Muzaffarnagar Riots an so on....

The Mumbai-based Citizens for Justice and Peace (CJP) has moved the Supreme Court in a detailed writ petition (WP Nos 170/2013) asking for the Supreme Coirt’s direct intervention through an appointment of a High Powered Committee of Court Commissioners to survey the four worst affected districts, assess details of the dead and misisng as also the scale of damages and monitor the transparency and quality of the probe/investigation and report back to the Supreme Court. Petitioners have also asked for directions to transfer the investigations to the CBI. The petition filed last Tuesday came up for hearing with other matters today and will now be heard next week.

Two Victim Survivors, Shahid Hassan, son of Sirajuddin who along with four others was massacred in the attack on Lisadh village of Shamli district and Samaydeen son of Kamruddin who was also killed in the violence at Lisadh and the Awami Council for Peace and Democracy are also co-petitioners in this substantive petition that was filed two days back and came up for hearing with other matters today. 

The detailed prayers also include directions to the State to register FIRs against the named powerful accused persons in respect of arson, theft, attempt to murder and murder and rape and molestation; to constitute a High Power Committee of Court Commissioners comprising of the persons/officers, which this Hon’ble Court may deem fit and proper, to visit the affected areas rural as well as urban where people suffered murder, loot, arson, rape and other criminal acts and have not been able to lodge F.I.Rs for the offence committed against them due to fear, threat and intimidation or because they are victim survivors who are incapacitated and hence require assistance and access because of any other reason and to assist them to lodge F.I.R. for the offence committed with them;to ensure a thorough investigation into all the F.I.Rs. which have already been lodged from 27.8.2013 to date relating to illegal meetings and unlawful assemblies, targeted loot, arson, circulation of fake photographs and videos and inciting communal passions by the holding of unlawful meetings and Panchayats by fixing the responsibility for the aforesaid offences; as well as identifying the officers, individuals, representatives, political leaders, organizations and other persons who instigated the general public by convening a Panchayat in village Nagla Mataund at Muzaffar Nagar on 7.9.2013 where the people were allowed to assemble not only from adjoining district but also from outside the state armed with dangerous weapons; to direct effectice compensation to all survivors of the dead and injured and those who have suffered heavy losses. 

The petition lists in detail the chronology of events leading up to the ghastly killings at Muzaffarnagar that have rendered 41,000 homeless and questions the state police and administration allowing armed Khap panchayatas, Mahapanchayats whena communal atmosphere was building up in the four districts of Shamli, Muzaffarnagar, Baghpat and Meerut. A list of 161 worst affected villages from where minorities have had to flee has also been annexed to the petition. 

Advocates Aparna Bhat and Ramesh Pukhrambam appeared for the petitioners.

Patterns of Anti-Muslim Violence

Dr Mohammad Manzoor Alam

The anti-Muslim riots in Muzaffarnagar and adjoining areas are already being compared to Gujarat 2002. As many as 50,000 people have been officially reckoned to have become internal refugees. According to official records, 85 people have died, but unofficial estimates put it at a much higher figure.

Picture For Representation purpose only

Police and administrative laxity, and sometimes police’s criminal collusion with rioters, have brought on this sorry state of affairs. Above everything else the murky dealings of Samajwadi Party leadership with the Sangh had a paralysing influence on the state machinery and encouraged goondas to indulge in rape, loot, arson and murder. Many Muslims have “disappeared”, many of their young women have been kidnapped and whisked away to places where they cannot easily be found.

Like Gujarat, it was a well-planned operation. Police in several areas have been seen to be hand in glove with rioters. These riots need a more comprehensive case study. The following is an account of some of the facets of these riots.

Role of Media

By now the riot methodology has been perfected. Disinformation, rumor mongering - the usual ammunition in every fascist armoury - are important components of this machinery. They have always been used with lethal effect in anti-Muslim riots all over India.

The post-Godhra riots began with a major news item in the two most important Gujarati dailies. The prominently-displayed news said Muslims in Godhra had raped two Hindu women and cut their breasts. This inflamed Hindu feelings beyond control. Later it was found that no such event had taken place.

However, by the time the truth came out, it was too late and hundreds of Muslim women had been raped and killed.

Several riots in UP in the past have been fuelled and aggravated by such false reports in Hindi newspapers. One such riot spread quickly after a Hindi newspaper wrote a story on the front page. The banner headline screamed: “Chaar sau bachche ghar nahin lautey” (Four hundred [school] children did not return home). The falsehood was known only after the damage was done.

Yet another vicious riot in Aligarh was aggravated by a false report in a Hindi newspaper that said Hindus in AMU’s Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College hospital had been poisoned by Muslim doctors.

In Muzaffarnagar, newspaper stories of a Hindu girl’s “molestation and rape” worked as petrol on fire. Subsequent investigations and reports by major publications found that the reports were not true. By then many people were killed and maimed, homes and shops burnt down, people in their thousands driven out to seek shelter in refugee camps.

The role of a section of media turned out to be as vicious this time as in the past.

The Muzaffanagar police complained that media had been reporting events that did not take place. That had a devastating effect. So far, media has gone completely untouched for its role in aggravating mass violence. This is a long record of impunity. Nobody ever dragged them to court for their crimes against humanity. Enough is enough. Victims must give a serious thought to legal action against these offenders.

The Press Council of India is aware of these transgressions, but being a toothless body all that they can do is after a proper investigation name and shame the offenders. However, it does not work as the offenders are shameless.

Small Changes

The larger pattern of anti-Muslim riots is intact, but smaller changes have been introduced into it to make such riots more deadly.

Throughout the 1950s, 60s and 70s the anti-Muslim riots began with somebody pelting stones at Hindu processions. Once the stones were pelted systematic attacks on Muslims began and riot apologist would invariably argue that the riot was “started by Muslims”, taking it for granted that those throwing stones were Muslims.

On the other hand, Muslims knew well that it was the handiwork of agent provocateurs hired by the riot organisers. The simple logic for Muslim innocence was that they did not stand to gain from the riots.

“Muslim casts the first stone” theme has given way to “riots begin with Muslims molesting and raping Hindu women”. That was the alibi in Pratapgarh riots earlier this year and Muzaffarnagar riots earlier this month. In both cases, the media propagated this false news with devastating consequences for Muslims. In both cases it later turned out that no molestation or rape had taken place.

Other measures of disinformation and provoking the majority community included wide distribution of a video in which a mob was lynching someone. The mischief makers said the video showed Muslims lynching Hindu youth in Muzaffarnagar, while the fact was that it was an old video of violence in Afghanistan.

In some areas, young men were seen distributing pamphlets in “Muslim dress”, while in fact they were not Muslims. This was another way of provoking violence and blaming it on Muslims.

For years we had witnessed riots erupting after the discovery of cows’ heads and other parts in temples. Miscreants had regularly used this tactic to provoke riots. Over the years it has lost much of its effectiveness. That is why the new narrative involves “Hindu naari ki izzat par hamla” (attack on the modesty of Hindu woman). As it has worked well so far. We should expect more of it in days ahead. 

The author is 

Gen Secy of ALL INDIA MILLI COUNCIL and Chairman Institute of Objective Studies

Water Conservation: A Need of the Hour

Rapid industrialization and urbanization coupled with continuous decline in per capita availability of water is putting a lot of pressure on the available water resources in the country. As per report of standing sub-committee for assessment of availability and requirements of water for diverse uses in the country, the future water requirements for meeting the demands of various sections in the country for the year 2025 and 2050 have been estimated to be 1093 BCM and 1447 BCM respectively. The increasing gap between water availability and demand highlight the need for conservation of water. The National Water Policy also lays stress on conservation of water. It has been stipulated that efficiency of utilization in all the diverse uses of water should be optimized and an awareness of water as a scarce resource should be fostered. With per capita availability of water depleting at a faster pace, the Government has declared the Year 2013 as Water Conservation Year under which awareness programmes are being launched among masses, especially children, on water conservation. Water conservation is also the key objective of the National Water Mission which is one of the eight National Missions under the National Action Plan for Climate Change. This envisages conservation, minimising wastage and ensuring equitable distribution of water resources across and within states through integrated water resources development and management. There is a need for water conservation, not only to restore the fast deteriorating eco-system of the country but also to meet the inevitable emergency of shortage even for drinking and domestic water in near future. The following points are to be pondered upon to plan strategies to meet the crisis: ·        Water is a finite resource and cannot be replaced/duplicated. ·        Water resources are theoretically ‘renewable’ through hydrological cycle. However, what is renewable is only the quantity, but pollution, contamination, climate change, temporal and seasonal variations have affected the water quality and reduced the amount of ‘usable water’. ·        Only 2.7% of the water on earth is fresh. ·        The ground water levels are declining very fast. ·        Rainfall is unevenly distributed over time and space. ·        Increased demand in coastal areas is threatening the fresh water aquifers with seawater intrusion. ·        In inland saline areas, the fresh water is becoming saline due to excessive withdrawal of ground water. ·        Water conservation practices in urban areas can reduce the demand as much as by one third, in addition to minimizing pollution of surface and ground water resources. ·        Watershed programmes tended to concentrate on harvesting rainwater through surface structures. ·        There is a need to look at surface and ground water holistically and prepare a conjunctive use plan. Action Plan for Water Conservation Conservation of Surface Water Resources All efforts should be made to fully utilize the monsoon runoff and store rainwater at all probable storage sites. In addition to creating new storages, it is essential to renovate the existing tanks and water bodies by de-silting and repairs. The revival of traditional water storage techniques and structures should also be given due priority. Conservation of Ground Water Resources Ground water is an important component of hydrological cycle. It supports the springs in hilly regions and the river flow of all peninsular rivers during the non-monsoon period. For sustainability of ground water resources it is necessary to arrest the ground water outflows by a) Construction of sub-surface dams, b) Watershed management, c) Treatment of upstream areas for development of springs, and d) Skimming of freshwater outflows in coastal areas and islands. Protection of Water Quality The rapid increase in the density of human population in certain pockets of the country as a result of urbanization and industrialization is making adverse impact on the quality of both surface and ground water resources. Demand for water is increasing on one hand and on the other hand the quantity of ‘utilizable water resources’ is decreasing due to human intervention in the form of pollution and/or contamination of fresh water. Thus the protection of existing surface and ground water resources from pollution and contamination is a very vital component of water conservation. Action Points for Water Conservation An important component of water conservation involves minimizing water losses, prevention of water wastage and increasing efficiency in water use. The action points towards water conservation in different sectors of water use are as follows: Irrigation Sector Important action points towards water conservation in the irrigation sector are as follows: ·                    Performance improvement of irrigation system and water utilization; ·                    Proper and timely system maintenance; ·                    Rehabilitation and restoration of damaged /and silted canal systems to enable them to carry designed discharge; ·                    Selective lining of canal and distribution systems, on techno-economic consideration, to reduce seepage losses; ·                    Restoration / provision of appropriate control structures in the canal system with efficient and reliable mechanism; ·                    Conjunctive use of surface and ground water to be resorted to, specially in the areas where there is threat to water logging; ·                    Adopting drip and sprinkler systems of irrigation for crops, where such systems are suitable; ·                    Adopting low cost innovative water saving technology; ·                    Renovation and modernization of existing irrigation systems; ·                    Preparation of a realistic and scientific system operation plan keeping in view the availability of water and crop water requirements; ·                    Execution of operation plan with reliable and adequate water measuring structures. ·                    Revision of cropping pattern in the event of change in water availability; ·                    Utilisation of return flow of irrigation water through appropriate planning; ·                    Imparting trainings to farmers about consequences of using excess water for irrigation; ·                    Rationalization of water rate to make the system self-sustainable; ·                    Formation of Water Users Associations and transfer of management to them; ·                    Promoting multiple use of water; ·                    Introducing night irrigation practice to minimize evaporation loss; ·                    In arid regions crops having longer root such as linseed, berseem, lucerne guar, gini grass, etc may be grown as they can sustain in dry hot weather; ·                    Assuring timely and optimum irrigation for minimizing water loss and water-logging; ·                    Introducing rotational cropping pattern for balancing fertility of soil and natural control of pests; ·                    Modern effective and reliable communication systems may be installed at all strategic locations in the irrigation command and mobile communication systems may also be provided to personnel involved with running and maintenance of systems. Such an arrangement will help in quick transmission of messages and this in turn will help in great deal in effecting saving of water by way of taking timely action in plugging canal breaches, undertaking repair of systems and also in canal operation particularly when water supply is needed to be stopped due to sudden adequate rainfall in the particular areas of the command. ·                    With a view to control over irrigation to the fields on account of un-gated water delivery systems, all important outlets should be equipped with flow control mechanism to optimize irrigation water supply. ·                    As far as possible with a view to make best use of soil nutrients and water holding capacity of soils, mixed cropping such as cotton with groundnut, sugarcane with black gram or green gram or soyabean may be practised. ·                    It has been experienced that with scientific use of mulching in irrigated agriculture, moisture retention capacity of soil can be increased to the extent of 50 per cent and this in turn may increase yield up to 75 per cent. Domestic and Municipal Sector Important action points for water conservation in domestic and municipal sector are as follows: ·                    Action towards reduction of losses in conveyance; ·                    Management of supply through proper meter as per rational demand; ·                    Intermittent domestic water supply may be adopted to check its wasteful use. ·                    Realization of appropriate water charges so that the system can be sustainable and wastage is reduced; ·                    Creation of awareness to make attitudinal changes; ·                    Evolving norms for water use for various activities and designing of optimum water supply system accordingly; ·                    Modification in design of accessories such as flushing system, tap etc. to reduce water requirement to optimal level. Wherever necessary, BIS code may be revised; ·                    Possibility for recycling and reuse of water for purposes like gardening, flushing to toilets, etc. may be explored. Wastewater of certain categories can be reused for other activities as per feasibility; ·                    Optimum quantity of water required for waste disposal to be worked out; ·                    In public buildings the taps etc. can be fitted with sensors to reduce water losses; Industrial Sector Important action points for water conservation in industrial sector are as follows: ·                    Setting-up of norms for water budgeting; ·                    Modernization of industrial process to reduce water requirement; ·                    Recycling water with a re-circulating cooling system can greatly reduce water use by using the same water to perform several cooling operations; ·                    Three cooling water conservation approaches are evaporative cooling, ozonation and air heat exchange. The ozonation cooling water approach can result in a five-fold reduction in blow down when compared to traditional chemical treatment and should be considered as an option for increasing water savings in a cooling tower. ·                    The use of de-ionized water in reusing can be reduced without affecting production quality by eliminating some plenum flushes, converting from a continuous flow to an intermittent flow system and improving control on the use. ·                    The reuse of de-ionized water may also be considered for other uses because it may still be better than supplied municipal water. ·                    The wastewater should be considered for use for gardening etc. ·                    Proper processing of effluents by industrial units to adhere to the norms for disposal; ·                    Rational pricing of industrial water requirement to ensure consciousness / action for adopting water saving technologies; Regulatory Mechanism for Water Conservation Ground water is an unregulated resource in the country with no price tag. The cost of construction of a ground water abstraction structure is the only investment. Unrestricted withdrawal in many areas has resulted in decline of ground water levels. Supply side management of water resources is very important for conserving this vital resource for a balanced use. An effective way is through energy pricing restriction on supply and providing incentives to help in conservation of water. Action plan, in this regard, may include the following: ·                    Rationalizing pricing policy of water in urban and rural areas. Industries should be discouraged to exploit ground water with high price slabs. ·                    Restriction on new construction of ground water structures in all the over exploited and dark blocks of the country; ·                    Metering of all ground water abstraction structures; ·                    Controlled supply of electricity and downsizing of pump capacity in rural areas; ·                    Regulating the water trading or selling; ·                    Providing incentives for adoption of rainwater harvesting; ·                    Modification in building bye-laws in urban areas to make it mandatory to adopt rainwater harvesting. Water conservation is prime and challenging concern. Numerous types of water conservation techniques are available in the country. The scientists are developing new techniques, but there are gaps on the application of the appropriate technologies, which needs to be removed. Due to lack of proper operation and maintenance in irrigation, industry and domestic water distribution system, there is huge loss of water. Hence emphasis should be given to improve the O&M system. For developing the water resources, age-old traditional water conservation methods need to be judiciously adopted in conjunction with the latest modern conservation technology. Keeping this in view, rain water harvesting, revival of traditional water storages/ponds, check dams and other similar structures need to be adopted. Building byelaws should be suitably modified to introduce mandatory roof top rain water harvesting. In order to conserve precious fresh water, recycling of waste water may be incorporated wherever feasible. Dual water supply system, one for treated wastewater and the other for fresh water may be introduced so that treated waste water can be used for secondary purposes such as toilets flushing, gardening, agriculture and selective industries etc. New urban colonies, big hotels industries and other similar establishments should have mandatory dual water supply systems. Cropping pattern and crops water requirement varies from time to time due to the dynamic socio-economic condition of the people and the region in addition to geo-morphological, climatic and metrological changes. Hence, for effective management, appropriate base line data for water demand under different situations needs to be brought out for optimum crop water management and field activities considering effective rainfall in different physiological stages. Night irrigation practice may be introduced to minimize evaporation loss thus conserving irrigation water. Timely and need based irrigation should be done to minimize loss of water. Further, for boosting productivity, rotational cropping pattern may be introduced for balancing fertility of soil and natural pest control. Various water savings devices are being developed under various ongoing R&D programmes. These devices should be suitably adopted in the system. Mass awareness campaign should be conducted regularly to cover all stakeholders, including service providers and consumers, for water conservation in irrigation, domestic and industrial sectors. Special attention must be given so that the fruits of the campaign must reach the children, housewives and farmers effectively. (PIB Features.)               ****** With inputs from the National Institute of Hydrology,  Roorkee, Ministry of Water Resources.

Minorities Development in India

M. S.  Ansari*

India is a democratic country where people of all community live in peace and harmony. All major religions of the world are found in India. As such, Hindus are the majority community and the minority community includes Muslims, Sikhs, Christians, Buddhists and Zoroastrians (Parsis) as notified under the National Commission for Minorities Act, 1992.

Minorities are playing a very vital role in India’s political and social upliftment, contributing significantly in the development of our country. Governments from time to time have formulated programmes and schemes for socio-economic upliftment of minorities.

For this purpose Government of India created the Ministry of Minority Affairs, which aims at empowering the minority communities and creating an enabling environment for strengthening the multi-racial, multi-ethnic, multi-cultural, multi-lingual and multi-religious character of our nation. It also aims at improving the socio-economic conditions of the minority communities through affirmative action and inclusive development, so that every citizen has equal opportunity to participate actively in building a vibrant nation.


To facilitate an equitable share for minority communities in education, employment, economic activities and to ensure their upliftment, Prime Minister's New 15-Point Programme for the Welfare of Minorities was announced in June, 2006. It provides programme specific interventions with definite goals which are to be achieved in a time bound manner. The objectives of the programme are: (a) Enhancing opportunities for education; (b) Ensuring an equitable share for minorities in economic activities and employment through existing and new schemes, enhanced credit support for self-employment and recruitment to State and Central Government jobs; (c) Improving the conditions of living of minorities by ensuring an appropriate share for them in infrastructure development schemes; and (d) Prevention and control of communal disharmony and violence.

An important aim of the programme has been to ensure that the benefits of various government schemes for the underprivileged reach the disadvantaged sections of the minority communities. In order to ensure that the benefits of these schemes flow equitably to the minorities, the programme envisages location of a certain proportion of development projects in minority concentration areas. The schemes included in the New 15-Point Programme are as under;

• Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) Scheme by providing services through Anganwadi Centres {Ministry of Women & Child Development}.
• Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA) and Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalaya Scheme (KGBV) {Ministry of Human Resources Development}
• Aajeevika{Ministry of Rural Development}
• Swarnajayanti Shahari Rojgar Yojana (SJSRY) {Ministry of Housing & Urban Poverty Alleviation}
• Upgradation of Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) {Ministry of Labour & Employment}
• Bank credit under priority sector lending {Department of Financial Services}
• Indira Awas Yojana (IAY) {Ministry of Rural Development}

Also acting on the Sachar Committee report, the Government has initiated several measures as:

• Universalization of access to quality education at secondary stage called Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA).
• One model college each would be set up in 374 educationally backward districts (EBDs) of the country. Of 374 EBDs, 67 are among identified minority concentration districts.
• Preference to be given by the University Grants Commission for provision of girls' hostels in universities and colleges in the areas where there is concentration of minorities especially Muslims.
• Area Intensive & Madarsa Modernisation Programme has been revised and bifurcated into two schemes. (a) Scheme for Providing Quality Education in Madarsas (SPQEM). It was attractive provision for better teachers' salary, increased assistance for books, teaching aids and computers and introduction of vocational subjects, etc and the other scheme which provides financial assistance for Infrastructure Development of Private aided/unaided Minority Institutes (IDMI).
• Academies for professional development of Urdu medium teachers have been set up at three Central Universities namely, Aligarh Muslim University (AMU), Jamia Milia Islamia University (JMIU), New Delhi and Maulana Azad National Urdu University (MAANU), Hyderabad.

Also, the Government has launched the Multi-sectoral Development Programme (MsDP) in 2008-09. The programme aims at improving the socio-economic and basic amenity facilities for improving the quality of life of the people and reducing imbalances in the Minority Concentration Districts (MCDs). Identified 'development deficits' are addressed through a district specific plan for provision of better infrastructure for school and secondary education, sanitation, pucca housing, drinking water and electricity supply, besides beneficiary oriented schemes for creating income generating activities. Absolutely critical infrastructure linkages like connecting roads, basic health infrastructure, ICDS centers, skill development and marketing facilities required for improving living conditions and income generating activities and catalyzing the growth process are eligible for inclusion in the plan.

The Ministry of Minority Affairs is also providing several scholarships to the minority communities to empower them educationally and socially across the country. These include: (a) The Pre-matric scholarship scheme. (b) Post-matric scholarship scheme. (c) The Merit-cum-Means Scholarship Scheme. (d) The Maulana Azad National Fellowship (MANF). (e) The Free Coaching and Allied Scheme. (f) Leadership Development of Minority Women scheme. (g) Grant In Aid Scheme to State Channelising agencies of National Minorities Development & Finance Corporation.

In this way the Government of India is making every effort for upliftment of minorities so that they can stand with others side by side in all spheres of life and live a dignified life.

(PIB Features.)

*******

*Information Assistant,  Press Information Bureau, Kolkata.

A few tips for safety of Girls

1) What should a woman do if she finds herself alone in the company of a strange male as she prepares to enter a lift in a high-rise apartment late at night?

Experts Say: Enter the lift. If you need to reach the 13th floor, press all the buttons up to your destination. No one will dare attack you in a lift that stops on every floor.

2) What to do if a stranger tries to attack you when you are alone in your house, run into the kitchen.

Experts Say: You alone know where the chili powder and turmeric are kept.And where the knives and plates are. All these can be turned into deadly weapons. If nothing else, start throwing plates and utensils all over.

Let them break. Scream. Remember that noiseis the greatest enemy of a molester. He does not want to be caught.

3} Taking an Auto or Taxi at Night.

Experts Say: Before getting into an auto at night, note down its registration number. Then use the mobile to call your family or friend and pass on the details to them in the language the driver understands .Even if no one answers your call, pretend you are in a conversation. The driver now knows someone has his details and he will be in serious trouble if anything goes wrong. He is now bound to take you home safe and sound. A potential attacker is now your de facto protector!

4}What if the driver turns into a street he is not supposed to - and you feel you are entering a danger zone?

Experts Say: Use the handle of your purse or your stole (dupatta) to wrap around his neck and pull him back. Within seconds, he will feel choked and helpless. In case you don’t have a purse or stole just pull him back by his collar. The top button of his shirt would then do the same trick.

5} If you are stalked at night.

Expert Say: enter a shop or a house and explain your predicament. If it is night and shops are not open, go inside an ATM box. ATM centers always have security guards. They are also monitored by close circuit television.

Fearing identification, no one will dare attack you.

After all, being mentally alert is the greatest weapon you can ever have.

Please spread it to all those women u care for their safety. & tag your friends 


ALSO READ : http://jameelblr.blogspot.in/2013/08/khidmat.html

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