What is 'relative deprivation' in Sociology?

This refers to a theory of social change that attributes drastic events like social and political revolutions to the desire among a group of people within society to acquire the privileges that are enjoyed by other privileged groups. In other words, social change is seen as the result of the feeling of deprivation or other forms of serious discontent experienced by a group of people. Relative deprivation could be caused by economic or other social inequalities among various social groups. It is believed that group members who were earlier dispersed may find common ground in a cause that leads them to ignore their individual interests and unite under a single cause.

Source: The Hindu, 21/12/2018

Whims of a digital boss

The rise of app-based aggregators has been a boon for consumers but not necessarily for the workers

Recently, a video of a Zomato delivery agent caught eating the food he was supposed to deliver went viral. This led to criticism, especially from middle- and upper-class consumers who questioned the accountability and monitoring mechanisms of food delivery apps and websites, which are important features of the platform or the gig economy. However, the working conditions of app-based employees are hardly discussed. In this case, given the pressure to fulfil never-ending targets to avail of certain incentives, the worker might not have found time to rest between deliveries or to have his own meal.

The rise of app-based aggregators has been a boon for consumers to access at their doorstep and with the touch of a phone a range of services including cabs, food, and retail. It also purportedly creates decently paid employment opportunities for millions of literate people. But what is the nature of employment arrangements, contracts, quality of work, security, grievance redress mechanisms and accountability in such cases?

The first “person” that app-based workers — whom the companies ironically label “partners” — must report to is the app itself, which is effectively their digital boss. This “boss” gives instructions, sets targets and provides incentives such as boosts, bonuses, star ratings and badges for the workers. It also provides disincentives in the form of fines and penalties. This “gamification” system, seen in apps such as Uber, puts insurmountable pressure on the app-driven worker, who tends to overwork even at lower pay to earn higher scores. And even if the driver or delivery “partner” aspires to be a self-employed mini-entrepreneur, it is the app companies that decide what commission rates to deduct from their earnings and what monetary incentives to give. Even the fares, prices and surges, including the locations and frequency of duty requests, are not determined by these workers. Thus, we may meaningfully ask whether this is a model of self-employment or self-exploitation.

Further, cases of technical glitches in the app, or incorrect payment or deductions from their earnings are no less than a crisis for these workers, since getting justice from these apps or from tedious helplines and zonal offices that get hundreds of complaints each day is often not feasible. Most importantly, we must ask why, in cases of accidents, to which these delivery persons and drivers are highly prone given the rush they are in, shouldn’t there be accountability and compensation, as well as job security, provided by these companies. Finally, why shouldn’t these workers be allowed to organise and unionise to exercise their right to collective bargaining? It appears that app-based companies have realised that there is a simple strategy to avoid these outcomes — keep workers busy with their next duty and block their app IDs in case of any aberration.

The writer is a Ph.D. Scholar at the University of Delhi, and Founding Partner, Jan Ki Baat

Source: The Hindu, 21/12/2018

Against the mandate for inclusion

The Transgender Persons Bill will do more damage than good if passed without revision

The transgender community has once again been let down, as the Lok Sabha passed the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Bill, 2018 in a hurry amid ongoing protests over the Rafale deal. The Bill, ostensibly aimed at protecting transgender persons’ rights, has been drafted hastily, with no real understanding of gender identity and expression. This was made amply clear in the original draft, with the offensive and unscientific definition of a transgender person as someone who is “neither wholly male nor wholly female”. After several submissions made by the transgender community and the recommendations of a parliamentary standing committee, the definition of transgender has been rectified and made inclusive of diverse gender identities.

However, all nuance of people’s self-identified gender expression is lost in the Bill. It proposes setting up a District Screening Committee comprising five people, including a medical officer and a psychiatrist, to certify a transgender person. This process is in direct violation of the Supreme Court’s directions inNational Legal Services Authority v. Union of India (or NALSA ), 2014 that affirmed the right to self-determination of gender as male, female or transgender without the mandate of any medical certificate or sex-reassignment surgery (SRS). In fact, NALSA had clearly directed that “any insistence for SRS for declaring one’s gender is immoral and illegal”.

A regressive Bill

Drafted by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment in 2016, the Bill was met with immediate protests from the transgender and intersex community as it has several provisions that take away from the rights accorded throughNALSA while injecting disempowering and regressive clauses. The Bill does not provide for employment opportunities through reservations, disregarding the directions of the Court in NALSA “to treat them as socially and educationally backward classes of citizens and extend all kinds of reservation in cases of admission in educational institutions and for public appointments.”

To make matters worse, the Bill criminalises begging, thereby targeting transgender persons who rely on begging for sustenance. Such provisions disregard the lived realities of transgender persons for whom begging often is the last resort. In fact, provisions such as these could give immunity to the police to exert force on transgender persons and “rehabilitate” them in beggars’ homes or detention centres against their will. Such harsh measures of detaining marginalised individuals under the garb of rehabilitation have also been criticised by the Delhi High Court in Harsh Mander v. Union of India, 2018. The court declared provisions of the Bombay Prevention of Begging Act, 1959 as unconstitutional on grounds that they violate Article 14 (equality before the law) and Article 21 (right to life and personal liberty), and affect the rights of persons who have no other means of sustenance apart from begging.

The Bill fails to extend protection to transgender persons who might be victims of sexual assault or rape, as the Indian Penal Code recognises rape in strict terms of men and women as perpetrator and victim, respectively. While the Bill makes “sexual abuse” punishable, with a disproportionate punishment of imprisonment only up to two years, it does not define the acts that constitute sexual offences. This makes it difficult for transgender persons to report such crimes and access justice. Moreover, the Bill does not grapple with the realisation of civil rights such as marriage, civil partnership, adoption and property rights, thereby continuing to deprive transgender persons of their fundamental rights and the constitutional guarantee provided by the Supreme Court in NALSA .

Transgender persons have faced prejudice, discrimination and disdain for years, and it is dehumanising to deny them their dignity, personhood and, above all, their basic human rights. The Bill in its present form continues to push them into obscurity, making a mockery of their lives and struggles by failing to secure for them their constitutional rights.

Still time to reconsider

The need of the hour is a robust Bill with strong anti-discrimination provisions that will remedy the historical injustices faced by the transgender community, which continues to fight for the most basic rights even today. The community has its hopes pinned on the Rajya Sabha. It is hoped that the Bill will be revised and brought in line with the NALSA judgment to ensure full realisation of transgender persons’ fundamental rights.

Ajita Banerjie is a researcher on gender and sexuality rights based in New Delhi. banerjie.ajita@gmail.com

Source: The Hindu, 21/12/2018

Children must have a voice in the kind of city they want

A child-friendly city would have to protect them from violence, allow them to grow up in an inclusive space, and let their voices be heard.

Go to any park in Gurugram (or any other city in India) and it is likely you will be met with the wonderful sight of children playing. For a child, growing up in a city can be both a delightful experience as well as one fraught with dangers. Remember the scene from the movie Taare Zameen Par in which the boy walks the streets of Mumbai and experiences all its sights and smells? It was a heady scene, but almost unimaginable for our children.

The city street is seen as dangerous today — not a place to explore and discover. This applies equally to women, who are increasingly unable to access the city for pleasure and discovery. In most of our cities today, children are less able to venture out on their own. In Gurugram, because streets have not been designed for walking or cycling, children are not encouraged to go out by themselves at all. Further, safety concerns mean even more protection for children. For many of them, walking to school is not a reality anymore.

A child-friendly city is being talked about nowadays by international actors as well as the United Nations. Such a city would have to include features such as protection from violence, allowing children to grow up in an inclusive space, providing them with good quality open areas as well as letting their voices be heard regarding issues that affect their lives. A child-friendly city must also provide access to quality services and not discriminate against children, irrespective of their gender, social status and other such factors. In India, Bhubaneswar is one city that has included the phrase “child -friendly” in their planning — and made safe paths for walking, good crossings, streetlights, well-maintained parks.

Children must have a voice in the kind of city that they want, as they carry the burden of the future. They have clearly demonstrated their ability to be political actors. In the recent civic action to protect the Aravali Bio Diversity Park, students raised their voices to claim their right to green, open spaces. The campaign against bursting firecrackers has been very successful, in part because the voices of children were most prominent. Children must be seen as contributers to making a city a better place for all.

Equally important are children who have fewer life opportunities because of economic and social issues. Good schooling and access to services are essential to building a more inclusive society and therefore, more inclusive cities. For example, not all children have access to parks, mostly those who live within gated communities. I have seen that sometimes children from economically weaker sections of the society are prevented from playing in public parks, which is an extreme form of discrimination. The right to play is as important as the right to go to school.

We are also living in times when screens occupy children’s time so much that they do not actually enjoy public spaces. Recent research has shown that the free play that children engage in, especially without the supervision of adults, helps teach them many social skills. Children must be included as important voices in the planning of cities so that they are able to influence their present as well as their future.

Source: Hindustan Times, 20/12/2018

Santa Claus Brings Cheer

The jingling of bells announces the onset of the festive Christmas and New Year season. It also marks the arrival of that special messenger of merriment and the harbinger of joy known fondly the world over as Santa Claus. Santa Claus encourages us to rediscover the child within us and to approach all things in life with the spirit of innocence. Santa Claus’ loving eyes reflect his concern for humanity. His spectacles, worn low on his nose, signify that he is not viewing the world through the narrow domain of perceptions. The dense and snow-white beard denotes wealth of wisdom. His large red gown symbolises energy and dedication. He appears as a fun-loving person. The word ‘Santa’ is an anagram for the word ‘Satan’. Satan symbolises greed, disorder, disobedience and pain. As the evil serpent, Satan enticed Adam and Eve to commit the original sin of eating the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden. Santa is what Satan is not: a symbol of selfless service and kindness. On the one hand, Santa carries a bag of gifts to spread abundance and prosperity. On the other, he holds the leash that reins in eight reindeers. He is in control of the seven deadly sins: pride, avarice, lust, anger, gluttony, envy and sloth. The eighth reindeer signifies immortality. He rides a sleigh bound skywards, implying that heavenly uplift or spiritual progress is the true goal of man. Santa Claus reminds us that miracles can happen, and that generosity is a virtue to be practised. He is a reinforcement of the goodness that is inherent in all human beings.

Source: Economic Times, 21/12/2018

Computer-based entrance at JNU

Test To Be Objective-Type From 2019-20

Jawaharlal Nehru University joins the growing league of institutions adopting computer-based mode for entrance exams. The National Testing Agency (NTA) has accepted the proposal of JNU to conduct its entrance exams for the second cycle of the 2019-20 admission session. Earlier in September this year, the university decided to adopt computer-based entrance for its admissions. It also decided to approach the NTA, the agency set up by the ministry of human resource development (MHRD) to conduct major competitive exams like the NEET UG, JEE (main) and UGCNET, which were earlier conducted by the CBSE. The process to change the mode of test from subjective to objective type was initiated by the vicechancellor of the university through a 12-member committee formed earlier in the year. Till now, the entrance examinations were conducted physically across centres, with some of them – those conducted for MPhil and PhD and language courses – requiring a viva voce. Even as the JNU Students’ Union (JNUSU) opposed the move claiming that the change in the mode from descriptive to a computer-based multiple choice question was a “scam” and imposed unilaterally by the administration, JNU defended the decision saying all the deans were consulted and it was duly passed by the academic council. Early this month the academic council decided that NTA will be conducting the JNU Entrance Examinations (JNUEE). The first exam will be conducted in May 2019 for the 2019-20 academic session. The university conducts admission twice a year and the December 2018 cycle entrance exam will be on the conventional pen-paper mode. In response to JNU’s request, NTA has accepted in principle to take on the task of conducting the entrance tests and is now planning to finalise the details with the university. According to a senior NTA official, “ The final modalities will be worked out in consultation with JNU.” With this JNU joins other central universities such as Pondicherry University, AIIMS, IITs and a few undergraduate courses of Delhi University which adopted computer-based entrance exams.

Source: Times of India, 21/12/2018

What is 'J-curve effect' in Economics?

This refers to a phenomenon wherein the trade balance of a country worsens following the depreciation of its currency before it improves. Generally, any depreciation in the value of a currency is expected to improve the economy’s overall trade balance by encouraging exports and discouraging imports. However, this may not happen immediately due to some other frictions within the economy. Many importers and exporters in the country, for instance, may be locked into binding agreements that could force them to buy or sell a certain number of goods despite the unfavourable exchange rate of the currency.

Source: The Hindu, 20/12/2018