STs are not violated. Therefore, the minister for HRD Prakash Javadekar approved an amendment in the PhD regulation that provides for a special admission process for SC/ST/OBC vacancies. This we hope will go a long way for improving the current situation,” Subrahmanyam said. He did not specify how many seats were vacant.

A 2016 UGC regulation, implemented in 2017 by all central universities, including Delhi University, made it mandatory for students to score at least 50% marks in entrance exams to qualify for MPhil and PhD interviews. A number of students had protested the move asking the government to scrap the criteria and bring in further relaxation.

Some academics believe the decision could have come earlier.

Himanshu, Associate professor at the Centre for Economic Studies and Planning, School of Social Sciences, JNU, said, “The government should have done it earlier. They can’t compensate for the loss of the students who have missed out on higher studies. Already the number of students from the deprived sections who are able to go for higher studies is quite low. It will definitely have a good impact next year but there has to be some consistency in the way policies are formed. The youth of this country should not be treated as guinea pigs.”

Others believe that there is a strong political subtext to the move, particularly ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, with the government trying to battle the Opposition critique that it is insensitive to Dalits.

In the last session of Parliament, the government brought an amendment to the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act to ensure that a recent Supreme Court verdict would not “dilute” its provisions. It is also considering an ordinance to ensure that reservations in faculty appointments in universities happen at the level of the institution rather than a department as per a judicial order that drawn criticism from Dalits and tribals for reducing recruitment for the two communities. The BJP is also planning separate conferences for Dalit beneficiaries of the government’s welfare schemes.

Udit Raj, BJP MP, said the government’s decision was welcome. “We have been demanding this for a while. Earlier some universities had reduced the seats for Mphil and PhD too and that had a huge impact on the community. They rely the most on government universities as private ones are very expensive. This move reflects that the government is proactive in the interest of the SC/ST community and is committed to their welfare.”

But the opposition was not convinced. Kumari Selja, senior Congress leader and former union minister, said it was a case of ‘too little, too late’. “They are carrying out too many experiments and are playing around with the future of SC/ST students. How will they know that the universities will follow this? They have reduced the number of post-matric scholarships that they used to give - so how will they ensure students opt for higher education?”

Source: Hindustan Times, 23/08/2018