A different tale of ‘COP26’
One day, some animals --- Tigers, lions, jackals, Zebras, monkeys, camels,.... -- Decided to meet and exchange Views on climate change! Tigers and lions said, 'let us all be united…
Sheshu Babu
Ambedkar, Gandhi, Marx…. Some thoughts on their philosophy
"True religion is a revolutionary force: it is an inveterate enemy of oppression, privilege, and injustice." Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan (Justice, Diversity, Enemy) Many philosophers, writers, thinkers and critics have, over the…
Ostomy-Need for Awareness
October 2, this year,is not only observed as the birthday of Gandhi, it is also a World Ostomy Day. Ostomy is an artificial opening during operation in the organ of…
‘Jailed’ Children
Conditions in all spheres of life is going from bad to worse. On September 13, 'political prisoners'day was observed. On that day, Jatin Das, friend of Bhagat Singh and member…
‘Surveillance’ Monkey
A monkey came to our home. It saw plenty of space to roam! Elated, it went from room to room Looking nook and corner It saw my computer ... The…
Hate — impact on daily life
"Majorities are of two sorts: (1) communal majority and (2) political majority. A political majority is changeable in its class composition. A political majority grows. A communal majority is born.…
Immortal Nightingale –an ode
Wandering here and there Among adivasis everywhere Singing like active Nightingale Inspiring local people She explored people's lives Offered succor without any avarice She was a darling To the folks…
Cancer…… Colostomy bag
Cancer Is not just a zodiac sign Like a crab its effects are not benign.... It is malign Life threatening Physical and mental taxing Deadly disease Will not leave body…
Caste — hatred and the disabled
"Caste is another name for control. Caste puts a limit on enjoyment. Caste does not allow a person to transgress caste limits. In pursuit of his enjoyment. That is the…
The ‘Invaluable’ Bud
One day, a rose bud Spoke to all the flowers In the garden 'Let all flowers in the world blossom Let every flower live In peace and tranquility ....' The…
Visually disabled and lockdown
Almost all sections of people have suffered due to lockdown. Only a few elite upper classes and rich have not suffered much. The migrant workers, street vendors and petty business…
The ‘invisible guards’ – Prison Guards
He smiles, he laughs through the prison bars to shake me up from my early morning dreams , his morning greeting is clanking a huge bunch of keys into the…
Challenges faced by visually disabled women
Atrocities on women are increasing day -by- day and they are struggling to cope with gruesome attacks by male. Disabled women, especially visually disabled, are all the more disadvantaged and…
‘Quarantine’ World…..!
Migrant workers walking home , walking ... For many a kilometer No water No food No shelter No time to brood On past or future .... Economy staggering Industrial output…
Child detentions and repressive regimes
It has become almost common that activists, dissenters, journalists, etc are being severely assaulted or imprisoned and detained for months without trial. But even children are not being spared by…
‘ Lock?…… Down!’
Years ago You imposed lockdown On our actions Aspirations Choices Voices.... You imposed lockdown On our thoughts Our minds Our movements Our expressions .... We were 'socially' distanced Discriminated Oppressed…
The ‘Healing’ Touch of Nurses
In big hospitals - Government or private - nurses play a crucial part. While doctors look after patients till operation, nurses take care of post-operative trauma and assist in speedy…
Abdul Jabbar: The victim who fought for victims
Another anniversary of Bhopal Gas tragedy will pass by next month but still many poor people are suffering the after effects of the release of poisonous gas. Many activists are…
Women prison inmates – pathetic state
While prisons in the country in general lack basic amenities and prisoners are made to live in sub-human conditions, women in jails suffer more than their male counterparts in most…
Another victory for the disabled
Through persistent struggles, the differently abled have achieved access to crucial jobs in society. The number might be small but they have proved that 'disability ' is not hindrance to…
Justice ….. Far, far away
It seems that judicial system is moving far away from major section of society, specially dalits, marginalised sections, muslims and women. Many recent instances are ample proof of this. Some…
A step towards secular India
In these days of rising communal tensions, a courageous woman achieved her dream of obtaining 'No Caste No Religion' certificate through persistent struggle. This incident is a significant one. Some…
First ‘green village’ and its struggles
'The soul of India lives in its villages' Mahatma Gandhi While cosmopolitan cities and even many villages are being polluted increasingly, there are some villages which are resisting environmental pollution…
Beyond Kashmir – some thoughts
' Extreme violence has a way of preventing us from seeing the interests it serves' Naomi Klein from 'The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism' Many analysts have presented…
Disabled in a capitalist society
Since the major aim of capitalists is to see that maximum production can be extracted from labor, exploitation of workers becomes a key factor. Ordinary workers, thus, face constant harassment,…
Caste bias in institutions of Excellence
Flaws in Indian education system have been discussed at length by various analysts and root causes have also been pointed out. Still, the situation has not improved. Marginalised sections find…
New Education Policy and Disabled
There has been a lot of debate on the draft of new policy on education. Many analysts have exposed loopholes and contradictions in the policy. Inaccessibility Though the government has…
Glimmer of hope? The SC verdict on encounter killings
In a country with poor human rights record and rampant violations of fundamental right to life of citizens, the Supreme Court ruling is a positive step towards accountability. The Supreme…
‘Waste ‘created by the wealthy is picked up by poor ‘waste’ pickers!
Much has been debated over waste disposal and waste management. But the root cause of ' creation' of waste is not discussed often. To reduce waste, the problem of creating…
Authoritarianism – ‘ What is to be done?’ – The question crops up again …..!
" People have always been the foolish victims of deception and self deception in politics , and they always will be until they have learnt to seek out the interest…
‘Value’ of unpaid work by women
In analyzing economic data, various sectors like industry, agriculture, services, etc are taken into account. But domestic work done by women is rarely 'measured' by analysts. A woman getting up…
Heat Wave – Impact on the Poor and the Marginalised
While summer is uncomfortable to most of middle class people, it takes heavy toll of the daily laborers, marginalised casual workers and industrial manual employees. The rich and most government…
Pellet injuries – Physical and Psychological trauma
Living with deformity is very difficult. The degree of difficulty varies with the intensity of disability and its impact on people. One of the vital parts of human body is…
‘Caste’ education in higher education
'That the caste system must be abolished if the Hindu society is to be reconstructed on the basis of equality, goes without saying. Untouchability has its roots in the caste…
Nazrul Islam – The bard of Bengal
'I sing the song Of equality : In my view gender difference is essentially a triviality. Everything that is great in the world, all the works, beneficial and good, half…
‘ Education’ of Educated Persons
"The backward classes have come to realise that after all education is the greatest material benefit for which they can fight....' Dr. B. R. Ambedkar (EDUCATION: THE ONLY KEY TO…
False charges fail before Truth
Prison walls or iron bars cannot hide Truth. Torture or harassment cannot detain anyone for too long. That was proved on April 3, 2019 when a brave woman Nirmalakka travelled…
Students’ suicide – social problems | Sheshu Babu
Summer is not only 'cruelest' season with rising heat and water connected problems to people but also it is a ' testing' time for many young students who dream of…
Patriarchal practices deny transgender to contest as a transgender
Though small in number, transgender community is an integral part of the country. But when elections take place, they are not even considered by most political parties to contest. The…
Sheshu Babu – Factors influencing voters
As election schedule has started, debates on victories and losses of political parties has picked up momentum. Among the factors which are responsible for outcome, the role of various lucrative…
Waste pickers – Wretched lives
In cities and towns, one often comes across heaps of garbage on roadsides and poor - mostly slum dwellers, children - hovering around the pile. These people are mostly ignored…
A manifesto for ‘ non- voters’ ….?
A child miseducated is a child lost - John F Kennedy While all the mainstream parties are busy issuing statements of promises to various sections of society, there is little…
This ‘ Chowkidar is not ‘Chor’
"Dekh raha hai kya kya sapna raat ko sone waala Ho sone waala Yeh na jaane aankh khule to kya hai hone waala Haa hone waala ( From ' yeh…
Darryl D’Monte: A journalist of people and environment
Very few journalists stood by peoples'rights and dared to expose atrocities committed by corporates and government. One such fine committed journalist was Darryl D'Monte who inspired younger generation. He passed…
Indication of Fascism….?
As the country is preparing for elections, all the politicians are trying to outsmart each other in promises and rhetoric. Amidst of the statements of leaders, some are really very…
Social Conflicts And Sahir Ludhianvi’s Thoughts
'Khuda-e-Bartar teri zameen par zameen ki khatir yeh jung kyoon hai? Har ek fatah-o-zafar ke daaman pe khoon-e-insaan ka rang kyon hai? O Lord Almighty, on your land, why is…
Lathi- charge on hearing impaired : An act of shame
Many excesses of the police and military forces go unreported or partially reported. A recent incident of injuring hearing impaired has not been covered widely in mainstream media. According to…
Begging – Social And Economic Problems
"They are but beggars that can count their worth " . William Shakespeare (Romeo and Juliet) Whenever poorly- clad, dirty and expectant people gathering major road junctions, bus - stands,…
‘Save Democracy’ – Present Duty of The People
Many analysts have pointed out the ' interim' budget as ' populist' and promising 'sops' to many sections of society. Most of these promises are, in actuality, the need of…
Rights of disabled prisoners
While the general condition of prisons and the prisoners is pathetic, those suffering disability is horrific to say the least. The basic right to life ( Article 21 of the…
Kaifi Azmi’s relevance in times of communal hatred
.... 'Jagmagate thhe jahan Ram key quadam ke nishan Piyaar kee kahkashan leti thi angdayee jahan Mod nafrat ke usee rah guzar mein ayee Dharam kya unka hae, kya zaat…
The marginalised lives of ‘Anganwadi’ and other workers
While major contribution to implementation of social welfare schemes is through social volunteers and anganwadis, nurses, teachers, etc .their economic and social condition remains pathetic. Their problems have not been…
‘Broken extended ‘ families and their significance
Though the trend towards ' nuclear' families where the family unit is mainly parents and children is increasing, there are indications of increase in families which are neither nuclear nor…
P. K. Rosy: A dalit actress in film world
Many women have struggled to come up in the tinsel world of film industry. The #Me Too movement has exposed how domination of male led many women to terminate their…
Social media and violation of human rights
Advancement of technology, more than benefiting masses, is becoming dangerous in the hands of miscreants. Increase of smart - phones and computers have spread the use of social media platforms.…
Year of caste and communal tensions
As new year draws closer, there is an increase of tensions on caste and communal lines. The Naseeruddin Shah affair has not yet subsided and another instance of repression took…
Problem of ‘ e- waste’ management
Use of electronic materials has increased over the years and waste emanating from disbanding of the equipment is rising rapidly particularly in cities and towns. The city of Moradabad in…
Fifty Years of a Revolutionary Tree
We still remember The wailing of standing tree When you were tied And brutally murdered
Alternate energy sources in times of scarcity
Recent ups and downs of petrol and diesel prices have made a large impact on people who depend upon them in their daily lives in most parts of the country…
Children and climate change
"We are causing the problem, but our children and grandchildren are going to suffer the consequences " James Hansen on Climate change Voicing concerns on deteriorating climate and rising pollution…
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