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Akanksha Saxena
Anshuman Shekhar
Nishtha Arora
Shiv Sunny
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India is a country where a large population does not go to bed with their stomach full. The government is not able to meet the growing demands of food. It is appalling to know that tonnes of foodgrain decay in the government godowns. Despite repeated interventions by the Supreme Court to distribute this food for free the situation remain abysmal.
Pitched as United Progressive Alliance II‘s biggest welfare scheme in India, the ambitious food security bill is receiving mixed responses from various quarters. The National Advisory Council led by UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi has proposed to cover 75% of the population under the programme.
The implementation of this bill will require an answer to many intricate issues involved in production, storage and distribution of foodgrains. A rotting public distribution system and lack of political will is often cited as reasons that stunt any efforts to meet this far-reaching welfare scheme in public space.
While many experts believe that the bill will mobilize efforts towards a food secure nation, others are skeptical about privatization of the Public Distribution System.
AKANKSHA SAXENA & ZEHRA KAZMI
AJK Mass Communication Research Centre
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Pilot Project discussed for e-governance in RTI
Akanksha SAXENA, eZine, October 20: You can soon track the status of your RTI application, consult experts through an RTI call center and even save paper by filing it electronically! All this and more are on the cards of government’s plan in a bid to initiate e-governance in the RTI space. In a stakeholders consultation held in New Delhi on Wednesday with representatives from CSOs, NGOs, active applicants and the government, the outline of a pilot project was arrived at. The consultation was a closed group meeting held in Ministry of Personnel, PG and Pensions, Department of Personnel & Training, North Block.
The Ministry has appointed National Institute for Smart Government (NISG), Hyderabad as consultants for the e-governance project for Right to Information, commonly referred to as RTI. The time bound project is expected to be launched next year.
- e-governance in RTI
Nitin Srinivas, a representative from NISG affirmed, “We have approached various ministries, including the Ministry of Home affairs who have willingly stretched their hands in support of this proposal. A system is under process to start a pilot project soon with collaborations from NGOs and civil society.” The project, initially, will place applications in English collected from the central government offices located in the Delhi-NCT region on the portal. It will soon be implemented across India on a large scale after the review of the proposed pilot scheme.
The objectives of NISG relates to providing multiple channels for filing RTI queries like call centres and portals. The portals will track the RTI status at various stages.
Saurabh Srivastava, a policy expert from Centre for Civil Society said, “Digital administration is where the future beckons therefore uploading public information should be pro-active. Digitizing RTI procedure will pay dividends in the form of better governance and savings in time, paper-work and public exchequer. The strict IT Act already in place will keep a check on any possible abuse.”
Officials from Department of Personnel & Training (DoPT) discussed the possibilities of training of youngsters for RTI call centres across India. They avowed the success of helplines for farmers, NACO-AIDS, National Population Stabilisation and so on.
However, there were apprehensions and doubts regarding identity theft, web harassment and a generous receipt of frivolous applications. “Uploading large amount of data on the web, technical barriers, acknowledgement of applications received and issues of fee for the sought information are some issues that need to be addressed while devising a blue- print”, said Anuradha Chagti, Deputy Secretary (RTI- DoPT).
There were also suggestions that poured in to curb possible bottlenecks. “Filing RTI through phones can be facilitated by involving telecom companies, the payment of fee in web portal is possible through e-payments, cash cards like PayPal etc. Public Information Officers can have one-time outlay budget for scanners which will reduce the cost of printing on paper,” said Anoop Awasthi, RTI fellow, Centre for Civil Society.
However, Shubh Jyoti, the representative from Nasscom, proposed of keeping the identity of applicant as anonymous which drew vehement debate. There were arguments on the screening of information which defeats the very purpose of filing an RTI.
A mutual concern was voiced on the lack of public awareness programmes on the RTI legislation. The kicking-off of the project will only pave way to improvement and popularity of the legislation. These initiatives will ensure easy accessibility to Public Information Officers in remote areas like gram panchayats. It would break the barriers of literacy and poverty and can be a revolutionary move. Once records and information get digitized, every gram panchayat in India will be able to give out information even to those who do not have a phone or computer.
Picture this- A group of youngsters gather together in a park, solemnly alone and avoiding the prying eyes of the antagonists, played here by the state machinery, to organise book reading sessions. Allegorically, these secretive book-lovers dread the hedonistic society that has given up reading and a meaningful way of life. The state which prevents thoughtful and scholarly pursuits, burns the books (form of media) to encourage mankind to indulge in wasteland of human thought, probably to ascertain and reinforce hegemony.
Set in a rather plaintive coefficient of imaginary world of 1990’s, Ray Bradbury’s 1953 novel- Fahrenheit 451 paints a shocking picture of the dystopian era where critical thought through reading is prohibited. The temperature at which the book paper catches fire is 451F. The firemen burn them as a ‘good deed for the humanity’ .Cinema genius François Truffaut adapted the novel in his 1966 film by the same name.
Ray Bradbury Novel
The grotesque imagery and mayhem in the book as well as its adaptations find startling semblance to the world that we reside in today. Burning of books is symbolically related to the idea of a strong urge to control the textual or any kind of biography of humankind, practised vehemently but covertly by the symbols of power. The representation of truth is blurred, distorted and twisted to an extent that it partially (sometimes wholly) annul the factual events.
The media conveniently ignore issues that require formidable and immediate concern. Many developmental issues never see the light of the day. The cut-throat rat-race in TRP era of broadcast news and publicity garnering sensationalism rules the roost. It’s appalling to note that about 25 lakh people in Manipur are hit by the closure of national highways. Prices of essential commodities including rice, pulses, floor, diesel, petrol and kerosene are skyrocketing.
Manipur has been in turmoil since April. An indefinite economic blockade is enforced on Manipur following the conflict between Nagaland and Manipur over council elections. It’s further aggravated by involvement of separatist leaders. Neither government is taking any immediate steps to ensure safety and end economic blockade, nor is media paying heed to the crisis involving two states of India. Commoners are unaware of the situation there.
The behemoth responsibility of impartiality by print media is also subsided by the trend of advertorials. Advertorials not only propel a brand (person/commodity/ideology) they also masquerade editorial content. Business of news space which belongs to objective news is an infringement of the trust that the reader places in the newspaper. It makes the news lose credibility. Most people cannot distinguish advertisement presented in the form of news content. Dissemination of the content, accurate or otherwise, is on the whims and fancies of the media gatekeepers.
An advertorial presented in news style
Truth is something someone is trying to hide, rest all is advertising. For instance, in the case of reports regarding Aligarh Muslim University, in the past three years of V-C Prof. Abdul Aziz’s tenure- the university has seen more than 145 student suspensions over various issues ranging from lack of student body to holding democratic protests against general corruption. AMU was in news for Professor Siras controversy (the gay professor who was caught on camera having sex with his partner and suspended. He later committed suicide). The students’ fall-out on the issue of alleged culpable suicide committed by Siras and subsequent opposition on surveillance in campus (installation of CCTVs) became vocal and made the authority paranoid.
Students holding peaceful dharnas in AMU
The bearing is clear: the age-old institution is trying hard to save its legacy by indulging in strict regulation only to end up committing more mistakes and jeopardizing future of several of its students.
This and many examples of regulation and state control reinforce what Bradbury went to elaborate the meaning of his book in a 2007 interview, saying specifically that the culprit in Fahrenheit 451 is not the state – it is the people.
We may ponder over the ‘railways third class (unreserved) compartment syndrome’ that we all suffer from. As long as we are out in open we object and powerfully protest for the rights that are due onto us i.e. opening the door. As soon as we get in the compartment (system) and become stalwarts, we resort to everything possible to keep the door shut making impossible for others to enter.
That’s precisely is what is leading to dystopian ends.
Chalo Hamara Des- Review
“ Mera mera kehkar marey , Iss tann ke bahut hain maalik ”
(Many lay dead claiming their rights over my body, but who is the proprietor of my soul?)
This review is written by a mesmerized viewer on whom the mystic film had an impact on a level that people like to consider as “higher conscience”. Therefore, emotive undertones in the lines to follow is not intended, it is merely reflexive of the impact that the documentary creates.
‘Chalo hamara des’ takes one to a journey spanning over two countries, two cultures, different upbringings, disjointed meanings of life and a search for the formless in this tangible world. The journey is made possible because of a unifying theme that connects the protagonists of the film- the ‘concept’ of 15th century Sufi saint- Kabirdas. The director of this film – Shabnam Virmani – takes her quest of finding Kabir a notch higher after Had-Anhad, another brilliant work by her about the bound-boundlessness of Kabir in the world today.
This film not only brings us in the lane of self-discovery, effortlessly made possible by folk singer Prahlad Tipanaya and Stanford professor Dr. Linda Hass, it can calm down one with many answers and yet raise new uncertainties.
Folk tunes and rustic flavour that renders mood and meaning to the couplets and songs of Kabirdas is the mainstay of this film. There is no clear narrative in terms of a conflict and a subsequent resolution. The protagonists are introduced with their backgrounds as they embark the journey together. Serene and soothing visuals complement the abstract imagery. Exceptional cinematography brings out the impact as the images of roads, meadows, villages, hills, ghats(banks of river), fog, greenery, clear sky and much more lingers on even after the film comes to an end.
First, Prahlad Tipanaya, a local school teacher is introduced through his passion and profession of folk singing in Malwa region of Madhya Pradesh. He is a rage among various communities residing in the plateau region. His soulful singing creates such a magic in them, as they come to attend his bhajan jagrans from far and wide, that they virtually consider Tipanaya a conduit to reach the Supreme Being. His rendition of Kabir’s dohas runs a sensation of crusade against social ills by motivating them to peer inside their soul. His strong personality draws drama and creates space for arguments. He comes from a disadvantaged group (discriminated as untouchables) in the caste-setup of the region. As he takes the director on his two-wheeler to show the countryside he talks deeper about his subaltern childhood, his father being a bonded labour. Viewers also come to know about the hundreds of wells he had helped farmers to dig. He familiarizes viewers to a Kabir memorial-cum-temple where no deity is placed. Only Kabir’s couplets find place on the walls. He argues that setting a sargun (idol) he will turn into a profiteering priest, someone he clearly detests.
According to his wife, he had renounced the worldly desires long back. She recounts experiences when in search of his true self he had once left her and young children at home. Though he never turned his back to them and supported them economically, Tipanya is not quite a family man. As his children, pleads him to take rest, he continues to sing at jagarans and spends most of his time at home doing sumiran (remembering Kabir). The director probes his wife more to discover that she is neither satisfied nor complaining about his detachment but like others, she too, reveres her husband. As she finishes domestic chores, in a bright yellow saree, her husband can be heard singing a doha with words like haldi (turmeric). Similar colour symbolism is depicted when he sings about colour red and its manifestations in eyes, henna, blood etc.
From the Indian hinterland the film takes us to the heaven of material existence- California in America, to a professor who is teaching shabd (word), shunya (universe) and sahaj (meaning) to her students. She is a researcher on Kabir and even knows the gujarati and rajasthani versions of the saint’s dohas. She felt cheated by her binding Jewish identity and turned towards Kabir. She comes to India, where along with Tipanya and camera she travels to Banaras. She dances with the tribals who associate themselves with Kabir’s idealogy and make impoverished state their pride on Kabir’s anand rasa. She marvels over the innumerable questions about lies, honesty to oneself and death. She recounts 3 years of her life there. She says with profundity “that she has worked on Kabir, and Kabir on her”.
Here the film presents an oxymoron when a sadhu, who takes great pride in knowing Kabir by writing mahabijak (collection) on him, raises “scientific” claims on impurity of blood of shudras and Linda’s jewish identity. Tipanya sings here sitting on a boat as it is rowed on the ghats of Banaras. In his flair he takes viewer to the tranquillity of Kabir’s words on life and death as bodies are brought to be cremated on the ghats. He mocks at the fake display of vulgar religiosity and outlandish pomp. The wintery dawn, river ganga and fog makes it a soulful experience.
Linda takes Tipanya to California to introduce Kabir through his singing to her students. Lighter moments too come up in the film. There is an argument on maya (worldly desires) being given a female identity as Linda vehemently opposes taking her feminist stance strongly while Tipanya makes lightweight comments all along. The conversational style hooks the viewers to the group. As continuing visual theme- ponds with lotus flowers and twigs, rivulets, meadows, contrasting skyscrapers, evening silhouettes and railway tracks support the mysticism.
The film by the end fills one with emptiness and peace as credits roll with behind the scenes singing of Kabir bhajans by the director who seem submerged in the journey with her friend- Kabir.
The most striking part of the film is its style which is ’boundless’.