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Five Reasons why Halloween can’t be celebrated in India

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If you’ve seen American shows or sitcoms, the craze and hype of Halloween won’t be a notion alien to you. If you haven’t, you shall still be apprised with the basic gist of the huge occasion October 31st is. And if you still don’t have a clue about what we’re talking about, chances are you’re living under a rock.

With the advent of the notion of globalization and the world becoming a ‘global village,’ traditions and values of the diversified hues are being adopted regardless of the geographical borders. Commendable, won’t you say? The fluidity of festivals is a worthy example and an idea with bright potential. While pondering over these noble and mighty ideas, one would wonder about the insertion of American celebrations, say Halloween, in the Indian culture; the more, the merrier, right? It’s not so simple.

Spooky pumpkins, ridiculous costumes and over-the-top makeup, trick or treating for children and themed parties for the adults, the story of Halloween runs deeply in the Western culture. But this story shall be subjected to a few technical and intellectual difficulties in the Indian counterpart for some painfully valid reasons.

  1. The trick or treating: Lol. India Mein?

There is only one rule which dominates the rule book of Halloween: children are supposed to ask for either treats or tricks from the houses they choose to knock on. Once you’ve absorbed the concept, try to picture this imagery in the Indian context. Firstly, as kids, the idea of not talking to strangers/taking things from strangers is hammered into our brains for blatant reasons. Secondly, the traditional rule takes place in the hours of an evening, and well, we all know how safe the streets of India are once the sun sets. The whole placement of children asking for trick or treat, hopping between homes can’t be executed for essential safety reasons. The parental philosophy paradox could not be more relevant here! Thus, one brick of the Jenga falls.

  1. The ‘Dress to Success’ Concept: Future ki Kahani, Halloween ke zubaani?

Myriad people, myriad mind-sets. Generalization is an abominable sin, but that doesn’t stop us from highlighting the sectional plight. We all know the formidable tales of Sharma ji ka beta and our dearest Pappu. To some extent, the minds of Indian parents still hover around the ‘successful’ careers of medicine and engineering. Halloween will just be another fancy dress competition where the kids will be reflections of the future their parents visualized for them. A Halloween with a motley of costumes: some with lab coats and lawyer robes, and some in superhero costumes. And here stands the purpose of Halloween defeated!

  1. The Intolerant India: Nahi, aapne pehen kaise liya?

The Intolerance debate became the favourite newspaper headline for the media for a loooong time. And a little momentum of the debate holds relevance in the Halloween modalities too. Fancy this: someone wearing the costume of a respectable figure, indulging in smoking/drinking. Such a scenario would seem minuscule to the young blood, but it sure has the potential to freeze a conventional street and make the dresser the victim of harassment. To talk about the restrictions surrounding the female dress code and the ogling that would invite, well, let’s not pull that string. Loyalty to figure and orthodox ideas run deep in the country, giving everyone a shade of intolerance and further hampering the creative streak of the Halloween celebration.

  1. The Notion Fallacy: Kaunsa amusement?

Diwali is the festival of lights. Holi is the festival of colours. Thanksgiving is the festival of gratitude. And Halloween is the festival which celebrates horror and everything spooky (hint: the pumpkins). Lights, colours, gratitude, are diametrically related to the spreading of horror in the community. Think of the gory and abhorrent ‘tricks’ people would commit in the name of Halloween; the Indian community is that unpredictable.

  1. The Market of Festivals: Bhaiya, aur kitne?

CBSE Political Science books taught us the importance of diversity in our country. This diversity lends us a colourful flavour to the cultural hemisphere, with a plethora of festivities lining up to be celebrated. With an average of two-three festivals per month booking up our calendar schedules, do we need one more to crowd our holidays? Specially the month of October which brings the celebration of Durga Pujo, Dussehra, Diwali back to back, the idea of another festival succeeding Diwali times indeed sounds less favourable and extremely tiring.

Colourful candies, orange pumpkins, shades of costumes flooding the streets under the black night; can the horror and fun of Halloween float through the Indian minds? Candy for thought!

Saumya Kalia
[email protected]

Image Credits: history.com

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DUB Speak

Why I’ll never approve of the ‘coaching classes’ culture

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I distinctly remember when I entered grade 8 of school, coaching institutes were wooing their potential candidates, lecturing children as young as 12 and 13 on ‘success’ and how one achieves success by cracking an ABC entrance exam after which they gets a nice ‘package’ and settle in life. It was all aversive to me, how people would pay so much to sit in a cramped classroom where mock tests decided your self worth.

What I saw was very obvious to me, but it wasn’t to my fellow schoolmates who did decide to sign up for coaching. My parents’ anxiety loomed each day as I continued to refuse coaching classes. I get where my parents’ anxiety comes from. It is indeed very hard to get a respectable, good earning job in this country without stomping on thousands of others, including your peers. ‘Cutthroat competition’ although a buzzword today, quite effectively describes the situation.

This anxiety is omnipresent and coaching institutes, vicious enough in their business strategies decide to tap these anxieties to squeeze out money from the masses. A lot of those include people from poor backgrounds, without means to access proper education who only seek a better life after investing hard earned life savings.

Coaching institutes which boast of guiding students to gain the top ranks in exams seek to reduce the individuals to their most marketable essence. The totality of their existence is judged by the decimal digits that follow 99 and they are confined to their passport sized photos on a large banner along with their All India Ranking (Much to everyone’s suspicion, all the toppers seem to be associated with all the coaching institutes)

Coaching culture is so widespread and accepted that most of actually consider it a basic necessity in getting an education. That explains the sorry state out higher education system is in, where school and college teachers wouldn’t ever give a damn about a student’s further studies.

When I learnt that earning money is not just the end motive but the soul motive of coaching centres, I refused to acknowledge their credibility. Why do I hear about people who crack Civil Service exams, only to quit their jobs after a few months to teach a class where they earn in lakhs? Why do IIT graduates, instead of giving back to the government that invests so much in them, vow to make you the next IITian?  

Education in India is not a transmission of knowledge but actually a very strategic trade. Coaching institutes are seemingly the throne bearers of this trade.

 

Kartikeya Bhatotia

[email protected]

 

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Best and Worst of 2015: National highlights of the year

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As the year ends, we look at the various events that changed the face of the country. Some restored our faiths in the governing system of the country, some disappointed us at the existing social structure. In this new series at DU Beat, we bring to you the best and worst of news from the National platform.

1. Constitutional and Policy Changes

  • March 24 – Section 66A of IT Act Repealed

In a move widely considered as protection of Free Speech in India, the Supreme Court of India, gave the verdict that Section 66A is unconstitutional in the Shreya Singhal v. Union of India case. Section 66A stated a punishment for any person who uses means of a computer resource to spread information that has a grossly offensive and menacing character.

  • April 13 – NJAC Act and the Constitutional Amendment Act come into force. Declared unconstitutional on October 16

National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) was a proposed body which would have been responsible for the appointment and transfer of judges to the higher judiciary in India. On 16 October 2015 the Constitution Bench of Supreme Court by 4;1 Majority upheld the collegium system and struck down the NJAC as unconstitutional after hearing the petitions filed by several persons.

  • December 22 – Juvenile Justice Bill passed in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha

In 2015, responding to the public sentiment after Delhi Rape case, both the houses of parliament in India further amended the Juvenile Justice bill that lowered the juvenile age to 16 and proposed adult-like treatment for juveniles accused of heinous crimes. The lower house, i.e. Lok Sabha passed the bill on May 7, 2015 and the upper house,i.e. Rajya Sabha on December 22, 2015. The bill currently awaits president’s approval.

Maneka Gandhi discussing the Juvenile Justice Bill in Rajya Sabha on December 22, 2015. Image credits: tribuneindia.com

2. Riots and terror attacks

  • 6 July-present – Patel reservation agitation

Starting of July 2015, the people of India’s Patidar community, seeking Other Backward Class (OBC) status, held public demonstrations across the Indian state of Gujarat.  Later, there were incidents of violence and arson across the state resulting in curfew in several cities and towns. The properties and vehicles worth crores of Rupees were damaged and destroyed. The agitation has led to the deaths of 11 people till now.

The Hardik Patel-led Patidar Anamat Sangarsh Samiti protests in Gujarat, August 2015. Image credits: livemint.com
  • July 25 – Terror attack in Gurdaspur, Punjab.

Three gunmen dressed in army uniforms opened fire on a bus and then attacked the Dina Nagar police station in Gurdaspur district of Punjab, India. The attack resulted in the death of three civilians and four policemen. All three attackers were killed in an operation that lasted 12 hours. Indian Ministry of Home Affairs alleges that the attacks were carried out by Pakistan based terror group Lashkar-e-Tayiba.

3. Rising intolerance and communalism

  • March 2 – Maharashtra ban on export and sale of beef comes into effect

Maharashtra cow slaughter ban was extended to ban the sale and export of beef, with a punishment of 5 years jail, and/or a ?10,000 fine for possession or sale.

  • March 5 – Mob lynching in Dimapur, Nagaland.

A mob of about 7000-8000 people broke into a prison, dragged a man detained under suspicion of rape out of the Dimapur Central Jail, paraded him naked and beat him to death in a case of vigilante justice. The victim, allegedly called an illegal Bangladeshi, was originally from the state of Assam whose 2 brothers were employed in the Indian Army with another brother who died during service in the Kargil War.

Mob lynching in Dimapur, Nagaland Image credits: mirror.co.uk
  • August 30 – Scholar and VC, Kannada University M.M. Kalburgi shot dead 

M. M. Kalburgi was was a scholar of Vachana sahitya (Vachana literature) and academic who served as the vice-chancellor of Kannada University in Hampi. He was awarded the National Sahitya Akademi award in 2006. He was under fire for making statements against idolatry in Hinduism. He was shot dead by two unidentified men at his home in Dharwad, Karnataka.

Later this year it was revealed by Karnataka Police that rationalists M. M. Kalburgi, Narendra Dabholkar and Govind Pansare were all killed by the same weapon

M. M. Kalburgi Image credits: intoday.in
  • September 28 – Mob lynching in Dadri, Uttar Pradesh

A mob of people attacked a Muslim family on the night of 28 September 2015 in Bisara village near Dadri, Uttar Pradesh, India. The attackers killed 52-year-old Mohammad Akhlaq Saifi and seriously injured his son, 22-year-old Danish. They were accused of consumption of beef. The controversy took new heights when it was supported by many right-wing politicians and the police, who decided to do a meat test instead of seriously investigating the case.

  • September-present – Writers return awards. Celebrities speak up against rising intolerance

Noted writers Uday Prakash and Chandrashekhar Patil were the first to return their Sahitya Akademi Award and Pampa Awards. In October, writer Nayantara Sahgal also returned Sahitya Akademi Award citing M. M. Kalburgi’s murder among other incidents with people being “killed for not agreeing with the ruling [party’s] ideology.”

Bollywood actors like Shahrukh Khan and Aamir Khan also chose to speak against the rising intolerance in the country receiving flack and criticism.

Aamir Khan expressing his views on intolerance in India. Image credits: indianexpress.com

4. From the digital front

  • March-present – Net Neutrality issue

As of now, there are no laws governing net neutrality in India, which would require that all Internet users be treated equally, without discriminating or charging differentially by user, content, site, platform, application etc.

Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) in March released a formal consultation paper on Regulatory Framework for Over-the-top (OTT) services, seeking comments from the public. The consultation paper was criticised for being one sided and having confusing statements. It received condemnation from various politicians and Indian Internet users.

  • July 1 – Digital India is launched

Digital India is an initiative by the Government of India to ensure that Government services are made available to citizens electronically by improving online infrastructure and by increasing Internet connectivity. The initiative includes plans to connect rural areas with high-speed internet networks.

Narendra Modi launched Digital India on July 1 Image credits: livemint.com
  • October – December – CEOs visit India

For the promotion of his venture Internet.org (or Free Basics) Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg visited India in October and held a townhall session at IIT Delhi

Satya Nadella, similarly, visited in November with Sundar Pichai joining in December doing a similar townhall session at SRCC, University of Delhi.

 

Mark Zuckerberg at the townhall session at IIT Delhi. Image credits: ndtv.com

5. In other news..

  • January 20 – Tiger population in India rises by 30%

Presenting the findings of the latest tiger census, Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar said the tiger population had risen from 1,706 in 2011 to 2,226 in 2014. He said a number of government initiatives to streamline tiger conservation were behind the increase. India is estimated to be home to around 70% of the world’s tigers.

  • July 27 – APJ Abdul Kalam, former President of India passes away

Kalam was elected as the 11th President of India in 2002.He was a recipient of several prestigious awards, including the Bharat Ratna, India’s highest civilian honour.

While delivering a lecture at the Indian Institute of Management Shillong, Kalam collapsed and died from an apparent cardiac arrest. Thousands including national-level dignitaries attended the funeral ceremony held in his hometown of Rameshwaram, where he was buried with full state honours.

Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam, former president of India passed away this year. Image credits: indianexpress.com
  • October 22 – Amaravati declared new capital of Andhra Pradesh

Amaravati is the proposed riverfront capital city of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is located on the southern banks of the River Krishna in Guntur and Krishna districts. The foundation stone of the planned city was laid at Uddandarayunipalem village of Guntur district by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Amaravati to be Andhra Pradesh’s new capital. Image credits: kostalife.com
  • October 25 –  Chhota Rajan extradited to India

Known underworld Don, Chhota Rajan was arrested in Bali by Indonesian police. He was extradited to India on 6 November after 27 years on the run and is currently awaiting trial in CBI custody.

Kartikeya Bhatotia

[email protected]

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Campus Central

India Vision 2020- Are we there yet?

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Markandey Katju speaking at Kirori Mal College Markandey Katju speaking at Kirori Mal College[/caption] Katju was of the view that every nation makes a transition from feudal agricultural society to a modern industrial society, but in case of India, we are stuck somewhere in the middle of these two phases. He not only commented on the sad state of affairs of the parliament and bureaucracy by calling politicians ‘a bunch of rogues and rascals’, but he also presented the unfortunate state of the Indian media that is more interested in covering Sheena Bora Murder, Radhe Maa and Bollywood, rather than bringing forth the plight of farmers who are committing suicides. Interestingly, he pointed out the pitiable condition of Police investigations in India, stating that the ‘Darogas’ must see and learn from Sherlock Holmes. For him, India would soon face a social revolution and things will become terrible and turbulent by 2020. However, our national aim should be to make India a modern, scientific and industrial state, for which a revolution is increasingly necessary. After Mr. Katju’s words of wisdom, academician- Dr. Indira Bhardwaj spoke about her vision of India. A faculty member at Delhi School of Business, she highlighted the ever pervasive problem of employability, explaining it as the art of doing routine things in a better way. She criticised how Indians lack innovation and how we make an imagined hierarchal difference between jobs by bifurcating them into either menial or sophisticated jobs. She stressed on learning and respecting ‘dignity of labour’, by treating all job platforms with equal respect. After former Justice Katju and Dr. Indira, the final speaker that enthralled the audience was politician, Subramanian Swamy. According to the former Cabinet minister, a DNA study claims that, ‘all people of India are originally Hindus or their descendants had a Hindu identity.’ Taking his genetic research adventure forward, he stated how he got the DNA structure of Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray matched with a person from Uttar Pradesh, claiming that Thackeray, who mocks North Indians himself has ancestors from UP. By virtue of these anecdotes, he aimed to highlight that every person in India is an Indian first, a north or south Indian next. [caption id="attachment_34918" align="aligncenter" width="269"]Subramanian Swamy speaking at Kirori Mal College Subramanian Swamy speaking at Kirori Mal College[/caption] Sharing his teaching experience at Harvard University, he said, “ Whenever I used to ask students what kind of a job they would vouch for after the completion of their degree, 99% of Indian students in my class would say they’ll go for a secure job”, hence throwing light on the never ending search for stability by Indians. Stating about the problem of corruption and bringing back our money from ‘foreign lands’, he said, “It is not that difficult to bring black money back to our country, but for that, I should be made Finance Minister.” He mockingly argued that India is in a questionable state because of the idealism of Jawahar Lal Nehru, who didn’t listen to anybody, but listened occasionally to Lady Mountbatten, Swamy claimed. He made an effort to project a hopeful picture of India as a developed country if we get our act together. All in all, the conference, though meant to discuss about the future prospects of the Indian Subcontinent, majorly dwelled on the present, but it did establish a connect with the students and teachers as was apparent with the loud roar of applause at the end of the session. Image Credits- Chirag Sharma for DU Beat Riya Chhibber [email protected]]]>

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DUB Speak

Lok Sabha Elections 2014: A dance of democracy, glamour and technology

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Lok Sabha Elections 2014 are here. The voting  scheduled to take place in nine phases throughout the country from April 7th,2014 to May 12th, 2014 has already started. The first phase constituting of 6 of the 543 seats being contested for, saw a voter turnout of a whooping 79.5%. The graph has of course risen and is  a healthy sign for the Mandate 2014.

A mega turn out like this could mean resentment in minds and desire for change in hearts of people. Only as the process unfolds further we shall know, whether this trend continues in the phases to come and if it leads to sustenance of current throne holders or formation of anti incumbent government. However, another aspect to attribute this turnout could be the increasing glamour quotient of election contenders  and an upsurge in technology driven promotion.

As glamour embraces politics!

Indian politics is no longer what it used to be decades ago. Nor is the image of Indian ‘neta’ same any longer. The white kurta dhoti guy with specs resting on his nose and hands resting on his round belly, wearing a Nehru jacket and a Gandhi topi atop his head ceases to exist in real and is only to be found in works of fiction.  Indian leaders today are dynamic,brand conscious,completely informed, well dressed and nowhere less as the demarcating line between politics and glamour industry is gradually disappearing.

Bollywood celebrities like Dharmendra Deol, Hema Malini and Late Sunil Dutt have been into politics for decades.  This year too,  numerous Bollywood celebrities are looking for a decent second innings in politics. Kirron Kher (BJP Chandigarh), MNS candidate Mahesh Manjrekar, Samaajwadi Party’s Kamaal Rashid Khan, BJP’s Smriti Z. Irani (from Amethi) and Paresh Rawal (from East Ahemdabad) are some of such names who’ve been a part of the glitzy industry and now wish to serve the people. In addition Congress is also fielding veteran actors such as Ravi Kishan, Aparijata Mohanty and Nagma as contenders from their party.

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Also, 2014 elections witnessed an inflow of young and fresh blood into the system with numerous ticket receivers being representatives of the youth of the nation. Gul Panag (AAP Chandigarh), Babul Supriyo( BJP West Bengal),  TMC’s actor Indraneil Sengupta,  AAP’s Jaaved Jaaferi and Rashtriya Aam Party’s Rakhi Sawant are few famous people to name. The list isn’t just limited to Bollywood  but also famous sports personalities like former Indian cricketer Mohammad Kaif, famous footballer Baichung Bhutia and magician P.C. Sorcar Jr. are also contesting Lok Sabha 2014 polls.

As the glamour quotient of politicians is rising,  India is eventually having leaders with better personalities and perspectives. Also, the celebrities have their own fan base, which helps them  to garner support in this new arena. The goodwill of celebrities comes handy for the party too, and as people have seen them and heard of them, the celebrities eventually have an advantage over their fellow contenders who are relatively unknown. In the elections of 2014 too, some celebrity seats like Amethi shall be interesting to keep an eye on.

In Social Media’s Ambit

The Lok Sabha Elections 2014 are the first ones to come after internet, smart phones and social networking sites like Facebook & Twitter have become household names and their updates have become the topic of dinner table discussions. No matter any other industry has or has not, but politicians have very well exhausted this unique methodology to reach out to the people at relative ease and cost efficiency. All major politicians and parties have launched their Facebook pages and Twitter handles that keep the party supporters and public updated on movements and activities of their leaders.

Arvind Kejriwal, who is being considered the pioneer of this new trend, has used it smartly enough, that within few years of its formation and function, the party tops the Twitter followers list, leaving behind the traditional twin parties – INC & BJP.

KS

 AAP tops the list in popularity ratings based on Twitter followers of the three major parties in India.         

This can be attributed to Kejriwal’s spontaneity with updates and posts, leaders’ humorous twitter conversations and patience of accepting sportingly even the negative most regards and gestures with utmost grace. He was also seen engaging in a conversation with the attacker, an auto driver Lali who allegedly slapped him in his rally. The video footage have been posted online, pictures uploaded on Facebook, indeed the best way of social media marketing.

Arvind Kejriwal tweeted a parody song made to mock his frequent staging of Dharnas, refering to it as an ‘interesting song’ on February 16th, 2014.

Numerous social media websites like Facebook & Twitter have been carrying out surveys and online opinion polls to provide insights into what voters feel.  Facebook has been showcasing leading parties and candidates status at a glance, while Twitter is running ‘#ElectionTracker2014‘. Another social media platform, Social Samosa, is carrying out another election tracking mechanism that shows politician popularity in terms of positive/negative mentions on Twitter/ Web for voters to judge

Another interesting trend observed in terms of unofficial online promotion, has been of the ‘Norinder Mudi’ memes, that combines random lines with the jingle ab ki baar, Modi sarkar. The idea has gone viral, and off late, similar memes on Arvind Kejriwal have also begun to circulate in social networking circles.

Image Courtesy: Facebook Page 'Norinder Mudi'

 

Not only has social media eased the way of reaching the masses, it has also led to some tiffs, jibes and cold wars among competitors. The recent Kirron Kher – Gul Panag face off on micro blogging website – Twitter has been an example of the same.

Thus in all, the Lok Sabha elections of 2014, have been different in all terms, from participation to promotion. The trend till date is encouraging, and it is hoped to continue, for Democracy is a religion, elections are the festivals, wherein everyone is supposed to celebrate and participate. Don’t merely exist, make your say count, make a difference, for there is ample information available,  in news dailies and on TV, on radios and with experienced people, and now even at  a distance of a few clicks.

Make an informed well thought upon call. I am a first timer like you, but trust me, that ink mark on my finger, I think it’ll all feel good. Happy Elections!

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Spo(r)tlight

Sri Lanka beats India, wins the T20 World Cup 2014

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The night of 6th April saw the repeat of the 2011 Cricket World Cup final in the Twenty20 format as India met Sri Lanka in an all-Asian final. The game was highly anticipated what with the huge fan-following the game enjoys, especially in the Indian subcontinent.

Sri Lanka reached the finals with the Rain Gods turning in their favour as the semi-final between West Indies and Sri Lanka was abandoned due to rain and the Lankans were judged the winners by the Duckworth-Lewis Method. India had had a very strong run in the competition with a hundred percent winning record in the tournament this year. The Indian side overcame a massive total of 172 runs set up South Africa in the Semi-final to win the game with 5 balls to spare. Virat Kohli shined through the game knocking an unbeaten 72 runs off 44 balls to clinch the match.

If Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s team went on to win the final, it would be the first team ever in the history of the sport to hold all the major titles in its trophy cabinet, having won the One-Day World Cup in 2011 and the Champions Trophy last year. The odds appeared to be in favour of the Indian side as Sri Lanka had faced a cursed streak in major trophy finals in the past, losing the One-Day World Cup finals in 2007 and 2011 and the Twenty20 World Cup final in 2009 and 2012.

Sri Lanka won the toss and opted to bowl first. Rohit Sharma and Ajinkya Rahane were the openers for the Indian side. Rahane once again took an early exit to the dressing room with 3 runs off 8 balls. Virat Kohli delivered a note worthy performance yet again, again knocking 77 runs off 58 balls. The disappointment for the Indian side turned out to be the usually reliable, Yuvraj Singh, whose hard-hitting style is world renowned. He was only able to gather 11 runs off 21 balls much to the frustration of Indian fans, pretty evident from the scenes in the stadium. Overall, India put up a below-par total of 130 runs for 4 wickets.

Sri Lanka’s innings was a perfect example of the saying, “Slow and steady wins the race” as Kumar Sangakkara hit 52 runs for 32 balls remaining unbeaten to clinch the title for the Lankans and to conclude his T20 career in a perfect way. Sri Lanka won the match by 6 wickets.

The Lankans finally broke their curse in the finals much to the disappointment of the 1 billion supporters in India. Sangakkara was named the Man of The Match for match-winning innings while Virat Kohli got a well-deserved Player of the Series award for his batting prowess.

Image courtesy: sports.ndtv.com

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Not just VC, three other personalities from DU also receive Padma Shri

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Although the most highlighted news about Padma Shri awards is of Vice Chancellor Dinesh Singh being honoured for ‘distinguished service’ to the field of education, apparently there are 3 more names from Delhi University who have been named in the honourable list of Padma Shree Awardees for the year 2014. The three other academics are Dr. Mahesh Verma, Prof. Rehana Khatoon and Keki N Daruwalla.

Shri Keki N Daruwalla is a renowned poet and leading literary scholar to be awarded the Padma Shri 2014. He is also a visiting scholar for a few months at South Campus, University of Delhi.

Rehana Khatoon is a retired professor at Department of Persian, University of Delhi. She has 23 publications to her name, most of them related to lexicography. She has also been credited for a source book-‘Delhi Past & Present: Focus on Persian Sources’. “The happiness of getting this award cannot be put into words; it is feeling of pride and joy for me as well as my family, relatives and neighbours too. It is a proud moment to be the sixth recipient of Padma Shri in the field of Persian literature which has also been awarded to my father in the past”, remarks Rehana Khatoon on celebrating her win of Padma Shri this year.

Dr. Mahesh Verma is working as a Director of Maualana Azad Institiute of Dental Sciences (MAIDS) and set on to become the President at Indian Dental Association next month. He is also acting as a President of Indian Academy of Restorative Dentistry (IARD) and Vice- President of Dental Council of India. He is also involved in research at the Institution level and in collaboration with various bodies like Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR), Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and WHO sponsored projects related to Prosthodontics and Dental Materials, Implants and other Dental Sciences.

“It’s recognition of not only to you but for the whole team as everybody contributes to it equally. It’s a very exciting and ecstatic feeling. Even after 3 days you wonder are you the one who got the Padma Shri at being awarded such a prestigious award when people come and congratulate. It’s quite surprising too because there are so many other accomplished people and to being chosen among so many is a wonderful feeling”, said Dr. Mahesh Verma on his thoughts for winning the fourth highest civilian award of India.

Featured Image: (Left to Right) Dr. Mahesh Verma, Rehana Khatoon, Keki N Daruwalla

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DUB Speak

65 years as a republic, yet several pending constitutional bills

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India, from the days of yore has been an amalgamation of multitude of people belonging to different cultural backgrounds, religious sects, linguistic groups, aspirations and mindsets. Owing to this diversity, ‘Republic’ Day too, has always had different interpretations for individuals. While initially it marked the victory of Indian self governance over British Raj, the meaning widened dynamically. Today, it is the assertion of individual’s rights, the charter of guiding principles that shape Indian democracy.

However, the road of constitutional governance is full of potholes. Numerous provisions have been outdated and bills have been pending for years. The ones that have been passed (like the Lokpal Bill & Food Securities Bill) are meticulously designed to keep the actual culprits out of their ambit. Consequently, the bills that are supposed to be postulated into binding acts are either shelved or passed with complicated provisions, limited applicability.

A few of the famous bills that have been shelved are:-

  • The Woman’s Reservation Bill (108th Amendment) – proposes to reserve 33 percent of seats for women in Lower House of Parliament and state legislative assemblies. As of now, Lok Sabha hasn’t voted on the bill.
  • Whistle Blower’s Protection Bill, 2011 – was approved by Lok Sabha to protect whistle blowers and eliminate corruption in country’s bureaucracy. The bill is pending before Rajya Sabha.
  • Insurance Law Amendment Bill, 2008 – seeks to increase the amount of foreign equity capital holding from 26% to 49%.
  • The Education Tribunal Bill, 2010 – seeks to set up national and state level tribunals to look into disputes related to higher education institutions, students and faculty. The bill is stuck in Rajya Sabha due to lack of consensus between political parties.

Numerous other bills like Judicial Accountability Bill, Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers Bill have not budged an inch for long.

With the Constitutional provisions (like Section 377) being subject to doubt and criticism, yet it continues to be the voice of visionaries even six decades hence. Parallel to this, there exists the era of judicial review and accountability, where in the constitution vests powers and autonomy in judiciary, safeguards interests of minorities, upholds the dignity of democracy and makes India a ‘sovereign, socialist, secular, democratic republic.’

Thus the Indian Constitution is supreme, indeed, the true hallmark of Indian democracy and Republic day continues to be the festival of the nation marked by parade, cultural presentations and patriotism. The amendments are of course slow but the trend is positive and progressive. Allow me to quote Jose N. Harris – ‘I may not be there yet, but I’m closer than I was yesterday.’

And lastly, Happy Republic Day,  fellow Indian!

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DUB Speak

Will the real Indian comedy please stand up?

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I do not watch Comedy Nights with Kapil, not FIR, or any other comedy serial that comes on Indian Television today. I find most of them low on content and high on antics that serve no purpose. Therefore, most of the weekends find myself going back at the episodes of “Khichdi” and “Sarabhai V/s Sarabhai” to revisit the time of good Indian Comedy.

“Office Office” starring the brilliant actor Pankaj Kaapor in the lead role as Musaddi Lal, the distressed common man instantly struck a chord with the masses. One of the best satires on Indian bureaucracy and administration, the show managed to highlight the shortcomings of the officers , and making the audience simultaneously laugh. The characters of “Patel” and “Pandey ji” instantly became a part of household vocabulary.

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“Khichdi” with its diverse characters with outlandish traits was always a treat to watch. From the voracious eater Bhavesh Kumar, to the incessant complainer “babuji”, from the dumb Praful to gossip queen “Jaishree”, all of these people always managed to bring a smile to my face. “Khichdi” was the amalgamation of various silly but kind-at-heart characters who established a connection with the Indian masses because of their simplicity and “typical Indian family” image. Set in a gujarati background with equally gujarati idiosyncrasies, it made “bade log” and “praful tu to gadha hai” a part of common usage.

 

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Then comes my personal favorite- Sarabhai V/s Sarabhai. A satire on the elitism of the high class society, Sarabhai never ceased to make me double up with laughter. Be it Rosesh’s poetry or Monisha’s “middle classiyat”, Dushyant’s obsession for machines or Maya’s narcissism , the show was one of the most realistic sketching of the present society.

image and gif courtesy:tumblr.com

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DUB Speak

Reversing the gender role: Indian women as football referees

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Recognise her? She’s the assistant referee, Sian Massey running along the sidelines of your favourite football club’s match on weekends.

Soccer - Barclays Premier League - Wolverhampton Wanderers v Liverpool - Molineux
Sian Massey

 

Just like her, Indian women referees are also breaking through the ice in the national football circuit. Recently, Chennai girls Ruba Devi & Basanti and Bengal’s Kanika Burman & Monica Jana qualified for Class II national refereeing. These four girls aim to follow the much celebrated Goan girls Maria Robello, 42, and Uvena Fernandes, 32, who have the honour of being included in the FIFA’s list of women referees.

Rebello, who was also a former Indian team captain, now referees for the Goan pro-league. For a woman referee, the biggest challenge is to control the male players and keep the tempers from soaring too high. In an interview to the Indo-Asian News Service (IANS), she said, “Things can get a bit nasty in Goa where football is a way of life. But I feel women have the ability to keep things under control. I have been verbally abused by the players & fans and I also give it back to them. “(Talk about a real life in-your-face Kate Beckett, eh?)

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Maria Rebello, officiating a match

Like Rebello, fellow Goan, Uvena Fernandes, who is an officer with the Indian Air Force (IAF), also represented India before she started refereeing in 2003.

The newly qualified Burman’s moment of test came when she refereed a highly controversial match between East Bengal and Railway FC which saw her being verbally attacked by one of the players. However, she handled it well with her no-nonsense style and came through with flying colours. But success for Burman comes with a cost. In 2013, she lost a month’s salary when she took leave from her other job to referee for the U-19 Women’s nationals. The underpaying nature of the job of a referee in India also does not help her case.

However, for AIFF (All India Football Federation) priority remains to promote women’s refereeing. The man behind the rise of women referees is Col (Retd.) Goutam Kar, the head of the refereeing department.

“We realized that one girl means one family. And since we don’t have organized women football, we encouraged them to take up refereeing so that they have a good future. First we started scouting and then in 2012 we got a good response in the women’s only refereeing course that was attended by 30-40 girls”, Kar said to IANS.

Kar believes that if these four girls (who have just qualified) make it big, then it can surely inspire the next generation of women referees.

 imagecourtesy: caughtoffside.com, epaper.timesofindia.com

Tushar Diwan

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