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Showing posts from February, 2015

Email policy makes no reference to its application on ministers, MPs, top judges

By Venkatesh Nayak* The Government of India has notified its new Email Policy. A former ideologue of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), KN Govindacharya had a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) suit against the Government about the use of foreign-based internet services for official purposes. He had objected to the use of social media outlets and web-based email service providers for official purposes (click HERE to read). Although the PIL itself has not been disposed of, the Government appears to have acted on the plaint. The new Email Policy was notified on February 19, 2015. It is applicable currently to public servants under the Government of India, and those states and Union Territories that use the email services of the Government of India. Under the new Email Policy civil servants working in India are ordinarily required to use the email service provided by the Government’s National Informatics Centre (NIC). The only exceptions are made for those agencies which have established

Wisdom of the illiterate: Working with Dalits keeping in view community interests

By Gagan Sethi* Is there a place for city-bred architects and planners in rural housing? Both poor and rich in villages have been building houses for centuries in accordance with their needs. Obviously, if these city-bred experts chip in for such projects like Indira (IAY), there would be issues. The year was 1988. As many as 108 houses were to be built for the Dalits who had faced the wrath of the dominant caste Darbars in Golana in Kheda district two years earlier. Four Dalits were gunned down because they had demanded the land that was meant for them but was encroached upon by the Darbars. As social workers, we were worried about the type of houses these Dalits would be given. It was a “mega project”. But to Golana’s Dalit Vankars, for whom the project was meant, it wasn’t a big deal. They seemed to know the type of houses they should have. They told us, they could illiterate, but they knew what they wanted– “ame bhanela nathi pan abhyas karelun che”, they would tell us confidently

New book on Narmada is quiet on reports to decommand 4 lakh hectares

By Rajiv Shah In sharp contrast to several water resources experts, such as Dr Tushaar Shah, who have long held that increase in groundwater levels witnessed in some parts of Gujarat has been caused by tens of thousands of checkdams built in the late 1990s, a just-published book, “The Sardar Sarovar Project: Assessing Economic and Social Impacts”, authored by an ex-bureaucrat and a senior expert, have insisted that this has taken place because of the availability of the Sardar Sarovar-supported canal network. The book has been coauthored by S Jagadeesan, who was managing-director of the Sardar Sarovar Narmada Nigam Ltd (SSNNL) till about two years ago, and M Dinesh Kumar, executive director, Institute for Resource Analysis and Policy (IRAP), Hyderabad. In a paper Dr Shah wrote in association with Ashok Gulati, Hemant P, Ganga Shreedhar, and RC Jain, “Secret of Gujarat’s Agrarian Miracle after 2000” (“Economic and Political Weekly”, December 26, 2009), the senior experts had stated, “S

Trauma: Can it be compensated? Aftermath of the Golana massacre of Jan 26, 1986

By Gagan Sethi*  The aftermath of the Golana massacre of January 26, 1986 gave a fillip to the Dalit movement in Gujarat. Golana had already become a pilgrimage site, especially for the Dalits who would visit the Samadhi, set up by us to commemorate the death of our colleagues. Meanwhile, the Gujarat government had begun distributing compensation to those whose houses were burnt, or were partially destroyed, and also to those who were injured. The year was 1987. Things began becoming piquant. While the whole community had suffered the trauma, the compensation was being paid just for physical damage. We found that some members of the Dalit community became extremely angry, even jealous. Some even aired the view that they had unnecessarily invited the ire of the upper caste Darbars, who were actually their benefactors. The Darbar landlords had stopped calling them to work on agricultural fields. And, the moneylenders wouldn’t give them loan. Things reached such a point that two youngster

LoP in Delhi assembly: AAP must act in a non-partisan manner, facilitate BJP

By Venkatesh Nayak* The opinion of the voters in Delhi is now crystal clear. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) – the newest political party on the block – has captured 95% of the seats in the Delhi Vidhan Sabha. In the newly-elected legislature there will be only 3 non-AAP MLAs. All three belong to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) which incidentally is the majority party in the Lok Sabha in Parliament. Upon the constitution and swearing-in of all MLAs in the Vidhan Sabha, a question that has arisen for the second time in less than 12 months — “Who will be the Leader of the Opposition (LoP)?” This question arose last May after the Indian National Congress (INC) became single largest party in opposition in the Lok Sabha with only 44 seats. I commented on this issue in response to queries raised by readers about the fate of various selection committees that shortlist candidates for appointment of statutory authorities such as the Director, Central Bureau of Investigation, the Chairperson and Mem

Indian judiciary has failed poor, marginalised, other sub-altern groups

Participants at the convention By Fr Cedric Prakash* Ahmedabad witnessed a unique event on February 7 and 8, 2015, as a two-day State Level Convention brought together more than 500 women and men from all over Gujarat. They were local leaders; mainly adivasis, Dalits and other backward communities (OBCs). They had come together to highlight their many grievances, to increase their bonding and in solidarity to say to those who attempt to control their lives and destinies, that they can no longer be taken for granted. The theme of the Convention was Chaalo Lokshahi melaviye (Come let us ensure People’s Rule: Democracy). In his inaugural address to the Convention, Fr Francis Parmar, the Provincial of the Gujarat Jesuits, emphasised that the four pillars of justice, liberty, fraternity and equality should never be compromised. He called upon the people to be united so that they can achieve their goals; to be truly effective, he asserted, one needs to have the commitment to struggle to th

Varsity authorities in Vadodara destroying environment, dumping waste

Dump near the History Department Senior environmentalist, Rohit Prajapati of the Paryavaran Suraksha Samiti, Vadodara, has sent a notice to the Vice-Chancellor and the Registrar of the MS University, Vadodara, to stop illegal dumping of the Bhookhee Nala, which is a major tributary of the Vishwamitri river, running through the cultural capital of Gujarat. A copy of the notice has been sent to the municipal commissioner, Vadodara, the district collector, and the member-secretary, Gujarat Pollution Control Board (GPCB). Text of the notice: Bhookhee Nala, an important tributary of the Vishwamitri River, traverses from its origin in Chhani till it meets the Vishwamitri River in Sayaji Baug. On its route, both or one of its banks touches the MS University campus. In fact, the Bhookhee Nala and its environs are being abused and neglected almost throughout its length by the by Vadodara Municipal Seva Sadan as also the MS University. Since 2004, we have been photographing the Bhookhee Nala