(Siddhartha Kumar)

Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com

IITs to treat disabled on par with SCs
17 Aug 2008, 0515 hrs IST, D Suresh Kumar,TNN
CHENNAI: The Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) must henceforth
treat physically disabled candidates at par with those from the
Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.
Consequently, physically disabled candidates for whom 3 % of seats
have been reserved in the IITs will be entitled for 40% relaxation in
marks that is currently extended to SC and ST candidates.
This follows an order delivered by the court of the chief commissioner
for persons with disabilities, New Delhi, on August 8 after parents of
two physically challenged candidates hailing from Chennai and Thane,
in separate petitions, pointed out that the IITs had treated their
children on a par with OBCs, which is in violation of a Supreme Court
ruling.
The court has said that the IITs must admit physically disabled
candidates who have a cut-off score of 104 and above in the current
academic session itself.
The chief commissioner for persons with disabilities Dr Manoj Kumar,
who is a quasi judicial authority, has directed the union ministry of
human resources development “to extend relaxation in marks and other
concession at par with SC/STs to all persons with disabilities,
irrespective of their vertical categories from the current academic
session.”
This year, the IITs had fixed a cut-off of 155 marks in the Joint
Entrance Examination for physically disabled candidates, which was
similar to that for the OBC applicants.
“As a result of this high cut-off only 20 of the 210 seats reserved
for the physically challenged were filled up in all the IITs,” said
Chennai-based M K Maheshwari, father of Rachit Maheshwari, a
physically disabled boy. “The remaining seats have fallen vacant and
nobody talks about it, while there is such a hue and cry over the
non-filling of OBC, SC and ST seats,” he lamented.
Maheshwari’s counsel argued “The common merit list of top 7903
candidates practically does not have any candidate with disability and
therefore fixing the aggregate cut off on the basis of the marks
scored by the last candidate in the common merit lists amounts to
fixing unrealistic targets for the physically disabled.”
Representatives of the union HRD ministry and the IIT Roorkee contested this.
The court pointed out that compared to other marginalised groups,
persons with disabilities, especially visually and hearing impaired,
are at a disadvantageous position “because the education system in the
country leaves a lot of be desired in terms of availability of
suitable teaching and learning material, trained teachers, appropriate
interfaces for conduction of examination and appropriate evaluation
methodology. The situation is all the more difficult in professional
and technical course.”
Referring to the contention of the IITs that physically disabled
candidates enjoyed the same reservation as entitled for their
community in vertical categories, Manoj Kumar said “while persons with
disabilities belong to SC/ST categories get relaxation of 40% marks,
the same benefit is not extended to physically disabled candidates
belonging to the open and OBC categories. This is discriminatory and
denies them equal opportunity to compete on equal footing with the
candidates with disabilities belonging to other vertical categories as
against the endorsement of the supreme court.”
Noting that relaxation in marks at par with SC/ST candidates was
extended to all persons with disabilities in the All India Engineering
Entrance Examination since 2007, the Delhi University and the Jamia
Millia University, he said that “it would be desirable that the
benefit of preparatory course extended to SC/ST candidates at the IITs
is also extended to students with disabilities. “
The court also directed the IITs “to declare vertical category wise
merit list for persons with disabilities i.e. SC-PH, ST-PH, OBC-PH and
Gen-PH from the next academic session.”
The IITs have also been directed to submit an action taken report
within 60 days of the receipt of the order.

(Siddhartha Kumar)

Source: www.dailypioneer.com

Cropping equality
By Chandrabhan Prasad
A good number of Indians who are self-conscious, wise, progressive,
pro-people and visionary, are upset over the declining crop diversity.
According to one estimate, Indian farmers once grew 30,000 rice
varieties. Now, more than 75 per cent have become extinct. It’s feared
that soon, only a dozen rice varieties will be left.
True, man and nature, over the ages, have evolved a sort of consensus
to protect and promote certain crop varieties depending upon the soil,
climatic conditions and needs. That helped keeping the biodiversity
best suited to man and nature both. But, the advent of science has
made fundamental changes, and man without consulting nature, promoted
certain crop varieties which suited him in the most disregarding
manner.
One of the underlying features in the science-led crop selection was
quantum of yields per hectare. In the process, high yielding, crops
replaced thousands of traditional crop varieties. World over, while
protecting crop diversity is a concern shown by various sections,
several dimensions exist in India.
Strange at it may appear, in India, crop diversity also meant crop
hierarchy. The crop hierarchy got innately connected with the caste
system. It may be strange, but certain crops were related with higher
castes, some with lower caste and few crops to outcastes.
Most crop varieties which are disappearing relate to either lower
castes or the outcastes, meaning Dalits. Most pearl millets crops
facing extinction relate to Dalits.
Coming to the 30,000 varieties of rice, there was a rice variety
called Sawan. A mustard size round shaped rice, off- white in colour,
it was grown in most parts of the Gangetic belt. Once cooked, the rice
would form blocks and grains would be inseparable. Eaten mostly by
Dalits and lower castes, the Sawan rice was looked down upon.
Sometimes, even upper castes too ate it, but secretly. So despised was
the Sawan rice, that even Dalits would avoid serving it to their
guests.
In the pulse segment, the “Khesari” is a household name amongst the
poor. Banned since 1961, this crop requires no manure or chemical
fertilisers, no irrigation, and is self-protected from weeds and
insects. It is currently available at Rs 15 a kg, when other pulses
are selling at about Rs 50 a kg. “Khesari” got identified with Dalits
and lower castes. Needless to say, this pulse has more protein than
most others. The Government imposed a ban on its production and sale
on the ground that it was a health hazard. Now, this too is becoming
extinct.
There were hundreds of such crops domesticated thousands of years ago,
but most such crops got identified with the poor and often with
Dalits. All those crops are now slowly disappearing. Even within the
wheat/rice segment — traditionally the monopoly food of the rich, –
there are varieties; thick and short, thin and long, and all have
distinct caste/income identities.
With the number of crop varieties shrinking, the few that remain, are
consumed by all, irrespective of caste, income, group identities.
Thus, crop hierarchies too are shrinking.
But, there’s a problem. As I visit villages these days and ask such
questions, the traditionally rich, upper castes, who rarely ate food
varieties now at the verge of extinction, are highly nostalgic about
the same. Dalits have no regret that these crops are disappearing.
They are rather delighted that all in the countryside are eating
nearly the same wheat/rice varieties that were once available to the
upper castes.
The big questions arises now. The science-governed crop varieties are
breaking crop hierarchies which were associated with castes. Shouldn’t
the good, wise, progressive, pro-people and visionary Indian
intellectuals be celebrating this? But, in reality, such people turn
up celebrating everything the Caste oppressors feel nostalgic about.
They are rejecting everything Dalits are celebrating.
India at this point of time is certainly in a phase of self conflict.
Conflict between modernity and tradition requires no elaboration. But,
is it also a conflict between caste and science? Or, it is a conflict
between caste and capitalism? Between Manu and Adam Smith? I ask this
because capitalism and science are inseparable as both grew together.

(Siddhartha Kumar)

Source: www.newindpress.com

KERALA Aug 17, 2008
Karat seeks quota for Dalits
Sunday August 17 2008 01:09 IST
Express News Service
Justice V R Krishna Iyer being greeted by CPM general secretary
Prakash Karat who turned up to grace the Scheduled Caste Convention
organised by the CPM in Kochi on Saturday. CPM state secretary
Pinarayi Vijayan and Home Minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan look on.
KOCHI: Enlarging the list of CPM’s demand for Dalits’ welfare, CPM
general secretary Prakash Karat on Saturday asked the Centre to ensure
legitimate reservation for dalits in public sector units which are
being taken over by the private sector.
Inaugurating a well-attended state Scheduled Caste convention
organised by the CPM here, Karat reiterated the the party’s demand for
job reservation for dalits in private sector. He pointed out that it
was one of the points in the Common Minimum Programmes on which the
Left parties had extended support to the UPA Government. He hoped that
the Centre would concede the demand soon.
“Globalisation and liberalisation have reduced the job opportunities
of dalits in government and public sector firms. So to make good this
loss, jobs should be reserved for dalits in private sector. The
private companies are not so private. The government gives them land
free or at nominal cost, power at concessional tariff and provide them
with infrastructure.
So the government has the claim,” he said. Karat said that reservation
would give a relief to dalits, but it was not a solution to
suppression and discrimination they were being faced. Karat said that
the convention had been organised as part of party’s commitment to
fight against all social suppressive system and emancipated the
victims of it.
Presenting the 15-point charter demand in the convention, SC/ST
Welfare Minister A K Balan, who is the organising committee convenor
of the meet, said that the government would soon ban issuing of
letters to dalits by caste organisations for producing at the village
offices for getting the community certificate.
CPM state secretary Pinarayi Vijayan presided over the function. Chief
Minister V S Achuthanandan also spoke. Justice V R Krishna Iyer graced
the function.

(Siddhartha Kumar)

Source: www.deccanherald.com

Mayawati as muse
Fascinated by Mayawati, political journalist Ajoy Bose decided to
document the political journey of this rising Dalit leader. Arathi
Menon digs deeper.
Mayawati’s growth from rags to riches is one that befits a fairytale.
The UP Chief Minister – dressed in silk kurtas, her diamonds intact –
tops the chart of the highest tax payers of the country and lives out
the fantasy of every single Dalit in the country. She’s one of them.
And her story could well be theirs.
For many politicians and political analysts, who dismissed her as
another Dalit leader from Uttar Pradesh, her breaking bread with
Comrade Karat prior to the recent trust vote came as a wake up call.
But for Ajoy Bose, a political journalist for three decades and author
of Behenji, a political biography of Mayawati, this breaking the mould
was long-time coming. “She had to come out of UP sometime. In May this
year, she visited Harkishen Singh Surjeet in hospital. That was a
clear sign that Maya’s coming out of her cocoon. Now, I don’t think
there’s anything that could stop her from being the prime minister.
“People have lost their trust in the biggest parties — the Congress
and the BJP — in the country. You also see a lot of small parties
coming up in the political arena. As far as the BSP’s concerned, it
has a constituency in every state. Dalits and Brahmins are the only
ones who see themselves as a caste in the country,” says Ajoy. “But if
she actually becomes the PM, it will have an electrifying effect on
the country. She can easily wrest 50 plus seats. Moreover, she has
begun to reach out to Brahmins. Poorer Muslims too can relate to her
success story,” he adds.
The charges of corruption against her, Ajoy feels, is no big deal.
Corruption, after all, has become part of the Indian politics. “Her’s
is a wealth aflaunt. In case of politicians, especially the one like
Maya, who’s at the helm of a party, her wealth becomes her party’s
wealth. Her constituency is happy with her wealth. For the Dalits,
it’s a fantasy she lives out,” reasons Ajoy.
There are many things that drove Ajoy to write a book on Mayawati. He
picks out the main three: “For one, Mayawati’s totally unique. Her
politics is different from what we have seen. She never belonged to
Congress. She has no past with Sangh Parivar or communists or
socialists. Secondly, her party, the BSP, has a structure different
from other parties. There is only a top rung leadership and then there
are grassroot level workers who garner votes for the party. When
elections come, the BSP is free to give tickets to anyone because
there’s no middle rung in the party.
The final point, but the most interesting one is that the BSP had
never held an agitation. Most parties grow on agitations. It’s rather
ironic that a party, that represents the Dalits, has never had to take
up the protest root to make it visible in the national level.” Ajoy
concedes that this method has served well for the party because if the
BSP had clashed, “they wouldn’t have come up. They took part in the
elections which was wiser,” he says.
Even though Ajoy had interacted with Mayawati closely earlier, when it
came to writing a book on her, he decided to maintain a healthy
distance. Seeking help from her would have made his job much easier,
but then, he says, “The book would have looked like a BSP brochure.”
Maya was out of power then and that proved helpful for the author.
“Her people were relatively free then. I got a lot of information from
them,” he says. On her response to the book, he says: “I am not a
great friend of Maya and she’s obviously not blowing kisses at me. I
would say, overall the reaction has been favourable.”
Which other women politicians have fascinated him similarly? “Politics
is not a rational game. You need to go by your instincts. Women are
different from men. They are intuitive and they go by their impulse.
Plus, they put in a lot of hardwork. That’s why most of them are very
successful in the field. Indira Gandhi is one that fascinated me the
most. Jayalalithaa too is a spunky woman,” Ajoy says.
And Sonia Gandhi? “If at all she follows her instincts. Sonia doesn’t
trust her instincts and turns to others for advice. In politics,
there’s nothing called ‘wise advice’,” Ajoy says.

(Siddhartha Kumar)

Source: www.hindu.com

National
Mayawati gets more security cover
Lucknow (PTI): Alarmed over a lapse in the security cover of Uttar
Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati, police authorities here have decided
to further strengthen her security by installing CCTVs and jammers in
her office and official residence.
The decision comes in the wake of arrest of an ISI agent Mohammad
Masroor alias Ramesh Chaudhary earlier this week.
During interrogation, Masroor reportedly told police that he had
visited secretariat annexe office of the Chief Minister for carrying
out renovation works as an employee of a local glass house.
“X-rays machines and CCTVs will be installed at the CM’s office in the
high security zone of the secretariat annexe and at her home. Dog
squads will also be used,” sources in the police department said here.
The security personnel in the inner ring of the annexe will be
equipped with bullet proof jackets besides being trained in commando
warfare to prepare them deal with any emergency situation, they said.
Additional jammers will be fitted and every visitor at her office and
residence will be frisked and identity checked, the sources said.

(Siddhartha Kumar)

Source: www.newkerala.com

Karat urges SC/ST quota in pvt education institutions
Kochi, Aug 16 : Calling for a ‘common united struggle’to protect the
rights of the Dalits in the country, CPI(M) General Secretary Prakash
Karat today urged the Centre to introduce a Bill in Parliament to
ensure reservation for SC/ST and OBC students in private educational
institutions.
Addressing a huge rally at the Dalit Convention organised by the
CPI(M) here, Mr Karat said ” due to commercialisation of education
sector, reservation in private educational institutions is going out
of reach of the deserving students. The Bill concerned will reverse
the situation.” He also reiterated his party’s demand the Centre
should not compromise on reservation for SC/STs even when work at
government departments were outsourced or contracted, or public sector
privatised.
” Most of the private sector industries enjoy the benefits and
subsidies of the government and the administration should ensure
statutory reservation for the Backward Class is adhered to,” he
noted.
Giving a clarion call for the emancipation of the Dalits and
protection of their rights, Mr Karat said the first land reforms in
Kerala did not benefit landless farmers as the land was distributed to
tenants and middlemen.
The State Government should try to distribute surplus land to the
landless SC/ST farmers across the State.
– UNI

(Siddhartha Kumar)

Source: www.patnadaily.com

CM Visions a Developed Bihar with ‘Rainbow Revolution’
Patna: Aug. 16, 2008
Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, during his speech at Patna’s Gandhi
Maidan on the occasion of India’s Independence Day on Friday,
reiterated his vision for a ‘Rainbow Revolution’ saying Bihar was well
on its way to an all-round prosperity with agriculture being the
centerpiece of economic changes.
“The government has earmarked Rs. 6,000 crore on agricultural projects
to be spent in the next four years. A host of projects have been put
in place to provide the necessary boost to the farming sector in Bihar
including setting up training programs for farmers at district levels
and making available scientific tools to increase land productivity, “
Kumar said.
Talking about the plights of dalits and ‘maha-dalits’ , the Chief
Minister said the government has given the go-ahead signal to a
‘Maha-dalit Development Mission’ where people falling within that
category would be provided opportunities to own land to build houses
with running water and indoor toilet, education, and vocational
training programs in an attempt to extricate them from their existing
hellish conditions.
“Hostels for students belonging to the extreme backward class, health
camps in predominant dalit areas, and opening of schools in their
neighborhood are just few of the measures that the government has
already committed to for the next several years,” said the Chief
Minister.
Kumar also outlined a number of social schemes for the upliftment of
Muslims, women, and other backward castes particularly those who are
living below the poverty line.
Earlier the Chief Minister took the salute from the armed and
para-military forces under the able leadership of Major Siddharth
Deshmukh.

(Shivam Vij)

Maya’s mystery heir is revealed
Raja Ram, Mayawati’s successor, is BSP’s national vice-president since
August 2006
1 BSP’s constitution says its national vice-president will be in line
to take over the party’s leadership
2 Mayawati has written Raja Ram’s name and placed it in two sealed
envelopes which are with two of her loyalists
3 They have been directed to make the name public only in the event of
her death or arrest
AT A GLANCE
NAME Raja Ram, 35
EDUCATION postgraduate from
Benaras Hindu University
RESIDENT of Bharatpur
Pichhawara village in Lalganj
subdivision of Azamgarh
district, Uttar Pradesh
By Dhirendra K. Jha in New Delhi
Mail Today, 19 August 2008
mailtoday.in
BAHUJAN SAMAJ Party (BSP) chief Mayawati’s heir as party president is
the only national vicepresident of the party. Zealously kept out of
public view by his mentor, the Uttar Pradesh chief minister, his name
is Raja Ram. He has been the BSP’s national vice president since
August 2006. At a rally in Lucknow on August 9, Mayawati had
dramatically announced that she had finalised her successor as one
from the Scheduled Castes тАФ a ‘Chamar’, she said тАФ who was 15-18 years
younger to her. But she immediately threw a shroud of secrecy around
his identity and did not reveal his name. It can now be revealed that
35-year-old Raja Ram has been carefully groomed in the position for
several years and stays mostly at Mayawati’s residence in Delhi.
Highly-placed sources in the BSP said that for his political training,
Mayawati ensured his election to the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council
and made him in charge of the party organisation in Madhya Pradesh.
As it turns out, there need never have been a mystery around the
succession plan in the BSP. The answer had always been in the party
constitution which unambiguously states that the national vice
president will be in line to take over the party leadership. The BSP
constitution says, “In the event of unfortunate demise of the National
President, the National Vice President shall immediately and
automatically assume charge as National President and shall continue
to function as such until the end of the current term of the National
President.” Mayawati followed the BSP constitution to put Raja
Ram in the right slot and quietly laid out her succession plan.
Sources said Mayawati has put his name in two sealed envelopes which
are in the custody of two of her senior loyalists. They have been
directed to make the name public only in case there is a leadership
crisis arising out of her “death” or “arrest”. “I foresee danger to my
life and if I am killed by my rivals and the opposition parties, you
should not worry as to who would lead the Dalits in the country,” she
said at the August 9 rally, adding: “My successor is 15-18 years
younger to me and a chamar (scheduled caste) by caste. He does not
belong to my family. He is a devoted worker of the party and is being
trained for the responsibility. “
The BSP supremo said she had written his name on her letterhead. The
details would remain with her close confidants. The name would not be
declared till she was in good health as, according to her, the BSP’s
detractors would create problems for him. His name would be announced
at the right time and it had been ensured that her successor would be
acceptable to all. The announcement came as a surprise to her party
workers who had come to participate in a day-long convention. They had
little idea who the heir apparent was. To date, they are said to be
clueless about the identity of their next leader. The BSP supremo’s
approach to succession is no different from her mentor Kanshi Ram’s,
who had made it clear to all that none other than Mayawati would
inherit his political legacy. She, too, was made national vice
president of the party after Kanshi Ram named her his successor in
2001.
Raja Ram is a resident of Bharatpur Pichhawara village in Lalganj
subdivision of Azamgarh district, UP. He did his Master’s degree from
Benaras Hindu University. His uncle Dr Baliram, an old associate of
Kanshi Ram and a former Member of Parliament, introduced Raja Ram to
the BSP founder nearly two decades back. Soon he won the trust of
Kanshi Ram and Mayawati. Sources said Mayawati made a shrewd political
move by grooming Raja Ram for the role. She was aware that her party’s
core Dalit constituency must remain intact if it was to grow in UP and
elsewhere.
The Dalit sub caste of ‘Chamar’ constitutes more than half the total
Scheduled Caste population in Uttar Pradesh. Since its formation, the
party ensured that the leadership of Dalits in the state stayed in the
hands of this sub caste. Raja Ram, therefore, represents the
continuation of the tradition started by Kanshi Ram himself. By making
the caste of Raja Ram public, and not his name, Mayawati sent a clear
message to her Dalit supporters that they need not worry about her
successor, who would continue to belong to the Chamar caste.

(Siddhartha Kumar)

Source: www.organiser.org

Home > 2008 Issues > August 24, 2008
Bookmark
Mayawati and social empowerment
By M.V. Kamath
Behenji: A Political Biography of Mayawati; Ajoy Bose; Penguin Viking,
pp 277, Rs 499.00
India’s greatest shortcoming, indeed its basic weakness, has been the
caste system which largely prevented the country from acting as a
unified force. It was this which contributed to India’s failure to
resist invaders from abroad. India has paid a grievous price for its
casteist social structure. The Scheduled Castes, so-called and the
Scheduled Tribes were always the target of first, Islamic and later,
Christian missionaries. Such of those who resisted conversion received
little help from upper caste fellow-citizens. Saints and savants
pleaded in their behalf, but to little avail. For centuries the dalits
remained marginalised.
One of the first to fight untouchability at the political level was Dr
Bhimrao Ambedkar. But he was ahead of his times. As much out of a
sense of guilt as out of social and political compulsions, a free and
independent India sought to bring the untouchables— or dalits—into
mainstream activity, through reservations in schools and colleges.
That, in turn, created an educated dalit class, full of anger and
hatred against the upper castes. Economic betterment gave them the
courage to speak out.
Among them was a young Sikh dalit called Kanshi Ram, who started life
as a laboratory assistant in an ammunition factory in Kirkee,
Maharashtra, but soon gave up his job and career to fight for dalit
rights. During his intense sadhana, if one might so call it, he was to
come across a studious if diffident, dalit school teacher called
Mayawati whose original ambition, strongly supported by her parents
(who were later to disown her) was to be an I.A.S. officer. It took
only one long and passionate discussion with Kanshi Ram for Mayawati
to succumb to his declared mission to fight for the downtrodden. The
rest, as the saying goes, is history.
Kanshi Ram became her mentor and guide. His organised fight for dalit
upliftment started on October 14, 1971 and by 1973 he had set up what
was called the Backward and Minority Communities’ Employees Federation
(BAMCF). How it grew into a powerful organisation with a total
membership of over 9,200,000, including 500 Ph.Ds, 15,000 scientists,
300 medical graduates and 7,000 graduate and post-graduate degree
holders is a story in itself. Kansi Ram, however, was soon to realise
that BAMCF was incapable of delivering his vision of a liberated
people, which led him to establish a political party: the Bahujan
Samaj.
Bitterly anti-brahmin— at public meetings Kanshi Ram would begin his
speech by declaring that if there were any upper caste members in the
audience, they better leave at once for their own safety—Kanshi Ram
got into politics. He did poorly in elections in the early stages but,
as the years passed, began to make visible progress.
In this brilliantly pieced-together narrative, Ajoy Bose recalls how
the Kanshi Ram-Mayawati duo played one political opponent against
another, how together they sewed together dalits, a whole range of
backward castes and Muslims besides, to form a political combination
that seemed unstoppable. Principles were thrown over board.
Hatred of upper castes whom Mayawati loosely dismissed as Manuwadis,
was the order of the day, Mahatma Gandhi was briefly a target of dalit
anger. Mayawati’s diatribe against the Mahatma for describing dalits
as Harijans—she hated the description—was to become the talk of the
town following any meeting she addressed. To her, not the Mahatma, but
Dr Ambedkar was the Great Liberator. Right from the day the Bahujan
Samaj was formed, Mayawati indulged in dirty politics as to the manner
born, with utter contempt for the leaders of the Samajwadi Party. Bose
goes into great detail over how Mayawati bested her political rivals
including Mulayam Singh and Kalyan Singh, how, step-by-step she rose
to power, ultimately to be the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, the
second largest state in the country.
Bose recounts the phenomenal number of properties she has acquired, as
also the acquisition of cash, clothing and jewellery for which she
became rightly notorious. Coming from a large family which consisted
of impoverished parents and seven siblings, Mayawati, in the course of
her political career and specially after she became Chief Minister,
had acquired seventy two houses and set up fifty four bank accounts.
According to her own admission, her financial worth including moveable
and immoveable assets jumped from Rs 160.7 million in 2004 to Rs 520
million in 2007. Bose says that “the condemnation of Mayawati’s vast
wealth and lavish spending must be tempered with the recognition of
the general absence of any kind of moral code in Indian politics when
it comes to money”. A pathetic excuse for corruption.
As estimated one hundred million rupees were allegedly spent
officially for celebrating her 47th birthday when she had become Chief
Minister for the third time in 2003. And this is the woman who aspires
to Prime Minister of India through the nation-wide support of dalits
and other backward classes. One can only say: God save India.
Mayawati, reports her biographer, will continue to view her journey
from poverty to affluence “as a fairy tale and not a dirty story” as
long as the rules of the political game remain the same. Some fairy
tale, that! Bose also notes that throughout her career, Mayawati has
been regarded as “an unguided missile that has explosive content but
no sense of direction”—unless, one supposes, it is raising her bank
balance. Unprincipled, reckless but scheming, she has been seeking the
support of the upper castes, notably the brahmins who once she
contemptuously dismissed as ‘Manuwadis’, and they are apparently
succumbing to her overtures because they see support to her as
preferable—if unprincipled— way of staying close to power. It is to
such a stage that Indian politics has been reduced.
A phonier explanation would be hard to come by Behenji—that’ s how she
apparently loved to be called—is a major study of unprincipled and
indefensible politics as currently practiced in Uttar Pradesh and
which evidently she wants to replicate in other states as well.
Mayawati has the right to fight her battles as she thinks fit. And
what she thinks fit, seems from her past record to be unacceptable
even to Chanakhya. All that we can do is to wait and see. But Bose
deserves our thanks for writing this expose. He has done real service
to the country.
(Penguin Books India Pvt. Ltd., 11, Community Centre, Panchsheel Park,
New Delhi-110 0017.)

(Siddhartha Kumar)

Source: www.fibre2fashion.com

AP Govt encourages khadi & village industries in urban areas
August 18, 2008 (India)
The State Government of Andhra Pradesh has taken the initiative to
celebrate the 61st Independence Day by encouraging regional
entrepreneurs to set up khadi and village industries in urban areas as
well.
The Government is already providing a 35 percent subsidy to
entrepreneurs from SC, ST, BC and Minority communities and 25 percent
to OCs in rural areas while it was offering 25 percent to SC, ST, BC
and minorities and 15 per cent to the OCs in urban areas.
While speaking during the flag hoisting ceremony on August 15, Mr
Gollapalli Surya Rao, Small-Scale Industries Minister, stated that
setting up of khadi and village industries would go a long way in
resolving the problem of unemployment in Andhra Pradesh. He also
brought to notice that the state industry won seven awards last year
and added that under the Employment Generation Scheme, a total of Rs50
million would be granted as loan to the SC and ST entrepreneurs.
Eminent Government officials including Zilla Parishad chairman CSVG
Krishna, MLC N Sesha Reddy, MLA Mutta Gopala Krishna, collector
Gopalakrishna Dwivedi, superintendent of police Y Nagi Reddy, and
joint collector GSRKR Vijay Kumar among others were also present at
the occasion.
Moreover, the Government is also implementing a host of welfare
schemes and invites people to take advantage of the same. Farmers in
the state who lost their crops due to recent rain and flood were also
assured to be secured with a remedial measure, one of which includes,
provision of Rs2,830 million in this Kharif season as crop loans.
These Governmental initiatives are likely to breathe new life into
both the industrial and agricultural sectors of the state, helping
sustain the economy and survive stiff competition from counterparts
belonging to other countries.