Widow remarriage is an Offence?

Widow remarriage is an offence! Just like dowry and domestic violence. And homosexuality is a social vice. It results in the spread of AIDS. Not treating homosexuality as a criminial offence will encourage it.

These are some of the enlightened positions our government our government has taken in an affidavit to Delhi’s High Court. The last mughal, Bahadur Shah Jafar, might have held more liberal opinions than our current rulers in Delhi. Homosexuality spreads AIDS? Well so do sex and blood transfusion. Why not criminalize these acts too?

Same sex union is criminal in India and that is one reason why gays and lesbians resort to unsafe practices like seeking multiple partners. The affidavit says that the law is there because the Indian society disapproves of homosexuality. I agree that a large part of Indian society does so and strongly. But a government should not always follow the society slavishly. Sometimes it should lead also. Just like marketeers. Marketeers do not only serve existing demands; they also create new demand through innovation and advertisement.

Even if government follows the society, who are The Society? How to aggregate its preferences? Is it the voting majority? We use majority rule to elect our government. But majority rule has serious limitations. That is why we have individual rights guaranteed by the constitution to protect individuals against the tyranny of the majority. We would have never had any progressive legislation if governments always followed the majority slavishly. India won’t be secular and women not equal to men if majority opinion were the law of the land.  

Government of India should rescind clause(s) of Article 377 of IPC that criminalize adult homosexuality. I think the government should not just stop at changing the statute. It should also try to shape society’s opinion with help from the civil society.

बांधो न नाव इस ठाँव बन्धु!

Suryakant Tripathi ‘Nirala’ was probably the greatest hindi poet of 20th century. He was definitely the most versatile. A pillar of Chhayawaad, he pioneered mukta-chhanda  (blank verse) in hindi poems and he was the leading light of nayi kavita. His poems, even when in blank verse, are lyrical: something entirely missing in modern hindi poetry. I think this is a big reason why no one reads poems anymore. Those who do, keep going back to the old classics. Here is one such short and sweet peom by Nirala.

 

बांधो न नाव इस ठाँव बन्धु!

बांधो न नाव इस ठाँव बन्धु!
पूछेगा सारा गाँव बन्धु !

यह घाट वही जिसपर हँसकर,
वह कभी नहाती थी धँसकर,
आँखें रह जाती थीं फँसकर,
कँपते थे दोनों पाँव बन्धु!

बांधो न नाव इस ठाँव बन्धु!
पूछेगा सारा गाँव बन्धु !

वह हँसी बहुत कुछ कहती थी,
फ़िर भी अपने में रहती थी
सबकी सुनती थी सहती थी
देती थी सबके दाँव बन्धु!

बांधो न नाव इस ठाँव बन्धु!

Financial Crisis: 4-Step View from Paul Krugman

Economist Paul Krugman explains the ongoing financial crisis in 4 small bullet points in his Op-ed in The New York Times. . This is the msot succint explanation I have come across. Follow the link and read the full article if you have time. It is one of the better ones by Krugman.  

The 4-Steps:

1. The bursting of the housing bubble has led to a surge in defaults and foreclosures, which in turn has led to a plunge in the prices of mortgage-backed securities — assets whose value ultimately comes from mortgage payments.

2. These financial losses have left many financial institutions with too little capital — too few assets compared with their debt. This problem is especially severe because everyone took on so much debt during the bubble years.

3. Because financial institutions have too little capital relative to their debt, they haven’t been able or willing to provide the credit the economy needs.

4. Financial institutions have been trying to pay down their debt by selling assets, including those mortgage-backed securities, but this drives asset prices down and makes their financial position even worse. This vicious circle is what some call the “paradox of deleveraging.”

Hamesha Der Kar Deta Hoon Main

Here is a beautiful nazm by one of the greatest urdu poets of our time, Munir Niazi (1928-2006).

Hamesha der kar detaa hoon main

Jaroori baat kehni ho, koi vaada nibhana ho

Use awaz deni ho, use wapas bulana ho

Hamesha der kar deta hoon main

 

Madad karni ho uski, yaar ke dhandhas bandhana ho

Bahut derina rasotn par kisi se milne jaana ho

Hamesha der kar deta hoon main

 

Badalte mausamon ke sheher mein dil ko lagana ho

Kisi ko yaad rakhana ho, kisi ko bhool jaana ho

Hamesha der kar deta hoon main

 

Kisi ko maut se pehle kisi gam se bachana ho

Haqeeqat aur thi kuchh, usko jaa ke ye batana ho

Hamesha der kar deta hoon main.

100 Bimaar…

For a population of 100 million, there are only 6 recognized medical colleges in Bihar. In north Bihar, where more than half of the state’s population lives, there are only 2 medical colleges. 390 new doctors graduate from these 6 colleges every year while the number of potential patients grows by about 2 million. On average, we have one doctor for 2700 people in Bihar. In rural areas, where 90% of Biharis live, the ratio must be much lower. It will only get worse as we add only 1 new doctor for 5000 newbornes every year. Unless we do something.

Government of Bihar proposed to increase the number of seats to 700 in the existing 6 medical colleges and build 3 new medical colleges in the state. Medical Council of India (MCI) disapproved both proposals and Supereme Court upheld MCI’s decision. MCI did not allow increasing of seats in existing colleges because if found faculty and facilities inadequate even for the current student strength in all six colleges. I do not know why MCI disallowed setting up of new medical colleges though. May be, it wants the state government to improve existing colleges before it sets up new ones. A sensible decision in my view.

This means that the doctor-population ratio will keep going down in Bihar for some time to come. Treatment will be expensive and difficult to access for most Biharis. We want more doctors in rural areas. Recently GoI decided to make a 1-year rural internship an essential for MBBS degree. I am not sure if the new rule will achieve its purpose. Young doctors will find ways to skip the rural stay component. I think one way to ensure availability of qualified doctors in rural areas is to produce more doctors every year. If there are more doctors, the new ones will be forced, by increased competition, to move to unglamorous areas to find practice. Right now, doctors are so scarce, they do not need to go the extra mile to survive.

Women More than Equal in Rwanda

People of Rwanda have elected/nominated more women than men to their parliament in the elections held on 15th and 18th september. This is a first in world parliamentary history. 30 percent of parliamentary seats are reserved for women in Rwanda.

Globally, only one in six members of national parliaments/Congress are women. In Sweden and other Nrodic countries, the ratio is higher, close to 40%, while it is much lower in the world’s two largest democracies, India (51 of the 538) and the U.S. (55 out of 400).

Ahmed Faraz is no more…

Ahmed Faraz, the shayar who wrote ab ke bichhade to shayad kabhi khaabon mein milein, jaise sookhe huye phool kitabbon mein milein is no more. He died on 25th August. I am late to post on him because I completely missed the news. I don’t know how.

I love his shers and ghazals. I think he was the greatest Urdu shayar of our times. I have not read enough of urdu literature to pay a scholarly tribute to him. Just that his shers touched my heart. Here are some of my Faraz favorites:

dil bhii bujhaa ho shaam kii parachhaa_iyaa.N bhii ho.n
mar jaa_iye jo aise me.n tanhaa_iyaa.N bhii ho.n

pahale pahal kaa ishq abhii yaad hai ‘Faraz’
dil Khud ye chaahataa hai ke rusvaa_iyaa.N bhii ho.n

‘Faraz’ ab ko_ii saudaa ko_ii junuu.N bhii nahii.n
magar qaraar se din kaT rahe ho.n yuu.N bhii nahii.n

lab-o-dahan bhii milaa guftaguu kaa fan bhii milaa
magar jo dil pe guzaratii hai kah sakuu.N bhii nahii.n

is se pahale ke bevafaa ho jaaye.n
kyo.n na ai dost ham judaa ho jaaye.n
karuu.N na yaad agar kis tarah bhulaa_uu.N use
Gazal bahaanaa karuu.N aur gun_gunaa_uu.N use

vo Khaar-Khaar hai shaaKh-e-gulaab kii maanind
mai.n zaKhm-zaKhm huu.N phir bhii gale lagaa_uu.N use

tum bhi Khafaa ho log bhii beraham hai.n dosto
ab ho chalaa yaqii.n ke bure ham hai.n dosto
sab kuchh sahii ‘Faraz’ par itanaa zaruur hai
duniyaa me.n aise log bahut kam hai.n dosto

ab ham hai.n aur saare zamaane kii dushmaanii
us se zaraa rabt ba.Dhaanaa bahut huaa

ab kyo.n na zindagii pe muhabbat ko vaar de.n
is aashiqii me.n jaan se jaanaa bahut huaa

phir usii raah_guzar par shaayad
ham kabhii mil sake.n magar shaayad

jo bhii bichha.De hai.n kab mile hai.n ‘Faraz’
phir bhii tuu intazaar kar shaayad

Gam-e-duniyaa bhii Gam-e-yaar me.n shaamil kar lo
nashaa ba.Dataa hai sharabe.n jo sharaabo.n me.n mile.n

muddato.n se ye aalam na tavaqqo na ummiid
dil pukaare hii chalaa jaataa hai jaanaa.N jaanaa.N

ham bhii kyaa saadaa the ham ne bhii samajh rakhaa thaa
Gam-e-dauraa.N se judaa hai Gam-e-jaanaa.N jaanaa.N

kahaa.N vo qurb ke ab to ye haal hai jaise
tere firaaq kaa aalam bhii Khvaab jaisaa hai

magar kabhii ko_ii dekhe ko_ii pa.Dhe to sahii
dil aa_iinaa hai to cheharaa kitaab jaisaa hai

vo saamane hai magar tishnagii nahii.n jaatii
ye kyaa sitam hai ke dariyaa saraab jaisaa hai

Silsile tod gaya wo sabhi jaate-jaate

warna itne to marasim the ki aate-jaate