Baba Ramdev Launches ‘Security’ Business: Should We Be Worried?

July 15, 2017

Yoga guru Baba Ramdev has launched a private security firm “Parakram Suraksha Private Ltd’. The aim of the company ensuring security and developing military instinct. According to Acharya Balakrishna, CEO of Ramdev’s Patanjali, “Security is a very important issue either for a man or a woman. Our aim is to prepare individuals for self and country’s security and for this we have formed Parakram. This will help develop military instinct in each and every citizen of the country so as to awaken the spirit and determination for individual and national security. Ramdev has hired retired Army and police personnel to train young interested recruits and plan to make a mark in security”.

In a democratic country there is nothing wrong with starting a legitimate business. A security firm is a perfectly legitimate business. Baba Ramdev is not just a Yoga guru with millions of followers including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the president of the ruling party, BJP’s Amit Shah but also a shrewd businessman. He has been seen performing his yoga tricks on several government functions including the Yoga Day.

Baba Ramdev’s “Patanjali Ayurved Ltd” which started its operations in 2008-09 was a marginal player until Narendra Modi came to power. Since then his business has boomed. In 2016-17 it doubled its revenue from Rs 5000 crore to Rs 10,000 crore and has become the fastest growing FMCG company in India. There are many who see the political patronage of the current political dispensation as the reason behind the phenomenal rise of the Patanjali empire.

So why should one be cynical about a well established businessman starting another lucrative business?

In April 2016, during a conference for harmony of the Rashtrya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) in Rohtak (Haryana). The media quoted Baba Ramdev as saying that he would have “beheaded” those who refuse to chant “Bharat Mata Ki Jai” were it not for the law of the land. Baba Ramdev said, “We respect this country’s law and Constitution, otherwise if anybody disrespects Bharat Mata, we have the capability of beheading not one but thousands and lakhs.”. This statement was directed at the Muslim community. This should send a chill down the spine of every peace loving citizen of the world.

When a person who has publicly stated that he is ready to behead hundreds of thousands of Muslims just for not ‘chanting’ patriotic slogans starts a private security company with an aim to “develop military instinct in each and every citizen of the country so as to awaken the spirit and determination for individual and national security” we should be worried.

Private security is a fast growing business in India. It’s the sought after business for the unskilled laborers and the former farmers who migrate to the cities and towns. They are in their millions in India. They can be spotted every nook and corner of India. If Baba Ramdev is going to instill ‘military instinct’ in them we should be worried. At a time when every ‘other’ in India is termed an ‘anti-national’ by the Sangh Parivar, Baba Ramdev instilling the spirit of ‘national security’ in his ‘private army’ is worrying. What is the purpose of hiring “retired Army and police personnel to train young interested recruits’’ if not for raising a para-military private army?

Given the business acumen of Baba Ramdev and the patronage he gets from the ruling dispensation and the Sangh Parivar, it would not be surprising, if he puts most of the currently operating security agencies out of business. Would you like to see nationalistic, ‘patriotic’, militarily trained Parakram Surakshak’s guarding your businesses and housing complexes? I would be worried.

To conclude, let me put a speculative question. How would these trained Parakram Surakshak’s behave in a communal riot, which is not infrequent in India?

Binu Mathew is the Editor of www.countercurrents.org. He can be reached at editor@countercurrents.org

Courtesy: countercurrents.org

The Mediocrity of the ICSSR Under Modi

July 15, 2017

The only qualification Braj Bihari Kumar has for this post is his loyalty to the ruling government and its ideology.

André Devambez, 1867–1944, aquatint on vellum / Image Courtesy: The Met Museum.

In May 2017, Braj Bihari Kumar was appointed the Chairperson of the ICSSR, the premier government institution for social sciences research. Does Kumar have the academic and research credentials for this job? Or has the government, predictably, bypassed democratic procedures by appointing Kumar? The ICSSR collegium, which is in charge of appointing a new Chairperson, was allegedly kept in the dark over Kumar’s appointment.

It is disappointing that the only person the government could choose for this significant position is a teacher of organic chemistry. Besides the fact that his discipline does not fall under social sciences, Braj Bihari Kumar de-legitimises the research work carried out by social scientists. He commented on Nobel Laureate Aamrtya Sen’s book The Argumentative Indian, stating that it is “politics, rather than economics”. Kumar is also of the opinion that “A large number of our intellectuals – the scholars in the field of social sciences and humanities – themselves are deficient in the knowledge about their country and society; they have developed vested interests in being collaborators and agents.”

Braj Bihari Kumar has written controversial books on various topics that have to do with the social sciences. He has said that Naga tribal identity was built up by colonial administrators and Christian missionaries. On the demarcation of states, he is of the opinion that small, economically unviable states are a bad idea. In one of his books, he even blames Muslim rulers for the caste system in India.

The new Chairperson of ICSSR, who makes all these absurd comments, is actually quite unknown to the social sciences fraternity. It is also not clear what contribution Dialogue and Chintan Srijan – journals edited by Braj Bihari Kumar – have made to social sciences. Former professor of JNU Ghanshyam Shah says “I don’t know about Kumar or his views on the status of social sciences. Nor have I come across his journal. There are hundreds of journals in the social sciences. I would also not say that because I am not familiar with him, he is not qualified for the position.”

The 2015 October-December edition of Dialogue reads, “Narendra Modi has proved himself to be the best Prime Minister. The economy of the country was in bad shape, when he came to power; in the brief period, we have overtaken China in GDP growth…” Last month’s report on GDP shows that India has officially lost the tag of the fastest growing economy to China as the March quarter registered a growth rate of 6.1 per cent much below than expected 7.1 per cent. The GDP growth was 8 per cent in 2015-16 and 7.5 per cent in the previous year.

It is evident that the only qualification Kumar has for this post is his loyalty to the ruling government and its ideology. Hardly a fortnight after he took office, he made a controversial statement: that teaching school children about Hindu-Muslim riots will make them social activists. The implication is that “social activists” are undesirable. Even worse is the implication for education, that students need not – or should not – learn about the reality of India.

More recently, JNU professor Amita Singh, who had kicked up a storm last year with her remarks that all Dalits and Muslims are "anti-nationals", is among the thirteen people chosen by the HRD Ministry as member of the ICSSR. The cases of Kumar and Singh indicate what has happened to autonomy, democracy and diversity of opinion in ICSSR, a premier body no longer allowed to be premier.

Sruti M D is member of the editorial collective of Indian Writers' Forum

Courtesy: Indian Cultural Forum

Desecrations of the Cross in Goa

July 15, 2017

Hindu Godess Santeri and her sister Saibin Mai, the Virgin Mary of Christians, will ensure the defeat of political forces trying to sow discord in Goa.

Image courtesy: Facebook page, oHeraldoGoa.

Since early July, Goans have woken to the shock of daily headlines reporting desecrations, mainly of Catholic religious sites, apart from two idols inside a Krishna temple including that of a nandi. Many wayside crosses in villages have been knocked down. The latest was a vicious attack on the cemetery of the Guardian Angel Church in Curchorem — where 28 niches, five wooden crosses, nine granite crosses, 16 tombs and a big cross on the arch opening into the cemetery were vandalised. All this was clearly the work of a group using heavy instruments.

Every one of these sites is situated in South Goa. South Goa is credited with winning many battles to preserve Goa’s identity: the Opinion Poll which saved Goa from being merged with Maharashtra; the declaration of Konkani as the official language (though there is still a struggle over scripts); and voting in each election to preserve the secular fabric of the state. The BJP has won seats here by supporting Catholic candidates, a precarious balance for the government at the moment, as it is a coalition government which has had to hold in abeyance measures such as the beef ban, for instance. This spate of malevolence is perhaps an attempt to discredit the government and create discord.

The RSS-backed Bharatiya Bhasha Suraksha Manch (BBSM) has been demanding that regional languages (Konkani and Marathi) be made the medium of instruction in Goa’s elementary schools, and that the government should stop the grants of English medium schools. The party lost all seats contested in the elections, and currently has no MLA that supports its cause. Their main target is the Diocesan Society of Education, whose primary schools are English medium; its tirades are aimed almost solely against the Catholic community. Their current strategy is to embarrass the BJP government in power.

The Sanathan Sanstha, a Goa-based rightwing Hindu outfit some of whose sadhaks (seekers) are under the scanner of investigating agencies looking into the killing of some rationalists, has had a presence here for some years, held meetings, and made controversial statements. Pramod Muthalik, chief of the Mangalore-based Sri Ram Sene, responsible for moral policing and attack on a pub in Mangalore, has tried, at various times to muddy our waters. But his entry has been banned for several months at a time, starting with the Congress government and continued by the BJP. Sadhvi Saraswati addressed the Sixth All India Hindu Convention held at the Ramnathi temple in Ponda: “People who take it as status symbol to eat beef… I request the Centre to hang them in public.” The lawyer Albertina Almeida writes: “There have been various Hindu Rashtra meetings brazenly hosted on Goan territory, with no reprimand by the State through its criminal justice system for the threatening statements made during and post these meetings.”

Our state is often praised for its communal harmony, and the BJP flaunts this quality when it is in power. Despite transformations effected by social engineering in the early years of Portuguese colonialism, which changed social relations, there has been peace. It has been argued that life was stable and without strife, because the two communities lived separate lives. Yet in our community life, political, religious and cultural dimensions merge and flow, as do our streams and rivers, into the great sea of Goan experience. It is an environment, and a way of life, that has charmed the well-to-do in Delhi, Mumbai and elsewhere into crowding our spaces with second homes.

But Goa has been no different when it comes to exploitation of all communities by the brahmins in the past. Goan society leaves more room for individual freedom than anywhere else in India. There could be several reasons for this, reasons that are to do with temporal rather than religious considerations. However, the influence of Buddhism, Jainism, Islam, the Bhakti movement and Christianity, must have led to a process of leavening and softening of the hierarchical rigidity seen elsewhere in India. Poet Bakibab (B.B.) Borkar described this component of the Goan personality as veglenchmunxaponn, a unique humanism.

Although there is a growing disquiet over the cultural transformations in other parts of the country, the Goan, who has gone about his business peacefully so far, has not felt threatened. Agitations have focused on the government’s support of excessive mining, casinos, environmental degradation. The desecrations this month, and the inadequacy of police action, have aroused anger and anxiety. Wayside crosses abound in our villages – honoured and venerated by everyone. Flowers and garlands adorn them, candles are lit around them. Cars and trucks slow down. The driver alights, bows and prays, then proceeds on his way. The Vashem cross broken in Loutulim – my ancestral village – was, in fact, renovated by the Shetyes, a Hindu community of jewellers. Religion in Goa is not divisive. There are many examples of cultural assimilation, not least the prominent transformation of the goddess Santeri.

Barring only two shrines outside Goa to goddess Santeri (and these are in the neighbouring state of Karnataka), it is only in Goa that Santeri is worshipped in various transformations, including as her sister Saibin Mai, the Virgin Mary of the Christians. Her special attributes are peace, fertility and protection — which Goa is proud to give as its special contribution to the Indian tradition. And this will ensure the defeat of political forces trying to sow discord. The singer Hema Sardesai is to lead a peace rally and concert Sunday July 16th.

Eminent writer and teacher Maria Couto’s books include Goa: A Daughter's Story and Filomena's Journeys: Portrait of a Marriage, a Family and a Culture.

Courtesy: Indian Cultural Forum

Complaint to Press Council on Provocative Dainik Bhaskar Headline on Amarnath Yatri Attack

July 15, 2017

The Network of Women in Media, India (NWMI) has sent a strong complaint to the Press Council of India on the provocative news headline in the Surat edition of the Hindi daily, Dainik Bhaskar published on July12. Sabrangindia had carried the story on how –what appeared to be a distorted headline two days after the Amarnath yatri attack sought to divide readers on communal lines

The July 13 complaint by the NWMI to the Press Council may be read below:

NWMI letter to PCI on Dainik Bhaskar's provocative news report

July 13, 2017
To,
Hon’ble Mr. Justice Chandramauli Kumar Prasad,
Chairman, Press Council of India
New Delhi

Sub: Inflammatory Headline and News Story

Hon’ble Mr Justice Chandramauli Prasad,

This is to bring to your attention the provocative headline and news report in Hindi daily Dainik Bhaskar’s Surat edition, dated July 12, 2017 (Annexure 1: screenshots).

The Network of Women in Media, India (NWMI) strongly condemns such reports and deplores the callous reporting and editing that produces them.

The news story relates to the recent attack on Amarnath pilgrims. The headline on the web version translates as “Terrorists were firing at us while bystanders laughed”. The headline of the print version, which has been widely circulated on social media, translates as “In agony over shots fired by terrorists, far from helping us, people were laughing loudly”. (Annexure 1: Screenshots)

The headline is based on a statement in the report from one Rajesh Naval, a resident of Valsad in Gujarat, who was reportedly on the bus that came under attack on July 10, 2017 near Khanabal in Jammu and Kashmir. The headline is not only misleading, it is mischievous and divisive.

Naval’s quote is neither prefaced nor followed by any explanation of how or where he spotted shopkeepers laughing at the passengers’ plight while the moving bus was under attack (and most people in it were, presumably, ducking for cover). The report also contradicts several press accounts of Kashmiris condemning the attacks, helping survivors and vowing not to let terror affect their hospitality or assistance to visitors. Even Home Minister Rajnath Singh has applauded the response of Kashmiris and the spirit of Kashmiriyat.

In a report in The Hindu on July 11, the driver of the bus, Salim Sheikh, stated that he drove the bus through the firing, without stopping. He also said, “We could not see anything as it was pitch black.”

A report by News18 detailed the various ways in which Kashmiris have always provided basic needs to pilgrims, while stating that many rushed to the aid of the injured pilgrims.

Reports in Greater Kashmir alluded to the tourist town of Pahalgam shutting down for a day in protest against the attack and to express solidarity with the victims. A report in Rising Kashmir quoted several survivors who thanked local Kashmiris for rushing them to the hospital.

A headline like the one in Dainik Bhaskar is particularly reprehensible in view of the current atmosphere in the country. The newspaper has failed to perform the journalistic duty of being accurate and fair and providing readers with correct information. The paper evidently preferred to distort and sensationalise a violent and tragic incident that has been widely condemned in Kashmir and in the rest of the country.

In the guise of giving readers a detailed, first-person account from people who survived the attack, the Hindi daily chose one inflammatory sentence as the provocative headline of the report. This goes against the Press Council of India’s directive stressing the need for caution while reporting on sensitive matters, including communal disputes or clashes.

The PCI specifically says that provocative and sensational headlines are to be avoided; that headings must reflect and justify the matter printed under them; and that headings containing allegations made in statements should either identify the body or the source making them or at least carry quotation marks. None of these guidelines were observed by Dainik Bhaskar in this particular headline.

According to the PCI, "News, views or comments relating to communal or religious disputes/clashes shall be published after proper verification of facts and presented with due caution and restraint in a manner which is conducive to the creation of an atmosphere congenial to communal harmony, amity and peace. Sensational, provocative and alarming headlines are to be avoided… The role of media in such situations is to be peacemakers and not abettors, to be troubleshooters and not troublemakers."

While recommending "due restraint and caution in hazarding their own opinion or conclusion in branding persons" the PCI observes, "In the zest to expose, the press should not exceed the limits of ethical caution and fair comments.” The PCI also says, “The press shall eschew publication of inaccurate, baseless, graceless, misleading or distorted material. All sides of the core issue or subject should be reported. Unjustified rumours and surmises should not be set forth as facts.”

As an association of journalists committed to and concerned about ethical journalism, NWMI demands that Dainik Bhaskar publish a corrigendum clarifying the facts and apologising for their misleading headline, which directly contradicts multiple survivor testimonies, and desist from stoking communal fires through misleading reports and headlines.

We hope the Press Council of India will take appropriate action.

Thanking you,
Sincerely yours,

Priyanka Borpujari, Nishita Jha, Ammu Joseph and Laxmi Murthy
[On behalf of the Network of Women in Media, India]

Annexure 1: screenshots of Dainik Bhaskar, July 12, 2017

Who Ate the Cows in Ancient India? Part 2

July 15, 2017

Historian D.N.Jha answers.

Professor D. N. Jha speaks on the myth of cow in India. In this part, he talks about the consumption of meat in the old Vedic times. He also tells us how the misconception of cow not being used as food in the ancient India, is being spread by the cow-vigilantes. Watch the second part of the talk.

Courtesy: Newsclick.in

Why We Must Say No to Vizhinjam Project

July 15, 2017

The Adani-owned port is estimated to cost a huge loss to the public exchequer and go the way of the Vallarpadam Container Terminal, commissioned by 2011 at a huge public cost and today running at a loss

Kerala is a unique state having many characteristics, famed for the Kerala Developmental Model that ahs showcased the welfare development concept emphasising high human development indicators.

Gifted with a decent forest cover, green-ish hamlets, 44 perennial rivers, hills and valleys with the identity 'God’s own country'. However, after inching towards the ‘neo-liberal concept of development’ Kerala, is, today, not an exception when it comes to giving a go-by to crucial issues related to livelihoods and the environment.

Once, one of the worlds’s sought after environmental hot spots, acclaimed for its bio-diversity, the Western Ghats, within Kerala today stands destroyed by trespassers. Sand mining continues to kill its rivers. Paddy lands have been modified to commercial lands. Sea shores have been encroached upon by hotels that are brands in the Tourism Industry.

Irrespective of the different political spectrum within the politics of Kerala, all governments and their attendant systems are showing an eerie interest in ‘developmental schemes’ which can and will have the impact of ravaging the environment.
Kerala, earlier had evolved a concept of developmental culture which was nurtured by the Revivalist, Gandhians as well as communist movements that was committed to sustainable development. Education and health for all, Land to the tiller and environmental farming formed the bedrock of the state’s polices.

At that time, Kerala saw a positive track record whether it was on the literacy front or in public health care (mother and infant mortality rates, secular politics etc). The eastern part of Kerala was protected by its ever green forests and different adjacent water sheds. Rarely did Kerala miss a monsoon, and droughts, extraordinary high temperature, etc were rare, rare happenings.

Today that commitment has collapsed and even as temperatures soar to extreme heat, diseases like swine flu, dengue, chicken gunia etc are a threat to the state where the public health system is otherwise well equipped.

Since the 1990s, both the Kerala state machinery and the mindset of its vast and moneyed middle class population (75%) are being deeply influenced by the metro mode of global developmental strategies. Even today, the creamy layers welcome the Hyper malls, golf clubs, toll gated roads, SEZ, air ports, water theme parks, self-financing institutions etc.

Kerala lies shaped like a ribbon on the banks of Arabian Sea having 35 to 125 kms wide mountainous forests of the Western Ghats which is gifted by a rare variety of flora and fauna. Due to the monsoon rain from June 1 and over the next eight months, muddy river water flows from 41 rivers to the Arabian Sea and results in the Chakara (harvest of fishes), a rare sight not seen in many other countries.

Though the length of the seas shores in Kerala is just 590 km, the total quantum of fishing totalled around 8.4 lakh tones, the highest of all Indian states. Due to the anti-environmental policies of governments, this output was reduced to 4.6 lakh by 2014. As a result, today, as many as 10 lakh fishermen have been shorn of their income. This has affected the economy of the state as also the protein level in the nutritional diet of Keralites.

Since Kerala is one of the least industrialised states, there are a higher number of jobless educated youths. This has pushed the government in its eagerness to invite more and more investors. At one point, what deliberately kept this class away was the allegation that labour strikes were more frequent and the high bargaining capacity of labour unions posed a threat to investors. Now these theories stand rejected. Kerala has had the least number of labour agitations in the past 25 years and today, many companies especially IT conglomerates are active in the state. The state government is making and unmaking many rules and regulations to welcome the investors.

Kerala has a number of ports along its Arabian Sea shore. Vizhinjam is situated very close to the famous Kovalam beach, has been a famous port since AD 100. It was the capital of the old dynasty called AAY RAAJA. There are around 50,000 people living in the surrounding villages, of which 15,000 people are engaged in fishing. The state government was planning to start a trans-shipment port here many years back. This idea was sought to be fulfilled by the UDF government and Adani groups through an MOU signed in 2015. There are different and serious environmental and economic threats to this new project.

The Vizhinjam International Sea port project has been conceived under the PPP mode of construction (Design, Build, Finance, Operate and Transfer). The total cost of the project is an estimated Rs 7525 crores and the share of the state government is 67% (3436 crores +viability fund Rs 1635 crores) and of the Adani s’ is only 33.% .( Rs 2454 crores ).

The state government agrees that Adani group can get the loan from nationalised banks with a public guarantee. Moreover public funds will further also be used to construct a fishing harbour at the cost of Rs 1463 crores. The road, rail and other facilities will be constructed by spending another Rs 1975 crores from state government coffers.

After 15 years of operation, the state government will be able to enjoy 1% of the benefit and Adani will get a substantial 99% of the profits. The state government will allow a hand over a precious 93 acres of land to the private corporate giant with SEZ facilities of more than 650 acres so that fancy five star hotels, flats, commercial institutes will come up and which will be the major attractions for the investor.

In this connection, the state government has agreed to extend the PPP contact for a further 10 more years. The CAG report says that the MOU signed between the state authority and Adani groups will get the Adani conglomerate a further whopping benefit of Rs 29217 crores. If we calculate the value of the investment made in government aids and other public supports, the net loss to the state will be around Rs 2,90,000crore over 40 years.

The environmental impact will be worse. The Vizhinjam Sea Shore has the maximum sand erosion. The area has more than a dozen of endangered corals, muscles and 40 to 50 kms of the sea is famous for the WEDGE BANK . There are 15,000 men and women engaged in fishing throughout the year. The average fishing quantum per person is 2000 kg of fish per year.

The new port will drive away thousands of fisher folk from their livelihood incurring a loss if no less than Rs 1,000 crores. Around 25,000 self-employed persons will be adversely impacted. The port will demand the construction of a water break stretching over 3.8 kilometers, the northern part of the wall will be swallowed by the waves and the Southern part will be projecting to sea . Both phenomena can seriously damage the ecology. Since the Kovalam beach is near the port, this beach famed internationally will be condemned to history.

To make the water break, the construction of the port will need more than 10millions tones of stones that will destroy the Western Ghats which have already been weakened.

For the Kerala government, the Vallarpadam Container Terminal, commissioned by 2011 is good lesson. The SEZ included port was launched, selling many dreams. But even after diluting the Cabottash rule of India, one of the dream projects of the state is today running at a loss. As the world cargo business lies in the doldrums, the fate of Vizhinjam could be far, far worse than that of Cochin Vallarpadam Cargo Terminal.

The Adani group of companies has a dubious history within the Indian democratic system. Their influence on Mr. Modi and his party has been close, and even controversial at several junctures. Retired IPS officers who had played a pivotal role in inactivating the police during the Gujarat 2002 riots, were absorbed in the Adani group of companies, signalling a dangerous phase in our democracy and for our society.

Kerala does not need more PPP projects like shipping Terminals, international air ports, shopping complex etc. These are not the answer to the sustainable development of the state. Since the days of the national movement for independence, Kerala has been the land of radical thought and revolutionary movements. Looking the facts and figures dispassionately, it is the duty of Keralites to say ‘no to Vizhinjam’ .

Complaint Against Met Dept for Colluding with Seed & Pesticide Makers to Predict Rainfall: Farmers, Maharashtra

July 15, 2017

Farmers from a village in Marathwada’s Beed district filed a police complaint on Friday against the India Meteorological Department (IMD), accusing it of colluding with seed and pesticide manufacturers and inflating monsoon forecast figures, reports PTI

This complaint has been filed at Dindrud police station in Majalgaon tehsil of Beed district, alleges that officials at the Pune and Colaba Met Department “colluded” with manufacturers and caused losses of lakhs of rupees to farmers who sowed their fields based on the IMD forecast.

Gangabhishan Thaware, 54, a farmer from Anandgaon village in Beed district and a complainant, said IMD officials misled farmers with a forecast that said there would be ample rain during the kharif season in June and July. “Farmers sowed their fields based on the IMD forecast, but after a brief initial spell, there has been no rain and farmers are staring at a bleak future. The sowing operations having gone waste,” Mr. Thaware said. In the complaint, he has added, “Farmers in our region completed pre-sowing operations before June, based on the IMD forecast which said there will be ample rains in June and July. They spent lakhs of rupees on seeds, fertilisers, pesticides and labourers wages. But it hasn’t rained since. IMD officials and seed and fertiliser companies who colluded and gave an inflated monsoon forecast are responsible for the plight of farmers and should be taken to task.” Mr. Thaware said farmers have also written to Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis seeking his intervention.

Dr. P.K. Nandankar, senior scientist, IMD, Pune said information they provide are advisories to the Central and State governments to aid the planning process. “It is up to citizens, including farmers, to interpret them. Every monsoon has a couple of dry spells, and our forecasts had made it clear that the usually arid Marathwada region is going through a dry patch.”

Dismissing the farmers’ allegations, Dr. Nandankar said newspapers had reported extensively on the dry spell in Marathwada. He added that IMD bulletins are sent to the State Department of Agriculture twice a week, and agricultural universities are updated through messages and alerts to help them advise farmers better.

“Our daily 30-page forecast bulletins are not region-specific and cover the whole country. Our short-range forecasts give approximate weather conditions over a five-day period. If we say, for instance, that Marathwada will receive 700 mm rainfall this monsoon as compared to its average 500 mm, we are not exaggerating but merely making a long-term prediction. It entirely depends on how people and farmers use this data,” he said.

An official at Majalgaon police station said they have received the farmers’ complaint and were looking into the matter.

Amarnath Yatra Victim’s Son Refused Bank Insurance Payout: The Hindu

July 15, 2017

The Hindu reports that apathetic bank officials of the Canara Bank are refusing to honour an accident cover claim under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana by the family of Amarnath pilgrim Nirmala Thakur, who lost her life in the terror attack on July 10 in Jammu and Kashmir. Seven pilgrims including Ms. Thakur were killed when their bus came under terrorist attack in Anantnag district.

Her son Pradip Thakur told the newspaper that the officials at the Canara Bank’s Dahanu branch said his mother hadn’t filled out a specific form while opening the account under the Central government scheme, which guarantees accident cover of Rs. 1 lakh to the account holder. “My mother had opened an account in the bank under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana. I want the bank to pay the insurance amount. Modi jine kaha tha (PM Narendra Modi had promised it),” says Mr. Thakur. Ms. Thakur had nominated her husband as the beneficiary.

He adds: “We are not very educated. It was the bank’s duty to inform us about the form when we were applying for the account with them.”

His wife, Rekha, adds, “How were we to know the procedure? They told us about other formalities, but didn’t mention a form for insurance. Rekha says she had accompanied her mother-in-law to the bank and both had applied for Jan Dhan accounts on the same day.

The bank officials are defending themselves, however. Insurances for riots and manmade disasters, anyway run into several complications as people-unfriendly regulations and a sector that has not been made accountable, are not made to pay up.

Officials at the Canara Bank’s Dahanu branch said Ms. Thakur is to blame for the situation. Initially, Manisha Matkar, the branch manager, said the Thakurs were mistaken. “Mr. Thakur is probably talking about another insurance cover, under which you need to contribute Rs. 12 per month. He should have approached me to resolve the issue,” Ms. Matkar said, when this reporter sought to know if bank officials were aware of the in-built insurance cover for Jan Dhan account holders.
Vineet Abraham, who will be succeeding Ms.Matkar as branch manager, said he doesn’t know about the Thakurs’ problem. claims he has no idea about the issue. “The person should have filled the form,” he said.

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Baba Ramdev Launches ‘Security’ Business: Should We Be Worried?

The Mediocrity of the ICSSR Under Modi

The only qualification Braj Bihari Kumar has for this post is his loyalty to the ruling government and its ideology.

Desecrations of the Cross in Goa

Hindu Godess Santeri and her sister Saibin Mai, the Virgin Mary of Christians, will ensure the defeat of political forces trying to sow discord in Goa.

Complaint to Press Council on Provocative Dainik Bhaskar Headline on Amarnath Yatri Attack

Who Ate the Cows in Ancient India? Part 2

Historian D.N.Jha answers.

Why We Must Say No to Vizhinjam Project

The Adani-owned port is estimated to cost a huge loss to the public exchequer and go the way of the Vallarpadam Container Terminal, commissioned by 2011 at a huge public cost and today running at a loss

Complaint Against Met Dept for Colluding with Seed & Pesticide Makers to Predict Rainfall: Farmers, Maharashtra

Amarnath Yatra Victim’s Son Refused Bank Insurance Payout: The Hindu

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