No corporal punishment: India needs social movement

Following a PIL, Delhi High Court had directed the state government to ban corporal punishment in schools and ensure that children receive education in an environment of protection and dignity, free from fear. But the reality is far from being true.

THE NATIONAL Commission for the Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) will take up the case of an 11-year-old girl of a Muncipal Corporation School, in North Delhi, who died after being in coma due to corporal punishment inflicted on her at school, a place where she had been to receive education of her life. She was alleged hit by her teacher and was made to stand in the sun for over two hours, resultant of which she slipped into a coma and then later on died. Her case will be taken as a suo moto complaint by the National Commission and an inquiry will be taken up immediately. But her case is not the only one. The reality is that in India two out of three school children are physically abused according to the National Report on child abuse by the Ministry of Women and Child Development, in the year 2007.

Dreams of many children get shattered due to this kind abuse in schools. And this is not limited to any geographic area or state. It happens in every district of India, in government as well as private schools. Most children do not report or confide about the matter to anyone. They suffer silently except in case where we see extreme forms like this one and are picked up by the media. Death of this little soul in Delhi was most unfortunate incident and could have been avoided.

Anyone who had seen or read in media have expressed shock and called for strictest possible action. Though Indian law will take its own course but is weak in this case and has many loop holes. Indian laws need immediate amendments to ensure that they are not used by perpetrators of corporal punishment to go scot-free. The Indian Penal Code Section 88, for example, protects an act, which is not intended to cause death, done by consent in good faith for person’s benefit.

A teacher/guardian who administers in good faith a moderate and reasonable corporal punishment to a pupil to enforce discipline in school is protected by this section and such an act is not even a crime under Section 323. Section 89 of Indian Penal Code protects an act by guardian or by consent of guardian done in good faith for benefit of child under 12 years, unless it causes death or grievous injury.

These provisions extend to teachers having quasi-parental authority i.e., consent or delegation of authority from parents. These sections therefore need to be amended. Working Group of National Commission of Protection of Child Rights, which comprises of educationists, lawyers, social activists, doctors, bureaucrats, representatives of non-governmental organisations and teacher’s union’s have recommended law reform to remove any existing defences of corporal punishment. In December 2000, following a PIL, the Delhi High Court had directed the state government to ban corporal punishment in schools and ensure that children receive education in an environment of protection and dignity, free from fear. But the reality is far from being true.

In India we not only need stricter laws, which are implemented, but also (and more importantly so) a social movement that brings together teachers, care givers, parents and communities to strongly ’say no to corporal punishment’ in all institutions.

anil gulati

West Bengal & UP to get premier medical institute

Indian government sanctioned Rs.16.46 billion ($340 million) for setting up two more premier referral institutes on the lines of the prestigious All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) here. Government also sanctioned Rs.7.50 billion for upgrading five existing government medical colleges. The five government medical colleges being upgraded are located at Aligarh (Uttar Pradesh), Amritsar (Punjab), Madurai (Tamil Nadu), Nagpur (Maharashtra) and Tanda (Himachal Pradesh). The new referral institutes, to be established at a cost of Rs.8.23 billion each, will be located at Raiganj in West Bengal's North Dinajpur district and at a site to be chosen by the Uttar Pradesh government.

Each institution will have a 960-bedded hospital, with 500 beds for the medial college hospital and 300 beds for its speciality and super speciality departments. This apart, 100 beds will be set aside for the ICU and accident trauma department, 30 beds for physical medicine & rehabilitation departments and 30 beds for the Ayush (Ayurveda, Yoga & Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy) departments.

AIIMS became functional in 1956 as an autonomous institution through an act of Parliament, to serve as a nucleus for nurturing excellence in all aspect of health care. In 2005, the government had approved five similar institutes at Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh), Bhubaneswar (Orissa), Jodhpur (Rajasthan), Patna (Bihar), Raipur (Chhattisgarh) and Rishikesh (Uttarakhand).

Nano laptop’ set to take computing to rural India

The concept of ‘nano laptop’ has been made possible by National Mission on Education through Information and Communication Technology. It is set to unveil on Feburary 3, a 'nano laptop', which will cost only Rs 500

DAY BEFORE yesterday, I was at Purulia in West Bengal and met Sakina Khatun, Ruksana Khatun and Tyab. These children were trying out their little fingers on a laptop. Though it was not theirs but belonged to the assistant labour commissioner of the district, who was happy to share his laptop with these kids. These children are part of child activist programme being run by district labour department, district administration and Zila Parishad, which is providing an opportunity to voices of children who were once child labour but are now back in school. But in the coming days things may change, may be they have a laptop of their own.

This has been made possible by National Mission on Education through Information and Communication Technology. It is set to unveil on Feburary 3, a ’nano laptop’, which will cost only Rs 500. A boon for many in India and will help in taking the power of computing to interiors of the country. This has been made possible due to efforts of students of Indian Institute of Technology, scientists in Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, IIT-Madras and Semiconductor Complex, a Public Sector Undertaking. Though it may take some time till the dreams of the little kids may get realised but nevertheless, it is a great hope in coming days.

The National Mission on Education through ICT has been envisaged as a centrally-sponsored Scheme to leverage the potential of ICT, in providing high quality personalised and interactive knowledge modules over the Internet/intranet for all the learners in Higher Education Institutions in anytime, anywhere mode. The mission plans to extend computer infrastructure and connectivity to over 18,000 colleges in the country and growing appropriate e-learning procedures, providing facility of performing experiments through virtual laboratories, online testing and certification, online availability of teachers to guide and mentor students.

Contributed by Anil Gulati

Japanese two wheelers taking india by storm

Tora means tiger in Japanese. In 1941, during the attack on Pearl Harbor, Japanese pilots used it as a code word to indicate that complete surprise had been achieved. Now, almost half-a-century later, it might well be brought out of the closet and used again. Just that this time, Indian two-wheeler companies seem to be the dozy targets.

Put another way: The recent ouster of Bajaj Auto, the country’s second largest two-wheeler maker by sales, from the second spot by Honda Motorcycles and Scooters India (HMSI), may just hint at a Japanese offensive. In November last year, for the first time, HMSI surpassed Bajaj Auto sales by volume in the domestic market. The Japanese two-wheeler firm repeated the same feat in the ensuing month as well. In December, HMSI sold 87,164 two-wheelers against Bajaj Auto’s 69,419 units. “The gap is narrowing and the competition level is much higher now,” points out HS Goindi, president (marketing), TVS Motor Company. “The Japanese have been at it for a long time and no one noticed. So, one fine morning, the crossover happened and people were caught napping.” Even TVS wasn’t spared. In December last year, the Chennai-based two-wheeler firm sold 72,355 units — a 13% slide over the corresponding period the previous year. Further, during the April-December period in 2008, all Indian two-wheeler companies, excluding Hero Honda Motors, posted negative growth figures over the corresponding period the previous year. In comparison, their Japanese counterparts, such as HMSI, Suzuki Motorcycle India and India Yamaha Motor, have all done relatively well and managed to garner decent growth figures. So, what worked for the Japanese? To be sure, one of the major contributors to growth for both HMSI and Suzuki continues to be the gearless scooter segment where HMSI is the market leader, with more than 50% marketshare. In December last year, scooters made up around 64% of HMSI’s total sales volume. Atul Gupta, VP, sales & marketing, Suzuki Motorcycle India, points out that this segment has been more or less insulated against the slowdown and has grown considerably year on year. “People usually purchase a scooter with cash. Hence, this segment escaped being butchered by the credit squeeze,” explains Gupta. But industry experts also point out that the future belongs to cutting edge technology. Case in point: India Yamaha Motor’s latest 150cc offerings, the FZ16 and the R15 are arguably the best in their segment as far as product quality and design are concerned. These are the bikes that have single-handedly brought the focus back on Yamaha after the Japanese firm’s incredible lean patch here. But they also come at a cost. The R15 sells for around Rs 1 lakh, almost double the price of an ordinary 150cc motorcycle. Says Sanjay Tripathi, division head (product planning), India Yamaha Motor: “It’s similar to cell phones. The technology that you see in high-end phones finally percolates down after some time. In the case of two-wheelers it’s the same story. Our 150cc bikes borrow technology that is born on the race track, and with time the cost will also come down.” So, does this suggest that Indian two-wheeler makers are low on technology? S Sridhar, CEO (two-wheelers), Bajaj Auto, strongly opposes the thought. “In Bajaj, technology is for daily life. We have a strong R&D focus. We are jointly developing bikes with KTM but even our own boys are good at innovation,” he declares.

Social issues do sell on TV !

Normally in media we say that it is crime, politics, sleaze, something sexy which sells. Social issues are normally for documentaries, or may be Doordarshan will air. But the TRPs of Balika Vadhu, a social serial has proved this argument wrong.

Social issues don’t sell on TV channels. This statement may not be true anymore. TRPs of Balika Vadhu, a social serial on Colors on the issue of child marriage recently had more TRPs then Kyunki and Myaaka serials. Interestingly, its TRP was more than the shows engaging celebrities running on the same channel or for that matter many reality shows on TV.Normally in media we say that it is crime, politics, sleaze, something sexy which sells. Social issues are normally for documentaries, or may be Doordarshan will air, as it has that social responsibility.But may be not true any more -- Balika Vadhu, a serial on air nowadays on Colors TV Channel.

It sensitively raises concern on a social issue ’child marriage’ which still happens in India and is a reality. As of now this is one of the most viewed serials in general entertainment category or GEC as they say.Television Rating Points (TRP’s) of the show validate this fact. It is a flagship series of Viacoms’ Colors TV Channel. This serial has helped Colors to sail past 200 GRP (gross rating points), within two months of its launch. Colors is the first to hit that mark among the newly launched Hindi entertainment channels, one of the hit serial on that channel is Balika Vadhu. The serial is laid out in traditional Rajasthani style, with a great title song and simple music (unlike the varied back ground music we find in normal serials on air) and rightly brings out impact on child marriage on child life.It ends with a message line, reminding us that child marriage impacts the very fabric of child life and needs to be stopped. The serial attracts attention and glues you to it. The viewership of it has grown exponentially and viewers has remained with it. Thanks to the way it is written, directed and the enacted along with its great title track.It is aired Monday to Thursday on Colors TV at 8 pm slot. It has helped break the myth that social issues don’t sell. Balika Vadhu is an arduous journey of child bride Anandi, who is married off to a young boy, Jagdish.

The girl losses her normal childhood and has to move away from her parents (protective environment), to be bound by customs. I am hopeful this serial will help in bringing issue of deep rooted tradition of child marriage to debate in our society which impact lives of girls and women across India not only in Rajasthan. Inspite of all the laws this still happens and needs to stopped.One more issue while debating on children issues that needs discussion is about children who work in these serials. I am sure National Children’s Commission is looking into it, and restrictions will be coming for reality shows but we need discussion also on children working in TV serials and films. To my knowledge they are not covered by child labour laws nor by any special child protection laws. Children who work in TV serials films do have to work very hard, which impacts them. They need adequate rest, sleep, time and break for education. They entertain us but it should not impact their normal growth, and protection which they should be getting as their right from the state, us and life.

Will smoking ban work in India?

India has banned smoking in workplaces from October 2 onwards. The aim is to discourage smokers, to make them reduce or quit smoking. Those flouting the ban will face a fine of Rs 200. The law is impressive, but would it work?.

OCTOBER 2 onwards, India has banned smoking in workplaces, public places, hotels and restaurants, offices, courts, banks, schools, colleges, libraries, cinemas, auditorium, restaurants, shopping malls, parks, monuments, railway stations, airports, bus stops, buses, taxis.

The new Smoking in Public Places Rules 2008, which was notified this month come into effect from October 2, birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. The only places where one can smoke will be smoking lounges at airports, restaurants with over 30 seats, smoking rooms and of course or your own home. The fine for violating the ban is Rs 200.

Though an appeal was filed before the Supreme Court, it upheld the government ban on smoking in public places from October 2. The government of India had earlier tried to control tobacco use through Prohibition of Advertisement and Regulation of Trade and Commerce, Production, Supply, and Distribution Bill, 2003. Key provisions of the law include prohibition on direct and indirect advertisements of tobacco products, prohibiting the sale of tobacco products to minors and prohibition of smoking in public places. But one can see many who smoke in public places. Also cigarette packets sold in India are required to carry pictorial warnings along with the text saying smoking is injurious to health and smoking causes cancer in both Hindi and English. But I still have not seen any pictorial warnings.

India is good in making laws, they look good when drafted and announced, but somehow implementation of these laws is a major challenge. It is not about one sector or area, it is across board.

India had banned children below 14 years of age from work, but go to any state, any city one can see children working in dhabas, restaurants, petrol pumps,brick kilns and as domestic labour etc. Hardly anyone gets punished! India has banned sex selection under Pre-conception and Pre-natal Diagnostics Techniques (Prohibition of Sex Selection) (PCPNDT) Act, but the reality is quite different.

Tobacco laws have been there in India, but still more than 250 million people in India use various tobacco products like gutka, cigarettes and bidis and millions of them die, many suffer with heart and lung diseases because of this habit. The data says one in two Indian men and one in seven women use tobacco in the country. Tobacco causes 40 per cent of all cancer disease in India.

So the fact is that law is good, but the issue is of implementation. I am not sure if we have the manpower to implement this law. Do we have necessary structures, people, mechanisms in place who can implement the laws or will it remain as yet another good policy level declaration, which is not implemented on ground.

Anil Gulati

Emotional experience of flood victims

Floods along the India-Nepal border have not yet receded. Lakhs of acres of crops and houses have been destroyed. Though relief is being provided to millions of victims, they are groping for emotional support too as they have lost ‘everything’..

Floods on both sides of the India-Nepal border have affected millions of people. Thousands have been displaced; many have lost their houses, crops and household goods; they are hardly left with anything. For many, floods have taken away their all. Some have even lost their loved ones. The lives of the affected lie devastated. Though relief efforts are underway, it will take some time for it to reach all and sundry. Many parts are still inundated and the inundation is continuing. Even those who have been saved are finding it tough to access potable water, food and shelter.

Floods have brought in contaminated water and with sanitation deteriorating, outbreak of water-borne diseases is feared. The people are a despaired lot. The normal coping strategies of the poor affected by the floods have been stretched to the limit. Once the present crisis is over, problems like water-logging, epidemics and water-borne diseases are likely to arise. Though rescue, relief and improvement of living conditions of the people who have been displaced are high on the list of priorities right now, we may need to look beyond.

Poor families struggle to obtain enough food even at the best of times. Now, with food stocks and crops all under water, food has become scarce. Already malnutrition among children and women in the flood-affected areas is high and can only get worse. Children are most vulnerable and susceptible to water-borne diseases; their health will be at risk in the days ahead and given poor nutrition, their health can only get worse. They will be the silent victims of floods and suffering even after the floods have receded. They are also more vulnerable to abuse.

The trauma inflicted by floods will linger on. Disaster impacts all those who have been subjected to it, either directly or indirectly. In addition to physical and social damage, gloomy thoughts, agony and hopelessness inflicted by the floods will pervade. In the case of children the agony may be even more, albeit different. They interpret their personal experiences in the context of the surroundings and environment they live in. Normally, elders tend to speak out and share their emotions but in the case of children, the normal protective ambience vanishes.

Given the associated chaos and trauma, the impact may be severe, most of which they can’t even share. Their home and / or school where they learn, play, share and receive psychological and social support often represents the protective ambience and this may ebb away. They tend to experience insecurity, anxiety, fear, anger, sadness, despair and fear of recurrence of flood. Emotional experience could be difficult to deal with for the elderly pregnant women and those who are sick.

No doubt, responding to immediate needs like food, water, shelter and support (for rebuilding their lives) should be high on the list of priorities but alongside, providing psycho-social support will be critical to help them overcome the trauma inflicted by the disaster.

Food safety a concern to prevent diseases

Food safety is a major concern. With increased debate on avian influenza this area gets more focus, for which serious steps are been taken by WHO in increasing awareness and educating people, including children on safe food handling.

RECENTLY MEDIA reports state on the need for creating awareness about food safety and services. There have been reports on making Goa a "safe food town”. Food safety is a major concern with increased debate on avian influenza this area gets more focus. Not only avian influenza even diarrhoeal diseases alone kills an estimated 1.8 million children annually, and most of these illnesses are attributed to contaminated food or water.

Proper food preparation can prevent most foodborne diseases. As per World Health Organisation (WHO) food safety is a public health priority, millions of people fall ill every year and many die as a result of eating unsafe food. Serious outbreaks of foodborne disease have been documented on every continent in the past decade, and in many countries rates of illnesses are increasing significantly. With increase in trade, imported products are getting common in countries and the fear of spread of contamination due to lack of food safety is crossing borders.

WHO states that disease-causing organisms in food are transmitted far and wide by today’s interconnected global food-chains - escalating how often and where foodborne illnesses occur. Rapid urbanisation worldwide is adding a risks to it, as urban dwellers eat more food prepared outside the home that may not be handled or prepared safely - including fresh foods and fish, meat and poultry.

Key global food safety concerns include -- spread of microbiological hazards (including such bacteria as Salmonella or Escherichia coli-e. coli); chemical food contaminants, assessments of new food technologies (such as genetically modified food) and strong food safety systems in most countries to ensure a safe global food-chain.

WHO has developed a global food hygiene message with five key steps that promote health, and the five keys to safer food are

-Keep clean
-Separate raw and cooked food
-Cook thoroughly
-Keep food at safe temperatures
-Use safe water and raw materials

It also states that increasing awareness and educating people, including children on safe food handling behaviors will help in preventing food borne diseases today and in the future.

Water: plenty amidst scarcity at an Andhra village

The Hindu, M.J. PRABU, Aug 21, 2008

The monsoon came late over the semi-arid regions of central India this year. While several farming villages suffered from drought, Kothapally village in Ranga Reddy district of Andhra Pradesh had water in its wells for drinking and irrigation. The International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), Patancheru, Andhra Pradesh, and a consortium of partners including international, national, governmental and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) empowered the people of Kothapally to cope with drought for more than nine years through community watersheds.

Plenty of water
“Thanks to ICRISAT, water shortage in our village is a thing of the past,” says Mohammed Azam, farmer in Kothapally. “We have enough water, but the villages that did not pick up the innovations continue to suffer.” “The productivity in Kothapally has increased immensely due to the water saving systems and also because of ICRISAT’s improved crop varieties, integrated pest management, and the judicious application of fertilizers.”

“I was one of the first farmers to adopt these ideas and today I can send my five grandchildren to good schools in town,” says Azam.Big benefits - Mr. T. Janaiah, another Kothapally farmer, emphasizes: “I have benefited incredibly. Ten years ago our groundwater level was about 300 feet deep and today it is at about 60 feet thanks to the water saving facilities that we built together with our partners from ICRISAT. Even with a late monsoon we have sufficient drinking and irrigation water.”The community watershed at Kothapally has become a model replicated in many other countries such as China, Thailand, and Vietnam, and now in East and Central Africa.Improve production. According to Dr William Dar, Director General of ICRISAT, the use of community watersheds as an entry point for agricultural and rural development, has resulted in many interventions to improve agricultural productivity and livelihoods of poor farmers. Dr. S.P. Wani, principal scientist on watersheds, says, “Once we found solutions for immediate problems, the farmers became our ambassadors for implementing these interventions.”Check dams

The people of Kothapally have embraced many new technologies. The construction of check dams were based on the community needs and executed by the villagers themselves.
The introduction of improved varieties and hybrid crops, integrated pest management, the restoration of wastelands together with a continuously growing groundwater level, resulted in significantly higher yields and greater income for the poor. Women farmers play a key role in utilizing new technologies. Several women’s self-help groups were trained in vermicomposting.
They in turn trained others in neighbouring villages. Mrs. B Lakshmi, a woman farmer, received the Jamsetji Tata National Virtual Academy fellowship for Rural Prosperity in 2007 for training peers in vermicomposting.

Replication
According to Dr. Wani, the consortium’s success in Kothapally led to its replication in other Indian states. The state government took the lead in Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka, while in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Jharkhand, the Sir Dorabjee Tata Trust and the Sir Ratan Tata Trust funded the spread of the program. In select watersheds in Tamil Nadu and Rajasthan, the Confederation of Indian Industry supported the projects. The idea also spread to other parts of Asia .
Potential solution

The Asian Development Bank supported watershed projects in these countries. A team of researchers from East and Central Africa (ECA) visited Kothapally and identified the watershed experience as a potential solution to many of the challenges their region faced. For further information and visit to Kothapally village readers can contact Dr. Suhas P. Wani, Principal Scientist and Regional Theme Co-ordinator, ICRISAT, Patancheru, Andhra Pradesh-502-324, email: s.wani@cgiar.org, phone: 040-3071-3466 and 3071-3071(extn) 2466.

Bullet Santi - Motorcycle Driven Multi Purpose Farm Machine

Bullet-loving farmers set up biker club
Times of India, Vijaysinh Parmar, 13 Aug 2008,

AHMEDABAD: When Mansukh Jagani, farmer from Amreli district invented 'Bullet Santi' in early '90s, he didn't know he was sparking a revolution of sorts. Bullet Santi is basically a motorcycle-driven multipurpose farm machine. His innovation inspired many others to follow suit and has led to formation of a club in Gujarat called Technology Commons. The club will comprise innovator and those who improvize the technology. They will critically analyze and improve on each other's models. Such an initiative is being taken for the first time in the country and the institution behind it is National Innovation Foundation. "In May, we organized a meeting of innovators in Rajkot and the idea of setting up this club emerged," said Anil Gupta, executive vice-chairman of NIF and faculty member of Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIM-A ). There would be no restrictions on club members learning from each other, but if a company wants to use their technology , it would have to get a licence, he added. Licensing would require consent from the lead innovator and all those who made improvements. Jagani fabricated an attachment so that a farm machine could be powered by an Enfield Bullet motorcycle. The innovation was patented by Grassroots Innovation Augmentation Network (GIAN) in US as well as India. "The idea was to have the flexibility of using a motorcycle for farming. Several fabricators in Saurashtra and Kutch found this a very attractive idea,'' says Riya Sinha, who has done a case study on motorcycle-based ploughing machines. She is president of SRISTI Innovations and senior advisor of newsletter 'Honey Bee' that documents grassroots innovations. There are at least 50 motorcycle-driven farm machine fabricators in Saurashtra alone, and more than 8,000 farmers using such machines.

SETTING STANDARDS Technology Commons will bring in standardization in grassroots innovations which is the best thing that could happen, saysProfessor Gupta. "It will make innovations competitive and cost-effective . And, offer affordable solutions to the expanding market. It raises the interesting possibility of combining customization (so necessary for farm machinery) with standardization," he added. NIF encourages people to imitate and build on each other's designs. The only precondition is that each innovator making derivative changes will put the improvements in the Technology Commons database.

Eco Friendly Hybrid Bikes

Times of India, Ahmedabad, Aug 22, 2008
Anand man creates eco-friendly hybrid bikes
In this age of skyrocketing fuel costs and pollution, an eco-friendly, multi-fuel bike sounds like the dream vehicle. That's what Paresh Budh of Anand has come up with. The 40-year-old, who used to work for a multinational, has now devoted himself full-time to develop hybrid bikes. Budh is an invitee to 'Inventors of India' workshop being organized by IIM-A. His bike can run on petrol, diesel, gas or bio-gas. It will neither create air nor noise pollution and will be air-conditioned! This is, amazingly, because it will be covered. Budh has been working in the field of fuel efficiency for 20 years. A diploma holder in automobile engineering, he is presently burning the midnight oil fine-tuning 'Motoscoot'. "My idea was to develop a bike that's multi-fuel and cost-effective. My bike prototype ranges from 180cc to 250cc and can accelerate to 60 kmph in 7.2 seconds. It has an aerodynamic shape in front, four-speed manual gear (and gearless variant for women) and three safety belts," an excited Budh adds. In 1998, he made a fuel-efficiency kit which gave him 110-km average for petrol in a 110cc bike. Currently, he's experimenting on a kit that can give 1,000 km average for Rs 200 of fuel. Budh has applied for a patent in India, but is frustrated that no one has supported him so far. "People have not recognized my work. In fact, they joke about it. That's why I'm particularly happy that my innovation has been selected for this prestigious workshop which Dr Abdul Kalam is expected to attend. I will show him my work and he will understand it better, being a scientist," he says.

Media should move beyond cricket

It's not often that Indian sports persons except cricketers get featured on the front page of newspapers. It is time for the media to create an equal space for all sports to encourage the masses towards other games beyond cricket..


SUSHIL KUMAR, Vijender Kumar and Abhinav Bindra are names, which have done India proud at Beijing Olympics. Hardly anyone knew them a few days back, may be the sports journalists had known them but now these three have become a part of history forever. Media is all over them for a small interview, a picture, for a minute of their life. Their families are being interviewed on television channels, media has reached their homes. And all the credit goes to the three stars who proved their mettle at Beijing. Else, when does the media in India get time to cover any other sports except cricket, which is their first love.

Even if Dhoni buys a new car, or gets a new dog it is ’breaking news’! Or Yuvraj attends a party with a girl, it’s news! Before the world cup, anything you do, make a cake in shape of bat, sing a song to wish the Indian team, it was news and the media covered it. But the same passion is never there for any other sport. These do get some coverage but that prime time attention is missing, especially in electronic media. In fact, when Abhinav was competing in the shooting event, half the Indian media at Beijing was missing, they only rushed to get his shots when he won.

Media attention also brings in money, sponsors and no doubt, Indian Cricket Board is the richest cricket board in the world.

Sports other then cricket also have a story. It is not that Sushil, Abhinav and Vijender have never played for India earlier. In 2006 Doha Asian Games, Sushil got a bronze. Vijender is the Asian Games bronze medallist and the King’s Cup silver medalist. Similarly, Abhinav had got a gold in 2002 Manchester Commonwealth Games and is the first Indian shooter to win a world championship gold. It was covered by media, may be as one news item or limited to sports page. Unlike this time when Bindra made to Page One as India’s golden boy. Possibly, these victories in wrestling, boxing and shooting may do some good to these sports and divert attention to them. And a country like India with over a billion people should be aiming high in the next Olympics.

We celebrated India’s 1984 World Cup victory in cricket, but we never celebrated or even remembered Khashaba Dadasaheb Jadhav’s victory, he was India’s first individual (Olympic Games) wrestler to win us a bronze medal at the 1952 Helsinki Olympics. Today when Sushil Kumar repeated history they talked about him. Hope his work gets some recognition at least after 56 years.

One rupee is not a rupee – one boy is not a boy

“One rupee is not a rupee, one boy is not a boy,” said a housewife from Shivpuri district of MP. Sex ratio in MP has declined at an alarming rate. It's the desire among people to have more than one son that is responsible for declining sex ratio



THIS IS the story from a village in India, which falls in Shivpuri district of Madhya Pradesh. It is a story of how a girl child is still unwanted. Even if one visits the district today it is the son the families want

"One rupee is not a rupee – one boy is not a boy," said Radha, a housewife in Sirsod, a village in Shivpuri district of Madhya Pradesh, while she was visiting primary health centre of her village for her son’s vaccination. It was the first Tuesday of October and was the ‘Vaccination Day’ in the district. She was there to get her son – (her fourth alive child) Kapsingh vaccinated. It could have been her fifth child if she had not lost her girl child few years back. In a possibility of exploring answers why they have so many kids (like a typical social worker), I slowly went ahead and had a conversation with her, other women, and the Anganwadi workers. Is it the pressure of having son or just ignorance regarding use of family planning method or something else? Well Radha’s eldest child was a son and rest were all daughters. She told us it is mainly due to son that they have so many children but it is not one son that they want. They want at least two sonsIt is that pressure within community and belief that ‘one son is not a son’ just like ‘one rupee is not a rupee’. But why two? Mangal Singh, a community member pointed out that people out here feel if you have only one son he may be left alone if there is a fight or when it comes to defending one’s family, one son is not enough. If something happens to one son, then who will take the name of the family forward? In earlier times, Shivpuri also had dacoits. If you have two sons then you are secure and have the so-called ‘power to defend’.



Another woman standing next to Radha at the Anganwadi with her seven-month-old son on her lap echoed this fact. She was more educated than Radha, and had studied till class tenth and her husband was a teacher. But even for her it was the fifth child, which was a son, after four girls. She added that in our case we do not differentiate between son and daughter, but we need a son – he runs generation ahead.



Your surname ie your family name dwindles if you have a daughter because when she gets married she will adopt another family’s name. If you want your family name, your generation to grow - you need a son. Families just want to have two sons. Nobody wants a daughter. It is this strong bias and with growing reach of ultrasonography and sex-determination technology that the female sex ratio in this part of the state is dwindling. It is not only Shivpuri, but even districts like Morena and Bhind have a sex ratio below 850 girls per 1000 boys. This is an issue, which needs urgent intervention. Though we have laws but these have not been implemented properly. There is a strong need to bring a change in the attitude of the people towards a girl child..

Life beyond AIDS

In order to fight HIV, all one needs is a strong will power to fight the disease. A positive frame of mind goes a long way to ease the dread of death. Remember, there is a life beyond HIV..

Anil Gulati

SPIRITUAL GURUS say and even I believe that our thoughts, moods, state of being and feelings are powerful influences on our health and immune system. I had attended a workshop on Human Immunodeficiency Virus/ Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (HIV/AIDS), which was held in Bhopal, wherein, I had a chance to hear from Sanjeev (name changed) who lives in one of the districts of Madhya Pradesh, on his experience in fighting with HIV, which he and his wife had been living with for the last six years. I too was a resource person in the same workshop. One got moved not only because the way he narrated his story, but by the way he has been fighting the dreaded virus. More than anything, the most powerful message one could get from his talk was that there is a life beyond HIV. One needs the will to fight the infection, which he had in him in plenty.

I presume that the moment you have that positive will, you would do whatever is needed and advised to fight HIV. I feel Sanjeev is a fighter, a fighter with the weapon of will. He not only motivates you and tells you that it is the will, which could be more potent than any other vaccine. He may or may not succeed but more important is his present, which he is living with full confidence. To me it proves a point that thoughts, one emotion and various body systems don't work in isolation. They work together as a whole system.

After hearing from him, I did some search, which was more to add to his belief and mine too. One which I found close to this was by UCLA AIDS Institute research, which showed that stress enables HIV to spread more quickly in HIV-positive persons and impairs antiretroviral drugs from restoring the immune system.

Depression and negative attitudes have also been linked to lowering the immune system, which means that opposite could do better, probably a theory, of which Sanjeev is a living example.Many of us get emotional on issue which affects us, but when you see him and hear about him, his wife and the suffering and stigma they got in return from the society in this 21st century era of technology and openness. How his daughter could not get admission in any school in the state capital?

One feels our issues are nothing as compared to his woes. He inspired me with the message that it is positive will power, which has helped him to fight. He is a real life role model, not only for a person living with HIV but also for me and may be for most of us. He encourages us to encounter our problems bravely.

Letter to CM, an opportunity for raising issues !

Dainik Jagran and Raj Express carry readers’ voices to the Chief Minister in their 'Letter to the Chief Minister' columns.



One of the roles of media is to provide an opportunity for voices of the communities to be heard, and giving vent to the opinions and views of people. Many possible options are available; letters to editor is one of them. One can use it to raise an issue which was in media or express your opinion on the story, or even to highlight issues which may have got missed in regular reporting.But when you feel strongly about an issue or have an unresolved problem, you may feel the need to draw the attention of the chief minister, who is supposed to be the highest in the rank of the elected representatives. This is possible in the state of Madhya Pradesh wherein two newspapers Dainik Jagran and Raj Express offer that opportunity for their readers.



For sometime now they have started an additional column in their edit page which is titled letter to The Chief Minister. They call it by different names: one calls it ‘Letter to Mr. Chief Minister’ and other one says 'Paati Mukhayamantri ke naam' . One uses a photograph of the Chief Minister at the head of the column while another uses his caricature. Both offer an opportunity for people voice to be heard. If one looks at kind of the letters which appear in print, they are diverse in nature. I am not sure how many are received by them and how many are published, and do they censor the content or not ? But if one analyzes them a few inferences can be drawn. The issues they raise are diverse, letters are normally written by individuals or sometimes by groups of individuals, and they come from various parts of the state, including interiors of the state. At present this is a feature which appears twice or even thrice in a week.



If one does a dip stick assessment of the content it reveals that issues of education, problems of state government employees, salaries, unavailability of water, electricity, roads, non accessibility of schemes initiated by the state, maternal deaths, the failure and weaknesses of the health system, and the issue of eve teasing appear more frequently. Perhaps these are issues which impact people directly. Regarding education, issues such as lack of building, teacher absenteeism, and vacant positions do come up quite often in these letters. One does not know many of them are being responded to.



There is some indicatio that people find this way as an easier way to reach eyes of the Chief Minster rather than approaching CM House directly. The Department of Public Relations which does media tracking for the state does track many of them and the same is evident from their website, wherein they scan and display the press cuttings tracked by them, indicating that at least some people get a bit of say in the system, with the help of media. May be this needs to increase.

blogathonindia, blogathonindia1

Letter to CM, an opportunity for raising issues !

Dainik Jagran and Raj Express carry readers’ voices to the Chief Minister in their 'Letter to the Chief Minister' columns.



One of the roles of media is to provide an opportunity for voices of the communities to be heard, and giving vent to the opinions and views of people. Many possible options are available; letters to editor is one of them. One can use it to raise an issue which was in media or express your opinion on the story, or even to highlight issues which may have got missed in regular reporting.But when you feel strongly about an issue or have an unresolved problem, you may feel the need to draw the attention of the chief minister, who is supposed to be the highest in the rank of the elected representatives. This is possible in the state of Madhya Pradesh wherein two newspapers Dainik Jagran and Raj Express offer that opportunity for their readers.



For sometime now they have started an additional column in their edit page which is titled letter to The Chief Minister. They call it by different names: one calls it ‘Letter to Mr. Chief Minister’ and other one says 'Paati Mukhayamantri ke naam' . One uses a photograph of the Chief Minister at the head of the column while another uses his caricature. Both offer an opportunity for people voice to be heard. If one looks at kind of the letters which appear in print, they are diverse in nature. I am not sure how many are received by them and how many are published, and do they censor the content or not ? But if one analyzes them a few inferences can be drawn. The issues they raise are diverse, letters are normally written by individuals or sometimes by groups of individuals, and they come from various parts of the state, including interiors of the state. At present this is a feature which appears twice or even thrice in a week.



If one does a dip stick assessment of the content it reveals that issues of education, problems of state government employees, salaries, unavailability of water, electricity, roads, non accessibility of schemes initiated by the state, maternal deaths, the failure and weaknesses of the health system, and the issue of eve teasing appear more frequently. Perhaps these are issues which impact people directly. Regarding education, issues such as lack of building, teacher absenteeism, and vacant positions do come up quite often in these letters. One does not know many of them are being responded to.



There is some indicatio that people find this way as an easier way to reach eyes of the Chief Minster rather than approaching CM House directly. The Department of Public Relations which does media tracking for the state does track many of them and the same is evident from their website, wherein they scan and display the press cuttings tracked by them, indicating that at least some people get a bit of say in the system, with the help of media. May be this needs to increase.

blogathonindia, blogathonindia1

2007 MDGs report: Urgent need to strengthen implementation

A mid term 2007 MDGs report by civil society organizations in Madhya Pradesh,India bring the state into focus, as here the situation of children is grim as compared to other states of India. So, the State seeks urgent attention, if the goals are to be met by 2015.

JULY 7 WAS the mid point for evaluating the progress towards achieving Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), set by all the countries of world. These MDGs range from halving extreme poverty to halting the spread of HIV/AIDS and providing universal primary education, all by the target date of 2015.

National Social Watch Coalition in India, a network of civil society partners came out with a national report on India’s progress on MDGs. Civil society groups in the State of Madhya Pradesh came out with implementation audit report on seven out of eight MDGs on July 9, 2007.

The civil society groups contributing to this report used available data sources to evaluate the State’s progress and presented some case studies to show the implementation status on the ground. The report suggests an urgent need to strengthen implementation and increase the focus on the monitoring of the situation on ground, which is a challenge. The report brought out analysis of various indicators on the progress of MDGs, which are at different levels of human development.

The report stated that the situation of children in Madhya Pradesh is a cause for concern as compare to other states of India. It was hard one and brought attention on the need of effective implementation and increased monitoring of the goals set by the world’s countries to achieve by 2015 in the area of human development. The report brought Madhya Pradesh into spotlight; where there is an urgent need to increase focus on the progress of these goals, if India wishes to achieve them. But augmented focus does not mean pressure on the system only, in fact there is an urgent need to increase resources, strengthen capacity and increase real engagement of communities. Especially the poor class and the section, which does not participate in decision-making process for human development in the State, should be included and this is something very important.

Civil society partners coming out with this report was an indicator of increased mobilization and concern among them. The increased involvement of civil society in monitoring the progress on the issues, which impact human development, is in line with ’Universal Declaration of Human rights’. This right calls on each individual to strive for securing human rights and these goals are barometers of progress towards fulfillment of these rights. Civil society has a role of duty bearers and needs to ensure that all the promises made by the countries at start of this millennium are met. There is a need to keep a constant vigil on the progress towards achieving the goals and the indicators set up for achievement of these millennium development goals.

It is not for first time when civil society in Madhya Pradesh has shown the increased concern. if one looks back, for last few years the networks of non governmental organizations, media advocacy groups and social activists have been using various forums and multiplicity of methods including media to bring issues of survival and development to forefront. Be it malnutrition among children, poverty, maternal mortality, and female foeticide, impact of displacement or challenges faced in guaranteeing education for all, civil society has always strongly advocated these issues with evidences.

It is a welcome sign as we work in the age of ’accountability’, which demands for the process where ‘systems’ are answerable to its constituencies. This also signifies growing influence and participation of civil society regarding human rights.

Madhya Pradesh State has seen increased civil society participation in State’s effort but still the major input by the NGOs is at the level of delivery or supporting delivery systems of the State. There still exists a glass ceiling when it comes to making decisions, which impact them and the people, which civil society represents. This is important both for civil society and State, as no mobilization of public opinion is perhaps as powerful as that of involvement of people including excluded and poor section.

By Anil Gulati

2007 MDGs report: Urgent need to strengthen implementation

A mid term 2007 MDGs report by civil society organizations in Madhya Pradesh,India bring the state into focus, as here the situation of children is grim as compared to other states of India. So, the State seeks urgent attention, if the goals are to be met by 2015.

JULY 7 WAS the mid point for evaluating the progress towards achieving Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), set by all the countries of world. These MDGs range from halving extreme poverty to halting the spread of HIV/AIDS and providing universal primary education, all by the target date of 2015.

National Social Watch Coalition in India, a network of civil society partners came out with a national report on India’s progress on MDGs. Civil society groups in the State of Madhya Pradesh came out with implementation audit report on seven out of eight MDGs on July 9, 2007.

The civil society groups contributing to this report used available data sources to evaluate the State’s progress and presented some case studies to show the implementation status on the ground. The report suggests an urgent need to strengthen implementation and increase the focus on the monitoring of the situation on ground, which is a challenge. The report brought out analysis of various indicators on the progress of MDGs, which are at different levels of human development.

The report stated that the situation of children in Madhya Pradesh is a cause for concern as compare to other states of India. It was hard one and brought attention on the need of effective implementation and increased monitoring of the goals set by the world’s countries to achieve by 2015 in the area of human development. The report brought Madhya Pradesh into spotlight; where there is an urgent need to increase focus on the progress of these goals, if India wishes to achieve them. But augmented focus does not mean pressure on the system only, in fact there is an urgent need to increase resources, strengthen capacity and increase real engagement of communities. Especially the poor class and the section, which does not participate in decision-making process for human development in the State, should be included and this is something very important.

Civil society partners coming out with this report was an indicator of increased mobilization and concern among them. The increased involvement of civil society in monitoring the progress on the issues, which impact human development, is in line with ’Universal Declaration of Human rights’. This right calls on each individual to strive for securing human rights and these goals are barometers of progress towards fulfillment of these rights. Civil society has a role of duty bearers and needs to ensure that all the promises made by the countries at start of this millennium are met. There is a need to keep a constant vigil on the progress towards achieving the goals and the indicators set up for achievement of these millennium development goals.

It is not for first time when civil society in Madhya Pradesh has shown the increased concern. if one looks back, for last few years the networks of non governmental organizations, media advocacy groups and social activists have been using various forums and multiplicity of methods including media to bring issues of survival and development to forefront. Be it malnutrition among children, poverty, maternal mortality, and female foeticide, impact of displacement or challenges faced in guaranteeing education for all, civil society has always strongly advocated these issues with evidences.

It is a welcome sign as we work in the age of ’accountability’, which demands for the process where ‘systems’ are answerable to its constituencies. This also signifies growing influence and participation of civil society regarding human rights.

Madhya Pradesh State has seen increased civil society participation in State’s effort but still the major input by the NGOs is at the level of delivery or supporting delivery systems of the State. There still exists a glass ceiling when it comes to making decisions, which impact them and the people, which civil society represents. This is important both for civil society and State, as no mobilization of public opinion is perhaps as powerful as that of involvement of people including excluded and poor section.

By Anil Gulati

Media and maternal mortality in M P

Increased coverage meant increased visibility for the issue and more public statements on maternal and infant deaths.

The media can be useful in raising the visibility of an issue, helpful in influencing the climate of public opinion; offer a chance to respond to official definitions, and influence media's own attitudes towards an issue. That function of media is perceptible in the state of Madhya Pradesh in last one and half year in raising concern on the issue of maternal mortality. This trend in the print media has brought the issue of maternal deaths not only on forefront of media but onto the political framework in the central Indian state.

Generating and sustaining media interest in an issue like maternal mortality was not an easy one. It was efforts of media advocacy groups such as Vikas Samvad in engaging print media professionals, media dialogues by various civil society organizations such as Madhya Pradesh Jan Adhikar Manch, Madhya Pradesh Voluntary Health Association and various social activists which provided the much needed evidence to raise the issue. An effort which was duly complemented by many newspapers in the state.

Earlier for the media and for many of us the maternal mortality ratio was just a figure (498 per 100,000 live births). According to official definition the maternal mortality ratio (MMR in short) is calculated as number of maternal deaths per one lakh live births, which is not newsy, for media. But the moment civil society groups and activists worked out a figure based on the government’s Family Health Survey and put out a statement that 13,000 women die per year in the state during and after delivery (approximately 35 women per day) - that made the statement which clicked with media. This then led to a number of stories - first on the numbers of course with official and political quotes (which did not deny the fact). Then the numbers were clubbed with case studies, issues like gaps in delivery system, lack of health facilities and accountablility in the state started featuring. It was not just the news, this provided the peg for features, op-eds and Navabharat ( a leading Hindi newspaper in MP) wrote an edit on the issue.

This raised concern was quite evident by the increase in number of public statements by political leaders, civil society groups and activists on the issue of maternal and infant deaths in public and media. It was unprecedented that an issue like this could make headlines or on to main page, which reflected an achievement on the part of media advocacy & civil society groups and activists working on the issue. This effort brought the agenda of maternal mortality and safe motherhood high on to the political normative framework in the state.

During this process an interesting angle which came up for the first time in the state was whether a serious issue like this matters to our legislators or not ? The Hindustan Times and The Hindu initiated the debate based on evidence i.e. a report by a civil society group which had analyzed that no questions had been raised in state assembly on the issue of maternal and infant deaths in the state. This trigger led too many articles by newspapers like The Pioneer, Rajya Ki nai Dunia, Danik Jagran, Nai Dunia, Deshbandhu (state newspapers) and op-eds by Danik Bhaskar, till the time issue finally made it to the state assembly.

This inference of increased visibility and its impact was echoed by a recent study undertaken by Centre for Research and Education, (CREED) an organisation based in Hyderabad and Bhopal to determine coverage given to maternal mortality and related issues by the newspapers published from the state of Madhya Pradesh. The report had analyzed the media coverage for the year 2005 and points out that there has been significant increase in reporting in the print media in the year 2005 especially if one compares it with the year 2004. They had tracked 723 stories on the issue and had analyzed 234 stories to evaluate its content. If one looks at the space which has been generated on the issue it was roughly equivalent to 61,161 square centimetres. If one compares the same to 2004, though no study was done just on the visibility factor there was a significant increase.

Looking at the press coverage for earlier years, the issue of maternal mortality was only visible around safe-motherhood day i.e. April 11, or else whenever the maternal death was reported it was visible in small columns on inner pages of the newsprint. The situation has changed now, significant benefits have accrued due to sustained and concerted media efforts by media advocacy and civil society networks which drew adequate response from the print media. This piece and even the reports by CREED mainly analyses media discourse in print and that too of the newspapers published from the state capital Bhopal and some from Gwalior and Indore. This does not account for district level issues which are being raised in the state, which, means the ripple effect would have trickled down and if one accounts for the same, may be it would show a much larger picture. This is not an end of the process but a beginning which has helped to raise the visibility of the issue of high maternal deaths in the state, and which needs to be carried forward.

(The views expressed in this piece are personal)

Media and maternal mortality in M P

Increased coverage meant increased visibility for the issue and more public statements on maternal and infant deaths.

The media can be useful in raising the visibility of an issue, helpful in influencing the climate of public opinion; offer a chance to respond to official definitions, and influence media's own attitudes towards an issue. That function of media is perceptible in the state of Madhya Pradesh in last one and half year in raising concern on the issue of maternal mortality. This trend in the print media has brought the issue of maternal deaths not only on forefront of media but onto the political framework in the central Indian state.

Generating and sustaining media interest in an issue like maternal mortality was not an easy one. It was efforts of media advocacy groups such as Vikas Samvad in engaging print media professionals, media dialogues by various civil society organizations such as Madhya Pradesh Jan Adhikar Manch, Madhya Pradesh Voluntary Health Association and various social activists which provided the much needed evidence to raise the issue. An effort which was duly complemented by many newspapers in the state.

Earlier for the media and for many of us the maternal mortality ratio was just a figure (498 per 100,000 live births). According to official definition the maternal mortality ratio (MMR in short) is calculated as number of maternal deaths per one lakh live births, which is not newsy, for media. But the moment civil society groups and activists worked out a figure based on the government’s Family Health Survey and put out a statement that 13,000 women die per year in the state during and after delivery (approximately 35 women per day) - that made the statement which clicked with media. This then led to a number of stories - first on the numbers of course with official and political quotes (which did not deny the fact). Then the numbers were clubbed with case studies, issues like gaps in delivery system, lack of health facilities and accountablility in the state started featuring. It was not just the news, this provided the peg for features, op-eds and Navabharat ( a leading Hindi newspaper in MP) wrote an edit on the issue.

This raised concern was quite evident by the increase in number of public statements by political leaders, civil society groups and activists on the issue of maternal and infant deaths in public and media. It was unprecedented that an issue like this could make headlines or on to main page, which reflected an achievement on the part of media advocacy & civil society groups and activists working on the issue. This effort brought the agenda of maternal mortality and safe motherhood high on to the political normative framework in the state.

During this process an interesting angle which came up for the first time in the state was whether a serious issue like this matters to our legislators or not ? The Hindustan Times and The Hindu initiated the debate based on evidence i.e. a report by a civil society group which had analyzed that no questions had been raised in state assembly on the issue of maternal and infant deaths in the state. This trigger led too many articles by newspapers like The Pioneer, Rajya Ki nai Dunia, Danik Jagran, Nai Dunia, Deshbandhu (state newspapers) and op-eds by Danik Bhaskar, till the time issue finally made it to the state assembly.

This inference of increased visibility and its impact was echoed by a recent study undertaken by Centre for Research and Education, (CREED) an organisation based in Hyderabad and Bhopal to determine coverage given to maternal mortality and related issues by the newspapers published from the state of Madhya Pradesh. The report had analyzed the media coverage for the year 2005 and points out that there has been significant increase in reporting in the print media in the year 2005 especially if one compares it with the year 2004. They had tracked 723 stories on the issue and had analyzed 234 stories to evaluate its content. If one looks at the space which has been generated on the issue it was roughly equivalent to 61,161 square centimetres. If one compares the same to 2004, though no study was done just on the visibility factor there was a significant increase.

Looking at the press coverage for earlier years, the issue of maternal mortality was only visible around safe-motherhood day i.e. April 11, or else whenever the maternal death was reported it was visible in small columns on inner pages of the newsprint. The situation has changed now, significant benefits have accrued due to sustained and concerted media efforts by media advocacy and civil society networks which drew adequate response from the print media. This piece and even the reports by CREED mainly analyses media discourse in print and that too of the newspapers published from the state capital Bhopal and some from Gwalior and Indore. This does not account for district level issues which are being raised in the state, which, means the ripple effect would have trickled down and if one accounts for the same, may be it would show a much larger picture. This is not an end of the process but a beginning which has helped to raise the visibility of the issue of high maternal deaths in the state, and which needs to be carried forward.

(The views expressed in this piece are personal)