Open Forum

An Impact and Policy Research Institute (IMPRI), New Delhi, note, prepared by Dr Simi Mehta and Ritika Gupta, on environmentalist Leo Saldanha’s insistence at a webinar on the need for governments to be in a state of ‘ever-readiness’ to deal with pandemics: *** Unabashed assaults by human beings on the natural ecological system have caused the virus to spread in the first place. While finding a definite cure to contain the virus, any complacency towards the environment would make the human lives more unsustainable on planet earth, said Dr Simi Mehta while hosting an IMPRI #WebPolicyTalk on the State of Environment, #PlanetTalks on Vulnerabilities of Indian Governance in handling the climate crisis amid COVID-19 and recession organized by Center for Environment, Climate Change and Sustainable Development at IMPRI on September 25, 2020. Reminiscing the loss of many notable personalities such as singer S B Subramanyam due to COVID-19 pandemic, Mr Leo Saldanha stated that lives have become

In his paper, "Philosophy’s systemic racism", Avram Alpert, lecturer in the Princeton Writing Program, controversially argues that it’s not just that Hegel and Rousseau were racists; racism was in fact baked into the very structure of their dialectical philosophy. Alpert has authored "Global Origins of the Modern Self, from Montaigne to Suzuki" (2019) and "A Partial Enlightenment: What Modern Literature". His book "Buddhism Can Teach Us About Living Well without Perfection" is expected to be published soon. The paper has been published by Aeon as an essay. Reproduced below is Alpert's paper:    *** 

By Martin Macwan*  I landed in Delhi, the night the violence began on February 23, 2020. I could not sleep until early morning, glued to the TV watching the burning and the brickbats. The memories of 1992 communal violence were alive. That year, I had visited Surat with my friends Indukumar Jani, Madhusudan Mistry and deceased Vadilal Kamdar, the ex-mayor of Ahmedabad. We were the rare beings trying to alight from the train with utmost difficulty on Surat railway station as thousands were jostling to get in the train and run away from the city. Had not we as citizens loved the communal violence, it would not be reengineered every ten years. What can we do? All our constitutionally created institutions are silent. The only hope is enhancing education, off the school curriculum. Hence, this idea of working with the children to creatively deal with communal violence. After all, the children of today will be the youth of tomorrow. Hope you like this three and a half minute video by Navsarj

Reproduced below is a detailed dossier, running into five parts, on RSS, which  its author claims is solely based on the saffron organization's archives. Unpublished, it is penned by former Delhi University professor Shamsul Islam , who says, he has written it for the “benefit of civil society, political parties, intellectuals, and all those who are concerned about the rise of the terrorist/fascist organizations":  *** 

Well-known environmentalist and scholar Dr Vandana Shiva's  unpublished briefing paper “Protecting the Rights of Small Farmers (our anna datas), the Right to Food of All Citizens to Create a Food Sovereign, Food Self-Reliant India (Atmanirbhar Bharat)” analyses the potential impact of the dismantling of India’s food sovereignty and food security regulatory and legal infrastructure framework through three food and farming Bills, passed in Parliament.  Here is the paper, which was distributed by JanVikalp for general interest in the subject:  *** 

By Anjan Pradhan* As part of COVID elevation measure, a meagre amount of 1 kg of chana dal has been provided to BPL/PDS beneficiaries every month and the state government is planning to stop its allocation from November. As it has been a key arsenal in rural Odisha’s pandemic fight and will be crucial to address malnutrition in the long run, civil society groups have urged the Odisha government to continue the supply of one kg of dal, free of cost for at least 12 months and provide an additional quantity of 2 kgs dal per family at Rs. 10/-kg and add 1 kg of cooking oil @10/- per litre and 1 kg of Iodized Salt at free of cost to keep hunger and malnutrition at bay. Following COVID-19 lockdown, people witnessed a spill in prices compared to 2019 and high prices of pulses may affect nutrition security, claim NGO Atmashakti Trust and its allies Odisha Shramajeebee Mancha and Mahila Shramajeebee Mancha, according to a study they had recently conducted to know the consumption practices of Da

By Venkatesh Nayak* I am sharing with you a copy of the representation I have recently submitted along with renowned academic and public intellectual – Prof. Jagdeep Chhokar, to The Secretary, Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India with cc to The Secretary, Ministry of Corporate Affairs, Government of India, urging the initiation of appropriate action against M/s. Sudarshan TV Channel (UIN: U92112PN2003PTC018392) under the Companies Act, 2013 (click HERE to see the representation). You may recall, in its order dated 15th September, 2020, in the matter of Firoz Iqbal v. Union of India, Writ Petition (Civil) No. 856/2020, the Hon’ble Supreme Court of India found the contents of the programme Bindaas Bol telecast between the 11th and the14th of September, 2020 by Sudarshan TV Channel, objectionable. The Court reasoned that the publication of patently false information in the guise of news coupled with a deliberate design to persecute a minority which is constitutionally entitled t

RB Sreekumar , former DGP, Gujarat,  reviews the book “Homo Deus – A Brief History of Tomorrow” (2015), authored by Prof Yuval Noah Harari, published by Harper Collins: *** Reputed historian Arnold Joseph Toynbee authored “The Study of History” analysing the causative factors behind rise and fall of civilisations for formulating ‘lessons of history’. Later futurologist Alvin Toffler wrote 3 books narrating the impact of science and technology on all facets of human activity. These are, “Third Wave”, “Future Shock” and “Power Shift”.  Latest in the futurological analysis is from historian Prof Yuval Noah Harari of Jewish origin who is not bound by any ideology and system of philosophy of ethnic, religious and political attachments. The books are: “Sapiens - A Brief History of Human Kind”( (2011) “Homo Deus - A Brief History of Tomorrow” (2015, Pages 448) and “21 lessons for the 21st century” (2018). "Homo Deus" published by Harper Collins makes prognostic observations about t

Voluntary Action Network India (VANI) statement requesting to refer FCRA bill, 2020 to a Select/Standing Committee of the Parliament : Voluntary Action Network India (VANI) being an apex body/national association of Indian voluntary development organizations strongly feels that the FCRA bill, 2020 will be a death blow to the development relief, scientific research and community support work of the NGO community as it prohibits collaboration with other Indian organizations. At a time like this, when India is battling a deadly disease, with so much at stake and collaborations internationally that are to be encouraged, this would be a model of control, over and above the rules, regulations and certification processes, that stifles this important sector. The new FCRA Bill throttles the spirit of cooperation that had been ushered in earlier this year by the positive role played by development organizations in mitigating the lockdown and COVID-19 pandemic by virtually making it impossible fo

Constance Galeo Mogale, an experienced South African land activist who has played leading roles in several campaigns and initiative, in conversation with Vidya Bhushan Rawat , on various issues of land rights, gender issues and racism and why she feels so much about them: *** 

Reproduced below is the paper “Thinking with Gandhi on racism and violence: A letter to a friend”, by Ajay Skaria , Professor of History and Global Studies at the University of Minnesota, author of “Unconditional Equality: Gandhi’s Religion of Resistance” and “Hybrid Histories: Forests, Frontiers, and Wildness in Western India”, currently working on a book, “What is Democratic Secularism?”. 

By Moin Qazi* Book Review: “Oral History of Indian Freedom Movement”, by Dr Licy Bharucha; Pp240; Rs 300; Published by National Museum of Indian Freedom Movement The Congress has won political freedom, but it has yet to win economic freedom, social and moral freedom. These freedoms are harder than the political, if only because they are constructive, less exciting and not spectacular. — Mahatma Gandhi The opening quote of the book by Mahatma Gandhi sums up the true objective of India’s freedom struggle. It also in essence speaks for the multitudes of brave and courageous individuals who aspired to get themselves jailed for the cause of the country’s freedom. A jail term was a strong testimony and credential of patriotism for them. The book has been written by Dr Licy Bharucha, an academically trained political scientist and a scholar of peace studies and Gandhian studies, who was closely associated throughout her life with those who made the struggle for India’s independence the primar

Human rights on peace activist/writer   Fr Cedric Prakash SJ says bhakts of the Sangh Parivar are doing just what the Swami Vivekananda hasd condemned: *** The past couple of weeks, particularly these first days of September, have been a defining period in the history of India. It is no longer about the ‘writing is on the wall’; it is much beyond, not any more a reality show, but reality itself! It is about THE WALL which divides, denigrates, demonises and decimates. About a regime which has become completely insensitive to the cries of millions of people, which just does not care!! In the garb of ‘democracy’, it is hard-core fascism! There is however, a silver lining with more and more coming out (at least virtually in this time of the pandemic), becoming much more visible and vocal, and saying in one loud voice, “We must arise!”  The eleventh of September was a day of great significance: Several anniversaries on one day! In 1893, Swami Vivekananda gave his famous speech at the Worl

Pramod Ranjan*  nexus between the success of the monopolistic policies of these mega-corporations and the growing autocracy of the governments: *** The coronavirus-induced lockdown hasn’t just eroded our physical liberty; it has also eroded our intellectual freedom. Our freedom to think has been put under lock and key. Clearly, we are on the threshold of a dangerous phase. Which way we go from here will depend on how soon and how well we gauge the danger and start exploring the ways to counter it. The success or failure of our endeavour will depend on how much time we take to raise questions on the so-called ‘pure sciences’ and experts. We will have to tell the people that the objectivity of science, experts etc. is not beyond reproach. Here, ‘we’ means academicians, writers, journalists and other intellectuals. This is not an easy job for us as we have benefitted from our so-called ‘expertise’ in our respective fields and have, time and again, used it as a weapon to silence the doubte