The article also notes the RSS’s controversial history, including its association with communal violence—such as the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi by a former RSS member and the 1990s demolition of a 16th-century mosque in Ayodhya, which sparked significant backlash.

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While writing my previous blog on how and why Narendra Modi went out of his way to promote English when he was Gujarat chief minister — despite opposition from people in the Sangh Parivar — I came across an interesting write-up by Aakar Patel, a well-known name among journalists and civil society circles.

Titled “How Gujarat ignores the English language”, with a subheading “Exploring clichés about Gujarat’s English and education system”, the piece was published in the online edition of the Hindustan Times’ business daily, Mint. It is now 12 years old — one reason why I decided to review what Aakar had written.

While quickly going through the article, I found Aakar — who served as the head of Amnesty International India between 2015 and 2019, and currently chairs its board — was grossly mistaken in stating that the Congress in Gujarat “has supported introduction of English earlier but the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) reject this.”

Traditional Indian spices

As my two previous pieces on this site suggest (click here and here), poor English in Gujarat is actually a Congress legacy — one that sections of the Sangh Parivar wanted to continue. Modi, however, made efforts to reverse this by crafting policies and programmes supporting the teaching of the language.

That said, much of what Aakar wrote in his article — published online in Mint on October 18, 2013 — still holds true. Written after attending a function at a school in Surat where he had studied 25 years earlier, Aakar states he “was struck” to find school teachers speaking “an embarrassingly-broken English, sprinkled with errors and without felicity.”

I don’t know how much teachers’ knowledge of English has changed since then, but Aakar’s quotation from the Gujarat education department website suggests that Modi’s efforts to promote English seem to have failed — at least at the official level. The web address quoted by Aakar may have changed, but the gibberish English written on it remains stuck in time.

Indeed, the two long quotes from the website that Aakar reproduced in 2013 remain unchanged. They appear verbatim today as they did then — serving, as he called them, “an evidence on display” of the poverty of English in a department meant to support Modi’s language promotion policies through such grand programmes as SCOPE, or Society for Creation of Opportunities through Proficiency in English.

Let me now reproduce the two long quotes from the Gujarat State Education Department website which Aakar copied in 2013 to “explain” how the department puts together its textbooks — and which remain as incoherent today as they were back then.

The first appears under the “Overview” section (screenshot here) of Gujarat textbooks. It states (quoted verbatim, without correcting grammar):

“Establishment

“Gujarat state Textbook Mandal was established in AD 1969 on 21st October. Since 38 year mandals main target. High quality textbooks are published and to Gujarat students they are easily available at reasonable prices.

Through Mandal Std. 1-12 Gujarati Medium textbooks are published. Thereafter in Hindi, English, Marathi, Sindhi, Urdu, Sanskrit and Tamil Language also text books are published.

Board Committees

Mandals whole management is done properly; it decided objectives are fulfilled for that Board Committee is formed as below.

(1) General Board (2) Director Board (3) Working committee (4) Educational committee (5) Production committee (6) Research committee.

Above mentioned all committee’s administration works properly regarding that advise suggestions are given.

Aakar Patel

 

Mandal distribution related works

Printed textbooks are distributed in whole Gujarat at Government level working organizations through them with district distributor textbook are sold in retail for that work distributors are hired. Retailers registration is done in mandal. In Ahmedabad also Ahmedabad has its own selling centre. (Sale Depot, Godown no. 9 below Asarva Bridge, Ahmedabad – 380016, Ph. 22133920) is there. At any institute or personal level to any student from this sale centre textbook can be availed at retailing std. from outside Gujarat through money order or bank draft also textbooks can be obtained.

Mandals research related work

Textbook mandal by publishing textbook is not satisfied. Textbooks quality improves continuously for that research related work is also done. From primary teacher to university professors knowledgeable persons are joined in evaluation programme and other educational programme. Textbooks writers, advisers, translators etc. for them work of finding genius is done.

Mandal’s work in new sector

Basic subject’s textbook – AD 1999 to Std. 11-12, basic subject 26 textbooks publishing being done Mandal for general exam additional subjects through textbook relevant sectors students are provided basic literature. Due to this in village and Kurshi sector also Mandal human research development important work could give own contribution.”

The second is what the department calls a “Disclaimer” (screenshot here):

“Gujarat Government Education Department related information is easily available to people from one place only with that aim this website is developed. Regarding this matter if you have any opinion then you are requested to contact us. To keep this site latest and the mistake that come our consideration to correct those mistakes all efforts will be done. In this site document information created by people and private organizations is there. The information available for outside, on its exactness, co ordination latest or completion we have no control or we can give any promise, this matter has to be kept in mind.

The information of this web site is for the benefit of general public and from it any legal right or responsibility is not created. For over sight or any mistake of typing this department is not responsible.

If any information is not true or some corrections are needed in it, if this is known then the steps to solve it opinions can be given. This web sites documents/samples (PDF file) soft copy and hard copy thus from both they are taken. While conversion certain documents formatting may change that can happen for conversion raised mistakes efforts are done of correcting it. In spite of that now also there can be any mistake in it. If regarding this matter you have any questions then original documents respective copies have to be brought or you are requested to contact us. Moreover for linked sites policy or method we are not responsible.”

Established in 2007–2008, the site has had a whopping 19,816,644 visitors. Yet it hasn’t been updated since 2014 — the year Modi left Gujarat to become the country’s Prime Minister. On Google, interestingly, the site is labelled as “Not secure or Dangerous,” with its identity marked as “not verified” (screenshot here).

Courtesy: CounterView

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This blog is a continuation of my story “English proficiency for empowerment: Modi’s SCOPE vision contrasts Amit Shah’s remark”. I personally found nothing unusual in the Union Home Minister’s “feel ashamed” remark directed at those who speak in English, as I have witnessed his dislike for the language on several occasions during my stint as the Times of India representative in Gandhinagar from 1997 to 2012.

In fact, Amit Shah never tried to hide his disdain for English. He would candidly tell me that he didn’t read the Times of India because it was an English daily. Once, ahead of a mass rally during an assembly election campaign in a tribal-dominated region of Gujarat that Modi was about to address, I spotted him. On seeing me, he objected to a particular news item I had written. I asked, “How do you know? You don’t read the Times of India.” He responded, “Yes, but others tell me what appears in your paper.”

On another occasion, as narrated to me later, Shah, accompanied by senior BJP leader Purshottam Rupala, reached my office to lodge a complaint about a report I had written. Bharat Desai, then my editor, heard them out patiently. Suddenly, Shah snapped, “Who reads your English paper?” To this, Desai calmly replied, “If nobody reads our paper, why have you come here? You can have tea and leave.”

Shah’s attitude wasn’t limited to just a contempt for English. Once, while discussing the poor state of education in Gujarat in his home minister’s chamber—an issue many would privately raise—I asked him what he thought should be done to improve the state’s educational standards, which I believed were among the poorest in India. His informal reply was startling: “Nothing needs to be done. It’s doing fine. No need to change things.”

Ironically, no one seemed to understand the importance of English for improving educational standards in Gujarat better than his boss, Narendra Modi. Unlike many earlier chief ministers, Modi went out of his way to promote English education in schools. His flagship initiative, SCOPE—Society for Creation of Opportunities through Proficiency in English—was launched with this very objective and continues to this day.

I don’t know the exact reason, but I believe he was convinced that English was a crucial business requirement for attracting investment to Gujarat. One of the major hurdles for those looking to set up enterprises in the state has been the poor educational standards of Gujarati job seekers, which he seemed to associate with their weak English communication skills. I have no reason to believe that he has changed his view after becoming the Prime Minister.

From what I gathered during my days at Sachivalaya, after Modi became chief minister, he consistently urged government officials to draft policies to make English a compulsory subject at the primary and secondary levels. In doing so, he even went against his trusted protégé Anandiben Patel—then education minister and now UP governor—who once told me, “We don’t need English, we need Sanskrit.” Modi’s push for English education became a sore point for many in the RSS.

Once, a pro-RSS group running a school in Gandhinagar, Vidya Bharati, invited journalists for a press-cum-lunch meet. Cloaking a swadeshi garb, their aim was to accuse Modi of “neglecting” Sanskrit in favour of English. They even announced an agitation against this perceived slight to Sanskrit—an agitation that never materialized. I reported the event for the Times of India.

Despite his ideological leanings, credit for reviving English in Gujarat must go to Modi—even though his command of the language was initially weak. During his first business summit, Resurgent Gujarat, held in early February 2002 in the presence of the British ambassador, Modi pronounced “delegates” as “dulgats,” causing amused chuckles in the audience. Yet, he took a surprisingly pragmatic approach to the language that Shah dismissed as “foreign.”

Within three years in office, Modi had improved his English considerably. Around 2003 or 2004, he inaugurated an IT event at InfoCity in Gandhinagar, supported by a global firm. He spoke in English, ex tempore, using short but grammatically correct sentences. During subsequent Vibrant Gujarat summits, Modi continued to speak off-the-cuff in English, without a teleprompter, fully aware that foreign dignitaries and entrepreneurs were key participants.

Even while denouncing “English culture,” Modi, by 2003, had begun instructing officials to draft education policies to overcome English language deficiencies. In fact, his was the first major reversal of a flawed language policy that had persisted since the 1960s. That policy, the result of a debate between two ministers both surnamed Thakore—one dubbed “Thakorebhai Panchava” for wanting English from Class 5, the other “Thakorebhai Athva” for preferring it from Class 8—had led to a compromise: schools could choose. The result? Children began English in Class 8, and dropped it by Class 10, producing a generation with little or no English proficiency.

Modi seemed to recognize this gap as a barrier to Gujarat’s global aspirations. He pushed for English in schools. A key obstacle, then and now, was the chronic shortage of English teachers—but the blame for that lay with his predecessors.

Looking back at my stories for Times of India, I found that in 2006, Modi urged the education department to launch a movement promoting spoken English among Gujarati youth. At the department’s Chintan Shibir, he stressed the importance of this skill: “Poor English among the Gujarati youth is telling adversely on their standing in the world. This stigma should be removed at the earliest. There is a need to develop an atmosphere in which the Gujarati youth, well-equipped with English, are able to show their best skills to the world.”

This was not Modi’s first push for English. A year earlier, in 2005, he proposed starting English education from Class 1. Although the idea gained traction in the bureaucracy, he had to backtrack due to resistance from the Sangh Parivar. The RSS’s education wing, Shiksha Bharati, labeled the move “anti-swadeshi.”

Even in the mid-1990s, when Gujarat decided to introduce English from Class 5, it had declared the subject non-examinable—so most students didn’t study it. Modi changed that in 2004, making English exams mandatory in Class 5 across the state.

“There is indeed a major change now. Even rural areas show a strong interest in English. With free textbooks, rural children are now scoring better in English than in other subjects,” Nalin Pandit, former director of Gujarat Council of Educational Research and Training (GCERT), once told me.

Thanks to Modi’s insistence, the Indian Institute of Teachers’ Education (IITE) was established in 2010 as a university with English as the medium of instruction. I had quoted him in a report saying, “World-class teachers to be produced at IITE must be taught in a language used internationally.” A brainchild of Modi, IITE today offers BA-BEd and BEd-MEd programs in English at its Centre of Education, while affiliated colleges offer B.Ed programs in both English and Gujarati.

IITE emphasizes the development of communication skills in both the mother tongue and English, showing a commitment to multilingualism in teacher training—a vision that stands in direct contrast to the anti-English rhetoric of Amit Shah.

Courtesy: CounterView

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The report suggests that multidimensional poverty in Gujarat declined by around 7% over a period of five years, pointing out that in tribal-dominated districts, where poverty levels were particularly high, there has been a clear improvement: in Dahod from 54.93% to 38.27%, in Dangs from 57.33% to 26.61%, in Narmada from 37.11% to 22.62%, and in Panchmahal from 41.52% to 18.11%.

Basing its estimates on the National Family Health Surveys of 2015–16 and 2019–21, the report claims the “most rapid reduction” in multidimensional poverty occurred in districts located in four states: Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, and Rajasthan.

While not directly disputing what the Government of India report highlights regarding Gujarat, a new survey carried out by a civil rights group in two tribal districts — Dahod and Panchmahal — and two non-tribal districts — Bhavnagar and Morbi — suggests that things aren’t as rosy as they are made out to be.

A follow-up to a similar survey carried out in 2004, the new survey — conducted in 2025 by Anandi (Area Networking and Development Initiatives or ASAA) — reveals that, even after two decades, total food security continues to elude nearly 80% of the population in the surveyed areas. To quote Sejal A. Dand, a senior activist directly involved in both the 2004 and 2025 surveys, two decades ago, 10% of people were found to be “food secure,” and this percentage has gone up by just 2% over the years — to 12%.

Releasing details of the 2025 survey, which was conducted with the help of senior academic Prof. Dipa Sinha, currently with Azim Premji University, another Anandi activist, Neeta Hardikar, told the Ahmedabad media that there is certainly a change: unlike in 2004, there is “no full day hunger” as found then, “but our survey suggests that a large number of households often don’t have access to food, especially in the tribal areas.”

The survey results confirm this: in 2004, it was found that in the sample households of the tribal area of Panchmahal, a staggering 73.66% were food insecure for more than six months in a year. In contrast, the 2025 survey shows that 7.06% “live in hunger,” while a whopping 86.38% have “incomplete meal,” and only 6.56% have a “full meal.” Conditions are worse in Dahod district: here, 24.61% live in hunger, 58.78% have “incomplete meal,” and only 16.61% have a “full meal.”

The 2025 results indicate that the situation is not much better in the non-tribal areas of the Saurashtra region of Gujarat where the survey was also conducted. In Malia (Morbi district), 9.10% “lived in hunger,” 75.51% had “incomplete meal,” while only 15.38% had a “full meal.” Similarly, in Shihor and Umrala of Bhavnagar district, 15.98% “lived in hunger”, 54.84% had “incomplete meal,” and just 14.13% had a “full meal.”

The 2025 survey was undertaken specifically to assess how effectively the National Food Security Act, 2013 — which aims to provide subsidized food grains to approximately two-thirds of the country’s 1.4 billion people — has been implemented since it became operational in Gujarat about a decade ago. A total of 1,261 households were included in the survey, mostly belonging to marginalised communities, with a deliberate effort to include those facing social vulnerabilities such as single women, the disabled, and the elderly.

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An action research report, “Invited Disaster: Khadi Floods in Surat City”, published by two civil rights groups, Paryavaran Suraksha Samiti and the People’s Union for Civil Liberties, Surat, states that nearly half of Gujarat’s top urban conglomerate—known for its concentration of textile and diamond polishing industries—is affected by the dumping of debris and solid waste, along with the release of treated and untreated sewage into the khadis (rivulets), thereby increasing the risk of flood disaster.

Conducted by two post-graduate students from Azim Premji University, Avadhut Atre and Buddhavikas Athawale, with assistance from environmental lawyer Krishnakant Chauhan, architect Sugeet Pathakji, environmentalist Rohit Prajapati, and urban planner Neha Sarwate, the study is based on field observations of the khadis passing through the South Gujarat town.

Using available secondary data, the study corroborates and confirms observed changes in these rivulets—intended as natural stormwater drainage channels for the urban area—through historical satellite images from Google Earth and interviews with stakeholders.

According to the study, authorized and unauthorized constructions, land reclamation along khadis, and resectioning and remodeling of khadi flows have severely compromised their capacity to carry stormwater. “In many areas in Surat city, smaller natural waterways have been levelled and converted into roads to facilitate traffic flow, overlooking the critical need for smooth stormwater drainage,” it asserts.

The study notes, “It can be said that the rainwater falling in city areas is unable to exit due to the ‘development’ of the city. The flooding of khadis impacts the eastern part of Surat city, affecting over 50% of Surat’s population. The textile trade also suffers during flooding, leading to economic losses.”

It estimates that khadi floods affect East Zone A, East Zone B, South East Zone, South Zone, and South West Zone, which collectively house approximately 43,75,207 of Surat’s total 82,32,085 residents.

More alarmingly, the study points out that the khadis are fed by discharges from sewage treatment plants. Moreover, numerous illegal outlets release both domestic and industrial effluents into the khadis. In fact, the city’s expanding periphery contributes untreated sewage into these waterways.

Containing a large collection of Google Earth images—compared from 2011 through 2025—of several rivulets such as Mithi Khadi, Koyali Khadi, Bhedwad Khadi, and Kankara Khadi, the study criticizes the Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) for undertaking desilting as part of pre-monsoon preparedness “without due caution,” which, it claims, harms floodplain areas and reduces the capacity of the khadis to handle excess monsoon water.

One such example is a bridge over Mithi Khadi, now surrounded by a high wall over land that previously acted as a floodplain. Landfilling has raised the terrain above the natural flood level, pushing water toward other low-lying areas. “The obstruction around the bridge hampers smooth flow of water during the monsoon,” the report says.

The study further observes that construction and reclamation have reduced floodplain areas and the width of khadi stretches. Dumping and landfilling have drastically altered the elevation profile. At one site, a compound wall built in 2018 has resulted in the khadi being embanked by a concrete wall, shrinking its original area.

At another site, textile waste is directly dumped into the khadi, while accumulated solid waste and soil significantly hinder water flow. “A sewage outlet was observed discharging domestic and chemical wastewater—particularly from nearby units—into the khadi.”

Focusing on Koyali Khadi, the report notes that road construction over it restricts natural water dispersion, causing severe waterlogging in the surrounding areas during monsoon. Particularly concerning is the ongoing project from Bhathena Naher bridge to Jeevan Jyot bridge, where the khadi is being fully concretized, drastically reducing its natural capacity.

The researchers warn, “With little to no space for excess water to flow or merge into other channels, this development poses a high risk of urban flooding and long-term stagnation during monsoons.” They add that the silt removed during desilting is often dumped on the banks, only to wash back into the khadi during heavy rain.

A comparative analysis of Google satellite imagery from 2011 to 2025 at Saniya Hemad village, located on Surat’s fringe, reveals “a noticeable alteration in the khadi’s flow pattern.” The 2011 image shows a naturally meandering khadi, while the 2025 image reveals a straightened course.

“Although this engineered modification may appear efficient in the short term, it shortens flow duration and reduces water retention, diminishing both ecological and flood-buffering functions,” the researchers highlight.

Near the Raghuvir Trade Market on Bhavani Road, earlier imagery showed a visible khadi flow, which by 2025 has vanished due to construction. Built-up structures over the khadi’s path have obstructed this natural drainage, increasing the risk of urban flooding.

Examining the impact of development on water flow, the study notes that the Bhedwad Khadi followed a wider, more continuous path in 2011. By 2025, construction near Bamroli cricket ground has narrowed its course and reduced its flow capacity.

It adds that near the Dindoli Water Treatment Plant, the Bhedwad Khadi’s course has been significantly altered and straightened for aesthetic reasons, severely compromising its natural flow.

In the area around Om Industrial Estate in Saroli, researchers found the khadi’s path constantly shifting. Its older flow, once almost gone, reappeared in 2025 imagery. “Taming a khadi and constructing concrete embankments drastically alters its natural behavior,” they say, “leading to unintended consequences such as heavy silt accumulation.”

At the Kankara biodiversity park, a 2016 image shows the right bank of Kankara Khadi concretized with a diaphragm wall. The park and a road were built by raising the land level. By 2025, both banks have diaphragm walls, eliminating the khadi’s natural meander and floodplains.

Further, near Gabheni village on the city outskirts, the khadi’s course has changed due to drastic land use alterations. “Legal and illegal shrimp farms have contributed to this change. Industrial waste dumping here has led to severe water and soil pollution,” the report adds.

During fieldwork, most respondents identified poor stormwater drainage as the key issue. “Drains are too narrow, broken, or absent in some areas,” the study says. These are further clogged by solid waste, particularly plastic, discarded by residents and industries.

Shopkeepers highlighted the lack of regular SMC clean-up. They reported repeated losses during monsoon, as inventories are damaged and earnings suffer. Businesses shut down for days due to prolonged water stagnation.

In low-lying markets, encroachment on khadi banks and lack of flood management lead to backflow during heavy rainfall. Locals noted a rise in unseasonal rains, aggravating waterlogging. Builders acknowledged that unplanned urbanization has severely disrupted the city’s hydrology.

“Residents, particularly near Koyali and Mithi khadi, emphasized the interlinkage among the khadis. When Kankara Khadi overflows, water backflows into Mithi Khadi, causing flooding in homes. This is devastating in low-lying areas with poor housing,” the study notes.

“Loss of income is the most immediate impact,” residents report. For shopkeepers and daily wage earners, flooding forces closures for several days. One woman said, “I am the sole earner. When it floods, work halts for 4–5 days. My shop remains shut for a week. We then rely on SMC for food and water.”

Mobility is another major issue. Waterlogged streets restrict access to work and healthcare. Children miss school, and both public and private transport becomes unreliable due to submerged roads.

The report concludes by stressing health risks. Waterborne diseases like fever, diarrhea, and skin infections, along with vector-borne diseases like dengue and malaria, increase after khadi floods. Residents mentioned rising medical expenses, adding strain to financially stressed households. “Stagnant water near homes, especially by khadi banks, becomes mosquito breeding grounds, worsening health conditions,” it warns.

Courtesy: CounterView

The post Unchecked urbanisation, waste dumping: Study warns of ‘invited disaster’ as khadi floods threaten half of Surat appeared first on SabrangIndia.

It was Krishna Kumar, the well-known educationist, who I believe first introduced me to the name — Gijubhai Badheka (1885–1939). Hailing from Bhavnagar, known as the cultural capital of the Saurashtra region of Gujarat, Gijubhai, Kumar told me during my student days, made significant contributions to the field of pedagogy — something that hasn’t received much attention from India’s education mandarins. At that time, Kumar was my tutorial teacher at Kirorimal College, Delhi University.

When Kumar — who is said to have been the main mind behind Prof Yashpal’s seminal report “Learning Without Burden” — mentioned Gijubhai, I vaguely recalled my father, Jagubhai Shah, also referring to him as a great Gandhian educationist. As often happens in youth, I didn’t pay much attention to what my father said about him. I vaguely remember my father telling me he had been associated as an art teacher at Ghar Shala, or perhaps Dakshinamurti Balmandir, both founded by Gijubhai for his educational experiments.

My recent interest in Gijubhai, also known as “Mucchadi Maa” (mother with moustaches), stems from a contact I received from someone in Pune — of Mamata Pandya, my school classmate. I was told she is Gijubhai’s granddaughter and had created a site: https://gijubhaibadheka.in. After leaving school in 1970, I met her sometime in the early 1990s after I joined The Times of India, Ahmedabad, as assistant editor. It was at the Centre for Environment Education (CEE), where I had been invited to speak on media and the environment. I was told she had spent around 35 years at CEE.

This prompted me to recall two contrasting viewpoints on Gijubhai that exist in Gujarat today. One, a critical perspective, is from top Dalit rights leader Martin Macwan, who had written a critique of Gijubhai objecting to his views on Dalits several years ago.

During a recent interaction with Macwan, I asked him specifically about his objections. He said that while Gijubhai’s contributions to pedagogy were unparalleled (“he used the Montessori method of teaching in Indian circumstances”), he suffered from the same casteist attitudes that plagued most Gandhians of his time.

“My article was published in the journal Naya Marg (now defunct), edited by the late Indubhai Jani,” he said, and went on to describe a story written by Gijubhai for children. “The story is about a princess who falls in love with what Gijubhai calls a bhangi. The term itself is derogatory. The boy wants to marry the princess.”

Macwan continued, “Her brother, the prince, lays down a condition: she can marry the boy if he wins a gambling game. The prince loses, and the princess marries the boy, who lives in a low-lying area inhabited by so-called untouchables. She is unhappy with the place. Seeing her distress, the king attacks the locality, destroys it, and ‘frees’ the princess. The story ends with the ruler’s family living happily ever after.”

“What message does this give, especially to young minds?” Macwan asked, adding, “Such views can be found in other stories by Gijubhai as well. I read many to understand his perspective.” A similar view, he said, is shared by Joseph Macwan, a well-known Gujarati litterateur, “who has also written critically about Gijubhai.”

Martin Macwan, Sukhdev Patel

 

He added, “And to those who say Gijubhai should be seen in the context of his times, I
want to remind them that the couple Jyotiba and Savitribai Phule, also educationists and living a generation earlier (in the 19th century), strongly opposed untouchability and passionately advocated for Dalit and women’s rights in Maharashtra.”

The other viewpoint comes from Gujarat’s well-known child rights leader Sukhdev Patel, who once told me that branding Gijubhai as casteist “overlooks” his immense contribution to pedagogy. A look at Gijubhai’s work suggests that while he opposed social discrimination and advocated inclusive education, there are no direct quotes in which he explicitly denounces caste discrimination.

At the institutions he established in Bhavnagar, it is said that Gijubhai promoted the inclusion of marginalized groups, encouraged Dalits to join in, and facilitated education for all, regardless of caste. His educational philosophy was centred on child-centric learning, freedom, and respect — challenging the rigid and discriminatory norms of his time.

However, the farthest he went was to say things like: “Every child has the right to a quality education, regardless of their background or circumstances,” “Education is not a privilege; it’s a fundamental human right,” or “Children are not vessels to be filled with knowledge but lamps to be lit.”

Gijubhai also said, emphasizing the need for schools to adapt to children’s diverse needs: “It is not that they are unfit for the school. Rather, the school is unfit for them. The school is unable to teach them what they have the aptitude for.” He was, his defenders point out, critical of the conventional, exam-driven schooling system that treated children as passive recipients, and instead advocated activity-based learning, storytelling, music, and hands-on experiences — something Prof Yashpal’s report “Learning Without Burden” also emphasized.

It is precisely for this reason, it is pointed out, that Krishna Kumar, in a paper titled What is Worth Teaching?, laments: “We have failed to give Gijubhai the place he deserves in the national narrative of educational thought. His experiments in Bhavnagar were a far more radical challenge to colonial schooling than many better-known reform efforts.”

Courtesy: CounterView

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This is what happened several months ago. A teenager living in the housing society where I reside was sent to Australia to study at a university in Sydney with much fanfare. The parents, whom I often met as part of a group, would tell us how easily the boy got his admission with the help of “some well-meaning friends,” adding that they had obtained an education loan to ensure he could study at a graduate school.

On reaching Sydney, the boy’s parents—especially the father—would tell us how a place to stay had been arranged by a “very close friend” at virtually no cost, and that the boy was “extremely happy.” We would be shown photos of the boy at various spots in the city as evidence of his happiness.

But as time passed, the father began to complain that his son had to “walk a lot” from where he stayed in order to catch public transport. “He gets tired on return,” he would tell us, adding that food was another problem. “He has to prepare his own food, which he has never done. Besides, while we can afford outside food, since he is a pure vegetarian, he isn’t very comfortable with what’s available on the counter.”

A month or so later, we found that the boy had returned. The reason? He was “unable to adjust,” and his mother was quite worried about him. “She advised him to return,” the father said, adding, “We have been promised by the university to return the advance fees deposited for his studies… Good that he is back…” Ironically, the parents never revealed which agent, if any, had organized the boy’s student visa.

While this boy returned after failing to adjust to a foreign environment, a news item published in the Times of India, authored by my ex-colleague Bharat Yagnik, suggests that Australia has now clamped down on Indian students, with the country joining the US and Canada in tightening immigration norms for Indian students, and several universities halting applications from six states, including Gujarat. The universities which have cracked the whip are Federation University, Western Sydney University, Victoria University, and Southern Cross University. Apart from Gujarat, the affected students are from Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, and Jammu & Kashmir.

The news item quotes what it calls visa consultants and foreign education experts—especially from Gujarat—pointing out that they are “rattled.” In their estimate, “20% of students from the state heading abroad typically choose Australia, a figure likely to drop with these new restrictions.”

Foreign education consultant Bhavin Thaker is quoted as saying, “This has dramatically reduced the number of opportunities available to students. Of every 100 students who plan to study overseas, at least 20 are directly impacted. With Canada and the US already tightening immigration policies, and now Australia going the same way, the list of accessible countries is shrinking. While there’s no official government statement yet, the message is quite clear.”

Visa consultant Lalit Advani is cited as claiming, “The decision by Australian universities to restrict applications from certain regions within India will impact genuine students. The majority of applicants are sincere, and they can be easily identified based on their academic scores, background, and intent. Blanket bans only add to the frustration.”

No sooner had I read the news item than I forwarded it to my college friend Neeraj Nanda, who runs South Asia Times, an online periodical in Melbourne, and phoned him up to find out what was happening, and what the Australian side of the story was. Nanda, who was my colleague at Link Newsweekly in Delhi in the early 1980s, told me that this is an “old story,” pointing out that the authorities in Australia have discovered how Indian students submit fake documents to study in Australia.

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In an in-depth analysis of real estate in Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Pune, the National Capital Region (NCR), and the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), in a series of reports it has sent to Counterview as email alert, the consultant Anarock states that NCR and Bengaluru have recorded the highest jumps in housing prices—34% and 20%, respectively.

According to Anarock, average prices in the seven cities collectively have risen from INR 7,550 per sq. ft. at the end of Q1 2024 to INR 8,835 per sq. ft. by the end of Q1 2025. However, at the same time, the annual supply share of affordable homes has declined—from 40% in 2018 to 16% in 2024.

The reason, says Anarock, is that the target clientele of affordable homes, consisting of “blue-collar workers, lower-paid workforces, and those just starting out in their careers, were severely cash-strapped,” leading to a situation where “buying homes did not feature among their immediate priorities.”

According to data released by Anarock, in 2018, cities like Pune, Kolkata, Chennai, and NCR were witnessing a consistently “high supply of such homes, riding on stimuli such as lower GST rates and tax breaks.”

Defining affordable housing as units priced under INR 40 lakh, the consultant comments that, judging by their sagging sales and supply in India over the past few years, now “it is easy to forget that this segment was once the housing industry’s veritable poster child,” which Indian real estate developers took “very seriously, regularly engaging with their architects to design smaller units to contain prices and ensure sales continuity.”

Pointing out that this trend peaked when the Union government in 2015 made “concerted efforts” to promote affordable housing via the ‘Housing for All’ programme under the Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana – PMAY (Urban), Anarock says the government at that time announced “many attractive incentives for buyers and developers of such housing.”

In fact, “the affordable housing story took on an appealingly patriotic ‘nation-building’ sheen, and even big-brand developers got into the fray…”

Noting that things changed during the pandemic when the demand for “larger and multi-functional homes with a comprehensive spread of lifestyle amenities” surged, Anarock says the demand shifted to houses that could effectively serve “as both residential facilities and offices… This trend continues even today, and essentially small-sized affordable housing plays no role in it.”

At the same time, it says, “at the developers’ end, constantly rising input costs—comprising land, labour, and construction materials (compounded by the low profit margins of affordable housing and the withdrawal of all relevant fiscal benefits)—caused their previous enthusiasm for affordable housing to dwindle. Instead, they turned their focus to what was and continues to sell well: bigger units with good lifestyle amenities.”

The result is that today, Bengaluru is “devoid of any supply in this segment. Hyderabad and Chennai are seeing only a minimal 2% supply share. The only cities with any sizeable activity in this segment are Kolkata and MMR. In both these cities, nearly 31% of the total upcoming supply is priced below INR 40 lakh. NCR has witnessed a drastic reduction in its share of affordable housing, falling from 62% in 2020 to only 11% in 2024.”

Ironically, despite the sharp downward trend in affordable housing, Anarock research suggests the real estate sector remained a dominant contributor in 2024 in fundraising via qualified institutional placements (QIPs), “both in terms of capital raised and the number of issues.” Notably, 2024 saw twice the number of QIP issues as the previous year. In fact, the sector “recorded the highest number of issues in a single year” in 2024.

However, Anarock regrets, “Skyrocketing residential prices, coupled with geopolitical headwinds, have slowed the Indian housing market’s bull-run in Q1 2025. Latest Anarock data finds that the year’s first quarter saw sales drop 28% across the top seven cities compared to the same period in 2024. Approximately 93,280 units were sold in Q1 2025 in the top seven cities, in sharp contrast to all-time high sales of over 1.30 lakh units in Q1 2024.”

Noting that approximately 93,280 units were sold in Q1 2025—a 26% decrease over Q1 2024—Anarock suggests the main reason for this was, “Average residential property prices across the top seven cities saw a significant jump in the last one year—ranging between 10–34% in Q1 2025 compared to Q1 2024.”

“This,” it insists, “was primarily due to steep new supply additions in the luxury and ultra-luxury segment, and overall strong demand. NCR and Bengaluru recorded the highest annual price jump of over 34% and 20%, respectively.”

In fact, Anarock asserts, private equity (PE) investments in the Indian real estate sector have shown signs of softening. Offering details in its report titled Anarock Capital Flux FY25 Annual Edition, it reveals that PE investment volumes in Indian real estate “have steadily declined over the past five years, dropping from USD 6.4 billion in FY21 to approximately USD 3.7 billion in FY25.”

This represents a 43% decrease from FY21 levels, primarily driven by reduced foreign investor activity amid heightened global macroeconomic uncertainty and geopolitical volatility,” Anarock underlines, adding that this is accompanied by a significant increase in “concentration of capital in fewer, larger transactions.”

Thus, says Anarock, in FY25, the top 10 deals accounted for 81% of total PE investment value, up from 69% in FY24. This spike is largely attributed to the mega Reliance–ADIA–KKR hybrid deal, which alone contributed to ~42% of FY25’s total value.

The “mega Reliance–ADIA–KKR hybrid deal” refers to a financing transaction in which Reliance Industries secured a blended capital infusion from two heavyweight global investors, the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) and Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR), an American global private-equity and investment company.

Stating that “FY25 saw a significant deviation in funding structure, with hybrid deals surging to 42% of total PE capital—primarily due to the Reliance-ADIA-KKR transaction,” Anarock notes that “logistics and warehousing” have emerged “as the clear frontrunner in FY25, attracting 48% of PE funding, the highest in five years.”

As for the residential sector, Anarock says its average deal size dropped to USD 117 million (Q2–Q4 FY25) from USD 233 million (Q1 FY23–Q4 FY25). Offices also saw a “steep decline in investment”—USD 806 million in FY25 versus USD 2.2 billion in FY24.

However, retail “continues to thrive on strong consumer demand,” with mall operators like DLF, Nexus, and Phoenix expanding aggressively.

Courtesy: CounterView

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The email concluded by stating: “The signatories have called upon both parties to keep the best interests of the Adivasis and other villagers in mind and to engage in peace talks while respecting the constitutional, democratic, and human rights of citizens within the broader framework of the Constitution of India.”

The PDF, which ran over 1,200 words and included a long list of individual and civil society signatories, was uploaded to the app so I could receive a detailed summary. And what did I get in return? It first offered a small summary — imagine! — under the headline “Religious Leaders’ Peace Appeal” in the context of Israeli-Palestinian conflict!

When I said this was totally misleading, the AI modified it, strangely stating: “The document you uploaded is a public appeal dated April 4, 2025, calling for a ceasefire and dialogue in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, signed by over 200 scholars and public figures from around the world”. Except the line “signed by over 200 scholars and public figures”, it was all wrong. Even “from around the world” wasn’t true.

Finally, I decided to open the PDF, copied its text—which was full of line breaks—and asked the AI to format the text without the line breaks.

This part, it did perfectly well, enabling me to upload a summary of the civil society statement on a site I handle, along with the full text and a link to the list of all the signatories.

Courtesy: CounterView

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Quoting the September 27 MoEFCC’s Expert Appraisal Committee (EAC) meeting,  released on October 2, a senior scholar-activist of the top environmental advocacy group South Asia Network on Dams, Rivers and People (SANDRP) has reported that in a “respite” to forest dwelling communities, fragile biodiversity and community conservation areas, the EAC has “rejected” the Adani application for project.

However, the window for continuing with the controversial project hasn’t been entirely closed. To quote Parineeta Dandekar, the proponents have been asked “to apply afresh” for Stage I Clearance, adding several conditions to assessment. To quote her, “The EAC did not approve the Adani application for amendments in the Terms of Reference (TORs) earlier granted for 1200 MW Warasgaon-Warangi Pumped Storage Project (PSP) by Adani Green Energy.”

Appreciating the move, Dandekar said, the EAC not just “rejected” the application but “decided to visit sites all the PSPs that have applied for environment clearance before giving any further clearances”, hoping, “The site visits will expose the perilous siting of over 15 pumped storage projects in the Western Ghats.”

In a detailed analysis on September 24 on the advocacy group’s website, Dandekar had pointed  to how the upper dam of 1500 MW Warasgaon Warangi Project “was set to destroy a sacred fish pool and sacred grove of Goddess Varadayini in the village Tekpowale.” This followed an SANDRP submission to the EAC outlining the impacts of this project on the “ecologically sensitive area” and the “wider cumulative impact” of the multiple PSP schemes in the Western Ghats.

The submission was signed by more than 200 individuals and organizations, including Parineeta Dandekar and Himanshu Thakkar of SANDRP; Suniti SR and colleagues of the National Alliance for People’s Movements; Shailaja Deshpande and colleagues of the Jeevit Nadi; Priyadarshini Karve of the Indian Network on Ethics and Climate Change; Jaideep Baphana of Pune River Revival (a group with over 1000 members in Pune); and Shripad Dharmadhikary of the Manthan Adhyayan Kendra, Pune.

Quoting the minutes of the  EAC meeting, Dandekar said, it asked the project proponents to prepare “a new project layout which will not obstruct rivulets in Western Ghats” and “change the project layout to reduce impact on forest land”. Refusing to grant TORs (Stage I Clearance) to the project and deciding on a site visit to all the proposed  PSP sites in the Western Ghats for which TORs have been issued prior to granting Environmental Clearance, EAC said, “These projects are located in the ecologically fragile Western Ghats and huge forest area is also involved”.

She quoted EAC as rejecting the Adanis’ TOR given on February 13, 2023 which had specifically said the project proposes to use water of the catchment of the lower reservoir for initial filling and annual recuperation of losses, pointing out, this will “impact several small rivulets draining into these reservoirs as the water will not be released downstream.”

Said Dandekar, the EAC was of the view that project proponents had “changed configuration of the project drastically which could attract more impact on the environment”,  raising concerns about “change in the total forest land required for the project with an increase of more than three times, i.e. from 24.50 ha to 88.98 ha.”

Hence, the EAC suggested submission of a fresh proposal for grant of TOR with modified pre-feasibility report (PFR) with “fresh alternative site analysis modifying the project layout with no obstruction of small rivulets in the area as the small rivulets are the key source of water for the perennial rivers in the western ghats”, and “change in project profile i.e. change in project layout, change in forest land and private land requirement.”

At the same time, the EAC  noted that  the MoEFCC had granted TOR to approximately 15 projects in the Western Ghats, but “given the region’s high environmental sensitivity”, there should be site visits by sub-committee members to several PSPs as these  are located in “the ecologically fragile Western Ghats and huge forest area is involved”. Hence, the need for a site visit “in toto wherever possible.”

In her September 25 analysis  of the project prior to the EAC move, Dandekar (photo), who had visited the project site earlier, had said, Adani Energy’s had planned the project “in a remote, densely forested area of the Western Ghats and enveloped by dam backwaters” around Tekpowale village, which “feels like a place lost in time”.

“This village”, she said, “narrowly escaped submersion from the Panshet Dam and now precariously perches on its encroaching backwaters. The Warasgaon Dam backwaters lie about seven kilometers away, with Mulshi and Temghar Dams approximately 19 kilometers distant and Pawana Dam around 48 kilometers”, adding, “The region is densely packed with dams; a mere straight-line distance of 66 kilometers from the northern-most Thokarwadi Dam to Panshet encompasses ten large dams in the Mula-Mutha Basin.”

According to Dandekar, “Unsurprisingly, Maharashtra holds the distinction of being the most dammed state in India, and this area might be the most heavily dammed within the state. Despite the proliferation of dams, upscale resorts, and urban developments like Lonavala and Lavasa encroaching upon the Western Ghats’ forests.” Yet, the region “still boasts vital community conservation areas, including sacred groves, temple forests, and remarkable community fish sanctuaries.”

Recalling her visits to Tekpowale, she said, they have “often revolved around its cherished fish sanctuary, which preserves a sacred pool devoted to Vardayini, a fierce forest goddess known as the Bestower of Boons. Surrounded by an ancient dark grove, the pool is home to sacred Mahseer fish, which villagers protect with utmost reverence. The grove, adorned with traditional garments and offerings, forms an eerie yet majestic setting.”

Pointing out that the community in the village “strictly forbids fishing in this sanctuary, believing the Mahseer bears a distinctive mark given by their goddess—similar to tales from other regions in India about fish marked by divine figures”, Dandekar noted, “Even in times of drought, the villagers refrain from drawing water from the pool, opting instead to carry it by hand as a show of respect.”

Praising this as a “community-driven conservation model”,  signaling “a successful commitment to safeguarding their sacred spaces and the biodiversity they support”, she warned, “This tranquil setting faces a dire threat. Adani Energy plans to create a 56-meter-high dam just upstream of Vardayini’s pool, resulting in the flooding of 49 hectares of dense forest within the proposed Velhe-Mulshi Conservation Reserve. This not only jeopardizes a culturally revered site but also threatens the diverse freshwater ecosystem.”

She underlined, “The 1500 MW Warasgaon-Warangi Pumped Storage Project will involve the construction of two massive dams—one in Tekpowale and another in Warangi—connected by a two-kilometer underground tunnel… Despite its proclaimed benefits, the environmental implications of such a project in a biodiversity-rich and sacred region are concerning.”

Calling the project’s pre-feasibility study “superficial” focusing “solely on economic factors while neglecting ecological realities, such as the presence of the Varadayini Fish Sanctuary”, Dandekar said, “The project would disturb not only the sacred pool in Tekpowale but also the nearby Walen Kondh Fish Sanctuary, without acknowledging its significance in project considerations.”

Asserting that the “communities like those in Tekpowale, deeply connected to their land and water, oppose any developments that threaten their heritage”, she said, “The claim that the Warasgaon-Warangi Project supports green energy initiatives is misleading”. She added, “The destruction of these sacred places is anything but eco-friendly and sustainable. As the guardians of Vardayini and her sanctuary, the villagers of Tekpowale stand resolutely against the encroachment of industry into their revered spaces.”

Courtesy: CounterView

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