• Abstract and Figures
• Public Full-text

A JOURNAL OF THE PRESS INSTITUTE OF INDIA ISSN 0042-5303 October-December 2019 Volume 11 Issue 4 Rs 60 Gandhi @150: What do CONTENTS • Resistance of the soul – a voice from the past / Bharat Dogra • Is the world paying lip we see today? service to his teachings? / N.S. Venkataraman A daylong seminar was organised at the National Institute of • Long way to go before becoming Advanced Studies (NIAS) Bengaluru in September to mark the ‘open defecation free’ / 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, revered as the Sakuntala Narasimhan Father of the Nation. The event brought together academics • Debating the state of the press and experts in different fields, from around the country. in modern India / Susan Philip The presentations and discussions provided some thought- • Of content and control – provoking insights on Gandhi’s ideas and their relevance advertising and PR still rule / to contemporary society, says Sakuntala Narasimhan who N. Bhaskara Rao attended the event • Manual cleaning of sewers and latrines in today’s tech-driven ahatma Gandhi was not just about non-violence and satyagraha era? / Sarita Brara (non-violent resistance). His ideas spanned several other areas of • Live and let live, yes… but in our Mnationhood and citizens’ entitlements. Some of these seem par- own style! / Alok Srivastava ticularly relevant to the developments that we see today, in contemporary • How globalisation has affected India. unorganised women workers / The concept of trusteeship, which was the focus of the presentation by Vibhuti Patel Subramaniam Ramadorai, is one such. Gandhi believed that each one of us • A laudable initiative enthuses holds in trust, for the common good, whatever resources we gain access to children to save water / and use. Appropriation for personal gain is the anti-thesis of such a concept Rina Mukherji of trusteeship, whether it is the use of natural resources like water and land • A newspaper that set a and forests, or the allocation of priorities in development planning. benchmark in Odia journalism / Mrinal Chatterjee But what do we see today? Common land being fenced off and used for the benefit of commercial activities and corporate business. Tribals being • How Hindi films have been influenced by Hollywood thrillers / ousted from land that they have been living on for generations, to make way Shoma A. Chatterji for a mega dam (Narmada, for example) or a factory (Singur, Thoothukudi, • Indian cricket all set to scale new for manufacture) in the name of ‘development’; river water that people had heights / Partab Ramchand access to freely, being dammed and diverted for power generation or other • A peek into an ancient, commercial enterprise; water being bottled and sold for profit, while mil- extraordinary ‘spa’ regimen / lions in poor localities and slums have to hunt for a pot of water for their Meenakshi Devraj basic needs. • Remembering Om Prakash / Farmers are committing suicide after being trapped in the clutches of Naushad / J. Om Prakash / agri-business tactics that want to promote chemical pesticides for profit Vidya Sinha generation. The rich and the powerful call the shots for deciding on who (Continued on page 3) October-December 2019 VIDURA 1 FROM THE EDITOR Truth and non-violence – haven’t we failed Gandhi badly? hundred and fifty years after call the shots and how the poor have jailed, vying with each other to gar- his birth and 71 years after no voice in decision-making. Every- land the statue of Mahatma Gandhi Ahis death, Mahatma Gan- thing that Gandhi wouldn’t have during his birth and death anniver- dhi still remains alive in our collec- wanted and nothing of what he had sary and posing for a picture beside tive conscience. We received quite a preached. Resurrecting his ideas, the statue is sheer mockery. few articles for this issue about him rather than ritually garlanding his Referring to Gandhi’s thrust on even without asking. Some of the statues on his birthday, Narasimhan commitment to truth, Narasimhan questions we frequently ask or are feels, would be a meaningful tribute in another article wonders how the confronted with are: How relevant to the Mahatma. government could have declared is Gandhi today? Does today’s gen- Bharat Dogra mentions how non- Rural India ‘open defecation free’ eration get inspired by him and the violence was a way of life for Gan- when we all knew well that it just ideals he stood for? Will Gandhi’s dhi, extending to all forms of life wasn’t the case. What was the harm principles and ideals work in today’s and covering not only action but in admitting that there were still world? How would Gandhi have also one’s innermost thoughts – a miles to go before Rural India or the reacted (to a particular situation) tall order for mere mortals to fol- country as such was open defeca- were he alive today? How would low, but inspiring nevertheless. We tion free? Also, as we again know, he have felt about the media’s func- live in a world today (India, that there are toilets that have been built tioning today, and about the use of is) where religious and caste differ- but there is no running water, and social media, too? Answers to these ences are highlighted and violence is there are toilets that aren’t used and other such questions are always easily used to show might is right. at all. debatable. Let’s get a flavour from This was what Gandhi feared and Now, what about the media? those who have written about him was dead against; he set an example M.V. Rajeev Gowda says Gandhi and his relevance in this issue. by his own behaviour and practices. strongly believed that journalism Sakuntala Narasimhan says Gan- In Gandhi Before India, Ramachandra should be accessible and empower- dhi believed that each one of us Guha mentions how Gandhi’s vision ing, he was an ardent supporter of holds in trust, for the common good, of an inclusive, tolerant India was the regional media and understood whatever resources we gain access being threatened from both ends of that a vital role of the media was to to and use. Appropriation for per- the political spectrum. speak truth to power and ensure sonal gain is the anti-thesis of such N.S. Venkataraman is convinced accountability and transparency. a concept of trusteeship, whether it that after celebrating Mahatma Gan- However, today, Gowda says, Gan- is the use of natural resources like dhi’s birth anniversary, the world will dhi would find a media that had water and land and forests, or the go back to its normal routine, which acquiesced and bowed down to the allocation of priorities in develop- means violence, hatred and animos- powers that be, a media that was ment planning, she adds, pointing ity, all totally contrary to his advoca- afraid to ask tough questions. Gan- to how today common land is used cies and preaching. He points to a list dhi, he points out, had emphasised for commercial activities and cor- of things that are missing today: hon- that publication of false news was porate business, how tribal people esty and probity in public and private “a crime against humanity” and he are being driven from where they lives, mindsets open to reform, non- would have been shocked by the have lived for years to make way violence, adherence to truth, courage surge of fake news and doctored for a mega projects, how farmers of conviction, and simplicity in living videos today. are committing suicide (numbers and outlook. Venkataraman says cor- shock) faced with a host of problems rupt and dishonest people, including Sashi Nair and getting little government sup- politicians, businessmen and bureau- [email protected] port, how the rich and the powerful crats, some of who have even been 2 VIDURA October-December 2019 Illustration: Arun Ramkumar Illustration: (Continued from page 1) Professor Narendar Pani of NIAS power by a few but the acquisi- gets what, not those on the lower referred to ‘morality’ which has tion of power by the majority ( the rungs of the economic ladder, who become another casuality of ‘mod- masses) to resist authority when have no voice in decision-making. ern’ policies. The media regularly it (authority) is abused”. Today, They count as vote banks only once report on some scam or the other, anyone questioning or criticiising in five years when their ballots are corruption is rampant at all lev- the policies of those in power, get needed by politicians; thereafter els of administration, and VIPs penalised in ways small and not they get nothing. Because they do indicted on corruption charges are so small – ranging from threats not count. “leaders” who get elected on the and harassment to imprisonment, This was not what Gandhi basis of money power, or caste or whether media persons or indi- preached. He lived frugally, like other devious means. One third viduals activists. any poor citizen, and identified with of today’s members of Parliament Former ambassador P.A.Nazareth the poorest of the poor. Resurrect- have some criminal charge or the who heads the Sarvodaya Trust, ing his ideas, rather than ritually other against them. Where is our focused in his presentation on garlanding his statues on his birth- national obeisance to Gandhi? ahimsa and conflict resolution. day, would lbe a more meaningful The other concept that came in While we in India seem to have side- tribute to the Mahatma. Following fort discussion was swaraj (free- lined the Mahatma’s philosophy a market-driven economic policy is dom). As one paper put it, Gan- based on non-violence, humanitar- a travesty of all that Gandhi held dhi believed that “real swaraj will ian service and peace, as “irrelevant sacred.

Load more

  72

Copy Link