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🔵 Looking Back At Lagaan: Was Cricket a Breeding Ground for Nationalism? | Economic and Political Weekly

https://www.epw.in/engage/discussion/looking-back-lagaan-was-cricket-breeding-ground

Boria Majumdar reads Lagaan as a “commentary on the evolution and development of cricket in colonial India” where defeating the colonists in their own game was a thing of pride for Indians. Cricket became a medium for India to assert itself and the sport became the “breeding ground” for nationalism. 

Nissim Mannathukkaren questions Majumdar’s arguments on cricket and nationalism, stating that the film, by showing unity among all Indians, ignores the realities of the stratification of Indian society. Specifically, Mannathukkaren claims, Lagaan ignores Indian oppressors such as rajas and taluqdars and presents the British as the sole oppressors of Indians.

✅ RELEVANCE: Nationalism

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1st visuals of workers stuck inside collapsed tunnel in Uttarakhand surface

Pressure from parents is the problem, not coaching institutes: SC on student suicides

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🔵 Young Indian parents are losing their children to foster care abroad - Frontline

https://frontline.thehindu.com/the-nation/controversy-young-indian-parents-are-losing-their-children-to-foster-care-abroad-for-incompetent-parenting-mrs-chatterjee-vs-norway-case-sagarika-chakraborty-dhara-shah-priyadarshini-lingaraj-patil/article67343742.ece

Though all such children are entitled to kinship care, this is not always possible, given the absence of the extended family in the country of residence. The children are placed with foster carers who do not have any ethnic or cultural links to the child’s country of origin. “As a consequence, these children... are unable to develop any bonds with their country of origin or their extended families. They age out of foster care in a state of double alienation—they are not citizens of the country of residence and have no substantial ties with their country of origin,” they wrote.

🔵 The Not-so-curious Case of the Nightie Ban | Economic and Political Weekly

https://www.epw.in/journal/2018/51/postscript/not-so-curious-case-nightie-ban.html

Why did a village in Andhra Pradesh ban the seemingly innocuous nightie?

Anywhere in India, nay, anywhere in the whole world, you will be hard-pressed to find a woman who has never ever been told what to wear or has never had to think of whether her clothes would make someone else feel uncomfortable. Seemingly simple choices of how women dress or move their own bodies in public spaces or in the home are, in fact, matters of control and power over women’s agency. Clothes are used as a tool to either sexualise the female body or strip it of its sexuality to best suit the oppressor’s need at the moment. Think of why the clothes of women who are victims of sexual assault are called into question. Or why widowed women are even today discouraged from wearing “attractive” clothing or accessories. These powers vary in potency, but are the omnipresent powers of the state, of patriarchy, of intimate relationships, of society, and of internalised patriarchy in women.

Recently, a coastal fishing village in Andhra Pradesh, Tokalapalli, decided to ban women from wearing nighties between 7 am and 7 pm. The humble nightie doesn’t seem to warrant this kind of a reaction, surely! The nightie is as innocuous as it is inoffensive. It is an oversized, loose fitting, one-piece attire that women across India wear as night clothes and during the day and out in public places too. In smaller towns and working-class neighbourhoods, it is not uncommon to see women walk about with neatly combed hair adorned with flowers, their faces aglow with a greyish tinge of talcum powder, pottu (vermillion) and eyeliner in place, whilst wearing a nightie accessorised with a dupatta.

🔵 Rainbow Rishta: Queer love in focus

https://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/columns/rainbow-rishta-queer-love-in-focus-9028050/

The wholesome docuseries Rainbow Rishta takes viewers on a journey where discussions revolve around queerness, queer love, and the challenges that the community has inherited — and is fighting against. It is an innovative attempt to convey both the complexity of queer love and the idea that queer love can transcend physical intimacy. Simultaneously, it compels us to question whether what is portrayed in the series truly encapsulates the essence of queer love.

Does the end goal of queer love also align with the conventional heteronormative institution of marriage? And is queer love confined to the monogamous understanding of love involving two individuals, similar to the heteronormative model?

🔵 Parochial law: The Hindu Editorial on the Haryana law guaranteeing 75% reservation to locals in private sector - The Hindu

https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/editorial/parochial-law-the-hindu-editorial-on-the-haryana-law-guaranteeing-75-reservation-to-locals-in-private-sector/article67559323.ece

If States build walls and impose restrictions that prevent job seekers from other States from accessing opportunities, citizens of poorer States will have to eke out a living within their own regions. This will affect the economy of the entire country. While legislation that seeks to reserve blue collar jobs for locals is problematic and unconstitutional, there is a reason why there is resentment among locals in better-off States over their jobs being taken up by “migrant” workers and which has compelled their governments to come up with knee-jerk protectionist measures. There are more than a few private employers who exploit the migrant labour market as such workers tend to work long hours for low wages with little or no social protection and benefits. This creates a segmentation of the labour market with low-wage migrant workers on the one side and local workers with better bargaining power on the other. If States are truly concerned about protecting workers’ rights, they should ensure that migrant workers in all establishments enjoy basic labour rights that are legally due to them, thereby creating a level playing field for all workers. This will also be a curb on exploitative practices by employers. Protectionism in the labour market is not the answer.

#Labour #Migrants

10 days after tunnel collapse: 5 rescue options on the table

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Students without Biology as primary subject in 10+2 exam can now become doctors

Do you support the decision?

#NEP

🔵 A dilemma over tribal land rights in Odisha - The Hindu

https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/tribal-land-rights-in-odisha-osatip/article67562221.ece

As of the 2011 Census, the tribal population in the State stands at 95.91 lakh, comprising 22.85% of the total State population. Odisha is home to 62 distinct tribes, including 13 Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups, showcasing one of the most diverse tribal landscapes in the country. It ranks as the third-largest concentration of tribal population, trailing behind Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra. Scheduled Tribes in Scheduled Areas constitute approximately 68.09% of the total tribal population. Notably, 121 out of the 314 blocks in Odisha have been designated as Scheduled Areas. Furthermore, about 44.70% of the State’s geographical expanse falls under the Scheduled Area classification.

The OSATIP 1956 is acknowledged as one of the most stringent legislations aimed at safeguarding tribal interests.

This Act was conceived in response to widespread reports of unchecked appropriation of tribal lands in Scheduled Areas. Instances were documented where even small parcels of tribal land were transferred to non-tribals in exchange for a bottle of local brew. For tribal communities, land holds paramount importance as it constitutes their most valuable asset.

A majority of tribals lack business expertise, face challenges in transitioning to alternative livelihoods, lack access to capital for starting new ventures, and are relatively recent participants in the realm of technology.

#Tribals

🔵 Haryana’s private sector domicile reservation law and why it has been quashed by the High Court | Explained - The Hindu

https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/haryanas-private-sector-domicile-reservation-law-and-why-it-has-been-quashed-by-the-high-court-explained/article67559282.ece

#Labour #Migrants

🔵 Measuring Participation And Contribution Of Rural Men And Women In Indian Agriculture

In total, women in rural India work 91 minutes more than men per day, yet their participation in and contribution to agriculture remains less than men. This is because women spend over three times the amount of time on unpaid work than men per day.

#EPW

🌐 Meet San Rechal Gandhi, Model Trolled For Dark Skin, Now Representing India at Miss Africa Golden 2023

https://www.india.com/women/meet-san-rechal-gandhi-model-trolled-for-dark-skin-now-representing-india-at-miss-africa-golden-2023-6469537/

San Rechal Gandhi is all set to represent India in Miss Africa Golden (Nov 16-Nov 20) at Gauteng in South Africa. The 24-year-old model was crowned Miss Pondicherry 2022 which was held in her native state, Tamil Nadu. She has participated in more than 15 pageants with a mission to break the stereotypical notion around beauty and skin tone, quash judgment and promote self-acceptance. Drawing from her own life experiences, she aspires to be an example for countless girls who have experienced discrimination based on their skin colour.

#Colourism
Colorism is a form of DISCRIMINATION or PREJUDICE based on the shade or tone of someone's skin color, often favoring lighter skin over darker shades. This bias can occur within and between ethnic groups and is rooted in historical and social factors.