Social Problem in India by Ram Ahuja

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SOCIAL PROBLEMS IN INDIA CONTENTS Alcoholism Black Money Child Labor and Child Abuse Communalism and Communal Violence Crime and Criminals Drug Abuse and Drug Addiction Illiteracy Juvenile Delinquency Population Explosion Poverty Scheduled Caste Scheduled Tribes Social Problems in India Terrorism Unemployment Urbanisation Violence against Women Youth Unrest and Agitations

SOURCE: RAM AHUJA/THE HINDU/INDIAN EXPRESS/WIKI

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ALCOHOLISM

Source: Social Problem in India by Ram Ahuja/IE/THE HINDU Etc.


All rights are reserved. No Part of this document may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior permission of IAS ABHIYAN.

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Alcoholism Introduction: Alcoholism is also known as Alcohol-use-disorder. It is a general term for the problems of uncontrollable consumption of alcohol. It deteriorates the health of the drinker and in medical term, it is considered a disease. Causes: There are a numerous causes or reasons for alcohol dependence or addiction of alcohol or alcoholism, such as:      

Childhood incident which affects badly (trauma), Peer pressure, Difficult upbringing and childhood, Easy availability of alcohol, Showing off in front of friends, Spending most of the times with different types of people who are already addicted to alcohol.

Disadvantages: The disadvantage of alcoholism is far more than imagined. They are:    

It hampers the drinker in both ways, physically and mentally. Alcoholism can cause cancer in any parts of the body mainly in kidney, liver, and stomach etc. It also hampers the digestive system of the body. Alcoholism can also create depression and behavioral change. This can affect his personal life and his relationships with friends and families.

Solution: The solutions are:   

There are many institutions who are working behind the solving the problem of alcohol addiction and Government is also not far behind in this. Detoxification of the body, Establishment of rehabilitation and counselling centres for alcohol addicted patients,

It is very important that patient is willing to quit the habit of alcohol. Otherwise any detoxification or rehabilitation also will not able to solve the problem of alcohol addiction. The Bihar Prohibition and Excise Bill, 2016: An analysis The Bihar Prohibition and Excise Bill, 2016 was introduced and debated in the Bihar Legislative Assembly today. The Bill creates a framework for the levy of excise duty and 2

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com imposes a prohibition on alcohol in Bihar. In this context, we examine key provisions and some issues related to the Bill. Prohibition on the manufacture, sale, storage and consumption of alcohol was imposed in Bihar earlier in 2016, by amending the Bihar Excise Act, 1915. The Bill replaces the 1915 Act and the Bihar Prohibition Act, 1938. Key features of the Bill include: 

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Prohibition: The Bill imposes a prohibition on the manufacture, bottling, distribution, transportation, collection, storage, possession, sale and consumption of alcohol or any other intoxicant specified by the state government. However, it also allows the state government to renew existing licenses, or allow any state owned company to undertake any of these activities (such as manufacture, distribution, etc.). Excise revenue: The Bill expects to generate revenue from excise by levying (i) excise duty on import, export, manufacture, etc. of alcohol, (ii) license fee on establishing any manufactory, distillery, brewery, etc., (iii) fee on alcohol transit through Bihar, and (iv) fee on movement of alcohol within Bihar or import and export from Bihar to other states, among others. Excise Intelligence Bureau: The Bill provides for the creation of an Excise Intelligence Bureau, which will be responsible for collecting, maintaining and disseminating information related to excise offences. It will be headed by the Excise Commissioner. Penalties and Offences: The Bill provides penalties for various offences committed under its provisions. These offences include consuming alcohol, possession or having knowledge about possession of alcohol and mixing noxious substances with alcohol. In addition, the Bill provides that if any person is being prosecuted, he shall be presumed to be guilty until his innocence is proven. The Bill also allows a Collector to impose a collective fine on a group of people, or residents of a particular village, if these people are repeat offenders. Process to be followed for offences The Bill outlines the following process to be followed in case an offence is committed:

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If a person is found to have committed any offence under the Bill (such as consumption, storage or possession of alcohol), any authorised person (such as the District Collector, Excise Officer, and Superintendent of Police) may take action against the offender. The Bill allows an authorised person to arrest the offender without a warrant. Alcohol, any material or conveyance mode used for the offence may be confiscated or destroyed by the authorised person. In addition, the premises where alcohol is found, or any place where it is being sold, may be sealed. Under the Bill, the offender will be tried by a Sessions Court, or a special court set up by the state. The offender may appeal against the verdict of the special court in the High Court. Some issues that need to be considered

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Family members and occupants as offenders: For illegal manufacture, possession or consumption of alcohol by a person, the Bill holds the following people criminally liable: 3

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com 1. Family members of the person (in case of illegal possession of alcohol). Family means husband, wife and their dependent children. 2. Owner and occupants of a land or a building, where such illegal acts are taking place. The Bill presumes that the family members, owner and occupants of the building or land ought to have known that an illegal act is taking place. In all such cases, the Bill prescribes a punishment of at least 10 years of imprisonment, and a fine of at least one lakh rupees. These provisions may violate Article 14 and Article 21 of the Indian Constitution. Article 14 of the Constitution provides that no person will be denied equality before law. This protects individuals from any arbitrary actions of the state. It may be argued that imposing criminal liability on (i) family members and (ii) owner or occupants of the building, for the action of another person is arbitrary in nature. Article 21 of the Constitution states that no person can be deprived of their life and personal liberty, except according to procedure established by law. Courts have interpreted this to mean that any procedure established by law should be fair and reasonable. It needs to be examined whether presuming that (i) family members of an offender, and (ii) owner or occupant of the building knew about the offence, and making them criminally liable, is reasonable. 

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Bar on Jurisdiction for confiscated items: The Bill allows for the confiscation of: (i) materials used for manufacturing alcohol, or (ii) conveyance modes if they are used for committing an offence (such as animal carts, vessels). It provides that no court shall have the power to pass an order with regard to the confiscated property. It is unclear what judicial recourse will be available for an aggrieved person. Offences under the Bill: The Bill provides that actions such as manufacturing, possession or consumption of alcohol will attract an imprisonment of at least 10 years with a fine of at least one lakh rupees. One may question if the term of imprisonment is in proportion to the offence committed under the Bill. Note that under the Indian Penal Code, 1860 an imprisonment at least 10 years is attracted in crimes such as use of acid to cause injury, or trafficking of a minor. Other states where a prohibition on alcohol is imposed provide for a lower imprisonment term for such offences. These include Gujarat (at least seven years) and Nagaland (maximum three years). _____________________________________________________________________________________

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BLACK MONEY




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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Black Money Meaning: Black money is both an economic and a social problem. In the latter context, it is perceived as a problem with adverse sociological effects on society, like social inequalities, social deprivations, etc.; in the former context, it is perceived as a parallel economy, an underground economy or an unofficial economy that is the consequence of the economic policies of the government and has damaging effects on country’s economy and nation’s planning development. Concept of Black Money:  Black money is taxevaded income. 

It can be earned both through legal and illegal means. Its legitimate source is that the incomeearners do not reveal their whole income for tax purposes.

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For example, government doctors earning money by private practice even when they get nonpractising allowance; teachers earning money through tuitions, examinations and book royalty and not including it in incometax returns; advocates charging much higher fee than shown in their account books, and so forth.

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Its illegitimate source is bribe, smuggling, blackmarketing, selling commodities at prices higher than the controlled prices, taking pugree for house, shop, etc., selling house at a high premium price but showing it at much lower price in the account books, and so on.

Measures to Control the Black Money: Over the past years, the government has at various times announced several schemes offering opportunities to bring black money overboard. Some of these schemes are: 

introducing the scheme of special Bearer Bonds,

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demonetizing high denomination currency notes,

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stringent raids, and scheme of voluntary disclosures.

National Housing Bank Scheme 2

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com 

In July 1991, the Union Finance Minister proposed a new scheme—National Housing Bank Scheme—to woo black money back into the legitimate operations of the national economy.

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The scheme offered possessors of unaccounted money an opportunity to deposit any amount of money (with a minimum limit of Rs. 10,000) with NHB without disclosing the source of funds.

Some scholars have maintained that all these measures have touched only the tip of the iceberg. The main drawback in these schemes is that 

they touch the problem of black money already created but they do not go into the root cause of generation of black money and that is why a person is prepared to take the risk of keeping black money despite so many problems.

It has been suggested that the problem of black money and parallel economy can be contained by 

reducing taxes in some areas,

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giving incentives for voluntary disclosure of income,

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overhauling the economic intelligence unit,

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curbing administrative corruption at various levels, exempting tax op money spent on house construction,

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doing away with control policies, and so forth.

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Isolated attempts may not yield much but a package of mutually reinforcing measures, along with a strong political will and the commitment of political elite may prove to be successful to a large extent.

Magnitude of Black Economy: A number of studies have been made to estimate the quantitative dimensions of the problem in the economy. The studies identifies the different sources of black income as follows: (a) Incometax evasion 3

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com (b) Corporation tax evasion (c) Excise duty evasion (d) Customs duty evasion (e) Black income from exports (f) Evasion of state taxes. (g) Bribes, illegal commissions. (h) Goods supply to black market (i) Unaccounted stockmarket profit (j) Interest earned from unorganised credit markets. Effects of Black Economy: The effects of black money in a country are discussed under the following heads: (i) False Information about the Economy:  The most important effect of black money is provide false information about the actual economy because it remains outside the purview of the economic policies. 

The presence of a sizeable black money casts doubts on the validity of the data on national income estimates, per capita income, and distribution of income, consumption, savings and investment.

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The economic planning losses it’s worth, because they are based on macro economic parameters which completely ignore the black money.

(ii) Impact on Fiscal System:  Government is fully based on tax revenue. Evasion of taxes has serious consequences for the economy’s fiscal system.

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In longrun consequence of such revenue loss is to reduce the builtin elasticity of the tax system.

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To raise a given target of revenue the Government is obliged to depend increasingly on discretionary hikes in tax rates or to expand the array of taxes.

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com (iii) Create Inequalities:  The black money creates inequalities among people. The excess of money leads to purchase non essential articles, which gives demonstration effect. The overall consumption pattern is titled in favour of rich and elite classes. 

A rise in the overall consumption on nonessential products leaves less resources for investment in priority areas. These distortions in the productmix in favour of nonessential consumption have adverse effects on production and thus they distort the objectives of planning.

(iv) Misguiding on Resource Allocation:  Block money distorts resource allocation in the economy and often leads to wasteful and often leads to wasteful use of money. 

It leads to conspicuous consumption and in turn results in the diversion of large funds to unproductive channels which ultimately put the economy out of order.

(v) Implications for Monetary Policy:  The black money related to the stock of ‘black liquidity’. The stock of ‘black liquidity’ is defined as the cumulation of black savings (from black incomes) in the form of cash and other readily convertible assets such as gold and silver. 

It is the ‘black liquidity’ which creates a lot of problems for monetary authorities to regulate the economy. The existence of sizable ‘black liquidity’ in our country misguide the Government to diverting credit from more urgent to the less urgent.

Tax Evasion:  In March 1970, an enquiry committee was appointed under the chairmanship of Mr. Justice K.N. Wanchoo, former Chief Justice of Supreme Court, to study the problem of black money, tax evasion, tax avoidance and tax arrears.

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According to the Wanchoo Committee Report, “Black money denotes not only unaccounted currency which is either hoarded or is in circulation outside disclosed trading channels but also its investment in gold, jewellery and even precious stones made secretly, and in land and buildings and business assets over and above the amounts shown in the books”.

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It can be easily seen that tax evasion is the Mother of Black Money.

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com As per the report of Wanchoo Committee, the principles causes of tax evasion and the creation of black money and its proliferation are: (i) High rates of taxation. (ii) Economy of shortages and licensing system. (iii) Donations to political parties. (iv) Corruption. (v) Ineffective enforcement of tax laws. (vi) Corruption in business practices. Various attempts have been made to stop tax evasion but results have been futile in a large number of cases. Tax administration was inefficient and week. Government also demonetise in many cases. 

Such as in 1946, 1978 (high denominations notes of Rs. 1000, Rs. 5,000, Rs. 10,000 were demonetised). But on these occasions a few amount was tendered to Reserve Bank of India (R.B.I.) Thus demonetisation was not an effective tool of controlling black income.

Government Measures: (1) Penalties and Prosecutions:  To stop tax evasion, tax laws also provide monetary penalties for the prosecution (and imprisonment) of tax evaders. (2) Settlement Commission:  Following the recommendation of the Wanchoo Committee. The Settlement Commission was established in 1976. Its objective was to provide a mechanism for the quick and final disposal of these cases, where tax evader was willing to make confession and face the consequences. (3) Voluntary Disclosure of Income Scheme (VDIS):  It was introduced in the annual budget for 199798. Introduced on 1st July 1997 and closed on 31st December 1997.  The main Slogan of the Scheme “30% tax and 100% mental relief” and was quite successful in achieving a good result. The Government gave assurance that the 6

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com source of amount disclosed (in cash and valuables) under the scheme will not be investigated. (4) Statutory Provision:  Compulsory filing of tax returns by everyone with taxable income, compulsory maintenance of accounts by businessmen and professionals and their compulsory audit, if income or turnover exceeds a specific limit, compulsory canalising of transactions involving payment through banks, etc. (5) Tax Raids and Seizures:  Raids are conducted from time to time by the tax enforcement machinery, on the premises of the people who are suspected of possessing black money. After the raids, wide publicity is usually given to the amount of money and other assets that are seized. Schemes for the Disclosure of Black Money: The Government of India introduced a series of 5 new schemes on 1st October 1991 to unearth the black money and to improve foreign exchange reserves in the country. The schemes are as follows; (a) Scheme One:  State Bank of India issued Bharat Development Bond in which NonResidential Indians (NRIs) were permitted to deposit foreign reserves of US dollar and British Pound (no upper limit) for 5 years. There bonds were sold upto January 31, 1992. The Government announced the rebate of income tax on the income earned as interest on the bond. (b) Scheme Two:  The Government introduced a scheme to promote the inflow of foreign currency in the country. Under this scheme any person residing in foreign country could send unlimited foreign exchange to any Indian citizen without declaring its source. 

This scheme was open upto January 31, 1992. Under this scheme, the inflow amount of foreign exchange was exempted from various taxes and Foreign Exchange Regulation Act restrictions.

(c) Scheme Three:  Under this scheme, any reason could deposit his black money upto January 31, 1992 in National Housing Bank. The depositor was authorised to with draw the 7

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com 60% of deposited amount but the remaining 40% was to be used for constructing low cost houses for poor people. (d) Scheme Four:  Under this scheme, the Government amended clause 273A of the Income Tax Act tor giving one more chance to the people having black money to declare it, but this opportunity can be availed by persons only once in their life. (e) Scheme Five:  This scheme provided for exemption from penalties on declared black money and assets if the tax payer declared his black money at the time of his tax assessment. 

In continuing that, the Government of India also introduced the Gold Bond Scheme in 15thMarch 1993 to unearthing black money.

Consequences of Black Money: 1. In India, black money is that which is taxable and is not taxed, i.e. money that is hidden from taxation. 2. However, in India, there are millions of people whose incomes do not touch the minimum income level and are thus not taxed. They also might involve in illegal activities like taking bribes which in effect must be classified as black money but are not. As a result, the value addition to the economy is actually much higher than recorded. So, what should ideally happen is that employment opportunities must increase and economy must grow because of more money circulating in the economy due to black money. 3. However, as people actually do not spend the black money and try to just hide it, the rate of savings gets increased and as a result the multiplier reduces which leads to lesser money in circulation in the economy. This lowers the potential growth rate and the employment potential and eventually leads to the dissatisfaction of the youth. 4. The black economy results in policy failure both because of inadequate allocations and due to ineffectiveness of expenditures. Primary schools intended to be set up do not materialize. Roads either do not get built or are of substandard quality needing frequent repairs. Investment gets diverted to unproductive sectors leading to shortage of savings for real investment. Scarcity of foreign exchange prevents import of essentials and technology. 5. The black economy has many economic illeffects. The black economy and the erosion of institutions of democracy are interlinked. The institutions of democracy, legislatures, learning centres, judiciary, police, bureaucracy, police and media, are all compromised due to the functioning of the black economy. 8

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com As people’s pressure has declined, illegality has grown. The involvement of the country’s elite in illegality has eroded their commitment to work and this pervades society. 6. The nation is not short of resources but because of the existence of black economy, a large chunk of resources are not only wasted but are either lying idle or are siphoned off out of the nation. 7. Paradoxically, the interests of those who have benefited the most from the black economy have been hurt the most since the growth has been stunted and dynamism has eroded 8. Much of the activity in the black economy is like digging holes and filling them. Many are employed but society makes little progress and remains poor. As policy fails, individual solutions are sought, which result in making the resource shortage look worse and weakens the commitment to national goals. Checking the growth of the black economy has become the single biggest task for the nation INDIA: Government Steps Some of the major decisions and actions taken in this regard are: 1. Sustained steps taken for curbing black money  

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A new Black Money Act has been enacted with strict penalty provisions. Special Investigation Team has been constituted which is chaired by exSupreme Court Judge Justice M.B. Shah vide notification dated 29th May, 2014.. Many recommendations of SIT have been implemented since then. A new Income Disclosure Scheme is formulated for domestic black money. Enhanced enforcement measures have resulted in unearthing of tax evasion of approximately Rs 50,000 Crore of indirect taxes and undisclosed income of Rs 21,000 Crore (Prov.). The value of goods seized on account of smuggling activities has increased to Rs 3,963 Crore in the last two years (32% increase over corresponding two previous years). Prosecution has been launched in 1466 cases as against 1169 cases in the previous two years (25% increase).

2. Amendments made in Prevention of Money-laundering Act, 2002, vide Finance Act, 2015: 

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The definition of proceeds of crime under PMLA has been amended to enable attachment and confiscation of equivalent asset in India where the asset located abroad cannot be forfeited.

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Section 8(8) has been inserted in PMLA providing for restoring confiscated property or part thereof, on the directions of Special Court to claimants with a legitimate interest in the property, who may have suffered a quantifiable loss as a result of the offences of money laundering. Section 132 of Customs Act which deals with offence relating to false declaration / documents in the transaction of any business relating to Customs has been made predicate offence under PMLA to curb trade based money laundering. The offence of willful attempt to evade any tax, penalty or interest referred to in section 51 of the Black Money (Undisclosed Foreign Income and Assets) and Imposition of Tax Act, 2015 has been made a scheduled offence under PMLA.

3. Recent Notification under PMLA: In connection with risk mitigation in DNFBP Sector, Revenue Department has taken some steps, which are described as below:   

Insurance Broker has been notified on 15.4.2015 under Section 2(1)(sa)(vi) of PMLA as person carrying on designated business or profession. Registrar or Subregistrar has been notified on 17.4.2015 under Section 2(1)(sa)(ii) of PMLA as person carrying on designated business or profession. Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), 1999 has been amended vide Finance Act, 2015. The amendments provide for seizure and confiscation of value equivalent, situated in India, in case any person is found to have acquired any foreign exchange, foreign security or immovable property, situated outside India, in contravention of Section 4 of FEMA. (ANI)

Double taxation agreements 

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DTAA is about declared (white) incomes of entities so that tax may be levied in one or the other country and not in both. Black income is not revealed in either of the two countries so there is no question of double taxation. Further, this data would not be available to either of the two countries to be exchanged. It is no wonder then that till date, no data has been supplied to India by any of the countries with which this treaty has been signed. In brief, DTAA is about white incomes and not black incomes, so it is disingenuous to say that in future no data would be given to us if names are given to courts

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Criticism of Government 

Different governments have tried to stall SIT. A bank has been revealed to have acted like a hawala operator. Other MNC and private Indian banks also indulge in these activities. Why has the government not initiated action against them and hawala operators? No wonder the perception is that the government is stalling on unearthing Indian black money. In May 2012, the Government of India published a white paper on black money. It disclosed India's effort at addressing black money and guidelines to prevent black money in the future.

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After a series of ongoing demonstrations and protests across India, the government appointed a high level committee headed by MC Joshi in June 2011 to study the generation and curbing of black money.

Tax Information Exchange Agreements 

To curb black money, India has signed TIEA with 13 countries Gibraltar, Bahamas, Bermuda, the British Virgin Islands, the Isle of Man, the Cayman Islands, Jersey, Liberia, Monaco, Macau, Argentina, Guernsey and Bahrain where money is believed to have been stashed away. India and Switzerland, claims a report, have agreed to allow India to routinely obtain banking information about Indians in Switzerland from 1 April 2011.

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In June 2014, the Finance Minister Arun Jaitely on behalf of the Indian government requested the Swiss Government to hand over all the bank details and names of Indians having unaccounted money in Swiss banks.

Banking transaction tax 

Replacement of most direct and indirect levies with a banking transaction tax and demonetisation of currency notes of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 to help prevent Indian black money, ease inflation, improve employment generation and also lower corruption.

Economic liberalisation 

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Nontariff barriers to economic activity such as permits and licences, long delays in getting approvals from government agencies are an incentive to

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com proceed with underground economy and hide black money. The successive waves of economic liberalisation in India since the 1990s have encouraged compliance and taxes collected by the government of India have dramatically increased over this period. The process of economic liberalisation must be relentlessly continued to further remove underground economy and black money, suggests the report. Reforms in vulnerable sectors of the economy 

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Certain vulnerable sectors of Indian economy are more prone to underground economy and black money than others. These sectors need systematic reforms. Gold trading, which was one of the major sources of black money generation and even crime prior to the reforms induced in that sector. High transaction taxes in property are one of the biggest impediments to the development of an efficient property market. Unless the real estate transaction process and tax structure is simplified. Old and complicated laws such as the Urban Land Ceiling Regulation Act and Rent Control Act need to be repealed, property value limits and high tax rates eliminated, while Property Title Certification system dramatically simplified.

Supportive measures Public awareness initiatives must be launched. Public support for reforms and compliance are necessary for long term solution to black money. In addition, financial auditors of companies have to be made more accountable for distortions and lapses. Laws must be strengthened to encourage reporting and tax recovery. Amnesty 

Amnesty programmes have been proposed to encourage voluntary disclosure by tax evaders.

International enforcement 

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India has Double Tax Avoidance Agreements with 82 nations, including all popular tax haven countries. Of these, India has expanded agreements with 30 countries which require mutual effort to collect taxes on behalf of each other, if a citizen attempts to hide black money in the

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com other country. The Agreements to help with enforcement.

be expanded to other countries as well

Modified Currency Notes 

Government printing of such legal currency notes of highest denomination i.e.; 1000, 500 which remain in the market for only 2 years. After a 2year period is expired there should be a one year grace period during which these currency notes should be submitted and accepted only in bank accounts.

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One step alone cannot eradicate black economy, what needed is a joint effort at numerous levels. First of all, the Political will is needed to curb the growth of Black Money. Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement (DTAA) and Tax Exchange Information Agreements with Tax haven countries will certainly help in bringing the capital flight problem. Movements which change the consciousness of people and make them strong enough to resist the temptations are needed for a turn around. When we have sufficiently worked on the consciousness and trust issues

we can look at the following reforms as a package because if handled individually, they will turn out to ineffective: 1. Right to information, judicial, bureaucracy and Media Reforms should be encouraged which will result in increase of transparency in the system. Also, building a special task force to enforce the laws effectively will go a long way. 2. Simplification of the tax laws should be done as it will make it easy to catch those who are fudging the accounts. 3. The link between the politician and money power needs to be broken as this leads to the policy makers themselves resorting to sources for easy money. 4. There should be three tier and interlinked representation in the legislatures on the same ground as party structures, which will increase the credibility of the contesting candidates. 5. Increasing the accountability of institutions and individuals and especially of the policymakers will act as big step in eradicating Black 13

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Economy in our country. 6. Leaders and persons in position should file a return of their assets and incomes which should be subjected to scrutiny by a special agency created for this purpose. 7. Lowering of tax rates so that tax evasion becomes unnecessary. Tendency to evade tax creeps in when tax rates are high. 8. Controls, licenses, and permits should be reduced to minimum. If necessary, they should be made available without under the table payments. 9. As recommended by Wanchoo committee, agriculture income should also be subjected to income tax as other incomes. 10. Government should subsidies election expenditure of political parties as is done in West Germany. 11. Heavy capital gains tax should be lowered. 12. Registration fees in relation to property and other real estate should be lowered. 13. All tax laws should be revised so as to eliminate loopholes. Deterrent punishment must be given to those who are found guilty of profiteering, blackmarketing and smuggling Income Declaration scheme 2016 Features of the Income Declaration scheme The income declaration scheme 2016 has some salient features. The features are as follows     

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The scheme is for the people who did not disclose their real income in the previous financial year The scheme will last for 4 months. From the month of June to September 2016 is the time to file the declaration of the undisclosed income. These undeclared incomes can be in the form of investment, asset or any such thing. These investments and assets under this scheme will not be considered under the wealth tax. Those who are enrolled under this scheme will not be enquired or scrutinised by the income tax department or wealth tax department. Though assets and investments can be shown as the income under this scheme, but foreign assets and assets which fall under the Black Money Act will not be considered under this scheme. If the eligible person denies declaring his / her undisclosed income under

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com this scheme, then he / she might be prosecuted under the income tax law.  In Finance Act, 2016, under section 196, the regulations and rules can be found for the situations where the said person is not eligible for the scheme or the scheme will not be applied on any person. If the concerning person or company try to evade taxes, penalties or surcharges by suppressing facts, then the declaration might not be valid. Benefits of the scheme  As the scheme is all about the declaration of the undisclosed income and such most of the people get confused whether to disclose their income or not as it can cost a lot in face of taxes. But the scheme is designed carefully so that the people who are filing declaration under this scheme can get the most out of this scheme. There are few numbers of benefits one can get by filing a declaration under this scheme. They are as follows The person will be freed from any sort of prosecution The declared income will not be added to the concerning person’s total income that is already filed under income tax  If the undeclared income is shown as an asset there will not be levied any wealth tax on the assets.  There will not be any special enquiry or scrutiny or anything like this by the income tax officials or wealth tax departments on the asset and income under this scheme  The declared income will not affect any of the already completed tax assessments for any previous or future assessment years.  The declaration form under this scheme can be easily filed online, so one does not need to run from here to there to submit the form.  The person or the company will be exempted from the Benami Transactions Act, 1988 _____________________________________________________________________________________  

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CHILD ABUSE AND CHILD LABOUR




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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Child Population and the Working Children in India 

The first Act to regulate the employment of children and their hours of work was the Factory Act of 1881.

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A commission was appointed in 1929 to fix the minimum age of child employment. On its recommendation, the Child Labour Act, 1933 was passed prohibiting employment of children below 14 years of age.

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The Factory Act of 1948 provided some safeguards to child labourers. In 1986, the parliament enacted the Child Labour Act (Regulation and Prohibition), prohibiting the employment of children in certain jobs and regulating the conditions of work in hazardous occupations.

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The Juvenile Justice Act, 1986 which superseded the existing Children’s Acts in different states and union territories and came into force from October 2, 1987, provides for the creation of Advisory Boards and the establishment of State Children Funds for preventing the abuse of children, for the protection and care of children, for the mobilization of resources and for the provision of facilities for education, training and rehabilitation of the neglected children. But in spite of all these measures, children continue to be employed, harassed and abused.

Causes of 4 Types of Child Abuse in India The major cause of child abuse is adaptation failure or environmental maladjustment (both in family and work-place) mostly on the part of the adult perpetrators (parents, employers…) but to some extent on the part of adults responsible for family socialization as well. Before discussing this thesis, let us first analyze the causes of three different types of child abuse separately. 1. Causes of Physical Abuse:

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Different scholars have suggested different causes of physical abuse. Some consider the psycho-pathology of the individual perpetrators as the primary cause, others view the psycho-social pathology of family interaction as the main cause, and still others put major emphasis on situations of acute stress.

2. Causes of Sexual Abuse: 

The four causes of sexual abuse mostly given are: adjustment problems of the perpetrators,

family

disorganization,

victim’s

characteristics,

and

the

psychological disorders of the abusers.. 3. Causes of Emotional Abuse: 

Four important causes of emotional abuse can be identified: poverty, ‘deficient’ parental control and non-cordial relations within family, maltreatment faced by parents in their own childhood or intergenerational transmission of child maltreatment, and alcoholism of parents. Kewalramani also found these factors important in emotional abuse.

4. Integrated Model of the Causes of Child Abuse: The major premise of this model is the interdependence between parent, child and situation. This model focuses on four factors in child abuse: (i) Family environment, (ii) Structural stresses, (iii) Individual characteristics of parents; and (iv) Sub-cultural learning. 3

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com The model requires knowledge in five different areas: (i) Child development, (ii) Socialization processes, (iii) Family interactions, (iv) Learning principles, and (v) Sources of arousing anger, aggression, hatred, and so forth. These areas point out that: (a) Child abuse can be viewed in terms of the degree to which a parent uses negative or inappropriate control strategies with his/her child. Employing ‘normal’ methods (meeting all the child’s needs, adequate control, positive disciplining, and clear communication) contributes to a child’s (social, emotional and intellectual) development, whereas taking recourse to ‘abnormal’ methods (neglecting child’s needs, inadequate control, negative disciplining, unclear communication, and over-reliance on coercion) in child rearing inhibits a child’s development and causes child abuse. 

Authoritative parenting (the commanding type of parents), authoritarian parenting (requiring complete obedience to their authority), indulgent parenting (gratifying all desires/fancies), and negligent parenting (being indifferent and unresponsive and not paying due attention) influence a child’s characteristics and behaviour. The authoritarian parental style is most harmful and is conducive to child abuse.

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com (b) Stresses also give rise to maladaptive coping responses, since abusive parents are clearly not violent under all circumstances. Factors like unemployment and dissatisfaction with job affect an individual’s behaviour which leads to child abuse. (c) Individual characteristics of parents like inherent traits (irritable nature, selfcentredness, rigidness…), lack of parenting skill, and lack of resources (low prestige, little education and low income) also cause child abuse. (d) The sub-cultural learning, that is, socialization in a violent home, or experiencing violence in childhood, is yet another cause of child abuse. All these factors together explain how they affect the behaviour of the perpetrators which ultimately leads to child abuse. Theoretical Explanations of Child Abuse in India A number of explanations have been given by scholars to explain the motivational factors in child abuse. Of these, the important ones are: (i) Psychiatric explanation; (ii) Socio-cultural explanation which includes (a) Social situational explanation, (b) Social habitability explanation, and (c) Social control explanation; (iii) Resource explanation;

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com (iv) Social interactional explanation; and (v) Social learning explanation. Violence is used when: (i) The cost of being violent is to be less than the rewards, (ii) The absence of effective social control over family relations decreases the cost (of one member being violent towards another), and (iii) Family structures reduce social control in family relations and, therefore, reduce the costs and increase the rewards of being violent. Effects of Abuse on Children in India What are the effects of abuse—physical, sexual, social and emotional— on children. Five questions pertaining to these indicators and found that: (i) A high percentage of children (75%) who were physically/emotionally abused felt that they were weak at studies and/or had to make more than one attempt to pass the examination, (ii) A high percentage (84%) considered themselves to be indifferent towards their work and/or felt dissatisfied with the work they were engaged in. (iii) An equally high percentage (86%) thought of themselves as shirkers than as helpers to their parents/caretakers in the routine household chores. From these, it may be inferred that abuse always devalues a child’s self-esteem. (i) A high percentage of emotionally and sexually abused victims (58% to 80%) missed their school frequently. 6

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com (ii) About three-fourths of the victims (74% to 77%) frequently remained absent from work, (iii) About one-tenth of the victims (8% to 10%) had either become drug addicts or had started smoking or taking tobacco or consuming alcohol, (iv) About one-fifth of the victims (18%) had started stealing money; (v) A large number of the victims (48% to 78%) had developed hostility and aggressiveness towards the perpetrators. From all this, it may be inferred that child abuse causes deviance amongst the victims which varies with regard to its magnitude and type. It was found that: (i) Most of the victims (68% to 83%) avoided situations in which interaction would have been expected, that is, they preferred to live in solitude and passed their leisure time all alone, (ii) Only a low percentage of the victims wanted to dissociate themselves from or abandon the family, (iii) A high percentage of the victims (76%) had indifferent or antagonistic relations with their parents/caretakers and/or siblings, (iv) Only a small number of the victims (24%) had a friend/relative whom they could trust and share their sorrows with, (v) Abuse caused embarrassment but its range differed in relation to the type of abuse. All these observations point out that victims of child abuse always develop certain types of social and interpersonal problems. 7

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com The last effect (of child abuse) is on revictimization, that is, the child once abused will essentially be abused time and again. The three indicators used by Kewalramani in this context in his study were: frequency of abuse, number of abusing perpetrators, and number of ways or forms of child abuse. The three questions related to these three indicators were how frequently the victim was abused, whether he was abused by one or more persons, and whether he was abused in one way or in more than one way. Problem of Child Labour in India Child labourers are exploited, exposed to hazardous work conditions and paid a pittance for their long hours of work. Forced to forego education, shouldering responsibilities far beyond their years, becoming worldly- wise when their peers have yet to leave the cocoons of parental protection, these children never know what childhood is. The Indian Constitution enshrines that: 1. No child below the age of 14 years shall be employed to work in any factory or in any hazardous employment (Article 24). 2. Childhood and youth are to be protected against exploitation and against moral and material abandonment (Article 39(f)). 3. The state shall endeavor to provide within a period of 10 years from the commencement of the Constitution free and compulsory education for all children until they complete the age of 14 years (Article 45). Nature of Child Work: 

A majority of the working children are concentrated in the rural areas. About 60 per cent of them are below the age of 10 years. Business and trade absorb 23 per cent while work in households covers 36 per cent. The number of children in

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com urban areas who work in canteens and restaurants, or those engaged in picking rags and hawking goods, is vast but unrecorded. 

Preference for child workers is most common in the unorganized sector because here it is relatively easy for employers to circumvent laws.

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Children are concealed from factory inspectors during inspection, their ages are raised arbitrarily to make them eligible for employment, or those eligible for adult wages are denied their legitimate share because the employers lower their age in the forms.

Causes of Child Labour: 

In a country like India where over 40 per cent of the population is living in conditions of extreme poverty, child labour is a complex issue.

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Children work out of necessity and without their earnings (however meagre they may be), the standard of living of their families would decline further.

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A large number of them do not even have families or cannot count on them for support. In these circumstances, the alternative to work may be idleness, destitution, or worse, crime.

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Employers give certain justifications for employing children to suppress their guilt feelings. They say that the work keeps children away from starvation. They are prevented from committing crimes which they would have indulged in if they had no jobs. The bureaucrats hold that the total eradication of child labour is not feasible because the government cannot provide substantial alternative employment to them. The social scientists say that the main cause of child labour is poverty. The children either supplement their parents’ income or are the only wage earners in the family.

Working Conditions of Child Labourers: 9

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Children work in dangerously polluted factories whose brick walls are scarred with soot (black powder in smoke) and there is an oppressive smell in the air. They work near furnaces which burn at a temperature of 1400° centigrade. They handle dangerous chemicals like arsenic and potassium.

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They work in glass blowing units where the work exerts their lungs and creates diseases like tuberculosis. Among the working children, many are the main or major wage- earners in the family who always remain worried about feeding their dependents. The migrant child workers whose parents live in some far off city or village are generally in despair. Some work for 9 to 10 hours including night shifts.

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A large number of the child workers are virtually confined in small rooms under inhuman conditions and in the most unhygienic surroundings. Most of these children come from extremely poor households. They are either school drop-outs or have not seen any school at all. They earn a very meagre wage and work in most unsafe conditions. The hazardous conditions take their toll. Children suffer from lung diseases, tuberculosis, eye diseases, asthma, bronchitis and backaches. Some are injured in fire accidents. Many become unemployable even at the age of 20. If injured or incapacitated, they are discarded mercilessly by their employers.

Government Measures and National Policy of Amelioration: 

The government believes that it is not easy to completely wipe out child labour. It, therefore, has only tried to improve their working conditions —reduce working hours, ensure minimum wages and provide facilities for health and education.

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It could be said that the national policy has three main ingredients—legal action focusing on general welfare, development programmes for the child workers and their families, and a project-based action plan.

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Initially ten projects were proposed to cover the areas where child labour is prevalent. They included the glass industry in Ferozabad, carpet-weaving in Mirzapur, diamond-cutting industry in Surat and Jaipur, brassware industry in Moradabad, match works in Sivakasi, and so forth. Of these, only two or three have been taken up so far.

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It was also contemplated in the policy to utilize the ongoing projects for the child workers and their families in order to cover their education, health, job prospects and a study of the socioeconomic conditions which compelled these children to work at such an early age.

An Evaluation: 

Despite the hope aroused of some improvement in the lot of the child workers, the enactment of the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986, has not goaded either the state governments or the Centre to any sort of purposive action even on a limited front.

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Nothing illustrates this apathy as the fate of the plan of action announced by the Labour Ministry in August 1987 as an essential component of the national policy on child labour.

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The idea behind formulating the action plan apparently was to make a beginning with the implementation of the new law and related provisions of other legislations affecting children in such sectors where the incidence of child labour is quite endemic. The failure of the projects to takeoff inspires no hope about the success of the plan to shift the thrust of the anti-poverty programmes to those segments of society that contribute the bulk of child workers.

Constitutional Analysis

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Critical Analysis of the Juvenile Justice (Care & Protection of Children) Act, 2015 

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Whether the culpability of offence committed by a juvenile is determined on the basis of maturity attained by him at a given age or his cognitive development? This never ending debate over “juvenile age” or in other terms, the debate over “16 or 18” came up again as an inevitable controversy after the introduction of Juvenile Justice (Care & Protection of Children) Act, 2015, repealing the previous Act of 2000. The ferocious “Nirbhaya rape case” has remained nothing less than poignancy of a barbarous act. It had made everyone to ruminate on the issue of juvenile’s age and finally, the Indian Government reverted back to the whining pleaders after a period of three years. Now the question which gives the whole issue a political tinge is that whether the hasty passage of this Act was done after getting swayed by emotions or was it really imperative to amend such a key legislation? Over the years, courts have looked into various cases wherein juveniles were accused of committing heinous crimes and the court reached a verdict while taking the Juvenile Justice (Care & Protection of Children) Act, 2000 into account. The sole concern before the judiciary was proper implementation of the Act and protection of rights and liberty of juveniles. There are innumerable efforts which have been made since the inception of the Children Act, 1960 till the enactment of the Juvenile Justice (Care & Protection of Children) Act, 2015, in order to emphasize upon the same concern. As time went by, we have seen amendments of definition of the term ‘juvenile’, varying parameters of punishments and so the provisions of child related laws. This article attempts to critically analyze the inherent contradiction in the neoteric Act, i.e. Juvenile Justice (Care & Protection of Children) Act of 2015. The critics referred the Act as mockery of the Indian Constitution and United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). Following are the key issues of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection) Act, 2015 – • Under Section 16(1), the Act permits juvenile who has completed or is above the age of 16, to be tried as adults for heinous offences. This particular amendment shook the audience who expected a reformatory approach from the legislature. According to them, it not only violates Article-14 of the Constitution, but beats the purpose of the Indian justice system with regard to juveniles i.e. to bring reformation and rehabilitation. Though around 90% of the brain gets developed by the age of six, but the fine tuning and cognitive maturity of the brain continues breaking the barriers of such age bars. • This act provides for mandatory constitution of Juvenile Justice Boards and Child Welfare Committees in each district consisting of a Metropolitan or Judicial Magistrate and two social workers, including a woman. This provision needs proper implementation and timely regulation for attaining the real aim.

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com •

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Under this new legislation, a preliminary inquiry will be conducted by the Boards to determine whether a juvenile offender is to be sent for rehabilitation or be tried as an adult. Section- 19(3) says that the enquiry will be assisted by experienced psychologists, psycho-social workers and other experts. This provision may affect the presumption of innocence and lead to disproportionate procedure and arbitrariness under the constitution. • The Act also provides for adoption of the juveniles which earlier was not provided under the Juvenile Justice (Care & Protection of Children) Act, 2000. • It also lays down the penalties for cruelty against a child, offering a narcotic substance to a child and abduction or selling a child. With so much mixed contradictions, the pleaders are still imploring the judiciary as well as the legislature to bring in a justifiable juvenile law as the present Act could not take retrospective effect and punish the juvenile who was found guilty in the “Nirbhaya rape case”. Further, it must be noted that if the constitutionality of several provisions of the Act is challenged before the superior courts, it may provoke a public outcry. Owing to such provisions that violate the provisions given under the Constitution and UNCRC, there are possibilities of further amendments in the Act. What the system of this country lacks is the effective implementation of the existing laws and not the enactment of a number of legislations.

The Juvenile Justice Bill, 2015: All you need to know 

The Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Bill, 2015 is currently pending in Rajya Sabha and was listed for passage in the current Winter session of Parliament. The Bill was passed by Lok Sabha after incorporating certain amendments, in May 2015. Here is all you need to know about the Bill and key issues associated with it.

Who is a juvenile as recognised by law? 

In the Indian context, a juvenile or child is any person who is below the age of 18 years. However, the Indian Penal Code specifies that a child cannot be charged for any crime until he has attained seven years of age.

Why is there a need for a new Bill when a juvenile justice law already exists? 

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The government introduced the Juvenile Justice Bill in August 2014 in Lok Sabha and gave various reasons to justify the need for a new law. It said that the existing Juvenile Justice Act, 2000 was facing implementation issues and procedural delays with regard to adoption, etc. Additionally, the government cited National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) data to say that there has been an increase in crimes committed by juveniles, especially by those in the 16-18 years age group. NCRB data shows that the percentage of juvenile crimes, when seen in proportion to total crimes, has increased from 1% in 2003 to 1.2% in 2013. During the same

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com period, 16-18 year olds accused of crimes as a percentage of all juveniles accused of crimes increased from 54% to 66%. However, the type of crimes committed by 16-18 year olds can be seen in table 1. What is the new Bill doing? Currently, the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000 provides the framework to deal with children who are in conflict with law and children in need of care and protection.  The Bill seeks to replace the existing 2000 Act and lays down the procedures to deal with both categories of children. It highlights the two main bodies that will deal with these children, to be set up in each district: Juvenile Justice Boards (JJBs) and Child Welfare Committees (CWCs).  It provides details regarding adoption processes and penalties applicable under the law.  The Bill provides for children between 16-18 years to be tried as adults for heinous crimes.  The three types of offences defined by the Bill are: (i) a heinous offence is an offence that attracts a minimum penalty of seven years imprisonment under any existing law, (ii) a serious offence is one that gets imprisonment between three to seven years and, (iii) a petty offence is penalized with up to three years imprisonment. 

Currently, how is a juvenile in conflict with law treated? How is that set to change? 

Under the 2000 Act, any child in conflict with law, regardless of the type of offence committed, may spend a maximum of three years in institutional care (special home, etc.) The child cannot be given any penalty higher than three years, nor be tried as an adult and be sent to an adult jail. The proposed Bill treats all children under the age of 18 years in a similar way, except for one departure. It states that any 16-18 year old who commits a heinous offence may be tried as an adult. The JJB shall assess the child’s mental and physical capacity, ability to understand consequences of the offence, etc. On the basis of this assessment, a Children’s Court will determine whether the child is fit to be tried as an adult.

What did the Standing Committee examining the Bill observe? 

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One of the reasons cited for the introduction of the Bill is a spike in juvenile crime, as depicted by NCRB data. The Standing Committee on Human Resource Development examining the Bill stated that NCRB data was misleading as it was based on FIRs and not actual convictions. It also observed that the Bill violates some constitutional provisions and said that the approach towards juvenile offenders should be reformative and rehabilitative.

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com The Bill as introduced posed certain constitutional violations to Article 14, 20(1) and 21. These have been addressed by deletion of the relevant clause, at the time of passing the Bill in Lok Sabha. What does the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) say? What are the obligations on the signatory nations? 

The UNCRC was ratified by India in 1992 and the 2000 Act was consequently brought in to adhere to the standards set by the Convention. The proposed Bill maintains this aim and seeks to improve implementation and procedural delays experienced by the 2000 Act. The UNCRC states that signatory countries should treat every child under the age of 18 years in the same manner and not try them as adults. While the 2000 Act complies with this requirement, the Bill does not. However, many other countries who have also ratified the Convention try juveniles as adults, in case of certain crimes. These countries include the UK, France, Germany, etc. The United States is not a signatory to the UNCRC and also treats juveniles as adults in case of certain crimes.

Under the Bill, what happens to a child who is found to be orphaned, abandoned or surrendered? 

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The Bill addresses children in need of care and protection. When a child is found to be orphaned, abandoned or surrendered he is brought before a Child Welfare Committee within 24 hours. A social investigation report is conducted for the child, and the Committee decides to either send the child to a children’s home or any other facility it deems fit, or to declare the child to be free for adoption or foster care. The Bill outlines the eligibility criteria for prospective parents. It also details procedures for adoption, and introduces a provision for inter-country adoption, so that prospective parents living outside the country can adopt a child in India. Currently, the Guidelines Governing Adoption, 2015 under the 2000 Act, regulates adoptions. Model Foster Care Guidelines have also recently been released by the Ministry of Women and Child Development.

What are the penalties for committing offences against children? Various penalties for committing offences against children are laid out in the Bill. These include penalties for giving a child an intoxicating substance, selling or buying the child, cruelty against a child, etc. Issue to consider: The penalty for giving a child an intoxicating or narcotic substance is an imprisonment of seven years and a fine of up to one lakh rupees. Comparatively, buying or selling a child will attract a penalty including imprisonment of five years and a fine of one lakh rupees. It remains to be seen if the Bill will be taken up for consideration in this session, and if its passage will address the issues surrounding children in conflict with the law.

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Child Labour Amendment Act 2016: An Analysis Introduction 

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In India, 33 million children are child labourers as per UNICEF report. Poverty, unemployment, ineffective implantation of the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009, a growth of informal economy coupled with the lack of an adequate social security net tends to upsurge of child labour. In 1986, The Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986 was constituted in order to protect tender age of children from forced labour and exploitation. In 2012, The Child Labour Amendment Bill, 2012 was introduced in the Rajya Sabha. On July 26, 2016, parliament passed the modified version of the bill that is Child Labour Amendment Bill, 2016. On August 1, 2016, the bill got the nod from the President. The pertinent question that arises here is that whether “The Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Amendment Act, 2016” will be an effective instrument in curbing the menace of child labour?. A befitting reply to the question can only be given if we are well acquainted with the core concept of child labour.

Child Labour: What it is? 

Child labour is the practice of employing children in any economic activity, either on part or full-time basis. Such practices not only swallow childhood of the children, but also hamper their physical and mental development.

Constitutional Safeguards for Children Constitution of India encompasses several provisions for upliftment, development and protection of children. The relevant articles are as follows: Article 15(3) gives the power to the State to enact laws to protect children.  Article 21A provides free and compulsory education to all children between the ages of 6 and 14.  Article 24 prohibits employment of children under the age of 14 years in hazardous industries.  Article 39 (e) provides that the State shall direct its policy to ensure that the tender age of children is not abused.  Article 45 provides that State shall endeavour to provide early childhood care and education to children below the age of six years.  Article 47 provides that it’s the duty of the State to raise the level of nutrition and standard of living and to improve public health. International Conventions and Regulations protecting child labour 

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com The International Labour Organization (ILO), a specific agency of United Nations deals with labour issues. UN Convention on the Rights of Child, 1989 is the most significant international instrument that deals with the rights of children in general. There is eight core ILO Conventions with respect to labour, and out of these India has ratified only four. Data on Child Labour  

According to UNICEF, there are 33 million child labourers in India. According to Global Slavery Index, India has the 4th largest estimated prevalence of modern slavery (including child labour) in proportion to its population.

The census data of 2011 states that there are 35.3 million child labourers (ages 5 to 19 years).  As per the International Labour Organisation (ILO) 2015 report, there are 5.7 million child workers (ages 5 to 17) in India, out of 168 million globally. Why amend the law? 

The following are the reasons behind the said amendment – The earlier Act failed to keep child labour in check.  To make it compatible with RTE Act, 2009 and Article 21A of the Indian Constitution, 1950.  To recognize adolescent labour as per ILO norms. Salient features of the Amended Act 

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Prohibition of employment below the age of 14 years– In the view of the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009, the Act put the blanket ban on employment of children below 14 years but allow them to work in home, family enterprises, outside of school hours and during holidays, and in audio – visual entertainment industry and sports only if it does not affect their education. A new category of ‘adolescents’ formed– The Act adds a new category of ‘adolescents’ (the 14-18 age group). They can be employed in ‘non-hazardous’ occupations.

Stringent punishment – The Act has enhanced the punishment by way of this amendment. For the first time offender, the fine has been increased from 20,000 to 50,000 and imprisonment has been extended from 6 months to 2 years. The offence is cognizable and a punishment of 1-3 year will be awarded to repeat offenders. The Act incorporates relaxed penal provisions for a parent. In a case of a repeat offender, a parent has to pay a fine of 10,000 rupees.  Powers conferred on the Central Government– The Act empowers the Central Government(i) To alter the list of hazardous occupation. 

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com (ii) To empower District Magistrate in order to ensure effective implementation of law. (iii) To conduct periodic inspection of places where children and adolescent cannot be employed. Child and Adolescent Labour Rehabilitation Fund – The Act proposes to set up Child and Adolescent Labour Rehabilitation Fund for rehabilitation of children.  Child rehabilitation – The Act puts the onus on the State Government to rehabilitate the child and to extend monetary assistance by giving Rs 15,000 and add the fine from the employer for child’s rehabilitation. Critical Analysis of the Amended Act 

On the face of it, the amended Act of 2016 seems to be progressive. However, on careful reading, various flaws in the new Act are exposed. The shortcomings of the Act are as follows: 

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Slashed list of hazardous occupation encourages child labour- Reducing the list of hazardous occupation from 83 to just 3 (mining, explosives, and occupations) would only reduce child labourers in number, not in reality. The law is grossly unfair to adolescents as they can be employed in rest 80 hazardous occupations. Section 4 of the Act gives discretionary power to government authorities,not to parliament, to revise the list. Therefore, it will give rise to more child labour. Legalizing Child labour in “family enterprise” will results in forced labour – Section 3 Clause 5 of the Act permits a child to work in family or family enterprises and in an audio-visual entertainment industry. The said provision is detrimental as it does not define the hours of work. It simply provides that only after school hours and during vacation child can work. Such legal provision is likely to be misused in the Indian context and would pave the way for child labour as most children indeed work in a family-run trade. The term family enterprise is defined as any work, profession or business performed by the members of the family with the help of other persons. Such broader definition would definitely promote castebased occupation. It will also empower contractors that will, in turn, result in bonded/forced labour. Such provision will have an adverse impact on education, innovative minds, learning outcomes as well as health and overall development of a child. The Act has completely overlooked the vital distinction between children and adults– Non – recognition of this distinction is arbitrary and a clear violation of a right to equality embodied under Article 14 of the C Further, the definition of child labour has been altered by the Act as it legitimize child labour in a family business and permits adolescent to work in the non- hazardous occupation. The Act contravene domestic legislations as well as international convention– The Act not only reverse the gains of previous laws, but also goes against the spirit of RTE Act of 2009 as it allows a child to work in a family enterprise. It also transgresses international convention such as the International

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Labour Organization’s (ILO), and UNICEF’s Convention on the Rights of the Child, to which India is a signatory. UNICEF has raised alarm over children employment in family enterprises and reduction in the list of hazardous occupation.  The Act lacks the provisions relating to regulation, inspection and monitoring systems. Regulation is going to be a big challenge as the Act does not lay down the criteria to determine whether a particular enterprise is a family enterprise or not. The lack of such provisions leaves the life of children at the hands of the employer.  Penalty provisions also suffer from certain loopholes – The Act prescribe penalty only for employment of children and not for bad working conditions. Penalizing parents are bad in law as it will only increase the burden of indigent parents. Conclusion 

The amended Act, display a lack of national commitment to abolishing all forms of child labour and do not resonate with the constitutional objective of elimination of child labour in India. In the context of the socio-economic realities of India and the preservation of the social fabric and learning of traditional occupations, the new Act tweaked the law in such a way that children are readily available for employment. It will push more children into labour and make them subjects of exploitation at the labour market.

National Commission for Protection of Child Rights  The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) was set up in March 2007 under the Commission for Protection of Child Rights Act, 2005, an Act of Parliament (December 2005).  The Commission's Mandate is to ensure that all Laws, Policies, Programmes, and Administrative Mechanisms are in consonance with the Child Rights perspective as enshrined in the Constitution of India and also the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. The Child is defined as a person in the 0 to 18 years age group.  The Commission visualises a rights-based perspective flowing into National Policies and Programmes, along with nuanced responses at the State, District and Block levels, taking care of specificities and strengths of each region. In order to touch every child, it seeks a deeper penetration to communities and households and expects that the ground experiences gathered at the field are taken into consideration by all the authorities at the higher level.  Thus the Commission sees an indispensable role for the State, sound institutionbuilding processes, respect for decentralization at the local bodies and community level and larger societal concern for children and their well-being. _____________________________________________________________________________________

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COMMUNALISM AND COMMUNAL VIOLENCE

Source: Social Problem in India by Ram Ahuja/Wikipedia etc



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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Communalism: Ideology and Characteristics of Communalism “If a person is deprived of his or her rights or privileges, just on the basis of his or her community, this would constitute communalism.”-Husain Shaheen  India represents diverse religions and multiple cultures. The Hinduism, Islam, Sikhism, Christianity, Zoroastrianism, Buddhism, etc. have flourished here. Whereas the Hindus constitute, the major segment of India’s population, the Muslims constitute the largest minority. But the irony is that the adjustment between the Hindus and Muslims has been a failure several times, resulting in violent outbursts and communal riots.  The inhuman behaviour seen in the communal riots during the period of independence of India, has no parallel instances in the entire history of the world. Millions of people were rendered homeless while millions of others lost their property and belongings. Thousands of people including women and children were slain by the religious bigots.  In fact, communalism is not a new phenomenon and has tended to exist since the times of the Muslim rule in the medieval period. However, this view is not universally accepted.  According to Dr. Rajendra Prasad, the Muslim rulers in India had developed an attitude of religious tolerance towards the Hindus. In his own words “The attitude of the Muslim conqueror had, on the whole, been one of toleration, and in-spite of the fanatical zeal manifested by some of them at times, it may be safely asserted that there have been a continuous effort to deal with the Hindus fairly.” Views of Social Scientists:  The action oriented social scientist Asghar Ali Engineer links communalism with the conflicts of the elites of communities. Communalism is described as a tool to mobilize people for or against, by raising an appeal on communal lines. Husain Shaheen views that “If a person is deprived of his or her rights or privileges, just on the basis of his or her community, this would constitute communalism.” Abdul Ahmad describes communalism as a social phenomenon characterised by the religion of two communities, often leading to acrimony, tension and even rioting between them.  But in its latest form, communalism amounts to discrimination against a religious group in matters of employment, education, commerce, politics, etc. Prabha Dixit explains communalism as a political doctrine which makes use of religious and cultural differences to achieve political ends. Pandav holds communalism as primarily an ideological theme which is appropriated by the dominant as well as dominated class for reactionary and progressive reasons respectively. 2

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Bipin Chandra holds that communalism is the product of a particular society, economy and polity, which creates problems. Asghar Ali Engineer, Moin Shakir and Abdul Ahmed try to explain communalism as an ideological tool for propagation of economic and political interests. According to them, it is an instrument in the hands of the upper class to concentrate power by dividing people. The elites strive to maintain a status —quo against transformation by dividing people on communal and religious lines.

Communalism as an ideology may be perceived as: (a) A total commitment to a set of beliefs, (b) Far from rationality, (c) Committing of self to the community alone, (d) Unwillingness to accept other belief patterns and faiths, (e) Closing of self and being highly emotional to it, to the extent of crossing the bounds of law at times. Characteristics of Communalism: (i) Communalism is an ideological concept, (ii) It mostly rests on prejudices, (iii) It has a broader base which encompasses social, economic and political aspects, for its manifestations. (iv) It causes rivalry and violence among masses. (v) It is used by the higher class people and elites as an instrument for division and exploitation. (vi) It strikes at the roots of secularism and national integration. (vii) Us effects are disastrous.

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Hindu-Muslim Communalism in India The Hindu-Muslim antagonism can be ascribed to a complex set of factors: These are: (1) Muslim invasions in which the invaders looted property and constructed mosques over/near Hindu temples. (2) British encouragement of Muslim separatism for their own ends during their imperial rule. (3) The behavior of some of the Muslims in India after partition, indicating their proPakistan attitude. Such behavior creates a feeling among the majority community that Muslims are not patriotic. The stereotype image of an Indian Muslim which is entrenched in the Hindu psyche is that of a bigoted, inward-looking outcaste. A Muslim similarly looks upon a Hindu as a conniving, all-powerful opportunist and he views himself as victimised by him and alienated from the mainstream of society. (4) A new aggressiveness on the part of the Muslim political parties in an effort to find a place in the country. Reports are rife about some Muslim extremists obtaining ‘foreign money’, ‘turning into foreign agents’, indulging in a well-designed plan to soil the secular ideal of the country, and attempting to incite Indian Muslims. (5) A failure on the part of the Muslim leaders to unite Muslims and resolve their problems is perhaps due to frustration because they have been influenced by the wave of Islamic fundamentalism sweeping West Asia and Pakistan. The leaders have only exploited the numerical strength of the Muslims (especially in Kerala, Kashmir and Uttar Pradesh) to strike barter Heals, secure a chunk of Muslim seats in parliament and legislatures, and seek power and pelf for themselves and their friends. (6) The government is also responsible for neglecting Muslims, large sections of whom feel alienated and consequently become willing victims of selfish leaders. The ruling elite merely preach religious amity and have little understanding of the real problems of the Muslims. The Hindu leadership only deals with those Muslim leaders who toe their line. Hindu-Sikh Communalism in India  The Sikhs constitute less than 2 per cent (1.3 crore) of India’s population. Though dispersed widely over the entire country and even abroad, their largest concentration is in Punjab, where they form the majority of the state’s population. Sikhism started as a reform movement against the dogmas of Hindu religion.  After the tenth guru, the tradition of gurus among Sikhs ended and the Granth Sahib was accorded utmost reverence. The Sikh shrines (gurudwaras) remained 4

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under the control of priests, some of whom misused their position and amassed personal wealth. In the early years of the twentieth century, some young Sikhs started a movement against the hegemony of the Sikh mahants. These people—called Akalis—wanted shrines to be managed by a body of democratically elected representatives. The SGPC (Shiromani Gurudwara Prabhandak Committee), thus, came into existence in 1925 after the Sikhs waged a hard struggle to liberate their gurudwaras from the corrupt mahants. Since its inception, the SGPC has been a seat of great power. Its president has always played a major role in Sikh affairs. At one time he was even described as a maker or demolisher of the Chief Minister of Punjab. Few Akali elite survived without his support. Another group (sect) called the Nirankaris started a movement against the dogmas, rituals and traditions which had crept into Sikhism. Thus, the Nirankari movement was a reformist movement (purely religious in character) against the induction of Hindu religious practices in the Sikh system of worship. It emphasized the elimination of the worship of several deities and revived simplicity, austerity and purity in rituals and ceremonies. The Nirankaris remained within the Sikh fold till 1943 after which there arose conflict. In 1973, the undivided Akali Dal under the leadership of Master Tara Singh demanded ‘autonomous status’ for Punjab dominated by Sikhs. On 17 October, 1973, the Akalis passed a resolution, now popularly called the ‘Anandpur Sahib Resolution’, in which they made 45 demands. Later, the Akalis came to be divided into extremists and moderates. One militant group led by Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale emerged as a powerful group in the early eighties. Initially, he launched a movement against the Nirankaris to purify the Sikh religion but ultimately he started a Sikh separatist movement and began a demand for Khalistan. Though a small section of Sikhs continues to work for this demand, the majority of the Akalis are for a state in which the authority of the Centre is to be confined to defence, foreign relations, communications, railways and currency. The Sikh agitation, which started in Punjab in the early eighties with the murder of a local editor, hijacking of a Srinagar-bound flight, and the issuing of passports for a fictitious nation called Khalistan, began to intensify. The number of killings and firings increased and the Sikh protests became organized, militant and increasingly violent. In 1984, when the military launched Operation Blue Star for seizing weapons and arresting militants from the Golden Temple at Amritsar, the Sikhs reacted violently. In October 1984, when Indira Gandhi was assassinated and thousands of Sikhs were killed in Delhi and other states, and their property was looted, burnt

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or destroyed, some Sikh militants became so agitated that they killed hundreds of Hindus in trains and buses, destroyed their property and forced many Hindus to leave Punjab. In May 1988, when Operation Black Thunder was launched once again by the military to clear militants from the Golden Temple in Amritsar which remained under their seize for about ten days, the Sikhs retaliated by exploding bombs, killing Hindus and looting banks. The relations between Sikhs and Hindus thus remained strained for about one and a half decade. However, the militancy of extremist Sikhs in Punjab has now been suppressed and from 1993 onwards, there has been considerable improvement in the relations between the people of the two communities. There is goodwill and respect among them for each other’s religious beliefs and places of worship.

Factors responsible for the growth of communalism The stagnant economy of India during the British rule was an important factor for the growth of communalism in India.  It was deeply rooted in and was an expression of the interests and aspirations of the middle classes in a social set up in which opportunities for them were inadequate.  The communal question was, therefore a middle class question par excellence. The main appeal of communalism and its main social base also lay among the middle classes.  It is, however, important to note that a large number of middle class individuals remained, on the whole, free of communalism even in the 1930s and 1940s.  According to Bipan Chandra communal politics till 1937 was organised around government jobs, educational concessions and the like as also political positions - seats in legislative councils, municipal bodies, etc - which enabled control over these and other economic opportunities.  According to him communalism developed as a weapon of economically and politically reactionary social classes and political forces. Communal leaders and parties were in general allied with these classes and forces. The vested interests deliberately encouraged communalism because of its capacity to distort and divert popular struggle, to prevent the masses from understanding the real issues. British rule and its policy of divide and rule  The British government used communalism to counter and weaken the growing national movement and the welding of the Indian people into a nation. It was presented by the colonial rulers as the problem of the defence of the minorities. 

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Hindu-Muslim disunity was sighted as the reason for the continuation of the British rule.  They favoured one community against the other in services and promotions. The British policy of acting late to crush the communal violence also contributed to the growth of this phenomenon. The British policy of separate electorate was another factor. Hindu Tinge in nationalist thought and propaganda  During the national movement, a strong religious element was introduced in nationalist thought and propaganda.  They tended to emphasise ancient Indian culture to the exclusion of medieval Indian culture.  Hindu idiom was introduced to its day-to day political agitation. Thus Tilak used Ganesh puja and Shivaji festival to propagate nationalism; and the anti-partition Bengal agitation was started with dips in the Ganges.  Many prominent writers including Bankim Chandra Chatterjea often referred Muslims as foreigners in their writings. Communal view of Indian history  A communal and distorted view of Indian history, particularly of the ancient and medieval period, was also responsible for its growth.  A beginning in this regard was made by the British historian, James Mill in the early 19th century, who described the ancient period of Indian history as the Hindu period and the medieval period as the Muslim period.  Other British and Indian historians followed him in this respect.  These writers declared that all Muslims were rulers in the medieval period and all Hindus ruled. Thus, the basic character of the polity in India was identified with religion.  Hindu communal view of history relied on the myth that Indian society and culture had reached ideal heights in the ancient period and fell into permanent and continuous decay during the medieval period because of the Muslim rule and domination.  In turn the Muslim communalism harked back to the 'golden age of Islamic achievement' in West Asia and appealed to its heros, myths and cultural achievements. They tended to defend and glorify all Muslim rulers, including religious bigots like Aurangzeb. Other Factors  Paul R Brass in his edited book Riots and Pogroms says that riots occur in waves, records, and in the wake of a "psychological atmosphere". Yet, after the trauma of Partition, riots decreased in frequency. The graph began to rise only after the Jabalpur riots in 1961. 7

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com According to Brass riot is "a violent disturbance of peace by an assembly or body of persons," a pogrom is "an organised massacre". We have had at least two pogroms since Independence.  One was against the Sikhs in Delhi in the wake of the assassination of Indira Gandhi in 1984. The other was in Mumbai in the aftermath of the demolition of the Babri Masjid, in December 1992 and January 1993.  According to Asghar Ali Engineer fundamentalism has its roots in Jawaharlal Nehru's mechanics of education and science being less effective than he wanted them to be.  Firstly, the partition deeply wounded the Hindu psyche. Secondly, the resurgence of Hindu-Muslim economic competition fuelled a communal ideology. Third, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), formed by Hedgewar in 1925 began to flourish.  Since then, a systematic process of historical distortion has sought to perpetuate a demonised Hindu-Muslim history through school textbooks and academic treatises. Word of mouth  Rumours, abetted by the media, play a role in almost every major communal riot. By virtue of their proximity to the source, many vernacular newspapers disseminate rumours as "news".  In fact, the system of communal information dissemination and perpetuation is far more sophisticated than that of mere words. During the 1969 Ahmedabad riots, newspapers headlined rumoured reports of attacks on Hindu temples. Politics of appeasement  Political parties, prompted by political considerations, take decisions, which promote communal violence.  Take the example of Shah Bano case. Muslims reacted aggressively against the Supreme Court judgement which granted a Muslim divorcee, Shah Bano, maintenance in excess and in protraction of the Shari'ah, which permits maintenance only for the iddah (three months post-divorce) period.  The then Central government headed by Rajiv Gandhi overturned the judgement by passing the Muslim Women's Act in early 1986. 

Mahatma Gandhi’s View on Socialism and Communism:  Gandhi was also never in favor of socialism propounded by Nehru, which emphasized on large-scale production. This massive production, Gandhi feared, would lead to greater exploitation and urbanization. It is this emphasis on decentralization that endeared Gandhi to Vinoba Bhave and Jayaprakash Narayan, and not to industrialists. 8

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According to Gandhi, for a real Swaraj to be established, it is not that one class rule be substituted by the other. It is much more than that. The villages have to be strengthened. He further believed that is much easier to change an institution than a man. Gandhi had great faith in institutions and their functioning, he had greater faith in the perfectibility of the individual. Gandhi strongly believed that Western socialism and communism had a strong sense of selfishness. He wanted the capitalists and the landlords act as trustees holding their wealth for the good of their villages, workers and the peasants. His theory of trusteeship wherein the economically powerful people would surrender their power voluntarily was severely criticized. Scholars like M. N. Roy stated that such a theory would benefit only the propertied class and that the exploited could win their rights only through violence and expropriation. However, Gandhi opined that violence might destroy one or two bad rulers, two capitalists but such capitalists always crop up. So, the only solution, according to Gandhi, was to change men and not destroy them. Further, Gandhi stated that rich cannot accumulate wealth without the cooperation of the poor; and therefore, if the poor does not cooperate with the rich they naturally mend their ways. Gandhi also gave his own definition to the word socialism. According to Gandhi, it does not refer to nationalization of the means of production, distribution, exchange, but faith in God, truth, non-violence and equality. So, in simple terms, Gandhian socialism is based on the ideas of nonpossession and trusteeship. It was thus not an ideology of industrialization, planning or state action and, therefore, it does not appeal to the intelligentsia. Further, Gandhian socialism was humanitarian in nature. It cared for the poor and it was a moral code of personal conduct than an economic ideology. It did not envisage the expropriation of the rich through violence or state action. As far as Gandhi’s ideas on Communism are concerned, though he appreciated its ability to organize masses, he was disappointed that it leads to the establishment of dictatorship. For a Gandhian, an alternative to communism is to establish a society wherein the instruments of production are simple and that the common man could play them in the villages. In such a society, there would be no concentration of economic power, and so state would wither away and the Marxian dream would not be fulfilled.

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However, thinkers like M. N. Roy strongly criticized the ideas expressed by Gandhi and stated that he regretted that Gandhi taught his workers not to look upon their employers as exploiters but trust them as their elder brothers and that landlords were happy that Gandhi regarded them as trustees of the interests of the peasants. He criticized Gandhi for his weak and watery reformism. Gandhi was further criticized for not having a progressive economic ideology that could give him a proper lead to the masses. In short. Communists countered any activity undertaken by Gandhi owing to their reservations against the economic and social philosophy of Gandhi. This antagonism was reflected in their denial to support Gandhi’s Quit India movement. Despite their criticism of Gandhian philosophy. Communists had great regards for Gandhi as a great humanist. Commenting on Gandhi’s idealism E. M. S. Namboodiripad in one of his books. The Mahatma and The Ism, stated that moral values like truth, non-violence, renunciation of the pleasures of life, political ideals like freedom, democracy, emancipation of women, unity of all religious groups and communities, etc., were ail indivisible parts of his life and teachings. But, unfortunately, Gandhi regarded the workers and peasants as brothers and partners of the classes that oppressed them. Communal Violence

The Concept  Communal violence involves people belonging to two different religious communities mobilised against each other and carrying the feelings of hostility, emotional fury, exploitation, social discrimination and social neglect. The high degree of cohesion in one community against another is built around tension and polarisation. The targets of attack are the members of the ‘enemy’ community. 

Generally, there is no leadership in communal riots which could effectively control and contain the riot situation. It could thus be said that communal violence is based mainly on hatred, enmity and revenge.

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Communal violence has increased quantitatively and qualitatively ever since politics came to be communalised.

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Gandhi was its first victim followed by the murder of many persons in the 1970s and the 1980s. Following destruction of Babri structure in Ayodhya in December 1992, and bomb blasts in Bombay in early 1993, communal riots in Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Kerala have considerably increased.

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While some political parties tolerate ethno-religious communalism, a few others even encourage it. Recent examples of this tolerance, indifference to and passive acceptance of or even connivance of the activities of religious organisations by certain political leaders and some political parties are found in attacks on Christian missionaries and in violent activities against Christians in Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, and Allahabad.

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Emergency of the mid-1970s commenced the trend of criminal elements entering mainstream politics. This phenomenon has now entrenched itself in Indian politics to such an extent that religious fanaticism, casteism and mixing of religion and politics have increased in varied dimensions. Political parties and political leaders adopt ‘holier than thou’ attitude in relation to each other instead of taking a collective stand against these negative impulses affecting our society.

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The Hindu organisations blame Muslims and Christians for forcibly converting Hindus to their religions. Without indulging in the controversy whether prosylitisation or religious conversions were coercive or voluntary, it may only be said that raising this issue today is patently irrational fanaticism. Hinduism has been tolerant and talks about all humanity being one family.

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Therefore, it has to be accepted that the doctrine of Hindutva blighting Indian politics has nothing to do with Hindu thought. It is time secular political leaders and political parties ignore political and electoral considerations and condemn and take action against those religious organisations which disrupt peace and stability through statements and threaten the unity and pluralistic identity of India.

Features of Communal Riots: A probe of the major communal riots in the country in the last five decades has revealed that:  Communal riots are more politically motivated than fuelled by religion. 

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Even the Madan Commission which looked into communal disturbances in Maharashtra in May 1970 had emphasised that “the architects and builders of communal tensions are the communalists and a certain class of politicians—those all-India and local leaders out to seize every opportunity to strengthen their political positions, enhance their prestige and enrich their public image by giving a communal colour to every incident and thereby projecting themselves in the public eye as the champions of their religion and the rights of their community”.

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Besides political interests, economic interests to play a vigorous part in fomenting communal clashes.

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Communal riots seem to be more common in North India than in South and East India.

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The possibility of recurrence of communal riots in a town where communal riots have already taken place once or twice is stronger than in a town in which riots have never occurred.

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Most communal riots take place on the occasion of religious festivals.

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The use of deadly weapons in the riots is on the ascendancy.

Causes of Communal Violence: Different scholars have approached the problem of communal violence with different perspectives, attributing different causes and suggesting different measures to counter it. 

The Marxist school relates communalism to economic deprivation and to the class struggle between the haves and the have-not’s to secure a monopoly control of the market forces.

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Political scientists view it as a power struggle.

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Sociologists see it as a phenomenon of social tensions and relative deprivations.

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The religious experts perceive it as a diadem of violent fundamentalists and conformists.

The class analysis of communalism requires some attention. The explanation is that the economic, social and political situations in a society sometimes create such problems and crises for the people that even though they try to come to grips with these crises, they fail to do so. Without attempting to grasp the real causes for this failure, they ‘perceive’ the other community (numerically much stronger than their own) as the cause of their woes. Communalism is thus a social reality which is generated and reflected in a distorted way. 

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After independence, though our government claimed to follow “socialistic pattern of economy” yet in practice the economic development was based more on

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com capitalist pattern. In this pattern, on the one hand the development has not occurred at a rate where it could solve the problems of poverty, unemployment and insecurity which could prevent frustration and unhealthy competition for scarce jobs and other economic opportunities, and on the other hand, capitalist development has generated prosperity only for certain social strata leading to sharp and visible inequality and new social strains and social anxieties. Is religion responsible for communalism? 

There are intellectuals who do not believe that religion has any role to play in it. Bipan Chandra (1984), for example, holds that communalism is neither inspired by religion nor is religion an object of communal politics, even though the communalist bases his politics on religious differences, uses religious identity as an organising principle, and in the mass phases of communalism uses religion to mobilise masses.

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The religious difference is used to ‘mask’ non-religious social needs, aspirations and conflicts. However, religiosity, i.e., “too much religion in one’s life” or the intrusion of religion into areas other than those of personal belief, tends to create a certain receptivity to communal ideology and politics. Moreover, religious obscurantism, narrow-mindedness and bigotry in the name of going back to fundamentals tends to divide people whom life and history have bought together, In this respect, different religions have different elements in their structure, rituals and ideological practices which relate to communalism in different manners. Their analysis and elimination has to be specific to different religions.

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Some scholars have proposed a multiple-factor approach in which they give importance to several factors together. Ten major factors have been identified in the etiology of communalism: These are; social, religious, political, economic, legal, psychological, administrative, historical, local, and international.

The social factors include 

social traditions,

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stereotyped images of religious communities,

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caste and class ego or inequality and religion-based social stratification;

The religious factors include 13

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decline in religious norms of tolerance and secular values,

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narrow and dogmatic religious beliefs,

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use of religion for political gains and communal ideology of religious leaders;

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religion-based politics,

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religion-dominated political organisations,

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canvasing in elections based on religious considerations,

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political interference in religious affairs,

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instigation or support to agitations by politicians for vested interests,

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political justification of communal violence

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failure of political leadership;

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to contain religious feelings;

The economic factors include 

economic exploitation and discrimination of minority religious communities,

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their lop-sided economic development,

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inadequate opportunity in competitive market,

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non-expanding economy,

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displacement and non-absorption of workers of minority religious groups, and

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the influence of gulf money in provoking religious conflicts;

The legal factors include  14

absence of common civil code,

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special provisions and concessions for some communities in the Constitution,

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special status of certain states,

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reservation policy, and special laws for different communities;

The psychological factors include 

social prejudices,

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stereotype attitudes,

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distrust,

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hostility and

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apathy against another community,

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rumour, fear psychosis and misinformation/misinterpretation/misrepresentation by mass media;

The administrative factors include 

lack of coordination between the police and other administrative units,

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ill-equipped and ill-trained police personnel,

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inept functioning of intelligence agencies,

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biased policemen, and police excesses and inaction;

The historical factors include 

alien invasions, damage to religious institutions,

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proselytisation efforts,

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divide and rule policy of colonial rulers,

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partition trauma,

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past communal riots,

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old disputes on land, temples and mosques;

The local factors include 

religious processions,

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slogan raising,

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rumours,

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land disputes,

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local anti-social elements and group rivalries; and

The international factors include 

training and financial support from other countries,

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other countries’ machinations to disunite and weaken India, and

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Support to communal organisations.

Holistic approach to understand the problem of communalism and communal violence The emphasis of this approach would be on various factors, distinguishing the major from the minor. We can classify these factors in four sub-groups: most conspicuous, chief cooperating, minor aggravating, and apparently inoperative. Specifically, these factors are: 

communal politics and politicians’ support to religious fanatics,

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prejudices (which lead to discrimination, avoidance, physical attack and extermination),

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the growth of communal organisations, and conversions and proselytisation.

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Broadly speaking, attention may be focused on fanatics, anti-social elements and vested economic interests in creating and fanning violence in the rival communities.

The mass media 

The mass media also sometimes contribute to communal tensions in their own way.

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Many a time the news items published in papers are based on hearsay, rumours, or wrong interpretations.

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Such news items add fuel to the fire and fan communal feelings.

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One of the issues which has been agitating both Muslims and Hindus in recent years is the Muslim Personal Law. With the decision of the Supreme Court in favour of Shah Bano, and its advice in April 1995 to the government that it should enact a uniform civil code, the Muslims fear that their personal law is being interfered with. The politicians also exploit the situation to keep themselves in power.

Two Main Theories of Communal Violence Communal violence is collective violence. When large sections of people in a community fail to achieve their collective goals, or feel that they are being discriminated against and deprived of equal opportunities, they feel frustrated and disillusioned and this collective frustration (or what Feiera- bends and Nesvold have called ‘systematic frustration’) leads to collective violence. However, it is not the whole community which launches a violent protest. In fact, the action planned by the discontented people against the ruling group or the power elite (against whose ways they protest) is often non-violent. It is only a small band of protesters who consider nonviolence ineffective and violence essential for the success of their struggle, and who snatch every precipitating opportunity to use violence to assert the strength of their ideology. This sub-group indulging in violent behaviour does not represent the whole community or the total group of the discontented people. The behaviour of this sub-group, by and large, is not equivocally supported by the rest of the community. My contention, thus, comes close to the old ‘riffraff theory’ of violent riot behaviour which holds that the

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com majority of the people disowns and opposes the violent/delinquent behaviour of the subgroup by describing it as ‘irresponsible’ behaviour. The question is, what causes the ‘group of individuals’ to be violent. Two of the important theoretical propositions on collective violence are: (i) It is normal response to provocation, and (ii) It is a response that is consistent with norms supporting its use. This calls for analysis of some of the important existing theories. Excluding the psychopathological theories (because they focus on the aggressors’ psychological personality characteristics and pathological disorders as the chief determinants of violence, and I consider these important for explaining individual violence but not collective violence), other theories may be classified into two categories: (a) At the level of the socio-psychological analysis, and (b) At the level of the sociocultural or sociological analysis. In the first group, theories like Frustration-Aggression Theory, Perversion Theory, Motive Attribution Theory and Self-Attitude Theory may be included, while in the second group theories like Social Tension Theory, Anomie Theory, Theory of Subculture of Violence, and Social Learning Theory may be included. My contention is that all these theories fail to explain the phenomenon of collective violence in communal riots. My theoretical approach (called Social Barriers Approach) concentrates on the sociological analysis of social structural conditions. 1. Social Barriers Theory: The conditions which lead to collective communal violence are: stress, status frustration, and crises of various kind. The origin of these feelings and anxieties in an individual can be traced to social barriers created by the oppressive social systems, the power elite, as well as the individual’s background and upbringing which have probably put up hurdles for him and which serve to aggravate his tendency to irrational and unrealistic attitudes to social norms and social institutions. Relative deprivation (of a group) occurs when: (i) Expectations increase while capabilities remain the same or decline, or (ii) When expectations remain the same while capabilities decline. 18

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Since both expectations and capabilities rest on perception, value orientations of a group have an important bearing on: (a) The way the group will perceive deprivation, (b) The target to which it (relative deprivation) will be directed, and (c) The form in which it will be expressed. Since each group/individual is subjected to different forces, each group/individual will respond differently in terms of violence or participation in collective communal violence. 

The Social Barriers Theory is not essentially an elitist theory of violence where a small group, ideologically superior, takes the initiative to spread violence and decides to use it ‘for the good’ of the whole frustrated group on whose behalf it violently vocalises its protest.

2. Theory of Polarisation and Cluster Effect: Recently, a new conceptual paradigm has been developed to explain the inter and intracommunity violence in India (Singh, 1990). The paradigm is based on three concepts— polarity, cleavage, and cluster. The paradigm has been built up on the basis of the facts in ‘pre-riot’, ‘riot’ and ‘post-riot’ situations and the analysis of group behaviour of individuals belonging to different social groups (polarities) in animosity with each other. Since the communal disturbances involve two antagonistic social groups, it necessitates a careful analysis of animosity (state of mind and psyche), structural conduciveness (physical situation), and prejudices. The individual in isolation is weak and insecure. The strength lies in assemblies, collectivities and groups. The individual joins them for his gain and security. Various polarities exist in society at all times. To each individual, these polarities are of two types—permanent and temporary. To the former category belong ideology, religion, language, caste, region and sex. These polarities constitute individual’s basic identity which lasts with the individual. To the second category belong occupation, profession, functions based on vested interests. Though normally the polarities are not mutually exclusive yet they become exclusive when society undergoes a cleavage phenomenon due to perceived difference and division of population as a consequence of polarisation. When masses in general assign the same closeness to single polarity, it becomes a dominating polarity at that time at that particular place for that particular population.

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com This dominant polarity sects the pattern of inhibitions of the population (cluster formation), that is, the polarity-based clusters determine the demographic living pattern. Such clusters in old cities and towns are based on religion, caste and sect, but in modern cities these are more class-based. When such clustering takes place because of two different polarities (say, of religion or religious sects), there is a clash. The social dynamics of living in clusters is that these prove highly conducive to the emergence of a riot-prone situation, as interpersonal relationships deteriorate and build irritants which are often perceived as deliberate insult, deprivation and injury by one to the other. The incidents affect most people in the clusters due to physical proximity. This prompts people to build contacts among one’s own polarity population and also facilitates the building of mass insurrection. The communal call given at the level of leadership also accelerates the process of polarisation. The nature of polarity dominance depends upon five factors: (1) Time and space (that is, period, area, location and situation or geographical limits), (2) Social structure (that is, caste, community and social group), (3) Education (that is awareness of interest), (4) Economic interests, and (5) Leadership (that is, emotional speeches, promises and policies of the leaders).

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CRIME AND CRIMINALS




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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Crime in India Concept of Crime in India: 

Let us first look at the concepts of crime and criminals and also identify various types of crimes and criminals.



Since official statistics are based on the legal definition of crime, as the system of criminal justice is perceived from a legal approach, since all empirical studies on criminals focus on crime defined by law, and since legal definition of crime is considered to be precise, unambiguous and capable of measurement, let us examine this legal definition (of crime) first.

Five elements of crimes: (1) It should be an act or omission of an act, that is, a person cannot be punished for his/her thoughts. (2) The act must be voluntary and committed when the actor has control over his actions. (3) The act should be intentional, whether the intent be general or specific. A person may not have a specific intent to shoot another person and kill him, but he is expected to know that his action might result in injury or death of others. (4) It should be a violation of a criminal law (as distinct from a non-criminal law or civil and administrative law). This is necessary so that the state can take action against the accused. (5) It (the act) should be committed without defence or justification. Thus, if the act is proved to be in self-defence, or committed in insanity, it will not be considered a crime even if it causes harm or injury to others. Ignorance of law is usually not a defence. 2

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Hall Jerome (1947:8-18) has defined crime as “legally forbidden and intentional action, which has a harmful impact on social interests, which has a criminal intent, and which has legally prescribed punishment for it”. Crime unless it has five characteristics: (1) It is legally forbidden, (2) It is intentional, (3) It is harmful (to society), (4) It has criminal intent, and (5) Some penalty is prescribed for it. The ‘Crime in India 2015’ statistics released by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) 

In 2015, 25 per cent of all crimes registered in major Indian cities that fell under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) took place in Delhi, which houses 10 per cent of the total population living in these 53 cities. IPC crimes constitute murder, dacoity, theft, crimes against women, children etc.

Highlights of the Report:   

Kollam, however, had the highest crime rate. Rate refers to crimes committed per lakh population. In 2015, 1194 crimes were committed in Kollam for a lakh people followed by Delhi, where the crime rate was 1066.

The story is different for crimes under Special Local Laws (SLL). 

It constitutes crimes related to Gambling Act, Information and Technology Act, Electricity Act etc.

In sharp contrast with IPC crimes:  3

just 0.5 per cent share of all SLL crimes were registered in Delhi.

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Lucknow, which constitutes 1.8 per cent of the total city population, contributes the highest share – 18.3 per cent – of SLL crimes followed by Ghaziabad which has a 12 per cent share. Lucknow (8717.2), Raipur (7132.1), Agra (7116) and Ghaziabad (7040.4) are the four cities having SLL crime rate greater than 7000 crimes per lakh population.



If international data on crime is analysed, it shows that countries perceived to have better systems of law and order also have high rates of crimes (number of crimes per 1 lakh population), while countries with dysfunctional governance, most of the times, display low rates of crimes.

According to United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) data, on seven counts of Serious crimes — which include       

murder, rape, sexual violence, assault, kidnapping, burglary and theft

High Rates of Crimes in? 

Sweden (with 6,456 crimes per 1 lakh population), Denmark (6,041) and the Netherlands (5,523) have high rates of crimes.

Low Rate of Crimes in? 

The countries with low rates of crimes are Somalia (1.5), Iraq (2), Libya (2.9) and Haiti (5). It would be naive to argue that Somalia is safer than Sweden.



India’s crime rate (87) itself compares with that of Lebanon (59), Yemen (67) and Kazakhstan (96).

Within India,  

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Kerala, considered to be a better policed state has one of the highest crime rates, while UP, whose poor law and order issues often hit headlines, has one of the lowest.

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Why is it so? 

The answer lies in the response of government and civil society to crime data and how sense of law and order in India is measured solely through registered crimes.

As soon as crime graph of a particular region, as reflected in data, rises, the minister responsible reprimands the concerned officer. The officer, in turn, tries his best to keep the numbers to the lowest. One of the ways this is allegedly done is by refusing FIRs.  

Non-registration of FIRs was reflected as a chronic problem of policing. According International Crime Survey Data to Indian scenario, 30 per cent people never report a crime to the authorities, while over 50 per cent are turned away by the police.

Survey & Report: 



A 2003 crime victimisation survey conducted in Tamil Nadu by noted criminologist K Chockalingam found that only 4 per cent of sexual offence victims report the crime. In a judgment on November 12, 2013, a five-judge Supreme Court bench headed by then Chief Justice of India P Sathasivam, said, “Burking of crime leads to dilution of the rule of law in the short run; and also has a very negative impact on rule of law in the long run since people stop having respect for rule of law.”

Some of the suggestions made include    

legal recognition of calls made to Dial 100 (police control room) as FIRs, statutory status to crime victimisation survey, digital recording of complaints and oral evidence and step-by-step tracking of investigations through technological interventions. “In developed countries in Europe and the Americas, governments regularly conduct crime victimisation survey (CVS) to get a sense of the level of crime in a region or state.

What Lacks in India   

The difference between survey results and crimes actually registered are taken seriously and the attempt is to minimise the gap. No such system exists in India. The consequence is that policies to combat crimes are formulated on the basis of limited data of registered crimes only and thus fail to have desired results. That 94 per cent of investigation time is wasted in writing case diaries and recording statements, is an argument in favour of technological solutions and better policing.

Way forward & Suggestions: 5

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com  



 







“If all crimes are registered, realistic patterns can be drawn and preventive measures be taken accordingly.” Rule of law is just as important for the country’s GDP. Krishna cites a survey conducted by The Economist Intelligence Unit among 301 top executives of Forbes 500 companies. The survey held that rule of law (88 per cent) was the third most important consideration for companies after ‘stable political environment’ (92 per cent) and ‘ease of doing business’ (92 per cent). Dial 100 calls to be registered as FIRs, however, poses the formidable challenge of investigating such huge number of crimes by an overburdened police. The presentation provides for checks in the form of elimination of cases that do not need investigation or have no evidence at a preliminary stage and making the offence of knowingly lodging a false complaint cognisable. According to experts, only in India, once a case is registered, it always lands up in court. In most countries there is a system of screening to reduce the number of cases that are chargesheeted or prosecuted after chargesheeting. The Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) even has a provision for this under Section 157. But NCRB data shows that this section has been invoked in only 0.03 per cent cases in 2014. A string of technological interventions, at a total cost of less than Rs 1,000 crore, to help meet the expectations arising out of better registration of FIRs. These include up-gradation of police control room with police specific call centre software which is compatible with CCTNS and acceptance of electronic case diaries in courts under Evidence Act.

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DRUG ABUSE AND DRUG ADDICTION




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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Drug Abuse and Addiction in India What is Drug Abuse and Addiction? 

Drug abuse refers to the habit of regular intake of illegal drugs characterized by mis-use of drugs. There is a thin-line of difference between Drug abuse and addiction. In case of drug abuse, the person may or may not be addicted to these harmful drugs. However, in case of drug addiction, the person is severely addicted to these drugs. Thus, drug abuse may often lead to drug addiction.

Problem of Drug Abuse and Addition in India: 



 



Drug abuse and addiction is one of the great evils of our time. It has become a serious problem in India. Young and old alike everywhere are addicted to drugs. It has resulted in increased crime, tension, disease, horror and lack of peace and security. The cities have attracted large number of youth who come in search of employment. Such people live a lonely and isolated life and become anti-social. They fall into evil company and get addicted. The children who are deprived of the loving care and affection, and do not get right type of education are prone to be addicted to drugs. In the beginning it comes as an escape from the monotony or drudgery of routine life, as an object of thrill, stimulation or excitement. Gradually the addicts depend more and more upon drugs. They develop a kind of madness. They add to the number of anti-social elements who disrupt peaceful social life. Drugs are often smuggled from one country to another and sold through the agents and sub-agents who work secretly.

Causes: In India drug abuse has become wide-spread and a cause of concern for the people and the government. The major causes of drug abuse and addiction are given below: 1. It is to be noted that despair very often drives many to drug addiction. Students who remain far away from parents and guardians and live in hostels and messes become victims of addition. 2. Their keeping contact with bad company pushes them to be addicts. There is no proper direction, no goal or objective before young men and women to move forward and reach. 3. Our education is such that it does not prepare students to fit into life. Coming out of the schools and colleges, they find that they have no future, no prospects in life.

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Remedial measures: Parents, teachers, educationists and governments should think how best to improve education, so that it brings a full development of the personality and teaches the essence of life and the art of decent living. 1. Moral instructions should form a part of teaching. 2. Mass media and voluntary organizations should do their best in the field and highlight the dangers of drug addiction. 3. The various drugs are capturing the market and holding young and old alike in their grip. 4. The Anti-Narcotic Squads and Drug Enforcement Agencies should work in a more vigilant manner to prevent drug trafficking and trade. 5. There should be more counseling centers and rehabilitation centers. Government and voluntary agencies should have co-ordinate efforts to deaddict people and spread awareness against the great evil. 6. Police can play a great role to check smuggling and drug trafficking. 7. The constitutional provision about prohibition of intoxicating drinks and drugs must be strictly enforced by all State Governments in our country. Conclusion: The radio, television and newspapers must come in with vigorous campaigns against drug abuse and addiction. Legislation alone cannot put an end to the evil practice. An increased social awareness is the key to the solution of this problem. People are to realize that drugs are killers and rare to be killed. They must learn to say ‘No’ to drugs and save their families from ruin. Persuasion, and not compulsion, can bring good results. Drug Addiction Introduction: The term ‘drug’ has now been given a new connotation. It was used originally to means ‘medicine’. However, now-a-days, the term ‘drug’ means not only medicine, but also the fatal narcotics that include cocaine, heroin, brown sugar, and many other specifications. All these drugs have their evil effects on the mind and body cells of the addicts. The young generations, particularly teenagers, are the worst victims of evils of Drug Addiction. Meaning of Drug Addiction Drug Addiction (also called substance use disorder) is a brain disease. The addict becomes dependent on the drug. The addict uses it, despite having full knowledge of its harmful effects on health. It is considered a brain disease because it changes the structure and functioning of the brain. 3

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com There is an uncontrollable desire or craving to consume the drug. Addicted people often engage in compulsive behavior to obtain the drugs. The addicts find if impossible to control the drug intake. In case of drug abuse, people start taking drugs in larger doses than the recommended doses. The addict is not able to discharge his day-to-day responsibilities in an efficient manner. It effects both the physical and mental health of the addict. Very often, addicts witness extreme changes in body weight. Very often, the addict stops socializing.

      

Sometimes, drug addiction is also referred to as drug dependency since the addict develops dependency or addiction for a particular drug. Causes of Drug Addiction among Youth 

The reasons why a young person gets addicted to these harmful drugs are many.

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Curiosities, desire for pleasure, social excommunication, mental gap, lack of selfreliance are some of the reasons why these youth becomes a drug-addict.

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Lack of self-confidence, that is inferiority complex, has been marked as cause of one’s becoming a drug addict.

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Peer pressure, excessive stress, lack of parental involvement in child’s activities, are among the leading causes for drug addiction among youth and teen people.

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The problem of drug addiction is all the more serious because the addicts are mostly young school or college going boys and girls, the future citizens of a country, on whom will depend in future its welfare and the welfare of its people. So, it is imperative to see that such young boys and girls may be no means fall victims to drug addiction.

Solution for Drug Addiction:

4

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Rehabilitation of the young drug-addicts is a major social problem.

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The need of raising the level of consciousness of self through proper education has been suggested as a proper step.

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Those who thus become able to overcome their addiction can tutor other young addicts.

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The need of forming a healthy environment where the needs of these youth can be met is equally important.

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The trading of harmful drugs such as cocoa, opium, etc. should be properly controlled.

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International projects should be taken to prohibit manufacturing of such harmful drugs.

Prevention Drug addiction among youth can be prevented if the youth are taught of its harmful consequences. If the young people are aware of the harmful effects of drug abuse, they would avoid drug abuse at the first instance. Hence, drug abuse preventive programmes, if implemented effectively at schools and colleges, can become the most successful method to reduce and alleviate the problem of Drug addiction among youth. Treatment of Drug Addiction: 

Treatment of the drug-addicts can be done through different medical processes. When a patient is made to give up his addiction, he suffers from several physical troubles. If he is treated through the method of detoxification by a gradual process he regains his normalcy gradually. When detoxification is completed, psychiatric treatment of the patient is to be started.



Attempts are made to release the need for the drugs from the mind of the addict. Most people get better results if they include yoga, meditation and hypnotherapy as part of their treatment procedure.

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The members of his family should be advised how to behave with the patient. In fact the help and co-operation of the same elements of the society is essential for the rehabilitation of the drug addicts in society. They should take the solemn vow of uniting for a drug-free world.

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ILLITERACY




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Illiteracy in India has, since long before independence, been regarded as an obstacle to development. It is commonly believed that without substantially eliminating illiteracy, India cannot become a cohesive nation and give to all its citizens the quality of life they have long yearned for. No wonder that education in general and literacy in particular have been accorded a high priority in the country’s development process. How is literacy defined? Who is literate? One who can read and write some language is ‘literate’. UNESCO has defined a literate person as “one who can with understanding both read and writes a short simple statement on his everyday life”. Following UNESCO, the Census Commission in India in 1991 also defined ‘literate’ person as one who can read and write “with understanding” in any Indian language, and not merely read and write. Those who can read but cannot write are not literate. Formal education in a school is not necessary for a person to be considered as literate.

In a resolution on National Policy on Education adopted in 1968, radical reconstruction of education was proposed so that it involved: (i) A transformation of the system to relate it more closely to the life of the people, (ii) A continuous effort to expand educational opportunity, (iii) A sustained effort to raise the quality of education at all stages, (iv) An emphasis on the development of science and technology, and (v) Cultivation of moral and social values. Non-formal education and open learning systems are being encouraged at all levels. However, in the field of removing illiteracy in the country, not much progress could be made an account of its huge population. This is evident from the vast magnitude of illiterate persons still found in the country. Measures National Adult Education Programme (NAEP):  The NAE programme was launched on October 2, 1978 with the aim of providing education and promoting literacy among all illiterate persons, particularly in the age group of 15-35 years.  The programme is a joint and collaborative effort of the central government, state governments, union territory administrations, voluntary agencies, universities, colleges and youth centres. 2

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com The education under the NAE programme is a package which envisages: (i) Imparting literacy skills to the target illiterate population, (ii) Their functional development, and (iii) Creation of awareness among them regarding laws and policies of the government for the efficient implementation of the strategy of redistributive justice. Special emphasis is being placed on the education of women, Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes and other weaker sections of society, who comprise the bulk of illiterate population in India. Rural Functional Literacy Programme (RFLP): The RFL programme is a sub-programme of the Adult Education Programme which is fully funded by the central government and implemented by the states and union territories. The broad objectives of this programme are: (i) To develop abilities in the learners to read and write, and (ii) To create awareness among the learners about their rights and duties and the benefits they can draw from various schemes of socio-economic development being implemented by the government. 

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The RFLP was launched in May 1986 by involving the NSS and other student volunteers in colleges and universities on the principle of “Each One Teach One”. Starting on a modest scale of 2 lakh volunteers, it went up to 4.50 lakh in 1990 covering over 4.20 lakh learners. The programme has been designed keeping in view the needs and languages of the learners. The government has selected 40 districts to improve the quality of adult education. It is only after evaluation of the impact that the programme will be taken up in a big way to spread literacy in the minimum possible time. The process of the Mass Programme of Functional Literacy involves a number of stages. These stages are: selecting master trainers who are to train the student volunteers; selecting, motivating and mobilizing the student volunteers who are genuinely and sincerely committed to literacy work; identifying illiterate persons in the age group of 15-35 who may be staying in the neighbourhood of an educational institution; forging a link between the student volunteers and the

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

illiterate persons and assigning an area of operation for each volunteer; monitoring of the programme of the student volunteers by senior teachers/headmasters of schools; coordination with various development departments/agencies by way of visits of functionaries to the place where the volunteer is imparting literacy, telling the learners about the advantages of being literate, making available charts, posters and other materials to the learners and identifying genuine difficulties of the learners; and providing post-literacy activities for the neo-literates through libraries and reading rooms. Coverage and support by the media and evaluation of the overall impact of the programme through University Departments of Adult and Continuing Education is of crucial importance.

National Literacy Mission (NLM):  In accordance with the directives of the National Policy on Education and the implementation strategies envisaged in the Programme of Action, the government formulated a comprehensive programme and constituted National Literacy Mission (NLM) with a view to achieving literacy goals through setting into motion Total Literacy Campaigns (TLCs) all over the country in a phased manner.  The NLM was launched in May 1988 to achieve the goal of imparting ‘functional literacy’ to 80 million illiterate persons in the 15-35 age groups by 1995. The NLM while laying emphasis on acquisition of literacy and numeracy skills seeks to create awareness among illiterate people, leading to their empowerment. Why is adult literacy programme not picking up fast in India?  

 

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The main criticism is that the adult education movement does not have the support from the grassroots. The planning is more at the state level and there is nothing yet like a detailed programme of action district by district, village by village, and area to area, with weak areas and difficult problems carefully identified and provided for and resources firmly assured. Much time has been spent on pedagogy and local and regional invocations and freedom of choice have been effectively discouraged. Instead of welcoming all the available options, including the so-called ‘centre’ approach, ‘each one teach one’ or ‘each one teach many’, the concerned central agency puts increasing obstacles in the way of voluntary and local agencies bringing learners together into ‘centres’ and imparting to them both literacy and other skills and socially useful knowledge.

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Five maladies in the bombing of NAE programme may be listed:     

not involving community, lack of political and administrative support, learners’ irregular motivation, poor quality of training, and absence of post-literacy programme.

Arun Ghosh led expert group has recommended: (a) A strong political commitment to the whole effort, (b) Integration of literacy campaigns with non-formal education programmes, (c) Carrying out a door-to-door survey of illiteracy in the country, (d) Concentration on the Hindi belt, (e) Emphasis on the voluntary character of the programme, and (f) Proper assessment of the content of learning. Besides the above critical evaluation of the literacy programmes, we may also identify the following hurdles in the successful implementation of the adult education programme. (1) Though the literacy programme was supposed to have three dimensions of literacy, awareness and functionality but in practice the programme has tended to become mainly a literacy programme, as most of the adult education centres are least equipped to deal with the other two basic components of AEP. The adults find no incentive in going to these centres as they do not consider these programmes useful in the context of their environmental needs. (2) The important factors which prevent adult illiterates from going to centres are: time constraint, economic pressures, fatalistic attitude nurtured by centuries of enslavement and exploitation, lack of leisure, family resistance, geographical distance, absence of material incentives, negative attitude towards women’s literacy and unawareness of the programme.

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com (3) Lack of commitment, interest and missionary zeal among key functionaries entrusted with the task of implementation of the. programme pose a major challenge to the successful implementation of AEP. (4) The threat posed by the vested interests has also negatively affected the programme, as it may deprive them of the cheap labour or potential vote banks. Therefore, veiled resistance and implicit indifference to the programme from a sizeable section of the community are stumbling blocks in the path of popularizing the programme. (5) The programme’s effectiveness is also impaired owing to some practical difficulties like: overemphasis on rules, voluntary agencies not receiving cooperation from state governments, absence of coordination among various agencies, lack of effective support from mass media, poor quality of training of functionaries, absence of proper evaluation, and lack of support by panchayati raj institutions (PRIs) in a sustained manner.

International Literacy Day 2016: All you need to know about India’s literacy rate  This year, the world will celebrate 50th International Literacy Day under the banner “Reading the Past, Writing the Future”. The even was first celebrated in 1966 when the UNESCO officially proclaimed September 8 as the International Literacy Day.  The idea was to actively mobilise the international community and to promote literacy as an instrument to empower individuals, communities and societies. The main global celebration will be held at UNESCO Headquarters, Paris in the form of a two-day conference on September 8-9 . The highlight of the event is literacy prizes. Literacy in India As per the latest Census 2011 report, the illiteracy rate in India is 22 per cent.  Jains are the most literate community above 7 years of age among religious communities with 86.73 per cent of them as literate and only 13.57 per cent as illiterate.  Illiteracy is highest in Muslims (42.72 per cent) while Hindus are at 36.40 per cent, 32.49 per cent among Sikhs, 28.17 per cent among Buddhists and 25.66 per cent among Christians.  About 61.6 per cent men and 38.4 per cent women have studied up to graduation or above.  As per UNESCO’s new Global Education Monitoring (GEM) report, India is expected to achieve universal primary education in 2050, universal lower secondary education in 2060 and universal upper secondary education in 2085. 6

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com According to 2011 census, Kerala is the most literate state with 93.91 per cent, Lakshadweep at 92.28 per cent, Mizoram at 91.58 per cent, Tripura at 87.75 percent and Goa at 87.40 percent  Bihar and Telangana have the lowest liteacy with only 63.82 percent and 66.50 percent literate people respectively.  In 2014, the literacy rate of India increased by 10 percent.  India’s literacy rate has increased six times since the end of the British rule — from 12 per cent to 74 per cent in 2011. However, India has the world’s largest population of illiterates. Constitutional Provisions 

Part / Article Preamble.

Provision To secure to all its citizens EQUALITY of status and opportunity.

Fundamental Rights Article 12 Definition of “the State” Article 14: Equality before law

State aid, control and regulation so impregnating a private activity as to give it the color of “State action” (M.C.Mehta v.UOI) Equality before admission

law

invoked

to

regulate

rules

of

(G.Beena v. A.P.University of Health Sc. AIR 1990 AP 252)

Article 19: Right to freedom of speech, which has been interpreted as a Right to Protection of Know (L.K.Koolwal v. State of Rajasthan AIR 1988 Raj. 2) certain rights regarding freedom of speech, etc. Article 21: Protection of life and personal liberty

Right to life “………..the fewer elegances of human civilisation, right to dignity, to health and healthy environ to clean water, to free education upto 14 years are parts of Right to Life under Article 21 (See Nalla Thampi, 1985; Francis Coralie, 1981, Mehta 1987, Wadhera, 1996, Unnikrishnan, 1993; Mahendra 1997, etc.”. Right to livelihood: Is an integral facet of the right to life. Narendra Kumar v. State of Haryana, JT(1994) 2 SC 94.

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Part / Article

Provision As Prof. D.D. Basu has annotated: “Articles 19 and 21 are not water-tight compartments. On the other hand, the expression of ‘personal liberty’ in Art. 21 is of the widest amplitude, covering a variety of rights of which some have been included in Art.19 and given additional protection. From A.Gopalan to Maneka the judicial exploration has completed its “trek from North Pole to the South Pole”. The decision in Maneka’s is being followed by the Supreme Court in subsequent cases.

Article Protection interests minorities

29: Cultural and Educational Rights – protection of interests of of Minorities. Although commonly Art. 29(1) is assumed to relate to of minorities, its scope is not necessarily so confined, as it is available to “any section of citizens resident in the territory of India”. This may well include the majority, as Ray, C.J. pointed out in Ahmedabad St.Xavier College Society v. State of Gujarat, AIR 1974 SC 1389.

Article 30(1): Right of minorities to establish and administer educational institutions

Right of minorities to establish and administer educational institutions. The right under this article is subject to the regulatory power of the state. This article is not a charter for maladministration Virendra Nath v. Delhi (1990) 2 SCC 307 This broad statement of the legal position is illustrated by and draws support from a host of decided cases beginning from Kerala Education Bill, In re. AIR 1958 SC 956 to St. Stephen’s College v. University of Delhi. This Article does not come in the way of enactments for ensuring educational standards and maintaining excellence thereof.

Directive Principles of State Policy Article 39(f): Certain principles of policy to be followed by the State. This Article Certain has been described as having the object of securing a Welfare State principles to be and may be utilized for construing provisions as to the Fundamental followed by the Rights. (Keshavananda Bharati v. State of Kerala (1973) 4 SC 228. State Article 41: Right Right to work, to education and to public assistance in certain cases. to work, to Court should so interpret an Act as to advance Art.41: Jacob v. education and to Kerala Water Authority (1991) I SCC 28. public 8

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Part / Article Provision assistance in certain cases Art. 45: Provision for free and compulsory education for children

The State shall endeavour to provide, within a period of ten years from the commencement of the Constitution, for free and compulsory education for all children until they complete the age of fourteen years.

Art. 46: Promotion of educational and economic interests of S.C.,

The State shall promote with special care the educational and economic interests of the weaker sections of the people, and, in particular, of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes, and shall protect them from social injustice and all forms of exploitation.

S.T. and other weaker sections. Art.51A(h): Fundamental Duties

Other provisions Articles 246 and 254: Subjectmatter of laws made by Parliament and by the Legislatures of the States and inconsistency of laws

Fundamental duty to develop scientific temper, humanism and the spirit of enquiry and reform. Where the constitutionality of an Act is challenged, court may look at this Article to uphold it. Mohan v. Union of India (1992) Supp 1 SCC 594. It can be used for interpreting ambiguous statutes. Head Masters v.U.O.I AIR 1983 Cal. 448

Concurrent list and inclusion of education thereunder. The Scheme of distribution of legislative powers under the Indian Constitution – such distribution being a necessary component of a federal political structure – raises interesting issues where co-existence of central and state Laws in a particular area gives rise to litigation. It is only where the legislation is a matter in the concurrent list that it would be relevant to apply the test of repugnancy.

Article 280: Finance Commission can suggest measures to augment The Finance Consolidated Fund to supplement the resource of the Panchayat in Commission the State as also of the Municipalities. Article Special 9

337: During the first three financial years after the commencement of this Constitution, the same grants, if any, shall be made by the Union

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Part / Article provision with respect to educational grants for the benefit of AngloIndian community.

Provision and by each State for the benefit of the Anglo-Indian community in respect of education as were made in the financial year ending on the thirty-first day of March, 1948. During every succeeding period of three years, the grants may be less by ten percent than those of the immediately preceding period of three years: Provided that at the end of ten years from the commencement of this Constitution, such grants, to the extent to which they are a special concession to the Anglo-Indian community, shall cease: Provided further that no educational institution shall be entitled to receive any grant under this article unless at least forty per cent of the annual admissions therein are made available to members of communities other than the Anglo-Indian community.

Part XVII: This whole Part deals with language, an inherent part of Official language Literacy with a specific mention in Art. 350A for facilities for instruction in mother-tongue at primary stage.

There have been specific amendments to the Constitution affecting education, as can be seen in 42nd, 73rd, 74th and 83rd Amendment Acts. These amendments pertain to provisions to enable education being included in the Concurrent List, devolution of powers to local bodies and making elementary education a Fundamental Right formally (from its present status of Directive Principles though this has been ruled as such through judicial interpretation even otherwise). Some causes of concern In the special issue of the International Yearbook of Education on “Primary Education on the threshold of the twenty-first century” (International Bureau of Education, UNESCO, Geneva, 1986), Ramamoorthi identified the following as the main problems, difficulties and obstacles to the universalisation of primary education in most of the developing countries:

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com 1.

A lack of financial resources coupled with the escalating cost of education.

2.

A high rate of population growth in relation to the available limited resources

3.

Deteriorating and inadequate physical facilities for education, such as an inadequate number of school buildings, essential scholastic and other educational materials

4. 5.

An inadequate supply of trained teachers, Inhibitory cultural attitudes in these countries’ communities, particularly bias against the education of girls and the physically and mentally handicapped. It should be pointed out that economic constraints tend to entrench these inhibitory attitudes.

6.

High drop-out rates in primary schools

7.

Unattractive terms of service for teachers.

Literacy Programs 1.

Rural Functional Literacy Project (RFLP): Adult Education Centres are set up by RFLP in all the States and Union Territories. They are fully funded by the Central Government although the State Governments and Union Territory Administrations are responsible for its implementation.

2.

State Adult Education Program (SAEP): Funded fully by the State Governments, this program aims at strengthening ongoing Adult Education Programs and expanding its coverage to ensure that the programs reach women and other underprivileged groups.

3.

Adult Education through Voluntary Agencies: A Central Scheme of Assistance to Voluntary Agencies exists to facilitate the participation of Voluntary Agencies. The Government of India provides financial grants to Voluntary Agencies on program basis.

4.

Involvement of students and youth in Adult Education Programs. The University Grants Commission provides 100 per cent financial assistance to colleges and universities to support their active involvement in literary and adult education activities. Specifically, 50,000 adult education centres are expected to be organized under this program. Simultaneously with the adult education program, the college and university students will be engaged in spreading universal primary education among non-school-going children.

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Nehru Yuvak Kendras: This non-student youth organization has been developing training programs to educate young people according to their identified felt needs.

6.

Non-Formal Education for Women and Girls: This project puts special emphasis on improving women’s socio-economic status by ensuring their participation in development programs in addition to efforts for family planning and promotion of welfare of children. This program is a joint effort of the Government of India and UNICEF.

7.

Shramik Vidyapeeths: This program has been established and ever since funded by the Government of India with the aim to provide integrated education to urban and individual workers and their families in order to raise their productivity and enrich their present life.

8.

Central Board for Workers Education : This program aims at providing literacy to unskilled and semi-skilled persons as well as raising their awareness and functionality. Its special feature is to meet the recognized needs of the workers with a specially matched program.

9.

Functional Literacy for Adult Women : Started in the International Year of Women, under the sponsorship of the Government of India, this program covers health and hygiene, food and nutrition, home management and child care, education, and vocational and occupational skills.

10.

Incentives Awards Scheme for Female Adult Literacy : designed to promote literacy among 15-35 year old women, this scheme presents awards to adult education centres (at the district, and Union Territory levels). At the State level, the awards are intended for equipments of various kinds as well as training facilities.

11.

Post-Literacy and Follow-up Program : The program has been in operation since 1984-1985. The Directorate of Adult Education has developed broad guidelines for the preparation of neo-literate materials for the State Governments and State Resource Centres. Prototype neo-literate materials have also been produced.

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JUVENILE DELINQUENCY




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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Juvenile Delinquency The notions about juvenile delinquency held by laymen and some law enforcement officials are faulty and misleading. For one thing, they often assume that juvenile delinquents are simply under-age criminals that are, non-adult criminals, or juveniles who engage in offences that constitute crimes when committed by adults, and are between the age of seven and 16 or 18 years, as prescribed by the law of the land. The maximum age today for juvenile delinquents according to the Juvenile Justice Act of 1986 is 16 years for boys and 18 years for girls, but earlier, according to the Children Acts, it varied from state to state. In states like Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Kerala, Maharashtra, Punjab and Madhya Pradesh, it was 16 years but in states like West Bengal and Bihar, it was 18 years. In states like Rajasthan, Assam and Karnataka, it was 16 years for boys and 18 years for girls. However, the nature of offence is just the same. According to Reckless (1956), the term ‘juvenile delinquency’ applies to the “violation of criminal code and/or pursuit of certain patterns of behaviour disapproved of for children and young adolescents”. Thus, both age and behavioral infractions prohibited in the statutes are important in the concept of juvenile delinquency. The difference between a delinquent child and an adult criminal is important from the case-work approach. The difference between the two is made by the conduct involved, the methods employed by the court, the philosophy and methods applied in treatment, and the individuals’ status, reputation and civil rights in the community after adjudication. Juvenile Delinquents in India: Classification, Nature and Incidence Juvenile delinquents have been classified by different scholars on different basis. For example, Hirsh (1937) has classified them in six groups on the basis of the kinds of offences committed: (1) Incorrigibility (for example, keeping late hours, disobedience…), (2) Truancy (staying away from school), (3) Larceny (ranging from petty theft to armed robbery), (4) Destruction of property (including both public and private property), 2

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com (5) Violence (against individual or community by using weapons), and (6) Sex offences (ranging from homosexuality to rape). Eaton and Polk (1969) have classified delinquents into five groups according to the type of offence. The offences are: (1) Minor violations (including disorderly conduct and minor traffic violations), (2) Major violations (including automobile thefts), (3) Property violations (4) Addiction (including alcoholism and drug addiction), and (5) Bodily harm (including homicide and rape). Trojanowicz (1973:59) has classified them as accidental, un-socialized, aggressive, occasional, professional and gang-organized. Psychologists have classified juvenile delinquents on the basis of their individual traits or the psychological dynamics of their personality into five groups: mentally defective, psychotic, neurotic, situational and cultural. Characteristics of Juvenile Delinquents in India Some of the most important characteristics of juvenile delinquents in India are as follows: (1) The delinquency rates are much higher among boys than among girls, that is, girls commit less delinquencies than boys. (2) The delinquency rates tend to be highest during early adolescence (12-16 years age group). (3) Juvenile delinquency is more an urban than a rural phenomenon. The metropolitan cities (with population of more than 10 lakh) produce more juvenile delinquents than small cities and towns. (4) Children living with parents and guardians are found to be more involved in the juvenile crimes. (5) Low educational background is the prime attribute for delinquency. (6) Poor economic background is another important characteristic of juvenile delinquency in India.

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com (7) More than four-fifths of the juvenile delinquents are first offenders and only a little more than one-tenth are recidivists or past offenders. (8) Not many delinquencies are committed in groups. (9) Though some delinquencies are committed in groups but the number of juvenile gangs having support of organized adult criminals is not much in our country. Types of Delinquency Refereed by Howard Becker Delinquency exhibits a variety of styles of conduct or forms of behaviour. Each of the patterns has its own social context, the causes that are alleged to bring it about, and the forms of prevention or treatment most often suggested as appropriate for the pattern in question. Howard Becker has referred to four types of delinquencies: (a) Individual delinquency, (b) Group-supported delinquency, (c) Organized delinquency, and (d) Situational delinquency. 1. Individual Delinquency: This refers to delinquency in which only one individual is involved in committing a delinquent act and its cause is located within the individual delinquent. Most of the explanations of this delinquent behaviour come from psychiatrists. Their argument is that delinquency is caused by the psychological problems stemming primarily from defective/faulty/ pathological family interaction patterns. The nature of unhappiness differed: some felt rejected by parents and others felt either inferior to or jealous of siblings or suffered from mental conflict. They indulged in delinquency as a solution to these problems, as it (delinquency) either brought attention from parents or provided support from peers or reduced their guilt feelings. 2. Group-Supported Delinquency: In this type, the delinquencies are committed in companionship with others and the cause is located not in the personality of the individual or in the delinquent’s family but in the culture of the individual’s home and neighbourhood. 3. Organized Delinquency: 4

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com This type refers to delinquencies that are committed by developing formally organized groups. 4. Situational Delinquency: The above mentioned three types of delinquencies have one thing in common. In all of them, delinquency is viewed as having deep roots. In individual delinquency (according to the psychogenic explanation), the roots of delinquency lie primarily within the individual; in group-supported and organized delinquencies (the sociogenic explanation) the roots (of delinquency) lie in the structure of the society with emphasis either on the ecological areas where delinquency prevails or on the systematic way in which social structure places some individuals in a poor position to compete for success. The situational delinquency provides a different perspective. Here the assumption is that delinquency is not deeply rooted, and motives for delinquency and means for controlling it are often relatively simple. A young man indulges in a delinquent act without having a deep commitment to delinquency because of less developed impulse control and/or because of lesser reinforcement of family restraints and because he has relatively little to lose even if caught. Family’s Contribution to Juvenile Delinquency in India Researchers generally agree that a number of factors play an important part in a youngster’s delinquencies. We can divide these factors into two groups: 

Individual factors and Situational factors.



The former include personality traits like submissiveness, defiance, hostility, impulsiveness, feeling of insecurity, fear, lack of self-control and emotional conflict while the latter may be sub-divided into five groups: family, companions, school environment, movies and work environment.

Family:  Many theorists consider family as the most significant factor in the development of juvenile delinquency. Class status, power group relations and class mobility, are also directly or indirectly related to the family environment.

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

The abnormal expression of behaviour expressed in an anti-social form is the result of these factors according to the psychologists.



Family environment producing delinquent behaviour may be analyzed with reference to a broken home, family tension, parental rejection, parental control, and family economics. A normal family is described as one which is structurally complete (with both parents alive), functionally adequate (each member performing his/her expected roles which reduces conflicts), economically secure (gratifying important needs of the members) and morally strong (each member conforming to the moral values of the culture). The family is abnormal if it lacks any of these characteristics.



Family tension is also a major contributing factor to delinquent behaviour.



Parental rejection or emotional deprivation has much to do with juvenile delinquency. If a rejected or a neglected child does not find love and affection as well as support and supervision at home, he will often resort to groups of a deviant nature outside the family. Studies have found that mutual rejection of parent and child markedly affects positive relationship and can ultimately result in delinquent behaviour.



Just as a broken home, family tension and parental rejection can affect the capability of the family structure, methods of parental control or forms of discipline also can play a part in the development of delinquent behaviour. The

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com type of discipline used by parents in rearing children varies from situation to situation and from child to child. 

An authoritarian approach to discipline affects the child in his peer group relationships as the child will not be able to interact freely with his peers. Conversely, a too lenient attitude will not provide the child with the necessary controls to guide his behaviour. Unfair or partial discipline fails to form an adequate conscience in the child, prevents the adults from serving as a model to be imitated by the child, and reduces the adolescent’s wish to avoid hurting the parent and the delinquent behaviour.



Emotional instability and behavioural disturbances in one or both of the parents also lead to a child’s delinquent behaviour. The child of the parents who are constantly in conflict often exploits the situation and gets away with a great deal of misbehaviour.



Lastly, family economics is also an important contributing variable in delinquency. A family’s inability to provide for the material needs of the child can create insecurity and affect the amount of control that the family exerts over the child, because he often seeks material support and security outside the home.



It should, however, be pointed out that economic status and material possessions do not explain middle and upper class delinquency. The economic condition of the family can be one of many contributing factors in a multiproblem family.

Neighbourhood:  The impact of the neighbourhood on the child is more in the urban areas than in the rural areas. After the family, the child spends a good part of the day in company of children in his neighbourhood.

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

The neighbourhood can contribute to delinquency by blocking basic personality needs engendering culture conflicts, and fostering anti-social values. On the other hand, it can supplement the influence of the home in the maintenance of social values.



Congested neighbourhoods with inadequate recreation facilities deny the natural play impulses of children and encourage the formation of delinquent gangs. Picture houses, cheap hotels and video-halls in the neighbourhoods become breeding places of vice and delinquency.

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Cinema and Pornographic Literature:  Movies and comic books featuring immorality, smoking, drinking and brutality leave a strong impression on the young minds of the children and the adolescents. Many a time, they teach the techniques of crime and delinquency. Several children are arrested in different parts of our country for emulating these techniques to commit thefts, burglaries and kidnapping. 

They claimed to have seen such techniques succeed in the movies. These movies also develop attitudes conducive to delinquent behaviour by arousing desires for easy money, suggesting questionable methods for their achievement, inducing a spirit of toughness and adventurousness, arousing sexual desires, and by invoking daydreaming.

Methods of Treating Delinquents Many approaches and methods can be used in treating a delinquent. Some important methods are: (1) psychotherapy, (2) reality therapy, (3) behaviour therapy, (4) activity therapy, and (5) milieu therapy.

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

Punishment is not discussed as a treatment method because it is no longer viewed as a viable technique of treatment, though some do feel that pain serves as a deterrent to further criminal action. Restrictions and reprimands can be effective supplements to the major treatment approach utilised but punishment cannot become an end in itself.



The two basic approaches in dealing with youngsters are the individual and the group methods of treatment. Of these, it is generally the individual method which is used by psychologists, psychiatrists, sociologists and social workers, though psychologists sometimes do use group method as well.



Sociologists usually take a 'social engineering' approach to delinquency, that is, they deal with the conditions of the social structure that breed delinquency, while psychologists treat the individual and emphasise his interpersonal dynamics.

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Sociology is regarded as a theoretical discipline researching the causes and effects of crime and delinquency.

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The profession of social work is the 'practical arm' of the sociologists (Trojanowicz, 1973: 229). As such, the above-mentioned five therapeutic methods are generally utilised by psychologists, psychiatrists and social workers. We will briefly discuss each method separately.



Psychotherapy treats emotional and personality problems by psychological means, that is, by changing the attitudes and feelings about significant persons (say, parents, etc.) in the client's (delinquent's) past.



When the early relationship of a youngster with his parents was not satisfactory, his emotional development was often retarded, with the result that he was often impulsive in his attempt to satisfy his infantile urges, not satisfied with the normal manner within his family. Satisfying these urges and impulses can take the form of anti-social behaviour.



Through psychotherapy, the delinquent is allowed by the therapist to operate in an atmosphere of love and acceptance where the person does not have to fear severe rejection or physical punishment.



This is due to the transference established in which the client and the therapist feel comfortable in exchanging communication. Thus, this therapy involves facilitating the solving of conflicts and providing positive alternatives to behaviour adaptation by the client.



Reality therapy is based on the view that people, unable to fulfill their basic needs, act in an irresponsible manner. The object of the reality therapy is to help the delinquent person act in a responsible manner, that is, refrain from antisocial activity.



For example, if a boy does not attend school classes owing to the harshness of the teacher, he is made to understand that the teacher is not harsh but is interested in helping him shape his career.



Here, the present is delinked with the past as the past cannot be changed. This therapy can be given by any one (police officer, counselor, teacher, social worker, family member, or a friend), because it does not emphasise nebulous psychiatric terms, extensive testing, or time-consuming case conferences.

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This method differs from the psychotherapeutic method in the sense that the latter is concerned with the past behaviour, while this is concerned with the present behaviour.



Whereas the basis of psychotherapy is that a person cannot change his present behaviour unless he clearly ties it to the events in the past, the basis of the Reality Therapy is that the past is insignificant.



In this therapy, since a child is treated as a responsible person and not as an unfortunate youngster, the treatment transmits strength to the youngster. The child is expected to obey rules but he is not rejected when he breaks one.



Behaviour therapy modifies the learned behaviour of the delinquent through the development of new learning processes. Behaviour can be changed through positive or negative reinforcements, that is, rewards or punishments.



Negative or unpleasant reinforcements (like restrictions) will reduce/eliminate negative behaviour (that is, delinquent activity), while positive or pleasant reinforcements (like rewards), will maintain/increase positive behaviour (like success on the job and in school).



This requires determining each individual's 'rein forcers', that is, those aspects which the individual (delinquent) will strive to achieve to gain personal satisfaction.



Money, praise, attention, food, privileges, admission in school, freedom to play with children, good clothes, etc. can be considered as positive reinforces, while threats, confinements, ridicule, physical punishment, depriving of money, etc., are negative reinforces. For modifying behaviour, both the reinforces can be employed.



Activity therapy: Many children do not have the verbal ability to communicate effectively in a conventional individual or group situation. In activity therapy method, a group of six to eight children are gathered/invited to meet at a specific time/place to engage in play or some artistic endeavor.



The atmosphere is permissive and the youngsters can use their time as they wish. Thus, a moderately neurotic child finds great release in a permissive environment where he can express his hostility and aggression in creative work, play, or mischief. Because his behaviour does not call for retaliation, punishment or disapproval, pent-up emotions find appropriate discharge.

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Milieu or environment therapy attempts to produce an environment that will facilitate meaningful change and satisfactory adjustment. This is used for persons whose deviant behaviour is a reaction to unfavourable life conditions.

Besides using the above methods, three more methods are also used in the treatment of juvenile delinquents. These are: (1) Social case-work that is, assisting the maladjusted youngster in coping with his problems. Although similar to psychotherapy in many respects, technically social casework is different from psychotherapy. Whereas a social case-worker could be a probation officer, prison counselor, mental health worker, or hospital social worker, a psychotherapist is essentially a doctor by profession. The caseworker prepares the case history of the client to explore his background, environment and relationships with his family, friends, school-fellows, etc. and evaluates his personal strengths and weaknesses so that a treatment plan can be devised and carried out. This method, however, is often not successful with delinquents because on the one hand, it is difficult to obtain the delinquent's cooperation as he has no trust in the caseworker and on the other hand, the delinquent's family also resists and feels threatened by the case-worker's 'probing'. (2) Individual counseling that is, re-educating a delinquent to enable him to understand his immediate situation and solve his problem. In this method, no attempt is made to effect a fundamental change in the client's personality. (3) Vocational counseling, that is, increasing the delinquent's knowledge of his career choices, job specifications and qualifications and training needed for successful employment. The positive attitudes, skills and habits that the youngster develops and refines in the work situation can be carried over to the community and can positively affect his relationships with others. _____________________________________________________________________________________

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CONTENTS

Source: Social Problem in India by Ram Ahuja/WIKIPEDIA


All rights are reserved. No Part of this document may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior permission of IAS ABHIYAN. 1

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Population Explosion  The rapid and dramatic rise in world population that has occurred over the last few hundred years.  Most of the growth is currently taking place in the developing world, where rates of natural increase are much higher than in industrialized countries.  Concern that this might lead to over population has led some countries to adopt population control policies.

Causes of Population Explosion:  Widening Gap between Birth and Death Rates  Low Age at Marriage:  Child marriages have been very common in our country.  The infant mortality rate is directly related to the age of women at marriage.  If we relate fertility rates (average number of children born per woman) with age groups, we find that as the age group increases, the fertility rate decreases.  If population growth is to be controlled, marriage of females (in rural and urban areas) is to be preferred in 21-23 or 23-25 age groups rather than in 15-18 or 18-21 age groups.  High Illiteracy:  Family planning has a direct link with female education, and female education is directly associated with age at marriage, general status of women, their fertility and infant mortality rate, and so forth.

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com  Religious Attitude towards Family Planning:  The religiously orthodox and conservative people are against the use of family planning measures.  There are women who disfavour family planning on the plea that they cannot go against the wishes of God.  There are some women who argue that the purpose of a woman’s life is to bear children. Other women adopt a passive attitude: “If I am destined to have many children, I will have them. If not, I will not have them. Why should I bother about it”.  Indian Muslims have a higher birth rate as well as fertility rate than the Hindus  Other Causes:  Some of the other causes responsible for the increase in population are: joint family system and lack of responsibility of young couples in these families to bring up their children, lack of recreational facilities, and lack of information or wrong information about the adverse effects of vasectomy, tubectomy and the loop.  Many poor parents produce children not because they are ignorant but because they need them. This is evident from that fact that there are some 35 million child workers in our country. If families stop those children from working, their family incomes will be terribly diminished.  Producing more children by the poor people illustrates the paradox of population-poverty interrelationship. Poverty is both 3

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com the cause and effect of the population growth. Having produced many children (sons) to combat one’s family’s growing needs, the parents are forced to keep them out of school to supplement their household income.  In turn, unlettered and ignorant children will inherit their father’s lot and like him, opt to have as many sons as are needed to work for sustenance. Ironically, a huge family size is the poor man’s only way to combat poverty caused by the population boom. The main effects of population explosion: 1. Problem of Investment Requirement:  Indian population is growing at a rate of 1.8 percent per annum. In order to achieve a given rate of increase in per capita income, larger investment is needed. This adversely affects the growth rate of the economy. 2. Problem of Capital Formation:  Composition of population in India hampers the increase in capital formation.  High birth rate and low expectancy of life means large number of dependents in the total population. In India 35 percent of population is composed of persons less than 14 years of age.  Most of these people depend on others for subsistence. They are unproductive consumers. The burden of dependents reduces the capacity of the people to save. So the rate of capital formation falls.

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com 3. Effect on per Capita Income:  Large size of population in India and its rapid rate of growth results into low per capita availability of capital.  From 1950-51 to 1980-81. India’s national income grew at an average annual rate of 3.6 percent per annum. But per capita income had risen around one percent. It is due the fact that population growth has increased by 2.5 percent. 4. Effect on Food Problem:  Rapid rate of growth of population has been the root cause of food problem. Shortage of food grains hampers economic development in two ways:  People do not get sufficient quantity of food due low availability of food which affects their health and productivity. Low productivity causes low per capita income and thus poverty.  Shortage of food-grains obliges the under-developed countries to import food grains from abroad. So a large part of foreign exchange is spent on it. So development work suffers. So rise in population causes food problem. 5. Problem of Unemployment:  Large size of population results in large army of labour force. But due to shortage of capital resources it becomes difficult to provide gainful employment to the entire working population. Disguised unemployment in rural areas and open unemployment in urban areas are the normal features of an under developed country like India. 6. Low Standard of Living:  Rapid growth of population accounts for low standard of living in India. Even the bare necessities of life are not available adequately.

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com 7. Poverty:  Rising population increases poverty in India. People have to spend a large portion of their resources for bringing up of their wards. It results into less saving and low rate of capital formation. Hence improvement in production technique becomes impossible. It means low productivity of labour. 8. Burden of Unproductive Consumers:  In India, a large number of children are dependent. Old persons above the age of 60 and many more in the age group of 15-59 do not find employment. High degree of dependency is due to high rate of dependent children. This dependency adversely affects effective saving. 9. Population and Social Problems:  Population explosion gives rise to a number of social problems. It leads to migration of people from rural areas to the urban areas causing the growth of slum areas. People live in most unhygienic and insanitary conditions.  Unemployment and poverty lead to frustration and anger among the educated youth. This leads to robbery, beggary, prostitution and murder etc. The terrorist activities that we find today in various parts of the country are the reflection of frustration among educated unemployed youth. Overcrowding, traffic congestions, frequent accidents and pollution in big cities are the direct result of overpopulation. 10. More Pressure on Land:  Rising rate of population growth exerts pressure on land. On the one hand, per capita availability of land goes on diminishing and on the other, the problem of sub-division and fragmentation of holdings goes on increasing. It adversely affects the economic development of the country. 6

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com 11. Impact on Maternity Welfare:  In India, population explosion is the result of high birth rate. High birth rate reduces health and welfare of women. Frequent pregnancy without having a gap is hazardous to the health of the mother and the child. This leads to high death rate among women in the reproductive age due to early marriage. Hence to improve the welfare and status of women in our society, we have to reduce the birth rate. 12. Pressure on Environment:  Population explosion leads to environmental degradation. Higher birth rate brings more pollution, more toxic wastes and damage to biosphere. Briefly speaking, population explosion hinders the economic development. It should be controlled effectively. The population policy of a developing country like India has to aim at: (i) Decreasing birth rate, (ii) Limiting the number of children in family to two, (iii) Decreasing the mortality, (iv) Creating awareness among the masses regarding the consequences of galloping population, (v) Procuring necessary contraceptives, (vi) Enacting laws like legalizing abortion, and (vii) Giving incentives as well as disincentives. On the other hand, it also has to aim at: (a) Checking the concentration of people in congested areas, (b) Providing necessary public services for effective settlement in new areas, and (c) Relocation of offices to less populated areas. 7

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Once the need for the population policy is realized, it has to be framed by appointing various committees and commissions for studying and advising and consulting experts. It has then to be implemented through various programmes and also evaluated from time to time. India’s population policy is the direct result of: (a) The total size of the population, (b) A high growth rate, and (c) The problem of uneven distribution in rural and urban areas.  Since our policy needs to aim at “enhancing the quality of life”, and “increasing individual happiness”, it has to act as a means to attaining a broader objective of achieving individual fulfilment and social progress. Initially, the policy framed in 1952 was ad-hoc in nature, flexible, and based on a trial and error approach. Gradually, it was replaced by more scientific planning.  The subcommittee on population appointed in 1940 under the chairmanship of Dr. Radha Kamal Mukherjee by the National Planning Committee (appointed by Indian National Congress in 1938) laid emphasis on self-control, spreading knowledge of cheap and safe methods of birth control and establishing birth control clinics.  It also recommended raising the marriage age, discouragement of polygamy, and an eugenic programme of sterilizing persons suffering from transmissible diseases. The Bhore Committee of 1943 appointed by the government criticized self-control approach and advocated “deliberate limitation of families”. 8

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com National Population Policy  As per the latest World Population Prospects released by United Nations (revision

2015),

the estimated population of India will be oximately

whereas

1419 million

appr

China’s population will be approximately 1409

million, by 2022.  In spite of the perceptible decline in Total Fertility Rate (TFR) from 3.6 in 1991 to 2.3 in 2013, India is yet to achieve replacement level of 2.1.  Twenty four states/UTs have already achieved replacement level of TFR by 2013, while states like UP and Bihar with large population base still have TFR of 3.1 and 3.4 respectively.  The other states like Jharkhand (TFR 2.7), Rajasthan (TFR 2.8), Madhya Pradesh (TFR 2.9), and Chhattisgarh (TFR 2.6) continue to have higher levels of fertility and contribute to the growth of population.  The National Population Policy 2000, is uniformly applicable to the whole country. In pursuance of this policy, Government has taken a number of measures under Family Planning Programme and as a result, Population Growth Rate in India has reduced substantially which is evident from the following:i.

The percentage decadal growth rate of the country has declined significantly from 21.5% for the period 1991-2001 to 17.7% during 2001-2011.

ii.

Total Fertility Rate (TFR) was 3.2 at the time when National Population Policy, 2000 was adopted and the same has declined to

9

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com 2.3 as per Sample registration Survey (SRS) 2013 conducted by the Registrar General of India. As the existing NPP-2000 is uniformly applicable to all irrespective of religions

and

communities

etc.,

therefore

no

proposal

is

under

consideration of the Government to formulate new uniform population policy.

The

steps

taken

by

the

Government

under

various

measures/programme are given below:Steps/Measures to Control the Population Growth of India by the Government of India On-going interventions:  More emphasis on Spacing methods like IUCD.  Availability of Fixed Day Static Services at all facilities.  A rational human resource development plan is in place for provision of IUCD, minilap and NSV to empower the facilities (DH, CHC, PHC, SHC) with at least one provider each for each of the services and Sub Centres with ANMs trained in IUD insertion. Quality care in Family Planning  services by establishing Quality Assurance Committees at state and district levels.  Improving contraceptives supply management up to peripheral facilities. Demand generation activities

10

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com  in the form of display of posters, billboards and other audio and video materials in the various facilities. National Family Planning Indemnity Scheme’ (NFPIS) under which clients are insured in the eventualities of deaths, complications and failures

following

sterilization

and

the

providers/

accredited

institutions are indemnified against litigations in those eventualities. Compensation scheme for sterilization acceptors - under the scheme MoHFW provides compensation for loss of wages to the beneficiary and also to the service provider (& team) for conducting sterilisations.  Increasing male participation and promotion of Non Scalpel Vasectomy.  Emphasis on Miniap Tubectomy services because of its logistical simplicity and requirement of only MBBS doctors and not post graduate gynecologists/surgeons.  Accreditation of more private/NGO facilities to increase the provider base for family planning services under PPP.  Strong political will and advocacy at the highest level, especially, in States with high fertility rates. New Interventions under Family Planning Programme 1.

Scheme for Home delivery of contraceptives by ASHAs at doorstep of beneficiaries: The govt. has launched a scheme to utilize the services of ASHA to deliver contraceptives at the doorstep of beneficiaries.

11

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Scheme for ASHAs to ensure spacing in births: The scheme is operational from 16th May, 2012, under this scheme, services of ASHAs to be utilised for counselling newly married couples to ensure delay of 2 years in birth after marriage and couples with 1 child to have spacing of 3 years after the birth of 1stchild. ASHAs are to be paid the following incentives under the scheme:-

a.

Rs. 500/- to ASHA for ensuring spacing of 2 years after marriage.

b.

Rs. 500/- to ASHA for ensuring spacing of 3 years after the birth of 1st child.

c.

Rs. 1000/- in case the couple opts for a permanent limiting method up to 2 children only. The scheme is being implemented in 18 States of the country (8 EAG, 8 NE Gujarat and Haryana).

3.

Boost

to

spacing

methods

by

introduction

of

new

method PPIUCD (Post-Partum Intra Uterine Contraceptives Device. 4.

Introduction of the new device Cu IUCD 375, which is effective for 5 years.

5.

Emphasis on Postpartum Family Planning (PPFP) services with introduction of PPIUCD and promotion of minilap as the main mode of providing sterilisation in the form of post-partum

12

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com sterilisation to capitalise on the huge cases coming in for institutional delivery under JSY. Assured delivery of family planning services for both IUCD and sterilisation. 6.

Compensation for sterilisation acceptors has been enhanced for 11 High Focus States with high TFR.

7.

Compensation scheme for PPIUCD under which the service provider as well as the ASHAs who escorts the clients to the health facility for facilitating the IUCD insertion are compensated.

8.

Scheme for provision of pregnancy testing kits at the sub-centres as well as in the drug kit of the ASHAs for use in the communities to facilitate the early detection and decision making for the outcome of pregnancy.

9.

RMNCH Counselors (Reproductive Maternal New Born and Child Health) availability at the high case facilities to ensure counseling of the clients visiting the facilities.

10. Celebration of World Population Day 11th July & Fortnight: The event is observed over a month long period, split into fortnight of mobilization/sensitization followed by a fortnight of assured family planning service delivery and has been made a mandatory activity from 2012-13 and starts from 27th June each year.

13

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com 11. FP 2020- Family Planning Division is working on the national and state wise action plans so as to achieve FP 2020 goals. The key commitments of FP 2020 are as under : Increasing financial commitment on Family Planning whereby India commits an allocation of 2 billion USD from 2012 to 2020. Ensuring access to family planning services to 48 million (4.8 crore) additional women by 2020 (40% of the total FP 2020 goal). Sustaining the coverage of 100 million (10 crore) women currently using contraceptives.  Reducing the unmet need by an improved access to voluntary family planning services, supplies and information.In addition to above, Jansankhya Sthirata Kosh/National Population Stabilization Fund has adopted the following strategies as a population control measure:Prerna Strategy:- JSK has launched this strategy for helping to push up the age of marriage of girls and delay in first child and spacing in second child the birth of children in the interest of health of young mothers and infants. The couple who adopt this strategy awarded suitably. This helps to change the mindsets of the community. Santushti Strategy:- Under this strategy, Jansankhya Sthirata Kosh, invites private sector gynaecologists and vasectomy surgeons to conduct sterilization operations in Public Private Partnership mode. The private

14

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com hospitals/nursing home who achieved target to 10 or more are suitably awarded as per strategy.

National Helpline: - JSK also running a call centers for providing free advice on reproductive health, family planning, maternal health and child health etc. Toll free no. is 1800116555.

Advocacy & IEC activities:- JSK as a part of its awareness and advocacy efforts on population stabilization, has established

networks and

partnerships with other ministries, development partners, private sectors, corporate and professional bodies for

spreading its activities through

electronic media, print media, workshop, walkathon, and other multi-level activities etc. at the national, state, district and block level.

_________________________________________________________________________

15

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POVERTY

Concepts & Causes of Poverty Measures in reducing poverty Rural Poverty & Its Causes Some Effective Strategies for Alleviating Rural Poverty Policies And Programmes Towards Poverty Alleviation Five key drivers of reducing poverty in India Global Hunger Index-2016

Source: Social Problem in India by Ram Ahuja/WIKIPEDIA/INDIAN EXPRESS/THE HINDU



1

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Poverty  Poverty is a social phenomenon in which a section of the society is unable to fulfill even its bare necessities of life.  The Planning Commission of India has defined a poverty line on the basis of recommended nutritional requirements of 2,400 calories per person per day for rural areas and 2,100 calories for urban areas.  The average calorie requirement is estimated by taking into account the population composition by age, sex and occupation categories together with the corresponding calorie norms by the Indian Council of Medical Research. Concepts of Poverty: There are two concepts of poverty in economics. They are absolute poverty and relative poverty. (1) Absolute Poverty:  If a person’s income or consumption expenditure is so low that he cannot live at minimum subsistence level, he is said to be absolutely poor. It basically indicates deprivation of some sort resulting in hunger and starvation.  People are said to be in absolute poverty if their earnings are insufficient to obtain the minimum necessities for the maintenance of physical efficiency. Such minimum necessities are usually measured in terms of minimum nutritional requirements. 2

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com (2) Relative Poverty:  Relative poverty concept indicates inequalities of income. The people of low income groups are relatively poor as compared to the people whose incomes are high. Here poverty is viewed in terms of inequality between the poorest group and the rest of the community. It is to be noted that relative poverty cannot be eradicated without transfers from the rich to the poor. At the same time the relatively poor may be living above the minimum subsistence level. Causes of Poverty: The causes of poverty in Indian economy are 1. High growth rate of population 2. Landless labour 3. Low productivity 4. Low food production 5. Illiteracy 6. Political system and corruption 7. Lack of job opportunity 8. Inequalities of income 9. Migration 10. Regional Disparities 11. Excessive population pressure on Agriculture. 12. Lack of capital 13. Lack of Vocational Education and Training. Measures in reducing poverty: (1) Reducing the fiscal deficits by the Central and the state governments; (2) Lifting import restrictions and boosting up exports; 3

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com (3) Controlling the borrowings; (4) Selling units in public sector which are constantly undergoing losses; (5) Collecting more taxes; (6) Improving cost effectiveness by monitoring welfare expenditure; (7) Making additional funds available in the field of trade and commerce and controlling the bank rate as well as the capital erosion by making the realization of bad debts easier; (8) Loans to the weaker sections of society may be provided at preferred rates while the extent of subsidy may be kept within reasonable limits; (9) Though many licensing restrictions have been removed, there is since need to review the remaining licensing items so that competition, intensified and dynamism may be imparted to Indian industry; (10)

Lowering

customs

tariffs

for

making

the

Indian

economy

internationally competitive; (11) Removing constraints on capital-intensive infrastructure industries, such as power, irrigation and telecommunications so that these may develop competitive market structures; (12) Our labour legislation till now is so designed as to provide workers with maximum security in terms of employment and wages. It is now time that labour laws are linked with labourers’ performance and security is provided both to the workers and the employers; (13) Growth in agricultural economy must be accelerated since two-third population is till dependent on agriculture. This requires action on several fronts, including resolving the problems of land tenure, raising the levels of 4

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com investment, increasing availability of credit, ensuring appropriate pricing policies, developing new technologies to increase productivity, decontrol of prices of certain fertilizers, and setting up public investment in agriculture and rural development; (14) Integrating various schemes of rural development; and (15) Reducing government expenditure and government employees. If we un-haltingly go on with our reforms, we can overcome the severe constraints on our economy, reduce poverty, and assure a prosperous future for our people. Rural Poverty Causes of Rural Poverty: The following causes of poverty in rural areas were identified: (1) Inadequate and ineffective implementation of anti-poverty programmes. (2) Low percentage of population engaged in non-agricultural pursuits. (3) Non-availability of irrigational facilities and erratic rainfall in several districts. (4) Low agricultural productivity resulting from dependence on traditional methods of cultivation and inadequate modern skills. (5) Non-availability of electricity for agricultural as well as industrial use in most of the villages. (6) Poor quality of livestock. (7) Imperfect and exploited credit market. Lack of link roads, communication facilities and markets (i.e., infrastructure). 5

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com (8) Low level of education. The general literacy level in the rural areas in the country is low (42.85%) while for females it is very low (24.85%). (10) Absence of dynamic community leadership. (11) Failure to seek women’s cooperation in developmental activities and associating them with planned programmes. (12) Inter-caste conflicts and rivalries. (13) Spending a large percentage of annual earnings on social ceremonies like marriage, death feast, etc., and people being unwilling to discard expensive customs. Some Effective Strategies for Alleviating Rural Poverty: For reducing poverty in the rural areas, following strategies may be suggested: (1) Strengthening credit disbursing agencies. (2) Providing cheap power supply for agricultural and industrial use. (3) Activating cooperative societies for selling products of household industries. (4) Making allocations in poverty alleviation programmes (PAPs) flexible and sanctioning special allocations to districts/blocks/villages showing good results. (5) Integrating varied PAPs in one or two schemes and making availability of benefits easier. (6) Developing human resources by focusing on education, health and skill programmes. 6

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com (7) Introducing double distributive system for the destitute and the extremely poor. (8) Creating social awareness to arrest increasing debt growth among the poor. (9) Improving animal husbandry and developing dairy and poultry farming. (10) Activating panchayats to focus on adult education programme, road construction and maintaining tree plantations. (11) Activating NGOs in role-play like digging of tanks, tree plantations, training of youth, imparting skills to women, creating social awareness among the people, and so forth.

Policies And Programmes Towards Poverty Alleviation Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act: Review of implementation I. MGNREGA: A brief introduction A. Objectives: MGNREGA, which is the largest work guarantee programme in the world, was enacted in 2005 with the primary objective of guaranteeing households.

100

days

of

wage

employment

per

year

to

rural

Secondly, it aims at addressing causes of chronic poverty

through the ‘works’ (projects) that are undertaken, and thus ensuring sustainable development. Finally, there is an emphasis on strengthening the process of decentralisation through giving a significant role to Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) in planning and implementing these works. 7

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com B. Key features: 

Legal right to work: Unlike earlier employment guarantee schemes, the Act provides a legal right to employment for adult members of rural households. At least one third beneficiaries have to be women. Wages must be paid according to the wages specified for agricultural labourers in the state under the Minimum Wages Act, 1948, unless the central government notifies a wage rate (this should not be less than Rs 60 per day). At present, wage rates are determined by the central government but vary across states, ranging from Rs 135 per day to Rs 214 per day.



Time bound guarantee of work and unemployment allowance: Employment must be provided with 15 days of being demanded failing which an ‘unemployment allowance’ must be given.



Decentralised planning: Gram sabhas must recommend the works that are to be undertaken and at least 50% of the works must be executed by them. PRIs are primarily responsible for planning, implementation and monitoring of the works that are undertaken.



Work site facilities: All work sites should have facilities such as crèches, drinking water and first aid.



Transparency and accountability: There are provisions for proactive disclosure through wall writings, citizen information boards, Management Information Systems and social audits. Social audits are conducted by gram sabhas to enable the community to monitor the implementation of the scheme.

8

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Funding: Funding is shared between the centre and the states. There are three major items of expenditure – wages (for unskilled, semi-skilled and skilled labour), material and administrative costs. The central government bears 100% of the cost of unskilled labour, 75% of the cost of semi-skilled and skilled labour, 75% of the cost of materials and 6% of the administrative costs. MGNREGA was implemented in phases, starting from February 2006, and at present it covers all districts of the country with the exception of those that have a 100% urban population. The Act provides a list of works that can be undertaken to generate employment related to water conservation, drought proofing, land development, and flood control and protection works.

SAMPOORNA GRAMEEN ROZGAR YOJANA Preamble

9

 Creation of employment opportunities with food security has been an important objective of developmental planning in India.  The relatively higher growth of population and labour force has led to an increase in the volume of unemployment and under-employment from the one Plan period to another.  The Government of India aim at bringing employment through wage and self employment into a larger focus with the goal of reducing unemployment and under-employment to a negligible level and of providing food security against hunger. Such an approach is necessary, because it is realized that larger and efficient use of available human and other resources is the most effective way of alleviating poverty, reducing inequalities, improving nutritional levels and sustaining a reasonably high pace of economic growth. www.iasabhiyan.com

IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com  To make a dent on the prevailing poverty, unemployment and slow growth in the rural economy and to provide food security, it is necessary to provide a demand driven infrastructure at the village level to facilitate faster growth in the rural areas and to increase opportunities of employment through access to the market oriented economy.  To provide a greater thrust to additional wage employment, infrastructural development and food security in the rural areas, the Hon’ble Prime Minister of India announced on 15th August 2001 , launching of an ambitious New Scheme with an annual outlay of Rs.10,000 crores.  Accordingly the Ministry of Rural Development reviewed the hitherto on-going Schemes of the Employment Assurance Scheme (EAS), (the only additional wage employment Scheme for rural areas), the Jawahar Gram Samridhi Yojana (JGSY) (a rural infrastructure development Scheme) and by merging them into one Scheme, launched the New Scheme of the Sampoorna Gramin Rozgar Yojana (SGRY) w.e.f 25th September, 2001. Broad Outlines & Objectives Objectives The Sampoorna Grameen Rozgar Yojana (SGRY) will have the following objectives: a. Primary Objective  The primary objective of the Scheme is to provide additional wage employment in all rural areas and thereby provide food security and improve nutritional levels. b. Secondary Objective 10

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com  The secondary objective is the creation of durable community, social and economic assets and infrastructural development in rural areas. Status  The programme will be implemented as a centrally sponsored scheme on cost sharing basis between the Centre and the States in the ratio of 75:25 of the cash component of the Programme.  In the case of UTs the Centre would provide entire (100%) funds under the Scheme. Foodgrains will be provided to the States/UTs free of cost. Target Group  The SGRY will be open to all rural poor who are in need of wage employment and desire to do manual and unskilled work in and around his village/habitat.  The Programme is self-targeting in nature.  While providing wage employment, preference shall be given to agricultural wage earners, non-agricultural unskilled wage earners, marginal farmers, women, members of Schedule Castes/Schedule Tribes and parents of child labour withdrawn from hazardous occupations, parents of handicapped children or adult children of handicapped parents who are desirous of working for wage employment.

NATIONAL FOOD FOR WORK PROGRAMME  The National Food for Work Programme was launched in November 2004 in 150 most backward districts of the country, identified by the Planning Commission in consultation with the Ministry of Rural Development and the State governments. 11

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com  The objective of the programme was to provide additional resources apart from the resources available under the Sampoorna Grameen Rozgar Yojana (SGRY) to 150 most backward districts of the country so that generation of supplementary wage employment and providing of food-security through creation of need based economic, social and community assets in these districts are further intensified.  The scheme was 100 per cent Centrally sponsored.  The programme has since been subsumed in National Rural Employment Guarantee Act which has come in force in 200 identified districts of the country including 150 NFFWP districts. PRADHAN MANTRI SADAK YOJANA  The Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojna (PMGSY) was launched on 25 December 2000 as a fully funded Centrally Sponsored Scheme.  The primary objective of the PMGSY is to provide connectivity to all the eligible unconnected habitations of more than 500 persons in the rural areas (250 persons in the hilly and desert areas) by good quality all-weather roads.  Under Bharat Nirman, goal has been set to provide connectivity to all the habitations with population of more than 1000 in the plain areas and habitations with a population of 500 or more in hilly and tribal areas in a time-bound manner by 2009.  The systematic upgradation of the existing rural road networks is also an integral component of the scheme. NATIONAL SOCIAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAMME  Article 41 of the Constitution of India directs the State to provide public assistance to its citizens in case of unemployment, old age, sickness and disablement and in other cases of undeserved want within the limit of its economic capacity and development.  In accordance with the Directive Principles of State Policy, the Government of India introduced in 1995 the National Social 12 www.iasabhiyan.com

IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Assistance Programme (NSAP) to lay foundation to a National Policy for Social Assistance for the poor.  The NSAP aims at ensuring minimum national standard for social assistance in addition to the benefits that state are currently providing or might provide in future.  At present NSAP comprises Indira Gandhi National Old Age Pension Scheme (IGNOAPS), National Family Benefit Scheme (NFBS) and Annapurna. SWARNAJAYANTI GRAM SWAROJGAR YOJNA  This programme was launched in April, 1999. This is a holistic programme covering all aspects of self employment such as organisation of the poor into self help groups, training, credit, technology, infrastructure and marketing.  The objective of SGSY is to provide sustainable income to the rural poor. The programme aims at establishing a large number of microenterprises in the rural areas, based upon the potential of the rural poor. It is envisaged that every family assisted under SGSY will be brought above the poverty-line with in a period of three years. Scope:  This programme covers families below poverty line in rural areas of the country. Within this target group, special safeguards have been provided by reserving 50% of benefits for SCs/STs, 40% for women and 3% for physically handicapped persons. Subject to the availability of the funds, it is proposed to cover 30% of the rural poor in each block in the next 5 years. Funding: 13

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com  SGSY is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme and funding is shared by the Central and State Governments in the ratio of 75:25 respectively. Strategy:  SGSY is a Credit-cum-Subsidy programme. It covers all aspects of selfemployment, such as organisation of the poor into self-help groups, training, credit technology, infrastructure and marketing.  Efforts would be made to involve women members in each self-help group. SGSY lays emphasis on activity clusters. Four-five activities will be identified for each block with the approval of Panchayat Samities.  The Gram sabha will authenticate the list of families below the poverty line identified in BPL census. Identification of individual families suitable for each key activity will be made through a participatory process.  Closer attention will be paid on skill development of the beneficiaries, known as swarozgaris, and their technology and marketing needs. JAWAHAR GRAM SAMRIDDHI YOJNA  The critical importance of rural infrastructure in the development of village economy is well known.  A number of steps have been initiated by the Central as well as the State Governments for building the rural infrastructure.  The public works programme have also contributed significantly in this direction. Objective: 14

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com  Jawahar

Gram

Samridhi

Yojna

(JGSY)

is

the

restructured,

streamlined and comprehensive version of the erstwhile Jawahar Rozagar Yojana.  Designed to improve the quality of life of the poor, JGSY has been launched on 1st April, 1999.  The primary objective of the JGSY is the creation of demand driven community village infrastructure including durable assets at the village level and assets to enable the rural poor to increase the opportunities for sustained employment.  The

secondary

objective

is

the

generation

of

supplementary

employment for the unemployed poor in the rural areas. The wage employment under the programme shall be given to Below Poverty Line(BPL) families. Scope:  JGSY is implemented entirely at the village Panchayat level. Village Panchayat is the sole authority for preparation of the Annual Plan and its implementation. Funding:  The programme will be implemented as Centrally Sponsored Scheme on cost sharing basis between the Centre and the State in the ratio of 75:25 respectively. Strategy:

15

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com  The programme is to be implemented by the Village Panchayats with the approval of Gram sabha. No other administrative or technical approval will be required. For works/schemes costing more than 50,000/-, after taking the approval of the Gram Sabah, the Village Panchayat shall seek the technical/administrative approval of appropriate authorities. Panchayats may spend upto 15% of allocation on maintenance of assets created under the programme within its geographical boundary. 22.5% of JGSY funds have been enmarked for individual beneficiary schemes for SC/STs. 3% of annual allocation would be utilised for creation of barrier free infrastructure for the disabled. The funds to the Village Panchayats will be allocated on the basis of the population. The upper ceiling of 10,000 population has been removed. INDIRA AAWAS YOJNA  IAY is the flagship rural housing scheme which is being implemented by the Government of India with an aim of providing shelter to the poor below poverty line.  The Government of India has decided that allocation of funds under IAY (Indira Awas Yojna)will be on the basis of poverty ratio and housing shortage Objective:  The objective of IAY is primarily to help construction of new dwelling units as well as conversion of unserviceable kutcha houses into pucca/semi-pucca by members of SC/STs, freed bonded labourers and also non-SC/ST rural poor below the poverty line by extending them grant-in-aid. 16

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Scope:  IAY is a beneficiary-oriented programme aimed at providing houses for SC/ST households who are victims of atrocities, households headed by widows/unmarried women and SC/ST households who are below the poverty line. This scheme has been in effect from 1st April, 1999. Funding:  IAY is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme funded on cost sharing basis between the Govt. of India and the States in the ratio of 75:25 respectively. Strategy:  For conversion of a kutcha house into in pucca house is provided.  Sanitary laterines and chulahs are integral part of the house.  In construction/upgradation of the house, cost effective and enviornment friendly technologies, materials and designs are encouraged.  The household is alloted in the name of a female member of beneficiary household. DRDA ADMINISTRATION  District Rural Development Agency (DRDA) has traditionally been the principal organ at the District level to oversee the implementation of the anti-poverty programmes of the Ministry of Rural Development.  Created originally for implementation of Integrated Rural Development Programme (IRDP), the DRDAs were subsequently entrusted with a number of programmes, both of the Central and State Governments. Since inception, the administrative costs of the DRDA (District Rural Development Agency) were met by setting aside a part of the allocations for each programme.

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com  Of late, the number of programmes had increased and several programmes have been restructured with a view to making them more effective. While an indicative staffing structure was provided to the DRDAs, experience showed that there was no uniformity in the staffing structure.  It is in this context that a new centrally sponsored scheme – DRDA Administration – has been introduced from 1st April, 1999 based on the recommendations of an inter-ministerial committee known as Shankar Committee. The new scheme replaces the earlier practice of allocating percentage of programme funds to the administrative costs. Objective:  The objective of the scheme of DRDA (District Rural Development Agency) Administration is to strengthen the DRDAs and to make them more professional and effective.  Under the scheme, DRDA is visualised as specialised agency capable of managing anti-poverty programmes of the Ministry on the one hand and effectively relate these to the overall efforts of poverty eradication in the district on the other. Funding:  The funding pattern of the programme will be in the ratio of 75:25 between the Centre and the States. Strategy:  The DRDA will continue to watch over and ensure effective utilisation of the funds intended for anti-poverty programmes. It will need to develop distinctive capabilities for poverty eradication. It will perform tasks which are different from Panchayati Raj Institutions and line departments.  The DRDAs would deal only with the anti-poverty programmes of the Ministry of Rural Development. If DRDAs are to be entrusted with 18 www.iasabhiyan.com

IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com programmes of other Ministries or those of the State Governments, it must be ensured that these have a definite anti-poverty focus. In respect of such States where DRDA does not have a separate identity and separate accounts. BASIC MINIMUM SERVICES  The Government of India launched this scheme in 1997 incorporating seven vital services of importance to common people.  The State Government has opted to provide shelter to shelter-less below poverty line under this scheme. Objective:  The objective of providing this scheme is to supplement the constitution of dwelling units for members of SC/ST, freed bonded labour and also non-SC/ST rural poor below the poverty line by providing them with grant. Funding:  The Central Government provides additional funds for Basic Minimum Services subject to the condition that the State Government will provide 15% of the required funds. Execution:  Additional Indira Awas are being constructed with the guidelines analogous to that for the Awas Yojana. The salient features are: Rs. 20,000/- is provided to the beneficiaries for construction of the houses in phases. Sanitary latrines and smokeless chulah are integral part of the houses.  Houses are allotted in the name of female members of the family or in joint names of both spouses.

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com  Selection of construction technology, materials and design is left entirely to the choice of beneficiaries. Contractors, Middlemen or the Departmental Agencies have no role in the construction of houses.  Cost effective and environment friendly housing technologies/design and materials are provided. COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT  The State Govt. launched a scheme in 1980-81 to enable the members of legislature to execute the small schemes of their choice that are developmental and are based on immediate felt local needs, as per the guidelines issued for this purpose. Objective:  The objective of this scheme is to facilitate immediate execution of locally important schemes, whose execution may otherwise span over a large period – as per the list of Do’s and Don’t indicated in the guidelines. Funding:  This is a State Plan Scheme whose expenditure is fully borne by the State Government. Execution:  Each legislator is supposed to indicate choice of schemes to the tune of Rs fifty lakhs per year to be taken up in his/her constituency to the concerned Deputy Development Commissioner, which will get them implemented by following the established procedures contained in the guidelines and circulars issued by the Rural Development Department. DROUGHT-PRONE AREAS PROGRAMME

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com  The Drought Prone Areas Programme (DPAP) aims at mitigating the adverse effects of drought on the production of crops and livestock and productivity of land, water and human resources.  It strives to encourage restoration of ecological balance and seeks to improve the economic and social conditions of the poor and the disadvantaged sections of the rural community. Scope:  DPAP is a people’s programme with Government assistance.  There is a special arrangement for maintenance of assets and social audit by Panchayati Raj Institutions. Development of all categories of land belonging to Gram Panchayats, Government and individuals fall within the limits of the selected watersheds for development. Funding:  Allocation is to be shared equally by the Centre and State Govt. on 75:25 basis.  Watershed community is to contribute for maintenance of assets created. Utilisation of 50% of allocation under the Employment Assurance Scheme (EAS) is for the watershed development.  Funds are directly released to Zila Parishads/District Rural Development Agencies (DRDAs) to sanction projects and release funds to Watershed Committees and Project Implementation Agencies. Strategy:  Village community, including self-help/user groups, undertake area development by planning and implementation of projects on watershed basis through Watershed Associations and Watershed Committees constituted from among themselves.  The Government supplements their work by creating social awareness, imparting training and providing technical support through project implementation agencies. 21 www.iasabhiyan.com

IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com MP LOCAL AREA DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME  MPLADS was launched in December 1993 as a central sector scheme to enable Members of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha to execute the schemes of their choice that are developmental and based on locally felt needs within the guidelines for this purpose. Objective:  The basic objective of this programme is to facilitate immediate execution of small but locally important schemes, whose execution may otherwise span over a huge period.  The works which can be carried out under this scheme are – construction of buildings for schools, hostels, libraries and shelter for old/handicapped, construction of link/approach roads, culverts/bridges, public irrigation and public drainage facilities etc. as indicated in the guidelines. Funding:  The Government of India provides cent-percent fund for this scheme. Each MP has the choice to suggest work to the tune of Rs. Two crores per year to be taken up in his/her constituency. Execution:  Execution of this scheme is done through the detailed guidelines and circulars issued from time to time on matters relating to operational details by the Department of Programme Implementation, Govt. of India CREDIT-CUM-SUBSIDY SCHEME FOR RURAL HOUSING  There were a large number of households in the rural areas which could not be covered under the IAY, as either they do not fall into the range of eligibility or due to the limits imposed by the available budget. 22

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com  On the other hand due to limited repayment capacity, these rural households cannot take benefit of fully loan based schemes offered by some of the housing finance institutions.  The need of this majority can be met through a scheme which is part credit and part subsidy based. Objective:  The objective of this scheme for rural housing is to facilitate construction of houses for rural families who have some repayment capacity.  The scheme aims at eradicating shelterlessness from the rural area of the country. Scope:  The scheme provides shelter to rural families who have not been coveted under IAY and who are desirous of possessing a house. All rural households having annual income up to Rs. 32,000/- are covered under this scheme. Funding:  The funds are shared by the Centre and the State in the ratio of 75:25 respectively.  Rural poor just above the poverty line are entitled to get the benefits of the scheme. A maximum subsidy of Rs. 10,000/- per unit is provided for the construction of a house.  Sanitary latrine and smokeless chulha are integral part of the house. Cost effective and enviornment friendly technologies, materials, designs, etc. are encouraged. Sixty per cent (60%) of the houses are allocated to SC/ST rural poor.

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Five key drivers of reducing poverty in India India is uniquely placed to drive global poverty reduction. It is home to the largest number of poor people in the world, as well as the largest number of people who have recently escaped poverty. Despite an emerging middle class, many of India’s people are still vulnerable to falling back into poverty. India is home to 26% of the global extreme poor. This means that the world’s ability to end extreme poverty by 2030 — an objective originally adopted by the World Bank and now a key element of the Sustainable Development Goals — hinges on India’s ability to make strong and sustained inroads in reducing poverty. The good news is that India has made notable strides in tackling extreme poverty and promoting growth among its poorest — what we call shared prosperity. The country is also home to the largest number of people who have escaped poverty in recent years, based on a poverty line set at $ 1.90 per person per day (in 2011 Purchasing Power Parity). Indeed, in contrast to the 1990s, the rate of decline in extreme poverty in India has not only outpaced the developing world as a whole, but also the middle- and lower middle-income countries as a group. Poverty challenge in India remains broad, and sometimes contradictory. Even though there is an emerging middle class, many people who have escaped poverty are not yet economically secure, living precariously close to the poverty line.

India and Other Countries:  When we compare India to other countries, there is marked room for improvement. For example, even though India has grown rapidly, its growth has been less effective at reducing poverty than in some of India’s middle-income peers such as China, Vietnam, Brazil and Turkey.

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com  India’s performance on key non-monetary indicators of well-being such as child nutrition and improved sanitation facilities lags behind countries at similar stages of development. And estimates that look at the country as a whole can often mask very large differences in the standards of living among states. Five key requirements for sustainable poverty reduction 1 Accelerating rural poverty reduction: With four out of every five of India’s poor living in rural areas, progress will need to focus on the rural poor. Our research shows that this is not just about agricultural growth, which has long been considered the key driver of poverty reduction. In fact, rural India is not predominantly agricultural, and shares many of the economic conditions of smaller urban areas. Capitalizing on growing connectivity between rural and urban areas, and between the agriculture, industry and services sectors, has been effective in the past two decades and holds promise for the future. 2 Creating more and better jobs: The road out of poverty in India has been built on the performance of the labour market, but also benefitted from rising transfers and remittances, and favourable demographics among other factors. Labour earnings have risen enough to move people out of poverty, but not into the middle class — more could be done. Future efforts will need to address job creation in more productive sectors, which has until now been tepid and has yielded few salaried jobs that offer stability and security. 3 Focusing on women and Scheduled Tribes: Two of the most worrying trends are the low participation of women in the labour market and the slow progress among Scheduled Tribes. India’s women have been withdrawing from the labour force since 2005, and less than one-third of working-age women are now in the labour force. As a result, India today ranks last 25

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com among BRICS countries, and close to the bottom in South Asia in female labour force participation. Scheduled Tribes started with the highest poverty rates of all of India’s social groups, and have progressed more slowly than the rest. Both are at risk of being locked out of India’s growth and prosperity. 4 Creating more ‘good’ locations: Where people live largely shapes their prospects in life. India’s states continue to see large and growing differences in poverty levels and basic opportunities. More and more of India’s poor are concentrated in the poorest states, and even within relatively prosperous states, certain pockets of deprivation persist where people are unable to share in the state’s successes. 5 Improving human development outcomes for the poor: This is central to improving their quality of life and income-earning opportunities. We cannot continue to assume that rapid economic growth will automatically translate into better human development outcomes. The recent past shows that some problems, such as undernutrition and open defecation, are endemic and not confined to the poor, and have not improved with economic growth.

Global Hunger Index-2016 Highlights of the Index:  15.2% of its citizens undernourished  38.7% of under-five children stunted  According to the report’s global rankings for 2016, India, which ranked 97 among 118 developing nations, fares worse than all its 26

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com neighbours such as China (29), Nepal (72), Myanmar (75), Sri Lanka (84) and Bangladesh (90), except for Pakistan (107).  India’s global hunger index or GHI score of 28.5 is worse than the developing country average score of 21.3. While countries like Brazil and Argentina have a GHI score of less than 5 and ranked the best among developing nations, nations like Chad and Central African Republic fare the worst with a score of 44.3 and 46.1, respectively. Indicators:  Proportion of undernourished in the population  Prevalence of child mortality,  Child stunting  Child wasting

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SCHEDULED CASTES

Source: Social Problem in India by Ram Ahuja/IGNOU/IE/The Hindu etc



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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Scheduled Castes: Social Backgrounds Caste system forms the essential component of stratification system in India. The Varna system, constitutes a status-hierarchy with the Brahmins on the top followed by Kshatriyas, Vaishyas and Shudras. The secheduled fall out of the fourfold Varna System. The Scheduled Caste: 

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The Scheduled Caste is a politico-legal-term. It was first coined by the Simon Commission and then Government of India, Act, 1935. When India became independent this term was adopted by the Constitution for the purpose of providing them some special facilities and the constitutional guarantees. Yet Untouchables or the Scheduled Castes do not constitute a homogeneous group. They are internally differentiated in terms of occupation, numerical segregated on the criteria of untouchability. Another term used for the Scheduled Castes or Untouchables is “Harijans” (the children of God). This term was first used by Mahatma Gandhi, which refers to an aggregate of castes which may differ from each other and which have been reduced to the lowest ritual and social status in the caste hierarchy. Another term which comes into currency almost at the same time is depressed class or classes. This term was used by Dr. Ambedkar and it refered to those classes of categories or people who were poor, exploited and socially and ritually or religiously degraded. They were treated as pariah or socially defiled. In term which is currently popular and is preferred by the scheduled caste is the term dalit. The word dalit is inclusive, in the sense that it includes also those communities groups of people, who are marginalised and subjugated it is used in a generic sense to the untouchable or the scheduled caste.

The Untouchable Castes and their Origins 

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The term Scheduled Castes signifies those groups of people who were out of the caste system or the varna hierarchy. They comprise the bulk of “untouchables” or untouchable castes. These groups or castes have been discriminated against by the superior castes through the ages and they have never had any kind of social acceptance from the majority of the people who belong to the upper castes. The Scheduled Caste were deemed untouchable and polluting by the upper caste due to their so called polluting activities like scavenging, cremation, skinning and hiding, etc. Not only because of their unclean occupations, but also due to their so called ‘dark complexion’ they were placed at the bottom of the ritual and social hierarchies of the caste and varna system.

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Since the Varna ashram darma – the philosophy and the religious duty demanded that each jati was to follow one’s traditional occupation – like priest’s son becomes a priest and a shoe-maker or tanner’s son or a becoming a shoe maker or a heriditory tanner. It was impossible for the untouchable castes to better their position by changing their occupation. The association of occupation with caste became inseperable, so much so, that the very fact of being born into a community, whether you engaged in clean or unclean activity had become irrelevant. Thus untouchables are those castes which were outside the pale of varna system. They were said to be polluting and marginalised and consigned to the lowest rung in society. Several ideological justifications existed for the sustanance of these ierarchical system, which kept everybody in their place.

CONSTITUTION AND THE SCHEDULED CASTES Before being scheduled and embodied in the Government of India Act 1935 and later in the constitution of free India in 1950, these castes were classified as “exterior” or “depressed” castes or classes. A caste was classified exterior or depressed if it was found subjected to a set of social disabilities or restrictions. According to the 1931 census, these disabilities or restrictions were: (1) inability to be served by clean-Brahmins; (2) inability to be served by the barbers, water carriers, tailors, etc. who served the caste Hindus; (3) inability to serve water to caste Hindus; (4) inability to enter Hindu temples; (5) inability to use public convenience such as roads, ferries, wells or schools; and (6) inability to dissociate oneself from despised occupation. Ambedkar played key role in the fight to give Scheduled Caste a dignity and their rights. He among others championed the cause of Scheduled Caste. During independent India certain reforms were undertaken to remove the discriminatory practices of intouchability. With the coming into force of the Constitution of India the Scheduled Castes were guaranteed certain essential rights and benefits.  

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Under Article 341(l), the Constitution after consultation with the governor of a State may specify, “The castes, races, tribes or, parts of groups within castes or races, tribes which shall be deemed to be scheduled castes for the purpose of the constitution.”

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com   

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However, according to the Article 341 (2) the Parliament of India, can include or exclude any group from the list of Scheduled Castes through an enactment of law. The Scheduled Castes are socially and economically backward groups and, therefore, the constitution gives special protection to them. Under Article 46 of the constitution, it is the responsibility of the State to promote with special care the educational and -economic interests of the weaker sections of people and the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in particular, and to protect them from social injustices and all forms of exploitation. The Preamble reflects the basic philosophy of the Indian constitution which stands by the Scheduled Castes. There are a number of articles included in Part-III of the constitution which provides fundamental rights to the citizens, Article 14, 15, 16 and 17 provide rights to equality. Article 14 of the constitution provides right to equality before law that means, every citizen in the country is equal before law. Article 15 prohibits social and educational discrimination on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth. This article provides that no citizen shall be prevented from access to shops, public restaurants, hotels, place of entertainment, use of public facilities like wells, tanks, bathing ghats, roads, places of public resort, etc. This also empowers the State to make special provision for advancement of the socially and educationally backward classes of the citizens. Article 16 prescribes the equality of opportunity in matters of public appointment. It provides that the State can reserve posts in public services for members of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. Finally Article 17 of this part of Constitution legally abolishes the practice of untouchability in any form against the Scheduled Castes. This article treats practice of untouchability as a legal offence and the offender is to be punished in accordance with the law. The offender may be imprisoned and or be subjected to fine. Later the provisions made under this article of the Constitution were strengthened and made more stringent under the Untouchability Offences Act in 1955. Article 46 mentions specifically that the State must endeavour to promote the educational and economic interests of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes among the weaker sections of the society. More precisely, the State shall reserve the public jobs for the members of the Scheduled Caste and Tribes. Two Articles, 330 and 332, lay down that there shall be reservation of seats in the Lok Sabha (Article 330) and State Legislative Assembly (Article 332) in proportion to the number of the Scheduled Castes in various states. And finally, according to Article 340, the President can appoint a commission to investigate the difficulties of the socially and educationally backward classes of

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com the citizens and to make recommendations to remove such difficulties. The commission is also empowered to take stock of the progress made by these classes of citizens due to provisions made under various articles for their welfare, protection and development. Reservation Policy for the Scheduled Castes The aim of the reservation policy is to help Scheduled Castes to come up, within specified time, at par with others in the society. The reservation policy has three major components. These are: 1) reservation in government appointments, 2) reservation in admission to educational institutions and 3) reservation of seats in the House of People (Lok Sabha) and the Legislative Assemblies of the States. There are other progressive measures to boost employment and steps are taken to eliminate poverty. Further, 15% and 7.5% posts are reserved for the Scheduled Caste and Tribe candidates in government jobs. Such reservations of posts are applicable in all the categories of jobs both in the Central and State Government services. In the recent years, such reservation has been extended to the services in the public undertaking units. In addition to these, the State Governments have also adopted other measures for school children of the Scheduled Castes. These are: a) provision of books; b) provision of educational equipment; c) provision of mid-day meals; d) provision of stipends; e) provision of school uniforms etc.       

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Besides, 15% seats are reserved for Scheduled Castes and 7.5% for tribes’ in admission in public schools. Similar provisions are also available for the SC/ST students in their admission to colleges, universities and other educational institutions. Then equal percentage of hostel seats are also reserved for them. There are post-matric scholarship by the various state governments to the students belonging to these castes and tribes. Out of 542 Lok Sabha seats 79 seats are reserved for the Scheduled Castes. Similarly, out of 3997 seats 541 seats in the State Legislatures are reserved for Scheduled Castes. The bulk of the Scheduled Caste constituencies contain 10 to 30% of the Scheduled Castes population, and around 75% of the Scheduled Castes population live in scattered fashion outside the constituencies reserved for them.

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This means, the elections of the Scheduled Caste candidates even from the reserved constituencies are largely dependent on the non-Scheduled Castes. Besides, the Scheduled Castes in rural areas are politically less conscious and are influenced by caste politics. Many of them do not exercise their franchise or they are absent during the time of voting due to reasons of migration for employment. In the urban areas, the Scheduled Castes are relatively in a better position. But in spite of the reservation and other developmental measures the deprived sections who are less in number and who are uneducated continue to remain backward. The caste class nexus works strongly and allows only a few castes to be politically or socially mobile. This has defeated the very purpose of the reservation and the intention of the constitutional measures for development of the Scheduled Castes.

Developmental Programmes A number of other developmental schemes have been adopted for the people in general and the Scheduled Castes in particular in the rural areas. Some of these are: Integrated Rural Development Programme (IRDP), National Rural Employment Programme (NREP), the new 20 point programme etc. But incidentally these programmes have not properly been implemented at the block level. A comprehensive strategy was worked out during the -6th Five Year Plan which had 3 aspects: 1) Special Component Plans (SCP) for the Central and the State Governments for monitoring various programmes for development of the Scheduled Castes. 2) Special Central Assistance (SCA) for Special Component Plans for the Scheduled Castes in the different states. 3) Scheduled Caste Development Corporations (SCDC) in the States. 

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The SCP identifies schemes for welfare and development of the Scheduled Castes and provides financial assistance to the State Governments to various programmes under these schemes, it acts as an interface between the Scheduled Caste families and financial institutions in respect of bankable schemes of economic development. The corporation provides subsidy loans and other kinds of assistance to these families, and thereby, helps to increase the flow of funds from financial institutions to the Scheduled Caste families. In the Seventh and Eighth Five Year Plans also the Central and State Governments have set up a large portions of the plan outlays for the welfare and development of the Scheduled Castes under the special component programmes. While the constitution emphasises on social and educational backwardness of certain castes and tribes for their being eligible for the benefits of the constitutional provisions, the present controversy centres around the definition of backwardness itself.

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According to this, the criteria for identifying those deprived sections of population who are eligible for the Government’s privileges and concessions have not been clearly identified in the present reservation policy. There are many socially backward castes who are economically forward and are reaping the fruits of reservation while the majority of the needy population have no access whatsoever to these constitutional measures. The experience in the last fifty years or so has shown that the reservation policy has not delivered the desired results to the right people. The policy has generated conflicts and tensions between those who are beneficiaries of reservation and those who are out of the purview of the policy. We have to accept the fact that the opposition of the weaker sections by the stronger sections of the society has not ended. The benefits of development in every aspects of life have been appropriated by about 20% of the population who are at the top and are drawn more from the nonscheduled and less from the scheduled castes. The intended benefits of the reservation policy as well as of the other developmental programmes are not, made available to those people who rightly deserve them. There are various infrastructural levels at which these benefits are appropriated as the caste and class politics works very strongly given the existing social circumstances. At the operational level, there are innumerable barriers, which have to be removed. Against this backdrop, it is realised that the Scheduled Castes have to organise themselves socially and politically in order to get their due share and rights and to fight against the dominant castes or class and remove the caste differences among themselves.

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Untouchability is a cultural problem related to the Hindu religion and the caste system. Many social movements were launched by social reformers and religious leaders against untouchability. A number of such movements launched by the dalits or the Scheduled Castes under the leadership of B.R. Ambedkar gained strong momentum. This was, reflected in the growing self consciousness of the Scheduled Castes which continues even today. However, the spontaneous revolts and organised struggles launched in different parts of the country against the practice of untouchability and their economic exploitation are not recent phenomena. There had always been antiuntouchability movements throughout the history. But their numbers had

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com increased since the British rule in India and especially during the freedom struggle. a) Anti-untouchability in Bhakti and Arya The anti-untouchability movements may be classified (1) reformative movements and (2) alternative movements.  

Samaj movements into two categories:

The reformative movements aim to reform the caste system in order to put an end to the problem of untouchability. The alternative movements aim to create ’an alternative cultural environment by conversion to’ another religion.

The reformative movements arrived out during different periods in India are broadly of three types: (1) bhakti movement (2) neovedantic movement (3) sanskritisation movement. 

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Bhakti movement was popular during the medieval period in India when there was a succession of foreign invaders like the Mughals, Turks, Arabs and the Afghans. The bhakti movement tried to bring some sort of cultural and emotional integration between the upper castes and the. lower castes. Kabir, Ramanand, Chaitanya, Tukaram and Ramanujam were the noted saints,of that period who spread the spirit of brotherhood among all human beings. They preached that every caste member could attain salvation through Bhakti to God. In spite of all this, the socio-economic position of the Sudra/untouchable castes remained unchanged. Even the temples constructed by the members of the bhakti movement did not allow the untouchables to enter their premises. Neo-vedantic movement assumed two forms namely neo-vedantism and sanskritisation. Vivekanand, Dayanand and Gandhi emphasised on secularisation of profession. Dayanand Saraswati the founder of the Arya Samaj believed that the caste system was a political institution created by the ruiers’for the common good of society and not a natural or religious distinction.

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Gandhi also said that all the four varnas were equal in status but not equal in opportunity and occupational division. For him, the varna system was not a hierarchical order. A scavenger had the same status as a Brahmin.

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As stated earlier in this unit, he symbolically called untouchables as “Harijans”, that is “the people of God”. Gandhi believed in the unity of various social groups. This was reflected in all his actions like his adoption of a harijan girl as his own daughter. He voluntarily decided to live with the untouchables to become one with them in appearance and in the standard of living. He even opposed separate electorate for the untouchables because, in his opinion, it could intensify the social division, which already existed in Hinduism. Gandhi had organised the Harijan Sevak Sangh for improving the life of the Harijans. The Sangh started hostels for the school untouchable children and improved work conditions of Harijans.

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Further, there were quite a few movements launched by the untouchable castes in different parts of the country which successfully mobilised the people of these castes to forego their traditional way of life, food habits and even name of the castes. These were very much in tune to sanskritisation. In some cases sanskritisation encouraged upward status mobility to honour castes. By abandoning their traditional occupations many of the lower castes had struggled for a higher status in the caste hierarchy. They followed Sanskritic norms and rituals and justified their claims to a higher status by creating their own mythologies according to the local traditions. However, how far their claims for equality with the upper castes was accepted in a particular region was always a question. Those castes who have tried to seek a new identity by identifying with and imitating certain customs and practices of upper castes are still treated as untouchables in their places of residence. But there are a few caste groups like the Nadars in Tamil Nadu, Ezhavas in Kerala and the Jatavs of Agra in Uttar Pradesh who have somehow been able to organise themselves to fight against the oppression meted out to them. Hardgrave has studied the Nadar community in Tamil Nadu. The Nadars who were traditionally engaged in toddy-tapping were treated as untouchables. They rejected their title or surname of Shanan and shavar to adopt a new title or surname of Nadar. This attempt was mainly to dissociate themselves from the traditional occupation of the community. They followed Sanskritic rituals and made attempts to enter temples as early as in 1970. A section of Nadars in some villages and towns also converted to Christianity and formed organisations to strengthen unity among them. Many of their attempts to enter temples were not fulfilled in the beginning because there were lot of restrictions and resentment posed by the caste Hindus or the upper castes. Some cases were taken to the court which delivered the judgement against the Nadar

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community and they were asked to pay Rs. 500/- for purification of the temples in which they attempted to enter. Despite all these failures, the Nadars continued their efforts for status elevation and undertook many secular activities. They formed the Nadar Mahajan Sangham which carried out literacy programmes and campaigned against toddy-tapping within the community. They also participated in political activities and even obtained political positions. In the 1921 census they got themselves registered as Nadar Kshatriyas. M.N. Srinivas has noted that the census operations introduced by the British made every caste self-conscious of its rights and status. This activated the process of sanskritisation. Similar to Nadar, the Ezhavas in Kerala also tried to achieve upward social mobility. The Ezhavas were also traditionally toddy-tappers. They were led by Shri Narayanan Guru and the S.N.D.P. Yogam, forming an association called Shri Narayana Guru Dharma Paripalayan. In the latter part of the 19th century the association launched activities for sanskritising the norms and customs of Ezhavas. It undertook secular programmes such as establishing schools and cooperative societies. The Ezhavas also joined hands with Christians and Muslims for achieving their aims.

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The Jatavs of Uttar Pradesh also tried to sanskritise themselves by giving up their traditional occupation which were directly linked with the Jajmani system, that is, hereditary occupational services to the upper castes by the lower castes. The Jatavs of Agra were urban dwellers and the majority of them were also engaged in the leather work (shoe making). So, many of the Jatavs could improve their social and economic conditions once the shoe industry developed in and around Agra. Like the Nadars and Ezhavas the Jatavs and Mahars also formed organisation to spread sanskritic norms and customs among their caste members. They started schools and distributed scholarships to deserving students of their jatis, in order to identify themselves as a higher caste, like the Nadars, the Jatavs also claimed for a new and separate identity (from the rest of the Scheduled Castes). O.M. Lynch in his book “Politics of Untouchability” has shown that the Jatavs claim to be recognised as a separate caste among the scheduled castes without being amalgamated with other castes under the list of scheduled castes which the Jatavs claim not to have any connection.

e) Anti-untouchability movment in Maharashtra  10

The Mahars in Maharashtra under the leadership of Ambedkar demanded, in 1919, separate electorate for the depressed classes.

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Many of the militant Mahars also got extremely frustrated with their abortive attempts towards sanskritisation and even gave up Hindu religion completely. Many Jatavs also followed this example later. In the early fifties, Ambedkar found that Buddhism was appropriate as an alternative religion. He preferred Buddhism primarily because in his opinion, it is an indigenous Indian religion of equality, a religion which was anti-caste and anti-Brahmin. Consequently, along with him a large Mahars of Maharashtra converted to Buddhism. The Militant Mahar youth organised the Dalit Panther Movement in 1942 because the religious conversion did not make any significant change in their socioeconomic condition. Now, the scheduled castes are involved in civil rights movements, students movements in the university and college campuses, and also in the ecological movements in many regions. Thus, they are collectivity endorsing their identity in various ways to pave a brighter future for themselves. The new identities of the scheduled castes are being accepted by others. Because of their educational development and the westernization the practices of untouchability and discrimination against them are slowly becoming less. The welfare and developmental measures undertaken for the improvement in their economic position and upliftment of their social status have been responsible for opening new vistas for the depressed classes. In spite of all these, we cannot say for certain that the Scheduled Castes are enjoying an equal status at par with the others. Their present generation has just set the stage for development and we can hope that the Scheduled Castes would acquire a new and a positive identity vis-a-vis rest of the castes and communities in years to come. A few more untouchable castes left Hinduism and developed their own separate religion. The Chamars and Chuhars of Punjab formed the Adi Dharm which believed that they were not part of the Hindu caste system. Later, the followers of Adi Dharm were politically aligned and absorbed in Ambedkar’s Scheduled Caste Federation in the late 1940s. Some Untouchables followed Christianity, Islam or Buddhism, and all those who were converted to Christianity or Islam did not make any attempts to sanskritise them. The classic case is of the Nadars of Tirunelvelli in Tamil Nadu who converted to Christianity. However, all those who have become Christians have not ceased to be untouchables. Caste differentiation has permeated itself even within the Church. The economic differentiation between the Pulaya Christian (traditional untouchables) and the Syrian Christians in Kerala still persists. Earlier, the Syrian Christians considered themselves to be more superior to Pulaya Christians

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in terms of education and employment. But now their situation is gradually improving. K.C. Alexander who has made a noteworthy study of social mobility among the Pulaya Christians has observed the Pulayas who now are university graduates and who are employed in white collar jobs are rarely treated as untouchables.

National Commission for Scheduled Castes National Commission for Scheduled Castes is an Indian constitutional body established with a view to provide safeguards against the exploitation of Scheduled Castes to promote and protect their social, educational, economic and cultural interests, special provisions were made in the Constitution. The following are the functions of the commission. To investigate and monitor all matters relating to the safeguards provided for the Scheduled Castes under this Constitution or under any other law for the time being in force or under any order of the Government and to evaluate the working of such safeguards; To inquire into specific complaints with respect to the deprivation of rights and safeguards of the Scheduled Castes; To participate and advise on the planning process of socio-economic development of the Scheduled Castes and to evaluate the progress of their development under the Union and any State; To present to the President, annually and at such other times as the Commission may deem fit, reports upon the working of those safeguards; To make in such reports recommendations as to the measures that should be taken by the Union or any State for the effective implementation of those safeguards and other measures for the protection, welfare and socio-economic development of the Scheduled Castes; and To discharge such other functions in relation to the protection, welfare and development and advancement of the Scheduled Castes as the President may, subject to the provisions of any law made by Parliament, by rule specify.

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Stand Up India scheme to help women and SC/ST entrepreneurs Government approves scheme to promote entrepreneurship among women and SC/ST. Some features of the Stand Up India scheme that you should know: 

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The scheme is a part of Start-up India, Stand up India slogan, spread by the Department of Financial Services (DFS) to encourage entrepreneurial projects

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The Stand Up India scheme will facilitate two entrepreneurial projects on an average of one for each category (Women and SC/ST) of entrepreneurs per bank branch

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The scheme will provide financial aid through the Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) with an initial amount of Rs 10,000 crore

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A credit guarantee system would also be implemented under the scheme through the National Credit Guarantee Trustee Company (NCGTC), which will act as the operating agency for financial aids

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The system will personally guide each entrepreneur through the pre-loan and operational phases

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The margin money for the composite loan will be up to 25 percent to help the credit system reach out to the entrepreneurs

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Loan amounts from Rs 10 lakh to Rs 1 crore will be given to female and SC/ST entrepreneurs that will be repayable up to seven years

The scheme will also familiarise the entrepreneurs with factoring services, e-market places and registration with online platforms and other aspects of web entrepreneurship. _____________________________________________________________________________________

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SCHEDULED TRIBES

Source: Social Problem in India by Ram Ahuja/IGNOU/IE/The Hindu etc



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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com The concept of Scheduled Tribe The concept of Scheduled Tribe emerged henceforth and was included in the Constitution of independent India. A list of tribes was incorporated in the Eighth Schedule of the constitution. In 1971, the list contained names of 527 tribes. The reservation policy or the policy of protecting discrimination for the notified or Scheduled Tribes has been made a constitutional obligation. Constitutional Safeguards   

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Under Article 15(4) special provisions are made for educational advancement of the Scheduled Tribes. These provisions are like reservation of seats and relaxation in marks in admission to educational institutions, scholarships, etc. Under Article 46 the State is enjoined upon to promote with special care to education and economic interests of SC and ST and protect them from social injustice and all forms of exploitation. Articles 330 and 332 seats are reserved for SC and ST in Lok Sabha State Vidhan Sabhas. Under Artcle 339(1) the President may at anytime appoint a Commission to report on the administration of the Scheduled Area and the welfare of the Scheduled Castes and Tribes in the State.

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On the basis of racial affinities the Indian people are classified into various groups. The ancestry of the present tribal population is traced chiefly to the following three races:

i) The Negrito : This shorter version of the Negro is found in the Andaman islands. There are four Scheduled Tribes in this area, viz., the Andamanese (now settled in Strait Island, the Onge in Little Andaman Island, the Jarawa on the western coast of Middle and South Andaman Islands and the Sentinelese in the two Sentinel Islands. ii) The Proto-Australoid : The tribes of the Middle and the Southern zones are generally assigned to this race and they form the bulk of the tribal population in India. iii) The Mongoloid : The tribes of the North and North-Eastern zones generally belong to this race which is divided into two sub-types, viz., PalaeoMongoloids (long-headed and broad-headed) and Tibeto Mongoloids. Besides these three main racial groups, some tribal communities trace their ancestryto the Palaeo-Mediterranean stock also. Linguistic Affinities

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com On the basis of linguistic affinities, the Indian people are classified into four speech families, viz., the Indo-European (Aryan), the Dravidian, The Austric (Kol or Munda) and Tibeto-Chinese. The Scheduled Tribes speak about 105 languages and 225 subsidiary languages, or dialects. The linguistic classification of the Indian tribal population is as follows: i) Sino-Tibetan : In the North and North-Eastern zones most of the tribal speak some form or the other of Sino-Tibetan and Tibeto-Burman. In certain north eastern areas there is an admixture of the Mon-Khmer (Austric) speech, e.g., among the Khasi. In Nagaland, sixteen languages apart from numerous dialects are spoken. ii) Kol or Munda : In the Central zone the Austric family of languages is dominant. The Munda languages lack the verb and gender differentiation. The only classificatory device is the differentiation between animate and inanimate. Some of the important Munda languages are Santhali, Mundari, Ho, Kharia, Korwa, Korku and Gadaba. iii) Dravidian : The tribal people of the Southern zone speak some form or the other of the Dravidian languages, viz., Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada, Tulu. The Kedar, one of the oldest inhabitants of India, speak a Malayalam dialect. There has been Dravidianisation of significant South Indian tribes like the Chenchu and the Yenadi. Some of the important Dravidian tribes are Gond, Oraon, Maler, Kandh, Saora, Parja, Koya, Kolam, Paniyan, Irula, Malser and Malaryan. TRIBAL MOVEMENTS Numerous uprisings and movements among the tribes especially in Bihar had occurred as early as in 1772. Some of the important movements among the tribes in British India were Mizos (1810), Kols (1795 & 1831), Mundas (1889), Santhals (1853), Muria Gonds (1886) and so forth. When the British came to India and expanded their rule, they came into clash with the tribes also. The British interfered in many of their customs which was resented by the tribes. But more than anything, the oppressive and exploitative landlords, middlemen, money-lenders, forest officials and princely chiefs contributed much to tribals rise in a revolt. They were eventually subdued, disarmed and or many a times appeased. The tribes who were in close proximity to Hindus and who were influenced by the Hindu customs and traditions had their own preoccupations, their movements were directed to raising their social mobility. Their movements have been compared to the status mobility movements among the lower castes. The tribes like Bhumij, Kond, Juang and number of other tribes were influenced by caste associations of Hindus. In Madhva Pradesh, for instance, there were movements among the Gonds claiming Kshatriya 3

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com status. The sought to purify and cleanse their social and religious institutions in tune with the practice of high caste Hindus. After Independence the Scheduled tribes, whether Hinduised or Christianised, were granted certain economic, educational, political and administrative privileges. This made them aware of themselves as unified groups who could hold on their own against all sorts of oppressions. They also could claim higher status because of education, economic benefits, political power etc. There are intances of movements among tribes seeking their ties not only with fellow tribes but also with the other oppressed sections of people. For the purpose of study, the tribal movements have often been classified into 3 types on the basis of their orientation. These are : (1) Movements for political autonomy, the Jharkhand Movement is a good example of this (2) the agrarian and forest based movements, the naxalite movements others involving tribes of Bihar, Orissa and Andhra Pradesh are fighting for their customary rights of land and forest. It can be are the results of oppression, discrimination, neglect and backwardness of the tribal people. (3) The third kind is socio-cultural movement. APPROACHES TO THE TRIBAL DEVELOPMENT A plan for tribal development must be holistic. It should tackle all cultural, social, economic and political, problems of the tribals. Priorities must be fixed in terms of quick results. At the outset, the tribal support for planning has to be enlisted by demonstrating to them that an attempt is being made-to change their life for the better and not at destroying whatever they have. The first focal point on which to concentrate is to their health any hygiene besides their economic life. No plans for change can succeed without their proper education. Instructions should be imparted in such knowledge as helps a person to be a better number of his / her own community much as possible the traditional system of imparting instruction should be retained. It is a human problem of immense magnitude for the solution of which administrators, social workers and social scientists must pool their resources together. Nehru added that these avenues of development should be pursued within the broad framework of the following five fundamental principles: 1) People should develop along the lines of their own genius and we should avoid imposing anything on them. We should try to encourage in every way their own traditional arts and cultures. 2) Tribal rights in land and forests should be respected. 3) We should try to train and build up a team of their own people to do the work of 4

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com administration and development. Some technical personnel from outside will, no doubt, be needed, especially in the beginning. But we should avoid introducing too many outsiders into tribal territory. 4) We should not over-administer these areas or overwhelm them with a multiplicity of schemes. We should rather work through, and not in rivalry to their own social and cultural institutions. 5) We should judge results not by statistics or the amount of money spent but by the quality of human character that is evolved.

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These five principles have since come to be known as Tribal Panchsheel. It is often, stated that the objective of tribal development is to enable the tribals to join the mainstream of national life. The word mainstream, however, is a nebulous expression. Similarly, the other commonly used expression of ‘integration’ is open to different interpretations. What is desirable on the part of non-tribals is not to make any conscious or deliberate efforts to assimilate or even acculturate the tribals. Let the non tribals acquire some of the good and healthy traits of the tribals cultures as relations is not possible in a system based on exploitation. The processes of socio-economic transformation have got to be duly regulated. The tribal society has largely been egalitarian and democratic. The triabal elite today have the only model of larger national life comprising socially and economically structured society where there are the poor and the rich. In the tribal areas we still have an opportunity of strengthening an egalitarian society. Development in the tribal areas should be so guided that deprivation processes do not set in. B.D. Sharma, the former Commissioner for the SC/ST has observed that the entire question of tribal development boils down to two basic issues : (i) whether the traditional command of the community over resources can be preserved, and (ii) whether the egalitarian structure of the tribal communities can be retained and their social milieu can be taken advantage of to initiate a process so that their socio-economic transformation can be negotiated without deprivation. This process cannot be superimposed but has to be stimulated by the tribal commuinity itself which has a tradition of selfgovernance.

Welfare schemes for Scheduled Tribes Background: In the Indian context, the Commissioner for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in his report for the year 1952 had listed some common features. These are that the tribes: 5

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com (i) live away from the civilised world in the inaccessible parts lying in the forest hills, (ii) they belong to either one of the three stocks–Negrito, Australoid or Mongoloids, (iii) they speak the same tribal dialect, (iv) they profess ‘primitive’ religion known as ‘Animism’ in which the worship of ghosts and spirits is the most important element, (v) they follow ‘primitive’ occupations such as gleaning, hunting and gathering of forest products; and (vi) They are largely meat eaters. (vii) The list also includes their love for food and drink. Politically, tribal societies are relatively simple and egalitarian. Lineage, clan and kinship tend to overlap with their political organisations. Scheduled Tribes: The Government of India Act 1933 incorporated some provisions and the policy of reservation for the tribes notified in the Schedule. The concept of Scheduled Tribe emerged henceforth and was included in the Constitution of independent India. A list of tribes was incorporated in the Eighth Schedule of the constitution. In 1971, the list contained names of 527 tribes. The reservation policy or the policy of protecting discrimination for the notified or Scheduled Tribes has been made a constitutional obligation. Constitutional Safeguards:  Article 15(4) - special provisions are made for educational advancement of the Scheduled Tribes. These provisions are like reservation of seats and relaxation in marks in admission to educational institutions, scholarships, etc.  Article 46 - the State is enjoined upon to promote with special care to education and economic interests of SC and ST and protect them from social injustice and all forms of exploitation.  Articles 330 and 332 - seats are reserved for SC and ST in Lok Sabha State Vidhan Sabhas.  Article 339(1) - the President may at anytime appoint a Commission to report on the administration of the Scheduled Area and the welfare of the Scheduled Castes and Tribes in the State. The majority of the tribes depend on land and forest to make a living. Their social life is also interwoven around the land they live on. They have thus a physical and emotional attachment and dependence on land and forest. In this context, launch of Van Bandhu Kalyan Yojana, Single Window System for Obtaining Market Information on Minor Forest Produces, Setting up of 184 Eklavya Model Residential Schools, Preparation of Tribal Map of India and Launch of MFPNET Portal of TRIFED were some of the important Initiatives for Tribal welfare during the year 2014.

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Role of the Ministry of Tribal Affairs: It is the nodal Ministry for the overall policy, planning and coordination of programmes for the development of the Scheduled Tribes (STs). The programmes and schemes of the Ministry are intended to support and supplement, through financial assistance, the efforts of other Central Ministries, the State Governments and voluntary organizations, and to fill critical gaps taking into account the needs of ST. Recent tribal welfare schemes: Van Bandhu Kalyan Yojana (VKY):  Introduced by the Central government in 2014 as a Central Sector Scheme with an allocation of Rs. 100 crore.  The Central Government proposes to replicate the intervention with special focus on o

the qualitative and sustainable employment for tribal families;

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bridging infrastructure gaps with focus on quality;

o Improving the quality of education and health and improving the quality of life in tribal areas.  The scheme been launched on pilot basis in one block each of the (10 Schedule V) States of AP, MP, HP, Telangana, Orissa, Jharkhand, Chattisgarh, Rajasthan, Maharashtra and Gujarat.  Under the scheme centre will provide Rs. 10 crore for each block (total Rs. 100 crores for 10 blocks) for the development of various facilities for the Tribals. These blocks have been selected on the recommendations of the concerned States and have very low literacy rate. Model Blocks:  There are about 350 Blocks in the Schedule V areas where population to STs compared to total population of the Block is 50% or above. Despite several interventions in the past, these Blocks are still reeling under various facets of deprivation in so far as Human Development Indices are concerned. Through VKY, it is envisaged to develop these Blocks as model Blocks over the period of next five years with qualitative and visible infrastructural facilities.  The selection of block will be made in consultation with the respective State Governments while taking into account the human development indices. Approach of VKY: The proposed intervention is aimed at adopting a holistic approach to create an enabling environment while ensuring  qualitative and sustainable employment;  emphasis on quality education & higher education;  accelerated economic development of tribal areas;  health for all; 7

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com housing for all; safe drinking water for all at doorsteps; irrigation facilities suited to the terrain; all weather roads with connectivity to the nearby town/cities; universal availability of electricity; urban development; robust institutional mechanism to roll the vehicle of development with sustainability;  Promotion and conservation of tribal cultural heritage and promotion of Sports in tribal areas. Scheme as a Mission Mode:       

The scheme is being implemented through robust institutional mechanism in a mission mode  The scheme equips these institutions with proper infrastructure and well capacitated manpower to gear up the process of monitoring and implementation of activities translating into tangible outcomes.  For the purpose, a Project Implementation Cell manned with 26 professionals will be set up at the Tribal Welfare Department of each State. Single Window System For Obtaining Market Information On Minor Forest Produces: 

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A Single Window System for obtaining information on Minor Forest Produces (MFPS) through Toll Free Call Service number 1800-180-1551 has been inaugurated where market rates information can be provided over phone to tribals and others on asking.

Synergy between two government bodies for infrastructure:  Establishing Toll Free Call Centre’s would have entailed major capital and recurring manpower expenses. Hence, TRIFED initiated a dialogue with Ministry of Agriculture (MOA) which is already running Kisan Call Centres (KCC) for disseminating market information about agricultural products. So it was decided that instead of establishing a parallel infrastructure for similar service, TRIFED should leverage the existing infrastructure of Kisan Call Centres (KCC). Ministry of Agriculture agreed to provide the necessary linkage of “MFP net” with KCC. This is a commendable initiative of convergence between two bodies which has created synergy and optimum utilisation of Govt. resources which will prove to be a trend setter for others. All the stakeholders of this service are benefitted with this convergence between two Ministries. With the operationalisation of this service, tribals can call from anywhere and enquire about:  MSP of different items,  State Implementing Agencies for MSP for MFP,  Market price of MFPs in different Markets Dual advantage of KCC: 8

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Since most of the tribal communities are also engaged in farming apart from MFP collection, they can also enquire about market related information about agricultural commodities. The other benefits to tribals include:  Tribals get market information about MFPs and Minimum Support Price (MSP) free of cost.  Tribals also get information about Agro commodities.  TRIFED is able to create a network for collection and dissemination of information without any extra cost.  TRIFED has saved its precious and scarce resources which would have otherwise gone into creating a parallel system.  Inclusion of MFPs has expanded the ambit of “Farmer’s Portal”  A database of tribals using telephony gets created which can be used for spreading multiple social messages and general awareness about various Government programmes. MFPNET Portal of TRIFED: 

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The new MFPnet portal of Tribal Co-operative Marketing Development Federation of India (TRIFED) is designed to act as an adjunct and a catalyst for implementing the scheme of Minimum Support Price (MSP) for Minor Forest Produce (MFP). It is a one stop destination for all information needs on MFPs and facilitates stakeholders in MFP trade and users to take decisions backed by requisite information. It is a platform to collect and disseminate MFP trade related information and latest developments in this field. The information shall be available commodity wise and state wise for different markets. The main objective is to ensure fair price to MFP gatherers who are mainly tribals, enhance their income level and ensure sustainable harvesting of MFPs. It is initially implemented for 10 main identified MFPs in 102 districts of 8 States. It is expected to increase quantum of MFP procurement substantially thereby benefitting tribal people. The Scheme also envisages training of 1,00,000 MFP gatherers of tribal origin on sustainable harvesting and value addition activities. This portal provides information about TRIFED, MFP trade in India, marketing prospects for MFPs, MSP for MFP, its current status, MFP development training beside its retail marketing activities. Moreover, the portal is a network of stakeholders in the trade of MFP which includes individuals, agencies and institutions. Emails & SMSes about daily market prices shall be sent to all those interested in knowing the market prices and registered with the MFPnet. In addition, MFPnet also has the provision to upload information on buying and selling. Buyers and sellers can upload the trade leads about the MFP stock they want to sell or buy directly and the same shall be visible to all other visitors on the site. The buyer/seller interested to pursue these trade leads can get in touch with each other directly. Eklavya Model Residential Schools:

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To facilitate infrastructure and conducive environment for provision of quality education to the tribals, the Government has sanctioned 184 Eklavya Model Residential Schools. Holding of this consultation is part of the process of sensitizing the State Government towards the bigger goal of tribal development at par with mainstream fellow population of the country.

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SOCIAL PROBLEMS IN INDIA CONTENTS

Features, concepts, its causes & types of social problems Theoretical approaches to social problems in India Methods for studying social problems in India Development of a social problem in India Rural and urban problems in India How to solve a social problem in India

Source: Social Problem in India by Ram Ahuja



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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Social Problems Characteristics of social problems: 1. All social problems are situations which have injurious consequences for society. 2. All social problems are deviations from the ‘ideal’ situation. 3. All social problems have some common basis of origin. All social problems are social in origin. 5. All social problems are caused by pathological social conditions. 6. All social problems are interconnected. 7. All social problems are social in their results, that is, they affect all sections of society. 8. The responsibility for social problems is social, that is, they require a collective approach for their solution. 9. Social Problems occur in all societies. Causes of Social Problems:  Social problems arise out of pathological social conditions.  They occur in all societies—simple (that is, small, isolated and homogeneous with a strong sense of group solidarity, and which change slowly) as well as in complex (which are characterized by impersonal secondary relations, anonymity, loneliness, high mobility and extreme specialization, and where change is faster), that is, wherever and whenever a relationship is affected between a group of individuals leading to maladjustments and conflicts. Three factors are important in the understanding of the causal factors in social problems: (1) The causal conditions are numerous. Broadly, the potential causes of social problems found in social environment are: (a) Contradictions in social systems, (b) Malfunctioning of economic systems, (c) Lack of change in religious systems, and 2

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com (d) Defective functioning of political systems. (2) Social problems provide a strong basis of common causal factors. (3) Social problems are interrelated and interdependent in the sense that they are cumulatively pro-motive and provocative, that is, they foster and encourage one another. Reinhardt has referred to three factors in the development of social problems: (1) Differentiation and Multiplication of Interests and Functions:  The principle that the greater the number of parts in a machine or an organism, the greater the probability of maladjustment among the parts holds good for human societies too, where there is increased opportunity for the collision of interests of various individuals, groups, institutions and systems. Untouchability, communal riots and political crimes, are the social problems which are the result of the clash of interests of different castes and classes. (2) Accelerating Frequency of Social Change or Growth of Civilization:  This has been made possible due to the multiplication of scientific and mechanical innovations. For example, the invention of machines has destroyed many old forms of employment resulting in the migration of millions of people, and has given rise to class conflicts. It is, thus, the structural and functional maladjustments arising from revolutionary inventions which create many social problems. (3) Man’s Developed Insight to Make a Scientific Analysis:  Ever since man has developed his social insight of looking into the working of nature, issues which were formerly regarded as simple are now perceived as the result of various kinds of natural conditions which influence man and society. Types of Social Problems: Case has given four types of social problems on the basis of their origin: (i) Which are rooted in some aspect of the physical environment? 3

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com (ii) Which are inherent in the nature or distribution of the population involved? (iii) Which result from poor social organization; and (iv) Which evolve from a conflict of cultural values within the society? Fuller and Myers have given three types of problems: (i) Physical problems’, though these are problems for the society but their causes are not based on value conflicts, for example, floods and famines; (ii) Ameliorative problems: there is consensus about the effects of these problems but there are differences pertaining to their solutions, for example, crime, poverty, and AIDS; and (iii) Moral problems’, there is no consensus pertaining to the nature or causes of these problems, for example, gambling, alcoholism, drug abuse and divorce. Theoretical Approaches to Social Problems in India Social problems have been analyzed scientifically. We will examine some of the theoretical approaches which present universal explanations for all types of social problems. 1. Social Disorganization Approach:  Social disorganization is a condition of a society, community or group in which there is a breakdown of social control, or of a social order, or of formal and informal norms that define permissible behaviour.  It is characterized by the lack of co-operation, common values, unity, discipline and predictability. Warren has described it as a condition involving: (a) Lack of consensus (disagreement about group purposes), (b) Lack of integration of institutions (often working at cross purposes), and (c) Inadequate means of social control (preventing individuals from playing their individual roles due to confusion). 2. Cultural Lag Approach:

4

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com  Culture lag is a situation in which some parts of a culture change at a faster rate than other related parts resulting in the disruption of integration and equilibrium of the culture; for example, the material culture changes more rapidly than the non-material culture in industrial societies through rapid advances in science and technology.  The theory of culture lag, in particular holds that in modern societies there has been a tendency for change in the political, educational, family and religious institutions to fall behind technological changes.  It is thus easy to see how culture lag can create social problems. Even after rapid industrialization in the last quarter of the nineteenth century and in the first quarter of the twentieth century, some people were so influenced by the rigid restrictions of the caste system that they refused to work with members of other castes in the industries and preferred to remain unemployed and poor.  The first quarter of the twentieth century, thus, remained a period of culture lag.  It took more than a generation to adapt ourselves to technological development in agriculture and industry.  Our social institutions, thus, retained the traditional flavour whereas technology advanced in the world. Though the culture lag theory explains some of the social problems (like AIDS, population explosion, etc.), it does not explain all social problems. It, therefore, cannot be accepted as a universal explanation of all social problems. 3. Value Conflict Approach:  A value is a generalized principle of behaviour to which the members of a group feel a strong, emotionally-toned positive commitment and which provides a standard for judging specific acts and goals.  Each member of the group is expected to remain committed to the values accepted by the group.  Values, thus, provide the generalized standards of behaviour. Examples of values are equality, justice, communal harmony, patriotism, 5

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com mobility, collectivism, compromise, sacrifice, adjustment and so forth. Because of the strong emotional feeling attached to values and because they serve as standards for judging concrete goals or actions, they are often regarded as absolute.  Different groups have different systems of values. Incompatibility between the values of two or more groups to the extent that the role performance of individuals is interfered with is called ‘value conflict’. This state of conflict may last only a short while or it may be a persistent problem.  The value conflict theorists like Waller, Fuller, Cuber and Harper hold that clashes in value system are of basic importance in the origin and development of social problems. Waller has referred to the conflict between ‘organizational’ and ‘humanitarian’ values. The former favour private property and individualism, while the latter are votaries of remedying the misfortunes of others. But this theoretical approach is too vague.  Thus, the value conflict theory may be useful in some areas like economics, in the analysis of social problems, but it certainly cannot be accepted as a universal explanation. On applying the value conflict approach, questions which are generally asked are: What are the values that are in conflict? How deep is the value conflict? What groups in the society hold to each of the competing values? How powerful are they? Which values are more consistent with other larger values such as democracy and freedom? What value sacrifices would each solution require? Are some problems insoluble at present because of certain irreconcilable value conflicts? 4. Personal Deviation Approach:  Deviation is non-conformity to social norms. It is different from abnormal behaviour because the latter connotes psychological illness rather than social maladjustment or conflict. Thus, people who deviate from social norms are not necessarily mentally ill. In the social 6

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com disorganization approach to social problems, one looks to the rules that have broken down and the changes that have taken place because of the breaking of the rules. In personal deviation approach, one looks to the motivation and behaviour of the deviants who are instrumental in causing the problems. Two factors that need explanation in the personal deviation approach are: (i) How does personal deviancy develop? (ii) What types of personal deviation are frequently involved in social problems? Personal deviancy develops because of either: (a) An individual’s inability to follow generally accepted norms, or (b) An individual’s failure to accept generally accepted norms.  The first is caused because of a person’s emotional, social or biological deficiency, that is, some persons are so constituted biologically, emotionally, or socially that they are incapable of adhering consistently to generally accepted standards. The socially deficient do not truly violate norms; rather they manifest an inability to learn and follow the norms. The cause of emotional deficiency is biopsychological. These deviants that constitute social problems and also contribute to problems often require medical, psychiatric and environmental or social therapies.  On the other hand, an individual’s failure to accept social norms has something to do with deficiency in socialization. These individuals, though have learnt the norms and values like honesty, truthfulness, integrity, justice and cooperation, they cannot put them into practice. 5. Anomie Approach: This approach was propounded by Merton.  Anomie is a condition characterized by the relative absence or weakening or confusion of norms and values in a society or a group. The concept of anomie was originally developed by Durkheim to 7

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com explain division of labour and suicide but it was Merton who used this concept 41 years after the publication of Durkheim’s book Suicide to explain deviant behaviour in terms of functioning of social and cultural structures in the society.  Anomie involves a breakdown in the cultural structure, occurring particularly when there is disjunction between cultural norms and goals and the socially structured capacities of members of the group to act in accordance with them.  Anomie is the counterpart of the idea of social solidarity. Just as social solidarity is a state of collective ideological integration, anomie is a state of confusion, insecurity and normlessness.  The social problem arises not from people failing to live up to the requirements of their social statuses but from the faulty organization of these statuses into a reasonably coherent social system. However, Merton’s theory is incomplete and inadequate.  All social problems cannot be perceived as the result of the responses to strains or mode of adaptation and adjustment. Methods for Studying Social Problems in India Three methods have mainly been used in studying social problems: (1) Case study method, (2) Social survey method, and (3) Multiple factor method. Each method has certain advantages as well as limitations. 1. The Case Study Method:  The case study is a complete, detailed account of an event, situation, or development.  This method is qualitative instead of quantitative. It analyses the social process involved in the development of a social problem as well as in the causal analysis.  It focuses on the sequence of events, motivations of persons, social influences affecting persons and events, social relations, sub-cultures 8

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com and so forth. For collecting information, it depends on both primary and secondary sources like documents, letters and newspapers.  Depending on the nature of the social problem, the case study can be used to study a subculture of deviants such as that of organized criminals, black-marketers, smugglers, drug addicts, the organization of personality or the modes of relations in an institution such as prison.  Perhaps, the greatest value of the case study is in the suggestion of hypotheses, which can then be tested by other methods  In analyzing the causes of a social problem, the case study method is a qualitative procedure which seeks to formulate generalizations about the development of problem behaviour. 2. The Social Survey Method:  Sometimes the facts we need are not recorded anywhere and we collect them by interviewing people. Interview and questionnaire studies, or the social survey method, thus, is a valuable technique for studying social problems in contemporary society. It collects data from samples of respondents representing a cross section of a given population through a schedule or a questionnaire. This instrument is frequently used in the field of sociology to answer concrete as well as abstract questions.  Studies on begging, drug-abuse, AIDS, alcoholism, youth crime, and dowry in India, or Kinsey’s (1948) survey of sex behaviour in the USA are the best examples of studying social problems through this technique. All these studies have pointed out the empirical relationship between two or more variables in creating a social problem.  The survey method does not necessarily start with a hypothesis. It can end in developing a hypothesis or it may not at all be concerned with hypothesis. When it seeks answers to questions, it does not test a hypothesis. For example, what is the magnitude of abuse of child girls in 9

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com a particular type of industry is a practical question which the information gathered in the survey will answer.  Questionnaires, schedules and interviews are the systematic ways of collecting data under scientific controls. But these methods have their pitfalls too which are avoided by sociologists in all possible ways. Assuming that these techniques have a margin of error, they are still very useful, for they are more reliable than guesswork. 3. The Multiple Factor Method:  This method determines the relationship between several factors and a social problem.  Factors such as the nature of associations, socio-economic status, sub-culture, marital status, residential background, intra-family relations, frustrations and inherited traits can be correlated positively or negatively with the social problem under investigation; for example, the relation between crime and poverty or between drug addiction and peer group associations and high economic status or between wife battering and inferiority complex and alcoholism or between suicide and feeling of social isolation, marital status, and religion.  The multi-factor approach is used both in single disciplinary studies as well as in interdisciplinary studies of social problems, for instance, collaborative studies on drug addiction by medical scientists, psychologists, sociologists and criminologists in India. Evaluation Research:  The scientific research to analyze the effectiveness of the measures taken to contain a social problem, or to reduce the problems of the sufferers, or to assess the social action programmes such as rehabilitation of drug addicts, job training of the handicapped, and the like, is called ‘evaluation research’.  Evaluation research uses different techniques of data collection with the object of gathering knowledge in deciding what programmes to continue and how to improve them. 10

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com  In theory, though the purpose of evaluation research is to assess the ‘success’ of the programme started for the people but in practice, the purpose is to find out whether the funding of the programme should be continued or not.  In evaluation research, many variables are controlled. Often, the findings of various evaluation studies are so conflicting that no firm conclusions can be drawn. For example, a number of studies have been conducted in India on students’ agitations in educational institutions, on atrocities against the weaker sections of society, on strikes in industries, on bonded labourers, etc. and it has been found that the reported results vary so widely that no clear decision is possible. Development of a Social Problem in India Fuller and Myres have referred to three stages through which the problems pass in the process of being defined and solved: 1. Awareness:  In this first stage, people become convinced that the problem exists, the condition is undesirable, and that something can be done about it. In the beginning, only a few people raise questions but gradually more people become aware of the existence of the problem. 2. Policy determination:  As awareness spreads to larger segments of the society, possible solutions come to be discussed, for example, population explosion in India and discussion of various means of family planning in the 1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. Thus, the emphasis in the second stage shifts from what should be done to how should it be done. 3. Reform:  As basic solutions and policies are decided upon, the stage of action is reached, for example, not only a plan for clearing the slums is put into practice but people living there are also accommodated elsewhere. 11

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com No wonder, this stage is called the stage of implementation rather than the stage of decision. Blumer has referred to five stages in the course of a social problem: (1) Emergence of a problem, (2) Legitimation of a problem, (3) Mobilization of action, (4) Formulation of an official plan, and (5) Implementation of the official plan. He says that movement from one stage to another is not automatic but it depends on many contingencies. Spector and Kitsuse have talked of four stages in the development of a social problem: (1) Agitation: The people feel aggrieved about the existing situation in the society. They agitate against this grievance: (i) To convince others that the problem exists, and (ii) To initiate action to improve conditions and to attack the alleged cause of the grievance.  The agitation is started not necessarily by the victims but even by moral crusaders on behalf of the victims, for example, the prohibition movement is started not by alcoholics but by social workers and social reformers.  Thus, the agitation is to convert private troubles into public issues by declaring them to be harmful, offensive and undesirable. However, it is not necessary that their efforts should succeed.  The efforts fail either because the claims made are too vague, or because the group that makes these efforts is insignificant or powerless, or because the group creates conflicting interests. (2) Legitimation and capitation:  When the group in power or the power-holders acknowledge the existence of the problem, the problem acquires legitimacy. Whereas in the first stage, the claimants of the problems are viewed as peculiar 12

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com individuals, in this stage they are viewed as legitimate spokesmen of the aggrieved people. They are, therefore, co- opted for discussing alternative solutions, for example, giving representation to workers in factories, in management bodies or to students in the academic councils. (3) Bureaucratization and reaction:  When the focus in the first stage is on the complaint group, in the second stage it is on the decision-makers, and in the third stage, it is the bureaucrats and their efficiency which attracts attention.  The extent to which the bureaucrats look for solutions of the problem and the extent to which they are able to fob off vested Interests, will determine whether the agitation will take the form of a movement or not. (4) Reemergence of the movement:  The defective policies of the decision-makers and the bureaucrats and their disinterestedness vis-a-vis the problem rekindle the feelings of the aggrieved people and their crusaders who start a movement to force the power-holders to adopt ameliorative measures for solving the problem. Rural and Urban Problems in India Many scholars have referred to characteristic difference between the rural and the urban areas and social problems are sometimes identified by these differences. Characteristics of Rural Problems: Some important characteristics of the rural areas in India which are associated with certain social problems are: (i) People are directly or indirectly dependent on agriculture and a large number of landowners have small and medium-sized landholdings, (ii) The upper caste people still hold large lands while people of the lower castes own either marginal land or work as landless labourers, (iii) Rural people are scattered in comparison to the urban people, 13

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com (iv) Not only the roles but the values of the rural people too continue to be traditional, and (v) The price the farmers get for their produces is less in relation to the work they put in.  Although the rural economic distress does not affect all farmers equally but the lower and middle-class farmers who are in a majority are forced to send their sons and brothers to the urban areas to find new sources of livelihood. In cities, they are forced to remain in slums and work as daily wage-earners due to the lack of education and proper training.  The standard of living of the rural farmers is very low and their exploitation by big landlords, intermediaries and money-lenders is far greater. No wonder, their whole life is generally frustrating.  The other rural problems are due to the fact that since the rural people do not live in concentrated masses, the availability of specialized services to them is minimal.  This is true for medical, market, banking, transport, communication, education, recreation, and many other services necessary for modern living. Thus, in a general way, people in the rural areas are at a great disadvantage and have to suffer many social problems. Characteristics of Urban Problems:  Just as many of the rural problems are the results of isolation and scattered living, many urban problems spring from concentration of population.  Slums, unemployment, crimes, delinquencies, begging, corruption, drug abuse, air pollution, etc., are all urban problems which are generally the result of intolerable living conditions in towns and cities. In a village, each man is so closely known to the others that his misdeeds are noticed and talked about. But in a city, the crowded conditions make for anonymity.

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com  Most city people live without social pressures which tend to increase the rate of deviance. Besides, the interdependence in the city life is so high that the failure of even one small but essential part renders the other parts inoperative. The simple examples are strikes by scavengers, by transport workers, by employees of the State Electricity Board, by workers of water works or by shopkeepers. Anonymity increases cases of riots, communal conflicts, and agitations. It is no wonder that the characteristics of city life become responsible for many social problems. How to Solve a Social Problem in India?  The solving of a social problem depends upon finding out the causes of troublesome social conditions which create the problem. Though every social problem is caused by multiple factors, but it is always possible to find out the chief factor, the cooperative factors and the minor aggravates in the origin and development of the problem. Every problem is likely to be unique and is likely to have individualistic traits which may differentiate it from other problems.  Many a time, the nature of the social problem is such that the control becomes extremely difficult, if not impossible. This happens when a social problem is occasioned by natural factors like droughts or floods or when the conflict of social interests blocks the application of curative programmes, or a revolution is needed to change the existing political or economic systems.  But after understanding and judging social problems, the society has to be effective and has to take some action whether it is by attempting to alter the established social institutions or by trying to alleviate them by adopting measures without trying to change the existing institutions. Further, action can be organized or personalized.  The former is action through group effort like giving a share to industrial workers in the management of the industry the latter is action through individual life and influencing others by living a life in 15

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com accordance with good principles. Gandhiji used the second method for solving the problem of untouchability—by living with untouchables and treating them with sympathy and kindness. When others imitated his example and followed him, the effect became greater and greater, and the government was ultimately forced to enact a law in 1955 prohibiting the practice of untouchability.  Organized action, thus, can be taken by the state or a political party or by the panchayat or an official group. An important point in organized action is the distribution of functions between state agencies and those not connected with the state. Sometimes the problem is solved by the combination of organized and personalized action. Social problems can be solved only when individuals in a society possess the following four feelings: (1) Feeling that a situation can be corrected, (2) Determination to correct the situation, (3) Confidence in the people and a belief that there is no limit to progress because of their intelligence and efforts, and (4) The use of technological and rational knowledge and skill for correcting the situation. The following three points have to be remembered while trying to reach a solution to social problems: 1. Multiple-factor approach: Each social problem is caused by a number of factors, for example, the problem of crime cannot be contained unless it is collectively perceived in terms of poverty, unemployment, social associations, functioning of social structures, strains and frustrations, and so on.

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com 2. Interrelatedness: No social problem can be perceived atomistically. Each problem has some relation to the other problems. 3. Relativity: Each social problem is related to time and space. What is considered a problem in one society may not be considered so in the other.

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TERRORISM

Source: Social Problem in India by Ram Ahuja/Wikipedia etc



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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Terrorism in India The words terrorism, insurgency, civil war, revolution, guerrilla war, intimidation and extremism are most often interchanged and used very loosely. What is common in all is ‘violence’. Terrorism is an organized system of intimidation. It is broadly defined as ‘violent behaviour designed to generate fear in the community, or a substantial segment of it, for political purposes’. It is also defined as ‘a method whereby an organized group or party seeks to achieve its avowed aims chiefly through the systematic use of violence’ (Encyclopedia of Social Sciences). A ‘terrorist’ is one who imposes the punishment meted out by his organization upon those who are held to interfere with the revolutionary programme. The common definition of terrorism does not include  all types of violence used by the organized groups.  That violence which is motivated by consideration of pure personal aggrandizement is excluded from terrorism.  This excludes common organized crimes like dacoity and robbery.  However, all murders and dacoities organized by ideological groups like the Naxalites fall within the purview of terrorism. Terrorism has also been differentiated from intimidation and insurgency.  In ‘intimidation’, the intimidator merely threatens injury to collect a ransom but in ‘terrorism’ and ‘insurgency,’ the terrorists and the insurgents actually use violence.  Terrorism is not a fight between individuals but a struggle between social groups and political forces. It has little to do with intimidating individuals as individuals. Terrorism is different from ‘mob violence’ also.  The latter is unplanned and uncontrolled, guided by some immediate motivation which may not even be rational and is not based on any precise programme.  The former has a definite goal and is planned. It aims at demoralizing a governmental authority and undermining its power. However, at times, terrorism may also use mob violence as its method. The difference between terrorism and insurgency is that  An insurgent has the support of a large section of the local population while a terrorist need not have such support.  Again, an insurgent is a national of a country which is in revolt against the constitutional government of his country and fights to overthrow the government by guerrilla warfare.  The terrorist may or may not be a national of the country in which he operates). 2

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com The above definitions enable us to put forth six basic definitional components of terrorism. These include: (1) Terror purpose (that is, creating fear in the minds of the primary target), (2) Instrumental or immediate victims, (3) Primary targets (population or broad groups and others), (4) An outcome of death to instrumental targets and damage to or destruction of property, (5) Violence, and (6) Political purpose. Terrorism in India: Characteristics, Objectives and Perspectives Terrorism is characterized by a technique of perpetrating random and brutal intimidation, coercion, or destruction of human lives and property, and used intentionally by subnational groups operating under varying degrees of stress, to obtain realistic or illusory goals. The main characteristics of terrorism are: 1. It is against the state or community, 2. It has a political purpose, 3. It is illegal and unlawful, 4. It aims at intimidating and creating impact of fear and panic not only for the victim but also for the people at large, caused for the purpose of coercing or subduing, 5. It is accompanied by a feeling of impotence and helplessness on the part of the masses, 6. It stops rational thinking, 7. It leads to reaction of fight or flight, and 8. It contains arbitrariness in violence as victims’ selection is random or indiscriminate. Objectives: The goals of terrorists may vary from movement to movement but the main objectives of terrorism are the same in all terrorist movements. These are: (1) Cause the regime to react and also to overreact. Reaction is required to compel the government/community to concede the demand of the terrorists. Overreaction or indiscriminate reaction is required to demonstrate the repression by the regime so that the people are alienated and their sympathy is achieved. The security forces used by the government (because of overreaction) to protect the VIPs and the public installations will reduce the amount of security forces available to protect the general public, which will enhance their feeling of insecurity and helplessness and also increase the sense of terror amongst them;

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com (2) Mobilize mass support and urge potential sympathizers to greater militancy, or increase the involvement of more people. In a foreign territory, the objective of terrorist activity is to influence people rather than win friends. The chief objective in these places is a show of strength and to demonstrate the incapacity of the regime to protect people and maintain order; (3) Eliminate opponents and informers and remove threat to the movement and also ensure obedience of the followers; and (4) Give publicity or magnify their cause and strength. Following causes for the origin and development of terrorism: (1) The present complex technological society is extremely vulnerable to unsuspected and ruthless attacks of terrorism because transportation centres, communication facilities, factories and agricultural fields cannot always be protected against the random acts of dedicated and determined terrorists. (2) Highly sophisticated weapons like missiles and remote controls are now relatively easy to obtain for various terror movements. In future, the terrorist groups will probably have access even to chemical and nuclear weapons and instruments of death and destruction. (3) With modern warfare capabilities, the ‘powerless’ terrorist groups have been transformed into subnational groups with formidable strengths, capable of creating states within states, thereby undermining the ability of legitimate governments to rule or to survive (the LTTE in Sri Lanka, the Khalistan Commandos, and Kashmir militants in India and the PLO in Israel are some examples of such strong subnational groups). (4) Communication and transportation opportunities have enabled an international network of terrorism to develop with a certain degree of centralized organizational structure. Collaboration among ideologically linked groups and among those with common political interest has developed relationships involving financing, training, supply of combat materials, organizational assistance and joint attacks. This pattern of ‘comradeship’ is inevitably expanding the areas of international violence. (5) Through revolution in communications, terrorists are able to target their violence not only against immediate victims but also direct it at a wide audience as well for psychological intimidation and blackmail. The media coverage also exports the terroristic techniques and inspiration to other terrorist groups. In addition to above factors, the other factors which have substantially contributed to terrorism are:  the weak nations’ will to weaken the strong nations, which motivates them to support the subnational groups of strong nations in their terroristic activities;  financial support of rich non-residents to terrorist groups on religious and cultural basis;

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com feasibility of using smuggling and drug trafficking methods by the terrorists and, thus, getting money for purchasing modem weapons;  confrontations between the East and the West as well as between the ideologies of the Leftists and the Rightists;  the rise in religious, linguistic, ethnic and national consciousness of groups throughout the world;  the feelings of deprivation and frustration among the minorities struggling for their liberation and a legitimate right to self-determination and, the growth of opposition by citizens to repressive regimes and dictators ruling their countries. The strategies and tactics employed by political terrorists are generally directed at three groups: the people, the regime in power and the terrorist organization itself. Some methods which may prove to be helpful to our government in this regard are: 1. Seeking cooperation of the citizens by the police to get information against the terrorists; 2. Reducing the finance at the disposal of the terrorists to contain their operations; 3. Refusing to accept any demands of any group of terrorists; 4. Giving swift and judicial punishments to arrested terrorists. The greater the delay in prosecution and greater the detention in the jail as under-trials, the greater the possibility of their (terrorists’) escape; 5. Adopting more effective intelligence methods in retrieving information about the terrorists, their associates, their modus operandi, and their sources of finance and weapons, etc.; 6. Improving security measures continuously at important places; and 7. Giving more scientific training to forces dealing with terrorists. 

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CONTENTS

Source: Social Problem in India by Ram Ahuja/WIKIPEDIA


All rights are reserved. No Part of this document may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior permission of IAS ABHIYAN. 1

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Unemployment Meaning:  Unemployment is a very complex phenomenon. It is rather easy to notice but difficult to define.  Broadly, unemployment may mean lack of employment. Thus, any body who fails to work may be considered as being unoccupied and therefore unemployed for the concerned period.  Ordinarily, the term unemployment denotes a condition of joblessness.  But it is not a comprehensive expression. Unemployment may be either ‘voluntary’ or involuntary’. Cases of voluntary idleness do not come under unemployment in the true sense of the term.  First, there are some unemployable who cannot work due to old age, disease or any other physical disablement  Secondly, some people may avoid work due to laziness. They are unemployed not from necessity but from choice. In this category we may include both the “idle rich” as well as the “idle poor”, who may not like to work. Thirdly, there are some social parasites, like thieves or pickpockets, who also may be voluntarily unemployed. It will be a misnomer to bring such cases of voluntary unemployment under ‘unemployment’. Therefore, in modern times, by unemployment we usually mean cases of involuntary idleness only. Elements of Unemployment:  The Individual should be capable of working  The Individual should be Willing to work  The Individual should be must make an effort to find work

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Types of Unemployment: Seasonal Unemployment  A familiar and common type.  Caused by the time pattern of a particular occupation.  Occurs due to lack of productive work during certain periods of the year. Certain industries or occupations are seasonal in character.  Seasonal unemployment may also be witnessed in the case of traditional and underdeveloped agriculture.  Takes place mainly due to the lack of suitable alternative employment opportunities in the slack season.  Such unemployment usually does not lead to serious distress, as the wages in seasonal occupations are comparatively higher, which provides for the period of unemployment. The wages of the masons are a case in point.  Such unemployment is completely independent of the wishes of the workers or employers affected.  Through the development of complementary and subsidiary industries and the modernization of agriculture that such unemployment can be controlled. Cyclical unemployment :  A factor of overall unemployment that relates to the cyclical trends in growth and production that occur within the business cycle.  When business cycles are at their peak, cyclical unemployment will be low because total economic output is being maximized.  When economic output falls, as measured by the gross domestic product (GDP), the business cycle is low and cyclical unemployment will rise.  Cyclical unemployment is normally a shot-run phenomenon. Industrial Unemployment: 3

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Causes:  Large-Scale Migration of people from rural to urban areas  Losses incurred by industries  Competition with foreign industries  Unplanned Industrialization  Defective Industrial Policies  Labor Strikes or employers lock outs  Rationalisation Technological Unemployment  Takes place because of rapid technological improvements.  Introduction of improved machinery and labour saving know-how has a tendency to displace labour force.  Introduction of improved technology in production will lower the capital-output ratio and the labour-output ratio. This will increase the productivity of capital and labour, causing technological unemployment. Probably due to this reason, even now introduction of electronic computers has always been viewed with suspicion by the workers. Educated Unemployment:  Indian universities and colleges have been producing lakhs of graduates every year. Education in India is not ‘job oriented’. Students have been aimlessly studying different courses.  When they come out of college after completing their education, they fail to get suitable jobs.  Educated unemployment entails a waste of the country’s most valuable resource, the human capital.

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Causes of Educated Unemployment in India  In India, there has been an alarming phase of mass-unemployment among the educated youth. Post-graduates and graduates are walking pillar to post in search of employment.  When there is slowdown in economy, there is surge in the number of uneducated unemployed people. Many educated people are knocking at the gates of offices just for the position of a petty clerk and get disappointed when they read the words ‘No Vacancy’ on the gate. Numerous cases of suicide among the unemployed young men have been a feature of our time. Defective Education System:  The main cause of this large-scale unemployment among the educated youth in India is our defective system of education.  India is an agricultural country, more than 70% of the people of India live in villages and their main source of livelihood is cultivation.  Our system of University education does not cater to the need of these students i.e. those who belong to agriculturist profession.  They should be imparted particular kind of education, laying special stress on the latest methods of cultivation and farm-managing. There are two or three agricultural colleges in every State, and even in these colleges, ordinary peasants cannot afford to get their sons’ education. Lack of Industrial and Technical Training:  Lack of industrial and technical training is also one of the major causes, contributing to the mass- unemployment among the educated young men in India.  There are a very few technical and engineering institutions in the country, and, secondly, technical education is so costly that common people cannot afford to get their wards admitted in these institutions.  No doubt, with the operation of our ‘Five-Year Plans’ there is a substantial need of technically-trained young men. But it must be

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com noted that these newly sprung-up industries cannot offer employment to non-technically educated youth. Lack of Network of Cottage Industries:  India is a large and predominantly agricultural country. Her economic lot is connected with the economic well-being of her village dwellers.  Our country needs above everything else, a network of cottage industries which can absorb our millions of unemployed educated youth. Mentality:  Our educated young men are suffering from a strange malady. They are scrambling head-way after the glitter of working in urban offices; they do not want to settle in villages. They have something of a villagephobia. They, especially after receiving education in cities and towns, prefer to starve in cities to settling down in their villages and do their ancestral work. This mentality of our educated young men must be changed.  They should be made to believe that there is no loss of dignity on their part, if they do manual work, honestly and sincerely. ‘Every labor has its own vanity’. Conclusion:  Educated youth is the pillar of a nation’s future destiny. A nation, whose educated young men walk pillar to post in search of a petty clerk’s job, cannot make progress in the substantial sense of the term. India’s is a newly-born independence. We have to build her up from very scratch.  It is the educated young men and women, on whose shoulder lies the great responsibility of making India an ideally socialist state. Our young men, on their own part, must make it a principle that they should not run after the outwardly shine of urban life, rather they should settle in villages, thereby contributing their quota of services in the build-up of our villages. 6

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Youth Unemployment in India  India faces today a number of problems. But the problem of Youth unemployment has become very serious in recent years. Because the problem is very extensive, it has attracted wide attention and discussions in the country.  Of course, the problem of unemployment among youths has raised its head in almost every country, but that cannot be our consolation.  The number of unemployment youths in our country has already reached an alarming proportion and still the number is increasing every year.  It is really a matter of pity and shame that though willing to work, a large number of our youths find to scope of employment. Thousands of young people remain idle even after completing their studies. Causes Alarming growth rate of population:  The most important factor is the alarming growth of population. The population of our country has exceeded 1.2 billion. We see that the population is growing fast but there is no expansion of corresponding avenues of employment. Inadequate growth of economic opportunities:  In comparison with the growth of population, the economic opportunities in the country in trade, industry, commerce, and agriculture have not proportionately increased, with the result that there are more young men seeking employment than there are opportunities to absorb them. Defective Education System:  Our system of education is also defective. It is not satisfactorily related to the socio-economic needs of our people. Since the western system of education was introduced in this country; people have all along shown a general tendency towards general higher education. A certain degree of general education was also considered essential for securing 7

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com services in public offices and jobs in merchant offices. The lure of lucrative opportunities in liberal profession have all along attracted the bulk of the young men with the result that gradually all these lines have become crowded. Lack of technical qualification:  They do not possess such technical qualifications as would enable them to take to some technical lines. The society is thus confronted with the problem of finding openings for the educated young people. Unplanned Aut0mation:  Unplanned automation has thrown thousands of young people out of their work. Industrial Unrest:  Industrial unrest has also led to lockouts and layoffs. And thus, on the whole, the situation is growing worse and gradually slipping out of control. Solution  To solve the problem a change of outlook is also needed. It is a fact that no government can provide employment for all the unemployed youths. However, there is a need for harmonious development of economic opportunities. Practical Education System:  Hence our education system should be more practical. Vocational education can offer greater employment opportunities to our youths. A system of education should be evolved where students are given technical training so that will eventually help them in securing suitable jobs in appropriate lines of occupations. Revival of small and cottage industries:  By reviving cottage and small-scale industries we can also solve the problem of rural unemployment. The existing cottage industries are to be revitalized and along with them new industries on cottage basis should be started. Cottage industries can serve not only as whole time 8

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com occupations to many but also as subsidiary means of livelihood to thousands. Economic opportunities in agriculture:  The scope for employment of the educated young men in in the field of agricultural is often forgotten. The introduction of better farming methods, cultivation of new crops, running of poultry farms, gardening, etc, are possible lines of work which young men with technical training and initiative may take up with profit. Control Population Explosion:  However, all these will be of no avail unless population explosion is controlled. Indeed hunger, distress and unemployment will rule the land unless the birth rate is reduced to an optimum level.  These are some of the methods, which may be tried for minimizing the effects of unemployment. Since this is a very complex problem, it is hardly possible for combating it by a single remedy. Its solution depends on a variety of economic and social factors. Causes of Unemployment in India: The important causes of Unemployment in India are as follows: 1. Rapid growth of population and increase in labour force. 2. Underdevelopment of the economy. 3. Slow growth in the agricultural sector. 4. Defective system of education. 5. Absence of manpower planning. 6. Degeneration of village industries. 7. Inappropriate technology. 8. Slow growth of industrial sector. 9. Immobility of labour. 10. Jobless growth.

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Prevention: The government of India set up a committee with M. Bhagavati as chairman to suggest measures to solve unemployment. Based on the committee report, the government took the following measures. i. Rural works programme:  The emphasis under the programme was on the construction of civil works of permanent nature such as rural housing, electrification construction of roads.  Marginal farmers and agricultural labours under the scheme were to be assisted with subsidised credit support for agricultural and subsidiary occupations like dairy, poultry, Fishery horticultural operations etc. ii. Agro service centres:  The scheme provided for assistance for self employment to unemployed graduates and diploma holders in mechanical, agricultural and allied fields. It aimed to help in establishing workshops, organising agricultural machinery and technical services like supply of spare parts etc. iii. Crash Programme for rural employment:  The primary objective of the scheme was to generate additional employment through a network of rural projects. iv. National Rural employment programme:  It was implemented in 1980. It was central sponsored programme with 50% central assistance. It aimed at creating community assets for strengthening rural infrastructure. 10

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com v. Food for work programme: It was a scheme to use food grains as payment for work to the persons living below poverty line. Objectives of the programme were: a. To generate additional gainful employment for both men and women in rural areas. b. To create durable community assets and strengthen the social infrastructure in order to increase production and raise living standards in the rural areas. c. To utilise surplus food grains for the development of the country’s human resources.  Recent schemes to reduce unemployment—Jawahar Gram Samrudhi Yojana 1999, Employment Assurance scheme. Sampoorna Grameen Rozgar Yojana Swarna Jayanti Gram Swarozgar Yojana.  Pradhan Mantri Gramodyog Yojana. It was introduced in 2000-01. Its objective is to focus on village level development in five critical areas. Eg. : health, primary education, drinking water With The Objective Of Improving Quality Of Life In Rural Areas And Provide Rural Employment. The following steps have been taken by Govt, to increase employment opportunities: 1. Integrated Rural Development Programme (IRDP):  In 1978-79, government of India introduced IRDP to create full employment opportunities in rural areas. Under this programme agriculture, animal husbandry, forests, fisheries, small and cottage industries, construction of roads and canals etc. are to be developed in all the 5111 development blocks. 2. Drought Prone Area Programme (DPAP):  This programme was launched in 70 such districts of 13 states as were prone to drought. The programme has proved fruitful particularly 11

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com in removing seasonal unemployment. In Sixth Plan, the programme provided 17 crore and 70 lakh man-days of employment. 3. Training for Self-Employment:  This programme was launched on 15th August, 1979 by the Government of India. It is called National Scheme of Training of Rural Youth for Self Employment (TRYSEM). The main objective of this programme is to reduce unemployment among the youth. During Seventh Plan about 11.6 lakh youth were imparted training under the programme.  During training period, young men are given financial assistance. On completion of training, they are asked to prepare project report. Arrangements are made to get them financial assistance from the banks. Every trained youth is given a financial help varying from Rs. 3,000 to Rs. 5,000 to start his work.  In the Seventh Plan, under this programme, Composite Rural Training and Technical Centres (CRTTC) were set up to impart training to rural youth. 4. Jawahar Rozgar Yojana:  The Jawahar Rozgar Yojana was started on 28th April 1989. The objective of this Yojana is to provide employment to at least one member of each poor rural family for fifty to a hundred days a year at a work place near his residence. A special feature of the scheme is that 30% of the employment generated will be reserved for women.  The Central government will finance 80% of the programme and the state government will have to bear only 20% of the expenditure of this scheme. In 1989, National Rural Employment Programme and Rural Landless Employment Guarantee Programmes were merged in the yojana. 12

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com 5. Employment in Foreign Countries:  Government also helps people to get employment abroad. Special agencies have been set up to recruit people to serve in gulf countries like Kuwait, etc. 6. Self-employment to Educated Unemployed Youth:  In 1983, a scheme namely self-employment of educated unemployed was initiated. Under this scheme, loans up to Rs. 25,000 are given to those educated unemployed who have no other financial resources.  This scheme is enforced by District Industries Centers. Government will give 25 percent as subsidy of the loans given by the banks under this scheme. 7. Nehru Rozgar Yojana (NRY):  This Yojana was started in 1989. There are three schemes under it. (1) Under the first scheme, subsidy is given to urban poor to set up micro enterprises. In 1995, under this programme, 1.25 lakh families have been benefited. (2) Under the second scheme arrangements have been made for wage-employment to labourers in cities with less than 10 lakh population by providing Indian Economic Development and Elementary Statistic 'them basic facilities.  In 1995, under this scheme 93 lakhs man-days of employment have been provided. (3) Under the third scheme, urban poor in the cities are to be provided employment opportunities in jobs like house repairing etc. 8. Small and Cottage Industries:  In order to reduce unemployment, government if has made special efforts to develop small and cottage industries. In 1995-96 about 33 lakh persons were employed in these industries. 9. Development of Organized Sector: 13 www.iasabhiyan.com

IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com  Many people are getting employment in organized public and private sectors. In 1995-96, nearly 340 lakh persons got employment in large industries.  In 1961, organized public sector provided employment to 70 lakh persons; now it provides employment to 1 crore and 92 lakh persons. Likewise, in 1961 organized private sector provided employment to 50 lakh persons; in 2000 it provided employment to 89 lakh persons. 10. Employment Exchanges:  Government has set up about 890 employment exchanges offering information on the possible vocational avenues. These exchanges do not provide employment directly but are of great assistance in directing the job-seeker to the possible areas of employment. 11. Employment Guarantee Scheme:  This Scheme has been launched in man; states, such as, Maharashtra, West Bengal, Kerala, Rajasthan etc. Under the scheme unemployed persons are given economic assistance. 12. Employment Assurance Scheme:  The Employment Assurance Scheme (EAS) was launched in 1994 in 1752 backward blocks in the country. The main objective was to provide 100 days of unskilled manual work to the rural poor who are seeking employment. 13. Prime Minister's Integrated Urban Poverty Eradication Program (PMIUPEP):  This programme has been implemented in 1995-96. This programme aims at to provide employment to the urban poor. It will cover 50 lakh urban poor living in 345 towns. 14. The Swaran Jayanti Rozgar Yojana:

14

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com  This plan began on December 1, whereas launching of this yojana, previous programmes meant for providing employment to urban unemployed like Nehru Rozgar Yojana and Prime Minister Integrate Urban Poverty Eradication Programme were merged into it.  It aims at providing self-employment or wage employment to urban unemployed and under- employ persons. It comprises of two plans: (i) Urban Self- Employment Programme-(USE and (ii) Urban Wage Employment Programme-(UWEP). Of the total expenditure on "Yojana, 75 percent will be borne by the centre and 25 percent by the state governments. 15. Jawahar Gram Samridhi Yojana:  Jawahar Rozgar Yojana has been restructured as Jawahar Gram Samridhi Yojana with effect from April 1999. This Yojana has been formulated to improve the quality of life of the rural poor by providing the additional gainful employment. 16. Other Programmes: Govt, of India launched other employment and poverty alleviation programme as under: (i) Pradhan Mantri Gramodaya Yojana (PMGY) (ii) Pradhan Mantri Gramodaya Yojana (Gramin Awas) (iii) Pradhan Mantri Gramodaya Yojana-Rural Drinking water project. (iv) Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) (v) Autyodya Anna Yojana. (vi) Jai Prakash Rozgar Guarantee Yojana (JPRGY). (vii) Valmiki Ambedkar Awas Yojana (VAMBAY).

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URBANISATION




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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Urbanization Urban:  What is an ‘urban area’ or a city or a town? This term is used in two senses— demographically and sociologically. In the former sense, emphasis is given to the size of population, density of population and nature of work of the majority of the adult males; while in the latter sense the focus is on heterogeneity, impersonality, interdependence, and the quality of life. Urbanization:  Urbanization is the movement of population from rural to urban areas and the resulting increasing proportion of a population that resides in urban rather than rural places. He has given five characteristics of urbanization: money economy, civil administration, cultural changes, written records and innovations. Urbanism:  Urbanism is a way of life. It reflects an organization of society in terms of a complex division of labour, high levels of technology, high mobility, interdependence of its members in fulfilling economic functions and impersonality in social relations Characteristics of Urbanism in India 1. Transiency: An urban inhabitant’s relations with others last only for a short time; he tends to forget his old acquaintances and develop relations with new people. Since he is not much attached to his neighbours, members of the social groups, he does not mind leaving their places. 2. Superficiality: An urban person has the limited number of persons with whom he interacts and his relations with them are impersonal and formal. People meet each other in highly segmental roles. They are dependent on more people for the satisfaction of their life needs. 3. Anonymity: Urbanites do not know each other intimately. Personal mutual acquaintanship between the inhabitants which ordinarily is found in a neighbourhood is lacking. 4. Individualism:

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com People give more importance to their own vested interests. Ruth Glass (1956:32) has given the following characteristics of urbanism: mobility, anonymity, individualism, impersonal relations, social differentiation, transience, and organic type of solidarity. Anderson (1953:2) has listed three characteristics of urbanism: adjustability, mobility, and diffusion. The following are the characteristics of the urban social system: (a) Non-agricultural occupation (b) Size of population (c) Density of population (d) Environment (e) Social differentiation (f) Social mobility (g) Social interaction (h) Social solidarity Growth of Urban Areas in India 

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While cities have existed since ancient times, until recently they represented only a relatively small proportion of the population. The lives of the great majority of the people were predominantly shaped by the rural community or village. The massive growth of cities and metropolitan areas, and the shift of a significant proportion of the population to urban areas has been a characteristic feature of past six decades or so. Urbanization was an off-shoot of the industrial revolution which created a demand for a large number of workers at centralized locations.

The growth of cities depends not only on birth and death rates and migration but also on political, religious historical and economic factors. Seven Crucial Problems Faced by Urban Society are: 1. Housing and Slums, 2. Crowding and Depersonalisation, 3. Water Supply and Drainage, 4. Transportation and Traffic, 5. Power Shortage, 6. Sanitation, 7. Pollution.  

Urban problems are endless. To name the more important among them are: pollution, corruption, unemployment, crime and juvenile delinquency, overcrowding and slums, drug addiction and alcoholism, and begging.

The more crucial problems. 1. Housing and Slums: 3

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7.

Crowding and Depersonalisation: Water Supply and Drainage: Transportation and Traffic: Power Shortage: Sanitation: Pollution:

Major Problems faced by Urban Life in India Five major problems faced by urban life in India are: 1. Migration, 2. Industrial Growth, 3. Apathy of the Government, 4. Defective Town Planning, 5. Vested-interest Forces. Urban Problems: Measures and Structural Decentralization Some measures have to be adopted if we want to remedy urban problems are suggested are as follows: Systematic Development of Urban Centres and Creation of Job Opportunities:  Regional Planning along with City Planning:  Encouraging Private Transport:  Amendment of Rent Control Acts:  Adopting Pragmatic Housing Policy:  Structural Decentralisation: To conclude, it may be pointed out that the effects of urbanisation and urbanism and the problems of cities can never be solved until urban planning is modified and radical measures are taken. These should not be based on profit motive which would benefit a few vested interests. 

The use of land, technology, and taxes should be for the benefit of the people and not for the benefit of a few powerful interests. City dwellers have to become active and organise themselves and agitate to change the existing economic and social systems in the cities. Recent Trends on Urbanisation: 

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According to Census 2011, 31 per cent of India’s total population lives in urban areas — a marginal increase of a little over three percentage points from the previous Census of 2001. In absolute numbers, however, India added about nine

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com million people to the urban areas, bringing the number of urban residents in India to a total of 377 million. 

Additionally, for the first time since Independence, the growth in total urban population is higher than the absolute rural population growth.

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It is in this context that a close scrutiny of the Smart Cities Mission, as this government’s articulation of what it thinks of India’s urbanisation, is warranted.

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With the final list of smart cities being announced, the process route taken and the proposals selected provide profound insight into what the mission would do for our cities. Smart City Mission

What are smart cities, exactly? A 'smart city' is an urban region that is highly advanced in terms of overall infrastructure, sustainable real estate, communications and market viability. It is a city where information technology is the principal infrastructure and the basis for providing essential services to residents. There are many technological platforms involved, including but not limited to automated sensor networks and data centres. According to the documents released on the Smart Cities website, the core infrastructure in a smart city would include: Adequate water supply Assured electricity supply Sanitation, including solid waste management Efficient urban mobility and public transport Affordable housing, especially for the poor Robust IT connectivity and digitalisation Good governance, especially e-Governance and citizen participation

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Adequate water supply Sustainable environment Safety and security of citizens, particularly women, children and the elderly Health and education Where did the idea come from? The concept of smart cities originated at the time when the entire world was facing one of the worst economic crises. In 2008, IBM began work on a 'smarter cities' concept as part of its Smarter Planet initiative. By the beginning of 2009, the concept had captivated the imagination of various nations across the globe. Countries like South Korea, UAE and China began to invest heavily into their research and formation. Today, a number of excellent precedents exist that India can emulate, such as those in Vienna, Aarhus, Amsterdam, Cairo, Lyon, Málaga, Malta, the Songdo International Business District near Seoul, Verona etc. Smart Solutions:

The idea of a smart city, for most of the 20th century, was science fiction. But cities can now integrate critical infrastructure such as roads, rails, subways and airports; optimise resources better; and plan preventive maintenance. 6

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Given India’s finance crunch, any smart city we plan should focus first on three things: urban transportation, e-governance and land titling. Urban transportation 

For a sustainable city, public transport has to be the main artery. With metro systems viable only in large cities, integrated bus services will be primary.

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While the National Urban Transport Policy, 2006, pushed for public transport to rise from 22 per cent to 60 per cent, only 30 major Indian cities out of 90 have an in-place bus system. Even Delhi, with its extensive metro, faces significant gaps in its efforts to provide cross-sectional connectivity, with just 6,500 buses instead of 20,000.

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India’s bus services continue to be hamstrung by limited or declining fleet sizes, loss-making services, inadequate resources, poor service quality and ignorance about modern vehicle technology.

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Cities should design bus routes to ensure multi-modal integration. A city-level Unified Metropolitan Transport Authority, backed by legislation, should facilitate coordinated planning and implementation of transport projects.

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We need an intelligent software to improve systems for vehicle location, collecting online fares, priority signalling for buses, and real-time bus information.

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Cities should also set up Traffic Information Management Control Centres for effective enforcement and monitoring of traffic rules.

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Financing this will require significant restructuring.

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A dedicated Urban Transport Fund, as seen in Ahmedabad, Bengaluru and Jaipur, should seek to generate inflows through advertisement revenue, additional vehicle registration fees and congestion taxes to fund new projects.

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A special purpose vehicle (set up in collaboration with the municipal corporation, city and private players), as seen in Indore and Jabalpur, could manage bus operations.

Better e-governance 7

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The Indian government has experimented with various e-governance initiatives, most of which have failed to materialise, given poor cyber security and significant privacy and data protection risk. But the implementation of a secure ICT Infrastructure, comprising wireless hotspots, wi-fi networks, and fibre optic Internet delivery at home, remains fundamental.

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E-governance could learn from these examples. The U.K.’s “Tell us Once” service allows citizens to inform public authorities about birth, death or significant life events just once. San Francisco’s DataSF.org displays public transportation arrival and departure times, recycle zones, crime patterns and more.

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Service requests for pothole repairs can be tweeted. Sweden has verksamt.se, both for entrepreneurs and for citizens to use theme-based portals on healthcare, taxation, etc.

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All procurement and invoicing is conducted electronically, restricting corruption.

Land titling

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Providing affordable housing remains a critical challenge.

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This has been exacerbated artificially by poorly conceived Central, State and municipal regulations, leading to land prices that are much higher than intrinsic levels.

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Urban development projects still have to undergo a lengthy approval process — developers have to spend two-three years getting permissions from nearly 40 departments.

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Titling issues and the lack of property rights information make this worse.

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While the law requires compulsory registration of the sale of land, it does not ask the registration authority to verify land history or ownership from the seller, weakening buyer protection and acting more as a fiscal instrument for the state, instead of a statutory support of certainty to title.

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Cities recognise presumed ownership to land, a questionable claim, which can be challenged on many fronts.

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A smart city would provide formal digitised recognition of property titles, along with increasing transparency and registered brokers, cutting down long search times and high costs of acquiring real estate.

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A less cumbersome process of accessing land records through the Department of Registration would increase its use, while helping to show actual transaction prices. Further, land inventory needs to be mapped comprehensively, and be accessible to buyers.

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Globally, many countries offer streamlined online processes and incentives to facilitate affordable housing — these can include tax deductions, density bonuses, direct subsidies, land grants, land use changes etc.

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Many countries such as Malaysia and Canada have revamped their administrative requirements through fee waivers and fast-tracking procedures.

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Smart cities can make daily life easier for residents simply by automating routine functions, and providing a basic transportation and housing network. Grandiose visions can be kept for later.

Smart City, Need, Challenges and Solutions:  By 2050, around 66% of the world’s population will reside in urban cities. As of 2014, 32% of total Indian population lives in urban areas.  Surprisingly, for the first time since Independence, the growth in urban population is higher than rural. This paired with rising migration to these developed cities necessitate that our cities be ‘smarter’. Realizing this need, the government has shortlisted 20 smart cities out of 98 for its ‘Smart Cities Mission’. Why Do We Need Smart Cities In India?  Smart cities are fundamental for a sturdy infrastructure that has the ability to support the rising population. It offers facilities such as water, sanitation and 24×7 electricity to residents in an efficient manner. The smart model promotes development of small business, educational institutions and commercial spaces. Overall, these facilities increase employment and in turn enhance the residents’ quality of life. Existing Challenges Although a boon for our country, there are certain hurdles that can affect the execution of the Smart City Mission. The following challenges are unique to India:  Inefficient Administration

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Lack of efficient administration is one major threat to this mission. For the project smart city to work, the resource allocation needs to be transparent and effectively channelized. With a large population and unorganized administrative systems, it is a hard task to identify the misuse of resources.  Expensive Construction In terms of construction, converting an existing city is far more expensive than building a new one. The cost of rehabilitation for construction, pulling apart infrastructure, not only increases expenses but also can affect the existing commerce and trade in the region.  Higher Costs Smart cities will prove to be expensive for the major population – which happens to be middle-class Indians. They would find it hard to be able to afford a house in the city. The poor sections of the society will be further segregated. Thus, smart cities may be only for the minority elite masses.  Implementation by Municipality Currently in India, the municipality faces issues such as lack of finances, technical expertise and skilled labour. This has already created inefficiencies in other large-scale state and national projects. Carrying this limitation forward to smart city project would lead to inept implementation, compromised quality, faulty tariff system and delayed implementation. Culture and Identity The city dwellers and rural migrants face challenges adapting to this concept. There is a possibility of loss of culture related to a particular area. In addition, infrastructure overhaul could destroy the historic identity of an existing city. Permissions and acceptance from residents in such a case will be troublesome. Solutions  Citizen Participation Citizen participation is the key to overcome these issues. Joint engagement of citizens and government will help in creating good policies that will be beneficial to the country. For good governance, citizens need to be involved in the decision-making process and take joint responsibility. This will make the smart city inclusive and sustainable for future developments.  Regulatory Authority A single regulatory body would centralize all the activities for a streamlined process. A common authority will be able to bring in uniformity in the private and public sector, especially for the utility industry. It would bring transparency in the process and help to ease various regulatory hurdles. 10

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Addressing these key issues with a citizen-centric solution is the key for success of this mission. Only then can smart cities be innovative, inclusive and truly urban. Conclusion:  India’s smart city program hopes to revolutionize city life and improve the quality of life for India’s urban population.  Smart City would require smart economy, bright people, smart organization, smart communication, smart engineering, smart transit, fresh environment and bright living.  Nevertheless, with mass migration leading to basic publications, like water shortages and overcrowding, the rate at which these cities will be developed will be the key.  Several initiatives are being led by the Government of India to convert 100 Cities into Smart Cities.  Government to Actively Use PPP Route and Encourage FDI for Effective Implementation of Smart Cities Project in India.  The government is concentrating on encouraging Public Private Partnership (PPP) for successful implementation of the smart city project in India.  Financial and IT services sectors are on the priority list of the government to garner investments from leading companies such as Cisco, EMC, GE, IBM, Bajaj, etc. in coming years. Few of the major companies that are currently involved in project planning of these cities include Halcrow, Synoate, Knight Frank and AECOM India.  The real challenge before the Government is to build inclusive smart cities for all its residents, regardless of whether they are rich or poor.  Creating a smart city isn’t just about creating the physical infrastructure — roads, clean water, power, and transport.  It is desired that public private partnerships (PPP) will deliver, but the mechanism appears to require a lot of plucking in order for it to work, a fact recognized in the recent Budget.  The big challenge will be to create self-sustaining cities, which create jobs, use resources wisely and also train people. The idea should be to make cities work for the masses.  India has to now take an important decision in the context of creating smart cities.  It has to determine if it desires to opt for making new cities or upgrade existing ones.

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Swachh Bharat Mission for Urban Areas 

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The programme includes elimination of open defecation, conversion of unsanitary toilets to pour flush toilets, eradication of manual scavenging, municipal solid waste management and bringing about a behavioural change in people regarding healthy sanitation practices. The mission aims to cover 1.04 crore households, provide 2.5 lakh community toilets, 2.6 lakh public toilets, and a solid waste management facility in each town. Under the programme, community toilets will be built in residential areas where it is difficult to construct individual household toilets. Public toilets will also be constructed in designated locations such as tourist places, markets, bus stations, railway stations, etc. The programme will be implemented over a five-year period in 4,401 towns.

Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana- Housing for All (Urban) At the slum decadal growth rate of 34%, the slum households are projected to go upto 18 million. 2 million non-slum urban poor households are proposed to be covered under the Mission. Hence, total housing shortage envisaged to be addressed through the new mission is 20 million. The Mission is being implemented during 2015-2022 and provides central assistance to Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) and other implementing agencies through States/UTs for: 1. In-situ Rehabilitation of existing slum dwellers using land as a resource through private participation 2. Credit Linked Subsidy 3. Affordable Housing in Partnership 4. Subsidy for beneficiary-led individual house construction/enhancement. 

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Credit linked subsidy component is being implemented as a Central Sector Scheme while other three components as Centrally Sponsored Scheme (CSS). All statutory towns as per Census 2011 and towns notified subsequently would be eligible for coverage under the Mission. In the spirit of cooperative federalism, mission provides flexibility to the States for choosing the best options amongst four verticals of mission to meet the demand of housing in their states. Process of project formulation and approval in

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accordance with the mission Guidelines has been left to the States so that projects can be formulated, approved and implemented faster A Technology Sub-Mission under the Mission has been set up to facilitate adoption of modern, innovative and green technologies and building material for faster and quality construction of houses. Technology Sub-Mission also facilitates preparation and adoption of layout designs and building plans suitable for various geo-climatic zones. It will also assist States/Cities in deploying disaster resistant and environment friendly technologies.

National Urban Livelihood Mission  The Mission of NULM is to reduce poverty and vulnerability of the urban poor households by enabling them to access gainful self-employment and skilled wage employment opportunities, resulting in an appreciable improvement in their livelihoods on a sustainable basis, through building strong grassroots level institutions of the poor.  The mission would also aim at providing shelter equipped with essential services to the urban homeless in a phased manner.  In addition, the Mission would also address livelihood concerns of the urban street vendors also by facilitating access to suitable spaces, institutional credit, social security and skills to the urban street vendors for accessing emerging market opportunities.  NULM will rest on the foundation of community mobilization and women empowerment.  NULM envisages universal mobilisation of urban poor households into thrift and credit-based Self-Help Groups (SHGs) and their federations/collectives. These groups will serve as a” support system for the poor, to meet their financial and social need.  NULM will target the urban poor who are occupationally vulnerable for Employment through Skills Training & Placement (EST&P). The Mission will focus on providing assistance for development / upgrading of the skills of the urban poor so as to enhance their capacity for self-employment and salaried employment. It intends to provide training to the urban poor as per the skill demand from the market, so that they can set up self-employment ventures or secure salaried employment.  Through the Self-Employment Programme (SEP), NULM will provide financial assistance to individuals and groups of urban poor to set up gainful selfemployment / micro-enterprise ventures.  The Support to Urban Street Vendors (USV) component will cover a socioeconomic survey of street vendors, development of pro-vending urban planning and vendors’ markets, credit enablement of vendors, skill development and micro13

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

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enterprise development and convergence under various schemes of the Government. NULM would aim at providing shelter for the urban homeless equipped with essential services. The shelters should be permanent all-weather 24 x 7 shelters for the urban homeless. For every one lakh urban population, provisions will be made for permanent community shelters for a minimum of one hundred persons. Depending upon local conditions each shelter could cater to between 50 and 100 persons. A mission mode approach in the form of the National Urban Livelihoods Mission (NULM) is considered necessary to organize urban poor in Self Help Groups, creating opportunities for skill development leading to market-based employment and helping them to set up self-employment ventures by ensuring easy access to credit. This will result in the empowerment and dignity of life of the urban poor. The approval of the National Urban Livelihoods Mission (NULM) represents a strategic shift in the Government’s commitment to urban poverty alleviation. The NULM will be implemented in two phases: Phase I (2013-2017) and Phase II (2017-2022). In Phase I, NULM will target all cities with a population of one lakh or more and district headquarter towns with a population of less than one lakh as per Census of India 2011. However, other towns may be allowed in exceptional cases on the request of the States. Funding will be shared between the Centre and the States in the ratio of 75:25. For North Eastern and Special Category States (Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim, Tripura, Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand), this ratio will be 90:10.

Values

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The mission will espouse the following values: Ownership and productive involvement of the urban poor and their institutions in all processes Transparency in programme design and implementation, including institution - building and capacity strengthening Accountability of government functionaries and the community Partnerships with industry and other stakeholders and Community self-reliance, self-dependence, self-help and mutual-help Strategy NULM will adopt the following strategy: 14

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   

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Building capacity of the urban poor, their institutions and the machinery involved in the implementation of livelihoods development and poverty alleviation programmes through handholding support Enhancing and expanding existing livelihoods options of the urban poor Building skills to enable access to growing market-based job opportunities offered by emerging urban economies Training for and support to the establishment of micro-enterprises by the urban poor – self and group Ensure availability and access for the urban homeless population to permanent 24hour shelters including the basic infrastructural facilities like water supply, sanitation, safety and security Cater to the needs of especially vulnerable segments of the urban homeless like the dependent children, aged, disabled, mentally ill, and recovering patients etc., by creating special sections within homeless shelters and provisioning special service linkages for them To establish strong rights-based linkages with other programmes which cover the right of the urban homeless to food, healthcare, education, etc. and ensure access for homeless populations to various entitlements, including to social security pensions, PDS, ICDS, feeding programmes, drinking water, sanitation, identity, financial inclusion, school admission etc., and to affordable housing To address livelihood concerns of the urban street vendors by facilitating access to suitable spaces, institutional credit, social security and skills to the urban street vendors for accessing emerging market opportunities. Heritage City Development Augmentation Yojana | HRIDAY Scheme  India has large number of heritage cities that are considered to be the pilgrims of the country. The ministry of urban development has taken one initiative to develop these cities for betterment by launching a new scheme called Heritage City Development and Augmentation Yojana or popularly known as HRIDAY scheme.  The scheme was launched in the year 2015 in the month of January. Under the scheme all the heritage cities will be augmented for betterment and the entire funding will be done by the central government. Heritage City Development Scheme Key Features  The HRIDAY scheme was launched for the development and augmentation of the heritage cities in India. The cities such as Varanasi, Gaya, Amritsar, Ajmer, Kanchipuram, Mathura, Warangal, Puri, Amravati, Velankanni, Dwarka and Badami are the 12 cities added to the list for development.  The entire development process will be funded by the Central Government of India. Total of Rs. 500 Crore have been allocated for the scheme for 27 months of time. 15

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Under this scheme the core infrastructure of all these heritage cities will be developed and will be transformed into better quality so that the visitors can enjoy their tours.  The Tourism ministry has also joined the urban ministry here as they said the scheme will boost up the Indian tourism better than earlier times. Heritage City Development Scheme Launch  The HRIDAY scheme was launched in the 2015 in the month of January. The ministry of urban development has launched the scheme under the supervision of the Prime Minister Shree Narendra Modi. The scheme was also welcomed by the ministry of the Indian tourism. 

Heritage City Development Scheme Objectives  Every year millions of people walk into the country, especially in these cities to learn Indian culture. The scheme aims to provide a better and developed heritage city to the nation and global travellers.  To preserve the culture and the essence of the heritage cities by planning and implementing the developed infrastructures in all over the cities.  To enhance the public and basic services like conveyance, sanitisation, streets, water taps, toilets and other benefits for the travellers.  To implement the growth and the development of the core infrastructure and system of these holy cities. Also they are aiming to conserve the assets of these cities. Heritage City Development Scheme Benefits  With this scheme now the under developed heritage cities will get more exposure and better opportunity to augment the core system of the place.  The scheme promotes the conservation of the culture and asset of each city. With this scheme now the inhabitants will get a developed basic amenities and services in localities.  This scheme also promotes the tourism as the tourism minister said that the scheme will enhance the tourism of the nation. People from not only the other parts of the country but also from outside will come down here to enjoy their time. Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) 

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The Cabinet also approved the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT), a mission aimed at transforming 500 cities and towns into efficient urban living spaces, with special focus on a healthy and green environment for children. The Cabinet approved Rs 50,000 crore for this mission which is to be spent over the next five years. Both projects are interlinked, however, each has a special focus on urban infrastructure development that India needs if it has to emerge as a strong contender for a developed nation status, in times ahead.

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com So how are the two projects different?  Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) has a wider reach in terms of the number of cities covered and therefore the funds available for each city would be proportionately less. The mission takes a project approach in working towards improving existing basic infrastructure services like extending clean drinking water supply, improving sewerage networks, developing septage management, laying of storm water drains, improving public transport services and creating green public spaces like parks etc, with special focus on creating healthy open spaces for children.  500 cities and towns will be selected on the basis of population i.e. one lakh and above, while the other criteria of selection will apply for certain locations like tourist popularity, cities located at the stems of main rivers, certain popular hill towns and some select islands. The centre is laying out guidelines on the basis of which states will be free to suggest cities that they wish to bring under AMRUT. AMRUT is actually a new avatar of the existing JNNURM and will extend support to till 2017 to those projects that are at least 50% complete under the earlier JNNURM. Over 400 existing projects are likely to benefit from this.  The Smart Cities Mission will focus on developing 100 select Smart cities by focusing on optimising efficiencies in urban services and infrastructure management, with proactive use of technology and people participation. The Mission will support each selected city with Rs 100 crore per year, for a period of five years.  Given the fact that each city and town is unique and has its own priorities for development, the Centre proposes an ‘area based’ approach to development that will cover retrofitting or redevelopment as per Local Area Plan. While retrofitting will focus on removing deficiencies in existing local infrastructure, redevelopment will focus on re-building those areas where existing infrastructure cannot be converted or improved further due to limitations of space.  The Smart Cities Mission will also look at optimizing basic core infrastructure services like clean drinking water supply, optimized power distribution, introducing efficient solid waste management, affordable housing to cater to various sections, efficient and intelligent public transportation systems and active use of IT infrastructure to improve service delivery and management. New cities planned will incorporate all aspects of urban infrastructure and ensure green and sustainable living. Centre walks the talk on giving more power to the states  Through both these missions, the Centre has taken a fresh approach by involving active participation by the states and giving the control to ‘shortlist’ cities and towns to be brought under the respective missions and take responsibility for their 17

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com implementation and fund allocation. In addition, the state will undertake supervision and monitoring of project milestones, as per agreed guidelines.  Unlike earlier practice, the Centre will not appraise project performance and will leave that to the respective states. Central contribution of funds release will be linked to broad mission objectives being met.  The states will be free to ‘suggest’ cities as per selection matrix laid out by the centre. For instance, for the Smart Cities Project, a ‘Smart City Challenge’ competition will be launched for cities that wish to come under the mission plan. The Centre plans to link financing to the ability of each city to meet the mission objectives.  Special Purpose Vehicles (SPV) will be created for each selected city and the respective states will be responsible to ensure that adequate resources are made available to the SPVs. The Centre will extend funding support to the extent of 50% for cities with a population of up to 10 lakh, and a third of the project cost for cities with a population above 10 lakh.  Central funding to the states for each city will be released in three installments in the ratio of 20:40:40 and would be linked to milestones being achieved, as per State Annual Action Plan.  To promote early implementation by the states, the centre will incentivise the states by offering to release 10% of the budget allocation, based on reforms implementation in the previous year.  Through implementation of these missions, the Central government hopes to catalyze transformation of approach and functioning of the existing municipal corporations into professionally run efficient bodies. For mission success, it is imperative to introduce professional staff that can introduce e-governance, transparency in project tendering and monitoring, reviewing existing Building by-laws, transparent and efficient funds allocation and management, efficient tax collection mechanisms, and most of all, inclusion of people participation and focus on people-centric services.  If successful, this will indeed be a significant step for India to seriously build a nationwide green and sustainable urban infrastructure. Challenges ahead  Till now central control over projects did not succeed in improving or incentivising state level involvement. With the new approach of extending central funding support and leaving it to the states to execute and monitor the projects as per their priorities and local needs, the centre has shifted the challenge and responsibility to the states.  The problem is that municipal functioning at the state level is heavily politicized and corrupt. The big question is – will the states be able to rise above petty politics and ensure corrupt free and efficient implementation of mission objectives? There cannot be a successful urban mission of transformation without establishing the 18

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com requisite professionally run management structure, with necessary checks and balances built-in, and one that has the ability to adopt technology and deliver efficient services. Do the states have the political will to undertake the necessary transformation? Will the missions succeed or will they end up as white elephants?  As with any large project, there will always be the naysayers. Both ‘AMRUT’ and the ‘Smart Cities Mission’ have come under criticism for being too ambitious and offering too little by way of funding.  That maybe partially true. While it is true that the cities will require significantly more than what has been offered by the centre, however, it is also true that the states will be taking their own initiatives in raising funds and resources to meet mission objectives. Between both missions, the central funds allocated is around Rs 100,000 crore, but with states contributing their share, the total allocation could well touch Rs 200,000 crore.  It must be seen in the context where most cities and towns in India have suffered years of neglect, with minimal investment in improving existing infrastructure or building new ones. This mission is a beginning towards initiating the much needed transformation.  After all, urban infrastructure development cannot stop with one government but must remain a part of an ongoing process. The fact that this government has initiated steps with active participation from the states, could well give much needed impetus to an overstressed and obsolete infrastructure. It’s time for India to transform.

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VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN




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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Violence Against Women in India Who are the women who are victimized? Who are their victimizers or the perpetrators of violence? 

The problem of violence against women is not new.

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Women in the Indian society have been victims of humiliation, torture and exploitation for as long as we have written records of social organization and family life.

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Today, women are being gradually recognized as important, powerful and meaningful contributors to the life of men; but till a few decades back, their condition was pitiable.

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Ideologies, institutional practices and the existing norms in society have contributed much to their harassment. Some of these behavioural practices thrive even today.

Definitions of Violence In spite of the legislative measures adopted in favour of women in our society after Independence, the spread of education and women’s gradual economic independence, countless women still continue to be victims of violence. They are beaten, kidnapped, raped, burnt and murdered. It is important to clarify here the concept of ‘violence’ against women. The term ‘violence’ has been described by Gelles (1979) as “an act of striking a person with the intent of causing harm or injury but not actually causing it”. Strauss (1980) has described a violent act as “an act where there is the high potential of causing injury”.

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Domenach (1981) has described it as “an act of a person which encroaches upon the freedom of another”. Megargee (1982) has defined violence as “the overtly threatened or overtly accomplished application of force which results in the injury or destruction of persons or their reputation”. Kempe (1982) has applied the term ‘violence’ to “physically striking an individual and causing injury”. The operational definition of violence may be given as “force whether overt or covert, used to wrest from an individual (a woman) something that she does not want to give of her own free will and which causes her either physical injury or emotional trauma or both”. Thus rape, kidnapping, murder, wife-battering, sexual abuse, eveteasing are all examples of violence against women. The Police Research Bureau, Delhi has referred to “crime against women” under two categories: (i) Crimes under the Indian Penal Code, and (ii) Crimes under the local and special laws (Crime in India, National Crime Records Bureau, Delhi, 1994: 209). The Bureau has identified seven crimes in the first category and four crimes in the second category of crimes. The seven crimes under the IPC are: rape, kidnapping and abduction, homicide for dowry, torture (physical and mental), molestation, eve-teasing; and importation of girls up to 21 years of age, while the four crimes under the local and special laws are: commission of sati, dowry prohibition, immoral traffic, and indecent representation of women.

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Who are the women who are victimized? Who are their victimizers or the perpetrators of violence? Where do the seeds of violence against women lie? Some scholars who have studied some of these aspects in western society have used the ‘personality’ approach and the ‘situational’ approach to explain this problem. But both types of approaches have, however, been criticized on varied counts. Nature of Violence against Women in India Violence against women may be categorized as: (i) Criminal violence—rape, abduction, murder… (ii) Domestic violence—dowry-deaths, wife battering, sexual abuse, maltreatment of widows and/or elderly women… (iii) Social violence—forcing the wife/daughter-in-law to go for female foeticide, eveteasing, refusing to give a share to women in property, forcing a young widow to commit sati, harassing the daughter-in- law to bring more dowry… Violence against Women in India 1. Rape: 

Though the problem of rape is considered serious in all countries, in India it is statistically not as serious as it is in the western society.

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It is not only the poor girls who become rape victims but even the employees belonging to the middle class are sexually humiliated by their employers. Women inmates in jails are raped by the superintendents, women crime suspects by the police officers, women patients by hospital personnel, maid-servants by their masters, and women daily wage-earners by contractors and middle-men.

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Even deaf and dumb, lunatic and blind, and women beggars are not spared. Women who come from the lower-middle class and who are the main bread winners of their families bear sexual abuse quietly and without protest. The victims face social stigma and disgrace and suffer serious guilt-pangs and personality disorders if they register protest.

2. Abduction and Kidnapping: 

Kidnapping is taking away or enticing of a minor (female of less than 18 years and a male of less than 16 years of age) without the consent of the lawful guardian.

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Abduction is forcibly, fraudulently or deceitfully taking away of a woman with an intent of seducing her to illicit sex or compelling her to marry a person against her will. In kidnapping, the victim’s consent is immaterial but in abduction, the victim’s voluntary consent condones the crime.

The important characteristics of kidnapping/abduction as revealed are: (1) Unmarried girls are more likely to be victims of abduction than married women; (2) Abductors and victims are acquainted with each other in a large number of cases; (3) The initial contact between the abductor and his victim frequently occurs in their own homes or neighbourhood than in public places; (4) Most often, only one person is involved in abduction. As such, a threat on the part of the offender and resistance on the part of the victim is not very common in abduction; (5) The two most important motives of abduction are sex and marriage. Abduction with an economic motive constitutes hardly one- tenth of the total abduction; (6) Sexual assaults go with abduction in more than 80 per cent of the cases; and 5

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com (7) the absence of parental control and dis-affectionate relations in the family are crucial factors in contacts between the abductor and the victim and girl’s (victim’s) running away from the home with some acquainted person (labeled later as abductor under pressure). 3. Murder: Homicide is mainly a masculine crime. Though the all-India figures pertaining to murders and their victims on the basis of sex are not available, it is well known that number of female victims of homicides in comparison to male victims is low. The important characteristics of murderers (of females) and their victims are (1) In a large majority of cases (94%), murderers and their victims are members of the same family; (2) In about four-fifth cases (80%) murderers belong to the young age group of 25-40 years; (3) About half of the victims are women with long-standing relationships (more than five years) with the male murderer. The mean period spent by the victims with their husbands/in-laws was found to be 7.5 years; (4) About half of the murdered women have children. The mean number of children (of victims) in the empirical study was 3.2 and mean age of the child was 14.8 years; (5) Murderers mostly belong to low- status occupation and low-income groups; (6) Two-third murders (66%) are unplanned and committed in the heat of passion or in a state of high emotionalism;

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com (7) Four-fifth murders (80%) are committed without anybody’s help. Accomplice in planned murders is also usually family members; and (8) Petty domestic quarrels, illicit relations, and women’s chronic illness are the main motivations in women’s murder. 4. Dowry-Deaths: Dowry-deaths either by way of suicide by a harassed wife or murder by the greedy husband and in-laws have indeed become a cause of great concern for parents, legislators, police, courts and society as a whole. Though the Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961 has banned the practice of dowry but in reality all that the law does is to recognize that the problem exists. The important characteristics of dowry-deaths as identified are: (1) Middle-class women suffer a higher rate of victimization than lower-class or upperclass women; (2) About 70 per cent victims belong to 21-24 years age group, that is, they are mature not only physically but socially and emotionally also; (3) The problem is more an upper-caste phenomenon than a lower-caste problem; (4) Before an actual murder, several forms of harassment/humiliation are used against the young brides, which show the chaotic pattern of social behaviour of the members of the victim’s family; (5) The most important sociological factor in the causation of dowry death is the offender’s environmental stress or social tensions caused by factors endogenous and

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com exogenous to his family, and the important psychological factor is the killer’s authoritarian personality, dominant nature, and his personality maladjustment; (6) No correlation exists between the level of education of the girl and her murder committed for dowry; and (7) The composition of a family plays a crucial role in bride burning cases. 5. Wife-Battering: Violence towards women in the context of marriage becomes more significant when a husband who is supposed to love and protect his wife beats her. For a woman, being battered by a man whom she trusted most becomes a shattering experience. The violence can range from slaps and kicks to broken bones, torture, and attempted murder and even murder itself. The important characteristics of wife-battering pointed out are: (1) Wives under 25 years of age have higher victimization rates; (2) Wives younger to their husbands by more than five years run a greater risk of being battered by their husbands; (3) Low-income women are more victimized, though family income is more difficult to associate with victimization; (4) Family size and family composition have little correlation with wife-beating; (5) Assaults by husbands generally do not involve severe injury;

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com (6) The important causes of wife battering are sexual maladjustment, emotional disturbances, husband’s inflated ego or inferiority complex, husband’s alcoholism, jealousy, and wife’s passive timidity; (7) Exposure to violence of the assaulter in his childhood is an important factor in wife battering; (8) Though illiterate wives are more vulnerable to husband’s beating than the educated wives, there is no significant relationship between beating and the educational level of the victims; and (9) Though wives with alcoholic husbands have higher rates of victimization, it has been observed that most of the husbands beat their wives not in a state of drunkenness but while they are sober. Violence against Widows in India 

All widows do not face similar problems. A widow may be one who has no issue and who has been widowed one or two years after her marriage; or she may be one who becomes a widow after a period of 5 to 10 years and has one or two small children to support, or she may be one who is above 50 years of age.

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Though all these three categories of widows have to face the problems of social, economic and emotional adjustment, the first and the third categories of widows have no liabilities while the second type of widows have to perform the role of a father for their children. The first two categories of widows have also to face the problem of biological adjustment.

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These two types are not as welcome in their husband’s family as the third type. In fact, while the family members try to get rid of the first two types of widows, the third type of widow becomes a key person in the son’s family as she is made

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com responsible for caring for her son’s children and cooking food in the absence of her working daughter-in-law. The self-image and the self-esteem of the three categories of widows also vary. A widow’s economic dependence is a severe threat to her self-esteem and her sense of identity. 

The low status accorded to them by their in-laws and others in the family roles lowers their self-esteem. The stigma of widowhood itself negatively affects a woman and she falls in her own esteem.

If we take all types of widows together, we could say that violence against widows includes 

physical battering,

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emotional neglect/torture,

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verbal abuse,

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sexual abuse,

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deprivation of legitimate share in property, and

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abuse of their children.

The important characteristics of violence against widows are: (1) Young widows are more humiliated, harassed, exploited or victimized than the middle-aged widows; (2) Ordinarily, widows know little about their husband’s business, accounts, certificates, insurance policies, and bonds, and become easy victims of fraudulent schemes fostered by unscrupulous members of their family (of procreation) who try to acquire their inherited property or life-insurance benefits; (3) Perpetrators of violence are mostly the members of the husband’s family; 10

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com (4) Of the three most important motives of victimization—power, property and sex— property is a crucial factor in victimization in middle-class widows, sex in the lower class widows, and power in both the middle class and the lower-class widows; (5) Though the authoritarian personality of the mother-in-law and the maladjustment of siblings-in-law are important etiological factors in the widow’s vitimization, the most important factor is widow’s passive timidity; and (6) Age, education, and class appear to be significantly correlated to the exploitation of the widows but family composition and family size have little correlation with it. Motivations in violence Five causes may be identified in violence against women: (1) Victim’s provocation, (2) Intoxication, (3) Hostility towards women, (4) Situational urge, and (5) Personality Traits. 1. Victim’s Provocation: 

Sometimes the victim of violence by her behaviour, which is often unconscious, creates the situation of her own victimization.

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The victim either generates or triggers off the violent behaviour of the offender. Her actions transform him into an assaulter/aggressor making him direct his criminal intentions against her.

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It is significant to determine whether the victim actually intended to invite such behaviour or not or whether it was merely the victimizer’s own interpretation/ perception that led him to exploit her. This may be called an ‘act of omission’ (failing to react strongly) on the part of the victim, if not an ‘act of commission’.

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Thus, the ‘passive’ victim contributes to the commission of violent act to the same extent as the ‘active’ victim. In abduction cases too, some abductors pointed out that their ‘victims’ had willingly agreed to run away with them and marry but, when they were arrested on the complaint of parents, the ‘victim’ on being coerced by their parents had accused them of abduction.

2. Intoxication: 

Some cases of violence occur when the aggressors are intoxicated and in a wildly excited and belligerent state of mind, scarcely comprehending the likely fallout of their actions. Alcohol-related sex crimes illustrate a reckless disregard of time, space and circumstances.

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We must admit that when we interrelate, violence with alcoholism, we rely only on the reported use of alcohol rather than on the measurements of alcohol levels in the blood. In fact, it is the blood alcohol concentration (BAC) which ought to be the basis of associating battering with the influence of alcohol.

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However, we cannot provide any proof that the ingest of alcohol alone elicits violent behaviour. There are many people who take alcohol yet they hardly ever become violent. The use of alcohol in violence against women may, therefore, be accepted as a ‘cooperative’ factor rather than the ‘chief factor.

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com 3. Hostility towards Women: 

Some of the reported cases of violence against women are of a nature that no amount of rationalization could convert the aggressors into doing anything other than hostile acts of a cruel kind. Perhaps a desire to gloat over the victim’s humiliation was far stronger.

4. Situational Urge: 

In this category, those cases may be included where the crime is committed neither because of the victim’s behaviour nor because of the offender’s psychopathological personality but rather because of the chance factors which create such situations which lead to violence.

5. Personality Traits: 

Some identifying traits of the violence-prone personalities are: extremely suspicious, passionate, dominant, irrational, immoral, easily emotionally upset, jealous, possessive and unjust. Traits developed in the early life affect the aggressive behaviour of a person in adulthood. The aggressor having being abused as a child, and/or his exposure to violence during childhood, therefore, must be examined to delve into his violent behaviour.

Theoretical Explanation of Violent Behaviour in India 

The theoretical propositions on violence typically encountered, whether violence is a normal response of provocation, or whether it involves the acting out of some psychopathology, or whether it acts as an instrument to obtaining some end or reward, or whether it is a response consistent with norms supporting its use, are explained.

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Our own conceptual framework is based on a holistic approach and is presented as the ‘Social Barrier Theory’ which explains violent behaviour to a large extent.

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Violence against a person is necessarily ‘violence by somebody’ and ‘violence against somebody’.

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As such, violence against women has to be understood as ‘violence by an individual against an individual’ in contrast to ‘violence by a group against an individual’ or ‘violence by a group against a group’. In violence by an individual, its origin or form must be determined in the individual himself and the situation around him.

Causes of violence against women are found to be related mainly to five factors: (1) Structure of the situation in which violence is committed, (2) Situational facilities which enable the use of violence, (3) Precipitating factor(s) that lead to violence, (4) Strains experienced by the perpetrator of violence, i.e., his individual problems, and (5) Victim’s behaviour with the user of violence much before violence is used against her. A holistic approach to the combination of these factors alone will give us the correct causes of use of violence against women. Specifically, three factors seem to play a major role in prompting a man to use violence against a woman: (1) Perpetrator’s history of abuse as a child (like unhappy upbringing, physical beating by parents, and emotional rejection); (2) Stressful situations in the family; (3) Status frustrations.

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com In other words, a woman’s exploitation is dependent on five things: (i) Social background (which refers to her age, education and training), (ii) Level of support (which depends on the support of her parents, in-laws, peers and others), (iii) Expectations of others (including her husband, parents, in-laws, children, kin, working colleagues, peers, etc.), (iv) Economic base (i.e., whether she belongs to low, middle or upper income group), and (v) Self-image (whether she considers herself timid, bold, helpless, weak, strong, etc.). Measure to Prevent Women’s abuse in India First, we take up the issue that is already receiving attention from many women’s organisations as well as government and private/public institutions. This is to meet the needs of protection, support and advice to the victims. Secondly, assistance in finding employment and childcare facilities and immediate financial support is also the need of the suffering women. Advisory centers for this purpose could be located centrally but away from the existing Women Homes so that they can be well advertised without affecting the safety of the residents in the Homes. Thirdly, establishment of cheaper and less formal courts could also be a measure to help women who are victims of exploitation. It is not being suggested that these courts will handle only female cases. Their scope has to be wider.

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Fourthly, strengthening and increasing voluntary organisations which could take up individual women’s problems with their in-laws or the police or the courts or the concerned individuals is equally necessary. Fifthly, publicity has to be given to those organisations which provide free legal aid to women so that the needy women could approach them and seek their help. Lastly, a change in parents’ attitudes is also necessary in women’s cases. Women have to learn to be assertive and accept new roles for themselves. They have to develop an optimistic and hopeful approach to life. _____________________________________________________________________________________

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YOUTH UNREST AND AGITATIONS




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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Youth unrest may be defined as the “manifestation of collective frustration of the youth in the society”. 

What is unrest? What is social unrest? What is youth unrest? ‘Unrest’ means ‘disturbed condition’. It is “the state of disillusionment and dissatisfaction”. Social unrest is the manifestation of collective disillusionment, discontentment and frustration of the group, community or society.

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The emphasis in the concept of social unrest is on “collective frustration and disillusionment on common issues of the groups in the society”

On this basis, youth unrest may be defined as the “manifestation of collective frustration of the youth in the society”. It is manifested when the existing norms in the society are perceived by the youth as ineffective or harmful to the extent that they offend them, and they feel so disillusioned and disgusted that they recognize the need for changing these norms. Characteristics of Youth Unrest: On the basis of the above definition, it may be said that youth unrest is characterized by: (i) Collective discontent, (ii) Dysfunctional conditions, (iii) Public concern, and 2

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com (iv) The need for change in the existing norms. Youth agitation on the other hand is characterized by: (i) Action based on the feeling of injustice, (ii) Growth and spread of a generalized belief among the youth which identifies the source of discontent, frustration and deprivation, (iii) Emergence of leadership and mobilization for action, and (iv) Collective reaction to stimuli. A committee appointed by the University Grants Commission (UGC) in 1960 included three types of behaviour in student indiscipline: (i) Disrespect for teachers, (ii) Misbehaviour with girls, and (iii) Destroying property. Further, it included the indiscipline of not a few students but of a large group of students. Some scholars describe this definition as faulty. They maintain that three situations create indiscipline among students: (a) Students lose interest in the goals of the (educational) institution. In such a situation, they remain members (of the institution) but do not follow its norms, (b) Students accept the goals but doubt whether the institution can achieve them. They, therefore, try to ‘improve’ the institution by deviating from its norms,

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com (c) Norms of institutions fail to achieve goals and students, therefore, want a change in norms. Youth unrest may be viewed with three perspectives: (1) Unrest among youth, (2) Unrest due to the youth, and (3) Social unrest in the country and its effect on the youth. Youth Agitations & Definitions in India Youth agitation is the behaviour of the youth whose goal is neither injury to a person nor destruction of public property but social protest. Social protest may lead to aggression, agitation, and movement. Aggression is a hostile act intended to harm or object, often the result of frustration. It is an unprovoked attack. It is directed at the source of individual’s frustration. 

Myres (1988:395) defines aggression as “physical or verbal behaviour that hurts harms or destroys”. This excludes accidental hurts or unintentional hitting; but it certainly includes gossipy ‘digs’ about a person which hurt him.

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Feshbach (1970) has given two types of aggression—hostile aggression and instrumental aggression. The former springs from anger and its goal is to injure. It is resorted to as an end in itself.

The latter also aims at hurting but only as a means to some other end. The term ‘aggression’ is used more in wars, while the term ‘agitation’ fits in more with the youth’s collective behaviour, causing anxiety to persons, their minds or feelings. Agitation is “to bring grievance and injustice to the notice of people in power”.

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com It is to shake up, to move, to stir up, to cause anxiety, and to disturb the power-holders. Social movement is the activity of diffused collectivity oriented towards changing the social order. It is characterized by: (i) Collective action which is initiated, organized and sustained, (ii) Ideology, and (iii) Orientation towards social change. 

A pressure group is one that attempts to influence decision-makers or ‘governing elite’ for its own interests or the interests of a larger group that it represents. It wants the existing norms to be interpreted to benefit it. In an agitation, there is always a pressure group tactics but in a social movement, it may or may not be there.

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The difference between an agitation and a social movement is that social movement may take the form of agitation but every movement does not do so. Many movements are peaceful, for example, women’s liberty movement, the prohibition movement or the anti-nuclear movement. These peaceful movements are the result of cultural drift.

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Youth agitation is the behaviour of the youth whose goal is neither injury to a person nor destruction of public property but social protest. It is neither the result of innate destructive drive nor it is an inborn reaction to frustrations. It is a learned behaviour. Various forms of youth agitations are: demonstrations, slogan shouting, strikes, hunger strikes, road blocks (rasta roko), gheraos, and boycott of examinations.

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com The preconditions for youth agitations are: (i) Structural strain, (ii) Identifying the source of strain, (iii) Precipitating factor in initiative action and (iv) Mobilization of force for action by a leader. The important functions of youth agitations are: (i) To create collective consciousness and group solidarity, (ii) To organize the youth to work for new programmes and new plans, and (iii) To provide opportunities to young individuals to express their feelings and make some impact on the course of social change. Students’ agitations may be classified as: (i) Student-oriented agitations, and (ii) Society-oriented agitations. The former include problems at college/university level and at national level while the latter refer to taking interest in state/country’s politics and policies and programmes. Student-oriented agitations are generally discontinuous and problem-oriented rather than value-oriented. Types of Youth Agitations in India (1) Persuasive agitations:

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In these agitations, the youth attempt to change the attitude of the powers that be by discussing their problems with them across a table and making them accept their viewpoint.

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These agitations range from the relatively trivial issues (postponing the examinations, extending the admission date) to significant issues (increasing the number of seats) to realty serious issues (giving representation in academic bodies, associating students with decision making processes).

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Protest demonstrations, shouting of slogans, persuading the power holders to meet the representatives of the students/youth to try and understand their views and demands are some of the methods used in this kind of agitation.

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The anger and injustice expressed through this method not only serves to arouse and mobilize popular support of passive students/youth but also helps drain off discontent into ‘harmless’ emotional outlets.

(2) Resistance agitations: 

The main object in these types of agitation is to keep the power-holders in their place. Many changes intended to be introduced by the authorities appear to be disturbing to students/youth who feel that either their precious years are being wasted or that legitimate opportunities are being denied to them or their careers are going to be adversely affected.

(3) Revolutionary agitations: These agitations aim at bringing sudden sweeping changes in the educational or the social systems. For example, forcing the authorities to decide that no student will be declared as failed but will be promoted to higher class and given the opportunity, to 7

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com appear in the failed paper/subject till he clears it. Revolutionary leaders see basic change as possible only after the existing system is overthrown and a new system is introduced in one go. Youth Receptive to Agitations in India Five types of youth who take to agitational activities have been identified: (1) Socially isolated: Youth who feel alienated and cut off from the larger society. (2) Personally maladjusted: Youth who have failed to find a satisfying life role, for example, those who have not developed an adequate interest in studies, are unemployed or under-employed or unsuccessful. They join agitations because of an emotional need to fill the void in their lives. (3) Unattached to family: Youth who lack intimate ties with their families are encouraged to participate in agitations. Young persons with warm and satisfying family ties have no emotional need to join agitations. (4) Marginals: Youth who are not fully accepted and integrated with their caste/religious/linguistic group feel uneasy, insecure and resentful. They find it difficult to resolve the discrepancy in self-image and public image which necessitates them to join agitations to get some recognition. (5) Mobile/Migrants: Migrants have little chance of getting integrated into the larger community. Joining agitations acts as refuge for them. 8

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com Causes of Youth Unrest and Agitations in India The UGC Committee of 1960 pointed out the following reasons for student agitations: (1) Economic causes, like demands for reducing fees, increasing scholarship, (2) Demands for changes in existing norms pertaining to admissions, examinations, and teaching, (3) Poor functioning of colleges/universities with non-purchase of chemicals and instruments for laboratories, or books and journals for libraries, (4) Conflicting relations between students and teachers (teachers being accused of frequently cutting classes and remaining non-committed to teaching, (5) Inadequate facilities in the campus, like inadequate hostels, poor food in hostels, lack of canteens and poor drinking water facilities, and (6) Leaders being instigated by politicians. 03 causes of student agitations: (1) Economic causes, which included a sense of insecurity for the future and gap between economic needs of the country and the educational system, that is, education being viewed as non-job-oriented; (2) Socio-psychological causes, which included defective educational system, gap between aspiration and achievement (getting 80% marks and yet failing to get admission in college of one’s interest), social distance between teacher and students, noncommitted teachers, policy of status quo, corruption and inefficiency, and large number

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com of students in the class or inadequate number of sections in the department/college; and (3) Political causes, which included, political interference, and instigation by political leaders. All these factors indicate that the main cause of student unrest and agitations in particular and youth agitations in general lies in social system rather than the personality of the youth.

Controlling Youth Agitations in India Some of the most important ways to control youth agitations in India are as follows: 1. Parents have also to encourage their children’s release of emotional tension in various kinds of activities. It is, therefore, necessary to help the youth to bottle up their anger and aggressive urges. Instead of using agitations to express one’s grievances, it is more essential to use non-agitational ways to express one’s feelings and to inform others (particularly decision-makers and power-monopolizers) how their behaviour and their decisions adversely affect others. 2. The adult world has to accept the fact that youth problems cannot be solved for them but with them. Therefore, co-operation of students/ youths need to be sought by parents, teachers and administrators. Youth/students, parents, teachers, educational administrators, politicians and political parties should cooperate in understanding problems/grievances of the youth and giving them logical guidelines. 3. Efforts should be taken to remove minor irritants in students’/ youths’ day-to-day contacts with teachers and educational administrators. Each educational institution must have an efficient machinery to identify and settle student grievances. Such arrangements must not only start tackling problems after they flare up but must

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IAS ABHIYAN www.iasabhiyan.com continuously strive to prevent incidents which lead to complications. Such bodies (students/teachers etc.) should be continuously in session. The effective measures for the redressal of the grievances could be: (a) Accessibility of senior functionaries, (b) Ensuring action on grievance in shortest possible time or with a definite time-frame, (c) Establishing monitoring system and getting regular reports from teachers and subordinate administrative staff, and (d) Sudden check-up by vice-chancellor or dean or person-in-power. 4. All political parties have to agree on a common code of conduct regarding students’ participation in politics. It will prepare them for shouldering responsibilities in future for national development. 5. The question of the extent and pattern of student participation in the process of educational administration will have to be decided at the earliest. 6. Definite rules should be framed regarding police intervention in educational institutions. We can think of instituting a special University Police Force. We can also have specially trained police personnel for dealing with students in particular and youth in general. It is high time that the vast youth power, which hitherto has been neglected and ignored, was harnessed for development, removal of social injustice and achieving national collective goals. The need for creating a climate of hope, confidence and trust rather than coercion and confrontation has to be realized and this initiative has to be taken for mobilizing the young. _____________________________________________________________________________________

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Social Problem in India by Ram Ahuja

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