2021

by Ram Puniyani
India’s caste system is the major obstacle for betterment of the socio-economic condition of the downtrodden. The lowest in the rung of caste hierarchy, the victims of caste oppression are addressed as dalits or ScheduledCastes (SC). There are others who are also on the lower scale of hierarchy, the tribal (ST) and other backward castes (OBC). For centuries the low castes were subject to oppression at multiple levels. Theirs’ was a sort of slavery couchedin the wrap of (…)

by Anil Rajimwale
One of the richest persons in the world Bill Gates said five years ago: “If anything kills over 10 million people in the next few decades, it’s most likely to be a highly infectious virus rather than a war,” “not missiles, but microbes.” So corona type viruses were being anticipated for long. Yet nothing was being done. Conspiracy theories are doing rounds, involving China and US in deliberately releasing the ‘war material’ of Corona virus as part of big power rivalries. (…)

One of the most important contributions of a democratic debate in a democracy is that it allows all views, even the less wise ones, to be heard. The less wise ones can then be rejected after due consideration in the deliberations and the wise views prevail. In this ideal situation there remains the possibility that aspects of minority views can sometimes prove valuable and do not get entirely neglected. Such a democratic debate is particularly important in the context of issues which impact (…)

by Tanmay Jyothis*
Baba Ramdev on May 21st, 2021 has openly attacked modern medicine. This is not an isolated event. We have seen during the pandemic, not from ordinary folk, but from sitting members of the parliament, claims that outrage science, reason, and common sense. Pragya Thakur, MP (BJP), has claimed her regular drinking of cow urine is the reason she has not (yet) contracted the coronavirus. Cow urine drinking ’parties’ were organized by the Hindu Mahasabha in the infancy of the (…)

by Nafis Haider
In face of the current intersectional crisis brought by the second wave of Covid-19, PM Modi tends to maintain his charisma and authority by following the Machiavellian politics of shedding off the blame for bad deeds and taking credit for the achievements.
Modi government is trying to play dual card to save its image from the Covid-19 crisis. Firstly by blaming the public on personal level, appealing to their religious as well as spiritual emotions by making their (…)

CITIZENS FOR DEMOCRACY (CFD) (Set up by Loknayak Jayprakash Narayan in 1974 in defence of democracy & democratic values) Adm.Office “Ashadeep”, XI Cross, Saptapur, Dharwad – 580001, Karnataka Email: srhiremath1944[at]gmail.com Ph: 94481 45930 ndpancholi44[at]gmail.com Ph: 9811099532 Date 2nd June, 2021
Press Release
Seven Demands Of Citizens For Democracy (Cfd) Which Should Be Pursued By The Government To Tackle Present Prevailing Crisis All-Around
Keeping in (…)

The Editors Guild of India
PRESS STATEMENT
June 4th, 2021
The Editors Guild of India welcomes the Supreme Court judgment on the sedition case against senior journalist Vinod Dua.
The apex court not just quashed the criminal complaint against Dua, but has also underlined the importance of protecting journalists from sedition cases.
While the reference to the earlier judgment of Justice Kedar Nath Singh and the need to protect journalists from sedition charges is welcome, the manner (…)

by Jajati K. Pattnaik & Rudra P. Pradhan *
China is seen to be investing heavily in the Artificial Intelligence (AI) driven techno- economic domain to shape and control the transnational space in order to gain global market advantages. It is noticed that the world mode of production which has evolved from manufacturing economy to knowledge economy — a phenomena of fourth Industrial Revolution — largely thrust upon algorithm, big data and decision tree as new mode of wealth creation to (…)

by John Scales Avery
A new report published in the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences’ Ambio, points out that humanity is hurtling towards destruction unless we have the collective wisdom to change course quickly. Here is the link to the article.
The Ambio article was written as part of the preparation for a meeting of Nobel Prize winners to discuss the state of the planet. The virtual meeting will be held later this month.
We must achieve a steady-state economic system
A steady-state (…)

by V (formerly Eve Ensler)
As Covid-19 has swept the world there has been an explosion of violence against women, and a full-blown assault on their rights. It’s time to fight back against a system that allows women to be sacrificed, erased and violated
Covid has unleashed the most severe setback to women’s liberation in my lifetime. While watching this happen, I have started to think we are witnessing an outbreak of disaster patriarchy.
Naomi Klein was the first to identify “disaster (…)