Innholdsfortegnelse for 13 June 2022 i India Today

The problem in India is that often when you think an issue is resolved, it isn’t. It crops up in some form or another. Our recent history is littered with such examples. Currently, it is a controversy over the Gyanvapi mosque in Kashi and other ancient monuments. We thought all such disputes would be laid to rest after a five-member bench of the Supreme Court unanimously delivered a final verdict on the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid title suit in 2019, in which it upheld the constitutionality of the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991, and enshrined it as a cornerstone of India’s secular edifice. In ringing words, it said: “History and its wrongs shall not be used as instruments to oppress the future.” While allowing the construction of the Ram…

Changing the face of education in Telangana, the government proudly set up largest number of Residential Educational Institutions in the country. In these 978 Educational Institutions Five lakh students are provided international standard of education. Government spends Rs.1.25 lakh on every student of Residential Educational Institutions Fine rice meals, free books and uniforms are provided in these institutions. The new scheme Mana Ooru-Mana Badi has transformed the basics of education system for which government allocated Rs.7,289 crore for a phased development of schools in the state. English medium of instrudion will be introduced from the academic year 2022-23 in all Government schools. 46 Mahlla residential degree colleges launched across the state for the benefit of Girijan and Dalli girl students. Nursing colleges set up al all distrid level medical colleges…

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI)’s refusal to allow Telangana to participate in the auction of securities for open market borrowings since April 1 has stalled the state government’s proposal to raise Rs 59,672 crore through such auctions and off-budget borrowings (OBBs) in 2022-23. This will make it difficult for the state to fund its flagship welfare schemes at a time when the ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) is preparing for the assembly poll in December 2023. The Centre has been unhappy with Telangana’s replies on the loans it had been raising by giving bank guarantees for staggering sums drawn in the name of state-owned corporations. It therefore halted the auction of Telangana bonds in 2022-23, contending that the economy could crumble if states conceal facts on indirect loans taken…

THE CONTROVERSY On May 10, Hindutva groups such as Mahakal Manav Sewa descended on the Qutub Minar, demanding that the iconic monument be renamed Vishnu Stambh. Former ASI regional director Dharamveer Sharma reiterated the claim, saying the Qutub Minar was a “sun tower” built by Chandragupta Vikramaditya circa 5th century. Earlier, on April 7, National Monuments Authority chairman and BJP leader Tarun Vijay claimed that the Ganesha idols placed “disrespectfully” in the Qutub Minar complex be either moved to the National Museum or installed “respectfully”. Meanwhile, a Delhi district court has been hearing a petition seeking restoration of Hindu and Jain deities, and the right to worship within the Qutub Minar complex. The petitioner has claimed that 27 temples in the complex were partly demolished by Qutubuddin Aibak and the…

ON THE SHARED HISTORY OF HINDUISM AND ISLAM “It was in the British colonial interest to portray their native subjects as ‘naturally’ divided by religion. The notion that ho-mogenised and self-aware Muslim and Hindu communities were ‘always’ in mutual conflict is refuted by evidence dating from the Turkish conquest of north India in the 12th century. Sanskrit inscriptions typically identified those from beyond the Khyber by their linguistic identity (i.e., ‘Turushka’) and not as Muslims, suggesting that they were not seen as posing any civilisational break with earlier Indian dynasties” ON THE DESTRUCTION OF THE VISHWESHWARA TEMPLE “Built by Akbar’s general Raja Man Singh, the Vishweshwara temple was patronised in Aurangzeb’s day by the Raja’s descendants, at least one of whom was suspected of assisting Aurangzeb’s arch-enemy Shivaji escape detention.…

BA.1 was the ORIGINAL VARIANT. Almost one new sub-lineage of it is being designated every day BA.1, BA.2, BA.3, BA.4, ba.5 were the FIRST 5 DESCENDANTS OF THE ORIGINAL Omicron ancestor. Each has bred further lineages with new mutations All subvariants are different but when they belong to a larger grouping (like Omicron), they aren’t assigned Greek letters BA.2 is the DOMINANT STRAIN WORLDWIDE and has around 21 sub-lineages BA.2.12.1, BA.4 and BA.5 are the 3 SUB-LINEAGES RESEARCHERS ARE CONCERNED ABOUT GLOBALLY. The first started a new wave in the US; the other two caused South Africa’s fifth wave All three contain the L452 MUTATION, which allows the virus to infect both nasal and lung tissues, leading to more severe disease BA.1 had a threefold greater reproduction number compared to…

Will Hardik Patel’s entry into BJP be a game changer in Gujarat polls? By Kiran D. Tare Patel is set to join the BJP on June 2. He will be expected to rebuild the saffron party’s base among the Patidars and counter the AAP’s appeal among the youth https://bit.ly/3aaAs0V Why RBI is poised to hike interest rates again in June 2022 By M.G. Arun The central bank’s hand is being forced by the uncertainty over inflation, which threatens to throw India’s economic recovery off track this fiscal https://bit.ly/3PUHBmi Should backward castes claiming Rajput icons as their own give up reservation benefits? By Rohit Parihar While some view the trend as an attempt to ‘divide’ Hindu society, others question Rajput ‘monopoly’ over legendary kings and warriors https://bit.ly/3M2RvPO Why KK was the…

Hyderabad is regarded as the safest city in the world, this image of the city has helped international and national investments pour into the city and became a destination hub for major investors. Since the formation of the state, the Telangana Police force has been striving to provide flawless services to the citizen round the clock, bringing the crime rate down in the State. The government has modernised the Police network, providing the personnel with modem vehicles and state-of-the· art technology. Special funds have been allocated for maintenance of the stations. Leaving nothing to chance, the intelligence network has been strengthened. 8.8 Lakh CC Cameras, the highest In the country. With international standards, a 20-storyed ultramodern Police Command Control Centre is being set up. Today, women feel safe to walk…

MISSION BHAIIRATIIA: ROLE MODEL FOR THE COUNTRY The brain child of Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao, Mission Bhagiratha aims to provide safe drinking water to urban and rural areas through a pipeline. Telangana is the only state In the country which Is supplying protected drinking water to all the people in the state. The Union Jal Shakti Ministry announced that through Mission Bhagiratha Programme, cent percent houses are getting protected drinking water through taps. The Union Government on the floor of the Parliament has announced that with Mission Bhagiratha programme Telangana State aims to became Fluoride Free State. HMTIHA HARAM ·THE REN AND CLEAN TELANIWIA The third human effort to increase green cover on the Planet earth, after China and Brazil is Telangana State. Implemented with a missionary zeal,…

Once upon a time, there was a king—three quarter Rajput and one quarter nomad by lineage—and he built one of the most beautiful monuments in the world….’ Facts are only the bare bricks. Finally, it is the stories we tell ourselves that matter—how we select bricks and weave shapes in the mind, and mortar them into our imagination. Those first lines are as factual a statement about the Taj Mahal as any other. Shah Jahan’s mother was Rajput, and his father was half-Rajput. His son, Aurangzeb, had Rajput blood from his father and Persian from his mother. So only a small fraction remained of that old Chagatai Mughal bloodline from Central Asia, with which we associate him most fervently. The one metaphor that has saturated the air for a century…

THE MOTIVATION BEHIND THE GYANVAP ISUIT “All we want is to identify its [Gyanvapi’s] religious character, whether it is a mosque or an old temple. Under Article 25, no law can take away anyone’s fundamental right to worship” THE PURPOSE OF RUNNING THE TEMPLE WAPSI MOVEMENT “Our aim is to take back all the temples destroyed in the past. I had made a vow to do so in my childhood. When I was about 12, my mother told me about the atrocities invaders committed. She inspired me to counter the tyranny of history” THE CURRENT GAMEPLAN “We file a case only after completing all our research. Being advocates, we do everything through legal means. As the Waqf Act is anti-Hindu, we will request that it is changed. Whatever anti-Hindu laws…

The iconic Charminar, an imposing edifice built to mark the founding of Hyderabad by Muhammad Quli Qutb Shah in 1591, has withstood the vagaries of time. But since the late ’60s, below the southeastern minaret, a religious structure has been taking shape under a canopy. Perhaps to keep the peace, the police and ASI have mostly been noncommittal about the temple. Answering an RTI query in 2012, the ASI stated, “As per the AMASR (Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains) Act, 1958, Rules 1959, AMASR Act, 2010 (Amendment & Validation), the construction of the temple adjacent to the southeastern minar of the Charminar is considered by the ASI as an unauthorised construction.” The Bhagyalakshmi temple, as it is now called, has evolved over decades. No disputes have been raised,…

MODI STAMP Gujarat CM Bhupendra Patel too has reaped the fruits of four schemes PM Narendra Modi launched when he headed the state between 2002 and 2014 Seva Setu The digital platform has been the biggest hit, offering 99 per cent of basic services, like change in name, adding beneficiaries to schemes etc. Garib Kalyan Mela Provides financial assistance to needy and poor people; has benefited 14.7 million people with disbursal of Rs 26,600 crore in 12 years Van Bandhu Kalyan Yojana Aimed at doubling the income of tribal families. Under the scheme, 1.1 million acres of farmland in tribal areas has been irrigated Tap water scheme The ambitious project is near completion with 90 per cent of the population having access to tapped drinking water. The target of 100…

ACTOR, RJ AND AUDIO writer-producer Mantra Mugdh heard Sholay before he saw Ramesh Sippy’s 1975 classic. That cassette helped him conjure his own version of Ramgarh and how Jai and Veeru took on Gabbar Singh. In Indore, where he grew up, Hawa Mahal on Vividh Bharati, The Twilight Zone tapes that a friend had sent from the US and BBC radio dramas filled his days. “It is blind man’s TV,” says Mugdh, 39, of his fondness for radio. “It helps you create your own pictures in the mind.” After two decades in radio, most of them with Fever FM, Mugdh ventured into creating original programming. Much before Audible and Spotify entered India and Pocket FM came up in 2018, he was already uploading audio shows on YouTube and Soundcloud. Under…

CHRONICLES OF THE LOST DAUGHTERS by Debarati Mukhopadhyay; translated by Arunava Sinha HARPERCOLLINS `399; 336 pages About to be sold into slavery, Bhubonomi only has reason to curse her fate, but destiny has other plans for her. Rabindranath Tagore and Wajid Ali Shah are also characters in the novel (originally Narach in Bengali). HYMNS IN BLOOD by Nanak Singh; translated by Navdeep Suri HARPER PERENNIAL `499; 239 pages First published asKhoon de Sohile (1948) in Punjabi, this novel tells the story of how Baba Bhana and his family are forced to leave Chakri, their village near Rawalpindi. Made perilous by communal violence, their journey is one of quiet resilience. HUNGRY HUMANS by Karichan Kunju; translated by Sudha G. Tilak PENGUIN VIKING `599; 270 pages Returning to his hometown after four…

Q. You’ve written books in both Hindi and English. Was this bilingual output always part of the plan or was it just circumstance? Did you ever feel the temptation to translate your own Hindi work into English? My creative writing is exclusively in Hindi. However, my doctoral dissertation–subsequently published as Between Two Worlds: An Intellectual Biography of Premchand—and periodic discursive writings have been in English. Rather than translate my work in English, I’d rather write something new in Hindi. Q. Tomb of Sand shows us how the distant past continues to shape one’s daily life, even after 50-60 years. How does one cultivate a healthy, functional relationship with history? That past in Tomb of Sand goes back much longer than mere 50-60 years. That said, the past, in general, functions…

June 2, 2022 marks the eight years of Telangana statehood formation. After a tumultuous struggle for separate statehood, the new state focused on what it promised to the people who were ignored for long. From utter neglect preceding statehood to a state of abundance and prosperity in 8 years - that is Telangana triumphant success story in short. It is also case study on what can be achieved within a short period of time. All this was possible with the visionary leadership of Chief Minister Shri. K. Chandrashekar Rao impeccable planning, execution of ideas & programmes and an unwavering approach to development and welfare of people. Shri. K. Chandrashekar Rao on assuming the office, focused on all round reforms. Firing all the cylinders, in no time the Telangana government made…

On an average daily 3 Lakh people are commuting in Metro Rail. Under SRDP Scheme, the state government has completed 27 constructions at a cost of Rs.2,500 Crore. Of these, there are IS Fly Overs, 5 Under Passes, 8RoB, RuB, I Cable Bridge are there. Another 20 works are in progress. The Durgam Cheruvu Cable Bridge construded to ease the traffic jams has become a tourist destination in the city. 530 Kms of five main roads are re carpeted. In this financial year, 30 Fly Overs, 18 Foot Over Bridges will be newly constructed. 39 Link Roads are being laid for an easy access to the ORR. Of these, 22 are completed. To supply drinking water to Hyderabad dty and its future needs, the Telangana government is constructing an Intake…

Founded in 1929, the DS Group (Dharampal Satyapal Group) is a Multi-Business Corporation and one of the leading FMCG (Fast Moving Consumer Goods) conglomerate. The Group has created a strong Indian and International presence with its extensive portfolio and diverse range in Mouth Freshener, Food and Beverage, Confectionery, Hospitality, Agri, Luxury Retail and Tobacco. Rajnigandha, Catch, Pulse, FRU, Maze, Ksheer, Pass Pass, BABA, Tulsi, t:Opera, Le Marche, Birthright, The Manu Maharani and Namah are some of the leading brands, the Group proudly shelters today. The organization is a remarkable blend of history and legacy with a vision that responds to social and environmental impacts alongside profits. Guided by a clear set of values and built on a strong foundation of philanthropy, corporate social responsibility is an integral part of the…

The devastating spread of the novel coronavirus has had dramatic effects on economic and social life. It has also had an impact on the direction of scientific research. In this wide-ranging book, Markus Brunnermeier argues that the discipline of economics should pay closer attention to the concept of resilience, defined as the capacity of a system to rebound quickly “like a trampoline” from large and unexpected adverse shocks. In a resilient society, argues Brunnermeier, we can “take more chances and embrace more opportunities—because the shocks will be less detrimental.” Several existing institutions—such as bankruptcy protection for individuals and limited liability for corporations—are designed with precisely this reasoning in mind. Brunnermeier would like us to go beyond such standard protections. He wants our infrastructure, production systems, financial architecture, and social safety…

THE CONTROVERSY Though there is broad historical consensus that Aurangzeb had in 1669 ordered the dismantling of Varanasi’s famed Vishweshwara temple—not only had the Mughal emperor left a wall of the old mandir standing, it was on the plinth of the Vishweshwara that the Gyanvapi mosque was built. It seems strange that despite glaring evidence, we’re still asking if Gyanvapi was once Vishweshwara. Since Gyanvapi’s geography has long been sacred to two religions, people of Varanasi did not find peculiar the fact that, for centuries, Hindu women would walk to the masjid’s western wall on the Chaturthi (fourth day) of every Chaitri Navratri to worship the goddess Shringar Gauri. But on August 18 last year, when a group of five women petitioned a local court, asking that they be given…

“The 1991 Act is the law but lower courts are entertaining such pleas when they should not have done so…. If Gyanvapi, Mathura and other issues are allowed to fester, then young Muslims will become permanently disenchanted with the constitutional process” “Whatever is happening is with the support of the Sangh Parivar and the government. How is it that a survey commissioner’s report is made available to a judge without hearing the Muslim side? Or that the report is leaked to the media? It’s being done to say this is not a masjid” “As regards the Mathura Idgah, there has been a written agreement between Muslims and Hindus 54 years ago. Now you say it is null and void and those Hindus did not have the locus standi to reach…

“The Babri Masjid was claimed by an agitation but dec lared as Ramjanmabhoomi by a court judgment. Now, Gyanvapi and Mathura mos ques are claimed by individuals by fighting the cause on legal forums. This is a new tactic to use courts to create communal atmosphere. It is for courts to check it” “In light of the Places of Worship Act, 1991, the court trying the case in Varanasi could not have passed any order for survey of the mosque premises without examining its competence to adjudicate the dispute…. At this stage, the order given for the survey is patently illegal” “Courts must look into our constitutional scheme, historical perspective of India as a secular democratic republic and the objects of the 1991 Act. Otherwise, history will not spare even…

Last December, a video clip of saffron-clad participants at the annual Datta Jayanti celebrations in Karnataka’s Chikmagalur town circulated on social media, with prominent BJP leaders from the region averring that “Datta Peeta will come to the custody of Hindus” and that the shrine “is, was and will always be of Hindus”. An hour’s drive north of the town leads to a ridge atop which lies the Sri Guru Dattatreya Baba Budan Swamy Dargah, a cave shrine where both Hindus and Muslims come to worship. With the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, Bajrang Dal and the BJP organising rallies to the shrine through the 1990s and the early 2000s, it has been another Ayodhya in the making in the south. The root of the dispute goes back to the 1960s when the…

On April 6, 2021, Padam Panwar, 50, a member of the managing committee of the Purana Shiv Mandir in Delhi’s Shahpur Jat area, was arrested for allegedly “dislodging” a Sai Baba idol at the temple. The idol had been removed, replaced by a Ganesha on March 25. A video later surfaced purportedly showing Panwar pointing to the idol and saying: “He was no God, he died in 1918, he was a Muslim.” “Mullah hai,” says another voice in the background. Panwar, who’s out on bail, now claims the video was fake and asserts that it is a tradition in the Hindu religion to replace idols when they become old. Others are not convinced. An FIR was registered after nine Sai Baba devotees approached the police. There is another video doing…

Pankaj Joshi Additional chief secretary The 1989-batch IAS officer helms the chief minister’s office. Energy, petrochemicals and infrastructure have been the forte of the ex-IITian Avantika Singh Principal secy Known as the CM’s eyes and ears, the 2003-batch IAS officer is considered to be one of the most influential bureaucrats in Gujarat. Had an impressive run as Ahmedabad collector K. Kailasnathan Chief principal secretary Retired in 2017 but was reappointed as chief principal secretary. An expert in water management, and a veteran analyst of state affairs M.D. Modia OSD, CM’s office The 2006-batch IAS officer was collector of Bharuch before being elevated to the CM’s office as one of the two OSDs. A trusted official, he looks after the CM’s engagements Nimesh Dave OSD As deputy commissioner in Ahmedabad Municipal…

Released last week, Anubhav Sinha’s action thriller, Anek, sees Ayushmann Khurrana play an undercover officer on a mission in the Northeast. (The state is unspecified.) During the course of two and a half hours, he begins to question the political strategy of his masters, the Indian government. Anek comes at a time when audiences seem to prefer larger-than-life heroes, men with much machismo. Three of the biggest pan-India hits of the past six months—Pushpa, RRR and KGF: Chapter 2—all seem to prove this assumption. Khurrana, though, has made a career out of playing heroes who are fallible, insecure and oftentimes not very likeable. The actor, for his part, isn’t too fazed by the current box office trend. He tells us, “Mass cinema will never go out of fashion. Every genre…

HOW DOES ONE WRITE ABOUT AN INDIAN metropolis? The classic Mumbai novel is supposed to be as unwieldy, chaotic and verbose as the city itself; art mirrors reality. In City of Incident, Annie Zaidi gives us a slim quiet counter-novel that is the very opposite: A sense of macabre colours the 12 interlocking stories about as many characters, which include a beggar, a balloon seller, a snake charmer and a trinket seller, “the invisible people on the peripheries of our vision”. Zaidi tries to pierce the inner lives of “a great city’s most powerless inhabitants” but, ironically, ends up erasing them physically, emotionally and literally—all the characters in this book are nameless. Writing about the Other in India carries the risk of the English-speaking author imposing her own misplaced empathy…

This exhibition is readily digestible, containing just 50 works. But they are skilfully selected—by Roobina Karode of KNMA (Kiran Nadar Museum of Art)—to represent each successive phase of the artistic career of Sayed Haider Raza, and so offering a mini retrospective. Some of these phases appear superficially to mark drastic changes in approach. But the selection also brings out the recurring preoccupations that serve as connecting threads, making the whole look seamless. In the 1940s, fresh out of art school in Nagpur, having moved to Bombay, Raza was an urban landscape painter, working mostly in gouache or watercolour on paper. The handling is loose but adept, so that forms seem rapidly but accurately drawn. The colouring is vibrant, almost Fauvist in works like ‘Bombay from Malabar Hill’ (1948). Following his…