2023

All India Kisan Mazdoor Sabha, AIKMS
Press Note - 20.08.2023 AIKMS condemns bauxite mining leases near Niyamgiri to Adani, Vedanta Condemns detention of AIKMS National Secretary Bhalchandra Shadangi and repression on Adivasis Demands withdrawal of UAPA cases on protesting tribals by BJD govt
CEC AIKMS condemns the brutal repression and indiscriminate arrest of activists and common people opposing Vedanta and Adani’s proposed mining projects in Kashipur area of Rayagada District.
CEC (…)

The Editors Guild of India
PRESS STATEMENT
August 24, 2023
The Editors Guild of India is disturbed by the blocking of the website as well as de-activation of social media accounts of the Srinagar-based news website, the KashmirWalla.
As per the statement released by the KashmirWalla on August 20, 2023, the service providers [of their website], informed them that the website has been, “blocked in India by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology under the IT Act, 2000”. (…)

BOOK REVIEW
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Hero of Kumaon: The Life of Jim Corbett by Duff Hart-Davis
HarperCollins India Pages: xii + 259; Price: Rs 399
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It was an Ashoka moment that transformed the legendary Edward James Corbett from a widely-admired hunter of man-eaters in the hills of Kumaon to an ardent conservationist, an avid photographer of wild animals and, finally, as a successful author that fetched him unprecedented international fame.
Jim, as he was popularly known, had once taken (…)

BOOK REVIEW
Reviewed by Leon Switala
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A Social Ecology of Capital by Éric Pineault
Pluto Press 2023. 176 pp. Paperback ISBN: 9780745343778 eBook ISBN: 9780745343792 __0__
In a recently held presentation, the Canadian sociologist Éric Pineault stated that he was writing his book to show that on a theoretical and empirical basis ‘there is nothing between degrowth and green growth’. He gives systematic arguments that neither position for a growth perspective seems to be (…)

* Remembering Bindeshwar Pathak | Devaki Jain
* With Naveen, Odisha Plays Snakes and Ladders | Radhakanta Barik
* Freedom: Corroded And Stained | Kobad Ghandy
* Afghanistan: UN human rights experts denounce idea of “reformed” Taliban

Letter to the Readers, Mainstream, Aug 19, 2023
Man-made mass violence, economic crisis, pandemics and disasters caused due to climatic /environmental reasons all lead to social dislocation and economic disruption, and displacement of populations. Over the past years India has seen demonetization that hugely impacted the informal sector causing the closure of thousands of businesses triggering economic distress, a few years later we saw the giant Covid-19 lockdown creating a wave of mass (…)

We, that is my colleagues in the small women’s study center that was born in the 70s,- and I had a surprise one evening when a tall gentleman dressed in a dhoti and kurta walked into our office He had heard that we were identifying voluntary agencies or non-governmental centers which had been effective. He told us he was deeply engaged in the emancipation of the scavengers, one of Gandhi’s ideals, and he had found his own way of doing that .-Mainly to improve the Latrines/ Lavatories/ the (…)

Achyut Yagnik breathed his last on August 4, Friday. He was one of the most versatile among that rather select number of people who are able to combine a lifetime of writing and activism. However even this introduction would fall short of a very important part of his contributions which relate to the numerous ways in which he helped other writers and activists to make a better contribution to society. As for those working on social issues and history of Gujarat, Achyut Yagnik was an (…)

Odisha’s chief minister Naveen Patnaik is 77 years old, just two months away from a birthday. On 22 July, Patnaik achieved a significant career milestone by becoming the second longest-serving chief minister in India, surpassing Bengal’s Jyoti Basu. He became chief minister of this eastern State in March 2000, after the death of his father Biju Patnaik.
When we look at Naveen, one needs to also keep in mind who he is. Biju was a charismatic leader, a Royal Indian Airforce pilot, Jawaharlal (…)

We have just celebrated the 77th year of our independence. While much euphoria was generated by the media and politicians it is the right time to take stock as to where we have reached in this journey forward and what is the likely future for the new generations growing up.
Oxfam India’s briefing ‘Inequality Kills’, published Jan 16 2023, has revealed “that the collective wealth of India’s 100 richest people hit a record high of Rs. 57.3 lakh crore (USD 775 billion) in 2021. According to (…)