आदिवासी अस्मिता और साहित्य

आदिवासी अस्मिता और साहित्य

Thursday, 07 February 2013 10:57 http://www.jansatta.com/index.php/component/content/article/20-2009-09-11-07-46-16/38367-2013-02-07-05-28-28

गंगा सहाय मीणा  जनसत्ता 7 फरवरी, 2013: इस बार दिल्ली में आयोजित विश्व पुस्तक मेले का केंद्रीय विषय है: 'देशज आवाजें- भारत के लोक और आदिवासी साहित्य का मानचित्रण और प्रकाशन'। लिहाजा, आदिवासी साहित्य की दशा-दिशा पर विचार करने का यह उपयुक्त अवसर है। यह भारतीय समाज, राजनीति और साहित्य में उत्पीड़ित अस्मिताओं के मुक्तिकामी संघर्षों का दौर है। बीसवीं सदी के आखिरी दशकों में भारत में नए सामाजिक आंदोलनों का उभार हुआ। स्त्रियों, किसानों, दलितों, आदिवासियों और जातीयताओं की 'नई' एकजुटता ने ऐसी मांगें और मुद्दे उठाए जो स्थापित सैद्घांतिक और राजनीतिक मुहावरों के माध्यम से आसानी से समझे और सुलझाए नहीं जा सकते थे। इन समूहों ने अपने शोषण के लिए अपनी खास अस्मिता को कारण बताया और उस शोषण और भेदभाव के खिलाफ संघर्ष के लिए उस संबंधित अस्मिता वाले समुदाय को साथ लेकर अपनी मुक्ति के लिए सामूहिक अभियान चलाया। चूंकि इस प्रक्रिया में शोषण और संघर्ष का आधार सामुदायिक पहचान है, इसलिए इसे अस्मितावाद की संज्ञा दी गई। वंचितों के शोषण के खिलाफ खड़ी हुई मुहिम में सामाजिक-राजनीतिक आंदोलन के अलावा साहित्यिक आंदोलन ने भी बढ़-चढ़ कर हिस्सा लिया है। स्त्रीवादी साहित्य और दलित साहित्य उसी का प्रतिफल है। अब आदिवासी चेतना से लैस साहित्य भी साहित्य और आलोचना की दुनिया में अपनी उपस्थिति दर्ज करा चुका है। आदिवासी लोक में साहित्य सहित विविध कला-माध्यमों का विकास तथाकथित मुख्यधारा से पहले हो चुका था, लेकिन वहां साहित्य सृजन की परंपरा मूलत: मौखिक रही। जंगलों में खदेड़ दिए जाने के बाद भी आदिवासी समाज ने इस परंपरा को अनवरत जारी रखा। ठेठ जनभाषा में होने और सत्ता प्रतिष्ठानों से दूरी की वजह से यह साहित्य आदिवासी समाज की ही तरह उपेक्षा का शिकार हुआ। आज भी सैकड़ों देशज भाषाओं में आदिवासी साहित्य रचा जा रहा है, जिसमें से अधिकांश से हमारा संवाद कायम होना अभी शेष है। मुक्त व्यापार और मुक्त बाजार के नाम पर मुनाफे और लूट का खेल आदिवासियों के जल, जंगल और जमीन हथियाने से भी आगे जाकर उनके जीवन को दांव पर लगा कर खेला जा रहा है। आंकड़े बताते हैं कि पिछले एक दशक में अकेले झारखंड राज्य में दस लाख से अधिक आदिवासी विस्थापित हुएहैं। इनमें से अधिकतर लोग दिल्ली जैसे महानगरों में घरेलू नौकर या दिहाड़ी पर काम करते हैं। विडंबना यह है कि सरकार के अनुसार राष्ट्रीय राजधानी क्षेत्र में मूलत: कोई आदिवासी नहीं है, इसलिए यहां की शिक्षण संस्थाओं और नौकरियों में आदिवासियों के लिए आरक्षण या कोई विशेष प्रावधान नहीं है। विकास के नाम पर अपने पुश्तैनी क्षेत्रों से बेदखल किए गए ये लोग जाएं तो कहां जाएं?  सरकार के पास इनके पुनर्वास की कोई योजना नहीं है। अपने जल-जंगल-जमीन से बेदखल महानगरों में शोषित-उपेक्षित आदिवासी किस आधार पर इसे अपना देश कहें? बाजार और सत्ता के गठजोड़ ने आदिवासियों के सामने अस्तित्व की चुनौती खड़ी कर दी है। जो लोग आदिवासी इलाकों में बच गए, वे सरकार और उग्र वामपंथ की दोहरी हिंसा में फंसे हैं। अन्यत्र बसे आदिवासियों की स्थिति बिना जड़ के पेड़ जैसी हो गई है। नदियों, पहाड़ों, जंगलों, आदिवासी पड़ोस के बिना उनकी भाषा और संस्कृति, और उससे निर्मित होने वाली पहचान ही कहीं खोती जा रही है। आदिवासी अस्मिता और अस्तित्व के लिए इतना गहरा संकट इससे पहले नहीं पैदा हुआ। जब सवाल अस्तित्व का हो तो प्रतिरोध भी स्वाभाविक है। सामाजिक और राजनीतिक प्रतिरोध के अलावा कला और साहित्य के द्वारा भी प्रतिकार की आवाजें उठीं, और वही समकालीन आदिवासी साहित्य का मुख्य स्वर हो गया। जब-जब दिकुओं ने आदिवासी जीवन में अनावश्यक हस्तक्षेप किया, आदिवासियों ने उसका प्रतिरोध किया है। पिछली दो सदियां आदिवासी विद्रोहों की गवाह रही हैं। इन विद्रोहों से रचनात्मक ऊर्जा भी निकली, लेकिन वह मौखिक ही अधिक रही। संचार माध्यमों के अभाव में वह राष्टÑीय रूप नहीं धारण कर सकी। समय-समय पर गैर-आदिवासी रचनाकारों ने भी आदिवासी जीवन और समाज को अभिव्यक्त किया। साहित्य में आदिवासी जीवन की प्रस्तुति की इस पूरी परंपरा को हम समकालीन आदिवासी साहित्य की पृष्ठभूमि के तौर पर रख सकते हैं।  कोई भी साहित्यिक आंदोलन किसी तिथि विशेष से अचानक शुरू नहीं हो जाता। उसके उद्भव और विकास में तमाम परिस्थितियां अपनी भूमिका निभाती हैं। समकालीन आदिवासी लेखन और विमर्श की शुरुआत हमें 1991 के बाद से माननी चाहिए। नई आर्थिक नीतियों ने आदिवासी शोषण-उत्पीड़न की प्रक्रिया तेज की, इसलिए उसका प्रतिरोध भी मुखर हुआ। प्रतिरोध का स्वरूप राष्टÑीय था, इसलिए प्रतिरोध से निकली रचनात्मक ऊर्जा देश भर में फूटी। इसमें आदिवासी और गैर-आदिवासी रचनाकार, दोनों बढ़-चढ़ कर हिस्सा ले रहे हैं। इस साहित्य का भूगोल, समाज, भाषा, संदर्भ शेष साहित्य से उसी तरह पृथक है जैसे स्वयं आदिवासी समाज, और यही पार्थक्य इसकी मुख्य विशेषता है।  यह आदिवासी साहित्य की अवधारणा के निर्माण का दौर है। आदिवासी साहित्य अस्मिता की खोज, दिकुओं द्वारा किए गए और किए जा रहे शोषण के विभिन्न रूपों के उद्घाटन और आदिवासियों पर मंडराते संकटों और उनके मद््देनजर हो रहे प्रतिरोध का साहित्य है। यह उस परिवर्तनकामी चेतना का रचनात्मक हस्तक्षेप है जो देश के मूल   निवासियों के वंशजों के प्रति किसी भी प्रकार के भेदभाव का पुरजोर विरोध करती है और उनके जल, जंगल, जमीन को बचाने के हक में उनके 'आत्मनिर्णय' के अधिकार के साथ खड़ी होती है।  हालांकि यह समकालीन आदिवासी लेखन और विमर्श का आरंभिक दौर है लेकिन इसके बावजूद यह सुखद है कि इसमें अभी तक 'स्वानुभूति बनाम सहानुभूति' जैसी छद्म बहसें केंद्र से दूर परिधि के इर्दगिर्द ही घूम रही हैं। आखिर स्वानुभूति या अनुभूति की प्रामाणिकता को केंद्रीय महत्त्व मिले भी क्यों? निश्चय ही अनुभूति की प्रामाणिकता की जगह अभिव्यक्ति की प्रामाणिकता अधिक महत्त्वपूर्ण है और होनी भी चाहिए। यह सच है कि लंबे अनुभव, निकट संपर्क और संवेदनशीलता के बिना प्रामाणिक अभिव्यक्ति संभव नहीं है, खासकर आदिवासी संदर्भ में, लेकिन इसके बावजूद स्वानुभूति को एकमात्र आधार नहीं बनाया जा सकता। आदिवासी साहित्य विमर्श के मुद्दे अभी आकार ले रहे हैं। 'आदिवासी कौन है' से शुरू होकर आदिवासी समाज, इतिहास, संस्कृति, भाषा आदि पर पिछले एक दशक में कुछ बातें हुई हैं। हर साहित्यिक आंदोलन की शुरुआत और उसे आगे बढ़ाने में पत्रिकाओं की अहम भूमिका होती है। आदिवासी मुद्दों को उठाने, उनसे जुड़े सृजनात्मक साहित्य को प्रोत्साहन देने में इन पत्रिकाओं ने अहम योगदान दिया है- 'युद्घरत आम आदमी' (दिल्ली, हजारीबाग; संपादक रमणिका गुप्ता), 'अरावली उद्घोष' (उदयपुर, सं. बीपी वर्मा 'पथिक'), 'झारखंडी भाषा साहित्य, संस्कृति अखड़ा' (रांची, सं.वंदना टेटे), 'आदिवासी सत्ता' (दुर्ग, छत्तीसगढ़; सं. केआर शाह) आदि।  इनके अलावा 'तरंग भारती' के माध्यम से पुष्पा टेटे, 'देशज स्वर' के माध्यम से सुनील मिंज और सांध्य दैनिक 'झारखंड न्यू्ज लाइन' के माध्यम से शिशिर टुडु आदिवासी विमर्श को बढ़ाने में लगे हैं। बड़ी संख्या में मुख्यधारा की पत्रिकाओं ने आदिवासी विशेषांक निकाल कर आदिवासी विमर्श को आगे बढ़ाने में मदद की है, जैसे- 'समकालीन जनमत' (2003), 'दस्तक' (2004), 'कथाक्रम'(2012), 'इस्पातिका' (2012) आदि। शुरू में हिंदी की प्रमुख पत्रिकाओं ने आदिवासी मुद्दों को छापने में उतनी रुचि नहीं दिखाई लेकिन अब विमर्श की बढ़ती स्वीकारोक्ति के साथ ही इन पत्रिकाओं में आदिवासी जीवन को जगह मिलने लगी है। छोटी पत्रिकाओं में आदिवासी लेखकों को पर्याप्त जगह मिल रही है। समृद्घ मौखिक साहित्य परंपरा का लाभ आदिवासी रचनाकारों को मिला है। आदिवासी साहित्य की उस तरह कोई केंद्रीय विधा नहीं है, जिस तरह स्त्री लेखन और दलित साहित्य की आत्मकथात्मक लेखन की है। कविता, कहानी, उपन्यास, नाटक, सभी प्रमुख विधाओं में आदिवासी और गैर-आदिवासी रचनाकारों ने आदिवासी जीवन समाज की प्रस्तुति की है। आदिवासी रचनाकारों ने आदिवासी अस्मिता और अस्तित्व के संघर्ष में कविता को अपना मुख्य हथियार बनाया है। आदिवासी लेखन में आत्मकथात्मक लेखन केंद्रीय स्थान नहीं बना सका, क्योंकि स्वयं आदिवासी समाज 'आत्म' से अधिक समूह में विश्वास करता है। अधिकतर आदिवासी समुदायों में काफी बाद तक भी निजी और निजता की धारणाएं घर नहीं कर पार्इं। परंपरा, संस्कृति, इतिहास से लेकर शोषण और उसका प्रतिरोध- सबकुछ सामूहिक है। समूह की बात आत्मकथा में नहीं, जनकविता में ज्यादा अच्छे से व्यक्त हो सकती है।  आदिवासी साहित्य में आर्इं आदिवासियों की समस्याओं को मोटे तौर पर दो भागों में बांटा जा सकता है- उपनिवेश काल में साम्राज्यवाद और सामंतवाद के गठजोड़ से पैदा हुई समस्याएं, और दूसरे, आजादी के बाद शासन की जनविरोधी नीतियों और उदारवाद के बाद की समस्याएं। आदिवासी कलम तेजी से अपने प्रभाव क्षेत्र का विस्तार कर रही है। आजादी से पहले आदिवासियों की मूल समस्याएं वनोपज पर प्रतिबंध, तरह-तरह के लगान, महाजनी शोषण, पुलिस-प्रशासन की ज्यादतियां आदि हैं, जबकि आजादी के बाद भारत सरकार द्वारा अपनाए गए विकास के मॉडल ने आदिवासियों से उनके जल, जंगल और जमीन छीन कर उन्हें बेदखल कर दिया। विस्थापन उनके जीवन की मुख्य समस्या बन गई। इस प्रक्रिया में एक ओर उनकी सांस्कृतिक पहचान उनसे छूट रही है, दूसरी ओर उनके अस्तित्व की रक्षा का प्रश्न खड़ा हो गया है। अगर वे पहचान बचाते हैं तो अस्तित्व पर संकट खड़ा होता है और अगर अस्तित्व बचाते हैं तो सांस्कृतिक पहचान नष्ट होती है, इसलिए आज का आदिवासी विमर्श अस्तित्व और अस्मिता का विमर्श है।  दलित और स्त्री साहित्य से भिन्न आदिवासी साहित्य की एक प्रमुख प्रवृत्ति इसमें अन्य उत्पीड़ित अस्मिताओं के प्रति सहयोगी भाव है। स्त्रीवादी साहित्य ने जाति के प्रश्न को नहीं समझा और दलित साहित्य ने स्त्री के सवालों को तरजीह नहीं दी, जिसके फलस्वरूप 'दलित स्त्री विमर्श' अस्तित्व में आया। चूंकि आदिवासी समाज में श्रम में भागीदारी के कारण स्त्री अपेक्षया बेहतर स्थिति में रही है, इसलिए साहित्य में भी बड़ी संख्या में स्त्री रचनाकारों ने अपनी उपस्थिति दर्ज कराई है। उनके और अन्य रचनाकारों के माध्यम से आदिवासी साहित्य में स्त्री के सवालों को पर्याप्त जगह मिल रही है। आदिवासी साहित्य अपने दायरे में अन्य उत्पीड़ित अस्मिताओं के प्रति संवेदनशील है। चूंकि आदिवासी साहित्य अपनी रचनात्मक ऊर्जा आदिवासी विद्रोहों की परंपरा से लेता है, इसलिए उन आंदोलनों की भाषा और भूगोल भी महत्त्वपूर्ण रहा है। हिंदी अधिकांश आदिवासियों की भाषा नहीं है। मुंडारी, संथाली, हो, भीलोरी, ओड़िया, गारो आदि उनकी भाषाएं हैं। आदिवासी रचनाकारों का   मूल साहित्य उनकी इन्हीं भाषाओं में है। हिंदी में मौजूद साहित्य देशज भाषाओं में उपस्थित साहित्य की इसी समृद्घ परंपरा से प्रभावित है। कुछ साहित्य का अनुवाद और रूपांतरण भी हुआ है। भारत की तमाम आदिवासी भाषाओं में लिखा जा रहा साहित्य हिंदी, बांग्ला, तमिल जैसी बड़ी भाषाओं में अनूदित और रूपांतरित होकर एक राष्टÑीय स्वरूप ग्रहण कर रहा है।  आदिवासी साहित्य की मूल विशेषता इसका पार्थक्य है, इसलिए इसके मूल्यांकन के लिए एक नए सौंदर्यशास्त्र की आवश्यकता होगी। आदिवासी साहित्य पाठक के अनुभव का विस्तार कर उसे उस भूगोल, समाज और इतिहास में ले जाता है, जिससे अधिकतर पाठक अपरिचित हैं। इसमें आई प्रकृति, परंपरागत प्रकृति चित्रण से भिन्न है। यह आदिवासी जीवन और संस्कृति का मूलाधार है। आदिवासी साहित्य जीवन-जगत के प्रति एक अलग नजरिया पेश करता है, इसलिए इसके मूल्यांकन में सतर्कता बरतनी होगी और साथ ही साथ इसे साहित्य की राजनीति से भी बचाना होगा। आदिवासी साहित्य के प्रति पत्रिकाओं, प्रकाशकों, और सबसे ज्यादा पाठकों का बढ़ता रुझान आशान्वित करता है।

यह प्रजातंत्र किसका है

यह प्रजातंत्र किसका है

http://www.jansatta.com/index.php/component/content/article/20-2009-09-11-07-46-16/38281-2013-02-06-05-15-39

Wednesday, 06 February 2013 10:44

कश्मीर उप्पल  जनसत्ता 6 फरवरी, 2013: अब्राहम लिंकन की प्रजातंत्र की यह परिभाषा बहुत प्रसिद्ध है, जिसमें वे कहते हैं कि 'जनता की सरकार, जनता के द्वारा, जनता के लिए'। हमारे देश में परिवार से राज्य तक, पितृसत्तात्मक सत्ता के फलस्वरूप, प्रजातंत्र की परिभाषा बदल गई है। यह कुछ इस प्रकार है, 'पुरुषों की सरकार, पुरुषों के द्वारा, पुरुषों के लिए'। इस बात को सिद्ध करने के लिए हमें कहीं और नहीं, सीधे अपने संसद भवन में जाने की जरूरत है। एक अंतरराष्ट्रीय संगठन 'इंटर-पार्लियामेंट यूनियन' पूरे विश्व में प्रजातांत्रिक मूल्यों को बढ़ावा देने का काम करता है। इसकी नवीनतमरिपोर्ट के अनुसार, भारत के लोकतंत्र में महिलाओं की भागीदारी अत्यंत दयनीय अवस्था में है। वर्तमान में लोकसभा के 543 सदस्यों में केवल साठ महिला सदस्य हैं, जबकि राज्यसभा के 240 सदस्यों में केवल चौबीस। इसमें दो-चार की कमी-वृद्धि होती रहती है।  इस तरह लोकसभा में महिला प्रतिनिधित्व 11 प्रतिशत और राज्यसभा में 10.7 प्रतिशत है। महिला प्रतिनिधित्व के मामले में विश्व के देशों में भारत का 105वां स्थान है। यही नहीं, इस मामले में भारत अपने पड़ोसी देशों से भी काफी पीछे है। इस सूची में नेपाल तिरपनवें, चीन साठवें और बांग्लादेश पैंसठवें स्थान पर है। 12 सितंबर 1996 को तत्कालीन सरकार द्वारा प्रस्तुत महिला आरक्षण विधेयक अभी संसद में पारित नहीं हो पाया है। मार्च 2010 में यूपीए सरकार ने इस विधेयक को कांग्रेस, भाजपा और वामदलों के समर्थन से राज्यसभा में पास करा लिया था, पर यह लोकसभा में कई दलों कीआपत्तियों के चलते पारित नहीं हो सका। इस विधेयक को ठंडे बस्ते में डालने के साथ ही राजनीतिक विमर्श से महिला आरक्षण के सवाल को गायब कर दिया गया।  हमारे देश के स्वतंत्रता आंदोलन में कस्तूरबा गांधी, अरुणा आसफ अली, कैप्टन लक्ष्मी सहगल, सुचेता कृपलानी, राजकुमारी अमृत कौर आदि ने महिलाओं को गोलबंद करने में बड़ी भूमिका निभाई थी। इसलिए प्रजातांत्रिक मूल्यों की रक्षा के लिए संसद में महिलाओं के प्रतिनिधित्व का प्रश्न महत्त्वपूर्ण हो जाता है। संसद में महिला प्रतिनिधित्व का जो हाल है वैसा ही विधानसभाओं का भी है। जबकि देश के सभी क्षेत्रों में महिलाओं के प्रतिनिधित्व का प्रश्न उनके सशक्तीकरण से जुड़ा हुआ है।  यूरोप और अमेरिका में स्त्रियों को स्वतंत्रता और समता के जो अधिकार मिले हैं वे पिछले दो सौ वर्षों के निरंतर संघर्ष के परिणाम हैं। उस समय के विचारकों, लेखकों और साहित्यकारों ने स्त्री अधिकारों के प्रति समाज को जागृत किया था। अठारहवीं शताब्दी में औद्योगीकरण ने यूरोप की महिलाओं के सामने कई प्रश्न खड़े कर दिए थे। आज भूमंडलीकरण ने पुन: नए प्रश्न पैदा कर दिए हैं। हमारे देश में औद्योगीकरण द्वारा खड़े किए गए प्रश्न अभी हल भी नहीं हुए थे कि भूमडंलीकरण ने महिलाओं पर नए दवाब बना दिए हैं। पश्चिम की तुलना में हमारे देश की महिलाएं दोहरे दवाब का सामना कर रही हैं। औद्योगीकरण और भूमडंलीकरण ने उत्पादन और काम की ऐसी परिस्थितियां पैदा की हैं जो हमारे परंपरागत समाज से भिन्न हैं। भूमडंलीकरण में 'आउटसोर्सिंग' जैसे व्यवसायों ने दिन और रात का भेद खत्म कर दिया है। अब बहुत-सी महिला कर्मचारियों को रात में काम करना होता है। ऐसी स्थिति में पुरुषों का सोच बदलने की जरूरत है।  भारत में कानूनों को कड़ाई से लागू कर कुछ समस्याओं को तो सुलझाया जा सकता है, पर सारी ताकत कानून में निहित नहीं है। इसलिए सामाजिक मोर्चे पर एक लंबी लड़ाई की तैयारी जरूरी है। शिक्षा, पैतृक संपत्ति में अधिकार और अन्य सवाल आगे हैं। हम यूरोप और अमेरिका में कई दशक तक महिलाओं के हक में चले आंदोलनों से सीख सकते हैं कि हमें एक लंबी और अनवरत लड़ाई के लिए किस तरह तैयार होना चाहिए। उन देशों में भी बूर्जुआ और सामंती वर्ग ने स्त्री आंदोलनों को कुचलने के प्रयास किए थे। प्रभावशाली राजनेता भी कुछ नहीं कर पा रहे थे। फ्रांसीसी क्रांति के पूर्व अमेरिकी क्रांति के दौरान जॉर्ज वाशिंगटन और टॉमस जैफरसन पर दवाब पड़ा कि महिलाओं के मताधिकार और संपत्ति के अधिकार को संविधान में शामिल किया जाए। पर बूर्जुआ वर्ग के विरोध के कारण महिला विधेयक को संविधान में शामिल नहीं किया जा सका था। महिला आंदोलन का सबसे महत्त्वपूर्ण दस्तावेज मेरी वोल्सिटनक्राफ्ट का 'महिलाओं के अधिकारों का औचित्य-प्रतिपादन' (1792) सिद्ध हुआ था। इसके बाद की शताब्दी के महिला आंदोलनों की रूपरेखा इसी पुस्तक से बनी थी। फ्रांसीसी क्रांति ने जिस तर्कबुद्धिसंगत समाज-राज्य की कल्पना की थी उसे बड़ी पूंजी और बड़े स्वामित्व ने कुचल दिया था। कई विचारकों ने भी 'नारी शरीर की प्राकृतिक दुर्बलता' को महिलाओं की असमानतापूर्ण स्थिति का कारण सिद्ध करने का प्रयास किया था। उन्नीसवीं शताब्दी में कई लेखकों ने स्त्री अस्मिता के प्रश्न उठाए। प्रसिद्ध लेखक चार्ल्स फूरिए की तो यह मान्यता थी कि किसी भी समाज में आजादी का एक बुनियादी पैमाना यह है कि उस समाज विशेष में स्त्रियां किस हद तक आजाद हैं। 1830 से 1840 के दशक में स्त्रियों की पारिवारिक गुलामी के विरुद्ध विद्रोह का स्वर फ्रांसीसी कथा साहित्य में व्यापक अर्थों में मुखर होकर उठा था। इसके फलस्वरूप स्त्रियों के समान राजनीतिक अधिकारों का संघर्ष नए सिरे से शुरू हो गया। 1848 में न्यूयार्क में विश्व की कई लेखिकाओं और आंदोलनों की पहल पर प्रथम 'नारी अधिकार कांग्रेस' का आयोजन हुआ था। इस   सम्मेलन में नारी स्वतंत्रता का घोषणापत्र जारी किया गया। इसमें महिलाओं को कानूनी समानता, समान शैक्षणिक और व्यावसायिक अवसर, समान वेतन या मजदूरी और मताधिकार की मांग की गई थी। मार्क्स और एंगेल्स ने अपने लेखन से सिद्ध किया कि स्त्रियों और बच्चों की सस्ती श्रमशक्तिकी लूट पंूजीवाद की एक महत्त्वपूर्ण आधारशिला है। उनके अनुसार स्त्रियों की सच्ची मुक्तिकी दिशा में पहला कदम पूंजीवादी व्यवस्था का खात्मा है। मार्क्सवाद की दृष्टि से बेवल की लिखी पहली पुस्तक 'नारी और समाजवाद' (1879) थी। इस तरह साम्यवाद के संघर्ष में अन्य अधिकारों के साथ-साथ स्त्री मुक्तिका सवाल भी जुड़ गया था। ब्रिटेन में महिला संगठनों के आंदोलनों के दबाव से ही 1847 में महिलाओं के लिए दस घंटे का कार्यदिवस कानून बना। इसके बाद 1860 में महिलाओं को शिक्षण के अतिरिक्तअन्य पेशों में काम करने का अधिकार मिला था। इसी प्रकार महिलाओं को तलाक लेने का अधिकार 1858 में मिला। ब्रिटेन में 1918 के पहले तक केवल पुरुषों को पार्लियामेंट चुनाव में वोट देने का अधिकार था। जॉन स्टुअर्ट मिल ने तो 1867 में ही संसद में महिला-मताधिकार विधेयक रखा था जो पारित नहीं हो सका। इसके बाद मताधिकार के लिए महिलाओं के दो प्रकार के आंदोलन चले। एक संगठन लॉबिंग करके और दूसरा संगठन उग्र प्रदर्शनों के जरिए मताधिकार की लड़ाई लड़ता था। इन आंदोलनों के फलस्वरूप ही वहां महिलाओं को वोट देने का अधिकार मिला।  यूरोप के कई और देशों में भी नारी स्वतंत्रता, समता और मताधिकार के आंदोलन चले। फ्रांसीसी क्रांति के दौरान महिलाओं ने सभी राजनीतिक गतिविधियों में खुलकर हिस्सा लिया था। उस समय कई महिला क्रांतिकारी क्लब बने। यह माना जाता है कि आधुनिक विश्व के इतिहास में ये प्रथम महिला संगठन थे। ओलिम्पी दि गूजे ने (1748-93) में 'महिला और महिला नागरिक' के अधिकारों की घोषणा की थी और उसे 1791 में राष्ट्रीय असेंबली के समक्ष पेश किया था। अमेरिका और यूरोप में प्रबोधकालीन आदर्शों से प्रभावित होकर महिलाओं के प्राकृतिक अधिकार और स्वतंत्रता-समानता की मांग कई लेखकों और महिला संगठनों ने उठाई थी। इसके फलस्वरूप ही 1871 के पेरिस-कम्यून में स्त्रियों की भागीदारी संभव हुई। इसने पूरे यूरोप को प्रभावित किया। संयुक्तराष्ट्र ने 8 मार्च 1975 से अंतरराष्ट्रीय महिला दिवस मनाने की शुरुआत की। यह दिवस महिला सशक्तीकरण के उद््देश्य से जाता है, जिसकी पहल 1985 में नैरोबी में आयोजित अंतरराष्ट्रीय महिला सम्मेलन में हुई थी। भारत में सर्वप्रथम 1926 में विधानसभा में एक महिला को मनोनयन द्वारा सदस्य बनाया गया था, पर उसे मत देने का अधिकार नहीं था। 1937 में महिलाओं के लिए सीट आरक्षित कर दी गई थी, जिसके फलस्वरूप 41 महिला उम्मीदवार चुनाव में उतरी थीं। 1938 में श्रीमती आर सुब्बाराव राज्य परिषद में चुनी गर्इं। इसके बाद 1953 में रेणुका राय केंद्रीय व्यवस्थापिका में प्रथम सदस्य के रूप में चुनी गई थीं। भारत में संविधान के 73वें और 74वें संशोधन के जरिए महिलाओं के लिए पंचायतों और नगर निकायों में एक तिहाई आरक्षण की व्यवस्था की गई।  अब संसद और विधानसभा में आरक्षण की लड़ाई शेष है। महिलाओं के ज्यादा प्रतिनिधित्व का आशय देश और प्रदेश में मंत्रिमंडल में महिलाओं की संख्या में वृद्धि होना है। जब जातियों और वर्गों का मंत्रिमंडल में ध्यान रखा जाता है तो महिलाओं के प्रतिनिधित्व का ध्यान क्यों नहीं आता है। संयुक्तराष्ट्र की सहस्राब्दी रिपोर्ट महिलाओं के पक्ष में कुछ नए तथ्य प्रकाश में लाती है। इसके अनुसार विश्व के कुल कार्य-घंटों में दो तिहाई महिलाओं द्वारा संपन्न किए जाते हैं। महिलाओं को अनाज पैदा करने, भोजन बनाने, बच्चों की देखभाल, घर के बुर्जुगों की देखरेख, र्इंधन और पानी की व्यवस्था आदि कामों के लिए कोई वेतन नहीं दिया जाता। महिलाएं कुल विश्व की आय का केवल दस प्रतिशत कमाती हैं। इनका पद और वेतन भी नीचे का होता है। विश्व की कुल संपत्ति का केवल एक प्रतिशत महिलाओं के नाम है। उनके नाम संपत्ति न होने से उन्हें कर्ज भी नहीं मिल पाता है। पुरुषों के अधीन होने और निशक्तरहने का सबसे प्रमुख कारण भी यही है कि महिलाओं के नाम भौतिक संपदा नहीं होती। भारतीय महिलाओं के कई मुद््दे हैं जिन्हें लेकर एक बड़ा सुगठित राष्ट्रीय आंदोलन खड़ा होना चाहिए। स्त्री-अस्मिता का प्रश्न सरकार द्वारा दो-चार मांगें मान लेने का ही प्रश्न नहीं है। यह मसला एक-दो हफ्ते या महीने तक प्रदर्शन करने से ही हल नहीं होगा। विश्व के अन्य देशों का इतिहास बताता है कि महिलाओं के पक्ष में अनवरत कई दशकों और पूरी शताब्दी तक संघर्ष चलाए रखने के बाद ही सफलता प्राप्त हुई है। इसके लिए समाज के सभी वर्गों द्वारा एक साथ मिलकर काम करने की तैयारी होनी चाहिए। विश्व समाज आर्थिक, सामाजिक, टेक्नोलॉजी के क्षेत्र में नए-नए क्षितिज छू रहा है। हमें देखना होगा कि हमारे जीवन का आधा भाग पीछे न छूट जाए। जीवन के एक पक्ष के पीछे छूट जाने से हम भी पीछे छूट जाते हैं।

Repression infrastructure to be streamlined in indigenous humanscape to continue the growth story. Masses have to be shocked with electricity!

Repression infrastructure to be streamlined in indigenous humanscape to continue the growth story. Masses have to be shocked with electricity!
Troubled Galaxy Destroyed Dreams, Chapter 848
Palash Biswas

Mobile: 919903717833

Skype ID: palash.biswas4

Email: palashbiswaskl@gmail.com


Repression infrastructure to be streamlined in indigenous humanscape to continue the growth story. Masses have to be shocked with electricity!Foreign investors see tremendous growth opportunities in India and can infuse here FDI worth about $ 250 billion a year, but they want a guarantee for a progressive and investment friendly policy framework, a top management guru has said. Overseas direct investment by Indian companies, including Essar Steel, Tata International and Videocon Oil Ventures, rose to USD 3.30 billion in January, a rise of 28.4 per cent from a month ago, RBI data showed today.The domestic companies had made an investment to the tune of USD 2.57 billion in December 2012.A total of 480 deals took place during the month to carry out outward foreign direct investments, it said.

The ambitious rural road scheme received a boost today with the government clearing projects worth an estimated Rs 38,500 crore to connect left out habitations including those in 82 Naxal-affected districts and areas of Arunachal Pradesh bordering China. The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Sigh, gave "in principle" approval for connecting all habitations with a population of 100 tribals and above in 82 Naxal-hit districts with all-weather roads under the Centre's flagship programme PMGSY.

On the other hand, the government today said it is satisfied with the response to NTPC's share sale and expects to garner more than Rs 11,500 crore from the offer -- the biggest disinvestment mop up so far this fiscal. It means further privatisation of electricity sector resultant in indiscriminate hike in tarriffs.


Meanwhile, observing that Naxalism can be tackled only through development, Union Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh today said the Centre has decided to improve the condition of roads in the naxal-hit regions under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY).

"The road connectivity is a major problem in the left wing extremism areas. In these regions, Naxals prevent construction of roads and also blow up already constructed roads," Ramesh said during his two-day visit to Bastar region that concluded today.

Therefore, the Union Government has decided to improve road connectivity in the naxal-hit regions under the PMGSY in two phases, Ramesh added.

In the first phase, WBM (Water Bound Macadam) roads will be constructed in these regions, he said adding that the asphalting work will be taken up later if naxals do not indulge in road destruction activities, he said.

During his visit to the tribal-dominated Sukma and Bijapur districts in the region, Ramesh asked the public representatives to carry the construction work with help of gram panchayats.

However, the public representatives said that the gram panchayats will come on the target of the Maoists if they get involved in development projects.

The minister also said that very soon an engineering branch of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) will be set up in the naxal-affected regions for road construction.

During his visit, the state officials informed the minister that under PMGSY, nearly 73 roads are to be constructed in Sukma district, of which construction of 20 roads have been completed while five of them are under construction.

Besides, construction of 48 roads in sensitive areas have been halted, they informed.

In Bijapur, nearly 33 roads are to be constructed under the scheme out of which construction of nearly 13 are underway, the official said.

In case of multi-connectivity at the block level, identified by the Union Home Ministry, it is not compulsory that tar-paved roads should be constructed in such areas where Maoists target metalled roads used by security forces.

"What we are saying now is you can have four roads, but one of them will be a blacktop road," Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh told reporters here.

He said the government has given "in principle" approval for covering unconnected habitations with population of 100 persons and above (as per the 2001 census) in the Left Wing Extremism-affected blocks (identified in consultations with the Home Ministry).

The approval has been given with a limited provision to complete missing links, "to form closed loops from through routes of the core network at an estimated cost of Rs 8,000 crore (at 2012-13 prices)," he said.

At present, the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY), envisages connecting all habitations with a population of 250 persons and above in tribal areas in Naxal-affected districts.

The Cabinet also gave nod to connect unconnected small villages with population below 250 in strategically important districts of Arunachal Pradesh bordering China with all- weather roads.

An amount of Rs 1200 crore is expected to be cost for providing new connectivity to the habitations in the border districts of Arunachal Pradesh, Ramesh said.

Out of the state's 17 districts, 10 districts are bordering China and Myanmar and the small habitations in these districts will be major beneficiaries.

Brace up for a phased increase in your electricity bills, as the government seems to be unrelenting on its decision to do away with subsidies, and is leaving no stone unturned to completely phase out the sops it offers on all energy products, be it petroleum, power or coal.

As of now, the total subsidy bill of the government is pegged at 2.4 per cent of the gross domestic product (GDP), which the government plans to bring down to 1.4 per cent in the 12th Plan.

Reiterating the government's commitment on the same, Power Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia today said: "Days of subsides are gone for the power sector."

The statement assumes significance as the common man may soon see another round of tariff hike for electricity.

Mr. Scindia was speaking at the 5th India Energy Congress.

Coming down strongly on the "unnecessary subsidy provided to the affluent", he said that extending subsidy and then providing relief to state electricity utilities by means of restructuring their debts is a failed model. "We did such restructuring 10 years ago also, but then we had to continue with providing subsidy, and too without a hike in tariff ... this proved bad for power distribution firms (discoms), which saw their debt bloat further."

Confirming that the moves will make the consumer shell out more in power bills, Mr. Scindia said: "The tariff hike has to be done on a regular basis, and can't be a once-in-a-blue-moon affair."

The power minister was referring to the subsidies given by respective state governments towards the households.

Mr. Scindia said the subsides given by the state governments put pressure on discoms, and "slowly they become sick units, thanks to the rising debt".

The minister also said: "The subsidy should reflect in the balance sheets of the state governments and not of the discoms."

The whole issue of tariff hike is necessitated as the input cost of coal and gas for power producers has gone up significantly, the minister said.

Also, it's a double whammy as the domestic coal and gas production has not gone up in tandem with the addition of power production capacity, even as the international price of coal and gas has doubled or even trebled in the last few years.

In India, price hike of any energy product, be it petrol, diesel, cooking gas or electricity, is a politically sensitive issue.

Any government, state or central, hesitates in taking a decision on the issue. However, with fiscal deficit poised precariously, it looks like the government is left with no other option but to hike the price of energy products.

In last few months, the central government has announced a series of price hike decisions on petroleum products.

In the power sector, the Cabinet approved a restructuring of debt of state power distribution firms, but on the condition that the states will allow tariff hike in tandem with the input cost incurred by power producers.

Once the state distribution firms are allowed to revise tariff, power producers like NTPC, NHPC, DVC, Tata Power, Reliance Power, Adani Power, among others, will benefit thanks to payments from discoms on a timely basis.

Govt to garner over Rs 11,500 cr from NTPC share sale

The government today said it is satisfied with the response to NTPC's share sale and expects to garner more than Rs 11,500 crore from the offer -- the biggest disinvestment mop up so far this fiscal.

"The government is satisfied with the response to this (NTPC) offer. We expect more than Rs 11,500 crore from the issue," Disinvestment Secretary Ravi Mathur said here after the offer closed for subscription.

The total demand received is for 132.84 crore shares and indicative price is Rs 145.91. Thus, the offer has been subscribed 1.7 times, he said.

Sharing further details, Mathur said there was good participation from foreign institutional investors (FIIs).

"One FII bid for 1,000 crore shares in the early hours of the trade. More order inflow came in towards the end of the day. Individually, FIIs have put in USD 50-100 million," he said.

The government had fixed the floor price for the 9.5 per cent stake auction of NTPCBSE -2.72 % at Rs 145 per scrip.

The government is selling 78.32 crore shares or 9.5 per cent of its stake in NTPC through the offer for sale route. It holds 84.50 per cent stake in NTPC. After stake sale, its holding will come down to 75 per cent.

So far this fiscal the government has already raised over Rs 10,000 crore through stake sale in PSUs like Oil IndiaBSE -0.56 %, NMDCBSE -0.66 % and HCL.

Govt likely to miss FY13 fiscal deficit target: Fitch arm
The government is likely to overshoot its fiscal deficit target of 5.3 percent for the current fiscal, feels Devendra Pant, Chief Economist, India Ratings & Research, part of the Fitch Group.

Moneycontrol Bureau

The government is likely to overshoot its fiscal deficit target of 5.3 percent for the current fiscal, feels Devendra Pant, Chief Economist, India Ratings & Research, part of the Fitch Group.

A government estimate pegged India's gross domestic product (GDP) to grow 5 percent in fiscal year 2012-13. This is the lowest of all growth projections issued by the government and the RBI.

"While the estimated investment rate in FY13 is likely to be similar to FY12, 80 basis point increase in share of consumption expenditure (private and government) would reduce savings rate further leading to further widening of current account deficit in FY13," said a note by Pant.

"The growth slowdown is reflective on the tax collection, which are growing at lower rate than the budgeted growth rates. The government has changed its fiscal deficit target to 5.3 percent in FY13 from budget estimate of 5.1 percent. Even after factoring in recent disinvestment proceeds, India Ratings expects, it will be difficult for government to limit its FY13 deficit to 5.3 percent," Pant said.
http://www.moneycontrol.com/news/economy/govt-likely-to-miss-fy13-fiscal-deficit-target-fitch-arm_820151.html



India's per capita income rises to Rs 5,729 per month

India's per capita income, a gauge for measuring living standard, is estimated to have gone up 11.7 per cent to Rs 5,729 per month in 2012-13 at current prices, compared with Rs 5,130 in the previous fiscal.

The estimated rate of growth in per capita income for the current fiscal, however, is lower than the previous fiscal when it grew by 13.7 per cent.

"The per capita income at current prices during 2012-13 is estimated to be Rs 68,747 as compared to Rs 61,564 during 2011-12, showing a rise of 11.7 per cent," an official release by the Central Statistics Office ( CSO) on Advance Estimate of National Income, 2012-13 showed today.

The per capita income in real terms (at 2004-05 constant prices) during 2012-13 is likely to attain a level of Rs 39,143 as compared to the First Revised Estimate for the year 2011-12 of Rs 38,037, it said.

The Gross Fixed Capital Formation (GFCF) at current prices is estimated at Rs 29.94 lakh crore in 2012-13 as against Rs 27.49 lakh crore in 2011-12, the release said.

However, at 2004-05 constant prices, the GFCF is estimated at Rs 19.44 lakh crore in the current fiscal as against Rs 18.97 lakh crore in the previous fiscal, it added.

The data also estimated an increase of 13.8 per cent in the Government Final Consumption Expenditure ( GFCE) to Rs 11.87 lakh crore at current prices for 2012-13 against Rs 10.43 lakh crore in 2011-12.

On Private Final Consumption Expenditure ( PFCE) for the current fiscal, it has estimated an increase of 12.8 per cent to Rs 57.06 lakh crore at current prices as against Rs 50.56 lakh crore in the previous fiscal.

"These advance estimates are based on anticipated level of agricultural and industrial production, analysis of budget estimates of government expenditure and performance of key sectors like railways, transport other than railways, communication, banking and insurance, availbale so far," said the data.

These estimates have been compiled using the data on indicators available from the same sources as those used for compiling GDP estimates by economic activity, detailed data available on merchandise trade in respect of imports and exports, balance of payments, and monthly accounts of central government, it added further.

"If we want to take the FDI from the current $ 20-30 billion to about $ 250 billion a year, the investors making this investment would need to see the progress that has been made to guarantee him growth," MIT Sloan School of Management's Deputy Dean S P Kothari told PTI.

"The investors would ask for a policy framework that is progressive and investment friendly," Kothari said here ahead of Citi-MIT Sloan Symposium being jointly organised here by Citibank and MIT Sloan School of Management tomorrow.

The MIT Sloan School of Management, based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is one of the world's leading business schools and some eminent MIT alumni members, along with business leaders and policymakers, would talk about 'Securing India's rightful place in the economic and financial world' at the symposium being held in the national capital.

Talking about India's growth potential, Pankaj Vaish, MD and Head of Markets at Citi South Asia, said that India can think of growing FDI to over ten times of the current level.

"There are opportunities in areas like manufacturing and food processing, where FDI can help in containing inflation. We need to imbibe the global best practices which we can learn from global corporations who would bring in this FDI.

"It is not merely about the foreign money, but the access the money gets in terms of better products and services. FDI worth $ 25 billion is good, but minuscule when compared to the size and opportunity of India. Our goal should be 8-10 times of the current level of FDI investment," Vaish said.

"I believe we should aim for 20 uninterrupted years of around 10 per cent GDP growth. It should be our single-minded goal as a nation," he added.

Kothari said that there is a tremendous fascination about India among the global investors.

"India offers many opportunities for rest of the world, the first and foremost being its huge talent pool that is one of the best in the world and very well trained," he said.

"Those who think of India as an investment destination, also think of thse benefits. When they taste india, they say it is phenomenal in terms of growth opportunities on many dimensions," Kothari said.

However, there are other dimensions where they feel that things could have been better and those are the areas where leaders and policymakers need to work, he added.

"India has made great strides in becoming more open and more investor friendly, but there still remains areas where progress has not been of desired levels," Kothari said.

"India needs to show that it has overcome the hurdles and there would not be roadblocks for the investments being committed, as what we are talking about is an investment of $ 200-250 per person," he added.


Nine lakh bank a/c opened in East Godavari for Aadhaar

East Godavari district Joint collector Babu A today said so far nine lakh bank accounts have been opened in the district to provide Aadhaar-based services.

Babu today held a review meeting on the Aadhaar-based services. He said another 11 lakh accounts would be opened for the people to avail of these services in the district.

Finer details of price-pooling before Cabinet in a week: Sriprakash Jaiswal, Coal Minister

Two days after the Cabinet gave the in-principle approval for price pooling, Coal Minister Sriprakash Jaiswal today said finer details of the mechanism will be put before the Cabinet within a week for final nod.

Jaiswal said states will not be impacted by the decision to pool prices of domestic and imported coal to arrive at a uniform price of the feedstock as it would not be implemented for power plants commissioned before March 31, 2009.

"The Cabinet has given its nod for price pooling and the Ministries of Power and Coal will have to work out a mechanism for it. We will place it before the CCEA within a week for a final decision on it," Jaiswal told reporters here on the sidelines of India Energy Congress.

Asked about states' opposition to price pooling, Jaiswal said they would have opposed it if the government had decided to bring old plants also under the ambit of price pooling.

"Price pooling would not be implemented for power plants, commissioned before March 31, 2009. So, there is no question of states being impacted by it," he said.

Many state governments have voiced their opposition to the price pooling mechanism as they fear that this could lead to increase in electricity tariffs.

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) on February 5 gave its in-principle approval to price pooling mechanism. Information and Broadcasting Minister Manish Tewari, who revealed this to media, had not spelt out any time line for fixing the specifics of price pooling.

He had merely said that "both the ministries have appreciated the urgencies and they would be coming back as quickly as possible".

Prime Minister's Office had directed Coal India LtdBSE 0.47 % (CIL) and Central Electricity Authority last year to work on price-pooling, so as to ensure 80 per cent supplies to power plants.

CILBSE 0.47 % on its part had said that price pooling is a mechanism to implement fuel supply agreement (FSA) with power companies.

The CIL board had earlier approved the modified FSA without price-pooling, for assured supply of 65 per cent through domestic sources and 15 per cent from imports at cost plus basis.

If price pooling is approved, then 15 per cent supply of imported coal "will be not in the cost plus method, but in pooling mechanism", it had said.

7 FEB, 2013, 11.04AM IST, KALYAN PARBAT,ET BUREAU
Government considering divesting 10% stake in Telecom Consultants of India Ltd

KOLKATA: The disinvestment of public sector company, Telecom Consultants of India Ltd (TCIL), is on the cards. The Telecom Commission, the highest decision-making body of the communications ministry, will meet on February 18 to consider listing TCIL by divesting a 10% stake. State-owned TCIL was set up in 1978 as a wholly-owned government company and today operates in 58 countries.

The company's consolidated net worth as on September 30, 2012, stood at Rs 1331.11 crore while its standalone net worth was pegged at Rs 428.26 crore, according to internal documents reviewed by ET. Till date, the company has paid a cumulative dividend of Rs 177.63 crore. Last March, the disinvestment department had suggested that the government offload 10% in TCIL, and had asked the telecom PSU to expedite steps to go for an inital public offer (IPO) in consultation with the telecom department. State-owned TCIL, however, was given the option to take a call on fresh equity infusion.

Back in June 2009, the TCIL board had approved the IPO route to issue 4.32 million equity shares of Rs 10 each. A clutch of measures have been taken to hasten TCIL's listing, which includes raising its authorised capital from Rs 30 crore to Rs 60 crore and restructuring its board by increasing the number of directors to 12, including 6 independent directors, according to an internal department note reviewed by ET. The TCIL board has also approved share allotments to employees under an ESOP scheme as per applicable guidelines. TCIL had, however, suggested to the telecom department that an IPO may not be necessary if it was allowed to offload its 30% holding in Bharti Hexacom.

The government's 30% stake in Bharti Hexacom is held through state-owned TCIL. However, the government's plans to exit mobile phone company Bharti Hexacom had been put on hold about two years ago after then cabinet secretary KM Chandrasekhar had asked the telecoms ministry to revisit the sale process. Bharti Hexacom has over 2 million subscribers and over 30% of the Rajasthan telecom market. In 2009, the telecoms department had decided that TCIL exit from Bharti Hexacom on account of two factors. First, TCIL had been seeking dividend payouts every year, a request that Bharti Group had turned down on account of the 'fact that it ( Bharti AirtelBSE -2.08 %) was using all its internal generation for expansion of network to keep up with the intense competition in the market.'

TCIL maintains that it is due to get dividend payment from 2004 onwards when Hexacom began making profits. TCIL had also sought listing of Bharti Hexacom, which too was turned down, on the grounds that the flagship company (Bharti Airtel) is already listed and as such their policy did not permit subsidiaries to be listed. Besides, as per the shareholders agreement, TCIL cannot insist on listing or getting dividend.
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/policy/government-considering-divesting-10-stake-in-telecom-consultants-of-india-ltd/articleshow/18379367.cms


CAG will uncover instances of crony capitalism: Vinod Rai

Cambridge: Comptroller and Auditor General of India Vinod Rai, whose reports on various scams had raised hackles of those in government on Thursday said the public auditor would endeavour to uncover instances of crony capitalism and counselled the government to support enterprises per se and not entrepreneurs.

"We may not be able to wipe out corruption, but our endeavour is to uncover instances of crony capitalism. Government should be seen to support enterprise per se and not particular entrepreneurs," he said in a lecture at the Harvard Kennedy School here.

Rai, who was been criticised by the Indian government for reports on various scams like in telecom, coal etc, said adding the role of a public auditor cannot be confined to merely placing its report in Parliament.

He said: "Should we as public auditors limit our role to placing reports in Parliament or go beyond that and seek to sensitise public opinion on our audit observations especially so in social sector audits such as rural health, primary education, water pollution, environment, drinking water etc."



On the issue of the CAG exceeding its mandate, Rai observed that since the Indian democracy is maturing and the urban middle class is becoming more involved in citizen's affairs, "we continue to tread the new path in the belief that the final stakeholder is the public at large."

Maintaining that the auditing of government and public entities has a positive impact on trust in society, Rai said, "It focuses the minds of the custodians of the public purse to use resources effectively, as they know that after audit scrutiny, the public will be aware of their actions."

CAG's role, Rai said has evolved as from "being a bunch of fault finders who are often wiser by hindsight, we now recognise and report good practises that we observe during audit".

The public auditor, he said, was as much engaged in the business of upgrading public governance as any other agency in the administration.

"We do not subscribe to the We-They concept and hold ourselves to be on the same side of the table as the executive. Out audits have undergone a cultural change. We now engage in positive reporting", Rai said.

Observing that it was imperative for public auditor to appear objective and trustworthy, he said, "We can only deserve trust if we are judged as credible, competent and independent and can be held accountable for our operations".

Ground reality of much hyped electricity board debt recast
One of the initial steps announced by the Government in its latest burst of reforms dealt with debt restructuring of the State Electricity Boards (SEBs)
http://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/ground-realitymuch-hyped-electricity-board-debt-recast_820148.html


Arnav Pandya

One of the initial steps announced by the Government in its latest burst of reforms dealt with debt restructuring of the State Electricity Boards (SEBs). This was considered as a major reforms measure as the total debt of the SEBs as per latest available estimates are around Rs 2.4 lakh crore and the completion of the restructuring process would have boosted growth in a critical sector of the economy. The debt restructuring processes called for the takeover by the States of 50 per cent of the debt of the loss making electricity boards and conversion into bonds that are backed by state guarantees. The remaining loans would be restructured by the lenders with a 3 year moratorium on principal repayments.

On paper this looked like a winning formula but the players seem to have found the going tough and a poor response from states has forced the government to extend the initial deadline of the scheme from 31 December 2012 to 31 March 2013. While several states have given in principal nod to the plan the real benefit will come when all the required conditions are met.  Here are some of the reasons that are likely to have proved to be the roadblock in the entire process.

Tough medicine to swallow

The most likely condition that is likely to have resulted in the slow progress in the whole process is that the bailout proposed tough measures that need to be met at the ground level. These are good in the economic sense as they impose discipline and will improve the financial position of the SEB in the long run but with several state as well as Lok Sabha elections looming around the corner it is difficult to see many states willing to bite the bullet. Some of the tough measures required were adjustment of fuel costs on a quarterly basis and timely tariff revision. This means that states have to raise the price for the end user, which means additional burden on the people who are already reeling under high inflation from all side. There is also a point about advance payments towards subsidies provided by states to the agriculture sector.

The Central Government has also not provided Statutory Liquidity Ratio (SLR) status to the bonds that will be issued by the SEB in the restructuring process. This makes the bonds less attractive for lenders and hence would require a lot of persuasion in finding takers for the instruments.

Time in actual implementation

The bailout scheme has multiple players involved and while the bailout looks extremely good for the distribution arm of the SEB this needs some work by the states especially since they have to take over half of the debt. The states own financial situation in many cases is not too good and with the massive pile up of debt by the SEBs it will require long term planning to adjust this with the States financial position.

The process that was put in place for the entire scheme to be operational called for the approval to be taken from the state cabinet as well as the electricity regulatory commission. This is not an easy matter and the completion of this requirement will take some time because this can be quite significant in terms of procedure to be followed. In addition some states have also appointed consultants to advise them in this particular area which means that this is taking time in getting the final proposals through the entire process.

Position of banks

One of the issues was that banks had to be careful due to the provision norms that they face. Restructured advanced need a provision of 2.75 per cent (which has now been raised further) while standard advances require a provision which far less at 0.4 per cent. Banks also need to provide for the reduction in the net present value of the loan once it is restructured. This can be avoided by the banks after getting the necessary regulatory approval. Completing this approval process requires some time and effort and this can slow things down. Now there has been a comprehensive review and banks will be subject to lower provisioning for this restructuring which is good news for the times ahead.

The writer is a certified financial planner

Violence rocks Dalit hostel as Patna varsity looks the other way

A mob burst on the scene as night fell. Equipped with hockey sticks, bricks, stones, firearms and crude bombs it prepared for an assault.

“You are Harijans,” it yelled. “You have no right to read and write. Your work is to mend shoes and chappals. We will keep you as servants in our houses. Your ancestors did the same work. You leave the hostel or else there will be a massacre.” This is part of a police statement given by a Dalit student residing in the Bhimrao Ambedkar Welfare Hostel of Patna University (PU) facility.

Last week, the hostel witnessed fierce caste violence in which three Dalit students were injured.

“Around 30 men came shouting Brahmeshwar Mukhiya zindabad, Mukhiya amar rahe [Long live the Mukhiya] and Ambedkar ko phuk do [Destroy Ambedkar]. They stood outside the hostel and started throwing stones. They dragged and beat up a student. Firing shots and bombs rent the air. We ran inside the hostel. All we had to defend against the armed attack were brick pieces used to support the cots in our room,” Satyaprakash, a student at the Ambedkar hostel, told The Hindu.

‘Mukhiya’ refers to the slain Ranvir Sena chief Brahmeshwar Singh.

Located in Patna’s ‘coaching district’, the hostel forms part of the Saidpur hostel campus of PU. Facing it is a cluster of five hostels for general category students, collectively called the ‘Saidpur hostel’, which has gained notoriety over the years for nurturing hooligans and becoming a virtual den of anti-socials from the landowning Bhumihar caste, particularly from the badlands of Jehanabad district.

“While students from other castes reside in the Saidpur hostel, since very early days, it has been dominated by the “so-called” students of the landlord caste, mostly Bhumihars. The boys come mostly from Jehanabad, Gaya and Nalanda districts. Though it’s for all students, including those from SC, when students are enrolled, they either belong to the Saidpur hostel or the Ambedkar hostel,” official sources told The Hindu.

A clear topographical division on caste lines thus separates the two hostels. “Yahan par Jehanabad ke khas jati ke khas logon ka dabang hai [A particular caste from Jehanabad wields clout here]. Only a Jehanabad Bhumihar can stay here without being harassed. Others; say a Yadav boy comes along; he is beaten up and made to flee. The miscreants then get their own relatives to stay. Many of them don’t even know where PU is. There is a terrible situation here,” a Saidpur resident told The Hindu on condition of anonymity.

Gangster Guddu Sharma, who was shot dead in Delhi a few years ago, was a product of the Saidpur hostel. In fact, this hostel is one of the reasons why a police check post in the area was converted into a full-fledged police station in 2007.

A common power grid that supplies electricity to the entire neighbourhood is one of the key triggers for such attacks, as it was last week.

“That evening, there was a power cut at the Ambedkar hostel, but not at the Saidpur general hostel. The Ambedkar students went to the electricity office, situated on the same campus, to take stock of the mater. Seeing them, the Saidpur boys hurtled down and started hurling caste abuses, such as ‘Harijans’ ‘dusadhs’ and ‘chamars’ [all lower caste names]’,” as per another police statement of a student.

“When we asked for power supply, they said, ‘Have you ever seen light in your life?’” Satyaprakash recalled.

The official sources said, in a situation where the Ambedkar hostel had power and Saidpur hostel did not, there was immense pressure on electricity officials to cut the supply to the Ambedkar hostel. “Seeing an equal distribution of facilities stokes the caste jealousies of the Saidpur hostellers, Many times fights over power supply take the form of caste clashes,” an official source said.

“There have been times,” said a general student, “when the whole area is plunged into darkness, but only the Saidpur hostel is lit.” Disconnecting water supply to the Ambedkar hostel is another means of showing caste dominance. The tap dries up at 9 a.m. and its water is dirty. At any given point of time, a few students suffer from jaundice.

At the heart of the matter, said students, lies plain caste hatred, “a determined effort to display caste superiority.”

The police have registered an FIR under the Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, the Indian Penal Code and the Arms Act. Five persons — Atul Shekhar, Amit Kumar, Ashutosh Kumar, Nupendra Kumar and Shishuranjan Kumar — are under arrest.

Sources told The Hindu that the police initially arrested 10 persons, but high-level manoeuvring facilitated the release of five of them. There are also complaints that while the real fish get away, “legal students” get wrongly implicated in cases.

So acute is the problem of “illegal occupancy” that even authorities are at the end of their tether. Officials put the size of illegal occupants to a whopping 80 per cent.

“The number is so huge that once even the Special Task Force [personnel] was beaten up by them. The unauthorised boys know nothing will happen. PU does not want to interfere. Perhaps they are scared. You need the Rapid Action Force to crack down. They have been staying there for years,” an authoritative source from the university, who did not wish to named, told The Hindu.

The police, on their part, perceive a limited role for themselves in the matter. “We have raised the matter with the university in vain,” they said.

When asked, PU proctor Kirteshwar Prasad told The Hindu: “We are trying to get them vacated. We are on the job. We had written to the administration. We will write to them, namely the senior superintendent of police and the district magistrate, who are the competent authority.”

The incident received biased coverage in the press, according to the Ambedkar hostel students. “The news report in a leading Hindi daily pinned the blame on us. It said we were the ones to attack. Their numbers are huge. How can we possibly attack them” they asked.

An official source concurred. “That report is totally false. We were on the ground, we know what happened. The report paints an entirely wrong picture. The local media has played a very bad role in this.”

Despite arrests, the trouble is far from being over. There are indications that in light of this incident, the Saidpur hostel is looking at acquiring more arms. Financial contributions collected for the upcoming Saraswati puja could provide the means.

The spectre of routine caste violence looms large over the Dalit students. They dare not take the short-cut to the university, as it passes through the Saidpur hostel.

http://www.thehindu.com/news/states/other-states/violence-rocks-dalit-hostel-as-patna-varsity-looks-the-other-way/article4386165.ece

--
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The Liberation Journey Of An Oppressed Caste

The Unconquered People

The Liberation Journey of an Oppressed Caste

John O'Brien

http://www.oup.com.pk/shopexd.asp?id=2313

 

This book explores the history, ethnography and liberation journey of an aboriginal, forest-dwelling hunting tribe, which was reduced to servitude by the Aryan conquest of the Indian subcontinent. They were called Chandala in classical Brahmanic literature and are designated as Chuhra in the censuses of India (1868–1931). In contemporary Pakistan, they are known as Punjabi Christians. The book explores their primarily tribal rather than occupational nature, their homeland, and their spread through the Indian subcontinent. It traces how the construction of their religiously-endorsed inequality and degradation came about. Furthermore, it cautions against the suppression of the 'memory' of oppression and argues that, by defining themselves as a lineage of belief and praxis, these resilient people can give meaning to their past and present, as well as purposefully construct a more humane future for themselves. Their very history is proof that culturally they are not easily contained, much less, dominated.

 

The book also covers their rites of passage, eclectic structure, mental universe, and the evolution of their religious sensibilities—from animism to the development of the cult of Bala Shah-Balmik. The movement to Christianity of the Chuhras was the defining moment in the creation of a new social identity. It delves into how upward mobility of agricultural workers and tenants widened the social gap between the 'rural' and the 'urban' sweeper; and in the cities between the 'dry' and the 'wet' sweeper. It also provides an insight into the Punjabi Christian's system of beliefs in the world of hidden spirits, propitiation, and superstition, and traces their growing exclusion from Pakistan's mainstream in the face of accelerating 'Islamisation' in the country.

 

This work is a study of memory. In his attempt to narrate the story of these people John O'Brien has not made any encyclopaedic pretence. Hence, it should be considered as an invitation to an ongoing dialogue rooted in further research.

 

About the Author

John O'Brien was born in Ireland, where he studied Science, Education and Theology. His doctoral thesis at the Gregorian University Rome was entitled 'The Hermeneutical Privilege of the Poor'. He has worked as a teacher in Sierra Leone and as a community activist in inner-city Dublin. He has lectured widely on Religious Studies and conducted workshops in several countries in Africa, Asia, Europe and Latin America. John O'Brien first came to Pakistan in 1977 and has spent twenty-five years working among its minorities in a variety of educational and development projects, while engaging in a dialogue with Islam. At present, he is involved in community development in Sindh, Pakistan, while also conducting research on Sufism.

 

THE UNCONQUERED PEOPLE — The Liberation Journey of an Oppressed Caste: John O' Brien; Oxford University Press, No. 38, Sector 15, Korangi Industrial Area, P.O. Box 8214, Karachi-74900. Rs. 995.

 

A minority in search of liberation

Meena Menon, The Hindu, January 07, 2013

http://www.thehindu.com/arts/books/a-minority-in-search-of-liberation/article4283625.ece

 

 

 

 

 

 

In what can be argued as one of the most detailed expositions on the origins of the Punjabi Christians in Pakistan, the book undertakes an arduous journey. It "explores the history, ethnography and liberation journey of the aboriginal, forest dwelling hunting tribe reduced to servitude by the Aryan conquests, who are called Chandala in classical Brahminic literature, designated as Chuhra in the census of India (1868-1931) and in contemporary Pakistan as Punjabi Christians."

 

With a population of 2.8 million, Christians are the largest minority in Pakistan and with limited material or studies on some aspects of their history the author has undertaken this venture to fill some much-needed gaps.

 

Another important reason for taking up this study, he says, is the history of the community which is one of oppression and dehumanisation and the tendency among the upwardly among them to regard this history as something best forgotten and buried.

 

The author has lived and worked with the community and grew to acquire great respect for their "resilience and sheer unconquerability."

 

Tracing the origins

The book goes about tracing the origins from Chandala, originally aboriginal rulers but now a crushed tribe, which some argue were the forerunners of the Chuhra. O'Brien uses material from the three volume Legends of the Punjab to showcase stories by the people themselves, for instance, the standard origin legend — "when Satan tempted Adam and Eve he was thrust down from heaven. Blood gushed from his nose and each drop became a pig. Allah-Talah brushed the sweat from his forehead and each drop became a dog. Filth multiplied upon the earth. Then: the Lord created the sons of Balmik to be scavengers on earth and created Lalbeg to clean the steps of the throne of heaven."

 

The myths are used by the author for a specific purpose. "Myths reveal a region of ontology inaccessible to superficial logic. These myths reveal what the oppressed appear to society to be is very different from what they really are. …Subjugated but not silenced, they "remember" what the official narrative has suppressed."

 

Genealogies or kursiinamas, funeral songs, wedding songs, songs relating to the homing of the bride, ballads, prayers, poems are presented in the book as a sort of counter narrative of the oppressed people, as a literature of resilience and survival.

 

A first attempt was made to study the psycho social life of the community in 1933 in Martinpur, a Christian village in which 55 families were settled around 1902. The researcher was struck by what he came to term, "the range of subtle antipathies" present in their relationships and he sought to analyse this in terms of chronic inferiority complex.

 

Quest for identity

The origin of the Pakistani Christians has been a controversial topic and the book says that in 1961 one activist proposed that they should stop denying their origins in oppression and work to express their faith from within the social reality in which they all lived. He was denounced as a social radical and his message was rejected with the sophism that the Christians wanted to be known by the sign of the Cross and not by the sign of the broom.

 

The Chuhras had to battle for religious identity as well. In terms of religion too, the Chuhras resisted Hinduism but they were always included as Hindus in the census. The book speaks of the Hinduisation of the urban dwelling Chuhra sweepers masterminded by Pandit Ami Chand which reinvented the cult of Balmik as one of the Hindu dharma. It took Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar to remark that the reinvented Valmik was a one-man advertising agency for "Ram Raj". The Balmikis were also subjected to the Shuddi programme by the Arya Samaj in 1930.

 

The book touches on the quest for religion by the Chuhras and their forays into Sikhism with mixed experiences. While for Guru Nanak there were no Hindus or Muslims and he rejected caste and the social inequality it stood for, his largest followers came from the Jats. For the Chuhras, who joined the Sikh faith along with Chamars, they could occupy the lowest positions in Sikh villages, as studies have shown, according to the author. Even in army, the Chuhras who served with the Sikh army were neither allowed to become a separate force nor to be numerous in any one battalion.

 

Finally, the quest for a new identity ended when the United Presbyterian Church began its work in Punjab in 1855. Within 11 years, over 500 Chuhras had become Christians and by "1900 more than half of our people in the Sialkot district had become baptized by different groups and by 1915 all but about 300 of them. From 3823 adherents in 1881, the number of Protestants in undivided Punjab rose to 493,081 in 1947." The reasons for conversion were much the same as anywhere else in the world.

 

The book gives a solid understanding into several aspects of the community's origin and journey, if you can wade through it, and modestly confesses it is an invitation to an ongoing dialogue. Reports of the Christian community from Pakistan are not encouraging and perhaps a more contemporary analysis is also needed to understand their current situation.