Dr.

Neelam Tikkha
M.A. (English), MBA (HR), M.A. (Soc.),
DCE (N.D.), Ph.D. (American
Literature), TEFL (Tampa, US), IELTS (Cambridge UK)
Professor, English Department
Other Books of Interest by Dr. Neelam G. Tikkha
Spoken English
Impressive Letters
Personality Improvement
Common Mistakes Made by Indian Speakers of English
101 Stories and Jokes for Elocution.
Essay for International and Competitive Exams
(IELTS, TOEFL, IAS)
Word Power
Conversations at Jewelers Store
Communication skills for small children
Also available as e-book at:
[email protected]
http.confidencefoundation.in
9 789 380 51 486 4
ISBN 81-86067-11-6
The Moment of Truth
A Multidisciplinary Critical
International Perspective
Editor : Dr. Neelam Tikkha
If egg is broken
by outside force,
life ends.
If broken
by inside force
life begins.
Great things
always begin
from inside.
Fire Management of
High Rise Buildings
(A Case Study of Delhi Area)
Author : Dr. Neelam G. Tikkha Editor : Dr. Neelam Tikkha
Labor to keep alive in your
breast that little spark of
celestial fire, called conscience.
George Washington
Where I Met My Horizon
A Multidisciplinary Critical
International Perspective
Edited by Dr. Neelam G. TIkkha
ISBN no. 81-86067-11-6
Copyright @CFI 2013. Publishers: CF International,
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individual writers and CFI holds no responsibility for the
same. Legal Jurisdiction, Nagpur.
Theme : Teaching and Learning in 21st Century
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Dedication
The book The Moments of Truth (A Multidisciplinary
Critical International Perspective) has been dedicated
to Mr. Narendra Modi, Chief Minister of Gujarat India
who is a great source of inspiration and motivation .
We also dedicate the book to parents of all the writers
who have contributed to the book,
Dr. G.S Tikkha , President, Confidence Foundation,
Professor Rakesh Batabayal, Dy. Director , ASC JNU , V
Sujatha , faculty and staff of ASC, JNU , Dr. Khurad ,
Director ASC , Nagpur , Mr. Ravindra Fadnavis
President MMV and Dr. Mrunalini Fadnavis , Principal
MMV.
Special thanks to all the contributors and Mr. Bhagirath
Kaushik , Vice President,
S .Chand and Company.
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The Moments of Truth is a multidisciplinary book and
has double blind peer reviewed articles on many
disciplines like, political science, law, literature, society ,
business, pedagogy of teaching language , environment
and social responsibility.
The contributors have great experience in their field. The
book also has two special invited papers First article titled
India's Caste System and American Pluralism by M. Lal
Goel, Professor Emeritus of Political Science, University
of West Florida and second article titled Giving The
Meaning & Purpose To Life, is a courageous saga of
making life fruitful.
Dr. Neelam G. Tikka
Dr. Ishita, MBBS ,JNMC ,
Winner of best paper award at International
Conference at Sewagram sponsored by ICMR
Papers published in Australian Medical Journal
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Directors
Name and address
Dr. Madan L Goel
Professor, Emeritus of Political Science and
Director of International Studies
University of West Florida
Pensacola, Florida 32514
Dr. Neelam G Tikkha has done her MA(
English) , MBA , Team Building ( XLRI) ,
Ph.D ( American Literature ) and TEFL ( US
Florida Tampa ) . She is working as Professor
at MMV,RTM Nagpur University. She has
Taught at US and UK Universities She is
president of CFTA- Global, an interactive
platform for teachers and trainers. She wears another hat that is of a
Corporate trainer for MNC's like World Trade Centre, ONGC,
HPCL, Mercedez , HUL. She is winner of British Council
International Anecdote Writing Competition. She is an examiner
for Cambridge ESOL Exams. She has written 28 E- books on
Communication Skills, Soft Skills and Essays for International
Exams. She has been a key note speaker and chief guest for various
International conferences. She has won several awards for best
paper presentation. Cell: 09422145467
Dr. MM Niyazi,
Principal Shri SB City College
Email : [email protected]
Cell : 09890559971
Head Public Relations: Riya Watson,
Email : [email protected]
Editor: Dr. Neelam Tikkha
Reviewers: Dr. ML Goel, Professor Emeritus, Florida US
Dr. Nidhi Tiwari
Email: [email protected]
Cell: 9425303719
Dr. Nidhi Tiwari is Associate Professor of
English at Regional Institute of Education
(NCERT), Bhopal (M.P.). She is an Eliot
scholar. She has over two decades of teaching
experience. Her area of specialization is in
ELT, Sociolinguistics, Psycholinguistics,
Archetypal Criticism, Canadian Native Drama and Indian Writing
in English. She has published three books and has published many
papers in journals and books. Her publications include: Imagery
and Symbolism in T.S.Eliot's Poetry, Critical Perspectives on
T.S.Eliot's Poetry and Linguisticality of Being in Native Canadian
Native Drama. Two projects on ELT have been successfully
completed by her.
Head Of Tamil Nadu Region :
Dr. J. John Sekar,
Email : [email protected]
Cell: 948672184
Dr. J. John Sekar, an Associate Professor at PG & Research
Department of English, The American College, Madurai, in
addition to MA, and MPhil in English, holds a PG diploma in
Teaching of English from CIEFL, and PG diploma in
Communicative English from University of Hyderabad, and
Postgraduate Diploma in Higher Education from IGNOU. He was
awarded PhD in ELT by Madurai Kamaraj University. He has
presented papers and chaired technical sessions in
international/national seminars and conferences on ELT and has
got his papers published in journals and proceedings with ISBN.
He has been a resource person for seminars on ELT in several
institutions. His areas of interest in teaching and research include
ELT, History of the English Language, Linguistics, Modern
English Phonetics and Phonology, and Literary Theories. He
serves as a member of Board of Studies in English either as
University Nominee or a subject expert in autonomous colleges.
He is also a Counsellor in IGNOU for Certificate for Teaching of
English and language-related courses for BCA and MCA.
Currently, he is collaborating with Prof N. Krishnaswamy for a
book on Literary Theories.
Profile : Dr Sanjay Kumar Singh,
Associate Professor & Head,
Department of Humanities,
OPJIT, Raigarh
Dr Sanjay Kumar Singh is Associate Professor &
Head of Humanities Department in OPJIT,
Raigarh. Having more than Ten years
administrative and teaching experience, his specialization is in the
area of Indian Writing in English. He has delivered many visiting
lectures on ELT, Soft Skills and Human Rights. Dr Singh has
organized One International Conference, four National
Conferences, two National workshops, twelve workshops under
Faculty Development Programme and participated in more than 40
International, National Conferences and Seminars. He has edited
Young Professional- A monthly magazine for youths and has edited
four Books - Aspects of Functional English, Rainbow: True
Colors of Life, Elixir and Aangan Ki Dhoop. He is Editor of
The Quest- A quarterly News Bulletin (OPJIT). Fifteen research
papers, many poems and articles are in his credit He is recipient of
the awards- Distinguished Leadership Award, Creative Giant
2007, Subhadra Kumari Janma Shatabdi Samman, Rastra
Bhasha Ratna Samman, Rambriksha Benipuri Samman,
Padmashri Laxminarayan Dubey Smriti Samman, Biswi
Shatabdi Ratna Samman and Honorary Degree of Achrya.
President
Dr. G.S. Tikkha ,
LLM, MIRPM
Vice President
Mrs. Kanti Bharadwaj,
MA, B.ED, Sahitya Ratan
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FACE- TO- FACE
Now, for the first time ever, a collection of scholarly articles on a
variety of disciplines like Law, Culture, Society, Business,
Language, Literature, Social responsibility, Pedagogy and
Politics are reproduced in a book form. There are articles on
experiences of real life after which the book has been named; THE
Moments of Truth - A Multidisciplinary Critical International
Perspective .
All the articles in this book have been double blind peer reviewed
and ensure quality work. Dr. Neelam Tikkha has labored hard to
bring this volume which is a tribute to the world of knowledge. The
book provides an experiential read for all Academicians, Scholars
and in fact anyone interested in enhancing knowledge.
Dr. Jaydipsinh K. Dodiya
Dean, Faculty of Arts, Saurashtra University,
President, Indian Association for Canadian Studies.
Professor and Chairman Board of Studies,
The Moments of Truth - A Multidisciplinary Critical
International Perspective, is unique in its endeavor . The articles
are from various disciplines and range in their approach yet there a
reader feels a beautiful thread around which these sparkling beads
of scholarly articles are woven with great care which provides an
interesting reading. The scholarly articles are interesting case
studies which have added new dimension to the field of knowledge
and research.
Dr. M.M. Niyazi
Principal
SB City College,
Nagpur
Soft Skills
13. Dr. Neelam Tikkha :Soft Skills for the Gen Y
14. Kurapati Malati Latha : Soft Skills@21st
Century
15. Kiran Bableshwar :What they don't teach us
in college!
16. Dr. Neelam Tikkha : Oh ! Where have my
Ci ndrel l a and Red Ri di ng Hood
disappeared???
17. Yogesh V Kshirsagar : Soft Skills Training for
Young Graduates
Literature Section
18. Dr. Nidhi Tiwari : Promise of Ecofeminism-
An Ecofeminist Reading of Gita Mehta's A
River Sutra.
19. Dr. Neelam Tikkha : Changing Identities of
Women A Refection of Culture
Language Teaching
20. Dr Shree Deepa : Humor and the Language
Classroom: Wedding Possible?
21. B. Sreekanth Reddy :Action Research - A
Device to Solve Language Issues in English
Classroom
22. Dr. Neelam Tikkha : Challenges in teaching
English Language to economically weaker
sections of Children from Vernacular
medium.
23. P. Hiltrud Dave Eve : Value based teaching of
English
The Moments Of Truth
Dr. Neelam Tikkha : Why People Stuff
Suggestion Box with Peels of Banana?
CONTENTS
Invited Papers
1. M. Lal Goel : Professor Emeritus of
Political Science, University of West Florida
India's Caste System and American
Pluralism
The Moment Of Truth
2. Varun Arya, Giving the Meaning &
Purpose To Life
Culture and Society
3. Dr. JJ Sekar : Taminglish: A Study in Social
Psychology of the Tamils
4. Dr. Neelam Tikkha: Is English in the loop of
Glocalization?
5. Sunand T : Miscommunication At The
Workplacean Interpersonal Approach
6. Ms. Sharmistha Das: Citizen Journalism and
New Media: A New Challenge to the
Mainstream Media
Business, Environment and Sustainable
Development
7 Dr. Neelam Tikkha : Shopping is an
Indulgence in Greed
8 Dr. Neelam Tikkha : Ethics and Law A
Shocking Culture
9 Dr. Neelam Tikkha : Nanoparticles Pollution
A Murder of Sustainable Growth
10 Dr. Neelam Tikkha : A Mile for Several
Smiles -CSR, Sustainability and Local
Community Development
11 Dr. Neelam Tikkha : Sustainable Growth -
The Tribute to The Mother Earth
12 Dr. Neelam Tikkha : Dust to Gold A
Remedy for Mahagenco Power Plant
1-18
19-46
47-63
64-78
79-87
88-97
98-107
108-117
118-123
124-135
136-148
149-162
163-172
173-178
183-189
190-200
201-211
212-230
231-255
256-263
179-182
264-271
272-278
279-283
Indias Caste System and American Pluralism
M. Lal Goel
Professor Emeritus of Political Science,
University of West Florida
www.uwf.edu/lgoel; [email protected]
Throughout history, all developed social systems (European,
Islamic, Chinese, Hindu) were socially and economically
stratified. No society is a mass of individuals. European
society was organized along class, guilds, and religion
(Catholics, Protestants, and Jews), Islamic society along
Muslims, dhimmis and kafirs and so on. India had castes, or
more accurately, jatis.
As a political category, caste in India is a result of British
policies. The British introduced the category of caste for
purposes of counting population in the census that began in
1871. The British began to rank order castes by status and
economics. Many petitions were filed by caste groups to seek
higher ranking. Castes began to be organized as political
movements. The British granted special electorate to the
Scheduled castes around 1931. Mahatma Gandhi launched a
fast unto death in 1932 to undo the partition of India on the
basis of caste. He almost died but he won.
Castes in India are different than classes in the West. Castes
are not structured entirely by economic differences. There
are rich Brahmins and poor Brahmins. I grew up in rural
Punjab. As a general rule, Brahmins were among the poorer
section of society. This observation runs counter to the
prevalent view in some circles that Indian society is Brahmin
dominated and Brahmin exploited.
The caste system in ancient times was not static. Castes rose
and fell. Under extended Muslim rule, a number of caste
groups that fought against Muslim tyranny (for example,
Rajputs) were pushed to the outer edges of the social system.
Among the sweeper castes in India, one finds many Rajput
gotras.
Different caste groups in India are comparable to different
ethnic groups in the United States. There are rich Italians and
poor Italians, rich Irish and poor Irish, and so on.
Historically, American ethnic groups practiced
endogamyJews married Jews, Blacks married Blacks and
Italians married Italian, and so on. This is natural. People
seek matrimony within their own social strata.
The caste defined Indian society is a model of
multiculturalism. Different castes practice their unique
customs in marriage, child-rearing, food and worship. A
multicultural society by definition is more democratic, open-
ended, tolerant and freer. Multiculturalism is much in vogue
in the United States these days.
While there is much to celebrate about caste, any caste and
birth-based discrimination and preference, where it exists,
must be combated.
Indias Caste System and American Pluralism
A recent article in Newsweek by Lisa Miller indicated that
Americans are slowly becoming more like Hindus and less
like traditional Christians in the ways we think about God, our
selves, each other, and eternity. The author cites the
following poll data: 67 percent of Americans believe that
many religions, not only Christianity can lead to eternal life,
reflecting pluralistic Hindu ethos rather than monotheistic
Christian view; 30 percent of Americans call themselves
spiritual, not religious; 24 percent say they believe in
Abstract
1 2
reincarnation; and more than a third choose cremation rather
than burial. http://www.newsweek .com/id/212155.
To this list may be added the growing caste-like pluralism and
multiculturism of the American populace. This essay
describes features of Indias caste system, its origin, the
negative impact of Muslim and British imperial rule, and
concludes with a description of the caste-like pluralistic
American social landscape.
Introduction
Caste is Indias badge. When we think of Hindu India, we
think of caste. Caste has become the subject of national
shame. All have paid tribute to the caste system: Gandhi,
Nehru, Ambedkar, Orientalists, James Mill, Abbe Dubois,
and anthropologists G. S. Ghurye and M. N. Srinivas. Caste
is a specter that continues to haunt India. Yet, Indias caste
based society preserves and values social diversity.
Nicholas Dirks tells us that caste is not the basic expression of
the Indian tradition. Rather, caste is a modern phenomenon.
It is the product of an historical encounter between India and
the British colonial rule. Castes of Mind: Colonialism and
the Making of Modern India, Princeton University Press,
2001, P. 5.
In pre-colonial society, Indians had multiple identities,
consisting of temple communities, village communities,
lineage and family groups, occupational guilds and
devotional societies. Caste identification was one among the
several social groupings. Under the British, caste became a
single term to categorize and systematize complex Indian
reality. See Dirks.
th th
European travelers in the 16 and 17 centuries noted caste
only in passing. They did not emphasize its importance in
understanding Hindu society. Alexander Dow of the East
India Company published The History of Hindustan in 1768.
He devotes only 1 page to caste.
Caste did not strike early European writers as something
peculiar to India. They knew it in their own countries and saw
it that way. J. S. Mill in his essays on Political Economy said
that occupational groups in Europe were "almost equivalent
i
to an hereditary distinction of caste".
Abbe Dubois, a French missionary, was one of the most
influential European travelers. He learned Tamil and lived
among ordinary people. Dubois had difficulty in converting
Hindus to Christianity. He attributed this difficulty to the
Hindu caste prejudices. Hindus are addicted to their
superstitions and prejudices born of caste affiliation. Nobody
can change them. His book Hindu Manners, Customs and
Ceremonies (1816) became the official gospel of the East
India Company.
Christian missionaries in general were frustrated in getting
Hindus to convert to Christianity. Caste was blamed for their
lack of success. All the abuse was heaped on the institution of
caste and on crafty Brahmins who kept the masses duped.
After the 1857 rebellion, the British discouraged missionary
activity. The British were fearful that interference with
peoples religious customs would foment rebellion.
Caste became rigid during extended foreign rule, especially
under Muslim rule (1201-1707). A number of the caste
groups that fought against Muslim tyranny were pushed to the
outer edges of the social system. I have been told that among
the sweeper untouchable castes in India, one finds many
Rajput gotras, clan names. Writes Ram Swarup:
3 4
With the advent of Islam the Hindu society came
under great pressure; it faced the problem of survival.
When the political power failed, castes took over;
they became defence shields and provided resistance
passive and active. But in the process, the system also
acquired undesirable traits like untouchability.
Alberuni who came along with Mahmud Ghaznavi
mentions the four castes but no untouchability. He
reports that "much, however, as these classes differ
from each other, they live together in the same towns
and villages, mixed together in the same houses and
lodgings."
. . .during the Muslim period, many Rajputs were
degraded and they became scheduled castes and
scheduled tribes. Many of them still retain the Rajput
gotra . . .
The same is true of bhangis (sweepers). William
Crooke of Bengal Civil Service tells us that the "rise
of the present Bhangi caste seems from the names
applied to the castes and its subdivisions, to date from
the early period of Mohammedan rule". Old Hindu
literature mentions no bhangis of present function. In
traditional Hindu rural society, he was a corn-
measurer, a village policeman, a custodian of village
boundaries. But scavenging came along with the
Muslim and British rule. Their numbers also
multiplied. According to 1901 Census, the bhangis
were most numerous in the Punjab and the United
Provinces which were the heartland of Muslim
ii
domination.
Ancient India had castes, but not casteism, the politicization
of caste. Casteism is rampant in India today. In its present
form, casteism is a construct of colonial period, a product of
imperial policies and colonial scholarship. It was
strengthened by the breast-beating of our own reformers.
Today, it has acquired its own momentum and vested
iii
interests.
The caste system in ancient times was not static. Castes rose
and fell within their Varna, the four-fold classification into
Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas and Shudras. Different
castes produced great saints revered by all. The great saint
Ravi Das was an untouchable Chamar, a leather worker.
Saint Kabir was a Jolaha or weaver.
Varna and Jati
There are four varnas (Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas and
Shudras), and hundreds of jatis meaning birth groups or
genus. Jatis are communities by birth which practice
endogamy (marriage within their own group). The jati
marriage circle may consist of some 500 families spread over
50 or 60 villages within a given region. Members of a jati also
follow common dietary rules and other social customs.
Each varna is divided into numerous jatis, birth groups. Some
jatis are small, numbering a few thousand members (the
Saraswat Brahmins of Konkan region numbered 20,000
according to a 1971 survey). Other jatis are large and number
into several million. Theoretically, each jati belongs to a
particular varna, but this is not always clear-cut. Some jatis
misperceive their varna or do not know which particular
varna the jati belongs to. Many lower castes identify
themselves as Kshatriyas.
The four varnas are loose configurations with little
organizational structure. Jatis are better organized and jati
associations are more common. When Mohandas Gandhi
decided to study in England in 1889, he was chastised by
leaders of his Modh Bania jati in Bombay, not the Vaishya
5 6
varna. The jati rules prohibited crossing the black waters.
Gandhi ignored the protest and booked his steamship
passage.
Jatis vary by region and state. Chetiars are found in the
Southern states and Marwaris in Rajasthan; both are
mercantile communities.
Attributes of the Caste System
The following features are commonly associated with the
caste system.
Endogamy : Marriage is restricted to members within ones
own caste. This feature continues to hold sway even among
the modern sections of society, although weakened.
Occupational Specialization : Different castes pursue
different occupations. Roughly, the following occupational
specialization was practiced. Brahmins=priests and
teachers; Kshatriyas=rulers and warriors; Vaish or
Vaishya=merchants and farmers; Shudras=service
occupations such as carpentry, barbering, weaving;
Untouchables=leather workers and sweepers. The feature
was not strictly adhered to even in ancient times. In the
Mahabharata, Acharya Drona was a Brahmin by caste and yet
he taught the science of weapons to his royal pupils, the
Pandu brothers. Modernism and urbanism has seriously
eroded the occupational specialization by caste. All caste
members now enter government service, teaching and the
professions.
Commensality : Caste membership restricts eating and
drinking activities among members of the caste. This was not
true in rural North India where I grew up. Different caste
members shared their food and attended each others
weddings (see more below). Modernity has seriously eroded
this feature even where it existed.
Hierarchy : There is some rank order among the castes in
terms of status and prestige. The rank order is not always
clear nor is it accepted by all. It varies by region. In some
localities, Brahmins may be at the top; in another locality
Vaishyas or Kshatriyas may occupy that position. Status is
not co-equal with economic ranking. Brahmins may have a
higher religious status but most are poor, especially in
villages (75% of India).
Membership by Birth : One is born into a given caste. One
does not voluntarily choose it.
Origin
The caste system has existed in India from very old times.
Several factors contributed to its birth. I describe four such
factors.
1. Originally it may have been based on Gunas, innate
qualities, into the fourfold classification of Brahmins,
Kshatriyas, Vaishyas and Shudras. Krishnas words in the
Bhagavad Gita may be quoted: The four varnas have been
created by Me through a division according to guna-karma,
qualities and work. (4.13) Even if once the caste system was
a division of society based on gunas or innate qualities and
occupation, the system degenerated. It became fixed in birth
and lineage. Sri Aurobindo writes: There is no doubt that the
institution of caste degenerated. It ceased to be determined
by spiritual qualifications which, once essential, have now
come to be subordinate and even immaterial and is
determined by the purely material tests of occupation and
iv
birth.
7 8
2. Like other ancient societies, India was once divided into a
number of tribes or endogamous ethnic groups. Each tribe or
ethnic group followed its own particular customs and
traditions. The tribal or ethnic groups became castes. Dr.
Ambedkar has drawn attention to this continuity between
caste and tribe:
The racial theory of Untouchability not only runs
counter to the results of anthropometry, but it also
finds very little support from such facts as we know
about the ethnology of India. That the people of India
were once organized on tribal basis is well-known,
and although the tribes have become castes, the tribal
v
organization still remains intact.
Ambedkar did not subscribe to the racial basis of caste: i.e.,
the conquering Aryans became the upper castes, and the
conquered darker races became the lower castes. The Aryan
Invasion Theory on which the thesis is based is now
discredited and is no longer a dogma.
3. Migration of people creates new castes. Jews and Parsees
who entered India to evade persecution at home survived as
distinct groups within the multiethnic Indian social mosaic.
Jews disappeared in China because of intermarriage but
survived in India because of separate caste identity. Saraswat
Brahmins on the Konkan coast in western India are a caste
group that migrated from Kashmir to evade Muslim
persecution. Tibetan Buddhists who fled to India with Dalai
Lama in 1959 are a new caste group. Tibetans largely marry
amongst themselves and follow common dietary and dress
codes.
4. Religious conversion leads to new castes. When a caste of
weavers converts to Islam, a new caste group is born.
Indias Caste System and American Pluralism
Christians and Muslims in India do not escape caste divisions.
Both communities are divided into a number of subgroups
which function like caste groups. Christians include Syrian
Christians, Catholics, Protestants, Goan Christians, Adivasi
Christians and are also divided by state and region. A Tamil
Christian may have little in common with his compatriot in
neighboring Kannada, much less in Delhi or Calcutta.
Muslims are even more divided: Sunnis, Shias, Bohras,
Khojas, Ismailies, Ahmediyas,Wahabis and so on. Christian
and Muslim caste groups practice endogamyBohras marry
among Bohras and Catholics among Catholics. Admittedly,
these practices are being eroded under urban and modern
influences. The following description of Muslim division is
taken from Imtiaz Ahmeds book, Caste and Social
Stratification among Muslims in India, South Asian Books,
1978, p. 142:
While there can be little doubt that the Koran
recommends the egalitarian principle, actual practice
among Muslim communities in different parts of the
world falls short of the Koranic ideal. Particularly in
India and Pakistan the Muslim society is clearly
stratified. First, there is a line which divides the
Ashraf from the Ajlaf: the former are high and the
latter low. The Ashraf are further divided into four
ranked subgroups: Sayyad, Sheikh, Mughal and
Pathan. Some would regard Muslim Rajputs as a fifth
subgroup of the Ashraf. The Ajlaf are similarly sub-
divided into a much larger number of groups. All
these groups, the Ashraf and the Ajlaf, are
endogamous. Furthermore, they are hierarchically
arranged in relation to one another, the Sayyads
occupying the highest and the Sweepers the lowest
position.
9 10
The Ashraf-Ajlaf distinction is not limited to India or
Pakistan. One of my Moroccan Muslim students proudly told
me once that he was an Ashraf and that other Moroccan
students at the campus were not.
In Iran only Arab descent qualifies one to hold high Vilayat-e-
Faqih religious office. Only Arab descent from the Prophet
Muhammads Hashemite tribe qualifies one to wear the black
turban. Other Iranian clergy wear white.
Ethnic specialization received scriptural sanction in India.
Other than this fact, ethnic specialization is not unique to
India. It is common around the world. The Lou tribesmen of
Kenya, who live next to Lake Victoria, are fish merchants.
Because of their reputation and skills, the Lou control the fish
trading business in countries of East Africa, as far away as
Mombasa. Even in the global business center of New York
City, there are ethnic concentrations by occupation. Hasidic
Jews control the diamond trade in Manhattan. The
Vietnamese immigrants control and run most of the nail
salons, and Koreans run the convenience stores. Because
some occupations are more lucrative than others (diamond
business for example), ethnic or caste income inequality is
inherent.
Even Untouchability is not peculiar to Hindu India. It existed
elsewhere. The Packchong in Korea, Eta or Buraku in Japan,
and Ragyappa in Tibet all had in common the fact that these
groups performed work that was considered polluting and
impure. The work consisted usually of animal slaughter,
tanning of animal hides and scavenging. These groups
married within their own group (endogamy). The Eta in Japan
lived separately from the rest of society. Their work was
associated with death, dirt and blood, considered morally
vi
impure and unclean. Gypsies or the Roma people may be
considered European untouchables.
Just because untouchability existed in several
countries does not excuse the disability associated with it.
Indias Caste System and American Pluralism
I grew up in rural Punjab (Ladda village in Sangrur District)
in 1950s. My village contained some one dozen different
Hindu and Sikh jatis or caste groups. Population count was
taken by the number of family units, not individuals. Of the
total 300 families in 1950, the approximate caste breakdown
was as follows: Jat farmers 180, Baniya merchants 20,
Brahmins 20, the service castes of Lohar (blacksmith), Nai
(barber), Carpenter, Teli (oil presser), Jolaha (weaver) 30, and
two untouchable groups of Chamars and Churahs (leather
workers and sweepers) 25 each, for a total of 300 families.
Some 20 Muslim families of potters and weavers left the
village in 1947 to migrate to Pakistan or to majority Muslim
towns within India. Each caste was traditionally associated
with a particular occupation. But all did not pursue it. None
of the Brahmin families pursued the traditional priest-craft;
some did farming, others did retailing or labor. Many of the
untouchables did share cropping, in addition to leather work.
For each jati, the marriage circle consisted of some 40-50
villages spread within a radius of about 50 miles. This was 60
years ago. With the availability of modern transportation and
communication, the marriage circle now encompasses a
wider area.
The village consisted of four contiguous sections or
neighborhoods, called behras. The untouchables occupied
one of the four neighborhoods. All other castes were mingled
in the remaining three sections. Untouchable separateness
was not strictly adhered to. Members of the higher castes
bought properties adjoining the untouchable quarter. The
11 12
primary school I attended was located in the untouchable
section of the village and nobody thought much about it. With
the exception of the untouchables, all other caste groups were
intermingled. They shared each other's food and water. They
attended each other's weddings and special ceremonies. Even
though food and water was not shared with the untouchable,
they were an integral part of the village social and economic
fabric.
My Vaishya family's three immediate neighbors were a
Brahmin, a Tailor and a Jat farmer family. No taboo about
sharing food held sway. As a child I accepted water and food
at the tailor's home (technically a lower caste Shudra) and
nobody in my family told me otherwise. Nobody in the
village identified the tailor as a shudra. Only after reading
books on caste did I know that the tailor belonged to the lower
shudra caste. The barely literate Brahmin neighbor pursued
subsistence farming rather than the traditional priest-craft.
Many descriptions of caste system popular especially in the
West are based more on certain ancient law books (for
example, Manusmriti, or the laws of Manu) than on ground
reality. Even sixty years ago in 1950, hereditary occupation
was not much followed. The principle of pollution and purity
did not strictly hold sway. The status difference among
different groups was minimal. Only the practice of
endogamy remained. And, things have dramatically changed
since my childhood.
Village identification was more important than caste or
religious identification. When I left India in 1956 to travel to
the United States for study, the entire village walked two
miles to the railway station to send me off with their blessings.
Many had teary eyes. When I returned three years later, a
similar reception waited for me at the village gate. My
emotional tie to the village is stronger than to my caste or
religion. Even though I left the village some 50 years ago, I
make periodic pilgrimages there.
Mine was a peaceful village, like all other villages in the
vicinity that I knew. Inter-caste tensions were rare. Textbook
accounts of inter-caste conflict are exaggerated or untrue.
There was small scale thievery but little serious or violent
crime. There were no accounts of girls being raped in the
remembered history of the village. All lived in similar
housing, one or two room clay-brick houses with front
courtyards where animals might be tethered and cooking and
washing were done. Their possessions were few in number.
Milk and honey did not flow, contrary to idealized versions of
Punjabi rural life. But all managed a healthful organic diet.
There was the close-knit family and the larger village
community that gave one the sense of belonging. Fairs,
festivals and wedding feasts provided entertainment and
gaiety. We lived reasonably contented lives.
In post-Independence India, caste has been politicized and
arenas of conflict have increased. Political parties now
accentuate caste and religious divisions in order to garner
votes.
Economic Disparity : The Untouchables were somewhat
poorer than the rest in the village, but not by much. All were
poor. There was no correlation between upper caste and
economic standing. Theoretically, Brahmins were supposed
to occupy the top rank; in reality, they received no elevated
status, economically or in prestige. Jat farmers and Baniya
merchants earned better than other jatis including Brahmins,
individual cases excepted. With land values skyrocketing in
the recent decades, the gap between Jat and non-Jat is even
sharper. As 95 percent were illiterate, educational gaps were
minimal. One of my fond memories as a young student was
to read and compose letters for the villagers. Letters were
13 14
exchanged only on special occasions--to announce births,
deaths, and marriages. Even though most adults were
unlettered, they were not un-smart, unwise or ignorant. With
all my education, I would not want to match my wits with
them.
The untouchables were fully integrated into the economic and
social life of the village. All worked together on the farm and
all bought and sold from one and another. The embroidered
brocade shoes I wore at my wedding were made by the highly
respected village cobbler, an untouchable by caste and a
friend of my father. I still own the flat-soled brocade pair. My
village was typical of the ground reality in rural Punjab as I
saw it. The village had not changed much in several centuries.
Major social and economic changes occurred in the
subsequent decades. In a 2010 visit to my native village, I
was informed that Jat farmers and untouchables not only
worked side by side on the farm but also now shared water, tea
and food.
Brahmin poverty runs across North India. Swami
Vivekananda tells us that his master Ramakrishna
Parmahansa was born into a very poor Brahmin family in
Bengal. Writing about the Brahmins, Vivekananda observes:
You have heard of the Brahmins and their priest-craft
many times. . . They are the poorest of all the classes
in the country, and the secret of their power lies in
their renunciation. . . . Theirs is the poorest
vii
priesthood in the world.
Writing about life in West Punjab, now part of Pakistan,
Prakash Tandon gives a similar picture of Brahmin poverty
(Punjabi Century: 1857-1947, Chatto and Winds, 1961). I
write about Brahmin poverty to counter the often made
statements that Brahmins are the top dogs and that they have
exploited India.
In South India in contrast, I have been told that Brahmins do
hold land and property. Temple entry was denied to the
untouchables in the past. On the other hand, Brahmins are
systematically discriminated against in present day India,
especially in Tamil Nad. Reservation quotas in state
employment for the lower castes are vigorously pursued all
across India. The temple exclusions for the untouchables and
caste-based discriminatory practices in employment of
course need to end.
Negative and Positive Aspects of Caste
Caste has too long been the bane of Indian society. Negative
aspects of the caste based hierarchy in status and economic
differences have received much scholarly attention. Where
these exist, they must go. Caste based discrimination where it
remains must end.
But the positive aspects of the caste system need to be
recognized. Caste based society is a tolerant society. It
celebrates our cultural differences. Different castes practice
their own customs in marriage, worship, food and dress.
Minorities, whether religious, racial, language or ethnic,
retain their cultural distinctiveness within the larger Hindu
caste system.
Caste system is a model of a multi-cultural, multi-ethnic
tolerant society. In contrast, egalitarian societies that
emphasize universalism (one set of laws and customs for all)
often use force and coercion to achieve oneness. Note the
following negative consequences of universalism.
Stalin liquidated 30 to 40 million Russians in order to
create a classless egalitarian communist society in the
15 16
Soviet Union. The same goes for Maoist China.
The Islamic conquest of the Middle East resulted in the
exile and murder of hordes of non-Muslims, called
Kafirs. Non-Muslims, when tolerated, were turned
into Dhimmis, third-class citizens. Before the advent
of Islam, the Middle Eastern countries were
religiously and ethnically diverse. Jews, Christians,
viii
and Pagans lived side by side in equal status.
During the Church sanctioned Inquisition that lasted
several hundred years in Europe, especially in Spain
and Portugal, many were tortured, liquidated or
exiled. Inquisition reached as far as Goa on the Indian
coast.
With emphasis on pluralism and cultural diversity, the
caste based society escapes such large scale onslaughts on
people. Different caste, religious, ethnic and language groups
follow their particular modes of living and religious belief.
'Quoted in Ram Swarup, Logic behind perversion of caste,
The Indian Express, 13 September, 1996.
Available at: http://indianrealist.wordpress.com/2009/11/20/
what-caste-actually-was-like/ . A must read piece.
ii
Ram Swarup, Ibid.
iii
Ram Swarup, Ibid.
iv
Sri Aurobindo, Indias Rebirth, p 27
v
Dr. B. R. Ambedkar, Writings and Speeches, V 1, p 303.
vi
Harold A. Gould, The Hindu Caste System, V. 1, Delhi:
Chanakya Publishers, 1987, p 82-83.
vii
My Master, delivered in New York City, published in
Inspired Talks, Ramakrishna-Vivekananda Center, NY, 1987,
p. 157.
viii
See Bat Yeor : Islam and Dhimmitude : Where
Civilizations Collide, Fairleigh Dickinson University Press,
2001
ix
Richard Zimler reports in his book Guardian of the Dawn
that the Portuguese Inquisition in Goa was the most
merciless and cruel ever developed. It was a machinery of
death. Over the 250 years (1560 to about 1812), any man,
woman or child could be arrested and tortured for simply
saying a prayer, wearing a religious symbol or keeping an idol
at home. The Portuguese are nostalgic about Goa and think of
it as a glorious island, peaceful, multicultural and prosperous.
Indians also are not aware of the horrors of the Inquisition in
Goa. Vi si t : ht t p: / / www. chr i st i anaggr essi on. org/
item_display.php?id=1126738163&type=articles .
ix
There are different accounts as to when Christianity came to
Kerala. It is now generally agreed that Christianity was not
introduced by St Thomas in the first century but by Syrian
merchant Thomas Cananeus in the 4th century. See
http://folks.co.in/2009/11/st-thomas-in-india-myth-or-truth/
ix
Most Indian Jews have migrated to Israel in the recent
decades for economic reasons. They did not depart because
of any persecution or discrimination in India but for
economic advantage, as publically stated by them.
ix
Koenraad Elst, Who is a Hindu?, Voice of India, 2001; Ch 1,
at: http://voiceofdharma.org/books/wiah/ch1.htm .
17 18
Giving the Meaning & Purpose to Life
Varun Arya
Alumnus of IIT Delhi (1976-81 Batch)
& IIM Ahmedabad (1981-83 Batch)
Member, IIM Ahmedabad Society &
Formerly President, IIT Delhi Alumni Association
E-mail : [email protected], [email protected]
Prof. Varun Arya
Director, Aravali Gurukul Ashram, Jodhpur
Prof. Arya is a first class graduate from IIT Delhi (1976-81
batch) and post-graduate from IIM Ahmedabad (1981-83
batch). Thereafter, he worked for 16 years in senior positions
with the leading companies like Indian Rayon, Reliance and
American multinational DuPont. After having established
and successfully run Aravali Institute of Management for 13
years, he is now associated with his dream project of
establishing and shaping up a top quality educational
complex Aravali Gurukul Ashram including a university,
envisioned to be a model of no compromise blending the best
of traditions with the latest in modernity, at Jodhpur in his
home state of Rajasthan.
Amongst the various positions held by Prof. Arya, he has been
the President of prestigious IIT Delhi Alumni Association -
the apex body of over 30000 member alumni based
worldwide, alumni representative on the Senate of IIT Delhi,
member of the Technology Business Incubation Units Board
of IIT Delhi and Secretary of IIM Ahmedabad Alumni
Association. He is presently on the Boards and Advisory
Councils of various companies, educational institutions and
other organisations. Presently he is also a member of IIM
Ahmedabad Governing Society.
Because of his firm belief that education, by definition, is
based on ethics, his journey as an educational entrepreneur
has been filled with unending hardships, risks, sacrifices and
struggles much beyond his expectations and imagination.
Some of his major satyagrahs (struggles to ensure that the
truth alone triumphs, despite all the odds) during the last over
a decade have been :
In the year 2003, he got drug mafia to vacate a public park
at Jodhpur through mobilization of the colony residents,
administrative action and filing of Public Interest
Litigation in Rajasthan High Court which he won.
In 2004, he galvanized and organized thousands of IIMs
alumni from all over India and abroad to fight the
onslaught of Ministry of Human Resource Development,
Government of India, on IIMs.
By actively involving the support of villagers and
panchayat in 2007, he fought successfully against the
onslaught by the local MLA and MP on the Institute
campus land.
In the year 2009, he got the All India Council for
Technical Education (AICTE) to confer approval to
Aravali strictly on merit alone, after fighting for nine long
years.
With facts and figures, extensive usage of RTI Act and
writs in Rajasthan High Court, during the last three years
19 20
he has been fighting successfully against Commissioner
of Income Tax and Chief Commissioner of Income Tax,
Jodhpur who have been all out to harass him and Aravali
in view of his persistent refusal to compromise.
After fighting for six years including 145 hours fast at
Jantar Mantar, New Delhi and extensive usage of the
Right to Information (RTI) Act, he succeeded on 01
November 2011, with the Government of Rajasthan
granting conversion approval to 94.4 acres of land for
Institute campus, without any compromise.
To build the campus, around eight years back he had
purchased 236 bighas (around 94.4 acres) of private
extremely high salinity wasteland at Village Kaparda, Tehsil
Bilara, District Jodhpur in Rajasthan on which nothing could
grow, nothing could be constructed and there was no water
in/around the land. During the last seven years, this land has
been painstakingly transformed under his leadership and it
now has 15 lakes having around 6 crore litres of water with
migratory birds visiting, various water harvesting structures
including two bridges, over 6000 trees grown upto 15 feet, 60
solar lights, three huge lawns of around 2.5 acres each, six
smaller lawns, a natural meditation centre with capacity for
2000 persons on a mound surrounded by 1500 plants, and
vegetables grown organically.
His endeavours have been extensively appreciated and
recognized locally, at the state level, national level and
globally with a large number of honours and awards.
Opportunities Vs Threats
Life provides both the opportunities and threats. People, in
general, look only for the opportunities and hate the threats.
The fact is that opportunities provide only the ordinary
opportunities to which everybody jumps, leading to dilution
of the strength in the opportunities. Whereas the threats
provide extraordinary opportunities in disguise to which
hardly anybody jumps and hence the opportunities get
exemplified.
Governance Deficit
People are generally found to complain about the government
practically all the time, especially in India. Yes, both the print
and electronic media in India everyday publishes news about
the authorities in the government being mired in corruption,
criminalization, favouritism, injustice, nepotism and red-
tapism. Yes, these all certainly demonstrate the serious
governance deficit in India. However, the fact is that since the
government does not do much, it provides us all the unique
opportunity to do so much.
Stay Hungry Stay Foolish
In his now famous Stanford University commencement
speech delivered just a few months before his untimely
demise, legendry Apple founder Steve Jobs spoke about
Stay Hungry Stay Foolish.
Life is the greatest teacher. As the saying goes, while in the
conventional exams you first get the learning and then appear
for the exams but in the life, you appear for the exams first and
then get the learning.
Over the last 54 years of my life, I have come to firmly believe
and realize that life is all about what you do with it, discover
with it, make out with it, get out of it and lastly, give back to it.
If you wish, you can complain all the time about it and if you
wish, you can compliment all the time about it. The choice is
entirely yours! To be complimenting all the time about the
life, you have to necessarily stand out of the crowd. You have
to look at the life differently, passionately and uniquely!
Introduction
21 22
Learning is a life-long continuous process. Learning leads to
development, development leads to competency,
competency leads to results, results lead to success, success
leads to satisfaction and satisfaction gives meaning and
purpose to life. Therefore, to be satisfied with life all the time,
we should yearn to learn all the time. We need to stay hungry
for learning life-long.
When you take the first step towards doing what is perceived
to be impossible, people would call you foolish. However,
when you struggle, strive and succeed by ultimately
managing to turn the impossible into possible then the same
people who had earlier called you foolish, would now call you
extraordinary. Of course, it is doable only through focused
and sustained strength of character, strength of commitment,
strength of confidence, strength of conviction, strength of
cooperation and strength of courage. Therefore, it pays to stay
foolish life-long.
Turning Points of Life
Everybodys life has milestones the increasing years of life
as the counting goes on from the first step on the Earth to the
last step on the Earth. Generally people begin with a given
status at birth and die with the same or similar status,
involving the usual ups and downs. They are generally not
remembered beyond family and friends. However, few
people manage to also have the turning points involving
unusual ups and downs in life as they go ahead crossing
milestones. These few people at times are mystery and at
times make history. They are generally the change agents,
institution-builders, leaders and path-breakers. They are
remembered by a larger population, besides the family and
friends
For every human being, I believe the first turning point can
come around the age of 20, when you decide what type of
career to get into architect, bureaucrat, doctor, engineer,
manager, scientist, etc. You accordingly decide the course of
higher studies. After this, if you wish you can have the second
turning point around the age of 40 when you can decide
what kind of second career to get into. Then if you are hale
and hearty then you can have the third turning point possibly
around the age of 60 when you can decide to have the third
career. Thereafter, if you are still alive and kicking then you
can have the fourth turning point around the age of 80 when
you can decide to have the fourth career. Of course, one can
have less or more turning points and at other ages as well.
Core Human Values
The Almighty or the Creator or the Nature made all of us as
human beings, with one community : Humanity, and one
common code of conduct : Human Values. The fundamental
human values are Peaceful Co-existence, Societal Welfare
(Shubh-Labh), Equality, Merit, Quality, Ethics & Integrity.
However, the man made divisions within the community of
humanity by creating the differentiations using castes, creed,
colour, class and religions. With these began the man-made
distortions in human values. Unfortunately the people at large
have come to accept these distortions and live the life with
these distortions. However, few persons come out of the
crowd and create their own core values, generally derived
from the fundamental human values mentioned above and
chart out their own path forward.
It is necessary to have your own core values and path forward
which create your unique personified equity and
demonstrate your distinct identity.
23 24
Pygmalion Effect
Those who are born poor, need not die poor. The poverty is
not only in terms of finances but can also be in terms of status,
intellect, image, respect, remembrances and assets creation.
All one needs is to look for, capture, capitalize, catalyze and
realize the opportunities to learn, develop, do and
demonstrate. By this you can turn weaknesses into strengths,
threats into opportunities and impossible into possible.
If you look back into the history and look around yourself,
you will find many shining examples of Pygmalion Effect
Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri, Nobel Laureate Dr. Subramanym
Chandrashekhar and Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam.
Nurturing A Dream
Today I am reminiscing sitting on the banks of one of
the lakes and looking at our around 100 acres campus
demarcated by three kilometers long boundary wall which
contains
lA total of 15 lakes, made through rain water harvesting,
having around 6 crore litres of water capacity with fishes,
frogs and even tortoises into these.
lThree large size lawns of 2.5 acres each, with solar lights
on the periphery of each and 60 benches made of fibre
glass.
lTwo guest rooms with attached bath rooms, one
conference room, one office, one electricity room, one
guard room and two stores.
lA truly natural meditation centre with capacity of 2500,
surrounded by 1500 plants.
lOver 6000 plants and trees which have grown upto 12
feet.
lMain campus building (first phase).
Added to the above are hosts of migratory birds visiting the
lakes and really memorable sunrise and sunset with
reflections in the lakes. It is a place I feel like just not leaving
at all and sitting there for eternity.
However, the land was not like this when we purchased it
eight years back. It was extremely saline wasteland (people
say, it was the worst land in Rajasthan) with water level
around 400 feet below ground, which too highly saline. It was
the land on which nothing could grow and nothing could be
constructed. Comments from some of the experts :
1. ISRO : Campus land is extreme wasteland and
development of the same for academic purpose is going
to cost enormous effort and the money.
2. CAZRI, Ministry of Agriculture : Plot lies in a
wasteland with high inherent salinity that is difficult to
develop. The salinity also makes building construction
risky because corrosion problem is very high.
3. AFRI, Ministry of Environment & Forest : Soil depth 25
to 40 cm (rock beneath), PH2 7.8 to 8.8, EC2 7.8 to 26.7
dsm-1 and Texture Loamy Sand.
When I left a high paying senior position with American
multinational DuPont 14 years back, people called me a fool.
When I chose Jodhpur in Rajasthan as a location for
establishing the top-quality educational complex, people
called me a big fool. And when I purchased the above
wasteland, people called me a bloody fool!
25 26
Eight years back when we were looking for purchasing land
for our campus, we had placed an advertisement in the
newspapers. One of the important conditions mentioned in
the advertisement was that the entire payment would be made
by account payee cheque. Around two dozen proposals came.
However, all except one backed out when they were told that
we really meant hundred percent payment by crossed cheque
only. They said that they would accept the cheques but
suggested some payment under some other heads like
development of land. When they were told that there was only
one head purchase of land then they all backed out except
just one the above land owners. They agreed since they were
trying to sell the land for several decades but there were no
takers, in view of the land perceived to be totally useless.
We also had really no choice except to purchase this land
since no one else was willing to give us the land with entire
payment by cheque. When we got into this educational
entrepreneurial venture 14 years back, we had told ourselves
that education, by definition, was based on ethics. No
compromise under any circumstances irrespective of the
difficulties, hardships, sacrifices and struggles.
Eight years back this was the land on which you could not
stand even for five minutes since it was so hostile. Today we
feel like staying there forever. This painstaking
transformation from wasteland to wonderland carried out
during the last eight years has meant a lot of learning from the
first principles, many intuitive experiments which fortunately
succeeded, enormous efforts with patience and perseverance
and investing reasonably large finances. Some salient details
are as under :
lEnglish Babool Problem
When we purchased the land, it was full of English
Babool. We got our friend Magsaysay awardee
waterman Mr. Rajendra Singh to visit the site. He
advised us to immediately first remove English Babool
from its roots. He told us that English Babool did not
allow anything else to grow and also made the land
infertile. We got a JCB machine which worked for
several days and removed around 1500 English Babool
from the site.
lLand Earmarking
We were advised by our well-wishers to dig up the
boundary of the land to ensure that there were no
problems. We placed a large board with proper
cemented foundation declaring the land as ours and
started digging the boundary. Soon a host of people
came protesting and next morning our board was also
found removed. We got the local police to come to help
us, which it did. However, we could not have got the
police everyday. We asked some people in the nearby
village as how to tackle the problem. They said that we
would need to make sizeable cash payments. We replied
that we would not be able to make any cash payments.
Then one very elderly villager told us that if we could
get Darbar to come to the site and address the villagers
then the problem would be permanently solved. Darbar
meant Maharaja Gaj Singh of Marwar-Jodhpur, who
happens to be Chairman of our Board of Governors. I
met Maharaja and he promptly agreed. Maharaja came
to the site, spoke to all the villagers and had tea with
them. Next day onwards, the people came and offered
all their help, saying that so were the orders of Darbar.
27 28
Since then we have been getting enormous cooperation
and help from the villagers in all matters.
lWater Harvesting
For cultivating and nurturing the flora and fauna at the
site needed water. Our friend Magsaysay awardee
waterman Mr. Rajendra Singh advised and guided us
with how to go about rain water harvesting.
Accordingly we dug up the land upto 10 feet in the
demarcated areas to make six lakes. We had to
extensively use blasting since at most places there were
rocks beneath. People laughed at seeing the dug up
areas, questioning as to from where so much of water
would come in the scantly rained Rajasthan.
As soon as the first rains came in July 2006, I rushed to
the site. With my own eyes, I could not believe all six
lakes with capacity of around 2.5 crore litres of water
getting filled one after another in a matter of just one
hour. After this, the water was overflowing the lakes for
around a month. So our conviction had proved right! No
matter what the intensity of drought would be, it would
certainly rain at least for one hour sufficient to fill in
our six lakes.
People then said that the water would become saline in
no time and suggested us to do the lining. When we
consulted our friend Mr. Rajendra Singh, he advised us
strongly against it. Firstly, it would cost a lot of money,
which we did not have. Secondly, in case there is even
one puncture in the lining (which was quite likely) then
the entire lining would be of little use. Thirdly, the lining
would hamper the process of reducing the salinity by
natural process. Fourthly, the lining would come in the
way of vertical as well as horizontal seepage of water
which would in turn adversely affect the charging of
underground water table. Therefore, we decided against
doing the lining at all.
In three months time, the water in the lakes indeed
became saline. People told us how foolish we were that
we ignored their advices for lining. The saline water
was, of course, no use for plants as well as construction.
Our friend Mr. Rajendra Singh advised us to have
patience. In the second year, the water in the lakes
became saline in five months. In the third year, it
became saline in seven months. In the fourth year, it
became saline in nine months. In the fifth year, the water
became saline in eleven months. And in the six year, it
was sweet throughout the year!
Encouraged by the above, we dug up the land at other
suggested places also and made four more lakes four
years back. Two years back, when we had a meeting of
our well-wishers at our campus site presided over
Maharaja Gaj Singh of Marwar-Jodhpur to discuss the
future plans, Maharaja advised us to make five more
lakes in the suggested areas. We did so recently.
With the above, we now have 15 lakes with total water
carrying capacity of 6 crore litres. These cover and take
care of the eco-system of the entire land. Also the
underground water level which was around 400 feet
eight years back, when we had purchased the land, has
now become just 4 feet because of water transmission
from the lakes horizontally as well vertically.
lBridges
During the first rains on our campus site in the year 2005
after we purchased the land, we found that there was a
water passage through which significant amount of
29 30
water was getting into our land and flowing out. When
we were crossing this water passage during the heaviest
rains, we found it literally touching almost our shoulder
level. This was actually the passage we decided to use
for rain water harvesting for creating the first six lakes.
It occurred to us that during the rainy reason, this water
passage would cut our campus site into two with
people unable to cross from one side to another. To take
care of this critical aspect and also to provide proper
water inlet and water outlet for the first set of six lakes,
we decided to construct bridges on both sides of the
boundary in the line of this water passage.
The two bridges have come out to be really good and
while providing a place to view the campus from the
birds view, these further add to make the campus look
beautiful, interesting and unique.
lPlantations
In view of it being extremely high degraded saline
wasteland, the plantation was a big challenge. The
villagers in the vicinity had told us that we would not be
able to grow anything. However, our close friend Dr. R.
L. Srivastava, Indian Forest Service officer of 1978
Batch who was Director of Arid Forest Research
Institute (AFRI) at Jodhpur, disagreed and came
forward to help us out with the plantation. Also Mr.
Narayan Dass Prajapati, Managing Trustee of Asian
Medical Plants & Healthcare Trust at Jodhpur
volunteered to advise us in the matter. Mr. Jagdish
Kishwan, IFS, Director General, Indian Council of
Forestry Research & Education of Ministry of
Environment & Forests in the Government of India also
visited our campus site and advised AFRI to make it as
their experimentation site.
With their advice and suggestions, we planted around 25
different varieties of plants some salt resistant and
some normal ones. The major plants were Khara Jal,
Karanj, Kasod, Neem, Peepal and Kumat. For all the
plants, we first dug up a one metre x one metre x one
metre pit in the rocky land using JCB. Then we got sweet
soil from quite a distance and filled each pit with it after
mixing it with traditional fertilizer made of cow dung
and goat bits. Then the plant was placed surrounded by
the tree guard. The tree guard helped us to place jute
cloth around the plant in extreme summer to protect it.
We also planted low roots high foliage plants like castor
and sunflower around each plant to protect these from
the extreme heat in the summer.
At those locations in our land where the salinity was the
highest, we went a step further in our experimentation.
In the pit dug up, we first placed a large multilayer
jumbo bag and then put the sweet soil inside the said
jumbo bag. This multilayer jumbo bag helped greatly in
preventing the seepage of salinity into the plant and thus
safeguarding its longevity.
All the above experiments and innovative plantation
practices facilitated us greatly to ensure that our plants
survived and grew. Today we have over 6000 plants at
our site surviving and growing upto 12 feet.
lLawns
People said that we would not able to have any lawns on
the site since these would not come up properly. To take
up this challenge we decided to first have a small lawn of
around 25 feet x 25 feet. This was made at a location on
our site where the salinity was relatively less. It came up
very well and survived throughout the year. It also
changed the topography and scenic beauty of the land.
31 32
Encouraged by the success of the above experiment, we
made five more such lawns of around 25 feet x 25 feet
size but at locations which were in the increasing extent
of salinity. Where the salinity was more, we first put
pebbles in the demarcated proposed area of the lawn
thereby effectively raising the level of the lawn and then
placed sweet soil. These five lawns also came up very
well and survived throughout the year.
After the above, we were truly buoyant to extrapolate
the above experiments to significantly larger levels.
Three years back we decided to make two large lawns of
100 metres x 100 metres, that is 2.5 acres each. Similar
system was followed first we placed stones pieces in
the proposed area and then put sweet soil over the
stones. In the process, the lawns level was raised around
three feet. For watering such large lawns we installed
sprinkler system. To beautify these large lawns, we
placed Neem trees around on the periphery of the lawns
and also did tapering down dressing of soil touching the
periphery of the lawns. We also placed solar lights on the
periphery of these lawns.
These two large lawns came up very well and added
greatly to the goodness of the entire campus site.
Encouraged by this, two years back we made one more
lawn of 2.5 acres size.
These lawns are proving to be of great use for holding
the students and other activities including sports with
no-holds-barred. Students have been enjoying their
activities like never before.
lSalinity Problem
We are given to understand that there is no real man-
made way available in the world whereby you can
actually reduce or remove the salinity. The only way the
salinity can be reduced certainly but slowly and
progressively is by natural means. Eight years back
when we had purchased this land, there was thick layer
of salt covering practically the entire land. Today you
see only patches and traces of salinity at various
locations on the site. This has been achieved naturally
through the following means :
i) Water harvesting
Making 15 lakes without lining helped us greatly to
reduce the salinity. By capillary effect, when the water
goes down in the land, the salinity comes up. With the
passage of time, therefore, water in the lakes becomes
saline. When the rains come, this saline water is flushed
out and the fresh sweet water fills the lakes. When this
process is repeated year after year, the salinity gets
progressively reduced.
ii) Plantation
We have planted many plants which are salt resistant or
salt absorbent. Such trees, over a period of time, help
reduce the salinity.
iii) Dhencha
Dhencha is a highly nitrogenous plant. It greatly helps to
reduce the salinity. Its seeds are planted just when the
rains are about to come, in early July. By the end of rains
in September, it grows reasonably well. In
October/November, it is cut and mixed in the soil.
In the first year, we got 5 quintals of Dhencha seeds and
planted these over around 20 acres of land in the area of
33 34
our site having maximum salinity. We could clearly see
the positive impact of this over the year. Next year we
planted 10 quintals of Dhencha seeds over around 40
acres of land. The effect was again there to be clearly
seen. In the third year we got 15 quintals of these seeds
and used over 60 acres with the positive results clearly
visible. In the fourth year, we got 20 quintals of seeds
and used these over 80 acres with better results. In the
fifth year we got 25 quintals of seeds and used these over
the entire land. Since then it has been repeated every
year.
lConstruction
For hundreds of years, conventional lime has been used
in the construction. It was around 160 years back that the
cement was invented and in India, it has been used for
the last around 120 years in construction. The strength of
construction with lime is the least initially but it
increases over the passage of time. No wonder, over 550
years old Meherangarh Fort in Jodhpur made with
conventional lime is so strong today. On the other hand,
the strength of construction made with cement is highest
initially but it reduces over the period of time. Not
surprisingly, therefore, the buildings made with cement
start giving serious problems after 50 years and many
are advised to be demolished when around 100 years.
Lime and salt are understood to be close friends, while
cement and salt are believed to be arch enemies. Salt
blends very well with lime construction, while the salt
eats into the cement construction. Therefore, it is
necessary to use sweet water in cement construction,
otherwise the construction is prone to get damaged in
due course. As the saline water or salinity seeps into the
cement construction, making it hollow and this
hollowness increases with time making such
construction weak and fragile.
After purchasing the land, we decided to first construct
the boundary wall 3 kms in length. This was for four
basic purposes firstly for earmarking permanently the
boundary of the wall, secondly to ensure that there are
no encroachments, thirdly for the safety & security of
work and the assets inside, and fourthly for ensuring that
the animals do not come inside. In view of our having
made the lakes and there being no water availability in
the nearby areas, we found animals coming. Specially
dangerous were wild cows who came silently, could
jump upto five feet, did not fear anything and even if you
touched them you could get into serious problem since
certain communities would protest. Therefore, this 3
kms long boundary wall had to be necessarily minimum
six feet high. In addition, there was three feet of
foundation beneath the ground level.
When we tried to find out the availability of
conventional lime (called mudia lime) we found that it
was scarcely available since not much used. For the
quantities needed by us, we explored around and finally
could get a supplier near Nagaur who was in a position
to provide large quantities. We did the costing and
discovered that the construction with mudia lime was
five times costlier than cement. Therefore, we decided
to use mudia lime for construction only up to plinth
level, since the salinity came in contact with the
construction only till the plinth level. Above plinth
level, we decided to use cement for construction.
Historically in Rajasthan, the mudia lime was processed
using camels. Since we did not have camels, we again
35 36
did the exploration. We found a person in Didwana in
Nagaur District who used to make the machines for
processing the mudia lime. We got two such machines
custom-made from him. These were made operational
using the tractor motor and it really worked.
The success of above experiment got manifested three
years later when there were heavy rains and the Pichyak
dam nearby was damaged. The water from the dam
created havoc in the villages in the area damaging the
buildings and reached upto our campus site. However,
our 3 km long boundary wall survived without any
damage.
lVegetation
Our next major experimental endeavour was to grow
vegetables. For this, we used the area in our land with
less salinity. We got sweet soil from outside and used it
after mixing with conventional fertilizer of cow dung
and goat bits. A number of vegetables like cucumber,
spinach, ladies finger, tomatoes, brinjals, moolis,
carrots, etc. grew very well. Their quality was much
better than the available in the market. When Dr.
Montek Singh Ahluwalia, Deputy Chairman of
Planning Commission of India visited our site with his
wife Dr. Isher Judge Ahluwalia, he was pleasantly
surprised to see the quality of these vegetables.
We also planted aloe vera and because of salinity, the
aloe vera variety which got developed was different
since it was easily eatable and tasty. The colour of aloe
vera which grew was also reddish as compared to
greenish which was planted.
lLand Conversion
When we decided to venture into this educational
entrepreneurship venture over 14 years back, we had
told our selves that education, by definition, was based
on ethics. No compromise under any circumstances,
irrespective of the difficulties, hardships, problems,
sacrifices, struggles and sufferings.
During these 14 years we faced a large number of
occasions when we got stuck in view of our refusal to
compromise on ethics. It is shockingly ironic that the
very people in the government who are expected to
facilitate and support the activities for the development
of our nation and benefit of its people are at times
actually the biggest hindrance in the same, in view of
their vested interests. Moreover, the biggest source of
corruption in our country is undoubtedly the land
matters. No wonder the issue relating to our having land
to construct the campus turned out to be the most
difficult and the longest one involving the authorities up
to the highest levels in the government.
We wanted land for education, not free but at the reserved
price meant for educational purpose. People at the highest
level in the state government gave a written commitment to
provide us the land. I came to Rajasthan in April 2000, various
options of land were immediately shown to me and one piece
of land was finalised. I was asked to meet a henchman of a top
politician to "negotiate". I refused because of my firm belief
that education, by definition, was based on ethics. We did not
get the land.
Then the government changed and we hoped that it would be
different. However, one of its senior functionaries made a
strange statement "Giving land without bribe will set a wrong
37 38
precedent". The fact is that we did not get the land again.
Mind you - in both the cases, some of the most distinguished
persons of our country had also written to the respective
governments in support of our project and requested for
helping this noble cause.
I met the highest authorities in the government but none of
this helped in any way. Instead, with full force of state, the
government unleashed against us several enquiries and false
cases including concocted cases even for disturbing peace in
the city of Jodhpur, death and molestation. There were even
attacks on the lives of me and my family members to make me
surrender to the whims and fancies of netas and babus.
However, I refused to buckle and continued to strive for
results while persistently refusing to make any compromise.
Having seen both shades of government and failed to get the
land without compromise, finally we purchased private
extreme salinity wasteland at market price. Even here, instead
of facilitating and supporting our having taken up this
challenge, the netas and babus continued to create problems.
On 28 March 2007 night some people came to the campus
site with a truck to steal the tree guards and damage the plants.
They were the henchmen of a leading local politician. When
our security guards caught one of the persons, got him
arrested and we filed an FIR, this politician rang up the police
to release this thief and asked the police to instead file a fake
counter FIR against us since how we had dared to catch his
henchman and file FIR. It was only after the villagers there
threatened to block the National Highway that the police did
not do as asked by this politician.
A minister of Rajasthan repeatedly asked me to meet him to
"negotiate". When I conveyed to him that I had nothing to
"negotiate", I was threatened that then we should be prepared
to face the consequences. Soon the consequences were there -
Tehsildar of the area levied penalty of Rs. 76 lakhs in a
sadistically fraudulent manner and to recover it, issued orders
for the auction of our land, without even giving us the legally
mandatory notice and without the information of his
superiors - SDM and Collector. The minister had told
Tehsildar directly to issue the auction order. When the
minister was contacted, he said "no compromise on bribes
and these have to be paid". Fortunately the District Collector
of Jodhpur intervened to stop the auction, after he was
convinced that it was being done fraudulently.
To have our own campus was certainly a question of the life
and death for our Institute and to do the construction, it was
essential to get the land converted from the government. For
this we completed all the requirements as per the rules for the
conversion, including payment of full conversion charges,
way back in October 2009. When the things did not move for
a full year then during November 2010 to January 2011, we
got some of the distinguished persons of our country to talk to
the highest levels in the state government as well as central
government, including the political leadership. When none of
this worked, we filed a writ petition in Rajasthan High Court
in February 2011 but it was not being responded by the state
government and we were only getting the dates after dates.
On 24 March 2011, a petition to Rajasthan Chief Minister was
placed online by IIT Madras senior alumnus Ram
Krishnaswamy based in Australia, which was signed and
supported by over 2600 persons from worldwide. During 01-
04 April 2011, my wife and I were at Jaipur to meet the top
government officials to convince them the necessity and
urgency of action but it did not work. Finally on 11 April
2011, one elderly person very close to the Chief Minister
since childhood travelled to Jaipur to make the things work.
When none of it produced the result, in view of our persistent
refusal to compromise, we were left with no choice but to go
on indefinite fast at Jantar Mantar, New Delhi to expose the
39 40
injustice and get the justice.
Around 60 of our students, staff and faculty members
including my wife and I left Jodhpur for Delhi at 05.30 P.M.
on 12 April 2011 in one bus and two cars. Around 08.00 P.M.
we reached a small place called Bar, where our Prof. Sanjay
Diddee received a call from District Collector of Jodhpur
informing us that we would get the conversion letter in a
week's time and asked us to return back. He informed us that
he was doing so as per the instructions from the Chief
Minister's office and Revenue Secretary, with whom he was
coordinating. We refused. After sometime, Collector
telephoned again and said that the conversion would be done
in three days time and asked us to return. We refused. Then
after sometime, he called up again and told us that we would
get it next day and asked us to return back. We refused. Then
he told us that conversion letter would be handed over to us at
Kishangarh, which was around three hours away. Collector
took our bus and cars numbers. We reached Kishangarh
around midnight. A posse of around 20 policemen including
two Inspectors and four police vehicles, who had our bus and
cars numbers, stopped us. When we asked for the land
conversion letter, they said they had none and told us that
there were instructions from the highest level in the state
government not to allow us to travel ahead.
When we insisted to travel ahead, they contacted the officials
and told us that we would have to go to State Secretariat at
Jaipur under police escort, where we would be provided the
land conversion letter. We reached the State Secretariat at
Jaipur around 02.00 A.M. in the night but there too, there was
no letter. While the police went here and there, we escaped
and moved fast towards Delhi. When we entered Delhi
around 08.30 A.M. on 13 April 2011, we were again stopped
by Delhi Police from moving ahead. When we threatened to
complain to Mr. Tejendra Khanna, Lt. Governor of Delhi,
who had visited us at Jodhpur, we were allowed to move
further.
When we rached Jantar Mantar, New Delhi around 09.30
A.M. on 13 April 2011, we received a call from District
Collector of Jodhpur informing us that he was sending us the
conversion approval letter and asked us not to begin the
indefinite fast. We gave him the fax number of Swami
Agnivesh, who has been a member of our Board of Governors
since inception and whose office was just at Jantar Mantar
Road only. Soon we received the fax but its contents were
shocking. It conveyed us conversion approval of only 135
bigha of land, subject to our paying the conversion charges
again, not using the land for non-agricultural purpose (which
was self-contradictory) and handing over 101 bigha of land to
the government. We refused to accept it and formally began
the indefinite fast at 10 A.M. on 13 April 2011, though we had
not eaten anything since 08.00 P.M. previous night.
The passion of our students, staff and faculty to this noble
cause was seen to be believed. The support of IITs & IIMs
alumni and faculty members, former judges & Chief Justices
of High Courts, top officials, academicians, defence officers,
social activists, media, lawyers and many others was
overwhelming. There was excellent coverage in both print
and electronic media, especially The Times of India, The
Hindustan Times, The Hindu and Nai Dunia. There were a
large number of our well-wishers working behind the scenes
to garner support and message reach the leaderships at both
the government and political levels in Jaipur as well as Delhi.
The state government was in regular touch with our Prof.
Sanjay Diddee.
On 15 April 2011, we received second communication from
the state government. Shockingly it again confirmed
conversion of 135 Bigha only subject to our paying the
41 42
conversion charges for this land again and handing over the
balance 101 Bigha land to the government. We refused.
Meanwhile, our support grew but the condition of my wife
worsened. Doctors from AIIMS New Delhi came and
examined. Our daughter flew from Mumbai to take care of
her mother. On sixth day, 18 April 2011 evening around 06.00
P.M.Dr. Rajiv Sharma, Additional Chief Secretary and Mr.
Vimal Sharma, Resident Commissioner of Rajasthan came.
They discussed, understood and followed up our demands
with the concerned in the state government till finally we got
the written confirmation of our demands being met around
08.00 P.M. After that we broke the fast and around 09.00 P.M.
Resident Commissioner of Rajasthan Mr. Vimal Sharma
came again and said that the Chief Minister wanted to talk to
me. Chief Minister Mr. Ashok Gehlot spoke to me and while
apologizing for our hardships, assured us of all support from
the state government.
Throughout the above period of six days and six nights, the
girl students and lady faculty stayed in the guesthouse of
Bangla Sahib Gurudwara. I stayed at Jantar Mantar footpath
only, along with our male students and faculty. In the night we
slept there only, despite the onslaught of mosquitoes whole
night. In the mornings we used public facilities by standing in
the queue with the beggars, taxi drivers and others. Each day
we walked upto Bangla Sahib Gurudwara to have bath in the
open there. Everybody cooperated with us fully including the
keeper of public facilities and people at gurudwara. There
was constant vigil on us by the police, CID, Intelligence
Bureau and many other agencies. At one time, we were about
to be evicted but courtesy the timely intervention of Lt.
Governor's office, we were allowed to stay on. We had a large
number of visitors from early morning till midnight everyday.
Finally when we achieved the victory, a large number of our
well-wishers came till midnight with sweets, ice creams, etc.
Just in case the success had not been achieved by sixth day
evening, next day around 15000 people from Bharatiya Kisan
Morcha and Bharat Swabhiman Andolan would have joined
us, whose leaders had come and assured their support to us,
apart from Sri Sri Ravi Shankar and many others.
I had no words to describe how happy we all, in Aravali
family, were to at last ensured the significant success of truth,
against all the odds. Around 08.00 P.M. on Monday, 18 April
2011 we received the requisite confirmation letters relating to
the conversion of our campus land from the Government of
Rajasthan. With overjoyed students, faculty, staff and other
well-wishers providing us juice, my wife Anita and I broke
our 145 hours continuous fast during which we did not eat
anything and did not drink anything, except a little water. For
this, before putting life of mine and my beloved at risk, we
had tried everything.
Next day, on 19 April 2011, we left Delhi at 05.45 A.M. At
01.00 P.M. we reached Jaipur where all 60 of us were invited
for lunch at Chief Minister's Residence. Chief Minister Mr.
Ashok Gehlot met us, talked to us and while again
apologizing for the hardships faced by us, assured us of all the
support. In fact he went a step further, asking us to establish a
similar large educational campus for girls also for which too,
he said that the government would provide us all the support.
At Jaipur we also had our alumni based there who came in full
attendance to felicitate with tilak and garland all the students,
faculty and staff who were part of this historic struggle to
success.
Around 10 P.M. we reached our campus site, where the
garlands and flowers were offered in the temple there. At
10.45 P.M. we reached Umaid Bhawan Palace where
Maharaja Gaj Singh and Maharani Hemlata Rajye were
waiting for us. They felicitated all of us, offered juices and
sweets and talked to us. Finally around midnight we reached
43 44
our Boys' Hostel. By the time we reached our homes, it was
past midnight.
We should all know that the land matters (which include land
conversion) are the biggest source of bribes, black money and
corruption in our country. Ours was not a personal matter, but
a case study struggle to fight successfully this menace for a
noble cause, turning impossible into possible without any
compromise.
However, the above joy unfortunately turned out to be short-
lived. To end our indefinite fast at Jantar Mantar, New Delhi
during April 2011, the state government had given us
conversion approval for 135 bigha and written promise to
convert the remaining 101 bigha also within a week after the
due process was completed. Despite our having completed
the due process immediately after the end of the indefinite
fast, later the government went back on its commitment and
insisted us to surrender 101 bigha to the government wrongly
citing the ceiling limit. In view of this, we refused to accept
the conversion of 135 bigha also unless the entire 236 bigha
was converted, without surrender of any land to the
government.
Finally with the extensive use of RTI, at last we received the
Government of Rajasthan's approval letter on 01 November
2011 for the conversion of balance 101 bigha of land also,
which they had so far been insisting for us to surrender to the
government.
I am glad that we have succeeded yet again to get the
conversion approval for the entire 236 bigha of our campus
site land without any compromise on our core value of ethics.
With the basic issue of the land conversion approval done and
the significant transformation achieved on the wasteland to
make somewhat hospitable for the campus purpose, we are
now gearing up to take our activities for various societal
benefit purposes to a new pedestal.
The adventure of this educational entrepreneurship venture
continues. Right thing must be necessarily done the right way
only! No compromise at all!!
45 46
Taminglish: A Study in Social
Psychology of the Tamils
Associate Professor
PG & Research Dept of English
The American College
MADURAI 625 002
INDIA
[email protected]
Abstract
Dr J. John Sekar, M.A., M. Phil., PGDTE (CIEFL),
PGDHE (IGNOU), PGDCE (UH), Ph.D.,
Taminglish is a reality. English teachers in Tamil society are
made to feel guilty about what they are accused of doing as a
professionthe teaching of English as a neo-imperialistic
language(!) to Tamil learners of English at different levels.
Politicians and Tamil activists alike raise a lot of hue and cry
against the mixing of English in the daily Tamil discourses.
They often fail to understand a linguistic fact that changes on
account of language contact do not amount to corruption but
enrichment of the languages involved and that change is
natural and inevitable in the history and development of any
language. They would like to artificially maintain the
classical status of Tamil even now when Tamil society has
irretrievably become a bilingual and bi-cultural community.
One of the psychological impacts of such a political project of
preserving the purity of Tamil on English teaching community
is that they refuse to accept the bilingual method of teaching
English without any professional basis. The process of
language development has always been independent of
human intervention and therefore, Tamil is firmly entering a
new phase of its development, which in this article, is termed
as Taminglish. Through a recent order, the government of
India has instructed all its employees to follow Hinglish in
the Devanagiri script for official communication. Tamil has
already permitted hundreds of English words and set
expressions both in oral and written discourses. This paper
proposes to diachronically and longitudinally interrogate the
history behind the evolution of the phenomenon called
Taminglish, a process of code-mixing/switching in
Tamil/English discourse, and to establish that English
teachers need not feel guilty about this linguistic hybridity.
Introduction
From an apolitical point of view, it was a proud moment in the
life of every Tamil speaker, Tamil user, and Tamil scholar that
the entire Tamil community which negates the geographical
boundaries in search of material well-being of its members
celebrated the World Classical Tamil Conference a couple of
years ago at the turn of the second decade of the twenty first
century, the first of its kind in the history of any modern
language. Also, the Tamils should feel privileged and proud
of the undeniable reality that the oldest Indian
languageTamilhas found a place along with twenty one
languages as national languages in the VIII Schedule of the
Constitution. The Conference was not only a celebration of
an early birth, uninterrupted growth in spite of imperial and
colonial forces that were at work from time to time, steady
and sturdy development, and ever increasing use of Tamil in
all the newly emerging departments of life, but also an
occasion to take stock of its changing role and nature in Tamil
community that is re-inventing itself as a tool for literal,
literary, and science communication and as a culture-
preserver in a bi-/multi-cultural society. Yes, Tamil society
is no longer a mono-cultural community, but it has become a
multi-cultural society that is open-minded to absorbing and
amalgamating cultural diversity and plurality. It has been
steadily influenced by and is influencing other cultures.
47 48
But the phenomenon of admixture of several cultures and
languages in Tamil society, which is practising an exogenous
bilingualism with English and celebrating multiculturalism
with several cultures from across India and from the world,
raises several questions and a sense of uncertainty and fear in
the mind of Tamil scholars, educational experts, and political
patrons. Some of them articulate and confront these
questions in a way that is convenient to them, while others
ignore them blissfully. The questions are raised in the context
of the fear psychosis created over the liberal use of English
vocabulary in the daily discourses by even uneducated Tamils
who live in remote rural pockets. The unsettling questions
can be critically viewed under the three heads: i) culture and
society, ii) language and education, and iii) economic and
scientific development.
i) Culture and society
a) How long can English be allowed to be used in Tamil
society?
b) Doesnt the continued use of English bring
world/western cultures into Tamil society and spoil
the ancient Tamil culture?
c) Hasnt English (Western) culture encroached into
the cultural space of the Tamils?
d) Will English replace Tamil as home language one
day?
ii) Language and education
a) Will the uninterrupted use of English in formal
domains, such as science and technology, trade and
commerce, pre-primary to tertiary education
endanger Tamil or stunt its growth?
b) Isnt code-mixing and code-switching inimical to
the growth of Tamil?
c) Will Tamil die someday if English is allowed to mix
with Tamil?
d) Even if English is permitted, should it not be taught
only as a language and not as a medium?
iii) Economic and scientific development
a) Is the use of Tamil not possible for research and
innovation in science and technology?
b) Why shouldnt parents prefer English as a language
of employment and economic prosperity for their
children?
c) Is it not possible for Tamil to replace English?
d) Shouldnt the youth studied in Tamil be given jobs in
government?
At one point of time or the other, every educated
Tamil has to face such questions (un)comfortably?
The 1960s political rhetoric of Hindi Never, English Ever
has paved the way for the unrealistic but emotional linguistic
jingoism Tamil Anywhere and Everywhere, and Hail Tamil
and Let Tamil Grow in contemporary Tamil society. These
empty politics-loaded slogans are harmless ornamental
declarations that are designed to adorn the government-
owned public spaces, such as government buildings and bus
stations. It is not difficult for common people to comprehend
the simple logic that neither does a language grow by such
visibly emotion-packed loud self-proclamations nor its
growth is stunted by the presence of other languages/cultures
in a bilingual or multilingual community. The images of the
Tamil language like Goddess and Mother are deeply
embedded in the collective unconsciousness of the Tamils to
the extent that one has to think if it is genetically
programmed! Thats why the Tamils are more emotionally
attached to their language than any other linguistic
community though language is always an emotive issue. For
the Tamils, Tamil is not just a tool for communication and
civilization, but an umbilical cord connecting its users with
49 50
the divine.
In response to and in consonance with global reality that
keeps changing, Tamil society is constantly changing
(growing) and re-inventing itself. No speech community
around the world can preserve cultural purity in the
contemporary world. Technological advances, capitalist
commerce, trade entrepreneurial motives, and professional
ambitions cause the breaking of political and geographical
boundaries of nations paving the way for the emergence of
culturally one global human society. Migrationemigration
and immigrationfor education and employment is already a
reality. As a result, all the mono-cultural and mono-lingual
societies are increasingly becoming multi-cultural and multi-
lingual. Multi-culturalism/lingualism has become a norm
rather than an exception. Tamil society is second to none in
grabbing opportunities for such trans-national and
supranational ventures in the fields, such as trade and
commerce, science and technology, art and culture, and sports
and games. Tamil Diasporas have become a reality around
the world. They bring in world languages and cultures and
take with them Tamil language and culture. They act as a
powerful conduit for the natural dissemination of world
cultures. Tamil literary and film artists contribute their might
to the culture mix. The Tamils relish cultural hybridity and it
is self-evident in the dress that they wear, the food that they
eat, the education that they receive, the literature that they
produce, the fruits of science and technology that they
consume, the religious faiths that they practise, and above all,
the philosophies that they endear with.
Languages change, too. Change is the sign of growth while
stagnation, a sign of decay and death. It is a law of nature for
those who believe in the evolution theory of language that
treats language as a living organism. Change happens neither
for the worse nor for the better, but it is natural and inevitable.
The whole world is becoming a net work of human relations,
cultures, and languages. Languages in a multi-cultural world
are influenced by and are influencing each other. They
unconsciously absorb the elements from each other. No
human intervention in the guise of control is plausible in the
life of any language. Like language change, language death
is also a reality. Languages are not immune to the principle of
the survival of the fittest. Any language that is trying to
react negatively against changes either internally or
externally faces its extinction. The use of language in
different domains by the members of a speech community can
not be regulated either by legal force or by emotional appeal.
When it is a matter of convenience and contingency, any
political decision into language issue would be counter-
productive.
The political decision with administrative sanction to honour
Tamil with classical status should not be conveniently
construed to mean that Modern Tamil is a classical language.
Modern Tamil is derivative of ancient/old Tamil that has been
now officially recognized as Classical. The non-existence of
speech community being a primary western parameter for the
consideration of languages as classical was not followed by
the Government of India for declaring modern languages like
Tamil (2004), Sanskrit (2005), Telugu and Kannada (2008) as
classical languages. The Union Government seems to have
borrowed its criteria from the American Tamil scholar,
George Hart (2000) who supported the demand for Tamil
(read as Tamil literature) a classical status on the basis of four
principles he outlined in a letter to the government of India.
They are: considerable antiquity, rich literary tradition
indigenous to India, quality of literature, and a primary
independent source of modern Indian culture and tradition.
Classical Tamil that is available to the present Tamil speakers
through its rich literature is literary, archaic, and obsolete, and
not fit for secular and scientific discoursal purposes. It can
not even be used as a vehicle for literary education since it is
51 52
not in use even among academics and literary professionals.
Tamil used in contemporary literature, including poetry and
for communication purposes through spoken and written
media in various domains is more or less the same.
Positively, it is a sign of growth and development. English
too has changed to a great extent that English used by Chaucer
and before him looks and sounds like a foreign language to
most of its native users. They cannot read Chaucer now
without Nevil Coghill !
Now, the question is Should or can or does modern Tamil
resemble Classical Tamil which is marked as poetic, literary,
and unmixed? Modern Tamil is used in a Tamil society that
is characterised as multilingual, multi-cultural, multi-
religious, and multi-ethnic. It happily bears the burden of
experiences that were unknown to the speakers of Classical
Tamil. Over the period of several centuries, it has come in
contact with Sanskrit, Arabic, Urdu, English, Portuguese,
Hindi, and Telugu, and has been influenced by them and
influenced them. Of all these languages, English has
exercised an overpowering influence over Tamil as it was the
language of colonial project for just about three hundred
years. Inexplicably, it has colonized [endeared] the mind and
the heart of the Tamils. It has endeared them as closely as
Tamil to the extent that both co-exist as sibling/daughter
languages! Never has English been resisted in Tamil society
nor opposed as it had been in the North, though the colonial
masters created in them a taste for English language and
culture as a strategy of subjugation and essential requirement
for careers in the colonization project.
The Tamils have appropriated much of English vocabulary,
idiomatic expressions, proverbs, and literary forms, and
assimilated them either wholly or partially. This
appropriation has resulted in a new modern Tamil which can
be called Taminglish. This is what happened to English after
the 200 year long rule in England by Normans and English
almost changed its Teutonic character and acquired the
character of a Romance language. The English treated it as
blessing and never lamented over the change nor politicized
it. (Albert Baugh, 2008) After political independence, the
presence of English was liberally welcomed as a permanent
guest. Meanwhile, as a typical living language, the role of
English in the world affair underwent a great change from
being a language of colonization and westernization to
becoming a language of globalization and modernization. As
a result, it acquired the new role of a world language bearing
the humanistic and scientific culture of the world,
transmitting it across the cosmos (it is language of
International Space Station), and shrinking the entire world
into invisible cyberspace. It has even redefined reality as
virtual reality or hyper-reality. The transitional period for the
role change of English is so smooth and short that the Tamils
were left with very little time even to think of embarking on
the decolonizing project. In fact, they faced the dilemma
between decolonizing their mind and enriching their socio-
educational developmental spheres, and re-colonizing
themselves by way of accepting English as the language of
modernizing their society and thereby humbly
acknowledging English linguistic imperialism. In the
invisible battle between what Tamil would be made capable
of in due course of time and what English was capable of at
that time, the Tamils chose the latter. Known devil is better
than unknown angel!
Tamil society post-independence was determined to become
a bilingual society with English. In tune with the changed
status of the English language in the present scenario, the
government, the educational institutions, parents, children,
and employers and industries prefer English as the most
desirable second language as passport to employment. While
the governments and the UGC continue to subsidize English
53 54
literary education in the country, the academics continue to
maintain, through the academic curriculum, the hegemony of
English studies over the regional literatures. The culturally
irrelevant English nursery rhymes continue to be taught to the
toddlers at the kindergarten level. The cinema and the
mediaboth electronic and printliberally mix with and
switch in English. They project all successful characters both
in real and fictional world as products of English (education).
Through the electronic media and films, people are given to
understand the grand narrative that all well-dressed people
occupying high positions in society use English as a means of
their achievement while Tamil teachers are either comedians
or old harmless but semi-serious academics teaching some
classics, or as entertainers. Moreover, words and phrases
referring to the much-coveted positions, power and authority
are in English. Some of them are PM, CM, President,
Collector, Superintendent, DSP, Inspector, Police, RDO,
BDO, Judge, Magistrate, MP, MLA, Military, Bank manager,
cashier, and so on.
During the colonial period the Tamils were the first to
welcome and endear the English language for both political
and career reasons. They found a powerful weapon in it to
fight against the supremacy and hegemony of Sanskrit
language and culture, and they, in fact, used it to fight against
the numerically superior, but a minority language, Hindi,
post-independence. They also endeared it because it liberated
them from the shackles of the feudal society and caste-based
profession and helped them to enter knowledge-based service
sector. It provided a key to unlock the world of opportunities
in modern science and technology, trade and commerce, art
and culture, and agriculture and health. English continues to
guide the Tamils in these fields though a lot of translation of
knowledge in these fields into Tamil has taken place.
Original creation of knowledge in Tamil is far from
satisfaction.
That Tamil society is now a bilingual society is an undeniable
reality. Language-mixing or switching is the language
behaviour of a bilingual society, and it is motivated by the
social-psychological as well as linguistic factors. As a
universal phenomenon of a bilingual society, code-mixing or
switching is caused by contact between two languages.
Mixing is a rule-governed and not capricious behaviour.
Bilinguals are not individuals with split personality, but
individuals with more linguistic repertoire. Borrowing is a
process through which the speakers of the matrix language
liberally use material from the embedded language.
Borrowing involves phonological and morphological
adaptation of the lexical items into the host language, whereas
code-switching does not. Hundreds and thousands of words
and phrases from English have been assimilated into modern
Tamil and it has made it morphologically richer and
syntactically smoother and more elastic than ever. The result
is post-colonial linguistic identity through Homi Bhabas
hybridity called Taminglish, a process of mixing/
switching with English in Tamil.
The motivating social-psychological and linguistic factors
for code-mixing and code-switching in bilingual Tamil
society are quality education, job opportunities, career
promotions, respect, power and authority, all-India positions,
positions in MNCs, opportunities abroad, commanding
positions in national politics, etc. Linguistic factors include
lexical gaps, easy accessibility to concepts, convenience,
greater range of choice of vocabulary, cultural and
community neutrality, reiteration, repair strategies like
omission, insertion and repetition, discourse allocation, etc.
Code-mixing and/or code-switching is/are not a burden but
an enabling and enriching phenomenon on the part of the
individual members of bilingual Tamil society. It enriches
their linguistic repertoire, it makes them more versatile in
55 56
communicative and interactional terms, more open-minded
and broad-minded to varied cultural conventions and customs
and usages. It also increases their reach in terms of
information and knowledge about the world that is passing
from the age of Industrialisation to the age of Information
Technology.
The bilingual users do not belong to the remote past but to the
immediate future, not to the mono-cultural parochial society
but to the multicultural cosmopolitan society, and not just to
the world of BPOs but to the world of KPOs. They need a
new idiom that comprises elements from all languages.
Bilingual societies do not recognize purist linguistic
boundaries, but celebrate a world wide web of natural human
languages. They undergo several stages of acquiring the
mixed linguistic system. There is no need for competition
between the matrix language (Tamil) and the embedded
language (English). The relationship between them is
complementary. It is mutual and voluntary, and not thrust and
imposed. Tamil continues remain the matrix language or host
language in which are found heterogeneous vocabulary from
all the embedded languages including English which by tacit
consent plays the role of the world language, because it has
assimilated without any reservation a plenty of vocabulary
from the languages around the world.
Hence, the long journey of Tamil language and culture
through several centuries of contact with other languages and
cultures has irrevocably changed its nature and content to a
bilingual language. It is now acquired the capacity to be
employed in fields that are hitherto considered conceptually
abstract and technologically advanced. Since it has
accelerated the assimilative capacity, there is no need for
translating concepts into neat equivalent Tamil lexicons. It is
now in the process of emerging as a modern world language.
It will not be surprising if it evolves a new grammar. New
dictionaries, reference books, language books on teaching
Tamil as a second/foreign language, pronouncing
dictionaries, science encyclopaedias, etymological
dictionaries, and modern Tamil philosophies need to be
published. It is satisfying that it is being recognized as a
classical language. But it is not enough. All possible kinds of
institutional support should be extended to Tamil so that it
may emerge as a modern world language. The main and
essential component of a world language is that its ownership
is widened in terms of national and cultural boundaries.
A world language is one whose ownership is denationalised
as in the case of English. It must belong to all those who use
it. It knows no geographical and cultural enclosures.
Enculturation or acculturation is the key feature of a world
language. It freely permits vocabulary and grammar from
other languages to mix with it. It widens its cosmopolitan
outlook, broadens its use in the hitherto unknown territories,
adapts to different linguistic and cultural ethos, and
assimilates without any hesitation language elements from
other sources.
Tamil has welcomed lexicon from other languages that came
in contact with it. It has definitely become richer in terms of
expressive power and vocabulary. It must be used for wider
purposes than the ones used so far. It should be used as a
language of research in science and technology. Mere
translation of knowledge from English into Tamil will not
suffice. Translation of both classical and modern literatures,
its art and culture, religion and faith, lifestyles in the past must
be rendered in English so that as a first step the world
attention can be drawn to Tamil as language and literature.
Their contribution in other secular fields should be brought to
the attention of the world. A taste and thirst for Tamil should
first be created in those who do not know Tamil. The fact that
Tamil society is a tolerant community should be known to the
57 58
rest of the world. The international science community will
turn their attention on to Tamil only when it is used as a
language of research in various science fields. Research
articles should be written in modern Tamil (Taminglish) so
that they can be translated into English on demand. The
English-speaking world will be induced to learn Tamil as the
language of research.
The Tamil language that is used for the expression of secular
art and science concepts in research will have all the elements
of a bilingual language. There will be mixing, switching, and
borrowing. It may have sounds that are not indigenous to it.
There is not even a single department in the life of the Tamils
where English has not percolated. It is thoroughly
assimilated into it. It is used both intersententially and
intrasententially. Still, Tamil as a host language retains its
essential structure. English can never change Tamils basic
nature. Since both the languages do not belong
genealogically to the same family of languages, there need
not be any anxiety that Tamil would be subsumed by English
in the long run.
In conclusion, it is not unnatural that Tamil mixes in and
switches with English in Tamil society which is fast
becoming a bilingual/multilingual and multi-cultural society.
Ultimately, it is Tamil and its users who stand to gain because
Tamil society is an exogenous bilingual society where
English and Tamil operate in complementary roles and are
given equal value and respect though Tamil continues to be
the matrix language. When two languages are in contact,
there is also a contact between two cultures. At the linguistic
level, the process is called bilingualism and at the cultural
level biculturalism or acculturation. Thus, Modern Tamil
should eventually emerge as a world language by widening its
domains of use and by enriching its expressive capacity in
secular realms. When Tamil sheds its regional ownership, it
becomes a global language. And English teachers need not
entertain any kind of guilt feeling about either teaching
English through bilingual method to the Tamils mixing
English words/switching to & from Tamil and English. In
fact, they patronize a silent revolution for the emergence of
Taminglish.
Works cited
Baugh, Albert C. (2008). A History of the English
language. London: Routledge.
Hart, George L. (2000). Statement on the status of
Tamil as a classical language. University of California,
Berkeley. Available at https://madharasan.wordpress.com
/2010/06/04/statement-on-the-status-of-tamil-as-a-
classical-language-george-l-hart/ (accessed on Friday 9
December 2011)
Appendix
Domain-wise use of English in the daily discourse
of Tamil society
1. Family : daddy, mummy, brother, sister, family, cousin,
house, bedroom, hall, kitchen, bathroom, brother-,
father-, sister-, mother-in-law, compound wall, switch,
wire, pipe, leak, tap, screen, ceiling, paint, bore, motor,
engine,
2. Work : office, file, canteen, officer,
3. Food : cake, coffee, tea, glass, tumbler, halwa,
hot/cold/cool drinks,
4. Dress : coat, gown, pyjamas, pant (s), trouser (s), shoe
5. Post office : letter, cover, stamp, speed post, inland letter,
card, parcel, postman/master, money order, coupon,
post-box,
6. Revenue department : collector, RDO, BDO, RI, VAO,
stamp, receipt,
7. Judiciary: judge, lawyer, case, stay, judgment, court,
and court fees stamp, document, jail, witness,
59 60
8. Police: Inspector, SI, Circle Inspector, DSP, SP,
Commissioner, Head, writer, police, traffic police, FIR,
complaint,
9. Educational institutions : college, school, book, note
book, teacher, sir, recess period, scale, box, science,
ground, PT master, PED, principal, headmaster, clerk,
lab, library, chalk piece, board, table, chair, bench, TC,
fees, admission, join, bureau, shelf, hundred per cent,
tuition,
10. Computer and mobile: computer, net, sim card, tower,
charge, cell, prepaid, postpaid, monitor, SMS, disk,
floppy, facebook, you tube, orkut, email,
11. Health sector: hospital, nurse, doctor, compounder,
operation, X-ray, scan, ward, glucose, discharge, ICU,
urgent, emergency, ambulance, stitch, bandage, report,
English marundhukadai, ESI aaspatri, government
aaspatri,
12. Trade and commerce: business, bill, receipt, hartal,
13. Entertainment: cinema, film, song, fight, scene,
direction, producer, love, DVD, actor, villain, theme,
super, bore, music, joke(r),
14. Art and Literature and language: music, novel,
essay, quotation, comma, full stop, sentence, paragraph,
spoken English, grammar, letter, spelling, writer,
15. Transport: bus, mini-bus, van, road, line, left and right,
centre, signal, driver, conductor, ticket, right, stop,
speed, seat, standing, brake, horn, auto, rail/train,
foreign, hill stations, scooter, bike, mile, kilometre,
inch, centimetre,
16. Compounds: pooja room, dining table, ration kadai,
gas adupu, motor repair, bus ticket, platform ticket,
register thapaal,
17. Literal Tamil translation of English expressions in
daily discourse which the common man does not
understand: red-carpet welcome, brain drain, who to
bell the cat, all are equal before the law, white paper,
yellow notice, habeas corpus petition, speaker,
18. Expressions: thanks, thank you, no mention, welcome,
dont mind, gazetted officer, join duty, ladies, left, right,
centre, lift, drinks, LPG gas, match box, cigarette
packet, missus for wife, money purse, mosquito, native
place, non-veg, or veg, no more, NRI, on/off, oil bath,
one-by two, out of station, paisa, panchayat election,
phone booth, pin code, pin drop silence, power cut,
prepone, private sector, public sector, quick-quick,
reservation, heater, tank, sales tax, sit-out, hall, kitchen,
bedroom, bathroom/toilet, group 1/2/4 exam, study
holidays, leave apply, too much, tiffin, topper, gold
medal, tower, water/ward boy, write-up, IPL match,
one-day series, night watchman,
19. Adjectives: strong, weak, dull, cushy, serious, names of
basic colours,
20. Games: cricket, volley ball, foot ball, running, walking,
pull up, push up, marathon,
21. Use of English words as they are or with partial/full
assimilation: cut and right, dirt cheap, assault,
carousal, aaspatri, line man, helper as elper, hold on as
olden, brake,
22. Verb + panni, eduthu, seithu, po:ttu, : educated and
semi-educated people do not use the English verbs
without such Tamil suffixes; [dismiss,
23. General: AC; Category of caste names (SC, MBC,
FC); Age-barred; AIR. Air-cooler, all-in-all, Anglo-
Indian, auto/autorickshaw, pooja holidays, backside,
balance, balcony, bandh, batch, batch-mate, bed-sheet,
black, black money, block, bungalow, butler, calling
bell, colour pencil, cantonment, capitation fees, caste,
centre (government), CM/PM, minister, collectorate,
college, colony, commissioner, community certificate,
compound, compound suvar, compounder, contractor,
cotton pants/saree, current, DA, decoction coffee,
deputed, district, iron box, mufti, sweeper, petrol
61 62
bunk/bulk/bank, maidanam, policekaarar, dispute,
24. Abbreviations of names of institutes / Titles
/degrees: IAS, IIT, IIM, MA., Ph.D., B.Ed., Mr, Mrs,
Dr., PA, MLA, MP, sir, madam, SSA, BRT, TRB,
TNPSC, UPSC, TA, VIP, VPP,
Is English in the Loop of Glocalization?
Abstract
When the mode of language changes,
the walls of the globe shake
Advancement of web technology and smart phones has
brought a revolution which has brought in changes faster
than the speed of rocket in the pattern of communication,
business, society and economy of the world. The change has
been furthered with the emergence of social sites like Face
book, Twitter and professional sites like Linked In. A cultural
lingua franca of web has emerged which has changed the way
people communicate the way people socialize and the way
people do business.
There has been a great paradigm shift in the culture
from regional to national. National to global and now from
global to Glocal . Glocalization as a concept arose to help
alleviate the conceptual difficulties of macro-micro
relationship. This paper examines the evolution and
transformation of the concept of globalization highlighting
the tangled relationship among the discipline of lingua
franca, economy, sociology and globalization. The paper will
also trace the history and the development of the concept of
glocalization, which originated in Japan as a popular
business strategy. The paper will also examine the transition
of lingua franca from Baby boomers to Gen Y and its impact
in the business and economy of the globe. This paper will also
touch on the changes that should be integrated in the teaching
patterns of English language to prepare an individual to meet
with the changing social and business lingua franca to surge
ahead in economy and prepare for future changes that an
individual might encounter in the ever leveraging race of
change.
63 64
Dr. Neelam Tikkha
Key Words : Glocalization, Globalization, Mc
Donaldization, homogenous culture, evolution, Pidgin,
Introduction :
When the mode of language changes, the walls of the globe shake
Since ages mans struggle for survival and growth has pushed
him to new horizons. His search touched the sky by virtue of
his reasoning and articulate speech. In this quest he spread
his wings of his business to other parts of the world which led
to globalization and countries became a part of the globe and
were termed global villages. The dawn of the 21st century
witnessed globalization which became a buzz word, a slogan,
a concept, a term most frequently used than any other term.
Some perceived Globalization to be a heroic change; some
considered globalization to be a sinister change, depending
on which side of the debate one stood.
Sociological change and technological change : Many
writers like James Thurber projected this confusion and fear
of the machine and gadgets that change brought and how it
was apprehended by two different generations- the older and
the younger, in the story The Car We Had to Push. The
narrator of the story recalls with lucid details a funny situation
, when Thurber boys duped their father into believing that the
family car was falling apart. Actually the boy had attached a
package of kitchen utensil underneath the car, to be dropped
at a particularly serene moment:
This was a little scheme of Roys to frighten
father, who always expected the car might
explode. It worked perfectly... Roy twitched the
string in the middle of a lovely afternoon on
Bryden Road near Eighteenth Street. Father
had closed his eyes and, with his hat off, was
enjoying a cool breeze. The clatter on the
asphalt was tremendously effective: knives,
forks, can-openers, pie pans, pot lids fell
beautifully together, in a lingering, clamant
crash. Stop the car ! shouted father. I cant,
Roy said, The engine fell out. God
Almighty said father who knew what it
1
sounded as if it might mean.
The above snippet mimics the social change and psychology
of confusion that modernization had brought in society. The
change is like the mystical car of Thurber a frightening
experience to father who did not understand the control
system. Machines created problems for some:
a world made up of gadgets and that whir and whine and
whiz and shriek and sometimes explode. No man who has
wrestled with a self- adjusting card table can ever be quite the
2
man he once was.
This was the impact of Globalization. The older generation,
represented the confused Homo sapiens, who were unable to
bear the shock of a world becoming chaotic and cluttered
with grisly gadgets and macabre machines. The generation
who could not work on any modern gadget without courting a
disaster and saw changes as sinister and perceived
globalization as a brakeless band wagon crushing everything
in its path whereas the younger generation believed it to be an
air craft of opportunity sky rocketing them to comfortable
life, economic growth, and modernization.
Change in Language : Globalization brought a change in
communication which brought a massive change in the
world. It led to a great paradigm shift in the culture from
Regional to National and National to Global. Business people
65 66
started moving from one country to another for business
initiating a new culture and a new language which gave birth
3
to the language of commerce called Pidgin in China. Pidgin
would sound very funny to other non users but was crucial in
expediting the business contracts. For example, Piano in
Pidgin was referred to as a big box you hit um in the teeth and
it cries. The other parts of the world also saw an emergence
of functional business language. For example, West African
Pidgin English which is still used extensively between
4
several ethnic groups along the West African coast." For
some Pidgin became the lingua franca the first language and it
was called Creole. An example of early Hawaii Pidgin
English (HPE) spoken in Honolulu in the late 19th century :
What for Miss Willis laugh all time? Before
Fraulein cry all time.
"Why does Miss Willis often laugh?
Fraulein used to always cry." 5
"Againye tried to be a good nurse, attentive
but not cloying, fetching me a stool to use
while I bathed from a bucket and petting my
head as I napped, saying, 'Pain you well
well' in soothing pidgin."
(Mary Helen Specht, "How Could I
6
Embrace a Village?"
English was taught with a different methodology and was
called ESL ( English for specific purpose) . The language
served the purpose of communication to further the business.
English unofficially with variation became the official
language of commerce for two reasons: i) The British had
spread English far and wide during colonization so it was a
popular fruit of colonization which world had tasted and
could comprehend. ii) Acceptability for other languages and
richness of vocabulary to express better and faster. Language
of social interaction also changed for example, formal
salutations from Dear Mr. Soni, Hello!, was replaced by
Hi! Buddy. Names got cramped and last names were
dropped for example; Nikita Daniel became Nikita as a result
of globalization. Similarly, type of food people consumed
changed. The loaf of bread was replaced with Pizza and
Burgher. Television and MC. Donald chain spread outside
America giving birth to McDonaldization of the world
(Ritzer, 2000) a homogenized world, a world dominated by a
single culture that erased the differences of local cultures of
hybridization or synthesis. Much of the human evolution of
culture could be seen as exchanges, diffusion, etc. where
cross-breeding, borrowing and adjusting to the local needs
and so on were very common. Foreign goods were available
easily and everywhere. Competition increased forcing local
companies to strive for better and better performance to
survive competition by foreign goods which led to improved
quality of goods and modest pricing. Affordability for people
with modest income also increased leading to mass
production. Companies profit margin reduced. The
Customer acquired the power to choose from a variety of
products and price range according to his taste. Customer
became the king. The World was a work place. Swaminathan
S Anklesaria Aiyar narrates a humouros example of his
family :
My son Sekhar won . Won a scholarship
to Oxford University , taught for a year at
Colombo . Next he went to Toronto ,
Canada , for higher studies. There he met a
German girl , Fraziska .
They both got jobs at IMF in Washington
DC USA. This meant that they constantly
travelled on IMF business to disparate
countries. Shekhar went on missions to
67 68
Sierra Leone, Seychelles , Kryzgystan and Laos .
Franziska went to Rwanda ,Tajikistan and
Russia . They interrupted these perambulations
to get married in late 2003. The readers might
think that my family was born in jet plane
rigid Tamil Brahmins were transformed into a
beef eating, pizza guzzling, hip hop
dancers.quite at home sitting on the floor of
the Kargudi house on a mat of reeds eating from
a banana leaf with my hands . I feel just as much
at home eating noodles in China, steak in Spain,
7
teriyaki in Japan and cous- cous in Morocco.
Early Stage of Globalization shed the shackles of religion and
region and was not just the movement of goods and capital but
also of people. This brought about transformation in the
social pattern since the most powerful social institution- the
marriage institution witnessed a change leading to a change in
the way people behaved, the way they thought and ate.
The change was so gigantic that globally a cultural and social
change started becoming visible. As such it is very difficult to
perceive the conceptual changes in sociological maneuvers
till we see the dramatic shifts. Concepts change due to a
number of factors but primarily they change because of
business interactions and social interactions and this was very
evident , in Singapore, from the inflow of foreign capital,
technology, workers or foreign talents, music, movies,
popular culture, almost everything resonated a shift towards
global culture, resonance with globalization. Fashions
witnessed a marked change and ironed the differences in all
classes because of the use of denims amongst teenagers -
Jeans and sports shoe became an informal dress style
statement world over. ESL teaching gained high importance.
Later stages of Globalization was marked with the invention
of computers that led to the change in the working pattern.
Microsoft Office with its key features of Word, Power point
and Excel were used in every office and at home children used
the feature of paint brush and also used it for playing of
video games . Cell phone was also introduced in this era but
initially, it was merely used by rich businessmen or people in
high position but the common man was still far away from
this magic box. Later with Governments liberalization
policies in the cellular world brought in a number of global
companies to India like Vodaphone and Uninor that enabled
people with 2 G and 3 G licenses the world was a localized
society. It gave birth to smart phones and SMS virus hit
people of all age group and all profession round the globe .
The magical wand reached the hands of people of all age
groups and all classes in the hands of people of all age groups
and all classes . It became an addiction SMS is a chill pill - a
necessity on which teens and business people thrive . The
lingua franca was lingua shrunka. In fact, it gained so much
popularity that teaching writing of sms became a necessity.
Maharashtra State Board responded by including a chapter in
8
course curriculum for xii th class English language. Not
only this there are exercises to help learner to learn writing
SMS.
SMS is the hottest euphoric addiction in teen town Its more
addictive than Marijuana or Hashish. At the play of your
fingers you can latch generations. All you need to do is be a
proud possessor of a smart phone. Marshall Mc Luhan father
of mass culture said :
We become what we behold. Flaunt a mobile
and you become a symbol of nomadic tribe;
speak sms and you add status to the symbol.
9
You bring grandeur to the gadget.
69 70
Once there was English concocted by guardian angels like
Wren &Martin and Thomson Martinet that tightened the
leash on the necks of a common man . Then came the
hurricane cell phone , which has unleashed rings and beeps
into solitude . Expression of love is laconic and pithy. Comas,
exclamations and semicolons and dashes take the message to
magical moments of subliminal ecstasy. Its brave- witty .
SMS is an extension of mind. You acquire the status of ATM
Available to Messages romantic, business or SOS or help
to anyone , anywhere , anytime to everyone. Bulk SMS help
you be in touch with as many friends, at the same moment
with the same click. Say S to sms. In fact, sms is a cultural
revolution of Mess Ages which says be brief, be quick to
capture your scintillating nano- moments through the
language of Sms. In the olden days , those who wrote could
not add. If you loved sums , you hated sonnets. These days,
Maths and English are cohabiting making messaging
sensual. Try this: RU + /X, IM(.) /CU @7/MH%KED.
Boy : Are you cross?/ Girl: No , Im lonely/ boy: see you at 7
10
/Girl: I am hooked.
Initially, sms was the lingua franca of young but now it is of
all age group rather it is now called the Tech lingua shrunka .
If you are on tech roller coaster ride you have acquired status
and a power to communicate in Tech lingua shrunka where :
punctuations make words, letters create
sentences, and words become paragraph. And
in the sms of love a mere preposition is a
11
proposition .
Infact Hamlet has been transformed into SMS
Ys&hres Hmlts sililoki to prve it.
(Wth a lttle hlp fm Jg Srya &NLBH Ban RG )
2B or nt 2B: tht is th?
Whthr ts nblr in th mnd 2 sffr
12
Th sings & ROs of outrajus 4 fun,
Lingua franca of Gen Y is abbreviation for example :EMI -
Easy monthly installment . PI is personality Improvement .
Boy friend is BF Nikita Joeseph Daniel reduces to Nikita ---
Informal names of baby boomers generation are formal
names for Gen Y . Baby boomers find Gen Ys attempts to
refrain from last names or family names as an attempt to hide
the identity and Gen Y feels it is an attempt to own an
independent identity.
For all limitations , Lingua tech is a sign of shrinking
boundaries and world becoming local arena. Tech shrunka is
not a spurious concoction, it is a genuine decoction. Its the
essence of English , as we want it to be . So next time you meet
an Smser, say cheers. For the worlds happiness depends on
the giggle line he bombards his( girl friends) with.
Teacher : What s the meaning of green
dot on Parle G packet
Student: Mam it means Parle G s status
is online .
Glocalization
Japanese ,pioneer in business world had thought of concept
of Glocalization which was initially a term used by the
marketing experts which meant the products of Japanese
origin should be localized so that, it suits to local taste and
interests and is acceptable through out the globe but of late it
has acquired a new meaning that there are no longer
geographical boundaries- of culture or religion or country. It
is a tech culture or a Face book culture.
71 72
Internet technology and changes in communication system
among the countries world over has led us to the concept of
Glocalization. This means that all countries have become a
part of every other country and is no longer a foreign counter
part but a local peer. Glocalization alleviate the conceptual
difficulties of macro-micro relationship, evolution and
transformation of the concept of globalization highlighting
the tangled relationship among the discipline of lingua franca,
economy, sociology and globalization. Advancement in the
technology of web and smart phones and the affordability of
this technology by the common man has further brought
about changes faster than the speed of rocket in the pattern of
communication, business, society and economy of the world.
The change has been furthered with the emergence of social
sites like Face book, Twitter and professional sites like
Linked In. Face book has become so popular that it is the
first tech company to be listed on NASDAQ. Face book has
become a tool to endorse a product an idea, a concept. It has
become a popular and important branding site. A cultural
lingua franca of web has emerged which has changed the way
people communicate the way people socialize, the way
people dress and the way people do business. For example ,
Face book language is cool and awesome. The word
situation or condition is replaced by status; beautiful
is replaced by sexy and thanks has been replaced by big
big hug. The feeling of love, happiness, sorrow and anger is
expressed by emoticons. The salutations of globalizations
like Hi! buddy has been replaced by Hi all or simply Hi! The
language has shortened in length but not in spirits. It is a
power packed language of SMS and symbols. Snail mail had
been replaced by E Mail and then by sms through smart
phones. One message communicates with people all over the
world. Advertisements in the news papers are being replaced
by advertisements on the web. Branding of products on face
book is more important than the advertisements on the
television since an advertisement on Facebook reaches every
part of the world whereas on TV it will remain localized and
may not reach every part of the country like remote villages.
Seminars and conferences are being replaced by Webinars
and web conferencing because of the sites like Second life.
On this site people even choose an identity they like . They
select avies or avtar they prefer and they dress it with the
clothes of their choice . Avies also give a liberty to select the
gender a man can select the gender of a woman and can even
decide on the hair style or hair color and the age you would
like the world to see of yours. This site also helps Companies
have round table conferences where virtual Avies of theirs sit
and discuss. One can teach and learn on such sites. People
even buy and sell virtual spaces. Everything can be
communicated virtually so people can have office at home
which gives them flexibility of time and of geographical
boundaries. No body had ever imagined living in India one
can have a foreign employer who sits in America and his
colleagues in all parts of the world. This is the magic of tech
revolution. Man is looking for a possibility of gigantic leaps
in every vista of life - be it language, be it marketing, be it food
and very soon online marriages would be very popular.
Restaurants are being replaced by online stores that deliver
products at the door step. Fast food is being replaced by
packaged ready to eat food. Mall is being replaced by online
stores like Flipkart .com, OLX , Shop and Buy and Home
Shoppee. Second Life can give you a virtual tour to the
various museums across the world at negligible cost. It has
become a booming business to buy and sell virtual space all
over the world. A World Park in US gives the ultimate
experience of a digital world. There are digital trees. You can
scan the card and listen to music , watch movies and also learn
about the history of any era.
The most important generation in India is Gen Y . India is
called the country of youth. An enormous number of
teenagers are on Face book and Twitter communicating
73 74
through out the globe. They put their pictures on the site and
buy clothes and stuff online. In fact the youths dressing style
has changed . Every one on face book is young since
conversation takes place with like minded people and it is the
same with people of all age group . Salutations and greetings
have changed. It is no longer representative of a particular
place but of a particular time . Traditional dresses like sarees
are a thing of the past and would soon be extinct like the
Dinosaurs. It is being replaced by business suit. It is a culture
marked by similar, dressing up style, hair style , similar food
pattern, similar way of talking rather similar belief patterns.
The social change that we see is in the kind of food that we eat
, the clothes that we wear the hair styles ,faceless working on
net and net banking, faceless marketing and man becoming
withdrawn from face to face interaction but becoming good at
faceless interactions. One can perceive Glocalization in every
aspect of life .
Globalization was a gradual process but the speed of
Glocalization was that of a Tsunami which said Be a part of it
or be washed out. One had a choice to accept Globalization
but there was no choice as far as Glocalization was
concerned. It was a concept that arose to help alleviate the
conceptual difficulties of macro-micro relationship.
Glocalization originated in Japan as a popular business
strategy but was twisted in its meaning and became a
nomenclature for homogenized tech culture that had a global
presence a status as evident on social sites. It is one culture be
it America, England, India, Thailand or China. No longer is
Kiwi an exotic fruit or Chinese Noodles Chinese or Thai food
that people just read but forms a dish at all special occasions
like weddings or birthday parties even in India. Samosa
travelled to the luncheon table at white house given by
president OBAMA. The song Kolavaeridi had fan following
from all over the world.
World is becoming virtual, infact,companies like Dssault
systems are trying to give customer virtual experience for
everything before one goes to finally decide to buy a car ,
decide an education product , decide to buy a production plant
even planning seating and leg room in the airplane . Next
what scientists have developed a way to turn living cells into
rewritable digital data storages like living hard drives Just
as a computer chip stores data by flipping an electrical bit or
magnetic field on or off , the DNA system flips the orientation
13
of a section of DNA to indicate an or-off- bit .Many
boardroom meetings people look for possibility of coming
out with a chip that can be planted inside the brain to hold
huge amount of information and have a quick access to it that
will increase the working speed and quality of product. The
technology is trying to cramp everything like the entire office
is accommodated in the pen drive.
English has been guillotined by the tech revolution .
Sentences have acquired zero figure and Slang is courting
syntax. The language of symbols written on Facebook walls
is similar to that on the walls of cave. The Lingua symbol of
tech cave would be represented by emoticons and ready
pictures and cartoons that will express feelings with / without
emotions. It is an ? ? generation where love is a word
written on T shirts . One night stands would define marriage
institution. Sex would be a recreation or leisure activity.
Virtual sex would gain popularity giving birth to virtual
egocentric tech babies moving in their cocoon. These babies
would be a societal recluse , chatting away on the internet
changing and shifting identities .The pace of our life will
speed up: we will move faster from one place to another, from
one continent to another using high speed jet airplanes.
Virtual space travel will be a reality for a common man . We
will be able to do many things that take much time now
without leaving our house. Computers will be everywhere .
75 76
Conclusion:
Have we taken a baby step towards the vision of John
Lennon?
Imagine theres no country ,
It isnt hard to do.
Nothing to kill or die for,
And no religion too.14
Extended statements will be used by highly pedantic
Philologists or Linguists studying the development of
language . Nikita Joeseph Daniel --- Niki ----- ND. Next
?????
Speed will be the buzz word:
The only language would be ? ? ? ? ? ? ??
Notes And references:
1. Thurber, My Life
2. Thurber, My Life
3. David Crystal, English As a Global Language.
Cambridge University Press, 2003 "
4. (cited by Jeff Siegel in The Emergence of Pidgin and
Creole. Oxford University Press, 2008).
5. (cited by Jeff Siegel in The Emergence of Pidgin and
Creole. Oxford University Press, 2008).
6. The New York Times, Feb. 5, 2010).
7. Aiyar, Swaminathan S .A.(2011), My Family and
Globalisers, in Yuwakbharti (1st edition), Pune:
MSB,pp.200-201,2011.
8. Kamat vinay, ( 2011), Is SMS Ruining the English
Language? in Yuwakbharti (1st edition), Pune:
MSB,pp.208.
9. Ibid .p 208- 209.
10. Ibid. p.219- 210.
11. Ibid. p 209.
12. Srya ,J.G. & Nlbh Ban R.G, SMS. in Yuwakbharti (1st
edition), Pune: MSB,p.215.
13. Bonnet, DNA turned into living Hard Drive, Times Of
India, Monday , May 28, 2012.
14. Aiyar, Swaminathan S .A.(2011), My Family and
Globalisers, in Yuwakbharti (1st edition), Pune:
MSB,p.201.
77 78
Miscommunication at the Workplace-
An Interpersonal Approach
Mr. T. Sunand Emmanuel
Assistant Professor in English
Vasavi College of Engineering,
Ibrahimbagh, Hyderabad-500031
Email: [email protected]
ABSTRACT
The voluminous work in today's organizations and the inevitability
of working in teams for the accomplishment of organizational
goals often lead to misunderstandings among employees. In this
process, our assumptions and fallacies, personal idiosyncrasies,
and our own personality traits precipitate the workplace
environment. This leads to a crisis and contributes to increased
miscommunication. Diverse views and perspectives on how work
should be done or shared invariably lead to misunderstandings.
This leads to miscommunication creating bad blood among
employees in the organizations. If misunderstandings persist for
too long, the stability of the organization itself would be at stake.
This affects the employees and vitiates the atmosphere prevailing in
the organization. In this article, the writer is making an attempt to
understand the nature of conflicts generally prevailing in
organizations from a very practical perspective. Differences of
opinions, of course, exist among peers or between superiors and
subordinates. However, determination to resolve issues amicably
should never be abandoned. Sincere intentions to resolve issues
and a desire to put aside individual interests for the sake of the
organization should be of paramount concern for any employee.
Only when issues are resolved amicably can organizations function
smoothly. Maintaining good interpersonal relations by reducing
misunderstandings should be the responsibility of every employee
in the organization.
Introduction:
Workplace communication is increasingly becoming important in
today's organisational life. Employees are spending considerable
amount of time at the workplace today.
Given the nature and complexity of today's workplace,
relationships have assumed significant importance. Successful
communication, hence, necessitates that employees have good
listening skills, good nonverbal communication, and the desire to
establish supportive and understanding climates. They should also
be able to manage conflict and resolve misunderstandings. There is
pressure to perform to the expectations of the management, the
clients, and the organization as a whole. And so, in our haste to live
up to the myriad expectations of the ever changing demands of the
organization and society at large, employees are under an intense
pressure to perform. In this process, there is bound to be friction
and misunderstandings between peers. There can also be
miscommunication between superiors and subordinates. Hence,
interpersonal conflict seems to be an inevitable reality at the
workplace today. Before we try to understand what interpersonal
conflict is all about, let us delve a little deeply into what we mean by
interpersonal communication. What exactly is interpersonal
communication? Interpersonal communication is selective,
systemic, unique, processual (is an ongoing process) transactions
that allow people to reflect and build personal knowledge of one
another and create shared meanings (Wood, 2010).
Beebe and Redmond define it as the process of interacting
simultaneously with another person and mutually influencing each
other, usually for the purpose of managing relationships.
According to Martin Buber, a 20th century philosopher,
relationships lie along a continuum of I-It, I-You, and I-Thou.
In an I-It relationship, the speaker treats the other person based on
the societal role. For example, in interactions between a bus
passenger and a conductor, or between a customer and a server in a
hotel, there is hardly any self-disclosure. We ask for the ticket and
the conductor issues the ticket. We order an item in the hotel, and
the server gets it. Beyond this, there is hardly any communication
79 80
between the two. In 'I-You' communication mode, both the
communicators recognize each other as individuals, and there is
some amount of self-disclosure. In the terminology of Patricia Sias,
this relationship approximates 'collegial peers'. There is mutual
respect and a bit of personal element in such transactions. In 'I-
Thou' mode of communication, there is highest self-disclosure
between the two participants in communication. We have I-Thou
relationship with very few people in life. Again, in the terminology
of Patricia Sias, this may approximate 'special peers'. The
participants know each other well, and can predict the other's
behavior to a reasonably good extent. (Miller and Steinberg, 1975).
At the organisational level, we are expected to have I-You level of
communication with our peers, subordinates, and superiors.
Going by Martin Buber's communication continuum, what is the
nature of communication in organizations? Is it an I-It, or I-You, or
and I-Thou? According to Julia T. Wood, it is important to have and
maintain I-You communication in organization. This is
fundamental and necessary.
Now, why does miscommunication take place in organizations?
What conflicts result due to miscommunication? What is 'conflict'
basically? Interpersonal conflict occurs when there are different
views, interests, or goals between individuals. (Wood, 2010).
Communication scholars William Wilmot and Joyce Hocker define
an interpersonal conflict as an expressed struggle between at least
two interdependent parties who perceive incompatible goals,
scarce resources, and interference from the other party in achieving
their goals. So, incompatible goals and scarce resources are the
essential elements of an interpersonal conflict. According to Kory
Floyd, conflict in interpersonal relationships is natural, can be
direct or indirect, harmful, and beneficial too. (Kory Floyd, 2010)
Conflict In Organizations:
All these different ragesroad rage, air rage, whatever rageare
all symptoms of the same thing: We all have too many
commitments and too little time. Lynne McClure, McClure
Associates.
It is natural, thus, to have miscommunication in organizations.
When miscommunication gets escalated over a period of time, it
results in breakdown in communication leading to gradual eroding
of relationships. Employees exhibit their behavior in different
ways during a conflict.
Different people express their resentment in different ways at the
workplace.
Causes of Conflicts
In an educational institution, conflicts are natural. But what could
be some of the reasons for conflicts? Conflicts can take place due to
inequality or injustice in workload distribution, invigilation duties
given to staff during exams, delegation of departmental
responsibilities. Other reasons could be when a coworker is
progressing in his/her professional career. Sometimes, when a
coworker is recognized by the management of the institution for
professional reasons, it can cause some sense of uneasiness and
insecurity in others. And all that is required is a 'spark' to ignite an
imaginary conflict. Miscommunication between employees takes
place due to 'cognitive fallacies'. Some common fallacies include:
1. Halo effect: Based on one trait, we see in the other person, we
generalize or attribute many other qualities to him. For
example, if somebody tells us that a certain coworker is lazy,
then we also assume that he is irregular, aggressive, rude, etc.
2. Allness fallacy: It is the belief that one can say everything
there is to say about something.
How do individuals deal with or respond in conflicts?
Aggressive communicators resort to shouting, screaming, and
accusing. They become even more provoked if the listener is a
passive communicator. Using abusive language, threatening,
becoming hysterical, and rallying support from others for their
assumptions is common. An aggressive communicator would
say, I tried my best to understand, resolve, and forgive the person,
but everything failed. And so I had to shout. This, generally, could
be one of the ways a person with an aggressive style of
81 82
communication reacts. Most aggressive communicators claim to
be assertive in dealing with conflicts, and consider themselves to be
'sanctimonious' even! But the reality is otherwise. They have just
lost control over their emotions.
Passive communicators, generally, do their best to avoid, ignore, or
pretend that there was no conflict. Since passive communicators
suffer from low self-esteem and are timid, they do not speak
assertively. They wish that the problem or conflict would subside in
due time. They do not assert themselves. A standard answer of a
passive communicator would be like this: It is not a big problem.
Things will subside. In fact, there is no conflict here. That means a
passive communicator even denies the existence of a problem.
Withdrawing, denying the existence of a conflict are some of the
ways a passive communicator does.
Assertive communicators are those who disagree respectfully.
They do not let others talk to them rashly or let others heap abuse on
them. In a conflict situation, they express their opinions frankly and
boldly, but with due respect to others. They believe in an 'I win- you
win' approach. An assertive communicator would protect the face
of the listener. They help people maintain a 'positive face
(Goffman). In a conflict situation, hence, an assertive
communicator protects his own face and the face of the listener's.
Brown and Levinson in their classic work on politeness define face
as the public self-image that every member of a society wants to
claim for himself/herself. Face is a social image that individuals
would like to preserve for themselves.
So, what essentially an assertive communicator does is to protect
the face of the persons in conflict.
Some common statements communicators would utter in conflict
situations:
Aggressive speaker:
1. You were completely wrong.
2. You did it, not me. (Emphasis on 'you')
3. You did not inform me.
4. You were supposed to inform me, but you didn't
5. How am I supposed to know that?
6. Who are you to tell me that?
7. I don't care.
8. Who cares?
Passive speaker:
1. I was wrong.
2. It's okay.
3. Leave the issue here.
4. I don't know.
5. I shouldn't have done that.
6. God is there. (fatalistic)
7. Let God take care of the situation. (fatalistic)
8. Time will heal.
9. I don't know anything about it.
Assertive speaker:
1. I understand your perspective, but please listen to me too.
2. You may be right; however, I wish to add..
3. I am not blaming you, but there could have been a better way
to deal with this
4. A little clarification would have resolved this issue between
us.
5. I am sorry that this had to happen, but ..
6. I am sorry if you are hurt because of what I said. I didn't
mean that.
7. I believe we should resolve this issue amicably, and it is
possible.
How to resolve conflicts?
Most conflicts can be resolved if our concern for ourselves is
matched with concern for others.
It is natural to think about our self interests; however, it is equally
important to empathise with the other person's situation too. We
should cultivate genuine concern, empathy for others. A sincere
altruistic attitude goes a long way in resolving problems at the
workplace. Respecting others' views is very important.
83 84
According to researchers Robert Blake and Jane Mouton, there are
two underlying dimensions in our approach to dealing with
conflict. They are as follows: our concern for our own needs and
desires, and our concern for the other party's needs and desires.
There are five major strategies for engaging in conflict. They are as
follows: competing, avoiding, accommodating, compromising,
and collaborating. (Floyd, 2009)
Competing: The competing style represents a high concern for
your own needs and desires, and a low concern for other's needs.
The person just wants to win at the cost of the other. Here, one
person wins and the other person loses (Floyd, 2009). It is at the
cost of the other person. There is aggression and lack of concern
for the other person. Power is the distinguishing characteristic here.
Physical or implied force is used here. In organizations, people use
implied force when they want to win at any cost. Superiors can use
implied force to get their work done (Adler and Rodman, 2006).
Avoiding: Here the individual simply ignores or fails to deal with
the conflict. They even deny that there is a conflict. This is more or
like a 'loselose' situation, neither of the individuals has any gain. A
nation may gain military victory at the cost of thousands of lives,
large amounts of resources, and a damaged national consciousness
hasn't truly won much. It is only a pyrrhic victory. On an
interpersonal level too, this holds true. Most of us have seen battles
of pride in which both parties strike out and both suffer. This
approach does no good to the individuals or the team or the
organization. (Adler and Rodman, 2006)
Accommodating: Here, there is high concern for the other party
but a low concern for the self. In the accommodating style, the
person gives up his needs to meet other's needs just to protect the
relationship. It is keep the peace in their relationships (Floyd,
2009).
Compromising: It involves a moderate concern for other's needs
and desires. Here, both parties give up something in order to gain
something. They may not get exactly what they want, but all
parties leave the conflict having gained something valuable. There
is some satisfaction of having gained something. (Floyd, 2009)
Collaborating: Here, the individuals believe in 'I win- You win'
mode of communication. They try to ensure that both the parties
gain. This requires patience, energy, and time since the needs of
both the individuals should be met. This is also called the
'collaborative' approach. (Floyd, 2009)
The writer believes that the desire to resolving conflicts should be
reciprocal in nature. It cannot be the concern of one individual
alone. It is important to understand organizational conflicts can be
resolved when individuals put aside their ego and strive towards the
well-being of the organization. It requires courage to be humble,
courage to admit one's mistakes, and courage to forgive others'
mistakes.
What should employees do?
1. Do not start a conversation with assumptions.
2. Be ready to forgive others' mistakes for the well-being of the
organization.
3. Empathise with the listener why he/she behaved in a certain
manner.
4. Understand the fact that mistakes are human in nature.
5. Be supportive, helpful, and altruistic in nature.
6. Do not be supremely egocentric of your own interests,
comforts, and needs.
Conclusion:
Conflicts are natural at the workplace. Unless employees have a
sincere desire to resolve all outstanding issues amicably, it is
difficult to think of successful organizations! In resolving conflicts,
there should be empathy. Accusations, assumptions, rashness,
aggressive tone and negative body language do not serve the
purpose at all. People in conflict in organizations should willingly
come forward, agree to disagree respectfully, think of the 'big
picture' and resolve issues at the earliest. Unresolved issues can
precipitate the crisis further. This does not help the individuals or
the organization. This writer is of the opinion that employees of an
85 86
organization should have a sense of solidarity and compassion for
one another. Else, organizations are bound to suffer due to rash
assumptions. Compassion and empathy are not a choice that
employees can exercise at their discretion. On the other hand, they
must show these qualities of compassion and empathy as a
' binding, reciprocal obligation' towards one another.
Misunderstandings and assumptions cannot continue perpetually
in organizations. Employees should be cognizant of the sacred
reality that 'an institution is greater than an individual or a sum of
individuals any day'. Hence, a desire to resolve conflicts should be
of paramount importance to all employees.
Bibliography
1. Mark L. Knapp and John A. Daly. The SAGE Handbook of
Interpersonal Communication. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage
Publications.
2. Wood, J. T. (2007). Interpersonal Communication: Everyday
Encounters. Wadsworth Cengage Learning.
3. Sias, P.M. (2009). Organizing Relationships: Traditional and
emerging perspectives on workplace relationships. Thousand
Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
4. Emmanuel, Sunand T. Striving to Communicate. Technocrats
Magazine 2008 Issue, Vasavi College of Engineering,
Hyderabad.
5. Floyd, Kory (2009). Interpersonal Communication, The
Whole Story
6. Understanding Human Communication, Ronald B. Adler and
George Rodman, Oxford University Press, 2006, Ninth
Edition
7. P. Brown, P. and S. Levinson, Universals in language usage:
Politeness phenomenon in Questions and politeness:
Strategies in social interaction (E. Goody Ed.) (Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press, 1978) p 56-289.
Citizen Journalism and New Media:
A New Challenge to the Mainstream Media
About the Author:
Ms. Sharmistha Das
UGC NET Scholar
Department of Mass Communication
University of Burdwan
WestBengal , India
E mail: [email protected]
With the devastation after the South Asian Tsunami (26th
December 2004), a new term has secured a profound place in the
journalism's vocabulary that is 'citizen journalism'. The
astonishing first person account of the deadly quack, camcorder
video footage, mobile and digital camera snapshots all those were
posted through blogs and online personal web pages by amateur
bystanders (most of them are tourists) without any proper
journalistic training were widely used by the mainstream media.
This was the first time that television reporters had to become so
dependent on these amateur videographers. Stuart, A.(2009)
commented , Producers and news cameramen often found
themselves being sent not to the scene of disaster to capture the
footage of its aftermath, but to the airports where holiday makers
were returning home with footage of the catastrophe as it
1
happened .Not only tsunami but other tragic incidents like
bombings in London's underground carriages (July ,2005) ,
inconceivable scenes of Hurricane, Katrina and Rita were reached
to all only by these kind of ordinary persons' recording gadgets .
Though citizen journalism emerged from crisis reporting but with
the passing of time it has been evolved into various forms such as
grass root journalism, open source journalism, participatory
journalism, hyper local journalism, 'democratic journalism
2
and alternative journalism .
87 88
Citizen Journalism: A Brief Account
In citizen journalism a common man without any journalistic
background plays an active role in bringing news often with the
help of new media technology such as blogs, social networking
sites and media sharing websites. Jay Rosen, a professor of
Journalism of The New York University defined when people
formerly known as the audience employs press tools they have in
their possession to inform one another'3. Anyone can now use UGC
(User generated content) applications to share incident which is
news worthy to them by uploading images and videos. With the
help of latest technology citizen journalists often beat mainstream
journalists in terms of breaking the news. Journalism 'for the
people' started to flourish with the development in internet and
mobile computing systems. Now smart phones with its integrated
latest features inspire so many people to become citizen journalist.
Social media such as Face book, Twitter, and You Tube connect
people 24x7 where one can share his thoughts with other
instantaneously. This has revolutionized the communication
system. Twitter was influential in Arab Spring uprising.
The basic objective of journalism is to inform and educate not to
entertain. Ideally the press should play an important role in the
formation of public opinion and the shaping of policies regarding
social, political and economic issues of the country. A well
informed citizen can form his/her opinion independently and in
turns becomes intelligent voter. This is the basic requirement for
any democracy. Over the years the press has become so powerful
that British politician Edmund Burke aptly described it as the
'Fourth Estate'4. Habermas in his normative ideal said that news
should do more than simply by reporting on important issues, but
by providing opportunities and resources for citizens to identify
and address these issues and concerns5 A serious news media
should perform a set of functions in the benefit of the society. These
are: a) the credible informational, b) the critical investigative
'watchdog' c) the educational and d) the agenda building functions
6. The Government will be more accountable to its citizen if the
media can play the vital link between the people and those existing
in power.
Commoditization of News
Since 1990s with the globalization deregulation has been started in
Indian mainstream media. The corporate sector has entered the
press mainly to do business like other business. The press has thus
become business oriented rather than people oriented. Editorial job
and policy have taken the backseat whereas market pressure has
become the main driving force which directs at what time in which
way what news will be catered to the audience. Increasing
importance of public relations in media houses has been observed
in order to serve the narrow interest of the corporate and the
government in power. Walter Lippman(1997) aptly described this
process as the manufacture of consent 7 Conglomeration and
concentration of ownership left the control of major media houses
in few hands. A few media house now decide what the world should
know and what the world should take as truth. They have
monopolized the media business. Monopoly over information
whether it is public or private is destructive for democracy because
it would be short of fair and objective approach. To these business
bug audience is nothing more than consumer and news is mere a
commodity. News which has market value gets priority. In such
environment where media outlets seek to deliver audiences to the
advertisers, 24- hour news cycle places a premium on speed not
accuracy and all too often style triumphs over substance. The result
is a form of journalism that lacks context and perspective, and blurs
any meaningful distinction between information and entertainment
8. The main agenda of the big media houses is to flourish
consumerism by manipulating minds, homogenization of culture,
sensationalism and yellow journalism.
The Rise of Alternate Journalism
In an era when a handful of transnational media conglomerate
more specifically on 1990s, Like NEWS CORP, VIACOM,WALT
DISNEY, SONY or AOL TIME WARNER dominate the global
media flows, the interest and perspective of citizen are rarely heard,
and their participation in public discourse is severely constrained.
But one incident which empowered the citizen and gave voice to
the voiceless - that is the invention of the internet. The modern
internet became operational as US military flipped the switch on
89 90
TCP/IP on January 1, 1983 9. Internet is completely different form
of communication from the communication we are used to,
whether it is mass mediated communication or interpersonal in the
sense that people can use the Net for both. The World Wide Web
(www) has enabled people to reach the world instantaneously
creating cyber communities and connected continents through
information super highway. Now citizen can publish and share
their individual story outside the traditional media. As a result a
new world of publishing has come out where anyone can become
publisher in a blog or through other channel on online. This new
form of publishing world which turned out to be an alternative
journalism democratized the publishing system. It offers everyone
opportunities to publish and share his/her individual thought with
other. The operation of the new media is not usually professional or
bureaucratically organized to the same degree as mass media. Here
it is important to note that the new media correspond with mass
media primarily in being widely diffused, in principle available to
10
all for communication but at least free from control
Scope of New Media in Contemporary
At present the total number of internet users in the world is 2
billion, of which 50% constitutes outside the developed world. It is
assumed that global internet population will be estimated 2.6 2.9
billion by 2015. Interestingly India has achieved third place in the
world in total number of internet use .Currently India has 120
million internet users and the projections say it will surpass 350
million within 2015. According to the market predictions India will
soon grasp the second rank with the fastest growth rate. Moreover
there has been observed a phenomenal growth in the use of mobile
internet. Internet has become affordable to the general people those
who cannot afford internet in computer. It is expected that India
will have about 165 million mobile internet users by March 2015,
up from 87.1 million in December 2012 as more people are
accessing the web through mobile devices and dongles, as per
report by Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) and
IMRB11. So it is clear that the reach of new media will only
increase in future. The reason why internet has become more
popular than the old media as it has the advantage of incorporating
the radio, film and television in it and distribute then through 'push'
technology. Internet does not have the limitations of print and
broadcasting media. It can enable i) many to many conversations ii)
simultaneous reception, alteration and redistribution of cultural
objects iii) communicative actions out of the posts of the nation
from the territorialized spatial relations of modernity iv)
instantaneous global contact and v) subject, new or old whatever
within the reach into machine apparatus that is networked (Poster)
12. New media opens up abundance of scopes for the authors.
There are numerous evidences where anonymous bloggers have
become famous in internet. Bloggers are making money from their
blogs, web diaries, picture chronicle, personal web pages, online
journal and websites which draw maximum audiences. Like
newspapers the bloggers are now becoming opinion makers but
more striking is the fact that one can write whatever one wishes if
one attracts enough audience. Amit Agarwal was computer
engineer passed out from IIT quit his job in 2004 and become
India's first professional blogger. 'Digital inspiration' is one of his
13
famous blog.
Proliferation of Social Media
Social media have become a new platform where one can share his
or her thought and feelings with other 24x7. The social networking
sites which were started to connect people are now becoming the
tool to mobilize and influence. Some may argue that why there is
need for citizen journalism as these sites can carry out the role of
citizen journalism. But the problem with the social media is that the
conversations generated in it are widely dispersed and full of noise
where as citizen journalism is focused on its issues. News which is
produced outside can be shared in social networking sites to reach
wider audience. So both media can complement each other. No
doubt the face book and twitter are now big platform to create
opinion. The use of social media is increasing day by day. The total
number of social media users was 62 million in December 2012 and
it will soon reach 66 million by June 2013 a report on social media
in India by Internet and Mobile association of India (IAMAI) and
14
Indian market research Bureau (IMRB) said.
In recent past there was huge uproar against the incident of gang
rape of the young girl in Delhi and these sites played a great role in
91 92
formulating countrywide protest against such a heinous crime.
Influence of social media is found in such an extent that hundreds
of Hyderabadis got motivated from social media and decided to
donate their blood to the victims of the twin blasts on 21st February,
2013 at Dilsukhnagar. So great were the numbers of donors
assembled at the Care Hospital in Nampally that the management
was compelled to put a board which said we have enough bloods,
15
thank you Hedrabadis
In severe weather like storm or in natural calamity people are
playing the role of citizen journalists through these social
networking sites. User can upload real time evidence of weather in
face book and twitter. A great example of social media was
observed during the time of Sandy. Even the users' response to the
super storm often worked as alert to the rest. During this time 20%
of 20 million tweets during Sandy were photos and video of Sandy
16
Pew Research report said. Even in the case of Wenchuan Earth
Quake in Southeastern China in 2008 also revealed how citizen
journalist broke the news of earth quake both to Chinese and
17
international audience. There are plenty of instances worldwide
where citizen journalists were first to break these kind of stories.
Are Mainstream Media under Challenge?
The combined impact of new media technologies has also
transformed journalism as a professional practice. Especially there
has been observed a huge change in the profession of newspaper
world. Computer Assisted Reporting not only provided more
precision and scientific approach through sourcing verifiable
online data but it also compelled the authority to strengthen its
online presence. The age-old concept of deadline from newspaper
world has vanished. Now every minute is deadline for the big
newspapers which have its online editions. The competition from
citizen journalism and other online news sources have put
continuous pressure on the mainstream media for continuous
update. On the other hand mass popularization of internet has come
with plenty of sources which offer news to the audience. This has
also brought crisis in journalism. The ideal of 'journalism as hero'
which was developed in the public eye from the film 'All the
President's Men' in 1976 dramatizing the reporting of Watergate
scandal is now becoming blurred.18 With the proliferation of
internet use today audience have total control to choose whatever
information they like. As a result the audience no longer subscribes
to a particular news paper or news channel rather access the articles
from different newspapers or navigate between news channels or
search for particular video online which interests them. The
demand of profession is such that the journalists are now becoming
information broker to adapt themselves with the changed
atmosphere. Even this abundance of online news and the
worldwide recession of 2008 have seriously declined the
circulation and advertising rate which forced many news paper to
19
close its operation or simply economize expenses.
The demand of user generated content has also observed in
broadcast news channels. The trend was started with the CNN's
innovation with its iReport20 initiative. Through this iReport
CNN broadcasts the stories of many citizen journalists. IN India
CNN IBN has a program entitled Become a Citizen Journalist21
which invites the audience to share their story with CNN IBN and
quite possibly with the world. Today in the age of internet a
significant relationship has been developed between news
channels and the internet sites like youtube, facebook and twitter
that they incorporate real-time tweets, instant messages, and Face
book comments from viewers into live programs.
Voice of the Voiceless
Gone are the days when mainstream media played a pivotal role in
mobilizing the people of India in its struggle for independence. But
now the scenario has changed. Heightened commercialism of the
media market is neglecting the democratic function of
communication. The vertical pattern of mainstream media
discourages active participation and dialogue. One of the
advantages of new media is that it is not easy for government to
control the access and use of the internet by dissident citizen. This
has led new media to create an ideal space for civil society between
the private domain and that of the state activity. Blogs, face book,
93 94
twitter, YouTube, Wikipedia, Reddit, Digg etc. have empower the
citizen and gave voice to the voiceless which seem to fulfill
Habermasian ideal of public sphere. Activism in social media went
to such an extent that civil wars erupted in Arab world on 18th
December 2010. Protests and demonstrations forced the men in
power in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen to give in to their revolution. A
poll in which nine out of ten Egyptian and Tunisians responded that
the fade book was used to organize protest and awareness and even
28% of the Egyptian and 29% of the Tunisian of the same poll said
22
it disrupted their communication.
Recently the students of The Dhaka University in Bangladesh used
Face book to assemble themselves in SHahbag region of Decca
with the demand of the execution of war criminals like Kader Molla
and Rajakar for the '71 genocide. Later thousands of civilians
joined there with the same demand. Activists named their
association Gana Jagaran Mancha and began their non violence
protest against Jamat- E Islami, the supporters of Kader Molla
through blogs and social networks. A kind of cyber war which
erupted from Shahbag soon spread the whole country. The effect of
the blogs were so intense that Rajib Hyder , a blogger activist was
killed inhumanly by the Jamat E Islami supporters on 15th Feb
23
2013.
Even in India social media and blogs played a vital role to create
countrywide protest in the demand of the stringent punishment for
the culprits involved in the gang-rape of the 23-year-old student of
Delhi on 16 th December, 2013. A huge number of people including
students and informal groups gathered to show their peaceful
protest seeking the justice for the victim in the different parts of the
capital like Jantar Mantar and in front of the Rastrapati Bhaban
which compelled the government to take quick action and form a
separate committee to review the law of sexual assault against
women. Justice J.S. Verma Committee was constituted on
December, 23 2012 to recommend amendments to the criminal law
so as to provide for quicker trial enhanced punishment f or criminal
24
accused of committing sexual assault against women .
Conclusion
Citizen journalism and new media empowered the audience to tell
their own story but demand of mainstream news media have not
lost. In the case of news there is still a perceived need for reliability
in news, the trust, the objectivity, the brevity, and balance in
reporting that some of the conventional news media have earned
cannot be substitute. Nevertheless, the basic features of the role of
media in public and private life seen to persist. Even the new media
have become a new platform for the advertiser and have gradually
come to be accepted as mass media as it exhibit many of the
features of old media.
Reference
1. Stuart, A.(2009). Histories of Citizen Journalism. In A.Stuart
& E. Thorsen (Eds.),
Citizen journalism global perspective, peter lang Publishing,
Inc. New York, (pp. 17-32). Ret ri eved from
http://books.google.co.in/books
2 Ibid .p18
3. Ret r i eved f r om ht t p: / / en. wi ki pedi a. org/ wi ki /
Citizen_journalism
4. Mc Quail, Denis. Mass Communication Theory, Vistaar
Publication(vth ed) 2007,p 169
5. D, Eoin. Community media and public sphere,Sage
Publications, New Delhi 2007, p 346
6. N, Ram. Principles of Ethical Journalism in Practicing
Journalism, Nalini Rajan, (ed), Sage Publications, 2005, p 40.
7. D, Eoin. Ibdi .p 348
8. D, Eoin. Ibdi .p 347
9. Business Economics, The Internet Touch: 30 Years of
Internet, Jan 16 31, 2013 Vol.18, issue no.20 India.
10. McQuail, Denis. Ibdi. p137.lication 5th Edition (2007)
11. Business Economics, The Internet Touch, 30 Years of
Internet, Jan 16 31, 2013 Vol.18, issue No.20 india
12. McQuail , Denis .ibid p138.
13. Retrieved from http://www.labnol.org/about/
95 96
14. The Business Economics, The Internet Touch, 30 Years of
Internet, Jan 16-30, 2013 Vol -18 issue no. 20 , India.
15. We have enough blood, thank you Hyderabadis! Afrin
Humayon, TNN | Feb 25, 2013, 11.09 AM IST Retrieved
from, http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/life-style/health-
fi t ness/ heal t h/ We-have-enough-bl ood-t hank-you-
Hyderabadis/articleshow/18670738.cms
16. Retrieved from http://mashable.com/2012/11/28/severe-
weather-social-media/
17. Citizen Journalism in China: The Case of the Wenchuan
Earthquake Retrieved from http://sydney.edu.au/arts/
media_communications/downloads/documents/09_Citizen_
journalism_in_Chinas_Wenchuan_earthquake_pre_publicat
io_%20version.pdf
18. Retrieved from http://eprints.qut.edu.au/39365/1/
c39365S.pdf, p 7
19. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newspaper
20. citizen journalism hits the mainstream Retrieved from
http://books.google.co.in/books?id=3kFNYR3bh7oC&pg=
PA246&dq=first+citizen+journalism+in+tv&hl=en&sa=X
&ei=Oa5pUeeDNoWKrgentIDAAQ&ved=0CEEQ6AEwA
w#v=onepage&q=first%20citizen%20journalism%20in%2
0tv&f=false
21. Become a Ci t i zen Jour nal i st Ret r i eved f r om
http://cj.ibnlive.in.com/login/?url=http://cj.ibnlive.in.com/u
pload?tag=
22. Social Media and The Arab Spring Retrieved from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arab_Spring#Social_media_an
d_the_Arab_Spring
23. Delhi echoes in Dhakas Shahbag Square Retrieved
from http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-03-
08/ sout h-asi a/ 37560654_1_abdul -quader-mol l ah-
projonmo-chottor-war-crimes
24. Just i ce J. S. Verma Commi t t ee Ret ri eved from
http://www.ibtimes.co.in/articles/430786/20130202/govern
me n t - o r d i n a n c e - v s - j s - v e r ma - c o mmi t t e e -
recommendations.htm
TITLE : Shopping Is Indulgence In Greed
Professor Neelam G.Tikkha
Abstract
A number of sweat labor works night and day through out the globe
to create high brand garments . The fashion industry is flooded by
garments that stink of the sweat of these labor . But, this issue is left
untouched by the government since the focus is more on a number
of international issues like protection of environment, terrorism,
and poverty affect our entire world. As globalization continues
and the earth's natural processes transform local problems into
international issues, few societies are being left untouched by
major environmental problems.
Objective: To throw a light on the ingrained exploitation of poor
labor by fashion industry and why the issue has been neglected .
The paper will also show latest practices to improve the conditions
of poor sweat labor by a few highly reputed brands .
Surely, these eco-friendly costumes can also make a green fashion
statement. The buying of these dresses is the testimony of the
consciousness related to the environment. Shopping will get new
dimensions and a new definition as it will no longer remain a trivial
activity practiced by self indulgent individuals but take a wider
perspective and would be a token of care, gratitude and love for
the mother planet by a sustainably aware ( post) modern shopper.
A time will be witnessed where fashion apparel or eco-dresses
made of environment-conscious materials and by fair trade would
dominate the market and fashion streets of various countries. Thus
,catapulting shopping and shopping activity to great significance
and raising it to the levels of other equally important global issues.
Key Words : Sweat labor, Shopping, indulgence , globalization
97 98
Introduction:
A number of international issues like protection of environment,
terrorism, poverty affect our entire world. As globalization
continues and the earth's natural processes transform local
problems into international issues, few societies are being left
untouched by major environmental problems. Resources are
depleting every day. The global percentage of people living in
abject poverty and/or suffering from hunger, for instance, although
definitely still major social issues, is lower today than perhaps ever
before.
Shopping, in the backdrop of various other political, global, social
issues of immediate and significant importance does appear to be
the most trivial issue to be even thought about. However , last
decade a number of researchers like Appadurai ( 1986) ,
Zukin(1991), Dittmar ( 1992), Daniel Miller( 1995) , and many
others became interested in shopping since they recognized
shopping as a cultural phenomenon that could be related to social
action, interaction and experience that is an important part of (Post )
modern society. This marked a major shift, in the society, from
'production' based society to 'consumption based society. This
restructured the fundamentals of society from traditional concept
of shopping as 'selling goods' to 'recreational shopping around'
which was taken a step ahead by the mushrooming of malls that
provided him with the perfect fantasy world ultimate in
epicurean delight for a shopper.
A shopper lives in a time, where he has access to goods that could
not have been foreseen anytime in history, even by any royalty.
Amusement and entertainment opportunities are ubiquitous
shopping centers beckon him. Consumer culture has set in that
defines human values by the amount of money made and the
degree of power and the kind of reputation enjoyed: greed is
accepted as a legitimate human virtue, and one's own needs take
precedence over the welfare of the community. George Ritzer
believes that human contact is reducing and detachment from one
another is taking place. The system is becoming fast and
automated. Shopping is becoming dehumanized and a controlled
experience. He feels a shopper, like in any MCdonald chain,
which ever part of the world it may be, undergoes the same
experience. The worker and the customer are concerned only with
their goals towards achieving the most rational means to their
individual end whether that end be to eat a predictable 'safe' meal as
quickly as possible or to dispense with the queue at the 'drive- thru'
in an efficient fashion . He labels this as 'McDonaldization of
society'^1 . Similarly, retail system has lost any creativity due to
intense competition one store tending to clone another resulting in
'identikit' shopping centers.
We are living in a profoundly material world, which is
characterized by a vast accumulation of objects. During our
lifetime there is a complex mesh of products that each of us has
used, seen or become attached to. One part of our human condition
is addicted to acquiring and collecting far more things than we have
time to handle. Mankind, or rather the rich part of the mankind, is
suffering from 'cultural obesity'.^2 Most people in the developed
world own many more things than they actually need; closets and
attics are clogged with unused 'stuff'. Katrina Kaif, a top ranking,
Indian film star, in one of her television interviews, titled Coffee
with Karan, remarked that her closet is full of clothes that she had
purchased and have not worn them even once. This would be the
story of many teenagers.
A (Post) Modern shopper is a consumer of experiences, who
exercises the freedom to move around in the secured
environment or in an artificial Utopia that exists within the Malls
or urban spaces and enjoys the attractions that are offered by things
and people and also exercises the freedom of choice . Baudelaire
opines that, The shopper's experiential focus is not primarily on
'the crowd 'experienced as 'an immense reservoir of electrical
energy ' by the 'perfect flaneur' but rather on the cornucopia of
goods. A (post) modern shopper appears to be with an
epicurean hunger for the goods : an 'I ' with an insatiable appetite
for the 'non I'.^3
The personal belongings of a shopper are familiar to him and reflect
parts of his personality. Cummings and Lewandowska point out
99 100
that, we use objects as a sophisticated means of making both
ourselves and our world knowable.^4 Consuming products that
narrate the best story about us. Bauman also echoes that a shopper
is engaged in 'self -construction' by a process of acquiring
commodities of 'distinction and difference' where he considers the
purchased objects as signs rather than things. He words it as
'fashioning their subjectivity'. He can be seen as 'buying an identity
for him/herself. ' According to Bauman contemporary society
employs consumer goods to communicate information about
themselves to others. As consumers they try to achieve self-
construction and hence consumption reduces to an activity in
which individuals employ the symbolic meanings attached to
goods in an endeavour both to construct and to inform others of
their 'life style 'or 'identity'^4 He is thus trying to construct
himself with a persona he likes to be or that can distinguish him
from others. Thus, he stands as a metaphor for identity shopper. He
ignores himself, and chooses the model -the self-as- identity-
shopper , and wears an identity for a while , like a costume and
disposed when it no longer appeals him. Hence shopping place can
be regarded as a huge stage where a shopper buys a mask to conceal
his true- self and reveal the identity he would like to communicate
to others.
Apart from being an identity shopper at shopping sites he also
enjoys several things like, watching movies, eating out or even
getting married. He gets an identity of playful, recreational
shopper, in fact he is a wonderful representative of an identity
shopper. A recreational shopper is , someone who spends free time
in the shopping sites and practices choice and builds her /him self
'freestyle' and so the circuit completes since recreational shopper's
image is already built on identity shopper and thus completes the
circuit and the formula that emerges is flaneur/flanuse = shopper =
( post ) modern self. ^5
Another researcher , Daniel Miller, emphasizes the emotional and
psychological aspect of shopping. His work on ethnographic
research, on material culture expounds the relationships of love and
care that is developed through the acquisition of objects in
shopping and how they deal with issues of separation and loss
through their retention and divestment of these objects and how
social relations are created through consumption as an activity.
Furthermore, another important issue that needs attention is that a
large number of women are leisure shoppers apart from being need
shoppers. They not only 'shop for' but also 'shop around' .The
number of women leisure shoppers is more world over which is due
to the fact that men and women view world and shopping
differently because of their socially conditioned stances. This is
due to the fact that for individuation process to occur each must
connect to the significant others and so a girl and a boy has a
different script of upbringing. For so long gender bias made people
ignore shopping and giving any importance to shopping activity or
making it an experience but shopping has become a dominant mode
of post modern shopper's life.
As (post) modern grows older, the objects surrounding him are
replaced according to his interests and his social status. This
practice is acceptable in our throwaway society^6. His ability to
throw away objects can be compared to the speed a child loses
interest in a toy.
Fashion designers and consumer culture are largely responsible for
the mass of useless products this world has become swamped with.
Bauman looks down upon shopping as total commodification
or celebrated as a 'fun culture' and the shopper is reduced to a mere
'subject of consumption'
On the flip side of the coin, we have fashion designers vouched for
Ethical fashion/ Sustainable Fashion and working towards
preserving mother nature. Sustainable fashion is a fashion that is
designed to be environmentally friendly. It is a part of the larger
trend of "ethical fashion," and according to the May 2007 Vogue it
would continue for multiple seasons. Ethical fashion has two areas
that need to be looked at the people, and the environment; or to put
in other words; fair trade standards and organic standards.
Fairtrade standards:
This includes the workers who sew the clothes, and those who
produce the raw materials. There are 30 million cotton farmers
101 102
worldwide, in 90 different countries. Much of the crop comes from
developing countries. Fairtrade cotton ensures that the growers are
paid a living wage, and that women and children are not exploited
in the harvesting of cotton.
It's also about the people who make the clothes. Do they get a fair
wage? What are their working conditions? What kinds of hours do
they have to work? Do they get holidays and time off? Can they
form unions to represent their views to their employers?
Sweatshops are normal, but that does not make them right.
Organic standards:
Secondly, ethical fashion respects the earth. Growing cotton is a
polluting business since eight times more chemicals are used on
cotton than on an average food crop. This pollutes rivers and soils,
and it also has serious effects on the people working in the fields. A
large percentage of deaths because of pesticides, are in the cotton
fields of the developing world. A lot of these pesticides are
unnecessary as cotton can be protected from pests with chilly, soap,
or garlic. Further chemicals are used in processing and dyeing the
cotton. Around 8000 different chemicals are used in producing a t-
shirt. ^7
Ideally then, ethical fashion is clothing that has been made with fair
trade organic cotton, in sweatshop-free conditions.
Despite the awareness, fashion Industry is full of material that
comes from sweat shops. Delhi and Mumbai Fashion streets and
UK High street, are full of such stuff. Sweat shops showcase an
ugly face of shopping. To name a leading brand like Tesco, the
largest retailer in the United Kingdom and fourth largest in the
world, should be leading the way toward ensuring the rights of
those who produce and manufacture its products. Instead, Tesco's
garment workers in India make less than a living wage and are
subject to precarious working conditions, states labor rights
researcher Suhasini Singh.^8 While Tesco is a member of the
Ethical Trading Initiative, Indian garment workers who
manufacture Tesco clothes work in sweatshop conditions, getting
paid 1.50 a day (US $3.00) -- only half a living wage.
The working conditions of garment workers are precarious in
Bangalore. They have to work for nine to ten hours with a break of
half an hour for lunch, that's it! They are forced to complete targets
of 100-120 pieces per hour, when under normal circumstances one
can do just 60 pieces. Many get paid well under a living wage, yet
they are expected to take care of a family of four or more! Overtime
is not paid, workplace harassment and abuse are rampant and above
all, workers cannot voice their opinion through unions. Similar is
the condition in Jaipur , shadow work and crochet work on cotton
kurti's is done for INR 5/= per piece, though the kurti is sold for INR
1000/= . Story is the same elsewhere in most developing countries
like India and China. Small children work in sweat shop conditions
and are exploited. Time and again it is uncovered that poverty pay,
unacceptable working conditions and a lack of trade union rights
prevail in the factories that provide clothes for the UK high street.
The companies that make massive profits off the back of the
clothing industry have a responsibility to ensure that their suppliers
treat workers fairly and that cheap clothing does not come at the
expense of workers' rights. Not only this ,fashion industry also
exploits interns. since many fashion industries, and most creative
industries, rely on unpaid interns to make things happen. Their
magazines wouldn't get published, film wouldn't get developed,
and fashion shows wouldn't run so smoothly if they did not have
unpaid interns working on sets, or in the offices. Interns work 18-
hours for days on a shoot or spend a day on cleaning the office for
free. These are some of the un ethical practices and the ugly side of
shopping that trivializes the whole issue and labels it to be an
activity of self indulgence practiced by self centered individuals.
On the flip face of the coin, many fashion designers and many large
companies globally are promoting their new-found green values
and have recently adopted the idea of sustainability, using more
environmentally-friendly materials and methods in production of
modern clothing rather than producing 'dusty, hippy-looking
clothes.' The dresses made of a new synthetic material produced of
corn are a new hit. Going Green' has been a catchword in global
fashion circles for long, and Indian designers are waking up to the
fact that being environment-friendly can also help them to raise
more money since international market supports ethical fashion.
103 104
Several green shows like Wills Lifestyle India Fashion are being
organized that work as an outlet for designers to show case their
green products. Not only this the efforts are being rewarded by
awards like Sustainable Business Award (Laurie Foon, founder of
Wellington fashion company Starfish, won this award in 2007, an
award that for the first time any fashion designer has ever won. )
Laurie Foon has made a commitment for life and strongly desires
and promises to focus on the use of fabrics, trims and
manufacturing techniques that have minimal environmental
impact. More importantly, she is committed to show that designer
fashion often linked with willful obsolescence - can be
accountable to sound, sustainable business philosophies. Starfish
has started making more use of materials such as hemp, not
traditionally used in high fashion. Coathangers and plastic garment
bags are now reused, carry bags are made from recyclable chlorine-
free paper, and surplus fabric is given to community groups. It uses
recycled buttons, vegetable-based dye, and sells sneakers with
soles of recycled rubber and has eco-focused label. Labels on
Starfish clothing tell the buyer if it uses recycled buttons, organic
cotton, New Zealand-made fabric, zero-toxin printing, hemp, and
if it was made in New Zealand.
Several celebrities and designers such as Bono and Stella
McCartney have also drawn attention to socially-conscious and
environmentally-friendly fashion. The "hot ticket" of the Fall 2007
fashion week was the Edun show showcasing sustainable fashion
while songs about war, climate change, and gasoline were
performed. Portland Fashion Week, attracted international press
for showcasing sustainable designs in a 100% eco-friendly and
sustainable production. An increasing number of Hollywood
celebrities have been associated with sustainable fashion,
including Natalie Portman, Cameron Diaz, Alicia Silverstone,
Jennifer Aniston and Selma Hayek.
An Indian fashion designer, Rodericks has used cotton and silk
dyed with indigenous colours, eponymous to Goan community,
to create 'The Kunbi Tribe ' collection. Chauhan collects silk
without killing silk worms ( ahimsa collection) ^10. In Jaipur
and Jodhpur , Bandhni print fabrics are dyed by using natural
vegetable-based dyes . Used sarees are made into carry bags and
used instead of polythene bags. Many designers have transformed
Khadi into a garb of modern man. It was long associated with the
common man but its versatility is catching the attention of
designers within and outside our country. Khadi created a
revolution in weaving, and once people understood its range, the
vibrant colours, its design elements and geometric patterns, they
started using it in various crafts, shoes, home accessories and
designer clothing. Famous Indian designers like Manish Malhotra
has started making designer clothes from Jute and Khadi .Silk
khadi which is available in a variety of hues and shades adds
elegance and a touch of royalty to any space. The dye gives the
cloth a whole new dimension and looks great on cushions,
tablecloths, runners, curtains, or sofa covers. Another advantage
Khadi goes well with traditional as well as modern setting.
Although khadi might not fall well due to its stiffness it looks great
when used for curtains. Khadi can replace the paper or fabric of
blinds. The fine weave allows light to pass through while keeping
the heat out. It is cool in hot Indian summers and keeps one warm
too in winters. Beautifully textured, sensuous and skin friendly, it
also makes for great sofa covers. Slip covers of khadi, that are
easily washed, can be used for light colored upholstery. Khadi
comes in many prints like block print, warli figures, floral designs
and can be dyed into any colour . It can be easily matched with
furniture. Khadi is also used for framing pictures. It is also used for
making rugs. Fashion designer Astha Behl( Delhi, India) makes
handcrafted zipper boots from jute. Not only this, Salabh Ahuja
and Anita Ahuja have started to use Delhi garbage by upcycling
technology ( patented by India) which involves washing, drying
and pressing, and are making their 'Conserve' collection- designer
bags, belts, seat belts, lamps, shoes and sarees. It is an effort to
save the resources . She helps her rag pickers by providing them
health care facility and education.
Surely, these eco-friendly costumes can also make a green fashion
statement. The buying of these dresses is the testimony of the
consciousness related to the environment. Shopping will get new
dimensions and a new definition as it will no longer remain a trivial
activity practiced by self indulgent individuals but take a wider
105 106
perspective and would be a token of care, gratitude and love for
the mother planet by a sustainably aware ( post) modern shopper. A
time will be witnessed where fashion apparel or eco-dresses made
of environment-conscious materials and by fair trade would
dominate the market and fashion streets of various countries. Thus
,catapulting shopping and shopping activity to great significance
and raising it to the levels of other equally important global issues.
Notes and References :
1. Gearge Ritzer(1993) in Falk,P. and Campbell,C."The Shopping
Experience",London , (1977) p62.
2. Van Hinte, Ed, Eternally Yours. Time in Design, Rotterdam: 010
Publishers, 2004, p.51
3. (Baudelaire , 1964), Falk,P. and Campbell,C. "The Shopping
Experience",London , (1977) ,p6-7.
4. Cummings, Neil and Lewandowska, Marysia, The Value of
Things, Basel; Boston; Berlin: Birkhauser, 2000, p.10
5. Falk,P. and Campbell,C. "The Shopping Experience", London ,
(1977) p8.
6. Van Hinte, Ed, Eternally Yours. Time in Design, Rotterdam: 010
Publishers, 2004
7. What is ethical fashion?, Posted on December 17, 2007 by
Jeremy6.
8. Inside a Sweatshop in India War on WantJuly 25, 2008.
9. http://www.ecofashionworld.com on Facebook
10. http://www.starfish.co.nz/about/our-story
11. http://www. indianexpress.com/news/%5Cfashion-with-
compassion%5C-finds-international-takers/703310/
12. Studies in Advertising and Consumption; Mica Nava, Adrew
Blake, Iain MacRury, Barry Richards , Routledge,1996,p340.
13. Studies in Advertising and Consumption; Mica Nava, Adrew
Blake, Iain MacRury, Barry Richards , Routledge,1996,p340.
14. Appadurai, A. (1986) Introduction: Commodities and the Politics
of Value, in The Social Life of
15. Things: Commodities in Cultural Perspective, ed. Appadurai, A.
Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, pp. 3-63.
Ethics and Law India and Canada
Affiliations: MMV, RTMNU India
[email protected]
[email protected]
Cell: +91 - 9422145467
Dr. Neelam Tikkha
Abstract
In the 2011 Corruption Perceptions Index of Canada ranked as the
tenth least corrupt country in the world whereas India's corruption
perception index would be one of the most corrupt countries in the
world. India was once upon a time looked as highly ethical and
peaceful country. A land of Mahatamas ( great souls) and peace
loving law abiding Indians. Peace was not by virtue of force, but
willful because of fear of God. But, now it seems that India will soon
turn into iniquitous paradise. The crime rate has been increasing
day by day in India. Women were considered Goddesses but now
there is a question with the recent incident of gruesome
psychopathic gang rape in Delhi of Nirbhaya which has fractured
the image in several bits.
The entire world was shaken up and raised questions before the
Indian government about the presence of fear of law in the minds of
the Indians. Are the Indians not scared about the consequences of
flouting law? Is there a need for making law more stringent; where
an eye for eye and tooth for tooth rule exists? The answer
apparently lies in the law being law for name sake in India.
There are a number of crimes like infringement of intellectual
property, cyber crime, Ponzi dealings, violence at home and the
law is flouted audaciously day in and day out! Time and space
would fall short to enumerate list of scams that have taken place
and taking place in India.
107 108
We are going through crisis of ethics. Behaviors that were once
thought unacceptable for example; lying, cheating,
misrepresenting, and covering up mistakes, have become in many
people's eyes acceptable or necessary practices. Our society has
been totally fragmented and we live in a sophisticated savage
world where dog eat dog. Here intellectual capacities are used for
pulling other person down and manipulating.
This study explores various crises of ethics in India and the reasons
for lack of fear of law in India. The paper will also examine why
Canada has been rated the least corrupt country.
It is seen that India snail and corrupt judiciary exists whereas in
Canada people are afraid of law since it is just and fast.
Introduction:
India was once upon a time looked as highly ethical and peaceful
country. A land of Mahatamas ( great souls) and peace loving law
abiding Indians. Peace was not by virtue of force, but willful
because of fear of God. But, now it seems that India will soon turn
into iniquitous paradise. The crime rate has been increasing day by
day in India. Women were considered Goddesses but now there is a
question with the recent incident of gruesome psychopathic gang
rape in Delhi of Nirbhaya which has fractured the image in several
bits.
The entire world was shaken up and raised questions before the
Indian government about the presence of fear of law in the minds of
the Indians. Are the Indians not scared about the consequences of
flouting law? Is there a need for making law more stringent; where
an eye for eye and tooth for tooth rule exists? The answer
apparently lies in the law being law for name sake in India.
There are a number of crimes like infringement of intellectual
property, cyber crime, Ponzi dealings, violence at home and the law
is flouted audaciously day in and day out! Time and space would
fall short to enumerate list of scams that have taken place and taking
place in India.
We are going through crisis of ethics. Behaviors that were once
thought unacceptable for example; lying, cheating,
misrepresenting, and covering up mistakes, have become in many
people's eyes acceptable or necessary practices. Our society has
been totally fragmented and we live in a sophisticated savage world
where dog eat dog. Here intellectual capacities are used for pulling
other person down and manipulating.
This study explores various crises of ethics in India and the reasons
for lack of fear of law in India.
Business Ethics:
There has been a sea change in the laws and regulations to nurture
right ethical practices at workplace. If we compare the working
conditions of today with the times of the Pharaohs or the Romans
the findings suggest that thousands of slave labour perished in the
construction of the awe-inspiring pyramids. Hands were amputed
of the labour who constructed Taj Mahal. Colour and race
determine the master and the slave. In western countries, children
because of their small size were employed to clean the soot from
inside chimneys. Many such children perished from lung disease.
Women would not be employed in factories.
Laws changed and society demand that businesses place should be
on premium of fairness and equal rights. So, labour laws were
instituted. Government watch-dogs were established. Unions were
formed. Laws and regulations like the MRTP were introduced.
Despite all these efforts there has been an increase in the crime rate.
Sweat labor still exists. Women are exploited sexually at work
place and are underpaid. Children work in tea stalls.
Many scams, frauds and Ponzi dealings are surfacing. The history
of India is full of sagas of fraud, deceit and corruption, not only at
the hands of a few mercenaries at the top, but also with the help of
employees willing to climb the bandwagon.
109 110
The Top 10 Scams in India
1) 2G Spectrum Scam: Deals with the allocation of unified access
service licenses. The scam artist is the former Telecom
minister A Raja who according to the CAG, has evaded
norms at every level as he carried out the dubious 2G license
awards in 2008 at a throw-away price which were pegged at
2001 prices.
2) Commonwealth Games Scam:
Another crown in the glory of India is Kalamadi a con artist of
Commonwealth Games loot. Even before the sporting bonanza
could begin, the grand event was in the highlight with the
allegations of corruption. It is estimated that out of Rs. 70000 crore
spent on the Games, only half the said amount was spent on Indian
sportspersons.
3) Telgi Scam:
It was unique scam full of suspense and drama and money was
made in unscrupulous manner.
Abdul Karim Telgi had mastered the art of forgery in printing
duplicate stamp papers and sold them to banks and other
institutions. The tentacles of the fake stamp and stamp paper case
had penetrated 12 states and was estimated at a whooping Rs.
20000 crore plus. Telgi clearly had a lot of support from
government departments that were responsible for the production
and sale of high security stamps.
4) Satyam Scam
The scam at Satyam Computer Services is something that fractured
the faith of Indian investors and shareholder community beyond
repair. Satyam was the biggest scam in the corporate history which
was to the tune of INR 14000 crore.
The company's disgraced former chairman Ramalinga Raju kept
everyone in the dark for a decade by fudging the books of accounts
for several years and inflating revenues and profit figures of
Satyam.
5) Bofors Scam
The Bofors scandal is known as the hallmark of Indian corruption.
The Bofors scam was a major corruption scandal in India in the
1980s; when the then PM Rajiv Gandhi and several others
including a powerful NRI family named the Hindujas, were
accused of receiving kickbacks from Bofors AB for winning a bid
to supply India's 155 mm field howitzer.
The Swedish State Radio had broadcast a startling report about an
undercover operation carried out by Bofors, Sweden's biggest arms
manufacturer, whereby $16 million were allegedly paid to
members of PM Rajiv Gandhi's Congress.
Most of all, the Bofors scam had a strong emotional appeal because
it was a scam related to the defense services and India's security
interests.
111 112
6) The Fodder Scam
Bihar's fodder scam of 1996 or Chara Ghotala , popularly known in
the vernacular language.In this corruption scandal worth Rs.900
crore, an unholy nexus was traced involved in fabrication of vast
herds of fictitious livestock for which fodder, medicine and
animal husbandry equipment was supposedly procured.
7) The Hawala Scandal
The Hawala case to the tune of $18 million bribery scandal, which
came in the open in 1996, involved payments allegedly received by
country's leading politicians through hawala brokers. From the list
of those accused also included Lal Krishna Advani who was then
the Leader of Opposition.
Thus, for the first time in Indian politics, it gave a feeling of open
loot all around the public, involving all the major political players
being accused of having accepted bribes and also alleged
connections about payments being channelled to Hizbul
Mujahideen militants in Kashmir.
8) IPL Scam:
Embezzlement with respect to bidding for various franchisees. The
scandal already claimed the portfolios of two big-wigs in the form
of Shashi Tharoor and former IPL chief Lalit Modi.
9) Share market Scam:
Harshad Mehta was considered the Pied Piper of the share
market, who created huge wealth, a fabulous house, a platoon of
cars and multiple stock exchange memberships. He was the first
broker to become a mega-star of the Indian capital markets, who
fired the greed and imagination of every middle class Indian in the
early 1990s. Charismatic, cheery and recklessly ambitious,
Harshad Mehta who set out to be a role model for investors turned
out to be India's best-known con artist. He was the main architect of
INR50-billion scam - India's biggest securities scandal.
The exposure of the scam reduced all fawning epithets that were
showered on him, by his investor fans, such as the Big Bull, or the
Amitabh Bachchan, or the Einstein of the share market, turned in
no moment into a naught.
10) Ketan Parekh Stock Market Scam :
Ketan Parekh is popularly known as Pentafour Bull for K 10 series
stocks. And was involved in over INR. 1000 crore scam that
washed off the shareholders wealth in form of big market jolt.
A look into deeper levels will reflect that unethical behavior at
workplaces stems from a few rotten apples among the bunch. There
are a number of people like Nick Leeson, the young stockbroker in
US, whose huge losses from illegal trades led to the downfall of the
venerable Barings Bank
We have many examples of CEO's greed . For example CEOs of
Satyam and Enron who hitched the country into a downfall of their
companies.
Satyam:
Satyam, came in fame for bribing World Bank for acquiring the
loan. Then surfaced years of falsified profits and an audacious
financial fraud worth 1.5 billion dollars:
The founding promoter of Satyam Computer Services Limited,
Ramalinga Raju, resigned as the company's chairman on
113 114
Wednesday, putting out a confessional statement admitting that
roughly 1.5 billion US dollars (or the equivalent of 70 billion
Indian rupees) of the firm's past funds were "non-existent".
What has shocked analysts is that the money, that is now supposed
to be fictitious, had been recorded in Satyam's balance sheets and
books of account that had been audited by the internationally
reputed firm of auditors, Pricewaterhousecoopers.1
Ramlingam Raju along with Pricewaterhousecooper had played
fast and loose with the business. Past success imploded in a wave of
accounting scandals. The business world now considers the past
successes as nothing but an elaborate accounting hoax.
Satyam imploded, taking with it billions of investor dollars and the
jobs of more than 53,000 employees, as well as their retirement
funds. Similar was the condition of Enron.
Enron :
Enron imploded, taking with it billions of investor dollars and the
jobs of more than 4,000 employees, as well as their retirement
funds. An employee, Sherron S. Watkins, a vice president for
corporate development, blew the whistle and had informed the then
CEO Kenneth Lay about the corrupt dealings that were going on in
the company. Lay ordered an inquiry but nothing came of it because
those who were questioned about the deals "had substantial
professional and personal stakes in the matters under review,"
according to an investigative report prepared for Enron's board of
directors.
Both these companies' core values--respect, integrity,
communication, and excellence--were once proudly etched on
paperweights. Now they're an ironic joke.
Intellectual Property Ethics:
Chinese cell phones are flooding the Indian market for only one
reason that they are cheaper than the branded phones. The good
side is that even a rickshaw puller who makes around INR 3000/= a
month can afford it. The ugly side is that earlier the brand name that
appeared looked slightly similar that could be identified by a closer
look so passing off was the crime committed. But, now it is
outrightly flouting IPR . Chinese cell phones, for example carry
the brand name of some popular brand and even the spelling is
similar example of the popular brands that are being copied are :
Blackberry, Samsung, Nokia and a number of them. It has become
difficult for a layman to recognize whether it is Chinese or of any
reputed brand since they are sold openly in the markets. There are
no steps taken by government for flouting of law.
Causes of Aberration in Moral Behavior :
A man's worth is known by the money he possesses rather than the
human relationships that he possesses. It is a materialistic society.
The ruling passion is insatiable greed for more and more money
and power. Jyada ka karo irada are the catch words. Now a days
publicity, whether negative or positive, is important. The passion
that is on the top priority is greed for money and more money. All
the hideousness is nullified out by one clothing that is money.
India's Transformation into a Wasteland:
The gang rape incidence also proves that the Indian society is
heading towards becoming rootless, as Eliot calls in his poem,
The Wasteland, 2with money as their God, Devil as their Guide and
Satan as their idol for satisfying lust. Plato says, people are trapped
in psychic prison2. It implies that factors such as aggression,
greed, fear, hate, and libidinal drives have no official standing
neither at workplace or in society.
Implementation Of Law In India:
Court cases take tremendously long time . Law in India is only for
rich who can afford it for years together. Shakespeare's saying
justice delayed is justice denied3 is followed in true spirit of the
term. Sometimes, very poor people take the job of giving justice in
their hands. A few incidences are being reported when a group of
angry mob has beaten the goons and killed them. All theses deeds
are indicative of poor , ineffective , weak legal machinery.
115 116
Conclusion:
Training in emotional quotient should be given. Whenever,
criminal feelings break into the open, they should be quickly
banished through apologies, rationalizations and punishments
designed to restore a mere neutered state of affairs. Emotional
quotient needs to be inculcated by parents and teachers in the
schools so that a child grows into an honest citizen. Ethical
practices can be infused by tapping on the emotional quotient.
Many organizations have understood that to be successful one has
to develop a 'social radar' that is learning to read the weather
system around individuals or groups of people. Similarly, at homes
also parents need to give good lessons so that people turn out to be
better individuals.
Notes and References:
1. Thakurta, Paranjoy Guha , Satyam Scam Questions Corporate
Governance IPS articleMonday, 09 February 2009 04:20
NEW DELHI, Jan 9, 2009.Downloaded on 25th December,
2012. From internet. http://focusweb.org/india/index
2.php?option=com_content&do_pdf=1&id=1110
2. Eliot, Thomas Stearns , The Wasteland, New York: Horace
Liveright, 1922. ON-LINE ED.:Published August 2011 by
Bartleby.com.
3. Shakespeare , The Merchant Of Veni ce.
http://www.opensourceshakespeare.org/views/plays/play_vi
ew.php?WorkID=merchantvenice&Act=3...
4. Plato, Plato's Ethics and Politics in The Republic First
published Tue Apr 1, 2003; substantive revision Mon Aug 31,
2009
Nanoparticles Pollution A Murder of
Sustainable Growth
Dr. Neelam Tikkha
MMV, RTMNU
Founder and Editor CFTRA- Global
[email protected], [email protected]
Cell: + 91-9422145467
Winner of British Council's award
for Anecdote writing.
We look before and after,
And pine for what is not:
Our sincerest laughter
With some pain is fraught;
1
Our sweetest songs are those that tell of saddest thought.
Key words: Air, brain, nano, nanoparticle, pollution, traffic corridor
Introduction:
Man in his quest to explore the universe for his
advantageIntroduction: It is believed that high levels of IQ, that is
intelligence quotient, may give you an interview but high levels of
EQ , emotional quotient, will reward you with a job and life long
altitude. But, It is a sad reality that Education curricula in India and
other developing countries lay more emphasis on the development
of ( IQ) but do not focus on developing Emotional quotient (EQ ) .
Emotional quotient has discovered power packed units like
nuclear bombs and nanoparticles. Man has been transformed into a
scorpion biting his own tail. Research and industrialization may be
highly essential for the growth. But, in the course of the golden
goose chase, he forgot these very power units have become the
growth game, making him a game of these toys designed by him
which threatens his survival.
Nano technology has taken all of us by an amazing sweep. We are
heading with a vigorous speed to make the use of nanoparticles in a
117 118
variety of industries. A person can become very fair instantly or
remove wrinkles by applying cream with nanoparticles but when
the face is washed nano particles would go in the waste water and
create pollution. Nano technology's prolific use should be of great
concern to anyone concerned with sustainable development since it
is posing a new risk to sustainable growth because of its robust
negative impacts on human health and ecosystem. This paper
attempts to highlight the various applications of nanoparticles and
the caution that has to be exercised while disposing nanoparticles
for sustainable growth. Nano technology is used in medicine,
manufacturing industry, electrical manufacturing, cosmetics and a
number of them.
The use of nanoparticles is ever increasing, in fact it is becoming a
part of our life and can be exemplified by a look into the uses of
nanoparticles in various fields. It is a proof that our dependence is
going to ever increase as far as usage of nanoparticles is concerned.
Use of Nanoparticle in Energy and Electronics:
Nanotetrapods studded with nanoparticles of carbon are used to
produce low cost electrodes for fuel cells which is capable of
replacing the expensive platinum needed for fuel cell catalysts.
NOMFET Transistor has been created by combining gold
nanoparticles with organic molecules. A catalyst which has
platinum cobalt nanoparticles is developed for fuel cells that
produces 12 times more powerful catalytic activity then pure
platinum. Another wonder of nanoparticles is of producing steam
with high energy efficiency by concentrating solar energy on
nanoparticles. The solar steam device" is a boon for resource poor
developing countries without electricity for applications such as
purifying water or disinfecting of dental instruments.
Recharging time can be drastically reduced and battery power can
be tremendously increased by coating silicon nanoparticles on
anodes of lithium-ion batteries. Low cost solar cells can be
manufactured by the use of semiconductor nanoparticles.
2
Palladium nanoparticles are being used in a hydrogen sensor.
Control of water Pollution:
Nanoparticles can be used for removal of industrial water
pollution, such as a cleaning solvent called TCE, from ground
water. Nanoparticles can be used to convert the contaminating
chemical through a chemical reaction to make it harmless. Studies
have shown that this method can be used successfully to reach
contaminates dispersed in underground ponds and at much lower
cost than methods which require pumping the water out of the
3
ground for treatment.
Use of Nanoparticles in Medicene:
Researchers have explicated the use of nanobubbles that form
around gold nanoparticles, when heated are capable of destroying
cancer cells. Autoimmune diseases can be tackled by the use of
nanoparticles by delivering antigens into the blood stream . This
prevents white blood cells from attacking healthy cells. It has been
found to be useful in tackling sclerosis in mice and research is
ongoing for treating human being similarly. Nano particles that
release biomarkers would be useful in detecting cancer in the early
stages. The use of gold nanoparticles with RNA molecules
attached can be used to control skin cancer. Mesoporous
nanoparticles are used to fight aging. Aluminosilicate
nanoparticles can reduce bleeding in trauma patients. Ironoxide
nanoparticles are used to improve MRI of cancer tumor.
Nanoparticles with protein coating could carry drug to damaged
4
region to fight cardiovascular disorder.
Use of Nano particle in Manufacturing and Materials:
Synthetic skin5 which is used in prosthetics can be made from
nanoparticles. The skin has self healing capability and the ability to
sense pressure. Silicate nanoparticles serve as barrier for gases and
can be used in packaging industry. Zincoxide nanoparticles are
used in industrial coatings to protect wood, plastic and textiles from
exposure to UV rays. Silicon dioxide nanoparticles can be used to
fill gaps between carbon fibers thus strengthening tennis
racquets.Silver nanoparticls can kill bacteria in cloth and make it
119 120
odor- resistant. Nanoparticles are used to breakdown organic
pollutants in the air. Iron oxide nanoparticles are used to clean
5
arsenic from the wells.
Damaging effects of Nanoparticles:
Air pollution is a major cause of human disease and has a particular
impact on the respiratory and cardiovascular systems. Air quality
issues have received much attention worldwide, and many
countries are making concentrated efforts towards improvement.
For example, China labored hard to reduce air pollution in Beijing
for 2008 Olympic Games, but how far they were successful is a
debatable issue.
Nanoparticles are potentially highly carcinogenic and have
harmful effects on DNA through skin applications, interaction with
microbes in the soil and in water, uptake through the food chain and
exposure to people in the workplace.
Mechanistic researches have highlighted the ability of PM10 and
ultrafine / nanoparticles in inducing the production of reactive
oxygen species and free radicals leading to oxidative stress and the
initiation of intracellular signaling pathways leading to the altered
expression of pro-inflammatory cytokine genes. These research
studies on PM10 and ultrafine particles have categorically pointed
out the potential hazard and therefore risk of such pollutants.
The release of nanoparticles into the environment intentionally
(e.g. by remediation of polluted land) and unintentionally (e.g.
from waste water sources) has distressed the environment. One
such study on Daphnia magna has brought to notice lethal impact
on Daphnia magna. There is also an urgent need to investigate the
impacts of nanoparticles on the environment and other phyla. The
properties of many conventional materials change when formed
from nanoparticles. This is typically because nanoparticles have a
greater surface area per weight than larger particles which causes
them to be more reactive to some other molecules.
Furthermore, Nanoparticles engineering is usually subject of
exaggerated media optimism, but in reality nanoparticles' first
major impact is in making people literally less bright. Or more
stupid, depending on one's view of the human condition.)
Nanoparticles air pollution (probably metallic) appears to increase
deposition of amyloid-beta and alpha-synuclein in the human
brain. These deposits are customarily associated with Alzheimer's
and Parkinson's. Young brains are especially vulnerable, but older
people are affected, too.
Tests of sample populations living along the most polluted traffic
corridors suggested that nanoparticles that cross the blood-brain
6
barrier result in lower IQs and lower scores on memory tests.
Stop, look, listen, before you go to dispose such waste, lest we'll
look back and we'll say, you know, we had all the warning signs to
put some kind of regime in place and we didn't take advantage of it.
The mammoth of industrialization is so dynamic, that it appears, as
if we are riding a mythological chariot of Sun god. But, as far as
sustainable growth is concerned, it is getting crushed under the
wheels of this chariot. The grey clouds are looming large on the
blue planet we live in. There are heavy dark and gloomy footprints
being created on the mother Earth.
In fine, nanotechnology should be developed more and more. But,
at the same time ways are to be devised by finding solutions for its
disposal for sustainable growth or else we are going to repent that
we knew, but we did nothing to save our blue planet.
Notes and References:
1. Arthur Quiller Couch, Thomas, Sir. ed, The Oxford book of English
Verse, Oxford: Clarendon, 1919, [c1901]; Bartleby.com, 1999.
ON-line ed.:Published January1999 by Bartleby.com, 1999
Bartleby.com,Inc.
2. http://blog.brainiyak.com/?p=27
4. www.understandingnano.com/nanoparticles.html
5. http://www.understandingnano.com/nanoparticles.html
6. http://blog.brainiyak.com/?p=27
121 122
References:
Inflammatory effects of coarse and fine particulate matter in
relation to chemical and biological constituents. Schins, R.P.F.,
Lightbody, J.H., Borm, P.J.A., Shi, T.M, Donaldson, K. & Stone, V.
(2004). Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology. 195, 1-11.
Calcium and ROS-mediated activation of transcription factors and
TNF-cytokine gene expression in macrophages exposed to
ultrafine particles. Brown, D.M., Donaldson, K., Borm, P.J.,
Schins, R.P., Dehnhardt, M., Gilmour,P., Jimenez, L.A. & Stone, V.
(2004). American Journal of Physiology Lung Cellular and
Molecular Physiology. 286, L344-L353.
The effect of oxidative stress on macrophages and lung epithelial
cells: The role of phosphodiesterases 1 and 4. (2007). Brown, D.
M., Hutchison, L.., Donaldson, K., MacKenzie, S. J., Dick, C. A. J.
& Stone, V.(2007). Toxicology Letters 168, 1-6.
Ulrich Ranft et al., Long-term Exposure to Traffic-related
Particulate Matter Impairs Cognitive Function in the Elderly,
Environmental Research 109(8):1004-1011 (November 2009).
Michelle L. Block & Lillian Calderon-Garciduenas, Air Pollution:
Mechanisms of Neuroinflammation and CNS Disease, Trends in
Neurosciences 32(9):506-516 (September 2009).
S. Franco Suglia et al., Association of Black Carbon with Cognition
among Children in a Prospective Birth Cohort Study, American
Journal of Epidemiology 167(3):280-286 (2008).
J. Sunyer, The Neurological Effects of Air Pollution in Children,
European Respiratory Journal 32:535-537 (2008)
Janet Raloff, Destination Brain: Inhaled Pollutants May Inflame
More than the Lungs, Science News 177(11):16-20 (22 May 2010).
A Mile for Several Smiles -CSR, Sustainability and
Local Community Development
Professor,
MMV, RTMNU
[email protected],
[email protected]
Neelam Tikkha
Abstract
A small village, Raghurajpur in Puri in Orissa, has occupied a
prominent space in the world map because of the social
responsiveness and intervention of an American lady, Mrs Halina
Zealey. The village has acquired the status of Heritage village.
Chitrakaras ( community of artists) have been infused with new life
and India has been bestowed with honor and glory.CSR can bring
phenomenal changes in the society.
In this paper, the efforts of UNGC and the impact of CSR activities
by some organizations like ONGC, Nestl, Azim Premji
Foundation and Vodafone towards inclusive development and
millennium development goals are highlighted in the backdrop of a
heritage village.
If the companies build up congenial relationship with the local
communities and work in their interest then tragedies like Tata
Nano plant would be averted and the proverbial golden siren would
sing the merry tune of prosperity and positivity of India Globally.
Key words: CSR, Sustainability, local Community, Chitrkaras,
Millenium development goal, Female gender empowerment.
Introduction:
Abraham Lincoln said, government cannot endure half slave
and half free similarly a country cannot be considered
developed or economically stable if there is a disparity between
rich and poor . India is reflecting the same disparity. There are a
123 124
number of people who can afford imported cars like Mercedes,
Audi and on the other hand there are people who do not have one
time proper meal. Some of the companies have come up to help
reduce this disparity.
Now a day, Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is a growing
concern for organizations combining their desire to protect
environment and invest in communities. Increasingly, corporate
executives must find new ways to address the social, economic, and
environmental effects of doing business, while balancing
conflicting demands on their attention, time, and resources. This
study aims at highlighting the efforts of UNGC and the impact of
CSR activities by some organizations like ONGC, Nestl, Azim
Premji Foundation and Vodafone towards inclusive development
and millennium development goals. A special reference is made to
Raghurajpur a heritage village in Orissa to show how social
sensibility can bring dynamic change in the lives of poor artisans in
making them economically independent and famous. The village is
important because the help provided by an American lady and
government of India led to the revival of cultural stream of India.
Entrance of the Village View of the Village
Case study- I: Raghurajpur, a small village in Puri district in
Orissa has occupied the status of Heritage Cultural village. It is the
strangest village in the world where everyone is an artist and every
house an art studio. These artisans are called Chitrakaras. The
artisans of this village have been involved in producing melodious
poetry on pieces of treated cloth, dried palm leaf or paper. The
village has a community of artisans, who produce different
varieties of handicrafts items such as Patta Chitra, (paintings on
treated cloth), Talapatra Chitra (palm leaf engravings),Ganjapa
(paintings on Playing cards) stone carvings, papier mache toys and
masks, wood carvings, wooden toys, cow dung toys and tusser
paintings called Mattha Chitra. Some of them are winners of
National Awards and are involved with the ritual performed in the
temple of Lord Jagannatha . At the dawn of the 20th century their
fortunes had started falling down which made a number of
Chitrakars to leave this art form and digress to other professions.
Ileana Citaristi, an Italian researcher observed :
"By the late fifties only a few old men among the
90- odd chitrakara families of Raghurajpur were
still painting, whereas all the youths had deserted
the profession; it was only around the year 1953
that, with the intervention of an American lady,
Mrs Halina Zealey, a new future opened up and
the artists once again took out their brushes and
i
colours."
Painting on House wall
Halina Zealy, a Polish-American lady and a member of the
American Friends' Service Committee (AFSC), spent a year or so
in Puri with a few of her associates before going to Barpali, where
125 126
they were planning to undertake experiments in rural
reconstruction. She noticed that patta painters are poor because
marketing for their artifacts is a problem. She put in herculean
efforts to find a market for their art. She had approached Bengal
Home Industries Association and the Indian Institute of Art
Industry. She had also investigated the possibility of showcasing in
the B.N.R. Hotel and Raghunandan Library in Puri and had put up a
temporary stand on the bada-danda. In March 1953, she sent a
detailed report narrating her experience to the AFSC headquarters,
and Philadelphia had immediately responded. She had also
attempted to promote this art form by giving Mrs B.K. Nehru, the
wife of the then Indian ambassador to US, few samples to take to
New York with a view to promote sales there. The demand for their
paintings increased so much that women also got involved in Patta
and Mattha paintings. This led to ameliorating in living standards
and building of confidence in female gender. Not only this ,
women who were treated as second fiddle to man got chance to
see mythological dramas in the nautanki's performed in the
villages because these dramas provided them subjects for
paintings. Government and NGO's are also promoting female
gender by organizing art and craft fare. In these fares women are
given preference while booking the stalls. This also has helped
women to come out of houses and experience independence. The
women are in turn contributing to the building of strong household
and equally strong nation.
Another major change that Globalization brought was that
Chitrakars in their earlier paintings would have Indian deities but
now according to the taste and preference of the buyers, the
subjects in the paintings have changed.
Painting on House wall
Paintings at Raghurajpur.
www.flickr.com user Damien [Phototrend.fr]
The two side effects of globalization are the use of synthetic colors
for painting patta chitra and mushrooming of a number of huge
shops selling Patta Chitra, Matha Chitra's, toys and paper mache
work. Villagers stand turn by turn to pull the crowd to their village
to sell their art work directly.
According to me corporate houses should encourage the use of
natural colors by providing suitable market so that the science of
manufacturing natural colors does not die out. It is very important
to develop it as a tourist destination by constructing proper roads
and railway station.
The support and sustainable growth model that was provided to the
local artisans is a constructive example of positivity in
globalization which has given a local village a chance to stand up to
the challenges of the globalization.
Yet, another art form these villagers are involved in is performing
art Gotipua, the earlier form of Odissi dance. Guru Kelu Charan
Mohapatra the famous Odissi dancer had his training here. A dance
school has been started called as Gotipua Gurukul, called Maa
Dasabhuja under the guidance of Maguni Charan Das. Chitrakars
believe that unless a person is well versed with performing art, one
cannot be a good artist. The trainees of this school present their
performances in different cultural events, in India and abroad.
Some NGO's are involved in taking these Odissi dancers to perform
in other countries. The performers and their families get very less
money as compared to the whopping money the NGO's bring to
themselves. Dr Dinanth Pathy, recipient of the President of India
Silver Plaque for Painting, Jawaharlal Nehru Fellowship for
Research and Orissa Sahitya Academy Award for creative writing
observed that:
Odissi has come to symbolize Oriya cultural
identity and is now danced by members of an
international community which is multilingual,
multi-religious and multicultural and is watched,
appreciated and patronized by an equally
impressive global audience.
127 128
The role multinational companies can play is organizing cultural
events in their chains abroad where a sort of cultural exchange can
take place. The mutual exchange would benefit both countries and
help artists grow. It is very easy for any company to give profit but
the loop can be completed only when it is structured properly with
support and sustainability.
The structured approach has made the village a living museum of
art and culture. Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage
INTACH has identified this village to revive the ancient wall
paintings of Orissa.
The efforts of foreigners to reconstruct and assign the village a
global presence, was an eye opener for Indians and thus on June 27,
2002,Shri Jagmohan, Hon'ble Union Minister of Tourism and
Culture, declared that this village would be developed as a model
for rural tourism in India. INTACH developed a Project Report for
this village to see that basic tourist amenities such as road, drinking
water, sanitation, interpretation centre and rest house are
developed. It is a thing to be admired that this is the first village to
be provided with rest houses for tourists. The day is not far with the
support of UNICEF and other agencies Raghurajpur will come in
the National Travel Circuit of the Government of India.
India is full of such famous art work popular all over the world. To
echo in words of the famous poet Chaucer, here's god's
plenty. A few popular art work which is famous for its
uniqueness and fineness are : Bidri work and stone bangles from
Andhra, Banarasi sarees from Varanasi, Bandhani from Rajasthan ,
Batic and mirror work from Gujarat ,Thanjavur paintings from
Tamil Nadu, Sambhalpuri sarees from Orissa, Chikan work from
Lucknow, Brass work from Moradabad, Glass bangles from
Firozabad and wooden and bamboo decorative artifacts from tribal
areas of Chhattisgarh. If these small artisans are given support and
provided a global market they would become economically
independent and lead to economic growth of India at large. So it is
very important for corporate houses to identify the villages close to
their working zone and adopt them to provide support and also
provide help to market their produce. This strategy would help
reduce the role of the non structured middleman, who takes the
lion's share without putting much of labor.
These efforts would also provide instructive examples of the locals
measuring up to the challenges of the global.
Case Study II:
Vodafone has started empowering village women by giving them
SIM recharge centres without taking any deposits. This has given
female gender a chance to liberate themselves from the clutches of
ignorance and have made them occupy a front seat in the
development of household. It has given birth to a number of small
female entrepreneurs.
iii
Case Study III: Azim Premji Foundation works towards
providing education to the poor It has an;
overarching goal to contribute to a just,
equitable, humane and sustainable society in
India. strive to facilitate deep, large scale and
long-term impact on the quality and equity of
education in India, along with related
development areas such as child health, nutrition,
governance and ecology.
In Vidarbha region there are a number of schools run by corporation
which are on the verge of closing down because of the decline in the
students' enrollment since the quality of education is poor . If
corporate houses in Vidarbha region come up with restructuring the
quality education in corporation schools it will definitely help poor
to get good quality education and will help reduce poverty.
v
Case Study IV: Nestle has been recognized by United Nations'
Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) for its
efforts in providing help to cocoa and coffee farmers to adapt to
environmental challenges.
Nestl trained more than 16000 coffee farmers all over the world in
2011 to adapt to changing weather patterns such as temperature
129 130
increases and limited rainfall, since coffee plants require very
reliable rainfall patterns for growth. The farmers had been facing
challenges associated with climate change such as heat stress, pest
pressure and water scarcity. The training included the methods to
improve soil quality and prevent erosion, responsible use of
fertilizer, water conservation and ways to develop community
nurseries to grow young coffee plantlets. Nestl also provided
information and distributed disease and drought resistant quality of
crops for sustainable growth.
Nestl is propagating and distributing coffee plant varieties that
produce more beans and have a greater resistance to drought and
certain diseases. In Colombia, the company distributed more than
four million disease-resistant coffee plantlets to farmers in 2011
through its partnership with the Colombian Coffee Growers
Association. The plantlets are particularly resistant to leaf rust,
which has had a significant impact on Colombian coffee
production over the past few years as a result of increasing
temperatures and excessive rainfall.
A number of farmers commit suicide every year in Vidarbha
because of drought. If some company also takes up a project like
Nestl it would save a number of life. A disturbing fact is that Nestl
has adopted to help only the farmers involved in coffee and coco
bean. Nestl India should focus on Vidarbha region farmers. It
should provide farmers with training and higher yielding crops to
promote sustainable agriculture.
Furthermore, according to a recent study by the International
Center for Tropical Agriculture, cocoa farmers in west Africa will
be greatly affected by climate change, as areas of land suitable for
growing the crop are predicted to shrink considerably in certain
parts of Cote d'Ivoire and Ghana by 2050.
One of the ways Nestl is supporting cocoa farmers through its
Cocoa Plan is by distributing higher-yielding, disease-resistant
plantlets to improve productivity and minimize the amount of land
required for farming. Nestl had also trained more than 21,000
cocoa farmers, including 9,900 in Cte d'Ivoire, in more efficient
and sustainable growing techniques such as how to prune trees and
ferment and dry beans more effectively.
Nestl has displayed its commitment to climate change by
participating in an event at the UN Climate Change Conference in
Doha, Qatar to explain how it is helping farmers to adapt to
environmental challenges. Worldwide, more than 680,000 farmers
are part of Nestl's supply chain, mainly smallholders in more than
50 countries. Nestl recently topped a list of global companies in
efforts to disclose and cut greenhouse gas emissions. It is now the
leading company in the Carbon Disclosure Project, an annual
ranking based on data supplied by the 'Global 500' companies.
Case study V: ONGC contributes 2% of its net profit for CSR
activities. It shoulders support for 12 activities mentioned below:
1. It provides support for education and vocational training.
2. Health care facility for destitute, under privileged and
abandoned old age people (Varishth Sahyog yojna).
3. Entrepreneurship program for self help and livelihood
generation for youth.
4. Infrastructure support.
5. Environmental protection and ecological conservation.
6. Protection of heritage site for example ONGC is helping
in protection of remains of the Auhm's kingdom in
association with Archeological society of India. Around
3.96 crores have been invested by ONGC for the
restoration and protection of Auhm in Sibsagar Assam
called Dharawar project.
7. Protection of artisans, musicians and craftsmen.
8. Women's empowerment and girl child development
program .
9. Promoting sports and sportsmen.
10. Water management and water recharge.
11. Physically challenged and mentally challenged welfare
scheme.
12. Sponsorship for seminars and conferences.
UNGC: The biggest global corporate sustainability initiative to
social responsibility, sustainability and local community
131 132
development is of United Nations Global Compact's Initiative.
There are 10,000 signatories based in more than 140 countries, and
Local Networks existing or emerging in over 100 countries. Indian
head is the Chairman of ONGC Mr. Vasudeva. The contributions of
Private sectors provide vital support to United Nations Global
Compact projects, helping advance corporate change and
innovation around environmental, social and governance issues.
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon defines it as:
The Global Compact asks companies to embrace
universal principles and to partner with the
United Nations. It has grown to become a critical
platform for the UN to engage effectively with
enlightened global business.
The UN Global Compact calls companies to follow the Ten
Principles mentioned below:
(1) voluntarily align their operations and strategies with ten
universally accepted principles in the areas of human rights,
labour, environment and anti-corruption and (2) take actions in
support of UN goals, including the Millennium Development
Goals. By doing so, business can help ensure that markets advance
in ways that benefit economies and societies everywhere. Endorsed
by chief executives, the UN Global Compact is a leadership
platform for the development, implementation, and disclosure of
responsible corporate policies and practices. The initiative brings
companies together with key stakeholder groups including:
Government, civil society, labour, investors, educators and the
United Nations.
vii
The Ten Principles
The UN Global Compact asks companies to embrace ten
principles:
Human Rights
lPrinciple 1: Businesses should support and respect the
protection of internationally proclaimed human rights; and
l
rights abuses.
Labour
lPrinciple 3: Businesses should uphold the freedom of
association and the effective recognition of the right to
collective bargaining;
lPrinciple 4: the elimination of all forms of forced and
compulsory labour;
lPrinciple 5: the effective abolition of child labour; and
lPrinciple 6: the elimination of discrimination in respect of
employment and occupation.
Environment
lPrinciple 7: Businesses should support a precautionary
approach to environmental challenges;
lPrinciple 8: undertake initiatives to promote greater
environmental responsibility;
lPrinciple 9: encourage the development and diffusion of
environmentally friendly technologies.
Anti-Corruption
lPrinciple 10: Businesses should work against all forms of
corruption, including extortion and bribery.
A number of birds and animals die during summer because of
drought. There is a need for the companies to take up projects in
consideration of protection of birds, wild animals and preservation
of bio diversity. Sustainable growth and respect for local
community is the right path to success and it also implies following
business ethics in true spirit. Exploitation of one will lead to the
Principle 2: make sure that they are not complicit in human
133 134
failure of another, for example Mahegenco Plant ended up paying
compensation to the locals. It also ruins a company's image and
poses a threat for its survival. If the giant corporate houses build up
congenial relationship with the local communities and work in
their interest many more tragedies like the Tata Nano plant, and
agitation against construction of dams on Brahmaputra would be
averted. The steps taken so far are only a few baby steps towards
inclusive growth and millennium development. A time will soon
come when the proverbial golden siren would sing the merry tune
of prosperity and positivity of India in Global and Glocal scenario.
Raghurajpur The Crafts Village, Orissa review, November, 2004. http://orissa.gov.in/e-
magazine/Orissareview/nov2004/englishPdf/raghurajpur-craftvillage.pdf, downloaded on
3rd May 2013.
Jatindra K Nayak ,The Telegrph Calcutta , Monday , May 16 , 2011.
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1110516/jsp/orissa/story_13987224.jsp, downloaded
th
on 4 May 2013.
th
http://azimpremjifoundation.org, downloaded 4 May,2013.
Ibid.
Nestl Helps Farmers Adapt To Climate Change - News - CSR Europe
th
www.csreurope.org/news.php?type=&action=show_news&news, downloaded 4
May,2013.
Foundation For Global Compact, www.unglobalcompact.org/AboutTheGC/
The Ten Principles - United Nations Global Compact
th
http://www.unglobalcompact.org/AboutTheGC/TheTenPrinciples/, downloaded 4
May,2013.
References :
1. A Destination in the Making." OrissaReview, September 2002.
2. Citaristi, Eleana. The making of a Guru : Kelu Charan Mohapatra,
His Life and Times (Delhi : Manohar 2001).
3. Mohanty, B. Pata-Paintings of Orissa, New Delhi : Publications
Division, Government of India, 1984.
4. Nayak , Jatindra K. The Telegrph Calcutta , Monday , May 16 ,
2011.
5. Special thanks to ASC Jawaharlal Nehru University and Prof.
Minnati Panda for lecture on Patta Chitra.
Professor, Neelam Tikkha
Director
Confidence Foundation
Corporate trainer for Soft Skills and Communication Skills
Winner of British Council's award for best paper presentation.
[email protected], [email protected]
cell:09422145467
Abstract
The boom of Innovation and research marks this century . But the
major questions that arise are: Is it sustainable? Is it conducive to
the mother earth? Very late human being realized, in his quest for
easy life, comfortable life, and greed for achievement that he has
actually made the parable of The Goose With The Golden Eggs,
come true.
Objective: This study investigates, the various sources of air
pollution, land pollution, solid waste pollution and water pollution.
The study will also highlight the impact of various types of
pollution in Nagpur as an example, since more or less, the impact
remains the same in every part of India. Also, a light will be thrown
on sustainable development, which happens to be the only ray of
hope for mankind's survival on the Earth.
Man is the creator and the destructor of the environment since the
environment is the sum total of all biological, chemical, physical,
and economical activities of mankind.
Recent times, has witnessed the consequences of digressions of
mankind, with the environment and the disrespect that he had
shown for the planet Earth, of which he is an inhabitant. The
various types of pollution quite common now days are: Air
pollution, water pollution, noise pollution, land pollution, and
solid waste (bio- medical and e- waste).
135 136
Lesson from Mahabharata:
Yudhishter after leaving his body left for heavenly abode. On the
way a street dog started following him. Lord Indra came and
greeted him to take him into his Kingdom. He said, Oh, great king
please step in the chariot I'll take you to my kingdom where you will
live forever. Yudhishter stepped up along with the dog. Lord Indra
said, I am sorry, but dogs are not allowed in my kingdom.
Yudhister promptly, stepped back and said, Lord Indra please send
me to hell along with this dog since as a king, I owe him a
responsibility. I must take care of the people of my kingdom,
downtrodden ones and even animals, before I look for my well
being.
The above example is a proof that man has not been a good leader
but has expressed himself as an exploiter and highly an indulgent
being.
Another, basic feeling empathy, which was necessary for
sustainable growth, was also dumped by man. The illustration from
The Bhagvad Geeta, given below is a clear indication of it.
Lesson From The Bhagvad Geeta:
A group of Brahmins gathered to sacrifice a goat. A goat was made
ready for the sacrifice. It was cleaned, washed and garlanded.
When, they were about to start the sacred fire ritual (yagya). They
heard the goat laughing. The Brahmins were surprised and asked,
What's the matter? Goat said, What is the use of these yagyas?
Brahmins replied, This yagya is for the well being of our family.
Goat again guffawed and said, The fruits of these yagyas would be
destroyed. And it will also be the cause of the vicious chakra of life
(life cycle of birth and death). I did all this in my previous birth and
see my condition now.
People who were gathered there, were surprised and said, What do
you mean by all this; please explain it to us in detail? Goat replied,
I was a Brahmin in my previous birth. Once, my son fell sick. My
wife, to please God, sacrificed a goat for my child's fast recovery.
The mother of the lamb cursed me. She said, In your next birth,
There are two major kinds of air pollution: Natural and Artificial
i.e. man made. Natural pollution is due to: Volcanic activity,
electrical discharge during storms, marsh gas production, and
forest fires. Man is yet again a major source of creator of air
pollution: Agricultural activities like crop spraying and burning,
automobile fuel emission, aero plane emission, nuclear tests, fire
works and solvent usage like hydrocarbons.
There are various sources of water pollution like industrial waste,
plastic bags disposed in water.These activities lead to global
warming, ozone layer depletion and acid rain that are hazardous to
biodiversity. Only sustainable growth can salvage us from the
denigration of the earth.
Key Words: Air Pollution, Water Pollution, Noise Pollution, Solid
Waste, e- waste, global warming, ozone layer depletion and acid
rain
Introduction :
The whole world was shocked with the news that a conference on
environment was being held under water since the earth will be so
polluted that it would become un fit to live. The boom of
innovation and research marks this century. But, the major
questions that arise are: Is it sustainable? Is it conducive to the
mother earth? Very late man realized, in his quest for easy life,
comfortable life, and greed for achievement, he has actually made
the parable of The Goose With The Golden Eggs, come true.
An innovator while looking for innovation looks at the target
customers, the way his organization and he would be benefited by
his innovation and research, but he keeps a blind eye to the people
who would be affected, the environment and the geographical
space of the animals that he is going to destroy. Our religious
scriptures have been teaching us a lot of lessons for living on this
blue planet for example an insight into the following two examples
from The Mahabharat and The Bhagwad Geeta will indicate how
callous man has been in dealing with the mother Earth.
137 138
Natural Sources
Forest fires, volcanic activity, dust and gases emitted from animal
excreta and marsh gas production are major causes of air pollution.
Forest fires and volcanic eruptions generally emit large amounts of
sulphur dioxide (SO2) into the atmosphere, disturbing its
ecological balance. Man is yet again a major source of air pollution:
Agricultural activities like crop spraying and burning, automobile
fuel emission, Aeroplane emission, nuclear tests, fire works and
solvent usage like hydrocarbons
Artificial Sources:
Still Sources
Stationary sources of air pollution are industrial factories, power
plants and furnaces. These sources emit into the atmosphere large
amounts of carbon dioxide (CO2). Even though, CO2 is a natural
component of the earth's atmosphere, increased levels of it is one of
the major causes of global warming.
Moving Sources
Automobiles and aircraft are the mobile causes of air pollution.
Fuel exhausts from the vehicle is one of the most common sources
of air pollution, accounting for about 40 percent of all the sources of
air pollution worldwide. Vehicles generally emit large amounts of
carbon monoxide (CO) that leads to serious health problems such
as asthma, bronchitis and other respiratory disorders.
Waste Disposal
The disposal of wastes in landfills is another major source of air
pollution. Waste depositions emit methane gas. Methane though
not harmful in nature by itself, it combines with other gases in the
atmosphere and converts into harmful free radicals which may
contribute to breathing problems and infection.
you'll be born a goat and would be similarly sacrificed. Moreover,
you will have the memory of previous birth so that you feel guilty
for your deeds.
Man is the creator and the destructor of the environment since the
environment is the sum total of all biological, chemical, physical,
and economical activities of mankind. Recent times, has witnessed
the consequences of digressions of mankind with nature and the
disrespect that he had shown for the planet Earth of which he is an
inhabitant. The various types of pollution which are quite common
now a days are: Air pollution, water pollution, noise pollution, land
pollution, and solid waste (bio medical and e -waste). These
pollutants have led to great health hazards like birth of high risk
neonates, children with malnutrition, increase in cancer and
respiratory disorder.
AIR POLLUTION:
A) Definition: The introduction of various toxins, chemicals,
biological materials or particulate matters into the
atmosphere.
The atmosphere protects us from
harmful radiations of sun by
forming a blanket and supports
life. The pollutants in the air
cause tremendous health hazards
among all the species on planet
Earth and also damages the
natural environment.
B) Causes Of Air Pollution: There are two major kinds of air
pollution: Natural and Artificial i.e. man made.
139 140
Pic from Open source
Common Problem at Home: Drinking water pool and swimming
pool water.
Point -Source pollution : When water pollution is from a single
source, for example an oil spill.
Non point-source pollution: If the pollution comes from many
sources.
Trans boundary pollution: When the pollution may affect the
environment hundreds of miles away from the source, for example
nuclear waste, burning of oil wells during war.
Effects Of Water Pollution: Surface water gets polluted that leads
to oxygen depletion. Ground water gets depleted reducing the bio
diversity and thus the nutrients present in it. Microbiological
pollution leads to the depletion of microbiological feed of fishes
thus reducing their number.
Another major cause of water pollution is chemical waste coming
out from factories.
Other miscellaneous sources of Air Pollution:
Various other factors such as wind erosion, pollen dispersal,
burning of fossil fuels and gases emitted from radioactive decay
from inside the earth's crust also contribute to air pollution.
2. Land Pollution:3
Activities like littering, improper industrial waste disposal,
agriculture-generated wastes, oil refineries, mining and human
sewage are the major sources of land pollution. It is a hideous site to
see land pollution and not only this, it is has adverse effects on
human health, wildlife and the ecosystem. Toxic substances may
seep into water bodies and cause groundwater pollution.
3) Water Pollution: The various sources of water pollution are :
Marine dumping , sewage and waste water, like industrial
waste, plastic bags disposed in the water , Radioactive waste ,
Oil pollution , underground storage leakages, atmospheric
deposition , global warming and eutrophication .
141 142
Avoid littering: Excessive littering is one of most common reasons
for land pollution.
Spread a word: Initiative should be taken to spread a word to as
many people as you can about the harmful effects of littering.
Organic wastes must be disposed off in the areas that are far from
human or animal habitation. Waste like plastic, metals, glass and
paper must be recycled and reused.
Improve fertility: Land fertility may be improved by reforesting.
Soil in forested lands is far more fertile than soil without trees,
suggesting that trees have the ability to fertilize land.
Dumping of the Waste: The land far away from natural
environments should be utilised to dump wastes that cannot be
disposed off and are essential to industrial processes.
4. Solid waste: It comes from hospitals like syringes, tubes, and
apparatus. The e-waste comes from discarding of mobiles,
electronic gadgets and other non disposable e- waste.
A number of countries have made a move to reduce the ever
increasing environmental problems by forming meaningful
legislation. Yet global climate change, rapidly decreasing
biodiversity and growing extinction rates, dwindling resources,
deforestation, worldwide over fishing, and pollution still remain a
challenge and a serious threat to the environment.
Environmental issues are closely linked to human rights, animal
protection, and economic and political issues. For example,
starting polluting industries in poor neighborhoods is both an
environmental and social justice issue. Another, global issue is the
burning of fossil fuels which leads to pollution, acid rain, and
climate change. These problems, in turn, lead to poor human health
and increase in weather-related disasters. Natural resources
ownership by multinational corporations, e.g. water, causes
shortages for humans and animals alike and contributes to
poverty. Spreading of urban boundaries leads to decreased
biodiversity and habitat which in turn, increases competition for
Prevention of Water from Pollution:
lConserve water by turning off the tap when running water is
not necessary. This helps prevent water shortages and reduces
the amount of contaminated water that needs treatment.
lBe careful about what you throw down your sink or toilet.
Don't throw paints, oils or other forms of litter down the drain.
lUse environmental freindly household products, such as
washing powder, household cleaning agents and toiletries.
lTake great care not to overuse pesticides and fertilizers. This
will prevent runoffs of the material into nearby water sources.
lBy having more plants in your garden you are preventing
fertilizer, pesticides and contaminated water from running off
into nearby water sources.
lDon't throw litter into rivers, lakes or oceans. Help clean up
any litter you see on the beaches or in rivers and lakes, make
sure it is safe to collect the litter and put it in a nearby dustbin.
Instructions:
Prevention Of Land Pollution:
Reduce toxic materials: While disposing waste ensure that it has
minimum toxic waste materials. This can be done by treating the
waste materials with various chemicals to make them less toxic.
Once the waste is treated, it can be disposed of using sensible
methods. Harmful chemicals can also be replaced with less toxic,
biodegradable materials.
Recycle waste materials: Reduce garbage as it requires land fills,
which takes up large amounts of land.
Buy organics products: Organics products are friendly to the
environment as they are biodegradable for example, organic
cleaners, pesticides, insecticides and fertilizers.
143 144
treatment operations, lack of flood control and monsoon water
drainage system, diversion of consumer waste into the rivers,
cremation practices near major rivers, highly polluting old public
transport, and continued operation by the Indian government of
government owned, high emission plants built between 1950 to
1980.
India's water supply and sanitation issues are inextricably linked to
many environmental issues. Environmental issues are one of the
primary causes of disease, health issues and long term livelihood
impact for India.
Sustainable growth: Man paid no heed while destroying the niche
of the native people, who thrived on the natural resources. He even
denigrated the natural resources and restricted the geographical
space of the animals; His innovations have resulted in massive
break down of the system and also of the blue planet the Earth. The
recent times have started to show the impact of such negative
growth by taking man in his loop of destruction by indirectly
affecting him. Man should have had a plan for maintenance but
now is on the run for break down maintenance because of his over
indulgence and negligent attitude towards environment and
sustainable growth.
Summits such as the Earth Summit in Rio, Brazil, 1992, were major
international meetings that brought sustainable development to the
mainstream. However, the record on moving towards
sustainability, so far appears to have been quite poor since the
concept of sustainability has many different meanings to different
people, and a large part of humanity around the world still live
without access to basic necessities.
Graph from open source
limited space and resources. All of us depend on the natural
resources for our survival, so every environmental issue becomes
4
an issue for both humans and even of animals.
Humane Education invites people to explore more complex and
far-reaching solutions to these either/or scenarios. Environmental
concerns are frequently pitted against human rights, inhibiting the
search for solutions that benefit both people and the natural world.
For example, we are given to choose between loggers and owls, as
if there is no way to protect jobs and other species. And species
viability is often pitted against individual animals, so that we
choose between trapping and killing certain animals to protect an
ecosystem.
Pic. From open source
Challenges Being faced by India: Major environmental issues are
forest and agricultural degradation of land, resource depletion
(water, mineral, forest, sand, rocks etc.) environmental
degradation, public health, loss of biodiversity loss of resilience
in ecosystems, livelihood security for the poor.
India must wake up to face the challenges to control the pollutants
coming from the rampant burning of fuel wood and biomass such
as dried waste from livestock as the primary source of energy . Poor
organized garbage and waste removal services, poor sewage
145 146
Conclusion:
Sustainable growth can salvage us from the denigration of the
earth. Every individual should become responsible and take steps
to reduce carbon footprints. Innovation and research before its
implementation should focus first on the negative impact that it will
have on the environment, the people and the animals and
biodiversity.
References :
"The Mahabharata (Electronic text)". Bhandarkar Oriental
Research Institute, Pune. 1999.
http://bombay.indology.info/mahabharata/statement.html
Vyas Ved, The Bhagwad Geeta, Geeta Press Gorakhpur, UP ,
sambadh 2010.
1. Major Causes of Air Pollution | eHow.com
http://www.ehow.com/about_5100731_major-causes-air-
pollution.html#ixzz28bvX19lD
2. Major Sources of Land Pollution | eHow.com
http://www.ehow.com/list_6184255_major-sources-land-
pollution.html#ixzz28bv9IdNc
3. http// e.n.Wikipedia.org// wiki /environmental issues in India.
4. globalissues.org
? I will put a water saving device in my toilet cistern.
? I will turn off the tap when I brush my teeth.
? I will use rechargeable batteries.
? I will take a five minute shower not a bath.
? I will use a 'bag for life' instead of plastic for shopping.
? I will dry my clothes in sun rather than in the tumble
dryer.
? I will boil only the water I need, rather than filling the
kettle every time.
? I will do car pooling to work with a colleague.
? I will use cycle for places close to my house.
? I will move in public transport as far as possible.
? I will use a climate payback scheme to reduce the
impact of my air travel.
? I will organize or volunteer an environmental project
in my Community.
? I will use both sides of the paper.
? I will think twice before printing the paper.
? I will use natural light and try using solar light.
? I will make use of Air conditioner less.
? I will replace my electronic gadgets only when I think
they are so outdated that no more I can use them.
REResolution :
147 148
Dust to Gold A Remedy for Mahagenco Power Plant
Dr. Neelam Tikkha, MMV, RTMNU,
CEO Confidence Foundation
[email protected], [email protected]
Cell: + 91-9422145467
Winner of British Council's award for Anecdote writing.
Keywords-Fly ash; environmental hazards; thermal power
plants, Fly ash utilization, Aluminum recycling, concrete,
chemical and physical analyses
Introduction:
Industrialization is a symbol of growth and development
worldwide. The mammoth of industrialization is so dynamic, that it
appears, as if we are riding a mythological chariot of sun God. But,
as far as sustainable growth is concerned, it is getting crushed under
the wheels of this chariot. The grey clouds are looming large on the
planet we live in. There are dark and gloomy footprints being
created on the mother Earth.
The foremost, disadvantage of this ill effect is the production of
large quantities of industrial wastes and the problems related to its
management and safe disposal. Another, major issue is the scarcity
of land, materials and resources required for ongoing
developmental activities, including infrastructure. Fly ash is one
such baby of industrialization. This has resulted in news papers
round the globe, sometime or the other, flashing with one news -
1
Coal Ash Cloud Looms Large Over China
Definition:
Fly ash is a superfine, powdery by product of burning coal for
electricity. It can contain heavy metals such as arsenic, lead and
mercury, which pose risks to the environment. (Bill Tiernan | The
Virginian-Pilot)
Reasons for Mass Production of Fly Ash:
There is abundance of coal production all over the world. China has
the largest reserve ie. 3,520.0 million Of tons. The United States
alone sits on a quarter of the world reserves which is 922.8 millions
of tons. India ranks third in coal production with 588.5 millions of
tons, making it a cheap and abundant energy source. Coal provides
more than half of the nation's electricity and will continue to be the
fuel of choice for generating power.
But as demand increases, there is proportionate increase in the
byproducts from burning coal. Millions of tons of "fly ash" - a
powdery substance laced with heavy metals such as arsenic,
mercury and lead - have piled up in the landfills. For power
companies, these are costly disposal options, because the fly ash
placed there must be treated as a potentially toxic industrial waste.
2
Mahagenco plant at Koradi near Nagpur in India is one such
example that is excreting toxic fly ash in Kanhan river which is a
life line for people around Kanhan river.
Similarly, in The US, the government has given coal industry a free
ride on the fly ash disposal and also to the municipal solid waste
incineration sector. Tons of garbage is burned down using coal as a
fuel supplement and the fly ash remnant as landfill cover. This is
being allowed despite concerns that the same heavy metals
(arsenic, lead, and aluminum) could contaminate groundwater and
soils in the vicinity of landfills. Similar, is the state of affairs in
India, China and other countries. It is a sorry state of affairs that ,
sustainable use of natural resources has not been the principal
focus around the globe, and our attempts to deal with our waste
products have emphasized preference for convenience over
environmental responsibility. We need to think to save our mother
earth. Coal-power producers and environmental regulators need to
form a partnership, trying to figure out a cheap and safe way to
dispose of the residue.
Laws and Legislation of Disposal of Fly ash:
The problem of fly ash disposal has acquired a mammoth status that
the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MOEF) issued a
149 150
regulation on 14 September, 1999, specifying normative levels for
progressive utilization of fly ash. According to the regulation, it is
mandatory for the existing (old) and new coal based thermal power
plants to utilize 100% of the fly ash produced in a stipulated time
horizon. The new coal thermal power plants are required to use
100% of the fly ash produced within nine years of commencing
operation. The old power plants, however, are required to achieve
100% fly ash utilization goal within 15 years from the date of issue
of the regulation.
Problems Caused by Fly Ash:
i) Problems in The US: With nearly 20 major coal-fired power
plants in Virginia, the disposal of coal ash had become a
problem. It was dumped in pits, old mines or landfills. In York
County, fly ash placed in abandoned sand and gravel mines
between 1957 and 1974 polluted groundwater, and the dump
site later gained Superfund status."Water in the adjacent
residential wells actually turned green," according to a
National Research Council study requested by Congress.
(ii) Problem In India : The drop in temperature has made life
difficult for people staying around Koradi and Khaparkheda
power plants as thick layers of fly-ash gets deposited on their
farms and houses. Persons with respiratory ailments find it
difficult to breathe. Farmers are the worst affected as they
suffer financial loss too. A lot of them grow vegetables in the
fields near the power plant. The produce does not fetch enough
price as repeated fly-ash deposition has affected the quality
adversely. Mahagenco plant is ruthlessly flouting the norms.
Maharashtra Pollution and Control Board (MPCB) knows
about it but has failed to do anything.
There were more disastrous effects noticed two years ago,
when a sudden increase in fly-ash emission from Koradi plant
had caused widespread damage to crops in many villages. A
joint survey was done by Mahagenco and agriculture
department officials. Lonkhairi village was one of the worst
affected villages. Sarpanch of this village stated that;"Crops in
150 acre near the village was damaged badly. The survey
officials had agreed to provide compensation at Rs25,000 per
acre but even after two years we are yet to get a single penny.
Providing compensation is not the correct solution. A company
still carries a stigma of being socially, environmentaly callous.
Mahagenco power plant is doing the same thing. It is also
acquiring a status of irresponsible and unsustainable growth.
The negative image will threaten its survival.
Sheshrao Anjankar, who owns eight acres, said the agricultural
output has gone down sharply due to heavy fly-ash emissions.
"Some 25 years ago, there were orange orchards in 100 acres.
Now, only they remain on five acres and the owners are
thinking of chopping down the trees as the number of fruits has
reduced sharply." Many villagers who had consumed
vegetables grown in this area have developed chronic ailments
and respiratory disorder. Teak plants have also suffered the
damage due to heavy ash deposition on the leaves."The
suburban areas of the city close to the plants have also been
affected by the pollutants. The fly-ash in Godhani an area in the
151 152
suburb of Nagpur has also been facing severe problems, since
the plants have stopped flowering and have started to wilt.
Piped water supply is not available in the area and people are
solely dependent on wells. But, this water will soon become
unfit for drinking.
Stop, look, listen, before you go to dispose of this kind of
waste, lest we'll look back and we'll say, you know, we had all
the warning signs to put some kind of regime in place and we
didn't take advantage of it.
The Effects of the Uncontrolled Use of Fly ash:
The effects of Fly ash are well documented on air and groundwater.
Cases involving fly-ash contamination of groundwater have been
cited in Indiana, Maryland, Montana, Wisconsin and Virginia. The
constituents in fly ash can vary widely and can soil conditions like
hydrology and other environmental factors. Every fly-ash disposal
site presents a unique puzzle. To see one coal-waste site is not to see
them all, but only the one you're looking at. Burke, the Johns
Hopkins professor, told the recent congressional panel. "You need
to have the tools to be able to evaluate them...The Battlefield Golf
Club at Centerville was sculpted from fly ash that Dominion
Virginia Power paid to have trucked from its Chesapeake Energy
Center. The deal was signed for an initial fee of about $4.50
perIntroduction: It is believed that high levels of IQ, that is
intelligence quotient, may give you an interview but high levels of
EQ , emotional quotient, will reward you with a job and life long
altitude. But, It is a sad reality that Education curricula in India and
other developing countries lay more emphasis on the development
of ( IQ) but do not focus on developing Emotional quotient (EQ ) .
Emotional quotient ton for the fly ash to be placed on the golf
course. At that rate, the deal would have cost the utility nearly $7
million.
"It is his opinion that levels of constituents of concern are high,"
wrote City Manager William E. Harrell, in a July 16 letter to the
EPA. "Further, high levels of vanadium were detected in the
groundwater recovered from the monitoring wells. It is the opinion
of our fly ash expert that vanadium is an element associated with
and found in fly ash."
The levels of other contaminants - arsenic, lead, manganese and
chromium - also were high, exceeding municipal drinking water
standards. The 217-acre golf course is among the largest known
fly-ash projects in the state of Virginia - bigger than Dominion's
regulated fly-ash landfill in Deep Creek, which has about 1.1
million tons of ash. The ash placed there was mixed with a binding
agent, either cement kiln dust or lime kiln dust that prevents
leaching
Dominion's Chesapeake plant no longer has a need to landfill the
fly ash it generates. An on-site vendor further processes virtually all
of the fly ash and markets it to regional companies that use it to
make concrete products.
This year, the company has won two environmental awards, one
from Gov. Timothy M. Kaine and another from the EPA.
The Chesapeake City Council unanimously approved the
Battlefield Golf Club project in June 2001 and, in April, after a
Solution to Fly ash Menace in The US:
Recycling of fly ash through "beneficial uses," should be
encouraged. The US has started various uses of fly ash, ranging
from concrete block and wallboard manufacturing to a variety of
in-ground, structural fill uses that include such local projects as
Norfolk's Harbor Park baseball stadium and embankments on parts
of the Chesapeake Expressway and the Southwest Suffolk Bypass.
Battlefield Golf Club at Centerville, a course in Chesapeake built
with 1.5 million tons of fly ash is the biggest of them all - one of the
largest ash reuse projects of its kind in the nation.
Agglite Corp, conducted an operation on the grounds of
Dominion's coal-fired power plant, in the city, in the year 1993. The
company used fly ash generated at Dominion's operation, where it
was mixed with cement. Agglite started a massive project of using
153 154
fly ash in place of dirt for fill projects. In the early 1990s, Virginia
regulators were forced for changes in the state's solid-waste
regulations that would allow beneficial uses of fly ash in
construction projects.
These regulations supported Chesapeake golf course project which
eventually moved forward. Agglite was then involved in plethora
of beneficial-use fly-ash projects in Hampton Roads, including
Harbor Park, Tidewater Community College's Virginia Beach
campus, Portsmouth Naval Hospital, a stretch of Providence Road
in Chesapeake and DEQ's offices in Virginia Beach.
Solution to Fly Ash Menace in India:
Utilization of fly ash has become very popular in various
construction and waste solidification and stabilization process for
example, approach embankment for the second Nizamuddin
Bridge at Delhi was made from fly ash which became operative for
traffic flow in the year 1998.The use of fly ash in this project alone
saved Rs.1.00 crore approximately.
Photo of second Nizamuddin Bridge approach embankment. ( Pic.
Sudhir Mathur, Chief scientist , CRRI N.Delhi)
Compaction of Pond Ash ( Pic. Sudhir Mathur, Chief scientist,
CRRI N.Delhi)
Another, example of use of pond ash for road embankment in India
is that of four-lane work on NH-6, Dankuni to Kolaghat, Km 17 to
72, West Bengal. A number of new projects are coming up in India
like Okhala approach embankment in New Delhi, Sarita Vihar
reinforced flyover approach embankment at Greater NOIDA
express highway, Hanuman Setu Flyover Approach Embankment
made from geo grid reinforcement.
(Four-lane work on NH-6, Dankuni to Kolaghat, Km 17 to 72, West Bengal)
155 156
Picture - Okhla Flyover Approach Embankment. Erection of facing
panels. ( Pic. Sudhir Mathur, Chief scientist, CRRI N.Delhi)
Hanuman Setu Flyover Approach Embankment ( Pic. Sudhir
Mathur, Chief scientist, CRRI N.Delhi)
Geo Grid reinforced fly ash projects.
In India bricks are also being manufactured from fly ash. Fly ash is
being converted into bricks. Another use of fly ash could be in
making cement .Cement industry has huge capacity to absorb
voluminous amount of fly ash.
The picture below gives the machines used to convert fly ash into
bricks:
Minimum requirement for making Bricks from Fly ash is as
follows:
lFLYASH - 30%
lCEMENT-5-7%
lGYPSUM-1%
SAND OR CRUSHER DUST BALANCE
157 158
lBELT CONVEYOR TO CONVEY THE
RAW MATERIALS FROM PAN
MIXTURE TO BRICK
MAKING MACHINE WITH 2 Hp
MOTOR AND FEEDER BIN
HYDRAULIC PALLET TRUCK -3No X Rs.
33000(CAPACITY 500 Kg)
WHEEL BARROW -THREE WHEEL
TILTING-4No (CAPACITY 250 Kg)
Conclusion:
In fine, it is highly essential to control the menace of Fly ash since it
can create a lot of problems. It has highly disastrous impact on
human being and plants alike. If norms are flouted it may even
bring about criminal action. And if Fly ash is widely used and
disposed it is like gold. The cement industry should be partnered
with, since cement can be manufactured utilizing a large volume of
fly ash. But, the only impediment that might come in the way would
be the addition of transport cost from power plant to cement
factory.
Notes
[1] Reuters ,EDT by Meng Si, chinadialogue, Coal Ash Cloud
Looms Large Over China, Sun Oct 3, 2010 8:41am.
[2] Roy Ashish, Times Of India, IT Increased Pollution by
Power Plants puts villagers at risk, Ashish Roy TNN Dec
29, 2012, 12.50AM IST
(C) Copyrights Confidence Foundation International Publishers.
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159 160
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161 162
SOFT SKILLS FOR THE GEN Y
Professor, Neelam . G. Tikkha
Affiliation : MMV, RTM Nagpur University
Corporate trainer for MNC's
WTC , HUL, HPCL, ONGC and Mercedez
Prof. Dr. Neelam Tikkha
ABSTRACT
The world is shrinking day by day and the products are moving
great miles . It has become very essential to understand cultural
differences. Moreover, the demand of the day is increasing and the
world is becoming more and more competitive. Corporate houses
prefer people with good soft skills since they would have a good
team that would lead them to progress.
It is believed that high levels of IQ, that is intelligence quotient,
may give you an interview but high levels of EQ , emotional
quotient, will reward you with a job and life long altitude. But, It is a
sad reality that Education curricula in India and other developing
countries lay more emphasis on the development of (IQ) but do not
focus on developing Emotional quotient (EQ) . Emotional quotient
relates with the development of soft skills. The world is becoming
global and piercingly competitive every year. To have a competitive
edge, one needs to have an edge over others by having
interpersonal skills.
Interpersonal skills are very important, since an individual may be
a good worker, but may not be a group worker, and the demand of
the day is group worker. The real growth of the organization takes
place, only when a person is able to work in a group. These
interpersonal skills which help to function in a group are termed as
Soft skills.
Paper
SOFT SKILLS FOR THE GEN Y
Introduction: It is believed that high levels of IQ, that is
intelligence quotient, may give you an interview but high levels of
EQ , emotional quotient, will reward you with a job and life long
altitude. But, It is a sad reality that Education curricula in India and
other developing countries lay more emphasis on the development
of ( IQ) but do not focus on developing Emotional quotient (EQ ) .
Emotional quotient relates with the development of soft skills. The
world is becoming global and piercingly competitive every year. To
have a competitive edge one needs to have an edge over others by
having interpersonal skills.
Interpersonal skills are very important since individual may be a
good worker but may not be a group worker and the demand of the
day is group worker, because real growth of the organization takes
place only when a person is able to work in a group. These
interpersonal skills which help to function in a group are termed as
Soft skills.
Definitions: A look into Wikipedia's definition, of soft skills, will
lucidly explicate the meaning and the use of the term in modern
sense:
soft skills as a sociological term relating to a
person's "EQ" (Emotional Intelligence Quotient),
the cluster of personality traits, social graces,
communication, language, personal habits,
friendliness, and optimism that characterize
[1]
relationships with other people. Soft skills
complement hard skills (part of a person's IQ),
which are the occupational requirements of a job
and many other activities. 1
Another elaborate definition has been given by Mohan Rao,2 a
technical director with Emmellen Biotech Pharmaceuticals Ltd,
Mumbai [Images] defines a 'good attitude: "It is a behavioural skill,
which cannot be taught. However it can be developed through
continuous training. It represents the reactive nature of the
individual and is about looking at things with the right perspective.
163 164
You must be ready to solve problems proactively and create win-
win situations. And you must be able to take ownership that is the
responsibility for your actions and lead from the front without
calling it quits at the most critical moment."
Hence, it is observed that, a number of CEO's and human resource
managers prefer to hire people with high levels of soft skills and
train them for the specific jobs that are available. They are looking
for learning to learn . They are also looking for competence in
listening, reading, writing and computing skills. According to the
Managers and CEO's, hard-skills do not matter much, at the time of
the interview, since the ever-changing impact of the technology has
given the workers , a short shelf life as far as hard-skills are
concerned.
It is easy to find people with hard skills that have the capability to
operate machinery or fulfill other tasks but there is a scarcity of
people with soft skills, which are highly required by the most
companies as has already been mentioned that in India and other
developing countries, 'soft skills' training has become even more
important since the education system does not include personality
development or any of the soft skills required for future jobs,
anywhere in its stream of academic curricula. Corporate houses
invest a lot of money on soft skills training in order to groom their
employees to help them develop interpersonal skills so that they
can present themselves in a better manner and improve their
performance.
A survey was conducted by the Workforce Profile, (source:
www.workforce.com) , who concluded in to believing that , the
more valuable is the employee , who can grow and learn as the
business changes. 3
Soft skills "are as important, if not more important, than traditional
hard skills to an employer looking to hire -- regardless of industry
or job type. This could offer a major breakthrough as educators and
training providers seek to develop and cluster training courses to fit
business and industry needs."4
Top 60 soft skills
The Workforce Profile defined about 60 "soft skills", which
employers seek. They are applicable to any field of work,
according to the study, and are the "personal traits and skills
that employers state are the most important when selecting
employees for jobs of any type." 5
1. Math.
2. Safety.
3. Courtesy.
4. Honesty.
5. Grammar.
6. Reliability.
7. Flexibility.
8. Team skills.
9. Eye contact.
10. Cooperation.
11. Adaptability.
12. Follow rules.
13. Self-directed.
14. Good attitude.
15. Writing skills.
16. Driver's license.
17. Dependability.
18. Advanced math.
19. Self-supervising.
20. Good references.
21. Being drug free.
22. Good attendance.
23. Personal energy.
24. Work experience.
25. Ability to measure.
26. Personal integrity.
27. Good work history.
28. Positive work ethic.
165 166
29. Interpersonal skills.
30. Motivational skills.
31. Valuing education.
32. Personal chemistry.
33. Willingness to learn.
34. Common sense.
35. Critical thinking skills.
36. Knowledge of fractions.
37. Reporting to work on time.
38. Use of rulers and calculators.
39. Good personal appearance.
40. Wanting to do a good job.
41. Basic spelling and grammar.
42. Reading and comprehension.
43. Ability to follow regulations.
44. Willingness to be accountable.
45. Ability to fill out a job application.
46. Ability to make production quotas.
47. Basic manufacturing skills training.
48. Awareness of how business works.
49. Staying on the job until it is finished.
50. Ability to read and follow instructions.
51. Willingness to work second and third shifts.
52. Caring about seeing the company succeed.
53. Understanding what the world is all about.
54. Ability to listen and document what you have heard.
55. Commitment to continued training and learning.
56. Willingness to take instruction and responsibility.
57. Ability to relate to coworkers in a close environment.
58. Not expecting to become a supervisor in the first six
months.
59. Willingness to be a good worker and go beyond the
traditional eight-hour day.
60. Communication skills with public, fellow employees,
supervisors, and customers.
167 168
According to me some more could be added to this exhaustive
list like
Negotiation Skills
Tackling Mercurial Mavericks Adapting to Change
Mentoring
Ability to lead through precepts
Walk the talk
Willingness to take initiative in community work
Being responsible for creating good image of organization in
the community and society at large.
Willing to change attitude and approach.
Technical competence
Computing competence
Ability to undertake learning all life
Good interpersonal skills both transmitting and receiving
information.
Working with multilingual teams.
Interdisciplinary knowledge and ability to work with such
teams
Ability to work with multilingual teams
Thinking laterally and creatively
Flexibility to tackle and solve wide ranging ill defined
problems
Ability to interact with other discipline and cultures should be
well developed.
Problem solving based learning ability.
Empathy
But, The most important one is communication,
communication and communication.
The following case studies will illustrate the importance of
soft skills:
Case Study : 1
A teacher's handbook was bought from Flipkart .com . Before
making a purchase a clear cut information was given on phone by a
very helpful executive. But seller and purchaser both did not realize
that book is useless without students book. When the customer
mentioned this problem, Flipkart immediately refunded the money
along with postal charges on the return of book.
This case reflects a helpful approach, good communication skill
and empathy which is very essential in furthering the business and
retention of old customers.
Case Study :2
An individual paid for hotel booking through ICICI credit card. The
individual was overcharged because of some technical error at the
website .The matter was reported to the Credit Card department .
An executive from the department said , Don't worry even if the
payment has been done we would support you and take up the case
for you and immediately interim cash was credited to the account.
Without any reminders things were done. It had built up an image of
the service provider and it also helped in giving confidence to use
the card more.
The above mentioned case reflects very powerful communication
skill and empathy.
Case Study : 3
An individual escalated the complaint to the MD of ICICI Lombard
and the case was directed to the executive and the executive replies
that since the file has been closed now whenever you meet with
another accident then I will get the repairs done that have not been
done this time. And further, there are mails being sent again and
again, that ask for same information.
Case study : 4
O General's inverter Ac was a total failure in 49 C temperature in
Nagpur but the service engineer kept on forcing the customer to
believe that it is perfectly OK. The customer was not satisfied but
still service engineer was forceful and kept on insisting. He was
over confident about his product and would remark My company
is so big that if one or two customers are not satisfied with our
product than that would not harm my companies image or profit.
After a lot of experiments at the cost of the customer the product
was taken back after deduction of INR 6500/= The customer care
was also too irresponsible
Another major attitude, that company employees reflected, was
that they would neither respond to the mails nor phone calls and
throughout the organization from top to bottom, same work culture
was reflected.
This case reflects that empathy and good attitude are missing out
and Communication Skills are poor. The company has ruined its
image by tackling the issue pathetically.
When the company spends so much money on the advertisements
why does it not spend money and a little thought on tackling with
the customers?
The Smyth County Industry Council, a governing body based in
the US, conducted a survey recently. The results of the survey was
called the Workforce Profile which found "an across-the-board
unanimous profile of skills and characteristics needed to make a
good employee."
169 170
Any organization with its good intentions of helping customers will
fail to get the desired results even with highly effective catch lines
like Khayal Apka if people on the lower rung are not educated
enough for soft skills.
What we find missing in this case was empathy and
Communication Skills.
The most common traits, mentioned by virtually every employer,
were:
~ Positive work ethic.
~ Good attitude.
~ Desire to learn and be trained. 6
CONCLUSION:
In fine, it takes time for soft skills to sink into one's behavior pattern
and hence the soft skills training must be given at school and
college level so that when an individual takes up any job , he will
be able to take up responsibilities effectively at later stages.
Notes and References:
1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emotional_Intelligence_Quotient
2. http://www.selfgrowth.com/articles/the_hard_truth_about_
softskills.html
3. http://www.rediff.com/getahead/2007/jan/08soft.htm
4. http://www. educationalservice. net/education/education-
001/ese20090534_soft-skills.php
5. http://www.rediff.com/getahead/2007/jan/08soft.htm
References
http://www.selfgrowth.com/articles/the_hard_truth_about_softsk
ills.html
www.eiconsortium.org/pdf/emotional_competence_framework.p
df
www.visionrealization.com/Resources/.../Emotional_intelligence
.pdf
etd.uasd.edu/ft/th9629.pdf
http://bookboon.com/en/business-ebooks/personal-development
Bibliography
Ivey Andrew, Time To Market, bookboon.com, e-book, 2010.
Goleman Daniel, Emotional Intelligence, Bentam Books, New
York,1995.
171 172
st
Soft Skills@21 Century
Kurapati Malati Latha
Associate Professor
J.b.i.e.t (joginapally Bhaskara Institute
Of Engineering & Technology)
Moinabad, Yenkapally Hyderabad, India
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 9652114711
Abstract
To be productive contributors to society in our 21st century
students need to be able to quickly learn the core content of a field
of knowledge while also mastering a broad portfolio of essentials
in learning, innovation, technology and career skills needed for
work and life. Teachers need to move away from traditional method
of teaching and bring into the classroom new and innovating
approaches to teach the content and life long skills.
Soft skills is a sociological term relating to person's "EQ"
Emotional Intelligence Quotient. Soft skills complement hard skills
which are the occupational requirements of job and many other
activities. Soft skills have a lot to do with career opportunities
development. Soft skills refer to abilities that make people better
employees and open doors to opportunities. With campus
recruitments underway in several Engineering Colleges across the
state, one of the key criterion for selection of students by IT firms is
based on their Soft Skills, which include communication skills,
personal effectiveness and problem solving ability. Several
leaders from the IT industry have repeatedly mentioned that there is
a huge gap between the requirements of corporate sector and
quality of students churned out from Engineering Colleges.
Job seekers with the necessary academic qualifications and
experiences are aplenty. But are ideal job seeker with
complimentary soft skills is almost like finding a needy in a hays.
So, soft skills are identified to be the most critical skills in the
current global job market. Vast research and expert opinions have
been sought in the effort to determine the specific soft skills to be
implemented and used in higher institutions of learning. So
teachers need to prepare students for the jobs that have not yet been
created, and for the new skills to build towards creativity and
innovation.
Key words: Leadership qualities, Decision making ,
Conflict management, Creative thinking , Time
management etc.
Soft skills is a sociological term relating to person's "EQ"
Emotional Intelligence Quotient, the cluster of personality traits,
social graces, communications language personal habits,
friendliness and optimism that characterize relationship with other
people. Soft skills complement hard skills (part of a person's IQ)
which are the occupational requirements of job and many other
activities. Soft skills have a lot to do with career opportunities
development. Soft skills refer to abilities that make people better
employees and open doors to opportunities
With campus recruitments underway in several Engineering
Colleges across the state, one of the key criterion for selection of
students by IT firms is based on their Soft Skills, which include
communication skills personal effectiveness and problem solving
abilities.
Several leaders from the IT industry have repeatedly mentioned
that there is a huge gap between the requirements of corporate
sector and quality of students churned out from Engineering
Colleges.
Job seekers with the necessary academic qualifications and
experiences are aplenty. But are ideal job seeker with
complimentary soft skills is almost like finding a needy in a hays.
So, soft skills are identified to be the most critical skills in the
current global job market, especially in past moved era of
173 174
technology. Vast research and expert opinions have been sought in
the effort to determine the specific soft skills to be implemented and
used in higher institutions of learning. Where as hard skills refer to
things such as academic qualifications and set ability to perform a
certain type of task or activity. Hard skills will get an interview but
you need soft skills to get the job.
Soft skills have a lot to do with career opportunities development
and refer to abilities that make people better employees. A person's
soft skill 'EQ' is an important part of their individual contribution to
the success of an organization. Particularly those organizations
dealing with customers face to face are generally more successful if
they train their staff to use these skills. For this reason soft skills 'are
increasingly sought out by employers in addition to standard
qualifications. .
It has been suggested that in a number of professions, soft skills
may be more important over long term than other skills. For
example, the legal profession is one where the ability to deal with
people effectively and politely more than their occupational skills
can determine the professional success of a lawyer. Based on
research findings obtained soft skills are
Contents of soft skills:
1. Conflict Management
2. Creative thinking
3. Decision making
4. Goal setting
5. Interpersonal skills
6. Problem solving
7. Team building
8. Leadership qualities
9. Time Management qualities
10. Motivating Others
11. Teach and guide others
12. Active listening
13. Coach others
14. Provide services
16. Behavioral skills
Conflict Management:
Negotiation intended to produce an argument for the right reasons
and that can be learned or mastered. A conflict situation is one in
which there is a clash of interests. A competent and sensible
individual should be able to take conflict situation in his stride and
resolve them. All conflicting situations need not be negative or
destructive.
Creative Thinking:
Creativity is mental process involving the generation of new ideas
or concepts.
Techniques for creative thinking:
i) Analogical thinking
ii) .Brainstorming
iii) Attribute listening
iv) Mind mapping
Decision Making:
It can be defined as a wise choice made between various
alternatives.
Kinds of decisions:
a) Simple decisions
b) Strategic decisions
c) Tactical decisions
d) Operational decisions.
Goal setting:
For the development of professional organizations or institutions
motto have to be there.
1) Visualization
2) Ideal Personality
3) Evaluation of aspirations are the functions of goal setting.
175 176
Time Management:
1. Planning the day
2. Importance of managing time
3. set a schedule
4. Preparing a weekly schedule
5. Action Plan
6. Important points about priorities.
Leadership skills
The ability to lead in various activities and tasks. This is an
important criteria for planning and implementing ideas in a group.
This skill is also important to lead in discussion and make decision.
Interpersonal skills:
Basic features of relationships:
1. Attitude towards others in relationships
2. The requisite of social skills including interpersonal
communication.
3. Trust is the key element in maintaining the relationships.
To obtain these soft skills ,students can develop many kinds of
activities. The most common activities include Organization of
events, Internship in Enterprises, development of Software or
Websites to customers, Sports, Cultural activities in order to
develop different skills. Internships provide invaluable soft skills .
Internships are unique opportunity that you will never again
encounter through out the career, Ideally our internship will
provide with work experience.
All internships teach students soft skills and every employer is
looking for soft skills. This internship useful for students to leave a
bit wiser, more mature, more confident, and a better candidate.
Benefits Of These Internships & Corporate Training.
1. Students can understand how rigid behaviour affects
relationships.
2. Becoming open to different view points.
3. Practicing being assertive while remaining cordial.
4. Understanding how negative attitude affects the team work.
5. Overcoming the feeling of frustration and or anger at the
work place.
6. Developing a positive attitude.
7. Creating a positive impact on their career growth.
8. They can improve their image in the eyes of colleagues and
seniors.'
9. They can enhance self-esteem and by practicing three word
mantra Act, never react, they can develop poise.
Most of the technical fests organized these days, include these
sessions, not only these, in order to touch the technical
development, paper presentation, PowerPoint presentation,
seminars play a very important role. It is always good to involve in
co-curricular activities to cheer-up Engineering lives. Now a days
industries are looking for a person who has both technical skills and
soft skills in-adequate proportional.
Few Companies like., Infosys, TCS, Wipro, BHEL, ECIL etc., are
concentrating on people who have a mixture of both. It is not only
important to maintain distinctions in University Standards, but it is
equally evident to know how to maintain relation with others.
Conclusively, in order to meet the requirements to combat the
competition, many Multinational Companies are switching to this
exercise of selections. Technical abilities and soft skills design a
person in a well defined manner which market is looking for.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Kurapati Malathi Latha (Ph.D) has been working as English faculty since
last 18 years and presently working as Associate professor of English
department in JBIET (Joginapally Bhaskara Institute of Engineering &
Technology) in Hyderabad . She has published 10 national articles and 12
International online articles, and also attended many workshops and
conferences and presented papers on topics 21st century English skills for
employability and Importance of English in today's world in India and
also having intention to get another doctorate , by doing Ph.D in soft skills
to ful fill the aim of creating placements for B.tech students, by giving soft
skills training, which is very essential in student's career .
177 178
What they don't teach us in college!
Kiran Bableshwar
Affiliations: Consulting Principal, KeyJobSkills India
Former Director (L&D), Saggezza India
Abstract
Employability is a huge issue in India today. While millions of
students pass out every year, there is a wide "skill gap" which exists
due to what colleges teach and what corporate need. There is an
urgent need to bridge this gap if India wants to retain its position as
a promising pool of young talent. This article is an attempt to
capture a real scenario from our hostel almost 20 years back. The
same problem exists even today due to outdated curricula, student
attitudes and corporate expectations.
Time and again we see media reports that India is facing a talent
crunch, while there is no dearth of jobs!
Something is seriously wrong and our youth is paying the price. Let
me go back 20 years.
Year 1992, a motley group of fresh faces with a twinkle in their eyes
entered an NIT (National Institute of Technology-a premier college
for Engineering). The Indian dream had begun. We wanted to have
good marks and a job in our pockets. The economy had just started
to unfold, thanks to the Liberalization initiatives. The IT industry
was already taking some baby steps with Infosys and other
entrepreneurs testing their business ideas.
Come 1996, we all had just a handful of companies visiting us for
Campus drives. Only about 20% must have been placed though.
The rest were left to fend for themselves. This was the scenario for a
good Government college with meritorious students!! We were
scared about what awaited us in the job markets. Strangely, none in
our colleges told us what exactly the companies looked for!
Introduction
First came the cut off marks for eligibility - Are you having less
than 60% average? Do you have backlogs? Sorry, you cannot sit or
the written test.
Next, all we did was write a test paper for an hour, and stood eagerly
outside the placement office to hear our names being announced.
70% were disappointed and told politely Sorry! But All the Best
for your career No feedback, no counseling. Some were
frustrated, some angry and some heartbroken.
How is the scenario different today? Circa 2013 I reminisced
about those times and checked back with my batch mates, over a
few drinks one Friday.
Yaar! How are you doing? Kya kar rahe ho aaj kal? (what are you
doing nowadays?)
Arrey! I am with the top ERP Company, doing fine, making about
50 Lakhs a year
Accha, how about you?
Just became the COO for a start-up, aur tu (how about you)?
I had enough of working for somebody, so opened my own
company! I want to enjoy what I like doing
So what was wrong with these guys in the first place?? Everyone is
well placed; they are financially and professionally just fine
maybe belonging to the top 2% of the upper class population
paying Taxes.
You get the picture India has enough talent, what is needed is
unlocking it. Every year, about 6 Lakh Engineers graduate from a
plethora of colleges that have mushroomed in every nook and
corner of this great country. For onece, our population is a boon
waiting to be harnessed.
But unfortunately, when I visited colleges last year for Campus
drives (now being in HR), I still saw the same issues! Of course,
Companies that visited look for the top talent, others be damned.
Ditto with the colleges too. They still focus on same old outdated
curricula and churn unfit graduates.
Hopefully, I see a ray of light a lot of people from my generation
have realized this skill gap and are taking action. About 10,000
179 180
Tech start ups are venturing in Education sector alone! That too
only in Bangalore. The focus is on many things Assessments,
Employability skills non-technical skills and knowledge
needed to participate effectively in the workforce.
I only wish many Engineering and degree colleges realize this and
start investing in our youth. These are essential skills which prepare
the country to build capacity. The gap is already alarming! Demand
for skilled labour is 11 Million per year and the supply is only 4
Million! By the year 2022, we need about 500 Million skilled
people to satisfy our growth needs!
Typical challenges for the colleges today are lack of motivated
faculty, mediocre infrastructure, old curricula and obsolete
thinking. We need the best in this ecosystem to make a
transformation, to realize that India of our dreams.
It is time our Government, colleges and industry started supporting
these entrepreneurs to achieve this goal.
Notes/References
1. 'India's Demographic Dilemma', by CII & BCG
2. National Employability Report 2012
3. The National Skills Development Commission Report of
March 2009
Author Profile:
Kiran Bableshwar
Has a B.E. degree from NIT, Jaipur and with a M.B.A.in Marketing
from ITM, Bangalore.
He comes with 15+ years of corporate experience across
Marketing, HR in IT, Management Consulting and Manufacturing
verticals.
In his earlier assignments as Director & Asia Pacific Head for
Global companies, he has designed and delivered training
workshops in India, China, Japan and USA for students, Leaders
and companies.
An Entrepreneur at heart, he also actively contributes to student
counseling, Faculty Development, Life skills workshops for kids
and supports NGOs through his passion Palette knife Oil painting
Oh ! Where have my Cindrella and
Red Riding Hood disappeared???
Dr. Neelam Tikkha
Today a reader, tomorrow a leader!
Video games, chatting on social sites have started creating a
magical world that has murdered the magical and mystical world of
Cindrella and Red Riding Hood. Earlier days, the only source of
entertainment was books so people loved to read and turned to
bibliophiles but there is a tremendous decline in the readership of
books since children are hooked to video games, internet social
sites and television.
The children will soon forget the characters like Alice, Red Riding
Hood, Tom and Cindrella. Indian children will lose stories like
Vikramaditya Batisi, Akbar Birbal Ke Kisse and Tales from various
regions. It is high time that rescue work should start by the parents
and the schools to develop reading skills in the children. A great
emphasis has to be laid on making the children realize the
importance of reading since it is a very advantageous exercise.
The foremost advantage that reading provides is that it engages the
mind, and exercises it, much more than any other form of
entertainment . The habit of reading books helps to gain multifold
benefit. It is not only entertaining but also provides with
tremendous information and helps increase the communication
skills. Anthony Robbins, who was rated one of the most intelligent
person on the globe opines:
The quality of your communication determines the Altitude you
will reach.
Peter S. Jennison also comments on the poor communication skills
of the poor because of lack of availability of books. He brings
forth a very poignant difference in rich and poor's communication
skills and its impact on social behavior of the poor.
He says:
The poor and the affluent are not communicating
because they do not have the same words. When
we talk of the millions who are culturally
deprived, we refer not to those who do not have
access to good libraries and bookstores, or to
museums and centers for the performing arts, but
those deprived of the words with which
everything else is built, the words that open doors.
Children without words are licked before they
start. The legion of the young wordless in urban
and rural slums, eight to ten years old, do not know
the meaning of hundreds of words which most
middle-class people assume to be familiar to
much younger children. Most of them have never
seen their parents read a book or a magazine, or
heard words used in other than rudimentary ways
related to physical needs and functions. Thus is
cultural fallout caused, the vicious circle of
ignorance and poverty reinforced and
perpetuated? Children deprived of words become
school dropouts; dropouts deprived of hope
181 182
behave delinquently. Amateur censors blame
delinquency on reading immoral books and
magazines, when in fact, the inability to read
anything is the basic trouble. (Jennison, 26th,
August,2012),
http://www.literacyla.org/quotes.htm
True said , it is highly important to mention about being deprived of
books while mentioning about the social and cultural deprivation
since it is the root cause of all delinquencies and immoral
behaviour.The government and the NGO's should also think of
providing reading experience when trying for other basic needs It is
essential to teach children how to read for their day-to-day survival,
but if we develop a passion to read opens new worlds for the
children. By reading, children can acquire all the knowledge, skills
and values essential for their success in school and in their life.
Ruskin Bond , the famous writer suggests that the parents and the
schools should focus on developing reading skills at junior level.
This is where they build a foundation for reading and gain
command over a language. All good schools, therefore, encourage
reading in a very proactive way, as they realize how it can impact
several other skills a child can develop in the years to come The
parents' role is to further this emphasis in a child's life, and
encourage the child to read as much as he can, and learn to
appreciate and enjoy the habit.
He feels that reading habit helps in following ways:
Broadens the child's horizons: While reading does not make
children more intelligent, what it can do is increase their
imagination, help broaden their outlook towards life and help them
to be more open minded.
Increases the child's awareness: Reading of any kind can add to a
child's knowledge irrespective of the kind of book your child is
reading. Yes, even a comic book! It can also help the child become a
good judge of character over time. It gives a child greater depth in
knowledge.
Increases the child's flair for writing: All good authors are also
avid readers! Reading leads to good writing too and not just for a
writer good writing skills can be useful in any profession today. If
a child is fluent in a language, then the thoughts flow more easily
and it adds tremendous advantage to a child's oral and written
communication skills. You will see that almost all famous people,
or leaders across the world, are also ardent book lovers! Take the
example of Gandhi or Nehru both had a passion for books!
(Ruskin, 5th, February 2011.)
The schools can also play a vital role by providing the children
with different language and reading experiences. There should be
one period allotted for reading story books in the school library at
least thrice a week. The schools should also motivate and make
their children participate in competitions like Read and Grow and
Spell Bee that help to improve reading skills and vocabulary.
The parents' role can play the most crucial role in the life of their
children by providing them with multi language learning
experience. No doubt, children should learn to read the books in
English but also in the regional language and the mother tongue.
The parents should make their children members of the nearest
library and bring them to the library every week. Now a day, the
libraries have become more digitalized and can provide rich
reading and learning experience to the child. The child's weekly
visit to the library would develop an addiction in him for reading of
the books. Once the child gets addicted nurture and let the addiction
magnify by buying one book for him every month. Make a promise
to yourself that you would gift your child on his birthday with a
book so that the child can have a mini library of his own. This will
help him to develop a kind of euphoric love for the books.
If the child does not like to read books the parents should read one
story during the bed time. This would be a nice way for the parents
to spend a rewarding time with their children. They can teach their
children phonemes with the help of computer technology or the use
of flash card. Whenever you are driving you can play a spy game
by asking the child to spot some words or letters around him.
183 184
It is very important to provide the child with a good space and
comfortable furniture to sit and read his favorite books in the house.
Every night the parents should tell the child one story and then give
him few words and ask him to develop a new story from these
words. This will help child's imagination run wild. The parents
must also set example by reading a book daily and then sharing the
information with the child from their own reading. Children love to
imitate their parents. The parents should postpone television time ,
to read books with their children. The parents can also provide with
animated books or ask children to develop animations to support
the stories they read. The need of the hour is to refresh the fairy tales
and folk tales by making animations and making them more lively
and peppy or we will soon see the death of the reading habit and the
books.
The children should be offered books (or time to read) as a reward
for achievement or chores.
The children can be motivated further by giving some pocket
money every month, especially to buy books. Suggest the children
to take books with them wherever they go, on vacations, or on
long road trips.
Reading is not a passive activity like playing video games or
listening to music or watching television but involves a
considerable amount of active participation and effort from the
part of the reader since a reader must have a good command over
language and must have the capacity to absorb what he reads.
Most parents know of these advantages already but what most
parents are stumped by is how to inculcate the habit of reading
within a child. What's more, with information being disseminated
from a variety of mediums, in today's day and age, the job becomes
much more difficult. But the important thing to somehow hook the
child and get him addicted to reading and once a child is hooked
on to reading, it is very unlikely, that he will give it up, irrespective
of other forms of entertainment. So, it is highly essential for the
parents to introduce reading at the right age, give the child the free
hand to choose the kind of books he would like to read and then, see
the habit bloom on its own.
A word of caution, parents must not push or impose the habit at any
point. Make the habit seem like a hobby, something that a child will
enjoy, and not as a task, which will make him want to run away
from it. The parents can relax and have fun with their children and
books! It is a life long habit, that you child is likely to enjoy forever!
To raise a reader, you don't need to overstress, or over work. These
are some simple tips that would help in raising a happy reader.
In my opinion, there is nothing wrong in a child enjoying other
sources of entertainment. I am a huge movie buff, but at the same
time I read hundreds of books and so my daughter has a habit of
reading books. In fact, she has read almost all motivational books
available in my library. So be assured, that even if your child has
other interests besides reading, his reading habit once formed won't
be easily deterred.
Notes and References
1. http://www.etllearning.com/why-home-education/reading_
skills_are_important Jennison, P. S. ( 26th, August,2012).
Quotes on Reading and Literacy. internet , 2012.
2. Inculcating the habit of reading in children: Ruskin Bond
Bibliography
Jennison, P. S. ( 26th, August,2012). Quotes on Reading and
Literacy. internet .
Ruskin, B. (5th, February 2011.). Inculcating the habit of reading in
children: Ruskin Bond Expert's view . Internet .
185 186
Profile
Dr. Neelam Tikkha
MA( English) , MBA & Team Building ( XLRI) , Ph.D ( American
Literature ), TEFL ( US Florida Tampa )
Professor at MMV ,RTM Nagpur University, Nagpur .
Examiner for Cambridge ESOL Exams . Writer of 28 E books on
Communication Skills, Soft Skills and Essays for International
Exams.
Key Note presenter for a number of international Conferences and
seminars around the globe.
Won several awards for best paper presentation.
Award for best trainer at Hindustan Unilever Limited
Counseled senior manger ONGC for Scholarly paper on
Knowledge Management that won the best paper award of the year
2011- 2012.
Consultant for Corporates like World Trade Centre Mumbai , HUL,
Acer, ONGC, CIPLA, Visaka Industries, Space wood , PEE VEE
TEX, HPCL, Blow Plast , Space Wood , Mercedez and a number of
organizations.
Gave talk shows on Radio and participated in discussions on
CNBC TV, Network 18 in prestigious programs like All for This
Moment with business tycoons like Adi Godrej and Tata.
1
Yogesh V Kshirsagar ,
Lecturer &
2
Navnath S. Randhave
Lecturer,
K. K. Wagh Polytechnic, Nashik
th
09 November, 2012
Soft Skills Training for Young Graduates
Abstract
It is observed by Dr. Kalam that almost seven million 10 + 2
students and three million graduates every year become
employment seekers and many of them are deprived of it.3 This
paper discusses the importance of soft skills in students' lives, both
while pursuing their education and after that. It discusses how soft
skills complement hard skills, which are the technical requirements
of a job the student is trained to do. The paper exhorts educators to
take special responsibility regarding soft skills, because during
students' university time, educators have to pay a major role in the
development of their soft skills. Embedding the training of soft
skills into hard skills courses is a very effective and efficient method
of achieving both an attractive way of teaching a particular content
and an enhancement of soft skills. Soft skills play an important role
in shaping an individual's personality. It is of high importance for
every student to acquire adequate skills beyond academic or
technical knowledge as it will cater to the requirements of the
country. Besides, many universities have started incorporating the
subjects related to the soft skills development in order to develop
personality of large young population.
Key Words: Soft Skills Training, Graduation, Industrial Needs,
Employability
187 188
What are Soft Skills?
The basic question about soft skills is not easy to answer as their
definitions change according to context. We can see a variety of
definitions of a soft skill. A subject may be considered a soft skill in
one particular area, and may be considered a hard skill in another.
Knowledge in project management for instance is nice to have
for an electrical engineer, but it is a must for a civil engineer. A
chemist may get benefitted by training in cultural awareness, but
such training is an absolutely necessary for public or human
resources management in societies of diverse cultures. Many
encyclopedias have little to say about soft skills. The online
encyclopedia Wikipedia gives a very broad definition of soft
skills,
Soft skills refer to the cluster of personality traits, social graces,
facility with language, personal habits, friendliness, and
optimism that mark people to varying degrees. Soft skills
complement hard skills, which are the technical requirements of a
job. (Wikipedia, 2007)
Whereas according to its definition by Moss and Tilly,
these subjective requisites as soft skills, which are defined as
skills, abilities, and traits that pertain to personality, attitude, and
behavior rather than to formal or technical knowledge.
(Moss and Tilly 2001, p. 44)
The definitions above focus on and express how the basic skills,
traits and abilities help us to make our work or task easy-going, in
other words, 'soft'. These skills are complementary to technical
knowledge. In the classical sense and according to the Wikipedia
definition the term soft skills primarily refers to the two
categories of personal qualities and interpersonal skills including
language skills.
The Human Resources Glossary even limits the definition of soft
skills to interpersonal skills (Tracey, 2004)
Here we can classify soft skills as following:
lPersonal qualities, and
lInterpersonal skills
We are in a constant pursuit of our goals and objectives and when it
comes to their achievements, a set of skills is prerequisite. For that,
bringing balance between our physical, mental, emotional and
spiritual needs, that is, inner harmony, and the other hand, social,
material, family and career level objectives, that is, outer balance,
is necessary. In other words, our personality is complete symmetry
of inner harmony and outer balance. We will discuss next how these
skills are important. But before that, let us take a glance at the
current scenario at graduation level in Indian context and at what
backdrop the soft skills are necessary.
What is the Scenario at Graduation Level?
Why do graduates need Soft Skills?
In an interview given to 'Team Careers 360', Dr. Kalam talks about
the current education system that Indian graduates are unable to get
employed when they pass out. He says that almost seven million 10
+ 2 students and three million graduates every year become
employment seekers and many of them are deprived of it. The
major reason behind this is, they lack in soft skills, particularly
business skills. He quotes the example of the Waterloo University
of Canada, wherein engineering graduates, after studying their first
year in classroom, go to the industry for on-the-job-trainings for the
next two years. In this method when they come back for the project
reports at the final year, they have sound knowledge of soft skills
accompanying the hard or technical skills. Although Dr. Kalam is
not criticizing the education system in Indian context, he clearly
mentions the significance of developing Soft skills in the lives of
students during and after graduation to enhance their
employability.
It is also observed in a survey that the graduates lack in the
following skills necessary and they need to develop them during
their graduation. The percentage of skills the employers look for
from the young graduates is as:
189 190
99% Work Ethics
96% Spoken English Language Skills
95% Reading & Writing
94% Problem Solving & Critical Thinking
94% Interpersonal Skills
90% Mathematics and Logical Reasoning
68% Computer Software
68% Leadership
58% Manual Labor
(Oregon Employment Department Employer Survey 04/08)
Moreover, in the view of globalization today's graduates are
required to fulfill the needs of the industry on the one hand and to be
effective learners on the other hand. The age of globalization has
also brought with it something that can be termed as 'Cut-Throat
Competition'. Even it is believed by scholars that India has became
a trillion dollar economy, that is, there is an immense demand for
manpower all over the world due to open market policy adopted by
the country.4 One straightforward reason behind why soft skills are
needed is today's job-market, which in many fields is becoming
ever increasingly competitive. All the above mentioned skills are
required for the students during their education period so as they
can cater to the future needs.
Let's consider the situation of campus interviews. Understandably,
employers prefer to take in job candidates who will be productive
from a very early stage on. If a graduate from university first has to
be trained on putting more than three sentences together, how to do
a proper presentation, or how to chat in a pleasant and winning
manner with colleagues and customers, this graduate will not
qualify as a quick starter. Also basic knowledge in business
management, project management and general economy will
improve the chances of a job candidate considerably. Good hard
skills alone are not necessarily enough anymore to be a first choice
when it comes to promotion. So, during the last decades in many
societies the opinion on soft skills has changed. Soft skills are
playing an important role in shaping personalities, enable social
competence, and also complement the hard skills, which are the
technical requirements of a job. As such, soft skills stand with equal
importance beside hard skills, but they should not be misused to
camouflage a person's lack of expertise in particular areas. At this
backdrop, countries like India have an opportunity to build the
nation with the help of skilled manpower in order to meet the
challenges of globalization.
Recently, in training workshop on curriculum revision in
Maharashtra, it was discussed and frequently referred to how the
persons from industry all the way complain that not only diploma
holders but the graduates lack in soft skills and there is great need to
pay attention to it. Even the Training and Placement Cells in many
engineering institutions grudge about the inability of the students
to fulfill the requirements of industries in campus drives. Therefore
many technical institutions have established Institute Industry
Partnership Cells (IIPCs) to provide a platform for the young
students to get well familiar well familiar with the work culture in
industry. They organize industrial visits, guest lectures by experts
from industry and arrange workshops and seminars for the
students.
The educational institutions have started taking responsibility to
develop the soft skills and in order to equip the graduate students
with the necessary soft skills the universities in India esp. in
Maharashtra have stared incorporating subjects like 'soft skills' in
the curriculum. For example, in the curriculum of engineering a
subject, 'Soft Skills' is included at the second year level in
University of Pune, Maharashtra. It is obviously a positive move
towards it, but its presence in the curriculum is not sufficient. What
is required over here is ample training and even it is evident from
the above cases there is need for training of soft skills apart from
formal training or teaching.
How to develop Soft Skill among Graduates?
Here we will go through some of the soft skills and try to
understand how they can be developed better. For example,
Communication Skills are the most important property of soft
skills. And indeed, it is the talent of communication skills, which is
191 192
mostly lacking among graduates from colleges and universities.
When asking people what exactly they understand to be
communication skills, one will receive a wide range of answers,
because communication skills include a lot of different aspects.
Basic Language skills are at the base of Communication skills as
most of our communication takes place with the help of language
either at spoken or written level. Minimum requirements for a
graduate of a tertiary institution should be ample proficiency in
spoken and written language, a certain amount of self-esteem that
will be reflected in conversation skills and body language,
adequate discussion skills, and of major importance, good
presentation skills in order to be able to market oneself and one's
ideas. However, communication skills are not only necessary for a
person's professional career, but are even more contributing to
one's so-called social competence, a fact which applies to many
other soft skills, too. Good social skills are also reflected at the
working place and hence recursively further the career.
However, if we continue drilling down deeper into Communication
skills the issue will become even more complex. In the English
speaking world
Language proficiency is the ability to speak, read, and write
Standard English in a businesslike way. One may have the 'hard'
skill of knowing what usage is correct and what is incorrect, but
lack the 'soft' skills of knowing when to use only standard forms and
in what tone to use them. (Waggoner, 2002)
In this definition our basic soft skill Communication Skills itself
is divided into a soft and a hard part. Furthermore, adequate
communication skills are a prerequisite for a range of other soft
skills like moderating discussions or conflict management.
Another pair of soft skills frequently lacking in graduates is critical
thinking. It along with communication skills goes hand in hand
with problem solving abilities. In this way, the soft skills are useful
in a person's professional and private life.
One more soft skill that should be highlighted here is creativity.
This skill is often misinterpreted as being only useful for artists,
whereas in the science or business arena only structured logical
thinking should be applied. However, this perception is wrong.
Applying creativity results in thinking out of the box, which
means that given conventional rules and restrictions are left aside in
order to find innovative approaches to problem solving. If Albert
Einstein had not bypassed the guidelines of Newton's old
established physics, and even discarded a bit of common sense, he
probably would not have arrived at his revolutionary new view on
physics. Brainstorming and mind mapping are well known
applications of creativity in the business world.
The question about inculcating the necessary soft skills among the
young graduates is answered by a corporate trainer and
instructional designer Rukmini Iyer in a simple way:
There is a lot of argument in industry as to whether it is possible to
enhance soft skills in a few hours of training, especially when one
considers the fact that a person has lived with those traits all his
life. To this, the answer is harsh but real -- a professional who wants
to do well in his / her career does not really have a choice. (Iyer,
2005)
As an initiative, the educational institutions and universities have
included subjects like soft skills in their curriculum to improve soft
skills. But, it is not always guaranteed that a certain formal course
actually successfully enhance a person's soft skills.
As a German proverb states: Self-recognition is the first step
towards improvement.
As soon as a deficit has been identified, one can start working on its
elimination. For example many people are not able to present their
ideas in appropriate language, esp. people working in a scientific or
technical environment. However, small talk is an important part of
communication skills necessary to display social competence.
Once having acknowledged this truth, a person can undergo a
simple self-training or guided training to improve the lacking
skills. There are for instance many books available on the issue of
Small Talk. Forthwith, the person can make it a habit at parties or
193 194
social gatherings to initiate a conversation with at least three
strangers. While the first times might require quite an effort, after a
few months the frequent chatting with strangers will become a
second nature. With such and similar easy exercises even a very
introverted person can appear reasonably sociable. In summary it
means that negatively perceived personal traits could be changed or
successfully covered by undergoing self-imposed training. Only
prerequisite is that one acknowledges one's weakness and takes the
decision to change it. Training will most likely be unsuccessful if
one is not fully convinced that it will lead to any improvement or
that the improvement will be beneficial. In other words, formal
training or classroom teaching will not achieve the desired result.
The social and conducive atmosphere on the contrary made
available for them by the educational institutions would be more
effective for the expected way to inculcate soft skills among the
graduates.
A first step in improving soft skills of students is to raise their
awareness about the importance of soft skills and the consequences
of shortcomings in this regard. Students should be encouraged to
enhance their soft skills by applying the methods we mentioned
before, e.g. reading dedicated books, attending courses, and joining
clubs or societies to broaden their horizon, like debating societies
or scientific societies who offer presentations and discussions.
On lower levels a course that requires students to do a bit of
research and to present their results to the class afterwards has been
proven as being quite effective. On graduate level a course on
management skills, including e.g. some communication skills
together with the management of time, conflict, cultural issues, and
of major importance, oneself, has in practice been well received by
students. The better way of acquiring soft skills is self-training. As
changing of personal traits often requires long-term practice and
therefore self-training might be more useful regarding the
improvement of the soft skills. Additionally, during the last decade
another method of self training has become increasingly popular. A
very pleasant way of self-training one's soft skills is frequent
socializing with friends, colleagues and other members of society.
Hopefully, at most education institutions at all levels teaching
methodology has been changed or will be changed towards more
student centered learning. Such a shift goes hand in hand with
embedding soft skills into the teaching of hard skills. In other
words: students participating in a lecture with the aim of learning a
hard skill will inevitably and unconsciously practice a range of soft
skills. This comes very close to an ideal way of lecturing.
However, very often the curricula are already overloaded with hard
skills courses, making it almost impossible to add or substitute
courses. Furthermore, other lecturers might be ignorant of the
importance of soft skills and hence, do not support dedicated
courses in this regard. A very elegant way of offering soft skills
training to students is to embed it into the teaching of hard skills.
This way, no changes to a programme's curriculum are necessary;
instead the change will be reflected in the lecturers' teaching
methodology. An increase in group discussions, letting students do
presentations, and using special methodologies like Neuro-
Linguistic Programming (NPL) can be applied throughout a
course. This approach to practicing soft skills requires some re-
thinking and re-planning of existing hard skill courses. An example
would be a mathematics teacher who plans a lecture by firstly
determining what soft skills s/he wishes to enhance on that day, and
then secondly considers how the required mathematics content can
be arranged to support this goal. Correctly applied, such an
approach to teaching will automatically increase the attractiveness
and effectiveness of a course regarding both, hard skills and soft
skills.
Finally, the most important method always has been practiced is
upliftment through spirituality. Spirituality refers to inner
transformation of a practitioner in order to self-actualization
through regular practice. It enhances among the graduates the soft
skills like concentration, clarity of thoughts, emotional
intelligence, positive thinking, self-discipline, motivation and
decision-making, confidence, problem solving, etc. This approach
could be a very useful and proved alternative as spirit refers to 'self'
in the real sense.
195 196
Conclusion
Taking into consideration the need and importance of soft skills, it
is prerequisite for technical educational institutions and industries
to come forward for providing opportunities of training in soft
skills to the young graduates. These trainings can be organized in
association with academic or technical education practices. It can
begin with need analyses of soft skills at various levels, and further
can be fulfilled by rectifying deficiencies during students' School
and University time. It has major impact on the development of
their students' soft skills. Even raising awareness regarding the
importance of soft skills and encouraging students to improve their
skills, lecturers should actively practice soft skills with their
students. Soft skills fulfill an important role in shaping an
individual's personality by complementing his/her hard skills.
However, excellence through spirituality is very effective and
widely accepted way to build competency in soft skills. Spirituality
is more than an intellectual exercise or mental imposition. It is
something which has to be practiced, evolved and actualized
through inner transformation through right spiritual practice to
enlighten the life of a person with virtues, creativity and aesthetics.
Acknowledgement
The authors would like acknowledge the support of K. K. Wagh
Education Society, Nashik and valuable guidance of Prof. P. T.
Kadave, Principal, K. K. Wagh Polytechnic, Nashik. We are
grateful to persons, agencies and organizations for their direct or
indirect contribution in the respective subject areas without which
this paper would not have been possible. We express our sincere
thanks to Faculty of English, MGTI, and ELT@I, Hyderabad for
giving us an opportunity to present our views through this paper.
We also propose vote of thanks to all the members involved in
organizing this event. And at last, we admire the cooperation of
Head of Department, Faculty members and staff of our institute.
Notes:
1. Yogesh Kshirsagar, Lecturer in English, Communication
Skills, and Development of Life Skills, has experience of
seven years in the field of teaching. He is also associated
with and undergone through many soft skills development
programs. He also has conducted soft skills training
programs for students and faculty members at different
educational and industrial institutions.
2. Navnath Randhave, Lecturer in English, Communication
Skills, and Development of Life Skills at K. K. Wagh
Polytechnic, Nashik (Maharashtra) since last 06 years. He
has attended training programs on soft skills and also a
trainer in it.
3. Interview of Dr. A P J Abdul Kalam in a textbook of English
(at diploma in engineering, MSBTE page no.30)
4. Dr. Vijay Bhatkar discussed the issues related Challenges
before Today's Engineers, in his speech at K. K. Wagh
Education Society, Nashik (Maharashtra) on 08 September
2010.
Works Cited
Dr. Vijay Bhatkar, Challenges before Engineers, a speech at K. K.
Wagh Education Society, Nashik, 08 September 2010.
Tracey, W.R. The Human Resources Glossary, USA: CRC Press,
2004.
McShane, S. L. & Von Glinow, M. A., Organizational Behaviour,
New Delhi, Tata McGraw-Hill, 2005.
Internet Resources
Wikipedia: www.en.wikipedia.com
Dr. Kalam's Interview, www.engineering.career360.com/ interview-
dr-kalam
British Association of Graduate Recruiters (AGR): www.agr.org.uk
Iyer, Rukmini: http://us.rediff.com/getahead/2005/jun/30soft.htm
Waggoner, Jaqueline: http://mountainrise.wcu.edu/html/
waggoner.pdf
197 198
Promise of Ecofeminism- An Ecofeminist Reading of
Gita Mehta's A River Sutra.
Message of passing Time,
Sanctuary and Salvation,
You dissolve the fear of time
O Holy Narmada .
A River Sutra.
Ecofeminism have always raised their voices against man's
ruthless destruction of nature in the name of development, and, the
parallel victimization of women to suit the interest of man. As a
movement ecofeminism started in 1970s and acquired significance
in 1980s and 1990s. The focus of ecofeminism has been the
domination of women and the destruction of the nature.
In India, Vandana Shiva has highlighted the need to protect earth
and nature so that environment can be saved. Apart from Chipko
Movement in U.P., there has been an active concern to save the holy
river Narmada. Megha Patkar has been a dynamic environmental
activist with her 'Narmada Bachao Andolan'. Among the supporters
of the Narmada Bachao, the most prominent voice is of famous
writer Arundhati Rao. She has not only expressed her views on
saving the river, but has also expressed active concern about the
lives of people who dwell near the river bank. Thus, she is a true
ecofeminist who has regard for the principle of life- be it human, be
it nature.
The essence of Narmada and her deep impact on the lives of Indian
masses is beautifully captured by Gita Mehta in her, A River Sutra.
The novel interestingly reflects ecofeminist concerns and weaves a
pattern to indicate what the promise of ecofeminism can be. The
most important feature of ecofeminism Geopiety seems to form
the spinal column in this novel which presents the multifaceted
Narmada.
Before proceeding on an ecofeminist reading of Gita Mehta's A
River Sutra, it becomes essential to understand the characteristics
that embody ecofeminism. Initially ecofeminism arose as a protest
against nuclear activities that posed a threat to human existence.
Noel Sturgeon, an ecofeminist author who attended the Nevada
nuclear protest in 1970, wrote in this political context, 'the
environment' served feminists as a medium for the connection of
critiques of militarism, capitalism and neocolonialism. As the
movement grew it started incorporating other voices which
included equity of more pressing concern to the impoverished and
socially marginalised; to landscapes of urbanization, racism,
poverty and toxification.
The fundamental concepts that emerged were connected to nature
woman relationship, Geopiety, green paradise lost, reweaving the
world and healing the wounds. All these concepts are explained
succinctly by Irene Diamond and Gloria Femen in their work
Reweaving the world. The first is the concept of Geo-piety which
means that the earth is sacred. It relates with nature worship and is
often reflected in novels and several writings, specially in
ecofeminist 'pagan activist' Starhawk. Such literature often
presents a spiritual view of nature. Here, the goal of ecofeminism is
to restore and preserve earth's wholeness.
Ye-fu Tuan had expressed that man was shaped out of this land by
the hands of God. 'Geo-piety' cover a broad range of emotional
bonds between man and his terrestrial home He feels that since
nature nourishes man so much it becomes necessary for man to give
reverence to nature and protect the beautiful nature from those who
intend to harm it.
Indian religion also venerates the feminine aspect of nature. Earth
goddess is known as Prithvi and jaggaddharti. The Vedas and
Puranas have described many natural resources like mountains,
rivers, trees, herbs, forests in feminine terms and even mythical
stories have been created around them. For instance the Rigveda
presents the crimson streak of day break as Usha, the Mistress of
dawn, whose brilliant effulgence spreads out piercing the farmless
black abyss.(Madhu Khanna, 127) Food is personified as
Annapurna, Sakhambari. The herb Tulsi also has a myth woven
around it. Similar are the tales of river Ganga, Yamuna and
Saraswati who have been worshipped down the ages in India. So
199 200
simple is the logic in these religious beliefs what is regarded as
divine will automatically be preserved.
This profound concept of Geo-piety has led to the concept of earth
as 'Green paradise' which is so rich in its mineral wealth that it is
indeed a gift of God to mankind. However, man in his lust for more
has forgotten to look after this treasure. The consequence of man's
ambition, greed, desire to control nature and women has led to an
acute crisis, that is, the loss of this Green paradise. Ursula K. Guin
in A Very Warm Mountain explains how the earth is almost on the
verge of an end due to what the human have gone on doing to the
earth destroying vegetation, experimenting on every living and
non-living things and taking away all her mineral wealth. It has led
to volcanic eruptions, global warming and acid rain. The face of
green earth is entirely disfigured.
Elizabeth Dodson in Green Paradise Lost (1989) unearths the flaws
in the initial chapters of genesis: with its command to 'subdue the
earth' at the bottom is posited by genesis.
Thus, patriarchy steps in and with it comes the shift in soil linked
communities where earlier the country as Motherland is now
masculine nation state. Ecofeminists indicate how oppression of
women is linked to subjugation of land and often terms like 'rape
the land', 'tame nature' are used in common parlance. All this
clearly shows how the balance of life is disturbed and the Green
Paradise is degenerating.
To regain the Green Paradise and maintain the ecological balance
the Ecofeminists state that instead of conquering nature, man must
start to co-operate with nature. There is a dire need to reweave all
the basic requirements that will regenerate life and promote the
welfare of the earth. Even the Man-woman relationship will
demand a new insight where men learn to respect women. In
Reweaving the world; the Emergence of Ecofeminism (1990) Irene
Diamond and Gloria Feman Orenstein insist on correcting the
culture-nature dichotomy. An ethic of care, compassion and
nurturing of life is needed to lead to healthy interactions between
man and women and also between man and nature. Similar thought
is advocated by Vandana Shiva. The feminine principle is based on
inclusiveness and its recovery in men, women and nature is the
recovery of creative forms of being and perceiving (Shiva,
Staying Alive, 53).
Once it becomes possible reweave the fabric of life all wounds can
be healed. Not only will women gain her status, voice, freedom, but
nature also will thrive and again the world will look green and
vibrant. This is the promise of ecofeminism a world that is full of
happiness in human relationships and a world that is free of
pollution and environment degradation.
Gita Mehta's A River Sutra is a refreshing novel because it presents
the splendor of nature and tries to relate man to the song of nature.
The most positive feature of ecofeminism, that is, Geo-piety forms
the foundation of this novel. All the characters in the novel are
associated with the Holy River Narmada and she is the source of
comfort for them. Many come to her banks to seek solution for their
problems and return back with satisfaction.
The narrator is a bureaucrat who now works as a manager of a guest
House situated amidst hills and forests overlooking the river
Narmada. The tourists who visit the area share their lives with him
and turn to River Narmada for solace and directions in their lives.
This is the 'sutra' or the thread that connects the river to each
character.
The reverence towards nature, specially towards the Holy River
Narmada clearly reveals Geo-piety. The narrator shares what he has
heard about the sacred river:
The river is among our holiest pilgrimage sites,
Worshipped as the daughter of the god Shiva. (A River Sutra)
As the narrator describes the area where he lives, he sketches the
beautiful landscape and also covers the beliefs and lifestyles of the
different communities that surround the spot. An interesting tale is
about the tribals of the Vano village who were known for their
strength as they could prevent Aryans from invading their areas for
201 202
a long time. The tale goes thus:
Indeed the Vano village deity is a stone image of a
half-woman with the full breasts of a fertility
symbol but the torso of a coiled snake because the
tribals believe they once ruled a great snake
kingdom until they were defeated by the gods of
the Aryans. Saved from annihilation only by a
divine personification of the Narmada River, the
grateful tribals conferred on the river the gift of
annulling the effects of snakebite, and I have often
heard pilgrims who have never met a tribal
reciting the invocation
Salutation in the morning and at night to
Thee, o Narmada!
Defend me from the serpent's poison. (p6)
The belief that their goddess curse people who were possessed is
also widely prevalent among the tribals of Vano.
As the novel progresses, the reality of this belief is tested The
Executive's story in the novel depicts apathy how a young
executive in Assam's tea-estates, one Mr. Nitin Bose, is afflicted
with a madness which is incurable. The state of Nitin is such that he
has forgotten his own name and presents himself as 'Rima Bose' His
uncle send him to the narrator for treatment as per belief that only
river Narmada has been given the power to cure him. The
investigation of his diary by the narrator unfolds the reasons behind
his insanity
Nitin Bose was posted to the tea-estate in Assam. Initially he led a
life that was aloof from drinks and women and immersed himself in
reading books of his grandfather. Later he related for a full year
with Rima, a labourer on the tea-estate. She taught him the secrets
of love ad made him appreciate the 'secret rhythms of nature,' until
he understand why his 'grandfather's books called these hills
Kamrupa, the kingdom of the God of Love., (p129)
However, this state came to an abrupt end when he was called back
to Calcutta by the company. Rima was heartbroken. But, she
expected him to return. Nitin was shocked when he learnt that Rima
was the wife of a coolie. Suddenly he felt that she was ugly and felt
ashamed of his behavior. Later when he was sent back to the tea
garden to organize things he dreaded seeing Rima. Though she
didn't come to him yet every night he felt she is outside, singing
songs of love. All this filled him with guilt. Finally on the night of
the eclipse she calls him outside by his name. When he faced her,
she performed a magic by breaking a coconut. After that Nitin fell
unconscious. When he regained consciousness he repeated Rima's
name several times and sang the tribal song sung at marriage.
The local priest tried some tricks to treat Nitin and asked him to
note everything he remembered in a diary. The priest told Nitin
'Someone has taken possession of you. The magic you are under is
stronger than my powers. Your memory will be affected. You
will believe yourself to be someone else.' Thus we see that the
Green Paradise of love, life and health for Nitin Bose are lost as he
had exploited the woman. He didn't show regard for the women and
even nature. He tried to settle things by sending money for Rima,
reducing the nature of their relationship to consumer-commodity.
Hence, nature and women conspired to take away his sanity.
Yet, a chance is given to Nitin to heal the wounds and reweave his
life. The priest advises, 'If your sahib wants to recover his mind he
must worship the goddess at any shrine that overlooks the Narmada
River. Only that river has been given the power to cure him. (p137)
Thus, Nitin reaches the guest house that faces the Narmada. There
he is taken to the shrine of the goddess by the tribals. Mr. Chagala
tells the narrator, The tribals will beg the goddess to forgive Mr.
Bose for denying the power of desire. (p141) He explains further,
'This is just the principle of life. She is every illusion that is
inspiring love. That is why she greater than all gods combined. Call
her what you will, but she is what a mother is feeling for a child. A
man for woman. A starving man for food. Human beings for God
.And Mr. Bose did not show her respect so he is being punished.
(p142) To make amends for his mistakes Nitin Bose is asked to
203 204
make a mud image of the goddess. He joins the procession and
carries the idol to the banks of river Narmada and chants the lines,
Salutations in the morning and at night to thee, O Narmada.
Defend me from the serpent's poison.' As the idol is immersed in the
holy waters of Narmada, it begins to disintegrate. Nitin stays in the
bungalow for three weeks and goes to the river daily, 'standing
waist deep in the water' (p147) and prays to Narmada. Finally, it is
geo-piety that restores his mental health and he returns back to life.
Thus, reweaving of the world is possible and the wounds are healed
when the principle of geo-piety is followed. The narrator discusses
the case of Nitin with a medical practitioner Dr. Mitra. The doctor
admits that such cases are possible. He comments:
A mere glimpse of Narmada's waters is supposed
to cleanse a human being of generations of sinful
births. (p151)
Being a scholar on Narmada, he gave more information about
Narmada to the narrator. He said:
You know, the great Alexandrine geographer
Ptolemy wrote about Narmada's holiness and the
religious suicides at Amarkantak- people fasting
to death or immolating themselves on the
Narmada's banks, or drowning in her waters in
order to gain release from the cycle of birth and
rebirth. (p152)
Dr. Mitra also spoke about astrological beliefs about River which
were as follows:
On top of all that mythology, there's the river's
astrology. Her holiness is believed to dispel the
malevolent effects of Saturn so all manner of
epileptics, depressives and other unfortunates rush
to her banks. And yet, the Narmada is also a
magnet to scholars. Towns on the banks of the river
are now renowned for the learning of their
Brahmins. It is as if reason and instinct are
constantly warring on the banks of the Narmada. I,
mean even the war between the Aryans and the
pre-Aryans is still unresolved here. (P152-153)
All the mythology and astrology about Narmada points about geo-
piety.
The 'Courtesan's Story' throws light n how nature and women are
ill-treated resulting in the loss of the Green Paradise, Here, an old
lady who was formerly a courtesan comes to the narrator in search
of her daughter who too had been a courtesan and had been
abducted by the dacoit Rahul Singh and taken to the jungles. As she
narrates her story one discovers the change in public opinion
towards the courtesans and also the change in situations. She says:
Oh friends, how shabby has changed in my
lifetime.
Where there used to be gardens now we have
factories. Our gracious old buildings have been
torn down to be replaced by concrete boxes named
after politicians. (p167)
Adding further she comments:
The city is owned by men who believe every
human being has a price, and a full purse is power.
Trained as scholars, artists, musicians, dancers,
we are only women for them. (p167)
All this account reveals how the Green Paradise is lost. Later the
old woman's daughter arrives and tells the narrator how the dacoit
Rahul Singh was basically a good man, how life made him a dacoit,
yet he was kind to the poor. . He had treated her well and married
her. But he died in a police encounter and she had no desire to live
without him. As a courtesan and a dacoit's wife she would be put in
jail by the police for the rest of her life. Hence she decides to end her
life by drowning in the Narmada. She convinces her mother about
it.

205 206
The narrator is told about this incident by Mr. Chagla thus-
Only that she was happy her daughter had died in
the Narmada because she would be purified of all
her sins. (p190)
Here the belief that even suicide in Narmada isn't considered a
crime; rather a libration from the cycle of birth is proved right.
However, one wonders if this is indeed the right path.
The story of Naga Baba and Uma is the culmination in the promise
of Ecofeminisism. The girl who was given the name 'Uma' by Naga
Baba was barely seven or eight years old when he saw her at a
brothel. She was being exploited and forced into prostitution at
such a tender age. The sight made him take a big decision, that is, to
rescue the child from such a miserable plight. He demanded from
brothel keeper to give the child to him as alms on 'Shivaratri'. The
woman agreed out of respect and also fears to hand the child to him
for ever. Yet she remarked
And do not curse me later when you find what
trouble she brings. She doesn't even have a name.
Her own father calls her misfortune. (p246)
The fact that her own father sold her to the brothel keeper indicates
the victimization of women. Not only man ruining 'Green Paradise'
but even women are accomplices in the act. The girl has no name.
The customers call her 'Chand'.
However, an effort is made by Naga Baba to restore the dignity of
women. He tells her,'you will never have to fear such men again.'
(p250) He take s her in the forest and makes her grow amidst
nature. She learns chanting and meditation under the guidance of
Naga Baba. They live near the river Narmada and told her,' Tonight
you become a daughter of the Narmada.' (p254)

Uma stayed near the banks of River Narmada with the Naga Baba
for three years. She observed him singing songs in praise of
Narmada. She learnt the songs and when she grew older she started
singing in temples during festivals. People started calling her
'Singer Saint' and the Naga Baba allowed her the freedom to live
alone because he too needed to work for his enlightenment. Uma
becomes a famous river minstrel. A hint is dropped as the Naga
Baba comments about her future-
To find a husband, like the Narmada found her Lord of Rivers .
(p280)
The transformation of 'Chand' to 'Uma' is indeed 'Regaining the
Paradise.' Geo-piety is clearly established when the narrator co-
relates 'Uma's song of Narmada with her own personality. Let us
read the lines-
It is written in the scriptures
That you were present at the birth of time
When Shiva as a golden peacock
Roamed the ocean of the Void.
You reminded the Destroyer
Creation awaited His command
You were present at the Creation
By Shiva's command you alone will remain
At the destruction.
She turned to face me and she no longer seemed young. Perhaps it
was unlit bungalow rising like the shadow of a deserted temple
behind her that made her now seem ageless. (p277)
The ageless River Narmada and her flowing waters of life are
worshipped in the river minstrel's song. Uma's devotion to
Narmada makes her appear 'ageless' to the narrator. This unique
blending of nature and women is certainly the promise of
Ecofeminism.
Gita Mehta has used her pen deftly to bring her readers close to
view nature worship which is and inseparable part of Indian life.
The stories that depict women sensitize the readers to wards their
sufferings and degradation. But, there is always hope and
207 208
regeneration when women and nature work to restore happiness to
mankind. Ecofeminism finds firm footing in Gita Mehta's A River
Sutra as each tale mesmerizes us with its message of Geopiety.
Works cited
Diamond, Irene and Orenstein, Gloria Feman. (1990) ed.
Reweaving the World : The Emergence of Eco-Feminism.
SanFransisco: Sierra Club Books.
Gray,Elizabeth Dodson.(1979). Green Paradise Lost. Wellesley
MA: Roundtable Press.
Khanna, Madhu (1995) 'Nature as Feminine: Ancient Visions of
Geo-Piety and Goddess Ecology,' Man in Nature .ed. Baidyanath
Saraswati New Delhi : D.K.Print.
Le Guin, Ursula (1989) 'Women and Wilderness,' Healing the
wounds: The promise of Eco-Feminism. Ed. Judith Plant.
Philadelphia: New Society Publishers.
Mehta, Gita. (1993). A River Sutra, New Delhi: Penguin books
India (P) Ltd. All textual citations are from this source.
Shiva, Vandana.(1988) Staying Alive : Women, Ecology and
development in India. London; Zed Press.
Sturgeon, Noel.(1997) Ecofeminist Natures: Race, Gender,
Feminist Theory and political Action. New York: Routledge.
Tuan, Yi-fu.(1976) Geo-piety: A Theme in Man's Attachment to
Nature and to Place.
In Geographies of the Mind. ed. David Lowenthal and Martyn
Bowden. New York: Oxford University Press.
Dr. Nidhi Tiwari
Associate Professor of English
RIE, (NCERT), Shyamla Hills Bhopal (M.P.)
M-9425303719
Changing Identities of Women A Refection of Culture
Dr. Neelam Tikkha
[email protected]
[email protected]
Women identity has always been a representation of culture. Any
change in the identity of women reflects the cultural change. This
is true in any country round the globe and is timeless and yet
temporal. The recent Nirbhaya rape case of 16th December in
Delhi has brought forth an identity of a woman strong enough to
challenge the male dominance. This is reflective of a cultural
change which was voiced by a number of women on street in their
slogans My body my right. The wearing of religious symbol like
hijab by Muslim women and terrorizing of the two girls who were
chatting on mobile in Kashmir are yet another example of the
reflection of culture. In this paper an attempt is being made to study
the various changes in the society being reflected through the
identity of women.
The reading of Kalidas's classic drama Abhijanana Shakuntalam
(Kalidas ed.Narayana Rama Acharya) and the Shakuntala of The
Mahabharata are projected with striking difference. Shakuntala is
the mother of the first king called Bharata of Bharata the Sanskrit
name for the Indian sub- continent. She is half -nymph and half-
Brahmin. She was left when a small child by her parents at
hermitage of Rishi Kanva where she was brought up by the Rishi
Kanyas. One day when Rishi Kanva is out on a pilgrimage. King
Dushyanta, the ruler of Hastinapur, was on his hunting expedition
and he came across Shakuntala. He was enchanted and spellbound
by her beauty so much that he proposes her for Gandharva Vivah. A
marriage, where in the mother Earth is the witness to a mutually
consensual marriage.
Shakuntala was first written by Rishi Vyasa in Mahabharata and
later adapted by Kalidas in his drama Abhijanana Shakuntalam.
The great poet Kalidas has projected her to be meek and a loving
woman. She is a shy daughter, a beloved and a gentle mother. When
209 210
she meets Dushyanta, the king of she does not look at him directly
but through furtive glances. She is incapable of independence and
is always accompanied by her two female friends Primvada and
Anusuya.
She is described as:
adhrah kislayragah komalavilapanukainau bahu,
Kusumamiva lobhaniyam
Yauvanamangesu samnaddham
Her lips are fresh red buds, her arms are tendrils. Impatient youth is
poised to blossom in her limbs. Shakuntala has been introduced
through comparison with nature which symbolizes her purity.
Fresh buds are a metaphor for virginity and the tendril describe her
longing for support and emotional dependency. Impatient youth is
poised to blossom in her limbs are indicative of her virginity and
achieving fulfillment with the company of a man in her life.
This is a typical Indian psyche of the time when Kalidas was
writing where women were considered second fiddle to man and
would be considered complete only with the presence of a man in
life. In striking contrast, in The Mahabharat written by Vyas,
Dushyanta never speaks of Shakuntala's purity or project her as
weak and dependent on any man for identity . He calls her
ii
rambharu (you of tapering thighs). The phrase tapering thighs
sexualizes Shakuntala. Shakuntala accepts such praises from
Dushyanta boldly without any inhibition is highly symbolic of her
audacity.
The Mahabharat written by Vyas projects her as confident and bold
woman character. When she meets Dushyanta for the first time she
herself initiates and welcomes him. The text states :
sa tam drstavawa rajanam dushyantam asitekasan svagatam ta iti
iii
ksipram uvanca pratipujyl ca
In complete contrast, Shakuntala hides her feeling of love for King
Dushyanta, at first sight and ponders :
Kim nu khalviman preksya tapovanavirodhina vikarasya
iv
gamaniyasmi samvrtta which when translated into English reads:
Why do I get emotions that forest forbids?
When the black- eyed damsel saw the king Dushyanta, she
instantly bade him welcome and worshipped him in due form.
After wooing king Dushyanta to marry in Gandharva style ; she
even goes to the extent of making profitable pre nuptial
agreement .In Mahabharat Shakuntala is strong woman seeking her
son's political power. At length she says that she does not desire any
material wealth for herself but for her son born from him she
desires the crown. She thus states:
Satyam me pratijanihi yatlwan vaksyamy aham rahah mam jayate
yah putrah sa bhavet tvad anantram yuvrajo maharaja satyam etad
bravihi me yadi etad evam dusyanta astu me sangamas tvaya.
She is admired by her wit rather than by her delicate beautiful sexy
body as is the case with Kalidas's Shakuntalam.
One Shakuntala can only have two identities because Kalidas was
writing at a time when women were considered as beautiful artifact
to decorate the life of a man.
If we go back to look at other female characters during the time of
The Mahabharata we find the women capable enough to challenge
the patriarchy. For example, Satyawati was an example of a strong
headed, assertive figure, in Mahabharat, who saved Bharata
dynasty. Satyawati was Devavrata Bhishma's step mother.
Bhishma was Shantanu's eldest son. Bhishma would have become
the king, had not for his father, who had fallen in love with
Satyavati, the daughter of the chief of a tribal fisherman. Satyavati
had put a condition to their marriage that unless her children are
promised the throne, she would not marry. Bhishma to fulfill his
father's desire vouched to remain celibate all his life. She had two
sons from Shantanu. Bhishma loved them intensely but they died
young. Satyavati requests Bhishma to impregnate her widowed
daughters in law by the law of levirate to produce an heir.But,
Bhishma refuses to go back from his vow of celibacy. She
211 212
summons her illegitimate son, Vyasa, to impregnate her daughters
in law to get heirs to save Bharata dynasty.
Another, example of a powerful character in Mahabharat was
Kunti. Kunti when became aware of her husband's inability to have
sex, found a solution to continue the family line. She invoked the
gods and had five godly Pandava children from four different Gods.
Despite their vague parentage they are called Pandavas' or the sons
of Pandu's. They are also referred more correctly in the epic as
Kaunteyas, the Sons of Kunti. Another, interesting thing which
gets unfolded is that though Kunti had all the children through
different Gods yet her illegitimate son Karna does not get affection
and love and on the contrary she coerces him to promise that her
five Pandava children survive in the battle. Why does not she ask
for the same promise to Arjun and her other children? The answer is
evident that Pandavas were her legal children where as Karan was
her illegitimate child. The attitude of mother exhibited here is very
biased and shows the criticism and ostracism a woman with
illegitimate child would get if the secret gets disclosed.
On the same lines, the marriage system favored a man having many
wives but polyandry was quite uncommon. There was hardly any
acceptance of polyandry as highlighted by remarks of Karna
,Dushasan and Duryodhan since they called Draupadi a harlot, a
slut since she had five husbands. Polyandry is a custom in some
communities so that the land holding does not get divided. Kunti
must have also thought the same that Pandavas are quite weak in
comparison to Kauravas so if they also get divided than they would
become more vulnerable. Hence, she asks her rest of the four sons
to get married to Draupadi and retain whatever strength they have
to sustain in front of Kauravas. It has been referred in the epic that
Pandavas were forewarned about Draupadi being born through a
powerful sacrifice in order to wipe out their Kuru race, but they
went ahead and marry her anyway. The Kauravas had become
perpetrators of immorality and their decadence is seen in the
incidence when Dushasan drags Draupadi when she is
menstruating and disrobes her in front of the assembly. It can be
perceived clearly that the degradation of Kauravas' morality has
reached its nadir and the destruction of entire Kuru race is
inevitable. The prophecy that Draupadi would bring the doom of
Kshatriya's was bound to come true is evident from the following
snippets of moment of molestation of Draupadi:
Duryodhan is warned and dissuaded from claiming Draupadi as his
prize, won by deceit in the game of dice, by Vidur his half brother
who has been born from low caste maid.
He says:
You don't know it, fool, you are tied in a noose!
You are a deer provoking a tiger's wrath
She is not a slave yet. Bharata! I think she was
staked
When the king was no longer his own master.
But, Duryodhan pays no heed he orders the royal messenger to
bring Draupadi in the assembly. The messenger speeds off and
enters like 'a dog in a lion's den, crawling up to the queen of the
Pandavas'. He softly speaks:
Intoxicated on dice, Yudhishtra has lost you, O
Draupadi
You must come now to Dhritrashtra's house
Listening to these words Draupadi goes mad with anger:
What son of a king would wager his wife?
The king is befooled and crazed by the game?
She tells the messenger to go back to the assembly and ask her
husband :
Whom did you lose first, yourself or me?
The messenger returns and puts the question, Yudhishter does not
stir, as though he is a stone statue. Since he doesn't reply Duryodhan
says ' Let Draupadi come here and ask the question herself. All the
people want to hear what she has to say.' The messenger returns to
213 214
Draupadi and says:
The kings in the hall are summoning you it seems
the fall of the Kurus has come ! Princess , when you
are led into that hall , the king will be too weak to
protect our fortunes?
Meanwhile, Duryodhan gets impatient, and orders his brother to
bring Draupadi to the court.
And quickly angry Dushasana
Came rushing to her with a thunderous roar;
By the long teressed black and flowing hair
Dushasana grabbed the wife of a king .
And as she was dragged she bent her body
And whispered softly,'It is now my month!
This is my sole garment, man of slow wit,
You cannot take me to the hall you churl!
But, Dushasana continues to drag her by the hair. She appeals to his
sense of Dharma not to debase her but Dushasana answers her:
Come, come you are wonenjoy the Kurus
With slaves one delights as one wishes.
Draupadi warns him that he has lost his mind.
Assembly is shocked at the sight of Draupadi being dragged thus.
She contemptuously looks at her husbands and questions
Yudhishter:
'Whom did you lose first, yourself or me?'
Her question points to a confusing, eventually insoluble
crystallization of conflict expressed along opposing lines of
xv
explanation since prashna can also mean a riddle in Sanskrit.
Not the kingdom lost, nor the riches looted
Not the precious jewels plundered did hurt
As much as did her sidelong glance.
Despite Draupadi being dragged while she is menstruating does not
lose courage to protect her dignity and raise a question on Dharma
and lawfulness of the wager by Yudhishter since Dharm is subtle as
Bhishma puts it:
As dharma is subtle, my dear, I fail
To resolve your question in the proper way.
Karna puts forth his argument that no one objected when
Yudhishter made the bet , and everyone saw him lose the bet.
Moreover, while staking Draupadi's name was mentioned and none
of the Pandavas objected to it so Draupadi was won fairly.
Besides a virtuous woman has only one husband and Draupadi
has five Pandava brothers making her a slut who ought to be
xvii
stripped in public. Karna 's argument smells of avenging his
insult by Draupadi who had refused to marry him since he was a
charioteer's son: Draupadi says: naham varyami sutam I do not
choose a Charioteer The brave little Draupadi snubs openly
xix
the semi divine bastard, the unwanted suitor'.
Draupadi does not give up. She turns her legal challenge into a
moral one. Being aware of the fact that dharma can mean both what
is lawful and what is right, the real question she leads to is : Is it
right or fair that that a woman , let alone a queen become a slave
because her husband staked her in a gambling game? She assumes
that law is reflective of the desires of the powerful in the society and
drifts away from what is right thing to do. That is to be concerned
with the well being of the low castes, poor , slave and women- and
historically it is essential for the deprived and vulnerable one to
fight for the change. This is the extension of her second question,
'What is the dharma of the king ?
The massive destruction of Kshatriya race takes place because of
the humiliation of Draupadi. If the five brothers had not been
married to Draupadi, who knows Mahabharat would have taken a
different recourse. Like Karan there would be possibility of
differences amongst the five Pandavas and some might also
215 216
support the Kauravas for some bounties. Kunti must have thought
of strengthening the ties between brothers by way of getting them
all married to one woman. There is another possibility that in those
days male female ratio must have been a problem and getting
suitable brides for the rest of the four Pandavas' must have been a
problem so immediately Kunti came out with this solution.
Moreover, while battle of Mahabharat was going on she
approaches Karan, If you and Arjun are united nothing would be
impossible in this world.asadhyamkim nu loke syad yuvayoh
xxi
sahitatmanoh. Kaurva's would be defeated and Karan would be
crowned the king instead of Yudhishter since he is the rightful
claimant to the throne. Kunti is not only assertive but strong
headed and witty. She does not disclose to Yudhishter that Karan is
his illegitimate brother since she knew very well Yudhishter might
become weak and surrender which would mean the Kuru's victory
would be ensured. Draupadi is also another strong woman like
Kunti who performs a major role in the war of Mahabharat. She
raises a subtle question on dharma and saved the Pandavas from
slavery and the kingdom that they had lost. Secondly, she goads
Yudhishter to fight for the kingdom during thirteen years of their
exile. Another brilliant example in the literary world is that of
Portia, the female protagonist, in the play, The Merchant Of Venice,
written by William Shakespeare, who saved Antonio of pound of
flesh, by her wit and logic.
Kunti tries to stop the war so she goes to Karan, her illegitimate son
from the Sun god, to coerce him to change sides and join Pandav
camp. Draupadi, Kunti, Shakuntala and Satyawati are all depicted
as very strong women characters in The Mahabharata. The women
play an active role in politics which has been clearly seen in the
efforts made by them. None of the women are meek. On the
contrary, they perform a great role in saving their dynasty. They
enjoy great liberty. The kind of freedom enjoyed by women would
be a feminist desire. The freedom they enjoyed is reflective of the
society's approach towards women in those days.
James Thurber and Eliot, the two American writers have projected
a modern woman so strong that men change into legendary
Prufrocks in her presence. The parable, The Little Girl and the Wolf
presents a challenge before man in a man's world. The story of Red
Riding Hood has been given a twist in this parable by Thurber:
When the little girl opened the door of her
grandmother's house she saw that there was
somebody in bed with a nightcap and nightgown
on. She had approached no nearer than twenty-
five feet from the bed when she saw that it was not
her grandmother but the wolf, for even in a
nightcap a wolf does not look any more like your
grandmother than the Metro-Goldwyn lion looks
like Calvin Coolidge. So the little girl took an
automatic out of her basket and shot the wolf dead.
(Moral: It is not so easy to fool little girls
nowadays as it used to be.)
Thurber had the genius and wit to draw weird drawings where
women have their own exposed nerve endings radiating from their
heads. They were neither prosaic hair nor celestial haloes, but
rather their own exposed nerve endings, as though they suffer a
vitality that cannot be contained. In Men, Women, and Dogs by the
same author, atrocious confusion arises out of remarkably
commonplace scenes: in a drawing of a middle-aged group playing
table tennis, a woman suddenly dis- ' robes' and needlessly asks,
"Do you people mind if I take off some of these hot clothes?"; At a
Thurber cocktail party, filled with his pathetic people, we overhear
this introduction: "This is Miss Jones, Doctor. . . . She's been
through hell recently," and we see a plump, middle-aged nude
woman play the piano while two men whisper, "I'd feel a great deal
easier if her husband hadn't gone to bed." Her presence creates
such a powerful image that the two men wish her husband to be
present so that they could be protected from her. This is the kind of
fear she has created.
The nakedness of the woman and the ease with which she plays
piano are symbolic of her confidence in man's world. The nudity
also symbolizes her down to earth attitude without any hypocrisy.
217 218
What is to be done with the lady on the bookcase,
a live, but shelved, former wife who peers down
on her equally drab substitute and a horrified
visitor? Or about "the room where my husband
lost his mind," with its extra, ancient furnishings
and tiny, obscure drawings on the walls? Or for the
respectable couple that desperately hopeswhen
confronted with a man standing on the back of a
woman, who is at the same time balancing a lamp
xxv
on her head.
In each of these frames Thurber has managed to freeze a moment of
perfect power and the strength the females have acquired and the
feminine dominion which is so powerful that man is seen standing
on the back of a woman. The Bollywood film Welcome also
projects a similar scene where Katrina Kaif saves Akshay Kumar
from the fire. She is seen walking out from the fire with Akshay
Kumar on his shoulders. This film shows the reversal of role of men
and women in the society quite reflective of the change happening
in and around the society.
TS Eliot in his poem The Love-Song of J. Alfred Prufrock shows
the dilemma of a man who grows middle aged observing women of
high class engaging in snobbish talk.
In the room the women come and go
Talking of Michelangelo.
There will be time, there will be time
To prepare a face to meet the faces that you meet;
And indeed there will be time
To wonder, "Do I dare?" and, "Do I dare?"
Time to turn back and descend the stair,
With a bald spot in the middle of my hair 40
[They will say: "How his hair is growing thin!"]
My morning coat, my collar mounting firmly to the
chin,
My necktie rich and modest, but asserted by a
simple pin
[They will say: "But how his arms and legs are
thin!"]
Do I dare
Disturb the universe?
In a minute there is time
For decisions and revisions which a minute will
reverse.
He prepares himself to propose but every time he fails to gather
courage to propose the lady whom he
Loves and wishes to be:
I should have been a pair of ragged claws
Scuttling across the floors of silent seas.
In this dilemma he has turned into a fool and utters in despair:
I grow old . . . I grow old . . . 120
I shall wear the bottoms of my trousers rolled.
Shall I part my hair behind? Do I dare to eat a peach?
This is all reflective of a cultural change where women have
become more powerful and stronger than man. This notion saps the
man out of courage even to propose any woman and in this
dilemma he grows old with the desire of getting married only in his
dream and utters in despair:
I shall wear white flannel trousers, and walk upon
the beach.
I have heard the mermaids singing, each to each.
I do not think they will sing to me.
This poem reflects the societal change that had ameliorated the
position of women in the west. The technological advancement ,
modernization and globalization uplifted the quality of life of
westerners and it also gave female gender a lot of leisure time and
the power to work that granted a lot of economical and societal
liberty and they were cast out of the frames of Tennyson's
stereotypical women, Man for earth and woman for hearth. The
liberty they enjoyed and the independence they acquired made
them equal to men in all respects.
219 220
Women found it difficult to bear with unreasonable dominance of
man and some women became so much dominant that they turned
into tormentors and the men wanted to get rid of such women. For
example, James Thurber's story The Unicorn in the Garden
wonderfully presents the trick played by a husband to get rid of his
wife's over domineering torture. He tells her one fine morning that
a unicorn with a golden horn has entered the rose garden. The wife
thinks it to be an opportunity to send him to asylum:
And as soon as the husband had gone out of the
house, the wife got up and dressed as fast as she
could. She was very excited and there was a gloat
in her eye. She telephoned the police and she
telephoned the psychiatrist; she told them to hurry
to her house and bring a strait-jacket. When the
police and the psychiatrist looked at her with great
interest. My husband, she said, saw a unicorn
this morning. The police looked at the
psychiatrist and the psychiatrist looked at the
police. He told me it ate a lily, she said. The
psychiatrist looked at the police and the police
looked at the psychiatrist. He told me it had a
golden horn in the middle of its forehead, she
said. At a solemn signal from the signal from the
psychiatrist, the police leaped from their chairs
and seized the wife. They had a hard time subduing
her, for she put up a terrific struggle, but they
finally subdued her. Just as they got her into the
strait-jacket, the husband came back into the
house.
Did you tell your wife you saw a unicorn? asked
the police. Of course not, said the husband.
The unicorn is a mythical beast. That's all I
wanted to know, said the psychiatrist. Take her
away. I'm sorry, sir, but your wife is as crazy as a
jay bird. So they took her away, cursing and
screaming, and shut her up in an institution. The
xxvii
husband lived happily ever after.
The marriage institution appears to have been transformed into a
game of dice and a battle ground where husband and wife are the
competitors to each other. Individual goals are on the driving seat
where love and emotions are not even retained on the back seat.
The only time when the man and woman come together are for
carnal pleasures. The story, The Seal in the Bedroom describes a
funny situation. A seal peers over a strangely amorphous couple in
bed, benignly barking as it keeps them company. Seal is a metaphor
for animal instinct and the barking of seal is indicative of man and
woman becoming animals. The craving of the girl in the fable The
Last Flower to protect the last flower and love is fruitless in the
world full of selfishness. The awareness that we experience
throughout Thurber's work is of that large chaos in which human
beings attempt to form groups, institutions, and systems in hopes of
somehow organizing and ordering life.
The Shrike and the Chipmunks also shows that husband and wife
are no longer company to each other but their togetherness leads to
misery. Chipmunk alone is able to save himself from all external as
well as internal threats but as soon his wife returns he is killed:
A few days later the female chipmunk returned and
saw the awful mess the house was in. She went to
the bed and shook her husband. What would you
do without me? she demanded. Just go on living,
I guess, he said. You wouldn't last five days,
she told him. She swept the house and did the
dishes and sent out the laundry, and then she made
the chipmunk get up and wash and dress. You
can't be healthy in you lie in bed all day and never
get any exercise, she told him. So she took him for
a walk in the bright sunlight and they were both
caught and killed by the shrike's brother, a shrike
xxix
named Stoop.
It is a metaphorical death of his identity. He knows the answer to
his wife's question; What would you do without me? she
demanded. Just go on living, I guess, he said. The answer is
clearly indicative that he would have a perfect life without his wife.
221 222
Coming together is exhibitive of the animal instinct and decadence
and fragmentation of the society where family system would soon
vanish.
In complete contrast, the American society has slowly started to
witness a change in the attitude towards family and that is
perceived and portrayed in Jhumpa Lahiri's book, Unaccustomed
Earth. American women are more devoted and trying to hold on
more to the marriage rather than men. It is a tour de force that has
been observed in the American society. The story, Hell- Heaven
brings out this fact very clearly. Deborah an American woman has
a lovey dovey relationship with Pranab a Bengali Indian. They
seemed to be in so much love that they felt no awkwardness sharing
it in front of others; Sometimes they ended up feeding each other
allowing their fingers to linger in each other's mouth, causing my
parents to look down at their plates and wait for the moment to pass.
At larger gatherings, they kissed and held hands in front of
everyone, ... Narrator's mother would remark ; He used to be so
different It's just hell- heaven , the difference, . After twenty-
three years of marriage, Pranab and Deborah got divorced. It was
he who had strayed, falling in love with a married Bengali woman,
destroying two families in the process and Deborah keeps
wondering despite her loyalty How could he do something like
xxxi
this ? It very clearly mirrors the rapidly changing culture in
America where American women are getting more loyal and
devoted to the marriage institution.
Conclusion:
The role women played had been very important since the dawn of
civilization. Recently, Globalization has given a great boost to the
status of women. They are competing and at times challenging the
man. Earlier automization, mechanization had also brought
shocking change in the society. Women went to work which gave
her tremendous economic, political and social independence. The
place woman occupies in the society is reflective of the culture
prevalent in the society and happens to be an indicator of the
attitude and the degree of patriarchy existing in the society at a
particular point of time. Every literary writer, poet or critic presents
it in various shades and colors that would gel with the taste of the
society. They do a wonderful presentation of voicing the culture
through the voice of their characters. Beginning from Rishi Vyas
later Kalidas, Jhumpa Lahiri , Bharati Mukherjee , Shobha De,
Arundhati Roy have been successful in projecting the societal
attitude and sensibility towards female gender through their
literary work.
i
Sonya Davey, One Shakuntala Two identities, Bhavan's Journal,
March,2013, p.33.
ii
Ibid36.
iii
Ibid36.
iv
Ibid.37
v
Ibd37.
vi
He calls him 'Bharata' after the name of the clan to which the Kauravas
and Pandavas belong. ( Paul Wilmot's translation of book Two of the epic
in clay Sanskrit series , represented by CSLII 66.4: Vyaghran mrigah
kopayase tivelam!)
vii
Mahabharata II.67.4 CSL.
viii
II.60.46
ix
II.60.5
x
II.60.7
xi
II.60.13.
xii
II .60.22
xiii
II .60.20
xiv
II.60.20- II.60.22-27
xv
David, Schulman, The Yasaka's Question in Galit Hasan- Rokem and
David Schulmen (eds.), Untying the Knot : On Riddles and Other
Enigmatic Modes, New York : Oxford University Press,1996,153.
xvi
II.60.35,36
xvii
II.67.47 CSL
xviii
Draupadi had five husbands not only because of Kunti but multiple
layer in the text.
xix
V.S. Sukthankar, Critical Studies in the Mahabharata, Mumbai:
Karnataka Publishing House, 1944, p.77-78. ( I.127.15)
xx
II.61,20-24
xxii
Asadhyam kim nu loke syad yuvayoh sahitatmanoh (V.143.10).
T.S Eliot, The Love-Song of J. Alfred Prufrock
http://people.virginia.edu/~sfr/enam312/prufrock.html downloaded on
17th April,2013.
Prufrock may represent a man wearing a frock that is he is so weak
emotionally that he is devoid of all masculinity.
223 224
x x i i i
J a me s Thur be r , The Li t t l e Gi r l a nd t he wol f ,
http://downwithtyranny.blogspot.in/2009/12/thurber-tonight-fables-for-
our-time-hen.html
xxiv
James Thurber, Men, Women, & Dogs, Ballatine NY:Publishers,1970.
xxv
James Thurber,
xxvi
T.S.Eliot ,The Love- Song OF J Alfred Prufrock
http://people.virginia.edu/~sfr/enam312/prufrock.html downloaded on
17th April,2013.
x x v i i
J a me s Th u r b e r , Th e Un i c o r n i n t h e Ga r d e n
http://dgtized.net/pages/thurber_owlgod downloaded 19th April 2013.
http://dgtized.net/pages/thurber_owlgod downloaded 19th April 2013.
xxviii
James Thurber, The Last Flower, http://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=X1RrEAroZbw , viewed 20th April, 2013.
x x i x
J a me s Thur be r, The Chi pmunk a nd t he Shr i ke ,
http://dgtized.net/pages/thurber_owlgod downloaded 19th April 2013.
xxx
Jhumpa Lahiri, Random House India Private Limited , 2008,p. 60.
xxxi
Ibid 68 , 81.
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227 228
Humor and the Language Classroom:
Wedding Possible?
[email protected]
Dr Shree Deepa
Centre for English Language Studies
University of Hyderabad
+919885130176
Abstract:
This paper discusses the possibilities of consciously including
humor in the classrooms in general and the Integrated Masters'
program in particular. It briefly traces the study of the history of
humor in the ELT classrooms. The paper lists the issues that these
students face and how humor can help overcome most of them. The
paper provides samples of tasks that were done and discusses its
relevance at different levels. The realistic possibility of a wedding
between the ELT classroom and humor is explored thoroughly. It
informally records and consolidates the experiences of about eight
years of teaching on the program at the University of Hyderabad.
The strong argument is made for the inclusion of humor in the
language classroom is made and substantiated with the results
reaped with such a conscious inclusion. It is also a plea to the
teachers to try it out to loosen and ease the tension in the language
classroom and foster learning in a threat free, positive
environment. It concludes with a section on the merits and
challenges of such inclusions.
Key words: humor, language learning, integrated masters'
program, ELT
English language teaching in many real and practical contexts still
remains a mysterious maze. Its history begins somewhere in the
1400s, (Howatt, 2013) and is now in its Post- Method era
(Brown, 2011). During this voyage of sorts, all kinds of syllabi,
materials, methods, approaches, genres, tasks, exercises were seen,
studied, taught and learnt and continue till today. The present
classroom is especially challenging like never before with the
advent of the internet, social networking sites, media and the like.
In such a scenario, teaching and learning English has become a big
question and a bigger issue. On one hand many theories teach us
how to teach English and on the other the learners' profiles keep
changing. Bridging the gap between what is to be taught, learnt and
how to teach and what to teach has become a greater distress among
the teaching community. Sustaining the attention and motivation
levels of the cyber age learners that wallow in a 'googling',
'facebook' world and that equate at the worst or at the least interpret
learning as cut-copy-paste-edit has become an ever greater
obsession and apprehension. To add to this we have different,
uninteresting, disengaging, unusable, complicated, disconnected
materials, textbooks, and syllabi that are forced upon the teaching
community by people of authority. With such learners and such
materials, the teacher has to straddle on these two volte faced
horses and train the students in the skills through tasks in the
language and 'prepare' them for a real life of language use. Various
studies have shown that the present generation students and
learners need something that's funny, usable, and immediately
appealing in the classroom to even sit patiently through those 'cruel'
minutes that figure in the time-table. Many students of other
teachers that I have seen and interviewed confessed that they had to
be physically present in the classroom only for the sake of
attendance. Fortunately in my classroom I never had to face such a
situation, and that set me thinking and the reflection and
introspection has led to this paper. The difference was that my
classes were full of laughter, humane, practical and seemingly
more useful to the learners than the other similar classes taught by
other teachers. The feminist pedagogy wedded with humor
smoothly led to effortless and open learning.
229 230

In this paper I heavily draw from the experiments conducted on the
students of the Integrated Masters' Program over a period of 6 and
half years. During the course of teaching English, humor was used
in various forms and contexts in the classroom.
Program profile: In the University of Hyderabad, Hyderabad,
India, every year over 200 students join various streams to earn an
integrated masters' degree in various disciplines. They join
immediately after completing their 12'Th standard. Initially (2006,
2007), they studied English for 4 semesters and it later was reduced
to just 2 semesters of formal study. The students were/are put into
groups of 100 (in the year 2006) to 45 (years 2007 to 2009) to 25
(year 2012). The criteria for grouping ranged from random to
discipline based to the latest proficiency based. The syllabus
outline was always decided by the department and the school
board. However the teachers have always had the freedom to
decide the method of instruction, actual pedagogy and, slightly
alter the syllabus based on justifiable, concrete and specific needs
of student groups if necessary.
This freedom has allowed the teachers to use materials of their
choice and many teachers opted to use similar kinds of materials
that were categorized as uninteresting and disconnected from the
students' world. In my case the first and useful choice is/was humor
in its many forms except the attack kind. Humor in my classroom
was defined as anything or saying or doing or seeing or listening or
reading etc that let to instant outburst of laughter or at least resulted
in a drawing of the lips into a faint smile. Utmost care and caution
was/is taken to keep the materials and incidences away from
personal attack and degradation of a person/ religion/ belief
system/ culture etc.
The paper discusses how, when and what kind of humor is suitable
in the integrated masters' level classroom. It exhibits the
experiences of such a teacher and explores the possibilities of
changing/adapting/ adopting such materials. All attempts
regarding the materials and humor used were towards making them
multicultural and multi-disciplinary in nature. It was a deliberate
choice. In the program and in the particular course classrooms that
included humor were more open and more productive than the
other classrooms/ groups. The conclusions are yet to be formalized
in the form of an in-depth and tangible study. Further experiments
will be conducted and more results will be discussed in a future
study.
The sources and resources for humor as materials ranged from
newspaper clippings, stories to pictures from the internet.
Deliberate attempts were made to include humor in teaching every
skill, ranging from spelling to essay writing. The choice of the
sources came from the youth dominated portions of the sub pages
of the social networking sites such as Facebook, ROFL, ROFL
India, etc. Such a choice was made so that it automatically
fascinated the youth community and was declared funny judged by
the comments and the number of likes each item got in the
community. As before extreme caution was exercised in the
selection so that the item was funny yet appropriate.
There are a lot of theories that explain humor as a concept, reaction,
action, culture, context, sensory, degrees, stress buster and the like,
based on what it is and what it does and how it does evoke laughter.
While many studies vouch for its benefits when included in the
classroom, unfortunately the English classes and teachers
particularly are categorized as being humorless, boring and
monotonous (as in mono tone too, though they claim to be teachers
of phonetics). Many teachers are creative with the methods and
materials but often without a tinge of humor, creativity is somehow
rendered, condemned to 'high seriousness'. A teaching learning
with humor setup keeps the language classroom happy and lowers
the 'affective filter' and creates a more conducive, appealing, open,
positive, receptive, supportive and joyful atmosphere in the
language learning classroom. Humor can come out of jokes,
riddles, puns, funny stories, humorous quotations and other
humorous items (Bryant et al, 1979). Many times the students were
encouraged to bring in their contributions to the classroom and
after careful selection, the materials were used.
231 232
Shade (1996) has classified humor as:
1. Figural humor that includes comic strips, cartoons and
caricatures. This form of humor appears in a variety of
media and involves the use of drawing to deliver the
humor.
2. Verbal humor that consists of jokes, puns, riddles, satire,
parody, irony, wit, limerick and anecdote. This form
involves the use of language and often depends on the
use of incongruity as demonstrated through
contradiction, understatement and exaggeration.
3. Visual humor that includes sight gags, practical jokes,
clowning, impersonation, impressions, etc. this category
depends on visual cues for the humor to be effective.
4. Auditory humor that includes impersonations,
impressions, noises and sounds. This form depends on
auditory cues for the humor to be effective.
Hativa (2001) provided classified humor in three main categories.
The first category is verbal humor that consists of jokes, anecdotes,
language play, etc. The second one is nonverbal humor such as
cartoon, caricature, photon and visual pun. The last one is
combined verbal and nonverbal humor that consists of
impersonation, parody, satire, monologue and skit. Chee (2006)
has classified humor in teaching into four major categories:
Textual: stories, jokes; Pictorial: cartoons, comics; Action/Games:
theatre, video, role play, simulation, contests; and Verbal: Puns,
word games, acronym
Why is classroom humor important? John A Banas (Jan 2011) in his
study starts with precisely this pertinent question and attempts to
trace four decades of study on it. Cornett (1986) argues that humor
is educator's most powerful resource and undoubtedly facilitates
foreign language acquisition. (8) A lot of research studies endorse
the fact that humor does benefit the learning processes (Aylor&
Opplinger, 2003; Bryant, Comisky, & Zillmann, 1979; Bryant &
Zillmann, 1989; Conkell, Imwold, & Ratliffe, 1999; Davies &
Apter, 1980; Frymier, Wanzer, & Wojtaszczyk, 1999; Frymier &
Weser, 2001; Gorham & Christophel, 1990; Kaplan & Pascoe,
1977; Wanzer & Frymier, 1999). However, some researchers have
noted that sometimes humor may have negative consequences as
well (e.g., Gorham & Christophel, 1990; Harris, 1989; Stuart &
Rosenfeld, 1994; Torok, McMorris, & Lin, 2004). Further,
methodological and conceptual discrepancies in instructional
humor research have often prevented clear conclusions about how
humor functions in the classroom (Martin, Puhlik-Doris, Larsen,
Gray, & Weir, 2003; Teslow, 1995; Ziv, 1988). For example,
Teslow concluded his review of instructional humor research by
noting that much of the empirical evidence is old, equivocal,
lacking replication and manipulation checks, and frequently
involves only young children.
If humor is part of the learning setup then studies prove that the
language output, productivity, general mood and creativity is
enhanced and thereby the educative process is smoother and more
effective.
How was and can humor (be) used? Humor was used in different
ways; in selection of materials in different tasks and task types.
Different media in the form of pictures, texts, combination of text
and pictures, videos, movies, movie clips, gestures and general
behavior were used in the course of a majority of teaching learning
hours. The sources were the internet, student sources and teacher's
personal sources. Humorous materials were used to teach,
enunciate and test language skills (example see appendix-1). But
extreme caution has to be exercised in the selection. In fact any skill
can be taught using humorous materials. The picture and text
combination works well even with the visually challenged students
because text can be read out to them and with normal students it
foregrounds the ideas presented. A few tasks were framed on the
item and the students felt instantly connected with the idea as it
stemmed from their world, and it also served the purpose of
highlighting and correcting and replacing the cyber usages of
English spelling in them into ordinary academic spelling. Skills
such as writing, speaking were also taught using the picture text.
For example:
233 234
1. Look at the picture and jot down any incident that is
similar in your life. Using the notes write 2 to 3
paragraphs describing the incident. (advanced learners)
(writing)
(This connected the students to their everyday life and
content was not a hard thing to find nor was it
uninteresting or boring. The students loved to respond
and a language production was at its maximum and
effortless. The discussions fostered a lot of laughter and
the learning mood was elevated. Though this was used for
the learners at the advanced proficiency levels, it can still
work well with the basic and intermediate levels, but, the
production would need facilitation by the teacher in form
of sample sentences written on the black board.)
2. In pairs discuss the picture and relate it to your own
experiences. Then declare it to the whole class.
(Speaking, intermediate to basic learners' level)
(Here the students had a lot of experiences to share as
almost all of them had such experiences. In rare cases
where they found it a bit difficult the idea of a smart
phone was replaced by a computer. The students did not
have to own either a smart phone or a computer to share
experiences because they were technically well aware of
the features of the said phones, tablets and computers as
they kept themselves aware through the advertisements
and related to the real and projected features of the
gadgets. The fortunate learners however will have many
more such similar gadgets to discuss.)
3. The texts have a few punctuation errors. Correct and
rewrite them against each blurb. (grammar, all levels)
(This task was essential as many academic answers were
written in the cyber spelling and the students almost
always felt that it was easier to write in that spelling and
did not want to at the worst and at the least problematic
did not notice the difference between academic and cyber
spelling. This question highlighted the difference and
enunciated; fore grounded it and paved way for fixing it.)
This is in no way exhaustive and many more useful, meaningful
tasks and questions can be framed with a complete exploitation of
the picture text.
When was /can be humor used? Of the 40 contact teaching hours
about 30 hours had humor content. 10 hours were spent in
examination, model paper discussion, clarification and specific
instruction. In the 30 contact hours all materials and methods of
learning involved the use of humor, ranging from gentle humor to
discussing particular mannerisms. But care was taken so as not to
assassinate any specific individual. In rare cases where a
mannerism was found generally funny care was taken to involve
the owner of the mannerism and they were taught why it seemed
funny. (Specifically during group presentations-For example if a
learner was found touching his/her hair too many times during the
presentation the teacher would gently highlight and ask him/her if
there was a reason why this was done. Similarly if someone was
found chewing a pen or pencil, the teacher would highlight it and
then tell him/her that plastic is not food and a pen/pencil should not
replace breakfast. The class and the concerned individual would
have a good laugh over it.) During instruction, testing and learning
care was taken to use funny materials (Appendix 1) wherever
possible. The first few classes dedicated to ice-breaking involved
humor (Appendix 2). The introductory classes are very important
for both the teachers and the students to get to know each other and
one another. (In these sessions a deliberate confusion as to the
teaching style was used. The learners were instructed in an
authoritative tone and teaching style. The learners were tricked to
believe that the very first class was a test and the appropriate mood
was set in. The high seriousness maintained where in the teacher
gave strict instructions about copying from fellow students and the
importance of silent work emphasized. After the oral instructions
and setting of an authoritative teaching style was established the
worksheet was given. Many took the style unwillingly but were
found smiling after the reading, reception and comprehension
began. The teacher can judge the speed of the readers individually
and infer from the time delay in the smiles blooming in the learners
in comparison with their fellow students. Some might end up being
straight faced, confused and bummed. This was deliberate and then
235 236
the teacher loosened up the class and told the class that laughter was
expected out of them. Many students did not expect that they were
permitted to laugh in an academic setting and that laughter and
learning could go together. This was their dream class, many
confessed: A complete education and an entertainer. They never
wanted to miss their classes and looked forward to newer
experiences. This set the mood to the classes and kept the learning
environment happy and cheerful and open. The learners were
encouraged to bring similar materials in the next class. The best
option was run through.
What kind of humor was/ can be used? David Sudol (1981, 27)
cautions teachers against using teasing and sarcasm
indiscriminately. He says it will be beneficial if it exudes or leads to
a better warm rapport in the learning classroom. He also talks of
jokes, exaggerations, fooling, clowning and amusements. He
believes that a class can be fun (filled with humor) and still be
quite serious; Serious and humorous are not mutually exclusive
termsthere can be a balance.(28) He believes that if a teacher
can highlight that both are possible at the same time then the
equilibrium is achieved. This he calls entertaining teaching. He
cautions that the students be made well aware of the reason and
personality of the teacher before using humor seriously in the
classroom. Many such jokes became a part of the materials used
and a particularly popular one was as follows:
Various jokes are available and can be used in a variety of ways in
the language learning classroom. A few sample tasks are given
below. The joke may be printed out in a handout format and handed
over to students in groups. (For more see appendix 3)
Source: http://academictips.org/blogs/jokes/
Physics Teacher: Isaac Newton was sitting under a
tree when an apple fell on his head and he
discovered gravity. Isn't that wonderful?
Student: Yes sir, if he had been sitting in class
looking at books like us, he
wouldn't have discovered anything.
A speaking task was done on this joke first.
Discuss in pairs why the students responded in this way and let the
other groups know of your opinions. Try to think creatively and
different from what your classmates could think of.
The students instantly connected to the ideas and language
generation was almost automatic and the teacher only needed to be
a facilitator in providing very minimal structures or vocabulary
items when necessary. There were two groups, one that sided with
Newton and the other that spited him. A lot of discussion and
spoken language use was found. The students either furiously
defended Newton or cursed him but used language anyway. The
students felt empowered because they were allowed to pick sides
and disclose their opinions and were provided opportunity to
negotiate, convince, and persuade the others.
Later they were required to write a letter. This time and point of
time was used to teach/remind them the conventions of letter
writing in a subtle way.
Writing task: Write a letter to Isaac Newton and
tell him how his discoveries have helped/bothered
you in your science classes.
This was also interesting and funny for them because many times
they were allowed to write bizarre responses as long as it was in
appropriate English. The flexibility and creativity encouraged
them to open out their minds and the result was that the class was a
completely productive and the students were left with a feeling of
importance and as it allowed them to be their true selves and most
importantly they were allowed to laugh and learn at the same time.
This could work with all levels of proficiency.
Many times humorous short stories were used to teach different
skills. One such story is recorded in appendix 6. This worked well
because it had an Indian context in it and the characters are a few
and so easily comprehensible. Many of the students frequently
travel by buses, buy tickets or subscribe to bus passes or at least
237 238
know friends that do. The actual humor in this story comes only in
the end as an element of surprise, and added to the humor is a
humorous moral that the youth live by. After the story was read a
discussion and reading comprehension questions were created and
answered. Created, because the students were allowed to frame
questions for their partners and the thrill of playing teacher was
exhilarating for them. The initial laughter at the point of discovery
of humor was sustained, addictive, infectious and affective through
the session.
In the integrated masters' program, classroom generated humor
was always a part of the author's teaching learning system; it was
encouraged as long as it was productive and contributive to
language learning. Sufficient care was taken so as not to use acidic
individualized sarcasm or personal attack. In case of distraught
distress teacher intervention and clarification was provided
immediately and the issue resolved and understood. Any material
that was used had the option of being entertaining unless it was not
an option due to various reasons beyond control. Even exams and
tests had humorous pieces in them as an aid to tasks. (Appendix
5it was a part of the end semester examination question paper)
The idea was to make the students think and respond. Funny
responses were welcomed and encouraged so as to give them the
freedom of expression while language was in use. The responses
were varied, creative, open ended, and funny. The students were
delighted to find something amusing to read and write about in an
examination.
The experiment of including humor was conducted on every batch
of students that studied with me in the University of Hyderabad and
informal interviews were conducted 3 to 4 times every semester
during their study in the course and after they had finished their
course. In the interview they were asked questions (appendix 6)
that were both open ended and close ended and responses were
noted and used to innovate in the next semester teaching. More than
80% of the students felt that they enjoyed learning in my class
because they were happy and felt non- threatened. They found a
receptive teacher that was keen on maintaining a positive
atmosphere; a teacher that was compassionate as well as educative
in their own words. This positive feeling for the teacher they
maintained even after they graduated the course. And one of the
main reasons is the use of humor in the classroom and outside. A
few of them found it difficult to digest the fact that there can be
humor in the language classroom. Nevertheless they confessed to
have enjoyed the learning sessions.
Limitations of the study include the difficulty to adopt/adapt such
materials for the visually challenged and specially-abled students.
Secondly, if the teacher is not alert the whole course may become a
joke. Thirdly, the students may take the course and the teacher for
granted. Fourthly, such an inclusion may be questioned by the stake
holders and if the teacher is unable to convince them it may turn
into a disastrous situation. Lastly, if the teacher herself is not
convinced then the inclusion may become a joke by itself.
Conclusion: If a teacher is convinced, wise, balanced and
innovative then humor can become a useful, creative, constructive,
functional, and efficient tool. It is possible to include humor in the
language classroom irrespective of the level of proficiency or age
of learners. Humor has a positive effect in learning if it is used
tactfully and wisely. It can enhance the learning experience of the
learners and can break the monotony of the classroom. This train of
thought could concretize as a research topic and more exhaustive
studies are possible and will be attempted.
The final argument is that a wedding of the ELT classroom and
humor is very much possible and will produce, foster, nurture,
enhance and contribute to learning in a positive, threat free,
conducive, and happy learning environment. It must be attempted,
included and integrated into the ELT classroom by every teacher,
the learning teachers.
References
Attardo, Salvatore. (1994) Linguistic Theories of Humor. Mouton
de Gruyter, NY.
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&pg=PP1#v=onepage&q&f=false
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Aylor, B., & Opplinger, P. (2003). Out-of-class communication
and student perceptions of instructor humor orientation and socio-
communicative style. Communication Education, 52, 122_134.
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Method' Era: Toward
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Methodology in Language Teaching: An Anthology of Current
Practice. Edited Jack. C. Richards and Willy A. Renandya. CUP,
2011. (pp 9-18)
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the college classroom. Communication Education, 28, 110-118.
Bryant, J., & Zillmann, D. (1989). Using humor to promote
learning in the classroom. In P.E. McGhee (Ed.), Humor and
children's development: A guide to practical applications (pp. 49-
78). New York: Haworth Press.
Chee, A. (2006). Humor in TEYL - reducing classroom anxiety.
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from http://www.teyl.org/article2.html
Conkell, C., Imwold, C., & Ratliffe, T. (1999). The effects of
humor on communicating fitness concepts to high school
students. Physical Educator, 56, 8-18.
Davies, A.P., & Apter, M.J. (1980). Humor and its effects on
learning in children. In P.E. McGhee & A.J. Chapman (Eds.),
Children's humor (237-253). New York: Wiley.
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0Laughing%20Matter.pdf
Frymier, A.B., Wanzer, M.B., & Wojtaszczyk, A. (1999).
Assessing students' perceptions of inappropriate and appropriate
teacher humor. Communication Education, 57, 266-288.
Frymier, A.B., & Weser, B. (2001). The role of student
predispositions on student expectations for instructor
communication behavior. Communication Education, 50, 314-
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Hativa, N. (2001). Teaching for Effective Learning in Higher
Education. Netherlands: Kluwer Academic Publishers.
Gorham, J., & Christophel, D.M. (1990). The relationship of
teachers' use of humor in The classroom to immediacy and student
learning. Communication Education, 39, 46-62.
Howatt, A. P. R and H. G. Widdowson. A History of English
Language Teaching: Second Edition. OUP, 2013.
Harris, J.J. (1989). When jokes are not funny. Social Education,
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Rowley, MA: Newbury House.
Martin, R.A., Puhlik-Doris, P., Larsen, G., Gray, J., & Weir, K.
(2003). Individual differences in uses of humor and their relation
to psychological well-being: Development of the Humor Styles
Questionnaire. Journal of Research in Personality, 37, 48-75.
Shade, A. R. (1996). License to Laugh: Humor in the Classroom.
Connecticut: Greenwood publishing.
Stuart, W.D., & Rosenfeld, L.B. (1994). Student perceptions of
teacher humor and Classroom climate. Communication Research
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Sudol, David.(1981) Dangers of Classroom Humor. The English
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of English pp. 26-28 retrieved 10/01/2013 from Stable URL:
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Teslow, J.L. (1995). Humor me: A call for research. Educational
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Appendix 1
Source:
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=494829393902789&s
et=a.289935947725469.88000.214433131942418&type=1&thea
ter
1. Look at the picture and jot down any incident that is similar
in your life. Using the notes write 2 to 3 paragraphs
describing the incident. (advanced learners) (writing)
2. In pairs discuss the picture and relate it to your own
experiences. Then declare it to the whole class. (Speaking,
intermediate to basic learners' level)
3. The texts have a few punctuation errors. Correct and
rewrite them against each blurb. (grammar, all levels)
243 244
Appendix 2
Source:
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=494829393902789&s
et=a.289935947725469.88000.214433131942418&type=1&thea
ter
Teacher talk: Learners! This is a test for you, so, please do your
work silently and individually.
Now rewrite all the statements with proper spelling and
punctuation.
Appendix 3
Note: Various jokes are available and can be used in a variety of
ways in the language learning classroom. A few sample tasks are
given below. The joke may be printed out in a handout format and
handed over to students in groups.
Source: http://academictips.org/blogs/jokes/
1. Physics Teacher: Isaac Newton was sitting under a tree when
an apple fell onhis head and he discovered gravity. Isn't that
wonderful?
Student: Yes sir, if he had been sitting in class looking at books
like us, he wouldn't have discovered anything.
Speaking task: Discuss in pairs why the students responded in this
way and let the other groups know of your opinions. Try to think
creatively and different from what your classmates could think of.
Writing task: Write a letter to Isaac Newton and tell him how his
discoveries have helped/bothered you in your science classes.
2. A man is talking to God.
The man: God, how long is a million years?
God: To me, it's about a minute.
The man: God, how much is a million dollars?
God: To me it's a penny.
The man: God, may I have a penny?
God: Wait a minute.
Speaking task: In pairs discuss who is more wise, the man or God.
Jot down reasons for your opinion. Later share it with the class.

3. A little girl came home from school and said to her mother,
Mommy, today in school I was punished for something that I
didn't do.
The mother exclaimed, But that's terrible! I'm going to have a
245 246
talk with your teacher about this by the way, what was it
that you didn't do?
The little girl replied, My homework.
Note: This can be used as a stimulus for a writing task.
Writing task: Do you think school children and other older students
need to be given homework? Record your response in an essay of
500 words.
4. The teacher of the earth science class was lecturing on map
reading.
After explaining about latitude, longitude, degrees and minutes the
teacher asked, Suppose I asked you to meet me for lunch at 23
degrees, 4 minutes north latitude and 45 degrees, 15 minutes east
longitude?
After a confused silence, a voice volunteered, I guess you'd be
eating alone.
Reading comprehension task:
a) Why do think that the teacher would be eating alone?
b) Where do you think the teacher invited the student?
Grammar task: write the student's response in reported speech.
5. Teacher: This essay on your dog is, word for word, the same as
your brother's.
Student: Yes, sir, it is the same dog.
Writing task: Do you think that teachers are running out of ideas for
essay writing topics? Defend your arguments with examples from
your English classes.
Or
Why do you think students refuse to put in extra effort to do
homework? Write a paragraph taking examples from your own
experiences.
6. Teacher: If you had one dollar and you asked your father for
another, how many dollars would you have?
Vincent: One dollar.
Teacher: You don't know your arithmetic.
Vincent: You don't know my father.
Reading comprehension task:
a) How many characters are there in this joke?
b) Write a few lines about each of them as you can judge
from the joke.
c) Why do you think the boy says that the teacher does not
know his father?
Appendix 4
Source :
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=550358768326687&s
et=a.407237669305465.113971.321454251217141&type=1&ref
=nf
One fine day, a bus driver went to the bus garage, started his bus,
and drove off along the route. No problems for the first few stops - a
few people got on, a few got off, and things went generally well.
At the next stop, however, a big hulk of a Pathan got on. Six feet
four, built like a wrestler, arms hanging down to the ground. He
glared at the conductor and said, "Pathan doesn't pay!" and sat
down at the back.
Conductor didn't argue with Pathan, but he wasn't happy about it.
The next day the same thing happened Pathan got on again,
made a show of refusing to pay, and sat down. And the next day, and
the next.
This grated on the bus driver, who started losing sleep over the way
Pathan was taking advantage of poor conductor. Finally he could
stand it no longer. He signed up for body building courses, karate,
judo, and all that good stuff.
247 248
By the end of the summer, he had become quite strong; what's
more, he felt really good about himself. So, on the next Monday,
when Pathan once again got on the bus and said, "Pathan doesn't
pay!"
The driver stood up, glared back at Pathan, and screamed, "And
why not?"
With a surprised look on his face, Pathan replied, "Pathan has a bus
pass."
Moral: Be sure there is a problem in the first place before working
hard to solve one.
4. Look at the pictures carefully. Choose only ONE and
write a reaction around it. It should closely correspond
to the quote and the picture. 10m
Picture 4a
Picture 4b
249 250
Appendix 6
Informal interview questions
1. Do you enjoy your English classes? Why/why not?
2. Do you think that your English classes are better or worse
than other batches? Why?
3. Describe your favorite session and explain the reasons.
4. Comment on the teaching skills of your English teacher.
5. Do you think you are learning English better than your batch
mates? Why/ why not?
6. Do you find your teacher more approachable? Why/ why not?
What can she do to be more approachable if she is not
already?
7. Have you improved your capacity to communicate in
English? If yes on a 10 point scale with 1 being the least
improvement, and 10 being perfect where do you stand now
in your own judgment?
Some unedited responses are recorded here for reference (the order
of questions was different) via email given by the learners in the
preceding semester (semester 1- July Dec 2012- group 7) as a part
of mid course feedback:
Student 1 : KORUTLA ROHITHKUMAR 12IMMM16.
A1
My best class was english because I dont know how to speak
english but I will understand english completely. Now I able to
english. That's y my best class was english.
Q2
Yes I enjoyed making questions and evaluation because previous I
not done this activity. I known that making questions and
evaluating is how hard I understood. Like this I enjoyed a lot.
A3
Yes my english has improved. Because when I came to my first
english class I dont know to speak english now I would speak with
all my friends. I say that my english was 70% improved.
Q4
No there is no class that was boring.
A 5
Yes my english class is different from others.
Student 2: Roshni
1. What was the best class and why?
Ans. The best class was the dramatics class were i was acting as
mom and girlfriend...
2. Dd u enjoy making question and evolution?
Ans. Yes it was awesome ..it ws v interesting and funny too...
3. Do you think ur English has improved?
Ans. A lot... as before i use 2 use capital letters alot for no reason, n
ma way it was a fashion ...now i came to know...
4. Was any class that was boring ? explain??
Ans. No..Not at all.Each nd every class ws so interesting that we
cannot forget.We enjoyed as well as learned a lot.. it was v
useful to me atleast.
5. Do u think ur English class was different than the other
class??how?
Ans. Yea,it was different ..we love the classes because its very
interesting as we involved in many group activities.
..Mam you rock..
Student 3: Fani Eswar
1. What was the best class and why?
Ans: I like every class.. and every subject....because every class
will teach us that how u r..and wr ur position.so that i always
251 252
try to be present in every class,and trying to learn every
thing.....mam.
2. Did u enjoy making questions and evaluation?explain?
Ans: Yes....i enjoyed.
First i felt some what shy to asking questions in classes
regarding anything.because i came from telugu medium
background.this english class mada a confidence to me...to
rise a question. This is because of YOU..mam.thanking you
mam.
3. do u think your English has improved?explain..give
approximate % of improvement according to you?
Ans: Yes....i learn and i improved my English talking skills.that
firstly 35-45.now it is near to 60-70.
4. Was there a class that was boring?explain...
Ans: No. i love every subject.
5. Do you think your English class were different than the
other?how?
Ans: Yes.....
English class was purely different than the other classes.
Because,they are teaching and giving only subject oriented
knowledge.but English class not like that.English class gave
a capacity to getting good marks.so that once sec i would like
to say that.thanking u mam
-------eswar.
Action Research - A Device to Solve Language
Issues in English Classroom
B.sreekanth Reddy
Research scholar (JNTUA)
Mail id - [email protected]
Abstract
The action research is an individualistic or a collaborative activity
for finding solutions to everyday, realistic problems of the
classroom. It is a process through which practioners study their
problems scientifically in order to guide, correct and evaluate their
decisions and actions. In the educational set up i.e. school / college,
the practioners are teachers and their colleagues who strive to
improve and enhance their personal as well as organizational
goals. Thus action research is very important tool to improve and
enhance the quality of educational objectives. In this paper
presentation an effort is made to present the theoretical and
practical aspects of Action research, and a brief sample design for
application of Action research to solve the problem of 'Spelling
Mistakes' of the 11th grade students of A9 class of RGUIIIT.
The teacher uses many concepts in planning and Organizing
effective teaching and realizing the objectives of teaching. A
teacher may come across several types of challenges in presenting
and achieving the learning objects .Therefore, it is essential for a
teacher to solve those problems scientifically. The appropriate
teaching strategies may not be effective unless and until the
problem are solved .
The classroom problems can be solved by employing the action
research process .It is a method for solving the problems of
teaching objectively and systematically. This is useful for
improving and modifying the teaching process.
253 254
Meaning of Research :
Research is a process to study the basic problems which contribute
in the edifice of human knowledge. The research process
establishes new truth, finds out new facts, formulates new theory
and suggests new applications. It is a purposeful activity which
contributes to the edifice of knowledge.
'' Research is a systematized effort to gain new knowledge''
Morey
Educational research:
The principle focus of education is the development of a child .It's
aim is to bring the desirable change among learners. The basic
problems of teaching and education are studied in educational
research.
'' Educational research is that activity which is directed towards the
development of science of behaviour in educational situation.''
WM. Traverse
Educational research aims to make contribution towards the
solution problem in the field of education by the use of the
scientific method, which focuses on critical reflective thinking.
Types of Educational Research:
The objectives of educational research is to contribute to the
existing knowledge in the form of new theory and facts in a
particular field studied. It may not always contribute to knowledge
development but suggests new application for practical problems
.Thus, the educational researches are classified broadly into two
categories.
1) Fundamental or Basic Research.
2) Action research or Applied Research.
Meaning and definition of Action Research:
Stephen M Corey applied this concept of Action research for the
first time in field of education. It is a process by which practitioners
attempt to study the problems scientifically in order to guide,
comment and evaluate their decision and action.
''Action research is a process for studying problems by
practitioners scientifically to take decision for improving their
current practices.'' Stephen M Corey.
The concept of action research is being used in education since
1926. Buckingham has mentioned this concept for the first time in
his book 'Research for Teachers,' but Stephen M Corey has used
this concept for solving the problems of education.
Objectives of action research:
The following objectives can be achieved by adopting the action
research projects:-
lTo enhance the performance and aspirational levels of
students.
lTo develop scientific attitude among administrators,
principal, and teachers and solve their educational problems.
lTo improve the working conditions of the Educational
institutes.
lTo create a healthy environment for teaching learning
process.
lTo improve and modify the classroom teaching learning
strategies.
lTo develop interests, attitudes and values in students.
255 256
Steps of action research:
1. Identification of the problem:- The teacher should be able to
identify the problem and must realize the seriousness of the
problem.
2. Defining the problem:- After identifying the problem, it
should be defined so that the scope ,boundaries, the action and
the goal may be fixed .The scope helps to localize the
problem in terms of class, subject in which a teacher
encounters a problem.
3. Analyzing the causes of the problem:- Analysing the
factors responsible for the cause of problems helps us to
formulate the hypothesis. It also tells us whether the factors
are under the control or beyond the control of an investigator .
4. Formulating the action hypothesis:- An action hypothesis
is formulated after identifying and analyzing the factors
which causes the problem .The statement of action
hypothesis has two aspects: Action and Goal. It indicates what
action has to be taken for achieving the desired goal.
5. Design for testing the action hypothesis:- In action
research one hypothesis is tested at a time. The design of
action research is flexible and can be redesigned at any time
according to the convenience of the research. The design is
developed for testing the feasibility of the proposed
hypothesis. If the hypothesis is not accepted second design is
developed for testing another hypothesis.
6. Conclusion of Action research project:- After testing the
hypothesis, the results are collected and studied in depth and
analyzed .After analyzing data some inferences are drawn.
The conclusion statement indicates the prescription for the
assumed practical problem of the class room. The conclusions
are useful in modifying the current practices of the school or
class room.
Experimental project of Action research
An experimental project is designed for solving the problems of
English teaching.
1. Topic of the project: A study for improving the spelling
errors in English language.
2. Investigator: An experienced teacher of English language.
3. Background for the project work: An English teacher has
observed and experienced that students commit more errors in
spellings. He came across several types of spelling errors in
student's assignments, composition, translations and in their
written work.
4. Objectives of the project: An action research is planned to
achieve the following objectives -
lTo make students know about the importance of correct
spellings in English language.
lTo make them sensitive towards spelling errors in English
language.
lTo improve the English spellings of the students.
lTo improve the level of achievement in English.
5. Importance of the project: English is an International/global
language. It is very important for communication in our
country as well as abroad. To have good hold on language is a
professional requirement now-a-days. Therefore students
must learn language correctly.
6. Field of the problem: The field of the study is the 'Spelling
Errors' in English language.
257 258
7. Specification: The problem is located in the 11th grade
students of A9 section in RGUIIIT, R.K. Valley. The students
of this class commit several spelling errors in English.
Analyzing the causes of the problem:- The causes of the problem
are identified so that tentative solutions may be designed. The
causes are analyzed as given below
Causes Evidence Control
1. The students
doesn't complete
their written
assignments.
2. Teacher doesn't
give due
attention /
importance to
spellings during
the class hours.
3. The students
donot have clear
understanding of
English grammar
or have a strong
foundation in
grammar.
The assignments
are always
incomplete
By conducting
dictation,
enquiring the
students /
supervising the
written work.
Students poor oral
response to the
questions based on
grammar
Under the control
of the teacher.
Under the control
of the teacher.
May or maynot be
under the control
of teacher
The analysis of the causes of the problem provides the basis for the
formulation of action hypothesis.
Formulation of Action hypothesis:- The following two action
hypothesis have been developed by considering the causes.
1st hypothesis:- The modification or improvement may be done in
English spelling errors by proper correction of English written
work/ assignments. It refers to the action part.
2nd hypothesis:- The spelling of words and their meanings should
be emphasized by the teacher to improve the spelling errors in the
English teaching. This part concentrates on goal.
The action hypothesis is tested by using the
design of the project -
Design for testing action hypothesis: - The first action hypothesis is
tested by employing the following design -
Activity Source Time
1. The teacher
designs a list of
written work
assignment in
English Language.
2. A blue print of the
tests to be
administered is
made for the
complete
lesson/module
3. The teacher will
assign daily based
written work to
test the different
aspects of
language.
4. The teacher
evaluates the
written
assignments and
assigns grades /
marks.
Text books &
prescribed
syllabus for the
weekend
Prescribed
syllabus for the
week.
Various model
papers, previous
exam papers.
Teacher evaluates
the assignments
5 days
3 days
1 week
2 days
S.
No.
The data is collected during the project work and the marks/grades
are analyzed. If the project result indicates significant
improvement in reducing spelling errors in English, there is no
need to test the second hypothesis.
Conclusion:- The project work done is evaluated in terms of
statistical representation. The results are studied and analyzed and
259 260
then the hypothesis is accepted or rejected. The percentage of errors
is also calculated and conclusion or suggestions may be
proposedinthe form of remedial measures for the problem.
Works Cited
1. Research Methodology: Methods and Techniques - C R
Kothari, 2nd edition, New Age International Publications.
2. Research Methodology and Statistical Tools P. Narayana
Reddy and GVRK Achayalu, 1st Edition, Excell Books New
Delhi, 2008.
3. Statistical Methods S.P.Gupta S Chand & Sons, New
Delhi, 2005
Dr. Neelam Tikkha
Challenges in teaching English
Language to economically
weaker sections of Children
from Vernacular medium.
Abstract
"Poverty doesn't only condemn humans to lives of difficulty and
unhappiness; it can expose them to life threatening dangers.
Because, poverty denies people any semblance of control over their
destiny, it is the ultimate denial of human rights" (Yunus and Weber,
2007, p 104).
In India, there has been an educational drive called Sarva Shiksha
Abhiyan to teach poor students but teaching the poor is not the
same . It is seen that despite hard work and persistent efforts of the
government the poor children are not able to compete with the
other privileged students. The major reason is they lack the
vocabulary and the language. It is highly essential to teach the poor
proper language to compete with other students to get rid of
poverty .As English has become the lingua franca of international
commerce, for economic growth it is important for a country to
have human bridges who can work across cultural and linguistic
borders, and ESL and other English teachers have an important
role in developing these human bridges.
An individual teaching English in a developing economy can have
a profound and direct impact on the lives of the students by
providing them with a proper language and in a way this individual
can also have a small and indirect impact on reducing global
poverty through providing the skills a nation needs to integrate
internationally.
261 262
Objectives:
teaching learning strategies for teaching ESL and EFL for the
poor.
(1) I would explore the possibility of using folklore and songs
of Maharashtra to develop vocabulary in English.
(2) I would attempt to use ICT to teach through translational
and trans creational method to impart essential English
Vocabulary which would help students to develop their
English skills and would be able to relate with the situation
in the context of Maharashtra.
Providing the poor with proper strategies to improve their
language skills would be in true sense giving them with equal
opportunity. Initiating the teaching learning process with the use
of folklore, vernacular songs, make learning interesting and
fruitful. Innovative use of ICT makes learning effective.
In this paper an attempt would be made to explore
Introduction:
"Poverty doesn't only condemn humans to lives of difficulty and
unhappiness; it can expose them to life threatening dangers.
Because, poverty denies people any semblance of control over their
destiny, it is the ultimate denial of human rights" (Yunus and
1
Weber, 2007, p 104).
In India, there has been an educational drive called Sarva Shiksha
Abhiyan to teach poor students but teaching the poor is not the
same . It is seen that despite hard work and persistent efforts of the
government the poor children are not able to compete with the other
privileged students. The major reason is they lack the vocabulary
and the language. It is highly essential to teach the poor proper
language to compete with other students to get rid of poverty .As
English has become the lingua franca of international commerce,
for economic growth it is important for a country to have human
bridges who can work across cultural and linguistic borders, and
ESL and other English teachers have an important role in
developing these human bridges.
An individual teaching English in a developing economy can have
a profound and direct impact on the lives of the students by
providing them with a proper language and in a way this individual
can also have a small and indirect impact on reducing global
poverty through providing the skills a nation needs to integrate
internationally.
Bygate (1987) said that speaking I a skill which deserves attention
2
as much as the literary skills in both native and foreign languages.
Objectives:
In this paper an attempt would be made to explore teaching
learning strategies for teaching ESL and EFL for the poor.
(1) I would explore the possibility of using folklore and songs
of Maharashtra to develop vocabulary in English.
(2) I would attempt to use ICT to teach through translational
and trans creational method to impart essential English
Vocabulary which would help students to develop their
English skills and would be able to relate with the situation
in the context of Maharashtra.
Folklore and mother tongue are close to the heart of the people.
Children and adolescent are also specially drawn to the folklore and
songs that are close to their culture.
The various reasons could be it brings home the point immediately.
They are able to understand what is being said. The new words that
they learn through this module they can implement in their day to
day life. Whereas, if they are taught what happens in western world
they are not able to relate with it so easily. If the children are
introduced with a sentence: The course begins in Fall. And then
they are asked the meaning. The use of word Fall will pose a
263 264
problem. They will find it difficult to learn the difference between
fall that is tripping over and fall as season. Another example;
Children had their supper. The difference between the word
supper and dinner would be difficult to understand. There would be
many other words that children would not be able to relate with.
If the list of non comprehensible words and situation increases poor
children who lack vocabulary and confidence soon give up and
loose interest. This is clearly evident from the number of failures
in the subject English. It is highly essential to curb the failure rate
since, once the child fails he cannot go ahead with his studies and
gives up permanently thus contributing to increase in literacy rate.
The teachers should have a sympathetic approach towards such
children.
Marathi folklore can be strategically used to make learning
interesting . For example the following song on rain is very popular
amongst children. They can learn a number of words with the help
of this song:
Ye re ye re pausa ,
Tula deto paisa ,
Paus ala motha ,
Paisa jhala khota.
Ye re ye re sari,
Majhe madke bhari,
Sar ali jorat
Madke gaile wahoon.
Vocabulary:
Pausa Rain
Motha paus : Heavy rains
Deto to give
Paisa coin
Sar gushing breeze
Madke Pot
Wahoon- to be swept away.
Some other following popular Marathi songs called Badbadit gite
are very funny and can be used:
ADgaula maDgaula
sanyaaca kDgaula
Pyaacaa vaaLa
tan(a baaLalaa
tIT laa].
ek hta Jaulala
cyaalaT navata Xalala
basa maQao caZlaa
iTkIT naahI kZlaa
itqaca Gar gaazlaa.
saKarama baapu
dmaiDcao Aafu
AaQaolyaacaI KsaKsa
padu naka fsa fsa.
DMpunaanaa TMpunaanaa
AgaDpgaDbaMd
gaaDa Aalaa gaaDI AalaI
rgaDdgaDcand.
cyaalaI cyaalaI
mhatarI AalaI.
The students could be asked to use these words and express
themselves in English. Another, activity that they can do is to make
some small poem using the words. The students can also be asked
to translate and trans create into English. This activity will develop
creativity , analytical ability and help enhance the speed of learning
English.
The major transformation and achievement that would be seen in
the students would be that interest level will go high. The fear of
English language will disappear.
265 266
Fun and Learning :
Introduction of fun in the inculcation of English language can also
be achieved by the use of ICT. Animated stories in Marathi
language can be shown and then asked to reproduce in the own
words in English. For example the story of a fox can be animated
and shown to children.
Kolba kolba bor pakli
Budhi ne mai kambar shekli.
A fox can be shown stealing berries from the farm of an old lady.
Then, the old lady burning the bottom of the fox will be highly
funny for children to see.
Another, effective use of ICT would be to teach their culture. This
will help children to develop roots and attachment to one's society
and would be able to identify to one's linkages. It will also
inculcate dignity and pride in the children.
Children can know the way festivals are celebrated by other
communities as well.
The following eleven fold use of ICT summarizes the impact of
ICT on the minds of children while learning:
1) Children love learning with ICT .
2) ICT helps four active key components to learning: a) Active
participation.
b) Participation in groups .
c) Frequent participation with peer.
d) Interaction with experts.
3) Professional development.
4) Makes life easier for teachers.
5) Improves test scores.
6) Help reach different types of students easily. For example, a
weak student will also get equal attention.
7) Help students with different attention spans.
8) ICT gadgets are one time investment but in long run saves
money and time . It also saves energy in teaching .
9) Encourages and engrosses students to do home work which is
often a very boring task.
10) Removes all obstacles that are encountered while learning
English language.
11) Gives multisensory experience while learning.
Teachers should not be afraid that the use of ICT will replace them
as Sheryl N. Beach says; Teachers will not be replaced by
technology, but teachers who do not use will be replaced by those
who do.
Conclusion:
Providing the poor with proper strategies to improve their language
skills would be in true sense giving them with equal opportunity. If
students speak confidently and express them well comfortably then
they can interact better in real life situations. They thus contribute
in improving economy. Initiating the teaching learning process
with the use of folklore, vernacular songs, make learning
interesting and fruitful. Innovative use of ICT makes learning full
of fun and effective.
267 268
Reference:
1) Yunus, M. and Weber, K. (2007), Creating a World without
Poverty: Social Business and the Future of Capitalism,
Public Affairs: New York.
2) Bygate,M Tonkyn, A and Williams, E.(eds): Grammar and
the Language Teacher ( esp. Chapters by P.Skehan and
M.Bygate). Prentice Hall, 1994.
3) Sheryl N. Beach, You tube downloaded on 26th December,
2012.
Value based teaching of English
P.Hiltrud Dave Eve,
Assistant Professor,
Sacred Heart College,
Tirupattur. 612 635
E-mail : [email protected]
Education is not the filling of a pail,
But the lighting of a fire.
William Butler Yeats
Education, which is the vehicle of knowledge, self preservation,
and success not only gives us a platform to succeed but also imparts
the knowledge of conduct, strength, character and self-respect. It is
not an accessory to life but it is a necessity. Will Durant says
'Education is the transmission of civilization'. It gives us the
knowledge of the difference between right and wrong, a belief in
God, the importance of hard work and self respect. Education is a
continuous learning experience form people, learning from success
and failures, learning from leaders and followers.
Mahathma Gandhi once said that education not only moulds the
new generation but also reflects a society's fundamental
assumptions about itself and the individuals that compose it. In the
words of Martin Luther King Jr, 'Intelligence plus character that
is the goal of true education'. Education tries to develop in three
aspects physique, mentality and character. Plutarch asserts that 'A
mind is a fire to be kindled, not a vessel to be filled'. Education is the
source which kindles the mind to live a goal oriented life. The
purpose of education is to mould the students in all the three
domains and makes them aware of honesty, humility, morality and
other moral values. It provides profession as well as a purpose of
life. The actual aim of life is to know oneself and be oneself.
Education gives us the unique knowledge of knowing oneself
which makes life better and purposeful. Education is a light to
ignorance, a way to success. The world classical text Tirukkural
describes the value of education,
269 270
Learning is excellence
Of worth that none destroy;
To man nought else affords
Reality of joy (Learning XL-6)
Thiruvalluvar opines that education makes a person free from fear,
he can go anywhere and the place or country became his own. He
further adds that an uneducated person is like an animal, and he is
like a barren field. Education gives tolerance, patient; it nurtures
and empowers the people. The teaching of moral and ethical values
to the student is called value based education. C.R.Lewis says,
'Education without values as useful as it is, seems rather to make a
man; a perfect human being with optimistic ideas. The
contemporary society does not care for the culture, value of life,
humanity, moral and ethical values. Education tries to generate the
student to become a good student.
The Parliamentary Committee in India, in its 81st report on value-
based education in 1999 strongly suggested that value based
education should be introduced at the school level and extended to
college and university level. According to the committee,
'Education should aim at multifaceted development, of a human
being-his intellectual, physical, spiritual and ethical development.'
The lives of great poets and great personalities itself teaches our
students the correct way of living. A teacher of English can take the
simple example of the contemporary writers work to teach values.
The main purpose of education is to make them understand not only
in the classroom but outside the classroom also. Prof. Anil Sarwal's
survey says 'At present over 6.5 billion human beings use over
6,800 languages to carry our their affairs, but English has emerged
as the de facto global language for universal communication in the
closing years of the 20th century though there are still challenges to
its functionality as global language given the linguistic prejudices
that still have strong roots in many parts of the world'. Education
now days are result-oriented. Schools and colleges concentrated
mainly on the curriculum and the result percentage. Of course
results do matter, but then again there is more to our life than the
performance in the bit of paper. Our educational system is far more
advances and progressive in terms of academic standards in
comparison with the USA or UK but in terms of creativity,
independent study and objective approach towards a subject we
feel inadequate in experience.
Literature is an instrument of reason and English language became
its dignified medium. Literature as it starts earlier concentrated
mainly on the moral values. From the ancient Aesop's fable of the
'Tortoise and the Hare', in which the plodding and determined
tortoise wins a race against the much faster yet extremely arrogant
hare, the stated moral is slow and steady wins the race. It can also
teach other morals, for instance that arrogance or over confidence
in one's abilities may lead to failure or the loss of an event, race or
contest. In Shakespeare's plays he used stock characters to present
the moral. The moral in Shakespeare's plays may be more nuanced
but no less present, and the writers point up in other ways.
Throughout the history of recorded literature, the majority of
fictional writing has served not only to entertain but also to instruct,
inform or improve the readership. The novels of Charles Dickens
are a vehicle for morals regarding the social and economic system.
Literature is used to teach moral values other than any other
subject. It teaches the behaviour, ways of thinking and use of
language to be followed or avoided.
Never give up! It is wiser and better,
Always to hope than once despair:
Fling off the load of Doubt's cankering fetter,
And break the dark spell of tyrannical care;
Never give up! Or the burden may sink you-
Providence kindly has mingled the cup,
And, in all trials or troubles, bethink you,
The watchword of life must be, never give up!
The above is an extract of an anonymous verses and songs from
chartist literature. It teaches the values of hope which is the
watchword of life. It presents the values of hard work and hope
which leads to success in difficult situation.
The greatest work in Russian Literature War and Peace by Leo
Tolstoy, constantly emphasizes the irrational motives for human
271 272
behaviour in both peace and war. It reveals the truth behind the
falsity of earthly life. When it is taught by the teacher, he may
emphasis the non-violent resistance.
Yes, love. But not the love that loves for something, or because of
something, but that love that I felt for the first time, when dying, I
saw my enemy and yet loved him. I knew that feeling of love which
is the essence of the soul, for which no object is needed. And I know
that blissful feeling now too. To love one's neighbour's; to love
one's enemies, to love everything - to love God and all His
manifestations. Some one dear to one can loved with human love;
but an enemy can be loved with divine love. And that was why I felt
such joy when I felt that I loved that man. What happened to him? Is
he alive... Loving with human love, one may pass form love to
hatred; but divine love cannot change. (War and Peace)
The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway is the symbolic
exploration of the human struggle with the natural world, the
human capacity to transcend hardship, and personal triumph won
from defeat. His works teaches and gives hope to the readers as well
as the students. It also portrays the importance of human courage
and prowess, the dignity amid the harshness of the world. The hero
has his own code of values. It leaves a message to the society that
A man can be destroyed but not defeated. It gives a hope to the
younger generation students. The poems of Robert Frost give an
idea about what is life and encourages self-reliance, not following
where other has led. In another poem Mending wall he advises to
the people to keep good relation. Good fences make good
neighbours Thoreau's Civil Disobedience presents the man's duty
to the society and in government, by presenting the vices; he gives a
message that the man in the society should be aware of these vices.
He is concerned with the problem of existence in the society. His
poems depict the theme of human limitation. The universe seems
chaotic and horrific because man's limited faculties cannot
comprehend its meaning. He insists on duty, responsibilities of an
individual. Margrat Atwood's works we may find the human nature
of loving animals, when it is taught by the teacher he or she can
teach the value of humanity and kindness which should be shown to
the animals. Her works are conscious about environmental issues
and it nurtures the importance of nature in the mind of people. Post
colonial writings show how the society is scattered with racial
problems. When it is taught to the students of English, they were
aware of the racial problems and they know their struggles. They
may be practising it in their life, the struggle of people who were
under the colonisation, depicts and teaches the national integrity in
the minds of students who learn the plays or works.
Among the ethical works written in Indian languages, Tirukkural
stands supreme. The main aim of this ethical text is to prescribe the
noble virtues to be adopted, and to prohibit the detestable vices to
be abhorred. Dharma or Aram indicates the positive and negative
virtues to be followed by the householder. Valluvar talks about all
the values which make man's life fruitful. He describes the right
way of earning money, how to lead peaceful life, even the qualities
of a ruler in the democratic country.
Gifts, grace, right, sceptre
Care of people's weal:
These four a light
Of dreaded kings reveal (Chapter LXXIII-8)
There are many hurdles and hardships in the life of a man. Valluvar
insists on the way of escape from the hardship and talks about
hopefulness in trouble.
Who pain as pleasure takes,
He shall acquire
The bliss to which
His foes in vain aspire. (Chapter LXIII-10)
It talks about friendship, love, power of speech, purity in action,
way of accumulating wealth, military spirit etc.,
As hand of him whose
Vesture slips away,
Friendship at once
The coming grief will stay (Friendship LXXIX-8)
In Gitanjali, Rabindranath Tagore views the relationship between
God and man, purity, deliverance, life, philosophical ideas about
life. Tagore a superb representative of his country- India the man
who wrote its national anthem- his life and words go far beyond his
country. He is a product of the best of both traditional Indian and
273 274
modern western cultures. He exemplifies the ideas important to us
of goodness, meaningful work and world culture. His works and
some of his poem induce the patriotic spirit in the young minds.
Where there is, mind without fear and the head
Is held high
Where knowledge is free
Where the world has not been broken up
Into fragments
.

Where the mind is led forward by thee

Into ever-widening thought and action
In that heaven of freedom, my father, let
My country awake. (Gitanjali I)
Shakespeare was not of an age nut for all times because his
characters are true to the eternal aspects of human life and not
limited to any contemporary life. Shakespreare's tragedies exhibit
the decorum Character is Destiny. Most of the characters regret
for what they have done is bad. He insists that even one flaw in the
character of a person may ruin his life. In King Lear, he presents life
through the character of Lear. He learns the value of patience and
worth of 'unaccommodated man'. He begins to realize his own
faults as a king and almost understands his failure as a father. It also
presents the value of true love of Cordelia. Through the character of
Cordelia the student may understand the virtues of devotion,
kindness beauty and honesty- honesty of a fault. Cordelia is an
embodiment of virtues; her reunion with Lear- shows the triumph
of love and forgiveness over hatred and spite. When the students
read literature, which mirrors the society clearly, they may shape
their own life in a good way.
If the teachers use the world literature to teach English, he can site
more examples to the students which are from ordinary men and
women and the student may understand the values and they can
implement it in their life.
275 276
Why People Stuff Suggestion Box with Peels of Banana?
Dr. Neelam Tikkha
Man of high credentials and remarkable simplicity
Mirror mirror on the wall ,
Who is the fairest one of all?
All of us know the answer to this riddle. The Indian culture is
fraught with the myth that asking questions is challenging the
authority which should be taken as a personal affront. Similarly,
giving suggestions is trying to show off
learning. In such cases suggestion box
becomes merely a show piece and an
object to be ignored . Nevertheless , the
person who gives a suggestion becomes
an object to be victimized like Snow
White. Many people become detectives
and take pride in showing off their skills
as a detective in trying to unearth the
writer of the suggestion, who dared to
challenge their superiority and
hierarchy instead of focusing on
improving the quality and paying a
serious thought to the suggestion .
The suggestion box kept under surveillance of CCTV is one such
ludicrous situation, where the privacy is not respected and the
purpose of the suggestion box is either mandatory or aping of the
successful organization literally, rather than in the true spirit.
277 278
There is a great danger in making things mandatory. I would like to
quote an example of the recent system of UGC which has made
the annual performance highly objective by assigning marks for
each activity. This has made college teachers run a rat race for
marks. Many teachers have become great by their excellent
knowledge and deeds in imparting training on how to increase
PBAS score by unethical and manipulative means.
Another, interesting fact is that PBAS is also a mother of various
writers, who have mushroomed suddenly and every book seller has
turned into a publisher and a successful businessman by taking out
journals, holding conferences and publishing articles in the
conference proceedings.
ICT is another magic wand in the hands of such teachers since it has
made research activity highly convenient. You just need to know
two commands cut and paste and you can come up with a nice
scholarly article which might put many a Shakespeare to shame and
make Eliot turn in his grave.
I feel, the Indian government by making the government
employees permanent has reduced the chances of improvement in
the quality. In fact , the problem should be addressed at grass root
level and education sector should be the first one to be considered
since it is the propagator of the attitude; yeh hai India yahan sab
chalta hai. The education sector has been hollowed out by poor
standards in the quality of teaching. Orientation programs are a
synonym to disorientation programs. Refresher programs no
longer refresh but make people sick.
On the other hand , if we see the major changes that companies have
brought in their system are because of their belief in as Peter
Drucker puts in :
One has to assume first, that the individual human being at work
knows better than anyone else what makes him or her more
productive . . .even in routine work the only true expert is the person
who does the job."
I feel we need to really think about the entire system since
Preaching only gets you converts on Sunday, but they are sinners
again on Monday.
A personal invite to join International society that promotes conferences,
workshops, and helps getting you known round the globe by helping in
getting your esteemed articles published in double blind peer reviewed
journals and books .
About CFTRA- Global: It is a nonprofit organization and a knowledge
sharing platform. It will also help building creativity, intellectual growth
and research sensibility.
Paper Publication: It is absolutely free of cost. Scholarly papers on any
topic in any discipline are accepted.
Papers would be published in ISBN listed Books and ISSN listed,
Pageant A Multi Disciplinary Critical International Journal
Guidelines for writing paper : Write an abstract of not more than 250
words. Type in 12 point Times New Roman, headings in 14 point and
justify the document.
Please attach a soft copy of photo .Please also write your designation,
postal address, affiliations and Email ID.
Hard Copy: while submitting paper make a mention, If you'd like a hard
copy of the book to be delivered to you?
The book and Journal are coming out after double blind peer review with
ISBN / ISSN number by CF International Publishers in the month of
MARCH 13 .
The Society is called CFTRA- Global, (Confidence Foundation
Educator's Trainer's Researcher's Association - Global)
Entrepreneur : People in business can also join since they would be able
to reach out globe. Advertisements would be carried on the books and
journals.
In case you have more questions feel free to contact me. It is for anyone
from any discipline interested in Education and paper writing. US,
Australia and India.
Fee: India and SAARC countries INR 600/ = for a year.
For International people: $ USD 100
India and SAARC countries Entrepreneur: INR 10000/=
Foreign Entrepreneur: $500
2. Call for papers: Please send your scholarly papers on any topic in any
discipline on Email: [email protected]
A BIG Hello!