How Religious Festivities are Becoming Social Fairs in India
Hinduism is a religion of festivities. Pomp, color, dance and music, assortment of delicacies, traditional costumes and merry making are usually associated with most Hindu festivals. Janmashtami- celebration of Lord Krishna’s birth, epitomizing the grandeur of Hindu festivities was observed in India on September 1. The Janmashtami celebrations, like most Hindu festivals, have come to highlight some specific dimensions of Hinduism portraying it as a religion that is ‘modern’ and ‘convenient’. The authenticity of these depictions can be challenged but it is the image of Hinduism as a religion marked by joyful festivities that feeds popular perception. Whether it is the Ganesh festival in Maharashtra or the Durga Puja Pandals in Bengal or the Navratri Dandiya nights in Gujarat, Hinduism is glamorized in the mainstream media.
Civilian Protests in J&K: [A]Part of Struggles in Rest of India?
Struggles for democracy and struggles of democracy may be different but are struggles nonetheless.
The civilian protests in the Kashmir region of the state of Jammu and Kashmir have been accompanied by a proliferation of literature on the intra-national dimension of the dispute, especially the issue of Human Rights. If you happen to read the columns by likes of Pankaj Mishra or Basharat Peer it is likely that your sympathies will lie with the people of Kashmir. Many others are of the opinion that the violent protests should stop to allow the Government to discuss the popular grievances. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has agreed that New Delhi is open to discussing the autonomy issue. Amendment of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act is also under consideration. For the protestors, Prime Minister Singh’s assurance is another addition to similar pledges in the past. The Kashmiri youth demand ‘aazadi’ and refuse to be pacified by piecemeal political and economic packages. The Government fears that accepting the demands of the protestors at this juncture would legitimize violent protests as an instrument of popular pressure. Click to continue…
Will Caste Census Change Anything in India?
The recent approval by the Government of India for caste based census has aroused concerns among political parties as well as social scientists and ethnographers. For the self-proclaimed ‘modernists’ such regressive measures are likely to heighten caste consciousness among Indians. While the pragmatists argue that data on caste can help the government to better target affirmative action policies and thereby address caste differences rationally. The fact however is the that caste as a social reality in India draws succour from multiple sources which will remain untouched by either the proposed census or the resultant official policies. Caste issues influence everyday life of Indians in countless ways.
2010 Commonwealth Games: Has India missed the opportunity?
A day after India celebrates the 141st birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, the man who led a non-violent struggle against the British rule, India will showcase her continued nominal ties with the British Empire by hosting the Commonwealth Games (CWG). However, the 2010 CWG have become more an arena of political wrangling and administrative corruption rather than a celebration of Imperial ties or sporting talent. India seems to have greater appetite for sports controversies than actual sports.
Discussing J&K
The street protests in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) are de javu for many locals. It is claimed that a new generation of youth in the state are turning to confrontational tactics as the state continues to define security in strictly militaristic terms. For the Indian side peace in J&K implies ensuring that separatists and militants supported by Pakistan are reined in and ‘democratic’ elections held every five years. The slogans of ‘aazadi’ echoing through the Kashmir Valley are dismissed as the voice of few misguided youth and miscreants supported by ‘foreign’ forces.
Limitations of the vocabulary of western political theory for post-colonial societies have created a dilemma for India and Pakistan. ‘Aazadi’ is interpreted as territorial sovereignty and arguments highlighting the improbability of it for J&K are promptly presented by the Indian side. Pakistan likewise claims to be supporting the Kashmiris in their struggle for self-determination. Looking at the concept of ‘aazadi’ from the perspective of J&K can connote a variety of political arrangements ranging from responsive governance and responsible administration to different degrees of devolution of political authority. The relation between the Indian Federation and its constituent units continues to remain problematic in other areas of the country as well. In the case of J&K, the struggle between the Federation and the units is subsumed in the master narrative constructed in 1947.
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Impressions from the Kashmir Protests
The recent tensions in the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir have not surprised many. The nation-wide shut down on July 5th attracted more attention than curfew restrictions in parts of the Kashmir valley. However, the recent protest demonstrations do not strictly fall in the segment of terrorism related issues inflicting the state since the past two decades. A section of the Indian population dissatisfied with the Government is participating in protest demonstrations. At least 11 people have been killed in the Kashmir Valley in firing by security forces on stone-pelting mobs protesting against alleged human rights violations.
[Photo Courtesy: The Hindu]
UPDATE: With four civilians killed in the past 24 hours and 70 others injured as the police opened fire to quell demonstrations in different parts of Srinagar, the Jammu and Kashmir government on Tuesday sought the Army’s help in tamping down mass protests that have not abated despite several days of curfew.
The Government of India is referring to it as a law and order problem prompted by separatists. The incident and follow up official reaction indicates that the Government’s priorities in the state are more security oriented than conditioned by requirements of ensuring stability. Maintenance of law and order and prevalence of armed forces can ensure security. Good governance and winning the ‘hearts and minds’ of the local population warrants stability.
Gujarat Grabs United Nations Public Service Award
Gujarat has done it again. For two consecutive years Gujarat has managed to bag the United Nations Public Service Award. In 2009, Water and Sanitation Management Organization (WASMO) of the State government won the award for fostering participation in policy-making decisions through innovative mechanisms. This year State Wide Attention on Grievances with Application of Technology (SWAGAT) has won the UN Public Service Award in the category improving transparency, accountability and responsiveness in public service. Gujarat is the only State in India to win this award for the second time.
WASMO aims to promote, support and monitor the community participation and community based management in water and sanitation projects in an equitable, sustainable and transparent manner. WASMO trains Pani Samiti members to effectively plan, implement and manage water supply systems, handle their finances, and spread awareness on personal hygiene and sanitation. SWAGAT operates on the principle that grievance redressal is essential for good governance especially to vitalize a democracy. Every month the Chief Minister considers grievance cases through multi-video conferencing with all 26 Districts and all 225 Taluka Offices. SWAGAT is outcome focused and cases are redressed on the same day or in a time-bound manner. This is the first time that the common citizen can access the highest level office with other officers present in real-time through video-conferencing.
Will such recognitions help to re-define the image of Gujarat and Chief Minister Narendra Modi in the backdrop of the 2002 violence? The Congress expressed displeasure when Amitabh Bachchan appeared as the brand ambassador for the Gujarat Tourism Industry. Will everything related to Narendra’s Modi’s Government in Gujarat continue to be viewed with contempt? What happened in Gujarat in 2002 needs to be condemned but for how long will 2002 continue to cast a shadow on the present and future of Gujarat? It’s sad that in a country with a dismal record of public service the achievements of Gujarat are not being duly celebrated.
What Determines Our Standard of Living?
My family from India recently visited me in the U.S. I was excited to show them around the beautiful beaches of Northern California, my adopted home for the past few years. Parents of young Indians exhibit a great sense of pride when their children migrate to the more developed countries, especially the U.S. A sense of delight characterizes their conversations about how their sons or daughters were enjoying a higher standard of living in the most developed country of the world. The lovely weather, wide freeways, smooth traffic, the combination of clam chowder at Fisherman’s Warf with the greasy Indian food at Naan and Curry, cherry picking at Brentwood Farms, the game of Black Jack at MGM Grand in Vegas, breath taking shows at Universal Studios and sprawling Berkeley campus, I thought these would be enough to reinforce their sense of pride. However, the reaction was much contradictory to what I had expected; reaction which reflected the widely dominant social perceptions of a majority of Indians.
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Twitter in India
As I watched We the People on NDTV last weekend I began to wonder how India was redefining Mahatma Gandhi’s slogan of ‘Swadeshi’. The topic of discussion was “Is Twitter here to stay”. For the sake of contextualization, this particular episode was titled “We the Tweeple”. Having a sense of Indian mainstream media’s dislike for social media, I was not expecting the discussion to be very supportive of this micro-blogging trend. As expected, two themes dominated the discussion: 1) social media sites like Twitter can’t substitute mainstream media; 2) internet facilitated communication in India was largely elitist.
ISI and Afghan Insurgency: Implications for India-Pakistan Relations
Matt Waldman in a recently released Paper, “The Sun is in the Sky: The relationship between Pakistan’s ISI and Afghan Insurgents”, explores the extent of the ISI’s links and support to the problem of Afghan insurgency. Though Matt accepts that hosts of endogenous factors responsible for the emergence and sustenance of the Taliban, his interviews with insurgent field commanders in and around Kabul and Kandhar provide him with evidence to claim that the ISI orchestrates, sustains and strongly influences the movement. The research concentrates on two principal groups: the core Taliban movement lead by Mullah Omar and the Haqqani network, led by Jalaluddin Haqqani. The Paper provides elaborate details of how the strategy, funding and operations of the two groups are dominated by ISI’s priorities and interests.In Matt’s analysis Pakistan’s support for the afghan insurgency can be checked by ensuring better relations between India and Pakistan.