Dear Friend,
Unprecedented flooding—arising from and demonstrably tied to climate change— continues to ravage Pakistan, with the official death toll rising by more than 250 since last week. 1,391 people are now reported as having perished due to the floods, which have inundated a third of the impoverished South Asian country. A further 12,700 have been injured. On Friday, Pakistan’s National Disaster Management Agency reported that 36 new fatalities had been recorded within the previous 24 hours.
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Countercurrents.org
Pakistan faces massive humanitarian crisis as unprecedented flooding continues
by Sampath Perera
Unprecedented flooding—arising from and demonstrably tied to climate change— continues to ravage Pakistan, with the official death toll rising by more than 250 since last week. 1,391 people are now reported as having perished due to the floods, which have inundated a third of the impoverished South Asian country. A further 12,700 have been injured. On Friday, Pakistan’s National Disaster Management Agency reported that 36 new fatalities had been recorded within the previous 24 hours.
Floods in South Asia and Climate Change
by Dr. Soma Marla
Havoc and misery caused by recent floods in Bengaluru, Pakistan and Assam are not only natural disasters but are man made and due to climate change. Over exploitation of urban land and water resources by greedy private real
estate developers perhaps the chief cause of floods. Media relentlessly focused on flooded upscale villas, their swanky automobiles of super rich in flooded of Bengaluru, and totally ignored the suffering of millions of poor and middle class slum dwellers.
Questioning Technological Determinism – II
by T Vijayendra
This is part II of an essay in two parts on modern technology and its demise. Part I deals with the history of modern technology starting from the Industrial Revolution (1760-1830) and ending in 2008 with the financial meltdown and the birth of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. In Part II we will show how this latest industrial revolution is bound to fail.
Mining the River Pamba for Flood Prevention- Novel ideas for evading Regulations: Case Study of Thottappally in Alapuzha, Kerala, India
by VT Padmanabhan
The Vemband Wetland in Kerala is a Ramsar Site, and also a Critically Vulnerable Coastal Area (CVCA). One of the three meeting points of the lake’s waters and the Lakshadweep Sea is at Thottappally in Purakkad Panchayat of Alapuzha. It is a Marma Point. About 600,000 cubic meters of mineral sand has been dredged out from the River Pamba since 2020. As the Coastal Regulation Zone Notification- 2011 prohibits mining in this No-Development Zone, this is packaged as a flood prevention project invoking the District Collector’s emergency powers under the Disaster Management Act 2005.
Why did Siddique Kappan get bail?
by Ajit Sahi
Siddique Kappan got bail from the Supreme Court. This is so good and relaxing. I met Siddique
Kappan many years ago. He is a very honest person. Sending them to jail was and is a crime in itself. Yogi Adityanath’s government disobeyed the law and completely engaged in hatred towards Muslims.
Jharkand Jan Sangarsh Morcha challenges neo-fascist repression
by Harsh Thakor
In recent weeks the Jharkand Jan Sangharsh Morcha, waged a sustained campaign against the arrest of journalists like Rupesh Singh, Socialist activists and Shamru Khadia. It is also valiantly confronting the burning issues of the day to day lives of people, like corruption ,unemployment etc.
A Note on Suicide Prevention Day
by Mohd Abdul Shakoor
As per a recent report by NCRB (National Crime Records Bureau), India has seen a rise of 7.2% from 2020 to 2021, in the deaths by suicide.The report further stipulates
that more than one lakh people die by suicide in the country every year, and this figure is enough to make India stand on top of the world for that year. Of these, fifteen percent come from megacities. And astonishingly, just four metropolitan cities (viz. Bangalore, Mumbai, Chennai & Delhi) account for almost 35% of the deaths by suicide in a study conducted in 53 megacities. Women account to one-third of these cases.
Need to Recognize Wider Dimensions of Stubble Burning
by Bharat Dogra
Crop stubble burning has so far attracted concern mainly in the context of Punjab and nearby areas. Its most widely discussed impact has related to increase in air pollution in Delhi and some other nearby cities. However what is not often realized is that in a more quiet way this is also spreading in several other parts of the country as well. The extent of its spread may be much lesser than in
the context of Punjab, but the trend has certainly started, more visible on the farms of bigger landowners.
RSS, Nazism and Fascism
by Nagesh Chaudhari
It is often said that RSS follows Mussolini, Hitler. To what extend it is true? Hitler and Mussolini were individuals. RSS is a collective, an organisation created by a caste. That was not the case with Hitler or Mussolni.
The basic difference between Nazism, Fascism and RSS is that RSS ideology is based on caste system and is not simply racism. RSS brand of Fascism, Nazism is having historical background unlike that of Mussolini or Hitler. And secondly, it is gaining strength in spite of it being banned by the Indian governments four times since 1948 to 1992. Now it has become the ruling ideology through the rule of BJP. RSS claims ancient background as its ideology. Whereas Mussolini and Hitler had none like that.
In this context can be seen background of Mussolini and Hitler.
Mussolini (1883-1943): It is often compared that RSS is fascist and praises Mussolini. Fascism was developed by Mussolini. He was He was a son of blacksmith. He joined politics and also was journalist for some time. He was Prime minister of Italy 1922-1943. He invented new ideology Fascism for the first time in Europe. The ideology was combination of nationalist and socialist views. Fascism is also described as radical authoritarian nationalism, characterised by dictatorial power, forcible suppression of opposition and control of industry and commerce. He was militaristic and racist. RSS too is of the same view. But he did not boast of the past as RSS does.
Hitler (1889-1945): Looking to the background of Hitler, he was a son of an illegitimate father in Germany. His education was up to secondary school and earned his living by painting and advertisement. Initially he was with German workers’ party.
Hitler rule temporary but Hindu nation a lasting phenomenon.
Hitler’s Nazi rule did not last beyond his life span. Aryan ruling or hegemony is more than Hitler’s racial rule. He had no ideological background as is claimed (or is having) by the RSS. Mr. Golwalkar claims that they, Aryans have the background of five thousand years. The Aryan concept is also the invention of Indian Brahmins. That way both Mussolini and Hitler do not have RSS type background. They both, Mussolini and Hitler were rulers and that way ‘state’ as per the formulation of Golwalkar, (RSS). State or head of the state, even a king is below the Brahmin as per Brahmanic ideology. Roots of Hindu or Brahmanic hegemony are ancient, as ancient as Vedic times. In Vedas formulation of society is hierarchical four Varnas. In descending order Brahman caste at the top and below it are Kshatriya, Vaishya and at the bottom the Shudra. Nothing like this is seen or propagated by Hitler or Mussolini. Aryan superiority claim by Hitler is the only common point.
Hence, Mussolini’s or Hitler’s rules were ‘state’ and not ‘nation’ in RSS’s, Golwalkar’s formulations. This will be clear by looking to his statement that RSS is ‘Nation’ and ‘Jansangh ‘(now BJP) as ‘state’. This is seen even today. RSS treats BJP as secondary. Mohan Bhagwat, Sarsanghchalak (RSS head) is above Modi, the Prime Minister. As Brahmin, priest is above the king. This formulation is completely missing in the Mussolini or Hitler’s ideology. They had no Brahmin above them, nor did they advocate Varna or caste system like hierarchy or untouchability.
Dr. B.R. Ambedkar very aptly compared Nazi and Brahmin rules. He says. “The Nazis had indeed a great deal to learn from the Hindus. If they had adopted the technique of suppressing the masses devised by the Hindus they would have been able to crush the Jews without open cruelty and would have also exhibited themselves as humane masters.” (Dr. B. R. Ambedkar, Writings and speeches, vol. 3, p.127, Govt. Of Maharshtra publication, Mumbai)
The ideology of RSS and its actions are for maintaining the supremacy of one caste not only over Indian people but over even the people from foreign countries. Their arrogant claim of becoming ‘Guru’ of the world speaks of their abnormal mindset.
Author is Satyashodhak Samaj activist and editor of Bahujan Sangharsh and author of many books.His latest published book, RSS, Caste System and Hindu Nation.
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