Justice for Jisha

I am on this pages once again for Jisha, a 29 year old who tried hard to fight against all odds and would have succeeded, if it was not cut short, in the most horrific manner. Those who found her says they have not come across such brutality in their life time.

Normally I scan for local news from newspapers, as well as from TV, yet I never caught this news. It never scrolled as breaking news when Kerala has 7 regional news channels. It happened 6 days ago and yesterday, the TV channel, Kairali  commenced a hashtag #JusticeforJisha and only then did the rest catch up. Where were they until then is another mystery but let me give credit where it is due even when I try to forgive the political motivation. I scanned for an English version to post in twitter and realized that no other newspaper had given any importance to this news as yet. Maybe it is the election heat but it is extremely shameful and a very sad state of affairs too.

Jisha, a law student was staying with her mentally unstable mother. She has an elder sister, a divorcee who is staying with her grandmother. Her father abandoned them when she was barely 5 years old and is staying elsewhere. Her mother being a daily wager and had gone out for work on that fateful day and she was alone is their one room house.

KOCHI: In a chilling reminder of the ‘Nirbhaya’ incident in New Delhi, Jisha, an LLB student in Kuruppampady near Perumbavoor was brutally tortured and sexually assaulted before being murdered, revealed the postmortem report.

The report also revealed that the culprit had used a sharp weapon to extract her intestines. Jisha suffered over 30 stab injuries. Her chest was pierced by a double-edged dagger. The severe injury inflicted on her head led to her death, according to the postmortem report. The postmortem was conducted at the Alappuzha Government Medical College.

According to officials, the samples have been sent for forensic examination, and the result is expected within a week.

Meanwhile, the probe into the murder has not gained any significant leads so far. According to the police officers, preliminary investigation revealed Jisha was  murdered when she resisted the rape attempt. The police are yet to ascertain even the exact time of her death. A special investigation team headed by Perumbavoor DySP Anil Kumar is probing the case.

Here is a girl who was trying hard to make it on her own in a State which is generally conducive to such attempts. Or am I living in a fool’s paradise?

The justification for this rape too may come in due course. Even in Kerala there are many enlightened ones who think girls should not venture out of the house after dark to avoid rape and should also choose rape resistive attire (What is that?? ). For such intelligent beings, please chew on this; this girl was in her own house and yet a few decided to rape and kill her brutally, in broad daylight. But the worst fact is that no one thought this was news worthy and hence I am forced to say it here; she was poor and a dalit.

Now one may fault the housing, the location, and even the fact that she did not have a male “protector” in her house. How many girls in our nation can pass all this criteria? Never mind the entire nation, let me only take my own State. My daughter too occasionally lives with her old grandmother in a house which can be broken down if a serious attempt is made.

Knowing Kerala, like the rest, even I would like to suspect the migrant workers who are in abundance in this area. Perumbavoor, a municipality in Ernakulam District is one place where the migrant workers came in hordes more than a decade ago. In fact, this district has the highest number of migrant worker: 8 Lakhs. Yet the State has no foolproof method to organize them. Organizing them is not tough if one demands voter’s card or any other national identity before hiring them. But unless the authority and those who hire them cooperate, this is not going to happen.

But let us not be quick to blame the migrant worker. Here is another case which is yet to be solved and though she was in a “secured” place, she lost the rape fight.

Delayed justice: Kerala HC's order for CBI probe comes out after a yearMahir HaneefOver a year after reserving a case seeking CBI probe for pronouncing orders, the Kerala High Court has finally delivered its judgment on a petition regarding the mysterious death of nursing student Jisamol.| TNN | Jun 12, 2014, 10.21 PM ISTKOCHI: Over a year after reserving a case seeking CBI probe for pronouncing orders, the Kerala High Court has finally delivered its judgment on a petition regarding the mysterious death of nursing student Jisamol.

The case that became notable for the delay was on a petition demanding CBI investigation into the death of Jisamol, a final year nursing student in a hostel at Thrissur. Though the final hearing on the petition filed by the girl's mother, Binny Devasya, was over by April 12th last year and the case was reserved for pronouncing orders, the judgment was delivered only on May 26th this year

The case that became notable for the delay was on a petition demanding CBI investigation into the death of Jisamol, a final year nursing student in a hostel at Thrissur. Though the final hearing on the petition filed by the girl's mother, Binny Devasya, was over by April 12th last year and the case was reserved for pronouncing orders, the judgment was delivered only on May 26th this year.

 CBI probe was sought by the mother into the death of her daughter, Jisamol of Chetupuzha, in her hostel room on December 5, 2005. She was a final year general nursing student at San Jose Parish Hospital at Thrissur. The girl was found hanging dead in the hostel room.

 In the judgment by justice CT Ravikumar, it is held that a CBI probe is needed as local police and crime branch hasn't been able to determine the cause of the alleged suicide even after the long-drawn investigation.

 After conducting an investigation into the unnatural death case, Pavaratty police had filed a report to the magistrate court stating that it is a suicide case. Meanwhile, chemical examiner's report said the girl was subjected to sexual intercourse.

As for the recent victim Jisha , they say it may be too late for the probe. If the rapist was a migrant worker, he may have already left Kerala, and as for neighbors, I think 6 days are more than enough to nab if it was one of them.

The police force in Kerala have always done their best, unless political intervention thwarted their efforts, but this crime is going to stand out as the worst in their history, if the criminals are not found and punished.

Source:
http://keralaonlinenews.com/Kerala/perumbavoor-jisha-murder-case-latest-3855.html
http://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/kochi/LLB-Student-Sexually-Assaulted-Brutally-Murdered/2016/05/03/article3412486.ece
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kochi/Delayed-justice-Kerala-HCs-order-for-CBI-probe-comes-out-after-a-year/articleshow/36450319.cms

Aham Bhumika

Thought I shall dedicate this post to Aham Bhumika. Have been seeing their tweets and the least I could do was an RT. Today I saw a request from them to re-post the following on blogs. 

‘Aham Bhumika’ is an NGO, a group of like minded people based in Bhopal, a city in the state of Madhya Pradesh in India. The diverse group consists of artists, housewives, engineers, tourist guides, teachers and government employees. 

        Gift a book to our library of rural  children 

Ahambhumika, working with the rural children in village Borda, Bhopal intends to set up a small library for the rural children. For these children, having a story book is a luxury.

At Ahambhumika we have a support centre for our rural children namely Mehak (Fragrance) wherein there are 120 children in the age group of 4 to 14 years.

We need people willing to support us in this initiative.The books and magazines  discarded by your children will be of immense use to our children.
What we need :  1. We need books in Hindi and English. 2. The books need to be on the topic of interest of children who are in the age group of 4 to 14 years.3. The books need to be of use for the children like  story books, Art and craft books, Biographies, Autobiographies, Cartoon, Colouring  books and Magazines.
How to send old books / magazinesThe best way of sending  books  and magazines discarded by your children is through Speed Post service of Government of India. The charges of Speed Post are very economical and you can track the books shipped through them.
( At the bottom is the address to send the books )

From where  to gift new books If you wish to donate new books, then books published by Pratham books are the best option. The Pratham books are very economical and cover all topics of interests in Hindi and English as well.You can connect with them on Twitter @prathambooks   You can choose books from following  link of Pratham books http://store.prathambooks.org/control/keywordsearch?SEARCH_STRING=Hindi You may order them directly to deliver the books to us on the following address.Ahambhumika Swayam Sevi Sanstha65, Elegant Estate, ( Sai Ganesh Mandir ) Near Mother Tereasa School, Bairagarh Chichli, Kolar Road, Bhopal -4620042 .For any query mail us at ahambhumika@gmail.com  Lastly : If you wish you may contribute financially too. The financial contribution made by you will be utilized to buy shelves, almirah and activity books.

Online bank transfer Aham Bhumika Swayam Sevi SansthaSavings Account Number 2073 1010 15874ISFC CODE :CNRB 000 2073Canara Bank Branch : Maharana Pratap Nagar , Bhopal. 

Aham Bhumika I believe was started by Subrat Goswami  who works with the Archaeological Survey of India. 

AAP and me

Addiction to twitter has kept me away from this space that I so loved. This was where I used to pen my thoughts which would seldom fit within 140 words. Twitter is different; there is more cacophony. It is easy to lose yourself in it if one is not careful. Anyway, here I am once more with no guarantee that I shall return soon!


The success of AAP has many implications/conclusions in our so called democratic nation. Thought I would pen down few that came to my mind after the not so bad victory of the Aam Aadmy party.


1- It proves beyond doubt that democracy is still alive and can function well within the existing frameworks. Compare this to nations where people have given up voting due to various reasons.

2- For poll victory, the nation need not have a party claiming years of experience or certain ideologies.

3- That the nation is thirsting for a drastic change which the current political parties may not suffice or they fail to give such a hope to the voter.

4- That each citizen craves for clean governance and nothing more.


Arvind Kejrival's speech echoes the thoughts that goes through the mind of every well meaning citizen. Do listen to it without prejudice. His Delhi Assembly speech has been compiled here: Know 42 Facts from Arvind Kejriwal Speech in Delhi Assembly.


It is a fact that the victory of AAP has disturbed the Congress, BJP and the Communist party. It was amusing to see the Communist party trying to claim AAP as one of their own while the media did the same for Congress and mainly Rahul! BJP at least showed the sense not to do so knowing well that it will not be bought.

The commentary said that the virtues that AAP claims for itself - a clean image, incorruptibility, denial of perks and privileges of power and funding based on people's contributions - “are all part of the style and practice of the communists from the outset”.Read more at: http://www.firstpost.com/politics/aap-is-like-left-but-it-must-reveal-its-economic-policies-karat-1319547.html?utm_source=ref_article

http://m.economictimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/rahul-gandhi-the-arvind-kejriwal-of-congress-tries-to-inject-aam-aadmi-blood-into-a-decrepit-party/articleshow/msid-27370665.cmsRahul is talking about "transformation" of "traditional" politics, "embedding" people's voice in the party and pushing "aggressively" for change of the kind we "cannot imagine" whereas Sonia is happy to "rectify" the party's "mistakes" and "way of functioning". If that is not political maturity let's have some more of Rahul's political naivete because soon all political parties will be forced to respond to the challenge called Arvind Kejriwal. The Congress is lucky. It will not have to work too hard because Rahul is their Kejriwal, the outlier within.

But a skeptic I am, let me wait and watch how AAP will govern now that power is in their hands. They may not sound realistic at times and may even falter under pressure since the old dogs in the system will be up to their usual tricks. But if the intentions of AAP is right, then I see no reason why it should not succeed. The voters may not be hoping for utopia but they will sense very quickly if there is even a hint of  insincerity.

And if it does not succeed, let me at least hope that it will change the current political parties in the way they function. Maybe even a kill a few in the process!

A secular nation?

We proudly call our nation multi-religious while forgetting the fact that this alone has killed many over the years! Why is that secularism does not work for India but it works for many others? Does the fault lie with our constitution? Or is it the blood of innocents over whom this nation was formed? Even if India did not have to shed much blood fighting for independence, it had to shed much over partition.More than a million they say. Did it all start from there? Will it's ghost never leave this nation?

Let us recall that the majority inherited this nation while the minority trusted the majority enough, to share this nation. Yet, there are a few among the minority as well as the majority who continue to feel insecure enough to fear each other. The politicians continue to fan this insecurity while they build their empire. Let me not blame one party alone since riots have occurred under both the major parties. If there was a 2002 Gujarat riot under BJP, there has been others under the Congress too. I mentioned Gujarat since this is where the nation's conscience stand rooted. From where it refuse to budge. But it is not from where it all started. If one party does it under the secular banner, the other under the Hinduvata banner.

Have a look at the various massacres that took place in India over the years and see the number of precious lives lost. Most of these massacres have been communal in nature.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_massacres_in_India

Communal riots are seldom caused spontaneously and very rarely caused by religious animosity. They are mostly caused due to conflicting political interests, which are often linked to economic interests. 

And in all these riots the police force was reduced to a mute spectator or an active party to the killing. A chronology of riots as reported by Hindustan Times details how police have always been let loose. I believe that before each religious killing or riots, there will be a smoldering time. The small fire from it all starts. Why is that this nation has never been able to douse this fire but does everything to fan it? I also continue to believe that the minute this smoldering starts, killers begin to sharpen their weapons. They have always been ready and yet our police and political party pretend not see them. You and me may never do the act, but there are those who have been trained to do so. Yes, those who are governing the state and the police force are responsible. Yet, over the years we have seen none of them being punished. Why? Are our courts biased too?

Police reforms may help they say. I believe too. The duty of the police is only to serve the people. They should never be a tool for the politicians to play with lives. Make them independent? Other nations are doing it, why not India? How much worse can it get, if it so? A force not governed by each state but as a separate entity. A force whose only duty is to protect the masses. What can go wrong? If there are mistakes, this will be more visible and can be easily punished?

Let the police force be politically neutral. Let them be recruited from a central pool and transferred like the bank employees. Let them be paid well for a start.

2014 LS elections are nearing. Do I have hopes for any positive change. Why should there be? On one side is the so called secular party trying to woo the minorities by all means while on the other side is the party for the majority trying to woo the majority. Will anything change on the ground? Or will both these parties lose and political mongering bring about an even more worse situation?

Let me end this by praying that any party which comes to power in 2014 will concentrate on building more toilets!

You will agree with me once you see the toilet map of our nation.

Time to return?

These days I realize that we are returning to the good old days than anything new! The past few decades were fast paced and we embraced the new with no second thoughts while discarding the old ways. Luckily, they are making a comeback. 

Let me go through some of it on this blog which has been neglected since some time! Yes..I was on vacation and had a wonderful one too. Am back much relaxed.

While in Kerala, I noticed that most households have started a vegetable garden. Two decades back it was common to have one where you could have your daily requirement of different coloured spinach, long beans, chilly, yam, gourds etc. etc. Now even those without much land can grow vegetables in grow bags on their terrace or balconies. At my parent's place I noticed the grow bags supplied by the panchayat at the rate of Rs. 500/-. Guess this is as per the scheme run by the Kerala Agriculture department; the details for the same is here: But since the rains were bad, it did not take off well initially. But just before I returned and when the rains subsided, I found them yielding well.

The Grow bags supplied to my Parent's place

3. Promotion of Urban Clusters: Rs. 400 Lakhs 

3.a. Terrace Cultivation :
It is proposed to popularize vegetable cultivation, in two corporation areas viz. Kollam and Thrissur Corporations by selecting 13250 beneficiaries from each 10  corporation. 25 nos of grow bags along with seedlings of major 4-6 vegetable  crops, preferably nonpandal varieties like Amaranthus, chillies, brinjal, Bhindi  Bush cowpea, tomato, cabbage, cauliflower, palak etc.worth Rs. 2000/- will be supplied to each beneficiary at 75 % subsidy (Rs. 1500 ). Grow bags will have a dimension of 40cmx24cmx24cm, 600 gauge (150 micron) thickness, UV Stabilised , white outer and black inner and should contain 10 to 12 kg potting mixture. The growbag should contain the details of the scheme as Name of Department, name of programme and year of implementation (in Malayalam) along with the details of the supplying agency. Minimum 15 houses as a cluster
in a residence association will be supplied with growbag with seedlings, wherein the association should take the lead role for the supervision and maintenance of the garden including collection of beneficiary contribution of Rs. 500 each.

Most food bloggers write about the best cooking utensils and I realize that these were and still being used by Indians. The ones made with iron/Cheenachatti and Earthenware/Manchatti. I have stopped buying the non stick pans and pots. I do have some manchattis and also use ceramic coated pans. The fish curries have to be prepared in earthenwares since the acid from the kokam can seep into the vessel. The taste of a sambar made in an earthenware is distinct. 

And now the latest invention from the west: the healthy way to poop! The idea of squatting when defecating is not a new one. Indians (maybe the whole world?)  did it all the time and still do. Our railways I think, still have it. But the Indian style toilets have almost disappeared from most households in Kerala.  Have a look at this article. 

Cycles are back with a vengeance on the Indian roads! Good! With the petrol price being increased every other day and government thinking of ridiculous ideas like shutting pumps after 8 PM, the best and healthy way of transportation would be the cycle.

Shoddy tracks no deterrent, cycle sales graph soars

Cyclists may have been decrying the poor and unusable condition of cycle tracks across Pune roads, but this has not affected the sale of cycles in the city. From medium-end bikes to the more expensive imported versions, they are all available and have takers in all age groups.

Hero cycles' new plant to target premium bikers

Targeting the premium bicycle market which is growing at 40 percent annually, Hero cycles Monday opened a new all-aluminium cycle plant here with an aim to increase sales five-fold.

Riding to success on a bicycle 

When M S Athirup, a Thiruvananthapuram-based engineer launched At his  Bicycle Club (abc), the city’s first cross-city bicycling club, little did he know about the immense response his initiative would garner.The club, which started off with 35 members in Kochi, now has more than 1,000 members. The club rents bicycle for two hours for Rs 2.Athirup is excited that corporates are showing interest in his initiative. He said three companies from Infopark have approached him to seeking the  service of Athi Bicycle Club.

Are we short of people?

Is this nation teeming with  121,01,93422, and still counting by minutes, short of people to represent our esteemed Rajya Sabha?

 

This must be the question that went through the minds of many Indians when 2G accused and now out on bail Kanimozhi was elected to the Rajya Sabha with the help of the Congress Party. She spared no time to thank her benefactor as soon as she was elected!

Kanimozhi thanks Sonia Gandhi for support in Rajya Sabha polls

 

NEW DELHI: DMK leader Kanimozhi on Friday thanked Congress president Sonia Gandhi for supporting her in getting elected to Rajya Sabha earlier this week. 
"I was here to offer my party's thanks to Sonia Gandhi for supporting us," she told reporters hereRajyaSabha and Lok Sabha are almost the same when it comes to The salary, allowances andpension for a member and also the qualification.

As you many know, the Rajya Sabha has equal footing in all areas of legislation with Lok Sabha, except in the area of supply, where the Lok Sabha has overriding powers. 

Now let us see the qualifications needed to contest the RS seat: The salary, allowances and pension for a member of Rajya Sabha are same as in Lok Sabha and so is the qualification too.

QualificationsAs per Article 84 of Indian Constitution, the Qualification for being a member of Lok Sabha is that he should be a citizen of India and has taken an oath given under Third Schedule of the Constitution. Also he must be at least 25 years of Age.
However ,as per Article 102 of Indian Constitution ,a member can be disqualified for being a member of parliament:-

• if he holds office of profit;

• if he is an undischarged insolvent;

• if he is of unsound mind;

• if he gives up as a citizenship of India or under allegiance or adherence to a foreign State;

• if he is violating party discipline(as per Tenth schedule of the constitution).

Also under Representation of People Act 1951, he should not be criminally convicted, which would lead to disqualification otherwise.

The trial of 2G scam is still going on and she is yet to be acquitted: Does this mean that they have already influenced the court?

M. K. Kanimmozhi

·         Political career – Daughter of five-time Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, M. Karunanidhi. Political party DMK. She is a Member of Parliament, representing Tamil Nadu in the Rajya Sabha (the upper house of Indian Parliament).^[49][50]·         Allegation – As per the chargesheet filed by CBI Kanimozhi has 20% stake in her family owned Kalaignar TV, her step-mother Dayalu Ammal owns 60% stake in the same channel.^[51] CBI alleges that Kanimozhi was an "active brain" behind the channel's operations^[51] and she worked along with former telecom minister A. Raja to get DB Realty promoter Shahid Balwa to circuitously route 2 billion (US$34 million) to Kalaignar TV.^[52] According to CBI, Kanimozhi was in regular touch with A Raja regarding launching of Kalaignar TV channel and its other pending works.^[52] CBI alleges that A Raja was further pursuing the cause of Kalaignar TV not only for getting registration of the company from Ministry of Information and Broadcasting but also for getting it in the DTH operator TATA Sky's bouquet. She was also summoned by the Income Tax Department, Chennai for alleged tax evasion charges.^[52]·         Charges – Criminal conspiracy to cause criminal breach of trust by a public servant, criminal conspiracy under section 120-B, cheating under section 420 & forgery under sections 468 and 471. Booked under the Prevention of Corruption Act.^[28][40]·         Status – Taken into custody (arrested) by CBI on 20 May 2011.^[53][54] Granted bail on 28 November 2011 after spending 188 days in judicial custody.^[55][56] As of August 2012, trial is being conducted in Special CBI Court.^[48]

The Lok Sabha is already teeming with those who have criminal background but the least Kanimozhi could have done was stay away from politics until her name was cleared. How much ever poetry she writes, in the hearts of many Indians she has lost even the little respect and sympathy that she gained.

Identity

It was a casual remark: "One need to have a political and religious identity": set me thinking. Really? What purpose does it serve?

Let me look at both. Having a political identity means that you are a die-hard fan of a particular party. And what does a political party do? Ideally in a democracy it should help in nation building. The same goes for religion too. Ideally, it should build the spiritual side of a person. But what happens when one succumbs to a political party/ideology or religion? One fails to see the mistakes it commits. After all, both religion and political parties are made on earth by mortals and is bound to fail. When you surrender your identity to a religion or a political party you fail to speak out for it's wrongs.

One good example would be Hitler who headed the Nazi party and was able to persuade many to kill in the name of his ideology. It looked very easy once he attained power over the minds of his followers. He became too powerful to rein in even if anyone had second thoughts.

As for religion, I don't have to say anything! The examples are numerous.

In my state of Kerala, the main political parties are the Congress led UDF and the Communist parties under LDF. They take turns governing almost every 5 years and this happens not because of the die-hard fans of these parties but only because of those who rose above each party! The die-hard fans must surely have voted for their favourite party, but it is the votes of the rest which turned the tide.

A party ideology or love can prove to be disgusting at times. The recent one would be the brutal killing of TP Chandrashekaran. Am not ready to blame it on the Communist party with whom he was at loggerheads but one saw the hatred of the party even after he was dead! What makes one behave so?

Or let us look at the love of the Congress or the BJP fans. It is the same kind of blindness that is exhibited by many.

Let me conclude by saying that to build our nation each citizen should rise above political parties and be ready to point out the mistakes of those who ruin the nation.

A political party should be made to build the nation and not the politicians.

History

History was boring only when one had to memorize events and dates to reproduce it during an exam. But later I have always loved looking up history. A few blogs have made it even more pleasurable. Have always loved imagining the situation as it was eons ago. Since human emotions have remained pretty same, it is easy to imagine!

Some say it is not good to dwell in the past glory since we forget to move forward. But one cannot and should not ignore history since it can repeat if forgotten. And if there is one history that I want to be repeated, it would be the following:

India was by far the biggest economy at the dawn of AD! followed closely by China.. 

Most of us are recipients of emails which stated this fact in many other ways. Some were taken seriously while others were ignored. A few even called these Indians "nationalists"! Not sure why the love for your country is a bad emotion! Love for your own country can be compared to the love you have for your parents and your home. It does not mean that you hate another set of parents or home. It is just that it is from your home that your identity first shapes up and hence you shall always have a special regard for it.

Anyway coming back to the topic of ancient India, if you look at the map you can see that India is in a very dismal position at the moment. China had the same constraints but look how it is bouncing back?

While China seems to be slowly regaining its lost glory, India seems to have a lot of catching up to do. Even militarily, China is way beyond India.

The main reason being the rampant corruption that is eating into the resources of free India. I am sure most of us don't want a Chinese style of administration but I think the Indian freedom has lost all it's meaning. Right now the only free Indians, enjoying the fruits of India are the politicians and and those who pamper them.

I did not write this to offer solutions but just wanted to remind myself that India had a glorious history but due to the smugness, complacency, and carefree attitude of us Indians the past glory continues to evade us.

Source:
http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2012/06/the-economic-history-of-the-last-2-000-years-in-1-little-graph/258676/

Old wine in new bottle

The UPA government’s final attempt to regain the lost trust of the voters before the impending Lok Sabha election is through the much acclaimed National Food Security Bill (NFSB). This is also being lauded by MSN as Sonia’s pet project.

The four pillars of NFSB

Food Availability: The availability of sufficient quantities of food of appropriate quality, supplied through  domestic production or imports (including food aid).

Food Access: Access by individuals to adequate resources (entitlements) for acquiring appropriate foods for a  nutritious diet. Entitlements are defined as the set of all commodity bundles over which a person can establish command given the legal, political, economic and social arrangements of the community in which they live (including traditional rights such as access to common resources).

Utilization or Absorption: Utilization of food through adequate diet, clean water, sanitation and health care to reach a state of nutritional well-being where all physiological needs are met. This brings out the importance of non-food inputs in food security.

Stability: To be food secure, a population, household or individual must have access to adequate food at all times. They should not risk losing access to food as a consequence of sudden shocks (e.g. an economic or climatic crisis) or cyclical events (e.g. seasonal food insecurity). The concept of stability can therefore refer to both the availability and access dimensions of food security.

But after repeated readings of several articles I fail to understand how different it is from the current Public Distribution System (PDS) or others that are already in place. 

The main purpose of PDS was to act as price supporting programmes for the consumers during the periods of food shortage of the 1960. In 1980 the coverage of PDS extended to rural areas in some states as welfare programme. In 1985 the scheme extended to all the tribal blocks covering about 51 million persons. The scheme was revamped and extended to 164 million persons covering the rural areas.

The FSB also talks about anganwadis. But these have been in place since 1975! We also have the mid-day meal programs in government schools since a long time.

So what is the new bill going to do which the older one couldn’t do?

It is an accepted fact that much leakage happens in the old system. FSB hopes to take care of this by the direct cash transfer system. How foolproof is this going to be when those governing the system have not changed at all?

Today, India has the largest stock of grain in the world besides China, the government spends Rs. 750 billion ($13.6 billion) per year, almost 1 percent of GDP, yet 21% remain undernourished. Under PDS scheme, each family below the poverty line is eligible for 35 kg of rice or wheat every month, while a household above the poverty line is entitled to 15 kg of foodgrain on a monthly basis.

The above graph shows that our foodgrains production has increased every year; yet millions go hungry.

As for storage of foodgrains, our FCI storages have never been revamped.  In fact much food grains are lost while in storage and is shameful in a country which has the most hungry in the world.

In 2010-11, the foodgrain loss was 1.56 lakh tonne, while it was 1.31 lakh tonnes in 2009-10 and 0.58 lakh tonnes in 2008-09, Food minister K V Thomas said in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha.

Even now most ration shops indulge in practices which create a black market, thus increasing the food grain price.

In aggregate, only about 42% of subsidised grains issued by the central pool reach the target group, according to a Planning Commission study released in March 2008.

In fact we are told that for every Rs. 4 spent on PDS, only Rs. 1 reaches the poor” and “57% of the PDS food grain does not reach the intended people” (UIDAI, 2009)

Besides, how much free food can a nation afford to give and how long? 

Instead if this amount is utilized for free education it will go a long way in creating a nation better equipped to face the present times. 

Won’t free and mandatory education combined with mid-day meals take care of a large section of our population? Won't it go a long way if a part of this money is spent on infrastructure projects?

If more than 40 years of upliftment through PDS couldn't make much change to the number of poor in India how will it do so now? Yes..we have uplifted our politicians and that is what even this will do. They shall remain the only winners as usual.

http://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/men-and-ideas/entry/food-security-bill-corruption-by-another-name

http://under-the-tree-of-tranquility.blogspot.com/2011/05/only-winners.html
http://www.umdcipe.org/conferences/policy_exchanges/conf_papers/Abstracts/29.pdf
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_Distribution_System
http://cacp.dacnet.nic.in/NFSB.pdf
http://www.academia.edu/378216/Public_Distribution_System_in_India

Storm the jails?

Justice Markandey Katju has concluded his blog post thus:

I, therefore appeal to the people of India, and particularly to the Media, to avoid doing anything which may fan or promote communal hatred and animosity, and exercise restraint in reporting cases of bomb blasts and other terrorist activities.

Fine. 

And he also says the following:

The recent case of Amir who was arrested when he was 17 years old and kept for 14 years in jail until he was found innocent by the Court, illustrates the gross injustice which is often done to Muslims in India.  There are a large number of such cases of false implication of Muslims in bomb blast cases.  

The whole country knows that all Muslims are not terrorists. And in my opinion the public has shown much restraint after each blasts.

As for the media, it was only doing a job: how mean or cruel it seems to be. But no riots ensued because of the same and in fact even Muslims were killed in the recent cowardly attack.

But my angst is as to why a retired judge is telling the public all this, since it is neither the media nor the public who nabs people and put them in jail. The only role the public plays is fall prey to terror attacks whenever it happens.

But while as a Judge has he done anything to ensure justice to those arrested wrongly? Since I am not sure, let me assume he did. And now that he is retired can he do more to change the attitude of the police and the judiciary? Maybe hold classes and repeat whatever he has penned on his blog? Do a bit more and get the "police reforms " that is only paper now into action? Else I shall never understand what he hopes to achieve by preaching to the public and the media. 

For the public it only matters that there has been no let down from the terrorists and how much ever the media white washes there lives among them a few hell bent on continuing with their acts. And the public also does not want any innocent to languish in jails. But what role does the public play in this game of arrests and detainment?

So tell me esteemed Judge.. what do you really want?

Do you want the public to storm the jails and free the prisoners whenever they are jailed?

Aman Ki Tamasha

Yes.. I should be writing about rape since nothing concrete has been done and even our Supreme Court recently noted that women are not safe in the capital city. 

“There is no safety in Delhi. We are concerned about providing a safe environment for women to live with dignity,” the top court said while expressing concern on the issue as it issued notices to the central government, the National Commission for Women and the Delhi government’s State Transport Authority.

Maybe it is time to shift the capital? But to where? In which part of India is women really safe? If the capital with a constant presence of security personnel is not safe then where else. And to top it all a few idiots continue to cite ridiculous reasons for rape. Even our Judges have fared no better. Anyway let me get back to the topic that I intended to write.

A few in Pakistan has yet again showed us how brutal they can be! Their brutality during the Mumbai carnage is still fresh in our minds and at least a few found some peace when Kazab was hanged. Yet our government went ahead with peace talks and our cricket crazy junta enjoyed cricket as usual. It was last year that an updated list of wanted men were handed over to Pakistan but yet nothing has been done. 

Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) chief Haafiz Saeed tops the list which was given to Pakistan during the Home Secretary level talks between the two countries in March. Saeed was followed by Major Iqbal, a suspected serving ISI officer who also figures in the FBI indictment in a Chicago court in connection with the Mumbai attack.

These men continue to spew hatred against India and also against those in Pakistan. They even accuse India for the recent bombing of the Shias in Quetta!

Since the year 2000, over 2000 Shia Hazara community members including many women and children have been killed or wounded in attacks perpetrated by Sunni Muslim terrorists affiliated with Al-Qaedaand Taliban in southwestern town of Quetta.

A fact recognised by all in Pakistan is that the people of the country are not sectarian-minded. Before jihad took hold of Pakistan and extremist clerics became threatening, there was considerable harmony between the sects. Muharram was not the season of sectarian violence and mayhem. Today, the world understands that the intensification of the sectarian feeling among the clerics is actually a result of a war relocated from Pakistan’s neighbourhood in the Gulf.

—The Express Tribune, 2012^[17]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sectarian_violence_in_Pakistan

Terrorism in Pakistan has become a major and highly destructive phenomenon in recent years. The annual death toll from terrorist attacks has risen from 164 in 2003 to 3318 in 2009, with a total of 35,000 Pakistanis killed as of 2010.^{[citation needed]} According to the government of Pakistan, the direct and indirect economic costs of terrorism from 2000-2010 total $68 billion.^[1] President Asif Ali Zardari, along with former President ex-Pakistan Army head Pervez Musharraf, have admitted that terrorist outfits were "deliberately created and nurtured" by past governments "as a policy to achieve some short-term tactical objectives".^[2][3]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terrorism_in_Pakistan

And yet there are people in India who have total memory loss when it comes to Pakistan. They call themselves “Peaceniks” (A political activist who publicly opposes war, a particular war, or the proliferation of weapons; a pacifist) and keep talking of peace with no solution for the same. I am a peacenik too since I oppose war. But war is not the only solution. Since the international community is well aware of the militant training camps and the number of wanted terrorists hiding in Pakistan, it can very well exert pressure and ensure that they discontinue their business of hatred. India can afford a complete stop in public discourse with Pakistan but can Pakistan afford the same? It will be further alienated and will have more terrorists attacks in it’s own soil. So it is time to put more pressure on Pakistan once and for all. India should not continue to tolerate a Pakistan who refuses to acknowledge it's weakness. A Pakistan whose government has no control over it's army. Whose people has a false sense of pride over their army.

When will the people of Pakistan rise up and dislodge those who are tearing up their country?

When will they stop listening to those who know only to spew hatred in the name of religion?

When will they recognize those who urge them to kill in the name of a compassionate and merciful God?

When will they rise en mass to protect the minorities among them? 

Until then let India remain mum. No more peace talks and cricket. Let us remember that we have our own to protect.

MJ Akbar has brilliantly described our government's failure to reign in Pakistan and in his own words:

Pakistan’s Army concluded that if it could get away with Mumbai, it could get away with anything. It has.

Nevertheless I cannot help but copy this cry for peace that is coming from the Civil society of Poonch. The signatures are few but let those who are spewing hatred remember that they shall be cursed throughout history for their role.

Also cannot help copy this from Ajit Ninan.

Edited to add the following:

http://www.rediff.com/money/2008/dec/10mumterror-8-things-india-inc-govt-must-do-against-pakistan.htm
http://www.rediff.com/money/2008/dec/11mumterror-12-steps-to-shock-and-awe-pak-economy.htm
http://www.rakeshjhunjhunwala.in/2013/01/how-not-to-do-anything-when-your.html