My Musings

Musings....... Left Wing Fascism While surfing through Quora app looking for something totally unrelated, I came across a question - “ Which dictator killed the most people-  Adolf Hitler, Joseph Stalin or Mao Zedong ? I was surprised to find the answer, Adolf Hitler only comes third in this list, only after Stalin and Mao !! We have generally attributed the fascism to right wing and have mostly ignored the fact that left wing fascism does exist. Though traditionally and historically considered a right wing phenomena, fascism identify itself even as left wing in the following sense - - [ ] Intolerance of its political opponents - [ ] Suppression of freedom of speech and lack of respect for democratic principles - [ ] Use of Violence. The term was popularised by sociologists and one such philosopher, Victor Klemperer described the close similarities between the Nationalist Socialist Regime and the German Democratic Republic ( Nazi Party). Most recently the term “left fa...

Musings....... It was with anger that I read the following news in my mobile newsfeed. That the right wing saffron outfit Hindu Mahasabha celebrated the 111th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhijis assassin Nathuram Godse in Madhya Pradesh. To add injury to insult, it’s national Vice President hailed him as a patriot!! At a time when all public functions and gatherings are banned due to the Coronavirus Pandemic, what was the urgency and need for such a commemoration escapes me. On November 15th 2019, the same outfit had observed Balidan Divas at its Gwalior office to mark the 70th anniversary of the hanging of Godse. Similarly during the time of the BJP government in Madhya Pradesh in 2017, the Hindu Mahasabha had tried to establish a temple in Godses name. Born Ramachandra Vinayak Godse, Nathuram was an active worker for the RSS and Hindu Mahasabha with alleged direct ties with Savarkar which is now well established with proof. Since the BJP government has come to power at t...

Musings....... The Economic Survey of India 2017 estimates that the magnitude of interstate migration in India was close to 9 million annually between 2011 and 2016, while Census 2011 puts the total number of internal migrants in the country at a staggering 139 million. UP and Bihar are the biggest source states, followed closely by MP, West Bengal, Rajasthan and Uttarakhand. The major destination states are Delhi, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Andhra and Kerala. These vulnerable population of India work in the construction, manufacturing, transport, services, hotel and domestic work market - marked by low pay and hazardous work conditions. The common issues they face at work is non- payment of wages, physical abuse, accidents and even death. Many informal sector disputes don’t even go to labour courts and those that manage to, languish in courts for lack of proof. They have poor access to health services - lack of insurance - and most often are forced to go back to their h...

Musings....... Lynching is a word that I learnt over the past few years, specifically around the time this present dispensation came to power. Mob lynching has become synonymous with killing in the name of religion. We have heard of cases mob lynching over fake news ranging from possession of Beef from Uttar Pradesh ( Akhlak lynching case ); to the lynching of the poor young Dalit man Madhu in Kerala over fake news of his stealing food. In all these cases the perpetrators were the powerful entitled part of society and the victims happened to be the poor minority - both religious and social. It was hence with surprise that I heard the news on 16th April 2020 of the lynching of two Hindu Sadhus and their driver in Ghadchinchale Village in Palghar District of Maharashtra, apparently by a vigilante group over fake WhatsApp rumours of theives operating in the area during the countrywide Coronavirus lockdown. The two sadhus belonged to the Juna Akhara, who were travelling at night t...

Musings....... Kerala Model -Lest we forget The famed Kerala model of development is characterised by achievements in social indicators such as education, healthcare, high life expectancy, low infant mortality and low birth rate. Kerala has achieved social development comparable to those of developed countries even though the states per capita income is moderate. Kerala has a 631 km narrow coast in southwest India supporting 4.5% of the country’s population. With its natural beauty it is rightly called the “ Gods own country” further enhancing tourism opportunities. Kerala enjoys a high literacy rate only slightly higher among males than females. Kerala has the lowest population growth rate in India, comparable to China’s near zero population growth rate. However, population pressure on the meagre land is very high. The low level of infant mortality is testimony to excellent health standards of the population both among males and females. The social status of Kerala women is...

Musings....... There is so much of information floating around us.  In the time of an epidemic, such as now, the only thing that floats around is the word Covid19 and frankly I have become wary of it. In my opinion the WHO ( International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses ) should grow a sense of humour. I mean why did they chose such a bland name for something that has turned the world upside down! The truth is the whole world has been affected by the virus (180 countries). Life as we know existed, do not exist anymore and may not exist so in future. Remember I am writing this in the 10th day of the 21 day lockdown in my country ! Corona virus has taken a toll on all our lives and as I said we are surrounded by information on it - both true and false. I do not intend to add to the misery of my readers by instilling more useless information on the virus, or our lackadaisical response to it. The writing on the wall is crystal clear- give some respect to the unseen enemy and...

Musings....... No one waiting for 2020 would have realised the world would be facing something so drastic as the COVID-19, previously called the Novel Coronavirus 2019 (nCOV-2019). Starting as an outbreak in Wuhan, the capital city of Central China’s Hubei Province, the viral zoonotic disease has spread its eagle wings into an epidemic at first and then into a pandemic engulfing the whole of earth around it. An outbreak is a sudden rise in the number of cases of a disease. It may occur in a community or geographical area or may affect several countries. It may last for a few days, weeks or for several years. Some outbreaks like influenza are expected each year. Sometimes a single case of an infectious disease can be considered an outbreak such as if the disease is rare - like botulism or if it has serious public health implications- like Anthrax. An epidemic occurs when an infectious disease spreads rapidly to many people. An example would be the 2003 SARS - severe acute respir...