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Showing posts from October, 2016

Need to learn from Sardar Patel what unity, integration, service is all about!

By Fr Cedric Prakash sj* Come October 31st 2016: India remembers Sardar Vallabhai Patel who was born on this day in 1875 in Gujarat; he was more famously called ‘the Iron Man of India’. As free India’s first Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister, he worked tirelessly for national integration, fully convinced that groups like the RSS (whom he banned) were doing their best to destroy the unity and secular fabric of the country. Unfortunately, today the ‘powers-that-are’ are doing great disservice to this visionary statesman and of all the values he embodied, by attempting to construct a so-called ‘statue of unity’ (at a scandalous cost and great profits for China), by displacing the poor tribals and destroying the environment and the fragile eco-system. We need to learn from Sardar Patel what unity, integration and service to the country is all about! Come October 31st 2016: On this day, Indira Gandhi, the Prime Minister of India was assassinated in 1984; this heinous deed was condemne

Need for informed debate cross on accession of J&K to India

By Venkatesh Nayak* 26-27 October, 2016 mark the commencement of the 70th anniversary of the accession of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) to India. On account of the troubled times that J&K is passing through since July, there is little space for celebrating this event, but a sober commemoration of this historic moment, may not be out of place. The Instrument of Accession (IoA) signed by Maharaja Hari Singh has become the object of a never-ending controversy, unlike accession instruments signed by other princely States. Does it really exist or not? Yes, the J&K IoA exists for real, safe and well preserved in the collection of the National Archives. I have elected to place in the public domain, a copy of the J&K IoA obtained legitimately from the National Archives, for the purpose of facilitating informed debate amongst those interested in the subject. I have also placed in the public domain copies of the IoAs of Mysore, Manipur, Tehri Garhwal and Udaipur obtained from the Natio

Develop mechanism to assess damage caused by environmental pollution, degradation

In a letter addressed to Justice HL Dattu, National Human Rights Commission, New Delhi, Paryavaran Mitra’s Mahesh Pandya insists on the need on the need to develop a mechanism to assess damage caused to people due to environmental pollution and degradation by industries, causing health hazards and provide compensation to the affected people. The letter has been co-signed by People’s Union for Civil Liberties’ (PUCL’s) Gautam Thaker. Text: *** We are Gujarat-based voluntary organization working in the field of environment and industrial pollution issues. Our main focus is on ecological/environmental imbalance due to developmental projects, social injustice, human rights violations, and tries to resolve these issues. We would like to draw your attention towards the status of Gujarat in terms of environment. CAG (Comptroller and Auditor General of India), in its report submitted in 2015 as well as 2011 regarding Gujarat’s status of CETP (Common Effluent Treatment Plant) has stated that “N

Murder of RTI user in Mumbai: Urgent need for debate to protect RTI activists

By Venkatesh Nayak* A few days ago, the media reported yet another gruesome instance of murder of an RTI user in Mumbai. The Mumbai Police are said to have arrested two suspects , including an ex-Corporator, during their investigation of this incident. Scores of RTI users have lost their lives for seeking information of public interest. Hundreds have been attacked, assaulted, harassed and threatened. Not all of them were seasoned RTI activists. Some were seeking information for the first time. So we have categorised them all as RTI users (to differentiate them from other information seekers in general) who have suffered at the hands of vested interests. Our preliminary findings are given below. Hall of Shame: Main findings In a country where the national motto is “satyameva jayate” (truth alone shall triumph), we have found media reports of more than 311 instances of attacks on or harassment of citizens who sought information under The Right to Information Act (RTI Act). Our database

Ministries, departments refusing to disclose monthly performance reports

By Venkatesh Nayak* India’s Right to Information Act turns 12 today (12th October). This is an appropriate moment to test compliance with a June 2016 directive of the Cabinet Secretariat requiring all Ministries and Departments of the Central Government to publish their performance reports on their official website, every month. Our quick survey of the official websites shows, more than 92% of the Central Ministries and more than 82% of the Central Departments have not displayed their monthly performance reports as required by this directive. Background to the Cabinet Secretariat’s transparency directive Under Rule 10 of the Rules of Procedure in Regard to Proceedings of the Cabinet, 1987 , every ministry and department is required to send a report of the work done every month, to the Council of Ministers. These reports are required to be submitted through the Cabinet Secretariat by the 10th of the next month. Such a monthly report may have a classified portion (labelled “top secret”

Eight Days and Eight Ways to help make our world a better place

By Fr Cedric Prakash sj* Whew! The first eight days of October 2016, have come and gone! And what a week it was! There were several events, observances, festivals, happenings, meetings at every possible level; it was a week of terrible violence, of inhuman acts; it was pain and suffering for millions the world over, caused by tragedies both man-made and so-called ‘nature’-made. Yet it was a week of hope, of new initiatives, greater commitments. As one looks back these eight days, one can sync the week into eight key – words which are not only rich in meaning but also provide a direction for us today. Family At the heart of every society is family. Today the family as an institution and the values that were sacrosanct in every family, are literally under siege. Pope Francis reminded the world of this during his visit to Georgia. Another wave of migrants drowned in the high seas, in their attempt to flee war and persecution. Families torn asunder for no fault of their own. ‘Ageism’, is g

Need to bring about uniformity in manner of reporting RTI statistics across India

By Venkatesh Nayak* India’s Right to Information Act (RTI Act) will enter the 12th year of implementation on the 12th of October, this year. Information Commissions established under this law have an obligation to report on the manner of implementation of the law to the respective legislatures. Not all Information Commissions come out with their Annual Reports in a timely manner. A major reason for the delays in the preparation of the annual reports is lack of inputs from the public authorities through their parent ministries and departments. Although the Information Commissions are known to press upon the respective Governments to fulfill their reporting obligations, compliance is poor. This year too, CHRI finds that there are only a handful of annual reports published for the latest year due. As a result, it is difficult to answer the most basic question – how many RTI applications are received from citizens all over the country in a given year. Similarly there is no clarity about th

International Day of Non-Violence: Contain arms and ammunition industry

By Fr Cedric Prakash sj* The famed Swedish sculptor Carl Frederik Reutersward (who died in May this year) has made one of the most powerful symbols of ‘Non-Violence’. It’s a large replica in bronze of a .45 calibre revolver with a twisted barrel (also known as the knotted gun) to symbolize peace and non-violence. In 1988, it was gifted by the Government of Luxembourg to the United Nations and it stands today at the UN Headquarters in New York. October 2nd, is here once again! It is the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi (born in 1869) and since 2007 the day has also been designated by the United Nations as the International Day of Non-Violence. Gandhi, led India to freedom in 1947 but he also pioneered the philosophy and strategy of non-violence. He propagated the twin doctrine of ‘ahimsa’(non-violence) and ‘satyagraha’ (the force of truth). Unfortunately, Gandhi was killed for the very causes he so fervently espoused; on January 30th 1948, he was assassinated by a right –wing fanat