Author: Vedikapathak

INTER-RELIGIOUS HARMONY

Hindu and Muslim residents of Sendhwa town in Barwani district of Madhya Pradesh came together to cremate 75-old-year Sitaram who had no family member left behind. People from both the communities attended his funeral ceremony and cremated him with full honour. This instance depicts inter religious harmony. Religious harmony in India is a concept that indicates that there is love, affection in between different religions. 

The Indian constitution supports and encourages religious harmony. In India, every citizen has a right to choose and practice any religion. Maintaining peace and harmony in a multi-religious and multi-lingual society like India becomes an important administrative responsibility.

Communal harmony is of paramount component for the social, economic and cultural development of any country. Swami Vivekananda has rightly said “Different religions are like the streams which lead to the same ocean”

The factors that breed harmony can be found both in history as well as have to be part of conscious government strategy to maintain tranquillity and an atmosphere of tolerance:

  • Nationalism as feeling of adherence to nation’s ideals helps citizens rise over differences. 
  • Humanity, respect for human life and liberty should be inculcated in every citizen of India.
  • An impartial administration, above all, which all sections especially minorities can bank upon is a must.  

National Foundation for Communal Harmony was constituted in 1992. The vision of the National Foundation for Communal Harmony (NFCH) is to have India free from communal and all other forms of violence, where all citizens especially children & youth live together in peace & harmony.

It provides financial assistance to the child victims of societal violence for their care, education & training, aimed at their effective rehabilitation. It promotes communal harmony and national integration by organizing variety of activities either independently or in association with State Governments, NGOs & other organizations. 

Ways to promote inter religious harmony:

  • Promoting the spirit of the Preamble of Indian Constitution: This reflects the spirit of national integration of our national leaders who fought against British empire, culminating in India becoming free in 1947.
  • Political & Administrative measures: Each ethnic, tribal, religious and linguistic group should have freedom to protect their own culture and freedom, as also envisaged by the Constitution.
  • Set up an Interfaith Dialogue Committee: This will help promote understanding between different religions.
  • Promote Moral Education in Education institutions: This should include the basic teachings of all religions.
  • There is a need to ban all communal parties and communal organisations by which the danger of communalism can be made less serious.

Hence, teachings of different religions should be compiled and distributed among the people of the country, including teachings of Saint Vivekananda and other saints who propagated religious harmony and respect for all religions. Such teachings also need to be integrated in the curriculum of schools and colleges.

ORIGIN OF CASTE SYSTEM

Caste system is an integral part of the Indian social system. It is the arrangement of people in a hierarchy of status where there is negligible mobility up and down the social ladder.

Origin of the caste system:

Caste system is very complex and complicated that is why a number of theories have been given explaining the origin of the caste system. Some of the theories are: 

Racial theory- One very old and important theory about the origin of the caste system is the racial theory. Herbert Risley and D N Majumdar are supporters of this theory. According to Risley before Aryans came to India they were divided into 4 classes which came to be regarded as from different races after their settlement. Majumdar believes that after the Aryans established themselves as superior in India they became a separate race and  called the defeated as the dasas and thus the Aryans the Dasas  became two separate races. This was the beginning of the caste system and once this distinction started it became difficult to narrow down the gap and it still continues.

Political Theory- Some of the thinkers believe that not race but the political convenience and manipulation by those who wanted to retain authority is the basis of the caste system in India. It is said that the Brahmin who wanted to hold authority devised this system. In the words of Dr.Ghurye, “Caste is a brahmanic child of Indo-Aryan culture, cradled In the land of Ganges and hence transferred to other parts of India by brahmanic prospectors.” How the Brahmins, however manipulated is not very clear. Thus, according to the supporters of this theory it has nothing to do with religion, it is a man-made institution and creation of few for the perpetuation of authority. 

Occupational theory-  Nesfield is of the view that occupation is the basis of the caste system. In his view “function and function alone is responsible for the origin of caste structure in India”. Thus, he and his supporters also do not believe that the system has any religious background. According to them occupation was the basis of the caste system. In the beginning when there was no rigidity each individual was free to have occupation of his choice. But gradually with the rigidity in the system changing of occupation became difficult and caste began to come into existence on the basis of his occupation. Those who were doing noble occupations like those of educating the people, fighting on the battlefield, or traders became noble and began to be considered superior caste people and others began to be treated as those belonging to the inferior caste ,example the shudras. The former then began to enjoy social respect which was denied to the latter. The system was continued because that suited the former.

Traditional theory- Exponents of this theory believe that the caste system is not of human but of divine origin. They argue that the main four castes were created by god Brahma whereas the sub-castes came into existence subsequently as a result of inter-caste marriages, etc. Since the purpose of creation of each caste, according to them, is to perform a specific function as such because of human will these castes cannot be changed. They also believe that any change in the system could be brought about only at the cost of winning the displeasure of God. 

National Human Rights Commission

National Human Rights Commission, a statutory body , was established in 1993 under a legislation enacted by the Parliament namely, the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993. The commission is the watchdog of Human Rights in the country, that is, the rights related to life, liberty, equality and dignity of the individual guaranteed by the constitution or embodied in the international covenants and enforceable by courts in India.

Composition of the Commission:

The commission is a multi-member body consisting of a chairperson and five members. The chairperson should be a retired Chief Justice of India or judge of the Supreme Court and the members should be a serving or retired judge of the Supreme Court, a serving or retired Chief Justice of a high court and three persons having knowledge of practical experience with respect to human rights.

 In addition to these full time members the commission also has 7 ex-officio members- the chairpersons of National Commission for minorities the National Commission for SCs,the National Commission for STs, the National Commission for Women, the National Commission for OBCs and the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights and Chief Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities.

Functions of the Commission: 

To enquire into any violation of human rights or negligence in the prevention of such violation by a public servant, either suo motu or on a petition presented to it or on an order of a court.

To intervene in any proceeding involving allegations of violation of human rights pending before a court. 

To visit jails and detention places to study the living condition of inmates and make recommendations there on.

To review the constitutional and other legal safeguards for the protection of human rights and recommend measures for the effective implementation.

To review the factors including acts of terrorism that inhibit the enjoyment of human rights and recommend remedial measures.

To study treaties and other international instruments on human rights and make recommendations for their effective implementation.

To undertake and promote research in the field of human rights.

To spread Human Rights literacy among the people and promote research.

To encourage the efforts of NGO working in the field of human rights.

To undertake such other functions as it may be considered necessary for the promotion of human rights.

Performance of the Commission:

The various Human Rights issues taken up by the commission are as follows-:

Abolition of bonded labour.

Functioning of the mental hospitals at Ranchi, Agra and Gwalior .

Functioning of the government protective home (women), Agra.

Issues concerning the right to food.

Review of the child marriage restraint act 1929.

Protocols to the Convention on the Rights of Child.

Preventing employment of children by government servants:Amendment of service rules.

Abolition of child labour

Guidebook for the Media on sexual violence against Children.

Trafficking in women and children: Manual for Judiciary for Gender Sensitization.

Sensitisation programme on Prevention of Sex tourism and Trafficking.

Maternal anaemia and human rights and so on.

Indian Independence Act of 1947

On February 20 1947, the British Prime Minister Clement Attlee declared that the British rule in India would end by June 30 1948 after which the power would be transferred to responsible Indian hands. This announcement was followed by the agitation by the Muslim League demanding partition of the country. Again on June 3rd 1947 the British government made it clear that any constitution framed by the constituent assembly of India cannot be applied to those parts of the country which were unwilling to accept it, on the same day Lord Mountbatten the viceroy of India put forth the partition plan known as the Mountbatten plan. The plan was accepted by the Congress and the Muslim League. Immediate effect was given to the plan by enacting the Indian Independence Act 1947.

Features of this act were as follows:

It ended the British rule in India and declared India as an independent and Sovereign state from August 15 1947.

It provided for the partition of India and creation of two independent Dominions of India and Pakistan with the right to secede from the British Commonwealth.

It abolished the office of Viceroy and provided for either dominion a governor general who was to be appointed by the British King on the advice of the Dominion cabinet. His Majesty’s government in Britain was to have no responsibility with respect to the Government of India and Pakistan.

It empowered the constituent assembly of the two dominions to frame and adopt any constitution for the respective nations and repeal any act of the British Parliament including the Independence Act itself.

It empowered the constituent assembly of both the Dominions to legislate for their respective territory till the new Constitution was drafted and enforced. No act of the British Parliament passed after August 15 1947 was to extend to either of the dominions unless it was extended thereto by a law of the Legislature of the Dominion.

It abolished the office of the Secretary of State for India and transferred his functions to the secretary of state for Commonwealth affairs.

It proclaimed the lapse of the British paramountcy over the Indian princely states and the Treaty relations with the tribal areas from August 15 1947.

It granted freedom to the Indian princely states to join the Dominion of India or dominion of Pakistan or to remain independent.

It provided for the Governance of each of the dominance and the provinces by the government of India Act of 1935 till the new Constitution was framed. The dominions were  however authorised to make modifications in the Act.

It deprived the British monarch of his right to veto bills or ask for reservation of certain bills for his approval. But this right was reserved for the Governor-General. The governor-general would have full power to assent to any bill in the name of His Majesty.

It designated the governor general of India and the provincial governors as constitutional heads of states; they were made to act on the advice of the respective Council of Ministers in all matters.

It dropped the title of Emperor of India from the Royal titles of the king of England.

It discontinued the appointment to the civil services and reservation of posts by the secretary of state for India

The members of the civil services appointed before August 15 ,1947 would continue to enjoy all the benefits they were entitled to till that time.

At the stroke of midnight of 14-15 August 1947 the British rule came to an end and the power was transferred to the two new independent dominions of India and Pakistan. Lord Mountbatten became the first Governor General of the new Dominion of India, he swore in Jawaharlal Nehru as the first Prime Minister of independent India. The Constituent assembly of India formed in 1946 in became the parliament of the Indian Dominion.

Westernization

According to M N Srinivas “westernization refers to the changes brought about in Indian society and culture as a result of over 150 years of British rule and the term subsumes changes occurring at different levels of technology, institutions, ideology, values”.

Main features of westernization:

Westernization is a simpler concept. It explains the impact of Western contact (particularly of British rule) on the Indian society and culture. M N Srinivas defends the use of the term when he says that there is need for such as when analysing the changes that a non western country undergoes as a result of prolonged contact with the western one.

It not only includes the introduction of new institutions (for example newspaper, elections, Christian Missionaries) but also fundamental changes in old Institutions. For example, India had schools long before the arrival of the British, but they were different from British introduced schools in that they had been restricted to upper caste children and transmitted mostly traditional knowledge. Other institutions such as the Army, civil service and law courts were also similarly affected.

The form and pace of westernization of India varied from region to region and from one section of population to another. For example one group of people became Westernized in dress, manners, speech while other absorbed Western science, knowledge and literature remaining relatively free from certain aspects. For example brahmins accepted the western dress habits and educational systems and also used gadgets such as radio, television, telephone but they did not accept the British diet, dancing, hunting and such other habits. This distinction is however only relative, not absolute.

According to M N Srinivas in the political and cultural field westernisation has given birth not only to nationalism but also to revivalism, communalism, casteism and heightened  linguistic consciousness and regionalism. To make matters even more bewildering revivalist movements have used Western type schools and colleges and books, pamphlets and journals to propagate their ideas .

The term westernisation, unlike modernisation, is ethically neutral, its use does not carry the implication that it is good or bad where modernisation is normally used in the sense that it is good, according to M N Srinivas.

Sanskritization

The term “Sanskritization” was introduced into Indian sociology by Prof M N Srinivas.

The term refers to a process whereby people of lower caste collectively try to adopt upper caste practices and beliefs as a preliminary step to acquire higher status. Thus, it indicates a process of cultural mobility that is taking place in the traditional social system of India.

MN Srinivas in his study of the Coorg in Karnataka found that lower caste in order to raise their position in the caste hierarchy adopted some customs and practices of the Brahmin and give up their own which were considered to be impure by the higher caste, for example, they gave up meat eating, drinking liquor, animal sacrifice, imitated Brahmins in matters of dress food and rituals by doing so within a generation of so they could claim higher positions in the hierarchy of castes.

Some features of the sanskritization:

Sanskritization denotes the process in which the lower caste try to imitate the lifestyle of the upper caste in their attempt to raise their social status.

It denotes the process of upward mobility. In this process, a caste is trying to increase his position in the caste hierarchy not at once but over a period of time, it would sometimes take a period of one or two generations.

Mobility that is involved in the process of sanskritization results only in positional changes for particular caste or section of castes,  and need not necessarily lead to a structural change; it means while individuals move up or down the structure as such remains the same.

The castes which enjoyed higher economic and political power but related relatively low in the ritual ranking went after sanskritization for they felt that their claim to higher position was not fully effective.

The British rule in India provided a favourable atmosphere for Sanskritization to take place. Political Independence has weakened the trend towards this change now the emphasis is on vertical social mobility and not on horizontal mobility.

Significant development in the realm of material culture has accelerated the process of sanskritization. Industrialisation, occupational mobility, mass media, communication, spread of literacy, advent of Western technology, improvement in transportation system etc, has speeded up the process of sanskritization. 

Public Interest Litigation (PIL)

The concept of PIL originated and developed in the US in the 1960. In the USA it was designed to provide legal representation to previously unrepresented groups and interests. In India, the PIL is a product of the judicial activism role of the supreme court; it was introduced in the early 1980s. Justice V R Krishna Iyer and Justice P N Bhagwati were the pioneers of the concept of PIL.

Under the PIL, any public spirited citizen or a social organisation can move the court for the enforcement of the rights of any person or group of persons who because of their poverty or ignorance or socially or economically disadvantaged position are themselves unable to approach the court for the remedies.

The real purposes of the PIL are:

  • Vindication of the rule of law 
  • Facilitating effective access to justice to the socially and economically weaker sections of the society 
  • Meaningful realization of the fundamental rights 

Features of the PIL:

  •  PIL is a strategic arm of the Legal Aid movement and is intended to bring justice within the reach of the poor masses who constitute the low visibility area of humanity .
  • It is brought before the court not for the purpose of enforcing the right of one individual against another as happens in the case of ordinary litigation but it is intended to promote and vindicate Public Interest.
  • PIL demands that violation of constitutional and legal rights of large numbers of people who are poor, ignorant or in a socially and economically disadvantaged position should not go unnoticed and unredressed.
  • In PIL, the litigation is undertaken for the purpose of redressing public injury, enforcing public duty, protecting social, collective, diffused rights and interests or vindicating Public Interest.
  • In PIL the role held by the court is more assertive than in the traditional actions; it is creative rather than passive and it assumes a more positive attitude in determining acts.

National Disaster Management Authority(NDMA)

The Government of India recognising the importance of disaster management as a national priority had set up a High powered committee in 1999 and a Nationals Committee in 2001 after the Gujarat earthquake to make recommendations on the preparation of disaster management plans and suggest effective mitigation mechanisms.

However, after the Indian Ocean Tsunami of 2004, the Government of India took a defining step in the legislative history of the country by enacting the Disaster Management Act 2005. The act provided for the creation of National Disaster Management Authority to spearhead and implement a holistic and integrated approach to disaster management in the country

Objectives of the NDMA:

To promote a culture of prevention preparedness and resilience at all levels for knowledge, innovation and education.

To encourage mitigation measures based on technology, traditional wisdom and environmental sustainability.

To mainstream disaster management into the developmental planning process.

To ensure efficient mechanism for identification assessment and monitoring of disaster risks

To establish institutional and techno-legal frameworks to create an enabling regulatory environment and a compliance regime and so on.

Functions of the NDMA:

To lay down policies on disaster management. 

To approve the national plan.

To approve plans prepared by Ministries and departments of the Government of India in accordance with the national plan.

To laid out guidelines to be followed by the state disaster management authority is in drawing of the state plan.

To co-ordinate the enforcement and implementation of the policy and planning for disaster management.

To recommend provision of funds for the purpose of mitigation. 

To provide such support to other countries affected by major disasters as may be determined by the central government.

To lay down broad policies and guidelines for the functioning of the National Institute of disaster management.

|Political parties and Party system in India|

Political parties are voluntary associations for organised groups of individuals who share the same political views and who try to gain political power through constitutional means and who decide to work for promoting the national interest. 

There are four types of political parties in the modern democratic states : Reactionary parties which cling to the old social economic and political institutions, conservative parties which believe in the status quo, liberal parties which aim at reforming the existing institutions and radical parties which aim at establishing a new order by overthrowing the existing institutions.

Characteristics of party system in India:

Multi party system- The continental size of the country, the diversifying character of Indian society, the adoption of Universal adult franchise, the particular type of political process and other factors have given rise to a large number of political parties. In fact, India has the largest number of political parties in the world.

One dominant party system- In spite of the multi party system the political scene in India was dominated for a long time by the Congress, hence Rajni Kothari an eminent political analyst prefers to call the Indian party system as “one party dominance system” or the “Congress system”.

Lack of clear ideology- Except the BJP and two Communist Parties (CPI and CPM), all the parties do not have a clear cut ideology. They are ideologically closer to each other. They have a close resemblance in their policies and programmes.  Almost every party advocates democracy, secularism, socialism and Gandhism.

Personality cult- Quite often, the parties are organised around an eminent leader who becomes more important than the party and its ideology. Parties are known by their leaders rather than by their manifesto. It is a fact that the popularity of Congress was mainly due to the leadership of Nehru, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi.

Based on traditional factors- In the western countries, political parties are formed on the basis of socio-economic and political programmes. On the other hand, a large number of parties in India are formed on the basis of religion, caste , language , culture , race and so on. 

Emergence of Regional parties- Another significant feature of Indian party system is the emergence of a large number of Regional parties and their growing role. They have become the ruling parties in various states like BJD in Odisha, Akali Dal in Punjab and so on.

Factions and defections- Factionalism, defections, splits, mergers, fragmentation, polarization and so on have been an important aspect of the functioning of political parties in India. The passion for power and material considerations have made politicians leave their party and join other party or start a new party.

Lack of effective opposition- An effective opposition is very essential for the successful operation of the parliamentary democracy prevalent in India. It checks the autocratic tendencies of the ruling party and provides an alternative government. However, in the last 50 years an effective, strong, organised and viable natural or position could never emerge except in flashes.

|Obstacles to National Integration|

India is a land of widespread diversities in terms of religion, language, caste, tribe, race, religion and so on. Hence, the achievement of National Integration becomes very essential for the all round development and prosperity of the country.

Obstacles to national integration:

Regionalism- Regionalism refers to the sub-nationalism and sub-territorial loyalty. It implies the love for a particular region or state in preference to the country as a whole. There is also sub-regionalism that is love for a particular reason in preference to the state of which region forms a part. Some examples of regionalism are demand of the people of certain areas for separate state would like Telangana, Bodoland, Uttrakhand, Vidarbha, Gorkhaland and so on; demand of people of certain union territories for full-fledged statehood like Manipur, Tripura, Puducherry, Delhi, Goa; formation of organisations with regional motives which advocates a militant approach in pursuing its policies and goals like Hindi Sena, Shivsena, Lachit Sena and so on.

Communalism- Communalism means love for one’s religious community in preference to a nation and a tendency to promote the communal interest at the cost of the interest of other religious communities. It has its roots in the British rule where 1909, 1919 and 1935 Acts had introduced communal representation for the Muslims and others.

Casteism- It implies love for one’s own caste group in preference to the general National interest. It is mainly an outcome of politicization of caste. Its various manifestations include formation of political parties on the basis of caste, emergence of pressure groups based on caste, allotment of party tickets during elections and formation of Council of Ministers in the states on caste lines.

Linguism– It means love for one’s language and hatred towards other language speaking people. The phenomena of linguism like that of regionalism, communalism and casteism are also a consequence of the political process. The problem of linguism got accentuated with the rise of some Regional parties in recent times like TDP, AGP, Shivsena and so on.

|Nuclear Policy of India|

India adopted its nuclear Doctrine in 2003 the salient features of this Doctrine are as follows:

Building and maintaining a credible minimum deterrence.

A posture of no first use nuclear weapons will only be used in retaliation against the nuclear attack on Indian Territory or on Indian forces anywhere. 

Nuclear retaliation to a first strike will be massive and designed to inflict unacceptable damage. 

Nuclear retaliatory attacks can only be authorised by a civilian political leadership through nuclear command authority.

 Non use of nuclear weapons against non nuclear weapon States.

However, in the event of a major attack against India or Indian forces anywhere by biological or chemical weapons India will retain the option of retaliating with nuclear weapons.

A continuance of strict controls on export of nuclear and missile related materials and technologies participation in fissile material cutoff Treaty negotiations and continued observance of the moratorium on nuclear test.

Continued commitment to the goal of a nuclear-weapon-free world through global, verifiable and non-discriminatory nuclear disarmament.

Principles of India’s Foreign Policy

The foreign policy of India regulates  India’s relations with other states of the world in promoting its national  interests.

Principles of foreign policy:

Promotion of world peace- India’s foreign policy aims at the promotion of international peace and security. Article 51 of the constitution directs the Indian state to promote international peace and security, maintain just and honourable relations between nations, foster respect for international law and treaty obligations and encourage settlement of international disputes by arbitration.

Anti colonialism- The foreign policy of India opposes colonialism and imperialism. India views that colonialism and imperialism leads to exploitation of the weaker sections by the Imperialist powers  and affect the promotion of international peace. India advocated the liquidation of colonialism in all forms and supported the Liberation Movement in Afro Asian countries like Indonesia Malaya Tunisia and so on.

Anti racialism- Opposition to racialism in all its forms is an important aspect of Indian foreign policy. India strongly criticized the policy of racial discrimination being followed by the white minority racist regime of South Africa.

Non alignment- This policy was initiated in the the cold war era when India refused to join any of the two blocks that is USA and USSR and chose to adopt a policy of non alignment. Under this India has no military alliances with countries of either blocs or indeed with any nation. India has an independent approach to foreign policy and she attempts to maintain friendly relations with all countries.

Panchsheel- This policy implies the five principles of conduct in international relations, it was embodied in the Preamble of The Indo China Treaty on Tibet signed in 1954 by Jawaharlal Nehru and Chou En-Lai the Chinese premier. The principles are mutual respect for each other’s territorial integrity and sovereignty, non aggression, equality and mutual benefit, peaceful coexistence and non interference in each others internal affairs.

Support to the UN- India became a member of the UN in 1945 itself since then it has been supporting the activities and programs of the UN. It has expressed full faith in the objectives and principles of the UN. India has actively participated in UN peacekeeping missions in Korea, Congo, Cambodia, Angola and so on.

Disarmament- The foreign policy of India is opposed to arms race and advocates this armament both conventional and nuclear. This is aimed at promoting world peace and security by reducing or ending tensions between power blocs and to accelerate economic development of the country by preventing the unproductive expenditure on the manufacture of arms.

Some beautiful quotes-II

“The soul of religion is one but encased in a multitude of forms. Wise men will ignore the outward crust and see the same soul living inside a variety of crusts.”– Mahatma Gandhi

“At the bottom of all tributes paid to democracy is the little man and woman, walking into a little booth, with that little pencil, making a little cross on paper- no amount of rhetoric or voluminous discussion can possibly diminish the overwhelming importance of the point.”– Winston Churchill

“Literacy in itself is no education. Literacy is not the end of education or even the beginning. By education I mean an all round drawing out of the best in the child and man- body, mind and spirit.” -Mahatma Gandhi

“Deliberation and debate is the way you stir the sole of our democracy.“- Jesse Jackson

“Freedom is not a matter of political decisions or new constitutions…. it is of the mind and heart and if the mind narrows itself and is befogged and heart is full of bitterness and hatred, then freedom is absent.”– Jawahar Lal Nehru 

“India is the cradle of the human race, the birthplace of human speech, the mother of history, the grandmother of legend and the great grandmother of tradition. Our most valuable and most constructive materials in the history of man are treasured of India only.” – Mark Twain 

“An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.“- Benjamin Franklin

“You can fool all the people some of the time and some of the people all the time but you cannot fool all the people all the time.” -Abraham Lincoln 

“Workers of the world unite, you have nothing to lose but your chains; you have a world to win.” -Karl Marx

“I alone cannot change the world but I can cast a stone alone across the waters to create many ripples.” -Mother Teresa

“Just as a country cannot be ruled by another country, a class cannot be ruled by another class.” -BR Ambedkar

“It is impossible to think about the welfare of the world unless the condition of women is improved. It is impossible for a bird to fly on only one wing.“- Swami Vivekananda

|Ageing Dams|

India is ranked third in the world in terms of building large dams, of the over 5,200 large dams built so far, about 1,100 large dams have already reached 50 years of age and some are older than 120 years.

Minor and medium dam shelf-life is lower than large dams for example Krishna Raja Sagar dam built in 1931 is 90 years old and Mettur dam built in 1934 is 87 years old.

Implications of ageing dams:

In a paper ‘supply-side hydrology last gasp’ Rohan D’Souza writes the siltation rate of Bhakra dam is 130.86 % so at this rate it will function for merely 47 years as against the original estimate of 88 years.

When when the dams ages the soil replaces water, the supply of water decreases and this in turn leads to reduction in the cropped area as  less water is received and which increases dependency on on the rain which is erratic in nature and groundwater is overexploited, the crop yield increases and farmers income thereby decreases.

By 2050 this will pose difficulties such as scarcity of water to feed the ever increasing population.

The flawed siltation rates reinforce the argument that designed flood cushions within several reservoirs across many river basins may have already depleted substantially due to which floods become more frequent downstream of dams. For example the flooding of Bharuch in 2020, Kerala in 2018 and Chennai 2015 a few examples attributed to downstream releases from reservoirs.

Way forward:

The way forward in the situation can be the building of medium or minor irrigation based small storage structures, identifying mechanisms to recharge aquifers and store water underground.

Hence, India will eventually feel difficulty in finding sufficient water in the 21st century to feed the rising population by 2050, grow abundant crops, create sustainable cities, or ensure growth. Therefore all stakeholders must come together to address this situation urgently.

|Costs of the practice of Sexism|

Sexism is an ideology which is used by men to victimize women.

“Sexism is the ideology that one sex is superior to the other. The term is generally used to refer to male prejudice and discrimination against women.”

Barbara Bovee Polk has stated that men in their own interest to maintain power and privilege over women are practicing sex differentiation. It is indeed a power game in which men want to establish their supremacy over women. 

Economic cost of sexism:

In comparison with men the economic cost to women is greater. Even though women have equal qualifications on par with men, in many business establishments they are paid less than what men in the same profession get. In fact there are legislations such as the equal remuneration act of 1976 in India which remove wage discrimination between male and female workers but in actuality this legislation is remain in majority of the instances as that letters. Studies have proved that families that rely on female breadwinners are found to be poorer than the ones which have male breadwinners.

Psychological costs of sexism:

Women are treated as second class citizens and their experience becomes passive, rather than active they tend to be treated as thoughtless objects and not subjects in the social environment. Women are forced to forego many educational, political, cultural and economic opportunities and to accept the feminine ideal -a thing of beauty and perfect housewife.

Costs of the practice of sexism on men:

Sexism has created stereotypes in the long run which has a negative impact upon men as well. Men often find it embarrassing to reveal or show too much affection for stereotypically they are expected to exercise control over women, if a husband helps his wife in the kitchen it is generally considered weird.

Hence, sexism is a practice which needs to stop as as it stands in the way of the growth and progress of women who are an equal member of the society and so it has a negative impact upon the growth and development of the society as a whole.

Sandra and Daryl Bem’s views are worth mentioning: “…. when a boy is born it is difficult to predict what he will be doing twenty-five years later we cannot say whether he will be a doctor or a college Professor because he will be permitted to develop and fulfill his own identity, but if the newborn child is a girl, we can predict with almost complete certainty how she will be spending her time twenty-five years later. Her individuality does not have to be considered, it is irrelevant.”